Alma 18: Ammon's Missionary Adventure: Saving King Lamoni's Sheep from Robbers

Ammon




Servants of King Lamoni testified about what Ammon had done.




King Lamoni





1 And it came to pass that king Lamoni caused that his ^aservants should stand forth and testify to all the things which they had seen concerning the matter.

 2 And when they had all testified to the things which they had seen, and he had learned of the faithfulness of Ammon in preserving his flocks,  and also of his ^agreat power in contending against those who sought to slay him, he was astonished exceedingly, and said: Surely, this is more than a man. Behold, is not this the Great Spirit who doth send such great punishments upon this people, because of their murders?  

 3 And they answered the king, and said: Whether he be the Great Spirit or a man, we know not; but this much we do know, that he ^acannot be slain by the enemies of the king; neither can they ^bscatter the king’s flocks when he is with us, because of his expertness and ^cgreat strength;   therefore, we know that he is a friend to the king. And now, O king, we do not believe that a man has such great power, for we know he cannot be slain.

 4 And now, when the king heard these words, he said unto them: Now I know that it is the Great Spirit; and he has come down at this time to preserve your lives, that I might not ^aslay you as I did your brethren.    Now this is the Great Spirit of whom our fathers have spoken.

 5 Now this was the ^atradition of Lamoni, which he had received from his father, that there was a ^bGreat Spirit. Notwithstanding they believed in a Great Spirit, they supposed that ^cwhatsoever they did was right; nevertheless, Lamoni began to fear exceedingly, with fear lest he had done wrong in slaying his servants;

 6 For he had slain many of them because their brethren had scattered their flocks at the place of water; and thus, because they had had their flocks scattered they were slain.

 7 Now it was the practice of these Lamanites to stand by the ^awaters of Sebus to scatter the flocks of the people, that thereby they might drive away many that were scattered unto their own land, it being a practice of plunder among them.

 8 And it came to pass that king Lamoni inquired of his servants, saying: Where is this man that has such great power?

 9 And they said unto him: Behold, he is feeding thy ^ahorses.

Now the king had commanded his servants, previous to the time of the watering of their flocks, that they should prepare his horses     and chariots, and conduct him forth to the land of Nephi; for there had been a ^bgreat ^cfeast appointed at the land of Nephi, by the father of Lamoni, who was king over all the land.

 10 Now when king Lamoni heard that Ammon was preparing his horses and his ^achariots  he was more astonished, because of the faithfulness of Ammon, saying: Surely there has not been any servant among all my servants that has been so faithful as this man; for even he doth remember all my commandments to execute them.

 11 Now I surely know that this is the Great Spirit, and I would desire him that he come in unto me, but I durst not.

 12 And it came to pass that when Ammon had made ready the horses and the chariots for the king   and his servants, he went in unto the king, and he saw that the ^acountenance of the king was changed; therefore he was about to return out of his presence.

 13 And one of the king’s servants said unto him, ^aRabbanah, which is, being interpreted, powerful or great king... the king desireth thee to stay...

Ammon

16 And it came to pass that Ammon, being filled with the ^aSpirit of God, therefore he perceived the ^bthoughts of the king.   And he said unto him... what is it, that thy marvelings are so great? Behold, I am a ^aman, and am thy servant; therefore, whatsoever thou desirest which is right, that will I do.

 18 Now ... king Lamoni did open his mouth, and said unto him: Who art thou? Art thou that Great Spirit, who ^bknows all things?

   19 Ammon answered and said unto him: I am not.

 20 And the king said: How knowest thou the thoughts of my heart? ... ^aif thou wilt tell me concerning these things, whatsoever thou desirest I will give unto thee; and if it were needed, I would guard thee with my armies; but I know that thou art more powerful than all they; nevertheless, whatsoever thou desirest of me I will grant it unto thee.

 22 Now Ammon being ^awise, yet harmless, he said unto Lamoni: Wilt thou hearken unto my words, if I tell thee by what power I do these things? And this is the thing that I desire of thee.

