D&C 129-132 Quotes and Notes

D&C 129 – Instructions by Joseph Smith, Nauvoo, Feb. 9, 1843

Historical Background

When the Prophet first learned these principles contained in D&C 129 is not known. We can be confident, however, that it was some time before this section was recorded. Given that all priesthood and keys restored in this dispensation were conferred upon the Prophet by angelic ministrants, and given Satan’s insatiable desire to deceive, the keys of discernment must have been given to Joseph Smith quite early. As it is presently found in the Doctrine and Covenants, this section comes from the journal of William Clayton. He recorded it as the Prophet gave it in conversation with Parley P. Pratt, who had just returned from a mission in England. It was first included in the 1876 edition of the Doctrine and Covenants.^[1]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. 1038. See also: … Continue reading

Angels… hands… resurrected bodies

Wilford Woodruff had recorded the following in his journal on 27 June 1839 as part of the instruction given to the Twelve by the Prophet prior to their departure for a mission to England:

“In order to detect the devel when he transforms himself nigh unto an angel of light. When an angel of God appears unto man face to face in personage & reaches out his hand unto the man & he takes hold of the angels hand & feels a substance the Same as one man would in shaking hands with another he may then know that it is an angel of God, & he should place all Confidence in him Such personages or angels are Saints with there resurrected Bodies, but if a personage appears unto man & offers him his hand & the man takes hold of it & he feels nothing or does not sens[e] any substance he may know it is the devel, for when a Saint whose body is not resurrected appears unto man in the flesh he will not offer him his hand for this is against the law given him.”^[2]Ehat and Cook, The Words of Joseph Smith: The contemporary accounts of the Nauvoo discourses of the Prophet Joseph, 1980, 6.

On 2 July of the same year, the Prophet taught that “an angel of God never has wings. Some will say that they have seen a spirit; that he offered them his hand, but they did not touch it. This is a lie. First, it is contrary to the plan of God; a spirit cannot come but in glory; an angel has flesh and bones; we see not their glory. The devil may appear as an angel of light. Ask God to reveal it; if it be of the devil, he will flee from you; if of God, He will manifest Himself, or make it manifest.”^[3]Revelations of the Restoration, p. 1039; Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, 162.

McConkie and Ostler^[4]Revelations, p. 1040. relate the following:

Perhaps it is of more than passing interest that we have ancient stories that have been preserved for us in what is known as the Book of Adam and Eve, or The Conflict of Adam and Eve with Satan, in which Satan constantly tries to deceive our first parents in order to obtain the garments they had received from the Lord in Eden. In one of those episodes, Satan “took the form of an angel, and with him two others” in order to imitate a threesome who had come to them from the presence of the Lord. In this story Adam and Eve were initially deceived by them “because, when they came to Adam the first time, there came upon him from them, peace and joy, through their bringing him good tokens; so Adam thought that they were come a second time to give him other tokens for him to rejoice withal. For he did not know it was Satan; therefore did he receive them with joy and companied with them.”^[5]Lost Books of the Bible, 49.

D&C 129.4-9 – Extending the hand

Why would Satan or one of his angels extend his hand knowing that so doing would unveil his true identity? The answer is found in understanding the authority of God in establishing laws by which all things, including the devil and his angels, are governed (D&C 88.36-38, 42). As mortals we are bound by the law of gravity and find physical objects a hindrance. Angels know no such limitations, and yet they are not free to converse with mortals, save it be according to the order of heaven. Similarly, evil spirits have bounds beyond which they cannot pass (D&C 122.9). The laws given to the prince of darkness and his legions include the sign of the dove, which the Prophet tells us was “instituted before the creation of the world, a witness for the Holy Ghost, and the devil cannot come in the sign of a dove.”^[6]Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, 276. We know that it “is not given unto Satan to tempt little children, until they begin to become accountable” before the Lord (D&C 29.47). In like manner Nephi tells us that Satan cannot tempt translated beings and that he has no power over them (3 Nephi 28.39). Thus, God, who governs all things, has placed limits and bounds on the adversary as to what he can and cannot do. In the instance here cited, Satan, or those acting in his name, must either extend his hand or withdraw, and in either case he will be detected. William Clayton recorded the Prophet as saying in 1840 that “if an angel or spirit appears, offer him your hand; if he is a spirit from God, he will stand still and not offer you his hand. If from the Devil, he will either shrink back from you or offer his hand, which if he does you will feel nothing, but be deceived. A good Spirit will not deceive. Angels are beings who have bodies and appear to men in the form of man.”^[7]Revelations of the Restoration, p. 1042-1043. See also: Ehat and Cook, Words of Joseph Smith, 44; syntax and spelling standardized.

David Patten: A Just Man Made Perfect

According to the history left by Orson Hyde, after his disaffection with the Saints in the Missouri War of 1838, after having left the Church with Thomas B. Marsh, both men signed an affidavit against Joseph Smith and the leadership of the Church. This document wound up in the hands of Governor Lilburn H. Boggs, and was critical to his decision to author the executive order demanding the Saints leave the state of Missouri in November 1838. Orson Hyde’s biographer, Myrtle Hyde, gives us the following account:

A few days after David Patten’s death^[8]Patten dies in the Battle of Crooked River on October 25, 1838., a startling event involved Thomas and Orson. They were “sitting in a log cabin together in silent meditation,” Orson tells us, when suddenly Thomas sat upright as though reacting to a slap on the shoulder. Orson saw no other person, but he felt the hallowed presence of a being of spirit. Then he heard a man’s voice implore, with deep anxiety and solicitude, “Thomas! Thomas! why have you so soon forgotten?”

Silence followed, and the color drained from Thomas’ face. When he spoke, his voice low, he told Orson that David Patten- their fellow apostle who recently died a martyr’s death- had visited them. Earlier, Thomas said, he and Elder Patten “had made a covenant to remain true and faithful until the end.”^[9]Myrtle Hyde, Orson Hyde: The Olive Branch of Israel, Agreka Books, 2000, p. 102.

