Commenting on the JST of Gen 50 (cf. 2 Nephi 3 | Book of Mormon), one Irish Catholic opponent of the LDS Church wrote:
One would have to wonder how Kieron Wood, a conservative Roman Catholic, would answer a liberal scholar (and his Roman communion is full of them!) who point to prophecies such as Isa 44:28 and 45:1 and Cyrus, or 1 Kgs 13:2 and Josiah? Indeed, these scholars cite these as "proof" that these texts reflect prophecy after the fact (vaticinium ex eventu)?
Furthermore, Wood is simply naive to reject the antiquity of the expansions to JST Gen 50, as it contains much ancient support, including another extension to the text Wood fails to mention, that is, the then-future mission of Moses and Aaron. For instance, in JST Gen 50:35, we read Joseph's prophecy Moses' spokesman (Aaron): "And I will make a spokesman for him, and his name shall be Aaron."
The antiquity of this story is confirmed in Jewish traditions, including a lengthy addition to Gen 40:12 in Targu Neofiti that has Joseph interpreting the three branches of the butler's dream as follows: "The three branches are the three fathers of the world: namely; Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob," the sons of whose sons are to be enslaved in the slavery of the land of Egypt and are to be delivered by the hands of three faithful leaders: Moses, Aaron, and Miriam, who are not to be likened to the clusters of grapes." Similarly, in Talmud Hillun 92a, Rabbi Eleazer explains that the "vine" is the world, the "three branches" are the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, while Rabbi Joshua corrects him by saying that the "vine" is the Torah and the three Branches are "Moses, Aaron, and Miriam."
For other ancient texts in support of JST Gen 50, see the essay by John A. Tvedtnes, "Ancient Texts in Support of the Book of Mormon" in the (highly recommended) book, Echoes and Evidences of the Book of Mormon (FARMS, 2002).
Smith now began revising the Bible, adding new sections where appropriate to bolster his own teachings. He even added a verse to Genesis prophesying the coming of a seer whose name would be Joseph, after the name of his father! (Kieron Wood, The Latter Day Saints: A Christian Perspective on Mormonism [Dublin: Veritas, 1993], 9)
One would have to wonder how Kieron Wood, a conservative Roman Catholic, would answer a liberal scholar (and his Roman communion is full of them!) who point to prophecies such as Isa 44:28 and 45:1 and Cyrus, or 1 Kgs 13:2 and Josiah? Indeed, these scholars cite these as "proof" that these texts reflect prophecy after the fact (vaticinium ex eventu)?
Furthermore, Wood is simply naive to reject the antiquity of the expansions to JST Gen 50, as it contains much ancient support, including another extension to the text Wood fails to mention, that is, the then-future mission of Moses and Aaron. For instance, in JST Gen 50:35, we read Joseph's prophecy Moses' spokesman (Aaron): "And I will make a spokesman for him, and his name shall be Aaron."
The antiquity of this story is confirmed in Jewish traditions, including a lengthy addition to Gen 40:12 in Targu Neofiti that has Joseph interpreting the three branches of the butler's dream as follows: "The three branches are the three fathers of the world: namely; Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob," the sons of whose sons are to be enslaved in the slavery of the land of Egypt and are to be delivered by the hands of three faithful leaders: Moses, Aaron, and Miriam, who are not to be likened to the clusters of grapes." Similarly, in Talmud Hillun 92a, Rabbi Eleazer explains that the "vine" is the world, the "three branches" are the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, while Rabbi Joshua corrects him by saying that the "vine" is the Torah and the three Branches are "Moses, Aaron, and Miriam."
For other ancient texts in support of JST Gen 50, see the essay by John A. Tvedtnes, "Ancient Texts in Support of the Book of Mormon" in the (highly recommended) book, Echoes and Evidences of the Book of Mormon (FARMS, 2002).
