Book of Mormon Critical Text

Critical texts of the Bible have been available for many years, showing variant readings from early Greek or Hebrew manuscripts accompanying the familiar phrasing of the standard Bible. Heavily footnoted, these volumes show how words and structures of the text have appeared in different editions over time and in different languages. They have become an essential tool for scholarly research on the scripture. They also aid serious readers by clarifying how the text may be interpreted.

By the time you receive this Newsletter, the first of a three-volume Critical Text (CT) of the Book of Mormon will be completed. This monumental work has been many years in preparation and will be indispensable to all future text-related scholarly study and translation of the Book of Mormon. It is not for the casual reader, but it is invaluable to anyone who wants to thoroughly understand the present text.

The CT show each noteworthy change which has occurred in the Book of Mormon from the Original Manuscript, through the Printer's Manuscript and the First Edition, on down to the most recent LDS and RLDS editions. Minor changes are not treated individually but are only described in general terms. (Nor would one list the thousands of purely stylistic changes in phrasing that have been made in the King James Version of the Bible since it first appeared in Elizabethan English in 1611.) Book of Mormon words and phrases that parallel Biblical expressions and passages are noted. Each Book of Mormon passage has its point of view or form of composition indicated, and its author identified where possible. The CT also contains a valuable explanatory Introduction. We believe this is the first comprehensive, computerized critical text project ever completed on the Book of Mormon.

The three volumes (I. 1 Nephi to words of Mormon; II. Mosiah to Alma; III. Helaman to Moroni) are available only as a set and will be offered for a limited time. The entire set will be approximately 1100 pages and will cost $55. We will be glad to send you some sample pages for examination upon request. The remaining two volumes should appear by the end of this year. Order now to obtain your copy of this superb tool.