D&C 130 – Instructions by Joseph Smith, Ramus, Illinois, April 1843

Historical Background

In late 1838 and early 1839, some of the Latter-day Saints who had been driven from Missouri began to settle about twenty miles east of Nauvoo in the Crooked River area of Hancock County, Illinois. In January 1839, a branch of the Church was organized there. It was called Ramus because ramus is the Latin word for “branch.” By July 1840, the branch at Ramus had become a stake. The town of Ramus was officially founded the following September, being laid out on the same city plan as Nauvoo.

On Saturday, 1 April 1843, Joseph Smith traveled to Ramus, accompanied by Orson Hyde and William Clayton. Brother Clayton acted as Joseph’s scribe on this trip and recorded the Prophet’s remarks in his personal diary. The Prophet’s party stayed the night at the home of Benjamin F. Johnson. The next morning Orson Hyde preached to the Saints, using as his texts 1 John 3.2 and John 14.23. Joseph later wrote that after the morning meeting, “we dined with my sister Sophronia McCleary, when I told Elder Hyde that I was going to offer some corrections to his sermon this morning. He replied, ‘They shall be thankfully received.'”^[10]Smith, History of the Church, 5:323. Joseph then preached to the Saints at Ramus in the afternoon and evening meetings. He included among his afternoon remarks what is now Doctrine and Covenants 130.1–7, and he included Doctrine and Covenants 130.18–23 during his evening remarks. These selected remarks of the Prophet Joseph, as recorded by William Clayton and later copied by Willard Richards, were first published in the Deseret News on 9 July 1856. They were added to the Doctrine and Covenants as section 130 in the 1876 edition at the direction of President Brigham Young.^[11]Garrett and Robinson, A Commentary on the Doctrine and Covenants, Volume 4, Deseret Book, 2005. See also: Cook, Revelations of the Prophet Joseph Smith, 287–91; Woodford, “Historical … Continue readingThe scriptural texts in question

1 John 3.2 reads as follows:

Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

John 14.23 reads:

Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.

D&C 130.1 – He is a man like ourselves

Orson Hyde had taught in his morning sermon on 2 April 1843, based on Revelation 19.11–12, 1 John 3.2, and John 14.23, that the Savior “will appear on a white horse as a warrior, and maybe we shall have some of the same spirit. Our God is a warrior. (John xiv, 23.) It is our privilege to have the Father and Son dwelling in our hearts.”^[12]Smith, History of the Church, 5:323. The Prophet, by revelation, later corrected Elder Hyde, emphasizing that at His second coming the Savior would appear as a being like ourselves (see Acts 1:11). Together with the information Joseph learned in the First Vision, Doctrine and Covenants 130 specifically clarifies that God and humans are the same species of being at different stages of progression, the Father and the Son having been glorified while we have not. This is the doctrine of godliness, or the possibility that human beings may, through the grace of God, grow to be like God by being glorified with his glory and being made “partakers of the divine nature” (2 Peter 1:4).^[13]Garrett and Robinson.

D&C 130.3 – An old sectarian notion

“Sectarian” here means pertaining to one or more of the various divisions into which traditional Christianity had become divided. The word usually has a negative connotation describing a schismatic or heretical departure from the mainstream. In this case it refers to the beliefs of the various non-LDS denominations that resulted from the apostasy of the primitive Christian Church.^[14]Ibid.

D&C 130.7 – Sea of Glass and Fire

The planet on which God dwells has already passed through a process of change similar to death and resurrection and has been glorified in the same way that the earth will eventually be glorified.14 This great change in glory will dissolve the heavens and melt the very elements “with fervent heat” (see 2 Peter 3:12). Just as sand becomes glass when heated and purified, so the earth, when glorified, will be a new, celestial globe “sanctified and immortal” (v. 9) like that upon which God now dwells. According to Brigham Young, “This earth, when it becomes purified and sanctified, or celestialized, will become like a sea of glass; and a person, by looking into it, can know things past, present, and to come; though none but celestialized beings can enjoy this privilege. They will look into the earth, and the things they desire to know will be exhibited to them, the same as the face is seen by looking into a mirror.”^[15]Young, Journal of Discourses, 9:87. See: Garrett and Robinson, Commentary, volume 4.

The sea of glass may also refer to the conquering of the Chaos, the Sea, or the Dragon- all Ancient Near Eastern symbols associated with the struggle of the gods of the Near East in their various texts over millennia.^[16]See: John Day, God’s Conflict with the Dragon and the Sea: Echoes of a Canaanite Myth in the Old Testament, Cambridge University Press, 1985.

The Sea of Glass in the Heavenly Temple of God

Margaret Barker has also spoken of the sea of glass in the heavenly temple:

The seer stood in the great hall of the heavenly temple and described what he saw and heard. There was a sea of glass, described in Revelation 4.6 as ‘the sea of glass like crystal’ before the throne where there were seven torches of fire. He saw seven angels emerging from the holy of holies, and one of the living creatures giving to each a golden bowl. A voice from the holy of holies commanded the angels to go and pour out the wrath of God on the earth, and the angel ‘went’ out of the temple (16.2), implying that the seer was in the temple and watched the angel ‘go’ (cf. 14.15 where the angel ‘came’ out of the temple). This was the voice Isaiah had heard, ‘the voice of the LORD rendering recompense to his enemies’ (Isa. 66.6).

The sea of glass was the floor of the heavenly temple which Enoch had described in his vision. When he was taken up to heaven he saw a great house built of white marble, with a floor of crystal and a ceiling like stars and lightning. There was a second ‘inner’ house, built of fire with a floor of fire, in which he saw the throne (1 En. 14.9-12). The interior of Solomon’s temple was lined with gold (1 Kgs 6.22) and it had a golden floor (1 Kgs 6.30). Josephus described the interior of the temple, completely covered with gold so that ‘the whole temple shined and dazzled the eyes of such as entered, by the splendour of the gold that was on every side of them’. Even the floor was plates of gold (Ant. 8.74). There is no description of the interior of the second temple; Josephus mentions only the menorah, the table and the incense altar (War 5.215-18). The temple was built of white marble decorated with gold, and the doors were covered with gold (War 5.208). ‘To approaching strangers it appeared from a distance like a snow-clad mountain; for all that was not overlaid with gold was of purest white’ (War 5.223). The description of the outer house in Enoch’s vision suggests that it was inspired by this marble and gold temple for it was built of ‘stones like hailstones’ (1 En. 14.10), with interior walls of crystal mosaics and a crystal floor. The whole house was surrounded by tongues of fire, and the doors were fire. The crystal and fire of Enoch’s vision correspond to the marble and gold of Josephus’ description, and suggest that the ‘sea of glass mingled with fire’ (15.2) was the floor of the great hall, white marble with gold mosaic. The temple which the seer knew in Jerusalem inspired his description of the temple in heaven. Only a priest was permitted to enter the temple; the seer must have been a priest.

