- 3In the 43rd year of the judges’ rule, there was no fighting among the Nephites except for some minor disagreements among the people caused by a little pride in the congregation, which were settled by the end of the 43rd year. 2There wasn’t any conflict among the people in the 44th year, and only a little in the 45th year. 3In the 46th year, however, there were many conflicts and divisions, and consequently, a very large number of people left Zarahemla and went to the north to settle land of their own. 4They traveled a considerable distance, arriving at large bodies of water and many rivers. 5They spread out over the whole land, wherever it hadn’t been laid waste and stripped of timber by the many earlier inhabitants of the land. 6Now other than the lack of timber, etc. nothing about the land was actually desolate. But because of the complete destruction of the earlier occupants, it was called desolate. 7Due to the lack of timber on the land, the people who went there developed skill in making cement; and they built cement houses to live in.
- 8Their population increased and spread out across the land from the south to the north and started to cover the whole region, from the southern sea to the northern sea, and from the western sea to the eastern sea. 9They lived in tents and cement houses and they protected any tree that sprouted there, planning for the future to have timber to build their houses, cities, temples, synagogues, sanctuaries, and other buildings.
- 10Because timber was very scarce in the land to the north, they imported a great deal of it. 11This let the people in the north build many cities, using both wood and cement. 12Many of Ammon’s people, who were born Lamanites, relocated there also.
- 13Many people have kept detailed records of this nation’s activities. 14But not even one percent of events are included in this book, such as an account of the Lamanites and Nephites wars, conflicts, divisions, preaching, prophecies, shipping, shipbuilding, building of temples, synagogues, and sanctuaries, and their righteousness and wickedness, and their acts of murder, robbery, and plunder, and all kinds of abominations and whoredoms and idol worship. 15There are many different books and records, for the most part kept by the Nephites. 16They were being handed down from one generation to another by the Nephites, until the Nephites fell into transgression and were murdered, plundered, hunted, and driven out and killed and scattered upon the earth, and then mixed with the Lamanites, until they’re no longer called Nephites, becoming wicked, wild, and ferocious, finally becoming actual Lamanites.
- 17Now I return to my account: After what I recorded last took place, and following other great conflicts, disturbances, wars, and divisions among the Nephites, 18the 46th year of the judges’ rule ended. 19There were still great conflicts in the land, in the 47th year, and in the 48th year as well. 20Nevertheless, Helaman served in the judgment seat with justice and fairness. He paid careful attention to obey God’s statutes, judgments, and commandments, and he did what was right in God’s eyes continually, living like his father had lived; so he prospered in the land.
- 21He had two sons. He named the oldest Nephi and the youngest Lehi. They grew up obeying the Lord. 22The wars and conflicts lessened among the Nephites in the last part of the 48th year of the judges’ rule over the Nephites. 23In the 49th year of the judges’ rule, peace prevailed in the land, except for the secret societies Gaddianton the bandit had organized in the more populated areas, which were concealed from those in charge of the government; therefore they weren’t captured and executed.
- 24In this same year there was tremendous growth in the congregation, resulting in thousands joining with the congregation after being baptized as a sign of repentance. 25The congregation’s prosperity was so great and so many blessings were poured out upon the people that even the high priests and teachers were very surprised. 26The Lord’s work prospered, resulting in many souls, tens of thousands in fact, being baptized and joining God’s congregation. 27So we see the Lord is merciful to all those who call on His holy name in the sincerity of their hearts; 28we see heaven’s gate is open to all, that is to say, to those who believe in the name of Jesus Christ, who is the Son of God, 29open to anyone who accepts God’s salvation, which gives life and has power. It will cut through all the accuser’s deceitfulness, traps, and tricks, and then it will lead Christ’s followers along a straight and narrow path to safely cross over that endless abyss of misery prepared to engulf the wicked, 30taking their immortal souls to stand at God’s right hand in the kingdom of heaven, to join Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and all our holy fathers, and never to leave. 31In this year, there was continual rejoicing in Zarahemla and in the surrounding areas, even in the entire land inhabited by the Nephites. 32There was peace and immense joy during the rest of the 49th year. Indeed, there was also continuous peace and great joy in the 50th year of the judges’ rule.
