--- title: Improvement Era description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930. authors: - Talmage, James Edward collections: - periodicals tags: - magazine - improvement-era periodical: Improvement Era volume: 17 number: 7 published: 1914-05 publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations publisher_place: Salt Lake City language: en type: magazine reference: 'James E. Talmage, "Concerning the Book of Mormon Clause “It Came to Pass”," *Improvement Era* 17, no. 7 (May 1914): 685–686.' source: url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera1707unse 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: improvementera1707unse start_page: 685 end_page: 686 rights: status: public-domain basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1914-05) source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera1707unse publication_year: 1914 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 1914, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright. --- # Concerning the Book of Mormon Clause “It Came to Pass” EDITORS' TABLE 685 British mission 9 Northern States mission . 6 California mission 5 Northwestern States mission 6 Central States mission 10 Samoan mission 8 Eastern States mission 4 Scandinavian mission 6 Hawaiian mission 9 Swedish mission 1 losepa Colony 1 Southern States mission 46 Japanese mission 1 Tahitian mission 2 Netherlands mission 2 Western States mission 3 New Zealand mission 3 All 46 places in the Southern States mission, with the ex- ception of the headquarters in Chattanooga, have been provided for by the mission itself. The president of the Southern States mission has made his mission self-sustaining, and is able to send a portion of the tithings of the people there to the Presiding Bish- op's office, besides. I think it is a worthy example for some of the rest of our brethren. To me these are very interesting facts, and I think they are facts that everybody in the Church, should know. I would like to say that the books in the Bishop's office are open to Latter- day Saints. There isn't a Latter-day Saint anywhere who may not obtain information with reference to these matters and others of interest to himself, at any time when he desires to obtain them for his own information and benefit, and for the work of the ministry in which he may be engaged. It is open to him. Now, the Lord bless you. I hope you will pardon me for occupying so much of your time. God bless Zion. My heart is with this work, and this people. I love God. I know that he is, and I know that my Redeemer lives. May the Lord help us to abide in the truth and be faithful and vigilant and valiant unto the windng up of our labor in life, is my prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen. Concerning the Book of Mormon Clause— "It Came to Pass" Editor Improvement Era: It is interesting and encour- aging, though assuredly not surprising, to find that the articles in course of current publication through your pages on "Hebrew Idioms and Analogies in the Book of Mormon" attract the at- tention of scholarly readers among both members and non-mem- bers of the Church. The author, Brother Thomas W. Brook- bank, at present engaged as a missionary called to special service in England, should find satisfaction in the valuable results of his research, and in the assurance of the good he is accomplishing. His analytical study of the language of the Book of Mormon and his excellent contributions to the literature of the subject to be of are of more than present interest; they will continue students in this important field of investigation. assistance to 686 IMPROVEMENT ER » In a letter recently received from a personal friend, who is a gentleman of high attainments in literature and philology, ap- proving reference is made to Brother Brookbank's writings and ; this is followed by a commentary on the connective or continuant clause, "It came to pass," which is of so frequent occurrence in the Book of Mormon as to have claimed the attention of readers of all classes. Although my able and gifted correspond- ent was not writing for publication when he indited the letter re- ferred to, I take the liberty of transmitting herewith an extract from his communication, knowing that such will be of value to your readers. Salt Lake City, Respectfully, April 20, 1914. James E. Talmage. THE COMMENT I have read with interest the articles on "Hebrew Idioms in Book of Mormon," by Thomas W. Brookbank, in the Im- the — provement Era. The last installment read by me ''Concerning the Use of the Hebrew Conjunction for 'and' ", is very suggestive, and in this same connection, there is an even more suggestive "evidence" to be found. As is perennially familiar, the phrase "it came to pass" has been quoted as an "earmark" of the Book of Mormon, although not common in the English transla- tions of the Old Testament. As this writer probably knows, how- ever, the expression, where it occurs in the Hebrew or Greek is a phrase merely. scriptures, In the Hebrew, there are two words used with this translation, one meaning "to come in," "to befall," "to happen," etc., the other the verb '.'to be." Alto- gether there are about thirty examples of this phrase in the Old Testament, and something over one hundred in the New Testa- ment, representing the verb "to come." To derive a Hebrew idiom, however, from the use of this phrase in the Book of Mormon, one need only consider that the rule with narrative writings in the Old Testament is to begin sentences or clauses with a connective particle. This may be seen by running the eye down a page of Kings, Chronicles, etc., and noting the number of verses beginning with "and." The verbs above mentioned are used in about the same way, as simple continuants or links in the chain of thought. It may be seen, therefore, that the text of the Book of Mor- mon exhibits, in the use of a constant connective expression, a close analogy to a regular idiom of the Hebrew language. It would be difficult indeed to establish the contention that a modern writer should burden his mind with the constant repetition of such a stilted phrase, when the direct style of narrative would be much more effective and much easier to write. It would be