Gospel Doctrine Lesson 13 – “This Generation Shall Have My Words Through You”

These scriptures were all received through revelation from the Lord. The Book of Mormon, the Pearl of Great Price and the Joseph Smith Translation were all restored by the Lord through Joseph Smith. The Doctrine & Covenants were revelations given to Joseph Smith by the Lord that have become latter-day scripture.

The Book of Mormon

In 2 Nephi 3:11-15 we find another revelation regarding Joseph Smith.

2 Nephi 3:11-15 – 11       But a seer will I raise up out of the fruit of thy loins; and unto him will I give power to bring forth my word unto the seed of thy loins—and not to the bringing forth my word only, saith the Lord, but to the convincing them of my word, which shall have already gone forth among them.

12 Wherefore, the fruit of thy loins shall write; and the fruit of the loins of Judah shall write; and that which shall be written by the fruit of thy loins, and also that which shall be written by the fruit of the loins of Judah, shall grow together, unto the confounding of false doctrines and laying down of contentions, and establishing peace among the fruit of thy loins, and bringing them to the knowledge of their fathers in the latter days, and also to the knowledge of my covenants, saith the Lord.

13 And out of weakness he shall be made strong, in that day when my work shall commence among all my people, unto the restoring thee, O house of Israel, saith the Lord.

14 And thus prophesied Joseph, saying: Behold, that seer will the Lord bless; and they that seek to destroy him shall be confounded; for this promise, which I have obtained of the Lord, of the fruit of my loins, shall be fulfilled. Behold, I am sure of the fulfilling of this promise;

15 And his name shall be called after me; and it shall be after the name of his father. And he shall be like unto me; for the thing, which the Lord shall bring forth by his hand, by the power of the Lord shall bring my people unto salvation.

The seer mentioned in these scriptures is Joseph Smith and the writings in verse 12 are the Bible and the Book of Mormon.

• In what ways does the Book of Mormon help eliminate contention and establish peace?
• In what ways does the Book of Mormon bring people to a knowledge of the Lord’s covenants?
• What are some of your favorite passages from the Book of Mormon?

The Doctrine & Covenants

From 1823 to 1831, Joseph Smith received more than 60 revelations from the Lord. Not all members had access to these important communications from the Lord, so in 1831 the Church leaders decided to put those revelations into a book called the Book of Commandments. Oliver Cowdery and John Whitmer were given the task to take the revelations to Independence, Missouri, where they would be printed into books.

The two men reached Independence in January 1832 and in July 1833 the first 160 pages of the Book of Commandments were printed. On July 20^th of the same year, a mob destroyed the printing press used to print those pages and many of the pages that had been printed were also lost. Not all were destroyed, though, due to the faith and courage of two little girls.

Handout #1 – After moving with their mother to Independence, Missouri, in the fall of 1831, young sisters Mary Elizabeth and Caroline Rollins soon learned of the hardship and persecution the Saints faced there. One night an angry mob attacked their home; on another occasion, they witnessed an attack on the newly constructed printing office located on the upper floor of the William W. Phelps residence.

During the attack on the printing office, the mob forced the Phelps family from their home and threw their belongings into the street. Mobsters then went to work destroying the printing equipment upstairs and throwing unbound manuscripts from the building. Some brought out large sheets of paper and declared, “Here are the Mormon Commandments!”1 By this time, the Prophet Joseph Smith had received many sacred revelations, some as early as 1823, when the angel Moroni appeared to the boy prophet. Joseph had recorded numerous revelations in his own handwriting, but no text had been prepared and distributed for the benefit of members of the Church. With much excitement, the Saints in Missouri anticipated the publication of these revelations as a “Book of Commandments.” This work was under way at the printing office when the mob struck. Mary Elizabeth, then 15, described what happened:

 “My sister Caroline [age 13] and myself were in a corner of a fence watching them; when they spoke of the commandments I was determined to have some of them. Sister said if I went to get any of them she would go too, but said ‘they will kill us.’”

