1 Nephi 18:11 Textual Variants

The actual reading of the original manuscript here is not obvious: the th at the end of hath could also be interpreted as a d. However, for all other examples of the word had on this page of the original manuscript (page 37 of 𝓞, with 12 occurrences of had ), the d looks consistently different than the supposed d of this single occurrence of hath. Therefore, it seems reasonable to interpret the word in this verse as hath rather than had. When Oliver Cowdery copied this word from 𝓞 into 𝓟, he was copying his own hand, and he correctly interpreted the word as hath and wrote that in 𝓟. But Joseph Smith changed hath to had in his editing for the 1837 edition. Undoubtedly, Joseph was influenced by the abundant use of the past-tense form throughout this narrative of Nephi’s, in particular the specific reference earlier in this verse to Laman and Lemuel tying up Nephi: “Laman and Lemuel did take me and bind me with cords and they did treat me with much harshness nevertheless the Lord suffered it”.

The original text here in 1 Nephi 18:11 suggests that what the Lord has spoken concerning the wicked is eternally true, so the present tense hath is perfectly acceptable, even if it is found in a narrative that frequently uses the past tense. We do find cases of “the Lord had spoken” elsewhere in the Book of Mormon, but in each of these instances the reference is to some specific statement of the Lord’s found earlier in the narrative:

• 1 Nephi 17:53–54
  • and they shall not wither before thee but I will shake them saith the Lord and this will I do that they may know that I am the Lord their God and it came to pass that I stretched forth my hand unto my brethren and they did not wither before me but the Lord did shake them even according to the word which he had spoken
• Helaman 10:11–12
  • and now behold I command you that ye shall go and declare unto this people that thus saith the Lord God who is the Almighty except ye repent ye shall be smitten even unto destruction and behold now it came to pass that when the Lord had spoken these words unto Nephi he did stop and did not go unto his own house but did return unto the multitudes which were scattered about upon the face of the land and began to declare unto them the word of the Lord which had been spoken unto him concerning their destruction if they did not repent
• Ether 10:28 (referring back to Ether 1:42)
  • and they were in a land that was choice above all lands for the Lord had spoken it
• Ether 12:20 (referring back to Ether 3:9)
  • and behold we have seen in this record that one of these was the brother of Jared for so great was his faith in God that when God put forth his finger he could not hide it from the sight of the brother of Jared because of his word which he had spoken unto him which word he had obtained by faith

On the other hand, whenever the text refers to the eternal judgment of the Lord, we have the present perfect “hath spoken”. Besides the example here in 1 Nephi 8:11, we have these examples:

• 2 Nephi 9:15–16
  • and then cometh the judgment and then must they be judged according to the holy judgment of God and assuredly as the Lord liveth for the Lord God hath spoken it and it is his eternal word which cannot pass away that they which are righteous shall be righteous still and they which are filthy shall be filthy still
• 2 Nephi 9:24
  • and if they will not repent and believe in his name and be baptized in his name and endure to the end they must be damned for the Lord God the Holy One of Israel hath spoken it
• 2 Nephi 25:3
  • wherefore I write unto my people unto all they that shall receive hereafter these things which I write that they may know the judgments of God that they come upon all nations according to the word which he hath spoken
• Mosiah 2:41
  • and moreover I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God for behold they are blessed in all things both temporal and spiritual and if they hold out faithful to the end they are received into heaven that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness O remember remember that these things are true for the Lord God hath spoken it
• Alma 5:32
  • yea even woe unto all ye workers of iniquity repent repent for the Lord God hath spoken it

Thus the use of hath in 1 Nephi 18:11 is precisely correct.