Words of Mormon 1:7 Textual Variants

Royal Skousen
and I do this for a wise purpose for thus it whispereth me according to the workings of the Spirit of the Lord which is in me

Ross Geddes has pointed out (personal communication, 12 September 2004) that the phraseology “it whispereth me” seems unusual. This construction, however, fits into a common pattern of verb construction where the verb refers to mental processes:

The King James Bible has two examples of “it repenteth me” (Genesis 6:7 and 1 Samuel 15:11) and one of “it grieveth me” (Ruth 1:13). The verb whisper in the expression “it whispereth me” can be considered as one of these verbs involving the mind since the whispering of the Spirit leads to an inspired thought in the mind.

Summary: Accept the phraseology “it whispereth me” in the Words of Mormon 1:7; similar usage is found elsewhere in the text.

Analysis of Textual Variants of the Book of Mormon, Part. 2

References