A FARMS symposium at BYU on Saturday, 26 January, highlighted findings from a years-long effort to collect, translate, and publish ancient accounts of the early life of the patriarch Abraham. Titled “Traditions about the Early Life of Abraham,” the free public event featured presentations by John Tvedtnes, Brian Hauglid, and John Gee, compilers and editors of a new book of the same title published by the Institute under the FARMS imprint.

“Now for this cause I know that man is nothing, which thing I never had supposed.” So lamented Moses in utter humility after seeing in vision the complexities of the planet Earth and her countless inhabitants. Shortly thereafter Moses was to see once again the earth and her. Imagine, however, his profound astonishment when, in answer to his plea for an explanation, the Lord revealed himself to Moses and told him of even more wondrous creations. “And worlds without number have I created. . . . For behold, there are many worlds that have passed away by the word of my power.” Other heavens and earths had already expired. New heavens, star systems with inhabitable planets, would be born in the distant future. Moses would surely have felt even more insignificant had not the Lord reassured him with his presence and the counsel that “all things are numbered unto me.”

Map with explanation

Chart

Review of John A. Tvedtnes, Brian M. Hauglid, and John Gee, comps. and eds. Traditions about the Early Life of Abraham.

Idrimi of Alalakh lived in Syria about a century after Abraham and left an autobiographical inscription that is the only such item uncovered archaeologically from Middle Bronze Age Syro-Palestine. The inscription of Idrimi and the Book of Abraham share a number of parallel features and motifs. Some of the parallels are a result of similar experiences in their lives and some are a result of coming from a similar culture and time.

The plausibility of the attempted offering of Abraham by a priest of pharaoh and the existence of human sacrifice in ancient Egypt have been questioned and debated. This paper presents strong evidence that ritual slaying did exist among ancient Egyptians, with a particular focus on its existence in the Middle Kingdom. It details three individual evidences of human sacrifice found in ancient Egypt. Four different aspects of the attempted offering of Abraham are compared to these Egyptian evidences to illustrate how the story of Abraham fits with the picture of ritual slaying in Middle Kingdom Egypt.

Since 1989, the Review of Books on the Book of Mormon has published review essays to help serious readers make informed choices and judgments about books and other publications on topics related to the Latter-day Saint religious tradition. It has also published substantial freestanding essays that made further contributions to the field of Mormon studies. In 1996, the journal changed its name to the FARMS Review with Volume 8, No 1. In 2011, the journal was renamed Mormon Studies Review.
Review of Hugh Nibley. Abraham in Egypt.

Review of E. Douglas Clark. The Blessing of Abraham: Becoming a Zion People.

A travel journal of many Bible lands

A travel journal of many Bible lands

A travel journal of many Bible lands

A travel journal of many Bible lands

A travel journal of many Bible lands

A travel journal of many Bible lands

A travel journal of many Bible lands

No abstract available.

Republished in 2000 in a second edition with new materials and illustrations as Abraham in Egypt, The Collected Works of Hugh Nibley vol. 14.
Nibley examines the Book of Abraham’s striking connections with ancient texts and Egyptian religion and culture.

Considered by many to be a classic in LDS literature, this new edition of Abraham in Egypt [published in association with the Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies (FARMS)] contains all the material from the first edition as well as additions from Nibley’s 1968–70 Improvement Era series “A New Look at the Pearl of Great Price.”
In 1968–70, Hugh Nibley wrote a series of articles for the Improvement Era titled “A New Look at the Pearl of Great Price.” Brother Nibley asked that some of these articles be made into chapters to be added to Abraham in Egypt. These new chapters are what constitutes the new edition; no changes were made to the original chapters. For the articles, Nibley drew from many Jewish and rabbinical sources, while his work in the first edition was based on Egyptian material.

The Book of Abraham, one of the canonized works of Latter-day Saint scripture brought forth by the Prophet Joseph Smith, has been attacked by critics since its publication in 1842. In Abraham in Egypt, LDS scholar Hugh Nibley draws on his erudition in ancient languages, literature, and history to defend the book on historical and doctrinal grounds. Nibley examines the Book of Abraham’s striking connections with ancient texts and Egyptian religion and culture. He discusses the book’s many nonbiblical themes that are found in apocryphal literature not known or available in Smith’s day. In opening up many other lines of inquiry, Nibley lays an essential foundation for further research on the biblical patriarch Abraham. This enlarged, second edition of Nibley’s classic 1981 work of the same title updates the endnotes, includes many illustrations, and adds several chapters taken from a series of articles in the Improvement Era entitled “A Look at the Pearl of Great Price,” which Nibley wrote between 1968 and 1970.

