Social: What comes from this conflict of cultures is social rebellion. While this is not stated in terms of a full-blown civil war, these are the seeds of such a war. On the one side of the conflict we have those who are in power and whose power reinforces their ability to create and maintain their social position. On the other hand, we have the prophets who directly threaten the very lifestyle of those who were in power. In such a situation of threat, there is certainly an implicit conflict, and the tension rose to a sufficient state at this time in Nephite society that the implicit conflict became explicit in the actions of the threatened judges and lawyers. These men combated the threat by removing those who were creating the greatest threat.
The second level of this conflict is equally as important as the death of the prophets. While that was a sign of the nature of the apostasy, there was a part of that action that had even greater consequences for the society as a whole. These deaths occurred outside of the law. They were accomplished by those who had power, but it was a power that they acquired that did not rely upon their participation in the traditional legal political structure. Mormon tells us that they did not have the power to put the prophets to death without consulting with Lachoneus. They certainly understood this. In spite of the law of the land, in addition to the unlawful (not to mention immoral) murders of God’s messengers, these judges and lawyers rebelled against the ultimate authority of the land.
When they do not take this matter to Lachoneous, the sitting chief judge, the rest of these judges and lawyers have decided to ignore, and therefore undermine, the entire legal system of the Nephties. They did not realize it at the time, but this very act would have extreme consequences. They undoubtedly murdered the prophets to preserve their preferred place in society. The ultimate effect, however; an ultimate effect seeded in their own undermining of the authority of the unifying poltical leader, would be to dissolve the Nephite polity entirely. They would not preserve their positions, they would destroy their positions.