The following is the transcript of an article by Dan Jones, “The God to Worship!—Who is He?,” Zion’s Trumpet, or Star of the Saints (Welch: Udgorn Seion, Neu Seren y Saint) 7, no. 9 (March 4, 1854) in Zion’s Trumpet: 1854 Welsh Mormon Periodical, ed. Ronald D. Dennis (Provo, Utah: Religious Studies Center; Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2015), 133-40. It shows us that:
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Early Latter-day Saints who knew Joseph Smith
and/or Brigham Young did not believe Brigham was using “Adam” in a
multi-valent sense in his “Adam-God” sermons nor did they hold to Elden Watson's (nonsense) thesis about Adam-God.
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Joseph Smith’s identification of the “Ancient of Days” in Dan 7 with Adam/Michael was one of, if not the, main reasons
why Dan Jones et al., believed in a form of the “Adam-God” doctrine.
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This article, written and published in Wales in
1854, shows how far and wide the “traditional” Adam-God understanding was disseminated.
Despite much pondering, yet, we cannot comprehend any right
higher than the right of the father who begets his children; he owns them, if he
has not forfeited that right by transgression; thus we know of no right or
priesthood higher than the Patriarchal right while they believe according to,
and subject to their own Patriarchs, and so on and so on. And what do we have
at the beginning of the human race? We have Adam as its chief patriarch of this
creation; he is the first, the oldest in days, and because of that, he
is called the “ANCIENT OF DAYS,” in the scriptures. He received the great first
commandment to begin to multiply and replenish the earth with his descendants;
and not only that, but also to subdue it and rule over it. How could he rule
without being a Lord? There was no way he could. It was his Father
who gave him this lofty and eternal right; for he did not tell him to rule
until death, rather the commandment is endless. But, one may say, he lost his
right through transgression Concerning his transgression there is more work to
defend the character of our first patriarch from the false accusations of his
corrupt children, than we can do here; for it will be our pleasure to yet do
that. At least let the verdict on him be postponed until he can have a fair
trial before the court of the truth. But if he forfeited his right, was justice
served? And what justice could there be, except he alter the consequences and
effect a restoration? If so, Adam was placed by his Father to be a Leader, a
head Lord over the earth and all its inhabitants. Although it is consistent
with the above, one may say, and his patriarchal right was just, it was
necessary for him to be the father of our spirits, besides being the father of
our bodies! All his descendants readily acknowledge that we are all “children
of Adam;” but they say that God is the father of our spirits! How can
contradictions such as these be reconciled? Well, if we examine this carefully,
perhaps the supposed contradictions can be resolved. What if we were to try
this: Who is that God whom we call the father of our spirits? We answer, that
the God is yet to judge us in the coming days. Paul say that the Father of our
Lord Jesus Christ is he, 1 Cor. xv, 24-28,—“Then cometh the end, when he shall
have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put
down all rule, and all authority and power. For he must reign till he hath put
all enemies under his feet. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.
For he hath put all things under his feet. But when he saith all things are put
under him, it is obvious that he, who did put all things under him, is excepted.
And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself
be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all
in all.” We see that Jesus Christ will carry the work of the Father along,
as it suited every eldest son to do for his father, until he accomplishes that
which his Father gave him to do; here we see that he must reign on this earth,
until he puts his enemies under his feet. He will be the king of kings, when
all the kingdoms of the earth will belong to our Lord and his Christ. Every
tongue will confess him, and every knee will bow. Yet all this will not show
that he will be the chief Governing “Lord” of this world, rather another
according to the first covenant.
After the Son has accomplished all the work that was given
him, then he will give himself, and all that he accomplished up to God and the
Father, namely his Father and our Father, he is the same person that will be
called God above. By presenting his dispensation up to Him, the Son will
acknowledge sublime right to all of it. “The Son himself will also be subdued,”
to this Father God, notice; and thus “God will be all IN all.”
In other words, the fullness of Godhood, namely, omniscience, omnipotence, the
fullness of truth and the perfection of love, in every one of the numerous
throng in the kingdom; and at that time they will have all these attributes,
that are called “Godhood,” or God in them all and all of them in Him;
namely this omnipresent God. It is seen from the revelation of John, that it is
this God that will be on the judgment seat, when all the dead will be brought
before him. Rev. xx, 11-15,—“And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat
on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away: and there was found
no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and
the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life:
and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books,
according to their works. And the saw gave up the dead which were in it; and
death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged
every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake
of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the
book of life, was cast into the lake of fire.” Let us compare this with that which
Daniel says in chapter vii, 9, 10, 13, 14, —“I beheld till the thrones were
cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit: whose garment was white as snow,
and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery
flame and his wheels as burning fire. A fiery stream issued and came forth from
before him: a thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times
ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened.
I saw in the night visions, and behold, one like the Son of man came with the
clouds of heaven; and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near
before him. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that
all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an
everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which
shall be destroyed.”
