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1 Now my son, here is somewhat more I would say unto thee; for I perceive that thy mind is worried concerning the resurrection of the dead.
2 Behold, I say unto you, that there is no resurrection; or I would say, in other words, that this mortal does not put on immortality; thus corruption does not put on incorruption, until after the coming of Christ.
3 Behold, he bringeth to pass the resurrection of the dead. But behold, my son, the resurrection is not yet. Now I unfold unto you a mystery; nevertheless, there are many mysteries, which are kept, that no one knoweth them save God himself. But I shew unto you one thing, which I have inquired diligently of God, that I might know; that is, concerning the resurrection.
4 Behold, there is a time appointed that shall come forth from the dead. Now when this time cometh, no one knows; but God knoweth the time which is appointed.
5 Now whether there shall be one time, or a second time, or a third time, that men shall come forth from the dead, it mattereth not; for God knoweth all these things; and it sufficeth me to know that this is the case; that there is a time appointed that all shall rise from the dead.
6 Now there must needs be a space betwixt the time of death, and the time of the resurrection.
7 And now I would inquire what becometh of the souls of men, from this time of death, to the time appointed for the resurrection?
8 Now whether there is more than one time appointed for men to rise, it mattereth not; for all do not die at once; and this mattereth not; all is as one day, with God; and time only is measured unto men;
9 therefore there is a time appointed unto men, that they shall rise from the dead; and there is a space between the time of death and the resurrection. And now concerning this space of time. What becometh of the souls of men, is the thing which I have inquired diligently of the Lord to know; and this is the thing of which I do know.
10 And when the time cometh when all shall rise, then shall they know that God knoweth all the times which are appointed unto man.
11 Now concerning the state of the soul between death and the resurrection. Behold, it hath been made known unto me by an angel, that the spirits of all men, as soon as they are departed from this mortal body; yea, the spirits of all men, whether they be good or evil, are taken home to that God who gave them life.
12 And then shall it come to pass that the spirits of those which are righteous, are received into a state of happiness, which is called paradise; a state of rest; a state of peace, where they shall rest from all their troubles, and from all care, and sorrow,
13 &c. And then shall it come to pass, that the spirits of the wicked, yea, which are evil; for behold, they have no part nor portion of the spirit of the Lord; for behold, they chose evil works, rather than good; therefore the spirit of the Devil did enter into them, and take possession of their house; and these shall be cast out into outer darkness; they shall be weeping, and wailing, and gnashing of teeth; and this because of their own iniquity; being led captive by the will of the Devil.
14 Now this is the state of the souls of the wicked; yea, in darkness, and a state of awful, fearful looking for of the fiery indignation of the wrath of God upon them; thus they remain in this state, as well as the righteous in paradise, until the time of their resurrection.
15 Now there are some that have understood that this state of happiness, and the state of misery of the soul, before the resurrection, was a first resurrection. Yea, I admit it may be termed a resurrection; the raising of the spirit or the soul, and their consignation to happiness or misery, according to the words which have been spoken.
16 And behold, again it hath been spoken, that there is a first resurrection; a resurrection of all those which have been, or which are, or which shall be, down to the resurrection of Christ from the dead.
17 Now we do not suppose that this first resurrection which is spoken of in this manner, can be the resurrection of the souls, and their consignation to happiness or misery. Ye cannot suppose that this is what it meaneth.
18 Behold, I say unto you Nay; but it meaneth the re-uniting of the soul with the body of those from the days of Adam, down to the resurrection of Christ.
19 Now whether the souls and the bodies of those of which have been spoken, shall all be re-united at once, the wicked as well as the righteous, I do not say; let it suffice that I say that they all come forth; or in other words, their resurrection cometh to pass before the resurrection of those which die after the resurrection of Christ.
20 Now my son, I do not say that their resurrection cometh at the resurrection of Christ; but behold, I give it as my opinion, that the souls and the bodies are re-united, of the righteous, at the resurrection of Christ, and his ascension into Heaven.
21 But whether it be at his resurrection, or after, I do not say; but this much I say: That there is a space between death and the resurrection of the body, and a state of the soul in happiness or in misery, until the time which is appointed of God that the dead shall come forth, and be re-united, both soul and body, and be brought to stand before God, and be judged according to their works;
22 yea, this bringeth about the restoration of those things of which have been spoken by the mouths of the prophets.
23 The soul shall be restored to the body, and the body to the soul; yea, and every limb and joint shall be restored to the soul; yea, and every limb and joint shall be restored to its body; yea, even a hair of the head shall not be lost, but all things shall be restored to its proper and perfect frame.
24 And now my son, this is the restoration of which has been spoken by the mouths of the prophets:
25 And then shall the righteous shine forth in the Kingdom of God.
26 But behold, an awful death cometh upon the wicked; for they die as to things pertaining to things of righteousness; for they are unclean, and no unclean thing can inherit the Kingdom of God; but they are cast out, and consigned to partake of the fruits of their labors or their works, which have been evil; and they drink the dregs of a bitter cup.

1 And now my son, I have somewhat more to say unto thee than what I said unto thy brother: for behold, have ye not observed the steadiness of thy brother, his faithfulness, and his diligence in keeping the commandments of God? Behold, has he not set a good example for thee?
2 For thou didst not give so much heed unto my words as did thy brother, among the people of the Zoramites. Now this is what I have against thee: Thou didst go on unto boasting in thy strength, and thy wisdom.
3 And this is not all, my son. Thou didst do that which was grievous unto me; for thou didst forsake the ministry, and did go over into the land of Siron, among the borders of the Lamanites, after the harlot Isabel;
4 yea, she did steal away the hearts of many; but this was no excuse for thee, my son. Thou shouldst have tended to the ministry, wherewith thou wast entrusted.
5 Know ye not, my son, that these things are an abomination in the sight of the Lord; yea, most abominable above all sins, save it be the shedding of innocent blood, or denying the Holy Ghost?
6 for behold, if ye deny the Holy Ghost when it once hath had place in you, and ye know that ye deny it; behold, this is a sin which is unpardonable; yea, and whosoever murdereth against the light and knowledge of God, it is not easy for him to obtain forgiveness; yea, I say unto you, my son, that it is not easy for him to obtain a forgiveness.
7 And now my son, I would to God that ye had not been guilty of so great a crime. I would not dwell upon your crimes, to harrow up your soul, if it were not for your good.
8 But behold, ye cannot hide your crimes from God; and except ye repent, they will stand as a testimony against you at the last day.
9 Now my son, I would that ye should repent, and forsake your sins, and go no more after the lusts of your eyes, but cross yourself in all these things; for except ye do this, ye can in no wise inherit the Kingdom of God. O remember, and take it upon you, and cross yourself in these things.
