D&C 89-92 Quotes and Notes

D&C 89: The Word of Wisdom

A Principle with Promise: Two layers to this idea

On one level, this passage of scripture can be read as a principle with a promise. The principle essential teaches that as I take care of my physical body, heavenly wisdom, or spiritual light, can come into my life. This is associated with the promise: “All saints who remember to keep and do these sayings (they shamar and ebed), walking in obedience to the commandments, shall receive health in their navel and marrow to their bones; and shall find wisdom and great treasures of knowledge, even hidden treasures…” (D&C 89.18-19)

Along this idea of the first level of understanding, Bryce applied this principle to not just smoking or drinking. He went through five things, with the invitation to think of other things we can add to this list. They were:

1. Food. The food I put in my body has an affect on how I feel.
2. Exercise. We all know that we need this, the key is balance and consistency. Much has been written on the importance of exercise to the human body.
3. Sleep.^[1]See: The Sleep Foundation. “Why do we need sleep?”
4. Stress Management.
5. Hormones. Having a balance here is important.

The second layer to this revelation has to do with verse 4: “In consequence of evils and designs which do and will exist in the hearts of conspiring men in the last days, I have warned you, and forewarn you, by giving unto you this word of wisdom…”

We live in a time where corporations and entities have worked to use us to maximize their profits, and in many cases, have made things that are addictive and destructive to our bodies and our souls. This is one of the aspects of the Mahan Principle outlined in Moses 5. For this reason we must be wise. We must be cautious so as to not enslave ourselves to other people.

John Taylor, lover of liberty, put it this way:

I was not born a slave!  I cannot, will not be a slave.  I would not be slave to God!…I’d go at His behest; but would not be His slave.  I’d rather be extinct than be a slave.  His friend I feel I am, and He is mine: –a slave!  The manacles would pierce my very bones–the clanking chains would grate upon my soul–a poor, lost, servile, crawling wretch to lick the dust and fawn and smile upon the thing who gave the lash!  Myself–perchance my wives, my children to dig the mud, to mould and tell the tale of brick and furnish our own straw!…But stop!  I’m God’s free man: I will not, cannot be a slave!  Living, I’ll be free here, or free in life above–free with the Gods, for they are free…”^[2]Brigham Henry Roberts, The Life of John Taylor, George Q. Cannon and Sons Co., 1892, p. 424.

D&C 89.1-3 Not by commandment or constraint… 

As the Prophet received it, the revelation began with the fourth verse as it is now rendered. The first three verses were simply an introduction that he gave to the revelation. The revelation was directed particularly to the brethren attending the School of the Prophets in Kirtland. The Saints in Missouri and in the Church generally were also invited to conform to the prohibitions of the revelation.^[3]Joseph Fielding McConkie and Craig J. Ostler, Revelations of the Restoration: A Commentary on the Doctrine and Covenants and Other Modern Revelations, Deseret Book, 2000, p. 651-652.

As originally given, the Word of Wisdom was not mandatory or binding on the Church as a commandment. President Joseph F. Smith explained that the Lord, in his wisdom, was tolerant with the Saints in granting them time to grow up mature to the point where they were able and willing to comply with the things associated with the Word of Wisdom. President Joseph F. Smith offered this explanation, “The reason undoubtedly why the Word of Wisdom was given—as not by ‘commandment or restraint’ was that at that time, at least, if it had been given as a commandment it would have brought every man, addicted to the use of these noxious things, under condemnation; so the Lord was merciful and gave them a chance to overcome, before He brought them under the law.”^[4]Conference Report, October 1913, 14. Since the early 1930s, however, the prohibitions of the commandment—refraining from the use of alcohol, tea, coffee, and tobacco— have been viewed as binding on the faithful Saint.^[5]As President Heber J. Grant began his presidency, it had become the rule that compliance with the Word of Wisdom was a tenant of the faith of the membership of The Church of Jesus Christ of … Continue reading Today, adherence to the Word of Wisdom is a required to qualify a candidate for baptism into the church and for entrance into the temple.

The Missing Comma – D&C 89.13

D&C 89.13 reads as follows: “And it is pleasing unto me that they should not be used, only in times of winter, or of cold, or famine.” (The they in this verse refers to the flesh of beasts as given in verse 12.) This comma suggests that the Lord is pleased when the flesh of beasts is not used, unless men are in a state of winter, cold, or famine.

The text actually reads (as written on February 27, 1833) as follows: “And it is pleasing unto me that they should not be used only in times of winter, or of cold, or famine.”^[6]See: Revelation, 27 February 1833 (D&C 89), as contained in The Joseph Smith Papers.

This reading significantly changes how the verse is interpreted. For almost a hundred years, from 1833 to 1921, there was not a comma after the word used in verse 13 of D&C 89. As of my reading of the evidence, I do not know who put the comma in this verse at this location. But the absence of the comma in the original text certainly seems to suggest that the Lord is okay with humans eating meat^[7]A distinction may arise with some between “meat” and “the flesh of beasts.” As Jane Birch has written, “Note that while I will often use the word meat, the text actually refers to “flesh … Continue reading in other seasons besides winter. In his comprehensive examination of the textual changes throughout the history of the Doctrine and Covenants, Robert J. Woodford shared the following story:

It [the comma] was never found in any text prior to the 1921 edition of the D&C. According to T. Edgar Lyon [prominent LDS historian and educator], [Apostle] Joseph Fielding Smith, when shown this addition to the text, said: “Who put that in there?” This is a significant statement since Elder Smith served on the committee to publish that edition of the D&C. Thus, the comma may have been inserted by the printer and has been retained ever since.^[8]Robert J. Woodford, “The Historical Development of the Doctrine and Covenants: Vol. II,” (PhD diss., Brigham Young University, 1974), 1175–76.

