An in-depth summary of Mike Walch’s “Book of Mormon: Mosiah and Alma” Fireside” presented May 5, 2024.
The books of Mosiah and Alma contain intertwined histories of kings, prophets, missionaries, migrations, captivity, and deliverance. Their stories become easier to follow—and their sermons more meaningful—when readers pay attention to the language, culture, and literary patterns behind the English text.
In his fireside, “Book of Mormon: Mosiah and Alma,” Mike Walch approaches these books through Hebrew language study, biblical comparisons, archaeology, and the organization of ancient religious teaching. He moves from the question of Mulek’s survival to the meaning of Book of Mormon names, from the migrations surrounding Zarahemla to the carefully arranged testimony of Alma the Younger.
Throughout the presentation, Walch’s central concern is not simply finding interesting details. He wants readers to discover how those details help communicate the gospel of Jesus Christ. Names can reinforce a narrative’s meaning. Historical context can illuminate unfamiliar behavior. Literary structure can identify the central message of a sermon.
The following summary follows Walch’s explanations and interpretations, including the connections he draws between the Bible and the Book of Mormon. Scripture quotations are taken from the Church’s online editions; where only part of a verse is quoted, the quotation presents the portion relevant to the discussion.
Mulek, Zedekiah, and a Question About Biblical Language
Walch begins with an apparent difficulty involving the destruction of Jerusalem. The Book of Mormon describes a people who came from Jerusalem during the time of King Zedekiah and later became the people of Zarahemla. It also identifies Mulek as a surviving son of Zedekiah.
The biblical account, however, describes the execution of Zedekiah’s sons.
2 Kings 25:6–7 reads:
“So they took the king, and brought him up to the king of Babylon to Riblah; and they gave judgment upon him.
“And they slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and put out the eyes of Zedekiah, and bound him with fetters of brass, and carried him to Babylon.”churchofjesuschrist
Does this passage make Mulek’s survival impossible?
Walch answers by focusing on the assumptions English-speaking readers bring to a plural expression. In his explanation, readers often understand “the sons of Zedekiah” as meaning every son Zedekiah had. He argues that the Hebrew wording need not carry that exhaustive meaning without an explicit word meaning “all.”
He illustrates his point with a question that troubled him when he first read Nephi’s account: Where does Sam fit among Nephi’s “brethren”? When Sam appears individually, he supports Nephi. Yet Nephi frequently describes conflict with his brethren.
Walch explains that a collective reference to brethren does not necessarily include every brother. In passages describing opposition, the intended group may be Laman and Lemuel rather than Sam. He applies the same reading principle to the account of Zedekiah’s sons: do not automatically make a plural expression more comprehensive than the wording requires.
The Book of Mormon supplies an explicit statement about the exception. In Helaman 8:21, Nephi asks:
“And now will you dispute that Jerusalem was destroyed? Will ye say that the sons of Zedekiah were not slain, all except it were Mulek? Yea, and do ye not behold that the seed of Zedekiah are with us, and they were driven out of the land of Jerusalem?”churchofjesuschrist
This is one of Walch’s opening examples of reading the Bible and the Book of Mormon together. In his presentation, the Book of Mormon supplies a detail that clarifies the history rather than contradicting it.
Jeremiah’s Cistern and the Name of a Royal Son
Walch next turns to a passage in Jeremiah that he connects with the question of Mulek’s identity.
Jeremiah 38:6 states:
“Then took they Jeremiah, and cast him into the dungeon of Malchiah the son of Hammelech, that was in the court of the prison: and they let down Jeremiah with cords. And in the dungeon there was no water, but mire: so Jeremiah sunk in the mire.”churchofjesuschrist
He highlights two translation issues.
First, he explains that the setting is more readily understood as a cistern than as the sort of dungeon a modern reader might imagine. A water-storage cavity with mud at its bottom makes sense of Jeremiah sinking into the mire.
