Alma
46:4 Amalickiah was desirous to be a king…the lower
judges…were seeking for power
Hugh
Nibley
“’the lower judges of the
land, and they were seeking for power’ (3 Nephi 6:27; Alma 46:4).
“All these Amalickiah welded together with immense
managerial skill to form a single ultraconservative coalition who agreed to ‘support him and establish him to be their king,’ expecting
that ‘he would make them rulers over the people’ (Alma
46:5). Many in the church were won over by Amalickiah's skillful oratory, for
he was a charming (‘flattering’ is the word used in the Book of Mormon) and
persuasive communicator. He made war the cornerstone of his policy and power,
using a systematic and carefully planned communications system of towers and
trained speakers to stir up the people to fight for their rights, meaning
Amalickiah's career. For while Moroni had kind feelings for the enemy,
Amalickiah ‘did care not for the blood of his
[own] people’ (Alma 49:10). His object in
life was to become king of both the Nephites and Lamanites, using the one to
subdue the other (Alma 46:4-5). He was a master of dirty tricks, to which he
owed some of his most brilliant achievements as he maintained his upward
mobility by clever murders, high-powered public relations, and great executive
ability. His competitive spirit was such that he swore to drink the blood of
Alma, who stood in his way. In short, he was ‘one
very wicked man’ (Alma 46:9), who stood for everything that Moroni loathed.”(Brother
Brigham Challenges the Saints, p. 502)
Alma
46:7 many in the church who believed in the
flattering words of Amalickiah, therefore they dissented
The
purpose of the church is to perfect the saints in order to establish a Zion
people. This was the goal of Helaman and his brethren as it has been with
priesthood leaders of all ages. Joseph Smith taught, “Adam blessed his
posterity; he wanted to bring them into the presence of God…Moses sought to
bring the children of Israel into the presence of God, through the power of the
Priesthood, but he could not” (Teachings, p. 159). Zion must be
established upon the principles of righteousness, one of the most important of
which is unity. A Zion people must be a united people.
Dissension
within the Church has a devastating but cleansing effect. “Thus, even diligent
care and watchfulness and righteous leadership cannot always prevent all
dissent… Dissension from the church and society performs a self-cleansing
function that leaves the remainder of the church or nation better able to unify
and to progress in harmony. Perhaps dissension is one manifestation of the
wheat-and-tares separation that is inevitable (Matthew 13:24-30; D&C
86:1-7; see also Jacob 5:65-69). In the last days things will be shaken and
turned upside down in order to liberate those who have been ensnared by Lucifer
(1 Nephi 14:15-17; 2 Nephi 23:6-11; 28:19; Jacob 3:11; 3 Nephi 21:8-22; D&C
45:43). Dissent appears to be one of the causes of such turmoil and
unshackling.” (Lynn D. Wardle, FARMS: Journal of Book of Mormon Studies,
vol. 3, no. 1, Spring-1994, p. 70) Regarding the cleansing of the church which
will take place prior to the Second Coming, the scriptures remind us, ‘vengeance cometh speedily upon the inhabitants of the
earth…And upon my house shall it begin, and from my house shall it go forth,
saith the Lord’ (DC 112:24-25).
The
scriptures remind us not to be flattered away by any who are a source of
dissension within the Church. Otherwise we will soon find ourselves wallowing
in the mire of our own disobedience until the vengeance of a just God is
exacted upon us.
Alma
46:8 how quick the children of men do forget the
Lord their God
In
the normal rhythm of the pride cycle, the Nephites usually go from righteous to
wicked in a matter of several years. Mormon had elsewhere lamented, thus six years had not passed away since the more part of
the people had turned from their righteousness, like the dog to his vomit, or
like the sow to her wallowing in the mire (3 Ne 7:8). In this instance,
they had been giving thanks and praise to God with much prayer and fasting
within the last year (Alma 45:1). Their gratitude had turned to dissension in
less than 12 months!
Alma
46:11 Moroni…was angry with Amalickiah
Hugh
Nibley
“It was a dangerous coalition to be threatening a
government which had barely succeeded in making a precarious peace with a
foreign enemy of vastly superior forces, ‘and thus
were the affairs of the people of Nephi exceedingly precarious and dangerous’ (Alma
46:7). ‘Thus we see,’ reflects Moroni, ‘how quick the children of men do forget . . . and we also
see the great wickedness one very wicked man can cause’ (Alma 46:8-9).
“No one saw more clearly than Moroni where this was
leading--all that he had achieved with great toil and danger was going to be
thrown away if he did not act quickly. ‘Angry with
Amalickiah,’ (Alma 46:11), he reacted with that speed and decision which
is the mark of the great leader in the field.” (Since Cumorah, pp.
