Alma thus far has had success in teaching the people at Zarahemla and Gideon, and at the beginning of chapter 8 he is going to take a break before moving on to a city called Melek. Notice in verse three that these are frontier folk; he's in the Nephite wild west now. The citizens of Melek, however, are apparently open to the gospel, and Alma doesn't run into any major problems here. When he heads further North the excitement begins.

After three days of hiking northward, Alma comes to a city called Ammonihah. Mormon doesn't have too many nice things to say about the residents of Ammonihah, who are described in verse 9: "Now Satan had gotten great hold upon the hearts of the people of the city of Ammonihah; therefore they would not hearken unto the words of Alma." Alma's response to a tough task should come as an inspiration to the rest of us, though: "Nevertheless Alma labored much in the spirit, wrestling with God in mighty prayer, that he would pour out his Spirit upon the people who were in the city; that he would also grant that he might baptize them unto repentance." A good missionary scripture, no doubt, but also a good example of prayer in general. Good prayer does not necessarily come easy, and we ought to show our seriousness when seeking the Lord in prayer.

Well, the people of Ammonihah don't take Alma too seriously, especially now that he's given up his judgeship and no longer wields the corresponding political power. So they rough him up a bit and kick him out of the city. Notice Alma's reaction here; he doesn't get mad or anything. He responds in true Sermon on the Mount fashion, although that hadn't been given yet. It's described in verse 14, Alma was "weighed down with much sorrow, wading through much tribulation and anguish of soul, because of the wickedness of the people who were in the city of Ammonihah." At this point an angel comes down to visit Alma -- the same one that visited him in the days of his rebellion, in fact. Now the tables are turned; instead of causing others to sorrow for his wickedness, he's the one sorrowing for the wickedness of others. Well, apparently the people are even more wicked than outward appearance has shown (see verse 17), so he's commanded to go back and warn them to repent or they will be destroyed.

This time Alma enters the city by another way. He's pretty hungry, and he says to some guy (who turns out to be Amulek), "Will ye give to an humble servant of God something to eat?" Amulek responds with verse 20: "And the man said unto him: I am a Nephite, and I know that thou art a holy prophet of God, for thou art the man whom an angel said in a vision: Thou shalt receive. Therefore, go with me into my house and I will impart unto thee of my food; and I know that thou wilt be a blessing unto me and my house." Remember that when Alma comes into Amulek's house to eat, he's being accepted in all serious as part of Amulek's family. Alma is now considered a member of the family, so it's natural that Amulek is going to go out there with him when he preaches to the people. So Alma tells him what's going on, and a few days later the Lord instructs them both to go out and prophesy and declare the words of God to the people. Mormon gives us a little foreshadowing here, in verses 30 to 32, a little taste of what's going to happen: "And Alma went forth, and also Amulek, among the people, to declare the words of God unto them; and they were filled with the Holy Ghost. And they had power given unto them, insomuch that they could not be confined in dungeons; neither was it possible that any man could slay them; nevertheless they did not exercise their power until they were bound in bands and cast into prison. Now, this was done that the Lord might show forth his power in them. And it came to pass that they went forth and began to preach and to prophesy unto the people, according to the spirit and power which the Lord had given them."

Beginning in chapter 9 we're quoting directly from Alma's record again. Right away the people start arguing with Alma. They say they're not going to believe the testimony of just one man. Notice the hyperbole they use. They come up with the wildest thing they can think of, and in true poetic justice it's going to happen to them. Verse 4: "And they said also: We will not believe thy words if thou shouldst prophesy that this great city should be destroyed in one day." But Alma responds, beginning in verse 8, "O ye wicked and perverse generation," don't you remember our fathers? Can't you see how merciful the Lord has been to us? He gives the prophecy he was commanded to give in verse 12: "Behold, now I say unto you that he commandeth you to repent; and except ye repent, ye can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God. But behold, this is not all -- he has commanded you to repent, or he will utterly destroy you from off the face of the earth; yea, he will visit you in his anger, and in his fierce anger he will not turn away."

The blessing and cursing upon the Americas is brought up once again -- it's a blessed land for the righteous, and a cursed land to the wicked. Alma points out that they could see that happening by looking at the state of the Nephite and Lamanite peoples. Yet with regards to the Lamanites, he says in verse 15: "Nevertheless I say unto you, that it shall be more tolerable for them in the day of judgement than for you, if ye remain in your sins, yea, and even more tolerable for them in this life than for you, except ye repent." Where much is given, much is required. Sinning in ignorance is not nearly so bad as knowingly reviling the laws of God. Brigham Young stated: "Those who do not profess to know anything of the Lord are far better off than we are, unless we live our religion, for we who know our Master's will and do it not, will be beaten with many stripes; while they who do not know the Master's will and do it not will be beaten with few stripes."

Alma outlines the many, many blessings the people have received, and explains to them the coming of the Lord and the promise of redemption for those who have faith, repent, and are baptized. He warns that those who "have been evil... shall reap the damnation of their souls, according to the power and captivation of the devil" (verse 28). He concludes his speech in verse 30: "And now, my beloved brethren, for ye are my brethren, and ye ought to be beloved, and ye ought to bring forth works which are meet for repentence [bringing forth works meet for repentance -- this looks a key to the whole faith vs. works dichotomy], seeing that your hearts have been grossly hardened against the word of God, and seeing that ye are a lost and a fallen people." Well, the people are pretty ticked off and want to throw them into prison, but first Amulek is going to speak.

