=Article 8.=--We believe the Bible to be the word of God, as far
as it is translated correctly....
=1. Our Acceptance of the Bible.=--The Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints accepts the Bible as the first and foremost of her
standard works, chief among the books which have been proclaimed as
her written guides in faith and doctrine. In the respect and sanctity
with which the Latter-day Saints regard the Bible, they are of like
profession with Christian denominations in general, but differ from
them in the additional acknowledgment of certain other scriptures as
authentic and holy, which others are in harmony with the Bible, and
serve to support and emphasize its facts and doctrines. There is,
therefore, no specifically "Mormon" treatment of the Bible to be
presented. The historical and other data, upon which is based the
current Christian faith as to the genuineness of the biblical record,
are accepted as unreservedly by the Latter-day Saints as by the
members of any sect; and in literalness of interpretation this Church
probably excels.
=2.= Nevertheless, the Church announces a reservation in the case of
erroneous translation, which may occur as a result of human
incapacity; and even in this measure of caution we are not alone, for
biblical scholars generally admit the presence of errors of the kind,
many of them self-apparent. The Latter-day Saints believe the original
records to be the word of God unto man, and, as far as these records
have been translated correctly, the translations are regarded as
equally authentic. The English Bible professes to be a translation
made through the wisdom of man; in its preparation the most scholarly
men have been enlisted; yet not a version has been published in which
even the unlearned cannot perceive errors. However, an impartial
investigator has cause to wonder more at the paucity of errors than
that errors are to be found at all.
=3.= There will be, there can be, no absolutely reliable translation
of these or other scriptures, unless it be effected through the gift
of translation, as one of the endowments of the Holy Ghost. The
translator must have the spirit of the prophet if he would render in
another tongue the prophet's words; and human wisdom leads not to that
possession. Let the Bible then be read reverently, and with prayerful
care, the reader ever seeking the light of the Spirit that he may
discern between truth and the mistakes of men.
=4. The Name "Bible."=--In present usage, the term _Holy Bible_
designates the collection of sacred writings otherwise known as the
Jewish scriptures, containing an account of the dealings of God with
the human family; which account is confined wholly, except in the
record of ante-diluvian events, to the eastern hemisphere. The word
_Bible_, though singular in form, is the English representative of a
Greek plural, _Biblia_, signifying literally _the books_. The use of
the word probably dates from the fourth century, at which time we find
Chrysostom[732] employing the term to designate the scriptural books
then accepted as canonical by the Greek Christians. It is to be noted,
that the idea of a collection of books predominates in all early
usages of the word _Bible_; the scriptures were, as they are, composed
of the special writings of many authors, widely separated in time;
and, from the striking harmony and unity prevailing throughout these
diverse productions, strong evidence of their authenticity may be
adduced.
[732] See Note 1.
=5.= The word _Biblia_ was thus endowed with a special meaning in the
Greek, signifying _the books_, that is to say the holy books as
distinguishing the sacred scriptures from all other writings; and the
term soon became current in the Latin, in which tongue it was used
from the first in its special sense. Through Latin usage, perhaps
during the thirteenth century, the word came to be regarded as a
singular noun signifying _the book_; this departure from the plural
meaning, invariably associated with the term in the Greek original,
led up to the popular error of regarding the Bible as having been a
unified volume from the first. Hence we meet with the reputed
derivation of the word from the Greek singular noun _Biblos_ meaning
_the book_, but this is declared by a preponderance of good authority
to be founded on a traditional misconception. It may appear that the
derivation of a word is of trifling importance; yet in this case, the
original form and first use of the title now current as that of the
sacred volume must be of instructive interest, as throwing some light
upon the compilation of the book in its present form.
=6.= It is evident that the name _Bible_ is not of itself a biblical
term; its use as a designation of the Jewish scriptures is wholly
external to those scriptures themselves. In its earliest application,
which dates from post-apostolic times, it was made to embrace most if
not all the books of the Old and the New Testament. Prior to the time
of Christ, the books of the Old Testament were known by no single
collective name, but were designated in groups as (1) the Pentateuch,
or five books of the Law; (2) the Prophets; and (3) the Hagiographa,
comprising all sacred records not included in the other divisions. But
we may the better consider the parts of the Bible by taking the main
divisions separately. A very natural division of the biblical record
is effected by the earthly work of the Savior; the written productions
of pre-Christian times came to be known as the Old Covenant; those of
the days of the Savior and the years immediately following, as the New
Covenant.[733] The term _testament_ gradually grew in favor until the
designations Old and New Testaments became common.
[733] I Cor. xi, 25; see also Jer. xxxi, 31.