History of Joseph Smith, the Prophet and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Joseph F. Smith
some conversation was had concerning revelations and language. I received the following:
Revelation, given November, 1831.13
1. Behold and hearken, O ye Elders of my Church, who have assembled yourselves together, whose prayers I have heard, and whose hearts I know, and whose desires have come up before me.
2. Behold and lo, mine eyes are upon you, and the heavens and the earth are in mine hands, and the riches of eternity are mine to give.
3. Ye endeavored to believe that ye should secure the blessing which was offered unto you; but behold, verily I say unto you, there were fears in your hearts, and verily this is the reason that ye did not receive.
4. And now I, the Lord, give unto you a testimony of the truth of these commandments which are lying before you;
5. Your eyes have been upon my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., and his language you have known, and his imperfections you have known; and you have sought in your hearts knowledge that you might express beyond his language, this you also know;
6. Now, seek ye out of the Book of Commandments, even the least that is among them, and appoint him that is the most wise among you;
7. Or, if there be any among you that shall make one like unto it, then ye are justified in saying that ye do not know that they are true;
8. But if ye cannot make one like unto it, ye are under condemnation if ye do not bear record that they are true;
9. For ye know that there is no unrighteousness in them, and that which is righteous cometh down from above, from the Father of lights;
10. And again, verily, I say unto you, that it is your privilege, and a promise I give unto you that have been ordained unto this ministry, that inasmuch as you strip yourselves from jealousies and fears, and humble yourselves before me, for ye are not sufficiently humble, the veil shall be rent, and you shall see me and know that I am; not with the carnal, neither natural mind, but with the spiritual;
11. For no man has seen God at any time in the flesh, except quickened by the Spirit of God.
12. Neither can any natural man abide the presence of God; neither after the carnal mind;
13. Ye are not able to abide the presence of God now, neither the ministering of angels; wherefore continue in patience until ye are perfected.
14. Let not your minds turn back, and when ye are worthy, in mine own due time, ye shall see and know that which was conferred upon you by the hands of my servant Joseph Smith, Jun. Amen.
The Folly of William E. M'Lellin.
After the foregoing was received, William E. M'Lellin, as the wisest man, in his own estimation, having more learning than sense, endeavored to write a commandment like unto one of the least of the Lord's, but failed; it was an awful responsibility to write in the name of the Lord. The Elders and all present that witnessed this vain attempt of a man to imitate the language of Jesus Christ, renewed their faith in the fullness of the Gospel, and in the truth of the commandments and revelations which the Lord had given to the Church through my instrumentality; and the Elders signified a willingness to bear testimony of their truth to all the world. Accordingly I received the following:
The testimony of the witnesses to the book of the Lord's commandments, which He gave to His Church through Joseph Smith, Jun., who was appointed by the voice of the Church for this purpose; we therefore feel willing to bear testimony to all the world of mankind, to every creature upon the face of all the earth and upon the islands of the sea, that the Lord has borne record to our souls, through the Holy Ghost, shed forth upon us, that these commandments were given by inspiration of God, and are profitable for all men, and are verily true. We give this testimony unto the world, the Lord being our helper; and it is through the grace of God, the Father, and His Son, Jesus Christ, that we are permitted to have this privilege of bearing this testimony unto the world, that the children of men may be profited thereby.14
As the following Elders—Orson Hyde, Luke Johnson, Lyman E. Johnson, and William E. M'Lellin—were desirous to know the mind of the Lord concerning themselves, I inquired, and received the following:
Revelation, given November, 1831.15
1. My servant, Orson Hyde, was called by his ordination to proclaim the everlasting Gospel, by the Spirit of the living God, from people to people, and from land to land, in the congregations of the wicked, in their synagogues, reasoning with, and expounding all Scriptures unto them.
2. And, behold, and lo, this is an ensample unto all those who were ordained unto this Priesthood, whose mission is appointed unto them to go forth;
3. And this is the ensample unto them, that they shall speak as they are moved upon by the Holy Ghost.
4. And whatsoever they shall speak when moved upon by the Holy Ghost, shall be scripture, shall be the will of the Lord, shall be the mind of the Lord, shall be the word of the Lord, shall be the voice of the Lord, and the power of God unto salvation;
5. Behold this is the promise of the Lord unto you, O ye my servants;
6. Wherefore, be of good cheer, and do not fear, for I the Lord am with you and will stand by you; and ye shall bear record of me, even Jesus Christ, that I am the Son of the living God, that I was, that I am, and that I am to come.
7. This is the word of the Lord unto you my servant, Orson Hyde, and also unto my servant Luke Johnson, and unto my servant Lyman Johnson, and unto my servant William E. M'Lellin, and unto all the faithful Elders of my Church.
8. Go ye into all the world, preach the Gospel to every creature, acting in the authority which I have given you, baptizing in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost;
9. And he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, and he that believeth not shall be damned;
10. And he that believeth shall be blest with signs following, even as it is written;
11. And unto you it shall be given to know the signs of the times, and the signs of the coming of the Son of Man;
12. And of as many as the Father shall bear record, to you shall be given power to seal them up unto eternal life. Amen.
13. And now concerning the items in addition to the covenants and commandments, they are these:
14. There remaineth hereafter, in the due time of the Lord, other Bishops to be set apart unto the Church, to minister even according to the first;
15. Wherefore they shall be High Priests who are worthy, and they shall be appointed by the First Presidency of the Melchisedek Priesthood, except they be literal descendants of Aaron,
16. And if they be literal descendants of Aaron, they have a legal right to the bishopric, if they are the firstborn among the sons of Aaron;
17. For the firstborn holds the right of presidency over this Priesthood, and the keys or authority of the same.
18. No man has a legal right to this office, to hold the keys of this Priesthood, except he be a literal descendant and the firstborn of Aaron.
19. But, as a high priest of the Melchisedek Priesthood has authority to officiate in all the lesser offices he may officiate in the office of Bishop when no literal descendant of Aaron can be found, provided he is called and set apart and ordained unto this power under the hands of the First Presidency of the Melchizedek Priesthood.
20. And literal descendants of Aaron, also, must be designated by this Presidency, and found worthy, and anointed, and ordained under the hands of this Presidency, otherwise they are not legally authorized to officiate in their Priesthood;
21. But by virtue of the decree concerning their right of the Priesthood descending from father to son, they may claim their anointing if at any time they can prove their lineage, or do ascertain it by revelation from the Lord under the hands of the above named Presidency.
22. And again, no Bishop or High