Textual: This verse is clearly dependent upon Matthew:
Matt. 3:10 And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
In the context of Alma's sermon, the imagery of the fruit is tied directly to the fruit of the Tree of Life. The shift has been that the person now becomes the fruit, rather than simply partaking it. The emphasis in Alma has always been on the individual, and now that emphasis returns to the problem of church members who fall from the proper path. As with the earlier phases of the sermon, those members of the church who do not follow the gospel are under condemnation. They have tasted of the fruit - but have not produced fruit that indicates that they have undergone the mighty change.