The Book of Joseph of Egypt

The church recently released an essay discussing the Book of Abraham , it’s origin, translation and historicity. The essay makes some remarkable statements, including an admission that the papyri and heiroglyphics (including those found on the facsimiles) have nothing at all to do with the text that Joseph produced as the Book of Abraham. The essay reviews some of the history of the papyri that were acquired by the church from which Joseph claimed to “translate” the book of Abraham. One thing which is notably absent from the essay is the fact that there was another book which Joseph stated was a part of the papyri – the Book of Joseph.

It is known by many members that the ancient documents which Joseph is said to have translated into the Book of Abraham is part of a collection of papyri purchased from a traveling antiquities salesman in 1835. What is less commonly known is that Joseph declared that in addition to the writings of Abraham, the papyri also included the writings of Joseph of Egypt.

“I commenced the translation of some of the characters or hieroglyphics, and much to our joy found that one of the rolls contained the writings of Abraham, another the writings of Joseph of Egypt, etc.,–a more full account of which will appear in its place, as I proceed to examine or unfold them. Truly we can say, the Lord is beginning to reveal the abundance of peace and truth.”

(History of the Church 2:236, archive.org)

If the Lord saw fit to bring a new account of such a key figure of biblical history to the hands of the only man on earth with the power to translate it you can bet that it was his intention to have them actually be translated. Anyone familiar with the question of the papyri used as the source of the Book of Abraham will know that many apologist argue that the actual papyri used in the translation were likely lost in the great Chicago fire and no longer exists. What do we know about the papyri supposed to represent the Book of Joseph?

Oliver Cowdery’s Description

In December of 1835 a letter by Oliver Cowdery was published in the church periodical “Messenger and Advocate” which described several of the figures found on the scroll of Joseph. Careful examination and comparison with the scrolls in the church’s possession, now available in high resolution on JosephSmithPapers.org, clearly demonstrates that the church owns this very papyrus. See the following descriptions and diagrams:

“Upon the subject of the Egyptian records, or rather the writings of Abraham and Joseph, I may say a few words. This record is beautifully written on papyrus with black, and a small part red ink, or paint, in perfect preservation.” (History of the Church 2:348 )

This is a fair description of a papyrus which the church currently owns as depicted below – note the writing in both black and red lettering:

Matching Figures

In the letter, referenced above, Oliver goes on to describe the specific scroll of “Joseph’s Record”:

“The representation of the god-head—three, yet in one, is curiously drawn to give simply, though impressively, the writers views of that exalted personage”

(Messenger and Advocate, Dec 1835, Vol II No. 3, pg. 236)

Here was can see one of the figures from the scroll appears to have three heads. This is a likely match with the description that Oliver describes above. It is noted that there appears to be three knees and feet as well, however. Could this simply be three people sitting in a row seen at the side?

“The serpent, represented as walking, or formed in a manner to be able to walk, standing in front of and near a female figure, is to me one of the greatest representations I have ever seen upon paper, or a writing substance; and must go so far towards convincing the rational mind of the correctness and divine authority of the holy scriptures”

(Messenger and Advocate, Dec 1835, Vol II No. 3, pg. 236)

This is a clear match for what Oliver was describing (though one may doubt his credentials as an art critic if this is one of the greatest representations he had ever seen upon paper)

Next, Oliver describes another figure:

“Enoch’s Pillar, as mentioned by Josephus, is upon the same roll . . .Enoch wrote a history or an account of the same, and put into two pillars one of brick and the other of stone; and that the same were in being at his (Josephus’) day.”

(Messenger and Advocate, Dec 1835, Vol II No. 3, pg. 236)

Here we see another figure from the same papyrus which matches Cowdery’s description.

These witnesses to this scroll – the black and red lettering, the triple headed figure, the figure of the walking snake and the pillar of Enoch identify it as the very scroll containing the Book of Joseph.

Questions

Why hasn’t this record been translated and published to the world? The Lord has preserved it up even to this very day. You can see in the picture that there is quite a bit of ancient writing – a plethora of scriptural treasure just waiting to be unlocked! Joseph Smith, using his divine calling as Prophet, Seer and Revelator declared it to be an account of Joseph of Egypt.

Egyptologists claim that it is a simply funerary text of the Book of the Dead, but that shouldn’t matter. The new LDS.org essay, explaining why the Book of Abraham papyri don’t match the text of the Book of Abraham says that the papyrus was a catalyst which helped the prophet channel the ancient record of Abraham, even though the hieroglyphics have nothing to do with it. (this is also why the introduction to the Book of Abraham was recently changed) If that is so with the Book of Abraham – let it be so with the Book of Joseph. The same authority and power with Joseph used to produce the Book of Abraham is still present and resting upon the mantle of the current prophet of the Church. If that power was real, then it would have shown the true fruits of its potency and produced this record which the Lord had preserved.

Conclusion

All the ingredients that produced the Book of Abraham are here: The catalyst of the papyri, the prophet wielding the power of God and a body of believers that are having a harder and harder time finding any reason to believe that the Lord’s anointed are, in fact, anointed. When Joseph Smith produced the Book of Abraham, the members saw tangible evidence of the gift and power of God and it galvanized his support among the faithful. Perhaps that is what the church needs today.