The
following are taken from Andrew Jenson, "Joseph Smith as a Prophet.
Predictions Uttered by Him and their Signal Fulfilment. His Prophetic Power
Established by the Scriptural Rule. A Lecture delivered by Elder Andrew Jenson
before the Students' Society in the Social Hall, Salt Lake City, Friday
Evening, January 16, 1891," reprinted in
Scrapbook of Mormon Literature, 1:92-118
TRIBULATIONS
PREDICTED.
In 1831
the Saints were commanded to gather to Jackson County, Mo., which was
designated as a land of inheritance for the Saints in the last days, and also
as the identical spot where they should build that great city, the New
Jerusalem, about which the ancient Prophets and Saints had sung, prayed and
rejoiced so much. Joseph Smith had just arrived in that goodly
land, together with a number of his brethren, when a revelation, containing
some very strange sayings was given on the 1st of August, 1831. The Lord said:
"Hearken,
O ye Elders of my Church, and give ear to my word, and learn of me what I will
concerning you, and also concerning this land unto which I have sent you. For
verily I say unto you, blessed is he that keepeth my commandments, whether in
life or in death; and he that is faithful in tribulation, the
reward of the same is greater in the kingdom of heaven. Ye cannot behold with
your natural eyes, for the present time, the design of your God concerning
these things which shall come hereafter, and the glory which shall follow
after much tribulation. For after much tribulation cometh the blessings.
Wherefore the day cometh that ye shall be crowned with much glory; the hour is
not yet, but is nigh at hand. Remember this, which I tell you before, that you
may lay it to heart, and receive that which shall follow." (Doc. and Cov.,
lviii: 1-5.)
Here is
an opportunity for sound reasoning. If Joseph Smith was an impostor, and if he
was trying to carry out a scheme with a view to benefit himself financially; or
if he was ambitious and seeking for vain glory or the honor of men, could
anything be more absurd than to predict troubles and difficulties, when none
such were immediately apparent.
If a
schemer was doing that which Joseph on that occasion was doing, namely,
planting a colony of his followers in one of the most desirable sections of
country within the borders of the United States, would he not have enlarged
upon the prospects ahead and predicted success and prosperity instead of
difficulties and tribulations? Most assuredly he would. But Joseph spoke as he
was directed by the Lord, and his own desires or ambition, if any such he
possessed, cut no figure in the matter.
And
now, to the fulfilment of the prophecy or revelation? No one who is acquainted
with the history of the Church will hesitate to testify that since that time
the Saints have indeed passed through much tribulation. In less than three
years after the revelation was given they were driven from their homes in
Jackson County. Three years after that they were forced to leave their
temporary possessions in Clay County, Mo., and still two years later, under the
exterminating order of Governor Lilburn W. Boggs, they were driven from the
State of Missouri. Seven years after their expulsion from that State, wicked
mobs, after first killing the Prophet and Patriarch in cold blood in Carthage
jail, drove the Saints from Nauvoo into the wilderness, which was full of
savage Indians; and even after coming to these mountains we have been subject
to wicked prosecutions and persecutions. If all this don't mean "much
tribulation," what does it mean?
In a
revelation given through Joseph Smith in Kirtland, Ohio, Sept. 11, 1831, the
following occurs:
"For
behold, I say unto you that Zion shall flourish, and the glory of the Lord
shall be upon her. And she shall be an ensign unto the people, and there shall
come to her out of every nation under heaven." (Doc. and Cov. 64: 41, 42.)
The
many different nationalities represented in this Territory today is conclusive
proof of the fulfilment of this remarkable prophecy, which was uttered at a
time when the Church consisted of only a few persecuted people, and the Elders
had only commenced preaching in a few of the States.
.
. .
CHOLERA PREDICTED.
In 1834 Joseph Smith marched from Ohio to Missouri, a
distance of about one thousand miles, as the leader of the illustrious body of
men known in Church history as Zion's Camp. On this long and wearisome journey,
some of the brethren indulged in a spirit of rebellion and fault-finding, which
was rebuked by the Prophet, first in a mild manner and finally very strongly,
as he told the brethren that the Lord had revealed to him that a scourge would
come upon the camp, in consequence of the fractious and unruly spirit that had
appeared among them. Still, if they would repent and humble themselves before
the Lord, the scourge might, in a great measure, be turned away, "but, as
the Lord lives," he said, "the camp will have to suffer for giving
way to unruly tempers." (Historical Record, page 582.) This prediction was
fulfilled a few weeks later when the brethren had arrived in Clay County, Mo.