 While the mob was busy at one end of the house, the two girls ran and filled their arms with the precious sheets. The mob saw them and ordered the girls to stop. Mary Elizabeth recalled: “We ran as fast as we could. Two of them started after us. Seeing a gap in a fence, we entered into a large cornfield, laid the papers on the ground, and hid them with our persons. The corn was from five to six feet high, and very thick; they hunted around considerable, and came very near us but did not find us.”

 This courageous act by two young girls helped preserve the printed text of the Prophet Joseph’s early revelations, paving the way for the subsequent completion of the Book of Commandments, which later became the Doctrine and Covenants.

(Steven E. Snow, “Treasuring the Doctrine and Covenants,” Ensign, Jan 2009, 50–53)

               The pages that were rescued by those two brave little girls were made into books, but the limited amount made it so that there were still many in the church who did not have access to the Book of Commandments. In 1835, after 45 additional revelations were received and added to the book, the Doctrine and Covenants was officially published.

• What does the story of Mary Elizabeth and Caroline Rollins teach us about how we should value the revelations in the Doctrine & Covenants?
  • These young girls were ready to give their lives to preserve the words of the Lord. We all should place these revelations even over the value of our own lives.
  • How have you been blessed as you have studied the Doctrine and Covenants?
  • What are some of your favorite passages from the Doctrine and Covenants?

The Pearl of Great Price

The Pearl of Great Price lives up to its name. The book is only 61 pages long, but it includes information from the Council in Heaven before the earth was created, the restoration of the gospel, the Second Coming, the Millennium and eternal life. It also includes teachings about the Creation, the Fall of Adam, the Atonement and the agency of mankind.

The Pearl of Great Price consists of five parts:

1. Selections from the book of Moses – An extract from the book of Genesis of Joseph Smith’s translation of the Bible, which he began in June 1830.
2. 2.      The book of Abraham – An inspired translation of the writings of Abraham. Joseph Smith began the translation in 1835 after obtaining some Egyptian papyri. The translation was published serially in the Times and Seasons beginning March 1, 1842, at Nauvoo, Illinois.
3. Joseph Smith – Matthew – An extract from the testimony of Matthew in Joseph Smith’s translation of the Bible (see Doctrine and Covenants 45:60–61 for the divine injunction to begin the translation of the New Testament).
4. Joseph Smith – History – Excerpts from Joseph Smith’s official testimony and history, which he and his scribes prepared in 1838–1839 and which was published serially in the Times and Seasons in Nauvoo, Illinois, beginning on March 15, 1842.
5. The Articles of Faith – A statement by Joseph Smith published in the Times and Seasons March 1, 1842, in company with a short history of the Church that was popularly known as the Wentworth Letter.

(for more detailed information, please click here)

The Joseph Smith Translation of the Bible

The 8^th Article of Faith reads: We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly; we also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God.

• What is the significance of the phrase “as far as it is translated correctly”?
  • During the apostasy, the Lord withdrew the fullness of the gospel from the earth. After that time, parts of the Bible were changed and the complete truth was lost. The Bible still teaches many valuable lessons and is a sacred book of scripture. There are just parts of it that were taken out and changed by the will of man, thus making the Bible incomplete. The King James Version of the Bible is the most correct version out of the many versions that are available today.

After the restoration of the church, Joseph Smith was instructed to follow the inspiration given unto him by the Lord and make some corrections to the translation and interpretation in the King James Version of the Bible. This instruction is referenced in several places in the Book of Mormon. Over time, the corrections the prophet was instructed by the Lord to make became known as the Joseph Smith Translation of the Bible.

While we refer to this book as the Joseph Smith Translation, what Joseph Smith did does not fall under the traditional interpretation of what translation is. There was not a change from one language to another, rather from one understanding to another. The changes and reinterpretations were inspired and instructed by the Lord and were not done by the will and intention of Joseph Smith.