The great hall of the temple represented the Garden of Eden, and so the crystal sea must have had a place in the mythology of the original Eden, the mountain garden of God (Ezek. 28.13, 16, see pp. 20, 104). The Life of Adam and Eve gives a good illustration of this and confirms that the mythology of the first temple was still known and used in the first century CE. After he had been driven from Paradise, Adam was visited by the archangel Michael and taken back up to Paradise in a chariot of fire. Adam saw the LORD there, enthroned in the midst of fire and surrounded by thousands of angels. He worshipped, and then ‘Michael held in his hand a rod and touched the waters which were around Paradise and they froze. I crossed over and Michael with me, and he took me to the place where he had seized me’ (Life 29.2-3). This is temple imagery: the LORD enthroned in Paradise amongst the angels, and around his throne a frozen sea. Ezekiel had seen this in his vision; under the throne he saw a firmament ‘like the gleam of the terrible ice’ (Ezek. 1.22, translating literally). The crystal sea around the throne, however it was described, was known in the time of the first temple. This ancient image of the sea does not appear in the Genesis account of Eden, but it is implicit in Ezekiel’s.^[17]Margaret Barker, The Revelation of Jesus Christ, T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 2000, p. 259-260.

1 Enoch also relates some of these ideas as they are associated with being summoned into the holy of holies:

And lo! there was a second house, greater then the former, and the entire portal stood open before me and it was built of flames of fire … And I looked and saw therein a lofty throne: its appearance was as crystal and the wheels thereof as the shining sun, and there was the vision of cherubim. And from underneath the throne came streams of flaming fire so that I could not look thereon. And the Great Glory sat thereon, and his raiment shone more brightly than the sun and was whiter than any snow. None of the angels could enter and behold his face by reason of the magnificence and glory and no flesh could behold him … And until then I had been prostrate on my face, trembling: and the Lord called me with his own mouth, and said to me: ‘Come hither Enoch, and hear my word.’ And one of the holy ones came to me and waked me, and he made me rise up and approach the door: and I bowed my face downwards.^[18]1 Enoch 14.15, 18-21, 24. See also: Barker, Revelation, p. 118.

From my reading of D&C 131, and related texts, as well as the ancient texts referred to by Barker, the imagery of the temple cannot be overlooked. Within the context of D&C 130, Joseph is weaving ideas of revelation, the conquering of the sea of chaos, the Urim and Thummim (temple artifacts), the white stone, the new name, and the appearance of the Savior to individuals. Those who have been initiated cannot help but see the association of these ideas as they relate to temple concepts of antiquity.

D&C 130.10-11 – A White Stone

McConkie and Ostler^[19]Revelations of the Restoration, p. 1047-1048. provide the following:

Revelation 2.17 states: “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.” Those “who overcome by faith” (D&C 76:53) inherit the celestial kingdom. Such have received the “hidden manna” or the revealed knowledge of Christ and his gospel. To them will be given a white stone symbolizing their innocence and purity before God. On the white stone will be written “a new name,” which symbolically suggests that they are ready to enter into a new life on a higher stage of existence.

The custom observed by judges in ancient times in announcing their decision as to guilt or innocence was to give the accused either a white or black stone. The white stone meant they had been pardoned or found innocent. The black stone meant guilt and condemnation.^[20]Clarke, Clarke’s Commentary, 3:979. One commentator described the white stone as “the imperishable token of acquittal, like . . . the pebble used in contemporary courts of justice in rendering a favorable verdict.”^[21]Revelations of the Restoration, p. 1048; Alleman, New Testament Commentary, 687.

Tally sticks and white stones

Hugh Nibley^[22]The Prophetic Book of Mormon, Deseret Book, 1992, p. 20-22., in speaking of ancient tally sticks, had this to say:

We need not establish the antiquity of the tally-stick by working back through the records of the Middle Ages, for the institution is met fully developed in the earliest records of antiquity. This may be illustrated by the archaic feasting-tickets of the Greeks and Romans. Originally little rods, these tokens, which everyone had to present for admission to the great public feasts, took various forms and went by the name of tesserae. In the Roman usage, the guest who came into the banquet would be stopped by an official or servant and asked to show his token; this would be fitted against a like token kept at the house of the host, and if the two pieces matched perfectly the guest would be recognized as one who had entered into a contract of hospitium with the host and duly admitted to the feast. One is strongly reminded of the “white stone” that is borne by those who “eat of the hidden manna” in Revelation 2.17. The act of placing the two tokens side by side (on which Ezekiel is so insistent) gave the feasting-token among the Greeks its name of symbolon, meaning to place (or shoot) two things together. From it comes our word symbol. A symbolon is by definition something that has value only when placed beside something else to show just what is “symbolized.” It is simply a very ancient tally-stick—how ancient may be judged from the use of wooden divining-sticks at the prehistoric Italian shrine of Praeneste and the Greek Delphi.^[23]Nibley, “Sparsiones,” 537-38. The oldest known symbolon was the messenger staff given by Apollo to his missionary Abarus; Abarus used it as a feasting ticket and sign of … Continue reading The tribal rod, herald’s staff, or scepter is a glorified tally-stick that appears in its nature as an exact copy of God’s own staff and in the provision that it is only on earth as a temporary loan, to be taken back in due time into the hand of God, where it rightfully belongs.^[24]The Arrow, The Hunter, and the State, p. 333. Ezekiel, then, is talking sense when he speaks of the two sticks that become one. Not merely did the ancients have such sticks, but they used them specifically in the situation described by Ezekiel for a summoning and gathering of the nation and for the establishment of identity and the renewing of contracts.^[25]For a fascinating examination of this symbol and its relationship to the ancient world, see Ricks, Parry, and Nibley, The Ancient State: The Rulers and the Ruled, Deseret Book, 1991, under the … Continue reading

D&C 130.11 The new name is the key word

Many of the heroes in the text of Genesis receive new names. The name of God is a subject discussed throughout the narratives of Genesis and in Exodus chapters 3 and 6. There is significance in the name of God as it is seen in the construction of the verb to be in the Hebrew language (הָיָה), something we will demonstrate in greater detail in upcoming podcasts. A new name implies entrance into a new life—the one receiving it is to enter into a higher stage of existence.^[26]Dummelow, Commentary on the Bible, 1075. Ancient tradition holds that possession of the “white stone” (viewed as an amulet having magical powers) could, by use of the name written on it, “secure entrance into heaven.” One commentator noted that “the power of a secret name to open closed portals and to give the user supernatural powers was widespread.”^[27]Eiselen, et al., Abingdon Bible Commentary, 1374.

