Alma 33
Alma2 Quotes Zenos, Zenock, and Moses
Alma 33:1–2
1 Now after Alma had spoken these words, they sent forth unto him desiring to know whether they should believe in one God, that they might obtain this fruit of which he had spoken, or how they should plant the seed, or the word of which he had spoken, which he said must be planted in their hearts; or in what manner they should begin to exercise their faith.
2 And Alma said unto them: Behold, ye have said that ye could not worship your God because ye are cast out of your synagogues. But behold, I say unto you, if ye suppose that ye cannot worship God, ye do greatly err, and ye ought to search the scriptures; if ye suppose that they have taught you this, ye do not understand them.
In Alma 31: 8-9, Mormon wrote that the Zoramites had previously been taught the Nephite religion, but that they had “fallen into great errors.” That condition meant that Alma2 could not be sure what these poor of the land of Antionum might have been taught. After Alma2‘s discourse on “growing faith as a seed grows,” they were willing to believe. They were taking that first step and planting the seed. However, Alma2 needed to know how much to teach them.
They desired to know “whether they should believe in one God.” That is probably not a question of whether they should be polytheists or monotheists, but rather whether they should believe that Yahweh is God. That very question suggests that they had not been taught many of the fundamentals of the Nephite religion.
One thing that they had been taught is that they could not worship God unless they did so in a synagogue. That is the first thing that Alma2 must contradict, because he wants these people to be able to worship, but he knows that they will not be permitted to enter the Zoramite synagogues. That is the reason that he brings up the subject. Alma2 rests his ultimate case on the scriptures, noting that, if the Zoramite preachers have used the scriptures to teach that they could only worship in synagogues, those teachers have misunderstood the scriptures.
Alma 33:3–11
3 Do ye remember to have read what Zenos, the prophet of old, has said concerning prayer or worship?
4 For he said: Thou art merciful, O God, for thou hast heard my prayer, even when I was in the wilderness; yea, thou wast merciful when I prayed concerning those who were mine enemies, and thou didst turn them to me.
5 Yea, O God, and thou wast merciful unto me when I did cry unto thee in my field; when I did cry unto thee in my prayer, and thou didst hear me.
6 And again, O God, when I did turn to my house thou didst hear me in my prayer.
7 And when I did turn unto my closet, O Lord, and prayed unto thee, thou didst hear me.
8 Yea, thou art merciful unto thy children when they cry unto thee, to be heard of thee and not of men, and thou wilt hear them.
9 Yea, O God, thou hast been merciful unto me, and heard my cries in the midst of thy congregations.
10 Yea, and thou hast also heard me when I have been cast out and have been despised by mine enemies; yea, thou didst hear my cries, and wast angry with mine enemies, and thou didst visit them in thine anger with speedy destruction.
11 And thou didst hear me because of mine afflictions and my sincerity; and it is because of thy Son that thou hast been thus merciful unto me, therefore I will cry unto thee in all mine afflictions, for in thee is my joy; for thou hast turned thy judgments away from me, because of thy Son.
Comments
Verses 4–11 quote the prophet Zenos from the brass plates. Alma2 cites this example of a prayer Zenos gave in order to demonstrate that prayer, and therefore worship, may occur anywhere. The imagery of the language and the repetitive structure of the phrases strongly suggest that this could be reformatted as poetry, and that it was originally either a poem or perhaps had been made into a hymn that was preserved on the brass plates even though we have no other record of it.
The teaching about where one might worship, or pray, moves from a wide area to the heart of one’s soul. It starts in the fields, then moves to the house, then to the closet in the house. Then it moves to the person when they are in a congregation and when they have been driven from a congregation and are their own. These poetic movements reinforce the idea that one may pray, or worship, in any location, whether in a group or alone.
Alma 33:12–14
12 And now Alma said unto them: Do ye believe those scriptures which have been written by them of old?
13 Behold, if ye do, ye must believe what Zenos said; for, behold he said: Thou hast turned away thy judgments because of thy Son.
