During the reign of
the judges, following king Mosiah denouncing of the kingship after his sons
refused the kingdom, and he had made it clear it would be far better for man to be
judged by God than of man, “for the
judgments of God are always just, but the judgments of man are not always just”
(Mosiah 29:12); he added, “Therefore, if
it were possible that you could have just men to be your kings, who would
establish the laws of God, and judge this people according to his commandments,
yea, if ye could have men for your kings who would do even as my father
Benjamin did for this people—I say unto you, if this could always be the case
then it would be expedient that ye should always have kings to rule over you”
(Mosiah 29:13).
One of the key pieces
of information the Jaredites left us is on this very same subject. When Jared
and his brother (left) became old, the people desired them to appoint a king
over them. The brother of Jared, the spiritual leader of the nation, well
understood the frailties of man when he said, “Surely this thing leadeth into captivity” (Ether 6:23). All the
sons among the brother of Jared’s twenty-two children, and three of the four
sons of Jared turned down the offer to be king. Finally, the last one agreed, a
young man named Orihah, who “did execute
judgment upon the land in righteousness all his days, whose days were exceedingly
many” (Ether 7:1), he himself having 23 sons and 8 daughters (Ether 7:2).
However, it was his grandson, Corihor, who rebelled against his father and eventually split the kingdom, fulfilling the brother of Jared’s prediction (Ether 7:5). From this point onward, covering some 1500 years or so, the Jaredite history was about wars and contentions between divisions of people, typically among the kings or those who wanted to be king.
So concerned about this possibility befalling his people, the Nephites, that when Aaron refused to be the next king (Mosiah 29:3), as well as Mosiah’s other sons, the king changed the affairs of the people and established a series of judges in the land, eliminating the position of king and causing elections among the people for all lower levels of judges and the seat of chief judge, though elected, a hereditary office.
The king’s wisdom is clear when he said, “Now I say unto you let us be wise and consider these things, for we have no right to destroy my son, neither should we have any right to destroy another if he should be appointed in his stead” (Mosiah 29:8).
“Let us be wise” when we consider our
actions, desires, and interests. What we do ourselves always has impact on
others; and what others do has impact upon us
Mosiah well understood the need for a righteous man to be chosen to office, to serve as king, or judge, or chief judge. His statement is even clear today, “Therefore, if it were possible that you could have just men to be your kings, who would establish the laws of God, and judge this people according to his commandments, yea, if ye could have men for your kings who would do even as my father Benjamin did for this people—I say unto you, if this could always be the case then it would be expedient that ye should always have kings to rule over you,” but he well knew the past condition of the kings in the city of Nephi with Zeniff, Noah and Limhi. Clearly he had this in mind when he told his people, “Yea, remember king Noah, his wickedness and his abominations, and also the wickedness and abominations of his people. Behold what great destruction did come upon them; and also because of their iniquities they were brought into bondage” (Mosiah 29:18).
Mosiah then set the stage for his people to understand, and in so doing, for us today to understand, that rulers have a tendency to become evil if not kept in check, by both themselves and their people. As Mosiah said, “And even I myself have labored with all the power and faculties which I have possessed, to teach you the commandments of God, and to establish peace throughout the land, that there should be no wars nor contentions, no stealing, nor plundering, nor murdering, nor any manner of iniquity” (Mosiah 29:14).
Then he reminds his people once
again of the consequences of unrighteous rulers in one of the most important
temporal and political sermons given in scripture: “And behold, now I say unto you, ye cannot dethrone an iniquitous king
save it be through much contention, and the shedding of much blood. For behold,
he has his friends in iniquity, and he keepeth his guards about him; and he
teareth up the laws of those who have reigned in righteousness before him; and
he trampleth under his feet the commandments of God; And he enacteth laws, and
sendeth them forth among his people, yea, laws after the manner of his own
wickedness; and whosoever doth not obey his laws he causeth to be destroyed;
and whosoever doth rebel against him he will send his armies against them to
war, and if he can he will destroy them; and thus an unrighteous king doth
pervert the ways of all righteousness” (Mosiah 29:21-24).
Mosiah, a loving and righteous parent, priesthood leader, and king—the absolute opposite of king Noah—well understood the manner of man, he understood people extremely well, and did not want any of these evils to befall his own sons, or his people. So he devised, no doubt through inspiration, a system of judges which he introduced to the people, saying first: “And now behold I say unto you, it is not expedient that such abominations should come upon you” (Mosiah 18:24).
It is important for us, both to fully understand the experience of the Nephite nation and its people, as well as to understand our own condition, what Mosiah said. Once again: “Yea, remember king Noah, his wickedness and his abominations, and also the wickedness and abominations of his people. Behold what great destruction did come upon them; and also because of their iniquities they were brought into bondage” (Mosiah 29:18, emphasis mine). That is, it is not just that one man, the king, ruler or leader, that rises to an evil state and exercises unrighteous dominion over others, but that he brings with him a cadre of people who are more than willing to become evil and join in the fruits of an evil government and leadership—a glad-handing, ever-smiling, promise-giving people bent on taking advantage over their fellow man. This cadre of evil people he brings with him into office, “friends in iniquity, and he keepeth his guards about him; and he teareth up the laws of those who have reigned in righteousness before him; and he trampleth under his feet the commandments of God” (Mosiah 29:22).
