Aaron Guides Lamoni's Father Toward Repentance - Book of Alma, Chapter Twenty-Two (Alma 22)

You can read the entire chapter here: https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/scriptures/bofm/alma/22?lang=eng. 

As Ammon and King Lamoni return to Lamoni’s realm to teach the people there, Aaron is leaving Middoni. We learn that God is guiding him and his companions to Lamoni’s father (verse 1).

Sometimes it requires a team effort to bring about a change in our hearts. One person might do something that leads us to question a well-established practice or habit of ours that had been so firmly set in stone for years. They succeed in cracking the elaborate shell of illusion we’ve constructed to convince ourselves we’ve reached a point where the painful process of change is no longer necessary. Once it’s cracked, we can sometimes become overwhelmed—going from never questioning anything about ourselves to questioning everything all at once. 

In that situation, it’s nice to have a trusted friend who can lead us in the right direction, assuring us that we don’t necessarily need to completely overhaul everything about our lives, but instead narrow our focus on what’s most important to change. 

After Ammon cracks the shell of Lamoni’s father, softening that hard man of action into a much more introspective person, Aaron shows up at just the right time to guide Lamoni’s father by the hand for the rest of his journey toward truth and reconciliation. 

Lamoni’s father (aka “the king”) tells Aaron that two things about Ammon have “somewhat troubled his mind,” or gotten him to think about things in a new way. First, what motivated Ammon to act so generously toward Lamoni? Second, what was the animating force behind the great words that Ammon spoke in defending truth and righteousness, and explaining his just cause (verse 3)? Remember, Lamoni’s father has years, maybe decades of experience ruling over people, so he knows a thing or two about the importance of finding a way to stir the hearts of others. Clearly, he recognizes a force in Ammon’s approach that he hadn’t yet encountered even in all his past experience. 

The king is also troubled by, or curious about, his new teachers’ reference to “the Spirit of the Lord” and repentance (verse 6). 

Aaron does not explain by providing a dictionary definition of the terms, but instead he backs up and simply asks if the king believes there is a God. The king has heard the Amalekites (those hardened people who descend from the priests of the wicked King Noah—introduced in ) talk about a God, and shows his willingness to trust Aaron by saying, “I’ll believe it if you tell me it’s real.” Aaron answers, “Yes, assuredly God is real” (verses 7-8). 

Then Aaron uses the starting points the king already has. The king knows about a Great Spirit from the Lamanites’ traditions about coming out of Jerusalem. So Aaron takes the knowledge the king has, and adds to it by explaining that the Great Spirit and God are the same thing. Then Aaron tells the king about God’s “plan of redemption” for man—creation, commandments, Adam’s transgression, and Jesus as our Redeemer from death and sin through his sufferings and death (verses 9-14). 

The king, this once very proud and haughty ruler who brooked no disrespect from his adult son (a king himself) or anyone else, is brought to complete and utter humility by Aaron’s teachings. He laps them all up hungrily, and is desperate to be “born of God,” to have “this wicked spirit rooted out of my breast” and receive God’s spirit and eternal life. In fact he’s so desperate, he says he’ll give up his whole kingdom for these spiritual treasures that he has only just now discovered. At the heart of this great show of feeling and desire from the king is the ultimate question—one that is always there for us too. “OK, now that I know something more about myself, the world, God, and our intertwined relationships, what do I DO?” (verse 15) 

Aaron reassures him that God doesn’t need him to make such drastic and total changes to his life (at least not now). He just needs to repent of his sins and bow down to the Lord in faith to receive a hope and assurance of his forgiveness and connection with God (verse 16). 

It is drastic enough for this king to bow himself down to someone else, this invisible God that Ammon and Aaron have spoken of. It must have presented quite a spectacle to the servants and others at court watching the king do this. They might have wondered if he’d gone mad or somehow been duped or used by Aaron here. What a moving thing to contemplate! No one, no, not even the highest ruler of the land, is exempt from the consequences of sin and mortality. We all are subject to Him who rules above everything (verse 17). 

