Part 16

In modern revelation the Lord has said to the Prophet Joseph Smith, "And the Lord appeared unto them, and they rose up and blessed Adam, and called him Michael, the prince, the archangel." (Doctrine and Covenants, Sec. 107, verse 54.) In connection with the coming of Michael in the last days, Daniel says: "And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt." (Daniel xii:2.)

In Paul's address before Felix he refers to the resurrection in the following language: "And have hope toward God, which they themselves also allow, that there shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust." (Acts xxiv:15.) Again "Him God raised up the third day and showed Him openly; not to all the people, but unto witnesses chosen before of God, even to us, who did eat and drink with Him after He rose from the dead. And He commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is He which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead." This was the testimony of the chief apostle, Peter, when the Gospel was first delivered to the Gentiles.

It is evident that the burden of the teachings and testimonies of the apostles was to establish the divinity of the mission of the Lord Jesus Christ. This necessarily included His atonement and resurrection. The fall of our first parents brought not only a banishment from the presence of the Lord, which may be termed a spiritual death, but it caused the death of the physical body. When an atonement was wrought out as a redemption from that fall, it would be incomplete unless it brought to pass immortality and eternal life to the body.

"The spirit and the body is the soul of man." The body is resurrected from the grave, independent of whether the individual in this life was good or bad, as shown by the declarations of Scripture. "For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." (I. Cor. xv:22.) Paul describes in a very definite way the different degrees of glory in the resurrection, which vindicates the justice of God in rewarding every man according to his works, and establishing the free agency of man by holding him personally accountable for every act of his life. "There are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial; but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another. There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for one star differeth from another star in glory. So also is the resurrection of the dead." (I. Cor. xv:40-42.) Jesus said to the apostles: "In my Father's house are many mansions: If it were not so I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you * * * that where I am there ye may be also." (St. John xiv:2, 3.) These assertions all agree that there has been a resurrection (so far as they refer to the resurrection of Jesus and those who came forth from their graves at the same time) and that there will yet be two more resurrections, one of the just, one of the unjust. The only reasonable conclusion to be reached by reading these testimonies is, that the resurrection will be an actual reunion of the spirit and the body.

If in the mind of the reader anything seems to be deficient in the conclusions from the statements quoted, certainly the account of the resurrection from the inspired writings of Ezekiel should dispel every doubt. The entire thirty-seventh chapter of Ezekiel should be read. In this vision of the prophet he saw the resurrection of the house of Israel, so real in its nature that bone came to bone, sinew to sinew; flesh and skin covered the frame, and the spirit entered the body of each. Thus a complete resurrection of the bodies was wrought out. Ezekiel says, after the Lord commanded, "So I prophesied as I was commanded; and as I prophesied there was a noise, and behold, a shaking, and the bones came together, bone to his bone. And when I beheld, lo, the sinews and the flesh came up upon them, and the skin covered them above; but there was no breath in them. * * * Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live. * * * And they lived and stood up upon their feet, an exceeding great army." (Ezek. xxxvii:7-10.) That this is to be an actual resurrection of the bodies of the dead is made plain by the twelfth and thirteenth verses: "Thus saith the Lord God: Behold, O my people, I will open your graves and cause you to come up out of your graves and bring you into the land of Israel. And ye shall know that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves." * * * "Moreover, I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them: and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them forevermore. My tabernacle also shall be with them; yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people." (Verses 26, 27. ) Thus there shall be a real, actual resurrection of the body, a complete reunion of the spirit with the body.

After the resurrection, those whose bodies and spirits are thereby reunited will join their living brethren, receive revelation from God, including the everlasting covenant, be gathered to their own lands, and continue to multiply and increase, with the sanctuary of God in their midst, and with His divine approval forevermore.

How beautiful, how joyous to contemplate, and how real and tangible is this, as contrasted with the poor, rambling, uncertain theories of uninspired men, who are controlled by the systems of men rather than guided by that "more sure word of prophecy," the revelations of God.

To the Latter-day Saints the doctrine of the resurrection is a living, tangible reality because, added to the testimonies of the Jewish Scriptures, the Old and the New Testaments, and the Book of Mormon, which corroborates the Bible, they have the testimony of men in this century, who have seen the living bodies of resurrected beings. Joseph Smith was a man of unblemished character. His veracity was never impeached. His honor in religion, in morality and business transactions, attested by friend and foe, were unsullied to the end of his mortal career, when he sealed his testimony with his innocent blood. His testimony is that he saw God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ, the latter on several occasions. Joseph also had a visitation from John the Baptist, Peter, James, John, Moses, Elijah, Moroni and other ancient prophets of God who lived on the Eastern or Western hemispheres. He was not alone in being a witness to the existence of resurrected beings. Others in modern times also have seen these, and have published their testimonies to the world. Those who have received the witness of the Holy Ghost, and who also know that there is a resurrection and that the words of the Savior and the prophets are true and faithful, are numbered by the thousands.

