Defeat at Desolation
In year 363, the Nephites marched out of Desolation to attack the Lamanites. The Nephite armies were driven back to Desolation. While they were still exhausted, a fresh Lamanite army hit them hard. The battle was brutal. The Lamanites took the city of Desolation, killed many Nephites, and captured even more. The survivors fled and joined the people in the city of Teancum. Teancum was a coastal city near Desolation.
It was the Nephites’ own aggression that brought this defeat. If they hadn’t attacked first, the Lamanites would have had no power over them. But God’s judgment catches up with the wicked. The wicked are punished by the wicked—because it’s the wicked who stir people up to violence and bloodshed.
The Lamanites prepared to attack Teancum. In year 364, the Lamanites came against Teancum, hoping to take that city too. But they were beaten back by the Nephites. When the Nephites saw they’d driven off the Lamanites, they started bragging again about their strength. In their arrogance, they marched out and retook the city of Desolation. By now, thousands had died on both sides—Nephites and Lamanites alike.
Wickedness Beyond Words
Year 366 came, and the Lamanites attacked again. Still the Nephites refused to turn from their evil. They just kept on with their wickedness. What happened next is too horrible to fully describe. The bloodshed and carnage among both peoples—Nephites and Lamanites—was beyond words. Every heart had hardened. They took pleasure in killing, constantly. There had never been such wickedness among all the descendants of Lehi, or even among all the people of Israel, as the Lord himself had said. This was the worst it had ever been.
The Lamanites took the city of Desolation because they simply outnumbered the Nephites. Then they marched against Teancum, drove everyone out, and took many women and children prisoner. They sacrificed them to their false gods. In year 367, when the Nephites heard that the Lamanites had sacrificed their women and children, they were filled with rage. They attacked with such fury that they beat the Lamanites back and drove them from their lands.
The Lamanites didn’t attack again until year 375.
The Final Collapse
That year they came with everything they had. Their numbers were too great to count. From that point on, the Nephites never gained ground again. They were swept away like dew before the sun.
The Lamanites attacked the city of Desolation. A terrible battle was fought there, and the Lamanites defeated the Nephites. The Nephites fled again and came to the city of Boaz. There they made a bold stand. The Lamanites couldn’t break them until they came back a second time. On the second assault, the Nephites were driven back and slaughtered in massive numbers. Once again, their women and children were sacrificed to idols. The Nephites fled again, this time taking everyone with them—from every town and village.
Mormon Saves the Records
When I saw that the Lamanites were about to overrun the entire land, I went to the hill Shim and gathered up all the records that Ammaron had hidden there for the Lord.