Ether 9:20 Textual Variants

The 1920 LDS edition changed the comma after “saith the Lord” to a colon. This would have been acceptable if the words “saith the Lord” had actually introduced the entire quote rather than interrupt it (as if the text had read, say, “thus saith the Lord : for upon such I will pour out the fullness of my wrath”). It is quite clear that “for upon such” is a part of the quote, as is exempli- fied by three other examples of this expression in the text:

• 1 Nephi 14:15 the wrath of God was poured out upon that great and abominable church
• 1 Nephi 14:17 the wrath of God is poured out upon the mother of harlots
• 1 Nephi 22:16 the fullness of the wrath of God shall be poured out upon all the children of men

In each instance, there is a prepositional phrase headed by upon, just as here in Ether 9:20 (“for upon such”). Thus the earlier comma will be restored in the critical text for this passage.