“The Lord’s protective and redemptive embrace is described in the Book of Mormon as being ‘encircled’ or ‘clasped’ in the Lord’s arms:
“‘But behold, the Lord hath redeemed my soul from hell; I have beheld his glory, and I am encircled about eternally in the arms of his love. (2 Nephi 1:15)’
“‘And thus mercy can satisfy the demands of justice, and encircles them in the arms of safety, while he that exercises no faith unto repentance is exposed to the whole law of the demands of justice. (Alma 34:16). … ’
“The embracing arms in these passages and the extended arm(s) of mercy both depend on the human addressee’s repentance” (Calabro, “‘Stretch Forth Thy Hand and Prophesy,’” 55).