3 Nephi 21:26 Textual Variants

For these two instances of the relative pronoun which that refer to tribes, Joseph Smith did not edit the which to who(m) in his editing for the 1837 edition. But for other cases where which refers to tribes, Joseph usually made that change (the one other case where he left the which unchanged is marked with an asterisk):

• * 2 Nephi 29:12
  • and I shall also speak unto the other tribes of the house of Israel which I have led away and they shall write it
• 3 Nephi 7:11
  • they were not so strong in numbers as the tribes of the people [which >js who 1|which A|who BCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRST] were united together
• 3 Nephi 15:15
  • neither at any time hath the Father given me commandment that I should tell unto them concerning the other tribes of the house of Israel [which >js whom 1|which A|whom BCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRST] the Father hath led away out of the land
• 3 Nephi 16:4
  • that they may receive a knowledge of you by the Holy Ghost and also of the other tribes [which >js whom 1|which A|whom BCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRST] they know not of
• Mormon 3:18
  • yea behold I write unto all the ends of the earth yea unto you twelve tribes of Israel [which 1A|who BCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRST] shall be judged according to your works by the twelve whom Jesus chose to be his disciples in the land of Jerusalem

Notice in particular that the case in 3 Nephi 15:15 has virtually the same phraseology as here in 3 Nephi 21:26 (both refer to the tribes “which the Father hath led away out of X”), yet one which was grammatically emended to whom while the other was not. Of course, the critical text will maintain or restore, as the case may be, all original instances of which, irrespective of whether they refer to people or not. For a complete discussion of this grammatical issue, see under which in volume 3.