Amalekites and Amulonites

Ammon had the good fortune to begin his missionary service in the land of Ishmael, where Lamoni and his people were converted to the gospel. His brother Aaron had a different experience in a city called Jerusalem. There, besides the Lamanites, they found two other groups of people, the Amalekites and the Amulonites. Mormon tells us:

The Lamanites of themselves were sufficiently hardened, but the Amalekites and the Amulonites were still harder; therefore they did cause the Lamanites that they should harden their hearts, that they should wax strong in wickedness and their abominations.

Alma 21:3

This is the first appearance of either of those groups of people, but we can make some assumptions about where they came from.

• The Amulonites are likely the descendants of the priests of King Noah, who were led by a man named Amulon, and who had united with the Lamanites decades earlier. (See Mosiah 23:30-35, Mosiah 24:1-6.)
• The Amalekites are probably the same as the Amlicites, who had rebelled against the Nephites and joined forces with the Lamanites to attack their own people. (See Alma 2, Alma 3.) They were followers of Nehor, a preacher who had been convicted and executed for murder. (See Alma 2:1.) Mormon tells us that the Amalekites “had built synagogues after the order of the Nehors; for many of the Amalekites and the Amulonites were after the order of the Nehors” (Alma 21:4).

I wrote this week about the importance of overcoming cynicism and trusting God. The trouble with the Lamanites in Jerusalem was that their cynicism was amplified by the influence of these two groups among them who were more hardened. Mormon later reports that “among those who joined the people of the Lord, there were none who were Amalekites or Amulonites, or who were of the order of Nehor” (Alma 24:29; see also Alma 23:14). He concludes that when we have been “previously enlightened by the Spirit of God” and then fall away from the truth, we develop a kind of resistance to “things pertaining to righteousness” which makes us less likely to accept the truth when we see it. (See Alma 24:30.)

One important lesson of these passages is to be careful of the Amalekites and Amulonites in our lives. We ought to love and serve all of God’s children and show respect for them, but we can all relate to the degrading influence of cynicism. In many groups of people, the outspoken pessimist drags the whole group down.

Consider these two warnings from President Russell M. Nelson:

There is no end to the adversary’s deceptions. Please be prepared. Never take counsel from those who do not believe. Seek guidance from voices you can trust—from prophets, seers, and revelators and from the whisperings of the Holy Ghost, who “will show unto you all things what ye should do.”

“Think Celestial,” General Conference, October 2023

Do not be led astray by those whose doubts may be fueled by things you cannot see in their lives. Most of all, let your skeptical friends see how much you love the Lord and His gospel. Surprise their doubting hearts with your believing heart!

“Choices for Eternity,” Worldwide Devotional for Young Adults, 15 May 2022, italics in original

I particularly appreciate that second quote. God does not want us to cut off all contact with those who believe differently from us, but He does want us to be realistic about their influence on us. He also wants us to be mindful of our potential influence on them. Cynicism may be contagious, but faith can be inspiring.

Today, I will have faith in God regardless of the doubts expressed by others. I will strive to love all of God’s children and to maintain and express my optimism even in the face of cynicism from others.