The Book of Abraham, one of the canonized works of Latter-day Saint scripture brought forth by the Prophet Joseph Smith, has been attacked by critics since its publication in 1842. In Abraham in Egypt, LDS scholar Hugh Nibley draws on his erudition in ancient languages, literature, and history to defend the book on historical and doctrinal grounds. Nibley examines the Book of Abraham’s striking connections with ancient texts and Egyptian religion and culture. He discusses the book’s many nonbiblical themes that are found in apocryphal literature not known or available in Smith’s day. In opening up many other lines of inquiry, Nibley lays an essential foundation for further research on the biblical patriarch Abraham. This enlarged, second edition of Nibley’s classic 1981 work of the same title updates the endnotes, includes many illustrations, and adds several chapters taken from a series of articles in the Improvement Era entitled “A Look at the Pearl of Great Price,” which Nibley wrote between 1968 and 1970.

The Book of Abraham, one of the canonized works of Latter-day Saint scripture brought forth by the Prophet Joseph Smith, has been attacked by critics since its publication in 1842. In Abraham in Egypt, LDS scholar Hugh Nibley draws on his erudition in ancient languages, literature, and history to defend the book on historical and doctrinal grounds. Nibley examines the Book of Abraham’s striking connections with ancient texts and Egyptian religion and culture. He discusses the book’s many nonbiblical themes that are found in apocryphal literature not known or available in Smith’s day. In opening up many other lines of inquiry, Nibley lays an essential foundation for further research on the biblical patriarch Abraham. This enlarged, second edition of Nibley’s classic 1981 work of the same title updates the endnotes, includes many illustrations, and adds several chapters taken from a series of articles in the Improvement Era entitled “A Look at the Pearl of Great Price,” which Nibley wrote between 1968 and 1970.
A study of the story of how Sarah ended up at the royal palace

The volume “An Approach to the Book of Abraham” contains diverse essays, including his three-year series of lengthy articles from Improvement Era, “A New Look at the Pearl of Great Price.” According to Nibley, “Until now, no one has done much more than play around with the bedizening treasury of the Pearl of Great Price. They would not, we could not make of the Book of Abraham an object of serious study. The time has come to change all that.”
Discusses Abraham’s dealings with men as a missionary.

Blake Ostler examines what relationship exists between the papyri of the ancient Egyptian Book of Breathings possessed by Joseph Smith and the Book of Abraham. Ostler finds that Joseph Smith, in associating vignettes of the Book of the Dead to explain Abraham’s experiences, was actually duplicating an ancient practice about which he could not have known from secular sources available in his day.

Hugh W. Nibley (1910–2005) was arguably the most brilliant Latter-day Saint scholar of the 20th century, with wide-ranging interests in scripture, history, and social issues. The Collected Works of Hugh Nibley comprise nineteen weighty volumes. But he was also one of the most enigmatic observers of the Church. In this volume readers will discover that the personal stories and perspectives behind the scholarship are sometimes even more captivating than his brilliant and witty intellectual breakthroughs. This comprehensive three-part collection of essays sheds fascinating new light on Hugh Nibley as a scholar and a man. Part 1, entitled “Portraits,” contains the first collection of observations—a “spiritual” portrait of Hugh Nibley by his close friend and colleague John W. “Jack” Welch, a description of the physical portrait by Rebecca Everett hanging in the Hugh Nibley Ancient Studies room at Brigham Young University, and a biographical portrait by Hugh himself. Part 2, “Nibley, the Scholar,” contains expanded and updated versions of the almost forgotten audio and video recordings of the BYU Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship lecture series celebrating the centennial of Nibley’s birth in 2010. An additional set of chapters on Nibley’s scholarship rounds out this collection. Part 3, “Nibley, the Man,” includes tributes given by family members and others at Nibley’s funeral service. A series of entertaining personal stories, reminiscences, and folklore accounts concludes the volume.

