The Book of Mormon

Mosiah 3:5

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~124 BC

1830 Edition

For behold, the time cometh, and is not far distant, that with power, the Lord Omnipotent who reigneth, which was, and is from all eternity to all eternity, shall come down from Heaven, among the children of men, and shall dwell in a tabernacle of clay, and shall go forth amongst men, working mighty miracles, such as healing the sick, raising the dead, causing the lame to walk, the blind to receive their sight, and the deaf to hear, and curing all manner of diseases;

Influences

Revelation 19:6 (KJV)
And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.
Westminster Confession chapter 3:1
God from all eternity did, by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will, freely and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass; yet so as thereby neither is God the author of sin,
Matthew 15:31 (KJV)
Insomuch that the multitude wondered, when they saw the dumb to speak, the maimed to be whole, the lame to walk, and the blind to see: and they glorified the God of Israel.
Matthew 11:5 (KJV)
The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them.

Changes

For behold, the time cometh, and is not far distant, that with power, the Lord Omnipotent who reigneth, whicho was, and is from all eternity to all eternity, shall come down from Hheaven, among the children of men, and shall dwell in a tabernacle of clay, and shall go forth amongst men, working mighty miracles, such as healing the sick, raising the dead, causing the lame to walk, the blind to receive their sight, and the deaf to hear, and curing all manner of diseases;.

Simple English

The time is coming soon when the Lord God will come down from heaven to live with people. He will live in a human body. He will do amazing miracles like healing sick people, bringing dead people back to life, making people who can’t walk be able to walk, making blind people see, making deaf people hear, and curing all kinds of sickness.

Paraphrase

'The time is coming soon—the Lord Almighty, who has always existed and always will, is going to come down from heaven. He’ll take on a human body and walk among people, performing incredible miracles. He’ll heal the sick, raise the dead, make the paralyzed walk, give sight to the blind, open deaf ears, and cure every kind of disease.'

Notes

3:2-8

It appears evident that King Benjamin is claiming revelation from an angel revealing the name Jesus Christ to him, and his people should take upon them the name of Christ (see also Mosiah 1:11-12; Mosiah 6:2).

"This address raises a very serious question with regard to the material which appears in the book of 2 Nephi. Why would King Benjamin have to receive a special revelation informing him of the name of Christ if the plates of Nephi already contained this information? According to Mormon, 'Amaleki had delivered up these plates [the small plates of Nephi] into the hands of King Benjamin' (Words of Mormon 1:10). Furthermore, King Benjamin also had the large plates of Nephi. Benjamin himself told his sons that the 'plates of Nephi' were 'true' and instructed them to 'remember to search them diligently' (Mosiah 1:6-7). In the small plates alone, the name Jesus appears ten times and the word Christ is found eighty-two times (See 2 Nephi 25:16, 26; 2 Nephi 31:13)..In light of this information, it seems highly unreasonable to believe that King Benjamin and his people would have been completely in the dark concerning the 'name of Christ' before the angel visited Benjamin and revealed this information."-Jerald and Sandra Tanner, Joseph Smith's Plagiarism of the Bible in the Book of Mormon, p. 217.

See also the Book of Mormon 1830 edition, page 28 (1 Nephi 12:18). The 1830 edition says, ".. and Jesus Christ." This was changed to read, "... and the Messiah" in 1837. Current editions read, "... and the Messiah."

3:5

"After some of Joseph Smith's family joined the Presbyterian faith in the mid-1820's, he evidently spent some time reading the Westminster Confession and Catechism, a vital part of that church. The Confession was formally adopted by the Presbyterian Church in the United States in 1729. Significantly, many phrases that are peculiar to that document appear in the Book of Mormon. The Westminster Confession, chapter 32, appears to be the source for Alma, chapter 40." -Jerald and Sandra Tanner, Joseph Smith's Plagiarism of the Bible in the Book of Mormon, p. 28.

See Footnotes on Alma 40:11, 12, 13, 14, 20.

Additionally, compare the following:
Mosiah 3:5-"The Lord... from all eternity"
Westminster Confession, ch. 3:1-"God from all eternity"

The word eternity is only used once in the KJV (Isaiah 57:15) and not in connection with the words from all.

Mosiah 5:3-"infinite goodness of God"
Westminster Confession, ch. 5:4-"infinite goodness of God"

The word infinite is found only three times in the Bible and never in connection with goodness of God.

Alma 42:2-"our first parents"
Westminster Confession, ch. 6:1-"our first parents"

All three of these words are found in the Bible, but they are never used in that order.

Alma 5:18-"before the tribunal of God"
Westminster Confession, ch. 33:1-"before the tribunal of Christ"

The word tribunal is never used in the KJV.

Mosiah 4:30-"thoughts, and your words, and your deeds"
Westminster Confession, ch. 33:1-"thoughts, words, and deeds"

Although these words are used in the Bible, they are not found in this order.

2 Nephi 28:21-"carnal security"
Westminster Confession, ch. 33:3-"carnal security"

Although both these words are found in the Bible, they are not found together.