This jovial, kindly-looking gentleman in the
yellow robe is none other than Amlici, the clever wicked man who wanted to pervert
the laws, overthrow the government and become king and ruler over the Nephites
Consider the man Amlici as he came among the Nephites shaking hands with everyone, smiling broadly, a kindly-looking man with his politician’s face that said he wouldn’t harm a flee.
However, Amlici’s purposes were quite obvious—he wanted to destroy the freedoms of the people and become a dictator over the land as many others down through history have tried to become. Each has known that in order to do so, the first thing to be accomplished is to destroy people’s freedom, usually meaning to destroy or eliminate their churches, then get people to favor your plans by showing how wrong and corrupt government is, how people are being unfairly treated, and a change in leadership is absolutely necessary to save the nation, the people, the land.
Then come the
promises. Telling people what they want to hear, telling people they will be
taken care of, telling people that a new, different, more equitable system
should be put in place—and then promising to see that certain people, the hard-core
followers, are promised special places among the elite of this “New Order.”
(See the next post, “The Amlicites – Part II,” for the final word on how evil men take over governments as normal good men stand around and watch as the evil ones build a cadre of evil men about them for their own protection and the subjugation of others, even an entire nation)
However, it was his grandson, Corihor, who rebelled against his father and eventually split the kingdom, fulfilling the brother of Jared’s prediction (Ether 7:5). From this point onward, covering some 1500 years or so, the Jaredite history was about wars and contentions between divisions of people, typically among the kings or those who wanted to be king.
So concerned about this possibility befalling his people, the Nephites, that when Aaron refused to be the next king (Mosiah 29:3), as well as Mosiah’s other sons, the king changed the affairs of the people and established a series of judges in the land, eliminating the position of king and causing elections among the people for all lower levels of judges and the seat of chief judge, though elected, a hereditary office.
The king’s wisdom is clear when he said, “Now I say unto you let us be wise and consider these things, for we have no right to destroy my son, neither should we have any right to destroy another if he should be appointed in his stead” (Mosiah 29:8).
Mosiah well understood the need for a righteous man to be chosen to office, to serve as king, or judge, or chief judge. His statement is even clear today, “Therefore, if it were possible that you could have just men to be your kings, who would establish the laws of God, and judge this people according to his commandments, yea, if ye could have men for your kings who would do even as my father Benjamin did for this people—I say unto you, if this could always be the case then it would be expedient that ye should always have kings to rule over you,” but he well knew the past condition of the kings in the city of Nephi with Zeniff, Noah and Limhi. Clearly he had this in mind when he told his people, “Yea, remember king Noah, his wickedness and his abominations, and also the wickedness and abominations of his people. Behold what great destruction did come upon them; and also because of their iniquities they were brought into bondage” (Mosiah 29:18).
Mosiah then set the stage for his people to understand, and in so doing, for us today to understand, that rulers have a tendency to become evil if not kept in check, by both themselves and their people. As Mosiah said, “And even I myself have labored with all the power and faculties which I have possessed, to teach you the commandments of God, and to establish peace throughout the land, that there should be no wars nor contentions, no stealing, nor plundering, nor murdering, nor any manner of iniquity” (Mosiah 29:14).
Mosiah, a loving and righteous parent, priesthood leader, and king—the absolute opposite of king Noah—well understood the manner of man, he understood people extremely well, and did not want any of these evils to befall his own sons, or his people. So he devised, no doubt through inspiration, a system of judges which he introduced to the people, saying first: “And now behold I say unto you, it is not expedient that such abominations should come upon you” (Mosiah 18:24).
It is important for us, both to fully understand the experience of the Nephite nation and its people, as well as to understand our own condition, what Mosiah said. Once again: “Yea, remember king Noah, his wickedness and his abominations, and also the wickedness and abominations of his people. Behold what great destruction did come upon them; and also because of their iniquities they were brought into bondage” (Mosiah 29:18, emphasis mine). That is, it is not just that one man, the king, ruler or leader, that rises to an evil state and exercises unrighteous dominion over others, but that he brings with him a cadre of people who are more than willing to become evil and join in the fruits of an evil government and leadership—a glad-handing, ever-smiling, promise-giving people bent on taking advantage over their fellow man. This cadre of evil people he brings with him into office, “friends in iniquity, and he keepeth his guards about him; and he teareth up the laws of those who have reigned in righteousness before him; and he trampleth under his feet the commandments of God” (Mosiah 29:22).
Consider the man Amlici as he came among the Nephites shaking hands with everyone, smiling broadly, a kindly-looking man with his politician’s face that said he wouldn’t harm a flee.
However, Amlici’s purposes were quite obvious—he wanted to destroy the freedoms of the people and become a dictator over the land as many others down through history have tried to become. Each has known that in order to do so, the first thing to be accomplished is to destroy people’s freedom, usually meaning to destroy or eliminate their churches, then get people to favor your plans by showing how wrong and corrupt government is, how people are being unfairly treated, and a change in leadership is absolutely necessary to save the nation, the people, the land.
(See the next post, “The Amlicites – Part II,” for the final word on how evil men take over governments as normal good men stand around and watch as the evil ones build a cadre of evil men about them for their own protection and the subjugation of others, even an entire nation)
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