Abraham’s test

Abraham’s obedience

Discourse by Apostle Erastus Snow, delivered in the Salt Lake Assembly Hall, Sunday Afternoon, February 26, 1882. Reported By: Geo. F. Gibbs.

Discourse by Apostle Erastus Snow, delivered in the Tabernacle, Provo, Sunday Morning, May 31 (Quarterly Conference), 1885. Reported By: John Irvine.

Discourse by Elder John Taylor, delivered in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, July 29, 1877. Reported By: Rudger Clawson.

Discourse by President John Taylor, delivered at Parowan, Sunday Morning, June 24, 1883. Reported By: John Irvine.

Discourse by Apostle Moses Thatcher, delivered in the Tabernacle, Logan, Cache County, Semi-Annual Conference, Thursday Afternoon, October 8, 1885. Reported By: John Irvine.

Stories about Abraham circulated in ancient times and were continued into the medieval period. Many of these accounts were then lost and have come to light only recently. John Tvedtnes examines several such stories— ranging from creation accounts to the attempted sacrifice of Abraham— and shows how they support the Book of Abraham.

Insights from the Old Testament to help strengthen the resolve for an eternal marriage

The Standard Works, the Masoretic text, and the JST arranged in columns with commentary to teach about Adam, Enoch, and Noah

The teachings of Augustine, Aquinas, Luther, and Calvin

LDS teachings about Adam

How men and women can become one in heart and mind

The Eden account is both literal and figurative

Reprinted in Old Testament and Related Studies, Collected Works of Hugh Nibley vol. 1.
A controversial examination of evolution and the Latter-day Saint view on creation and the various roles of Adam.

Originally presented as a talk given on 1 April 1980 at Brigham Young University.
A controversial examination of evolution and the Latter-day Saint view on creation and the various roles of Adam.

How the statements cursing Eve in the garden were symbolic

The purposes for the Fall of Adam

An explanation of the Hebrew root behind “replenish” in Genesis 1:28

An explanation of what Adam and Eve did and why

The scriptural purpose of angels and references to angels in the standard works

Abstract: This article highlights the striking resemblances between Moses 1 and a corresponding account from the Apocalypse of Abraham (ApAb), one of the earliest and most important Jewish texts describing heavenly ascent. Careful comparative analysis demonstrates a sustained sequence of detailed affinities in narrative structure that go beyond what Joseph Smith could have created out of whole cloth from his environment and his imagination. The article also highlights important implications for the study of the Book of Moses as a temple text. Previous studies have suggested that the story of Enoch found in the Pearl of Great Price might be understood as the culminating episode of a temple text woven throughout chapters 2–8 of the Book of Moses. The current article is a conceptual bookend to these earlier studies, demonstrating that the account of heavenly ascent in Moses 1 provides a compelling prelude to a narrative outlining laws and liturgy akin to what could have been used anciently as part of ritual ascent within earthly temples.

Concludes that Jasher is a medieval work and not the one mentioned in the Old Testament

Review of LDS Perspectives on the Dead Sea Scrolls (1997), edited by Donald W. Parry and Dana M. Pike

An extensive bibliography of writings related to the Old Testament

The Lord has told us that many things in the Apocrypha are true and many false. The fascination that apocryphal writings generally hold for Latter-day Saints was recognized in a 1983 BYU symposium on this topic addressed by fifteen scholars representing a wide range of expertise. Those addresses are collected in this book.

How the scriptures were made more available through the translation of the Old Testament to Greek three hundred years before Christ

Abstract: Latter-day Saints are often aware that the Apocrypha contains valuable sacred material along with some “interpolations of men,” but few know how to approach those ancient texts and what they could learn from them. A new book by Jared W. Ludlow provides a helpful tool to guide LDS readers in appreciating the Apocrypha and exploring the material in these highly diverse sacred documents.
Review of Jared W. Ludlow, Exploring the Apocrypha from a Latter-day Saint Perspective (Springville, Utah: CFI, 2018). 234 pp. $16.99. Never repeat a conversation, and you will lose nothing at all. With friend or foe do not report it, and unless it would be a sin for you, do not reveal it; for someone may have heard you and watched you, and in time will hate you. Have you heard something? Let it die with you. Be brave, it will not make you burst! Having heard something, the fool suffers birth pangs like a woman in labor with a child. Like an arrow stuck in a person’s thigh, so is gossip inside a fool.
— Ecclesiasticus, aka The Wisdom of Jesus Ben Sira,
aka Sirach 19:7–12. .

