It is quite unexpected to me, brethren and sisters, to be called
upon to address you this forenoon; and still more so, to address
you upon the principle which has been named, namely, a plurality
of wives.
It is rather new ground for me; that is, I have not been in
the habit of publicly speaking upon this subject; and it is rather
new ground to the inhabitants of the United States, and not only
to them, but to a portion of the inhabitants of Europe; a portion
of them have not been in the habit of preaching a doctrine of
this description; consequently, we shall have to break up new
ground.
It is well known, however, to the congregation before me, that
the Latter-day Saints have embraced the doctrine of a plurality
of wives, as a part of their religious faith. It is not, as many
have supposed, a doctrine embraced by them to gratify the carnal
lusts and feelings of man; that is not the object of the doctrine.
We shall endeavour to set forth before this enlightened assembly
some of the causes why the Almighty has revealed such a doctrine,
and why it is considered a part and portion of our religious faith.
And I believe that they will not, under our present form of government,
(I mean the government of the United States,) try us for treason
for believing and practising our religious notions and ideas.
I think, if I am not mistaken, that the constitution gives the
privilege to all the inhabitants of this country, of the free
exercise of their religious notions, and the freedom of their
faith, and the practice of it. Then, if it can be proven to a
demonstration, that the Latter-day Saints have actually embraced,
as a part and portion of their religion, the doctrine of a plurality
of wives, it is constitutional. And should there ever be laws
enacted by this government to restrict them from the free exercise
of this part of their religion, such laws must be unconstitutional.
But, says the objector, we cannot see how this doctrine can
be embraced as a matter of religion and faith; we can hardly conceive
how it can be embraced only as a kind of domestic concern, something
that pertains to domestic pleasures, in no way connected with
religion. In reply we will show you that it is incorporated as
a part of our religion, and necessary for our exaltation to the
fulness of the Lord's glory in the eternal world. Would you like
to know the reasons? Before we get through, we will endeavour
to tell you why we consider it an essential doctrine to glory
and exaltation, to our fulness of happiness in the world to come.
We will first make a few preliminary remarks in regard to the
existence of man, to his first existence in his first estate;
and then say something in relation to his present state, and the
bearing which it has upon his next or future state.
The "Mormons " have a peculiar doctrine in regard
to our pre-existence, different from the views of the Christian
world, so called, who do not believe that man had a pre-existence.
It is believed, by the religious world, that man, both body and
spirit, begins to live about the time that he is born into this
world, or a little before; that then is the beginning of life.
They believe, that the Lord, by a direct act of creation, formed,
in the first place, man out of the dust of the ground; and they
believe that man is possessed of both body and spirit, by the
union of which he became a living creature. Suppose we admit
this doctrine concerning the formation of the body from the dust;
then how was the spirit formed? Why, says one, we suppose it
was made by a direct act of creation, by the Almighty Himself;
that He moulded the spirit of man, formed and finished it in a
proper likeness to inhabit the tabernacle He had made out of the
dust.
Have you any account of this in the Bible? Do the Scriptures
declare that the spirit was formed at the time the tabernacle
was made? No. All the tabernacles of the children of men that
were ever formed, from remote generations, from the days of Adam
to this time, have been formed out of the earth. We are of the
earth earthy. The tabernacle has been organized according to
certain principles, and laws of organization, with bones, and
flesh, and sinews, and skin. Now, where do you suppose all these
tabernacles got their spirits? Does the Lord make a new spirit
every time a tabernacle is made? if so, the work of creation,
according to the belief of Christendom, did not cease on the seventh
day. If we admit their views, the Lord must be continually making
spirits to inhabit all the tabernacles of the children of men;
he must make something like one thousand millions of spirits every
century; he must be working at it every day, for there are many
hundreds of individuals being born into the world every day.
Does the Lord create a new spirit every time a new tabernacle
comes into the world? That does not look reasonable, nor God-like.
