This is an archived copy of a post written by Conflict Of Justice (conflictofjustice.com). Used with permission: Conflict Of Justice may not agree with any alterations made.
“The Book of Mormon includes mistranslated biblical passages that were later changed in Joseph Smith’s translation of the Bible. These Book of Mormon verses should match the inspired JST version instead of the incorrect KJV version that Joseph later fixed.”
(CES Letter)
CES Letter Mismatches Verses
Here is how the Sermon on the Mount compares between the KJV bible and Book of Mormon:
| Matthew 6:24-29 (JST) | 3 Nephi 13:24-26 |
| No man can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will hold to the one and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. And again, I say unto you, Go ye into the world and care not for the world; for the world will hate you, and will persecute you, and will turn you out of their synagogues. Nevertheless, ye shall go forth from house to house, teaching the people; and I will go before you. And your heavenly Father will provide for you whatsoever things ye need for food, what ye shall eat, and for raiment, what ye shall wear or put on. Therefore, I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat or what ye shall drink, nor yet for your bodies, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air, for they sow not; neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? How much more will he not feed you? | No man can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will hold to the one and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and Mammon. And now it came to pass that when Jesus had spoken these words he looked upon the twelve whom he had chosen, and said unto them: Remember the words which I have spoken. For behold, ye are they whom I have chosen to minister unto this people. Therefore I say unto you, take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air, for they sow not, neither do they reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? |
CES Letter matches up wrong verses to make the Book of Mormon look totally different than the bible translation. CES Letter snips off verses that match. They incorrectly make it look like verse 25 disappears:
Different Contexts
CES Letter says these are “identical” sermons, so they should match, but this is false. No, these are not “the same identical sermon.” Mormon did not write down the sermon that Jesus gave in Galilee. He recorded what Jesus said to the Nephites. They were different events, different people, different contexts.
Jesus was talking to people on the other side of the planet. They were isolated from Europe and Asia, so why would he command them to preach in all the world? What, was Jesus supposed to be reading from a script wherever he went? Nephites did not live in the center of three connected continents like the Israelites did. So what would that command to preach to all the world mean to people who live in a tightly-bound geographical area? The Nephites were not commanded to preach to the Gentiles like the disciples at Israel were, for good reason. Each change is suited to each context.
CES Letter snips off verses that show these different contexts. Dishonest and deceitful.
JST Bible Not ‘Corrections’
Few of Joseph Smith’s changes were corrections. The purpose of the Joseph Smith translation was not to restore the bible to what it originally said. CES Letter misrepresents what the JST is. I don’t believe Joseph Smith ever called the KJV translators “uninspired” or his version “corrected.” The terms “correct” and “incorrect” misrepresent the nature of Joseph Smith’s translation.
There were six kinds of changes:
- Lengthy additions from long-lost books
- Common sense fixes to English translation
- Clarification for confusing passages
- Harmonizing conflicting passages
- Inspired commentary on meanings
- Grammar improvements
Joseph Smith’s “translations” are often clarifying additions or commentary, which obviously would not align word for word. This Anti-Mormon argument is just so far in left-field, completely misrepresenting LDS scripture.
Why Would Joseph Smith Change This Passage? – Why would Joseph Smith make changes to the bible that contradict a book he wrote himself just a couple years earlier? Why go to that effort? He didn’t. He made a few clarifications, appropriate according to the context. This is just altogether a ridiculous argument to use against Joseph Smith.
CES Letter Logical Fallacies
| Falsehood | CES Letter snips out parts of the JST chapter to present an incorrect premise, that Joseph Smith took verses 26-27 out of 3 Nephi 13. CES Letter incorrectly claims that these are the “same passages” yet that the Book of Mormon “has the incorrect Sermon on the Mount passage.” No, the appropriate passages are there, CES Letter just snipped them off, and these are not the same sermon. |
| Strawman Argument | CES Letter incorrectly claims the JST “should match” what is in the Book of Mormon. But this ignores differences in contexts, and the nature of Joseph Smith’s translation of the bible, which included clarification to meaning and prophetic commentary. |
| Cherry-Picking | CES Letter (incorrectly) cherry-picks the only example they could find of a discrepancy. They also ignore the fact that both the Book of Mormon and JST bible claim that Jesus gave the Sermon on the Mount only to close disciples rather than the general public, a stunning parallel that we do not see in the ordinary bible. So Joseph Smith remembered to include this tiny detail yet forgot to include sentences of text? |
Too Much Association, Too Little Association – In their opening arguments, CES Letter goes back and forth between associations with between the bible and Book of Mormon that are too weak and too strong. Earlier, it was too weak. Now, CES Letter flips their narrative and complains that the association is too strong, that it ought to match perfectly the Joseph Smith inspired translation instead. Which is it, too little association or too much association?