When I was invited to participate in this symposium on the subject of apocryphal literature, my first inclination was to decline. This was a conference for experts trained in the biblical languages. But after some reflection, I changed my mind because I think there is a place for variety, and there might even be an advantage in having a paper from a nonlinguistic point of view. And so, although I do not know Greek or Hebrew, I have had considerable exposure to Church history, and I am familiar with the formation of several books of scripture and non-scripture. This is especially true as pertaining to the books that are used by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (hereinafter labeled the LDS Church) and the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (hereinafter called the RLDS Church). And I think there are some parallels between the development of books in the Church anciently and development of books in the Church in modern times.

In Temple and Cosmos, Brother Nibley explains the relationship of the House of the Lord to the cosmos. In Temple, the first part of the volume, he focuses on the nature, meaning, and history of the temple, discussing such topics as sacred vestments, the circle and the square, and the symbolism of the temple and its ordinances. In the second part, Cosmos, he discusses the cosmic context of the temple-the expanding gospel, apocryphal writings, religion and history, the genesis of the written word, cultural diversity in the universal church, and the terrible questions: Where did we come from? Why are we here? and Where are we going?
Hugh Nibley draws parallels between language and traditions found in the Apocrypha to the culture of the people in the Book of Mormon. In the second half of his lecture, Hugh Nibley compares the linguistics and culture of the Book of Mormon to that found in the Apocrypha. The imagery and practices found in the Book of Mormon are compared with certain phrases and material concerns found in Jewish and Christian apocryphal writings.

In Temple and Cosmos, Brother Nibley explains the relationship of the House of the Lord to the cosmos. In Temple, the first part of the volume, he focuses on the nature, meaning, and history of the temple, discussing such topics as sacred vestments, the circle and the square, and the symbolism of the temple and its ordinances. In the second part, Cosmos, he discusses the cosmic context of the temple-the expanding gospel, apocryphal writings, religion and history, the genesis of the written word, cultural diversity in the universal church, and the terrible questions: Where did we come from? Why are we here? and Where are we going?

Originally presented on 5 July 1962 to the Seminary and Institute faculty assembled at BYU.
Hugh Nibley answers some questions about the Dead Sea Scrolls.

Reprinted from Qumran and the Companions of the Cave.

Later published in Temple and Cosmos: Beyond This Ignorant Present.
In the second half of his lecture, Hugh Nibley compares the linguistics and culture of the Book of Mormon to that found in the Apocrypha.

Cf. “Unrolling the Scrolls: Some Forgotten Witnesses,” in Old Testament and Related Studies, The Collected Works of Hugh Nibley 1. 115–70.
Hugh Nibley draws parallels between language and traditions found in the Apocrypha to the culture of the people in the Book of Mormon. In the second half of his lecture, Hugh Nibley compares the linguistics and culture of the Book of Mormon to that found in the Apocrypha. The imagery and practices found in the Book of Mormon are compared with certain phrases and material concerns found in Jewish and Christian apocryphal writings.

Also circulated as “Teachings from the Dead Sea Scrolls.”
A survey of teachings in a large number of apocryphal, pseudepigraphal, and patristic writings.

In this work the Book of Mormon is seen in a new perspective; we see it in a world setting, not in a mere local one. It takes its place naturally alongside the Bible and other great works of antiquity and becomes one of them.
In the light of the Dead Sea Scrolls, all the Apocryphal writings must be read again with a new respect. Today the correctness of the 91st Section of the Doctrine and Covenants as an evaluation of the Apocrypha is vindicated with the acceptance of an identical view by scholars of every persuasion, though a hundred years ago, the proposition set forth in the Doctrine and Covenants seemed preposterous. What all the apocryphal writings have in common with each other and with the scriptures is the Apocalyptic or eschatological theme. This theme is nowhere more fully and clearly set forth than in the Book of Mormon. Fundamental to this theme is the belief in a single prophetic tradition handed down from the beginning of the world in a series of dispensations but hidden from the world in general and often confined to certain holy writings. Central to the doctrine is the Divine Plan behind the creation of the world that is expressed in all history and revealed to holy prophets from time to time. History unfolds in repeating cycles in order to provide all men with a fair and equal test in the time of their probation. Every dispensation, or “Visitation,” it was taught, is followed by an apostasy and a widespread destruction of the wicked, and ultimately by a refreshing or a new visitation.

