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View Of The Hebrews: Substitute For Inspiration?, Spencer J. Palmer, William L. Knecht

BYU Studies Quarterly

Critics of Joseph Smith, founder of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, have asserted that the Isaiah portions found in the Book of Mormon are plagiarized from Ethan Smith's View of the Hebrews. In an attempt to vindicate the claims of the Book of Mormon's divine origin, the authors tallied the references to Isaiah in the Book of Mormon and in View of the Hebrews. Using a reliable statistical test, the authors conclude that the common references between View of the Hebrews and the Book of Mormon are coincidental and not proof of plagiarism.