Alma promises the people that Yahweh will deliver them if they place their trust in him. The promise is immediately true because the Lamanites spare their lives (v. 29), even though they become a tributary people. The promise is fulfilled in a second sense when Alma and his people escape to Zarahemla, their deliverance complete. This is the story’s message. Yahweh will allow his people’s patience to be tried but will deliver them (vv. 21–24). For Mormon, this Lamanite domination is not a denial of the people’s righteousness or a punishment for unrighteousness, but a trial of that righteousness. These people have already committed to follow Yahweh and, from all we know of them, are faithful to that covenant.
Literature: Mormon turns a parallel phrase in emphasizing the position of Alma’s people before the Lamanites: “[They] began to cry unto the Lord that he would soften the hearts of the Lamanites, that they would spare them, and their wives, and their children. And it came to pass that the Lord did soften the hearts of the Lamanites” (Mosiah 23:28–29).
In verse 28 they cry unto the Lord to “soften the hearts of the Lamanites” and “the Lord did soften the hearts of the Lamanites.” This repetition of the substance of the prayer ties the request to its granting. They ask God for a certain type of assistance and the repetition of the phrase marks God’s direct affirmative response.