We hear some of Amulek's words in chapter 10, and we get some great insight into who this guy is. He starts of with his ancestry of course, it's important that the people know who he is. There's a curious reference to an Aminadi interpreting certain writings. We don't have this story in our abridgement, but since Mormon is copying directly out of Alma's record here, a little reference to it sneaks in. Anyway, Amulek is a pretty well known businessman. He's a pretty wealthy guy, and with all this business he's been distracted from a gospel-centered life, as he tells us in verses 5 and 6: "I never have known much of the ways of the Lord, and his mysteries and marvelous power. I said I never had known much of these things; but behold, I mistake, for I have seen much of his mysteries and his marvelous power; yea even in the preservation of the lives of this people. Nevertheless, I did harden my heart, for I was called many times and I would not hear; therefore I knew concerning these things, yet I would not know; therefore I went on rebelling against God, in the wickedness of my heart, even until the fourth day of this seventh month, which is in the tenth year of the reign of the judges." This could probably be a good description of many of us if we're not too careful. Luckily Amulek was straightened out, and he ended up testifying alongside of Alma.

Verse 12: "And now, when Amulek had spoken these words the people began to be astonished, seeing there was more than one witness who testified of the things whereof they were accused, and also of the things which were to come, according to the spirit of prophecy which was in them." Well, they're astonished, but that doesn't mean they're going to accept what's staring them in the face. This is where the lawyers come in: it's they're job to trip up the witnesses in their words. We're told in verse 13 that they want to frame these guys so they can execute them, or at least have them thrown in prison. Verse 16: "And it came to pass that they began to question Amulek, that thereby they might make him cross his words, or contradict the words which he should speak." But he calls them out on their plans and warns them (verse 23), "But it is by the prayers of the righteous that ye are spared; now therefore, if ye will cast out the righteous from among you then will not the Lord stay his hand; but in his fierce anger he will come out against you; then ye shall be smitten by famine, and by pestilence, and by the sword; and the time is soon at hand except ye repent." Well, the people aren't too pleased about this, and they seem almost an the verge of riot.

Zeezrom comes into the picture, and he does a lot of talking in chapter 11. There's a digression here to go over Nephite coinage, and it's really interesting stuff, but we don't have the time to get into it this week. But the point is that the judges and lawyers get paid whenever people are dragged into court, so they want to make it happen as much as possible. It's why we have such a litigous society today: it's definitely not a righteous thing, but there's a lot of money in it. So, as stated in verse 20, the lawyers and judges "did stir up the people to riotings and all manner of disturbances and wickedness, that they might have more employ, that they might get money according to the suits which were brought before them; therefore they did stir up the people against Alma and Amulek." It's good business. We justify all kinds of sin because "it's just good business."

Well, Zeezrom follows the pattern that Satan started with Cain. He offers Amulek money, quite a bit of it in fact, to deny the existence of God. Amulek, speaking by the Spirit, outwits Zeezrom from every angle, and we get a good discourse on the redemption made by Christ while he's at it. I'll highlight a couple of verses here, starting with 40: "And he shall come into the world to redeem his people; and he shall take upon him the transgressions of those who believe on his name; and these are they that shall have eternal life, and salvation cometh to none else." Verses 42 and 43 give the clearest statement of the resurrection that one can find: "Now, there is a death which is called a temporal death; and the death of Christ shall loose the bands of this temporal death, that all shall be raised from this temporal death. The spirit and the body shall be reunited again in its perfect form; both limb and joint shall be restored to its proper frame, even as we now are at this time; and we shall be brought to stand before God, knowing even as we know now, and have a bright recollection of all our guilt." Well Zeezrom has been tripped up, we've been taught some good doctrine, and he's shaken up pretty badly at this point.

In chapter 12 Alma begins talking to Zeezrom (it was Amulek up to this point), and points out his trickery and shows him that his thoughts were made known to Alma and Amulek by the Spirit. Verse 7: "Now when Alma had spoken these words, Zeezrom began to tremble more exceedingly, for he was convinced more and more of the power of God; and he was also convinced that Alma and Amulek had a knowledge of him, for he was convinced that they knew the thoughts and intents of his heart; for power was given unto them that they might know of these things according to the spirit of prophecy." Zeezrom's really scared now. Seeing the situation he's in, he starts asking them about death, resurrection, and judgement -- frightening things for the wicked. Well, Alma answers him and astonishes all the people, but they're not quite ready to give up yet. They send another one of their henchmen in: Antionah.

Antionah says how can people be raised to an immortal state? The resurrection is a contradiction -- the tree of life was guarded by a flaming sword to prevent man from living forever. Well that's the point, says Alma, we're left mortal for the time being as a probationary state. He says it in verse 24: "And we see that death comes upon mankind, yea, the death which has been spoken of by Amulek, which is the temporal death; nevertheless there was a space granted unto man in which he might repent; therefore this life became a probationary state; a time to prepare to meet God; a time to prepare for that endless state which has been spoken of by us, which is after the resurrection of the dead." Well, the plan of salvation is expounded in this chapter, and Alma exhorts the people to repent and "provoke not the Lord our God to pull down his wrath upon us" but rather seek to stay on the Lord's good side.