Verses 9–11 continue the legal explanation of Korihor’s story. While verses 7 and 8 clarify that Korihor could believe as he wished, verses 10 and 11 make certain that Mormon’s readers understand that the laws were not overly permissive. Not prosecuting for one’s belief was different from not prosecuting for specific crimes. “There was a law that men should be judged according to their crimes.” Crimes were defined, but what a person believed was not defined by law.
In the ancient world, it was typical that the entire community had a single belief. Nephite society had been that type of community prior to merging with the people of Zarahemla. It was after that point, where there had been a merger between two peoples who had different religions (see Omni 1:17), when social conditions required that the law be defined to allow the different religions. In the situation where people came from different backgrounds and beliefs, this allowed “all men [to be] on equal grounds.”