Questions Regarding the Book of Mormon - Part 2

In this post I will be questioning things in 2 Nephi.

1.  2 Nephi 2:6, 8 uses the word “Messiah.”  Why not use “Christ” as with chapter 10?

2.  2 Nephi 5:  How could Nephi and just a small handful of men, in less than 20 years, build a temple like Solomon's, when it took Solomon 7 1/2 years using 180,000 workers to complete his temple?

3.  2 Nephi 5:15, 16:  What is the difference between precious "ores" and "things"?  vs 15 says that precious "ores" were in great abundance, but in the next verse he says that "precious things" were not to found upon the land!  Isn’t this contradictory?

4.  2 Nephi 6:16-18 is a copy of Isaiah 49:24-26 KJV.  This problem is the same as addressed in 1 Nephi in Part 1 of this series.

5.  2 Nephi 7 is Isaiah 50 KJV with minor changes.

6.  2 Nephi 8 is Isaiah 51 KJV with minor changes.

(The problem with these two is the same as noted about 1 Nephi.)

7.  2 Nephi 9:18.  Enduring crosses is an idiom based on the crucifixion.  It is anachronistic here.

8.  2 Nephi 10:3 uses the term "Christ".  This is a Greek word for the Hebrew "Messiah".  Both mean "The Anointed".  Why would this be translated as “Christ” rather than “The Anointed?”  The name "Christ" is then used throughout the text of the Book of Mormon.  If these people are Jews, why aren’t they using Hebrew instead of Greek?

9.  2 Nephi 12 through 2 Nephi 24 are Isaiah 2 through 14 KJV with aforementioned problems associated with being identical to KJV.

10.  2 Nephi 14:5 copies the King James error in Isaiah 4:5 by saying, "For upon all the glory shall be a defense."  The Hebrew word mistranslated by King James translators was "chuppah", which means a protective curtain or canopy, not "defense".  The only way this error could be present is if the author was copying KJV instead of translating “Reformed Egyptian.”

11.  2 Nephi 17:14 uses the word "virgin" as does KJV, but the original Hebrew was merely, "young girl", who may or may not be virgin.  "Virgin" comes from the Greek Septuagint.  How is it that ‘Reformed Egyptian” translates like Greek?

12.  2 Nephi 22:2 would not use the word JEHOVAH.  This is a Latinized transliteration of YHWH in Hebrew, which combines the Latin letters JHVH with the vowels of Adonai.

13.  2 Nephi 24:12 uses the word "Lucifer".  This is a Latin word from the Vulgate.  The Hebrew word meant "morning star" or "star of the morning".  KJV just kept the Latin, and Joseph Smith copied KJV!  (See my article about “Lucifer”).  I think this error, along with all the copying of KJV, is one of the proofs that Smith wrote the Book of Mormon rather than translated it from an unknown language.

14.  2 Nephi 25:19  We have now added "Jesus" to Christ, another Greek name for the Hebrew "Y'shua" or "Joshua".  Why do Jews in the Americas use Greek before Greek was used in the empire in Asia?

15.  2 Nephi 26 begins the use of the word "Gentile", another Greek word.  Hebrew calls them "Goyim".

16.  2 Nephi 29 talks of a "Bible".  The word is from Greek, not Egyptian.  It merely means "book".  The Bible was not named as such until it was canonized.  Otherwise, the material is known as the Scripture.  It also discusses the lost tribes of Israel.  At this time they were not "lost", but to God they are never lost anyway!  Another problem is that it states the Bible came from the Jew, but only the O.T. came from them.

17.  2 Nephi 30:6, until 1981, said that the Lamanites would turn “white and delightsome” when they embraced the Mormon doctrine.  In 1981 this was changed to read, not “white,” but “pure.”  Could it be because no one was turning white as Smith claimed?

18.  2 Nephi 30:9, 11-15 is copied from Isaiah 11:4-9 KJV.   The same KJV problem.

19.  2 Nephi 31 has baptism following Jesus' example, yet Jesus has not come yet?!?  How does anyone follow an example which hasn’t been demonstrated?

