THE BOOK OF ALMA
THE soN OF ALMA
CHAPTER 44
Moroni commands the Lamanites to make a covenant of peace or be destroyed—Zerahemnah rejects the offer, and the battle resumes—Moroni’s armies defeat the Lamanites. [About 74—73 B.C.]
[ What is so important here that it made the cut of the hundreth part when the prophet Mormon, compiled this sacred record. What did Mormon see that made this important enough to keep? with all the material Mormon could have selected for this record, he made a place for this story, so what are we to learn from it? After Alma 44, Zerahemnah is never mentioned again anywhere in the book and these renegade Zoramites essentially disappear from this sacred record and are forgotten, and yet Mormon ensures that future readers will have this account. He even chose to pass over other teachings of Alma when he included this story. Right before he recounts the battle between Moroni and Zerahemnah, Mormon remarks that Alma and his sons went forth to preach the word but that “we shall say no more concerning their preaching” (Alma 43:2; see also vv. 1–2). So Mormon must have seen meaningful reason to replace some of Alma’s teachings with a story about war..Mormon would have recognized the spiritual significance often found in a tale of warfare. ]
1 AND it came to pass that they [ Moroni's army. ] did stop and withdrew a pace [ What does this show? It is a form of posturing that says we do not want to do battle with you, but we are not afraid either. HEnce you go so far and then you pull back a little as a sign that we will give you your space and not come at you agressively. ] from them. And Moroni [ Suppose we allow Moroni to be a type for Christ. ] said unto Zerahemnah: [ and we will let Zerahemnah represent humanity. ] Behold, Zerahemnah, that we do not desire to be men of blood. [ Or it is not our mission to destroy you. Neither is it our Father in Heavens mission to destroy us. No the plan is to try at all costs to save us, but that does not mean that he will save us in sin. The choice is left to us. ] Ye know that ye are in our hands, yet we do not desire to slay you. [ we are surrounded by the demands of justice and that only Christ can offer us mercy to fulfill that justice if we will but make a “covenant of peace” with Him. Each of us has sinned and there is no way out except to accept the Savior and repent. ]
2 Behold, we have not come out to battle against you that we might shed your blood for power; [ The plan of salvation is not there to punish us either, nor to show the power of God. ] neither do we desire to bring any one to the yoke of bondage. [ How do you think the people of Zerahemnah would have taken this? Do you think they would have trusted in it completely? it was foreign... Likewise out Heavenly Father wants us to serve our fellow man because he knows that in doing so we will gain happiness. His commandments as well are to bring us closer to him not so that he can look to punish us when we disobey or make a mistake. IT all depends on how you see them I suppose. ] But this is the very cause for which ye have come against us; yea, and ye are angry with us because of our religion.
3 But now, ye behold [ trying to help them understand, to see what Moroni see's. How does this logic not work? We often see things from our point of view, we can often be blinded by the truth, we convince ourslef that we are right our cause is just - sometimes just because we want it to be so. ] that the Lord is with us; and ye behold that he has delivered you into our hands. [ Victory in war to the was a symbol of righteousiness as it meant that they had God on their side. ] And now I would that ye should understand that this is done unto us because of our religion and our faith in Christ. And now ye see that ye cannot destroy this our faith.
4 Now ye see [They probably did not see it the same way that Moroni did. But that is how Moroni saw it. So he attempts to show that we are right and you are not. ] that this is the true faith of God; [ Faith is the stubborn resolve to see God blessing us in all circumstances. Even in our struggles and disappointments, faith requires us to believe God is ministering to us. The Nephites saw wars through a spiritual lens. Military fights were not only a measure of prowess, but their successes and failures on the battlefield were also interpreted as a measure of their own righteousness. As one scholar described it, “Most military events in the Book of Mormon have both religious and political importance. . . . To the Nephites, the matters of war were all-important religious affairs and sacred obligations, not the optional exploits of imperialistic monarchs or of mercenary soldiers of fortune.” We can gain greater insights into the gospel if we see warfare in the Book of Mormon with spiritual eyes. ] yea, ye see that God will support, and keep, and preserve us, so long as we are faithful unto him, [ God has decreed eternal laws that we cannot destroy, and by fighting against these laws we only deliver ourselves into the hands of justice. These laws are found and taught in God’s religion and true faith. Only by being faithful unto Him and the plan of salvation will He then “support, and keep, and preserve us”. For both Zerahemnah and ourselves, the key to securing the blessings of liberty and eternal life—and likewise avoiding captivity and death—is faith in and obedience to God, His plan, and His laws.
