The Lord Tells Ammon to Go to Middoni
After they started a church in that land, King Lamoni wanted Ammon to go with him to the land of Nephi. He wanted to show Ammon to his father.
The voice of the Lord came to Ammon. He said: “Don’t go up to the land of Nephi. The king will try to kill you. Go to the land of Middoni instead. Your brother Aaron and Muloki and Ammah are in prison there.” When Ammon heard this, he said to Lamoni, “My brother and friends are in prison at Middoni. I’m going to help them get free.” Lamoni said to Ammon, “I know that with the Lord’s strength, you can do anything. But I will go with you to the land of Middoni. The king of Middoni is named Antiomno. He is my friend. So I will go to Middoni to talk nicely to the king. He will let your friends out of prison.” Then Lamoni said to him, “Who told you that your friends were in prison?” Ammon said to him, “No one told me except God. He said to me, ‘Go and free your friends. They are in prison in the land of Middoni.’” When Lamoni heard this, he had his servants get his horses and chariots ready. He said to Ammon, “Come with me. I will go down to the land of Middoni. There I will ask the king to let your friends out of prison.”
Lamoni’s Father Gets Angry
As Ammon and Lamoni were traveling, they met Lamoni’s father. He was king over all the land.
Lamoni’s father said to him, “Why didn’t you come to the feast on that great day? I made a feast for my sons and my people.” He also said, “Where are you going with this Nephite? He is one of the children of a liar.” Lamoni explained where he was going. He was afraid to upset his father. He also told his father why he stayed in his own kingdom. He explained why he didn’t go to his father’s feast.
When Lamoni explained all these things, his father was angry with him. He said, “Lamoni, you are going to help these Nephites. They are sons of a liar. He stole from our fathers. Now his children have come to us too. They will trick us with their clever words and lies. Then they will steal from us again.”
Lamoni’s father told him to kill Ammon with his sword. He also told him not to go to the land of Middoni. He said Lamoni should return with him to the land of Ishmael.
But Lamoni said to him, “I will not kill Ammon. And I will not return to the land of Ishmael. I am going to the land of Middoni to free the friends of Ammon. I know that they are good men and holy prophets of the true God.”
Ammon Protects Lamoni
When his father heard this, he was angry with him. He pulled out his sword to strike him down.
But Ammon stepped forward and said to him, “You cannot kill your son. It would be better for him to die than you. He has turned away from his sins. But if you die right now in your anger, your soul cannot be saved.” He said, “You should stop. If you kill your son, he is an innocent man. His blood would cry from the ground to the Lord his God. It would cry for God to punish you. You might lose your soul.”
When Ammon said these words to him, he answered, “I know that if I kill my son, I would kill an innocent man. But you are the one who has tried to destroy him.” He reached out to kill Ammon. But Ammon blocked his hits. He also hit the king’s arm so that he could not use it.
When the king saw that Ammon could kill him, he started to beg Ammon to let him live.
But Ammon lifted his sword. He said to him, “I will strike you down unless you promise that my friends will be let out of prison.”
The king was afraid he would die. He said, “If you let me live, I will give you whatever you ask for. You can even have half of my kingdom.”
When Ammon saw that he had changed the old king’s mind, he said to him, “If you promise that my friends will be let out of prison, I will let you live. And Lamoni must keep his kingdom. You cannot be angry with him. Let him do what he thinks is right. If you promise this, I will let you live. If you don’t, I will strike you down.”
The King Makes Promises
When Ammon said these words, the king became happy because he would live.
When he saw that Ammon did not want to kill him, he was surprised. He saw that Ammon loved his son Lamoni very much. He said, “You only want me to free your friends and let my son Lamoni keep his kingdom. I will let my son keep his kingdom from now on and forever. I will not rule him anymore. I will also let your friends out of prison. You and your friends may come to me in my kingdom. I want to see you very much.” The king was very surprised at the words Ammon had said. He was also surprised at the words his son Lamoni had said. He wanted to learn from them.
Ammon’s Friends Are Freed
Ammon and Lamoni kept going toward the land of Middoni. Lamoni talked to the king of that land. The king of that land liked Lamoni. So Ammon’s friends were brought out of prison.
When Ammon saw them, he was very sad. They had no clothes on. Their skin was worn badly from being tied with strong ropes. They had been hungry and thirsty. They had gone through all kinds of hard times. But they had been patient through all their troubles.
They had ended up with people who were mean and stubborn. These people would not listen to their words. They had thrown them out and hit them. They had pushed them from house to house and from place to place. Finally they got to the land of Middoni. There they were arrested and put in prison. They were tied with strong ropes and kept in prison for many days. Then Lamoni and Ammon helped them get free.