This is my testimony on the subject: I testify in the name of the resurrected Redeemer that God has spoken from the heavens in this age of the world; that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, the Redeemer of the world; that Joseph Smith was a prophet of the Most High, and received the revelations of God for the benefit of mankind; that angels and ancient prophets visited him and delivered to him the keys of the "dispensation of the fullness of times;" that Brigham Young, John Taylor, Wilford Woodruff, Lorenzo Snow, each in his time, has been the successor of the prophet Joseph Smith, and that Joseph F. Smith is now such successor. I also testify that all who receive this Gospel with honest hearts shall know that the doctrine is true, and if they are faithful unto death shall come forth in the resurrection of the righteous, to live and reign with Christ a thousand years. Those who reject this message, and who fight against the truth and persecute the advocates thereof will, unless they repent, die in their sins, and will remain unredeemed, their bodies in the earth, their spirits in bondage, until the thousand years are finished, when death, hell and the grave shall deliver up their dead to stand before God, living, resurrected beings, to receive the reward of their deeds, whether they be evil or whether they be good.

THE BOOK OF MORMON.

It is not the purpose in this brief chapter to enter into a detailed argument on the divine authenticity of the Book of Mormon, but to state sufficiently what the sacred record purports to be. The Bible records some of the leading events in the dealings of the Almighty with His children upon the Eastern hemisphere, prefaced by the Mosaic history of the creation. The Book of Mormon is to the American continent what the Bible is to the Eastern. The Bible is more especially the stick of Judah, being written by Jewish prophets and apostles. Of the ten tribes carried into the North countries and lost from the world, the Bible gives no account, beyond brief statements which go to prove that they were lost to the rest of mankind.

Of the various colonies "scattered from the tower of Babel" upon all the face of the earth, according to Genesis, chapter xi., the Bible offers no information. Of the branches of Joseph which ran over the boundary walls of the other tribes of Jacob, extending to the utmost bounds of the everlasting hills, the Jewish record is silent.

What became of them? Whither did they flee, and are they lost to God? Are they less His offspring because they went to people other lands? From the time the ten tribes were carried away, no communication has been established between them and the Gentile nations, and not until the discovery of America by Columbus was there any correspondence between the aborigines of America and the countries of Europe and the East. Because these were lost to Jew and Gentile, is it reasonable to suppose they were lost also to Him who is the Father of the spirits of all flesh, and who made of one blood all nations to dwell upon all the face of the earth? Reason, mercy, justice and the Bible all deny that these should not have revelations from God and write them as well as did the Jews. Jesus Himself most emphatically declared, "There is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed, neither hid, that shall not be known." (Luke xii:2.) The Book of Mormon reveals the fact that from the Tower of Babel came a colony of people to the Western continent. They were led by a prophet to whom God spake and His words were written. They became a mighty nation on this land, having prophets and inspired men to lead them. Finally, like the Jews, they fell into apostasy and through war and bloodshed became extinct as a nation. The Book of Mormon gives a brief review of their rise, progress and fall. It also records the fact that in the days of Jeremiah, two colonies came from Jerusalem to America, years before Christ. It gives a history of God's dealings with them until four hundred years after Christ, covering a period of one thousand years.

From the Book of Mormon we also have light thrown upon sayings of the Savior, recorded in the New Testament. He said to the Twelve, "Other sheep I have which are not of this fold. Them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold and one shepherd." (St. John x:16.) Who can tell us where those other sheep were and when the Savior visited them? He said they should hear His voice. The Book of Mormon gives the history of this visit to the descendants of Jacob upon this land. He organized His church among them, with apostles, prophets, etc., "one fold and one shepherd." This occurred subsequent to His resurrection. While teaching His disciples on this land, He told them of this statement to the Jewish apostles, that He had other sheep to visit; and to the apostles chosen upon this land He said, "I have other sheep which are not of this land; neither of the land of Jerusalem; neither in any parts of that land round about, whither I have been to minister. For they of whom I speak are they who have not as yet heard my voice; neither have I at any time manifested myself unto them. But I have received a commandment of the Father that I shall go unto them, and that they shall hear my voice and shall be numbered among my sheep, that there may be one fold and one shepherd; Therefore I go to show myself unto them." (III. Nephi, chapter xvi:1-3.)