On the 21st of June, 1834, the cholera broke out in the camp and raged
fearfully for several days. Altogether sixty-eight of the Saints were attacked
with the dreadful disease and thirteen died. Finally Joseph called some of the
surviving brethren together and told them that if they would humble themselves
before the Lord and covenant to keep His commandments, and obey his (Joseph's)
counsel, the plague should be stayed from that hour and there should not be
another case of cholera among them. The brethren covenanted to that effect and
the plague was stayed.
.
. .
MIRACULOUS ESCAPE PREDICTED.
On the 31st of October, 1838, Joseph and a number of
his brethren, all prominent men in the Church, were betrayed by Col. George M.
Hinkle into the hands of the mob militia who had surrounded Far West, Mo.,
determined to sack the town. Although Joseph had only been in Missouri a few months
and had not done the least harm to a single soul there, nearly the whole
population of that State, including its highest officers, both civil and
military, had become so exasperated, through the stream of lies which had been
circulated through the country concerning the Saints and their motives, that
they had fully determined to kill the leaders of the Church; and there were
scores in that mob militia camp to which Joseph and his brethren were brought
that memorable day who would have considered it a great honor to put to death
Joseph and his fellow-prisoners. They knew also that there would be no danger
of them being brought to justice for such a deed, even if they should
assassinate them without orders from any commander. It was on this occasion
that the mobbers cursed and shouted like mad-men and swore that Joseph and
those with him should never see their friends or families again alive; and to
prove that this was not the boast and threat of the common soldier only, I will
refer you to what John Clark, the head general and commander of the whole
militia, said in his notorious speech which he delivered before the brethren at
Far West, after he had made them prisoners of war. Referring to Joseph and his
fellow prisoners, who then were on the road to Jackson County in the hands of
Gen. Lucas and his army, General Clark said:
"As for your leaders, do not once think—do not
imagine for a moment—do not let it enter your minds, that they will be
delivered, or that you will see their faces again, for their fate is fixed,
THEIR DIE IS CAST, THEIR DOOM IS SEALED."
But
while, from a human standpoint, it seemed absolutely impossible for Joseph and
his brethren to escape from their enemies alive, Joseph rose up in the spirit
of his prophetic calling, and prophesied that they ALL should be delivered
alive. Parley P. Pratt, one of the prisoners with Joseph, writes the following:
"As we arose and commenced our march on the
morning of the 3rd of November, Joseph Smith spoke to me and the other
prisoners in a low but cheerful and confidential tone.
Said he: 'Be of good cheer, brethren; the word of the Lord came to me last
night that our lives should be given us, and that whatever we may suffer during
this captivity, not one of our lives should be taken.'
"Of this prophecy I testify in the name of the
Lord, and though spoken in secret, its public fulfilment and the miraculous
escape of each one of us is too notorious to need my testimony."—Parley P.
Pratt's Aut., page 210.
Notwithstanding the fact that they were sentenced on
two or three different occasions to be shot, that several attempts were made to
poison them while incarcerated in filthy dungeons; that forty men at a certain
time and place entered into a conspiracy that they would neither eat nor drink
until they had killed the "Mormon Prophet," all the brethren in due
course of time, escaped from their persecutors and would-be murderers, and,
although they suffered as only few men have suffered, they arrived safely, and
all alive, among their friends in Illinois. This surely is another proof of
Joseph Smith's prophetic gift, while General Clark at the same time is proven
to be a false prophet.
.
. .
STEPHEN A. DOUGLAS.
I will now refer you to another most remarkable
prophecy and its fulfilment. Among the prominent men of Illinois, who
befriended the Saints when they were expelled from Missouri, was Stephen A.
Douglas, afterwards known as the "Little Giant," and who became one
of the great statesman of our nation. This man continued friendly to the Saints
for many years, and especially to Joseph Smith, in whose case he, as an
Illinois district judge, rendered a fair and impartial decision at Monmouth,
June 10, 1841, at a time when the Missourians were endeavoring to get Joseph
Smith into their power. After that he and the Prophet exchanged visits, and on
one occasion when Joseph dined with him in Carthage, Illinois, May 18,
1843, he listened to a lengthy explanation from the
Prophet about the Missouri persecutions. Winding up the conversation, Joseph
spoke of the dire effects that would flow to the nation if the United States
should refuse to redress the wrongs of murder, arson and robbery committed
against the Saints in Missouri and the crimes committed upon the Saints by the
officers of the government. Turning to Judge Douglas he said:
"You will aspire to the presidency of the United States, and
if ever you turn your hand against me or the Latter-day Saints, you will feel
the weight of the hand of the Almighty upon you; and you will live to see and
know that I have testified the truth to you, for the conversation of this day
will stick to you through life."