Second, he focuses on “Hammelech.” Walch explains that the Hebrew expression means “the king,” making the description “Malchiah, the king’s son.” The Church’s online edition provides the same basic language clarification in its footnote to “Hammelech”: “HEB the king.”churchofjesuschrist
Walch then discusses the consonants of the name and the use of divine-name endings such as -iah and -yahu. He proposes a relationship between the royal name Malchiah or Malkiyahu and the Book of Mormon name Mulek.
His presentation also describes a small inscribed sealing artifact that surfaced in a private collection in the early 1990s. He gives its inscription as “Malkiyahu, son of the king” and presents it as tangible support for the existence of a royal person bearing the relevant name.
Walch includes an important qualification in his own discussion: the artifact’s provenance—where it was found and the circumstances of its discovery—is unknown because it came through a private collection. His argument brings together the biblical wording, the proposed name relationship, and the inscription, while acknowledging that limitation.
He also suggests a possible historical scenario: a king who recognized Jerusalem’s danger might send a royal son somewhere safer, perhaps Egypt. In the fireside, this functions as a possible explanation of survival, not as an itinerary supplied by the Book of Mormon.
The broader scriptural setting appears in Omni 1:15–16:
“Behold, it came to pass that Mosiah discovered that the people of Zarahemla came out from Jerusalem at the time that Zedekiah, king of Judah, was carried away captive into Babylon.
“And they journeyed in the wilderness, and were brought by the hand of the Lord across the great waters, into the land where Mosiah discovered them; and they had dwelt there from that time forth.”churchofjesuschrist
Making Sense of Mosiah’s Flashbacks and Migrations
After his opening discussion of Mulek, Walch turns to a practical reading problem: Mosiah can be confusing because its events do not appear in a simple chronological sequence.
The book opens near the end of King Benjamin’s reign. Readers then encounter accounts that reach backward into the history of Zeniff’s colony. Other narratives follow different groups whose experiences eventually converge in Zarahemla.
Walch describes the historical material as spanning approximately 110 years when its earlier narrative settings are included. His larger point is that readers must distinguish the order in which Mormon tells the stories from the order in which the events occurred.
The first Mosiah leads a people to Zarahemla
Before the events at the beginning of the book of Mosiah, an earlier king named Mosiah leads those who will listen to the Lord out of the land of Nephi.
Omni 1:12–13 describes him as:
“Being warned of the Lord that he should flee out of the land of Nephi, and as many as would hearken unto the voice of the Lord should also depart out of the land with him, into the wilderness—”
The account continues:
“They were admonished continually by the word of God; and they were led by the power of his arm, through the wilderness until they came down into the land which is called the land of Zarahemla.”churchofjesuschrist
Mosiah’s people discover the people of Zarahemla, and the two communities unite. Zarahemla thereafter becomes the principal center of the Nephite narrative.
Zeniff’s colony returns to the land of Nephi
Another group wants to return to the land associated with its earlier inheritance. This movement leads into the history of Zeniff, followed by Noah and then Limhi.
Walch emphasizes that this colony is not merely a side story. Abinadi’s ministry and Alma the Elder’s conversion emerge from its history. Without following this colony, readers cannot fully appreciate how the religious leadership of the later narrative develops.
Alma’s people leave Noah’s society
Alma gathers believers, teaches them, and eventually leads them away from the threat posed by King Noah’s forces.
Mosiah 23:1 states:
“Now Alma, having been warned of the Lord that the armies of king Noah would come upon them, and having made it known to his people, therefore they gathered together their flocks, and took of their grain, and departed into the wilderness before the armies of king Noah.”churchofjesuschrist
Their experiences form a separate narrative thread from that of Limhi’s people, even though both groups originate in the same larger colonial history.
Limhi’s people and Alma’s people reach Zarahemla separately
Walch distinguishes the Ammon who helps Limhi’s people from Ammon, the missionary son of Mosiah. Keeping those two men separate prevents a common source of confusion.