Every little discrepancy can be cherry-picked as evidence as part of this Contradiction Stategy. But then later on, CES Letter suggests the bible is made up like the Book of Mormon. So why did they spend all this time trying to show weaknesses from association? Why not just say “the bible is false, so the Book of Mormon is false for quoting it?” Wouldn’t that be the honest way to debate?
Contradiction Strategy – To discredit the Book of Mormon, Anti-Mormons again portray discrepancies between books of scripture, two books they believe to be false. This time, they set a rigid standard of “correctness” that no scripture could realistically live up to. If the Book of Mormon is “the most correct book” and Joseph Smith “corrected” the bible, then they ought to be perfectly the same, right? NO! Of course not! If the sermon did match exactly to the bible, wouldn’t that be evidence that it was just copied straight out of the bible? So this is a no win argument for us. If the sermon in the Book of Mormon is different than in the bible, Anti-Mormons complain. If it is different, Anti-Mormons complain. Either way they complain.
CES Letter‘s constant failure to consider different contexts shows a foundational flaw in their ideology. Think about it. Is there some perfect sermon that Jesus should go around preaching to different civilizations? Or should his sermons be tailored to their individual circumstances? The Anti-Mormon’s idealistic standard for “correctness” is apparently that everything should be completely equal, totally identical regardless of circumstances. No diversity. No context. Doesn’t this kind of thinking lead us to resent the diversity of other people’s lives and become jealous at how ‘privileged’ they are, the wealth they were born into, the good luck they had, and so forth?
CES Letter‘s logic reflect the simplistic idealism that we see in the Plan of Satan. This idealistic standard for “correctness” makes people bitter that God allows tragedies to happen in their lives, that one person’s son dies in a car crash and another person’s doesn’t. It makes them skeptical of any opinion that doesn’t fit their narrow preconceived view of perfection. It thus sets a narrative that destroys Mormons’ testimonies and promotes Satan’s agenda.
God As A Dictator – I have noticed that Anti-Mormons often complain when everything isn’t spelled out for them. Do this. Say this. Don’t even bother thinking critically or making judgement calls for yourself. This is the heart of their strawman argument that scripture should be a perfect, crystalized model of truth for every word we say and movement we make. They are authoritarian personalities who want a dictator, really. Anti-Mormons want a formula that fits every circumstance in life, that works the same for every human being, as if we were machines. This is why Anti-Mormons disregard circumstance.
They don’t actually have a rigid model for truth. They only have their ideology, and they follow an ever-changing narrative to suit whatever helps their ideology in that moment. So, if you can’t trust ancient scripture to be infallible truth, who can you trust? Science! Science will tell you all you need to know. Science is great for Satanist because conclusions are always changing, the text books are always updating, and studies are easily manipulated. The frequent shifts in science can be exploited to push Satan’s ideology, which is an ideology of universal salvation, absolute equality, and no personal responsibility.
So if Anti-Mormons can convince you that the Book of Mormon is not trustworthy as ancient, unchanging truth, then they can also convince you that a good alternative to scripture should be constantly edited to fit modern circumstances and push this oppressive gospel of Satan. They make the case that modern “scripture” should direct every explicit part of your life, from the way you tie your shoes in the morning to which words you are allowed to speak.
Well, Mormons are different. We believe spiritual principles are eternal and commandments are given through authorized prophets to fit today’s circumstances. We believe the Spirit of God speaks to individual using the individual’s language and understanding. There is no formulaic approach, though, as Sister Arburto said: “Every one of our paths is different, yet we walk them all together.” We strengthen one another through the ministry that Jesus outlines in this Sermon on the Mount. We all clasp to the iron rod in our own way and help the Brother and Sister to our side. There is no need to obsess over contradiction. We know who we are and where we are going, because modern scripture directs us in these modern times, and the voices of our forefathers speak from the dust, inspiring us with the eternal principles that save us in the kingdom of God.Complete answers to CES Letter questions about Mormons: