Alma XV

27now it came to pass that when those Lamanites which had gone to war against the Nephites had found after their many struggles for to destroy them that it was in vain to seek their destruction they returned again to the land of Nephi 2and it came to pass that the Amlicites because of their loss were exceeding angry and when they saw they could not seek revenge from the Nephites they began to stir up the people in anger against their brethren the people of Anti-Nephi-Lehi therefore they began again to destroy them 3now this people again refused to take their arms and they suffered themselves to be slain according to the desires of their enemy 4now when Ammon and his brethren saw this work of destruction among those who they so dearly beloved and among those who had so dearly beloved them for they were treated as though they were angels sent from God to save them from an everlasting destruction therefore when Ammon and his brethren saw this great work of destruction they were moved with compassion and they said unto the king 5let us gather together this people of the Lord and let us go down to the land of Zarahemla to our brethren the Nephites and flee out of the hands of our enemies that we be not destroyed 6but the king saith unto them behold the Nephites will destroy us because of the many murders and sins we have committed against them 7and Ammon saith I will go and inquire of the Lord and if he saith unto us go down unto our brethren will ye go 8and the king saith unto him yea if the Lord saith unto us go we will go down unto our brethren and we will be their slaves until we repair unto them the many murders and sins which we have committed against them 9but Ammon saith unto him it is agains the law of our brethren which was established by my father that there should be any slaves among them therefore let us go down and rely upon the mercies of our brethren 10but the king saith unto him inquire of the Lord and if he saith unto us go we will go otherwise we will perish in the land 11and it came to pass that Ammon went and inquired of the Lord and the Lord said unto him 12get this people out of this land that they perish not for Satan hath great hold on the hearts of the Amlicites which do stir up the Lamanites to anger against their brethren to slay them therefore get thee out of this land and blessed are this people in the generation for I will preserve them 13and now it came to pass that Ammon went and told the king all the words which the Lord had said unto him 14and it came to pass that they gathered together all their people yea all the people of the Lord and did gather together all their flocks and herds and departed out of the land and came into the wilderness which divided the land of Nephi from the land of Zarahemla and came over near the borders of the land 15and it came to pass that Ammon saith unto them behold I and my brethren will go forth into the land of Zarahemla and ye shall remain here until we return and we will try the hearts of our brethren whether they will that ye shall come into their land 16and it came to pass that as Ammon was going forth into the land that he and his brethren met Alma over in the place of which has been spoken and behold this was a joyful meeting 17now the joy of Ammon was so great even that he was full yea he was swallowed up in the joy of his God even to the exhausting of his strength and he fell again to the earth 18now was not this exceeding joy behold this is joy which none receiveth save it be the truly penitent and humble seeker of happiness 19now the joy of Alma in meeting his brethren was truly great and also the joy of Aaron of Omner and Himni but behold their joy was not that to exceed their strength 20and now it came to pass that Alma conducted his brethren back to the land of Zarahemla even to his own house and it came to pass that they went and told the chief judge all the things which had happened unto them in the land of Nephi among their brethren the Lamanites 21and it came to pass that the chief judge sent a proclamation throughout all the land desiring the voice of the people concerning the admitting their brethren which were the people of Anti-Nephi-Lehi 22and it came to pass that the voice of the people came saying behold we will give up the land of Jershon which is on the east by the sea which joins the land Bountiful which is on the south of the land Bountiful and this land Jershon is the land which we will give unto our brethren for an inheritance 23and behold we will set our armies between the land Jershon and the land Nephi that we may protect our brethren in the land of Jershon and this we do for our brethren on account of their fear to take up arms against their brethren lest they should commit sin and this their great fear came because of their sore repentance which they had on account of their many murders and their awful wickedness 24and now behold this will we do unto our brethren that they may inherit the land Jershon and we will guard them from their enemies by our armies on conditions that they will give us a portion of their substance to assist us that we may maintain our armies 25now it came to pass that when Ammon had heard this he returned to the people of Anti-Nephi-Lehi and also Alma with him into the wilderness where they had pitched their tents and made known unto them all these things and Alma also related unto them his conversion with Ammon and Aaron and his brethren 26and it came to pass that it did cause great joy among them and it came to pass that they went down into the land of Jershon and took possession of the land of Jershon and they were called by the Nephites the people of Ammon therefore they were distinguished by that name ever after 27and they were numbered among the people of Nephi and also numbered among the people which were of the church of God and they were also distinguished for their zeal towards God and also towards men for they were perfectly honest and upright in all things and they were firm in the faith of Christ even unto the end 28and they did look upon shedding the blood of their brethren with the greatest abhorrence and they never could be prevailed upon to take up arms against their brethren and they never did look upon death with any degree of terror for their hope and views of Christ and the resurrection therefore death was swallowed up to them by the victory of Christ over it 29therefore they would suffer death in the most aggravating and distressing manner which could be inflicted by their brethren before they would take the sword or the scimitar to smite them 30and thus they were a