Top 10 embarrassments of the mormon religion listverse. Are there errors from the 1769 king james version of the. This book is tremendously educational yet very fascinating to read. A reader without access to the original manuscripts could then never be sure if a difference between the dss translation and the king james or any other translation represented a true difference in the dss text, or simply the choice of the dss translators to improve existing translations. What are 1769 kjv edition errors doing in book of mormon. 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 by the angel moroni. 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. 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 quotations in the book of mormon kjq, 2019 royal skousen, with the collaboration of stanford carmack. Kjv isaiah, bom 2nd nephi, correct translation, kjv bom translation. 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 king james bible and the joseph smith translation.
This means that either joseph simply plagiarized directly from the bible which means he could have easily also used a document to help dictate other portions or the lord gave him the same biblical errors that the book of mormon claims were made by the great and. Much of the dead sea scrolls has been translated in the same fashion. When they say directly support, they typically mean that they are looking for a direct corroboration, such as the presence of the name nephi or zarahemla in association with ancient american archaeological data. Sometimes the translators italic words appear in the. The original 1830 edition, book of mormon had s of. Were the plates sometimes not in the room while joseph was translating them. Joseph smith nor the nephites lived in jacobean england. A question of book of mormon scholarship is whether the several chapters or passages of isaiah cited or paraphrased in the book derive from an ancient text or whether they have been copied with some revision from the king james version. Book of mormon difficulties, contradictions and explanations. It does not require much reasoning to see which solution is the simplest.
Joseph used a rock in a hat for the book of mormon dictation but may have also used the 1769 kjv edition bible and possibly other sources in aiding in producing the book of mormon. Book of mormontransmission from translator to printed. Critics of the book of mormon claim that major portions of it are copied, without attribution, from the bible. Although few in number, the king james version does contain a number of undeniable incorrect translations. Ive researched kjv errors a bit, but i havent been able to find specifically any errors that are specific to that edition of the king james. This chapter will explore the relationship between the king james bible and the joseph smith translation. Much of what makes the kjv recognizable, and even iconic, is its external expression, such as its words, grammar, organization, and the way it is presented on the printed page. Tvedtness analysis and evidence was highly ambiguous, substantially incomplete, strained, or simply in error. It was first published in march 1830 by joseph smith as the book of mormon.
Aug 27, 2008 there are a couple of circumstances that bear on the similarity to the king james version. Some of the sharpest detractors of the book of mormon translation have confessed that as we stated earlier, most of the 3,9 changes which we found were related to the correction of grammatical and spelling errors and do not really change the basic meaning of the text. False, because of mistakes in book of mormon, doctrines and covenants, and the pearl of great price. According to chronology found in the book of mormon, king benjamin should have been dead at this time. Kjv does not take the word for rock and accidentally translate. Bible passages again dominate this section of the book of mormon, specifically the king james version, including translation errors. Conclusion there really is only one theory which fully accounts for all the features of the phenomenon. The book of mormon has the structure of a translation from the hebrew language. All this statement does is transfer the problem to why god chose to have joseph smith translate the book of mormon into king james version biblical language see that topic below. Church resources book of mormon translation, gospel topics, topics the gold plates and the translation of the book of mormon. Beyond historical problems, the book of mormon also contains errors specific to the king james bible the smith family owned. The original 1830 edition, book of mormon had s of errors. 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. It is a common claim by critics that there is absolutely no archaeological evidence to support the book of mormon.
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. The book of mormon is the sacred text for the church of jesus christ of latter day saints. It seems reasonable to assume that if smith was a prophet of god and was translating the book of mormon under divine inspiration, he would have known about the errors found in the king james version, and would have corrected them for when passages from the king james version appeared in the book of mormon. Absolutely thorough explanation of so called errors in the king james bible. The original text of the book of mormon contains complex hebrewlike constructions that have been subsequently removed from the text because of their nonenglish character. 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 tanners have listed, one by one, 400 verses and portions of verses quoted from the new testament in the book of mormon in their book, the case against mormonism. The book of mormon and the king james bible wikipedia. King james english in the book of mormon an oddity in the book of mormon, published in 1830, is that it uses antiquated english resembling the style of the king james version kjv bible. Upstate new york dialect, king james english, or hebrew. What are the errors in the king james version bible.
