Alma 9 - 10

As Alma and Amulek began their preaching to people of Ammonihah, the people began to condescendingly contend with Alma saying -

"...Who art thou? ...And they said also: We will not believe thy words if thou shouldst prophesy that this great city should be destroyed in one day." (Book of Mormon Alma 9:2 - 4)

"Who is God, that sendeth no more authority than one man among this people, to declare unto them the truth of such great and marvelous things?" (Book of Mormon Alma 9:6)

As I read these words, I couldn't help but think of the catastropic disaster caused by the hurricane Katrina this past week in New Orleans and other southern cities. I wonder how many arrogant citizens in those cities felt the same way as the people of Ammonihah.

Alma responds back with -

"..have ye forgotten so soon how many times [God] delivered our fathers out of the hands of their enemies, and preserved them from being destroyed...Yea, and if it had not been for his matchless power, and his mercy, and his long-suffering towards us, we should unavoidably have been cut off from the face of the earth long before this period of time, and perhaps been consigned to a state of endless misery and woe." (Book of Mormon Alma 9:10 - 11)

He reminds the people that the Lord had said that -

"...Inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments, ye shall prosper in the land. And ...Inasmuch as ye will not keep my commandments ye shall be cut off from the presence of the Lord." (Book of Mormon Alma 9:13)

Then Alma very boldly tells them -

"...now I say unto you that he commandeth you to repent; and except ye repent, ye can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God. But behold, this is not all—he has commanded you to repent, or he will utterly destroy you from off the face of the earth; yea, he will visit you in his anger, and in his fierce anger he will not turn away." (Book of Mormon Alma 9:12)

"...behold, I say unto you that if ye persist in your wickedness that your days shall not be prolonged in the land...and if ye repent not...in a time when you know not, and ye shall be visited with utter destruction; and it shall be according to the fierce anger of the Lord.
19 For he will not suffer you that ye shall live in your iniquities..." (Book of Mormon Alma 9:18 - 19)

Why would the Lord have so much anger? Because

"after having been such a highly favored people of the Lord; yea, after having been favored above every other nation, kindred, tongue, or people; after having had all things made known unto them, according to their desires, and their faith, and prayers, of that which has been, and which is, and which is to come;
21 Having been visited by the Spirit of God; having conversed with angels, and having been spoken unto by the voice of the Lord; and having the spirit of prophecy, and the spirit of revelation, and also many gifts, the gift of speaking with tongues, and the gift of preaching, and the gift of the Holy Ghost, and the gift of translation;
22 Yea, and after having been delivered...by the hand of the Lord; having been saved from famine, and from sickness, and all manner of diseases of every kind; and they having waxed strong in battle, that they might not be destroyed; having been brought out of bondage time after time, and having been kept and preserved until now; and ...have been prospered until they are rich in all manner of things—" (Book of Mormon Alma 9:20 - 22)

And with all those blessings, Alma says -

"...now behold I say unto you, that if this people, who have received so many blessings from the hand of the Lord, should transgress contrary to the light and knowledge which they do have,...that if ye will rebel against him..." (Book of Mormon Alma 9:23 - 24)

Then -

"...ye shall utterly be destroyed from off the face of the earth..." (Book of Mormon Alma 9:23 - 24)

And all the Lord asks is for each of us -

"...to bring forth works which are meet for repentance" (Book of Mormon Alma 9:30)