This
remarkable prophecy concerning Judge Douglas personally has had a literal
fulfilment. Judge Douglas continued to rise in prominence in the nation as long
as he remained a friend to the Saints. But, finally he turned against them, and
at the time the excitement ran high against the "Mormons" in 1857,
and preparations were being made to send an army against the people of Utah,
Judge Douglas thought he would add a little to the great popularity he had
already achieved by doing the most popular thing that could be done at the
time, namely, denouncing the "Mormons." Hence, in a political speech
which he delivered in Springfield, Ill., June 12th, 1857, and which was
published in the Missouri Republican of June 18th following and
partly republished with comments in the DESERET NEWS of September 2nd, 1857,
Senator Douglas attacked the Saints in Utah in a most fierce and unwarranted
manner, and among many other bitter expressions which he made, he called
"Mormonism, a loathsome, disgusting ulcer," to which he recommended
that Congress apply the knife and cut it out. In the DESERET NEWS of the date
mentioned, the prophecy of Joseph Smith was republished with warning remarks,
directed to Mr. Douglas, who at that time, in fulfilment of Joseph's words, was
already aspiring to the presidency of the United States. In the campaign of
1860 he became the candidate of the Independent Democratic party for that
position. It is asserted that no man ever entered into a campaign with brighter
prospects of success than did Senator Douglas on that occasion. His friends
viewed him as sure to be seated in the Presidential chair, because of his great
popularity. But, alas, he and his friends had reckoned without Divine
interposition. He had lifted his hands against the Saints of the Most High God
and denounced the people whom he knew to be innocent and
whom he ought to have defended. The result was that he was sadly defeated at
the election, as he only received two electoral votes against seventeen cast
for Abraham Lincoln (Republican) and eleven cast for J. C. Breckenridge
(Democrat).
When
the result of the election became known in Utah Apostle Orson Hyde published
the following in the DESERET NEWS of December 12, 1860:
"EPHRAIM, Utah Ter., Nov. 27, 1860.
"Will the Judge now acknowledge that Joseph Smith
was a true Prophet? If he will not, does he recollect a certain conversation
had with Mr. Smith at the house of Sheriff Backenstos, in Carthage, Illinois,
in the year 1843, in which Mr. Smith said to him: 'You will yet aspire to the
presidency of the United States. But if you ever raise your hand, or your voice
against the Latter-day Saints, you shall never be President of the United
States.'
"Does Judge Douglas recollect that in a public
speech delivered by him in the year 1857, at Springfield, Illinois, of
comparing the Mormon community, then constituting the inhabitants of Utah
Territory, to a 'loathsome ulcer on the body politic,' and of recommending the
knife to be applied to cut it out?
"Among other things the Judge will doubtless
recollect that I was present and heard the conversation between him and Joseph
Smith, at Mr. Backenstos' residence in Carthage, before alluded to.
"Now, Judge, what think you about Joseph Smith
and Mormonism?
ORSON HYDE."
A
few months later, or in June, 1861, Judge Douglas died in disappointment and
grief. Never has the saying of any Prophet of God been more literally and
minutely fulfilled than the prediction made by the Prophet Joseph Smith
concerning this man.
.
. .
THE SIGNS FOLLOWING THE BELIEVERS.
In December, 1830, a few months after the Church
was organized in Fayette, N.Y., with six members, the
following predictions were made:
"I give unto thee a commandment, that thou shalt
baptize by water, and they shall receive the Holy Ghost by the laying on of
hands, even as the Apostles of old. * * * For I am God, and mine arm is not
shortened; and I will show miracles, signs and wonders unto all those who
believe on my name. And whoso shall ask it in my name in faith, they shall cast
out devils; they shall heal the sick; they shall cause the blind to receive
their sight, and the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak, and the lame to walk;
and the time speedily cometh that great things are to be shown forth unto the children
of men."—Doc. & Cov. xxxv: 6-10.
Again,
in September, 1832, in a revelation given to Joseph Smith and six Elders,
"as they unveiled their hearts and lifted their voices on high," the
following glorious promises were made:
"Therefore, as I said unto mine Apostles I say
unto you again, that every soul who believeth on your words, and is baptized by
water for the remission of sins, shall receive the Holy Ghost; and these signs
shall follow them that believe. In my name they shall do many wonderful works;
in my name they shall cast out devils; in my name they shall heal the sick; in
my name they shall open the eyes of the blind, and unstop the ears of the deaf;
and the tongue of the dumb shall speak; and if any man shall administer poison
unto them it shall not hurt them; and the poison of a serpent shall not have
power to harm them." Doc. and Cov., 84, 64-72.
