Ammon² was one of the four sons of King Mosiah². He at first rejected his father’s teaching and worked with his brothers to destroy the church, leading many into sin (Mosiah 27:8-10). As they were going about rebelling, an angel appeared in a cloud and called them to repent, telling Alma² the Lord had heard the prayers of his father (Mosiah 27:11-14). Counted among “the very vilest of sinners,” the brothers afterward asked their father for leave to preach to the Lamanites; Mosiah² inquired of the Lord, who promised to deliver his sons, and granted the request. This began a fourteen-year mission (Mosiah 28:1-8).
Entering the land of Ishmael, Ammon² was bound and carried before its king, Lamoni, a descendant of Ishmael (Alma 17:20-21). Offered one of Lamoni’s daughters in marriage, he asked instead to be the king’s servant and was set to watch the flocks (Alma 17:25). When Ammon² preserved the flocks and struck down those who scattered them, the servants reported it to Lamoni, who concluded that Ammon² was the Great Spirit (Alma 18:2-4). Lamoni feared to have him brought in (Alma 18:11), and Ammon², perceiving the king’s thoughts, declared he was a man and the king’s servant (Alma 18:17), denying that he was the Great Spirit (Alma 18:19).
Ammon² offered to tell Lamoni by what power he acted if the king would hear him. He taught that the Great Spirit is God, that God created all things and dwells in heaven, and that man was created in God’s image. He recounted the records and scriptures from Adam and the creation through Lehi¹’s departure from Jerusalem and the rebellions of Laman¹ and Lemuel, then expounded the plan of redemption and the coming of Christ (Alma 18:22-40; 18:28-39). The king and his household, then many of his people, were converted and baptized, and a church was established among them (Alma 19:29-36).
The voice of the Lord then directed Ammon² to the land of Middoni, where his brother Aaron² and others were imprisoned (Alma 20:2). On the way he and Lamoni met Lamoni’s father, the king over all the land, who tried to kill Ammon²; Ammon² disarmed him and, sparing his life, secured the release of his brethren and Lamoni’s continued rule over his own kingdom (Alma 20:20-26).
The Lamanite converts took the name Anti-Nephi-Lehies (Alma 23:17) and, after migrating to Nephite territory, were called the people of Ammon (Alma 27:26). The Nephites gave them the land of Jershon, east by the sea and joining Bountiful, for an inheritance (Alma 27:22), and Ammon² was a high priest over them (Alma 30:20). Ether 12:15 attributes the miracle among the Lamanites to the faith of Ammon² and his brethren, and Mormon² later names Ammon², son of Mosiah², among the men of God (Alma 48:18).