Alma 58:7 Textual Variants

Lyle Fletcher suggests (personal communication, 18 February 2009) that the word wait here may be an error for wade. There is an earlier passage in this part of the text that has wade along with a prepositional phrase that describes the circumstances (as here in Alma 58:7):

• Alma 53:15
  • therefore all those which had entered into this covenant were compelled to behold their brethren wade through their afflictions in their dangerous circumstances at this time

Oliver Cowdery, the scribe here in 𝓞 for Alma 58:7, could have mistakenly heard wait instead of wade since they are both phonetically similar (although there are no examples in the text of mixups between these two words). One could also argue that preceding uses of the verb wait here in Alma 58 could have prompted Oliver to write wait in verse 7:

• Alma 58:3 that we should wait that we might receive more strength from the land of Zarahemla
• Alma 58:4 we did wait to receive provisions and strength from the land of Zarahemla

There’s also a relevant instance of wait later on, in Alma 60:30: “I wait for assistance from you”.

The main problem with emending the text here is that elsewhere in the text all instances of wade are followed by a prepositional phrase headed by through, including the one in Alma 53:15 (also noted above):

• 1 Nephi 17:1 and wade through much afflictions
• Mosiah 27:28 after wading through much tribulation
• Alma 7:5 after wading through much afflictions and sorrow
• Alma 8:14 wading through much tribulation and anguish of soul
• Alma 53:15 to behold their brethren wade through their afflictions
• Helaman 3:34 and to wade through much affliction

The corresponding expression in Alma 58:7 lacks such a prepositional phrase.

Finally, we have to recognize that the current reading in Alma 58:7 is acceptable. Helaman’s army is waiting for provisions; without those provisions, they are on the point of perishing. Thus the critical text will retain the verb wait in Alma 58:7 since it works perfectly well.

Alma 59:8, page 2799, lines 14 and 16

In line 16 the citation is from Alma 59:6, not Alma 58:6, which means that the language in line 14 should be revised to read “nearby in this chapter” instead of “nearby in the previous chapter”.

Alma 60:12, page 2807, line 15

Actually, the current RLDS text no longer follows the 1840 emendation. In 1908, for the third RLDS edition, the earlier reading that lacks it is was restored to the RLDS text.

Alma 61:8, page 2823, line –17

As explained under the addendum for 1 Nephi 3:2, Joseph Smith himself emended 27 out of 57 instances of “in the which” in the earliest text. Thus the sentence here under Alma 61:8 should state more accurately that Joseph Smith edited “nearly half ” of those instances.