“Mormon views the conflict between the Nephites and Lamanites from a spiritual context. There is no mention here of the superior military strength of the Lamanites as a reason for their advantage in battle, but it comes from the dissensions among the Nephites. This message is consistent throughout the Book of Mormon—the Lord defended the Nephites (or His covenant people) when they were righteous. … Hugh Nibley has observed: ‘ … [The Lamanites] were not the Nephite problem. They were merely kept there to remind the Nephites of their real problem which was to walk uprightly before the Lord’” (Bassett, “Nephi’s Freedom Thesis and the Sons of Helaman,” 293).