Limhi’s community escapes and returns to Zarahemla. Alma’s community also experiences captivity and eventual deliverance before reaching Zarahemla. Their stories converge geographically, but they arrive through different sequences of events.
The sons of Mosiah begin another journey
Near the end of Mosiah, the king’s sons seek to preach among the Lamanites. Their departure introduces a major story that Mormon does not fully narrate until Alma 17.
The opening of that chapter reconnects the narrative threads. Alma 17:1–2 reports:
“As Alma was journeying from the land of Gideon southward, away to the land of Manti, behold, to his astonishment, he met with the sons of Mosiah journeying towards the land of Zarahemla.”
Alma rejoices because:
“They were still his brethren in the Lord; yea, and they had waxed strong in the knowledge of the truth; for they were men of a sound understanding and they had searched the scriptures diligently, that they might know the word of God.”churchofjesuschrist
Walch’s study suggestion is straightforward: draw a timeline or a simple movement diagram. Identify the group, its leader, its starting point, and its destination. Artistic skill is unnecessary; the purpose is to keep the narrative relationships visible.
Why the Beginning of Mosiah Feels Like Entering a Story Already Underway
Walch observes that the book of Mosiah begins with established characters and circumstances rather than a full introduction to their histories.
He contrasts this with the introductory statements found before many other Book of Mormon books or narrative units. He calls these statements colophons: brief descriptions identifying the record or indicating what follows.
His explanation connects Mosiah’s abrupt beginning with the lost 116 manuscript pages. He presents the view that the missing material included earlier history associated with Mosiah and Benjamin, leaving the surviving text to begin after much of that background had already been narrated.
This helps explain, in his reading, why readers receive relatively little information about the first Mosiah and why Benjamin is already nearing the end of his reign when the book opens.
The study lesson is to recognize that the present narrative does not supply every earlier event. Omni provides valuable background, but readers should not expect the opening of Mosiah to introduce every character and situation from the beginning.
Hebrew Naming Patterns and Their Narrative Significance
Walch devotes substantial attention to Book of Mormon names. He argues that their forms and their placement within the stories deserve more attention than readers commonly give them.
He points to patterns in the pronunciation guide, including the absence of certain English letters or initial-letter patterns that he regards as significant in relation to Hebrew. He also discusses divine-name endings such as -iah and -hah, contrasting them with -el endings.
Another recurring feature in his presentation is the prevalence of place-names ending in -on or -an. He compares these with biblical names familiar from Israelite geography.
His central invitation is to ask whether a name’s proposed meaning fits the role a person or place plays in the narrative.
Jershon: a land of inheritance
Walch connects Jershon with a Hebrew root associated with inheriting or possessing. What interests him especially is that the text itself explains the land as an inheritance.
Alma 27:22 records the Nephites’ decision:
“Behold, we will give up the land of Jershon, which is on the east by the sea, which joins the land Bountiful, which is on the south of the land Bountiful; and this land Jershon is the land which we will give unto our brethren for an inheritance.”churchofjesuschrist
In Walch’s explanation, the proposed meaning of the name and the narrative explanation reinforce one another. The place is not merely where the converts settle; it becomes the inheritance granted to them by their new brethren.
Mormon: a place associated with religious change
Walch proposes a connection between the opening portion of Mormon and a Hebrew expression involving change or exchange, particularly a change of religious allegiance.
He relates this to the waters of Mormon, where Alma’s followers turn from the religious order associated with Noah’s priests and enter a covenant community centered on Christ.
Walch explicitly acknowledges that he has difficulty accounting for the second m in the complete name. His discussion therefore concentrates on the proposed significance of the first part rather than presenting a complete derivation of every element.
Mosiah: deliverance and lawgiving
Walch discusses a proposed relationship between Mosiah and a Hebrew term for a deliverer, then develops the connection he particularly favors: Mosiah and Moshe, the Hebrew form of Moses.
He joins the linguistic discussion to two major roles associated with Moses:
- Delivering a people and leading them through the wilderness.
- Establishing the law by which a covenant people live.