303-4)
Alma
46:12-13 he rent his coat…and wrote upon it…And he
called it the title of liberty
Ezra Taft Benson
“We as a
people have never known bondage. Liberty has always been our blessed lot. Few
of us have ever seen people who have lost their freedom-- their liberty. And
when reminded of the danger of losing our liberty and independence our attitude
has usually been: It cannot happen here.
“We must never
forget that nations may, and usually do, sow the seeds of their own destruction
while enjoying unprecedented prosperity…
“In that
sacred volume of scripture, the Book of Mormon, we note the great and prolonged
struggle for liberty. We also note the complacency of the people and their
frequent willingness to give up their liberty for the promises of a would-be
provider.
“The record
reveals that a man ‘of cunning device . . . and . .
. many flattering words,’ . . . sought . . .
‘to destroy the foundation of liberty which God had granted unto them, . . .’
(Alma 46: 10.)
“…This great
general, Moroni…‘caused the title of liberty to be
hoisted upon every tower which was in all the land.... and thus Moroni planted
the standard of liberty among the Nephites.’ (Ibid., 46:36.)
“This is our
need today -- to plant the standard of liberty among our people throughout the
Americas.
“While this
incident occurred some seventy years BC, the struggle went on through one
thousand years covered by this sacred Book of Mormon record. In fact, the
struggle for liberty is a continuing one -- it is with us in a very real sense
today right here on this choice land of the Americas.” (Conference Report,
Oct. 1962, pp. 14-15)
Ezra Taft
Benson
“Of course,
the war in heaven over free agency is now being waged here on earth, and there
are those today who are saying ‘Look, don't get involved in the fight for
freedom. Just live the gospel.’ That counsel is dangerous, self-contradictory,
unsound…Now, part of the reason we may not have sufficient priesthood bearers
to save the Constitution let alone to shake the powers of hell, is because
unlike Moroni, I fear, our souls do not joy in keeping our country free, and we
are not firm in the faith of Christ nor have we sworn with an oath to defend
our rights and the liberty of our country.
“Moroni raised
a title of liberty and wrote upon it these words: ‘In
memory of our God, our religion, and freedom, and our peace, our wives, and our
children.’ Why didn't he write upon it: ‘Just live your religion;
there's no need to concern yourselves about your freedom, your peace, your
wives, or your children’? The reason he didn't do this was because all these
things were a part of his religion, as they are of our religion today.
“Should we
counsel people, ‘Just live your religion. There's no need to get involved in
the fight for freedom’? No, we should not, because our stand for freedom is a
most basic part of our religion; this stand helped get us to this earth, and
our reaction to freedom in this life will have eternal consequences. Man has
many duties, but he has no excuse that can compensate for his loss of liberty.”
(Conference Report, Oct. 1966, p. 122 as taken from Latter-day
Commentary on the Book of Mormon compiled by K. Douglas Bassett, p. 351)
Alma
46:13-14 Christians…For thus were all the true
believers…called by those who did not belong to the church
Bruce R. McConkie
“Christians is
an obvious name for the followers of Christ, for those who believe he is the
Son of God and that salvation of all degrees comes because of him and his
atoning sacrifice. Since there have been followers of Christ in successive
gospel dispensations from Adam to the present, these all would have been known
as Christians or some equivalent, synonymous term. By saying the saints were
called Christians first in Antioch (Acts 11:26) means that for the first time
in the meridian dispensation there was a sufficient church membership so that
nonmembers recognized the saints as a separate and distinct organization, one
severed and apart from the Jewish synagogue and community.
“As far as the
rejectors and detractors of Christ were concerned, the term Christian was
probably first used in derision. Such was clearly the case among the Nephites.
The Book of Mormon account, recording events in about the year 73 B. C. -- well
over a century before the Antioch congregation came into being -- says: ‘Christians . . . For thus were all the true believers
of Christ, who belonged to the church of God, called by those who did not
belong to the church.’ (Alma 46:13-16.)
“A somewhat
analogous situation exists in this dispensation with reference to the term
Mormons…It must be understood that this is not the name of the Church, but in
the sense that it is used as a synonym for that name, it is not offensive to
those to whom it has been applied.
“Are Mormons
Christians? The answer depends on what is meant by Christians. If Christians
are people with the defined view that salvation comes only through the complete
gospel of Christ, Mormons are truly Christians in the precise and full meaning
of the term.