But how is it, you inquire? Why the fact is, that being that
animates this body, that gives life and energy, and power to move,
to act, and to think: that being that dwells within this tabernacle
is much older than what the tabernacle is. That spirit that now
dwells within each man, and each woman, of this vast assembly
of people, is more than a thousand years old, and I would venture
to say, that it is more than five thousand years old.
But how was it made? when was it made? and by whom was it made?
If our spirits existed thousands of years ago--if they began
to exist--if there were a beginning to their organization, by
what process was this organization carried on? Through what medium,
and by what system of laws? Was it by a direct creation of the
Almighty? Or were we framed according to a certain system of
laws, in the same manner as our tabernacles? If we were to reason
from analogy--if we admit analogical reasoning in the question,
what would we say? We should say, that our spirits were formed
by generation, the same as the body or tabernacle of flesh and
bones. But what says revelation upon the subject? We will see
whether revelation and analogy will agree.
We read of a certain time when the corner stones of the earth
were laid, and the foundations thereof were made sure--of a certain
time when the Lord began to erect this beautiful and glorious
habitation, the earth; then they had a time of joy. I do not
know whether they had instruments of music, or whether they were
engaged in the dance; but one thing is certain, they had great
joy, and the heavens resounded with their shouts; yea, the Lord
told Job, that all the sons of God shouted for joy, and the morning
stars sang together, when the foundations of this globe were laid.
The SONS of God, recollect, shouted for joy, because there
was a beautiful habitation being built, so that they could get
tabernacles, and dwell thereon; they expected the time--they looked
forward to the period; and it was joyful to them to reflect, that
the creation was about being formed, the corner stone of it was
laid, on which they might, in their times, and in their seasons,
and in their generations, go forth and receive tabernacles for
their spirits to dwell in. Do you bring it home to yourselves,
brethren and sisters? Do you realize that you and I were there?
Can you bring it to your minds that you and I were among that
happy number that shouted for joy when this creation was made?
Says one, I don't recollect it. No wonder! for your recollection
is taken from you, because you are in a tabernacle that is earthly;
and all this is right and necessary. The same is written of Jesus
Christ himself, who had to descend below all things. Though he
had wisdom to assist in the organization of this world; though
it was through him, as the great leader of all these sons of God,
the earth was framed, and framed too, by the assistance of all
his younger brethren--yet we find, with all that great and mighty
power he possessed, and the great and superior wisdom that was
in his bosom, that after all, his judgment had to be taken away;
in his humiliation, his reason, his intelligence, his knowledge,
and the power that he was formerly in possession of, vanished
from him as he entered into the infant tabernacle. He was obliged
to begin down at the lowest principles of knowledge, and ascend
upward by degrees, receiving grace for grace, truth for truth,
knowledge for knowledge, until he was filled with all the fulness
of the Father, and was capable of ruling, governing, and controlling
all things, having ascended above all things. Just so with us;
we that once lifted up our united voices as sons and daughters
of God, and shouted for joy at the laying of the foundation of
this earth, have come here and taken tabernacles, after the pattern
of our elder brother; and in our humiliation--for it is humiliation
to be deprived of knowledge we once had, and the power we once
enjoyed--in our humiliation, just like our elder brother, our
judgment is taken away. Do we not read also in the bible, that
God is the Father of our spirits?
We have ascertained that we have had a previous existence.
We find that Solomon, that wise man, says that when the body
returned to the dust, the spirit returns to God who gave it.
Now all of this congregation very well know, that if we never
existed there, we could not return there. I could not return
to California. Why? Because I have never been there. If you
never were with the Father, the same as Jesus was before the foundation
of the world, you never could return there, any more than I could
to the West Indies, where I have never been. But if we have once
been there, then we can see the force of the saying of the wise
man, that the spirit returns to God who gave it--it goes back
where it once was.
Much more evidence might be derived in relation to this subject,
even from the English translation of the Bible; but I do not feel
disposed to dwell too long upon any particular testimony; suffice
it to say, that the Prophet Joseph Smith's translation of the
fore part of the book of Genesis is in print, and is exceedingly
plain upon this matter. In this inspired translation we find
the pre-existence of man clearly laid down, and that the spirits
of all men, male and female, did have an existence, before man
was formed out of the dust of the ground. But who was their Father?
