--- title: Improvement Era description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930. authors: - Stuart, Oni D. collections: - periodicals tags: - magazine - improvement-era periodical: Improvement Era volume: 13 number: 2 published: 1909-12 publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations publisher_place: Salt Lake City language: en type: magazine reference: 'Oni D. Stuart, "Choicest Riches," *Improvement Era* 13, no. 2 (December 1909): 121.' source: url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera1302unse transcription: Transcribed from the Internet Archive scan of each issue (the item for each issue is named in the issue's own source); unnumbered advertising leaves are omitted, printed page numbers are kept as page markers. identifier: improvementera1302unse start_page: 121 end_page: 121 rights: status: public-domain basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1909-12) source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera1302unse publication_year: 1909 note: The Internet Archive item metadata carries a blanket "© Copyright by Intellectual Reserve, Inc." notice. The library owner judged it inapplicable because this issue was published in 1909, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright. --- # Choicest Riches HEBREW IDIOMS IN THE BOOK OF MORMON. 121 would not suffer them, saying, I am thy brother, yea, even thy younger brother, wherefore, worship the Lord thy God, and honor thy father and thy mother, that thy days may be long in the land which the Lord thy God shall give thee." The exhortation to his brothers to refrain -from their idolatrous act is thus made with all the force of an appeal to each of them individually. Each one was to judge of Nephi's humanity by the personal consciousness they individually had of their own humanity, and consequent lack of all just claim to divine honor; and if there happened to be one among them who was less richly endowed by nature than his broth- ers, Nephi by the use of the Jewish idiom, placed himself upon an identical footing with that one, so far as the nature of his being was concerned. In concluding remarks upon this example of enallage, may it not be said justly that it was purposely brought by the spirit of inspiration into the closest association with that other example of the same kind in the latter part of the quoted text where thy is used in reciting a portion of the ten com- mandments, in order that our attention should be called more readily to Nephi's use of this Hebraism. A third example is taken from Jacob 7: 6, "For I have heard and also know that thou goest about much, preaching that which ye call the gospel." Here Jacob, being the only preacher con- cerned, the singular pronoun is used, but as his teachings were regarded not only by himself as gospel, but were so esteemed by all the Nephite Christians, a change to the plural ye is allowable and highly appropriate according to the genius of the Hebrew. [to be continued.] Flagstaff, Ariz. Choicest Riches. If you wish the choicest riches: Life eternal, lasting light, Dear beyond all earthly treasures, Trust in God and do the right. Oni D. Stuart. Uintah, Utah.