Book of Mormon Evidence: Thematic Significance of Rabbanah

Evidence Summary

After protecting King Lamoni’s flocks and performing other services, Ammon went before the king but noticed something unsettled in his countenance. Probably not wanting to intrude, Ammon was about to leave when “one of the king’s servants said unto him, Rabbanah, which is, being interpreted, powerful or great king, considering their kings to be powerful; and thus he said unto him: Rabbanah, the king desireth thee to stay” (Alma 18:13; emphasis added throughout).

In a previous evidence article, it was demonstrated that the term Rabbanah and its attending gloss (editorial explanation) has support in ancient Semitic languages.1 This article will focus on a separate but related issue: the gloss’s relevance to the surrounding narrative, specifically regarding the themes of power and greatness.

A Theme of Power

A theme of divine power is introduced before the missionary narratives even begin. One of the first things Mormon tells the reader about the sons of Mosiah, upon their being reunited with Alma, is that “they taught with power and authority of God” and that “by the power of their words many were brought before the altar of God” (Alma 17:3–4). Once the extended flashback narrative begins which details their missionary service, Mormon again emphasizes that they “went forth among them, every man alone, according to the word and power of God which was given unto him” (Alma 17:17).2

In the story of Ammon, this theme is continued. Ammon’s extraordinary and divinely bestowed power is repeatedly emphasized, as is the transfer of that power to King Lamoni and his household:

• “I will show forth my power unto these my fellow-servants, or the power which is in me, in restoring these flocks unto the king” (Alma 17:29)
• “with mighty power he did sling stones amongst them” (Alma 17:36)
• “he slew a certain number of them insomuch that they began to be astonished at his power” (Alma 17:36)
• “And when … he had learned of the faithfulness of Ammon in preserving his flocks, and also of his great power … he was astonished exceedingly” (Alma 18:2)
• “And now, O king, we do not believe that a man has such great power, for we know he cannot be slain” (Alma 18:3)
• “Where is this man that has such great power?” (Alma 18:8)
• “tell me by what power ye slew and smote off the arms of my brethren that scattered my flocks” (Alma 18:20)
• “I know that thou art more powerful than all they” (Alma 18:21)
• “Wilt thou hearken unto my words, if I tell thee by what power I do these things?” (Alma 18:22)
• “And a portion of that Spirit dwelleth in me, which giveth me knowledge, and also power according to my faith and desires which are in God” (Alma 18:35)
• “thou art a prophet of a holy God, and that thou hast power to do many mighty works in his name” (Alma 19:4)
• “Now, this was what Ammon desired, for he knew that king Lamoni was under the power of God” (Alma 19:6)
• “for it was they who had stood before the king and testified unto him concerning the great power of Ammon” (Alma 19:15)
• “when she saw that all the servants of Lamoni had fallen to the earth, and also her mistress, the queen, and the king, and Ammon lay prostrate upon the earth, she knew that it was the power of God” (Alma 19:17)
• “and supposing that … by beholding this scene it would cause them to believe in the power of God, therefore she ran forth from house to house, making it known unto the people” (Alma 19:17)
• “they began to marvel again among themselves what could be the cause of this great power” (Alma 19:24)

A Theme of Greatness

Throughout the Book of Mormon, the term great is occasionally attributed to God or his works.3 However, the term is used to an unusual extent in the Lamanite conversion narratives, especially in reference to God. When Lamoni first learned of Ammon’s remarkable military prowess, he declared, “is not this the Great Spirit” (Alma 18:2). The phrase “Great Spirit” seems to have been a distinctive Lamanite title for deity and is used repeatedly throughout Alma 18–22.4

Of particular interest is the exchange between Ammon and Lamoni concerning the identity of God. Ammon asked, “Believest thou that there is a God?” and Lamoni answered, “I do not know what that meaneth.” Rather than undermining the Lamanite conception of deity, Ammon instead incorporated it into his message, asking, “Believest thou that there is a Great Spirit? And [Lamoni] said, Yea. And Ammon said: This is God” (Alma 18:24–28).

Building on this conceptual relationship, it appears these name-titles (“Great Spirit” and “God”) may have eventually fused together in Lamanite theology and discourse. This can be seen in a speech given by the righteous Lamanite king Anti-Nephi-Lehi, in which he used the term “great God” five times within just a few verses:

• “I thank my God, my beloved people, that our great God has in goodness sent these our brethren, the Nephites (Alma 24:7)
• “I thank my great God that he has given us a portion of his Spirit” (Alma 24:8)
• “I also thank my God, yea, my great God, that he hath granted unto us that we might repent” (Alma 24:10)
• “if we should stain our swords again they can no more be washed bright through the blood of the Son of our great God” (Alma 24:13)
• “And the great God has had mercy on us” (Alma 24:14)

Matthew Bowen explains, “In using the appellation ‘our great God,’ Anti-Nephi-Lehi preserves the key adjective associated with the being whom the Lamanites have formerly recognized as the Great Spirit.”5 In Ammon’s own powerful discourse in Alma 26, he seems to interact with this same theme, using the term “great” nearly a dozen times. Here are a few examples:

• “we have been made instruments in the hands of God to bring about this great work” (Alma 26:3)
• “Behold, who can glory too much in the Lord? Yea, who can say too much of his great power” (Alma 26:16)
• “he did not exercise his justice upon us, but in his great mercy hath brought us over that everlasting gulf of death and misery” (Alma 26:20)
• “Now this is my joy, and my great thanksgiving” (Alma 26:37)

