This chapter is a synopsis of the events given by Mormon from his sources. In these two verses we have an editorial comment from Mormon on what would have been a much fuller, and probably more direct, description of the battle on his source plates. What we have from Mormon is an interesting comment placing Captain Moroni’s actions into a moral sphere. What we seem to have is a hint at Mormon’s understanding of the morality of battle.
Mormon is giving an excuse for Moroni’s actions. He tells us the motivation for Moroni’s tactics, and that this motivation therefore justifies the tactics. What Mormon is saying, though he certainly does not realize it, is that he considers this type of tactic less than honorable in other circumstances. This comment says worlds about Mormon’s conception of “proper” warfare. As with the Mesoamerican armies with which we are familiar though history, the morality of warfare depended heavily on the individual combat. The purpose of the fight was not destruction, but demonstrating prowess and the moral superiority of the polity behind the army. Battles were typically announced, and the arrival of the army had been well noted.
Moroni violates that principle of direct and known conflict by secreting his forces. While that makes perfect sense in a modern military situation, it was apparently foreign to certain principles held by Mormon, and therefore something on which he needed to comment.
The comment that Mormon makes in verse 29 tells us much about the nature of political warfare in the Lamanite/Nephite world. When Mormon first describes the intent of the Lamanites he says that they want to “destroy their brethren.” This makes it sound as though the Lamanites were simply bloodthirsty and desirous of killing and total destruction. That cannot be the image that Mormon has in mind, because his following information contradicts this type of complete destruction. When we get to the more specific information of the desires of the Lamanites we have: “…to subject them and bring them into bondage that they might establish a kingdom unto themselves over all the land.” As we have seen before in the Book of Mormon, battles were not fought for destruction, nor even for acquisition of land, but for the subjugation of the local polity in favor of the rulers of the attacking army. The idea was to establish a tribute relationship between the conquered city and the new overlord.
This is precisely what we see in Mormon’s description. The Nephites were to be brought into bondage. This is a Book of Mormon term that may be retranslated as “become a tributary” in the Mesoamerican context. The bondage is that they are required to offer up some of their production and send it to the new political leader. Notice that the end result of this “bondage/tribute” would be that there is as a new kingdom in the land. The overlordship of the land of Zarahemla would pass to the king of the organizing city of the Lamanite army. All of these specifics fit precisely the conditions we find in Mesoamerican warfare.