I have already quoted a saying that God is the Father of our
spirits.
In one sense of the word, there are more Gods than one; and
in another sense there is but one God. The Scriptures speak of
more Gods than one. Moses was called a God to Aaron, in plain
terms; and our Saviour, when speaking upon this subject, says,
"If the Scriptures called them Gods unto whom the word of
God came, why is it that you should seek to persecute me, and
kill me, because I testify that I am the Son of God?" This
in substance was the word of our Saviour; those to whom the word
of God came, are called Gods, according to his testimony. All
these beings of course are one, the same as the Father and the
Son are one. The Son is called God, and so is the Father, and
in some places the Holy Ghost is called God. They are one in
power, in wisdom, in knowledge, and in the inheritance of celestial
glory; they are one in their works; they possess all things, and
all things are subject to them; they act in unison; and if one
has power to become the Father of spirits, so has another; if
one God can propagate his species, and raise up spirits after
his own image and likeness, and call them his sons and daughters,
so can all other Gods that become like him, do the same thing;
consequently, there will be many Fathers, and there will be many
families, and many sons and daughters; and they will be the children
of those glorified, celestial beings that are counted worthy to
be Gods.
Here let me bring for the satisfaction of the Saints, the testimony
of the vision given to our Prophet and Revelator Joseph Smith,
and Sidney Rigdon, on the 16th day of February, 1832. They were
engaged in translating the New Testament, by inspiration; and
while engaged in this great work, they came to the 29th verse
of the 5th chapter of John, which was given to them in these words--"they
who have done good, in the resurrection of the just; and they
who have done evil in the resurrection of the unjust." This
being given in different words from the English translation, caused
them to marvel and wonder; and they lifted up their hearts in
prayer to God, that He would show them why it was that this should
be given to them in different manner; and behold, the visions
of heaven opened before them. They gazed up on the eternal worlds,
and saw things before this world was made. They saw the spiritual
creation who were to come forth and take upon themselves bodies;
and they saw things as they are to be in the future; and they
saw celestial, terrestrial, and telestial worlds, as well as the
sufferings of the ungodly; all passed before them in this great
and glorious vision. And while they were yet gazing upon things
as they were before the world was made, they were commanded to
write, saying, "this is the testimony, last of all, which
we give of him, that he lives; for we saw him, even on the right
hand of God: and we heard the voice bearing record that he is
the Only Begotten of the Father; that by him, and through him,
and of him, the worlds are and were created; and the inhabitants
thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God." Notice
this last expression, "the inhabitants thereof are begotten
sons and daughters unto God," (meaning the different worlds
that have been created and made.) Notice, this does not say,
that God, whom we serve and worship, was actually the Father Himself,
in His own person, of all these sons and daughters of the different
worlds; but they "are begotten sons and daughters unto God;"
that is, begotten by those who are made like Him, after His image,
and in His likeness; they begat sons and daughters, and begat
them unto God, to inhabit these different worlds we have been
speaking of. But more of this, if we have time, before we get
through.
We now come to the second division of our subject, or the entrance
of these spirits upon their second estate, or their birth and
existence in mortal tabernacles. We are told that among this
great family of spirits, some were more noble and great than others,
having more intelligence.
Where do you read that? says one. Out of the Book of Abraham,
translated from the Egyptian papyrus by the Prophet Joseph Smith.
Among the great and numerous family of spirits--"the begotten
sons and daughters of God"--there are some more intelligent
than others; and the Lord showed unto Abraham "the intelligences
that were organized before the world was; and among all these
there were many of the noble and great ones." And God said
to Abraham, "thou art one of them, thou wast chosen before
thou wast born." Abraham was chosen before he was born.
