Amazingly, the translation of the book of mormon as we now have it took less than 65 actual days of translating. However, the book of mormon is not written in elizabethan english, except for the copies of the twenty chapters of isaiah that are found in the book. Isaiah 53 and the dependence of the book of mormon on the kjv. Smith translated the ancient language into english through divine revelation. The king james version was completed in 1611 ad and the book of mormon published in 1830. Why do italic translator words from the kjv bible appear in. Sperry, of the brigham young university, made the following comment concerning this change. That the book of mormon quotes from isaiah is not a problem, except that joseph smiths 1830 translation reads nearly verbatim to the 1611 king james translation. Why is some of the book of mormon identical to the bible. Peter s download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading the errors in the king james bible. What resulted was a mormon version of the kjv, complete with some of the translation errors included in the old kjv and hundreds of minor and significant text changes.
Joseph smiths other writings, such as his history and diary, reflect the. Sometimes the quotation is explicit, as in the second book of nephi, which contains 18 quoted chapters of the book of isaiah other significant connections between the two books include book of mormon words and phrases that only appear in. The king james version contains certain translation and textual errors which will facilitate a global transition from the true gospel of jesus christ to the false gospel of the antichrist. The only bible that joseph smith relied on was the king james version. Aug 17, 2011 the joseph smith translation is josephs supposedly inspired revision of the king james bible.
Proof the book of mormon isnt true the book of mormon contradicts the bible and was actually a work of fiction written by joseph smith in the 1800s, who copied much of it from the king james version, trying to make it look like an ancient manuscript. What are 1769 kjv edition errors doing in book of mormon. Ces letter provides zero examples or evidence to back up their false claim that kjv translation errors appear in the book of mormon. I find it hard to fathom that the egyptians, who allegedly wrote what became the bom many thousands of years before king james of england, wrote on golden plates in egyptian hieroglyphics, that when translated, matched sections or whole chapters from the kjv with the. This book is tremendously educational yet very fascinating to read. The book of mormon contains a version of the sermon on the mount, which some authors have claimed to be the achilles heel of the book of mormon. Joseph smith claimed that the book of mormon is his translation of an ancient book written on gold plates. Conclusion there really is only one theory which fully accounts for all the features of the phenomenon.
The book of mormon narrates the historical, religious, political, and military events that shaped and continue to inform the churchs teachings. Due to the king james bible errors and deuteroisaiah passage in the book of mormon, it further proves that the the book of mormon is a work of joseph smiths 19th century mindset, and even apologetic lds historian. There are specific quotes in the book of mormon that are found in the king james bible and other modern works that joseph smith had access to. Galatians chapter 2 kjv king james version a snowball effect. It has long been held by critics of mormonism, for instance, that the book of mormon is nothing but a synthesis of earlier works written by other men, of the vivid imaginings of joseph smith, and of simple plagiarisms of the king james bible.
He translated the book of mormon by the gift and power of god, using the urim and thummim. Days and hours never to be forgotten, byu studies quarterly 57 no. This article explains that joseph claimed to be restoring the true, original meaning of the bible, and looks at examples of josephs changes to the gospel of john proving this claim to have been false. What are 1769 king james versionedition errors doing in. If the book of mormon is an accurate translation, some claim that it shouldnt contain these translational errors. The book of mormon has the structure of a translation from the hebrew language. Mormon is allegedly a prophethistorian who was the native american believed by mormons to have written the book of mormon the main religious text of the church of jesus christ of latter day saints mormonism. He shows that mormon attitudes toward the bible comprise an extraordinary mix of conservative, liberal, and radical ingredients. Being a latterday saint, or mormon, many of these versus will come from the book of mormon. Secondly, more than half of the verses in the book of mormon isaiah differ from the kjv isaiah. Much of the dead sea scrolls has been translated in the same fashion. Jerald and sandra tanner list 400 clear examples in their book the case against mormonism vol. The book of mormon and the king james bible red door church. The book of mormon teaches that little children are not capable of sin because they do not have a sinful nature moroni 8.
Sometimes the quotation is explicit, as in the second book of nephi, which contains 18 quoted chapters of the book of isaiah. In several cases, the book of mormon follows king james version translation errors. Wherefore condemn not the things of god, that ye may be found spotless at the judgment seat of christ. This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies. The book of mormon title page, which was translated by joseph smith, 1 ends with a rather intruiging disclaimer for a book of scripture. The book of mormons old testament portion bmot quotes heavily from the new testament of the bible. Here is a partial listing of king james version translation errors. Along the way, weve noticed that joseph smith quotes directly from the king james bible kjv or paraphrases it in a handful of places in the book of mormon which was allegedly revealed to him. This is a clear case of plagiarism, with no other purpose than adding volume to the book of mormon without too much effort. Oct 07, 2017 the resulting translation was published in 1830 as the book of mormon. The quality of the typeface is no longer as clear and sharp as it should be.
