Br. Martins' Lecture Notes for Book of Mormon

Alma 52-63

Questions for Review:

1. What brought great success to the 2,060 Stripling Warriors? (Alma 57:21)

2. Why does the Lord allow righteous individuals to be killed? (Alma 60:13)

3. Who became the next two record-keepers in the Book of Alma after the death of Helaman? (Alma 63:1, 11)

4. What two highly significant and correlated activities are mentioned at the close of the Book of Alma? (Alma 63:5-9)

5. What did Helaman, the son of Helaman, do with the sacred records in his possession? (Alma 63:12)

Alma 52-57

Ammoron (Amalickiah's brother) becomes king of the Lamanites (52:3)

Nephite dissensions undermine the war effort (53:8-9)

. Lack of unity in times of distress only contributes to worsen the problem

The 2,000 (later 2,060) Stripling Warriors (53:10-18)

They chose Helaman, president of the Church, as their commander (53:19)

This shows how serious the Nephite situation was in that war--even the president of the Church accepted a military assignment

Character of these 2,060 young warriors (56:47-48; 57:20-21,27)

Valiant and courageous; strong and active; true at all times and in all things; men of truth and soberness; knowledgeable of the commandments of God (53:20-21)

True - reliable; exactly conforming to a rule or standard; quick and exact in responding

Fearless and selfless (56:47)
Firm and undaunted; obedient; exact performers; firm minds; trusting God (57:20-21,27)

Firm - resistant to external pressure; securely fixed in place (indicates tone and resiliency of healthy muscle); determined; resolute; constant
Undaunted - not disheartened; resolutely courageous

The source of these warriors' qualities: the faith and teachings of their mothers (56:47-48)

Mormon, who himself had been a great soldier since his youth (see Mormon 2:2) seems to have reserved some of his highest compliments to the righteous warriors of his past, the 2,060 Stripling Warriors and Captain Moroni. His admiration was so great that this could have been (who knows?) the reason why he named his son after the great general of old.

These chapters also remind us of the role and importance of youth in the plan of salvation. Take a look at a few other examples of faith and responsibility at early ages (this list is not intended to be comprehensive):

Noah - D&C 107:52

Samuel - 1 Samuel 2:10

Nephi - 1 Nephi 2:16

Moroni - Alma 43:17

John, the Baptist - D&C 84:28

Mormon - Mormon 1:2-3,15

Joseph Smith Jr. - First Vision at age 14

Brigham Young - apostle at age 23

Heber J. Grant - apostle at age 25

David O. McKay - apostle at age 32

Alma 60

When trying to solve problems one must use the resources the Lord has provided, instead of waiting for him to do all the work (11,21)

Sometimes the Lord allows the righteous to be slain (12-13)

The Prophet Joseph Smith:
"I explained ... that it is a false idea that the Saints will escape all the judgments, whilst the wicked suffer; for all flesh is subject to suffer, and "the righteous shall hardly escape;" still many of the Saints will escape, for the just shall live by faith; yet many of the righteous shall fall a prey to disease, to pestilence, etc., by reason of the weakness of the flesh, and yet be saved in the Kingdom of God. So that it is an unhallowed principle to say that such and such have transgressed because they have been prayed upon by disease or death, for all flesh is subject to death; and the Savior has said, 'Judge not, lest ye be judged.' " September 29, 1839 (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p.162)

"The inward vessel shall be cleansed first" (23; also read D&C 29:12)

Alma 58, 61-62

The Lord inspires and comforts the faithful even in the middle of a great crisis (58:11)

Justification for battle against enemies (61:13; also read 60:33)

Death of Ammoron and end of the great (12 years long) war (62:33-38)

. Remember that this long war was caused by Nephite dissenters

War is not romantic, and even when fought for righteous reasons it still causes all kinds of serious problems (62:39-41)

. The prayers of the righteous preserved the people from destruction (62:40)

After a long period of crisis the Church needs to be properly taken care of (62:44-45)

Alma 63
The Records of
Shiblon, son of Alma the Younger
& Helaman, grandson of Alma the Younger

Shiblon (another son of Alma) and later Helaman (his nephew, son of Helaman) become the new record-keepers (1-2, 10-11)

Death of Captain Moroni (3)

Migrations to the north by ship (4-9; read also 1 Nephi 22:4)

Note: Traditions among Latter-day Saints combined with unconfirmed statements from past leaders, have held that Hagoth's ships would have sailed to Hawaii and Polynesian Islands. However, observe that the text in Alma 63, even though it opens the door to the possibility, does not affirm that any of the ships would have reached the islands of the Pacific. On the other hand, in 1 Nephi 22:4 we find a prophetic statement linking the population of the isles of the sea to the House of Israel--not via Hagoth's ships, but through other means still unknown to us. (Dr. Marcus Martins, January 2007)

Helaman publishes the scriptures (12)