Has anyone read view of the hebrews by ethan smith in. The view of the hebrews relatively unknown to the general public, view of the hebrews is an 1823 book written by ethan smith december 19, 1762 august 29, 1849, no relation to joseph smith which argues that native americans were descended from the hebrews. Josephs familiarity with the theory of the hebraic origin of the indians seems, however, to have come chiefly from a popular book by ethan smith, pastor of a church in poultney, vermont. The author ethan smith was the pastor of the religious congregation in which. Those who propose a connection between the book of mormon and a view of the hebrews generally ignore the presence of many unparallelsthese are elements of ethan smiths book which would have provided a rich source of material for joseph to use in order to persuade his contemporaries that the book of mormon was an ancient history.
For almost a century critics of the authenticity of the book of mormon have claimed that view of the hebrews, first published by ethan smith in 1823 2d ed. The mormon historian, bh roberts one of the foremost scholars the mormon church ever had read the book a view of the hebrews, and was so impressed by the many coincidences between this book and the book of mormon, he prepared a manuscript in which he presented these parallels. It was not long, however, before a number of people realised that the view of the hebrews and the book of mormon had some. Dec 29, 2008 an imagination, it could with reason be urged, which, given the suggestions that are to be found in the common knowledge of accepted american antiquities of the times, supplemented sic by such a work as ethan smiths, view of the hebrews, would make it possible for him to create a book such as the book of mormon is. Numerous commentators on mormon doctrine, from lds church general authority b. Nevertheless, there is no evidence that joseph smith ever knew anything about this book. If ethan smith suspected or even wished to charge that the book of mormon plagiarized or purloined from his work, it is strange that he proceeded as if there was no relationship between the two books. Well, if joseph smith used ethan smiths view of the hebrews as the main source for the book of mormon, as many critics claim, it is a miracle for the same. In the book the view of the hebrews, what counterarguments h. If joseph plagiarized from ethan smith, we would expect to find that unique aspects of view of the hebrews ideas, names, stories that are not also found in the bible or other sources would have been incorporated into the book of mormon, but no such fingerprints are found. Did view of the hebrews influence themes in joseph smiths. Would you respond to the theories that the book of mormon. Ethan smith was a minister of a congregational church in poultney, vermont from 1821 to 1826 when he wrote view of. May 11, 2018 but these ideas and similar stories are found in the fictional book called the view of the hebrews published by ethan smith in 1825.
In the book the view of the hebrews, what counterarguments. The quote above comes from the mormon periodical times and seasons which joseph smith used to post a quote from a book called view of the hebrews, authored by the minister ethan smith no relation. Oliver cowdery, one of the bom witnesses, just so happened to be a member of ethan smiths church from18211825 or 1826 during which time ethan. Recent imputations against joseph smith contain the charge that the isaiah chapters of the book of mormon were purloined by the prophet from a popular book first published in 1823 by a protestant clergyman named ethan smith, under the title view of the hebrews. View of the hebrews 1823 ethan smith internet archive. Another more recent theory, also open to criticism, suggests that joseph smith used ethan smith s no relation view of the hebrews, which was published during the 1820s, to help him write the book of mormon. Despite being disproven by later research, view of the hebrews remains interesting for insights into popular beliefs and suppositions of religious scholars at the time. This book is significant for it contains parallels to the content of the book of mormon.
Similarities between view of the hebrews and the book of mormon. Ethan smiths book was published in the adjoining county west of windsor county, where joseph smith was born and lived from 1805 to 1811. May 31, 2019 the storyline outline for the book of mormon probably came from ethan smiths 1823 new york novel, view of the hebrews. There is no real evidence of joseph relying on that text. The first chapter of this book, extending to the 45th page, is an account of the. A full pdf of view of the hebrews can be found here, and it is the source of the page number references in this document.
The use of the old testament in the book of mormon, by wesley p. Ethan smith lived in poultney, vermont at the same time as oliver cowdary, who later became one of. It was not long, however, before a number of people realised that the view of the hebrews and the book of mormon had some rather startling similarities. Mark twain once said after reading the book of mormon, it is chloroform in print. View of the hebrews 1825 edition introduction mormons. Scripture use in view of the hebrews and the book of mormon.
Book of mormon and view of the hebrews parallels life after. After his death, his son delivered copies of these parallels. View of the hebrews, or, the tribes of isreal in america 9781930679610. The author ethan smith was the pastor of the religious congregation in which the oliver cowdrey family attended. Did ethan smiths view of the hebrews furnish structural material. Is the book of mormon plagiarized from view of the hebrews. It was first published in 1823 the book of mormon was published 6 years later in 1829.