10 And I command you to take it upon you to counsel your elder brothers in your undertakings; for behold, thou art in thy youth, and ye stand in need to be nourished by your brothers. And give heed to their counsel;
11 suffer not yourself to be led away by any vain or foolish thing; suffer not that the Devil lead away your heart again, after those wicked harlots. Behold, my son, how great iniquity ye brought upon the Zoramites: for when they saw your conduct, they would not believe in my words.
12 And now the spirit of the Lord doth say unto me, Command thy children to do good, lest they lead away the hearts of many people to destruction: therefore I command you, my son, in the fear of God, that ye refrain from your iniquities;
13 that ye turn to the Lord with all your mind, might and strength; that ye lead away the hearts of no more, to do wickedly; but rather return unto them, and acknowledge your faults, and retain that wrong which ye have done;
14 seek not after riches, nor the vain things of the world; for behold, you cannot carry them with you.
15 And now my son, I would say somewhat unto you concerning the coming of Christ. Behold, I say unto you, that it is him that surely shall come, to take away the sins of the world; yea, he cometh to declare glad tidings of salvation unto his people.
16 And now my son, this was the ministry unto which ye were called, to declare these glad tidings unto his people, to prepare their minds; or rather that salvation might come unto them, that they may prepare the minds of their children to hear the word at the time of his coming.
17 And now I will ease your mind somewhat in this subject. Behold, you marvel why these things should be known so long beforehand. Behold, I say unto you, Is not a soul at this time as precious unto God, as a soul will be at the time of his coming?
18 Is it not as necessary that the plan of redemption should be made known unto this people, as well as unto their children?
19 Is it not as easy at this time, for the Lord to send his angel to declare these glad tidings unto us, as unto our children; or as after the time of his coming?

1 My son, give ear to my words: for I say unto you, even as I said unto Helaman, That inasmuch as ye shall keep the commandments of God, ye shall prosper in the land; and inasmuch as ye will not keep the commandments of God, ye shall be cast off from his presence.
2 And now my son, I trust that I shall have great joy in you, because of your steadiness and your faithfulness unto God; for as you have commenced in your youth, to look to the Lord your God, even so I hope that you will continue in keeping his commandments: for blessed is he that endureth to the end.
3 I say unto you my son, that I have had great joy in thee already, because of thy faithfulness, and thy diligence, and thy patience, and thy long suffering among the people of the Zoramites.
4 For I knew that thou wast in bonds; yea, and I also knew that thou wast stoned for the word’s sake; and thou didst bear all these things with patience, because the Lord was with thee: and now thou knowest that the Lord did deliver thee.
5 And now my son, Shiblon, I would that ye should remember that as much as ye shall put your trust in God, even so much ye shall be delivered out of your trials, and your troubles, and your afflictions ; and ye shall be lifted up at the last day.
6 Now my son, I would not that ye should think that I know these things of myself, but it is the spirit of God which is in me, which maketh these things known unto me: for if I had not been born of God, I should not have known these things.
7 But behold, the Lord in his great mercy sent his angel to declare unto me, that I must stop the work of destruction among his people; yea, and I have seen an angel face to face; and he spake with me, and his voice was as thunder, and it shook the whole earth.
8 And it came to pass that I was three days and three nights in the most bitter pain and anguish of soul; and never, until I did cry unto the Lord Jesus Christ for mercy, did I receive a remission of my sins. But behold, I did cry unto him, and I did find peace to my soul.
9 And now my son, I have told you this, that ye may learn wisdom, that ye may learn of me that there is no other way or means whereby man can be saved, only in and through Christ. Behold, he is the life and the light of the world. Behold, he is the word of truth and righteousness.
10 And now, as ye have begun to teach the word, even so I would that ye should continue to teach; and I would that ye would be diligent and temperate in all things.
11 See that ye are not lifted up to pride; yea, see that ye do not boast in your own wisdom, nor of your much strength;
12 use boldness, but not overbearance; and also see that ye bridle all your passions, that ye may be filled with love; see that ye refrain from idleness;
13 do not pray as the Zoramites do, for ye have seen that they pray to be heard of men, and to be praised for their wisdom.
14 Do not say, O God, I thank thee that we are better than our brethren; but rather say, O Lord, forgive my unworthiness, and remember my brethren in mercy; yea, acknowledge your unworthiness before God at all times.
15 And may the Lord bless your soul, and receive you at the last day into his kingdom, to sit down in peace. Now go, my son, and teach the word unto this people. Be sober. My son, farewell.

1 And now my son Helaman, I command you that ye take the records which have been entrusted with me;
2 and I also command you that ye shall keep a record of this people, according as I have done, upon the plates of Nephi, and keep all these things sacred which I have kept, even as I kept them: for it is for a wise purpose that they are kept;
3 and these plates of brass which contain these engravings, which have the records of the Holy Scriptures upon them, which have the genealogy of our forefathers, even from the beginning.
4 And behold, it hath been prophesied by our fathers, that they should be kept and handed down from one generation to another, and be kept and preserved by the hand of the Lord, until they should go forth unto every nation, kindred, tongue and people, that they shall know of the mysteries contained thereon.
5 And now behold, if they are kept, they must retain their brightness; yea, and they will retain their brightness; yea, and also shall all the plates which do contain that which is Holy Writ.
6 Now ye may suppose that this is foolishness in me; but behold I say unto you, That by small and simple things, are great things brought to pass; and small means, in many instances, doth confound the wise.
7 And the Lord God doth work by means to bring about his great and eternal purposes; and by very small means the Lord doth confound the wise, and bringeth about salvation of many souls.
8 And now, it hath hitherto been wisdom in God, that these things should be preserved: for behold, they have enlarged the memory of this people, yea, and convinced many of the error of their ways, and brought them to the knowledge of their God, unto the salvation of their souls.
9 Yea, I say unto you, were it not for these things that these records do contain, which are on these plates, Ammon and his brethren could not have convinced so many thousand of the Lamanites, of the incorrect tradition of their fathers; yea, these records and their words, brought them unto repentance; that is, they brought them to the knowledge of the Lord their God, and to rejoice in Jesus Christ, their Redeemer.
10 And who knoweth but what they will be the means of bringing many thousands of them, yea, and also many thousands of our stiffnecked brethren, the Nephites, which are now hardening their hearts in sin and iniquities, to the knowledge of their Redeemer?
11 Now these mysteries are not yet fully made known unto me; therefore I shall forebear.
12 And it may suffice, if I only say, they are preserved for a wise purpose, which purpose is known unto God: for he doth counsel in wisdom over all his works, and his paths are straight, and his course is one eternal round.