Interpretations of the Missing Comma

Joseph Fielding McConkie and Craig Ostler take this approach to the missing comma:

When this revelation was first printed in the Doctrine and Covenants (1835), there was no comma after this phrase. The addition of the comma clarifies the meaning of the text, thus dramatizing the importance of proper punctuation. The addition of the comma is in harmony with the context of the revelation, which is that meat should be used sparingly.^[9]Joseph Fielding McConkie and Craig J. Ostler, Revelations of the Restoration: A Commentary on the Doctrine and Covenants and Other Modern Revelations, Deseret Book, 2000, p. 655-656.

James W. McConkie, in his 2010 D&C Commentary takes an opposite approach:

Sometimes the addition or deletion of a comma makes very little or no difference. However, in this case the use of a comma completely changes the meaning. Without the comma after the word “used” in verse 13, the revelation recommends the use of meat year round. The placement of a comma prohibits the use of meat altogether, except “in times of winter, or of cold, or famine.”^[10]James W. McConkie II, Looking at the Doctrine and Covenants Again for the Very First Time (West Valley City, UT: Temple Hill Books, 2010), 353.

He proceeds to suggest that not only is the comma a mistake but that it “could very well be removed” in a future edition of the book.

Robinson and Garrett take (in my view) a middle approach:

Sparingly

The term sparingly must be understood according to the standards and norms of frontier America in 1833. At that time, meat was often considered “the staff of life” (v. 14), and, when possible, the diets of many Americans consisted largely, or even mostly, of animal flesh. Doctrine and Covenants 89 seeks instead to establish whole grains as the staff of life, or the primary sustenance of humans, without at the same time forbidding the use of meat except “sparingly.”

Moreover, “when the Word of Wisdom was revealed, methods for preserving meat were still primitive. Spoiled meat can be fatal if eaten, but the chance of spoilage is not as great in winter as in summer. Modern methods of refrigeration now make it possible for meat to be frozen and thereby preserved for later use in any season.” Refrigeration also makes it possible to keep freshly slaughtered meat without risk of spoilage for longer periods of time, even in summer’s heat. It should be noted that the proper definition of “sparingly” can vary depending on differences in one’s age, activity, weather, or other circumstances.

They should not be used, only in times of winter – D&C 89.13 The difficulty in verse 13 lies in the comma following the word “used.” Depending upon the presence or absence of this comma, contradictory meanings may be ascribed to the text. Between 1833 and 1921, there was no comma in the text at this point in the revelation. The comma was first inserted in the revelation in the 1921 edition of the Doctrine and Covenants.

However, insertion of the comma brings verse 13 into agreement with the clear sense and intent of verses 12 and 15, and without it, these would seem to contradict verse 13. Moreover, since 1921, several different First Presidencies have had the opportunity to correct the reading of verse 13 in subsequent editions of the Doctrine and Covenants and have specifically declined to do so. At present, given our firm conviction in continuing revelation, we need to follow the reading of the most recent edition. There is no commandment or constraint on this issue, and Church leaders seem content to let the Saints apply the principle as stated here individually as guided by the Spirit.^[11]Garrett and Robinson, Commentary on the Doctrine and Covenants, volume 3.

The reason I consider this a middle approach is that the authors here acknowledge the issue, state that there “is no commandment or constraint on this issue,” and they also acknowledge the complexities of refrigeration in 1833 compared with today. They acknowledge the historical realities of Americans in 1833, that they ate meat, and that it was a considerable part of their diet, while also acknowledging that the definition of “sparingly” can vary depending on differences in one’s age, activity, weather, or other circumstances. I find this to be a reasonable approach to the text.

Pre-1921 Approaches to D&C 89.13

Jane Birch has studied how this revelation was read prior to 1921, and has given insightful commentary into this revelation.^[12]A. Jane Birch, Questioning the Comma in verse 13 of the Word of Wisdom, Faculty Publications, p. 134. See also: Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture, volume 10, 2014, p. 133-149. She writes:

While it is true that the comma did not appear in this verse until 1921, it is equally clear that the way the text was read without the comma in the decades before 1921 was identical to the way the text is read today with the addition of the comma. In other words, adding the comma did not change the way the text was read. In fact, Latter-day Saints who were adult members of the Church in 1921 did not remark on any change of meaning with the addition of the comma. The assertion that the text should be read differently without the comma is a much later idea, dating back to about the 1960s.^[13]Birch explains, “The first reference I have seen in print is in the first edition of Richard O. Cowan’s Doctrine & Covenants: Our Modern Scriptures (Provo: Brigham Young University … Continue reading

Times of Famine – D&C 89.13

In 1842, Hyrum Smith was Patriarch to the Church at the time he gave a lengthy sermon on the Word of Wisdom. He stated:

Let men attend to these instructions, let them use the things ordained of God; let them be sparing of the life of animals; ‘‘it is pleasing saith the Lord that flesh be used only in times of winter, or of famine” — and why to be used in famine? because all domesticated animals would naturally die, and may as well be made use of by man, as not.^[14]Hyrum Smith, “The Word of Wisdom,” Times and Seasons 3, no. 15 (June 1, 1842): 801. In addition to Hyrum Smith, Birch includes several brethren’s statements from before 1921 that … Continue reading

Why was the comma added and who put in D&C 87.13?

