The Fate of a Coward

After Abinadi's death, contention arose in the City of Nephi.  A small group of people began to speak out against the king and his court and their excesses.  One of the members of the group was a man named Gideon.  Gideon came to the conclusion that the only way to rid Nephi of the stench of the king's wickedness was to assassinate Noah.  This he swore to do.

Noah fled before him in terror and Gideon pursued him.  Noah ran to the top of the watch tower he had built near the temple.  Just as Gideon was about to kill him, the king looked out toward the land of Shemlon and saw a large Lamanite army within the borders of the land.  He begged Gideon to spare his life so that he could lead his people to safety.

Noah told his people to get out of Nephi and flee into the wilderness.  He led out men, women, and children.  But when it became clear that the Lamanites would overtake them, Noah told the men to leave their wives and children behind because they were slowing them down.  Noah's priests and many other men left their families and ran away with the cowardly king.  But some men refused to leave and they stayed to protect the women and the children.

When the Lamanites overtook them, they had compassion on the women and children with so few men to protect them.  They took the remaining people back to the City of Nephi.  Although they survived, they were put under tribute to the Lamanite king and were not allowed to leave their city.

 

When the men who fled with Noah finally stopped to catch their breath, their fear subsided and shame took its place.  They felt like the cowards they were and wanted to return to their wives and children.  Noah forbade it.  The men then too Noah, tied him to a tree, and burned him to death.  Thus ended the life of a useless coward and a truly evil man.

The wicked priests fled further into the wilderness lest they, too, be executed.  The other men then returned to their wives and children in the City of Nephi, preferring captivity and tribute to cowardice.  One of those men had a particular struggle with this decision.  In the Book of Mormon we read: 

And now there was one of the sons of the king among those that were taken captive, whose name was Limhi. And now Limhi was desirous that his father should not be destroyed; nevertheless, Limhi was not ignorant of the iniquities of his father, he himself being a just man. (Mosiah 18: 16-17)

King Noah was powerful until he betrayed the trust of his people and lost their loyalty.  The new King Limhi was committed to ruling his people in righteousness.
 

Copyright August 2013, Gebara Education

 

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Picture of the tower of Kaminaljuyu from www.touristlink.com