KnoWhy #144 - Why was Alma Converted? (Alma 36:21)

No other event had a greater impact on Alma’s life than the transformative three days he spent racked with torment after being rebuked by an angel. Alma 36 stands out as the most complete and well-composed account of this event. Its chiastic composition eloquently and effectively guides the reader most centrally and emphatically toward Alma’s direct, personal encounter with Jesus Christ. Ultimately, Alma’s conversion occurred when he remembered his father speaking of “the coming of one Jesus Christ, a Son of God, to atone for the sins of the world.” It is hard to imagine any literary form being used more effectively than this extended chiasm to articulate the transformative effect of the Christ’s Atonement.