Galatians 1:6-8; “I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: 7 Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. 8 But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.”
Today we’re taking another look at some of the changes made to the original 1830 Book of Mormon and then asking some questions. While doing all this, let’s always keep the apostle Paul’s admonition in the forefront of our minds!
Original reading of 1 Nephi 11:18; “And he said unto me, Behold, the virgin which thou seest, is the mother of God, after the manner of the flesh.” Reference/link for 1830 BoM is from Jim Spencer’s Book of Mormon Machine.
1 Nephi 11:18; “And he said unto me: Behold, the virgin whom thou seest is the mother of the Son of God, after the manner of the flesh.”
The modern reading listed above was changed in 1964.
Luke 1:28-35; “And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. 29 And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be. 30 And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. 31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. 32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: 33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. 34 Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? 35 And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.”
While there’s a plethora of topics that could be looked at when it comes to the Virgin Mary and Mormonism, we’re limiting our focus on just one. Today we’re looking at how Joe Smith chose to ‘translate’ the original BoM, and why it smacks of Roman Catholicism.
The whole reason we’re here discussing Mormonism today is because of Smith’s claims, so we’re wondering…
If God was really the one who translated this book, why did he use the vocabulary of those he warned Smith not to associate with?
Did Smith believe Mary was the mother of God when he ‘translated’ this?
Other questions we have –
Why is the BoM considered the most perfect book on earth if it’s been the recipient of so much editing?
Did God reveal they needed to edit this work, or did this come about through the work of man?
Why did they leave it this way until 1964?
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