Samuel, the Lamanite

A Book of Mormon Story Retold by Mabel Jones Gabbott

Samuel turned sadly away from the city of Zarahemla. He had spent many days among the Nephites, talking with them, trying to get them to see their wrongs and repent of their wickedness. They would not listen. They had cast him out of their city, and he was about to return to his own land.

But the voice of the Lord came to Samuel, telling him to return again to Zarahemla and prophesy to the people whatever came into his heart.

The people would not let him enter the city, so Samuel found a place where he could climb up onto the wall surrounding it, and then he stretched forth his hand and cried out in a loud voice, “I, Samuel, a Lamanite, do speak the words of the Lord which he doth put in my heart.”

To those who stopped to listen, Samuel said, “Behold, I give you a sign that I prophesy truly, for after five more years the Son of God will come to redeem all those who believe on his name. And this will be a sign at the time of his coming; there shall be great lights in the heaven in the night before he comes. There shall be no darkness, and it shall seem that there is one day and a night and a day, as if it were one day, and there were no night. You shall know of the rising of the sun and also of its setting; so you shall know of a surety that there shall be two days and a night; nevertheless, the night shall not be darkened; and it shall be the night before he is born. And there shall be a new star arise, such an one as you have never seen; and this also shall be a sign unto you. And there shall be many signs and wonders in heaven, so many that you shall all be amazed.”

There were many people who believed the words of Samuel and asked to be baptized, but because Samuel was a Lamanite and spoke the words that the Lord commanded that he speak—and they were harsh words about the wickedness of the Nephites—they were angry with him and wanted to destroy him.

They cast stones at him up on the wall, and many shot arrows at him as he stood upon the wall; but the Spirit of the Lord was with him so that they could not hit him with their stones or with their arrows. The officers tried to take hold of Samuel, but he jumped down from the wall and fled to his own country to preach and to prophesy among his own people.

And Samuel was never heard of more among the Nephites!

Painting by Arnold Friberg