Alma 10:21 - 10:25

Alma 10:21 Yea, well doth he cry, by the voice of his angels that: I will come down among my people, with equity and justice in my hands.

The underlining philosophy of the Lord is that all people are treated the same and that reward and punishment is meted out in fairness and in like manner. No one is favored above another just because of their birth or other circumstance.

Why is it important that the Lord be fair and treat His children in the same manner? Why is justice so important that it is called referred to by itself? Why is it important that there is equality between all of us?

Alma 10:22 Yea, and I say unto you that if it were not for the prayers of the righteous, who are now in the land, that ye would even now be visited with utter destruction; yet it would not be by flood, as were the people in the days of Noah, but it would be by famine, and by pestilence, and the sword.

The only reason the city of Ammonihah still exists is because a few righteous people in the area are praying that the Lord will extend mercy a little while longer with the hope that the people will repent. Actually the city should have been destroyed by now because to the grossness of the sins of the people. If the city had been destroyed it would not be by flood as in the days of Noah, but by famine, disease and war.

Just how much influence do we have on events because of our prayers? I wonder at times if I should just let events naturally occur and trust in the Lord that what is happening is for the best or pray that he might try some other approach or delay in the hope that the situation will change? How do praying for others affect us personally? What change does it cause in us? Just how powerful a technique is praying for other have on each of us personally?

Alma 10:23 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.

Again Amulek reminds that people of Ammonihah that the only reason they still exists is because of the prayers of the few righteous in the city. But as soon as they get in their minds to remove these few remaining righteous folks (which they do soon) they will be destroyed by starvation, disease and war. It is going to happen soon unless they repent.

The removal of the righteous seems to be the key to how long a people will exist. When they are actively persecuted and killed or run out of town the Lord must figure it is a lost cause of try to work with them any longer and for the sake of the righteous that may be in other areas nearby, He will take them out. A question that has always intrigued me is just how long does the Lord wait to take people out? I guess when it is clear to Him that there is nothing more that could be done to get them to repent. When that is not an option, there is just no need to live any longer. The test is over and they have made the choise.

Alma 10:24 And now it came to pass that the people were more angry with Amulek, and they cried out, saying: This man doth revile against our laws which are just, and our wise lawyers whom we have selected.

Well the citizens of Ammonihah are even more ticked off at Amulek. They accuse him as well as Alma that he has spoken ill of their laws and the lawyers who see that the laws are lived up too.

I guess it is one thing to speak ill of people by strangers but for a local to do so is very irritating to the locals. I guess the locals expect some kind of loyalty by their neighbors. It usually take a lot of courage to speak out against ills of the community when you are living in it. I am impressed by Amulek’s commitment to his mission to call his neighbors to repentance. He has to know how this is going to affect him, his family and his business. However, he knows that if the people do not repent, his business will be destroyed anyway and he has to do something to get his people out of harm’s way. It would interesting to see how Amulek’s wife and children were dealing with all this?

Alma 10:25 But Amulek stretched forth his hand, and cried the mightier unto them, saying: O ye wicked and perverse generation, why hath Satan got such great hold upon your hearts? Why will ye yield yourselves unto him that he may have power over you, to blind your eyes, that ye will not understand the words which are spoken, according to their truth?

Amulek continues his speech with a high tone of voice. He is calling his neighbors and friends a wicked and perverse people. He asks why have the allowed satan to get such a great hold on their minds and hearts that they are following his precepts and philosophy? The result has been their blindness to the stupidity of their actions and the evil affect it is having on their families and the people of the city as a whole. It is frustrating to see this happening when what he and Alma are saying is true.

Blindness is the result for living according to one’s own philosophy which is actually satan’s influence. One is either living as God wants them too or how satan wants them too. There is NO middle ground. You either for the Father or not, period. If any person thinks they are living their own way and not under the influence of either are blind and/or fooling themselves. These are the only two ways that exists in the universe.