When they are uttered with sincere feeling and real intent, there are no more important words for us to say to the Lord than what the king says in his prayer, “I will give away all my sins to know thee, and that I may be raised from the dead, and be saved at the last day.” A measure of the king’s sincerity is that he, like his son King Lamoni and those surrounding him not too long before (in Alma 18-19), is struck dumb by the power of the transformation that begins to work on his mind and heart (verse 18). 

The reaction of the king’s servants and the queen here is very different than with Lamoni. Instead of carrying the king into the queen and waiting patiently for the situation to resolve itself, the servants fetch the queen and she is ready to act immediately against Aaron and his companions. When the servants express reluctance to obey the queen’s command to kill the visitors, based on the power they perceive Aaron has, she insists they gather the people to come and kill Aaron and his companions. Perhaps the queen has been conditioned over time to act quickly in order to avoid being left vulnerable or having others perceive her as vulnerable if too much time is taken to act (verses 19-21). 

The situation is also different because Aaron hasn’t built up a relationship with the servants or any of the people surrounding the king, unlike Ammon with his efforts to ingratiate himself at King Lamoni’s court through a period of service with Lamoni’s flocks. Aaron has every reason to believe that the people will not be pacified. Just as the servant Abish roused the royal family in Alma 19 with the prospect of an angry multitude on hand, Aaron takes the king by the hand to raise him from his trance. The queen and everyone else, no longer feeling as though Aaron intends direct harm to the kingdom, now feel a less expressible, more foreboding type of anxiety, as they don’t know what to make of the power Aaron has (verses 22-23). 

The king steps in at this point. He so convincingly ministers to his household that we learn they are all converted to the Lord. Additionally, he pacifies the discontented multitude and sends Aaron and his companions out to preach to them (verses 23-26).

Aaron and His Brothers: Courageous Teachers, Not Rulers - Book of Alma, Chapter Twenty-One (Alma 21)

Ammon and Aaron are both sons of the Nephite King Mosiah. Along with their brothers Omner and Himni, they renounced their claims to their father’s throne, thus ending their people’s dependence on monarchical rule. The Nephites had witnessed in the past generation how destructive a wicked king can be to his people, with the example of King Noah’s destructive tyranny fresh in their memory.

As we have learned, Ammon demonstrates great faith to carry the gospel into Lamanite lands and right into the heart of one of the Lamanites’ kings—King Lamoni. So there’s an interesting theme surrounding the experiences of King Mosiah’s sons. They are finding ways to minimize the damage that imperfect humans in leadership roles can do to the people they rule. They already showed a desire to “do no harm” by refusing to be kings in their own land. Now, they are softening the minds and hearts of the people who rule over the Lamanites. 

In just a few chapters, Ammon’s reliance on the Lord in several perilously life-threatening situations have given us plenty of material for a great adventure movie plot. Not only have the hearts of Lamoni and his wife been transformed, but in his encounter with Lamoni’s father—the king over all the land—Ammon found a way to show that love conquers all, and the father is now waiting in the wings to learn more. 

Our narrative turns back to the moment when Ammon, his brothers, and their other companions take a deep breath and each travel to different areas populated by the Lamanites to share the truth about God’s plan—with Jesus’ sacrifice and triumph over death and sin at the center of it. 

We learn that Ammon’s brother Aaron goes to a place called Jerusalem (this is an area in the Americas—where the Nephites and Lamanites now live—named after the much better known holy city in the Middle East). This name provides a hint for us about the people who live there. They are still very focused on the places from their family’s past. We know that Laman and Lemuel used to complain that they were pressured into leaving the comfort and stability of their hometown, and that this argument is something their descendants regularly rehash when voicing grievances about their Nephite rivals. So before we even follow Aaron into the land of Jerusalem, we have some idea of the reception he’ll get (not a very welcoming one) (verses 1-2). 

