To this point, Mormon has described the beginning of the reign of judges generically, without reference to anyone filling the positions. Now we find that the first chief judge is Alma the younger. Where the government and religious leadership had been split between Mosiah and Alma the elder, they were now reunited in Alma the younger.
The confirmation that this change was divinely ordained comes in the form of the standard statement that things were well after a major change. In this case, Alma always “did walk in the ways of the Lord, and he did keep his commandments.” This is the statement that shows that the Nephites prospered, and that the prosperity came as a result of aligning themselves with Jehovah’s laws and desires.