Alma 23

The King Protects the Teachers

The king of the Lamanites sent a message to all his people. He told them not to hurt Ammon, Aaron, Omner, Himni, or any of their friends. These men were going around teaching about God. No one should hurt them anywhere in the land. The king made a law. His people should not tie these men up or put them in prison. They should not spit on them or hit them. They should not throw them out of their churches or whip them. They should not throw stones at them. The teachers should be able to go into any house, temple, or church. This way they could teach the word of God anywhere they wanted. The king had become a believer in the Lord. So did everyone in his family. He wanted God’s word to spread through all the land. He wanted his people to learn that their old ways were wrong. He wanted them to know they were all brothers and sisters. They should not murder, steal, or do wrong things.

Many People Believe

After the king sent out this message, Aaron and his friends went from city to city. They went from one church to another. They started new churches. They chose priests and teachers in the land of the Lamanites. These leaders would teach God’s word. They had great success. Thousands of people learned about the Lord. Thousands came to believe in the Nephite teachings. They learned the records and prophecies that had been passed down to this day.

As the Lord lives, all who believed never turned away. They learned the truth through the teaching of Ammon and his friends. The Spirit showed them what was true. God worked miracles through them. I tell you, as the Lord lives, all the Lamanites who believed in their teaching and became believers in the Lord never fell away. They became good people. They put down their weapons. They stopped fighting against God. They stopped fighting against any of their brothers and sisters.

The Cities That Believed

These are the people who became believers in the Lord: The Lamanite people in the land of Ishmael. Also the Lamanite people in the land of Middoni. Also the Lamanite people in the city of Nephi. Also the Lamanite people in the land of Shilom, the land of Shemlon, the city of Lemuel, and the city of Shimnilom. These are the names of the Lamanite cities that became believers in the Lord. They put down their weapons. They stopped fighting. They were all Lamanites.

The Amalekites did not believe. Only one of them did. None of the Amulonites believed either. They made their hearts hard. They also made the hearts of the Lamanites hard in the places where they lived. This happened in all their villages and cities. So we have named all the Lamanite cities where people turned from their sins. They learned the truth and became believers.

A New Name

The king and the people who had believed wanted a new name. They wanted to be different from their brothers and sisters who didn’t believe. So the king talked with Aaron and many of their priests. They talked about what name they should choose. They decided to call themselves Anti-Nephi-Lehies. That became their name. They were no longer called Lamanites. They became very hard-working people. They were friendly with the Nephites. They wrote letters to each other. God’s curse did not follow them anymore.