Thursday, October 17, 2013

More Than Double the Power of Dragons

Partly because I love dragons, and partly because I love the War Chapters, a few verses in the Book of Mormon really stand out to me because they help to describe the strength of dragons and the strength of the power of God.

First, the strength of dragons.

In Mosiah 20, the people of Limhi were Nephites living under Lamanite control. Another group of people kidnapped the Lamanites' daughters, and the Lamanites thought the people of Limhi did it. This, of course, made the Lamanites very angry, and they attacked the people of Limhi.

And it came to pass that the battle became exceedingly sore, for they fought like lions for their prey. 
And it came to pass that the people of Limhi began to drive the Lamanites before them; yet they were not half so numerous as the Lamanites. But they fought for their lives, and for their wives, and for their children; therefore they exerted themselves and like dragons did they fight. 
Mosiah 20: 10-11 (Italics Added)

So we see, that though the Lamanites were twice as many as the people of Limhi and fighting like lions, the people of Limhi fought like dragons, and "began to drive the Lamanites before them."

Lamanites =  (2x Number of Warriors) x (Strength of Lions) < People of Limhi = (1x Number of Warriors) x (Strength of Dragons).

Therefore, the strength of dragons is more than twice as strong as the strength of dragons. We have scriptural evidence that dragons are more than twice as powerful as lions. That. Is. Awesome.

But it gets better.

In Alma 43, the War Chapters have officially begun, and they start with a battle between an army of the Lamanites and the army of Moroni. Moroni was a terrific man and a matchless war-captain. He gave the Nephites armor, he fortified their cities, he led them in brilliant (for their era) strategies, and he inspired their hearts to stand firm and fight hard.

Now in this case the Lamanites did fight exceedingly; yea, never had the Lamanites been known to fight with such exceedingly great strength and courage, no, not even from the beginning. 
And they were inspired by the Zoramites and the Amalekites, who were their chief captains and leaders, and by Zerahemnah, who was their chief captain, or their chief leader and commander; yea, they did fight like dragons, and many of the Nephites were slain by their hands, yea, for they did smite in two many of their head-plates, and they did pierce many of their breastplates, and they did smite off many of their arms; and thus the Lamanites did smite in their fierce anger. 
Nevertheless, the Nephites were inspired by a better cause, for they were not fighting for monarchy nor power but they were fighting for their homes and their liberties, their wives and their children, and their all, yea, for their rites of worship and their church. 
... 
And it came to pass that they turned upon the Lamanites, and they cried with one voice unto the Lord their God, for their liberty and their freedom from bondage. 
And they began to stand against the Lamanites with power; and in that selfsame hour that they cried unto the Lord for their freedom, the Lamanites began to flee before them; and they fled even to the waters of Sidon. 
Now, the Lamanites were more numerous, yea, by more than double the number of the Nephites; nevertheless, they were driven insomuch that they were gathered together in one body in the valley, upon the bank by the river Sidon. 
Alma 43: 43-45, 49-51 (Italics Added)

In this case, it was the Lamanites who were fighting like dragons, and they were still twice as numerous as the Nephites, yet, the Nephites fought with the strength of the Lord, and they won that battle.

Lamanites = (2x Number of Warriors) x (Strength of Dragons) < Nephites = (1x Number of Warriors) x (Strength of the Lord)

Scriptural evidence that the strength of the Lord is more than twice as powerful as the strength of dragons.

That's great, but it gets even better.

In Alma 56, Helaman writes to Moroni about his 2000 Stripling Warriors and a battle they had had against the Lamanites, in which the Lamanites surrendered.

And now it came to pass that when they had surrendered themselves up unto us, behold, I numbered those young men who had fought with me, fearing lest there were many of them slain. 
But behold, to my great joy, there had not one soul of them fallen to the earth; yea, and they had fought as if with the strength of God; yea, never were men known to have fought with such miraculous strength; and with such mighty power did they fall upon the Lamanites, that they did frighten them; and for this cause did the Lamanites deliver themselves up as prisoners of war. 
Alma 56: 55-56 (Italics Added)

Now, Helaman may not have been present at the battle where the army of Moroni fought twice as hard as dragons. In fact, I don't think he was there. So he may not have ever seen an army fight with the strength of the Lord until he saw his stripling soldiers do it. But regardless of whether his claim was mathematically accurate or not, it's obvious that he was very impressed. And it's equally obvious that the Strength of the Lord is tremendously powerful, easily more than twice as powerful as dragons.

Sometimes I think life is hard. Sometimes I think that the forces that stand against me are many times stronger than I am. But what I often forget is that I never have to fight alone. The Nephites almost never did. Like the Nephites, I can cry to the Lord for a portion of His strength, and in His strength, I can stand against all the enemies of righteousness, no matter what animals they're fighting like, mythical or otherwise. We all can call upon the strength of the Lord to help us win the battle for our own souls and for the fate of the world, and we can get it. If we are faithful and pray for strength, we can stand for truth and righteousness with more than double the power of dragons. And in case you haven't picked up on this yet, that is really, really STRONG.

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