In Ether 8:11 we read “he desired her to wife.” English would prefer for a wife. There is a Hebrew preposition that means both to and for. Furthermore, the Hebrew word used for wife really means woman. In three Book of Mormon passages, the word women appears to mean wives:

“Our women did bear children” (1 Nephi 17:1).

“Our women have toiled, being big with child; and they have borne children” (1 Nephi 17:20).

“For behold, he hath blessed mine house, he hath blessed me, and my women, and my children, and my father and my kinsfolk; yea, even all my kindred hath he blessed” (Alma 10:11).

There is much more linguistic evidence for the influence of Hebrew on the Book of Mormon, but the examples of Hebraisms that I have cited should be enough to demonstrate that the Book of Mormon is an authentic ancient text influenced by Hebrew. Many expressions used in the Book of Mormon are awkward or unexpected in English, even in Joseph Smith’s time. Yet they make good sense when viewed as translations, perhaps as too literal translations, from an ancient text written in a Hebrew-like language.