An edited version of an incomplete typescript.

The Book of Abraham, one of the canonized works of Latter-day Saint scripture brought forth by the Prophet Joseph Smith, has been attacked by critics since its publication in 1842. In Abraham in Egypt, LDS scholar Hugh Nibley draws on his erudition in ancient languages, literature, and history to defend the book on historical and doctrinal grounds. Nibley examines the Book of Abraham’s striking connections with ancient texts and Egyptian religion and culture. He discusses the book’s many nonbiblical themes that are found in apocryphal literature not known or available in Smith’s day. In opening up many other lines of inquiry, Nibley lays an essential foundation for further research on the biblical patriarch Abraham. This enlarged, second edition of Nibley’s classic 1981 work of the same title updates the endnotes, includes many illustrations, and adds several chapters taken from a series of articles in the Improvement Era entitled “A Look at the Pearl of Great Price,” which Nibley wrote between 1968 and 1970.
A stimulating comparison and analysis of the Apocalypse of Abraham and the Testament of Abraham, presenting the two traditions and offering others that have specif relevance to the Book of Abraham.

Some brief references to the Dead Sea Scrolls.

Some brief references to the Dead Sea Scrolls.

Dead Sea Scroll evidence witnesses that the text of the Bible has not been so much altered as mutilated by the removal of material from the original

As evidenced by the Dead Sea Scrolls, Isaiah was subject to the same abridging as the Book of Mormon prophets

As evidenced by the Dead Sea Scrolls, Isaiah was subject to the same abridging as the Book of Mormon prophets

Reprinted as “Treasures in the Heavens” in Nibley on the Timely and the Timeless (1978), 49–84; (2004), 53–93; and in Old Testament and Related Studies, The Collected Works of Hugh Nibley 1:171–214.
A complex and rich study of the cosmology of the Christian world, which is compared to other similar sources. — Midgley

As evidenced by the Dead Sea Scrolls, Isaiah was subject to the same abridging as the Book of Mormon prophets

As evidenced by the Dead Sea Scrolls, Isaiah was subject to the same abridging as the Book of Mormon prophets

Reprinted as “Treasures in the Heavens” in Old Testament and Related Studies, The Collected Works of Hugh Nibley 1, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book and FARMS, 171–214.
A complex and rich study of the cosmology of the Christian world, which is compared to other similar sources. — Midgley. As Christianity has been deeschatologized and demythologized in our own day; so in the fourth century it was thoroughly dematerialized, and ever since then, anything smacking of “cosmism” that is, tending to associate religion with the physical universe in any way has been instantly condemned by Christian and Jewish clergy alike as paganism and blasphemy. Joseph Smith was taken to task for the crude literalism of his religion not only talking with angels like regular people but giving God the aspect attributed to Him by the primitive prophets of Israe, and, strangest of all, unhesitatingly bringing other worlds and universes into the picture. Well, some of the early Christian and Jewish writers did the same thing; this weakness in them has been explained away as a Gnostic aberration, and yet today there is a marked tendency in all the churches to support the usual bloodless abstractions and stereotyped moral sermons with a touch of apocalyptic realism, which indeed now supplies the main appeal of some of the most sensationally successful evangelists. Over a century ago, J.-P. Migne argued that the medieval legends of the Saints were far less prone to mislead the faithful than those scientifically oriented apocrypha of the Early Church, since the former were the transparent inventions of popular fantasy that could never lead thinking people astray, while the latter, by their air of factual reporting and claims to scientific plausibility, led the early Christians into all manner of extravagant speculation, drawing the faithful astray in many directions. To appreciate the strength of their own position, Latter-day Saints should not be without some knowledge of both these traditions. Since the “cosmist” doctrines have been almost completely neglected, here we offer a look at some of them.

