The Mosiah/Benjamin Error, What’s the King’s Name?

[Shulem]

That whole "confounding" thing didn't work out too well for the Mormon Jesus.

What doesn’t work well for modern apologists is the argument they make for excusing the name change in the first place to say nothing about the lack of transparency for that action resulting in a coverup. That doesn’t seem to bother the testimony-minded Latter-day Saints who bend their minds to justify the prophet for editing words written by the power of God who was ultimately responsible for causing the words to appear in the first place. God made the words appear for the reader to dictate exactly what it says while the scribe writes the spoken word -- God’s word! There is no room for the translator to interpret or figure out what specific word to use; just read the words that are prepared by God, one at a time (“word for word” or “word by word”), as they are manifested in the writing.

Simple. As. That.

Do the apologists take this into account? How hardly!

[Shulem]

Dear Readers,

This is a powerful thread that discredits the Book of Mormon translation.

I’ve dropped ONE shoe, but there is another.

Does anyone want to see that shoe?

[Shulem]

I have more secrets to tell. If only you knew!

Sweet! We're ready for your scholarly firehose.

Are you still ready?

[Limnor]

Dear Readers,

This is a powerful thread that discredits the Book of Mormon translation.

I’ve dropped ONE shoe, but there is another.

Does anyone want to see that shoe?

I do.

[Kishkumen]

Sweet! We're ready for your scholarly firehose.

Are you still ready?

Yup!

[Shulem]

I do

Yup!

Very good, it’s time to drop the other shoe.



The first shoe provided ample evidence to show how Smith was faking a miraculous translation in which he pretended to read the word of God as it appeared and then disappeared through the instrumentality of the seer stone. Thus, the appearance of the writing was made by the power of God and by that same power it disappeared after a correct translation was recorded. Changing the king’s name on the sly proves that God never gave the name Benjamin in the first place because God doesn’t make mistakes! We may rightly conclude the original name was given by the power of man (Smith) who created stories that were made out of whole cloth.

The other shoe which I now drop is the one that proves how Smith lied and covered up the Benjamin/Mosiah contradiction by not providing any explanation for why it happened and then blatantly lied when he categorizes all the changes made for the 2nd edition as typographical errors!

Buckle up, read, and understand:

The following clip is taken from the 1837 “PREFACE” of the 2nd edition of the Book of Mormon, “PRINTED BY O. COWDERY & CO. FOR P. P. PRATT AND J. GOODSON. 1837.”

Individuals acquainted with book printing, are aware of the numerous typographical errors which always occur in manuscript editions. It is only necessary to say, that the whole has been carefully re-examined and compared with the original manuscripts, by elder Joseph Smith, Jr. the translator of the Book of Mormon, assisted by the present printer, brother O. Cowdery, who formerly wrote the greatest portion of the same, as dictated by brother Smith.

Expecting, as we have reason to, that this book will be conveyed to places which circumstances will render it impossible for us to visit, and be perused by thousands whose faces we may never see on this side of eternity, we cannot consistently let the opportunity pass, without expressing our sincere conviction of its truth, and the great and glorious purposes it must effect, in the restoration of the house of Israel, and the ushering in of that blessed day when the knowledge of God will cover the earth, and one universal peace pervade all people.

PARLEY P. PRATT,
JOHN GOODSON.
Kirtland, Ohio, 1837.

This is the Mosiah 21:28 coverup:

...typographical errors...

But the name Benjamin cannot be classified as a “typographical error”! The name Benjamin in the 1830 printer’s manuscript was directly copied from the original manuscript. It *was* and *is* not a typo! The name swapping from Benjamin to Mosiah was covert action by those at the top who wished to keep it hush, hush. No accountability! No explanation!

Here is the real definition of a typo:

TYPOGRAPH'IC
TYPOGRAPH'ICAL, adjective Pertaining to printing; as the typographic art.

1. Emblematic.

TYPOGRAPH'ICALLY, adverb By means of types; after the manner of printers.

