Social: While Alma will teach them the gospel, there is another important thing that he is not teaching them. Alma does not suggest that they should leave their homes and come to a location closer to a city where the true religion is taught. This might have been a politically expedient solution because it would decrease the economic base of the rebellious Zoramites. However, Alma makes no such suggestion, and in fact goes to lengths to explain that worship need not be associated with a location. These people have accepted Zoramite religion because of the expectation of mutual benefit with the city state. Alma is suggesting that they might be able to continue to have the political and defensive benefits while disassociating themselves from the religious aspects of the city. The is the reason that Alma emphasizes that idea that true worship does not require a specific place.
As noted in the commentary on the previous verse, Alma specifically mentions scripture, and expects that they would be familiar with it. Alma states that they ought “to search the scriptures.” This is an interesting allusion to possible literacy in this population. It would be surprising in the ancient world to have a farming population that was sufficiently literate to read the scriptures, but that may not be Alma’s meaning here. We may have a phrase that is used more as an expression than as a literal indication of literacy. Alma may expect that they understand the scriptures from having heard them, which is the standard way in which such populations would have experienced the scriptures.