When Joseph Smith lived in Nauvoo, Ill. he had acquired a polyglot NT. One can narrow down which one it was by the languages it contained. Hebrew, Greek, German, Latin. I’m not sure where he got it, but it might have been from Alex Neibaur. I’ve done a little searching for this NT, but have not found it. It’s not in the LDS archives, the CoC archives or the usual major libraries – unless of course it’s uncatalogued. So it may be in private hands, if it still exists at all. Joseph made reference to it in the King Follett sermon, which of course makes it relevant to this blog. So. Anyone out there know where this NT is? If you don’t want to reply by comment, you can email me at boap at boap dot org.
Cotton Mather – and Scripture
November 3, 2009 Leave a comment
A new edition of Cotton Mather’s Biblical Commentary (Biblia Americana) is beginning publication. At 10 volumes, it’s being compiled by a list of good scholars of the period. Jonathan Edwards often gets the title for America’s theologian, but Mather had profound influence. His commentary was in question-answer form and it reminds me of Joseph Smith’s revelatory approach, many of his revelations are in that format. Was there a cultural reason in addition to the obvious candid recitals of how they happened?
Anyway, look for Mather’s Genesis at a library or bookstore near you. Worth a peak if for nothing else than restoration movement context.
Filed under 19th Century American History, History of Religion Tagged with Bible, commentary, Genesis, Mather