Our narrator (Mormon) also tells us that many of the people in this area are Amalekites and Amulonites, people who are from the family of the wicked priests of Noah. Their opposition to the teachings of gospel truth is even more pronounced than the Lamanites’ basic annoyance. The people of Amalek and Amulon hate anything that could turn their fellow inhabitants toward greater independence of thought and action, because they have become very attached to the control over others that comes with power, position, and prestige (verse 3).

The attitude of the people of Jerusalem can be summed up this way: they feel they are entitled to every accolade or achievement that anyone else gets without having to be held accountable for the consequences of their actions. Why shouldn’t they get every blessing from the Lord, even if they don’t exercise their faith (verses 4-6)?

The most telltale sign of this attitude is the people’s resistance to learning about Jesus Christ. When Aaron brings up redemption from sin through the Son of God, the people of Jerusalem first dismiss him as a fool, then angrily mock him (verses 7-10). Aaron and his missionary companions try moving to other areas, but receive similarly cold responses. When they reach a land called Middoni, Aaron and some of his companions are thrown in prison, with a few others fleeing the same fate (verses 11-13).

After Ammon and King Lamoni come to Middoni and secure their release (something also mentioned in the previous chapter), Aaron and his companions go right back out there to preach the gospel, showing amazing faith and perseverance (verses 14-16). Even if they may feel a new level of support at this point—or at least toleration from the ruling authorities—they still face a hardened people who have previously rejected them at every turn. Also, depending on where they might feel inspired to wander, it is possible they might move into an area with people who have not gotten the word from the ruling authorities to let them be.

Aaron and his company seem to have gone everywhere and anywhere they could to share the message of salvation through Jesus, and Mormon says that they are being led by the Spirit of the Lord. As ever, the Spirit does not lead anyone wrong. It may lead someone into adversity, but if that person is following the Spirit’s guidance, they will often find God working through them to great effect, or learn powerful lessons that helps them grow beyond measure.

The Lord “begins to bless” Aaron and his company. They help many come to a knowledge of the truth, and convince them of their sins and of the incorrectness of their family traditions (verse 17). It is hard for any of us to discard our family traditions, so it’s always impressive when a teacher of the truth can provide another person enough light to help them realize that some of what they learned as a child is wrong or incomplete. 

In the meantime, King Lamoni and Ammon return to the land of Ishmael. Now that he has been given full authority in this area by his father, Lamoni builds synagogues (places of gathering to teach and learn about God’s plan and Jesus’ role at the center of it) and declares that they have freedom of worship. Ammon teaches truth to Lamoni’s people and exhorts them daily, and the people heed his word and are “zealous for keeping the commandments of God” (verses 18-23).

Lamoni's Faith and New Friend Transform His Father - Book of Alma, Chapter Twenty (Alma 20)

You can read the entire chapter here: https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/scriptures/bofm/alma/20?lang=eng. 

Ammon has just been the means by which the Lord has miraculously changed the entire trajectory of a kingdom. The hearts of many Lamanites are now softened and open to the word of God with King Lamoni, his wife, and many others in the land of Ishmael.

This chapter begins with Lamoni expressing a desire to introduce Ammon to his father, who is king over all the Lamanite lands. This seems quite natural. After having such a life-changing experience with Ammon as his guide and mentor, Lamoni seeks to share this new knowledge with his own father and almost certainly has hope that his father will accept the truth as he has, and open even more Lamanite territory and hearts to the teachings of Ammon and his fellow missionaries (verse 1).

There’s only one thing wrong with Lamoni’s idea. The Lord has other plans for Ammon. In fact, He warns Ammon that if he goes to the land of Nephi, where Lamoni’s father rules, the father will seek his life. Instead, the Lord commands Ammon to go to the land of Middoni, where Ammon is told his brother Aaron and Aaron’s companions Muloki and Ammah are imprisoned (verses 2-3). 

As this chapter and the next few chapters unfold, we gain some better understanding of why the Lord commands Ammon to avoid Lamoni’s father and go to Middoni. But there isn’t a full explanation for why Ammon couldn’t simply “rinse and repeat” his approach to Lamoni with Lamoni’s father, other than that what works for one person doesn’t for someone else. It seems as though Lamoni’s father’s heart needed to be softened in a different way.