These sayings of our Savior afford the only present scriptural and reasonable interpretation of the parable in Matthew, thirteenth chapter: "The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened." The leaven must be a symbol of the Gospel, as its effects upon the meal to lighten and prepare it for use are like the effects of the Gospel of Christ upon the hearts of those who obey the same, viz., to refine and purify that men may be prepared for the kingdom of the Father. The three measures of meal doubtless are representative of three divisions of the house of Israel. These were, according to the Book of Mormon, the Jews in Palestine, the seed of Joseph on the Western hemisphere, and the ten tribes in the North country. These all were visited by the Savior. They heard His voice and were taught of Him "one Lord, one faith, one baptism," that there might be "one fold and one shepherd." The Gospel going to the Gentiles could have no part in the fulfillment of the parable of the three measures of meal, because the Messiah never did visit the Gentiles, and He says of the other sheep, "they shall hear my voice." The only account of such an event given to mankind thus far is that recorded in the Book of Mormon. If that is not the true one, then we must look for one no less remarkable and no less in conflict with the spiritual bigotry and ignorance of the nineteenth century. That there should be a record kept by another branch of Israel than the Jewish tribe, is plainly set forth by Ezekiel in his thirty-seventh chapter, where the Lord commands the prophet to take "one stick" and write upon it for Judah and his brethren, and another stick and write upon it for Ephraim and his brethren, and then predicts that they shall become one in the hand of the Lord. The Book of Mormon claims to be the stick of Joseph, and it and the Bible have become one in the hand of the Lord in these last days. Each corroborates the other. They are one in doctrine, one in prophecy, one in history so far as they treat upon the same events. Each throws light upon the other, and yet bear the marks of having been written far apart by a different people, of different surroundings and education.

Isaiah speaks of a book (see Isa. xxix.) that should come forth. And "the vision of all is become unto you as the words of a book that is sealed, which men deliver to one that is learned, saying, read this, I pray thee: and he sayeth, I can not; for it is sealed: And the book is delivered to him that is not learned, saying, Read this, I pray thee: and he sayeth, I am not learned." This prophecy was verified as set out in a previous chapter. The book itself was delivered by an angel to the young man Joseph Smith, with the injunction that they should never be used to get gain, but for the salvation of mankind. Joseph, feeling his own weakness and knowing that he could not of himself translate them, acknowledged that he was not learned. He was told that he should translate them by the gift and power of God, which he did by the use of the Urim and Thummim, the instrument used by seers of old. Thus were the words of the prophet Isaiah verified.

No amount of credulity could make a reasonable mind believe that Joseph Smith, an unlettered, unsophisticated boy of twenty-two years, could prepare such a scheme, conniving with men of maturer years to aid him in the fraud, that the words of an ancient prophet, spoken 2,500 years before, should be literally fulfilled. The probability is that neither Joseph Smith, Martin Harris nor Prof. Anthon knew anything of the words of Isaiah relating to such a record. Prof. Anthon was not in sympathy with Joseph Smith and became an avowed opponent of the Book of Mormon. What he said in fulfillment of prophecy in this instance regarding the Book of Mormon may be said of all others, for many have been verified since it came forth--prophecies regarding it and predictions in the book itself.

The Psalmist David said that "Truth shall spring out of the earth and righteousness shall look down from heaven." The Book of Mormon was written upon metallic plates, and hidden in the earth 400 years after Christ. They literally came out of the earth, and righteousness in the personage of a holy angel came down from heaven and placed them in the hands of the Prophet Joseph Smith. Isaiah speaks of the ancient seers being covered, and that in the latter days their speech should be "low out of the dust." The Book of Mormon was written by seers upon the American continent. Through martyrdom they had been covered and their words lost to the apostate Lamanites for many generations. In the last days, however, their words came forth. They speak "out of the dust" and light shines upon the hidden mysteries of a whole continent, revealing a period of ten centuries.

Among the many prophecies in the Book of Mormon verified since its publication in 1829, is one found in II. Nephi, chapter 29, verse 3: "And because my words shall hiss forth, many of the Gentiles shall say, A Bible! A Bible! we have got a Bible and there cannot be any more Bible.