20.  2 Nephi 31:21 is a clear statement of the doctrine of the Trinity that LDS now claim is an error. Why were the Nephites given all the knowledge of Jesus Christ, whereas the Jews in Israel were not?

Again, how are these oddities explained?

Questions Regarding the Book of Mormon - Part 1

Eleven years ago I posted this series, but unless one is looking for such information they probably won’t see the series. So I’m re-running them for a new audience. The point of this series on the Book of Mormon is to make people THINK.  So with that introduction, here is part 1 of the series.

Three thoughts to start with:

1.  The translation of the Book Of Mormon was purportedly done by revelation and, therefore, no error of man should have been involved; no wrong names, no wrong words or grammatical errors, nothing to delete or add to the original translation.  If any additions or corrections are made, there is no way that the new editor can know what the original manuscript (the plates) actually said and, therefore, no change to the original translation should be made.  Another problem throughout is the use of New Testament doctrine, which would be anachronistic before Christ died.

2.  Hebrews and Egyptians of the same period of time as the people in the Book of Mormon used prepared animal skins or papyrus for writing; why would the people of this Mormon record engrave on brass and gold plates? Engraving is a slow process—even slower if the engraver casts his own plates—so one would expect the engravers to be very concise!  Yet the Book of Mormon is very wordy.

3.  Orson Pratt stated, about the Book of Mormon, "This book must be either true or false.  If true, it is one of the most important messages ever sent from God...If false, it is one of the most cunning, wicked, bold, deep-laid impositions ever palmed upon the world, calculated to deceive and ruin millions who would sincerely receive it as the word of God, and will suppose themselves securely built upon the rock of truth until they are plunged with their families into hopeless despair.  The nature of the message in the Book Of Mormon is such, that if true, no one can possibly be saved and reject it; if false, no one can possibly be saved and receive it."

So the question I will be asking in this series of posts I’m beginning today is, “Can the Book of Mormon be true?”  Lets’ begin looking at my questions, addressing the book of 1 Nephi.

1.  1 Nephi 1:  Why is the record made in Egyptian by a Jew?  Especially since he lived his whole life in Jerusalem? Hebrews hated Egyptians and considered the Hebrew language to be sacred.  Besides this, why has no one ever found evidence of a “Reformed Egyptian” language from which the Book of Mormon was purportedly translated?

2.  1 Nephi 1:4, 13-14; 2:2:  The LDS claim that there can only be one prophet of God on earth at a time.  Lehi is said to have dwelt in Jerusalem during the first year of the reign of King Zedekiah, but according to Jer. 1:1-3; 37:1-2, Jeremiah was the prophet of God in Jerusalem at that time.  So according to LDS, Lehi could not have been a true prophet of God.

Another problem with Lehi being a prophet of God is that he prophesied that many inhabitants of Jerusalem would perish and that he and his family should depart from the Babylonian captivity.  But Jer. 27:6-17; 29:4-9 says this was the message of the false prophets.  God said that none of the captives were to be free, and they were to live and serve the king of Babylon in peace.  False prophets claiming otherwise would perish!  How do you solve this contradiction between the Bible and the Book of Mormon?

3.  1 Nephi 2:  Lehi, in 600 BC, takes his family out of Jerusalem during Nebuchadnezzar's siege, traveled on foot for three days in the wilderness and came to a valley through which flowed a river that ran into the Red Sea.  According to 1 Nephi 16:12-13, they were traveling in a south-southeast direction.  Historical details of the siege tell us that anyone breaking out of Jerusalem was chased down and killed.  Even if Lehi's family did escape, travel under good conditions would be about three miles per hour and the three days travel would take them about 75 miles, to the southern tip of the Dead Sea.  It would have taken them 7 days of favorable travel to reach the closest tip of the Red Sea.  There are no rivers in that part of the world.  After reaching "Bountiful" on the Persian Gulf, Nephi was commanded to go to the mountains for instruction on building the ship. There are no mountains for several hundred miles from the Persian Gulf.  How is this geographic problem solved?

