There is so much going on behind the scenes in Alma 17-18. To read Hugh Nibley’s argument for the background of the scattering of the flocks at the Waters of Sebus, as well as Brant Gardner’s argument that this is a political rivalry, go here: Alma 18.7 – A Practice of Plunder Among Them
For more information about the trances happening to the people in this text, see Alma 19 & 22: Trances in the Book of Alma.
For much more regarding Abish, the meaning of her name, and possibly why Mormon added her name to the record, see Matt Bowen’s article – “Father Is a Man: The Remarkable Mention of the Name Abish in Alma 19:16 and Its Narrative Context.”
Alma 22.32 – A Day and a Half’s Journey
Alma 22.27-34 – Geography and the Plan of Salvation