Mormon Describes Their Various Lands

Event 90

Reference: Alma 22:27-35; 23:1-3

And it came to pass that the king sent a proclamationthroughout all the land, amongst all his people who were inall his land, who were in all the regions round about, whichwas bordering even to the sea, on the east and on the west,and which was divided from the land of Zarahemla by anarrow strip of wilderness, which ran from the sea east evento the sea west, and round about on the borders of theseashore, and the borders of the wilderness which was onthe north by the land of Zarahemla, through the borders ofManti, by the head of the river Sidon, running from the easttowards the west—and thus were the Lamanites and theNephites divided.MormonKing’s palace inland of Nephi91 to 77 B.C.28 Now, the more idle part of the Lamanites lived in thewilderness, and dwelt in tents; and they were spreadthrough the wilderness on the west, in the land of Nephi;yea, and also on the west of the land of Zarahemla, in theborders by the seashore, and on the west in the land ofNephi, in the place of their fathers’ first inheritance, andthus bordering along by the seashore.29 And also there were many Lamanites on the east by theseashore, whither the Nephites had driven them. And thusthe Nephites were nearly surrounded by the Lamanites;nevertheless the Nephites had taken possession of all thenorthern parts of the land bordering on the wilderness, atthe head of the river Sidon, from the east to the west, roundabout on the wilderness side; on the north, even until theycame to the land which they called Bountiful. 30 And itbordered upon the land which they called Desolation, itbeing so far northward that it came into the land which hadbeen peopled and been destroyed, of whose bones we havespoken, which was discovered by the people of Zarahemla,it being the place of their first landing. 31 And they camefrom there up into the south wilderness. Thus the land onthe northward was called Desolation, and the land on thesouthward was called Bountiful, it being the wildernesswhich is filled with all manner of wild animals of everykind, a part of which had come from the land northward forfood. 32 And now, it was only the distance of a day and a half’sjourney for a Nephite, on the line Bountiful and the landDesolation, from the east to the west sea; and thus the landof Nephi and the land of Zarahemla were nearly surroundedby water, there being a small neck of land between the landnorthward and the land southward.MormonKing’s palace inland of Nephi91 to 77 B.C.33 And it came to pass that the Nephites had inhabited theland Bountiful, even from the east unto the west sea, andthus the Nephites in their wisdom, with their guards andtheir armies, had hemmed in the Lamanites on the south,that thereby they should have no more possession on thenorth, that they might not overrun the land northward. 34Therefore the Lamanites could have no more possessionsonly in the land of Nephi, and the wilderness round about.Now this was wisdom in the Nephites—as the Lamaniteswere an enemy to them, they would not suffer theirafflictions on every hand, and also that they might have acountry whither they might flee, according to their desires.35 And now I, after having said this, return again to theaccount of Ammon and Aaron, Omner and Himni, and theirbrethren.1 BEHOLD, now it came to pass that the king of theLamanites sent a proclamation among all his people, thatthey should not lay their hands on Ammon, or Aaron, orOmner, or Himni, nor either of their brethren who shouldgo forth preaching the word of God, in whatsoever placethey should be, in any part of their land. 2 Yea, he sent adecree among them, that they should not lay their hands onthem to bind them, or to cast them into prison; neithershould they spit upon them, nor smite them, nor cast themout of their synagogues, nor scourge them; neither shouldthey cast stones at them, but that they should have freeaccess to their houses, and also their temples, and theirsanctuaries.Land of Nephi3 And thus they might go forth and preach the wordaccording to their desires, for the king had been convertedunto the Lord, and all his household; therefore he sent hisproclamation throughout the land unto his people, that theword of God might have no obstruction, but that it might goforth throughout all the land, that his people might beconvinced concerning the wicked traditions of their fathers,and that they might be convinced that they were all brethren, and that they ought not to murder, nor to plunder,nor to steal, nor to commit adultery, nor to commit anymanner of wickedness.MormonLand of Nephi91 to 77 B.C.