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Th Pearl of Great Price[]
A selection from th revelations, translations, and narrations of Joseph Smith.
First prophet, seer, and revelatory to th Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
Divided into chapters and verses with references, in 1902, by James E. Talmage.
Salt Lake City, Utah.
Th Deseret News.
1913
The Book of Moses[]
Chapter 1[]
Visions of Moses As Revealed to Joseph, th Seer, in 1830.
1 Th words of God, wich he spake unto Moses at a time wen Moses was caut up into an exceeding hy mountain,
2 And he saw God face to face, and he talkd with him, and th glory of God was upon Moses; therefore Moses cud endure his presence.
3 And God spake unto Moses, sayng: Behold, I am th Lord God Almighty, and Endless is my name; for I am without beginning of days or end of years; and is not this endless?
4 And, behold, thou art my son; wherefore look, and I wil sho thee th workmanship of mine hands; but not al, for my works ar without end, and also my words, for they nevr cease.
5 Wherefore, no man can behold al my works, except he behold al my glory; and no man can behold al my glory, and afterwards remain in th flesh on th earth.
6 And I hav a work for thee, Moses, my son; and thou art in th similitude of mine Only Begotten; and mine Only Begotten is and shall be th Savior, for he is ful of grace and truth; but ther is no God beside me, and al things ar present with me, for I no them al.
7 And now, behold, this one thing I sho unto thee, Moses, my son, for thou art in th world, and now I sho it unto thee.
8 And it came to pass that Moses lookd, and beheld th world upon wich he was created; and Moses beheld th world and th ends thereof, and al th children of men wich ar, and wich wer created; of th same he greatly marveled and wondered.
9 And th presence of God withdrew from Moses, that his glory was not upon Moses; and Moses was left unto himself. And as he was left unto himself, he fel unto th earth.
10 And it came to pass that it was for th space of many ours befor Moses did again receve his natrl strength like unto man; and he said unto himself: Now, for this cause I no that man is nothing, wich thing I nevr had supposed.
11 But now mine own eyes hav beheld God; but not my natrl, but my spiritual eyes, for my natrl eyes cud not hav beheld; for I shud hav withered and died in his presence; but his glory was upon me; and I beheld his face, for I was transfigured befor him.
12 And it came to pass that wen Moses had said these words, behold, Satan came tempting him, sayng: Moses, son of man, worship me.
13 And it came to pass that Moses lookd upon Satan and said: Ho art thou? For behold, I am a son of God, in th similitude of his Only Begotten; and wher is thy glory, that I shud worship thee?
14 For behold, I cud not look upon God, except his glory shud com upon me, and I wer transfigured befor him. But I can look upon thee in th natrl man. Is it not so, surely?
15 Blessed be th name of my God, for his Spirit hath not altogether withdrawn from me, or else wher is thy glory, for it is darkness unto me? And I can judge between thee and God; for God said unto me: Worship God, for him only shalt thou serv.
16 Get thee hence, Satan; deceive me not; for God said unto me: Thou art aftr th similitude of mine Only Begotten.
17 And he also gave me commandments wen he cald unto me out of th burning bush, sayng: Cal upon God in th name of mine Only Begotten, and worship me.
18 And again Moses said: I wil not cease to cal upon God, I hav othr things to inquire of him: for his glory has been upon me, wherefore I can judge between him and thee. Depart hence, Satan.
19 And now, wen Moses had said these words, Satan cryd with a loud voice, and ranted upon th earth, and commanded, sayng: I am th Only Begotten, worship me.
20 And it came to pass that Moses began to fear exceedingly; and as he began to fear, he saw th bitterness of hell. Nevertheless, calng upon God, he receved strength, and he commanded, sayng: Depart from me, Satan, for this one God only wil I worship, wich is th God of glory.
21 And now Satan began to tremble, and th earth shook; and Moses receved strength, and cald upon God, sayng: In th name of th Only Begotten, depart hence, Satan.
22 And it came to pass that Satan cryd with a loud voice, with weeping, and wailing, and gnashing of teeth; and he departed hence, even from th presence of Moses, that he beheld him not.