Years later, Samuel the Lamanite supplied additional name-titles for deity that incorporate great:

• “And it shall come to pass, saith the Lord of Hosts, yea, our great and true God …” (Helaman 13:18)
• “which thing is contrary to the nature of that righteousness which is in our great and Eternal Head” (Helaman 13:38)
• “which is the knowledge of their Redeemer, and their great and true shepherd” (Helaman 15:13)

Bowen suggests that Samuel “knew the righteous traditions of the people of Ammon—the righteous Lamanites from whom he descended.”6 It therefore makes sense that he would perpetuate the language of greatness in connection to deity, albeit with his own unique phrases like “great and true God” or “great and true shepherd.”7

A Theme of Deflecting Greatness and Power

Throughout these narratives, Mormon seems to have been particularly sensitive to the distinction between the true source of great power—God himself—and the mortals who might be granted access to that power. Not only did Mormon repeatedly make such clarifications in his own statements, but he also included quotations from others to the same effect (italicized below).

When introducing the missionary narratives, Mormon explained that the sons of Mosiah went forth among the Lamanites, “every man alone, according to the word and power of God which was given unto him” (Alma 17:17). Likewise, when quoting Ammon’s internal dialogue, Mormon made sure to include his clarifying aside: “I will show forth my power unto these my fellow-servants, or the power which is in me, in restoring these flocks unto the king” (v. 29). In the next chapter, Ammon explained that “a portion of that Spirit dwelleth in me, which giveth me knowledge, and also power according to my faith” (Alma 18:35).

This issue comes to a head in Alma 26, when Aaron was afraid that Ammon was carried away unto boasting in himself. Ammon then made the following statements, directing his praise toward God and clarifying that God was the true source of his strength and power:

• “as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things” (Alma 26:12).
• “they are brought to sing redeeming love, and this because of the power of his word which is in us” (Alma 26:13)
• “yea, and we have been instruments in his hands of doing this great and marvelous work” … “Yea, who can say too much of his great power” (Alma 26:15–16)
• “through the power and wisdom of God we have been delivered again” (Alma 26:29)
• “for he has all power, all wisdom, and all understanding … Now if this is boasting, even so will I boast” (Alma 26:35–36)

Many chapters later, Mormon made a similar clarifying distinction when referring back to these events: “And now behold, I have somewhat to say concerning the people of Ammon, who, in the beginning, were Lamanites; but by Ammon and his brethren, or rather by the power and word of God, they had been converted unto the Lord” (Alma 53:10).

A Divine Warrior Context

An ancient cultural context might help further explain and elucidate Mormon’s emphasis on these themes.8 The available textual evidence suggests that the Lamanites viewed the Great Spirit as a powerful divine warrior who acted on behalf of certain groups or individuals. For instance, Lamoni stated that the Great Spirit had come to preserve his servants’ lives (Alma 18:4), while other Lamanites claimed the Great Spirit “had destroyed so many of their brethren” in defense of the Nephites rather than the Lamanites (Alma 19:27).9

Such beliefs can be traced to the Old Testament, which attributes to Jehovah the characteristics of a divine warrior who comes from heaven to fight battles on behalf of his covenant people. This belief system was also common throughout the ancient Near East.10 Jacob previously used similar language in 2 Nephi 6, suggesting that the Lehites carried this tradition with them from the Old World.11

The divine warrior motif helps explain the Ammon story since it was, after all, Ammon’s miraculous military prowess that initially led the Lamanites to believe he was an embodied god. It accounts for the frequent mention of Ammon’s great power and strength in these chapters, as well as Aaron’s concern about Ammon letting all of this get to his head. Matthew Bowen concluded that “Ammon’s fighting skills made him the ideal, if not the perfect, missionary” for these people at this time.12

Conclusion

With this textual data in place, it may be helpful to once again review Mormon’s editorial gloss in Alma 18:13: “And one of the king’s servants said unto him, Rabbanah, which is, being interpreted, powerful or great king, considering their kings to be powerful; and thus he said unto him: Rabbanah, the king desireth thee to stay.” As is often the case in the Book of Mormon, things aren’t as simple as they might first appear. While there was likely a legitimate linguistic reason for explaining the term Rabbanah, this gloss holds obvious thematic significance as well. As explained by Bowen,

Recalling the Lamanite royal ideology of Rabbanah (with its semitic roots) as “powerful or great king,” Mormon shows how Ammon drew on divine power and used it within the existing Lamanite belief system to enlarge a generalized belief in the “Great Spirit” into faith in Jesus Christ and his atonement, reflected in later speeches by Anti-Nephi-Lehi, Ammon, and Samuel the Lamanite.13

The way that Mormon repeatedly clarifies the divine source of this great power, either in his own statements or through his careful selection of quotations, is also noteworthy. In fact, that seems to be part of the reason for the gloss in the first place.

The Lamanites were clearly confused about the nature of God and the source of Ammon’s great power, likely due in part to their cultural assumptions about the Great Spirit being a divine warrior figure. The gloss draws particular emphasis to this cultural confusion, establishing a somewhat misguided Lamanite worldview that Mormon intended to both subvert and adapt as part of his larger rhetorical strategy. The gloss on Rabbanah thus offers a glimpse into the Book of Mormon’s literary complexity and sophistication, demonstrating how even seemingly tangential asides can sometimes be filled with profound depth and meaning.