Ethan smith, pastor of the congregational church in poultney, vermont, argued that the native americans were scattered israelites who would soon be restored into the gospel fold. I dozed off several times in my attempt to get through these 220 pages of rambling, 19th century, anecdotal evidence that native americans were the mark twain once said after reading. Interestingly, oliver cowdery, scribe, and later witness of the book of mormon, lived in poultney for 22 years until 1825. It is claimed that a 19th century work by ethan smith, view of the hebrews, provided source material for joseph smiths construction of the book of mormon. Book of mormonauthorship theoriesview of the hebrews. Roberts conducted an exhaustive comparison and analysis of these two books and concluded there is merit to this criticism. View of the hebrews, or, the tribes of isreal in america. Some critics believe joseph smith plagiarized the view of the hebrews when he wrote the book of mormon. In 1927 the well respected lds historian bh roberts wrote a letter to lds apostle richard r. Ces letter picks 34 parallels between view of the hebrews and the book of mormon. Walters, 1990, page 30 our own computer study of the book of mormon has certainly not been as sophisticated as that of david i. Oliver cowdery, one of the bom witnesses, just so happened to be a member of ethan smiths church from 18211825 or 1826 during which time ethan. Books on the book of mormon 19892011 by an authorized editor of byu scholarsarchive.
Pdf view of the hebrews ebooks includes pdf, epub and. For example, they misquote the book of mormon s account of samuel the lamanite to make it sound like the view of the hebrews account of jesus ben ananias many of the parallels are unique to the second. Ethan smith was a pastor in poultney, vermont when he wrote and published the book. Ethan smith pastored a church in poultney, vt which was adjacent to the county where joseph smith lived in ny. Joseph smith quoted view of the hebrews as supporting the book of mormon. Did joseph smith plagiarize from view of the hebrews when. The author ethan smith was the pastor of the religious congregation in which the. View of the hebrews 1825 by ethan smith this book, written by a minister named ethan smith, contained stories and information proposing that the first settlers of ancient america were the lost ten tribes of israel. Ethan smith s view of the hebrews was first published in 1823 in poultney, vermont. View of the hebrews is an 1823 book written by ethan smith, a congregationalist minister in vermont, who argued that native americans were descended from the ten lost tribes of israel, a relatively common view during the early nineteenth century.
Another 2,000 words were taken from the new testament. Lets face it, they say, joseph smith was an uneducated young man living in poverty with almost no access to books, and he dictated the entire text of the book of mormon in 63 days. The view of the hebrews is a book written in 1823 by ethan smith no relation to joseph. Numerous commentators on mormon history, from lds church general authority b. Ethan smith was a minister of a congregational church in poultney, vermont from 1821 to 1826 when he wrote view of the hebrews.
This video goes over the many similarities between the two books. Similarities between the book of mormon and the view of the hebrews the view of the hebrews is a 1823 book written by ethan smith, a united states congregationalist minister. Parallel between the book of mormon and view of the hebrews by ethan smith. The book of mormon might have remained no more than an intangible promise to a group of money diggers if joseph had not come across a copy of view of the hebrews.
The book of mormon shares some thematic elements with view of the hebrews. Similarities between the book of mormon and view of the. For example, they misquote the book of mormon s account of samuel the lamanite to make it sound like the view of the hebrews account of jesus ben ananias. While not claiming any divine command, this smith, like his prophetic namesake, also argued that native americans were descended from the ten lost tribes of israel. Ive yet to read it as ive always wondered where the mormon church got the idea they were hebrews from and some people claim that joseph smith copied much of the structure and content of the book of mormon from the 1823 book view of the hebrews by ethan smith. Exaggerated similarities between the book of mormon and view. Woodworth for almost a century critics of the authenticity of the book of mormon have claimed that view of the hebrews, first published by ethan smith in 1823 2d ed.
Brodie, biographer of joseph smith, have noted similarities in the content of view of the hebrews and the book of mormon, which was first published in 1830, seven years after ethan smiths book. Since the book of mormon was first published in 1830, its critics have endeavored to find explanations for it other than the one given by joseph smith. Ces letter misportrays the content of the two books. Ethan smiths view of the hebrews, published seven years before the book of. Ethan smith lived in poultney, vermont at the same time as oliver cowdary, who later became one of joseph smiths scribes.