First, we do not know who put the comma into the text, but Birch offers strong possibilities as to who placed it there and how it occurred. Birch writes:

While there is no definitive evidence of who inserted the comma and for what purpose, there are only two ways the comma could have got into that verse: either it was added intentionally or by mistake. If it was added intentionally, Apostle James E. Talmage is the person most likely to have inserted this comma, and he is the person most often cited as being responsible for it. Because of his attention to detail, the editing of scriptural text was often entrusted to him. The manuscript containing the revisions for the 1920 Book of Mormon are all in his hand; of the hundreds of punctuation changes made to the 1920 Book of Mormon edition, all of them came from Talmage, and none was due to a typesetting error.^[15]Royal Skousen, e-mail message to Birch, February 2, 2013. As Talmage was also on the same committee when they revised the D&C in 1921, it is likely he directed the punctuation changes in that edition as well, including inserting the comma into 89:13. Whether or not it was Apostle Talmage, if the comma was added intentionally, it was undoubtedly done by (or under the direction of) one or more of the original committee members assigned to the task, though apparently without the knowledge of Joseph Fielding Smith (if we assume Woodford’s telling of the story is correct). If we take Woodford’s story at face value, Elder Smith had not seen the comma before it was shown to him, but this is not evidence that the comma was put in by the printer or even evidence it was put in by mistake.^[16]Birch, p. 140.

Some important things to remember regarding the Word of Wisdom:

1. Implementation of this counsel, these words of wisdom, came in gradually. This is something we see with the Lord: At first he may extend an invitation rather than give a stern command, at least we see this in this circumstance.^[17]A classic example of this is the interchange between Jesus and the woman at the well as found in John 4. Jesus met the woman where she was. Gradually he brought her to a higher level of … Continue reading

2. This law was given for those in our days, for the “temporal salvation of all saints in the last days.” (D&C 89.2). This alleviates any stress regarding whether or not Jesus, Noah, Moses, or anyone else in the Bible drank wine. We can move forward with the idea that this dietary law is applicable to us and the dietary laws of the ancients were applicable to them. Jesus didn’t eat pork, but he was associated with the use of wine.^[18]See John 2 and Luke 7.33-35. The very first miracle Jesus performed was to turn water into wine, according to the record of John in the New Testament. The word for wine is οίνος, … Continue reading

3. It may be beneficial to not try and give reasons for the dietary laws, rather, to emphasize that, at least with respect to D&C 89, they are given for the reasons stated in the text, “in consequence of evils and designs which do and will exist in the hearts of conspiring men in the last days” (D&C 89.4).^[19]One commentator, speaking of the dietary laws of Judaism, wrote, “unlike the ethical and moral precepts of Judaism the dietary laws seem to defy human reasoning. Why should it matter to religion … Continue reading

4. The President of the Church has been given “power to decide”^[20]This is what D&C 107.79 states. “The Presidency of the council of the High Priesthood shall have power to call other high priests, even twelve, to assist as counsellors; and thus the Presidency … Continue reading many of the issues that are difficult. For example, for years the Word of Wisdom has had varying degrees of emphasis, and there were questions regarding how to implement certain aspects of it. For example, what, exactly constituted “hot drinks?” The President of the Church stated that hot drinks consisted of tea and coffee, although it has been argued that this was understood as early as 1833.^[21]Paul H. Peterson, “An Historical Analysis of the Word of Wisdom,” Master’s thesis, Brigham Young University, 1972, 22-23. See also page 80, “As reported in the Journal History of … Continue reading

D&C 90 The First Presidency

Historical Context

Garrett and Robinson give readers excellent coverage of the historical context of section 90:

Because Joseph Smith gave no background information concerning Doctrine and Covenants 90 in History of the Church, a brief review of the leadership offices of the Church might be helpful at this point. The reader will recall that Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery received the Aaronic Priesthood from John the Baptist, and Peter, James and John conferred the Melchizedek Priesthood on Joseph and Oliver in the spring of 1829. At that time, they also received the apostleship and those keys of the priesthood necessary to restore and preside over the Church of Jesus Christ. From that time onward, regardless of how the Church might be organized administratively, the necessary keys and powers for preaching the first principles of the gospel and performing the ordinances thereof were present in its leaders (but see D&C 110), and their righteous actions in these functions were valid before God just as in the primitive Church.

In April 1830, the “Articles and Covenants of the Church” (D&C 20) affirmed that Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery were called of God and ordained apostles and elders of the Church. They were also designated first and second elders of the Church, respectively (see D&C 20:2–3). These callings and ordinations did not give Joseph and Oliver any additional priesthood authority that they did not already possess, but they did provide a temporary structure through which their authority was administered to the Church and by which the Church could sustain its leaders. This temporary administrative arrangement, with a first and second elder, remained in place until 25 January 1832, by which time a number of high priests had been ordained. At that time, at the Lord’s direction, Joseph Smith was sustained and ordained President of the High Priesthood of the Church.^[22]History of the Church, 1:243. Six weeks later, on 8 March 1832, Sidney Rigdon and Jesse Gause were also called and ordained as counselors to Joseph Smith in the Presidency of the High Priesthood (see D&C 107:9, 21–22, 65–67, 91–92). The Kirtland Revelation Book (10–11) contains the following brief statement of these events: “March 8, 1832: Chose this day and ordained brother Jesse Gause and Brother Sidney to be my counselors of the ministry of the presidency of the high Priesthood.”

