Mosiah 29:6 Textual Variants

In Mosiah 29:6, the printer’s manuscript reads “he to whom that the kingdom doth rightly belong”. Hyrum Smith, the scribe here, may have accidentally added an extra that as he copied the text from 𝓞 to 𝓟. The 1830 typesetter undoubtedly thought that this reading in 𝓟 represented a simple error, so he omitted the extra that, giving the form that would be correct in standard English: “he to whom the kingdom doth rightly belong”.

This unusual usage in 𝓟 is, however, supported by the nearby example of whosoever that. In this other instance, the scribe in 𝓟 was the unknown scribe 2:

• Mosiah 26:22
  • for behold this is my church whosoever [that >js NULL 1|that A| BCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRST] is baptized shall be baptized unto repentance

As discussed under Mosiah 26:22, there is evidence for the occurrence of whoso that in late Middle English. Similarly, there is evidence for who that and whom that in late Middle English. The online Oxford English Dictionary provides, for instance, the following examples (including two with the specific form to whom that):

• John Wycliffe (about 1380)
  • In departyng of meritis to whom πat hem likip. ‘in departing of merits to whom they like’
• Geoffrey Chaucer (about 1386)
  • I wol been his to whom πat I am knyt. ‘I will be his to whom I am knit’
• John Gower (1390)
  • I syh there Aristotle also, Whom that the queene of Grece so Hath bridled … ‘I saw there Aristotle also / whom the queen of Greece hath so bridled …’
• John Lydgate (1413)
  • Wel thou wost who that me hath abused … ‘well thou knowest who hath abused me’
• John Lydgate (1426)
  • I am she By whom that ye yknowe be ffrom other bestys … ‘I am she by whom ye are known from other beasts’
• Henry Lovelich (about 1450)
  • I am he Of whom that thow In thy Maister Cyte A Chirche ... dost Make. ‘I am he of whom thou in thy master city a church ... dost make’

Some of these examples of who(m) that are generic in reference (that is, they have the meaning ‘who(m)soever’), such as the Wycliffe example (and perhaps the Chaucer one). But the rest of these examples are specific in reference. We can therefore find evidence in the history of English for the kind of usage found in the earliest reading to whom that in Mosiah 29:6. (I am grateful to Don Chapman for help in interpreting these citations.)

All the examples with specific reference appear in texts written within about a century of Early Modern English. Nonetheless, this usage may have extended itself up into Early Modern English, perhaps dialectally. The use of that after subordinate words was very frequent in Early Modern English, and this usage seems characteristic of that time period. In the original Book of Mormon text, we apparently have two examples of that following a wh-word (whosoever that in Mosiah 26:22 and to whom that in Mosiah 29:6). To be sure, there are many more instances in the original text of that following a subordinate conjunction (such as after that, because that, before that, since that, for that, and than that). For a complete list of examples of this more general type, see under subordinate conjunctions in volume 3.