Book of Mormon Commentary - Mosiah 18

by Don R. Hender

Scriptural Text [& Editorial]
Commentary & Explanation
Footnotes ~ References ~ JST
             CHAPTER 18

Alma preaches in private—He sets forth the covenant of baptism at the waters of Mormon—He organizes the Church of Christ and ordains priests—They support themselves and teach the people—Alma and his people flee from King Noah into the wilderness. [About 148—145 B.C.]

1 AND now, it came to pass that Alma, who had fled from the servants of king Noah, arepented of his sins and iniquities, and went about privately among the people, and began to teach the words of Abinadi—
2 Yea, concerning that which was to come, and also concerning the resurrection of the dead, and the aredemption of the people, which was to be brought to pass through the power, and sufferings, and bdeath of Christ, and his resurrection and ascension into heaven.
3 And as many as would hear his word he did teach. And he taught them privately, that it might not come to the knowledge of the king. And many did believe his words.

 1a Mosiah 23:9
 2a TG Jesus Christ, Redeemer
   b TG Jesus Christ, Ascension of;
     TG Jesus Christ, Death of
4 And it came to pass that as many as did believe him did go forth to a aplace which was called Mormon, having received its name from the king, being in the bborders of the land having been infested, by times or at seasons, by wild beastsa.
5 Now, there was in Mormon a fountain of pure water, and Alma resorted thither, there being near the water a thicket of small trees, where he did hide himself in the daytime from the searches of the king.
6 And it came to pass that as many as believed him went thither to hear his words.

 4a a place which was called Mormon, having received its name from the king, being in the borders of the land having been infested by times or at seasons, by wild beasts Now there has been some who have stated the meaning of the name Mormon as being 'MORE - GOOD'. This is of course a latter-day application to what the Book of Mormon brings about. As to the actual meaning of the name in the days of the Nephites we can only surmise from such as this verse which stipulates that it did refer to the place on the borders of the wilderness which was infested with wild beast at times. This would also explain why Alma pick this location to hide himself and his peole at. For if it had the reputation of being infested by wild beasts then the kings men would be less likely to search the location throughly in fear of the wild beast. But true to their faith in Christ, Alma and his people had no fear of the wild beast, but rather found themselves a home of peace and harmony among the wild and fearsome creatures of nature. As to which king had named the location Mormon, it would seem the Zeniff would have had the more experience with the wilderness than would have had Noah.  4a Alma 5:3; 3 Ne. 5:12
   b Mosiah 18:31
7 And it came to pass *after many days there were a goodly number gathered together at the place of Mormon, to hear the words of Alma. Yea, all were gathered together that believed on his word, to hear him. And he did ateach them, and did preach unto them repentance, and redemption, and faith on the Lord.
8 And it came to pass that he said unto them: Behold, here are the waters of Mormon (for thus were they called) and now, as ye are adesirous to come into the bfold of God, and to be called his people, and are willing to bear one another's burdens, that they may be light;
9 Yea, and are awilling to mourn with those that bmourn; yea, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort, and to stand as cwitnesses of God at all times and in all things, and in all places that ye may be in, even until death, that ye may be redeemed of God, and be numbered with those of the dfirst resurrection, that ye may have eternal life—
10 Now I say unto you, if this be the desire of your hearts, what have you against being abaptized in the bname of the Lord, as a witness before him that ye have entered into a ccovenant with him, that ye will serve him and keep his commandments, that he may pour out his Spirit more abundantly upon you?