Lamoni is so loyal to Ammon that he decides if Ammon is going to Middoni, he will go with him to help him find favor in the eyes of the king there, which could be crucial if Ammon is trying to get his brother and friends released. And so they start their journey together (verses 4-7). 

And who, of all people, should they meet on their way? Lamoni’s father, the very person they had been discussing earlier (verse 8). We never learn why Lamoni’s father was traveling. Was he searching specifically for Lamoni, or was he on some other errand?

Based on the father’s attitude, I wonder if he may have been very specifically searching out his son, and nursing a grudge against him. When they meet unexpectedly, Lamoni’s father basically asks him, “Why didn’t you come to the special feast I held for you and your brothers, and for all our people? And why on earth do I find you traveling with this Nephite, who we know must be a liar and terrible person because of his people?” It’s possible the father had already spent days or weeks letting feelings of offense and hurt fester within himself, and now confronted with this picture of Lamoni choosing to spend time with—of all people—a Nephite (Ammon) instead of him, he’s really angry (verses 9-10).

Lamoni makes an effort to explain what has occurred. His entire life has been transformed by Ammon coming into the picture, and these events sidetracked Lamoni from being able to attend his father’s feast (verses 11-12). But what has taken place is something very personal and has happened within the internal workings of Lamoni’s mind and heart. It can often be very difficult to communicate a change of heart, however wondrous, to someone who has not experienced the same events, and especially when that person is very committed to an established way of doing things. Lamoni’s father is very invested in the established order, as the ruler over the entire Lamanite kingdom.

Lamoni is astonished that his father doesn’t soften up after he provides his explanation (verse 13). We have already seen Lamoni soften, and so we have a sense of what is going on inside his mind. But we also saw that it took some pretty miraculous things to happen before Lamoni and his wife were converted. So it’s probably more surprising that Lamoni thought a simple explanation would suddenly turn his father’s thinking around, than the fact that this didn’t happen.

His father is totally unmoved, and seems to believe that his son has been foolishly duped into allying himself with Ammon. Feeling like his son needs some stern reminders of where his true loyalties should naturally lie, the father instructs Lamoni to kill Ammon and come with him (verse 14).

This is where the drama really heats up. The son’s conviction is being tested, and we know it is much deeper than his father thinks. Lamoni says, “Dad, I’m not coming with you, and I’m not turning against Ammon” (verse 15).

The father’s rage is kindled against his son, and it looks like he might even try to kill him with his sword. But Ammon steps between them and uses his prodigious strength, undoubtedly with heavenly help, to wound Lamoni’s father. Ammon also warns him that because Lamoni is now right with God, it is he (the father) who is actually in greater danger spiritually, because if he dies without repenting, and especially if he kills his innocent son, he would be tormented forever (verses 16-20).

A combination of fear and wonder grips Lamoni’s father. Having no real choice but to submit to Ammon, he is amazed further by the Nephite’s mercy and modest demands toward him. Instead of seeking to pressure the father into surrendering part of his kingdom, Ammon merely wants freedom for his companions held in prison in Middoni, and for Lamoni to be able to think and act for himself and his own kingdom. Ammon’s selflessness so surprises Lamoni’s father, and challenges his preconceptions about the “evil” Nephites, that he not only meets all of Ammon’s demands, but goes beyond that to ask Ammon and his companions to visit him in his capital so that he learn more about what makes them so powerful and so moral at the same time (verses 21-27).

Lamoni and Ammon proceed from there to Middoni, and they are able to secure the release of Ammon’s companions from captivity. These missionaries had been ill-treated from the start, and after being mocked and beaten in various places, had been bound, imprisoned, and subject to hunger, thirst and many other privations (verses 28-30).

Men and Women Using Joy in Christ to Rise to the Occasion - Book of Alma, Chapter Nineteen (Alma 19)

You can read the entire chapter here: https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/scriptures/bofm/alma/19?lang=eng.

