Moroni's Reply to Ammoron's Letter

In the beginning of 63 BC, Ammoron, the Lamanite king, sent a message to Moroni requesting an exchange of prisoners. Moroni was happy with this request, for he needed the provisions being used to support the Lamanite prisoners for his own people. He also wanted to increase the size of his army.

The Lamanites had taken many women, children and men as prisoners, but Moroni had only taken Lamanite men as prisoners. He had a strategy to get back many of his captured people. He wrote a letter and gave it to Ammoron’s servant, who had delivered Ammoron’s message to him. The letter read:

“Ammoron, I have written to you about this war that you have waged against my people, or rather that your brother has waged against them, which you are still determined to carry on after his death. The sword of God’s almighty wrath hangs over you unless you repent and take your armies back to the land of your possession, the land of Nephi. I would tell you more about these things if you were capable of responding to them. I would tell you about the awful hell that has received your brother, and that awaits you unless you repent by giving up your murderous ways, and take your armies back to your own lands. But since you have rejected these things once before, and have fought against the Lord’s people, I expect you to do it again.

“We are prepared to receive you, and unless you withdraw, you will pull down the wrath of that God, whom you have rejected, upon you, even to your utter destruction. For as the Lord lives, our armies will come upon you if you do not withdraw. You will soon be visited with death, for we will retain our cities and lands, and we will maintain our religion and the cause of our God.

“I may be writing to you about these things in vain, for I think that you are a child of hell. I will end my letter by telling you that I will not exchange prisoners unless you deliver up a man with his wife and children for one prisoner. If you will not do this, I will come against you with my armies. I will even arm our women and children. We will follow you into your own land, the land of our first inheritance, and give you battle until you are destroyed off the face of the earth!

“My people and I are very angry, for you have sought to murder us while we have only sought to defend ourselves. If you seek to destroy us anymore, we will seek to destroy you and take the land of our first inheritance. This is the end of my letter. I am Moroni, the leader of the Nephite armies.”

Upon reading Moroni’s letter, Ammoron became angry. He wrote another letter to Moroni, which read:

“I am Ammoron, the king of the Lamanites. I am the brother of Amalickiah, whom you have murdered. I will avenge his blood upon you by coming upon you with my armies, for I do not fear your threats. Your forefathers wronged their brothers, robbing them of their right to govern when it rightly belonged to them. If you will lay down your weapons and subject yourselves to be governed by those to whom the government rightly belongs, then I will tell my people to lay down their weapons and this war will end.

“You have threatened me and my people, but we do not fear you. However, I will gladly exchange prisoners according to your request, to preserve my food for my men of war. We will wage an eternal war, and either subject the Nephites to our authority or make them eternally extinct.

“And as for that God whom you say we have rejected, we do not know such a being, and neither do you. If there is such a thing, he made us as well as you. And if there is a devil and a hell, he will send you there to live with my brother, whom you have murdered, and whom you have hinted has gone to such a place. But these things do not even matter.

“I am Ammoron, a descendant of Zoram, whom your forefathers forced out of Jerusalem. I am a bold Lamanite, and this war has been waged to avenge the wrong-doings of your forefathers upon ours, and to obtain our rights to the government. This is the end of my letter to you, Moroni.”