Page:A dictionary of the Book of Mormon.pdf/36

Alma, the younger. sorrow this course caused their God-fearing parents; we can realize how frequent and how fervent were the prayers offered by the king, the high priest, and the people for those misguided youths. And their prayers prevailed before God.

It came to pass that as Alma and the sons of king Mosiah were going about to destroy the Church and to lead astray the people of the Lord, that an angel descended in a cloud and stopped them on the way. When he spoke his voice was as thunder, and caused the whole earth to tremble beneath their feet. Naturally this manifestation of the power of God spread terror and dismay in the hearts of those who witnessed it; simultaneously they fell to the ground, and so confused and terrified were they, that they failed to understand the words of the holy messenger. "Arise, Alma, and stand forth," he cried; and when Alma arose, his eyes were open to see who stood before him. “Why persecutest thou the Church of God?” he was asked, “for the Lord hath said, This is my Church, and I will establish it; and nothing shall overthrow it, save it is the transgression of my people. If thou wilt of thyself be destroyed, seek no more to destroy the Church of God.” Besides this, the angel spoke to him of his father's fervent prayers in his behalf, and that because of those prayers of faith he was sent to convince him of the power of God. He also recounted to him the captivity of his fathers in the lands of Helam and Nephi. and of their miraculous deliverance therefrom, but Alma heard none of these latter sayings, for the terrors of the first salutation had overpowered him.

Alma, bereft of the presence of the angel, dismayed and soul-stricken, sank to the ground. When his companions gathered around him, they found he could not move, neither could he speak; outwardly he was dead to the world; but the torments of the damned had taken hold of his