The Baptismal Covenant 
Reflective of the sacramental prayers and the covenant we enter at baptism, verse 10 itemizes well what it is that we do in the outward performance of the symbolic act of baptism. 1) We enter in 'in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ'. 2) We witness before him by the action of batism that we are entering into a covenant with him wherein we promise to do certain things and he in turn gives a promise unto us. 3) What we promise is that we will serve him and keep his commandments. 4) What he promises us in return is that we will have his Spirit more abundantly poured out upon us. And this is the relationship between God and man. That as man draws near unto God by serving him and obeying his commandments, then God pours out his Spirit and presence upon man in guiding and directing him in the ways that he should go to obtain Eternal Life and the Kingdom of God. Thus the opposite is true. When men do not serve God and keep his commandments, man has no promise from the Lord that he will be successfully led in the path and way of God which leads to Eternal Life. And thus man left unto himself does fall into the forebidden roads and ways of the world which led to the second death of being separated from the presence and kingdom of God. It is that simple that a child may understand it. And since that men are not perfect but subject to the weaknesses of the flesh. It is further ordained of God that man might renew and keep anew his baptismal and other covenant that he may have entered into with God by the ordinance of the sacrement of the Lord. Thus great is the love and the mercy of the Lord which has give such a workable and merciful plan of redemption unto man whereby they may return unto him. 		  7* [About 147 B.C.]
    a Alma 5:13
  8a D&C 20:36-37, 77
    b TG Brotherhood and Sisterhood;
      TG Conversion
  9a TG Baptism, Qualifications for
    b TG Comfort; TG Compassion
    c TG Missionary Work; TG Witnesses
    d Jacob 4:11
10a 2 Ne. 31:17; Alma 4:4
    b TG Jesus Christ, Taking the Name of
    c Neh. 10:29; TG Commitment
11 And now when the people had heard these words, they clapped their hands for joy, and exclaimed: This is the desire of our hearts.
12 And now it came to pass that Alma took Helam, he being one of the first, and went and stood forth in the water, and cried, saying: O Lord, pour out thy Spirit upon thy servant, that he may do this work with holiness of heart.
13 And when he had said these words, the aSpirit of the Lord was upon him, and he said: Helam, I baptize thee, having bauthority from the Almighty God, as a testimony that ye have entered into a ccovenant to serve him until you are dead as to the mortal body; and may the Spirit of the Lord be poured out upon you; and may he grant unto you eternal life, through the redemption of Christ, whom he has prepared from the dfoundation of the worlda.
14 And after Alma had said these words, both Alma and Helam were aburied in the watera; and they arose and came forth out of the waterb rejoicing, being filled with the Spirit.

Alma's Baptism 
Whether the words of the actual baptismal covenant have forever been the same since the days of Adam unto this day and were in fact used by Alma is a matter for God to be concerned about. For they are given by God to man for the purposes of God. And if any may set them or if any may alter them according to the various circumstance of man, it is certainly the right of God to do so and to none other. Thus whether Alma's pronouncement upon Helam was that of prepatory explaination or the actual part of the prayer of baptism in Alma's day before the time of Christ is not a worrisome matter at all. For it is a matter unto God. But what we may do is to study the words of Alman unto Helam and glean from them what is significant unto us relative to our own baptism in Christ.

Now we first learn fromt the words of Alma unto Helam that Alma had received his authority directly from the 'Almighty God'. This establishes that Alma was called and ordained of God, by the hand of God and not after the order of man. And it establishes that such authorized authority from God is necessary for the performance of all such ordinances of God. We also learn that our baptism is a testimony before God and man that we have entered into a covenant with God that we would serve him until when we are dead, until our death, enduring to the end of this mortal existance. And we also learn that what the Lord gives in return is that the Spirit of the Lord, the Holy Ghost might be poured out upon man to the end purpose of obtaining and being granted eternal life through the redeption of Jesus Christ. And we also learn that this was the plan of redemption given whereby man might be saved from the foundation of the world. This is the work and the glory of God, to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. And there is NO OTHER WAY given by which man may be saved and redeemed to enter the kingdom of God and obtain eternal life but by this way unto Christ.

 13a from the foundation of the world From whence was and what is the meaning of 'the foundation of the world'? Any person in the world of construction knows that before one attempts of build a structure, there first needs to be brought into existance a plan, design or blueprint. And in that sense, the beginning or foundation of a structure is not merely when the whole is dug, the forms are prepared and the cement pored for the actual physical foundation of the building. That is but the physical or temporal foundation. But well before it was prepared and pored and came into existance, there was first the thoughts, ideas and design of it made. Of course as is also the case in the building process, one such design and or blueprint may be used and reused in the construction of many buildings or houses. And so also it is with the many worlds which God has created, each being after that order and plan which was set and established before.
 14a buried in the water The very selection of words here become of importance in understanding the order and meaning of baptism. Baptism is an outward symbolic ordinance which is a representation of the process of the atonement of Christ. As Christ was 'buried' in the earth unto death so are we also symbolically so buried in the water representing our death in both the dualistic sense that it does represent both the death of the natural carnal man and of that actual physical death which we will all one day suffer. We are buried with Christ unto death. This is the symbolism of being 'buried' submerged by complete emersion under the water as under the ground of the grave of death.
 14b they arose and came forth out of the water Again the words are selected purposefully. 'They arose' out of the water, as with Christ we too arise from the dead. 'They came forth out of teh water', as with Christ we come forth out of the tomb unto a newness of life. In life it is putting off the old man of sin and putting on the new man of righteousness. In actual death, it is the laying down of the corruptable body of mortality and the taking up the incorruptable body of immortality. It is the words which symbolize the resurrection, arising from the grave, coming forth out of the tomb into that newness of immortality which the resurrection does bring. And it terms of the sins of the Old Man, it is the washing away and cleansing through the atonement of Christ the sins of man, that he may so arise cleased from all sin by the mercy and grace of God. 		 13a TG Holy Ghost, Mission of
     b Mosiah 21:33; Alma 5:3; 3 Ne. 11:25
     c Mosiah 21:31; TG Covenants
     d Mosiah 4:6; Alma 12:30 (25, 30)
 14a TG Baptism, Immersion
15 And again, Alma took another, and went forth a second time into the water, and baptized him according to the first, only he did not bury ahimself again in the water.
16 And after this manner he did baptize every one that went forth to the place of Mormon; and they were in number about two hundred and four souls; yea, and they were abaptized in the waters of Mormon, and were filled with the bgrace of God.
17 And they were called the church of God, or the achurch of Christ, from that time forward. And it came to pass that whosoever was baptized by the power and authority of God was added to his church.