4.  1 Nephi 2:5 has Lehi naming his son "Sam".  Isn't this an American nickname for "Samuel"?

5.  1 Nephi 4:9 has Laban with a steel sword.  Nephi himself claims to have had a steel bow (the word translated as steel in KJV Psalms 18:34 is more properly rendered as bronze).  How is this explained since steel did not exist until well over 1000 years after the Book of Mormon was completed?

6.  1 Nephi 8 Lehi has a dream wherein a river of water (8:13) and a fountain (8:20) are major symbolic factors.  In Chapter 11, the dream is interpreted for Nephi by an angel and he is told that the waters represent the love of God (11:25).  However, when the angel gives further counsel (12:16), we find the "love of God" has become "filthy water", and in chapter 15:26-29, the water is called "filthiness" because it represents the "awful hell" prepared for the wicked.  Isn’t there inconsistency in God's message?

7.  1 Nephi 10:  Uses the word "baptize".  This is a Greek word, the meaning of which is to wash or immerse in water.  Why is the Greek word here?

8.  1 Nephi 11:18 originally stated in the 1830 Book of Mormon, "Behold, the virgin which thou seest, is the mother of God” (a Catholic title, by the way).  This verse now reads, "Behold, the virgin whom thou seest, is the mother of the son of God."  How is this change explained since there were no plates to refer to?

9.  1 Nephi 11:21.  Page 25 of the 1830 edition says, "And the angel said unto me, Behold the Lamb of God, yea even the eternal father.”  In later editions it reads, "And the angel said unto me: Behold the Lamb of God, yea, even the son of the eternal Father!"  How is this change explained?

10.  1 Nephi 11:32 in the 1830 version said, "And I looked and beheld the Lamb of God...yea, the everlasting God was judged of the world."  The passage now reads, "...yea, the Son of the everlasting God…"  Why the change?

11.  1 Nephi 18:25:  How did domestic animals, such as horses, pigs, sheep, cattle and donkeys, come to be found in about 590 BC when evidence confirms these animals did not exist in the New World until after the time of Columbus?  In addition to this error, the Nephites produce wheat and barley (Mosiah 9:9) rather than the indigenous maize and potatoes. Ether 9:19 even has elephants in the New World!  How are these things explained?

12.  1 Nephi 19:10 mentions crucifixion.  This method of punishment was unknown at this period of time. (This word shows up again in many other places.)  Also, the prophecy is that there would be three days of darkness at Jesus' death, yet there is nothing about this in the Bible.

13.  1 Nephi 20 is virtually word-for-word KJV Isaiah 48, even down to the same verse numbers; chapter divisions first appeared in the Latin Vulgate in the 11th century and verse numbers first appeared in the 1500s!  Verse two contradicts Isaiah by saying they "do not stay", while Isaiah says they do “stay".  Another problem is the use of italicized words from KJV - they were inserted by the KJV translators!  This is the same problem in all the following KJV quotes throughout the Book of Mormon.  So aside from explaining how chapter and verse divisions could show up in a book written almost 2000 years before these divisions were first made, how can you explain “Reformed Egyptian” being translated into English and ending up word-for-word identical to 1611 English translation of Hebrew?  Why would Joseph Smith translate into obsolete English to begin with?  This problem runs throughout the Book of Mormon.

14.  1 Nephi 21 has the same problem as above; it is Isaiah 49 with a longer introduction and a few deletions and changes.  Verse 1 uses the word "pastors", which is anachronistic.  The word pastor simply means shepherd.

How are these oddities explained?

Did They Really Say That?!?

The Seer, p. 215 “Questions and Answers On Doctrine…

Q. What does the Lord require of the people of the United States?
A. He requires them to repent of all their sins and embrace the message of salvation, contained in the Book of Mormon, and be baptized into THIS church, and prepare themselves for the coming of the Lord.
Q. What will be the consequence if they do not embrace the Book of Mormon as a divine revelation?
A. They will be DESTROYED from the land and SENT DOWN TO HELL, like all other 

generations who have rejected a divine message!” 