President Jesse Gause was excommunicated from the Church on 3 December 1832.^[23]Dean Jessee, Papers, 2:4. Consequently, on 5 January 1833, Frederick G. Williams, who had served as a clerk to the Presidency since 20 July 1832, was called to replace Brother Gause as a counselor.^[24]Cook, Revelations of the Prophet Joseph Smith, 192. However, it does not appear that the Presidency was officially reorganized in the modern sense at that time. Exactly one year after Joseph had chosen his original counselors in the Presidency of the High Priesthood, he received on 8 March 1833 at Kirtland Doctrine and Covenants 90, which revelation confirmed the callings of Sidney Rigdon and Frederick G. Williams as counselors in the Presidency. Doctrine and Covenants 90 also further defined their duties as counselors to Joseph Smith and for the first time declared that the President’s counselors were to be “accounted as equal with [him] in holding the keys of this last kingdom” (D&C 90.6). Ten days later, on 18 March 1833, Sidney Rigdon and Frederick G. Williams were ordained counselors to Joseph Smith in the Presidency of the High Priesthood as defined in Doctrine and Covenants 90. Of this occasion, Joseph wrote, “Elder Rigdon expressed a desire that himself and Brother Frederick G. Williams should be ordained to the offices to which they had been called, viz., those of Presidents of the High Priesthood, and to be equal in holding the keys of the kingdom with Brother Joseph Smith, Jun., according to the revelation given on the 8th of March, 1833.”^[25]Smith, History of the Church, 1:334

This new Presidency of the High Priesthood, or First Presidency, as it later came to be known, was different from the previous Presidency in that it was organized as a quorum with Joseph’s counselors “accounted as equal with [him] in holding the keys” (v. 6) while the President lived and while they were in harmony with him. Since 1833, the term “Presidency of the High Priesthood” has been used synonymously with the term “First Presidency of the Church.”^[26]Compare D&C 68:15 and 19 with D&C 68:22; see also Ludlow, ed.,  Encyclopedia of Mormonism, 2:512–13, where the latter is said to have been organized in 1832, although the former … Continue reading

Similarly, though the apostleship had been restored and held by men upon the earth since the spring of 1829 (D&C 18, also D&C 20:2–3),the second leading quorum of the Church, the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, would not be officially organized as a quorum until 14 and 15 February 1835, also in a manner directed by the Lord (see D&C 18:26–38).^[27]Smith, History of the Church, 2:186–98. As long as the keys were held by living leaders, it did not really matter at that time, when the Church was small, how the lines of administration were drawn. Brigham Young waited three years after the death of Joseph Smith to reorganize the First Presidency. However, since the administration of Lorenzo Snow, it has been the custom to reorganize the Quorum of the First Presidency soon after the funeral of the previous President.^[28] H. Dean Garrett and Stephen E. Robinson, Commentary on the Doctrine and Covenants, volume 3, Deseret Book, 2000, p. 154-156.

The Keys of the Kingdom shall never be taken from you – D&C 90.3

In Doctrine and Covenants 43:3, the Prophet was told that as long as he remained faithful he would hold the keys of the kingdom but that if he fell from faithfulness, those keys would be given to another. A similar promise to Joseph was repeated in Doctrine and Covenants 64:5. However, in this verse the Prophet was told, unconditionally, that he would never lose the keys of the kingdom and that they would remain with him not only in this world but in the world to come. This progression may indicate that sometime between September 1831 (see D&C 64) and March 1833 (see D&C 90), the nature of the Lord’s promises to the Prophet Joseph Smith had changed—amounting to a much stronger assurance that his exaltation was secure (see, for example, D&C 132:49).^[29]Garrett and Robinson.

Neither in the world to come – D&C 90.3

Joseph Smith still holds the keys of this dispensation of the gospel, and he still presides over the work of the Church in the spirit world. In eternity Joseph will continue to preside in the priesthood order over Brigham Young, John Taylor, and so forth, and ultimately over all others who have received their priesthood and keys through the Restoration in the latter days.^[30]Garrett and Robinson, p. 157.

Through you shall the oracles be given – D&C 90.4-5

The word oracle, or debir דְּבִיר, is an Old Testament word.^[31]See Debir, in Strong’s Concordance, H1687. Noun masculine (hindmost chamber, innermost room of the temple of Solomon = קדשׁ הקדשׁים holy of holies, most holy … Continue reading Essentially it is tied to revelation, the holy of holies, and the visionary experiences located in that space. The word is associated with speech, as the debir is the place of speaking and the word dabar דָּבַר means “to speak.”^[32]See H1696 – dabar. The closely connected word dabar דָּבָר means “speech,” “word,” or “thing.”^[33] See H1697 – dabar. The “oracles,” as the term is used here in the Doctrine and Covenants, according to Garrett and Robinson,^[34]See: H. Dean Garrett and Stephen E. Robinson, Commentary on the Doctrine and Covenants, volume 3, Deseret Book, 2000, p. 157-158. mean the divine revelations (as in D&C 90.5). The process of how Joseph’s revelations will be disseminated through his counselors and others is further clarified in verses 6–11 (especially v. 9). The Prophet Joseph will receive the word of God and will then share it with his counselors in the Presidency. Through the First Presidency, the word will then be delivered to the Church (see v. 4) and through the Church to the world (see v. 9). “Whenever new doctrines are to be introduced, they are first presented by the President to his counselors and then to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in a meeting of the council of the first presidency and the quorum of the twelve apostles. If unanimously approved [D&C 107:27], they are then presented to the membership of the Church at a general conference for a sustaining vote.”^[35]Ludlow, ed., Encyclopedia of Mormonism,3:1127. New doctrine (that is, new divine information as opposed merely to policy changes or to clarification of existing doctrine) comes to the Church collectively in no other way.^[36]Garrett and Robinson, p. 158.

The translation of the prophets – D&C 90.13

The term “the prophets” is here used to mean the books of the Old Testament. Joseph Smith finished his translation of the New Testament (see D&C 45:60) on 2 February 1833, more than a month before Doctrine and Covenants 90 was received. Since Joseph had already spent considerable time on the Old Testament before beginning the New, the expectation seems to be that his translation of the Old Testament Prophets would also soon be completed.^[37]Garrett and Robinson, p. 160.

