“The King of All the Lamanites,” Book of Mormon Stories (2023)
“The King of All the Lamanites,” Book of Mormon Stories
The King of All the Lamanites
Wanting to learn about the Lord
The Lamanites had a king who ruled over all their other kings. He was King Lamoni’s father. He thought the Nephites were enemies. One day, he saw Lamoni with Ammon. The king asked Lamoni what he was doing with a Nephite. Lamoni told the king that they were going to free Ammon’s brothers from prison.
The king was angry. He thought the Nephites were lying to try to steal from the Lamanites. He told Lamoni to kill Ammon and come with him.
Lamoni would not kill Ammon. He told the king that Ammon and his brothers were prophets of God. He said he would help Ammon’s brothers.
The king took out his sword to hurt Lamoni, but Ammon stopped him. The king attacked Ammon instead. Ammon defended himself. He hurt the king’s arm so the king could not fight. The king was scared because of how strong Ammon was. He promised to give Ammon half of his kingdom if Ammon would let him live.
Ammon did not want the kingdom. Instead, he asked the king to free his brothers from prison. He also asked the king to stop being angry with Lamoni. Ammon said the king should let Lamoni rule the way he thought was best.
The king was surprised about how much Ammon loved Lamoni. He agreed to do everything Ammon asked.
The king wanted to learn more about what Ammon and Lamoni had told him about God. He asked for Ammon and his brothers to come and teach him.
Ammon and Lamoni went to the land of Middoni. Ammon’s brothers were in prison there. They were tied up with ropes and had not been given food or water. Lamoni convinced the ruler of Middoni to let Ammon’s brothers go free.
Once they were free, Ammon’s brothers went to Lamoni’s father. They bowed to the king and asked to be his servants. The king said no. Instead, he wanted them to teach him about the gospel. One of the brothers was named Aaron. He read the scriptures to the king and taught him about God and Jesus Christ.
The king believed Aaron. He said he would give up his whole kingdom to know God. He asked Aaron what he needed to do. Aaron told the king to repent and pray to God with faith. The king repented of all his sins and prayed.
The king fell to the ground. The king’s servants ran to tell the queen.
The queen came and saw the king on the ground. She thought Aaron and his brothers had killed the king. The queen was angry.
The queen told the servants to put Aaron and his brothers to death. But the servants were afraid. They said Aaron and his brothers were too strong. Now the queen was scared. She sent the servants to tell the people in the city what had happened. She hoped the people would kill Aaron and his brothers.
Aaron knew the people would be angry. He also knew the king was not dead. He helped the king stand up. The king got his strength back and stood. The queen and servants were surprised.
The king taught the queen and the servants about Jesus. They all believed in Jesus. The king wanted all his people to learn about Jesus. He made a law that Aaron and his brothers could teach the gospel anywhere in his kingdom. They taught the people and called priests and teachers in the land.