“If Christians
are people (and this is the standard definition of the clergy of the day) who
believe in the holy trinity as defined and set forth in the Nicene, Athanasian,
and Apostles creeds, meaning that God is a three-in-one nothingness, a spirit
essence filling immensity, an incorporeal and uncreated being incapable of
definition or mortal comprehension -- then Mormons, by a clergy-chosen
definition, are ruled out of the fold of Christ.
“But if by
Christians is meant the saints of God in Antioch and elsewhere who believe and
live as they did; if by Christians is meant those who accept Christ as the
literal Son of God; who believe that miracles and signs follow true believers;
who believe in kingdoms of glory, revelation, the gathering of Israel, and
Melchizedek and Aaronic priesthoods; who believe there must be apostles and
prophets in the Church; and who believe in all respects as did holy men of old
-- then Mormons are Christians and they have the only pure and perfect
Christianity now on earth. Indeed, Mormonism is pure, unadulterated
Christianity, restored anew in all its grandeur and glory.” (Doctrinal New
Testament Commentary, pp. 112-3)
Alma
46:20 whosoever will maintain this title upon the
land, let them come forth in the strength of the Lord
Anthony
W. Ivins
“I appeal to you to reflect, and to resolve, in the
words of Moroni…that so long as there is a band of Christians left in the
world, they will gird on their armor, the armor of righteousness, that the word
of the Lord may be advocated in every nation, and if necessary the arm of every
Christian be steeled to fight for the perpetuity of these eternal truths upon
which the salvation of the world depends today. God give victory to the armies
which are fighting in defense of these principles. May he give strength to the
latter-day Saints to properly perform their part in this great struggle, and
above all may he give power to spread these truths among all nations, until the
world shall be converted, God’s kingdom come, and his will be done upon earth,
as it is in heaven.’ (Conference Report, Oct. 1918, pp. 52-3)
Alma
46:21 rending their garments in token, or as a
covenant
“While twentieth-century readers correctly view this
moment as a time of great patriotism, it is important to note that any such
feelings of the Nephites were founded in their covenants. The focus in the record is not upon an
emotional flagwaving fervor, but upon the necessity of keeping covenants with
the Lord in order to be preserved in the land.
According to the record, ‘the covenant which
they made,’ as they ‘cast their garments at
the feet of Moroni,’ was: ‘We covenant with our God, that we shall be
destroyed, even as our brethren in the land northward, if we shall fall into
transgression; yea, he may cast us at the feet of our enemies, even as we have
cast our garments at thy feet to be trodden under foot, if we shall fall into
transgression’ (v 22).” (Thomas Valletta, Book of Mormon
Symposium Series, Alma, edited by PR Cheesman, MS Nyman, and CD Tate, Jr.,
1988, p. 234)
Alma
46:23 a remnant of…Joseph whose coat was rent by his
brethren into many pieces
Joseph’s
“coat of many colors” has become legendary. Yet, the language used may not be
an accurate description of the garment. In fact the word “garment” may be a better
description. A modern Torah commentary gives alternate translations such as “Ornamental
Tunic. [Although] the meaning is not clear. Others translate as ’a coat of
many colors,’ or ‘a robe with sleeves.’” (W. Gunther Plaut, Torah: A Modern
Commentary, p. 244) Yet, apocryphal sources indicate that the garment was
“the garment of Adam” which had been handed down from one patriarch to the
next. This, in part, explains the anger of Joseph’s elder brothers when they
learned that he would be the recipient of the garment.
“In Alma 46:21-24 we read of a particular ceremony
associated with the story of Joseph's garment. Because Jewish tradition
indicates that Joseph's garment was the high priestly garment of Adam, this
passage may have more meaning than previously supposed. In this passage, the
desecration of the garment symbolizes being ‘ashamed
to take upon them the name of Christ.’” (Donald W. Parry, Temples of
the Ancient World, p. 695, footnote 50)
“There is no shortage of traditions in the Old World
about this garment of Joseph. Ginzberg recounts various stories about
appearances of Gabriel to Joseph. One of these appearances was while Joseph was
imprisoned in the pit before his brothers sold him into slavery. Here it is
said that Gabriel placed upon him a special garment of protection which he wore
throughout all his Egyptian experiences (Ginzberg, Louis. The Legends of the
Jews. 7 vols. Philadelphia: The Jewish Publication Society of America, 1909.,
2:17). Ginzberg also records that after Joseph was reunited with his family in
Egypt his father gave him two gifts, the first being the city of Shechem and
‘the second gift was the garments made by God for Adam and passed from hand to
hand, until they came into the possession of Jacob’ (Ginzberg, Louis. The Legends
of the Jews. 7 vols. Philadelphia: The Jewish Publication Society of America,
1909., 2:139). He also notes that ‘according to the view of later authors,
Joseph's coat was the holy tunic of the priest’ (Ginzberg, Louis. The Legends
of the Jews. 7 vols. Philadelphia: The Jewish Publication Society of America,
1909., 5:326).” (Millet & McConkie, Gospel Symbolism, p. 140)
Hugh
Nibley
“Here the survival of Joseph's garment guarantees and
typifies the survival of Joseph (Alma 46:24).
