King Lamoni had a problem. A particular watering place was used by him and others in tending their flocks. The king used servants to protect his animals, but they failed to carry out that duty. Biblical law protected such servants or hirelings if the animals are driven away “no man seeing it,” or if it is “torn in pieces” by wild animals (Exodus 22:10, 13), in which cases they had no liability; but “if it be stolen from him [in his presence], he shall make restitution” (Exodus 22:12), which was the case in King Lamoni’s case. His servants had not protected the flock from those who came to scatter them. Indeed, the problem was serious enough that Lamoni had killed some of his servants, whose flock had been scattered (Alma 19:20).
But Ammon rose to the challenge. When the marauders attacked again, Ammon killed six of them with his sling, and a seventh, their leader, he killed with his sword (perhaps a wooden blade studded with extremely sharp obsidian chip blades, called a “macuahuitl” in the Nahuatl language; Alma 17:38). The severed arms of all seven (Alma 19:16) were then presented to King Lamoni, who immediately wanted to reward him, by offering him one of his daughters in marriage (17:24).
All of this makes one wonder, Was it customary among Ishmaelites to return to their commander with the bloody body parts of defeated enemies? It is interesting to note that in the ancient world, especially in the ancient Near East, soldiers would often return from the battlefield with a designated body part of those they had killed. Such soldiers were not necessarily mercenaries, but they all expected to be properly rewarded for their skill and valor in battle. The soldier would often receive piece-meal compensation for each enemy he killed. The designated body part brought from battle was often the right hand. This is because every person has only one right hand. Soldiers were not compensated for left hands because that could result double payment. This gruesome wartime practice is depicted in several Assyrian archeological murals showing soldiers bringing the arms or the legs (or whatever agreed-upon body part) in order to be paid for their service. The practice is also documented in Egyptian archaeology, as in the forecourt of a Hyksos palace where two deposits of seven right hands were found. Because the practice shows up in Mesoamerica as well, it is clearly possible that this same practice was traditional among the Ishmaelites and Lamanites.
Book of Mormon Central, “Why did the Servant Present Lamoni with the Arms of His Enemies? (Alma 17:39),” KnoWhy 125 (June 20, 2016).
Bruce H. Yerman, “Ammon and the Mesoamerican Custom of Smiting Off Arms,” Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 8, no. 1 (1999): 44–47, 78–79.
John M. Lundquist and John W. Welch, “Ammon and Cutting Off the Arms of Enemies,” in Reexploring the Book of Mormon: A Decade of New Research, ed. John W. Welch (Salt Lake City and Provo, UT: Deseret Book and FARMS, 1992), 180–181.
Manfred Bietak, Nicola Math, Vera Müller, and Claus Jurman, “Report on the Excavations of a Hyksos Palace at Tell El-Dabca/Avaris,” Ägypten und Levante / Egypt and the Levant 22, no. 23 (2012): 17–53.