Also check out these two videos: https://youtu.be/iWnNhTFTzvk and https://youtu.be/RRVj682zN_c.

This is a remarkable chapter because we witness heroism and amazing strength and depth of character from so many people, but in each in a different way. There are four people who stand out: two men (Ammon and King Lamoni) and two women (Lamoni’s wife and her servant Abish). 

What is most striking is that each of these men and women are able to be stay so dialed in to the Lord and His way of doing things despite getting surprised left and right with unexpected challenges. Like the rest of us, they are imperfect and probably had their share of good and bad days. But in these moments, they are able to keep their focus on the bigger picture. And so, as events swirl around them, they make courageous choices that leave them vulnerable to physical death, but entitle them to spiritual protection that also allows them to deflate the rising tensions that have broken out into chaos and near-insurrection.

The chapter begins on a somber note. Lamoni’s family and royal attendants don’t know what his unconsciousness means. Apparently, they haven’t seen something like this before with him. After two days and nights and no change in his condition, they assume he is dead (verse 1). 

In this situation, Lamoni’s wife turns to Ammon. This is a big decision. It is her husband and her people’s king. We don’t know the specific rules of succession in the land of Ishmael where Lamoni reigns, but there could be some major implications. Plus, his wife loves him. And she seems to want as much verification as possible for taking such an irreversible step as putting her husband in a sepulchre and potentially burying him alive (verses 2-4). 

Ammon knows that this kind of catatonic state is not death, but some kind of deep spiritual coma where the person is undergoing a major transformation. When he and his brothers were confronted by the angel in Mosiah 27, Alma went through almost the exact same experience, down to the same duration of time (two days and nights).  

The queen seems to be torn between her duty to do the right thing for her people and her desire to give her husband every chance to revive. The people around her seem to be divided about whether King Lamoni’s body has started to smell of decomposition, but she tells Ammon that “to me he doth not stink” (verse 5). Her turning to Ammon for verification seems to be like when we ask a trusted friend to give us a sanity check about something we observe or believe that seems oddly unpopular: “Tell me, am I crazy, or does this make sense?”

We learn that Ammon perceives the “dark veil of unbelief” being lifted from Lamoni’s mind, replaced by the “light of the glory of God.” We know that light dispels, or chases away, the “cloud of darkness,” and Ammon recognizes that it is infusing great joy into Lamoni’s soul. Fundamentally, then, Lamoni’s body literally has been overcome by joy. What we’ll learn next is that this joy can be infectious in the best way possible (verse 6-7).

Ammon tells the queen that Lamoni is only sleeping, not dead, and that he will wake the next day. She completely trusts Ammon, and her faith greatly impresses him. She keeps vigil at Lamoni’s bedside until the appointed time when Lamoni arises (verses 8-11).

When he does, he reaches out to his wife praising God and pronouncing blessings on her. We sense that whatever his past faults, he has been a good and loving husband. Then he simply states that he has seen his Redeemer (Christ), and He will be born into this world and redeem all who believe on Him. This simple, powerful truth once again overtakes the king’s physical strength, and he sinks once more into an unconscious state. His wife must have been greatly moved by the spirit attending his words, for she is also “overpowered by the Spirit” unto deep sleep (verses 12-13). 

This miraculous manifestation of God’s power moves Ammon to indescribable feelings of joy and gratitude. He is struck with amazement at how the Lord has answered his prayers and used him to help the Lamanites come to Christ despite the many centuries of their false and wicked traditions and actions. Thus, he too is overcome with joy in the moment and falls motionless to the earth (verse 14).

Words on a page clearly fail at conveying the intense power that must have come over all who witnessed these things. The king’s poor servants have doubtless never encountered anything like this. In their dumbstruck and confused state, they turn in humility to calling on the Lord. Ammon’s example and the things they have witnessed lead them to prayer almost as reflexively as our leg kicks out when our knee is struck with a rubber hammer. And with the Spirit so palpably present, the servants don’t stand a chance. They also fall to the ground, overpowered as are the king, the queen, and Ammon (verses 15-16).

