3 Nephi 7:15 Textual Variants

Here we have one more case of disagreement between the printer’s manuscript and the 1830 edition. 𝓟 lacks the repeated preposition by (“having been visited by angels and also the voice of the Lord”) while the 1830 edition has it (“having been visited by angels and also by the voice of the Lord”). As listed under Alma 2:38, there are four cases in the early transmission of the text where the repeated preposition by has been lost, one by the 1830 typesetter and three momentary omissions by Oliver Cowdery in his copywork. There’s also an example of this loss in the 1837 edition as well as one in the 1840 edition. In fact, here in 3 Nephi 7:15 we have a seventh instance where the repeated by has been lost: namely, in the 1849 LDS edition. The copytext for the 1849 edition was the 1841 British edition (which derives directly from the 1837 edition), and that had the repeated by. The subsequent LDS text has continued the reading without the by.

In contrast to the tendency to omit the repeated by, there are no examples in the transmission of the Book of Mormon text where a repeated by has ever been added to a conjunctive prepositional phrase. Thus it seems very unlikely here in 3 Nephi 7:15 that the 1830 reading is the innovative one. Instead, it seems more likely that Oliver Cowdery accidentally omitted the by when he copied the text from 𝓞 into 𝓟. The critical text will therefore restore the repeated by here in 3 Nephi 7:15.

Usually the Book of Mormon text repeats the by in conjunctive prepositional phrases when there is an immediately preceding also:

• title page written by way of commandment and also by the spirit of prophecy and of revelation
• Alma 15:16 he being rejected by those which were once his friends and also by his father and his kindred
• Helaman 15:11 which hath been spoken of by our fathers and also by the prophet Zenos and many other prophets
• Mormon 3:10 and they did swear by the heavens and also by the throne of God
• Ether 8:14 they all sware unto him by the God of heaven and also by the heavens and also by the earth and by their heads

But in one instance, the by is not repeated after also:

• Alma 2:38 many … were devoured by those beasts and also the vultures of the air

For discussion of this difficult reading, see under that passage. Also see the general discussion under conjunctive repetition in volume 3.