Here then, is knowledge, if we had time to notice it, upon the
doctrine of election. However, I may just remark, it does not
mean unconditional election to eternal life of a certain class,
and the rest doomed to eternal damnation. Suffice it to say,
that Abraham and many others of the great and noble ones in the
family of spirits, were chosen before they were born, for certain
purposes, to bring about certain works, to have the privilege
of coming upon the stage of action, among the host of men, in
favorable circumstances. Some came through good and holy parentages,
to fulfil certain things the Lord decreed should come to pass,
from before the foundations of the world.
The Lord has ordained that these spirits should come here and
take tabernacles by a certain law, through a certain channel;
and that law is the law of marriage. There are a great many things
that I will pass by; I perceive that if I were to touch upon all
these principles, the time allotted for this discourse would be
too short, therefore I am under the necessity of passing by many
things in relation to these spirits in their first estate, and
the laws that governed them there, and come to their second estate.
The Lord ordained marriage between male and female as a law
through which spirits should come here and take tabernacles, and
enter into the second state of existence. The Lord Himself solemnized
the first marriage pertaining to this globe, and pertaining to
flesh and bones here upon this earth. I do not say pertaining
to mortality; for when the first marriage was celebrated, no mortality
was there. The first marriage that we have any account of, was
between two immortal beings--old father Adam and old mother Eve;
they were immortal beings; death had no dominion, no power over
them; they were capable of enduring for ever and ever, in their
organization. Had they fulfilled the law, and kept within certain
conditions and bounds, their tabernacles would never have been
seized by death; death entered entirely by sin, and sin alone.
This marriage was celebrated between two immortal beings. For
how long? Until death? No. That was entirely out of the question;
there could have been no such thing in the ceremony.
What would you consider, my hearers, if a marriage was to be
celebrated between two beings not subject to death? Would you
consider them joined together for a certain number of years, and
that then all their covenants were to cease for ever, and the
marriage contract be dissolved? Would it look reasonable and
consistent? No. Every heart would say that the work of God is
perfect in and of itself, and inasmuch as sin had not brought
imperfection upon the globe, what God joined together could not
be dissolved, and destroyed, and torn asunder by any power beneath
the celestial world, consequently it was eternal; the ordinance
of union was eternal; the sealing of the great Jehovah upon Adam
and Eve was eternal in its nature, and was never instituted for
the purpose of being overthrown and brought to an end. It is
known that the "Mormons" are a peculiar people about
marriage; we believe in marrying, not only for time, but for all
eternity. This is a curious idea, says one, to be married for
all eternity. It is not curious at all; for when we come to examine
the Scriptures, we find that the very first example set for the
whole human family, as a pattern instituted for us to follow,
was not instituted until death, for death had no dominion at that
time; but it was an eternal blessing pronounced upon our first
parents. I have not time to explain further the marriage of Adam
and Eve, but will pass on to their posterity.
It is true, that they became fallen, but there is a redemption.
But some may consider that the redemption only redeemed us in
part, that is, merely from some of the effects of the fall. But
this is not the case; every man and woman must see at once that
a redemption must include a complete restoration of all privileges
lost by the fall.
Suppose, then, that the fall was of such a nature as to dissolve
the marriage covenant, by death--which is not necessary to admit,
for the covenant was sealed previous to the fall, and we have
no account that it was dissolved--but suppose this was the case,
would not the redemption be equally as broad as the fall, to restore
the posterity of Adam back to that which they lost? And if Adam
and Eve were married for all eternity, the ceremony was an everlasting
ordinance, that they twain should be one flesh for ever. If you
and I should ever be accounted worthy to be restored back from
our fallen and degraded condition to the privileges enjoyed before
the fall, should we not have an everlasting marriage seal, as
it was with our first progenitors? If we had no other reasons
in all the Bible, this would be sufficient to settle the case
at once in the mind of every reflecting man and woman, that inasmuch
as the fall of man has taken away any privileges in regard to
the union of male and female, these privileges must be restored
in the redemption of man, or else it is not complete.
What is the object of this union? is the next question. We
are told the object of it; it is clearly expressed; for, says
the Lord unto the male and female, I command you to multiply and
replenish the earth. And, inasmuch as we have proved that the
marriage ordinance was eternal in its nature, previous to the
fall, if we are restored back to what was lost by the fall, we
are restored for the purpose of carrying out the commandment given
before the fall, namely, to multiply and replenish the earth.
