The phrase “listeth to obey” suggests that Mormon is familiar with, and perhaps referencing, the great sermon of King Benjamin:
Mosiah 2:32-33 But, O my people, beware lest there shall arise contentions among you, and ye list to obey the evil spirit, which was spoken of by my father Mosiah.
33 For behold, there is a wo pronounced upon him who listeth to obey that spirit; for if he listeth to obey him, and remaineth and dieth in his sins, the same drinketh damnation to his own soul; for he receiveth for his wages an everlasting punishment, having transgressed the law of God contrary to his own knowledge.
There is an interesting overlap in the language and contexts of Benjamin’s statement and Mormon’s apparent restructuring of that statement. In both cases there is an emphasis on the volition of the person – the one who “listeth [listens] to obey.” In both there is a description of the eternal wage one will receive for the spirit to which one listens. The main difference is that Benjamin emphasizes only the negative half of the choice, and Mormon presents both the negative and positive options. Nevertheless, it would seem that Mormon is repeating the same message. The ultimate spiritual happiness or misery of man is based upon our own choices.
This is Mormon’s logical conclusion to the story of the Amlicites, who have become cursed, and did so voluntarily. Mormon’s story of the Amlicites emphasizes that they were originally Nephite, and therefore not subject to the curse of the Lamanites (not the implicit eternal misery of those who oppose God – as known by the way of life of the Nephties). The cursing of the Amlicites came because they made a choice, and they received the reward of that spirit that they “listeth to obey.”
What did they listen to? From a historical viewpoint, what can we say was evidence that the Amlicites “listened” to a spirit that drew them away? Once again we have the conflict that has been part and parcel of the Nephite experience. The Nephite way of life continues to be in conflict with the cultural influences surrounding them. The Amlicite “contention” was that they “listened” to those outside influences. They wanted to adopt the king-culture, which has become the Book of Mormon shorthand for the way of life that is opposed to the way of God.
Textual: The first sentence of this verse is the conclusion of the statement in verse 26. The final verse simply pastes on the conclusion that Mormon began to write in verse 25. This is the end of a chapter in the 1830 edition.