Often we wish that we still had access to the gold plates. In our faithlessness, we wish the plates could be shown to the world—as if to prove that Joseph Smith really had them. Instead, the Lord provided an inspired interpretation and then had Moroni take the plates back into his prophetic custody. If we were smart, we would spend less time complaining that we can’t show investigators the actual gold plates and spend more time in thankful praise to the Lord for giving us an inspired and indisputable interpretation. Consider the alternative.
Hugh Nibley
“If we had the original text, which we do not, and if we could read it, which we cannot, any translation we might make of it would still be inferior to that which was given, as we claim it was, by the gift and power of God. If we had the original text, scholars would be everlastingly squabbling about it and getting out endless new and revised translations, as in the case of the Bible. In fact, if our English text of the Book of Mormon came to us in any other way than by revelation it would be almost worthless! For members and investigators could ask of every verse: ’But how do we know it is translated correctly?’ A revealed text in English is infinitely to be preferred to an original in a language that no one on earth could claim as his own. It frees the members and leaders of the Church as it frees the investigating world from the necessity of becoming philologists, or, worse still, of having to rely on the judgment of philologists, as a prerequisite to understanding this great book. At the same time, it puts upon the modern world an obligation to study and learn, from which that world could easily plead immunity were the book in an ancient language or couched in the labored and pretentious idiom that learned men adopt when they try to decipher ancient texts.” (The Prophetic Book of Mormon, p. 96)