A revision or translation of the king james version of the bible begun by the prophet joseph smith in june 1830. Yes, there are similarities in wording between the king james version of the bible, and the way joseph smith translated the book of mormon. Large portions of the book of mormon are very similar to the king james version of the bible, which of course was about the only english bible available to joseph smith in the 1820s. Smith plagiarized 478 verses from the book of isaiah, and 201 are identical to the king james bible. Bible translation is the revised king james version, which is standard for the lds church. This is indisputable proof that the book of mormon was written after 1611 and not many centuries before this. The contradictions between the book of mormon and the bible constitute a most serious obstacle to accepting the book of mormon as latterday scripture supplemental to the bible.
The author labored to give his words and phrases the quaint, oldfashioned sound and structure of our king james s translation of the scriptures. Two chapters of the prophet malachi are quoted by jesus in iii nephi 24 and following. Joseph smiths other writings, such as his history and diary, reflect the modern english era of his day. Kjv translation errors as found in the book of mormon. Errors represented across both 1611 and 1769 kjv a. Mormonism is a religion less than two centuries old, but in this short time it has managed to accrue a long list of embarrassments which the church leaders would. Here is emma smiths description of how joseph translated the book of mormon. Book of mormon translation challenge home facebook. For example, critics of mormonism have shown convincing proof that the book of mormon is a synthesis of earlier works written by other men, of the vivid imaginings of joseph smith, and of plagiarisms from the king james bible. Joseph smith believed the existing king james bible was corrupted through translation errors and, in the words of the book of mormon had lost many plain and precious things. Textual errors in the book of mormon also found in the kjv.
With that in mind, let me suggest two reasons why the isaiah passages in the book of mormon are more like those in the king james version than those in the dead sea scrolls. The errors in the king james bible kindle edition by ruckman, dr. Why is the book of mormon written in king james english. Contradictions between the book of mormon and the bible. Many of these errors, however, are found in the kjv bible. The church of jesus christ of latterday saints uses the king james version of the bible, as it considers it most accurate version available in english. Fairmormons response to presence of 1769 kjv errors in book of mormon in terms of attempting to pinpoint the origin of the book of mormon, even more significant than book of mormon revisions are places where it follows the kjv into error, echoing mistranslations or including translations of late and derivative greek texts. The book of mormon incorporates text which seems to be taken from the king james version, including passages which are now considered to be mistranslations in the king james version. When out of fear of offending the jews from jerusalem, peter went back to following jewish traditions. The golden plates, from which the book of mormon was supposedly translated, were, according to mormons, written prior to the 1st century, and yet oneeighteenth of the book of mormon is identical, word for word, to the 1611 king james version of the bible1 corinthians and isaiah 53 are quoted in full.
The first reason is that part of the dead sea scrolls are of questionable authenticity. The king james quotations in the book of mormon kjq, 2019 royal skousen, with the collaboration of stanford carmack. In responding to the ces letters book of mormon section, fairmormon makes a few critical concessions, including that errors unique to the 1769 version of the king james version bible are included in the current version of the book of mormon. Ces letter no translation errors i dont think you can say that the book of mormon contains unique errors from the king james version bible. And now if there be fault, it be the mistake of men. Fourteen centuries later, in 1823, the angel moroni led joseph smith to the plates hidden in a hillside in upstate new york. Second, this makes clear that the only way a translation of the book of mormon could have happened is with a tight translation. Oh wait, the king james scribes also used felt hats to translate the bible. Generally, we find that when the king james version commits a translation error, the book of mormon usually follows. I dont agree with this because of the other texts stated here and other reasons stated elsewhere. The book of mormon and the king james bible textus receptus.
The king james version of the bible was the most correct and used the most elevated language that. The book of mormon text contains logical impossibilities. Jun 19, 2008 b the book of mormon is a nineteenth century work, and joseph smith simply copied the king james version into the book of mormon. The book of mormon derives its names from a book that has semitic sources, i.
One author makes the point that certain portions of the greek manuscripts of matthew 57 do not agree with the kjv of the text, and concludes that the book of mormon version of the sermon should not contain text similar to the kjv. Those skeptical of joseph smiths claims sometimes insist that his account of the coming forth of the book is simply too. Book of mormon difficulties, contradictions and explanations. The original 1830 edition, book of mormon had s of. Joseph smith worked on a translation of the bible, and his work is listed in the footnotes of the page for certain verses. For none can have power to bring it to light save it be given him of god. In the first place joseph smith did not copy the king james version of the bible in his translation. There are two possible explanations for the origin of the book of mormon. It is very likely that the king james bible may have been used as a model for the translation of the book of mormon, but the authorship of the book is attributed to the man mormon, who is reported to have compiled the book around 400 a.
Absolutely thorough explanation of so called errors in the king james bible. The word translated was is hayah, and denotes a condition different than a former condition, as in genesis 19. It does not require much reasoning to see which solution is the simplest. Mormons, why is it the book of mormon plagiarises 1611 king. The king james bible and the book of mormon its obvious even to the casual reader that the book of mormon, in its original 1830 translation, is written in the language of the king james version bible hereafter kjv. In some cases, entire passages are duplicated in the book of mormon.
