Lamoni and Ammon's Confrontation

After the Lamanites had established a church, King Lamoni asked Ammon to go with him to the land of Nephi to meet his father. But the Lord’s voice told Ammon, “Do not go to the land of Nephi, for Lamoni’s father will try to kill you. Instead, go to the land of Middoni, where your brother Aaron, and also Muloki and Ammah are in prison.”

Upon hearing this, Ammon said to Lamoni, “My brother and his friends are in prison in Middoni. I must go there to free them.” Lamoni replied, “I know that in the strength of the Lord you can do anything. But I will go with you, for the king there, Antiomno, is a friend of mine. I will flatter him and he will let your brethren out of prison. And who told you that your brethren were in prison?” Ammon answered, “No one but God, who said to me, ‘Go and free your brethren who are in prison at Middoni.’ ”Lamoni told his servants to get his horses and chariots ready to go, and then said to Ammon, “I will go with you to Middoni, and I will plead with the king to let your brethren out of prison.”

As Ammon and Lamoni went on their way to Middoni, they met Lamoni’s father, the king over all the land. He was sharp with Lamoni, and asked him, “Why didn’t you come on the day I held a great feast for my sons and my people? And where are you going with this Nephite, a child of a liar?” Afraid of offending his father, Lamoni answered that he was going to Middoni. He told his father all that had happened in his kingdom—that these things had kept him from coming to the feast. Lamoni expected his father to be happy with this good news, but to his surprise, his father was angry with him, and said, “Lamoni, why would you want to free these Nephites, the sons of a liar? Nephi robbed our forefathers, and now his children have come among us to trick and rob us!”

Then Lamoni’s father commanded him not to go to Middoni to free the Nephites, but to go with him back to the land of Ishmael. He also commanded Lamoni to kill Ammon with his sword. Lamoni refused, saying, “I will not kill Ammon, and I will go to Middoni to free Ammon’s brethren, for I know they are just men and holy prophets of the true God!”

Upon hearing this, Lamoni’s father became very angry and drew his sword to kill him. But Ammon stepped between Lamoni and his father, and said, “You will not kill your son, but if he did die, it would be better for him than you, for he has repented of his sins. If you were to die now in your anger, your soul could not be saved. For your own sake, do not kill your son, for he is innocent, and his blood would cry up from the ground to the Lord his God for vengeance upon you, and perhaps you would lose your soul.”

Lamoni’s father answered, “Yes, you are right. If I killed my son, I would shed innocent blood. You’re the one who has tried to destroy him!” He raised his sword against Ammon who defended the blows. Then Ammon wounded the king’s arm so he could not use it. Helpless, Lamoni’s father begged Ammon to spare his life. But Ammon raised his sword above him, saying, “I will kill you unless you give me authority to let my brethren out of prison!” Afraid for his life, the king said, “You can have whatever you want, even half of my kingdom!” Ammon saw that he had power over the king, and said, “In addition to letting my brethren out of prison, I want you to let Lamoni keep his kingdom. You must not be displeased with him, but instead let him do as he desires. Unless you promise this, I will kill you!” When Ammon said this, the king was happy, for his life had been spared. He realized that Ammon did not want to kill him, and he was very surprised at Ammon’s great love for his son. He said, “Because all you want is to free your brethren from prison and see Lamoni keep his kingdom, I will grant this, and I will not govern Lamoni again. Come to my kingdom when your brethren are out of prison, and bring them with you. I want to see you again and learn more about what you and Lamoni have told me today.”

Then Ammon and Lamoni continued their journey to Middoni. Lamoni was favored by Antiomno, the king of the land, who released Ammon’s brethren from prison.

When Ammon saw his brethren, he was very sorrowful, for they were naked and had many sores from being tied up. They had suffered from hunger, thirst and all types of afflictions, but they had been patient through it all. It had been their misfortune to be among a more stubborn people who had refused to listen to them. The people had driven them from house to house, and from place to place. The people had beaten them, and had driven them away, until at last they had gone to Middoni, the worst place of all. For in Middoni, they had been thrown into prison, tied with strong ropes, and kept there for many days before finally being released by Lamoni and Ammon.