“When I Speak the Word of God with Sharpness They Tremble and Anger Against Me”

Alan C. Miner

According to John Tvedtnes, a difference between Hebrew and English conjunctions is that in Hebrew the same conjunction can carry both the meaning and also the opposite meaning but. . . . Evidence for Hebraism in the Book of Mormon lies in the fact that some passages use the conjunction and when but is expected. Moroni 9:4 is a good example: "And when I speak the word of God with sharpness they tremble and anger against me; and (= but) when I use no sharpness they harden their hearts against it." [John A. Tvedtnes, "The Hebrew Background of the Book of Mormon," in Rediscovering the Book of Mormon, pp. 83-84]

Step by Step Through the Book of Mormon: A Cultural Commentary

References