- 33In the 51st year of the judges’ rule, there was also peace, except for pride that started entering the congregation — not God’s congregation, but into the hearts of those claiming to belong to God’s congregation. 34They were lifted up in pride, to such an extent they persecuted many of their fellow members. Now as a result of this great evil, the more humble part of the people were persecuted and abused. 35But in response they fasted and prayed often, growing increasingly stronger in their humility and increasingly firmer in the faith of Christ. Their souls rejoiced and they were consoled by the purification and sanctification of their hearts; the kind of sanctification that results from letting God into your heart. 36The 52nd year also ended in peace, except for the great pride within the wealthy, prosperous people’s hearts that over time increasingly influenced them.
- 37In the 53rd year of the judges’ rule, Helaman died, and was replaced by his oldest son Nephi. He served in the judgment seat with justice and fairness. Indeed, he kept God’s commandments and followed his father’s example. 4In the 54th year, there were many strong arguments in the congregation. There was also fighting among the people, resulting in a substantial amount of killing. 2And a violent rebellion was defeated, lives were lost, and the surviving rebels exiled. These rebels went to see the Lamanite king.
- 3They attempted to incite the Lamanites to attack the Nephites; but the Lamanites were intimidated and refused to listen to what the defectors said. 4But in the 56th year of the judges’ rule, another body of defectors left the Nephites to join the Lamanites; and they, along with the earlier rebels, together succeeded in inciting them to be angry with the Nephites; and that whole year they prepared and armed themselves to go to war. 5In the 57th year, they attacked the Nephites, spreading death; so much that in the 58th year of the judges’ rule they succeeded in taking Zarahemla, as well as the lands near Bountiful. 6The Nephites and Moronihah’s armies were driven back, all the way to Bountiful. 7There they fortified their positions to defend against the Lamanites, from the west to the east seas, which was a day’s journey for a Nephite on the fortified borderline defending their northern country. 8So the Nephite defectors with the large Lamanite army captured all the Nephite lands to the south. All this took place in the 58th and 59th years of the judges’ rule.
- 9In the 60th year of the judges’ rule, Moronihah, with his armies, succeeded in regaining many parts of the land. They took back many cities from Lamanite control.
- 10In the 61st year of the judges’ rule, they succeeded in taking back half of their territory. 11Now the Nephites’ losses and their many deaths wouldn’t have happened if not for the wickedness and abomination that continued among them, including those who claimed to belong to God’s congregation. 12It was because of the pride of their hearts, because of their great wealth; indeed, it was because they oppressed the poor, withholding their food from the hungry, withholding their clothing from the naked, and hitting their lowly fellow Nephites in the face, mocking what was sacred, rejecting the spirit of prophecy and revelation, murdering, plundering, lying, stealing, committing adultery, engaging in intense disputes, and defecting to the land of Nephi to join the Lamanites. 13Because of their great wickedness, and boasting in their own strength, they were left with only their own strength. Therefore they didn’t prosper, but were afflicted, struck down, and driven by the Lamanites until they lost control of almost all their lands. 14But Moronihah preached continually to the people, denouncing their iniquities. And Nephi and Lehi, who were Helaman’s sons, also preached continually to the people, and prophesied many things to them about their iniquities and what would happen to them if they didn’t repent of their sins. 15Some repented; and to the degree they repented, they began to prosper. 16When Moronihah saw they repented, he was inspired to lead them onward from place to place and from city to city, until they had regained half their property and half their lands. 17And so ended the 61st year of the judges’ rule.
- 18In the 62nd year of the judges’ rule, Moronihah was unable to regain any more of their lands from the Lamanites. 19Therefore they abandoned their plan to get the rest of their lands, since the Lamanites were so numerous it was impossible for the Nephites to defeat them. Therefore Moronihah used all his armed forces to defend those places he had retaken.
- 20Because of the extremely large number of Lamanites, the Nephites feared they would be overpowered, trampled, killed, and destroyed. 21They began to remember Alma’s prophecies and Mosiah’s words as well. They saw they had been a stubborn and unyielding people and had treated God’s commandments as meaningless 22and they had changed and ignored Mosiah’s laws, the very laws the Lord commanded him to give the people. So they realized their laws had become corrupted and they had become a wicked people, no different than the Lamanites. 23Due to their iniquity, the congregation was falling apart. They began to disbelieve in the spirit of prophecy and in the spirit of revelation. God’s judgments stared them in the face. 24They saw they were now weak like their Lamanite brothers and sisters and the Spirit of the Lord no longer protected them. It had withdrawn from them because the Spirit of the Lord doesn’t reside in unholy temples. 25Therefore the Lord stopped protecting them with His miraculous and unmatched power, since they fell into unbelief and awful wickedness. They could see the Lamanites were far more numerous than they were; and unless they held firmly to the Lord their God, they faced unavoidable destruction. 26They saw the Lamanites’ strength matched theirs comparing man to man. They were in a weakened condition because of their transgressions; indeed, it only took a few years for them to be weakened by their transgressions.