Apostle Orson Pratt

The vast majority of the people in the USA are NOT LDS nor will they ever be and yet none are destroyed, nor have been destroyed, for denying/denouncing the Book of Mormon.

H/T: Life After Ministry.

Lots of Thoughts About Mormonism

First, I want to point you to an OUTSTANDING site for examining and exposing the teachings of the LDS. The site is titled Life After Ministry. I have pointed my readers to articles from there a few times already and this time I will be sharing links to more of their articles. But before that, check out this video where Joseph Smith disagrees with his own Book of Mormon, as well as other LDS doctrines.

More Mormon lies/contradictions, this time being about polygamy.

I’ve been reading Shelby Foote’s three-volumes series on the American Civil War—the war that freed the slaves. What I find amusing is that Brigham Young said the war would NOT free the slaves. Thanks to Life After Ministry for exposing this false prophecy.

What is a Saint? Certainly what the LDS tells you.

Why are Italicized KJV Verses in the BoM? I’ve actually dealt with this in some of my examinations of the books in the Book of Mormon.

Joseph Smith said Hell is an Agreeable Place. This one gave me a laugh because Smith knows now that he was wrong!

Marriage and Childbirth Mandatory for Salvation.  Can someone please show me from Scripture that this is true?!? No one can because it is a LIE.

Moroni, Who was He? 2025.  Interesting question with an excellent answer.

Three Nephites and Apostle John Still Alive.  Oh really? Just another absurd claim from an LDS “prophet.”

Do We Have Heavenly Parents? If so, what about heavenly grandparents, great-grandparents, etc? Do Our Ancestors Need Us? Of course out ancestors don’t need us because we can’t do anything for them!! They just go on having eternal sex. Godhood and sex are the primary doctrines of the LDS.

LDS Advice for Sexual Abuse Victims. Of course they get to decide if the abused person was culpable. Disgusting blaming of the victim.

Sort of like Roman Catholics, Mormons will have Mary as queen to some people—oh and she marries Adam. Say What?!?!

Joe Smith Prophesied Mormons Won’t Have to Cook. Since Mormons are still cooking their meals (unless they all go out to eat), this is another false prophecy by Smith—among many false prophecies which prove he was a false prophet.

If Plural Marriage Isn’t True, Faith is in Vain. Of course Joseph Smith claimed the right of polygamy was given by God because he was committing adultery and said prophecy was for him to defend his peccadilloes to his wife. Of course over time he also “married” other men’s wives while they were off on mission trips; i.e. serial adultery. So, since it was a lie that God allowed this, then according to Orson Pratt the faith of Mormons is in vain!

Children of Apostates Will Have Dark Skin. Well, I was once a Mormon and then became a Christian, making me an apostate to Mormonism. So why are my children’s skin not dark/black?

Well, all this should make any reasonable person take a hard look at the LDS faith and see that it is not of God. Period.

All For a Lie

Mormon Women Wait In Long Lines For Debut Of Sleeveless Sacred Undergarments.

Firstly, there is no temple for Christ—HE is our temple. All the temples of the LDS are to worship a fake god. Secondly, no where in the Bible will you find any garment that makes one more holy—the whole special garment thing was made up by Joseph Smith.

When your life is wrapped up in a cult, a false god, and made up clothing rules, this is the legalistic life that follows.

People on the Sun???

Mormons and the Trinity

Back to the issue of the Trinity: here are some citations from the Book of Mormon and Doctrine and Covenants which teach that God is not a man, and that the Trinity is true. 

1. "The Testimony of Three Witnesses" at the front of the Book of Mormon ends with the statement: And the honor be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost, which is one God. Amen. 

2. 2 Nephi 11:7 makes the point that Jesus is God: For if there be no Christ there be no God; and if there be no God we are not, for there could have been no creation. But there is a God, and he is Christ, and he cometh in the fulness of his own time. 

