There is a delicate balance between the Lord respecting man’s free agency and the Lord controlling events and their outcomes. Here the Lord protects Abinadi by prohibiting the priests of Noah to kill him. He will still allow them their agency to do this, but protecting Abinadi until he has testified their sins accomplishes two things, he is giving the priest and Noah a last chance to repent (important for Alma), and he is also making them fully accountable for what their actions, especially their desire to murder a prophet. They will be left without excuse. This tells me that no matter how wicked, the Lord will persevere with people until all hope for their redemption is gone. He will not remove the consequences of our actions, but he will not stop trying to help them and bring them back to a fullness of happiness and joy. So here, Abinadi begins his testimony of Christ because the priests and Noah do not understand the scriptures, the need for a redeemer, and their responsibility as leaders and priests to teach the people concerning these things. When he is done, the priests and Noah will know he speaks the truth, it will be a matter for them to accept it or reject.
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