23 And now of this thing Moses bore record; but because of wickedness it is not had among th children of men.
24 And it came to pass that wen Satan had departed from th presence of Moses, that Moses liftd up his eyes unto heaven, being fild with th Holy Ghost, wich beareth record of th Fathr and th Son;
25 And calng upon th name of God, he beheld his glory again, for it was upon him; and he herd a voice, sayng: Blessed art thou, Moses, for I, th Almighty, hav chosen thee, and thou shalt be made stronger than many watrs; for they shall obey thy command as if thou wert God.
26 And lo, I am with thee, even unto th end of thy days; for thou shalt deliver my peple from bondage, even Israel my chosen.
27 And it came to pass, as th voice was stil speakng, Moses cast his eyes and beheld th earth, yea, even al of it; and ther was not a particle of it wich he did not behold, discerning it by th spirit of God.
28 And he beheld also th inhabitants thereof, and ther was not a soul wich he beheld not; and he discerned them by th Spirit of God; and ther numbrs wer gret, even numberless as th sand upon th sea shore.
29 And he beheld many lands; and each land was cald earth, and ther wer inhabitants on th face thereof.
30 And it came to pass that Moses cald upon God, sayng: Tel me, I pray thee, wy these things ar so, and by wat thou madest them?
31 And behold, th glory of th Lord was upon Moses, so that Moses stood in th presence of God, and talkd with him face to face. And th Lord God said unto Moses: For mine own purpose hav I made these things. Here is wisdom and it remaineth in me.
32 And by th word of my powr, hav I created them, wich is mine Only Begotten Son, ho is ful of grace and truth.
33 And worlds without numr hav I created; and I also created them for mine own purpose; and by th Son I created them, wich is mine Only Begotten.
34 And th first man of al men hav I cald Adam, wich is many.
35 But only an account of this earth, and th inhabitants thereof, giv I unto u. For behold, ther ar many worlds that hav pasd away by th word of my powr. And ther ar many that now stand, and innumerable ar they unto man; but al things ar numbered unto me, for they ar mine and I no them.
36 And it came to pass that Moses spake unto th Lord, sayng: Be merciful unto thy servant, O God, and tel me concernng this earth, and th inhabitants thereof, and also th heavens, and then thy servant wil be content.
37 And th Lord God spake unto Moses, sayng: Th heavens, they ar many, and they canot be numbered unto man; but they ar numbered unto me, for they ar mine.
38 And as one earth shall pass away, and th heavens thereof even so shall anothr com, and ther is no end to my works, neither to my words.
39 For behold, this is my work and my glory to bring to pass th immortality and eternal life of man.
40 And now, Moses, my son, I wil speak unto thee concernng this earth upon wich thou standest; and thou shalt rite th things wich I shall speak.
41 And in a day wen th children of men shall esteem my words as naught and take many of them from th book wich thou shalt rite, behold, I wil rase up anothr like unto thee; and they shall be had again among th children of men -- among as many as shall beleve.
42 These words wer spoken unto Moses in th mount, th name of wich shall not be known among th children of men. And now they ar spoken unto u. Sho them not unto any except them that beleve. Even so. Amen.
Chapter 2[]
1 And it came to pass that th Lord spake unto Moses, sayng: Behold, I reveal unto u concernng this heaven, and this earth; rite th words wich I speak. I am th Beginning and th End, th Almighty God; by mine Only Begotten I created these things; yea, in th beginning I created th heaven, and th earth upon wich thou standest.
2 And th earth was without form, and void; and I caused darkness to com up upon th face of th deep; and my Spirit moved upon th face of th watr; for I am God.
3 And I, God, said: Let ther be lyt; and ther was lyt.
4 And I, God, saw th lyt; and that lyt was good. And I, God, divided th lyt from th darkness.
5 And I, God, cald th lyt Day; and th darkness, I cald Nyt; and this I did by th word of my powr, and it was don as I spake; and th evenng and th mornng wer th first day.
6 And again, I, God, said: Let ther be a firmament in th midst of th watr, and it was so, even as I spake; and I said: Let it divide th watrs from th watrs; and it was don;
7 And I, God, made th firmament and divided th watrs, yea, th gret watrs undr th firmament from th watrs wich wer above th firmament, and it was so even as I spake.
8 And I, God, cald th firmament Heaven; and th evenng and th mornng wer th secnd day.
9 And I, God, said: Let th watrs undr th heaven be gathrd togethr unto one place, and it was so; and I, God, said: Let ther be dry land; and it was so.