“In the ancient world, gemstones engraved with secret names were considered talismans of personal power.  The apostle Peter was thought of as a celestial gatekeeper in early Christianity because he held all the keys of the kingdom and, therefore, had the power to open or shut its gates (Matthew 16:18-19). Similarly, the white stone engraved with the correct word or name symbolizes one’s personal, private key that not only reveals things pertaining to a higher order of kingdoms but is also the key or ‘keyword’ that allows one to pass the gatekeeper at the portal and enter into the celestial kingdom.”^[28]Stephen E. Robinson, H. Dean Garrett, A Commentary on the Doctrine and Covenants, Deseret Book, 2001, Volume 4, p. 227.

D&C 130.14-15 – Joseph asks about the Second Coming of Jesus Christ

Note that these verses refer to a revelation Joseph received at some unknown time before Doctrine and Covenants 130 was received. According to Jesus in the New Testament, the time of his second coming was a secret kept from men, angels, and even from the mortal Son himself (Matthew 24:36; Mark 13:32). In 1831, the Lord repeated to Joseph Smith that no man knew the exact time of his coming (D&C 39:21), nor would any man know the time before it arrived (D&C 49:7). From this we may probably assume that Joseph’s prayers, “troubling” the Lord on this topic (v. 15), occurred sometime before March 1831, the date of Doctrine and Covenants 49, the revelation that finally settled the matter. At a later time, the Prophet Joseph Smith firmly stated that “Jesus Christ never did reveal to any man the precise time that he would come.”^[29]Cannon and Dahl, Encyclopedia of Joseph Smith’s Teachings, 625.

Nevertheless, although Joseph himself was unsure of how to understand the “eighty-five years” in verse 15, some others in the nineteenth-century Church rashly concluded that the Second Coming would occur by 1890,^[30]Jennifer Mackley also points this out in the historical record in her book Wilford Woodruff’s Witness. when Joseph would have turned eighty-five. However, Joseph Smith was martyred in Carthage at the age of thirty-eight. Therefore, since the condition in verse 15 was not met (that Joseph live to be eighty-five), neither could the conditional consequence be assumed to follow.^[31]Garrett and Robinson, Commentary, volume 4.

D&C 130.18 – Whatever principle of intelligence

Elder Smoot said:

The Prophet was true to his principles. He established schools and championed the cause of education… “His educational ideals passed over the threshold of time and strode down the halls of eternity. With a full appreciation of the knowledge that makes men and women capable and skillful in this life, he prized and taught others to prize, above all, the knowledge that maketh wise unto salvation. How to make a living here how to solve life’s everyday problems, was of course important; but how to grapple successfully with the mightier problems of the great hereafter, how to store up treasures in heaven and lay hold upon eternal life, was far more consequential. Education meant to him the leading out of all the latent potential powers of the individual, the training to perfection of every divine attribute in man, as the child of God and as a god himself, in embryo. He stood for the full and complete development of the soul, body and spirit combined-mental, physical, moral, and spiritual education-the education contemplated and inculcated by the Gospel of Jesus Christ.”^[32]Conference Report, October 1933, Afternoon Meeting 107.

D&C 130.22 The Father has a Body of Flesh and Bones

The crowning revelation of the New Testament is the Fatherhood of God. In every recorded instance in which Christ addressed the God of heaven, he called him “Father.” He used such expressions as “my Father,” “our Father,” and “the Father,” but it was always the “Father” that he addressed. With the restoration of the gospel through the Prophet Joseph Smith comes the knowledge that in so doing Christ was not simply using a pleasant metaphor as believed in historical Christianity but rather had in mind the plain and simple meaning of the word. Our testimony to all the world is that “Jesus Christ is the Son of God in the most literal sense,” said President Ezra Taft Benson. “The body in which He performed His mission in the flesh was sired by that same Holy Being we worship as God, our Eternal Father. Jesus was not the son of Joseph, nor was He begotten by the Holy Ghost. He is the Son of the Eternal Father!”^[33]Come unto Christ, 4. So it was that in every recorded instance in which the Father addressed the Savior in scripture, it was as “Son.” Again, through the restoration of the gospel, we have come to know that what was intended in his so doing is found in the plain and simple meaning of the word. Christ is the Son of God in the same sense that we are the sons of our fathers. As we obtained tangible bodies through the process of mortal birth, so did he; and as he suffered death through the separation of the body and the spirit, so will we; and as his body and spirit were inseparably united in the Resurrection, so it will be with us. Joseph Smith testified that “God himself was once as we are now, and is an exalted man, and sits enthroned in yonder heavens! That is the great secret. If the veil were rent today, and the great God who holds this world in its orbit, and who upholds all worlds and all things by his power, was to make himself visible,—I say, if you were to see him today, you would see him like a man in form— like yourselves in all the person, image, and very form as a man; for Adam was created in the very fashion, image and likeness of God, and received instruction from, and walked, talked and conversed with him, as one man talks and communes with another.”^[34]Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, 345.

