Text: Probably this verse influenced Mormon’s choice of words in his synoptic remarks (v. 2).
Scripture: Benjamin is referring to the people’s humility before Yahweh, a quality which precedes repentance and forgiveness. Clearly the people had experienced both, and Benjamin knew it by the Spirit.
Rhetoric: Verses 5–8 form a logical set in that they progress naturally from one theme to another. However, verse 10 reiterates the concept begun in verse 5. Benjamin is a sufficiently talented speaker that this second iteration is not a mere repetition. Nevertheless, the sequence is rather like an aside, a reminder to Benjamin’s listeners that they have already heard this discussion. Such a characteristic is more typical of oral discourse than a written text. I believe that there is considerable evidence that Benjamin’s first discourse was very tightly crafted and probably written, or at least composed mentally prior to delivery, while this speech may have been delivered impromptu.
The context also suggests spontaneity, because, although Benjamin hoped for a certain outcome, he could not have written his speech presupposing it. Even if Nibley is correct in suggesting that the entire pageant was scripted, Benjamin could not have scripted the power of the Spirit’s impact. The more spontaneous feeling in this second discourse suggests that the written texts Mormon describes (Mosiah 2:8) were not scripts handed out ahead of time but reports on the words and covenants Benjamin had declared.