The Critical Text Project or Webster’s 1828 Dictionary: An Interesting Comparison – Part VIII

Continuing with more of our reader’s comments and our responses, and information about Royal Skousen’s CriticalTest Project and Webster’s monumental dictionary. 
    8. Drugs. “But they are cast out, and consigned to partake of the fruits of their labors or their works, which have been evil; and they drink the dregs of a bitter cup” (Alma 40:26).
    In another case of a word being changed that should not have, and Skousen agreeing with the change that alters the meaning of the statement when changing the original word “drugs” in a later revision to the word “dregs.”
    Webster: Dregs means sediment, grounds, waste; drugs, as a noun, means: deadly drug or a deadly poison.
    In the scripture above, those who have been evil will not just drink the dregs, or sediment, of their work; but will drink the poison of the bitter cup, cutting them off from eternal progression and exaltation.
    Joseph Smith’s original transcription of the word “drugs” is correct. “Dregs” is far too mild of a word to substitute the horrendous results await those living an evil life.
    9. Wrecked. “My soul was racked with eternal torment; but I am snatched, and my soul is pained no more” (Mosiah 27:29).
    This is a case where a difference of opinion determined a change in the scriptural record. Originally, the word transcribed and written down was “wrecked,” not “racked.”
    Racked means “tortured, tormented, strained to the utmost.” By the way, tortured means “tormented.” 
    Wrecked,on the other hand, means “dashed on the rocks, stranded and ruined.”
    Skousen claims Cowdery should have written down “My soul was racked (tormented) with eternal torment; however, as can be seen, that is merely repeating the same word and meaning twice  (my soul was tormented with eternal torment), and would not have been the original meaning of the sentence since nowhere are word meanings repeated in the scriptural record or Hebrew writing.

On the other hand, “my soul was dashed, it was stranded and ruined with eternal torment,” is a correct phraseology, especially since the next part of the sentence reads: “but I am snatched, and my soul is pained no more.” Thus, Joseph’s original translation would have read “My soul hath been redeemed from the gall of bitterness and bonds of iniquity. I was in the darkest abyss; but now I behold the marvelous light of God. My soul was wrecked with eternal torment; but I am snatched, and my soul is pained no more,” i.e., his soul was redeemed from its ruined state of torment (torture) and seized suddenly by the marvelous light of God and he has been redeemed (delivered) from the bitter gall (bitterness of mind and malignity) of iniquity. That is, his soul was dashed, it was stranded and ruined with eternal torment, but he was snatched (seized suddenly), and his soul was pained no more.
    Once again, making the change from the original loses some in the translation from its original intent. Joseph Smith was correct with his first interpretation and the scribe wrote it down correctly.
    10. Wrapped. “And the earth should be wrapped together as a scroll” (3 Nephi 26:3).
    Skousen claims that “wrapped” in this case meant “roll” from 1350-1650, and then not used afterward and was archaic in Joseph Smith’s day. He then went into a lengthy discussion on the meaning of the verse that it was to roll all things together.
    However, Webster in 1828 defines wrapped as not only “wind,” but also to “cover, involve, hide, inclose in secrecy or obscurity,” and “to involve totally,” which is the correct explanation of the verse.
    We need to keep in mind what the overall scripture is talking about before we start recommending changes or other meanings. First of all, in the two other verses Skousen draws attention to in the use of this word we find:

1. “And Elijah took his mantle and wrapped it together and smote the waters” (2 Kings 2:8); 
2. “And the napkin, that was about his head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by itself” (John 20:7)
    The first no doubt means rolled, but the second means folded, both modern renditions of wrapped.
    So how was “wrapped” used in the Book of Mormon? Well, in checking the overall meaning, we find that Jesus was chiding the Nephites in their not having some of the scriptures (3 Nephi 23:11-13), then expounded upon all the scriptures they had brought up to date (3 Nephi 23:14), then commanded the Nephites to write the words which the Father had given unto Malachi (3 Nephi 24:1), then Jesus expounded upon those words of Malachi they had written down (3 Nephi 26:1), saying, “These scriptures, which ye had not with you, the Father commanded that I should give unto you; for it was wisdom in him that they should be given unto future generations” (3 Nephi 26:2).

Christ then expounded all things, “even from the beginning until the time that he should come in his glory -- yea, even all things which should come upon the face of the earth, even until the elements should melt with fervent heat, and the earth should be wrapped together as a scroll, and the heavens and the earth should pass away” (3 Nephi 26:3). In fact, Christ spoke about “even unto the great and last day, when all people, and all kindreds, and all nations and tongues shall stand before God, to be judged of their works, whether they be good or whether they be evil” (3 Nephi 26:4). Mormon then concludes this thought with: “And now there cannot be written in this book even a hundredth part of the things which Jesus did truly teach unto the people; But behold the plates of Nephi do contain the more part of the things which he taught the people” (3 Nephi 26:6-7).
    Now, within this idea, Mormon tells us by quoting a little of what Christ said and expounded upon, that this information—Christ’s explanation of these scriptures he made sure the Nephites included—would not be available to us, that it would be wrapped in secrecy or inclosed, which means to surround, to shut in, to confine on all sides, to separate from common grounds, to encompass, (there was no use of the word “enclose” in 1828). In this simple statement that Skousen wants to change because he must not understand it, the Lord is telling the Nephites that the full gospel as he was expounding upon, clear to the end of time, would be hidden, secret, obscure to people in general “until the time that he should come in his glory –

"Yea, even all things which should come upon the face of the earth, even until the elements should melt with fervent heat, and the earth should be wrapped together as a scroll (covered, inclosed, hidden), totally involving all things—that is, all of this shall be wrapped together as a scroll, meaning kept within the inclosure (separated, shut up or encompassed), that is held in obscurity until the end time.
    We find, then, as Webster defines the word in use in 1828, that “wrapped” is the correct word in this case, and Joseph Smith, once again, used the correct word and the scribe wrote it down correctly. This is borne out by Mormon’s concluding remarks on this subject: “And these things have I written, which are a lesser part of the things which he taught the people; and I have written them to the intent that they may be brought again unto this people, from the Gentiles, according to the words which Jesus hath spoken. And when they shall have received this, which is expedient that they should have first, to try their faith, and if it shall so be that they shall believe these things then shall the greater things be made manifest unto them” (3 Nephi 26:8-9).
(See the next post, “The Critical Text Project or Webster’s 1828 Dictionary: An Interesting Comparison-PtIX,” for more of the reader’s comments and our responses, and information about Royal Skousen’s project and Webster’s monumental dictionary)