Does it say, continue to multiply for a few years, and then the
marriage contract must cease, and there shall be no further opportunity
of carrying out this command, but it shall have an end? No, there
is nothing specified of this kind; but the fall has brought in
disunion through death; it is not a part of the original plan;
consequently, when male and female are restored from the fall,
by virtue of the everlasting and eternal covenant of marriage,
they will continue to increase and multiply to all ages of eternity,
to raise up beings after their own order, and in their own likeness
and image, germs of intelligence, that are destined, in their
times and seasons, to become not only sons of God, but Gods themselves.
This accounts for the many worlds we heard Elder Grant speaking
about yesterday afternoon. The peopling of worlds, or an endless
increase, even of one family, would require an endless increase
of worlds; and if one family were to be united in the eternal
covenant of marriage, to fulfil that great commandment, to multiply
his species, and propagate them, and if there be no end to the
increase of his posterity, it would call for an endless increase
of new worlds. And if one family calls for this, what would innumerable
millions of families call for? They would call for as many worlds
as have already been discovered by the telescope; yea, the number
must be multiplied to infinity in order that there may be room
for the inheritance of the sons and daughters of the Gods.
Do you begin to understand how these worlds get their inhabitants?
Have you learned that the sons and daughters of God before me
this day, are His offspring--made after His own image; that they
are to multiply their species until they become innumerable?
Let us say a few words, before we leave this part of the subject,
on the promises made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The promises
were, Lift up your eyes, and behold the stars; so thy seed shall
be, as numberless as the stars. What else did He promise? Go
to the sea-shore, and look at the ocean of sand, and behold the
smallness of the particles thereof, and then realize that your
seed shall be as numberless as the sands. Now let us take this
into consideration. How large a bulk of sand would it take to
make as many inhabitants as there are now upon the earth? In
about one cubic foot of sand, reckoning the grains of a certain
size, there would be a thousand million particles. Now that is
about the estimated population of our globe. If our earth were
to continue 8,000 years, or eighty centuries, with an average
population of one thousand millions per century, then three cubic
yards of sand would contain a greater number of particles than
the whole population of the globe, from the beginning, until the
measure of the inhabitants of this creation is complete. If men
then cease to multiply, where is the promise made to Abraham?
Is it fulfilled? No. If that is the end of his increase, behold,
the Lord's promise is not fulfilled. For the amount of sand representing
his seed, might all be drawn in a one-horse cart; and yet the
Lord said to Abraham, thy seed shall be as numerous as the sand
upon the sea-shore; that is, to carry out the idea in full, it
was to be endless; and therefore, there must be an infinity of
worlds for their residence. We cannot comprehend infinity. But
suffice it to say, if all the sands on the sea-shore were numbered,
says the Prophet Enoch, and then all the particles of the earth
besides, and then the particles of millions of earths like this,
it would not be a beginning to all thy creations; and yet thou
art there, and thy bosom is there; and thy curtains are stretched
out still. This gives plenty of room for the fulfilment of the
promise made to Abraham, and enough to spare for the fulfilment
of similar promises to all his seed.
We read that those who do the works of Abraham, are to be blessed
with the blessing of Abraham. Have you not, in the ordinances
of this last dispensation, had the blessings of Abraham pronounced
upon your heads? O yes, you say, I well recollect, since God
has restored the everlasting Priesthood, that by a certain ordinance
these blessings were placed upon our heads--the blessings of Abraham,
Isaac, and Jacob. Why, says one, I never thought of it in this
light before. Why did you not think of it? Why not look upon
Abraham's blessings as your own, for the Lord blessed him with
a promise of seed as numerous as the sand upon the sea-shore;
so will you be blessed, or else you will not inherit the blessings
of Abraham.
How did Abraham manage to get a foundation laid for this mighty
kingdom? Was he to accomplish it all through one wife? No.