D&C 130.23 – The Holy Ghost may descend upon man and not tarry with him

Man can neither predict nor program the Spirit of the Lord. To suggest that a sequence of deeds or performances will always result in an unusual outpouring of the Spirit, or to teach that spiritual gifts may be had through following a carefully constructed list of steps, may be misleading. The Lord knows best our spiritual capacity and is thus able to decide perfectly what measure of spiritual experience we should receive. Although he grants to the children of men according to their desires and their works, he does so “in his own time, and in his own way, and according to his own will” (D&C 88:68). We simply cannot force spiritual things. Further, we cannot restrain the Spirit from determining the times of his comings and goings. “The presentation or ‘gift’ of the Holy Ghost,” President Joseph F. Smith explained, “simply confers upon a man the right to receive at any time, when he is worthy of it and desires it, the power and light of truth of the Holy Ghost, although he may often be left to his own spirit and judgment,”^[35]Gospel Doctrine, 60-61. That is to say, the Holy Ghost “may be conferred upon men, and he may dwell with them for a while, or he may continue to dwell with them in accordance with their worthiness, and he may depart from them at his will.”^[36]Smith, Gospel Doctrine, 466.

D&C 131 – Instructions by Joseph Smith, given at Ramus, Illinois, May 1843

Historical Background

Six weeks after receiving Doctrine and Covenants 130 at Ramus, Illinois, Joseph Smith returned to that town on 16 May 1843.^[37]Garrett and Robinson, Commentary, volume 4. After visiting with others at the home of William Perkins, he stayed the night at the home of Benjamin F. Johnson, along with William Clayton, who was acting as Joseph’s scribe. The text of Doctrine and Covenants 131, like that of Doctrine and Covenants 130, was originally recorded in the personal diary of William Clayton, of which the present text represents selections.^[38]Garrett and Robinson, Commentary. See also: Smith, History of the Church, 5:391–93; see also Cook, Revelations of the Prophet Joseph Smith, 291–93; Ehat and … Continue reading Verses 1–4 were delivered to Benjamin and Melissa Johnson as they sat with the Prophet and William Clayton before retiring on Tuesday, 16 May 1843.^[39]The account in Smith, History of the Church, 5:391–92, as later edited by Willard Richards, makes it appear the Prophet was addressing Clayton in D&C 131:1–4, but the earlier and … Continue reading

On the following morning, 17 May 1843, Joseph Smith preached in Ramus on the first chapter of 2 Peter. Verses 5–6 of Doctrine and Covenants 131 are excerpted from Clayton’s account of that sermon. In the evening of the same day, Joseph attended a sermon by Samuel Prior, a Methodist minister who had been invited to preach in Ramus. At the close of Reverend Prior’s sermon, “Elder Smith, who had attended, arose and begged leave to differ from me in some few points of doctrine, and this he did mildly, politely, and affectingly; like one who was more desirous to disseminate truth and expose error, than to love the malicious triumph of debate over me. I was truly edified by his remarks, and felt less prejudiced against the Mormons than ever.”^[40]Times and Seasons 4 (15 May 1843): 198. The text of Doctrine and Covenants 131:7–8 was excerpted from the remarks Joseph made in responding to Mr. Prior.

The contents of Doctrine and Covenants 131 were first published in the Deseret News for 24 September 1856 and were included in the 1876 edition of the Doctrine and Covenants as edited by Orson Pratt at the direction of President Brigham Young. They were also included in Joseph Smith’s History of the Church (5:392–93), beginning in 1909.

D&C 131.1-4 – Three heavens or degrees

Eleven years earlier, the Lord had revealed to the Church in “The Vision,” now recorded as Doctrine and Covenants 76, that “heaven,” the dwelling place of the saved, consisted of three broad degrees of glory (the celestial, terrestrial, and telestial) and that of these three, the presence of the Father could only be enjoyed in the highest, or celestial, glory. Now the Lord reveals that the celestial glory itself is further divided into three degrees. It has been revealed that to enter into any degree of the celestial kingdom a person must be baptized into and keep the gospel covenant (2 Nephi 31:17).^[41]Smith, Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, 12. It has not yet been revealed to the Church what conditions or requirements distinguish the first and second degrees of glory within the celestial kingdom, and speculation on this matter is pointless.^[42]Garrett and Robinson, Commentary, volume 4.

D&C 131.5-6 – The More Sure Word of Prophecy

The words of the prophets are sure. If a prophet promised us in the Lord’s name that we were destined for exaltation in the celestial kingdom, that would surely be a cause for confidence and joy. The only way such a prophecy could be “more sure” would be to hear the promise from the Lord himself. According to the Prophet Joseph Smith, “after a person has faith in Christ, repents of his sins, and is baptized for the remission of his sins and receives the Holy Ghost, (by the laying on of hands), which is the first Comforter, then let him continue to humble himself, before God, hungering and thirsting after righteousness, and living by every word of God, and the Lord will soon say unto him, Son, thou shalt be exalted. When the Lord has thoroughly proved him, and finds that the man is determined to serve Him at all hazards, then the man will find his calling and his election made sure, then it will be his privilege to receive the other Comforter, which the Lord had promised the Saints, as is recorded in the testimony of St. John, in the 14th chapter, from the 12th to the 27th verses.”^[43]Garrett and Robinson. See also: Smith, History of the Church, 3:380; emphasis added.

Besides the terms “receiving the more sure word of prophecy” and “being sealed up unto eternal life,” which are both used in verse 5, at least one other term is used in the scriptures to describe those who have come to know their exaltation is guaranteed and who are therefore worthy “to receive the other Comforter.” The phrase “to have one’s calling and election made sure” also appears in the statement of the Prophet cited in the preceding paragraph.

Through the ordinances of the gospel and the promises spoken by those who perform them, all endowed Saints can have absolute faith that if they keep their covenants to the end of their lives, God—who cannot lie—will fulfill his part of the covenant and seal them up to exaltation. Until then, they walk by faith and will be exalted after faithfully observing their covenants throughout their lives. For most of the Saints, the fulfillment of God’s covenant promises will take place at the second coming of the Savior in the resurrection of the just. Some Saints, however, are privileged to receive the unconditional promise of exaltation from “the Lord’s own mouth”^[44]Smith, History of the Church, 3:380. while they are still in mortality. Joseph Smith stated publicly six months after receiving Doctrine and Covenants 131 that “to obtain a promise from God for myself that I shall have eternal life . . . is the more sure word of prophecy.”^[45]Dahl and Cannon, Encyclopedia of Joseph Smith’s Teachings, 368. These individuals, such as the brother of Jared (Ether 3:19), have faith no longer (in the usual sense), for after receiving such a guarantee from the Lord, they subsequently know of themselves, nothing doubting.^[46]Garrett and Robinson, Commentary, volume 4.

