The fragile nature of the Nephite political structure is made evident here. To review the essential information, we had a Nephite religion and political system that were one and the same until the ending of Mosiah II’s reign. Alma the Elder began establishing churches, and that sub-organization of the society created internal structures that allowed for some separation of religion and politics, a rather remarkable social distinction for that time and place. Mosiah continued that division, and the unique Nephite religious ideal continued to be dominant in the political arena, but was clearly not mandated, nor was it universally accepted and practiced, particularly as time progressed.
At this point in Nephite history, this sub-organization of the church exists along side members of the political hegemony who do not belong to the church. Those are the ones that we would first expect to be susceptible to the outside “Lamanite” ideas of social hierarchy. What we learn in this verse is that even inside of the church, that location which should most zealously guard the Nephite egalitarian idea. There were those who were beginning to believe that there was another way. Since this other way was couched in more political terms, the very division between the church and the political government might have allowed them to think that they might have a king and still have their religion. After all, they had had kings not all that long before.
The reason that this logic fails them is twofold. The first is that the nature of early Nephite kings is decidedly different from the kings that they see in cities around them. The best indication of the difference between Nephite and Lamanite kings might be seen in Benjamin’s speech where he implicitly contrasts himself with other kings, and particularly notes that he supports himself with the labor of this own hands (see especially Mosiah 2:10-14).
The second reason that this new king is so dangerous is that it is not simply the king, but an entire system that is being sought. It is an attractive system because they see it all around them in cities that are being made grand by the labor supplied to their kings. They see it in the riches so visibly displayed in these other areas. Their own riches are increasing to the point where a similar display of wealth is becoming attractive. The people in the church aren’t necessarily looking for a new religion, but a new socio-political order. What they do not see, and what the prophets saw all too clearly, is that the adoption of this new social order would signal the destruction of the Nephite society, and ultimately the destruction of the church itself.