Alma and Amulek’s preaching creates great waves in
Ammonihah! There are many people who believe and begin to repent, and believe
it or not, the lawyer Zeezrom who originally led the interrogation of Alma and
Amulek, is greatly impacted by their words.
Unfortunately, the majority of the people are angered by
Alma and Amulek, and bring them tied and bound to the Chief Judge of
their land, who is an awful guy. When the believers, including
converted-Zeezrom, try to stick up for Alma and Amulek in their unfair trial,
they are chased out of the land by the unbelievers. And most horribly, the
wives and children of the believers are gathered together and thrown into a pit
of fire to be burned along with their scriptures. Alma and Amulek are forced to
watch this awful scene.
Why don’t Alma and Amulek call upon God to save these
innocent people? Why does God allow terrible things to happen to good people? We probably won't understand all the answers in this life; but
in this case, Alma tells Amulek just one reason why God sometimes allows bad
people to do bad things to good people:
10 And when Amulek saw the pains of the women and children who were consuming in the fire, he also was pained; and he said unto Alma: How can we witness this awful scene? Therefore let us stretch forth our hands, and exercise the power of God which is in us, and save them from the flames.11 But Alma said unto him: The Spirit constraineth me that I must not stretch forth mine hand; for behold the Lord receiveth them up unto himself, in glory; and he doth suffer that they may do this thing, or that the people may do this thing unto them, according to the hardness of their hearts, that the judgments which he shall exercise upon them in his wrath may be just; and the blood of the innocent shall stand as a witness against them, yea, and cry mightily against them at the last day.12 Now Amulek said unto Alma: Behold, perhaps they will burn us also.13 And Alma said: Be it according to the will of the Lord. But, behold, our work is not finished; therefore they burn us not.
After witnessing this awful scene, Alma and Amulek are
thrown into prison for days where they are stripped, starved, and beaten, and
every day the Chief Judge and his entourage come to question them, mock them,
and beat them more. Alma and Amulek refuse to speak.
After many days of this routine, Alma and Amulek finally cry to God
for deliverance while their crowd of oppressors are in the prison, and the
entire prison crashes to the ground. Every person in the prison is killed except
for Alma and Amulek, who walk out free.
The Lord commands Alma and Amulek to leave the city of
Ammonihah, where the people remain hard-hearted and attribute Alma and Amulek’s
power to the devil.
They go to the neighboring town of Sidom where they find all
the men who had believed Alma and Amulek and fled from Ammonihaha. Alma and Amulek
tell them the tragic news of what happened to their wives and children, and
also what happened to them in prison.
A miracle of healing occurs in vs. 3-12 for
Zeezrom—remember, the bad lawyer turned good? I’ll let you read it yourself.
Alma and Amulek establish the church in the land of Sidom,
and then they are able to rest and rejuvenate from their labors for a time.
Even the prophets have to re-coop sometimes!
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