- 5Alma started teaching God’s word to the people, first in Zarahemla, and afterward throughout the land. 2This is what he taught the congregation in the city of Zarahemla, according to his own record: 3I Alma was ordained by my father Alma to be a high priest over God’s congregation, since he had power and authority from God to do so. He started to establish a congregation in the land that bordered the land of Nephi, a place called Mormon. He baptized his followers in the waters of Mormon. 4I testify they were liberated from king Noah’s control by God’s mercy and power. 5Subsequently they were enslaved by the Lamanites. But the Lord delivered them again from slavery by the power of His word. We were then led to this land and began to establish God’s congregation here and throughout this land.
- 6Now I ask all you who belong to this congregation: Have you remembered your fathers’ captivity? Have you also remembered God’s mercy and long-suffering toward them? Have you also carefully considered how He rescued their souls from hell? 7He changed their hearts; He woke them from a deep sleep and they woke up to God. They were surrounded by darkness; but their souls emerged into the light of God’s everlasting word. They were bound by the chains of death and hell, and faced everlasting destruction. 8So I ask: Were they destroyed? I answer: No, they were not. 9I also ask: Were the chains of death broken? Were the chains of hell surrounding them removed? I say: Yes, they were removed. And their souls grew in understanding and they sang of redeeming love. I testify they’re saved. 10Now I ask: What are the conditions for their salvation? On what basis did they hope for salvation? How were they freed from the chains of death and hell? 11I’ll tell you the answer: Didn’t my father Alma believe in the words taught by Abinadi? And wasn’t he a holy prophet? Didn’t he speak God’s words and my father Alma believed them? 12Because of his faith, a powerful change happened in his heart. I testify this is all true. 13He preached the word to your parents, and changed their hearts as well, and they humbled themselves and trusted the true and living God. Then they were faithful until the end; so they were saved.
- 14Now I ask you, my brothers and sisters of the congregation: Have you spiritually been born of God? Have you received His image in your own countenances? Have you experienced this powerful change to your hearts? 15Do you rely on faith in the redemption of the Lord who created you? Do you faithfully anticipate rising from the grave to immortality, freed from degeneration, illness, and corruption, to stand before God and be judged based on what you’ve done in the mortal body? 16I ask: Can you expect to hear the Lord’s voice then saying to you: Come to Me, blessed one; your works have been righteous on the earth? 17Or do you imagine being able to lie to the Lord and claim: Lord, our works on earth have been righteous (even when they were not), and He’ll save you? 18Or can you instead foresee standing before God’s judgment seat filled with guilt and remorse, remembering clearly all your guilt and wickedness, knowing you’ve defied God’s commandments? 19I ask: Can you look up to God on that day with a pure heart and clean hands? I ask: Can you look up, having the image of God engraved on your countenances? 20I ask: Can you think of being saved when you’ve allowed yourselves to obey the accuser? 21I say: You will then know you can’t be saved; because no one can be saved unless their clothes are clean, purified, and every trace of sin and iniquity removed through the blood of Him our fathers testified was appointed to come to redeem His people from their sins.
- 22Now I ask you, my brothers and sisters: How will any of you feel when standing before God’s judgment bar, with your clothes stained with blood and all kinds of filthiness? What will these things prove about you? 23Won’t they prove you are murderers, guilty of all kinds of wickedness? 24My people, do you think anyone can have a place in God’s kingdom with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and all the holy prophets, wearing clothes that aren’t cleansed and spotless, pure, and white? 25I’m telling you: That’s impossible unless our Creator is a liar from the start, or you would have to believe He’s a liar from the start. You can’t think such a person will be welcome in the kingdom of heaven; they’ll be thrown out since they belong in the accuser’s kingdom.
- 26Now, my people, consider this: If you’ve experienced a change of heart and felt moved to sing the song of redeeming love, I would ask, Do you still feel that way? 27Have you been keeping yourselves innocent before God? If you were to die now, could you honestly say you’ve been humble enough, that your clothes have been cleansed and made white through the blood of Christ — who is coming to redeem His people from their sins? 28Are you stripped of pride? I tell you that if you’re not, then you aren’t prepared to come face to face with God. You must prepare now; because the kingdom of heaven is coming soon, and you won’t have eternal life. 29Again I ask you: Is there any one of you not stripped of jealousy? I tell you anyone who’s not, is not prepared and won’t be found innocent. And I urge you to prepare quickly, since the time is near; and we don’t know when the time arrives.
- 30I ask you again: Is there any one of you who mocks their brother or sister or who mistreats them? 31Woe to anyone like this, because they aren’t prepared; the time is short for them to repent or they can’t be saved. 32Indeed, woe to everyone who commits iniquity. Repent! Repent, because the Lord God requires it. 33He invites all mankind — the arms of mercy are extended toward them. He pleads: Repent, and I will receive you. 34He says: Come to Me and you’ll partake of the fruit of the tree of life; you’ll eat and drink freely of the bread and waters of life. 35Come to Me and do righteous works and you won’t be cut down and cast into the fire. 36The time is near when anyone who’s failed to produce good fruit or didn’t do righteous works will have good reason to weep and mourn.