The same glorious person called God by John, “God the Father”
by the Son according to the foregoing quotation, is there called the “Ancient
of Days>” The great work that he will do, that of judging the world, proves
that the same time period is referred to by the one and the other, also, the
fact that there will be but “one judgment day,” proves that the judge will be
the same although he is called “God the Father,” by the one, and “the ancient
of days” by the other. Also this kind of subjection of the Son to the “Ancient
of days,” according to the vision of Daniel, which his, according to Paul,
to “God and his Father,” proves that the two were referring to the same person.
God is also identified in the two visions by the similarity of “government” and
the lifting up the Son received. The two thrones coincide with respect to their
fiery nature—the large number of those present and the remarkable nature of the
characters that are judged, namely the “beasts” as they are called; besides the
singularity of the “judgment days,” the victory that is assured, and the
eternal enjoyment of the kingdom by its worthy heirs; all, prove that it is the
same period that is referred to; and thus that it is the same person who will
fill the same glorious throne in judgment, although under two different names.
But lest any doubt lingers, about whether the “Ancient of Days” and the God
whom Jesus Christ calls “Father” are the same, let us take note of the saying
of the angel Gabriel to Mary, His mother, in Luke I, 32, 33, —“He shall be
great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God shall give
unto him the throne of his father David. And he shall reign over the house of
Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.” Here is the
testimony of the second greatest angel in heaven, to prove that the “Highest”
crowned his Son Jesus with the eternal kingdom, and with an endless reign; and we
received the testimony of Daniel, which he received, most likely from the same Gabriel,
who was with him several times, which proves that it was the “Ancient of Days”
who gave the same “reign” to him; and thus, more than likely, the “Ancient of
Days” was simply another name for the “Highest,” his “Father,” &c. After
using scriptural fact from God in heaven, one sees the consistency of the conception
of his body by the same Father in the womb of the Virgin. Since Jesus is
considered our brother, does that close relationship obligate him to be born
of the same Father as we; although that Father can be both God and man;
both God and man at the conception of either one? If our statement, that the “Highest,”
relating to this world; namely, the Father of Jesus Christ is the Father of our
spirits, is true, —if we have proved that he and the ”Ancient of Days” are the
same, then the “Ancient of Days” is the Father of all our spirits. Lest we have
not provide sufficient and clear proof that he who is called the “Ancient of
days” and he who is called “Adam” are the same person, let us add that it was
revealed to Joseph the Seer; if so, we who is the original Father of our
earthly bodies, is the same as he who was the father of our spirits; thus, he
is our spiritual and corporeal Father; and our “elder brother” will be the fair
and gracious judge of us all, in the day to come. Is that not more consistent
than the popular idea that the one is the Father of our spirits, and the other
is our original earthly father? Also, if it is thus, we ask which of the two
will be our Father, if we have the privilege of having part of the “glory of
the sons of God,” namely the “resurrection of the body?” or, will our two
fathers claim us as children for each of them? or is it supposed that not all
the sons of God will have their father, as it is acknowledged by the ”eldest
Son?”
Perhaps some will be frightened by a doctrine that appears
so new and strange as is our subject to many; nevertheless, we cannot retreat
from the inevitable conclusions of the truths seen in the scriptures; and we
cannot comprehend what objection any man has concerning the one who is considered
sufficiently good to be our earthly father, to his also being the father of our
spirits, while he is God in the heavens, —or why he is not just as suitable as
a patriarch, or a God, as he is for one of the two previous relationships.
Furthermore, concerning this statement let us reason as follows:--namely, since
not one of the children of Adam is considered to be in a condition of perfect salvation,
until their bodies are resurrected in an undefiled state, and are “a perfect
man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ;” how could the
Father of our spirits complete our salvation, without becoming the father of
our earthly bodies? Is it because so much is said from the pulpits about the “transgression
of Adam,” that he is considered unworthy of the lofty sphere that we are trying
to show is his lawful right? But let us remember that he is no more guilty of
all the accusations that are brought against him than we are, nor,
consequently, accountable to their court. If the character of Adam deteriorates
as much in the coming six thousand years, as it was made to do in the past, we
do not know how his children of godly image will have a place sufficiently
painful to be punished: it is far worse now than it was in the time of Paul,
for he said that it was “not Adam who sinned, rather the woman.” And he has
not, as far as we know, been proved guilty of an intentional sin, before any
just court, although perhaps he loved his wife a bit too much, unintentionally;
but more on this later. If this God was sufficiently good to be an object of
worship by Jesus Christ, why is he not sufficiently worthy of the truth of all
his children? Yet, it is not his person that is in question, rather his Godhood,
as we have already mentioned; while he is in complete unity with his Father.
Although there are “lords many” why is he not the chief Lord of his own
family in this world? and since “we have but one God,” why is that one not he?
