The mission to the Zoramites was not easy for Shiblon. Alma did not protect his sons by sending them to the easy missions, but rather he took them with him to one of the hardest. Shiblon’s faithfulness was tested by his deprivations in that place.
We should note that while death by stoning was a Biblical punishment, obviously the stoning of Shiblon did not occasion his death. Alma’s use of the term here certainly deals with people hurling stones at Shiblon, but he appears to have been able to retreat rather than remain and suffer death at the hands of those who cast the stones.