- 5That same year, Nephi turned the judgment seat over to a man named Cezoram. 2Because their laws and how they were administered was controlled by the will of the people, and there were more who chose evil than those who chose good, their entire society was ripening for destruction, since the laws had become corrupted. 3But this wasn’t the only thing. They were so stubborn and defiant that if you enforced the law or imposed justice, they deserved to be destroyed.
- 4Nephi was sick at heart because of this; so he turned over the judgment seat and assumed the responsibility to preach God’s word for the rest of his life, and his brother Lehi joined him, for the rest of his life also. 5They remembered what their father Helaman told them. He said: 6My sons, I want you to remember to keep God’s commandments. And I want you to explain to the people that I named you after our first parents who came from the land of Jerusalem. I’ve done this so your names will remind you of them. When you remember them, you’ll remember their works. When you remember their works, you know it’s said, and also written, that they were good. 7Therefore, my sons, I want you to be good, so the same thing will be said and written about you, as it has been said and written of them. 8Now, my sons, I ask of you one more thing, which is that you don’t set a good example so you can brag about it. Only do what’s right to store up for yourselves a treasure in heaven, which is eternal and won’t fade away, so you can have the precious gift of eternal life. We have every reason to believe our fathers received that gift.
- 9Remember, remember, my sons, the words king Benjamin taught his people. Remember there isn’t any other way or means by which mankind can be saved, except through the atoning blood of Jesus Christ, who’s sure to come. Remember He is coming to redeem the world. 10Remember also what Amulek said to Zeezrom in the city of Ammonihah. He told him the Lord would certainly come to redeem His people, but He wouldn’t come to redeem them in their sins, but He would come to redeem them from their sins. 11He has power given to Him from the Father to redeem them from their sins if they repent. Therefore He has sent His angels to declare the requirement for repentance, which permits the power of the Redeemer to save their souls. 12Now, my sons, remember, remember it’s on the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, you must build your foundation, so that when the accuser attacks with powerful winds, lightning, a tornado, hail, and his turbulent storm to defeat you, none of it will have the power to drag you down to the abyss of misery and endless suffering, because the rock you’re built on is a stable foundation that will never fail.
- 13This was what Helaman taught to his sons, but he also went on with things not written down, and taught other things from this record and from written scriptures; 14and they remembered his words. Then they departed to teach God’s word throughout the Nephite communities, beginning at Bountiful, 15then the city of Gid, and from there to Mulek, 14all in keeping with God’s commandments. 16They taught from one city to another until they had traveled to all the Nephites in the land to the south, and then went from there into the land of Zarahemla among the Lamanites.
- 17They preached powerfully, convincing many of the defectors who had departed from the Nephites that they had been wrong. As a result, they publicly confessed their sins and were baptized as a sign of repentance and immediately returned to the Nephites to attempt to repair the wrongs they had committed. 18Additionally Nephi and Lehi preached powerfully with a voice of authority to the Lamanites, since God’s power and authority was His gift to them. Their words were inspired through that gift. 19Therefore their messages were astonishing and so convincing to the Lamanites that 8,000 of them in Zarahemla and the surrounding area were baptized as a sign of repentance because they had been convinced of the wickedness of their fathers’ traditions.
- 20Then Nephi and Lehi went on from there to the land of Nephi. 21And there they were captured by a Lamanite army and thrown into prison, the same prison where Ammon and his brothers were put by Limhi’s servants. 22After they had been confined in prison many days without food, the captors went into the prison to take and kill them. 23But Nephi and Lehi were surrounded as if by fire, and so they didn’t dare touch them for fear of being burned. However, Nephi and Lehi weren’t burned although they were standing unharmed in the middle of fire. 24When they saw they were surrounded by a pillar of fire and it didn’t burn them, their hearts took courage; 25they saw the Lamanites didn’t dare touch them, or even dare to approach them; instead, they stood dumbstruck in amazement.
- 26Nephi and Lehi got up and spoke to them, saying: Don’t be afraid! It’s God who’s shown you this miraculous thing, showing you that you can’t take and kill us. 27These words were followed by a strong earthquake. The prison walls shook as if they were about to fall to the ground, but they didn’t fall. The crowd who entered the prison were Lamanites and Nephite defectors. 28Thick darkness surrounded them, and they were filled with ominous fear. 29They heard a voice speaking as if from above the thick cloud of darkness, saying: Repent, repent! Stop trying to kill My servants, whom I’ve sent to you to declare the gospel.