D&C 131.7-8 – No such thing as immaterial matter

For thousands of years, and certainly as early as the time of Plato in the West and Buddha in the East, religious teachers have divided the universe into two parts—the material world and the spiritual world. Many of these teachers have taught that the physical world was a trap in which spiritual elements had become mired. Others taught that the physical or material world was only illusory and actually had no real existence. But virtually all agreed that the material world had a beginning and would have an end, that there was an eternally unbridgeable gulf between the realms of spirit and matter, and that only spiritual realities were worthy of human concern.^[47]Garrett and Robinson, Commentary, volume 4.

Joseph Smith was one of the first religious leaders to deny the great gap between spirit and matter. Here he states the grand unifying principle that heals the great divide in the universe that had been created and taught by men for thousands of years: all things, including spirits, are made of matter. Just as matter can change form from matter to energy, so, apparently, matter can be refined and purified to the point where it is normally discernible only to bodies that have been similarly refined and purified. The universe is not composed of two mutually exclusive entities, matter and spirit, but of only one—matter in one or another stage of refinement. About a year before receiving Doctrine and Covenants 131, Joseph taught in Nauvoo: “The body is supposed to be organized matter, and the spirit, by many is thought to be immaterial, without substance. With this latter statement we should beg leave to differ, and state that spirit is a substance; that it is material, but that it is more pure, elastic and refined matter than the body; that it existed before the body, can exist in the body; and will exist separate from the body, when the body will be mouldering in the dust; and will in the resurrection, be again united with it.”^[48]Times and Seasons 3 (1 Apr. 1842): 745; see also Dahl and Cannon, Encyclopedia of Joseph Smith’s Teachings, 415. It is also important to remember that the unseen world is greater than that which we can now behold. The time will come when our spiritual eyes will be opened, and then a whole new aspect of our universe will become a reality to us.

D&C 132

A multitude of books on the subject of plural marriage and its practice in Church history have been written. The real problem, for faithful members of the Church and students of history, is to find the best ones. From my experience, there are several books that can help these individuals to understand what took place both in early Church history when Joseph Smith was alive, and later, as the practice of plural marriage developed and finally ended in the Utah period of Church history.

The slides that I refer to throughout this podcast can be seen here.

Some books that I would recommend are the following:

Samuel Morris Brown, In Heaven as it is on Earth: Joseph Smith and the Early Mormon Conquest of Death, Oxford University Press, 2012.^[49]Chapter 8, covering the patriarchal priesthood and the chain of belonging and kingdom building was probably my favorite of this book. This helps modern readers see what the early Saints were thinking … Continue reading

Brian and Laura Hales, Joseph Smith’s Polygamy: Toward a Better Understanding, Greg Kofford Books, 2015.^[50]I would recommend this to those that do not have the time or money to purchase all of Hales’ books. These authors have also written the following volumes:

Joseph Smith’s Polygamy, Volume 1: History, Greg Kofford Books, 2013.

Joseph Smith’s Polygamy, Volume 2: History, Greg Kofford Books. 2013.

Joseph Smith’s Polygamy, Volume 3: Theology, Greg Kofford Books. 2013.^[51]This book really digs into the motivations for the practice, diving into the theological reasons why Joseph may have seen these ideas, especially in relation to his understanding of the Old Testament.

Jennifer Ann Mackley, Wilford Woodruff’s Witness: The Development of Temple Doctrine, High Desert Publishing, 2014.

William Victor Smith, Textual Studies of the Doctrine and Covenants: The Plural Marriage Revelation, Greg Kofford Books, 2018.^[52]Smith really works to show the way the text became canonized, how it was viewed in early Church history, and he also tackles many of the difficult verses in the section, including the law of Sarah, … Continue reading

The Gospel Topics Essays are useful in working to gain an understanding of the early practice of plural marriage among the Saints. The essay “Plural Marriage in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints” is a great place to start for those learning about this for the first time.

The essay “Plural Marriage in Kirtland and Nauvoo” also examines the earliest practice of plural marriage, as evidence exists that suggest that Joseph Smith was receiving revelations about plural marriage as early as the Kirtland period (1831-1838) in Church history.^[53]Joseph and Emma arrive in Kirtland in February 1831, and leave on January 12, 1838.

I would also highly recommend the Hales’ website Joseph Smith’s Polygamy. It is well researched and in my opinion, represents a faithful approach to analyzing Joseph Smith’s polygamy through the voices of those that were there in that time. It avoids the sensational as it works to observe the more nuanced and complications of this aspect of Church history.

D&C 132 and its effect on the Church and our history

One author wrote:

Section 132 of the Doctrine and Covenants is perhaps Joseph Smith’s most historically influential revelation after the Book of Mormon. Its significance flows from its language of deification- tied closely to the notion of “sealing”- and its explicit promotion of polygamy. Though disclosure of the revelation was limited at first, the resulting rumors about it had a powerful effect on cognizant Church leaders and members in Nauvoo, Illinois. It would fracture Church leadership at the highest levels and set the stage for acts that both led to the assassination of Joseph Smith and elevated the Twelve Apostles to the summit of Church leadership. Beyond this, the plural marriage revelation, delivered on July 12, 1843, has had a profoundly important interpretive and textual history that reflects a complex internal structure with several interwoven themes.^[54]William Victor Smith, Textual Studies of the Doctrine and Covenants: The Plural Marriage Revelation, Greg Kofford Books, 2018, p. 1, emphasis added.

The Manuscript

The revelation was dictated by Joseph Smith to his private clerk, William Clayton, on the morning of July 12, 1843. The Prophet Joseph Smith met with his brother Hyrum William Clayton in the upper story office of the red brick store in Nauvoo. A discussion ensued concerning plural marriage and the difficulties the Prophet’s wife, Emma Smith, was having at that time in accepting and living the practice of plural marriage. Hyrum recommended that Joseph dictate the revelation, believing that if he gave it to Emma, she would accept it. Joseph was not sure it would be that easy, stating, “You do not know Emma as well as I do.”^[55]William Clayton affidavit, February, 16, 1874, as found in Smith, Textual Studies, p. 9.