Walch sees those roles reflected in the two kings named Mosiah.
The first Mosiah leads a righteous community out of the land of Nephi and through the wilderness to Zarahemla. The second Mosiah reorganizes the government and establishes the system of judges.
Mosiah 29:11 records the second king’s proposal:
“Therefore I will be your king the remainder of my days; nevertheless, let us appoint judges, to judge this people according to our law; and we will newly arrange the affairs of this people, for we will appoint wise men to be judges, that will judge this people according to the commandments of God.”churchofjesuschrist
Walch’s point is that the proposed name relationship fits not just one character but two characters whose roles reflect different aspects of Moses’ work.
Cumorah and Zarahemla
Walch also proposes a Hebrew association between Cumorah and priesthood, distinguishing the term he discusses from the familiar kohen, associated with a priest.
For Zarahemla, he offers a compound explanation involving scattering and tumult. He connects that meaning with the upheaval surrounding Jerusalem’s destruction and the departure of the people who eventually settled in Zarahemla.
These name discussions illustrate his broader method: look for relationships among language, narrative setting, and the work a person or community performs.
Abinadi’s Shining Face and the Biblical Description of Moses
One of Walch’s clearest examples of the Book of Mormon illuminating a biblical passage concerns the appearance of Moses.
He shows Michelangelo’s sculpture of Moses, with its horns, and discusses the linguistic issue behind that artistic tradition. His explanation centers on the relationship between Hebrew wording associated with horns or rays and the description of Moses’ radiant appearance.
The biblical passage is Exodus 34:29–30:
“Moses wist not that the skin of his face shone while he talked with him.
“And when Aaron and all the children of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face shone; and they were afraid to come nigh him.”churchofjesuschrist
Walch then compares the account of Abinadi before Noah and his priests.
Mosiah 13:5 states:
“Now it came to pass after Abinadi had spoken these words that the people of king Noah durst not lay their hands on him, for the Spirit of the Lord was upon him; and his face shone with exceeding luster, even as Moses’ did while in the mount of Sinai, while speaking with the Lord.”churchofjesuschrist
For Walch, the importance lies in the explicit comparison. The Book of Mormon does not merely describe Abinadi as radiant. It states that his face shone as Moses’ did.
He presents this as an instance in which the Book of Mormon preserves or confirms the intended meaning of a biblical description. The shared feature is divine radiance accompanying prophetic authority.
The Daughters of the Lamanites and an Ancient Marriage-Festival Comparison
Walch next examines a narrative that had puzzled him: Noah’s priests carry away Lamanite daughters, yet those women later plead that their husbands be spared.
The initial account appears in Mosiah 20:1–2, 5:
“Now there was a place in Shemlon where the daughters of the Lamanites did gather themselves together to sing, and to dance, and to make themselves merry.
“And it came to pass that there was one day a small number of them gathered together to sing and to dance.”
The priests then emerge from hiding:
“And when there were but few of them gathered together to dance, they came forth out of their secret places and took them and carried them into the wilderness; yea, twenty and four of the daughters of the Lamanites they carried into the wilderness.”churchofjesuschrist
Later, Mosiah 23:33–34 reports:
“And it came to pass that Amulon did plead with the Lamanites; and he also sent forth their wives, who were the daughters of the Lamanites, to plead with their brethren, that they should not destroy their husbands.
“And the Lamanites had compassion on Amulon and his brethren, and did not destroy them, because of their wives.”churchofjesuschrist
Walch proposes a cultural comparison with the Jewish festival associated with the fifteenth of Av, discussing gatherings at which young women danced and prospective marriages were formed. He suggests that such a background could help explain the relationship between the dancing scene and the later description of the women as wives.