Since all the sons of God expect to attain this “lofty objective;” and since it
is Adam who has the patriarchal reign, through his begetting us, and since his
God will place him to “reign” on this earth forever, why has he not gained back
Godhood, before all the rest of them? Although millions of his race have come
in the same way, they are no more independent from him, than he is from the
great Elohim. Before the will of God can be done on the earth, as it is
done in heaven, as Christ prayed, all families must be in perfect obedience to
their Patriarch, according to the plan of heaven, with the father of us all as
chief almighty patriarch over all, with no one in opposition. If so, there
would be no need for any changes except for the perfection of the
members to make earth a heaven, —and the human race a godly race with respect
to principle. As long as he is obedient to his God, having his essential right
to preside over them, together with those who have chosen him as their father;
there is nothing but his own transgression that will deprive him from that, and
they are responsible to him, according to the plan of God for all they do.
Joseph the Seer informs us that the “Ancient of Days,” “Michael,”
and “Adam,” are but different names pertaining to the same person, about whose
greatness and glory the scriptures say so much; another time he is called “Michael
the GREAT prince,” and Gabriel called him, “Michael YOUR prince.” The latter’s
supremacy over Gabriel, who is Noah, is proved, although he is the leader of
the postdiluvian world, as was the other of the antediluvian world, by freeing
him on his way from the clutches of a mighty angel, “the princes of Persia,”
who kept him prisoner, it appears for “one and twenty days.” This Michael was
our Leader in the early council, —Lucifer fought against him, and He and his
armies cast him out of heaven: he will bind him with a “great chain,” and will
drive him and the ”beasts” who worship him, to the “second death.” If Michael
was not the father of our spirits in that war, who was their father, and why is
he not mentioned, or why did he not support his obedient children against the
oppression of the traitor? We learn through revelations that the Father asked
the spirits in the early council, who would go to give his life for his
brethren? His eldest Son responded, “Here am I, send me.” His second son said, “send
me.” I shall send the first, said the Father, and the second son was angry, and
“at that time he began to be Satan.” According to this, the two brothers were
Jesus and Lucifer, sons of the same father, —who was that? If we have proved
that the “Ancient of Days,” whom Jesus called “Father,” is the same as he who
is called Michael, then Jesus acknowledges that Michael was his Father; if he
is his father, and Jesus is our brother, why is this Michael not the Father and
the God of all spirits, yes, the father of Lucifer also? Is it strange,
then, that he would be a suitable judge of the one, and the God of the others
who obey him? If he is the God of the spirits, why is he not a suitable God for
them while they are men?
It is worthy of emulation instead of condemnation, if all
the works of our “Chief-covenanter” for his family, whom he represented, are
properly considered: his first concern for them was seen in begetting bodies
for them, without which they would never be able to become Gods, like him;
next, he taught them the way of salvation, by words and example; he gave them
the Priesthood, which enabled those of them who wished, like Enoch, to “WALK
WITH GOD three hundred years.” Although that God is not named, yet it is known
that Enoch was contemporary with Adam! He not only showed his great concern for
the objects of his “RULE” while he was in the world of the spirits, and on the
earth with them; but after his departure his concern was not less, if he is
Michael: frequently he sent dispensations following the destruction of the
previous ones by the rebellious children, —salvation, present benefit, and eternal
glory of his children was his objective in it all. Over the past thousands of
years he sent one messenger after the other, —his stalwarts and his valiant
ones in the early campaign, such as Abraham, Mises, Elijah, and all the
prophets, with terms of peace. And in the predetermined time, he sent his
beloved Son, —the Lamb that was killed (as promised) since before the
foundation of the world, to save his younger brothers and sisters, —his life as
a sacrifice he gave at the request of his Father, who was “well pleased” with
him. He had sent his servants and the same terms of peace as before, only to
meet with the same harsh treatment as their predecessors, and from those whom
they sought to benefit the most. Last of all to our midst, for whom the end of
the world has already come, he sent his servant Joseph and Hyrum, and other
hosts of stalwarts, as he did earlier, with the restoration of the same terms
of eternal peace, —“the dispensation of the fullness of times,” —the “eternal
gospel,” through which life and purity are brought to light. Proclaiming the gracious
message cost them their lives, and, like practically all before them, they
willingly sealed their truth with their blood. What else would a Father do for
the salvation of his children, besides what He did? Then will his justice shine
gloriously, in the condemnation of the rebellious and the heedless of such
fatherly concerns on their behalf; and thus, his graciousness will be magnified
in the saving of his followers to bliss and eternal life.
O! the remarkable wisdom shown in the organization of such a
glorious plan, through which an endless succession of the children of Adam can
become fathers—patriarchs—GODS!—all, completely independent in their
sphere, —all, in unity and peace, —all, Kings and all subjects, reigning in
glory and perfect happiness forever!
Dear reader, rejoice together with the author in such a
privilege—let us rejoice in every obedience to our lawful ruler so that we will
be received into His glory, when he comes on his fiery throne to judge the
living and the dead, according to the testimony of this gospel.