10 And I, God, cald th dry land Earth; and th gathering togethr of th watrs, cald I th Sea; and I, God, saw that al things wich I had made wer good.
11 And I, God, said: Let th earth bring forth grass, th herb yielding seed, th fruit tre yielding fruit, aftr his kind, and th tre yielding fruit, hos seed shud be in itself upon th earth, and it was so even as I spake.
12 And th earth brot forth grass, evry herb yielding seed aftr his kind, and th tre yielding fruit, hos seed shud be in itself, aftr his kind; and I, God, saw that al things wich I had made wer good;
13 And th evenng and th mornng wer th third day.
14 And I, God, said: Let ther be lyts in th firmament of th heaven, to divide th day from th nyt, and let them be for syns, and for seasns, and for days, and for years;
15 And let them be for lyts in th firmament of th heaven to giv lyt upon th earth; and it was so.
16 And I, God, made two gret lyts; th gretr lyt to rule th day, and th lesser lyt to rule th nyt, and th gretr lyt was th sun, and th lesser lyt was th moon; and th stars also wer made even acordng to my word.
17 And I, God, set them in th firmament of th heaven to giv lyt upon th earth,
18 And th sun to rule over th day, and th moon to rule over th nyt, and to divide th lyt from th darkness; and I, God, saw that al things wich I had made wer good;
19 And th evenng and th mornng wer th fourth day.
20 And I, God, said: Let th watrs bring forth abundantly th moving creature that hath life, and fowl wich may fly above th earth in th open firmament of heaven.
21 And I, God, created gret whales, and evry living creature that moveth, wich th watrs brot forth abundantly, aftr ther kind, and evry winged fowl aftr his kind; and I, God, saw that al things wich I had created wer good.
22 And I, God, blessed them, sayng: Be fruitful, and multiply, and fil th watrs in th sea; and let fowl multiply in th earth;
23 And th evenng and th mornng wer th fifth day.
24 And I, God, said: Let th earth bring forth th living creature aftr his kind, cattle, and creeping things, and beasts of th earth aftr ther kind, and it was so;
25 And I, God, made th beasts of th earth aftr ther kind, and cattle aftr ther kind, and evrything wich creepeth upon th earth aftr his kind; and I, God, saw that al these things wer good.
26 And I, God, said unto mine Only Begotten, wich was with me from th beginning: Let us make man in our image, aftr our likeness; and it was so. And I, God, said: Let them hav dominion over th fishes of th sea, and over th fowl of th air, and over th cattle, and over al th earth, and over evry creeping thing that creepeth upon th earth.
27 And I, God, created man in mine own image, in th image of mine Only Begotten created I him; male and female created I them.
28 And I, God, blessed them, and said unto them: Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish th earth, and subdue it, and hav dominion over th fish of th sea, and over th fowl of th air, and over evry living thing that moveth upon th earth.
29 And I, God, said unto man: Behold, I hav given u evry herb bearing seed, wich is upon th face of al th earth, and evry tre in th wich shall be th fruit of a tre yielding seed; to u it shall be for meat.
30 And to evry beast of th earth, and to evry fowl of th air, and to evrything that creepeth upon th earth, wherein I grant life, ther shall be given evry clean herb for meat; and it was so, even as I spake.
31 And I, God, saw evrything that I had made, and, behold, al things wich I had made wer very good; and th evenng and th mornng wer th sixth day.
