Mormon includes few details of Shiblon and Corianton’s role in the Zoramite mission, but it was apparently a test of their characters. Alma’s final blessings on his sons specifically mention his mission with both Shiblon and Corianton.
Of Shiblon, Alma notes:
I say unto you, my son, that I have had great joy in thee already, because of thy faithfulness and thy diligence, and thy patience and thy long-suffering among the people of the Zoramites.
For I know that thou wast in bonds; yea, and I also know that thou wast stoned for the word’s sake; and thou didst bear all these things with patience because the Lord was with thee; and now thou knowest that the Lord did deliver thee. (Alma 38:3–4)
Mormon’s report centers on Alma’s preaching, not mentioning either imprisonment or stoning. Presumably, the group split up to contact more people. The sons of Mosiah had followed a similar pattern among the Lamanites.
To Corianton, Alma says: “For thou didst not give so much heed unto my words as did thy brother, among the people of the Zoramites. Now this is what I have against thee; thou didst go on unto boasting in thy strength and thy wisdom” (Alma 39:2).
Clearly Shiblon’s and Corianton’s missions had different outcomes. Their father had the same desires and hopes for each, and they had the same opportunity to prove themselves among the Zoramites; but they chose different paths. Individual agency is the decisive factor in their ability to follow Yahweh. Many a righteous parent, like Alma, has watched a child fail a test of faith or character.
In Alma’s final blessing, he reminds Corianton: “And now, my son, this was the ministry unto which ye were called, to declare these glad tidings unto this people, to prepare their minds; or rather that salvation might come unto them, that they may prepare the minds of their children to hear the word at the time of his coming” (Alma 39:16). This detail is important. The purpose of the Zoramite mission was to reinforce the understanding of and belief in the Messiah’s atoning mission.