Alma 50:27–28 Textual Variants

Here in the printer’s manuscript, the subordinate conjunction when was added in pencil, apparently by the 1830 compositor, John Gilbert. There is a possibility that the when was added by Oliver Cowdery. Textually, it makes little difference who made the emendation; since the when was written in pencil, it was probably added in the print shop and without consulting 𝓞 itself, which is extant here and lacks the when or any other subordinate conjunction. For discussion of the use of pencil in the print shop, see under Alma 22:22–23.

The when definitely seems necessary here in Alma 50:28 since the following clause (listed above as 2) repeats the language of an earlier clause in verse 27 (listed above as 1). The text seems excessively repetitious if there is no subordinate conjunction for the clause in verse 28, which was the apparent motive for supplying the when. Note, however, that this earlier information is not found in the immediately preceding clause (which I have marked with an arrow) but before it.

Elsewhere in the text, we have a number of instances of “it came to pass” followed by a subordinate clause that repeats narrative information from an earlier clause. If the information does not occur in the immediately preceding clause, then when is the preferred subordinate conjunction; in each of the following examples, I use an arrow to mark the clause that intervenes between the original information and its repetition in the later when-clause:

• Alma 50:7–9
  •    yea and they went forth and drave all the Lamanites which were in the east wilderness
      into their own lands which were south of the land of Zarahemla
    → and the land of Nephi did run in a straight course from the east sea to the west
      and it came to pass that when Moroni had driven all the Lamanites
      out of the east wilderness which was north of the lands of their own possessions
      he caused that …
• Alma 59:3–4
  •   he immediately sent an epistle to Parhoron
      desiring that he should cause men to be gathered together
      to strengthen Helaman or the armies of Helaman
    → insomuch that he might with ease maintain that part of the land
      which he had been miraculously prospered in retaining
      and it came to pass when Moroni had sent this epistle to the land of Zarahemla
      he began again to lay a plan that …
• Alma 62:17–18
  •   and when they had entered into this covenant
      they sent them to dwell with the people of Ammon
    →  and they were in number about four thousand which had not been slain
      and it came to pass that when they had sent them away
      they pursued their march towards the land of Nephihah
• 3 Nephi 17:12–13
  •   so they brought their little children
      and sat them down upon the ground round about him
      (1ª) and Jesus stood in the midst
    → and the multitude gave way till they had all been brought unto him
      and it came to pass that when they had all been brought
      (2ª) and Jesus stood in the midst
      he commanded the multitude that they should kneel down upon the ground

When the information is found in the immediately preceding clause, the subordinate conjunction can be either when or after:

• 1 Nephi 18:20–21
  • they repented of the thing which they had done insomuch that they loosed me and it came to pass that after they had loosed me behold I took the compass and it did work whither I desired it
• Alma 45:22–23
  • they did appoint priests and teachers throughout all the land over all the churches and now it came to pass that after Helaman and his brethren had appointed priests and teachers over the churches that there arose a dissension among them
• Alma 62:15–16
  • they overtook a large body of men of the Lamanites and slew many of them and took their provisions and their weapons of war and it came to pass after they had took them they caused them to enter into a covenant that …
• 3 Nephi 18:39 – 3 Nephi 19:1
  • and the disciples saw and did bear record that he ascended again into heaven and now it came to pass that when Jesus had ascended into heaven the multitude did disperse
• Mormon 2:25–26
  • we did stand before them with such firmness that they did flee from before us and it came to pass that when they had fled we did pursue them with our armies
• Mormon 6:5–6
  • and when three hundred and eighty and four years had passed away we had gathered in all the remainder of our people unto the land Cumorah and it came to pass that when we had gathered in all our people in one to the land of Cumorah behold I Mormon began to be old
• Ether 15:30–31
  • when Coriantumr had leaned upon his sword that he rested a little he smote off the head of Shiz and it came to pass that after he had smote off the head of Shiz that Shiz raised upon his hands and fell

Since in Alma 50:27–28 there is an intervening clause (“for behold they were not in the wrong”), the decision to supply when rather than after was probably correct.

There is considerable evidence in the manuscripts that Oliver Cowdery sometimes omitted the subordinate conjunction when, especially after “it came to pass (that)”:

• 2 Nephi 4:10
  • and it came to pass that [NULL > when 1|when ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRST] my father had made an end of speaking unto them …
• Alma 43:48
  • and it came to pass that [NULL > when 1|when ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRST] the men of Moroni saw the fierceness and the anger of the Lamanites …
• 3 Nephi 4:25
  • so that on the morrow [NULL > when 1|when ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRST] the robbers began their march …
• Ether 15:15
  • and it came to pass that [NULL > when 1|when ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRST] they were all gathered together …

On the other hand, there appears to be no example where Oliver omitted after in the manuscripts. There is one case where he later thought he had omitted an after in 𝓞, but he was wrong; instead, he had omitted an and. See under Jacob 7:1 for discussion of that case. Thus manuscript evidence supports the decision to supply when rather than after as the subordinate conjunction in Alma 50:28. The critical text will therefore accept the emendation made in 𝓟 (most likely by the compositor) in the print shop while the 1830 edition was being typeset.