Let a place be provided – D&C 90.19

Frederick G. Williams was a resident of Kirtland before joining the Church and his family owned a large farm in the area. When Frederick G. Williams went with Oliver Cowdery and the Lamanite missionaries to Missouri, his farm land was divided up and given out to other Latter-day Saint families moving into the Kirtland area from New York, including those of Joseph Smith Senior and Ezra Thayre. In accordance with these instructions in Doctrine and Covenants 90, other lodgings were now provided for the Williams family, and the following year Frederick G. Williams consecrated his entire farm to the Church without being compensated. The Williams family farm eventually made up part of the parcel of land that provided grounds around the Kirtland Temple.^[38]See Backman, Heavens Resound, 73, 144.

Let your families be small – D&C 90.25

This commandment should not be construed as applying to the number of children Saints ought to have. Rather, it applied initially to the extended social obligations of the Saints. In the spirit of Christian charity, it was the practice of the Prophet and other Church leaders to open up their homes and share their resources with those Saints and others who came to Kirtland in need. At other times, members like Newel Whitney or John Johnson were in turn called upon to share their resources with the Prophet in his need.

Eventually, as Church leaders, particularly Father and Mother Smith, continued to open their homes to the Saints who were moving into the Kirtland area from the East, certain problems arose. Some members took advantage of the kindness of their hosts. Other members who were unworthy avoided the responsibilities of consecration but still received its blessings by attaching themselves to more faithful families. In addition, the sheer burden of housing so many individuals in their comparatively small homes became very taxing on them, but it was hard to say no to anyone who claimed to be in need. Thus, the Lord here counsels his leaders, and particularly Father and Mother Smith, who were generous to a fault, to use wisdom and where possible to reduce the number of their dependents who were not actually blood relatives or who were not personally worthy of receiving the blessings of consecration on their own.^[39]Garrett and Robinson, p. 162.

Vienna Jaques – D&C 90.28-31

As the only other woman mentioned by name in the text of the Doctrine and Covenants, Vienna Jaques holds a prominent position in LDS history.^[40]The other woman is Emma Smith. Forty-five-year-old Sister Vienna Jaques^[41]Vienna Jaques was born 10 June 1787. See: The Joseph Smith Papers. had joined the Church on 12 July 1831.^[42]See: The Joseph Smith Papers. She was baptized by Emer Harris, and after this she moved to Kirtland in 1833. Though she lived in Boston, and apparently supported herself there as a nurse, she was converted by the Book of Mormon and visited Joseph Smith in Kirtland, being baptized while she was there. After returning briefly to Boston, Sister Jaques moved to Kirtland sometime before March 1833 and was instructed to consecrate her wealth, including fourteen hundred dollars cash, to the Lord.^[43]By the time of that March 1833 revelation, Vienna had freely given to the Church a substantial financial offering—a sacrifice borne out of faith. Her gift came at a propitious time, as Church … Continue reading This she did without hesitation. Doctrine and Covenants 90 here directs that her expenses of moving to Missouri be paid by the Church and that she receive an inheritance in Zion. Sister Jaques arrived in Independence in the summer of 1833 but lost her temporal inheritance when the Saints were driven from Jackson County.^[44]She had only been in Missouri six weeks when on July 20, 1833 mobs attacked the Saints there. On that day, 46-year-old Vienna saw the mob tar and feather Edward Partridge, the bishop in Missouri, and … Continue reading After the Saints were cast out of Illinois, Vienna, at the age of 60, drove her own cart across the plains to Salt Lake.^[45]See Mary Jane Woodger’s comments as found in “Women in the D&C deemed as role models.” The Daily Universe, December 2002, by Nicole Matsen. Accessed 7.28.2021. However, she remained faithful and steadfast for more than fifty years thereafter, moving with the Saints in all their wanderings, and finally dying in Salt Lake City in 1884, at the age of ninety-six.^[46]Garrett and Robinson, p. 162-163. See also: Susan Easton Black, Who’s Who in the Doctrine and Covenants, 145–47.

D&C 91 – The Lord speaks about the Apocrypha

Doctrine and Covenants 91 was revealed one day after section 90. The Prophet was at that time engaged in the revision of the Bible (D&C 90:13). The Bible from which he was making his corrections contained the Apocrypha. Thus he inquired of the Lord as to whether he should revise those books. This revelation indicated that it was not necessary for him to do so.

The Definition of Apocrypha

Before I get too far into some of my favorite quotes and ideas about the Apocrypha, something that includes so much more than what was in Joseph Smith’s Bible, I would like to share one of my favorite parts of Hesiod’s Theogony. The poet Hesiod (Ἡσίοδος Hēsíodos, ‘he who emits the voice’), living around 700 BCE in Boeotia, a district of central Greece, was out near a spring in a thick mist when nine Muses came to him and said:

ποιμένες ἄγραυλοι, κάκ᾽ ἐλέγχεα, γαστέρες οἶον,

ἴδμεν ψεύδεα πολλὰ λέγειν ἐτύμοισιν ὁμοῖα,

ἴδμεν δ᾽, εὖτ᾽ ἐθέλωμεν, ἀληθέα γηρύσασθαι.