- 30What they heard wasn’t a voice like thunder, nor a deafening, loud voice, but it was a quiet voice of perfect mildness, almost a whisper; and it pierced right to the very core — 31and yet despite the mildness of the voice, the earth shook terribly. The prison walls quaked again as if they were about to fall to the ground. The thick darkness overshadowing them remained. 32And the voice spoke again, saying: Repent, repent, because the kingdom of heaven is near. Stop trying to kill My servants. And again the earth and walls shook and quaked. 33The voice spoke a third time and said astonishing words to them that we are unable to record. The walls quaked again, and the earth shook as if it were about to split in two.
- 34The Lamanites couldn’t see to flee because of the thick darkness surrounding them, and they were also paralyzed by fear. 35Now one of them, a Nephite by birth, had once belonged to God’s congregation but had split from them. 36He turned around, and could see through the darkness the faces of Nephi and Lehi. They were brightly shining like the faces of angels. He saw them looking up to heaven and they seemed to be talking or addressing someone they could see.
- 37This man yelled out to the crowd to turn around and look. And they turned around and looked and they also saw the faces of Nephi and Lehi. 38They asked the man: What does all this mean? Who are these men talking to? 39Now the man’s name was Aminadab. And Aminadab answered: They’re talking with God’s angels. 40The Lamanites asked him: How can we get this thick darkness removed from surrounding us? 41Aminadab answered: You must repent and pray to the voice until you have faith in Christ, which was taught to you by Alma, Amulek, and Zeezrom. When you do this, the thick darkness will be lifted from you.
- 42They all began to pray to the voice of the One who had shaken the earth. Indeed, they prayed until the thick darkness dispersed. 43When they looked around and saw the thick darkness was removed from surrounding them, they realized they all were surrounded by a pillar of fire. 44Nephi and Lehi were in the center of the crowd. Yet even though they were surrounded and in the middle of a flaming fire it didn’t hurt them, and it didn’t harm the prison walls, either. They felt joy that’s unspeakable and glorious. 45The Holy Spirit of God descended from heaven and entered their hearts. They were filled as if with fire, enabling them to speak of breathtaking, glorious things.
- 46The voice spoke to them again, cheerfully and softly, saying: 47Peace, peace be with you because of your faith in My Well Beloved, who existed from the foundation of creation. 48When they heard this, they looked up trying to see who was speaking. The heavens opened as angels descended from heaven and ministered to them. 49There were about 300 souls who witnessed these things. They were told to not question or doubt their experience. 50They went out and testified to the people, declaring throughout the surrounding area everything they had heard and seen, and the majority of the Lamanites were convinced by their testimony. 51All those who were convinced gave up their weapons, their hatred, and ancestors’ traditions as well. 52And they returned the lands they had taken back to the Nephites.
- 6All these things had happened by the time the 62nd year of the judges’ rule had ended; and the majority of the Lamanites had become righteous, so much so that their righteousness exceeded the Nephites’, because they were firm and steady in their faith. 2In contrast, there were many Nephites who had become hardened, unrepentant, and excessively wicked, rejecting God’s word and all the preaching and prophesying provided to them. 3Nevertheless, the congregation members felt tremendous joy about the conversion of the Lamanites, and for God’s congregation now established among them. They fellowshipped with each other, rejoiced with each other, and shared the joy. 4Many of the Lamanites went to Zarahemla and testified to the Nephites about their conversion and urged them to be faithful and repent. 5Many preached effectively and persuasively, which humbled many of them and converted them to again follow God and the Lamb.
- 6Many of the Lamanites went north along with Nephi and Lehi to preach to the people there. And so ended the 63rd year. 7There was peace throughout all the land, allowing the Nephites to travel anywhere they wished, whether it was among the Nephites or the Lamanites. 8The Lamanites could do likewise, also among the Lamanites or the Nephites. All had free communication and trade with one another, letting them buy, sell, and profit, as they wanted.
- 9They became very rich, both the Lamanites and the Nephites; they accumulated gold, silver, and precious metals, both in the south and in the north. 10Now the land to the south was called Lehi; and to the north was called Muloch, after Zedekiah’s son. Because the Lord originally led Muloch to settle the land to the north and Lehi settled the south. 11There was a variety of gold, silver, and precious ores in both areas. The skilled workmen refined a variety of metals resulting in their wealth. 12Others raised grain in abundance, both in the north and in the south. They prospered both in the north and in the south. The population grew and society was strong in the land. They raised many flocks and herds, providing many fattened calves. 13Their women worked hard and made thread, all kinds of cloth, woven linen, and a variety of material to clothe themselves. And so the 64th year ended in peace. 14In the 65th year, they also had great joy and peace and continual preaching and many prophecies about the future. And so ended the 65th year.