1. Emblematically; figuratively.

This thread performs two functions like a two-edged sword:

1) Expose the translation as a HOAX
2) Expose the COVERUP


These two shoes prove the Book of Mormon translation was not from God! All apologetic arguments for the Benjamin/Mosiah Error are utterly destroyed. The apologists are left to deny, foam at the mouth, and gnash their teeth. I feel sorry for them.

And now u know.

Amen.

[Shulem]

Recall in my opening post that Royal Skousen (professor of linguistics and English language at BYU) refers to “the replacement of Benjamin with Mosiah” as the fourth “chestnut” in his apologetic article as if to wave everything off as an old anti-Mormon complaint hardly deserving of scrutiny from the faithful perspective. Nothing to see here! Move on!

But I’ve shown how this old “chestnut” is more than he ever bargained for and has now become a “skeleton in the closet!” Skousen thinks in the box which the Church has set within parameters of a limited thinking Mormon testimony box. But not me! I don’t think inside the box! The Benjamin error is like a dead body that Smith desperately wanted to keep hidden because he knew it was proof that shows the original translation was a fraudulent miracle and the divine text that manifested via the translation instrument was a hoax. Therefore, the name change from Benjamin to Mosiah was done on the sly, in the dark, covertly, and hidden away like a skeleton in the closet.

Boo!

[Shulem]

Just for giggles, here is some outdated Mormon apologetic garbage from the FAIR 2001 Conference:

Benjamin or Mosiah? Resolving an Anomaly in Mosiah 21:28

Considering the nature of this textual change, I am a bit surprised our critics have not made more noise than they have....one would think the critics would spend much more time on this particular textual anomaly than they have.

<snip>

As it pertains to our critics, who often believe themselves to be “learned” (or informed) on LDS matters, it seems to suggest that our critics are stuck in a rut. In other words, our critics are asking the same tired questions over and over again, apparently unaware of the growing body of LDS scholarship that tends to substantiate LDS truth claims. The critics are elegantly, or not so elegantly, tied to a world that no longer exists, a world where substantive answers are becoming more and more available.

[Shulem]

King Benjamin or Mosiah: A Look at Mosiah 21:28
Conclusion
While we are unable to be sure as to the reason for the change in Mosiah 21:28, we can be sure that several hypotheses exist, not recognized by the anti-Mormon authors. It is very possible, indeed very likely, that Joseph Smith translated this correctly and should not have been changed. It is also very possible that Joseph translated this correctly, yet needed to be changed to correct a scribal error.

Apologists think unbelievers (anti-Mormon critics) fail to recognize several hypotheses or theories that may satisfactorily solve the problem raised by those who are critical of Mormon truth claims. But the apologists are stuck within a box and are the ones who fail to solve the puzzle. In the clip above, we are informed how “It is very possible, indeed very likely, that Joseph Smith translated this correctly and should not have been changed.”

SO, WHY WAS IT CHANGED AND BY WHAT AUTHORITY?

The second option the apologist offers: “It is also very possible that Joseph translated this correctly, yet needed to be changed to correct a scribal error.”

ACCORDING TO SMITH’S 1830 TRANSLATION, THE NAME “BENJAMIN” WAS THE WORD OF GOD WRITTEN IN STONE AND THERE SHOULD BE NO REASON TO CHANGE THAT.

[Shulem]

And now if there be fault, it be the mistake of men; wherefore condemn not the things of God, that ye may be found spotless at the judgment seat of Christ.

Let’s be very clear about one thing: Doctrinal teachings throughout the Book of Mormon declare that God is without fault and does not make mistakes. The introduction of the Book of Mormon to the world in 1830 presents the book as a divine translation in which Smith simply read the English words that God caused to appear via the translation instrument. The name and title for “King Benjamin” was given by the power of God and Smith was said to read them under the influence of the Spirit while the appointed scribe recorded exactly what was said, every letter and every word -- one word at a time.

Smith undoubtedly agreed to change the name from Benjamin to Mosiah in the 1837 edition because he was pressured to do so by influential readers (Pratts) who picked up on how the statement given in Mosiah 21:28 is not supported by the internal chronology. Smith had little choice but to agree to the change and kept his mouth shut in the process. That was the coverup!

And now u know!