Have Ye Obtained a Bible Save It Were by the Jews

Alan C. Miner

In 2 Nephi 29, a statement is made concerning the origin of the Bible: Have ye obtained a bible save it were by the Jews?" (2 Nephi 29:6). According to Hugh Nibley, it's interesting that not only the New Testament was all written by Jews, but the Old Testament too was what gave them the Bible. Remember Jerome? The Latin Bible is Jerome's Bible. Reuchlin with the Reformation was the first one to really get into the Hebrew Bible. It was the Hebrew and Jerome's and Luther's bible [that influenced the King James]. Jerome lived fifteen years in Bethlehem. He worked among the Jews all that time. He gave us the Latin vulgate, the standard Roman Catholic Bible. He lived right among the Jews when he wrote it, all those many years in Bethlehem. Reuchlin and Luther were busily studying Hebrew. It's from them we get our King James Bible more than anyone else. The King James Bible translators relied quite heavily on Luther's Bible. They depended a lot on Luther. In order to do this, of course, Reuchlin and the others became ardent Hebraists. They worked with the Jews, etc. [Hugh W. Nibley, Teachings of the Book of Mormon, Semester 1, p. 351] [See also the commentary on 1 Nephi 5:11 concerning the Septuagint]

Step by Step Through the Book of Mormon: A Cultural Commentary

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