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Book of Mormon Commentary
Mormon Chapter 1
MORMON KEEPS THE RECORDS, VER. 1-23
Mormon 1:4 And when ye are of that age, go to the land of Antum, unto a hill, which shall be called
Shim; and there have I deposited unto the Lord, all the sacred engravings concerning this people.
Ammoron spoke these words to Mormon, a ten-year-old lad, about A.D. 321. Little is known of
Ammoron, except that he was given custody of the sacred records by his brother, Amos (IV N.
1:56). Ammoron was "constrained by the Holy Ghost" to hide the records (IV N. 1:57). Doubtless
this same power moved upon him to select this boy. Mormon was to take from the hill Shim only
the plates of Nephi (Mn. 1:5). He identifies himself as the son of Mormon and a descendant of
Nephi.
When he was eleven, he was taken by his father to the land southward, called Zarahemla. There he
observed that "the whole face of the land" was covered by buildings, and the people were ''as
numerous almost, as it were the sand of the sea" (7).
Mormon 1:8 And it came to pass in this year, there began to be a war between the Nephites, who
consisted of the Nephites and the Jacobites, and the Josephites, and the Zoramites; and this war was
between the Nephites and the Lamanites, and the Lemuelites, and the Ishmaelites.
This war was fought "in the borders of Zarahemla, by the waters of Sidon" (10). See the graph
near Alma 13:67. The Nephites numbered over thirty thousand (11). They had 'many battles and
eventually killed many Lamanites, causing them to withdraw. Four years of peace followed.
Mormon 1:14 But wickedness did prevail upon the face of the whole land, insomuch that the Lord did
take away his beloved disciples, and the work of miracles and of healing did cease, because of the
iniquity of the people.
When Mormon was fifteen years old, he "was visited of the Lord, and tasted, and knew of the
goodness of Jesus" (16). He endeavored to preach unto this people, but was forbidden because the
people "had willfully rebelled against their God" (17). "The beloved disciples" were taken away
"because of the iniquity of the people" (14).
"The Gadianton robbers, who were among the Lamanites, did infest the land," and the people hid
their treasures in the earth, "and they became slippery, because the Lord had cursed the land" (19;
H. 5:47, 48).
Mormon 1:20 And it came to pass that there were sorceries, and witchcrafts, and magics; and the power
of the evil one was wrought upon all the face of the land, even unto the fulfilling of all the words of
Abinadi, and also Samuel the Lamanite.
These three terms have much in common. Those who practice them all claim to have power and
insight to control evil spirits. Abinadi prophesied that the people should eventually be driven and
slain, and their flesh eaten by vultures, dogs, and wild beasts (Mos. 7:46-49). Samuel prophesied