Jacob 2:15 Textual Variants

Here the 1892 RLDS edition inserted the preposition unto after the verb show /shew. The 1908 RLDS edition removed this intrusive unto from the RLDS text.

The Book of Mormon text has 167 occurrences of shew /show, of which 148 take an indirect object. In most cases, the preposition for the indirect object is expressed, with unto being the most frequent (129 times) and to quite infrequent (only 3 times). There are also 16 cases where no preposition is expressed, as here in Jacob 2:15 (in accord with the earliest textual sources). Here is an example for each of the three possibilities:

• title page (“shew/show unto X”)
  • which is to shew unto the remnant of the house of Israel how great things the Lord hath done for their fathers
• 1 Nephi 14:26 (“shew/show to X”)
  • and also others which have been to them hath he shown all things
• 1 Nephi 17:8 (“shew/show X”)
  • thou shalt construct a ship after the manner which I shall shew thee

There is considerable variation in some passages, as in these examples from Alma 30 (four with unto and three without a preposition):

• Alma 30:43 if thou wilt shew me a sign
• Alma 30:43 shew unto me that he hath power
• Alma 30:44 shew unto me a sign
• Alma 30:45 except ye shall shew me a sign
• Alma 30:48 except ye shew me a sign
• Alma 30:51 to shew unto thee a sign
• Alma 30:51 he hath shewed unto you a sign

All three types occur in the text, but since unto dominates, it is not surprising that the 1892 typesetter accidentally introduced the expected unto here in Jacob 2:15. (For one case where the scribe omitted the preposition unto, see Mormon 9:11.) In each case the critical text will follow the earliest textual sources in determining how the indirect object for shew /show should be expressed.