This claim, as well as all claims to historical authenticity of the book of mormon, are rejected by nonlatter day saint historians. The king james version of the holy bible has some translation problems with it as stated in the articles of faith. Errors in grammar there are literally thousands of grammatical errors in the original edition of the book of mormon errors that gradually have been changed in later editions. Volumes have been written on its distinctive and rhythmic style, and it is still regarded as a triumph of modern english literature. The book of mormon is a sacred text of the latter day saint movement, which, according to adherents, contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the american continent from approximately 2200 bc to ad 421. When king james translators were translating the kjv bible between 1604 and 1611, they would occasionally put in their own words into the text to make the english more readable.
In the isaiah chapters which were plagiarized by the book of mormon, joseph smith has changed them in his translation to fit the book of mormon. Why is the book of mormon written in king james english. From that humble beginning, today the church prints over 3 million copies a year on large web presses. In response, apologists sometimes claim that the book of mormon does not transmit translation errors, mainly focusing on the highly subjective nature of translating. 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. There are a couple of circumstances that bear on the similarity to the king james version. Mormons, why is it the book of mormon plagiarises 1611 king.
If the book of mormon was translated by the power of god, it is reasonable to. The book of mormon and the king james bible red door church. If the book of mormon is an accurate translation, some claim that it shouldnt contain these translational errors. Book of mormontransmission from translator to printed text. In some cases, entire passages are duplicated in the book of mormon. Kjv isaiah in the book of mormon why the lds church is. Could joseph smith have written the book of mormon. The translation and publication of the book of mormon immediately preceded the organization of the church in the spring of 1830. 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. 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.
Joseph smiths other writings, such as his history and diary, reflect the modern english era of his day. Since joseph smith used no paper notes, scripts or other texts, whatever he produced in the book of mormon came from god. 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. While joseph smith described the book of mormon as a translation of text written on golden plates, smith had not. The book of mormon, doctrines and covenants, the pearl of great price. Problems in the joseph smith translation of the bible and comparison to the book of mormon. Smith copied the kjv blindly, not showing awareness of translation problems and errors in the kjv. In short, he read from the stone as he translated the texts. I dont think you can say that the book of mormon contains unique errors from the king james version bible. Dec 19, 2018 yes, and we can only speculate as to why. Anachronisms apparently perpetuated from king james s translation see also.
Why do italic translator words from the kjv bible appear. For example, no, the book of mormon does not contain unique errors from the king james version bible. The book of mormon agrees with the textus receptus not the original text and includes the later phrase by them of old time. Errors which are unique to the 1769 edition that joseph smith owned. Joseph smiths other writings, such as his history and diary, reflect the. The king james version of the bible is, in all likelihood, the most successful of all the english translations. The book of mormon contains many linguistic similarities to the king james bible kjv. Jun 07, 2019 do jehovahs witnesses have a book equivalent to the book of mormon. Oct, 2017 when king james translators were translating the kjv bible between 1604 and 1611, they would occasionally put in their own words into the text to make the english more readable.
Two chapters of the prophet malachi are quoted by jesus in iii nephi 24 and following. Sometimes the translators italic words appear in the book of mormon verses and sometimes. Sometimes the quotation is explicit, as in the second book of nephi, which contains 18 quoted chapters of the book of isaiah. Book of mormonplagiarism accusationsking james bible. Why do italic translator words from the kjv bible appear in. Kjv translation errors our understanding of the hebrew language today is much more advanced than it was in the 1600s when king james authorized an english translation of the bible. The best confirmation that the book of mormon used the kjv bible is the. Third, it is noteworthy that the original book of mormon chapter divisions of the isaiah quotations follow a larger thematic grouping, not the interruptive chapter system found in the king james bible. The book of mormon is published in 112 languages, and many of them are available in multiple formats online in march 1830, 5,000 copies of the book of mormon were printed in the e. What are 1769 king james version edition errors doing in the book of mormon.