With all of our main characters out of commission, our attention turns now to how the people of the land of Ishmael will respond to this very strange and miraculous cascade of events. When the authority figures are totally helpless and vulnerable, what will the masses do? 

Truth definitely seems stranger than fiction in this case. There is one servant who has not fallen unconscious. It is a Lamanite woman named Abish who serves the queen. We learn that Abish has already been a secret follower of the Lord and His truth for years because her father received and shared a “remarkable vision” (verse 16).

This is one of our first signs that amid whatever chaos may ensue, the Lord is very aware of the situation and all of the people involved. When the vision came to Abish’s father those many years ago, doubtless much of the reason was that God was looking ahead to this day, when his daughter would have such an important part in what comes next.

Abish knows that the power of God has overcome the king, the queen, Ammon, and the other servants. She acts without hesitation—the people must see this because it will cause them to also believe in God and His power. What an example of faith and fearlessness this good woman is to us! She goes house to house, like a female Paul Revere, only instead of a warning about impending danger from an enemy, Abish is inviting them all to come and see for themselves what has happened (verse 17).

In the next verses, some of us may be tempted to think, “Abish, how naive and foolish you are. You should have known that inviting the whole town to this scene would lead to panic, chaos, and mob rule. People are their own worst enemy.” And indeed, the first signs are not encouraging. Yes, the people are amazed at what they see, but instead of recognizing what has happened to the king and his retinue as a blessing, they view it as a curse. What terrible thing have these people done to be rendered completely inert? “Serves King Lamoni right for letting that terrible Nephite (Ammon) live among us.” Or “It’s bad karma for being so cruel to the servants who couldn’t stop the flocks from being scattered.” Rumors fly among the assembled crowd (verses 18-21). 

Not surprisingly, the thieves who Ammon battled in saving the king’s flocks see an opportunity for revenge. One (whose brother died at Ammon’s hand) raises his sword to kill the motionless Nephite prophet and servant, and—instantly falls dead (verses 22-23). 

This dismays the gathered people even more. What is going on here? Who’s next? Who or what is this Ammon person, that such otherworldly things are happening after his arrival in our land? Is he the Great Spirit or a messenger? Is he a monster meant to torture us (verses 24-27)? 

Abish hasn’t expected this, and I expect it pains her to think that the people are getting the wrong message from her effort to show them something wonderful. Our narrator (as usual in the Book of Mormon, it is the great record-keeper named Mormon) tells us that Abish is “exceedingly sorrowful, even unto tears.” But instead of helplessly gnashing her teeth and watching the people take things in the wrong direction, she acts. Approaching the queen, Abish grasps her hand, hoping to revive her. Immediately the queen regains her strength and jumps to her feet (verses 28-29). 

The queen is clearly quite a leader in her own right. These next, extremely important moments, with the situation so tense among the people, are hers. Her first exclamation is to praise Jesus and how He has personally saved her from sin. Her second statement is prayerful: she calls on God to have mercy on the gathered people. She cannot contain the joy she feels, and bursts with words that are clearly meaningful to her but probably beyond the understanding of those assembled, who have not yet had a personal encounter with God. Knowing she needs help, the queen revives King Lamoni by taking his hand (verses 29-30). 

The effect is immediate. Lamoni also jumps to his feet. We read that he teaches and rebukes his people at the same time. When we are corrected, it is important that we feel like it is for our growth and greater knowledge, so that we can learn from mistakes and help others do the same (verses 30-31). 

And so it is that Lamoni becomes the foremost witness of Jesus Christ and His gospel among his own people. Ammon and the king’s servants soon awake and add their testimonies to that of the king and queen. Some of these include accounts of being visited by angels. The people who are willing to hear believe and are converted to the Lord—their hearts are turned away from evil to good desires. They begin making covenants to follow the Lord and form a church through baptism. Just as the Jewish followers of Jesus were to take the gospel to the Gentiles in another 125 years, the Nephites through Ammon show that even their long-estranged Lamanite brothers and sisters can repent and find salvation (verses 32-36).