And it came to pass when Alma had heard these words, he wrote them down that he might have them, and that he might judge the people of that church, according to the commandments of God. And it came to pass that Alma went and judged those that had been taken in iniquity, according to the word of the Lord. And whosoever repented of their sins and did confess them, them he did number among the people of the church; And those that would not confess their sins and repent of their iniquity, the same were not numbered among the people of the church, and their names were blotted out. In this revelation we have the word of the Lord to guide the Nephite church throughout all its dispensations. The same spirit is manifested in the instructions given by the Redeemer in his teachings to the Nephites.[34] They are full of love, mercy, and patience. On the other hand, they show that the church of God must not be defiled by countenancing iniquity or permitting that which is holy to be handled by the unworthy. Nearly four hundred years later, Moroni, speaking on church government, says: And they were strict to observe that there should be no iniquity among them; and whoso was found to commit iniquity, and three witnesses of the church did condemn them before the Elders; and if they repented not, and confessed not, their names were blotted out, and they were not numbered among the people of Christ; But as oft as they repented, and sought forgiveness, with real intent, they were forgiven. From these quotations we perceive that the spirit of the ancient church on this continent, with regard to offenses and offenders, was uniform in all its dispensations and identical in its methods with those of the latter days. [‡Illustration: Text Decoration.] [‡Illustration: Text Decoration.] FOOTNOTE: [34] See Chapter xlvi. CHAPTER LXXV. THE DISCOVERY OF THE JAREDITE RECORDS--CORIANTUMR--ETHER--THE DISPERSION AT BABEL--THE JOURNEY OF THE JAREDITES--ATLANTIS. Let us return to the year 123 B. C. At that time the Nephites in the land of Nephi were suffering sore afflictions at the hands of the Lamanites. In this extremity Limhi, their king, sent a company of forty-three men, with instructions to discover, if possible, their brethren in the land of Zarahemla, that peradventure they would bring them succor and deliverance. The expedition was unsuccessful, so far as its immediate object was concerned. The company missed the land of Zarahemla, pushed northward into Central America, and how far beyond we cannot tell. At last they discovered the remains of an ancient people who had apparently been destroyed in battle. Among other things they found twenty-four plates of gold, covered with engravings. This treasure, with some other relics of the vanished race, they took back to king Limhi.