He also directs attention to the biblical account at Shiloh. Judges 21:20–21 records instructions to the surviving Benjaminites:
“Go and lie in wait in the vineyards;
“And see, and, behold, if the daughters of Shiloh come out to dance in dances, then come ye out of the vineyards, and catch you every man his wife of the daughters of Shiloh, and go to the land of Benjamin.”churchofjesuschrist
Walch uses the parallel to suggest that the Book of Mormon episode may reflect an ancient cultural setting unfamiliar to modern readers. His interpretation seeks to connect the two scenes in Mosiah rather than treating them as unrelated details.
Ammon’s Defense of the Flocks and Physical Evidence as Testimony
The account of Ammon protecting Lamoni’s flocks contains another detail Walch believes becomes more understandable through ancient cultural comparison.
Alma 17:37 states:
“But behold, every man that lifted his club to smite Ammon, he smote off their arms with his sword; for he did withstand their blows by smiting their arms with the edge of his sword, insomuch that they began to be astonished, and began to flee before him.”
Afterward, the servants return to the king. Alma 17:39 explains that they came:
“Bearing the arms which had been smitten off by the sword of Ammon, of those who sought to slay him; and they were carried in unto the king for a testimony of the things which they had done.”churchofjesuschrist
Walch asks why the servants would bring the severed arms as testimony.
He compares the practice with Egyptian depictions of collected hands and discusses an archaeological discovery of severed right hands in Egypt in 2011. In his presentation, such material illustrates the use of body parts as physical evidence of military accomplishment.
He also contrasts this with the form of evidence more familiar from accounts of frontier warfare in Joseph Smith’s environment.
The interpretive point is that the servants bring more than a verbal report. They present visible evidence to substantiate what occurred. Walch sees this detail as consistent with an ancient setting in which such physical testimony had an understood purpose.
What Does It Mean to Be “Buried by the Hand of the Lord”?
Walch’s next biblical comparison concerns the end of Moses’ mortal ministry.
Deuteronomy 34:5–6 reads:
“So Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the Lord.
“And he buried him in a valley in the land of Moab, over against Beth-peor: but no man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this day.”churchofjesuschrist
Walch contrasts a reading centered on an undiscovered grave with the explanation supplied in the Book of Mormon.
After Alma’s final instructions and blessings, Alma 45:18–19 states:
“And when Alma had done this he departed out of the land of Zarahemla, as if to go into the land of Melek. And it came to pass that he was never heard of more; as to his death or burial we know not of.
“Behold, this we know, that he was a righteous man; and the saying went abroad in the church that he was taken up by the Spirit, or buried by the hand of the Lord, even as Moses. But behold, the scriptures saith the Lord took Moses unto himself; and we suppose that he has also received Alma in the spirit, unto himself; therefore, for this cause we know nothing concerning his death and burial.”churchofjesuschrist
Walch emphasizes the explanation that the Lord took Moses unto Himself. He reads the passage in terms of translation—being taken by God without experiencing death in the ordinary manner—and applies that understanding to the tradition concerning Alma.
He then connects Moses’ continuing ministry with his appearance on the Mount of Transfiguration.
The corresponding New Testament passage, Matthew 17:1–3, states:
“Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart,
“And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light.
“And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him.”churchofjesuschrist
A related latter-day passage, which complements Walch’s discussion of Moses and priesthood keys, is Doctrine and Covenants 110:11:
“After this vision closed, the heavens were again opened unto us; and Moses appeared before us, and committed unto us the keys of the gathering of Israel from the four parts of the earth, and the leading of the ten tribes from the land of the north.”churchofjesuschrist
This last passage records the latter-day conferral of keys upon Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery. Together, the accounts show the connection Walch wants readers to recognize: the Book of Mormon’s explanation of Moses’ departure helps readers consider his later appearances and continuing divine commission.
Chiasmus: Reading Toward the Center
The final major portion of the fireside concerns chiasmus.
Walch explains that modern readers commonly expect an argument to proceed sequentially: one point leads to another, then another, until the writer reaches a conclusion.
A chiastic arrangement works differently. It introduces a sequence of ideas and then repeats or answers those ideas in reverse order:
- A
- B
- C
- A central turning point
- C′
- B′
- A′
The name comes from the Greek letter chi, whose crossed shape suggests the intersecting relationships.
