Mormon provides the moral of the story. There had been terrible death and destruction, but it had led to an increase in humility, and therefore devotion to God. That increased devotion would have been Mormon’s definition of better keeping the commandments, and therefore meriting the blessings of the promise of the land. That message is made clear when he declared: “Nevertheless for righteous’ sake, yea, because of the prayers of the righteous, they were spared.”