 15a JS-H 1:71 (70-71)
 16a Mosiah 25:18
     b TG Grace
 17a Mosiah 21:34; Mosiah 25:22 (18-23);
       Mosiah 26:4; Alma 4:5 (4-5l); 3 Ne. 26:21;
       TG Jesus Christ, Head of the Church
18 And it came to pass that Alma, having aauthority from Goda, bordained priests; even one priest to every fifty of their number did he ordain to preach unto them, and to cteach them concerning the things pertaining to the kingdom of God.
19 And he commanded them that athey should bteach nothing save it were the things which he had taught, and which had been spoken by the mouth of the holy prophets.
20 Yea, even he commanded them that they should apreach nothing save it were repentance and faith on the Lord, who had redeemed his people.

 18a Alma, having authority from God Now in Mormon's abridgement we are not given the details of God's administration unto Alma and the whole course of his conversion and the restoration of the priesthood and authority from God unto him, given by the hand of God to so establish a Chruch of Christ. But we are simply told and are to understand that such was the case. Alma had received his authority from God. Whether such details are to be found in the comlete record of Alma which he made is to be yet found out. But Mormon merely extracts the facts of the matter that Alma was so authorized and called by God to do the work of God in establishing a Church of God. What like experiences unto those of Joseph Smith which Alma may have had we are not at this present time given to know and may only speculate upon such. But certainly Alma would have had some such administrations from God to establish Alma in that position which Alma was raised to in the name of God. It is of a note of interest to see that the church which Alma did established was geared to the times and the people with which Alma did deal with, though the doctrine was the same then as it is today.  18a Mosiah 23:16; TG Priesthood, Authority
     b TG Priesthood, History of
     c Mosiah 2:4; Mosiah 23:14; Mosiah 24:4-8
 19a Mosiah 23:14
     b D&C 5:10
 20a TG Preaching; TG Repentance
21 And he commanded them that there should be no acontention one with another, but that they should look forward with bone eye, having one faith and one baptism, having their hearts cknit together in unity and in love one towards another.
22 And thus he commanded them to preach. And thus they became the achildren of God.
23 And he commanded them that they should observe the asabbath day, and keep it holy, and also every day they should give thanks to the Lord their God.
24 And he also commanded them that the priests whom he had ordained ashould blabor with their own hands for their support.

 13a TG Contention
     b Matt. 6:22; Morm. 8:15; D&C 4:5;
       D&C 88:68
     c 1 Sam. 18:1; Rom. 15:5 (1-7);
       Mosiah 4:15; Mosiah 23:15
 22a Moses 6:68
 23a Ex. 35:2; Mosiah 13:16-19
 24a Acts 20:34 (33-35); Mosiah 27:5 (3-5);
       Alma 1:3, 26
     b 1 Cor. 9:18 (16-19); Alma 30:32
25 And there was aone day in every week that was set apart that they should bgather themselves together to teach the people, and to worship the Lord their Goda, and also, as often as it was in their power, to cassemble themselves together.
26 And the priests were not to depend upon the people for their support; but for their labor they were to receive the agrace of God, that they might wax strong in the Spirit, having the bknowledge of God, that they might teach with power and authority from Goda.

