The King James Bible and Joseph Smith

Joseph Smith

Part of the miracle of the restoration of the Church is the fact that the Smith family even had a KJB in their home. Bibles were not cheap the way they are today; in fact, Joseph Smith, along with Oliver Cowdery, jointly bought a KJB from the Grandin Bookstore in Palmyra, New York. The price tag on the fly leaf of the bible indicates it was $3.75, basically four days of labor for an average man during that time period. Actually, it was just prior to the birth of Joseph Smith that the cost of a Bible was out of the Smith families reach. What two aspects allowed the Smith family to own their own KJ version of the Bible?

A)     The paternal grandfather of Joseph Smith, Asael Smith, died and Joseph Smith Sr. inherited his father’s bible

B)     Social and technological changes at the time

C)     The local Methodist minister bought a new bible and donated his old bible to the Smith family

D)     The Church called Joseph Smith Sr. on a mission and took up a donation to buy him a bible before he left

Yesterday’s answer:

(A)   Illinois

In 1976, the Missouri legislature rescinded the 1838 extermination order and apologized for associated past actions. In 2004, the state of Illinois in its first draft of a resolution apologized but in the final version issued regrets for the 1846 Mormon expulsion from Illinois.

Leonard, Glen M. Nauvoo: A Place of Peace, a People of Promise. Salt Lake City and Provo, 2002, 351.