Walch emphasizes two purposes for this arrangement. First, patterned repetition can help an audience remember a message. Second, the arrangement can draw attention to the center, where a crucial idea or transformation occurs.
He places this within a world where handwritten scripture texts were costly and ordinary listeners often encountered sacred teaching orally rather than through a personal copy at home.
For Walch, identifying a chiasm is therefore more than a literary exercise. It provides a way to ask: What did the teacher most want the audience to notice and remember?
Biblical Examples: The Flood, Ephraim and Judah, and the Lord’s House
Walch begins his literary examples with the Flood account.
Genesis 7:21–23 reads:
“And all flesh died that moved upon the earth, both of fowl, and of cattle, and of beast, and of every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth, and every man:
“All in whose nostrils was the breath of life, of all that was in the dry land, died.
“And every living substance was destroyed which was upon the face of the ground, both man, and cattle, and the creeping things, and the fowl of the heaven; and they were destroyed from the earth: and Noah only remained alive, and they that were with him in the ark.”churchofjesuschrist
Walch discusses the ordering of the categories in Hebrew and explains that the arrangement is less visible in the King James English. His emphasis is the central declaration of the destruction of life outside the ark.
He then turns to Isaiah, whom he describes as exceptionally skilled in poetic and rhetorical forms.
Isaiah 11:13 states:
“The envy also of Ephraim shall depart, and the adversaries of Judah shall be cut off: Ephraim shall not envy Judah, and Judah shall not vex Ephraim.”churchofjesuschrist
The corresponding Book of Mormon passage, 2 Nephi 21:13, reads:
“The envy of Ephraim also shall depart, and the adversaries of Judah shall be cut off; Ephraim shall not envy Judah, and Judah shall not vex Ephraim.”churchofjesuschrist
Walch draws attention to the reversed relationships among Ephraim, Judah, envy, and vexation.
He also discusses Isaiah’s prophecy of the Lord’s house. The passage corresponding to the wording he describes is Isaiah 2:3–5:
“Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths.”
The prophecy continues:
“And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.”
It concludes this unit:
“O house of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk in the light of the Lord.”churchofjesuschrist
Walch highlights the relationships among the house of Jacob, walking in the Lord’s ways, the nations, and the central images of weapons becoming agricultural tools.
An Expanded Isaiah Passage Preserved in the Book of Mormon
One of the presentation’s most important examples concerns material in the Book of Mormon’s Isaiah text that is absent from the corresponding King James passage.
Isaiah 49:1 begins:
“Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye people, from far; The Lord hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name.”churchofjesuschrist
The Book of Mormon version includes an expanded opening. 1 Nephi 21:1 reads:
“And again: Hearken, O ye house of Israel, all ye that are broken off and are driven out because of the wickedness of the pastors of my people; yea, all ye that are broken off, that are scattered abroad, who are of my people, O house of Israel. Listen, O isles, unto me, and hearken ye people from far; the Lord hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name.”churchofjesuschrist
Walch identifies a chiastic arrangement within the expanded opening. The repeated references to the house of Israel frame descriptions of people who are broken off, driven out, and scattered.
At the center stands the explanation involving “the wickedness of the pastors of my people.”
This illustrates two of his major themes at once. The Book of Mormon preserves additional wording, and the literary arrangement of that wording directs the reader toward its meaning. In his reading, the passage does not merely report Israel’s scattering; it emphasizes the responsibility of unfaithful leaders.
Jacob’s Warning: Learning Must Remain Subject to God’s Counsel
Walch next examines Jacob’s teaching about learning.
2 Nephi 9:27–29 states:
“But wo unto him that has the law given, yea, that has all the commandments of God, like unto us, and that transgresseth them, and that wasteth the days of his probation, for awful is his state!