13 O remember, remember, my son Helaman, how strict are the commandments of God. And he saith, if ye will keep my commandments, ye shall prosper in the land; but if ye keep not his commandments, ye shall be cut off from his presence.
14 And now remember, my son, that God hath entrusted you with these things, which are sacred, which he hath kept sacred, and also which he will keep and preserve for a wise purpose in him, that he may shew forth his power unto future generations.
15 And now behold, I tell you by the spirit of prophecy, that if ye transgress the commandments of God, behold, these things which are sacred, shall be taken away from you by the power of God, and ye shall be delivered up unto Satan, that he may sift you as chaff before the wind;
16 but if ye keep the commandments of God, and do with these things which are sacred, according to that which the Lord doth command you—for you must appeal unto the Lord for all things whatsoever ye must do with them—behold, no power of earth or hell can take them from you, for God is powerful to the fulfilling of all his words:
17 for he will fulfill all his promises which he shall make unto you, for he hath fulfilled his promise which he hath made unto our fathers.
18 For he promised unto them that he would reserve these things for a wise purpose in him, that he might shew forth his power unto future generations.
19 And now behold, one purpose hath he fulfilled, even to the restoration of many thousands of the Lamanites to the knowledge of the truth; and he has shewn forth his power in them, and he will also still shew forth his power in them, unto future generations; therefore they shall be preserved;
20 therefore I command you, my son Helaman, that ye be diligent in fulfilling all my words, and that ye be diligent in keeping the commandments of God, as they are written.
21 And now, I will speak unto you concerning those twentyfour plates, that ye keep them, that the mysteries and the works of darkness, and their secret works, or the secret works of those people, which have been destroyed, may be made manifest unto this people; yea, all their murders, and robbings, and their plunderings, and all their wickedness, and abominations, may be made manifest unto this people; yea, and that ye preserve these directors.
22 For behold; the Lord saw that his people began to work in darkness, yea, work secret murders and abominations; therefore the Lord said, If they did not repent, they should be destroyed from off the face of the earth.
23 And the Lord said, I will prepare unto my servant Gazelem, a stone, which shall shine forth in darkness unto light, that I may discover unto my people which serve me, that I may discover unto them the works of their brethren; yea, their secret works, their works of darkness, and their wickedness and abominations.
24 And now my son, these directors were prepared, that the word of God might be fulfilled, which he spake saying:
25 I will bring forth out of darkness unto light, all their secret works and their abominations; and except they repent, I will destroy them from off the face of the earth; and I will bring to light all their secrets and abominations, unto every nation that shall hereafter possess the land.
26 And now my son, we see that they did not repent; therefore they have been destroyed, and thus far the word of God hath been fulfilled; yea, their secret abominations have been brought out of darkness, and made known unto us.
27 And now my son, I command you that ye retain all their oaths, and their covenants, and their agreements in their secret abominations; yea, and all their sign and their wonders ye shall retain from this people, that they know them not, lest peradventure they should fall into darkness also, and be destroyed.
28 For behold, there is a curse upon all this land, that destruction shall come upon all those workers of darkness, according to the power of God, when they are fully ripe; therefore I desire that this people might not be destroyed,
29 Therefore, ye shall keep these secret plans of their oaths and their covenants from this people, and only their wickedness, and their murders, and their abominations, shall ye make known unto them; and ye shall teach them to abhor such wickedness, and abominations, murders; and ye shall also teach them, that these people were destroyed on account of their wickedness, and abominations, and their murders.
30 For behold, they murdered all the prophets of the Lord which came among them, to declare unto them concerning their iniquities; and the blood of those which they murdered, did cry unto the Lord their God, for vengeance upon those which were their murderers; and thus the judgments of God did come upon these workers of darkness and secret combinations;
31 yea, and cursed be the land forever and ever unto those workers of darkness and secret combinations, even unto destruction, except they repent before they are fully ripe.
32 And now my son, remember the words which I have spoken unto you: trust not those secret plans unto this people, but teach them an everlasting hatred against sin and iniquity;
33 preach unto them repentance, and faith on the Lord Jesus Christ; teach them to humble themselves, and to be meek and lowly in heart; teach them to withstand every temptation of the Devil, with their faith on the Lord Jesus Christ;
34 teach them to never be weary of good works, but to be meek and lowly in heart: for such shall find rest to their souls.
35 O remember my son, and learn wisdom in thy youth; yea, learn in thy youth to keep the commandments of god;
36 yea, and cry unto God for all thy support; yea, let all thy doings be unto the Lord, and whithersoever thou goest, let it be in the Lord; yea, thy thought be directed unto the Lord; yea, let the affections of thy heart be placed upon the Lord forever;
37 counsel the Lord in all thy doings, and he will direct thee good; yea, when thou liest down at night, lie down unto the Lord, that he may watch over you in your sleep; and when thou risest in the morning, let thy heart be full of thanks unto god; and if ye do these things, ye shall be lifted up at the last day.
38 And now my son, I have somewhat to say concerning the thing which our fathers call a ball, or director; our fathers called it liahona, which is interpreted, a compass; and the Lord prepared it.
39 And behold, there cannot any man work after the manner of so curious a workmanship. And behold, it was prepared to shew unto our fathers the course which they should travel in the wilderness;
40 and it did work for them according to their faith in God; therefore if they had faith to believe that God could cause that those spindles should point the way they should go, behold, it was done; therefore they had this miracle, and also many other miracles wrought by the power of God, day by day;
41 nevertheless, because those miracles were worked by small means, nevertheless it did shew unto them marvellous works. They were slothful, and forgot to exercise their faith and diligence, and those marvellous works ceased, and they did not progress in their journey;
42 therefore they tarried in the wilderness, or did not travel a direct course, and were afflicted with hunger and thirst, because of their transgressions.
43 And now my son, I would that ye should understand that these things are not without a shadow; for as our fathers were slothful to give heed to this compass—now these things were temporal—they did not prosper; even so it is with things which are spiritual.
44 For behold, it is as easy to give heed to the word of Christ, which will point to you a straight course to eternal bliss, as it was for our fathers to give heed to this compass, which would point unto the a straight course to the promised land.
45 And now I say, Is there not a type in this thing? For just as suredly as this director did bring our fathers, by following its course, to the promised land, shall the words of Christ, if we follow its course, carry us beyond this vale of sorrow, into a far better land of promise.
46 O my son, do not let us be slothful, because of the easiness of the way; for so was it with our fathers; for so was it prepared for them, that if they would look, they might live; even so it is with us. The way is prepared, and if we will look, we may live forever.
47 And now my son, see that ye take care of these sacred things; yea, see that ye look to God and live. Go unto this people, and declare the word, and be sober. My son, farewell.