Sarah gave a certain woman to him whose name was Hagar, and by
her a seed was to be raised up unto him. Is this all? No. We
read of his wife Keturah, and also of a plurality of wives and
concubines, which he had, from whom he raised up many sons. Here
then, was a foundation laid for the fulfilment of the great and
grand promise concerning the multiplicity of his seed. It would
have been rather a slow process, if Abraham had been confined
to one wife, like some of those narrow, contracted nations of
modern Christianity.
I think there is only about one-fifth of the population of
the globe, that believe in the one-wife system; the other four-fifths
believe in the doctrine of a plurality of wives. They have had
it handed down from time immemorial, and are not half so narrow
and contracted in their minds as some of the nations of Europe
and America, who have done away with the promises, and deprived
themselves of the blessings of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The
nations do not know anything about the blessings of Abraham; and
even those who have only one wife, cannot get rid of their covetousness,
and get their little hearts large enough to share their property
with a numerous family; they are so penurious, and so narrow and
contracted in their feelings, that they take every possible care
not to have their families large; they do not know what is in
the future, nor what blessings they are depriving themselves of,
because of the traditions of their fathers; they do not know what
a man's posterity, in the eternal worlds, are to constitute his
glory, his kingdom, and dominion.
Here, then, we perceive, just from this one principle, reasoning
from the blessings of Abraham alone, the necessity--if we would
partake of the blessings of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob--of doing
their works; and he that will not do the works of Abraham, and
walk in his footsteps, will be deprived of his blessings.
Again, let us look at Sarah's peculiar position in regard to
Abraham. She understood the whole matter; she knew that, unless
seed was raised up to Abraham, he would come short of his glory;
and she understood the promise of the Lord, and longed for Abraham
to have seed. And when she saw that she was old, and fearing
that she should not have the privilege of raising up seed, she
gave to Abraham, Hagar. Would Gentile Christendom do such things
now-a-days? O no; they would consider it enough to send a man
to an endless hell of fire and brimstone. Why? Because tradition
has instilled this in their minds as a dreadful, awful thing.
It matters not to them how corrupt they are in female prostitution,
if they are lawfully married to only one wife; but it would be
considered an awful thing by them to raise up a posterity from
more than one wife; this would be wrong indeed; but to go into
a brothel, and there debauch themselves in the lowest haunts of
degradation all the days of their lives, they consider only a
trifling thing; nay, they can even license such institutions in
Christian nations, and it all passes off very well.
That is tradition; and their posterity have been fostered and
brought up in the footsteps of wickedness. This is death, as
it stalks abroad among the great and popular cities of Europe
and America.
Do you find such haunts of prostitution, degradation, and misery
here, in the cities of the mountains? No. Were such things in
our midst, we should feel indignant enough to see that such persons
be blotted out of the page of existence. These would be the feelings
of this community.
Look upon those who committed such iniquity in Israel, in ancient
days; every man and woman who committed adultery were put to death.
I do not say that this people are going to do this; but I will
tell you what we believe--we believe it ought to be done.
Whoredom, adultery, and fornication, have cursed the nations
of the earth for many generations, and are increasing fearfully
upon the community; but they must be entirely done away from those
who call themselves the people of God; if they are not, woe! woe!
be unto them, also; for "thus saith the Lord God Almighty,"
in the Book of Mormon, "Woe unto them that commit whoredoms,
for they shall be thrust down to hell!" There is no getting
away from it. Such things will not be allowed in this community;
and such characters will find, that the time will come, that God,
whose eyes are upon all the children of men, and who discerneth
the things that are done in secret, will bring their acts to light;
and they will be made an example before the people; and shame
and infamy will cleave to their posterity after them, unto the
third and fourth generation of them that repent not.
How is this to be prevented? for we have got a fallen nature
to grapple with. It is to be prevented in the way the Lord devised
in ancient times; that is, by giving to His faithful servants
a plurality of wives, by which a numerous and faithful posterity
can be raised up, and taught in the principles of righteousness
and truth: and then, after they fully understand those principles
that were given to the ancient Patriarchs, if they keep not the
law of God, but commit adultery, and transgressions of this kind,
let their names be blotted out from under heaven, that they may
have no place among the people of God.