But by rebelling against the Nephites, Zerahemnah has forfeited these blessings and securities. Having broken these basic laws, he has to comply with other conditions. ] and unto our faith, and our religion; and never will the Lord suffer that we shall be destroyed except we should fall into transgression and deny our faith.
5 And now, Zerahemnah, I command you, in the name of that all-powerful God, who has strengthened our arms that we have gained power over you, by our faith, by our religion, and by our rites of worship, and by our church, and by the sacred support which we owe to our wives and our children, by that liberty which binds us to our lands and our country; yea, and also by the maintenance of the sacred word of God, to which we owe all our happiness; and by all that is most dear unto us—
[ Notice how Moroni is careful to make sure he does not leave anything out to which he could be accussed by God to have neem boasting in himself. ]
6 Yea, and this is not all; I command you by all the desires which ye have for life, that ye deliver up your weapons of war unto us, and we will seek not your blood, but we will spare your lives, if ye will go your way and come not again to war against us. [ Moroni commanding Zerahemnah and his army to surrender can be compared to Christ and His prophets commanding us to repent when we have rebelled and sinned against God: “Repent, and be baptized every one of you” (Acts 2:38; see also 2 Nephi 9:23; 3 Nephi 11:38; D&C 18:22). Moroni is asking them to change their lives and habits by giving up their tools of destruction and by then promising never to fight the Nephites again.
Weapons in the Book of Mormon often represent tools or habits of sin, and giving them up represents a change of heart and repentance. Mormon, speaking of a certain group of Lamanites that were taught the word of God by recent converts, says that “as many as were convinced did lay down their weapons of war, and also their hatred and the tradition of their fathers” (Helaman 5:51). Another example of this change of heart is the Anti-Nephi-Lehies. They associated their weapons with rebelling against God as “they did lay down the weapons of their rebellion, that they did not fight against God any more, neither against any of their brethren” (Alma 23:7). Later on, this same group buried their weapons, “saying that it was a testimony to our God . . . that we have not stained our swords in the blood of our brethren since he imparted his word unto us and has made us clean thereby” (Alma 24:15). For this righteous people, their weapons were directly connected with sin and their repentance before God. ]
7 And now, if ye do not this, [ The choice is left to you - you have your agency. However you choice my have consequences so think hard about your decision. ] behold, ye are in our hands, [ warns us of the consequences of refusing this covenant and gives insight into the great mercy and long-suffering of the Lord on our behalf. We too find ourselves in the “hands” of justice, condemned to die spiritually. Christ, typified by Moroni, does not desire to place us in a “yoke of bondage,” but we have ensnared ourselves by our own free will. ] and I will command my men that they shall fall upon you, and inflict the wounds of death in your bodies, that ye may become extinct; [ In view of the plan of salvation, if we do not accept the atonement and repent then when the body dies it will not return to live with Heavenly Father which in a way is a death of a spiritual kind since we will not be in Gods presence. ] and then we will see who shall have power over this people; yea, we will see who shall be brought into bondage. [ Satan and his plan has no power to save, and it that day you will see who is left in bondage. ]
8 And now it came to pass that when Zerahemnah had heard these sayings he came forth and delivered up his sword and his cimeter, and his bow into the hands of Moroni, and said unto him: Behold, here are our weapons of war; we will deliver them up unto you, but we will not suffer ourselves to take an oath unto you, [ We will not commit to anything going forward. Kind of like the Children of Israel, they could have had th eblessings of the higher priesthood and yet they were not willing to covenant with God. What blessing are we missing becasue we choose not to fully commit ourselves? ] which we know that we shall break, [ I do have to commend him for being honest, that he was not willing to say he woudl do something without the intent to do it. That really tells us something about a persons word in those days. He would rather fight in battle with th ehigh possibility that he will dies than give his word to do something and not live up to his committment. There is a lesson for all of us there. ] and also our children; but take our weapons of war, and suffer that we may depart into the wilderness; otherwise we will retain our swords, and we will perish or conquer. [ How is this like us? Zerahemnah’s stubborn reaction to Moroni’s offer reflects a tragic attitude that we often display toward the gospel of Jesus Christ. Zerahemnah delivers up his weapons to Moroni but with some conditions, he still wants to keep his favorite sins. Zerahemnah’s repentance is thus only partially complete. While he is willing to give up his weapons, he refuses to make an oath that he knows he will break. It is the attitude of a person who is only willing to make what we may call a “half covenant.”
