Zarahemnah knew he was defeated, but he was not willing to meet all of the conditions of peace (v. 8). The sacredness of the oath among the people from whence the families of Lehi and Ishmael came in 600 B.C. is again shown. The oath was more sacred than death even among the Lamanites (v. 8). However, Zarahemnah lacked a commitment to and a knowledge of God. Once more he put the strength of man above the power of God (v. 9).
Captain Moroni’s commitment to fair play, as suggested above (Alma 43:30), is now illustrated. In spite of the superior number of the Lamanites (see Alma 43:51), he returns the weapons to Zarahemnah (Alma 44:10) that there be no advantage to the Nephites. Perhaps he wanted to show that God was with them as he had testified.
Although it is not stated clearly that Moroni is raising the standard of liberty the second time, it is implied by the Lamanites not being allowed to depart unless they make the oath not to return in war. “As the Lord liveth” is a sacred part of an oath (see 1 Nephi 4:32). Moroni would not recall his words. The conditions of peace belong to the victor and were not to be altered. Surely he was not responsible for the second offense, the Lamanite attack about to begin (see Alma 43:46). The Lord would also fight this battle.
Again Zarahemnah rejects the standard of peace. If Captain Moroni did not raise the standard of peace a second time, it was raised through the soldier who had smitten off Zarahemnah’s scalp (Alma 44:13–14). Even though Zarahemnah had rejected the peace offer, many others did not accept the second offer (v. 14). Nothing is said about the lineage of those who accepted the second offer, but from reasoning it seems they were Lamanites and not Zoramites or Amalekites. Some have speculated that this incident was the origin of scalping by latter-day Americans Indians. Dr Daniel H. Ludlow has commented:
Recent evidence would seem to indicate the American Indian did not have a scalping tradition until after the coming of the white man—that is, until the seventeenth century A.D. Apparently it was the white man who started the scalping custom, when some of the early colonists offered money for the scalps or hair of dead Indians. In order to get even with the evil white men who killed Indians just for their scalps (in much the same way as they would kill a buffalo for its hide), the Indians started to kill and scalp the whites in return.