In the text of D&C 13, there is an ambiguous phrase:
Upon you my fellow
servants, in the name of Messiah I confer the Priesthood of Aaron, which holds
the keys of the ministering of angels, and of the gospel of repentance, and of
baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; and this shall never be taken
again from the earth, until the sons of Levi do offer
again an offering unto the Lord in righteousness.
With respect to the use of
"until," there is the question of whether there will be a cessation
to the Aaronic Priesthood when the sons of Levi make their offering, or if
there will be a continuation of the main clause after the "until" is
reached. However, in Oliver Cowdery's account of the restoration of the Aaronic
Priesthood from a letter dated September 7, 1834, sheds light on this issue:
. . . and this
authority . . . shall remain upon the earth, that the Sons of Levi may
yet offer an offering unto the Lord in righteousness. ("Copy
of a Letter written by O. Cowdery, on the restoration of the Priesthood,"
2, no. 2 Times and Seasons [November 1, 1840]:202, emphasis added)
In light of Oliver’s account of this event, D&C 13 does not teach that the Aaronic Priesthood will be retired when the “until” is reached; instead, a (perhaps the) purpose of the Aaronic Priesthood being restored is to allow the Sons of Levi to make their offering.