1 My son, give ear to my words; for I swear unto you, that inasmuch as ye shall keep the commandments of God, ye shall prosper in the land.
2 I would that ye should do as I have done, in remembering the captivity of our fathers; for they were in bondage, and none could deliver them, except it was the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, and he surely did deliver them in their afflictions.
3 And now, O my son Helaman, behold, thou art in thy youth, and therefore I beseech of thee that thou wilt hear my words. and learn of me; for I do not know that whomsoever shall put his trust in God, shall be supported in their trials, and their troubles, and their afflictions, and shall be lifted up at the last day;
4 and I would not that ye think that I know of myself, not of the temporal, but of the spiritual; not of the carnal mind, but of God.
5 Now behold I say unto you, If I had not been born of God, I should not have known these things; but God hath, by the mouth of his holy angel, made these things known unto me, not of any worthiness of myself,
6 for I went about with the sons of Mosiah, seeking to destroy the church of God; but behold, God sent his holy angel to stop us by the way.
7 And behold, he spake unto us, as it were the voice of thunder, and the whole earth did tremble beneath our feet, and we all fell to the earth, for the fear of the Lord came upon us.
8 But behold, the voice said unto me, Arise. And I arose and stood up, and beheld the angel.
9 And he said unto me, if thou wilt of thyself be destroyed, seek no more to destroy the church of God.
10 And it came to pass that I fell to the earth; and it was for the space of three days and three nights, that I could not open my mouth; neither had I the use of my limbs.
11 And the angel spake more things unto me, which were heard by my brethren, but I did not hear them; for when I heard the words, If thou wilt be destroyed of thyself, seek no more to destroy the church of God, I was struck with such great fear and amazement, lest perhaps that I should be destroyed, that I fell to the earth, and I did hear no more;
12 but I was racked with eternal torment, for my soul was harrowed up to the greatest degree, and racked with all my sins.
13 Yea, I did remember all my sins and iniquities, for which I was tormented with the pains of hell; yea, I saw that I had rebelled against my God, and that I had not kept his holy commandments;
14 yea, and I had murdered many of his children, or rather led them away unto destruction; yea, and in fine, so great had been my iniquities, that the very thoughts of coming into the presence of my God, did rack my soul with inexpressible horror.
15 O, thought I, that I could be banished and become extinct both soul and body, that I might not be brought to stand in the presence of my God, to be judged of my deeds.
16 And now, for three days and for three nights was I racked, even with the pains of a damned soul.
17 And it came to pass that as I was thus racked with torment while I harrowed up by the memory of my many sins behold, I remembered also to have heard my father prophecy unto the people, concerning the coming of one Jesus Christ, a Son of God, to atone for the sins of the world.
18 Now as my mind caught hold upon this thought, I cried within my heart, O Jesus, thou Son of God, have mercy on me, who art in the gall of bitterness, and art encircled about by the everlasting chains of death.
19 And now behold, when I thought this, I could remember my pains no more; yea, I was harrowed up by the memory of my sins no more.
20 And O, what joy, and what marvellous light I did behold; yea, my soul was filled with joy as exceeding as was my pain;
21 yea, I say unto you, my son. that there could be nothing so exquisite and so bitter, as was my pains. Yea, and again I say unto you, my son, that on the other hand, there can be nothing so exquisite and sweet as was my joy;
22 yea, and methought I saw even as our father Lehi saw, God sitting upon his throne, surrounded with numberless concourses of angels, in the attitude of singing and praising their God; yea, and my soul did long to be there.
23 But behold, my limbs did receive their strength again, and I stood upon my feet, and did manifest unto the people that I had been born of God;
24 yea, and from that time, even until now, I have labored without ceasing, that I might bring souls unto repentance; that I might bring them to taste of the exceeding joy of which I did taste; that they might also be born of God, and be filled with the Holy Ghost.
25 Yea, and now behold, O my son, the Lord doth give me exceeding great joy in the fruit of my labors;
26 for because of the word which he hath imparted unto me, behold, many hath been born of God, and hath tasted as I have tasted, and hath seen eye to eye, as I have seen; therefore they do know of these things of which I have spoken, as I do know; and the knowledge which I have is of God.
27 And I have been supported under trials and troubles of every kind, yea, and in all manner of afflictions; yea, God hath delivered me from prison, and from bonds, and from death; yea, and I do put my trust in him, and he will still deliver me;
28 and I know that he will raise me up at the last day, to dwell with him in glory; yea, and I will praise him forever, for he hath brought our fathers out of Egypt, and he hath swallowed up the Egyptians in the red sea; and he led them by his power into the promised land; yea, and he hath delivered them out of bondage and captivity, from time to time;
29 yea, and he hath also brought our fathers out of Jerusalem; and he hath also, by his everlasting power, delivered them out of bondage and captivity, from time to time, even down to the present day; and I have always retained in remembrance their captivity; yea, and ye also had ought to retain in remembrance, as I have done, their captivity.
30 But behold, my son, this is not all: for ye had ought to know, as I do know, that inasmuch as ye shall keep the commandments of God, ye shall prosper in the land; and ye had ought to know also, that inasmuch as ye will not keep the commandments of God, ye shall be cut off from his presence. Now this is according to his word.

1 Now it came to pass that after Amulek had made an end of these words, they withdrew themselves from the multitude, and came over into the land of Jershon;
2 yea, and the rest of the brethren, after they had preached the word unto the Zoramites, also came over into the land of Jershon.
3 And it came to pass that after the more popular part of the Zoramites had consulted together, concerning the words which had been preached unto them, they were angry because of the word, for it did destroy their craft; therefore they would not hearken unto the words.
4 And they sent and gathered together throughout all the land, all the people, and consulted with them concerning the words which had been spoken.
5 Now their rulers, and their priests, and their teachers, did not let the people know concerning their desires; therefore therefore they found out privily the minds of all the people.
6 And it came to pass that after they found out the minds of all the people, those which were in favor of the words which had been spoken by Alma and his brethren, were cast out of the land; and they were many; and they came over also into the land of Jershon.
7 And it came to pass that Alma and his brethren did minister unto them.
8 Now the people of the Zoramites were angry with the people of Ammon which were in Jershon, and the chief ruler of the Zoramites being a very wicked man, sent over unto the people of Ammon desiring them that they should cast out of their land all those which came over from them into their land.
9 And he breathed out many threatnings against them. And now the people of Ammon did not fear their words, therefore they did cast them out, but they did receive all the poor of the Zoramites that came over unto them; and they did nourish them, and did clothe them, and did give unto them lands for their inheritance; and they did administer unto them according to their wants.
