The retaking of Manti was accomplished without bloodshed after a long siege with few provisions: The Nephites had been unable to use the previously successful decoy tactics, and attacking them in their fort was impractical. Finally, provisions arrived after a very long wait, accompanied by 2,000 men to help. With this assistance, Helaman’s striplings prepared to attack Manti. The troops of Gid and Teomner hid to cover the right and left flanks in the wilderness, while Helaman remained at the camp. The Lamanites, who had already determined that the Nephites had less manpower, brought out the whole army from Manti and marched toward them. Whereupon Helaman and his young warriors retreated rapidly into the wilderness area, passing through the hidden troops of Gid and Teomner, and drawing the Lamanites after them. Gid and Teomner slipped in to retake Manti; “Now this was done because the Lamanites did suffer their whole army, save a few guards only, to be led away into the wilderness” (v. 22). By marching at night, Helaman’s army got back to Manti before the Lamanites returned. The Lamanites fled into the wilderness and “out of all this quarter of the land.”
In the end of this campaign, here are a few questions to discuss or think about:
1. What have you found that helps you to combat depression? What gives you hope?
2. How can we be like the parents of the striplings and increase the faith of our youth?
3. What events in your recent life can you “justly ascribe to the miraculous power of God” (Alma 57:26)?
4. What might you do to better “obey and observe to perform every word of command with exactness” (Alma 57:21, another unique word here)?
5. What other lessons of life can you extract from the stories in each of these episodes?