 23 And the king answered him, and said: Yea, I ^awill believe all thy words. And thus he was caught with ^bguile.

 24 And Ammon began to speak unto him with ^aboldness, and said unto him: Believest thou that there is a God?

 25 And he answered, and said unto him: I do not know what that meaneth.

 26 And then Ammon said: Believest thou that there is a ^aGreat Spirit?

 27 And he said, Yea.

 28 And Ammon said: This is God. And Ammon said unto him again: Believest thou that this Great Spirit, who is God, created all things which are in heaven and in the earth?

   29 And he said: Yea, I believe that he created all things which are in the earth; but I do not know the heavens.

 30 And Ammon said unto him: The heavens is a place where God dwells and all his holy angels.

 31 And king Lamoni said: Is it above the earth?

 32 And Ammon said: Yea, and he looketh down upon all the children of men; and he ^aknows all the thoughts and ^bintents of the heart; for by his hand were they all created from the beginning.

 

King Lamoni

Ammon

33 And king Lamoni said: I believe all these things which thou hast spoken. Art thou ^asent from God?

 34 Ammon said unto him: I am a ^aman; and man in the beginning was created after the image of God, and I am called by his Holy ^bSpirit to teach these things unto this people, that they may be brought to a knowledge of that which is just and true;

 35 And a portion of that ^aSpirit dwelleth in me, which giveth me ^bknowledge, and also power according to my faith and desires which are in God.

 36 Now when Ammon had said these words, he began at the creation of the world, and also the creation of Adam, and told him all the things concerning the fall of man, and ^arehearsed and laid before him the ^brecords and the holy scriptures of the people, ... he ^aexpounded unto them the ^bplan of redemption, which was prepared from the foundation of the world; and he also made known unto them concerning the coming of Christ, and all the works of the Lord did he make known unto them.

 40 And it came to pass that after he had said all these things, and expounded them to the king, that the king ^abelieved all his words.

 41 And he began to cry unto the Lord, saying: O Lord, have mercy; according to thy abundant ^amercy which thou hast had upon the people of Nephi, have upon me, and my people.

 42 And now, when he had said this, he ^afell unto the earth, ^bas if he were dead.



Queen Lamoni



 43 And it came to pass that his ^aservants took him and carried him in unto his wife, and laid him upon a bed; and he lay as if he were dead for the space of two days and two nights; and his wife, and his sons, and his daughters mourned over him, after the manner of the Lamanites, greatly lamenting his loss.

Ammon and King Lamoni Junior Meet King Lamoni Senior: Alma 20 - 22




King Lamoni wanted to bring Ammon to meet his father

 

Ammon




  1 And it came to pass that... king Lamoni desired that Ammon should go with him to the land of Nephi, that he might show him unto his father.

The Lord told Ammon not to go to the land of Nephi, but to go to Middoni, to save his friends in prison




 

Aaron was in prison with two other missionaries in Middoni.

 2 And the voice of the Lord came to Ammon, saying: Thou shalt not go up to the land of Nephi, for behold, the king will seek thy life; but thou shalt go to the land of ^aMiddoni; for behold, thy brother Aaron, and also Muloki and Ammah are in prison.

 3 Now it came to pass that when Ammon had heard this, he said unto Lamoni: Behold, my brother and brethren are in prison at Middoni, and I go that I may deliver them.

Ammon had to travel to Middoni to find Ammon's missionary brethren and save them.

 4 Now Lamoni said unto Ammon: I know, in the ^astrength of the Lord thou canst do all things. But behold, I will go with thee to the land of Middoni; 

King Lamoni wanted to come along with Ammon to Middoni

for the king of the land of Middoni, whose name is Antiomno, is a friend unto me; therefore I go to the land of Middoni, that I may flatter the king of the land,  

King Antiomno was a friend of King Lamoni Junior.

and he will cast thy brethren out of ^bprison. Now Lamoni said unto him: Who told thee that thy brethren were in prison?

 5 And Ammon said unto him: No one hath told me, save it be God; and he said unto me—Go and deliver thy brethren, for they are in prison in the land of Middoni.

 6 Now when Lamoni had heard this he caused that his servants should make ready his ^ahorses and his chariots.

 7 And he said unto Ammon: Come, I will go with thee down to the land of Middoni, and there I will plead with the king that he will cast thy brethren out of prison.