Get cozy and expand your home library with a large online selection of books at. View of the hebrews and the book of mormon book of. So the evidence indicates that the book of mormon is not a true historical record, nor is its message compatible with gods word, the bible. Some also postulate a link between ethan smith and oliver cowdery, since both men lived in poultney, vermont while smith served as the pastor of the church that oliver cowderys family attended at the time that view of the hebrews was being written. Roberts privately researched the link between the book of mormon and the view of the hebrews, josephs father having the same dream in 1811 as lehis dream, and other sources that were available to joseph smith, oliver cowdery, martin harris and others before the publication of the book of mormon. Another look at book of mormon and view of the hebrews. Book of mormon and view of the hebrews parallels life. Studies of the book of mormon is a collection of essays written at the beginning of the 20th century though not published until 1985 by b. Is view of the hebrews a source for the book of mormon. As some critics who relate joseph smiths book of mormon to ethan smiths view of the hebrews have pointed out, oliver cowdery, josephs cousin and his scribe during the writing of the mormon scripture, had lived in poultney for twentytwo years until 1825. In spite of its weaknesses, this theory continues to surface from time to time even in our day. Ethan smiths view of the hebrews, published seven years before the book of mormon is thought to be source material for joseph smiths book of mormon. Reverend ethan smith was the author of view of the hebrews.
Did view of the hebrews influence themes in joseph smith. Roberts 18571933, a general authority of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints lds church, which examine the validity of the book of mormon as a translation of an ancient american source. Jul 12, 2011 first of 15 parts of online version of 1824 book view of the hebrews by ethan smith. Did ethan smiths view of the hebrews furnish structural material for joseph smiths book of mormon. Oliver cowdery was a thirdcousin of lucy mack smith, joseph smiths mother. View of the hebrews and the book of mormon the founder of mormonism. It was ethan smiths book that would provide the young seer with the concepts that would get his active imagination to work on transforming the expectations of the treasure hunters. As you know, oliver cowdery played an instrumental role in the. The most important reason for reading and digesting his book is that it influenced joseph smith no relationship to ethan smith to write his novel the book of mormon after his failed moneydigging activities. The book of mormon, as it was called, purported to tell the story of the first americans by giving them a hebrew ancestry. What the critics say is that the source of the book of mormon or rather the ideas were. Even after the bom had been published, joseph smith quoted from ethan s book to bolster his own fictitious work. Lds revelations view of the hebrews book of mormon 1.
There are a significant number of differences between the two books, which are easily discovered upon reading ethan smiths work. But the differences between these books are very significant. Joseph smith and the origins of the book of mormon, 2d ed. View of the hebrews ethan smithoriginal book of mormon latter daycd ebook pdf. Ethan smith republished view of the hebrews, revised and enlarged, in 1835. View of the hebrews was published in 1823 and a second edition was published in 1825. If the view of the hebrews served as the basis for the book of mormon, one would think that the bible scriptures used by ethan smith would be mined by joseph smith for the book of mormon. An imagination, it could with reason be urged, which, given the suggestions that are to be found in the common knowledge of accepted american antiquities of the times, supplemented sic by such a work as ethan smiths, view of the hebrews, would make it possible for him to create a book such as the book of mormon is. Approximately 25,000 words in the book of mormon consist of passages from the old testament, mainly chapters from isaiah that ethan smith mentioned in view of the hebrews. View of the hebrews by ethan smith, photomechanical reprint of the 1825 edition. Oliver cowdery also a poultney, vermont resident was a member of ethan s congregation during this time and before he went to new york to join his distant cousin joseph smith.
This is where ethan smith enters the picture with his book view of the hebrews. First of 15 parts of online version of 1824 book view of the hebrews by ethan smith. View of the hebrewsethan smithoriginal book of mormon. The book and the man, joseph smith, kindled a religion that today numbers over nine million members. Some have suggested that the source for much of the history and theology in the book of mormon was an early nineteenthcentury book entitled view of the hebrews, by ethan smith. View of the hebrews and the book of mormon book of mormon. Jan 30, 2015 view of the hebrews 1825 ethan smith from.
A potent representation of how the book of mormon follows popular but ultimately falsified early 19th century beliefs about the native americans and a possible direct source of influence for some specific book of mormon content in 1922 lds leader bh roberts stated the following. Alleged relationships of view of the hebrews to the book of mormon have attracted interest periodically through the years. It has been pointed out in these pages that there are many things in the former book that might well have suggested many major things in the other. Joseph smith and the origins of the book of mormon. The book of mormon, published in 1830, and ethan smiths 1823 book view of the hebrews parallel each other in some two dozen general themes. View of the hebrews proposes that the american indians are. Oliver cowdery also a poultney, vermont resident was a member of ethans congregation during this time and before he went to new york to join his distant cousin joseph smith.
The book was popular enough that a second edition was published in 1825. Would you respond to the theories that the book of mormon is based. In the book it argues that native americans were descended from the hebrews. Would you respond to the theories that the book of mormon is based on the spaulding manuscript or on ethan smiths view of the hebrews. View of the hebrews flooded the area in which joseph smith lived. Parallels, in and of themselves, dont necessarily point to plagiarism, which is only one of several possible explanations for parallels. If joseph smith composed this book, the act was a miracle. Jan 01, 1977 well, if joseph smith used ethan smiths view of the hebrews as the main source for the book of mormon, as many critics claim, it is a miracle for the same reason.