"But thus saith the Lord God: O fools, they shall have a Bible; and it shall proceed forth from the Jews, mine ancient covenant people. And what thank they the Jews for the Bible which they receive from them? Yea, what do the Gentiles mean? Do they remember the travels, and the labors, and the pains of the Jews, and their diligence unto me, in bringing forth salvation unto the Gentiles? O ye Gentiles, have ye remembered the Jews, mine ancient covenant people? Nay; but ye have cursed them, and have hated them, and have not sought to recover them. But behold, I will return all these things upon your own heads; for I the Lord have not forgotten my people. Thou fool, that shall say, A Bible, we have got a Bible, and we need no more Bible. Have ye obtained a Bible, save it were by the Jews?

"Know ye not that there are more nations than one? Know ye not that I, the Lord your God, have created all men, and that I remember those who are upon the isles of the sea; and that I rule in the heavens above, and in the earth beneath; and I bring forth my word unto the children of men, yea, even upon all the nations of the earth? Wherefore murmur ye, because that ye shall receive more of my word? Know ye not that the testimony of two nations is a witness unto you that I am God, that I remember one nation like unto another? Wherefore, I speak the same words unto one nation like unto another. And when the two nations shall run together, the testimony of the two nations shall run together also. And I do this that I may prove unto many, that I am the same yesterday, today, and forever; and that I speak forth my words according to mine own pleasure. And because that I have spoken one word, ye need not suppose that I cannot speak another; for my work is not yet finished; neither shall it be, until the end of man; neither from that time henceforth and forever.

"Wherefore, because that ye have a Bible, ye need not suppose that it contains all my words; neither need ye suppose that I have not caused more to be written: For I command all men, both in the East and in the West, and in the North, and in the South, and in the islands of the sea, that they shall write the words which I speak unto them; for out of the books which shall be written, I will judge the world, every man according to their works, according to that which is written.

"For behold, I shall speak unto the Jews, and they shall write it; and I shall also speak unto the Nephites, and they shall write it; and I shall also speak unto the other tribes of the house of Israel, which I have led away, and they shall write it; and I shall also speak unto all nations of the earth, and they shall write it. And it shall come to pass that the Jews shall have the words of the Nephites, and the Nephites shall have the words of the Jews; and the Nephites and the Jews shall have the words of the lost tribes of Israel; and the lost tribes of Israel shall have the words of the Nephites and the Jews. And it shall come to pass that my people which are of the house of Israel, shall be gathered home unto the lands of their possessions; and my word also shall be gathered in one. And I will shew unto them that fight against my word and against my people, who are of the house of Israel, that I am God, and that I covenanted with Abraham, that I would remember his seed forever."

It has been decreed by the Almighty, and spoken of by Book of Mormon prophets that slavery should not obtain and be perpetuated upon this land: "Behold, this is a choice land, and whatsoever nation shall possess it shall be free from bondage, and from captivity, and from all other nations under heaven, if they will but serve the God of the land, who is Jesus Christ, who hath been manifested by the things which we have written." (Ether ii:12.) This decree of the Almighty has determined the history of this country from the beginning, so far as internal slavery and freedom from bondage of other nations is concerned. If the skeptic shall say that the prophecy was published to the world long after the freedom of the American colonies and the independence of this government were attained, we call attention to the fact that slavery has been abolished in this land since then, and that no nation which has made war with the United States has ever succeeded, and never will, unless the inhabitants of this land shall become overwhelmed in iniquity and abominations.

Another striking prediction contained in the Book of Mormon is the following: "And this land shall be a land of liberty unto the Gentiles, and there shall be no kings upon the land, who shall raise up unto the Gentiles; and I will fortify this land against all other nations; and he that fighteth against Zion shall perish, saith God; For he that raiseth up a king against me shall perish, for I, the Lord, the king of heaven, will be their king, and I will be a light unto them forever, that hear my words." (II. Nephi x:11-14.) Gradually, yet with certain progress, has the government of kings been abolished from the American continent until nearly all governments in North and South America are republics. Canada is still under the rule of Great Britain, but is managed in such a manner that the liberties of the people are almost, if not quite equal to those of a republican territory. Those who know the history of the effort to make Maximilian a king in Mexico also know how terribly the words of the Book of Mormon have been verified: "For he that raiseth up a king unto me shall perish."

This continent is the land of Zion, "and he that fighteth against Zion shall perish, saith God." Before the late Spanish-American war, George Q. Cannon read these predictions from the Book of Mormon before a congregation in the Tabernacle, and with a knowledge that these prophecies were given of the Lord foretold the result of the war and the certain banishment of Spanish kingly power from the American isles. Other prophecies of the sacred volume have been verified since its publication to the world. Those verified should establish faith in reasonable minds that the unfulfilled parts will surely come to pass.