3. 2 Nephi 26:12 says Jesus is the Eternal God: And as I spake concerning the convincing of the Jews, that Jesus is the very Christ, it must needs be that the Gentiles be convinced also that Jesus is the Christ, the Eternal God.

4. Another Trinitarian statement is 2 Nephi 31:21: And now, behold, my beloved brethren, this is the way; and there is none other way nor name given under heaven whereby man can be saved in the kingdom of God. And now, behold, this is the doctrine of Christ, and the only and true doctrine of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, which is one God, without end. Amen. 

5. Here's a bit convoluted Trinitarian statement, which might be a good one to ask to be explained [comment - who is it that calls the father and son one person?]. Mosiah 15:1-5: And now Abinadi said unto them: I would that ye should understand that God himself shall come down among the children of men, and shall redeem his people. And because he dwelleth in flesh, he shall be called the Son of God, and having subjected the flesh to the will of the Father, being the Father and the Son - The Father, because he was conceived by the power of God; and the Son, because of the flesh; thus becoming the Father and the Son - And they are one God, yea, the very Eternal Father of heaven and of earth. And thus the flesh becoming subject to the Spirit, or the Son to the Father, being one God, suffereth temptation, but suffereth himself to be mocked, and scourged, and cast out, and disowned by his people. 

6. Another one where they call the Son the Father: Mosiah 16:15: Teach them that redemption cometh through Christ the Lord, who is the very Eternal Father.

7. Mormons preach multitudes of gods, even that they become one. But Alma 11:28 says, Now Zeezrom said, Is there more than one God? And he answered, No.

8. Is God eternal or did He start as a man as LDS teach now? Is the son the father? Alma 11:38-39: Now Zeezrom saith agian unto him: Is the Son of God the very Eternal Father? And Amulek said unto him: yea, he is the very Eternal Father of heaven and of earth, and all things which in them are; he is the beginning and the end, the first and the last. 

9. Alma 11:44: Now, this restoration shall come to all, both old and young, both bond and free, both male and female, both the wicked and the righteous; and even there shall not so much as a hair of their heads be lost; but every thing shall be restored to its perfect frame, as it is now, or in the body, and shall be brought and arraigned before the bar of Christ the Son, and God the Father, and the Holy Spirit, which is one Eternal God, to be judged according to their works, whether they be good or whether they be evil. 

10. Is God man or spirit? Alma 18: 24: And Ammon began to speak unto him with boldness, and said unto him: Believest thou that there is a God? And he answered, and said unto him: I do not know what that meaneth. And then Ammon said: Believest thou that there is a Great Spirit? And he said, Yea. And Ammon said: This is God. 

11. Is God Spirit? Alma 22:9-11: And the king said: Is God that Great Spirit that brought our fathers out of the land of Jerusalem? And Aaron said unto him: Yea, he is that Great Spirit, and he created all things both in heaven and in earth. Believest thou this? And he said: Yea, I believe that the Great Spirit created all things, and I desire that ye should tell me concerning all these things, and I will believe thy words. 

12. Again, is God a spirit? Alma 31:15: Holy, holy God; we believe that thou art God, and we believe that thou art holy, and that thou wast a spirit, and that thou art a spirit, and that thou wilt be a spirit forever. 

13. 3 Nephi 11:27 and 36 has the trinity: And after this manner shall ye baptize in my name: for behold, verily I say unto you, that the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost are one.... And thus will the Father bear record of me, and the Holy Ghost will bear record unto him of the Father and me; for the Father, and I, and teh Holy Ghost are one. 

14. D&C 20:28: Which Father, Son, and Holy Ghost are one God, infinite and eternal, without end. Amen.

15. D&C 68:8: ...baptizing in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. 

16. D&C 93:3: I am in the Father, and the Father in me, and the Father and I are one. 

As you can easily see while reading these quotes, when Joseph Smith wrote the Book of Mormon he had a fairly orthodox theology.  It was only later, especially after settling in Nauvoo, that Smith denied the Trinity and began teaching the theology of a plurality of gods and other bizarre doctrines.  

This is just another example of the ever-changing teachings of the Mormon church.