Chapter 3[]
1 Thus th heaven and th earth wer finishd, and al th host of them. 2 And on th seventh day I, God, ended my work, and al things wich I had made; and I rested on th seventh day from al my work, and al things wich I had made wer finishd, and I, God, saw that they wer good; 3 And I, God, blessed th seventh day, and sanctified it; because that in it I had rested from al my work wich I, God, had created and made. 4 And now, behold, I say unto u, that these ar th generations of th heaven and of th earth, wen they wer created, in th day that I, th Lord God, made th heaven and th earth, 5 And evry plant of th field befor it was in th earth, and evry herb of th field befor it grew. For I, th Lord God, created al things, of wich I hav spoken, spiritually, befor they wer naturally upon th face of th earth. For I, th Lord God, had not caused it to rain upon th face of th earth. And I, th Lord God, had created al th children of men; and not yet a man to till th ground; for in heaven created I them; and ther was not yet flesh upon th earth, neither in th watr, neither in th air; 6 But I, th Lord God, spake, and ther went up a mist from th earth, and watered th hole face of th ground. 7 And I, th Lord God, formd man from th dust of th ground, and breathed into his nostrils th breath of life; and man became a living soul, th first flesh upon th earth, th first man also; nevertheless, al things wer befor created; but spiritually wer they created and made acordng to my word. 8 And I, th Lord God, planted a garden eastward in Eden, and ther I put th man whom I had formd. 9 And out of th ground made I, th Lord God, to gro evry tre, naturally, that is pleasant to th sight of man; and man cud behold it. And it became also a living soul. For it was spiritual in th day that I created it; for it remaineth in th sphere in wich I, God, created it, yea, even al things wich I prepared for th use of man; and man saw that it was good for food. And I, th Lord God, planted th tre of life also in th midst of th garden, and also th tre of knowledge of good and evil. 10 And I, th Lord God, caused a river to go out of Eden to watr th garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heds. 11 And I, th Lord God, cald th name of th first Pison, and it compasseth th hole land of Havilah, wher I, th Lord God, created much gold; 12 And th gold of that land was good, and ther was bdellium and th onyx stone. 13 And th name of th secnd river was cald Gihon; th same that compasseth th hole land of Ethiopia. 14 And th name of th third river was Hiddekel; that wich goeth toward th east of Assyria. And th fourth river was th Euphrates. 15 And I, th Lord God, took th man, and put him into th Garden of Eden, to dress it, and to keep it. 16 And I, th Lord God, commanded th man, sayng: Of evry tre of th garden thou mayest freely eat, 17 But of th tre of th knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it, nevertheless, thou mayest choose for thyself, for it is given unto thee; but, remembr that I forbid it, for in th day thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. 18 And I, th Lord God, said unto mine Only Begotten, that it was not good that th man shud be alone; wherefore, I wil make an help meet for him. 19 And out of th ground I, th Lord God, formd evry beast of th field, and evry fowl of th air; and commanded that they shud com unto Adam, to se wat he wud cal them; and they wer also living souls; for I, God, breathed into them th breath of life, and commanded that whatsoever Adam cald evry living creature, that shud be th name thereof. 20 And Adam gave names to al cattle, and to th fowl of th air, and to evry beast of th field; but as for Adam, ther was not found an help meet for him. 21 And I, th Lord God, caused a deep sleep to fal upon Adam; and he slept, and I took one of his ribs and closed up th flesh in th stead thereof; 22 And th rib wich I, th Lord God, had taken from man, made I a womn, and brot her unto th man. 23 And Adam said: This I no now is bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh; she shall be cald Womn, because she was taken out of man. 24 Therefore shall a man leve his fathr and his mothr, and shall cleave unto his wife; and they shall be one flesh. 25 And they wer both naked, th man and his wife, and wer not ashamed.
Chapter 4[]
