1 Nephi 11:9 Textual Variants

Here we have another example where Oliver Cowdery omitted a word in his copying from 𝓞 to 𝓟. In this instance, he accidentally deleted the most that was right before precious. Elsewhere in the text, there are five other occurrences of “most precious” used predicatively in a relative clause, so there is obviously nothing wrong with its use here in 1 Nephi 11:9. In fact, two of these (like 1 Nephi 11:9) involve fruit:

• Jacob 5:74
  • and the Lord of the vineyard had preserved unto himself the natural fruit which was most precious unto him from the beginning
• Alma 32:42
  • ye shall pluck the fruit thereof which is most precious which is sweet above all that is sweet and which is white above all that is white

For discussion of “most precious” in conjoined phrases, especially those involving the adjective plain, see 1 Nephi 13:28.