“O that cunning plan of the evil one! O the vainness, and the frailties, and the foolishness of men! When they are learned they think they are wise, and they hearken not unto the counsel of God, for they set it aside, supposing they know of themselves, wherefore, their wisdom is foolishness and it profiteth them not. And they shall perish.
“But to be learned is good if they hearken unto the counsels of God.”churchofjesuschrist
Walch identifies corresponding ideas in the passage: commandments and counsel, transgression and hearkening, learning and self-assured wisdom, vainness and lack of profit.
He also explains “vainness” in terms of worthlessness or futility rather than merely personal vanity.
His interpretation places the spiritual decision at the center: will a person hearken to God’s counsel?
Jacob’s teaching does not reject learning. It distinguishes learning governed by humility and revelation from learning used to dismiss divine instruction.
King Benjamin: Remembering the Name and Yielding to the Spirit
Walch then turns to two examples from King Benjamin.
Retaining the name of Christ
Mosiah 5:10–12 reads:
“And now it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall not take upon him the name of Christ must be called by some other name; therefore, he findeth himself on the left hand of God.
“And I would that ye should remember also, that this is the name that I said I should give unto you that never should be blotted out, except it be through transgression; therefore, take heed that ye do not transgress, that the name be not blotted out of your hearts.
“I say unto you, I would that ye should remember to retain the name written always in your hearts, that ye are not found on the left hand of God, but that ye hear and know the voice by which ye shall be called, and also, the name by which he shall call you.”churchofjesuschrist
Walch points to the repeated references to a name, remembering, blotting out, and transgression.
He identifies “take heed that ye do not transgress” as the practical warning emphasized by the arrangement. The people have entered a covenant; now they must remain faithful to it.
He also recounts John Welch’s identification of chiasmus in King Benjamin’s address as an important development in recognizing these patterns in the Book of Mormon.
Putting off the natural man
Benjamin’s teaching in Mosiah 3:18–19 states:
“Men drink damnation to their own souls except they humble themselves and become as little children, and believe that salvation was, and is, and is to come, in and through the atoning blood of Christ, the Lord Omnipotent.”
The next verse explains:
“For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father.”churchofjesuschrist
Walch emphasizes yielding to the Holy Spirit as the turning point.
The change from natural man to saint is not merely a demand to improve one’s behavior independently. Benjamin explains a transformation involving responsiveness to the Spirit and the Atonement of Christ.
Alma 36: A Conversion Account Organized Around Jesus Christ
The climax of Walch’s discussion is Alma 36.
He describes the chapter as an extraordinary chiasm, presenting an arrangement with seventeen corresponding points on each side of a central turning point. In his analysis, the chapter’s literary form reinforces its testimony of the Savior.
Alma begins by instructing his son. Alma 36:1 states:
“My son, give ear to my words; for I swear unto you, that inasmuch as ye shall keep the commandments of God ye shall prosper in the land.”
The chapter returns to that covenant principle in Alma 36:30:
“Inasmuch as ye shall keep the commandments of God ye shall prosper in the land; and ye ought to know also, that inasmuch as ye will not keep the commandments of God ye shall be cut off from his presence.”churchofjesuschrist
Between those framing teachings, Alma recounts his conversion through a series of powerful reversals.
Destroying the Church becomes bringing souls to repentance
In Alma 36:6, he confesses:
“For I went about with the sons of Mosiah, seeking to destroy the church of God; but behold, God sent his holy angel to stop us by the way.”
Later, Alma 36:24 describes his changed purpose:
“And from that time even until now, I have labored without ceasing, that I might bring souls unto repentance; that I might bring them to taste of the exceeding joy of which I did taste; that they might also be born of God, and be filled with the Holy Ghost.”churchofjesuschrist
Helplessness becomes restored strength
Alma 36:10 states:
“I fell to the earth; and it was for the space of three days and three nights that I could not open my mouth, neither had I the use of my limbs.”
The answering movement appears in Alma 36:23:
“But behold, my limbs did receive their strength again, and I stood upon my feet, and did manifest unto the people that I had been born of God.”churchofjesuschrist
Horror at God’s presence becomes longing to be there
Walch especially emphasizes this contrast.