In a gospel context, Zerahemnah represents all who want the blessings of the Atonement, who desire eternal life, but who are not willing to pay the full price required. They are not willing to make covenants—or to strive to obey their previous covenants—but they do not want to be denied salvation. They believe Christ is their Savior, and they want eternal life, but they are not willing to make all the required sacrifices to receive Christ’s saving grace.
For those that might hold to this “half-covenant” attitude, consider these words of President Marion G. Romney:
I conceive the blessings of the gospel to be of such inestimable worth that the price for them must be very exacting. . . . What is required is wholehearted devotion to the gospel and unreserved allegiance to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. . . . A half-hearted performance is not enough. . . . We must be willing to sacrifice everything. Through self-discipline and devotion we must demonstrate to the Lord that we are willing to serve him under all circumstances. When we have done this, we shall receive an assurance that we shall have eternal life in the world to come. Then we shall have peace in this world.[2]
Christ’s grace is infinite and powerful enough to cleanse us, but He will not save us in our sins, only from our sins (see Helaman 5:10). The Atonement of Jesus Christ will save us, but only after all we can do (see 2 Nephi 25:23). The Savior does not expect us to do more than we are able, but He does expect us to obey and repent as far as our power allows us, for God is a just God as well as a merciful God.
Alma, only a couple of chapters earlier, explains that “the plan of redemption could not be brought about, only on conditions of repentance . . . , for except it were for these conditions, mercy could not take effect except it should destroy the work of justice” (Alma 42:13). Instead, “there is a law given, and a punishment affixed,” and unless we repent, “the law inflicteth the punishment.” If Christ saved us from the punishment of sins for which we have not repented, then mercy would overrule justice, and “the works of justice would be destroyed, and God would cease to be God” (v. 22). God’s mercy is reflected in His willingness to let us repent and then cleanse us, but He cannot redeem us if we do not allow Him to. ]
9 Behold, we are not of your faith; we do not believe that it is God that has delivered us into your hands; but we believe that it is your cunning that has preserved you from our swords. Behold, it is your breastplates and your shields that have preserved you.
10 And now when Zerahemnah had made an end of speaking these words, Moroni returned the sword and the weapons of war, which he had received, unto Zerahemnah, saying: [ Captain Moroni, while mercifully offering Zerahemnah an opportunity to repent, recognizes these demands of justice. When Zerahemnah agrees to a “partial” repentance but refuses to make a covenant of peace, “Moroni returned the sword and the weapons of war, which he had received, unto Zerahemnah, saying: ] Behold, we will end the conflict. [ Moroni is commanding Zerahemnah to make a covenant with him—what will later be called “a covenant of peace” (v. 14). The conditions of the covenant are not outlandish. In fact, there is only one condition, and it is amazingly simple and merciful: “come not again to war.” Do that, and they can depart in peace. Is that just? Zerahemnah and his men have slaughtered hundreds of Nephites, and Moroni is willing to let them off that easily? These conditions hardly seem fair to us, but we must remember that we likewise face the demands of justice. Christ has promised that if we will only give up our “weapons of war”—our sins—and promise never to rebel against Him or His commandments again, then He will release us from the “yoke of bondage” that justice has placed upon us. Neither the covenant of Moroni nor of Christ is “fair,” but it is merciful. Christ does not ask us to undo the evil we have done any more than Moroni asks Zerahemnah to return the Nephite lives he has taken. Instead, Christ pleads for us to give up our rebellious ways and promise to be obedient, and then He will appease justice. How are we like the people of Zerahemnah? Will you give up your favorite sins? ]
11 Now I cannot recall the words which I have spoken, [ While Moroni would prefer that Zerahemnah had surrendered and promised never to fight the Nephites again, he cannot “recall” his words any more than God can recall eternal laws and decrees, or the “works of justice would be destroyed.” If we refuse to repent, God cannot simply repeal the law, but justice demands that we be exposed to the full force of the punishment. ] therefore as the Lord liveth, ye shall not depart except ye depart with an oath that ye will not return again against us to war. [ The war of words has esculated to Moroni delivering a final warning: that only through complete repentance—a surrender of sin and a willingness to make a covenant—will Zarahemnah and his men be allowed to leave in peace. You choose - your agency. Repent or die. ] Now as ye are in our hands we will spill your blood upon the ground, or ye shall submit to the conditions which I have proposed.
