The title of this post is not a mistake. We are dealing with 2 Josephs. Joseph the man trusted to take the place of GOD the FATHER and help raise the MESSIAH. The other Joseph is Joseph Smith Jr. trusted by the CHRIST to bring forth the Book of Mormon and fix thousands of mistakes in the Bible.
As we get closer to the world's date for the SAVIOR's birth, I felt is appropriate to use a change in the Bible relating to that birth. The universe's most important birthday was more likely to have been in the spring time. The critical thing is that JESUS, a GOD, was born on this planet.
Today's JST correction is very small yet quite important. This is a verse relating to JESUS' earthly parents, Mary and Joseph. This information follows Joseph's vision of the angel of the LORD telling him to fulfill his betrothal (marital obligation) to Mary.
King James Version of Matthew 1:25
And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son:
and he called his name JESUS.
Joseph changes one word and shows that Joseph is not the typical arrogant male of the time period. Their are proud men in every generation, but the Jews of the day seem to be some of the worst offenders in world history. As far as Joseph Smith's day, women could not vote or own property, so why would he make a change that in any way made women equal to men?
Joseph Smith's Version of Matthew 1:25
And knew her not until she had brought forth her firstborn son:
and they called his name JESUS.
Now there are two changes here. The first is changing "till" into "until". This is better, but it does change the original meaning of the verse.
The important change is "he" to "they". This shows that Mary and Joseph were in agreement with the name of the Child. Joseph the Carpenter did not just unilaterally name the child like a modern Mormon male. The two decided together. This is a marriage modeled after our Heavenly Parents- the MOST HIGH GOD and His QUEEN.
Some people will think this is no big deal, but I think it demonstrates the LORD's love of women, and Joseph's (Mary's spouse) greatness as a man. It also shows that Joseph Smith was a prophet.
John Scott Peterson