An ancient legal practice in the Mediterranean world involved cursing a litigant with speechlessness, and Alma’s cursing of Korihor closely matches this practice. Often the stricken litigant would confess his guilt and would be considered influenced by a god. The litigant, hoping to appease the offended god, would inscribe a testimony of his newfound faith in stone, as well as a warning to others not to show disdain for the gods. Recent archaeological discoveries show that this and other curses were commonly used to inflict the punishment of God on those who did not keep His commandments. It was not commonly known in Joseph Smith’s day that Hebraic law involved the use of such curses, so their appearance in the Book of Mormon is most miraculous. (See Echoes, 350–353.)