“When Mormon is acting as an abridger, he interacts extensively with the underlying documents he is abridging. It is usually possible (although not always) to distinguish Mormon’s own words and comments from the words that he draws from the materials he is condensing. As one reads along in many sections of the Book of Mormon abridged by Mormon, one often senses that a subtle shift has taken place as a smooth, almost imperceptible transition has occurred from the underlying historical narrative to Mormon’s commentary on that narrative” (Keller, “Mormon and Moroni as Authors and Abridgers,” 269). In this verse, however, Mormon seems to be “abridging” himself as witness to the horrific events of his last days.