But again, there is another reason why this plurality should
exist among the Latter-day Saints. I have already given you one
reason, and that is, that you might inherit the blessings and
promises made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and receive a continuation
of your posterity, that they may become as numerous as the sand
upon the sea-shore. There is another reason, and a good one,
too. What do you suppose it is? I will tell you; and it will
appear reasonable to every man and woman of a reflecting mind.
Do we not believe, as the Scriptures have told us, that the wicked
nations of the earth are doomed to destruction? Yes, we believe
it. Do we not also believe, as the Prophets have foretold, concerning
the last days, as well as what the new revelations have said upon
the subject, that darkness prevails upon the earth, and gross
darkness upon the minds of the people; and not only this, but
that all flesh has corrupted its way upon the face of the earth;
that is, that all nations, speaking of them as nations, have corrupted
themselves before the Most High God, by their wickedness, whoredoms,
idolatries, abominations, adulteries, and all other kinds of wickedness?
And we furthermore believe, that according to the Jewish Prophets,
as well as the Book of Mormon, and modern revelations given in
the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, that the sword of the vengeance
of the Almighty is already unsheathed, and stretched out, and
will no more be put back into the scabbard until it falls upon
the head of the nations until they are destroyed, except they
repent. What else do we believe? We believe that God is gathering
out from among these nations those who will hearken to His voice,
and receive the proclamation of the Gospel, to establish them
as a people alone by themselves, where they can be instructed
in the right way, and brought to the knowledge of the truth.
Very well; if this be the case, that the righteous are gathering
out, and are still being gathered from among the nations, and
being planted by themselves, one thing is certain--that that people
are better calculated to bring up children in the right way, than
any other under the whole heavens. O yes, says one, if that is
the case--if you are the people the ancient Prophets have spoken
of, if you are the people that are guided by the Lord, if you
are under the influence, power, and guidance of the Almighty,
you must be the best people under heaven, to dictate the young
mind: but what has that to do with the plurality of wives? I
will tell you. I have already told you that the spirits of men
and women, all had a previous existence, thousands of years ago,
in the heavens, in the presence of God; and I have already told
you that among them are many spirits that are more noble, more
intelligent than others, that were called the great and mighty
ones, reserved until the dispensation of the fulness of times,
to come forth upon the face of the earth, through a noble parentage
that shall train their young and tender minds in the truths of
eternity, that they may grow up in the Lord, and be strong in
the power of His might, be clothed upon with His glory, be filled
with exceeding great faith; that the visions of eternity may be
opened to their minds; that they may be Prophets, Priests, and
Kings to the Most High God. Do you believe, says one, that they
are reserved until the last dispensation, for such a noble purpose?
Yes; and among the Saints is the most likely place for these
spirits to take their tabernacles, through a just and righteous
parentage. They are to be sent to that people that are the most
righteous of any other people upon the earth; there to be trained
up properly, according to their nobility and intelligence, and
according to the laws which the Lord ordained before they were
born. This is the reason why the Lord is sending them here, brethren
and sisters; they are appointed to come and take their bodies
here, that in their generations they may be raised up among the
righteous. The Lord has not kept them in store for five or six
thousand years past, and kept them waiting for their bodies all
this time to send them among the Hottentots, the African negroes,
the idolatrous Hindoos, or any other of the fallen nations that
dwell upon the face of this earth. They are not kept in reserve
in order to come forth to receive such a degraded parentage upon
the earth; no, the Lord is not such a being; His justice, goodness,
and mercy will be magnified towards those who were chosen before
they were born; and they long to come, and they will come among
the Saints of the living God; this would be their highest pleasure
and joy, to know that they could have the privilege of being born
of such noble parentage.
