Revelation Through Others

In Alma 60 we have the letter that contains the rebuke of Moroni to the leaders of the government, including Pahoran, who have failed to sustain the army in the midst of their long war against the Lamanites.  Generally it seems that people reading this seem to think that Moroni was wrong to accuse Pahoran and they praise Pahoran for his humble way in which he received the upbraiding; in his response he said, “And now, in your epistle you have censured me, but it mattereth not” (Alma 61:9).  Certainly that kind of attitude in which he was not offended by Moroni’s accusation is worthy of praise, but I think we should not discount the fact that Moroni’s censuring was spot on in general—it just didn’t apply to Pahoran.  Moroni’s letter was written “to Pahoran, in the city of Zarahemla, who is the chief judge and the governor over the land, and also to all those who have been chosen by this people to govern and manage the affairs of this war” (Alma 60:1).  Pahoran was indeed innocent, but the rest of the government leaders were not and this was the cause of much of the trouble.  What’s interesting to me about this exchange between Moroni and Pahoran, though, is the way that revelation came to Pahoran. 

                Pahoran was driven out from Zarahemla by those who rose up in rebellion against him, and he “fled to the land of Gideon” with some of those still faithful to him (Alma 61:5).  It appears from his letter that he really was struggling to know what to do.  He wrote to Moroni, “And now, Moroni, I do joy in receiving your epistle, for I was somewhat worried concerning what we should do, whether it should be just in us to go against our brethren” (Alma 61:19).  Pahoran was a good man who feared to do wrong in the sight of the Lord, and like Nephi wondering if he could really slay Laban, he must have agonized over whether or not it was lawful for him to go against in own people in battle.  We don’t know how long he was in the situation, but it must have been at least a considerable amount of time given how frustrated Moroni was with the lack of supplies.  This must have been a terrible choice weighing on Pahoran’s mind, and likely it would mean fighting against those who had been in government with him and who probably were former friends.  But it appears that his answer came to him when he got Moroni’s letter.  For he wrote back to Moroni, “But ye have said, except they repent the Lord hath commanded you that ye should go against them” (Alma 61:20).  The Spirit must have confirmed to him at that moment as he read the letter that this was exactly what he was supposed to do; thousands were dying because of the Lamanite aggression and the Nephites weren’t being strengthened because of the failures of the Nephite government.  It was indeed just to go against those who had taken over the government, and once he had that revelation he seemed to know exactly what to do in order to take back power and ultimately win the war.  Moroni received the words of the Lord, but it was Pahoran who needed to hear them and he finally learned the Lord’s will when he got Moroni’s letter.   

                Perhaps the lesson here for us is that revelation can come from many places, and often hearing the thoughts and counsel of others can change our perspective and help us see the path forward.  I remember a specific instance when I agonized over a decision and prayed earnestly to know what I should do.  But it wasn’t until I had a conversation about it with my wife that I suddenly knew what the right course of action was; she was actually leaning the other direction in terms of what choice to make, but she had learned something that when she told it to me the Spirit confirmed exactly what we needed to do.  Spencer W. Kimball taught, “God does notice us, and he watches over us. But it is usually through another person that he meets our needs” (see here).  Perhaps in matters of revelation the Lord sometimes uses others as well to help us see the way forward.