13 And it came to pass that when the Lamanites saw that they could not overpower the Nephites they returned again to their own land; and many of them came over to dwell in the land of Ishmael and the land of Nephi, and did join themselves to the people of God, who were the people of Anti-Nephi-Lehi.
14 And they did also bury their weapons of war, according as their brethren had, and they began to be a righteous people; and they did walk in the ways of the Lord, and did observe to keep his commandments and his statutes. Another miracle! It seems that many of the attacking Lamanites were actually humbled by their afflictions— which is the very purpose of them. But now they had a place to go! They could easily and more comfortably dwell among “their own” people, and still accept the Gospel of Jesus Christ. So they did. They joined the people of Anti-Nephi-Lehi in the lands of Ishmael and Nephi, and also sealed their covenant to war no more by burying their weapons deep in the earth also. Why did they all bury their weapons deep in the earth? If they had no intention of ever using them again, would it not be sufficient to just bury them? Wouldn’t that symbolism be enough? For it was symbolic of their covenant. Then again, why not just make the covenant and leave the weapons where they were? If you have no intention to use them, would it matter that they were left where they always were? I submit that it was not only for symbolic reasons that they buried their weapons, and that they specifically buried them deep in the ground for a reason. I submit that they buried them deep so as not to be tempted to unearth them and use them again. For the purpose of hindering them from using them if they were ever tempted to do so. These people knew their weaknesses. They knew how they were raised and how steeped they were in violence and war. And they must have known that they would still suffer from temptation, especially if they had to defend themselves against an enemy. For surely they still had a desire to protect and preserve their lives. Of course this is all conjecture and opinion. But I believe it very well may be so. Anyway, how welcome these brethren and their families (those who joined them) must have been! For not only did the people of Anti-Nephi-Lehi lose many enemies, they gained many brothers in Christ! More rejoicing in the lands of Ishmael and Nephi!!
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