Noah built costly palace had horses and chariots and a large number of wives and servants. He led a shameful life, spending his days in feasting and in doing things which were exceedingly displeasing in the sight of the Lord. It required a great deal of money to support this ungodly king. He, therefore, put heavy taxes upon his people, and the Nephites had to work hard to pay the expenses of their wicked ruler. One by one the Nephites began to follow the example of their king, and in the course of time the greater part of them had become almost as bad as Noah himself. Now, there was a man among the Nephites who had watched with sorrow the conduct of his people. His name was Abinadi. He was a good man, and the Lord loved him. One day the voice of the Lord came to Abinadi, saying, "Abinadi, I want you to go among this people and call them to repentance. Tell them that I, the Lord, am very angry with them because of their wickedness, and that if they do not cease doing evil, I will let the Lamanites come down upon them and overcome them, and they will become servants to the Lamanites." Abinadi did as the Lord commanded him. He stood up in the midst of the Nephites and told them of the wicked things they had done, how angry the Lord was with them, and warned them of the trouble which would come upon them if they did not repent. His words made them very angry. They rushed upon him, seized him, and marched him roughly to the king's court. They told Noah of the terrible things which Abinadi had prophesied would come upon the king and his people if they did not repent of their wickedness. "What shall we do with this man," they asked, "who has spoken such things against the king and against us?" The cry went up, "Let him be put to death!" But Abinadi had not completed his mission, so the Lord delivered him out of their hands. Two years later he appeared in their midst again. He began to preach with great power and courage. He repeated all that he had said before, and told them of the fate which awaited them if they refused to listen to the warning of the Lord. O, foolish people! Instead of thanking the prophet for pointing out to them their errors, and for telling them how they could be saved from the judgments of God, they turned upon him with hearts full of anger, treated him in a shameful manner, and finally put him to death. Among those who listened to the preaching of Abinadi was a young man named Alma. Alma believed what the prophet had said. He knew that he had spoken the truth. So Alma repented of his sins and began to live a godly life. He wrote down all that Abinadi had said. Then he went quietly among the people and read to those who would listen to him the wonderful things which the prophet had spoken. Many believed the teachings of Alma. They repented also and commenced to serve the Lord. They had to be very careful.