“Shepherds that reside in the field, disgraces, mere bellies, we know how to tell many false things resembling truth, and we know when to sing truthful, when we desire to.” (Hesiod, Theogony, 26-28; my translation)

Much has been written regarding this passage. Suffice it to say that from my reading, the Muses are telling Hesiod something very important related to myth, religion, and revelation, and I see this directly related to the Apocrypha, as well as all extrabiblical literature.^[47]I would include canonized texts as well, especially much of the Old Testament. The Muses are telling Hesiod that they are going to sing to him things that are not necessarily true, what I would call historical in the modern sense, but things which are nevertheless resembling truth ἐτύμοισιν ὁμοῖα. This is religion. For example, I don’t believe Eve was made from a rib that was removed from Adam, this is one of many false things ψεύδεα πολλὰ in the text of the Tanakh.^[48]President Spencer W. Kimball taught that Eve was not literally created from Adam’s rib. He said: “The story of the rib, of course, is figurative.” See: “The Blessings and … Continue readingI do, however, see things resembling truth in this passage, things that once seen, cannot be unseen. Even in our history, we have seen many false things resembling truth.^[49]Nothing illustrates that better than a letter written by Joseph Smith on Nov. 27, 1832, to William W. Phelps, the church printer in Missouri. In it, the Prophet Joseph Smith writes, “Oh Lord … Continue reading Things have been and will continue to be messy, imperfect, and, like our revelation, clothed in human language (D&C 1.24) resembling truth. But our language is crooked, false.^[50]Brigham Young conceded that the “revelations of God contain correct doctrine and principles, so far as they go; but it is impossible for the poor, weak, low, groveling, sinful inhabitants of the … Continue reading Everything in mortality is tinged with flaw, and to me, this is beautiful. This is the human experience, and I wouldn’t want it any other way. Imperfection is pretty cool. So I love extrabiblical literature. I love The Testament of the Twelve Patriarchs, and the apocryphal book of Judith. You should read The Didache, (I think every Christian could get something from this text that was cut from the list of authoritative books in the fourth century!) I love Hesiod’s Theogony and his Works and Days. I love Homer’s Iliad and his Odyssey, as well as the Ugaritc text known as The Baal Cycle, and other ANE texts like Enuma Elish, The Epic of Gilgamesh, and the works of so many creative authors, because it is all connected in a wonderful web of humanity struggling in the darkness to shine light through this sea of chaos. It is wonderful.

Hugh Nibley gives us a definition of apocryphal texts when he said:

“First as to what the Apocrypha are. An apocryphal writing is one that had been accepted as inspired scripture by any Christian or Jewish group at any time. When such texts are brought together and examined, they are found almost without exception to reveal all the characteristics of real scripture. The manuscripts that contain them are just as old as and sometimes older than many of those of the canonical books, i.e., the books of the Bible; they are found in the same places and conditions; they were anciently put to the same uses; they talk about the same things in the same terms and make the same claim to divine origin. It is clear, for example, that the Qumran community considered the Book of Jubilees, the Testament of the Twelve Patriarchs, the Apocalypse of Baruch, the Assumption of Moses, the Psalms of Solomon, and many other writings just as sacred as anything in the Bible. So closely in fact do these documents resemble the scriptures and each other that to this day there is no agreement among their pious readers or among the specialists who study them as to what is really ‘apocryphal’ in the Bible and what is really biblical in the Apocrypha. It is no wonder that scholars have been driven to distraction trying to decide how to classify the apocryphal writings. The key to the problem of the Apocrypha was given in 1833 in Section 91 of the Doctrine and Covenants.”^[51]Hugh Nibley, Approach to the Book of Mormon, 194-95.

This was a shocking declaration at the time it was written and long afterward. The apocryphal writings contained in the Septuagint and Vulgate, for example, were regarded as wholly inspired by a large section of the Christian world, but by most Protestants they were looked upon as purely human creations. Other Apocrypha were dismissed as the productions of diseased and undisciplined Oriental minds.^[52]Thus the Book of Enoch, while it “influenced the thought and diction” of “nearly all the writers of the New Testament,” and “is quoted as a genuine production of Enoch by St. Jude, and as … Continue reading The thought that the Apocrypha might be both divinely inspired and corrupted by men seemed utterly contradictory for, as Augustine protested to Jerome, how could a book of which God was the author have any corruption in it at all or be anything but absolutely perfect? Unless it believes in revelation a church must, as Irenaeus insisted long ago, believe that its scriptures are absolutely perfect, otherwise no certitude is possible, all things being resolved in a conflict of opinion and speculation of men.^[53]Irenaeus, Contra Haereses (Against Heresies) II, 27, in J.-P. Migne, Patrologiae Cursus Completus… Series Graeca, Paris: migne, 1857-66, 167 volumes, 7:803, hereafter cited … Continue reading Yet today both Catholics and Protestants not only accept new and revised translations of the Bible, but engage in the diligent compilation of new and changing editions of the “original” text! In Joseph Smith’s day all Christians believed that the Bible was the only divinely dictated book in the world; the existence of a large and ancient literature that closely resembled the Bible both in form and content was largely ignored and its materials consigned to a wholly different category from that of the Bible. Yet the Jews never made such a distinction:

One cannot emphasize strongly enough the fact that, literally speaking, there are no apocrypha in the Jewish literature. . . . The idea of the Canon and, in consequence, the idea of books not forming part of that Canon, belongs exclusively to the Church and not to the Synagogue. . . . Not all the Books . . . in the Hebrew Bible share among the Jews the same authority. . . . Even the Prophets are not considered as having a binding legal force.^[54]Moses Gaster, “The Apocrypha and Jewish Chap-Books,” Studies and Texts, 3 vols. (1928; reprinted New York: KTAV, 1971), 1:280.

The Christian Canon is a product of the post-Apostolic Church that had ceased to claim revelation. It is a late and artificial thing and the true church is not bound by it.^[55]Nibley, Approach to the Book of Mormon, p. 196. The most significant recent comment on this much-treated theme is by Friedrich Ebrard, “Bibel, Bibel und Pandekten,” Archiv … Continue reading

What do the Apocryphal  texts say?