As Christianity has been deeschatologized and demythologized in our own day; so in the fourth century it was thoroughly dematerialized, and ever since then anything smacking of “ cosmism“ that is, tending to associate religion with the physical universe in any way has been instantly condemned by Christian and Jewish clergy alike as paganism and blasphemy. Joseph Smith was taken to task for the crude literalism of his religion not only talking with angels like regular people, but giving God the aspect attributed to Him by the primitive prophets of Israel, and, strangest of all, unhesitatingly bringing other worlds and universes into the picture. Well, some of the early Christian and Jewish writers did the same thing; this weakness in them has been explained away as a Gnostic aberration, and yet today there is a marked tendency in all the churches to support the usual bloodless abstractions and stereotyped moral sermons with a touch of apocalyptic realism, which indeed now supplies the main appeal of some of the most sensationally successful evangelists. Over a century ago, J.-P. Migne argued that the medieval legends of the Saints were far less prone to mislead the faithful than those scientifically oriented apocrypha of the Early Church, since the former were the transparent inventions of popular fantasy which could never lead thinking people astray, while the latter by their air of factual reporting and claims to scientific plausibility led the early Christians into all manner of extravagant speculation, drawing the faithful astray in many directions. To appreciate the strength of their own position, Latter-day Saints should not be without some knowledge of both these traditions. Since the “cosmist“ doctrines have been almost completely neglected, here we offer a look at some of them.

An address originally given on 5 July 1962 to the Seminary and Institute faculty assembled at BYU.
Hugh Nibley answers some questions about the Dead Sea Scrolls.

The Apocalypse of Abraham, a pseudepigraphon only extant in a fourteenth century Old Church Slavonic manuscript, has not received much attention from scholars of Ancient Judaism, due in part to a lack of readily available information regarding the history and transmission of the Slavonic Pseudepigrapha. This dissertation examines the historical context of these works with the aim of assessing the probability that they contain ancient Jewish material. The rest of the dissertation is focused on the Apocalypse of Abraham specifically, discussing its date and provenance, original language, probability that it comes from Essene circles, textual unity, and Christian interpolations. This includes treatments of the issue of free will, determinism, and predestination in the Apocalypse of Abraham as well as the methodological complexities in trying to distinguish between early Jewish and Christian works. It also provides an in-depth comparison of the Apocalypse of Abraham with 4 Ezra and 2 Baruch and takes up the question of the social setting for these texts based on relevant precedents set by recent scholars of midrash who seek to probe the “socio-cultural and historical situatedness” of midrashic texts. This discussion includes a survey of parallels between the content of the Apocalypse of Abraham and rabbinic literature to support the argument that a sharp distinction between apocalyptic ideas and what later became rabbinic tradition did not exist in the time between 70 and 135 C.E. Overall, this dissertation argues that the Apocalypse of Abraham is an early Jewish document written during the decades following the destruction of the Second Temple. While seeking to warn its readers of the dangers of idolatry in light of the apocalyptic judgment still to come, it also provides sustained exegesis of Genesis 15, which gives cohesion to the entire document.

In this paper I intend to deal primarily with the element of deception in the production and employment of apocryphal literature, particularly as it is revealed by the devices of pseudonymity and pseudepigraphy. I am defining pseudonymity here as an author’s intentional adoption of another persona, not merely as a pen name but as an assumed identity. Thus the Testament of Solomon is pseudonymous because the author has clearly adopted the persona of Solomon and speaks, as Solomon, in the first person. On the other hand, Huckleberry Finn would not be pseudonymous by my definition even though Samuel Clemens used the nom de plume Mark Twain, because Clemens did not adopt a persona other than his own; that is, we may assume that Clemens did not return royalty checks made out to Mark Twain, but rather cashed them unashamedly. Sam Clemens was Mark Twain, and there was no real possibility of confusing one person for the other.

In most forms of Gnosticism secret oral tradition is often associated with accounts of the creation of the world, the experiences of Adam and Eve in the Garden, and the fall of man. It is usually in this creation setting or in a temple or on a mountaintop that Gnosticism places the revelation of the esoteric mysteries and the knowledge needed to thwart the archontic powers and return to God.
Gnosticism is primarily concerned with the questions, Who am I? Where am I from? and What is my destiny? That the answers to these questions are often associated with the creation, the Garden, and the fall of man is probably due to the Gnostic presupposition that the end of all things is to be found in their beginning. Of those documents which manifest this concern, the Nag Hammadi Apocalypse of Adam is perhaps the prime example.