zealous and beloved people a highly favored people of the Lord 28and now it came to pass that after the people of Ammon were established in the land of Jershon and a church also established in the land and the armies of the Nephites were set round about the land of Jershon yea in all the borders round about the land of Zarahemla behold the armies of the Lamanites had followed their brethren into the wilderness 2and thus there was a tremendious battle yea even such an one as never had been known among all the people in the land from the time Lehi left Jerusalem yea and tens of thousands of the Lamanites were slain and scattered abroad 3yea and also there was a tremendious slaughter among the people of Nephi nevertheless the Lamanites were driven and scattered and the people of Nephi returned again to their lands 4and now this was a time that there was a great mourning and lamentation heard throughout all the land among all the people of Nephi 5yea the cry of widows mourning for their husbands and also of fathers a mourning for their sons and the daughter for the brother yea and the brother for the father and thus the cry of mourning was heard among every one of them a mourning for their kindred which had been slain 6and now surely this was a sorrowful day yea a time of solemnity and a time of much fasting and prayer 7and thus ended the fifteenth year of the reign of the judges over the people of Nephi 8and this is the account of Ammon and his brethren their journeyings into the land of Nephi their sufferings in the land their sorrows and their afflictions and their incomprehensible joy and the reception and safety of the brethren in the land of Jershon and now may the Lord the Redeemer of all men bless their souls forever 9and this is the account of the wars and contentions among the Nephites and also the wars between the Nephites and the Lamanites and the fifteenth year of the reign of the judges is ended 10and from the first year to the fifteenth has brought to pass the destruction of many thousand lives yea it has brought to pass an awful scene of bloodshed 11and the bodies of many thousands are laid low in the earth while the bodies of many thousands are moldering in heaps upon the face of the earth yea and many thousands are mourning for the loss of their kindred because they have reason to fear according to the promises of the Lord that they are consigned to a state of endless woe 12while many thousands of others truly mourn for the loss of their kindred yet they rejoice and exult in the hope yea and even know according to the promises of the Lord that they are raised to dwell at the right hand of God in a state of never-ending happiness 13and thus we see how great the unequality of man is because of sin and transgression and the power of the devil which comes by the cunning plans which he hath devised to ensnare the hearts of men 14and thus we see the great call of the diligence of men to labor in the vineyards of the Lord and thus we see the great reason of sorrow and also of rejoicing sorrow because of death and destruction among men and joy because of the light of Christ unto life 29O that I were an angel and could have the wish of mine heart that I might go forth and speak with the trump of God with a voice to shake the earth and cry repentance unto every people 2yea I would declare unto every soul as with the voice of thunder repentance and the plan of redemption that they should repent and come unto our God that there might be no more sorrow upon all the face of the earth 3but behold I am a man and do sin in my wish for I had ought to be content with the things which the Lord hath allotted unto me 4I had not ought to harrow up in my desires the firm decree of a just God for I know that he granteth unto men according to their desires whether it be unto death or unto life yea I know that he allotteth unto man yea decreeth unto them decrees which are unalterable according to their wills whether it be unto salvation or unto destruction 5yea I know that good and evil hath come before all men or he that knoweth not good from evil is blameless but he that knoweth good and evil to him it is given according to his desires whether he desireth good or evil life or death joy or remorse of conscience 6now seeing that I know these things why should I desire more than to perform the work to which I have been called 7why should I desire that I was an angel that I could speak unto all the ends of the earth 8for behold the Lord doth grant unto all nations of their own nation and tongue to teach his word yea in wisdom all that he seeth fit that they should have therefore we see that the Lord doth counsel in his wisdom according to that which is just and true 9and I know that which the Lord hath commanded me and I glory in it I do not glory of myself but I glory in that which the Lord hath commanded me yea and this is my glory that perhaps I may be an instrument in the hands of God to bring some soul to repentance and this is my joy 10and behold when I see many of my brethren truly penitent and coming to the Lord their God then is my soul filled with joy then do I remember what the Lord has done for me yea even that he hath heard my prayer yea then do I remember his merciful arm which he extended towards me 11yea and I also remember the captivity of my fathers for I surely do know that the Lord did deliver them out of bondage and by them did establish his church yea the Lord God the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob did deliver them out of bondage 12yea I have always remembered the captivity of my fathers and that same God who delivered them out of the hands of the Egyptians did deliver them out of bondage 13yea and that same God did establish his church among them yea and that same God hath called me by a holy calling to preach the word unto this people and hath given me much success in the which my joy is full 14but I do not joy in my own success alone but my joy is more full because of the success of my brethren which have been up to the land of Nephi 15behold they have labored exceedingly and have brought forth much fruit and how great shall be their reward 16now when I think of the success of these my brethren my soul is carried away even to the separation of it from the body as it were so great is my joy 17and now may God grant unto these my brethren that they may sit down in the kingdom of God yea and also all those which are the fruit of their labor that they may go no more out but that they may praise him forever and may God grant that it may be done according to my words even as I have spoken amen