10 Now this did stir up the Zoramites to anger against the people of Ammon, and they began to mix with the Lamanites, and to stir them up also to anger against them;
11 and thus the Zoramites and the Lamanites began to make preparations for the war against the people of Ammon, and also against the Nephites.
12 And thus ended the seventeenth year of the reign of Judges, over the people of Nephi.
13 And the people of Ammon departed out of the land of Jershon, and came over into the land of Melek, and gave place in the land of Jershon for the armies of the Nephites, that they might contend with the armies of the Lamanites, and the armies of the Zoramites; and thus commenced a war betwixt the Lamanites and the Nephites, in the eighteenth year of the reign of the Judges; and an account shall be given of their wars hereafter.
14 And Alma, and Ammon, and their brethren and also the two sons of Alma, returned to the land of Zarahemla, after having been instruments in the hands of God of bringing many of the Zoramites to repentance, were driven out of their land; but they have lands for their inheritance in the land of Jershon, and they have taken up arms to defend themselves, and their wives, and their children, and their lands.
15 Now Alma, being grieved for the iniquity of his people, yea, for the wars, and the bloodsheds, and the contentions which were amog them; and having to declare the word, or sent to declare the word, among all the people in every city; and seeing that the hearts of the people began to wax hard, and that they began to be offended because of the strictness of the word, his heart was exceeding sorrowful;
16 therefore, he caused that his sons should be gathered together, that he might give unto them every one his charge, separately, concerning the things pertaining unto righteousness. And we have an account of his commandments, which he gave unto them according to his own record.

1 And now it came to pass that after Alma had spoken these words unto them, he sat down upon the ground, and Amulek arose and began to teach them, saying:
2 My brethren, I think that it is impossible that ye should be ignorant of the things which have been spoken concerning the coming of Christ, who is taught by us to be the Son of God; yea, I know that these things were taught unto you, bountifully, before your dissension from among us.
3 And as ye have desired of my beloved brother, that he should make known unto you what ye should do, because of your afflictions; and he hath spoken somewhat unto you to prepare your minds; yea, and he hath exhorted you unto faith, and to patience;
4 yea, even that ye would have so much faith as even to plant the word in your hearts, that ye may try the experiment of its goodness;
5 and we have beheld that the great question which is in your minds, is whether the word be in the Son of God, or whether there shall be no Christ.
6 And ye also beheld that my brother hath proven unto you, in many instances, that the word is in Christ, unto salvation.
7 My brother hath called upon the words of Zenos, that redemption cometh through the Son of God, and also upon the words of Zenock; and also he hath appealed unto Moses, to prove these things are true. And now behold, I will testify unto you of myself, that these things are true.
8 Behold, I say unto you, that I do know that Christ shall come among the children of men, to take upon him the transgressions of his people, and that he shall atone for the sins of the world; for the Lord God hath spoken it;
9 for it is expedient that an atonement should be made; for according to the great plan of the Eternal God, there must be an atonement made, or else all mankind must unavoidably perish; yea, all are hardened; yea, all are fallen, and are lost, and must perish, except it be through the atonement which it is expedient should be made;
10 for it is expedient that there should be a great and last sacrifice; yea, not a sacrifice of man, neither beast, neither of any manner of fowl; for it shall not be a human sacrifice; but it must be an Infinite and an Eternal sacrifice.
11 Now there is not any man that can sacrifice his own blood, which will atone for the sins of another. Now if a man murdereth, behold, will our law, which is just, take the life of his brother? I say unto you Nay.
12 But the law requireth the life of him who hath murdered; therefore there can nothing, which is short of an Infinite atonement, which will suffice for the sins of the world;
13 therefore it is expedient that there should be a great and last sacrifice; and then shall there be, or it expedient there should be a stop to the shedding of blood; then shall the law of Moses be fulfilled; yea, it shall all be fulfilled; every jot and tittle, and none shall have passed away.
14 And behold, this is the whole meaning of the law; every whit a pointing to that great and last sacrifice; and that great and last sacrifice will be the Son of God; yea, Infinite and Eternal;
15 and thus he shall bring salvation to all those who shall believe on his name; this being the intent of this last sacrifice, to bring about the bowels of mercy, which overpowereth justice and bringeth about means unto men that they may have faith unto repentance.
16 And thus mercy can satisfy the demands of justice, and encircles them in the arms of safety, while he that exerciseth no faith unto repentance, is exposed to the whole law of the demands of justice; therefore, only unto him that hath faith unto repentance, is brought about the great and Eternal plan of redemption;
17 therefore may God grant unto you, my brethren, that ye might begin to exercise your faith unto repentance, that ye begin to call upon his holy name, that he would have mercy upon you;
18 yea, cry unto him for mercy; for he is mighty to save;
19 yea, humble yourselves, and continue in prayer unto him;
20 cry unto him when ye are in your fields; yea, over all your flocks;
21 cry unto him in your houses, yea, over all your household, both morning, midday, and evening;
22 yea, cry unto him against the power of your enemies;
23 yea, cry unto him against the Devil, which is an enemy to all righteousness.
24 Cry unto him over the crops of your fields, that ye may prosper in them;
25 cry over the flocks of your fields, that they may increase.
26 But this is not all: ye must pour out your souls in your closets, and your secret places, and in your wilderness;
27 yea, and when you do not cry unto the Lord, let your hearts be full, drawn out in prayer unto him continually for your welfare, and also for the welfare of those which are around you.
28 And now behold, my beloved brethren, I say unto you, Do not suppose that this is all; for after ye have done all these things, if ye turn away the needy, and the naked, and visit not the sick and afflicted, and impart of your substance, if ye have, to those who stand in need; I say unto you, if ye do not any of these things, behold, your prayer is vain, and availeth you nothing, and ye are as hypocrites which do deny the faith;
29 therefore, if ye do not remember to be charitable, ye are as dross, which the refiners do cast out—it being of no worth—and is trodden under foot of men.
30 And now, my brethren, I would that after ye have received so many witnesses, seeing that the Holy Scriptures testify of these things, come forth and bring fruit unto repentance;
31 yea, I would that ye would come forth and harden not your hearts any longer; for behold, now is the time, and the day of your salvation; and therefore, if ye will repent and harden not your hearts, immediately shall the great plan of redemption be brought about unto you.
32 For behold, this life is the time for men to prepare to meet God; yea, behold, the day of this life is the day for men to perform their labors.
33 And now as I said unto you before, as ye have had so many witnesses, therefore I beseech of you, that ye not procrastinate the day of your repentance until the end; for after this day of life, which is given us to prepare for eternity, behold, if we do not improve our time while in this life, then cometh the night of darkness, wherein there can be no labor performed.