- 15In the 66th year of the judges’ rule, Cezoram was murdered by an unidentified person while the judgment seat was his. That same year his son, who had been appointed by the people to replace his father, was also murdered. And so ended the 66th year. 16At the start of the 67th year, the people began to grow very wicked again. 17The Lord had blessed them with material possessions for so long that they were never angry, started a war, or caused any bloodshed. Therefore they began to make their material possessions their only priority. Indeed, they began acquiring wealth and status so they could think of themselves as better than the next person. Then secret murders started, and people started robbing and stealing to make money. 18Now the murderers and thieves were from that gang started by Kishcumen and Gaddianton. There were many, even among the Nephites, who joined Gaddianton’s gang. But there were far more among the more wicked part of the Lamanites. They were called Gaddianton’s robbers and murderers. 19They were the ones who murdered the chief judge Cezoram and his son while responsible for the judgment seat. But they went unidentified.
- 20When the Lamanites discovered there were robbers among them, they were dismayed. They used every means within their ability to find and execute them. 21But Satan inspired most of the Nephites to join with those gangs of robbers and commit themselves through covenants and oaths, promising to protect and defend one another no matter the circumstances they were caught in, so they could escape punishment for their murders, robberies, and thefts.
- 22They used their secret signs and words to identify any fellow gang member who had made the covenant. It didn’t matter what crime his fellow gang member committed, he would be protected by the other gang members. 23They were able to murder, rob, steal, and commit whoredoms and all kinds of evil, violating the laws of the land and laws of God also. 24Anyone who belonged to their gang and revealed their wickedness and corruption to the world was to be tried, not according to their country’s laws, but according to the rules of their gang society, which had been established by Gaddianton and Kishcumen. 25Now these were the secret oaths and covenants Alma commanded his son not to make public, to prevent the resulting destruction.
- 26But Gaddianton didn’t get his secret oaths and covenants from the records delivered to Helaman; he got them from that same being who tempted our first parents to eat the forbidden fruit — 27the same one who plotted with Cain to murder his brother Abel, promising others wouldn’t find out about it. He plotted with Cain and his followers from then on. 28It’s also the same one who inspired people’s hearts to build a tower high enough to get to heaven. It was the same being who deceived the people who came from that tower to this land, and then spread works of darkness and abominations over the whole land till the people destroyed themselves and fell into an everlasting hell. 29It was him, the same one, who put it in Gaddianton’s heart to do the same evil and continue with secret murders. And he’s promoted it since the beginning of mankind, all the way up to now. 30He’s the original advocate for every sin. He renews his dark works and secret murders by passing down the plots, oaths, covenants, and their wicked, destructive plans to generation after generation, whenever he can take hold of mankind’s hearts. 31Now he got a great hold on the hearts of the Nephites, so much so that they became very wicked. Indeed, the majority of them turned from the way of righteousness and stomped on God’s commandments, gratified their ambitions, and made gold and silver idols for themselves.
- 32All these iniquities erupted in just a few years, with most of it beginning in the 67th year of the judges’ rule over the Nephites. 33They increased their iniquities in the 68th year, while the righteous mourned and agonized over it. 34And so the Nephites began to fall away in unbelief and grow increasingly in wickedness and abominations, while the Lamanites grew increasingly in their knowledge of God; they obeyed His ordinances and commandments and walked uprightly in truth before Him. 35But the Spirit of the Lord began withdrawing from the Nephites because of the wickedness and hardness of their hearts. 36On the other hand the Lord began to pour out His Spirit on the Lamanites because they were willing and readily believed in His word.
- 37The Lamanites hunted the secret society of Gaddianton’s robbers. And they preached God’s word among the most wicked of them, so this gang of robbers was completely destroyed among the Lamanites. 38On the other hand, the Nephites built them up and supported them, beginning with the most wicked of them, until they spread over the entire Nephite territory and had persuaded most of the righteous, until they started adopting their scheme and sharing in their spoils and participated in their secret murders and conspiracies. 39This resulted in the complete control of the government with resulting oppression and exploitation of the poor, the meek, and the humble followers of God. 40They were in an awful state and ripening for everlasting destruction. 41And so ended the 68th year of the judges’ rule over the Nephites.
Chapter 2