“In the tenth century of our era the greatest
antiquarian of the Moslem world, Muhammad ibn-Ibrahim ath-Tha'labi, collected
in Persia a great many old tales and legends about the prophets of Israel…Among
other things, Tha'labi tells a number of stories, which we have not found
anywhere else, about Jacob and the garment of Joseph. In one, Joseph's brethren
bring his torn garment to their father as proof that he is dead, but Jacob
after examining the garment (‘and there were in the garment of Joseph three
marks or tokens when they brought it to his father’) declares that the way the
cloth is torn shows him that their story is not true: ‘Behold, if the bear had
eaten him he surely would have rent his garment, and since he would (naturally)
have fled towards the gate, verily the garment should have been torn behind.’
But since this is not the case it may be that Joseph still lives…
“Most significant is Tha'labi's discussion of the two
remnants of Joseph's garment, from which we quote:
“And when Joseph had made himself known unto them
[his brethren] he asked them about his father, saying, ‘What did my father
after [I left]?’ They answered, ‘He lost his eyesight [from weeping].’ Then he
gave them his garment [qamis, long outer shirt]. According to ad-Dahak
that garment was of the weave [pattern, design] of Paradise, and the breath
[spirit, odor] of Paradise was in it, so that it never decayed or in any way
deteriorated [and that was] a sign [omen]. And Joseph gave them that garment,
and it was the very one that had belonged to Abraham, having already had a long
history. And he said to them, ‘Go, take this garment of mine and place it upon
the face of my father so he may have sight again, and return [to me] with all
your families.’ And when they had put Egypt behind them and come to Canaan
their father Jacob said, ‘Behold, I perceive the spirit [breath, odor] of
Joseph, if you will not think me wandering in my mind and weakheaded from age.’
. . . [for] he knew that upon all the earth there was no spirit [breath, odor]
of Paradise save in that garment alone. . . . And as-Sadi says that Judah said
to Joseph, ‘It was I who took the garment bedaubed with blood to Jacob, and
reported to him that the wolf had eaten Joseph; so give me this day thy garment
that I might tell him that thou art living, that I might cause him to rejoice
now as greatly as I caused him to sorrow then.’ And Ibn-Abbas says that Judah
took the garment and went forth in great haste, panting with exertion and
anxiety . . . and when he brought the garment he laid it upon his face, so that
his sight returned to him. And ad-Dahak says that his sight returned after
blindness, and his strength after weakness, and youth after age, and joy after
sorrow. [Then follows a dialogue between Jacob and the King of Death].
“Note here that there were two remnants of Joseph's
garment, one sent by Joseph to his father as a sign that he was still alive
(since the garment had not decayed), and the other, torn and smeared with
blood, brought by Judah to his father as a sign that Joseph was dead. Moroni
actually quotes Jacob (‘Now behold, this was the
language of Jacob’ [Alma 46:26]) as saying: ‘Now
behold, this giveth my soul sorrow; nevertheless, my soul hath joy in my son’ (Alma
46:25)…
“These interesting little details are typical
apocryphal variations on a single theme, and the theme is the one Moroni
mentions; the rent garment of Joseph is the symbol both of his suffering and
his deliverance, misfortune and preservation.” (An Approach to the Book of
Mormon, p. 218-20)
Alma
46:24 Even as this remnant of garment of my son hath
been preserved, so shall a remnant of the seed of my son be preserved
The
book of Genesis is an abbreviation of the lives of the Patriarchs. As with so
many other instances in the Book of Mormon, we see that the Nephite record was
more complete than our own. Moroni was quoting scripture to rally his people.
In his version of the life of Jacob, the above prophecy was included. According
to our Bible, the only thing the torn garment of Joseph represented was his
death by wild animals (Gen 37:32-25). In Moroni’s Bible, the garment
represented Joseph’s posterity which would be forever preserved.