 8 And it came to pass that as Ammon and Lamoni were journeying thither, they met the father of Lamoni, who was king ^aover all the land.

 9 And behold, the father of Lamoni said unto him: Why did ye ^anot come to the ^bfeast on that great day when I made a feast unto my sons, and unto my people?

 10 And he also said: Whither art thou going with this Nephite, who is one of the children of a ^aliar?

 11And it came to pass that Lamoni rehearsed unto him whither he was going, for he feared to offend him.



King Lamoni Senior commanded
his son to kill Ammon but he would not.

  12 And he also told him all the cause of his tarrying in his own kingdom.. And now when Lamoni had rehearsed unto him all these things, behold, to his astonishment, his father was angry with him, and said: Lamoni, thou art going to deliver these Nephites, who are sons of a liar. Behold, he robbed our fathers; and now his children are also come amongst us that they may, by their cunning and their lyings, deceive us, that they again may rob us of our property.

 14 Now the father of Lamoni commanded him that he should slay Ammon with the sword. And he also commanded him that he should not go to the land of Middoni, but that he should return with him to the land of ^aIshmael.

 15 But Lamoni said unto him: I will not slay Ammon, neither will I return to the land of Ishmael, but I go to the land of Middoni that I may release the brethren of Ammon, for I know that they are just men and holy prophets of the true God.

 16 Now when his father had heard these words, he was angry with him, and he drew his sword that he might smite him to the earth.

King Lamoni was about to be killed by his own father



 17 But Ammon stood forth and said unto him: Behold, thou shalt not slay thy son; nevertheless, it were ^abetter that he should fall than thee, for behold, he has ^brepented of his sins; but if thou shouldst fall at this time, in thine anger, thy soul could not be saved...

  19 Now when Ammon had said these words unto him, he answered him, saying: I know that if I should slay my son, that I should shed innocent blood; for it is thou that hast sought to destroy him.

Ammon could not be killed

 20 And he stretched forth his hand to slay Ammon. But Ammon withstood his blows, and also smote his arm that he could not use it.

 21 Now when the king saw that Ammon could slay him, he began to plead with Ammon that he would spare his life.

 22 But Ammon raised his sword, and said unto him: Behold, I will smite thee except thou wilt grant unto me that my brethren may be ^acast out of prison.

 23 Now the king, fearing he should lose his life, said: If thou wilt spare me I will grant unto thee whatsoever thou wilt ask, even to half of the kingdom.

 24 Now when Ammon saw that he had wrought upon the old king according to his desire, he said unto him: If thou wilt grant that my brethren may be cast out of prison, and also that Lamoni may retain his kingdom, and that ye be not displeased with him, but grant that he may do according to his own desires in ^awhatsoever thing he thinketh, then will I spare thee; otherwise I will smite thee to the earth.

 25 Now when Ammon had said these words, the king began to rejoice because of his life.



King Lamoni Senior changed his heart



 26 And when he saw that Ammon had no desire to destroy him, and when he also saw the great ^alove he had for his son Lamoni, he was astonished exceedingly, and said: Because this is all that thou hast desired, that I would ^brelease thy brethren, and suffer that my son Lamoni should retain his kingdom, behold, I will grant unto you that my son may retain his kingdom from this time and forever; and I will govern him no more—

 

 27 And I will also grant unto thee that thy brethren may be cast out of prison, and thou and thy brethren may come unto me, in my kingdom; for I shall greatly desire to see thee. For the king was greatly astonished at the words which he had spoken, and also at the words which had been spoken by his son Lamoni, therefore he was ^adesirous to learn them.

 28And it came to pass that Ammon and Lamoni proceeded on their journey towards the land of Middoni. And Lamoni found favor in the eyes of the king of the land; therefore the brethren of Ammon were brought forth out of prison.

King Antiomno was a friend of King Lamoni Junior, so he let the missionaries out of prison.



Ammon was sad when he saw how much his missionary brethren had suffered in prison

 29 And when Ammon did meet them he was exceedingly sorrowful, for behold they were naked, and their skins were worn exceedingly because of being bound with strong cords. And they also had ^asuffered hunger, thirst, and all kinds of afflictions; nevertheless they were ^bpatient in all their sufferings.