34 Ye cannot say, when ye are brought to that awful crisis, that I will repent, that I will return to God. Nay, ye cannot say this; for that same spirit which doth possess your bodies at the time that ye go out of this life, that same spirit will have power to possess your body in that eternal world.
35 For behold, if ye have procrastinated the day of your repentance, even until death, behold, ye have become subjected to the spirit of the Devil, and he doth seal you his; therefore the spirit of the Lord hath withdrawn from you, and hath no place in you, and the Devil hath all power over you: and this is the final state of the wicked.
36 And this I know, because the Lord hath said, he dwelleth not in unholy temples, but in the hearts of the righteous doth he dwell; yea, and he hath also said, that the righteous should sit down in his kingdom, to go no more out; but their garments should be made white, through the blood of the Lamb.
37 And now my beloved brethren, I desire that ye should remember these things, and that ye should work out your salvation with fear before God, and that ye should no more deny the coming of Christ;
38 that ye contend no more against the Holy Ghost, but that ye receive it, and take upon you the name of Christ; that ye humble yourselves even to the dust, and worship God in whatsoever place ye may be in, in spirit and in truth; and that ye live in thanksgiving daily, for the many mercies and blessings which he doth bestow upon you;
39 yea, and I also exhort you my brethren, that ye be watchful unto prayer continually, that ye may not be led away by the temptation of the Devil, that he may not overpower you, that ye not become his subjects at the last day: for behold, he rewardeth you no good thing.
40 And now my beloved brethren, I would exhort you to have patience, and that ye bear with all manner of afflictions; that ye do not revile against those who cast you out because of your exceeding poverty, lest ye become sinners like unto them;
41 but that ye have patience, and bear with those afflictions, with a firm hope that ye shall one day rest from all your afflictions.

1 Now after Alma had spoken these words, they sent forth unto him desiring to know whether they should believe in one God, that they might obtain this fruit of which he had spoken, or how they should plant the seed, or the word, of which he had spoken, which he said must be planted in their hearts; or in what manner they should begin to exercise their faith.
2 And Alma said unto them, Behold, ye have said that ye could not worship your God, because ye are cast out of your synagogues. But behold, I say unto you, If ye suppose that ye cannot worship God, ye do greatly err, and ye had ought to search the Scriptures; for if ye suppose that they have taught you this, ye do not understand them.
3 Do ye remember to have read what Zenos, the prophet of old, hath said concerning prayer or worship?
4 for he saith, Thou art merciful O God, for thou hast heard my prayer, even when I was in the wilderness; yea, thou wast merciful when I prayed concerning those which were mine enemies, and thou didst turn them to me;
5 yea, O God, and thou wast merciful unto me when I did cry unto thee in my field; when I did cry unto thee in my prayer, and thou didst hear me.
6 And again, O God, when I did turn to my house thou didst hear me in my prayer,
7 And when I did turn unto my closet, O Lord, and prayed unto thee, thou didst hear me;
8 yea, thou art merciful unto thy children, when they cry unto to thee to be heard of thee, and not of men; and thou wilt hear them;
9 yea, O God, thou hast been merciful unto me, and heard my cries in the midst of thy congregations;
10 yea, and thou hast also heard me when I have been cast out, and have been despised by mine enemies; yea, thou didst hear my cries, and wast angry with mine enemies, and thou didst visit them in thine anger, with speedy destruction;
11 and thou didst hear me because of mine afflictions and my sincerity; and it is because of thy Son that hast been thus merciful unto me; therefore I will cry unto thee in all mine afflictions; for in thee is my joy; for thou hast turned they judgments away from me, because of thy Son.
12 And now Alma saith unto them, Do ye believe those Scriptures which have been written by them of old?
13 Behold, if ye do, ye must believe what Zenos saith; for behold, he saith, Thou hast turned away thy judgments, because of thy Son.
14 Now behold, my brethren, I would ask, if ye have read the Scriptures? If ye have, how can ye disbelieve on the Son of God?
15 For it is not written that Zenos alone spake of these things;
16 for behold, he saith, Thou art angry, O Lord, with this people, because they will not understand of thy mercies which thou hast bestowed upon them, because of they Son.
17 And now my brethren, ye see that a second prophet of old has testified of the Son of God; and because the people would not understand his words, they stoned him to death.
18 But behold, this is not all; these are not the only ones which have spoken concerning the Son of God.
19 Behold, he was spoken of by Moses; yea, and behold, a type was raised up in the wilderness, that whosoever would look upon it might live. And many did look and live.
20 But few understood the meaning of those things, and this because of the hardness of their hearts. But there were many which were so hardened that they would not look; therefore they perished. Now the reason that they would not look, is because they did not believe that it would heal them.
21 O my brethren, if ye could be healed by merely casting about your eyes, that ye might be healed, would ye not behold quickly, or would ye rather harden your hearts in unbelief, and be slothful, that ye would not cast about your eyes, that ye might perish?
22 If so, wo shall come upon you; but if not so, then cast about your eyes, and begin to believe in the Son of God, that he will come to redeem his people, and that he shall suffer and die to atone for their sins; and that he shall rise again from the dead, which shall bring to pass the resurrection, that all men shall stand before him, to be judged, at the last and judgment day, according to their works.
23 And now my brethren, I desire that ye should plant this word in your hearts, and as it beginneth to swell, even so nourish it by your faith. And behold, it will become a tree, springing up in you unto everlasting life. And then may God grant unto you that your burdens may be light, through the joy of his Son. And even all this can ye do, if ye will. Amen.

1 And it came to pass that they did go forth, and began to preach the word of God unto the people, entering into their synagogues, and into their houses; yea, and even they did preach the word in their streets.
2 And it came to pass that after much labor among them, they began to have success among the poor class of people; for behold, they were cast out of the synagogues, because of the coarseness of their apparel;
3 therefore they were not permitted to enter into their synagogues to worship God, being esteemed as filthiness; therefore they were poor; yea, they were esteemed by their brethren as dross; therefore they were poor as to things of the world; and also they were poor in heart.
4 Now as Alma was teaching and speaking unto the people upon the hill Onidah, there came a great multitude unto him, which were those of which we have been speaking, of which were poor in heart, because of their poverty as to the things of the world.
5 And they came unto Alma; and the one which was the most foremost among them, saith unto him, Behold, what shall these my brethren do, for they are despised of all men, because of their poverty; yea, and more especially by our priests; for they have cast us out of our synagogues, which we have labored abundantly to build, with our own hands; and they have cast us out because of this our exceeding poverty, that we have no place to worship God; and behold, what shall we do?
