Adjustments to the Scriptures

Throughout the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, leaders and members have reverenced the text of the scriptures and deepened their understanding by using study helps such as dictionaries, cross-references, and the historical information given in chapter and section headings. The scriptures as we know them today have undergone careful revisions and subtle improvements, introduced gradually through numerous editions.

In 2013, the Church prepared new printing masters of the scriptures because the printing masters of the 1979 edition of the Bible and the 1981 edition of the triple combination had deteriorated due to age and long use. In the process of preparing new printing masters, the Church took the opportunity to make adjustments. In 2025, the Church made some additional adjustments to section introductions of the Doctrine and Covenants to reflect the latest historical findings, as well as minor clarifying adjustments to two Book of Mormon summaries.

2013 Adjustments

An abbreviated summary of the 2013 adjustments can be found in “Summary of Approved Adjustments for the 2013 Edition of the Scriptures,” with an expanded version of this document also available.

Scripture Text

The spelling of some words was corrected to reflect the spellings in more recent editions of the King James Version of the Bible since 1979. Also, adjustments were made to resolve minor typographical errors in spelling, wording, and punctuation, restoring earlier readings of the text and maintaining the fidelity and integrity of the scriptures.

Study Helps

More than 99 percent of the 2013 adjustments were made in the study helps. Errors in cross-references, date information, or misquoted text were resolved in the footnotes, Topical Guide, Bible Dictionary, and triple combination index.

Layout

Adjustments were made to the layout for clearer reading and standardization throughout, including title pages, contents pages, headings, and footnotes.

In the Book of Mormon, all scripture text that is part of the original translation from the plates was placed in roman typeface. Only study helps, such as chapter headings, remain in italics.

These adjustments also included standardizing the layout of appendix materials, including improving accuracy and reflecting more recent scholarship in the Topical Guide, Bible Dictionary, Bible chronology, and Harmony of the Gospels.

The typeface of the Joseph Smith Translation was enlarged for easier reading, a new introduction was included, and numerous entries were added or adjusted.

Maps and Photographs

Maps and photographs were adjusted to improve quality, accuracy, and gospel study. Some place-names were corrected for greater historical accuracy.

2025 Adjustments

Complete information about the adjustments made for 2025 is found in “Detailed Summary of Approved Adjustments to Select Study Helps of the Doctrine and Covenants and Book of Mormon.”

Study Helps

With the conclusion of the Joseph Smith Papers, some refinements in addition to those made in 2013 have been made to Doctrine and Covenants section introductions.

Updates reflecting the approved adjustments were also made to the Doctrine and Covenants Chronological Order of Contents, Church History Maps, and Church History Photographs.

Minor adjustments were made to two Book of Mormon summaries for greater accuracy.

Additional Questions

Have adjustments been made in past editions of the Doctrine and Covenants? Short headings were used in the earliest printed collections of Joseph Smith’s revelations, the Book of Commandments (1833) and the Doctrine and Covenants (1835). Section headings have been substantially revised in many editions of the Doctrine and Covenants, particularly those published in 1876, 1921, and 1981.

How many adjustments have been made in the 2013 edition’s section headings of the Doctrine and Covenants? Adjustments, many of which are very minor, have been made to 78 section headings.

How many adjustments have been made in 2025 to the section headings? With the conclusion of work on the Joseph Smith Papers, additional adjustments have been made to 25 section headings.

What types of adjustments have been made in the section headings of the Doctrine and Covenants for 2013 and 2025? The adjustments fall into three basic categories: (1) some dates or locations have been corrected; (2) some factual errors have been corrected or deleted; and (3) historical context has been added or updated.

Why have headings been added for Official Declaration 1 and Official Declaration 2? Introductions have been added to Official Declaration 1 and Official Declaration 2 to help Church members and others understand the historical context that led to these revelatory statements.

Why has the Church History Chronology been removed? The Church History Chronology was removed in 2013 because a more comprehensive, updated version is available on the Church History website.

Where can I learn more about the new historical information in the section headings? In 2009, the Joseph Smith Papers published photographs and transcriptions of the manuscript revelation books into which early Latter-day Saints copied Joseph Smith’s revelations. Since 2013, the Joseph Smith Papers Project has completed the Documents series, which provides extensive historical introductions and annotations for Joseph Smith’s revelations through June 1844. All these volumes are available to view for free at josephsmithpapers.org and have greatly aided in understanding the context of many revelations. For historical background behind specific adjustments, see “Explanations for the Doctrine and Covenants Section Headings.”

Is there any additional information available about the adjustments? Complete information about the adjustments made for 2025 is found in “Detailed Summary of Approved Adjustments to Select Study Helps of the Doctrine and Covenants and Book of Mormon.” An abbreviated summary of the 2013 adjustments can be found in “Summary of Approved Adjustments for the 2013 Edition of the Scriptures,” with an expanded version of this document also available.