Scriptures/The Book of Mormon/Mosiah/14

Scriptures/The Book of Mormon/Mosiah.
Mosiah 14 at churchofjesuschrist.org

Citing Isaiah 53.

1 Yea, even doth not Isaiah say: Who hath believed our report, and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?

to whom: Matthew Bowen point out that this is, in Hebrew, "ʿal-mî", and that Alma is therefore, about to become the answer to "ʿal-mî".^[1] I would go further, pointing out that this makes Alma a kind of christ-figure, and that references to "alma" would have been apparent to Alma at multiple points in this text. This text would appear to be an excellent passage to cite to get the young Alma's attention.

2 For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of dry ground; he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him there is no beauty that we should desire him.

For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant: This gets at the essence of "alma", ayin-lamed-mem, the young and immature potential; hidden and ready to spring forth.

3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

we hid: Again, we have the central idea of "alma" coming up.

4 Surely he has borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows; yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.

5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

6 All we, like sheep, have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquities of us all.

7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb so he opened not his mouth.

a sheep before her shearers is dumb: This is "ne’elamah" in Hebrew. The root is aleph-lamed-mem, an easy wordplay on Alma, that will come up again when Alma, the Younger curses an antichrist with muteness in Alma 30.

8 He was taken from prison and from judgment; and who shall declare his generation? For he was cut off out of the land of the living; for the transgressions of my people was he stricken.

9 And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no evil, neither was any deceit in his mouth.

10 Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief; when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.

11 He shall see the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied; by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.

travail: An ayin-mem-lamed word, "amal". This is not only metathesis of Alma's name, but Abinidi's quotation here, and it's applicability to "Alma", could be seen as a prophecy of his future trouble with Amulon, the chiefest of Noah's wicked priests.

12 Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death; and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bore the sins of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.