“Behold, Thousands of Them Do Rejoice”

Brant Gardner

Culture: The comment of “thousands” gives an indication, though a vague one, of the Anti-Nephi-Lehi population. All we can say for sure is that the Anti-Nephi-Lehies were larger than “hundreds,” so large that it was wise to give them a land of their own in Zarahemla (Alma 27:21–22). I would argue that a population in the lower thousands is more reasonable than in the higher thousands. The Anti-Nephi-Lehies constitute a single city in Zarahemla although they came from multiple Lamanite cities. Still, only a minority of the Lamanites converted.

Second Witness: Analytical & Contextual Commentary on the Book of Mormon, Vol. 4

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