Even though Joseph expressed doubts that Emma would receive it, Hyrum was still convinced that Emma would accept the principle, stating: “The doctrine is so plain, I can convince any reasonable man or woman of its truth, purity and heavenly origin.” Joseph dictated the revelation to his scribe, William Clayton. It was then carefully reviewed and copied. Hyrum took a copy to Emma, who read it and then gave Hyrum what he referred to as a “severe talking to.”^[56]Smith, History of the Church, 5:xxxii-xxxiii. Clayton reports the experience in this way:

Hyrum then took the revelation to read to Emma. Joseph remained with me in the office until Hyrum returned. When he came back, Joseph asked him how he had succeeded. Hyrum replied that he had never received a more severe talking to in his life, that Emma was very bitter and full of resentment and anger.

Joseph quietly remarked, “I told you, you did not know Emma as well as I did.” Joseph then put the Revelation in his pocket and they both left the office.^[57]William Clayton affidavit, Feb. 16, 1874.

The revelation is now section 132 in the Doctrine and Covenants. The original document penned by Clayton was destroyed either by Emma or by Joseph at Emma’s bidding.^[58]Andrew Jenson, “Plural Marriage,” Historical Record 6 (July 1887): 226. William Smith, on p. 15, writes, “The original Clayton manuscript of the revelation did not survive the disgust … Continue reading

The text as it now exists

Orson Pratt put the text into the verse form that now exists in the scriptures of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Pratt did this as they were presented in the 1876 edition of the Doctrine and Covenants. The text, though viewed as authoritative by believers since its initial delivery, was officially canonized in the October 1880 General Conference. It remains in this position as canonized scripture to this day.^[59]Smith, Textual Studies, p. 19-20.

The Main Question

The first question students ask me when we cover this section is, “Why was this practiced? What reasons exist for this practice?”

I must say that navigating this historical issue can be complicated, depending on the audience and the questions asked. The Lord seems to give the following reasons for this command as recorded by Joseph Smith:

1. To multiply and replenish the earth (The first five reasons are contained in the same verse).
2. To fulfill the promise.
3. For their exaltation.
4. That they may bear the souls of men.
5. That they may be glorified (D&C 132.63).
6. As a test for men and women (D&C 132.51).
7. To raise up seed, “for if I will, saith the Lord, raise up seed unto me, I will command my people; otherwise they shall hearken unto these things (monogamy).” (see Jacob 2.30. See also D&C 132.30-31, “wherein he glorifieth himself.”)

Plural Marriage Timeline

June 1829 – Joseph translates the book of Jacob in the Whitmer home in Fayette, New York.^[60]This fits with the Mosiah first translation timeline, especially as the text of the manuscript is in the Whitmer’s handwriting. Historically this is important because the Whitmer family doesn’t … Continue reading

1832-1835 – Joseph is married to Fanny Alger.^[61]The Gospel Topics essay “Plural Marriage in Kirtland and Nauvoo” gives the following information regarding this relationship: Fragmentary evidence suggests that Joseph Smith acted on the … Continue reading

1841– Louisa Beaman, the first Nauvoo plural wife of Joseph Smith

July 12, 1843 – D&C 132 is recorded. Hyrum takes the manuscript to Emma. This was a personal letter to Emma Smith in regards to her questions about the practice of plural marriage.

June 27, 1844 – Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum are killed at Carthage.^[62]Joseph and Hyrum are in Carthage answering charges relating to the destruction of the Nauvoo Expositor, a newspaper that ran a story of polygamy being practiced in Nauvoo. For this reason, many … Continue reading

1852– The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints publicly informs the world that some members are practicing plural marriage

1880’s – The U.S. Federal government confiscates properties of the Church.

1890 – President Wilford Woodruff declares an end to plural marriages with Official Declaration 1.

1890-1904– Some plural marriages continue to take place.^[63]The Gospel Topics Essay titled “Plural Marriage and Families in Early Utah” states, “After the Manifesto, monogamy was advocated in the Church both over the pulpit and through the … Continue reading The Temple Lot Case takes place.^[64]The Temple Lot Case (also known as the Temple Lot Suit and formally known as The Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, complainant, v. the Church of Christ at … Continue reading

1904– The Church issues the Second Manifesto. The Reed Smoot hearings.^[65]The Reed Smoot hearings, also called Smoot hearings or the Smoot Case, were a series of Congressional hearings on whether the United States Senate should seat U.S. Senator Reed Smoot, who was … Continue reading

What were the early Saints thinking?

1. The importance of following the prophet.

2. The end was near… raising up seed fit into this narrative.

3. Dynastic/Adoptive Ties – this was taught everywhere in the history.

4. The more wives and children, the more glory, exaltation (see #3).

At its core, polygamy asked the Saints to put their faith in the Restoration to the ultimate test.  Was Joseph really a prophet, or not? Did prophetic authority persist? Could God truly speak by divine, unmistakable revelation to each indi­vidual?

Not only must they abandon the false doctrines of the sectarians, but they must appear to renounce cherished principles of monogamy which were viewed as the well-spring of civilization.

Dynastic/Adoptive Ties – The Law of Adoption

Brigham Young spoke of this concept when he said:

I will show you a rule by which you may comprehend the exhaltation of the faithful. I will use myself as A figure, & say that I am ruling over 10 sons or subjects ownly & soon each one of them would have 10 men sealed to them & they would be ruler over them & that would make me ruler over 10 Presidents or Kings whereas I was ruler over 10 subjects ownly or in other words I ruled over one Kingdom but now I rule over 10. Then let each one get 10 more. Then I would be ruler over 100 Kingdoms & so on continued to all eternity & the more honor & glory that I could bestow upon my sons the more it would add to my exhaltations.^[66]Wilford Woodruff’s Journal 3:136.

At another time Brigham put it this way:

“I have gathered a number of families around me by the law of adoption and seal of the covenant according to the order of the priesthood,” he said, “and others have done likewise, it being the means of salvation left to bring us back to God.”

