Do Mormons Believe The Bible?

The answer is yes, but...

LDS teaching makes two statements about the Bible.

The Mormon scripture says in The Pearl Of Great Price, The Articles of Faith 1:8 - "We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly;"

That's a good statement. This is a christian doctrine also. God's word was given to us perfect and flawless. Translation is done by humans who are not perfect. That's why Bible translations are done by a group of scholars, and the translation work is checked and verified multiple times. Then once a translation is published it is subject to public examination and critique. The result is that we have a number of English translations that are accepted as accurate translations such as the King James (KJV), NASB and NIV.

But the LDS church does not stop there. The LDS scripture, includes three books plus the the Bible. These are: The Book of Mormon, Doctrines and Convenants (D&C), and Pearl of Great Price) . These three are considered to be the greater among four equals. Why? Because it appears what Joseph Smith* intended to convey with the word translated is more like what the word transmitted means, because how we got the Bible involved more than just translation.** The book "Teachings Of The Prophet Joseph Smith", by Joseph Field Smith (Deseret Book, 1976, page 56) quotes Joseph Smith as explaining: "I believe the Bible as it read when it came fom the pen of the original writers. Ignorant translators, careless transcribers, or designing and corrupt priests have committed many errors."

A foundational part of Mormom belief is that Christianity was corrupted in the first century. The result being that the Christianity we have now is not the true Christianity. The LDS church believes they are the source of the "correct" doctrine that restores Christianity to what it was originally. In other words, the Bible we have now can not be trusted. For example, it is missing information that is supplied by Mormon scripture.

Yes, Mormons believe the Bible, but only after it has been filtered through Mormon scripture which:

• Changes the meaning of words (salvation does not mean salvation, nor does atonement mean what Christians think of as atonement, plus many other changes)


• Changes Christian doctrine


• Adds to what the Bible has said

Is that really believing in the Bible?

Here is a thought: Joseph Smith is right when he expresses concern about the Bible being translated correctly. One aspect of correct translation is that it must be translated into the language the reader understands. Since the LDS church has created their own version of the English language, in which words mean something different than what they used to mean, when a Mormon reads the Bible they are not reading a book that has been correctly translated. It has been translated into standard English, when instead it needs to be translated into Mormon English.

Yes Mormons believe the Bible. But they don't understand it, because they are not reading the Bible in a language they understand. Believing something does not make what you believe true.

Ask a Mormon this question: If someone read only the Bible (no Mormon scripture), would that person have a correct understanding of God, our purpose in life, salvation and eternity? The answer will be "No". Mormons believe the Bible, but they believe the Bible is limited and is not sufficient on its own. That is not Christianity. Christians believe in a God who is strong enough to preserve His word accurately and completely for all generations.

* Joseph Smith is the founder of the Mormon religion, the translator of Mormon scripture, and according to the LDS church the first modern day prophet of God.
** This is stated exactly this way in the book "The Mormon Faith" by Robert L. Millet, page 17