It was a record of the Jews, a compilation of God’s dealings with his prophets and his covenant people in the old world.
“Out of the Mouth of a Jew”
A further lesson was taught to the seventeen-year-old Prophet by the angel Moroni in the year 1823. Moroni quoted numerous passages of scripture to Joseph, particularly Malachi 4, though “with a little variation from the way it reads in our Bibles” (Joseph Smith History 1:36). Whether Moroni gave detailed instructions concerning specific passages of scripture or whether he taught Joseph how to interpret biblical verses is not known. The Prophet did learn, however, that the King James Version of the Bible was not the only authorized translation of the scriptures