What are these 17th century italicized words doing in the book of mormon. According to most adherents of the latter day saint movement, the book of mormon is a 19thcentury translation of a record of ancient inhabitants of the american continent, which was written in a script which the book refers to as reformed egyptian. It is claimed that each sentence and word in the 1830 book of mormon had supposedly come directly from god. The following essay is the official lds released essay entitled book of mormon translation. John gilbert, compositor for the 1830 edition of the book of mormon. At red door church weve been taking a look at the church of jesus christ of latterday saints lds. Of the 490 verses in these chapters, 246, or roughly half, contain recognizable kjv quotations or phrases. Below is a partial listing of king james version kjv bible translation errors. 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. Ergo, the book of mormon could not be based on plates buried in 421 a. Jeremy runnells, a formerly committed mormon and byu grad, in his now famous letter to a ces director, asks at the very beginning of his paper.
When it comes to the book of mormon translation, there is what is called a tight translation and there is what is called a loose translation. The verses in question are given first and then what is the correct or better translation. Book of mormontranslation errors from the kjv fairmormon. The book of mormon and the king james version secular web. Much of what makes the kjv recognizable, and even iconic, is its external expression, such as its words, grammar, organization, and the way it. An account written by the hand of mormon upon plates taken from the. Another major problem for the book of mormon is archeology, a major embarrassment for the mormon church. If the book of mormon is an accurate translation, why would it contain translational errors that exist in the king james bible. It was released by the church to help explain how the book of mormon was translated, and to explain why the true story of the translation differs so greatly from the official church narrative taught since its founding. Also notice how the apologists blame you for taking director to mean director.
These translation errors occurred when the original greek and hebrew bibles were translated into english. Welch, a byu professor of law, admits that the best early manuscripts lack tois archaiois in matthew 5. In the book of mormon, there are many chapters of isaiah directly incorporated from the king james version kjv of the bible, complete with translation errors that were obviously not possible to have been recorded on the gold plates since the. Somehow the divine process guiding josephs translation of the book of mormon didnt prevent him from making identical translation errors. These take the form of such things as double negatives, incorrect adverbs and adjectives, and incorrect tenses. Aug 11, 2010 secondly, more than half of the verses in the book of mormon isaiah differ from the kjv isaiah.
Do jehovahs witnesses have a book equivalent to the book of. It is also true that the king james version contains some textual errors. What do we know about the method used to translate the book of mormon. They present this as evidence that joseph smith wrote the book of mormon by plagiarizing the authorized king james version of the bible.
Several critics have pointed to grammatical errors in the early modern english style of the book of mormon and made the argument that because the original ms, the printers ms, and the first edition of the book of mormon appear to have contained hundreds of grammatical errors, the book was therefore fabricated by smith and not divinely inspired. No, the book of mormon does not contain unique errors from the king james version bible. In several cases, the book of mormon follows king james version translation errors. The book of mormon and the king james bible a significant portion of the book of mormon quotes from the brass plates, which purport to be another source of old testament writings mirroring those of. Sperry, of the brigham young university, made the following comment concerning this change. So one of the talking points in the ces letter, which i have seen quoted in this sub as well, is that there are 1769 kjv bible edition errors unique to only that edition present in the book of mormon. I wish also to mention here, that the title page of the book of mormon is a literal translation, taken from the very last leaf, on the left hand side of the collection or book of plates, which contained the record which has been translated. What is more, the bom quotes sections of the kjv which scholars now know to contain errors.
Debunking fairmormon letter to a ces director book of. Large portions of the book of mormon are very similar to the king james. Debunking fairmormon letter to a ces director book of mormon. 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. For example, as soon as the first edition was out, the readers could not avoid noticing many typographical, spelling, and grammatical errors. Yet the book of mormon is not a slavish copy of the. Kjv translation errors as found in the book of mormon.
The joseph smith translation is only an inspired revision of the king james version. The book of mormon contains passages from the king james bible summary. The situation with the book of mormon is likely analogous. 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. Jan 04, 2016 i wish also to mention here, that the title page of the book of mormon is a literal translation, taken from the very last leaf, on the left hand side of the collection or book of plates, which contained the record which has been translated. Problems with portions of the bible in the book of mormon. The book of mormon even contains king james bible translation errors.
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