12 And now when Moroni had said these words, Zerahemnah retained his sword, and he was angry with Moroni, and he rushed forward that he might slay Moroni; but as he raised his sword, behold, one of Moroni’s soldiers smote it even to the earth, and it broke by the hilt; and he also smote Zerahemnah that he took off his scalp and it fell to the earth. And Zerahemnah withdrew from before them into the midst of his soldiers.
13 And it came to pass that the soldier who stood by, who smote off the scalp of Zerahemnah, took up the scalp from off the ground by the hair, and laid it upon the point of his sword, and stretched it forth unto them, saying unto them with a loud voice:
14 Even as this scalp has fallen to the earth, which is the scalp of your chief, so shall ye fall to the earth except ye will deliver up your weapons of war and depart with a covenant of peace. [ This time, Zerahemnah doesn’t try to reason with him—he simply retaliates. Zerahemnah rushes at Moroni to slay him, but one of Moroni’s soldiers stops him, breaks his weapon, and scalps him before the Zoramite captain can retreat into his ranks. Then this Nephite soldier, hanging Zerahemnah’s scalp on his sword, raises it aloft for everyone to see. Even Zerahemnah’s scalping is not without meaning. It represents an admonition to change and repent, or death is inevitable. This brave Nephite soldier was trying to warn Zarahemnah and his soldiers that something much worse than being scalped would befall them if they did not repent.
Likewise, the Savior, in His great mercy, will often warn us of the more devastating and eternal consequences of sin with temporal hardships and sufferings. Mormon expounded on this when he wrote: “And thus we see that except the Lord doth chasten his people with many afflictions, yea, except he doth visit them with death and with terror, and with famine and with all manner of pestilence, they will not remember him” (Helaman 12:3). The Lord also taught this in a modern-day revelation when He warned the Church in Kirtland that He “will chasten them and will do whatsoever [He] list, if they do not repent and observe all things whatsoever [He has] said unto them” (D&C 98:21). sometimes, the trials, hardships, and obstacles that we face are not God’s punishment upon us but a merciful reminder and warning of a more eternal punishment that comes unless we repent and obey. The Nephite soldier did not seek to punish Zerahemnah by scalping him but instead hoped to warn the Lamanites of the inevitable doom by continuing in their rebellion and sin. ]
15 Now there were many, when they heard these words and saw the scalp which was upon the sword, that were struck with fear; and many came forth and threw down their weapons of war at the feet of Moroni, and entered into a covenant of peace. [ The scalping had served a purpose for many as it was effective in getting the attention of his soldiers. The scriptures say many heeded the warning, laid down their weapons, and made a covenant of peace. ] And as many as entered into a covenant they suffered to depart into the wilderness.
16 Now it came to pass that Zerahemnah was exceedingly wroth, [ No one likes to be told that they are wrong, that they need to repent, except the humble. ] and he did stir up the remainder of his soldiers to anger, [ When things do not go our way we want to fight against those who tell us it is wrong. How does that not work with God? Since he is the source of all truth what he says is the way that it is and we can choose to argue all we want, we can fight it all that we want but that still will not change the truth. ] to contend more powerfully against the Nephites.
17 And now Moroni was angry, because of the stubbornness [ Lack of humility to know when you are going to loose. We are always wrong we we contend to make the Lord's way our ways. ] of the Lamanites; therefore he commanded his people that they should fall upon them and slay them. And it came to pass that they began to slay them; yea, and the Lamanites did contend with their swords and their might.