- 37All of you that commit iniquity, take pride in empty, worldly things and have claimed to understand righteousness: you’ve wandered off like sheep without a shepherd, while a shepherd has called and is still calling you back, but you ignore His voice. 38I declare the Good Shepherd is calling to you. He is calling for you in His own name, which is the name of Christ. But if you won’t respond to the Good Shepherd’s voice, to the name you’re called by, then you aren’t His sheep. 39Now if you aren’t the sheep of the Good Shepherd, then to whose fold do you belong? I tell you the accuser is your shepherd, and you’re part of his fold. Who can deny this? I’m telling you whoever denies this is a liar and a child of the accuser.
- 40I testify whatever is good comes from God and whatever is evil comes from the accuser. 41So if a person does good works, then they respond to the Good Shepherd’s voice and follow Him. But whoever does evil works becomes a child of the accuser, since they follow his voice and obey him. 42Whoever does this will get their payment from him. He’ll compensate them with death as to righteousness, letting all good works in you die. 43Now, my people, I want you to listen, because I sincerely plead from the core of my soul. I’ve spoken plainly to you so you won’t miss the point, based upon God’s commandments. 44I’m called to speak in this way from the duty held by the Holy Order after the Order of the Son of God, Jesus Christ. It’s my obligation to stand and testify to this people about what our fathers have prophesied about what will happen. 45And this isn’t all. Do you think I don’t know personally about these things? I testify that everything I’ve spoken about is true. How do you think I know of their certainty? 46I’ll tell you: They were revealed to me by God’s Holy Spirit. I’ve fasted and prayed many days to obtain personal knowledge of these things. And I know personally they’re true, since the Lord God has revealed them to me by His Holy Spirit; which is the Spirit of revelation that’s in me. 47Just like it was revealed to me that the words of our fathers are true, the spirit of prophecy and revelation from the Spirit of God to me confirms 48and therefore I personally know, what I told you about the future is true. I tell you that I know Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten of the Father, who’s full of grace, mercy, and truth, will come. He is coming to take away the sins of the world, the sins of every person firmly believing in His name.
- 49I testify this is the Holy Order I’ve been ordained into to preach to my dear people — and to everyone who lives in the land — to preach to all: the old and the young, the enslaved and the free, the middle-aged and the rising generation — to invite them all to repent and be born again. 50Indeed, the Spirit says: Repent, everyone throughout the earth, because the kingdom of heaven is coming soon. The Son of God will come in His glory, strength, majesty, power, and dominion. My dear people, I tell you the Spirit says: The glory of the King of the whole earth and of the King of heaven will very soon be seen here with us. 51And the Spirit directed me to go, use all my energy, and warn the people bluntly, saying: Repent! Because, unless you repent it’s impossible to inherit the kingdom of heaven. 52I also testify the Spirit says: The ax is placed at the root of the tree, ready to cut down and throw into the everlasting, unquenchable fire every tree that doesn’t produce good fruit. Listen and remember! The Holy One has spoken it!
- 53Now, my dear people, I ask you: Can you deny these words? Can you set them aside and trample the Holy One under your feet? Can you be filled with pride to your very core? Will you continue displaying your extravagant clothes, setting your hearts on empty, worldly things — on your material possessions? 54Will you persist in thinking you’re better than others? Will you continue to mistreat your brothers and sisters, who humble themselves and live according to the Holy Order of God, which brought them into this congregation, having been sanctified by the Holy Spirit? For they show by their works that they’ve truly repented. 55Again, will you continue turning your backs on the poor and needy when you could easily help them? 56Finally, all of you who insist on continuing to do evil, I tell you unless you quickly repent, this is what will get you cut down and thrown into the fire.
- 57Now all of you that wish to follow the voice of the Good Shepherd: Come and separate yourselves from the wicked and don’t touch their unclean things. Their names will be erased, dividing the names of the wicked from the names of the righteous, so that God’s word will be fulfilled, which says: The names of the wicked won’t be mixed in with the names of My people; 58because the names of the righteous will be included in the Book of Life, and I’ll bestow upon them an inheritance at My right hand. Now, my people, how can you criticize this? I tell you: If you speak opposing it, it doesn’t matter, because God’s word will certainly be fulfilled. 59Indeed, does any shepherd with a flock fail to watch over them to prevent wolves from attacking and eating his flock? If a wolf enters his flock, doesn’t he drive it out? And ultimately, if he can, he’ll kill it. 60Now I tell you the Good Shepherd is calling out to you. And if you’re willing to respond to His voice, He’ll bring you into His fold and you’ll be His sheep. He commands you not to let any ravenous wolf enter among you, to prevent you from being destroyed.
- 61And I give you the same command He gave to me: You must take care to do what I’ve told you. 62This is a commandment to the congregation. For those who don’t belong to the congregation, I invite and ask you to come and be baptized as a sign of repentance, so you can also eat the fruit of the tree of life.
Chapter 3
The teaching Alma, the high priest belonging to the Holy Order of God, delivered to the people in their cities and villages throughout the land.