“And It Came to Pass That Thousands Did Flock Unto His Standard”

Brant Gardner

Social: Moroni recruits men as he travels. The men that are being recruited are probably those who are in the fields, and are not part of the government of any large cities that they may have passed. Those who are already in the fields are those for whom there is no great advantage in the Lamanite system. They already enjoy their lives and lands, and the addition of an elite; does not immediately change their lives. Thus they are those willing to support the traditional Nephite way. There are thousands of them because these are the majority of the people in the land. The rebellion is led by city folk, and city-lineages who have the most to gain from a Lamanite takeover. The were able to take over in Zarahemla because they would be more numerous inside of a city, while the type of men rallying to Moroni’s standard of liberty would be most assuredly found in the fields. Of course cities like Gideon and surely Jershon remained faithful even inside the cities, but as we have seen in the Book of Mormon, rebellion among the Nephites is city-oriented (Ammonihah and Antionum of the Zoramites are two specific and recent examples).

Multidimensional Commentary on the Book of Mormon

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