Hugh
Nibley
“The Nephite prophet Moroni tells a story, which he
says was common property of his people, concerning the death of the patriarch
Jacob (Alma 46:24-25). I have never come across this story except in
Tha'labi—who in Joseph Smith's America had access to Tha'labi? Tha'labi, a
Persian in the tenth century A.D., went about collecting old stories of the prophets
from his Jewish neighbors. The story in barest outline is that when the garment
of Joseph was brought to Jacob on his deathbed, he rejoiced because part of it
was sound and whole, signifying that some of his descendants would always
remain true; but he wept because another part of the garment was befouled and
rotted away, signifying that part of his descendants that would fall away. The
same story is told with the same interpretation in Tha'labi and in the book of
Alma, in the latter significantly as a popular folk-tale.” (The Prophetic
Book of Mormon, p. 249)
Alma
46:27 who knoweth but what the remnant…which shall
perish…are those who have dissented from us?
Hugh
Nibley
“One of the most remarkable aspects of the story is
the manner in which Moroni sought to stir up patriotic fervor by appealing to
ancient and traditional devices. He connected the whole business of the rent
garment with the story of the tribal ancestors Jacob and Joseph, and suggested
that ‘those who have dissented from us’ were
the very ‘remnant of the seed of Joseph’ to
which the dying Jacob prophetically referred (Alma 46:27). It was not merely a
resemblance or a type, but the very event foreseen by the patriarch of old.” (An
Approach to the Book of Mormon, p. 213)
Alma
46:35 Amalickiahites that would not enter into a
covenant…he caused to be put to death
Moroni
was given power by the chief judges and the voice of
the people (v. 34) to establish order. By doing so, they gave Moroni
power to declare marshal law on the Amalickiahites. Their threat was so real,
that reconciliation or extermination was the only option.
“What may at first seem to be harsh measures was
really a very humane and just approach, and it was remarkable for two reasons.
First, how many times in history does one find prisoners of war given a chance
to swear their allegiance to the government and then freed, even though the war
still continues? Second, once again we see the great importance these people
placed on making and keeping oaths. In today’s society, many would sear such an
oath to escape death, with no intent of ever keeping it. But the, the oath was
a very important and sacred thing to the people.” (Book of
Mormon Student Manual, 1981, pp. 330-1)
Hugh Nibley
“The fiction has been diligently cultivated that
Moroni on this occasion put all the pacifists to death. Those put to death were
not those who had refused to take up arms to defend their country, but those
who had taken up arms to attack it and who were on their way to join the enemy
across the border, glad in their hearts when they heard that the Lamanites were
coming down to battle against their country; they were dissenters to the enemy.
Pacifists? They were all members of Amalickiah's army, armed to their teeth on
their way to join the enemy when Moroni caught them. ‘And
. . . whomsoever of the Amalickiahites that would not enter into the covenant,
. . . he caused to be put to death; and there were but few’ (Alma
46:35). Armed violence, not pacifism, had been their program from the
beginning.” (Approaching Zion, p. 98 – 99)
Alma
46:40 the many plants and roots which God had
prepared to remove the cause of diseases
Long
before the medicinal value of plants and roots was understood by modern
science, the Nephite and Lamanite “medicine men” made good use of the only
pharmacy available to them. Since then, science has found that plant derived
medicines have many uses: quinine is an
effective treatment for malaria, opium is a powerful pain killer, digitalis stabilizes
the heart’s rhythm, and belladonna is used to make atropine, a drug with many
medicinal uses.
Hugh
Nibley
“They were able to control fevers because of the very
good remedies they had from these tropical plants. Quinine wasn't discovered
until 1840. Nobody knew that the quinine bark would cure these fevers until
then. They didn't know what could cure them. They didn't know about mosquitoes
or anything else. Again, here we have a wonderful insight. There are these
occasional flashes of background in the Book of Mormon, which for the most part
concentrate intently on the issues of salvation. But here it just happens to
note in passing (it's good to note) that it was fever country and there were
diseases to which men were subject by the nature of the climate, which was
tropical and humid. The fevers were held under control by the most excellent
quality of the plants.” (Teachings of the Book of Mormon, lecture 62, p. 65)
Bruce R.
McConkie
“There are two
opposite and almost equally unsound views held by many people as to the value
and place of physicians in society. Most people rely entirely on doctors and
medical science where health is concerned and make no attempt to seek the
healing power of the Lord. (2 Chron. 16:12.) Some others reject hospitalization
and medicinal aid, supposing that it is only by divine aid that health will or
can be restored.
“Actually, of
course, the Lord intends that men should exercise faith in him so as to be
healed, but he also intends that men should use the agency and intelligence he
has given them, in both preventing and curing sickness. It is proper that the
sick should ‘be nourished with all tenderness, with
herbs and mild food.’ (D. & C. 42:43.) The Book of Mormon speaks ‘of the excellent qualities of the many plants and roots
which God had prepared to remove the cause of diseases.’ (Alma 46:40.)”
(Mormon Doctrine, p. 573)