1 And I, th Lord God, spake unto Moses, sayng: That Satan, whom thou hast commanded in th name of mine Only Begotten, is th same wich was from th beginning, and he came befor me, sayng Behold, here am I, send me, I wil be thy son, and I wil redeem al mankind, that one soul shall not be lost, and surely I wil do it; wherefore giv me thine honor. 2 But, behold, my Beloved Son, wich was my Beloved and Chosen from th beginning, said unto me -- Fathr, thy wil be don, and th glory be thine forever. 3 Wherefore, because that Satan rebelled against me, and sought to destroy th agency of man, wich I, th Lord God, had given him, and also, that I shud giv unto him mine own powr; by th powr of mine Only Begotten, I caused that he shud be cast down; 4 And he became Satan, yea, even th devil, th fathr of al lies, to deceive and to blind men, and to led them captive at his wil, even as many as wud not hearken unto my voice. 5 And now th serpent was mor subtle than any beast of th field wich I, th Lord God, had made. 6 And Satan put it into th hart of th serpent, (for he had drawn away many aftr him,) and he sought also to beguile Eve, for he new not th mind of God, wherefore he sought to destroy th world. 7 And he said unto th womn: Yea, hath God said -- Ye shall not eat of evry tre of th garden? (And he spake by th mouth of th serpent.) 8 And th womn said unto th serpent: We may eat of th fruit of th tres of th garden; 9 But of th fruit of th tre wich thou beholdest in th midst of th garden, God hath said -- Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. 10 And th serpent said unto th womn: Ye shall not surely die; 11 For God doth no that in th day ye eat thereof, then yr eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, noing good and evil. 12 And wen th womn saw that th tre was good for food, and that it became pleasant to th eyes, and a tre to be desired to make her wise, she took of th fruit thereof, and did eat, and also gave unto her husbnd with her, and he did eat. 13 And th eyes of them both wer opened, and they new that they had been naked. And they sewed fig-leves togethr and made themselvs aprons. 14 And they herd th voice of th Lord God, as they wer walkng in th garden, in th cool of th day; and Adam and his wife went to hide themselvs from th presence of th Lord God amongst th tres of th garden. 15 And I, th Lord God, cald unto Adam, and said unto him: Wher goest thou? 16 And he said: I herd thy voice in th garden, and I was afraid, because I beheld that I was naked, and I hid myself. 17 And I, th Lord God, said unto Adam: Ho told thee thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of th tre whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldst not eat, if so thou shouldst surely die? 18 And th man said: Th womn thou gavest me, and commandest that she shud remain with me, she gave me of th fruit of th tre and I did eat. 19 And I, th Lord God, said unto th womn: Wat is this thing wich thou hast don? And th womn said: Th serpent beguiled me, and I did eat. 20 And I, th Lord God, said unto th serpent: Because thou hast don this thou shalt be cursed above al cattle, and above evry beast of th field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat al th days of thy life; 21 And I wil put enmity between thee and th womn, between thy seed and her seed; and he shall bruise thy hed, and thou shalt bruise his heel. 22 Unto th womn, I, th Lord God, said: I wil greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception. In sorrow thou shalt bring forth children, and thy desire shall be to thy husbnd, and he shall rule over thee. 23 And unto Adam, I, th Lord God, said: Because thou hast hearkened unto th voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of th fruit of th tre of wich I commanded thee, sayng -- Thou shalt not eat of it, cursed shall be th ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it al th days of thy life. 24 Thorns also, and thistles shall it bring forth to thee, and thou shalt eat th herb of th field. 25 By th sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, until thou shalt return unto th ground -- for thou shalt surely die -- for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou wast, and unto dust shalt thou return. 26 And Adam cald his wife's name Eve, because she was th mothr of al living; for thus hav I, th Lord God, cald th first of al women, wich ar many. 27 Unto Adam, and also unto his wife, did I, th Lord God, make coats of skins, and clothed them. 28 And I, th Lord God, said unto mine Only Begotten: Behold, th man is becom as one of us to no good and evil; and now lest he put forth his hand and partake also of th tre of life, and eat and liv forever, 29 Therefore I, th Lord God, wil send him forth from th Garden of Eden, to till th ground from whence he was taken; 30 For as I, th Lord God, liveth, even so my words canot return void, for as they go forth out of my mouth they must be fulfilled. 31 So I drove out th man, and I placed at th east of th Garden of Eden, cherubim and a flaming sword, wich turnd evry way to keep th way of th tre of life. 32 (And these ar th words wich I spake unto my servant Moses, and they ar tru even as I wil; and I hav spoken them unto u. Se thou sho them unto no man, until I command u, except to them that beleve. Amen.)