6 And now when Alma heard this, he turned him about, his face immediately towards him, and he beheld, with great joy; for he beheld that their afflictions had truly humbled them, and that they were in a preparation to hear the word;
7 therefore he did say no more to the other multitude, but he stretched forth his hand, and cried unto those which he beheld, which were truly penitent, and saith unto them,
8 I beheld that ye are lowly in heart; and if so, blessed are ye.
9 Behold, thy brother hath said, What shall we do? for we are cast out of our synagogues, that we cannot worship God.
10 Behold I say unto you, Do ye suppose that ye cannot worship God, save it be in your synagogues?
11 And moreover, I would ask, Do ye suppose that ye must not worship God only once in a week?
12 I say unto you, It is well that ye are cast out of your synagogues, that ye may be humbled, and that ye may learn wisdom; for it is necessary that ye should learn wisdom; for it is because ye are cast out, that ye are despised of your brethren; because of your exceeding poverty, that ye are brought to a lowliness of heart; for ye are necessarily brought to be humble, blessed are ye; for a man sometimes, if he is compelled to be humble,
13 seeketh repentance; and now surely, whosoever repenteth, shall find mercy; and he that findeth mercy and endureth to the end, the same shall be saved.
14 And now as I said unto you, That because ye are compelled to be humble, ye were blessed, do ye suppose that they are more blessed who truly humble themselves because of the word?
15 Yea, he that truly humbleth himself, and repenteth of his sin, and endureth to the end, the same shall be blessed; yea, much more blessed than they who art compelled to be humble, because of their exceeding poverty;
16 therefore blessed are they who humbleth themselves without being compelled to be humble; or rather, in other words, blessed is he that believeth in the word of God, and is baptized without stubborness of heart; yea, without being brought to know the word, or even compelled to know, before they will believe.
17 Yea, there are many which do say, If thou wilt show unto us a sign from Heaven, then we shall know of a surety; then we shall believe.
18 Now I ask, Is this faith? Behold, I say unto you, Nay; for if a man knoweth a thing, he hath no cause to believe, for he knoweth it.
19 And now, how much more cursed is he that only believeth, or only hath cause to believe, and falleth into transgression?
20 Now of this thing, ye must judge. Behold, I say unto you, That it is on the one hand, even as it is on the other; and it shall be unto every man according to his work.
21 And now as I said concerning faith: Faith, is not to have a perfect knowledge of things; therefore if ye have faith, ye hope for things which is not seen, which are true.
22 And now, behold, I say unto you: and I would that ye should remember that God is merciful unto all who believe on his name; therefore he desireth, in the first place, that ye should believe, yea, even on his word.
23 And now, he imparteth his word by angels, unto men; yea, not only men, but women also. Now this is not all: little children doth have words given unto them many times, which doth confound the wise and learned.
24 And now. my beloved brethren, as ye have desired to know of me what shall ye do because ye are afflicted and cast out: now I do not desire that ye should suppose that I mean to judge you only according to that which is true;
25 for I do not mean that ye all of you have been compelled to humble yourselves;. for I verily believe there are some among you which would humble themselves, let them be in whatsoever circumstances they might.
26 Now as I said concerning faith, that it was not a perfect knowledge, even so it is with my words. Ye cannot know of their surety at first, unto perfection, any more than faith is a perfect knowledge.
27 But behold, if ye will awake and arouse your faculties, even to an experiment upon my words, and exercise a particle of faith; yea, even if ye can no more than desire to believe, let this desire work in you, even until ye believe in a manner that ye can give place for a portion of my words.
28 Now we will compare the word unto a seed. Now if ye give place, that a seed may be planted in your heart, behold, if it be a true seed, or a good seed, if ye cast it out by your unbelief, that ye will resist the spirit of the Lord, behold, it will begin to swell within your breasts; and when you feel these swelling motions, ye will begin to say within yourselves, It must needs be that this is a good seed, or that the word is good, for it beginneth to enlarge my soul; yea, it beginneth to enlighten my understanding; yea, and it beginneth to be delicious to me.
29 Now behold, would not this increase your faith? I say unto you, yea; nevertheless it hath not grown up to a perfect knowledge.
30 But behold, as the seed swelleth, and sprouteth, and beginneth to grow, and then ye must needs say, That the seed is good; for behold it swelleth, and sprouteth, and beginneth to grow.
31 And now behold, are ye sure that this is a good seed? I say unto you, Yea; for every seed bringeth forth unto its own likeness;
32 therefore. if a seed groweth, it is good, but if it groweth not, behold, it is not good; therefore it is cast away.
33 And now behold, because ye have tried the experiment, and planted the seed, and it swelleth, and sprouteth, and beginneth to grow, ye must needs know that the seed is good.
34 And now behold, is your knowledge perfect? Yea, your knowledge is perfect in that thing. and your faith is dormant; and this because you know; for ye know that the word hath swelled your souls; and ye also know that it hath sprouted up, that your understanding doth begin to be enlightened, and your mind doth begin to expand.
35 O then, is not this real? I say unto you, yea, because it is light; and whatsoever is light, is good, because it is discernible; therefore ye must know that it is good. And now behold, after ye have tasted this light, is your knowledge perfect?
36 Behold, I say unto you, Nay; neither must ye lay aside your faith, for ye have only exercised your faith to plant the seed, that ye might try the experiment, to know if the seed was good.
37 And behold, as the tree beginneth to grow, ye will say, Let us nourish it with great care, that ii may get root, that it may grow up and bring forth fruit unto us. And now behold, if ye nourish it with much care, it will get root, and grow up, and bring forth fruit.
38 But if ye neglect the tree, and take no thought for its nourishment, behold, it will not get any root; and when the heat of the sun cometh and scorcheth it, and because it hath no root, it whithereth away, and ye pluck it up and cast it out.
39 Now this is not because the seed was not good; neither is it because the fruit thereof would not be desirable. But it is because your ground is barren, and ye will not nourish the tree; therefore ye cannot have the fruit thereof.
40 And thus if ye will not nourish the word, looking forward with an eye of faith to the fruit thereof, ye can never pluck of the fruit of the tree of life.
41 But if ye will nourish the word, yea, nourish the tree as it beginneth to grow, by your faith, with great diligence, and with patience, looking forward to the fruit thereof, and it shall take root; and behold, it shall be a tree springing up unto everlasting life;
42 and because of your diligence, and your faith, and your patience with the word, in nourishing it, that it may take root in you, behold, by and by, ye shall pluck the fruit thereof, which is most precious, which is sweet above all that is sweet, and which is white above all that is white; yea, and pure above all that is pure; and ye shall feast upon this fruit, even until ye are filled, that ye hunger not, neither shall ye thirst.
43 Then my brethren ye shall reap the rewards of your faith, and your diligence, and patience, and long suffering, waiting for the tree to bring forth fruit unto you.