Now as to what the Apocrypha say, it is true that they are full of bizarre and peculiar things. Such things by their very oddity can sometimes be traced back to their uninspired sources and “the interpolations of men.” But along with dubious information it is even more apparent that “there are many things therein that are true.” In the Old Testament, New Testament, Jewish Apocrypha, Christian Apocrypha, and Dead Sea Scrolls we have five bodies of documents every one of which has numerous points of resemblance to all the other four. By the process of boiling them all down to those teachings which are shared by all of them in common, scholars hope, and often claim, to discover the original pattern of thought common to all of them, and in the end to reveal the true nature and origin of the gospel. What results from this process is always the same thing. The common denominator of all the apocryphal writings and all the scriptures is the “apocalyptic” or “eschatological” theme. There is no clearer or fuller exposition of this theme than the Book of Mormon.

Hugh Nibley goes on to point out the commonalities of this literature by listing several elements that many of them share, pointing to the truth that the Book of Mormon squarely sits in these elements and focuses upon these very apocryphal themes.^[56]For a much fuller explanation of these elements, see: An Approach to the Book of Mormon, chapter 16, pages 194-208. I have abbreviated his points in this chapter in this post.

1. The Great Tradition. This essentially relates to the idea that God’s people represent a continuous tradition from antiquity, down from the dawn of time to the time the text is written.

2. The Secret Teaching. According to the Book of Mormon the knowledge possessed by the righteous prophets down through the ages has not been shared by the rest of the world. From time to time God has “sent angels, . . . conversed with men, and made known unto them the plan . . . prepared from the foundation of the world” (Alma 12:29-30; Moroni 7:22). Those who have believed in the plan have been few, and God has always hidden them away from the wicked.^[57]Nibley, p. 198.

3. The Holy Book. “The apocalyptic writer,” writes R. H. Charles, “professedly addressed his book to future generations. Generally directions as to the hiding and sealing of the book . . . were given in the text.” The belief was that this practice had been obtained from the days of the earliest patriarchs.^[58]Robert H. Charles, “Apocalyptic Literature,” Encyclopedia Britannica, 11th ed., 1:171, citing Daniel 12:4, 9;1 Enoch 1:4; Assumption of Moses 1:16-18.

4. The Plan. As the books themselves are brought forth from time to time throughout the whole span of history, so the subject they deal with is always the Big Picture, God’s Plan for the world from beginning to end. “God knowing all things . . . sent angels to minister unto the children of men” (Moroni 7:22), and himself “conversed with men, and made known unto them the plan . . . which had been prepared from the foundation of the world” (Alma 12:30). God sees all things “from eternity to all eternity, according to his foreknowledge” (Alma 13:7), and the purpose of all revelation is “to bring about his eternal purposes in the end of man” (2 Nephi 2:15). According to R. H. Charles, all apocalyptic writing conceives of the whole of human history as being “determined from the beginning in the counsels of God.”^[59]Robert H. Charles, “Apocalyptic Literature,” Encyclopedia Britannica, 11th ed., 1:169. In the Serek Scroll we are told, “From God is the knowledge of all that exists or will exist. And before their existence he established [or prepared] all their design, and when they exist the manner of their operation as to the Plan of His Glory. They fulfill their functions and no changes are made therein.”^[60]1QS (Manual of Discipline) 3:15.

5. Revelation. For all their devotion to the ancient books and the constant tradition, the people who cultivate apocalyptic literature always claim revelation in their own time. “We search the prophets,” says Jacob at the beginning, “and we have many revelations and the spirit of prophecy; and having all these witnesses we obtain a hope” (Jacob 4:6). Charles notes that every apocalyptic writing claims divine revelation, and that “the reality of the visions is to some extent guaranteed by the writer’s intense earnestness and by his manifest belief in the divine origin of his message.” Charles himself hesitates “to assume that the visions are a literary invention and nothing more,” though he concludes that “there will always be a difficulty in determining what belongs to his actual vision and what to the literary skill or free invention of the author.”^[61]David Flusser, “The Apocryphal Book of Ascensio Isaiae and the Dead Sea Sect,” Israel Exploration Journal 3 (1953): 30-47; quote is on 46.

6. Time and Timelessness. The plan and the true story of man’s life on earth, being “eschatological,” i.e., beyond the limits of local time and space, is timeless. Abinadi can speak quite naturally of “things to come as though they had already come” (Mosiah 16:6), and Mormon can address unborn generations “as if ye were present, and yet ye are not” (Mormon 8:35). Yet as far as this earth is concerned everything is in terms of times and periods. The history of God’s people is a repeating cycle of events—a dispensation of the visiting of angels and of God’s conversing with men followed by an apostasy and in turn by a general destruction from which the righteous remnant are rescued by being led away. This you will find in 2 Nephi 9:2; 25:8-9 (“destroyed from generation to generation”); and in 2 Nephi 29:8-13. God speaks to every nation in its dispensation (Moroni 7:22, 24, 31). It was the nature of a “church of anticipation” to consider future events as present.

