Research Guide

Scriptures Publication

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Overview


Since the first edition of the Book of Mormon was published in 1830, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has reprinted the book numerous times in multiple languages. Following the publication of the Book of Mormon, additional scripture has been published including the Book of Commandments, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price. Later, the Church published its own edition of the Holy Bible. As new editions of scriptures were published, changes were made to enhance the readers’ experiences and improve references and citations. These changes include adding verse numbering, chapter headings, summaries, study aids, and a topical guide.

While many of the sources cited in this research guide may be beneficial to studying the content of the scriptures, the primary focus of this guide pertains to the publishing history. Significant editions of the English scriptures have been identified, digitized, and linked in this research guide. First editions of full-text copies of the Book of Mormon have also been digitized and included in additional languages.

The guide is not intended to be a comprehensive list of resources. Its purpose is to assist individuals as they begin their research regarding the publication of the scriptures. Researchers can search for many sources regarding the scriptures in the Church History Catalog. Researchers may also use the Church History Library’s Ask Us
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Lastly, web-friendly versions of current Church scripture editions have been published on ChurchofJesusChrist.org and within Church mobile apps (Gospel Library and The Book of Mormon App). However, the printed history of the scriptures is the focus of this research guide.

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Research Guidance

Because scripture titles appear so frequently in items in the Church History Library’s collection, searching for the scriptures in the library catalog can be difficult. Here are some helpful hints to refine your searches to locate specific records.

Avoid Searching by Title

The Church History Library collection focuses on materials and publications that specifically pertain to the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Scripture titles are commonly used on items about the scriptures and other reference aids. To ensure more accurate results, use the following suggested searches:

Search and Sort Results by Call Number

Call numbers are designed to place items in order according to subject, alphabetized author or title, and chronological print date. Searching and sorting by call number will narrow your search results and place them in order. This allows for easier navigation and assessment of the search results. (See the “Call Numbers” section on this page for additional information.)

Search by Language and Partial Call Number

When searching for scriptures printed in languages other than English, include the name of the language in your search.

Examples

M222.2 B724* Spanish

M222.2 B724* French

Any search results for scriptures published in other languages will include a three-letter language code in the call number.

Examples

M222.2 B724SPA 1952 (“SPA” indicates that the volume is published in Spanish.)

M222.92 B724MGL 2008 (“MGL” indicates the volume is published in Mongolian.)

Narrow and Expand Your Search Results

The Church History Library catalog includes options for filtering your search by digitized and non-digitized collections, record types, author/creator, publication dates, and so on. Using these filters will help you refine your search results to match your intended research goals.

Call Numbers

The library has a unique way of identifying differences in printings and bindings by using call numbers. This can help distinguish between different copies held by the library. Please see Decoding CHL Call Numbers for more information about how call numbers work.

Printings

Printing variations at the Church History Library are any copies of a work that have an identifiable indicator of a separate print run or edition. These include different printing dates, corrected errors in a text, differences in publication information, and so on.

Printing variations are identified by a letter added to the end of the publication year in the call number. These letters start at a and follow the alphabet as needed. The letters will only appear in the call numbers for all scriptures and pre-1931 publications created by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The following are examples of print variations that may be encountered in the catalog.

Example:

M222.1 B724 2024a (The “a” denotes a printing date in 2024.)

M222.1 B724 2024b (The “b” denotes a different printing date in 2024.)

In the above example, the copies were printed in the same year but in different months. The order is not necessarily chronological.

Example:

M222.1 B724 1920a (The “a” denotes decor on the title page and a lack of publication date on the title page.)

M222.1 B724 1920b (The “b” denotes a different decor and the presence of the publication date on the title page.)

In the above example, both items have the same publication date, but they have differences in how the title page is formatted.

Some bibliographies will mention “states” when describing differences in the publications. The Rare Books and Manuscripts Section of the American Library Association defines “states” as “print differences among an impression or issue, usually due to an error in printing or an attempt to correct an error” (RBMS Controlled Vocabularies
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Different states are also included as a printing difference. The “state” will be indicated in the bibliographic record along with bibliographical reference.

Bindings

Binding differences include multiple binding types and variations in the designs. Differences in binding are identified by “no. #” at the end of the call number. Unlike printing differences, the numeration starts with 2.

Example:

M273 S157b v.3 2024

M273 S157b v.3 2024 no. 2 (The “no. 2” denotes the same publication date but different binding or wrapper.)

Bindings and Printings Combined

On occasion, it is necessary to indicate differences in bindings within differences in printings. These use the same call number indicators previously mentioned and combine them in the call number.

Example:

M222.1 B724 2013a (The “a” denotes that there is more than one print date with this date assigned “a.”)

M222.1 B724 2013a no. 2 (This item contains the same print date as “a” but has a different binding.)

M222.1 B724 2013a no. 3 (This item contains the same print date as the previous two, but its binding differs from both of them.)

M222.1 B724 2013b (The “b” denotes a different print date within the same year.)

M222.1 B724 2013b no. 2 (This item contains the same print date as “b” but has a different binding.)

In the above examples, the items have the same publication date, but two copies have different print dates. These are indicated by the “a” and “b” after the 2013 year. Within these two different print dates, there were copies available in different binding types, indicated by the “no. 2” and “no. 3” after the “a” and “b.”

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English Scriptures

Timeline

English scriptures are listed here according to how they are commonly referenced. Click on a title to access a digitized copy of the book.


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Book of Mormon (Additional Languages) First Editions

Click on the links below to access full—text editions of the Book of Mormon in additional languages:
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The Holy Bible

The catalyst for Joseph Smith’s First Vision came from reading James 1:5–6 in the New Testament of the King James Version of the Bible. In 1842, Joseph Smith wrote to John Wentworth and stated, “We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly.” The Church continues to use preferred Church-published translations of the Bible in conjunction with other scripture today. Currently, there are three versions of the Bible that are copyrighted and published by the Church. Approved translations are available for other languages.

Timeline

King James Version (English)

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ version of the King James Bible was first copyrighted and published in 1979. Previously, the Bible text used by the Church was printed by other printing houses, such as Cambridge University Press and Winchester University Press, which were then specially bound for the Church. The 1979 edition cross-referenced Bible verses to Latter-day Saint scriptures and added references to the Joseph Smith Translation.

Additional Resources

Santa Biblia La Reina-Valera (Spanish)

Similar to the King James version, the Church used the Santa Biblia La Reina-Valera edition before publishing their own version in 2009.

Additional Resources

Jôo Ferreira Annes de Almeida (Portuguese)

In 2015, the Church published Bíblia Sagrada Almeida, which was based on the João Ferreira Annes de Almeida version previously used by the Church.

Additional Resources


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