Then is it not reasonable, and consistent that the Lord should
say unto His faithful and chosen servants, that had proved themselves
before Him all the day long; that had been ready and willing to
do whatsoever His will required them to perform--take unto yourselves
more wives, like unto the Patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
of old--like those who lived in ancient times, who walked in my
footsteps, and kept my commands? Why should they not do this?
Suppose the Lord should answer this question, would He not say,
I have here in reserve, noble spirits, that have been waiting
for thousands of years, to come forth in the fulness of times,
and which I designed should come forth through these my faithful
and chosen servants, for I know they will do my will, and they
will teach their children after them to do it. Would not this
be the substance of the language, if the Lord should give us an
answer upon this subject?
But then another question will arise; how are these things
to be conducted? Are they to be left at random? Is every servant
of God at liberty to run here and there, seeking out the daughters
of men as wives unto themselves without any restriction, law,
or condition? No. We find these things were restricted in ancient
times. Do you not recollect the circumstance of the Prophet Nathan's
coming to David? He came to reprove him for certain disobedience,
and told him about the wives he had lost through it; that the
Lord would give them to another; and he told him, if he had been
faithful, that the Lord would have given him still more, if he
had only asked for them. Nathan the Prophet, in relation to David,
was the man that held the keys concerning this matter in ancient
days; and it was governed by the strictest laws.
So in these days; let me announce to this congregation, that
there is but one man in all the world, at the same time, who can
hold the keys of this matter; but one man has power to turn the
key to inquire of the Lord, and to say whether I, or these my
brethren, or any of the rest of this congregation, or the Saints
upon the face of the whole earth, may have this blessing of Abraham
conferred upon them; he holds the keys of these matters now, the
same as Nathan, in his day.
But, says one, how have you obtained this information? By
new revelation. When was it given, and to whom? It was given
to our Prophet, Seer, and Revelator, Joseph Smith, on the 12th
day of July, 1843; only about eleven months before he was martyred
for the testimony of Jesus.
He held the keys of these matters; he had the right to inquire
of the Lord; and the Lord has set bounds and restrictions to these
things; He has told us in that revelation, that only one man can
hold these keys upon the earth at the same time; and they belong
to that man who stands at the head to preside over all the affairs
of the Church and kingdom of God in the last days. They are the
sealing keys of power, or in other words, of Elijah, having been
committed and restored to the earth by Elijah, the Prophet, who
held many keys, among which were the keys of sealing, to bind
the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the children to
the fathers; together with all the other sealing keys and powers,
pertaining to the last dispensation. They were committed by that
Angel who administered in the Kirtland Temple, and spoke unto
Joseph the Prophet, at the time of the endowments in that house.
Now, let us enquire, what will become of those individuals
who have this law taught unto them in plainness, if they reject
it? [A voice in the stand, "they will be damned."]
I will tell you: they will be damned, saith the Lord God Almighty,
in the revelation He has given. Why? Because where much is given,
much is required; where there is great knowledge unfolded for
the exaltation, glory, and happiness of the sons and daughters
of God, if they close up their hearts, if they reject the testimony
of His word, and will not give heed to the principles He has ordained
for their good, they are worthy of damnation, and the Lord has
said they shall be damned. This was the word of the Lord to His
servant Joseph the Prophet himself. With all the knowledge and
light he had, he must com ply with it, or, says the Lord unto
him, you shall be damned; and the same is true in regard to all
those who reject these things.
What else have we heard from our President? He has related
to us that there are some damnations that are eternal in their
nature; while others are but for a certain period, they will have
an end, they will not receive a restoration to their former privileges,
but a deliverance from certain punishments; and instead of being
restored to all the privileges pertaining to man previous to the
fall, they will only be permitted to enjoy a certain grade of
happiness, not a full restoration. Let us inquire after those
who are to be damned, admitting they will be redeemed, which they
will be, unless they have sinned against the Holy Ghost. They
will be redeemed, but what will it be to? Will it be to exaltation,
and to a fulness of glory? Will it be to become the sons of God,
or Gods to reign upon thrones, and multiply their posterity, and
reign over them as kings? No, it will not. They have lost tha