1 Now it came to pass after the end of Korihor, Alma having received tidings that the Zoramites were perverting the ways of the Lord, and that Zoram, which was their leader, was leading the hearts of the people to bow down to dumb idols, etc., his heart again began to sicken, because of the iniquity of the people;
2 for it was the cause of great sorrow to Alma, to know of iniquity among his people; therefore his heart was exceeding sorrowful, because of the separation of the Zoramites from the Nephites.
3 Now the Zoramites had gathered themselves together in a land which they called Antionum, which was east of the land of Zarahemla, which lay nearly bordering upon the seashore, which was south of the land of Jershon, which also bordered upon the wilderness south, which wilderness was full of the Lamanites.
4 Now the Nephites greatly feared that the Zoramites would enter into a correspondence with the Lamanites, and that it would be the means of a great loss on the part of the Nephites.
5 And now, as the preaching of the word had a great tendency to lead the people to do that which was just; yea, it had had more power effect upon the minds of the people than the sword, or any thing else, which had happened unto them; therefore Alma thought it was expedient that they should try the virtue of the word of God.
6 Therefore he took Ammon, and Aaron, and Omner; and Himni he did leave in the church of Zarahemla; but the former three he took with him, and also Amulek and Zeezrom, which were at Melek; and he also took two of his sons.
7 Now the eldest of his sons he took not with him; and his name was Helaman; but the names of those which he took with him, were Shiblon and Corianton: and these are the names of those which went with him among the Zoramites, to preach unto them the word.
8 Now the Zoramites were dissenters from the Nephites; therefore they had the word of God preached unto them.
9 But they had fell into great errors, for they would not observe to keep the commandments of God, and his statutes, according to the law of Moses;
10 neither would they observe the performances of the church, to continue in prayer and supplication to God daily, that they might not enter into temptation;
11 yea, in fine, they did pervert the ways of the Lord in very many instances; therefore, for this cause, Alma and his brethren went into the land, to preach the word unto them.
12 Now when they had come into the land, behold, to their astonishment, they found that the Zoramites had built synagogues, and that they did gather themselves together on one day of the week, which they did call the day of the Lord; and they did worship after a manner which Alma and his brethren had never beheld;
13 for they had a place built up in the center of their synagogue, a place of standing, which was high above the head; and the top thereof would only admit one person.
14 Therefore, whosoever desired to worship, must go forth and stand upon the top thereof, and stretch forth his hands towards heaven, and cry with a loud voice, saying:
15 Holy, holy God; we believe that thou art God. And we believe that thou art holy, and that thou wast a spirit, and that thou art a spirit, and that thou wilt be a spirit forever.
16 Holy God, we believe that thou hast separated us from our brethren; and we do not believe in the tradition of our brethren, which was handed down to them by the childishness of their fathers; but we believe that thou hast elected us to be thy holy children; and also thou hast made it known unto us that there shall be no Christ;
17 but thou art the same, yesterday, today, and forever; and thou hast elected us, that we shall be saved, whilst all around us are elected to be cast by thy wrath down to hell; for the which holiness, O God, we thank thee; and we also thank thee that thou hast elected us, that we may not be led away after the foolish traditions of our brethren, which doth bind them down to a belief of Christ, which doth lead their hearts to wander far from thee, our God.
18 And again: We thank thee, O God, that we are a chosen and a holy people. Amen.
19 Now it came to pass that after Alma and his brethren, and his sons, had heard these prayers, they were astonished beyond all measure.
20 For behold, every man did go forth and offer up the same prayers.
21 Now the place was called by them Rameumptom, which being interpreted is the Holy Stand.
22 Now from this stand, they did offer up, every man, the selfsame prayer unto God, thanking their God that they were chosen of him, and that he did not lead them away after the tradition of their brethren; and that their hearts were not stolen away to believe in things to come, which they knew nothing about.
23 Now after the people had all offered up thanks after this manner, they returned to their homes, never speaking of their God again, until they had assembled themselves together again, to the holy stand, to offer up thanks after their manner.
24 Now when Alma saw this, his heart was grieved: for he saw that they were a wicked and a perverse people; yea, he saw that their hearts were set upon gold, and upon silver, and upon all manner of fine goods.
25 Yea, and he also saw that their hearts were lifted up into great boasting, in their pride.
26 And he lifted up his voice to Heaven, and cried, saying: O how long O Lord, wilt thou suffer that thy servants shall dwell here below in the flesh, to behold such gross wickedness among the children of men.
27 Behold, O God, they cry unto thee, and yet their hearts are swallowed up in their pride. Behold, O God, they cry unto thee with their mouths, while they are puffed up, even to greatness, with the vain things of the world.
28 Behold, O my God, their costly apparel, and their ringlets, and their bracelets, and their ornaments of gold, and all their precious things which they are ornamented with; and behold, their hearts are set upon them, and yet they cry unto thee and say, We thank thee, O God, for we are a chosen people unto thee, while others shall perish.
29 Yea, and they say that thou hast made it known unto them, that there shall be no Christ.
30 O Lord God, how long wilt thou suffer that such wickedness and iniquity shall be among this people? O Lord, wilt thou give me strength, that I may bear with mine infirmities? for I am infirm, and such wickedness among this people doth pain my soul.
31 O Lord, my heart is exceeding sorrowful; wilt thou comfort my soul in Christ? O Lord, wilt thou grant unto me that I may have strength, that I may suffer with patience these afflictions which shall come upon me, because of the iniquity of this people?
32 O Lord, wilt thou comfort my soul, and give unto me success, and also my fellow laborers which are with me; yea, Ammon, and Aaron, and Omner, and also Amulek, and Zeezrom, and also my two sons; yea, even all these wilt thou comfort, O Lord? Yea, wilt thou comfort their souls in Christ?
33 Wilt thou grant unto them that they may have strength, that they may bear their afflictions which shall come upon them, because of the iniquities of this people?
34 O Lord, wilt thou grant unto us that we may have success in bringing them again unto thee, in Christ?
35 Behold, O Lord, their souls are precious, and many of them are our near brethren, therefore, give unto us O Lord, power and wisdom, that we may bring these, our brethren, again unto thee.
36 Now it came to pass, that when Alma had said these words, that he clapped his hands upon all they which were with him. And behold, as he clapped his hands upon them, they were filled with the holy Spirit.
37 And after that, they did separate themselves one from another, taking no thoughts for themselves what they should eat, or what they should drink, or what they should put on.
38 And the Lord provided for them that they should hunger not, neither should they thirst; yea, and he also gave them strength, that they should suffer no manner of afflictions, save it were swallowed up in the joy of Christ. Now this was according to the prayer of Alma; and this because he prayed in faith.