14 Now behold, my brethren, I would ask if ye have read the scriptures? If ye have, how can ye disbelieve on the Son of God?
Alma2‘s question about believing in the scriptures has two objectives. The first is to get them to acknowledge that the scriptures hold the instructions that they need to properly worship Yahweh. The second is to teach a very specific lesson from the scriptures. Of course, Alma2 is rapidly turning to the coming Messiah. Therefore, it is not simply believing in the scriptures, but believing that the scriptures are speaking of that coming Messiah when Zenos said “Thou has turned away thy judgments because of thy Son.” That is the essential message of redemption, and the reason for the coming atoning Messiah.
If they believe the scriptures, they must believe “on the Son of God.”
Alma 33:15–19
15 For it is not written that Zenos alone spake of these things, but Zenock also spake of these things—
16 For behold, he said: Thou art angry, O Lord, with this people, because they will not understand thy mercies which thou hast bestowed upon them because of thy Son.
17 And now, my brethren, ye see that a second prophet of old has testified of the Son of God, and because the people would not understand his words they stoned him to death.
18 But behold, this is not all; these are not the only ones who have spoken concerning the Son of God.
19 Behold, he was spoken of by Moses; yea, and behold a type was raised up in the wilderness, that whosoever would look upon it might live. And many did look and live.
It is hardly surprising that Alma2‘s most important and most consistent message is the necessity of believing in the coming Messiah. That is the essential Nephite religious message and it is one of the first things lost in Nephite apostasies. It was certainly lost among the Zoramites (see Alma 31:16–17). Alma2 began by quoting Zenos on the ability to worship anywhere. Then he used Zenos to focus on the Messiah as the center of such worship.
Now, Alma2 expands the scriptural references. He quotes Zenock, and then cites the experience where Moses raised the serpent on the staff so that those bitten by a serpent might look upon it and live. He will use that as a type of Christ.
Alma 33:20–23
20 But few understood the meaning of those things, and this because of the hardness of their hearts. But there were many who were so hardened that they would not look, therefore they perished. Now the reason they would not look is because they did not believe that it would heal them.
21 O my brethren, if ye could be healed by merely casting about your eyes that ye might be healed, would ye not behold quickly, or would ye rather harden your hearts in unbelief, and be slothful, that ye would not cast about your eyes, that ye might perish?
22 If so, wo shall come upon you; but if not so, then cast about your eyes and begin to believe in the Son of God, that he will come to redeem his people, and that he shall suffer and die to atone for their sins; and that he shall rise again from the dead, which shall bring to pass the resurrection, that all men shall stand before him, to be judged at the last and judgment day, according to their works.
23 And now, my brethren, I desire that ye shall plant this word in your hearts, and as it beginneth to swell even so nourish it by your faith. And behold, it will become a tree, springing up in you unto everlasting life. And then may God grant unto you that your burdens may be light, through the joy of his Son. And even all this can ye do if ye will. Amen.
The sad part of the story of the serpent on the staff during the Exodus was that the way to be healed was so simple. The people had only to look and live. Still, many did not. Perhaps they felt it too easy. Perhaps they didn’t believe that Yahweh would truly save them. Alma2 invokes that experience to bring this people’s choice into clear focus. Alma2 is presenting them with the way to begin to have faith, with the way to worship, and with the true focal point of that worship. All they need to do is to take that first step.
If they can do so, if they can “plant this word in [their] hearts,” they will know that it is true. Alma2 is able to promise that, should they do so, “[their] burdens may be light,” because he clearly knew that his father’s people had experienced that very blessing. In the land of Helam they had been heavily burdened, but the Lord made their burdens light, or made them stronger to make the burdens appear lighter. Alma2 can speak to this from his father’s experience.
This is one of the cases in Mormon’s writing where a testificatory Amen does not end a chapter. It is possible that this Amen does not trigger a chapter ending because Mormon is copying from Alma2‘s record and Alma2 didn’t end a chapter at this point. Mormon simply kept working from the text and kept it as Alma2 had written it.