He then explained that adoption would not be necessary if the keys of the priesthood had been handed down from father to son through all generations because “all would have been legal heirs instead of being heirs according to the promise.” Adoption was the means of reconnecting the chain of the priesthood.^[67]Jennifer Ann Mackley, Wilford Woodruff’s Witness, The Development of Temple Doctrine, 116. See also: Wilford Woodruff’s Journal, 3:130, February 16, 1847). Mackley continues: In theory, the … Continue reading

Brigham simply said, “If you have a word of counsel for me I should be glad to receive it.”^[68]Brigham Young, The Journal of Brigham Young: Brigham Young’s Own Story in His Own Words, edited by Leland R. Nelson, Council Press, 1980, p. 209, February 23, 1847. In response, Joseph’s instruction was, “Tell the people to be humble and faithful, and be sure to keep the Spirit of the Lord and it will lead them right.”^[69]Ibid. Joseph explained that, even though the Saints were disorganized and in great confusion, if they would follow the Spirit they would “find themselves just as they were organized by our Father in Heaven before they came into the world.” Although Joseph then showed Brigham the pattern of organization in the beginning, Brigham could not describe it. Brigham did see when the priesthood had been taken from the earth and how all “must be joined together, so that there would be a perfect chain from Father Adam to his latest posterity.”^[70]Ibid.

Perhaps the dream served to remind Brigham Young, the apostles, and the Saints that God would continue to reveal the needed direction regarding the vital ordinances if they were willing to listen to the Spirit.^[71]Mackley, pages 116-118.

Later Wilford explained to the Saints that Joseph Smith came through the loins of ancient Joseph and, as his literal descendant, was heir to the priesthood keys by birthright. When Joseph Smith was adopted into the priesthood line, by virtue of his ordination to the Melchizedek Priesthood, by Peter, James, and John, he bridged the gap created between the dispensations when apostasy occurred and the priesthood was taken from the earth.^[72]Mackley, p. 105. See also: Wilford Woodruff’s Journal 6:553, June 18, 1870.

Conclusions regarding Plural Marriage

Current LDS Church leaders consistently re-affirm that the standing law on eternal marriage is that one man should be married to one woman. This position can be found clearly articulated in canonized scripture (see Jacob 2:27). The thought of the future practice of polygamy should not haunt current members. The Lord has always offered agency and a Plan of Happiness rather than of misery and coercion. Understanding that the past is often akin to visiting a foreign country can be challenging. Add to this that when teachers work to emphasize that the Lord was directing Joseph in this early time of the history of the Church, that this gives fundamentalist splinter groups ammunition to justify their position, or it may send the wrong message to the those hearing of these things for the first time. Many members of the Church have no cultural or religious foundation to prepare them to understand why plural marriage was apparently commanded during the early years of the church.

Members in pioneer Nauvoo shared many of the same struggles in relation to plural marriage that modern members carry. When Benjamin Johnson first heard of it, he recalled: “If a thunderbolt had fallen at my feet I could hardly have been more shocked or amazed.”^[73]Benjamin F. Johnson, My Life’s Review (Mesa, AZ: 21st Century Printing, 1992), 94–95.

Oftentimes, Latter-day Saints ask if this sacrifice will be required for exaltation. In response to a letter “received at the office of the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints” in 1912, Charles W. Penrose of the First Presidency wrote:

Question: Is plural or celestial marriage essential to a fulness of glory in the world to come?

Answer: Celestial marriage is essential to a fulness of glory in the world to come, as explained in the revelation concerning it; but it is not stated that plural marriage is thus essential. . . . These questions are answered, so that it may not be truthfully claimed that we avoid them.^[74]President Charles W. Penrose, Improvement Era, vol. 15, no. 11, September 1912, 1042.

Wilford Woodruff reported the following statement from Brigham Young:

“I spent the day in the council house… he attended the school of the prophets… Brother John Owen… speeches were made… Orson Pratt, Erastus Snow… Brigham Young stood up and said that there would be men saved in the Celestial Kingdom with one wife, with many wives, and with no wife at all.”^[75]Wilford Woodruff Journal, Feb. 12, 1870. One is left to wonder what to do with this statement in light of D&C 131.1-4. I leave this here for modern readers to decide for themselves how to … Continue reading

The sociological effects of plural marriage worked to draw a distinct dividing line between “gentile” and “Zion” American culture. As Douglas Parker has written, “The institution of polygamy was the best thing that ever happened to Mormonism, and polygamy’s suppression at the hands of the federal government was the next best…”^[76]Douglas H. Parker, “Victory in Defeat—Polygamy and the Mormon Legal Encounter with the Federal Government,” Cardozo Law Review 12:805 (1991): 808. The twin isolating factors of plural marriage and the geographic isolation of the Saints in Utah created a climate whereby the Saints would grow into a distinct and separate form of Christianity apart from the main splinter group, the RLDS Church, as well as the rest of the Christian denominations in America in the 19^th century. As one author put it, “We do not have to look far to see the fate of a religion without the twin isolators of plural marriage and geogra­phy: the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This break-off from the Utah “Brighamites” ini­tially shared most of the other distinctive LDS doctrines, including a belief in Joseph Smith’s prophetic call, the di­vine origin of the Book of Mormon, and a need for a resto­ration. Yet, today the RLDS Church—now “Communities of Christ”—has little to distinguish it theologically from mainline Protestantism. Theologically, they were steadily absorbed into the American “mainstream,” while the Utah Mormons have retained their separate theological identity, despite joining the American cultural mainstream.”^[77]Gregory L. Smtih, Polygamy, prophets, and prevarication, p. 52.

Whatever conclusions readers of this article and listeners of the podcast may take from this discussion, one thing I personally have found to be true in my life is this: Joseph Smith was the prophet of the Restoration. I have a witness that he was visited by the Father and Son in 1820 when only a 14 year-old boy. The Book of Mormon is inspired scripture. I have found from my searching of history that those in Nauvoo and in the period of the early Church joined the Church and lived the gospel in spite of plural marriage, not because of it. The written records that we have indicate this to be the truth. It was difficult. It came to an end. And as modern members of the Church in this age of information, we are left to listen to the witness of the Spirit direct us in how to navigate not only our history, but how to conduct ourselves in this ever-changing world. Perhaps one day those that had to live this practice will ask us how we were able to navigate these times just as they worked to “endure it well” in their times.

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