 25a there was one day in every week that was set apart that they should gather themselves together to teach the people, and to worship the Lord their God Oh the foolishness of man and the simplicity of God. Man lives denying the very existance of God but yet wherein is the time of man marked? What an oddity it is that the prime number of 7 be chosen to mark man's calendar of the passage of time. This single basic unit of measure in all of its oddity and lack of practicality unto the wisdom of man is so well preserved in the annuals of man that from whence did it come but by God? Does man have seven fingers upon his hand that the number of days in a week ought to be seven? Such an awkward number this seven. And where with would man have contrived it but by and through God, the days of creation and the seventh being given as a day of rest unto the Lord? Certainly is man would have of himself contrived the calendar of time a 'week's' measurement of time would have been something other that the number 7. Perhaps 5 the number of digits upon a single hand. Or perhaps even 10 the number upon two hand, that is the basic base of the dicimal system of man. Even the number of 12, being divisible by 3 and 4 would have been a workable choice. But Seven? Wherein lies that logic of man in this? And and answer is that it does not. For it is not the logic of man which pronounced it. But it was established by the word and power of God. And all doth use it whether they profess a belief in God or not. And so it is in the course of things that it runs by the design of God whether or not man doeth accept it or not.  26a with power and authority from God Some speculate from whence Alma obtained his authority to so establish a church among the people. Some suppose that Alma, being a priest of King Noah's court, had received his priesthood from that ordinational source. But here it seems to plainly state that such authority in the church which Alma established was that power and that authority which was from God and not of man. The Book of Mormon is an abridgement. Certainly by now, Mormon is beyond just copying from the record of Zeniff and is into compilaton of his abridged record from all such sorces as the record of Alma as well. That Alma would have had an authorization from God to establish a church is certain. That Alma obtained he power and authority from God is so stated here and elsewhere in the Book of Mormon record. Perhaps if we had the whole of the story there would be some interesting parallels to be drawn between Joseph Smith's restoration visitations and those of Alma. Alma's would have been before the time of Christ and Joseph Smith's was of course since that date. Joseph Smith received his priesthood from John the Baptist and the three chief Apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ. And Joseph Smith had seen Christ and the Father as well as other angelic visitors. As to who and how many such sanctioning visitations and wither or not they would correspond well or poorly with those of Joseph Smith seem to not be of a signicant nature. For it is a matter of apples and oranges in one respect. A Church of Christ before and a Church of Christ after the time of Chrirst need not be precisely equally compared in all respects and those who would do so might find fault in the seeming differences. Perhaps beyond the concept of an abridged record is also to be found the wisdom of not placing a part or even the whole of such matters unto Alma to be so considered by the mere understandings of men.  25a Alma 32:11
     b TG Meetings
     c TG Assembly for Worship
 26a TG Blessing; TG Reward; TG Wages
     b Neh. 10:28; TG God, Knowledge about
27 And again Alma commanded that the people of the church should impart of their substance, aevery one according to that which he had; if he have more abundantly he should impart more abundantly; and of him that had but little, but little should be required; and to him that had not should be given.
28 And thus they should impart of their asubstance of their own free will and good desires towards God, and to those priests that stood in needa, yea, and to every needy, naked soul.
29 And this he said unto them, having been commanded of God; and they did awalk uprightly before God, imparting to one another both temporally and spiritually according to their needs and their wants.

 28a and to those priests that stood in need Now there is a line to be drawn between the supporting of priests in their need and that of priests being priests and preaching the word of God merely to get gain, to become popular and to gain riches of the people. We do not have a paid ministry in the church. The true church of God does not have paid ministers nor does it support the concept of priestcraft, All men are to work for their living and support. Yet all those who do yet stand in need, as also to be given support in their need according to the law of God. The difference between being support in one's need and glutting themselves upon the people is a clear cut and well defined line. A man is to work for his own support. If unable or even if he is insefienct in this undertaking, it is the intent of the system of the Lord that his people of his kingdom on earth not suffer because of the lack of what they stand in 'need' of. And those who are able to so give such support are to render such aid unto their brethren in the gospel of Christ.  27a Alma 16:16; 4 Ne. 1:3
 28a TG Generosity; TG Initiative
 29a TG Walking with God; TG Welfare
30 And now it came to pass that all this was done in Mormon, yea, by the awaters of Mormon, in the forest that was near the waters of Mormon; yea, the place of Mormon, the waters of Mormon, the forest of Mormon, how beautiful are they to the eyes of them who there came to the knowledge of their Redeemer; yea, and how blessed are they, for they shall bsing to his praise forever.
31 And these things were done in the aborders of the land, that they might not come to the knowledge of the king.

 30a Mosiah 26:15
     b TG Praise; TG Singing
 31a Mosiah 18:4
32 But behold, it came to pass that the king, having discovered a movement among the people, sent his servants to watch them. Therefore on the day that they were assembling themselves together to hear the word of the Lord they were discovered unto the king.
33 And now the king said that Alma was stirring up the people to rebellion against him; therefore he sent his aarmy to destroy them.

 33a Mosiah 19:1
34 And it came to pass that Alma and the people of the Lord were aapprised of the coming of the king's army; therefore they took their tents and their families and bdeparted into the wilderness.
35 And they were in number about afour hundred and fifty souls.

 34a Mosiah 23:1
     b Mosiah 21:30; Mosiah 23:13, 36
 35a Mosiah 23:10
* Verse 7 [About 147 B.C.]
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