• In which book of scripture do we find excerpts from the Joseph Smith Translation?
  • The Pearl of Great Price
  • Which two excerpts are included in the Pearl of Great Price?
    • The book of Moses
    • Joseph Smith – Matthew
    • How do we know when a particular scripture has had part of it retranslated?
      • There is a JST next to a word in the scripture
    • While short bits of a Joseph Smith Translation are included in the footnotes, where do we find longer experts of the translations?
      • The appendix following the Bible Dictionary
    • Why is it important that we read the footnotes and excerpts in the Joseph Smith Translation?
      • The corrections clarify scriptural passages and help us gain a better understanding of what the Lord is trying to teach us

When Joseph Smith followed the Lord’s instructions to use inspiration to correct and clarify passages in the Bible, he brought about a doctrinal restoration.

Elder Bruce R. McConkie speaks of the importance of the doctrinal restoration and how we should not take it for granted.

Handout #2 – In that day of restoration the earthly Church and kingdom of God is to be set up among men. Apostles and prophets, holding priesthood and power and keys, are again to roam the earth teaching and testifying of the risen Lord. Gifts and miracles as of old are to be manifest. The blind will see, the deaf hear, and the spirits of men, having departed this life, will be called back to reanimate corpses that would otherwise rot away in graves dug by men.

All these things and ten thousand others are destined to be restored in this glorious age of restoration. All this is or should be well known among us. But these is something that underlies it all; something that is the bedrock upon which it is built; something without which none of these glorious things could occur; something that we either overlook or take for granted.

That something is the doctrinal restoration. It is the restoration of the principles of the gospel. It is the restoration of the truths of salvation. It is the restoration of that knowledge without which men could not have faith like the ancients and thus prepare themselves to receive and be participants in the other restored events of which we speak.

(Bruce R. McConkie, “The Doctrinal Restoration,” in The Joseph Smith Translation: The Restoration of Plain and Precious Truths, ed. Monte S. Nyman and Robert L. Millet (Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 1985), 1–22.)

Select scriptures from the list and discuss how the Joseph Smith Translation has clarified the passages and made them easier to understand.

Subject	Scriptures in the Bible	Scriptures Given through JS
Physical nature of the Godhead	Matthew 3:16–17;John 4:24; Acts 7:55	Joseph Smith—History 1:17; D&C 130:1, 22
Our creation in God’s image	Genesis 1:27	Moses 6:8–9
Apostles and prophets	Ephesians 2:20; 4:11–16	D&C 107:23, 33, 35, 39, 58; 112:30–32
Melchizedek Priesthood	Hebrews 6:20; 7:17	D&C 84:19–25; 107:1–8, 18–19
Aaronic Priesthood	Hebrews 7:11	D&C 13; 84:18, 26–27, 30; 107:1, 13–14, 20
Mode of baptism	Matthew 3:16	3 Nephi 11:22–26;Moroni 8:8–12; D&C 20:71–74
The gift of the Holy Ghost	Acts 8:17	D&C 20:41, 43; 35:6;121:46
Premortal existence	Jeremiah 1:4–5	D&C 93:29; Abraham 3:22–26
Baptism for the dead	1 Corinthians 15:29	D&C 128:16–18
Resurrection	Job 19:25–26; John 5:28–29;1 Corinthians 15:22	Alma 11:42–45
The three kingdoms of glory	1 Corinthians 15:40–42	D&C 76:50–112; 131:1
Eternal marriage	Genesis 2:24;1 Corinthians 11:11	D&C 131:1–4; 132:19
Our potential to become like Heavenly Father	Romans 8:17	D&C 88:107; 93:20;132:20–24

               I’m very thankful for Joseph Smith and for his willingness to follow the instructions and promptings of the Lord. I’m thankful to have the scriptures we have and to have the understanding and knowledge of the gospel and God’s plan for us. I’m thankful the Lord is doing everything He can to help us learn and grow and understand the things He would have us learn.