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Evidences for the Book of Abraham's Authenticity
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Evidences for the Book of Abraham's Authenticity
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Summary: This page is a summary of additional evidence for the Book of Abraham. We have already discussed on other pages evidences for the authenticity of Joseph Smith's explanations of the Facsimiles (Facsimile 1 | Facsimile 2 | Facsimile 3). This page, however, will list all the other evidence for the Book of Abraham's authenticity. There is also evidence for the Book of Abraham that we have discussed on the page, which touches on supposed anachronisms in the Book of Abraham. These include Potiphar's Hill and Ur of the Chaldees.
Abraham's Astronomy
Smoot, Gee, Muhlestein, and Thompson explain that Chapter 3 of the Book of Abraham and Facsimile 2 include an ancient view of the stars and planets, which they call Abrahamic astronomy, and that different scholars have offered several ways to understand this section. One strong idea they describe is that the astronomy in the Book of Abraham fits an ancient geocentric view of the universe, meaning people long ago thought the sky and heavenly bodies revolved around the earth—similar to how ancient Egyptians pictured the heavens. They show that this ancient model helps make sense of the text and teaches gospel ideas in ways Abraham’s people could understand, even though it doesn’t match modern science. For Latter-day Saints, this article can be used to show that the Book of Abraham’s astronomy makes sense in the context of ancient Near Eastern thinking and isn’t just a modern invention, helping readers appreciate the text as something that could reflect an authentic ancient worldview rather than only a modern description. —(Click here to read more)
Abraham's Converts in Haran
Smoot, Gee, Muhlestein, and Thompson explain that when Abraham and his family left Haran in the Book of Abraham, the text says they took with them “the souls that we had won in Haran” (Abraham 2:15), which means they brought people they had helped join God’s covenant, not just servants or property. They compare this to the similar passage in Genesis 12:5 and show that ancient Jewish interpreters also read it as people Abraham converted rather than as slaves, so the Book of Abraham’s wording makes sense in that ancient context. The article presents Abraham as a missionary who taught and gathered people to follow God before he journeyed to Canaan. For Latter-day Saints, this article can be used to support the idea that the Book of Abraham’s account fits with ancient understandings of conversion and shows Abraham’s faith-filled efforts to share God’s message, which helps readers see the Book of Abraham as grounded in real ancient themes rather than only modern language. —(Click here to read more)
Abraham and Idrimi
An ancient inscription by a king named Idrimi from about 1500 BC shares some similarities with the Book of Abraham, because both texts are written in the first person and tell of the writer’s life, travels, connection to their ancestors, and relationship with God or divine promises. In the ancient Near East, people sometimes wrote about their own lives in this way, and the Idrimi inscription is one example of that kind of writing that archaeologists have found long after the Book of Abraham was published. Smoot, Gee, Muhlestein, and Thompson argue that because these kinds of autobiographical texts existed in the ancient world, this supports the idea that the Book of Abraham could also reflect an ancient literary tradition rather than being purely a modern creation. For Latter-day Saints, this article can be used to suggest that the style and form of the Book of Abraham fit with real ancient Near Eastern writings, helping readers see the Book of Abraham in a broader historical and cultural context.—(Click here to read more)
Abraham the Seer
Smoot, Gee, Muhlestein, and Thompson explain that the Book of Abraham repeatedly shows Abraham as a “seer”—someone who receives visions or sees divine things, often with the help of special instruments like the Urim and Thummim mentioned in Abraham 3:1, and that words like see and show appear again and again in the story to emphasize this idea. They argue that the way the book talks about Abraham seeing heavenly things is both one of its main themes and something readers might otherwise miss, because the text uses both clear and subtle language to paint Abraham as someone who interacts with the divine through visionary experience. For Latter-day Saints, this article can be used to help readers understand the Book of Abraham by showing that its style and focus on Abraham as a visionary figure make sense within ancient religious ideas about how prophets saw God’s will, reinforcing that the book presents Abraham in a way that fits ancient seer traditions rather than just being a modern story. —(Click here to read more)
Abrahamic Legends and Lore
Smoot, Gee, Muhlestein, and Thompson explain that many Jewish, Christian, and Islamic stories about Abraham—called extrabiblical traditions—contain details similar to the Book of Abraham, such as Abraham facing idolatry, living through a famine in the Chaldean lands, nearly being sacrificed, receiving visions of God and the stars, and engaging in astronomy with the Egyptians, which suggests these themes were part of ancient storytelling about Abraham, not just modern ideas. These legends come from sources most people in Joseph Smith’s time probably didn’t have access to and often differ in important ways, but when read alongside the Book of Abraham they show that many of its unique elements fit well with ancient traditions about Abraham rather than only nineteenth‑century writing styles. For Latter‑day Saints, this article can be used to show that the Book of Abraham shares core ideas with long‑standing ancient Abraham stories, helping readers see the book as part of a wider ancient tradition instead of something entirely new or invented. —(Click here to read more)
The Ancient Egyptian View of Abraham
Ancient Near Eastern Creation Myths
Authentic Names in the Book of Abraham
The Blood of the Canaanites
Creation from Chaos
The Divine Council in the Book of Abraham
Egyptianisms in the Book of Abraham
The Book of Abraham contains features that appear to be derived from ancient Egyptian language, including certain grammatical patterns and wordplay that reflect how Egyptians expressed their ideas, despite the fact that English is the language of the text we have today. Scholars look at parts of the manuscript where a phrase was changed and note that both versions would mean the same thing in Egyptian, and they also point out places where the way ideas are connected (like linking stars and spirits) fits with Egyptian ways of thinking. Because people in Joseph Smith’s time did not fully understand Egyptian, the article states that the discovery of these Egyptian-style features in the Book of Abraham is consistent with the claim that it originated from an ancient Egyptian source rather than being written entirely in English from scratch. For Latter-day Saints, this article can be used to support the idea that the Book of Abraham reflects ancient literary patterns, helping to demonstrate that its language and structure are not random but align with authentic ancient Egyptian writing and thought processes.—(Click here to read more)
The Foreordination of Abraham
Hebraisms in the Book of Abraham
Human Sacrifice in Egypt
Jews in Ancient Egypt
Kolob, the Governing One
The Name of the Lord
The Plain of Olishem
In an article for BYU Studies Quarterly, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerru Muhlestein, and Thompson discuss “The Plain of Olishem.” They explain that the Book of Abraham mentions a place called Olishem (Abraham 1:10) and explore whether this name matches an ancient place called Ulisum found in old Akkadian records from about 4,000 years ago. These records place Ulisum west of the Euphrates River, in an area that fits well with where Abraham is said to have lived. The article notes that the names Olishem and Ulisum sound similar and come from the same time period, even though the place name does not appear in the Bible. While the authors admit there is no final proof, they argue the match is reasonable and worth taking seriously. For Latter-day Saints, the article can be used to demonstrate that the Book of Abraham contains realistic ancient place names, thereby supporting the idea that the text fits an authentic ancient setting.—(Click here to read more)