In Alma 36:14–15, Alma remembers:
“The very thought of coming into the presence of my God did rack my soul with inexpressible horror.
“Oh, thought I, that I could be banished and become extinct both soul and body, that I might not be brought to stand in the presence of my God, to be judged of my deeds.”
After his conversion, Alma 36:22 states:
“Methought I saw, even as our father Lehi saw, God sitting upon his throne, surrounded with numberless concourses of angels, in the attitude of singing and praising their God; yea, and my soul did long to be there.”churchofjesuschrist
The desire to disappear has become a desire to enter God’s presence.
The center: remembering and calling upon Jesus
The turning point appears in Alma 36:17–19:
“I remembered also to have heard my father prophesy unto the people concerning the coming of one Jesus Christ, a Son of God, to atone for the sins of the world.
“Now, as my mind caught hold upon this thought, I cried within my heart: O Jesus, thou Son of God, have mercy on me, who am in the gall of bitterness, and am encircled about by the everlasting chains of death.
“And now, behold, when I thought this, I could remember my pains no more; yea, I was harrowed up by the memory of my sins no more.”churchofjesuschrist
Everything turns upon Christ and the appeal for His mercy.
The experience culminates in Alma 36:20–21:
“And oh, what joy, and what marvelous light I did behold; yea, my soul was filled with joy as exceeding as was my pain!
“Yea, I say unto you, my son, that there could be nothing so exquisite and so bitter as were my pains. Yea, and again I say unto you, my son, that on the other hand, there can be nothing so exquisite and sweet as was my joy.”churchofjesuschrist
Walch sees the chapter’s careful arrangement as evidence of deliberate teaching. He suggests that Alma worked to communicate his experience in a form Helaman could understand and remember.
In that reading, inspiration and careful composition belong together. The chapter’s structure helps preserve its central lesson: Jesus Christ can change the sinner’s relationship with guilt, service, hope, and the presence of God.
Walch’s Study Tips: Read Differently and Ponder More
Walch closes by encouraging readers who have read the Book of Mormon many times to approach it differently.
Reading from beginning to end remains valuable. His concern is that repeatedly using only that method may leave other kinds of understanding unexplored.
Study by topic
Choose a theme and trace it through different books and speakers. This helps reveal relationships that are easy to miss when reading only in narrative order.
Follow conversion accounts
Walch particularly values conversion stories. They show how individuals recognize divine truth, respond to it, and experience spiritual change.
Alma’s testimony illustrates how a conversion account can teach both doctrine and the lived reality of repentance.
Concentrate on the sermons
Walch argues that Mormon’s historical selections serve his teaching purposes. The history provides enough setting for readers to understand the spiritual messages.
A sermon-centered reading therefore asks not only what happened, but why Mormon preserved a particular discourse and what its speaker wanted future readers to learn.
Use the footnotes
Slow down long enough to examine cross-references, language explanations, and related passages.
Walch’s own treatment of Jeremiah, Moses, and Isaiah demonstrates the value of reading across scriptural books rather than keeping each passage isolated.
Pay attention to literary form
Look for repeated words, paired ideas, opposites, and changes in order. Then ask whether the arrangement directs attention toward a central message.
For Walch, the purpose is not simply to label a passage a chiasm. The purpose is to understand what the arrangement teaches.
Focus on the Savior’s words and prophecies
Walch also recommends concentrating on what Christ teaches and what He says will happen, including matters relevant to the latter days.
Spend less time merely finishing and more time pondering
His concluding invitation is to make scripture study less about reaching the end of an assigned passage and more about thinking deeply about what it says.
The fireside’s movement—from language and archaeology to covenant, conversion, and the Savior—reflects that invitation. Walch wants readers to notice more, connect more, and allow the Holy Ghost to deepen their understanding as the scriptural pieces begin to fit together.
See more of Mike Walch’s Firesides…
