Alma 24:29 Textual Variants

there were none which were Amlicites or Amulonites or which were [after 0|of 1ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRST] the order of Nehor

Here Oliver Cowdery accidentally replaced the after (the reading in the original manuscript) with of as he copied from 𝓞 into 𝓟. Elsewhere in the text, we have the phraseology “to be after the order of X”, never “to be of the order of X”:

Alma 2:1 he being after the order of the man that slew Gideon by the sword
Alma 13:1 which was after the order of his Son
Alma 13:7 this high priesthood being after the order of his Son
Alma 14:16 now this judge was after the order and faith of Nehor
Alma 21:4 for many of the Amlicites and the Amulonites were after the order of the Nehors
Alma 24:28 the greatest number of whom were after the order of the Nehors

Moreover, the expression “to be after the order of X” is prominent in the epistle to the Hebrews in the King James Bible, especially in the phrase “after the order of Melchizedek” (which occurs six times). The critical text will restore the correct after here in Alma 24:29.

Summary: Restore the original preposition after in Alma 24:29: “or which were after the order of Nehor”; this usage is consistent with all other occurrences in the Book of Mormon text of the phraseology “to be after the order of X”.

Analysis of Textual Variants of the Book of Mormon, Part. 4

References