18 But behold, their naked skins and their bare heads were exposed to the sharp swords of the Nephites; [ Symbolically "sharp swords" denote truth. However, many others, including Zerahemnah, scorned the warning and tried to fight the Nephites again, but the Lamanites were quickly swept down. Here, Mormon gives us valuable insight into why the Lamanites were so ineffective at this time. He explains that “their naked skins and their bare heads were exposed to the sharp swords of the Nephites,” Reasonably, without any physical protection, the Lamanites were doomed to perish in battle, but this imagery also has spiritual significance. Nakedness is used throughout the scriptures to denote being sinful before God and exposed to the demands of justice after not repenting. Jacob, describing the judgment bar of God, said, “We shall have a perfect knowledge of all our guilt, and our uncleanliness, and our nakedness.” He then contrasts this image with the righteous “being clothed with purity, yea, even with the robe of righteousness” (2 Nephi 9:14; emphasis added). Moroni, also speaking about the Judgment, said that the wicked will “be brought to see [their] nakedness before God” and that Christ’s holiness “will kindle a flame of unquenchable fire upon [them]” (Mormon 9:5). In both cases, being naked represents standing before God as sinful, unrepentant, and unprotected by the Atonement of Christ. Even the Hebrew word for atonement means “to cover,” much as armor or a garment is meant to cover nakedness. The doctrine is clear: spiritual death awaits the unrepentant as dramatically and assuredly as the naked soldier confronting a well-protected and well-armed opponent. ] yea, behold they were pierced and smitten, yea, and did fall exceedingly fast before the swords of the Nephites; and they began to be swept down, even as the soldier of Moroni had prophesied.
19 Now Zerahemnah, when he saw that they were all about to be destroyed, cried mightily unto Moroni, promising that he would covenant and also his people with them, if they would spare the remainder [ We will all be brought to stand before the judgement bar of God. We will all be judged. some will have lived a good part of their life under a covenant with him; keeping his commandments and will be better off for it than those who only have a remainder (or a part of their life) living under the covenants. IN other words we progress to become more like God as we keep the comandments they are there as an example of how he would make decisions, as such the longer we live our life making decisions the way that God does the closer we will be to him, even if both the sinnner and the covenant maker end up in the same place at the end they may not be the same in closiness to God. ] of their lives, that they never would come to war again against them.
20 And it came to pass that Moroni caused that the work of death should cease [ Once more, Moroni demonstrates that he is truly merciful and long-suffering—a man who desires peace, not war. ] again among the people. And he took the weapons of war from the Lamanites; and after they had entered into a covenant with him of peace they were suffered to depart into the wilderness. [ The Savior’s mercy is also constantly extended to us. No matter how disobedient we might become, “his hand is stretched out still” (Isaiah 9:21). Consider these two statements that Christ Himself made, one to His prophet Alma and the other to his Nephite disciples, about those who postpone their repentance: “Yea, and as often as my people repent will I forgive them their trespasses against me” (Mosiah 26:30), and “Ye shall not cast him out of your synagogues, or your places of worship, for unto such shall ye continue to minister; for ye know not but what they will return and repent, and come unto me with full purpose of heart, and I shall heal them” (3 Nephi 18:32). Our merciful Savior is always inviting us to come unto Him, to repent, and to be cleansed. In this same manner, Moroni once more offers peace to Zarahemnah. The rebellious Zerahemnah accepts this proposal, promises never to come against the Nephites again, and is “suffered to depart into the wilderness” (Alma 44:20). And thus peace is established once more in the land.
Through the conflict of Moroni, Zerahemnah, and their armies, we learn of the great and eternal plan of salvation and how it applies directly to us. We can see our own mistakes, sins, and pride in the rebellious and hard-hearted attitude of Zerahemnah. By looking at the merciful, just, and loving manner of Moroni, we can more fully understand the nature of our Savior and appreciate how much He wants us to renounce our sins and make a “covenant of peace.” ]
21 Now the number of their dead was not numbered because of the greatness of the number; yea, the number of their dead was exceedingly great, both on the Nephites and on the Lamanites.
* Verse 24 [73 B.C.].