If
Joseph Smith had been an impostor and his revelations consequently not genuine,
would he have dared to make promises like those contained in the forgoing?
Could anything have proven more disastrous to his schemes than to promise
people gifts which were not in his power to give? If he was not a servant of
God would he not studiously have avoided to connect the Lord with any of his
schemes in such a way? Could he imagine that God would sanction his doings by
pouring out his gifts and blessings upon people who were being deceived by a
wicked impostor? Certainly not. If Joseph Smith was not called of God he would
have had to re-echo the old, old sectarian song from the dark ages: These
things (the gifts and blessings following the believer) have ceased, because
they are no longer necessary. It is a well-known fact that the signs which were
promised by the Savior and enumerated in St. Mark, 16th chapter, 17th and 18th
verses, did follow the believers. The Acts of the Apostles are full of examples
of this kind. It is also a known fact that when Christianity in the days of
Constantine the Great, and later became mixed up with Paganism and was then
made the State Religion of he Roman empire, and the
people were compelled at the edge of the sword to accept it, that these signs
did not follow the members of this false church. But when the clergy, in order
to blind the masses, told the people that the reason why the members did not
enjoy these blessings, as in former years, was that they were no longer
necessary, they told a deliberate falsehood. The real cause was that this
apostate church had "transgressed the law, changed the ordinance and
broken the everlasting covenant," and that Christ did not recognize this
new form of so-called Christianity as His doctrines of salvation, nor accept of
the order of their organization as anything akin to the Church organized by
Himself and His Apostles. Hence, He withheld His gifts, signs and blessings
from them, and for hundreds of years they were unknown so far as church gifts
were concerned.
An
anecdote that I heard a friend relate several years ago will illustrate the
contrast between the true Church of Christ and fallen Christianity. A prominent
cardinal of the Roman Catholic church, on a certain occasion, visited the Pope
of Rome, and together with him examined the contents of the treasure chamber at
the Vatican where gold, diamonds and other costly things were deposited. While
gazing upon the costly treasures the Pope remarked. "We can not truthfully
say now as Peter and John said anciently that we have no silver and gold."
"No, that is true," answered the cardinal, "and there is
something else we cannot say. We cannot command the lame in the name of Jesus
Christ to arise and walk."
We
all remember the beautiful story related in the third chapter of the Acts of
the Apostles, of a certain man who had been lame from his mother's womb and who
daily lay at the gate of the Temple of Jerusalem to ask alms of those who
entered; and how he, seeing Peter and John about to go in, also asked them for
alms. Peter, after fastening his eyes upon the cripple, together with John,
said, being moved upon by the power of God: "Silver and gold have I none;
but such as I have give I thee: in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise
up and walk." And he took him by the right hand and lifted him up, and
immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. And he, leaping up,
stood and walked, and entered with them into the Temple, walking and leaping,
and praising God.
The
contrast is this: The Apostles of the true Church had no silver and gold, for
they had been sent out to preach without purse or scrip; but they possessed the
power of God to such an extent that they healed the sick, the lame, the blind,
etc. The Catholic Church is wealthy, has plenty of silver and gold, but not the power of God. Joseph Smith was also poor as
regards this world's goods, but he was powerful in the Priesthood, and in the
strength of the Lord, and hundreds were healed under his administrations. How
then about the promises made in the revelations from which I have quoted? The
answer is easily given and can be stated briefly. They have been fulfilled to the
very letter. There are thousands in the Church who can testify and who do bear
testimony continually to the effect that the gifts and blessings follow the
believers, who have embraced the Gospel as restored through Joseph Smith. Not
only in the United States, but in Europe, upon the islands of the sea, and in
all parts of the world where the Gospel has been preached by our Elders, have
the sick been healed under their administration, the lame have received their
strength, the blind have been restored to their sight and the deaf to their
hearing; evil spirits have been cast out; the gifts of prophecy, of tongues,
the interpretation of tongues, and, in short, all the gifts and blessings
enjoyed by the former-day Saints have been and are now being enjoyed by the
Latter-day Saints. Our books, pamphlets, papers and periodicals are full of
instances of this kind, and should an attempt be made to gather, compile and
publish testimonies of this nature, we would have material enough for a book
larger than the Bible and Book of Mormon combined. In the face of all these
testimonies, what additional proofs do we need to establish the fact that
Joseph Smith was a true Prophet.
Further Reading
Resources on Joseph Smith's Prophecies