Review of ?Joseph Smith's Use of the Apocrypha? (1995), by Jerald and Sandra Tanner

Adam, Moses, Abraham, and Noah in apocryphal writings and traditions

The apocryphal book Susanna.

Review of Robert M. Price. The Pre-Nicene New Testament: Fifty-four Formative Texts.

Several approaches to interpreting Joseph Smith’s use of the so-called Jewish and Christian apocryphal literature have been employed both by critics of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (hereafter LDS), and by those professing faith in the Church and whose interests may be classified as apologetic. These approaches span the range of being probative of Joseph Smith’s restoration of lost texts and scripture and being dismissive of Mormonism generally, because its sacred religious texts are founded on flagrant plagiarism of apocryphal literature.[1] Before one can answer the most important historical question at hand, how Joseph Smith used the Apocrypha and what relationship that body of literature had to early Mormon writings, it seems prudent to first of all establish some controls on the discussion. This is necessary because previous discussions have largely contented themselves with drawing out parallels between apocryphal writings and early Mormon publications without any discussion of whether or not Joseph Smith had access to the texts under discussion. Moreover, a wide variety of modern translations of ancient apocryphal texts are often employed when there is no possible way that someone living in the early nineteenth century could have known them. This is particularly important when citing phrases or words that Joseph Smith might have incorporated into the language of his revelations.

Similarities between LDS doctrines and the Dead Sea Scrolls do not prove that Qumran had the gospel

An article reprinted from Leslie’s Weekly maintains that the excavation of Giza supports the truthfulness of the Bible

Archeological evidence. Reprinted from the Deseret News.

This is the manuscript of an essay submitted to the Instructor, rejected, and circulated with two letters, both dated 16 September 1965, one addressed to “Dear Brother” (1 page) and the other addressed to “Mr. W.” (5 pages).

An edited version of the manuscript of an essay submitted to the Instructor, rejected, and circulated with two letters, both dated 16 September 1965, one addressed to “Dear Brother” (1 page) and the other addressed to “Mr. W.” (5 pages).

Archaeological evidence incorrectly used as proof of scriptural accounts

The 1938–39 study manual for MIA

The fulfillment of the prophecy of Armageddon will depend on the faith of the Saints and there will be no nuclear or conventional war

“Now for this cause I know that man is nothing, which thing I never had supposed.” So lamented Moses in utter humility after seeing in vision the complexities of the planet Earth and her countless inhabitants. Shortly thereafter Moses was to see once again the earth and her. Imagine, however, his profound astonishment when, in answer to his plea for an explanation, the Lord revealed himself to Moses and told him of even more wondrous creations. “And worlds without number have I created. . . . For behold, there are many worlds that have passed away by the word of my power.” Other heavens and earths had already expired. New heavens, star systems with inhabitable planets, would be born in the distant future. Moses would surely have felt even more insignificant had not the Lord reassured him with his presence and the counsel that “all things are numbered unto me.”

The latter-day restoration of the gospel included the restoration of much significant truth to the Bible. It brought about the restoration of biblical history that had been lost and the restoration of biblical texts that had been changed or omitted or were in need of clarification. More important, it included the restoration of biblical doctrine that had been either removed, distorted, or simply misinterpreted by a world that did not enjoy the fulness of the gospel.
Shortly after the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saint was organized, the Prophet Joseph Smith was instructed by the Lord to undertake a careful reading of the Bible to revise and make corrections in accordance with the inspiration that he would receive. The result was a work of profound significance for the Church that included the revelation of many important truths and the restoration of many of the “precious things” that the Book of Mormon prophet Nephi had foretold would be taken from the Bible (1 Ne. 13:23–29). In June 1830 the first revealed addition to the Bible was set to writing. Over the next three years, the Prophet made changes, additions, and corrections as were given him by divine inspiration while he filled his calling to provide a more correct translation for the Church. Collectively, these are called the Joseph Smith Translation (JST), a name first applied in the 1970s, or the New Translation, as Joseph Smith and others in his day referred to it.

