King-Men Versus Freemen

Some Nephites asked the chief judge, Pahoran, to change some of the laws of the land. Pahoran would not do it. Alma 51:2–3

These people became angry and wanted to remove Pahoran as chief judge. They did not want judges. They wanted to have a king. Alma 51:4–5

Called king-men, they hoped that one of them would become king and have power over the people. Alma 51:8

The Nephites who wanted to keep Pahoran as chief judge were called freemen. They wanted to be free to live and worship as they chose. Alma 51:6

The people voted between the freemen and the king-men. Most of them voted for the freemen. They wanted a judge, not a king. Alma 51:7

At this same time, Amalickiah was gathering a large army of Lamanites to attack the Nephites. Alma 51:9

When the king-men heard that the Lamanites were coming, they were pleased and refused to help defend their country. Alma 51:13

Captain Moroni was angry with the king-men for not fighting for freedom. He had worked hard to keep the Nephites free. Alma 51:14

He asked the governor for power to force the king-men to either fight the Lamanites or be put to death. Alma 51:15

When the governor, Pahoran, gave him this power, Moroni led his army against the king-men. Alma 51:16–18

Many king-men were killed; some were put into prison. The rest agreed to help defend their country against the Lamanites. Alma 51:19–20

Illustrated by Jerry Thompson