Oct, 2017 and the book of mormon just happens to omit this word. Joseph smith translating the book of mormon by looking at a seer stone in a hat. That said, the bible verses embedded in the book of mormon do show a clear reliance on the 1769 king james version of the bible and not on the 1611 version. The book of mormon contains many linguistic similarities to the king james bible kjv. The king james version is a version, not edition, of the bible.
Many of the names in the book of mormon are just plucked directly from the bible, e. If this is true, then the book of mormon should be full of errors. The errors in the king james bible kindle edition by. His translation of matthew is contained in an appendix. Aug 11, 2010 secondly, more than half of the verses in the book of mormon isaiah differ from the kjv isaiah. Debunking fairmormon letter to a ces director book of. Ergo, the book of mormon could not be based on plates buried in 421 a. This is a clear case of plagiarism, with no other purpose than adding volume to the book of mormon. The book of mormon does not include the italicized word her, which is further proof that the book of mormon does not copy italicized portions word for word.
The current printing masters of the 1979 edition of the king james version of the bible and the 1981 edition of the book of mormon, doctrine and covenants, and pearl of great price have deteriorated because of age and long use. Jul 15, 2012 being a latterday saint, or mormon, many of these versus will come from the book of mormon. This addendum hopes to present information which will enable the reader to understand what the gnostic doctrine teaches and which mistranslations in the kjv. Brother jake returns for part 3 of his 4part series defending the book of mormon s historicity. Aug 27, 2008 there are a couple of circumstances that bear on the similarity to the king james version. Dec 30, 20 why did the extended biblical quotes comprising about 6% that allegedly came from a 600bc version of the old testament on brass plates and put in by nephi have the translation errors king james scribes made in the 17th century. Joseph smiths inspired revisions to the king james bible. He was divinely commissioned to make the translation and regarded it as a branch of his calling as a prophet. Mormons, why is it the book of mormon plagiarises 1611 king james english. What are 1769 king james version edition errors doing in the book of mormon. This demonstrates that he did not perform a translation from an ancient text written in reformed egyptian, but was merely copying from the kjv bible. The book of mormon has occasionally been analyzed in a nonreligious context for its literary merits. The kjv has been relentlessly attacked for 2 simple reasonsfor money and so scholars can become their own final authority and sit in judgement of gods words. Since that time, the lds church has continued to make revisions as well amounting according to one source as being over 3,900.
There are a couple of circumstances that bear on the similarity to the king james version. The isaiah source for the king james version was written much later. Theyre sorted by the order they appear, bible first, then book of mormon. Many adherents to the theory of an inerrant translation of scripture, namely those referred to as kjvonlyists, are thoroughly convinced that yahuwah has preserved his sacred written word in the english language through the translation of the king james version, which is also called the authorized version. Thirdly, this isnt the only example of a translation relying on the king james version for the bulk of translation while modifying it where the translations differ. Elder cunninghams version of the book of mormon with all the fantasy and scifi references. Of the 8 verses from the book of mormon that contain possible or likely kjv translation errors all of these errors seem to be preserved in the 1611 king james version in general, the book of mormon appears to rely exclusively on the 1769 king james translation compared with the 1611 king james version or other derivatives in other instances where the two texts diverge. Why do the book of mormon selections from isaiah sometimes. It is also true that the king james version contains some textual errors. Id say this was highly improbable, and creates additional problems see the note below. In this part 5 of volume 3 of the critical text, we identify one more use of early modern english in fact, a very specific one in the original text of the book of mormon, namely, quotations from the king james bible. Bible verses related to mormons from the king james version kjv by relevance sort by book order galatians 1. Joseph, or someone else involved in the translation, heard or remembered or read the phrase. The chorus to making things up again becomes ever increasingly funnier when elder cunninghams conscience takes the form of his father, joseph smith and moroni.
Book of mormontranslation errors from the kjv fairmormon. Errors which are unique to the 1769 edition that joseph smith owned. Adjustments to the scriptures church of jesus christ. The critics have been quick to condemn the book of mormon because of this fact. One author makes the point that certain portions of the greek manuscripts of matthew 57 do not agree with king james version of the text, and concludes that the book of mormon version of the. Kjv does not take the word for rock and accidentally translate.
Oct 06, 2016 a lot of people make a big deal about their being nearly 5,000 textual changes to the book of mormon since its first publication. Especially at the end, when its used to threaten general buttfucking naked. According to chronology found in the book of mormon, king benjamin should have been dead at this time. The inspired version was a revision of the king james bible completed by smith to bring it in line with mormon. What is the original language of the book of mormon. It is either of divine or human origin, and if it is of human origin that means that joseph smith concocted the book. For a further analysis of the question, how long it took for joseph to translate the book of mormon, see my recent article, timing the translation of the book of mormon. Mormons, why is it the book of mormon plagiarises 1611. All of the italic words that the book of mormon does include are universally reasonable additions for any english translation.
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