This book is a study of the text of Selections from the Book of Moses, an excerpt of Genesis from the Joseph Smith Translation of the Bible. Commonly called the Book of Moses, it is the first section in the Pearl of Great Price, one of the standard works of scripture of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
We now have access to the revealed text itself, which we did not have before, and we can examine the words as they were recorded when they first came from the inspired lips of the Prophet. We are in a new day, a day of closer access to one of the great fruits of the Restoration—an important branch of Joseph Smith’s calling, as he designated his inspired work on the Bible. With our ability now to examine the original documents closely, we can express our thanks to a loving God who has provided that “righteousness and truth.”

In 1828, the H. and E. Phinney Company in Cooperstown, New York, published a quarto-size edition of the King James Bible. This is the version that Joseph Smith, founder of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, used in his work when he created a new translation of the Bible. Here the author examines Joseph Smith’€™s marked-up copy of the Phinney Bible as an artifact important to Mormonism’€”some of Smith’€™s corrections and additions appear in footnotes of the Bible that Mormons use today. The author notes that the Phinney Bible’s updated language is more modern than the version of the Bible Latter-day Saints officially use (the King James), and the modernization may or may not have influenced Joseph Smith’€™s word choice in creating his translation. The author also gives biographical information on the Phinneys, describes how their Bible may have made its way into Joseph Smith’€™s hands, briefly traces the history of the English Bible in America, and describes the printing process employed by the Phinneys.

The book of Moses, Noah and the covenant, Melchizedek, tokens and priesthood ordinances, Lot in Sodom, Jacob’s prophecies of Joseph, and Moses and Joseph Smith

Robert Matthews presents this survey of biblical textual criticism with the suggestion that omissions to the Bible text of today are more extensive and more intentional than most textual critics have realized. He sums up the history of biblical translations and discusses the church situation in June 1830, when Joseph Smith received the first revelation associated with an inspired translation of the Bible.

This article will attempt to look at the Church in the early 1830s and, so far as it is possible, will trace the introduction of several important doctrinal concepts into the Church during that time. In this context we will discuss the role of new translation of the Bible in the restoration of the gospel in this dispensation. When speaking of the “development” of the Church doctrine, we do not mean particularly to dwell on an evolutionary phenomena but rather simply to emphasize that all of the doctrines were not revealed at once and that there has been a developmental increase of doctrine from continuing revelation. It is in the spirit of this principle that we trace the historical relationship that exists between Joseph Smith’s new translation of the Bible and the increase of doctrine during the Kirtland period.

Robert J. Matthew’s first article in the Autumn 1968 issue of BYU Studies dealt primarily with the making of the Inspired Version of the Bible. It considered two major aspects: (1) the preparation of the manuscript notes by the Prophet Joseph Smith and his scribes, and (2) the publication of the printed editions by The Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (RLDS). This article will discuss a number of passages that are unique to the Inspired Version and also some of the implications in the text that are frequently overlooked. There are at least three levels at which one may read the Inspired Version. The first and simplest level is to compare it with the King James Version to find the variant readings. The second and perhaps the most informative level is to analyze each variant to determine the actual change in meaning that resulted from the Inspired Version rendition. The third and most difficult level is to examine the Inspired Version not only for content but also for style. This level is not limited to what is said but also involves an analysis of how it is said. The third level is particularly important because it deals with the question of whether the Inspired Version is a restoration of the original text of the Bible. Although not all of the variants in the Inspired Version are suitable for this kind of critical examination, a number of passages are thus suited, and these are highly interesting and even provocative when analyzed. Such passages have characteristics about them which strongly suggest inspiration and even restoration of the original text in some instances.

This article examines the Inspired Version of the Bible translated by Joseph Smith, the first president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Matthews compares Joseph’s Inspired Version with the Bernhisel Manuscript, which has never been published. He also illustrates how Joseph Smith’s revision of the Bible was significant to the establishment of the church.

Papers presented at the BYU Symposium ‘As Translated Correctly’: Joseph Smith’s Translations of the Bible, January 13–14, 1995

Ten prominent Church scholars presented at the symposium on the Joseph Smith Translation of the Bible. Their in-depth study of the Joseph Smith Translation and related scriptures clarifies the Bible from Genesis to Revelation and show how Joseph Smith restored many plain and precious truths to that holy book. This volume brings together those addresses, illuminating this inspired translation as perhaps no other book had done.

A study of different renditions of the JST