The Book of Mormon

Alma 41:11

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~73 BC

1830 Edition

And now, my son, all men that are in a state of nature, or I would say, in a carnal state, are in the gall of bitterness, and in the bonds of iniquity; they are without God in the world, and they have gone contrary to the nature of God; therefore they are in a state contrary to the nature of happiness.

Influences

Acts 8:23 (KJV)
For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity.
Acts 8:23 (KJV)
For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity.
Ephesians 2:12 (KJV)
That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world:

Changes

And now, my son, all men that are in a state of nature, or I would say, in a carnal state, are in the gall of bitterness, and in the bonds of iniquity; they are without God in the world, and they have gone contrary to the nature of God; therefore, they are in a state contrary to the nature of happiness.

Simple English

My son, all people who are in a natural state—or I should say, in a sinful state—are full of bitter anger. They are tied up in sin. They don’t have God in their world. They have gone against the way God made them to be. So they are in a state that goes against happiness.

Paraphrase

Everyone who lives by their natural impulses—their worldly desires—is caught in bitterness and trapped by sin. They’re cut off from God, living against his nature. That means they’re living against the nature of happiness itself.

Notes

41:11

"Curiously, of the five times the words 'gall of bitterness' are used in the Book of Mormon, four of them include the words 'bonds of iniquity.' It should be noted that all of these quotes are set in the same context as the quote from Acts 8:23." -Jerald and Sandra Tanner, Joseph Smith's Plagiarism of the Bible in the Book of Mormon, p. 23.

See also: Mosiah 27:29, Alma 36:18, Mormon 8:31, Moroni 8:14.