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"The Lamanites... Had Compassion on Them," Mosiah 20

Mosiah 20

There is a miracle of peace recorded in this chapter, and it is brought about again through the faithfulness and diligence of Gideon, the statesman. The daughters of the Lamanites show up missing, or rather the wicked priests who were associated with Noah before his demise kidnap twenty-four of the daughters of the Lamanites while they were dancing at a wilderness retreat.

This incites the Lamanite people in anger, lead by their king, to go up against the people of Limhi. Not being in the wrong, the people of Limhi themselves fought "like dragons" (vs. 11) to defend themselves. The king of the Lamanites, though not dead, was found among their dead upon the retreat of the the Lamanite.

What Gideon does after Limhi realizes the cause of this assault from the Lamanites is both notable and peaceful, and it worked. Gideon both now recognized the fulfillment of the the prophecies of Abinadi against his people, and he also recognized the obligation that they had to fulfill towards the Lamanites. "For it is better that we should be in bondage than that we should lose our lives."(vs. 22) In the same verse, Gideon also expresses his deeper motives for peace, "therefore, let us put a stop to the shedding of so much blood."

Ultimately, the peaceable solution was achieved through knowledge. Knowledge was imparted to the king of the Lamanites about the demise of king Noah, the escape of his wicked priests, and the very probable chance that they were the cause for their missing daughters. This same approach to knowledge and its power led the people of Limhi to meet the Lamanites on the battlefield without weapons to let the Lamanite king impart the same knowledge to those that came seeking revenge.

When we attempt to resolve any situation with force, be it physical, mental, emotional, or otherwise, we are not of a peaceable disposition. Peace is always the product of pure knowledge.  


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