7. The Messiah. The center and pivot of the whole plan of history is, of course, the Messiah in the Book of Mormon: “None of the prophets have written, nor prophesied, save they have spoken concerning this Christ” (Jacob 7:11). “All the prophets . . . ever since the world began—have they not spoken more or less concerning these things?” (Mosiah 13:33). Compare this with the teaching of the Talmud: “All the prophets have prophesied of nothing save the days of the Messiah, that is, of the eternal order to come.”^[62]Discussed throughout Hermann Gunkel, Zum religionsgeschichtlichen Verständnis des Neuen Testaments, Göttingen, Vandenhoeck, 1903. Gunkel, before the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, found in the pre-Christian apocryphal writings frequent reference to a divine redeemer, a new heaven and a new earth, the millennial rule of the Lord in person on earth, a Messiah who is to come as a human being and yet be more than human, a carefully cultivated “Wisdom” literature, the doctrine of the resurrection of the flesh, the practice of baptism in water, the belief that the eighth day rather than the seventh is the holiest of days, the reports of a Lord who is meek and humble, despised and put to death, resurrected, ascended to heaven, and who visits the spirits in prison. Also he found in the apocalyptic writings the use of such baffling code-words as “water of life,” “second death,” “first Adam,” etc., and a conception of cosmology and world history totally at variance with that of the official schools of the Jews and Christians.^[63]Nibley writes, “All this is clearly set forth in 1QS 4:15-16.” All this sort of thing has been brought to light by the studies of the past two generations.

8. The Doctrine of Probation. According to the Plan of Life and Salvation, fixed and determined before the foundation of the world, the earth was made to be a place of testing, men being free while here to choose the way of light or the way of darkness. The Book of Mormon has a great deal to say about this. Our earth life is the “days of probation” (1 Nephi 15:31-32; 10:21), “and the days of the children of men were prolonged, according to the will of God. . . ; wherefore, their state became a state of probation, and their time was lengthened” (2 Nephi 2:21)… There is no more emphasized doctrine in the Apocrypha, especially the Christian Apocrypha, than the teaching of the Two Ways, the Way of Light and the Way of Darkness. We have seen Nephi counseling his people to “walk in the straight path which leads to life . . . until the end of the day of probation” (2 Nephi 33:9). Constantly the Book of Mormon people are told to choose between life and death, with emphasis on the fact that man is placed on this earth in the peculiar position of being able to choose either good or bad as long as he is here: “Remember that ye are free to act for yourselves—to choose the way of everlasting death or the way of eternal life” (2 Nephi 10:23; cf. Helaman 14:30-31; Alma 12:29, 31; Alma 13:3 ff.; 23; 1 Nephi 14:7). The closest parallels to these passages are extremely abundant in the apocryphal literature.^[64]1QS 5:4-5. One can find the doctrine of the Two Ways implicit in almost any of the early aprocrypha, e.g., Clement, Epistola I ad Corinthios (First Epistle to the Corinthians) 36, … Continue reading

9. The Doctrine of Apostasy. From the first, according to the apocalyptic concept of history, men have chosen the darkness rather than the light. This teaching receives great emphasis in the Book of Mormon, where a constantly recurring event is the apostasy of God’s church from the way of righteousness… Man is always falling away; from Eden to the present moment the human race is in revolt. The chosen people themselves regularly fall from grace and must be called to repentance. “Because of the shedding of blood,” says the Talmud, “the holy house [the temple—the same expression is used in the scrolls] is destroyed, and God withdraws [literally, ‘takes back up’] his presence from Israel.”

10. The Apocalypse of Woe. Since the world is the domain of Belial, it is doomed in the end to destruction—but only in the final end. The image most commonly invoked by the word “apocalyptic” is that of the great destruction of the world, but that comes only at the consummation of times. Meantime there are many ends. 35 We see that from the Book of Mormon. The saints can only expect persecution “in the domain of Belial,” but must not weaken for that reason… This is precisely the teaching of the Didache and the Pastor of Hermas, the two most important Christian Apocrypha.^[65]Didache 16.3-6; Hermae Pastor (Shepherd of Hermas), Visio (Visions) 2, 2-4, in PG 2:898-99, Similitudo (Similitudes) 3 and 4, in PG 2:956-57.

Conclusion

These and other teachings, set forth with great power and clarity in the Book of Mormon, make up the substance of the apocryphal as well as the scriptural teaching, but their great importance for the understanding of the true nature both of Christianity and of Judaism has only begun to be appreciated. With the new discoveries the Apocrypha must be read in a wholly new context that gives them a new meaning and importance. Even the Bible must now be viewed in the light of new knowledge; but especially the Book of Mormon must undergo a change of status. Apocalyptic ideas, as is well known, have flourished among groups of religious enthusiasts, Christian and non-Christian, in every age, but in only one source do we find the full and consistent picture of the old eschatology that scholars today are reconstructing from many pieces of evidence, and that source is the Book of Mormon.^[66]Nibley, Approach, p. 207.

For more information regarding the Apocrypha, see the post entitled “Joseph Smith and the Apocrypha.“

D&C 92

On 8 March 1833, Joseph Smith received Doctrine and Covenants 90 at Kirtland, Ohio, which dealt with the organization and duties of the Presidency of the High Priesthood, or First Presidency. Section 90 confirmed the calling of Frederick G. Williams as a counselor in the First Presidency in place of Jesse Gause who had been excommunicated three months earlier. One week after section 90 was received, it was revealed to Joseph Smith that Frederick G. Williams should also become a member of the united order or united firm. This firm in which Frederick G. Williams took part, had the responsibility to oversee the business dealings of the Church. The minutes of the Kirtland High Council record for 15 March 1833 read as follows: “Thursday, received a revelation making known that F. G. W. should be received into the united order in full partnership agreeable to the specification of the bond.”^[67]Kirtland Council Minute Book, Church Archives; see also D&C 78:11; 82:11, 15.

A Lively Member – D&C 92.2

Frederick G. Williams was not to hold back in contributing to the united order because he was the newest member. Similarly, newly baptized members of the Church are received into full fellowship and are expected to be “lively members” in their respective service in the Kingdom of God.

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