Chapter 5[]
1 And it came to pass that aftr I, th Lord God, had driven them out, that Adam began to till th earth, and to hav dominion over al th beasts of th field, and to eat his bread by th sweat of his brow, as I th Lord had commanded him. And Eve, also, his wife, did labor with him. 2 And Adam new his wife, and she bare unto him sons and dautrs, and they began to multiply and to replenish th earth. 3 And from that time forth, th sons and dautrs of Adam began to divide two and two in th land, and to till th land, and to tend flocks, and they also begat sons and dautrs. 4 And Adam and Eve, his wife, cald upon th name of th Lord, and they herd th voice of th Lord from th way toward th Garden of Eden, speakng unto them, and they saw him not; for they wer shut out from his presence. 5 And he gave unto them commandments, that they shud worship th Lord ther God, and shud ofr th firstlings of ther flocks, for an ofrng unto th Lord. And Adam was obedient unto th commandments of th Lord. 6 And aftr many days an angel of th Lord appeared unto Adam, sayng: Wy dost thou ofr sacrifices unto th Lord? And Adam said unto him: I no not, save th Lord commanded me. 7 And then th angel spake, sayng: This thing is a similitude of th sacrifice of th Only Begotten of th Fathr, wich is ful of grace and truth. 8 Wherefore, thou shalt do al that thou doest in th name of th Son, and thou shalt repent and cal upon God in th name of th Son forevermore. 9 And in that day th Holy Ghost fel upon Adam, wich beareth record of th Fathr and th Son, sayng: I am th Only Begotten of th Fathr from th beginning, henceforth and forever, that as thou hast fallen thou mayest be redeemed, and al mankind, even as many as wil. 10 And in that day Adam blessed God and was fild, and began to prophesy concernng al th famlis of th earth, sayng: Blessed be th name of God, for because of my transgression my eyes ar opened, and in this life I shall hav joy, and again in th flesh I shall se God. 11 And Eve, his wife, herd al these things and was glad, sayng: Wer it not for our transgression we nevr shud hav had seed, and nevr shud hav known good and evil, and th joy of our redemption, and th eternal life wich God giveth unto al th obedient. 12 And Adam and Eve blessed th name of God, and they made al things known unto ther sons and ther dautrs. 13 And Satan came among them, sayng: I am also a son of God; and he commanded them, sayng: Beleve it not; and they beleved it not, and they lovd Satan mor than God. And men began from that time forth to be carnal, sensual, and devilish. 14 And th Lord God cald upon men by th Holy Ghost everywhere and commanded them that they shud repent; 15 And as many as beleved in th Son, and repented of ther sins, shud be saved; and as many as beleved not and repented not, shud be damned; and th words went forth out of th mouth of God in a firm decree; wherefore they must be fulfilled. 16 And Adam and Eve, his wife, ceased not to cal upon God. And Adam new Eve his wife, and she conceived and bare Cain, and said: I hav gotten a man from th Lord; wherefore he may not reject his words. But behold, Cain hearkened not, sayng: Ho is th Lord that I shud no him? 17 And she again conceived and bare his brothr Abel. And Abel hearkened unto th voice of th Lord. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of th ground. 18 And Cain lovd Satan mor than God. And Satan commanded him, sayng: Make an ofrng unto th Lord. 19 And in process of time it came to pass that Cain brot of th fruit of th ground an ofrng unto th Lord. 20 And Abel he also brot of th firstlings of his flock, and of th fat thereof. And th Lord had respect unto Abel, and to his ofrng; 21 But unto Cain, and to his ofrng, he had not respect. Now Satan new this, and it pleased him. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fel. 22 And th Lord said unto Cain: Wy art thou wroth? Wy is thy countenance fallen? 23 If thou doest wel, thou shalt be accepted. And if thou doest not wel, sin lieth at th dor, and Satan desireth to hav thee; and except thou shalt hearken unto my commandments, I wil deliver thee up, and it shall be unto thee acordng to his desire. And thou shalt rule over him; 24 For from this time forth thou shalt be th fathr of his lies; thou shalt be cald Perdition; for thou wast also befor th world. 25 And it shall be said in time to com -- That these abominations wer had from Cain; for he rejected th gretr counsel wich was had from God; and this is a cursing wich I wil put upon thee, except thou repent. 26 And Cain was wroth, and listened not any mor to th voice of th Lord, neither to Abel, his brothr, ho walked in holiness befor th Lord. 27 And Adam and his wife mourned befor th Lord, because of Cain and his brethren. 28 And it came to pass that Cain took one of his brothrs' dautrs to wife, and they lovd Satan mor than God. 29 And Satan said unto Cain: Swear unto me by thy throat, and if thou tel it thou shalt die; and swear thy brethren by ther heds, and by th living God, that they tel it not; for if they tel it, they shall surely die; and this that thy fathr may not no it; and this day I wil deliver thy brothr Abel into thine hands. 30 And Satan sware unto Cain that he wud do acordng to his commands. And al these things wer don in secret. 31 And Cain said: Truly I am Mahan, th master of this gret secret, that I may murder and get gain. Wherefore Cain was cald Master Mahan, and he gloried in his wickedness. 32 And Cain went into th field, and Cain talkd with Abel, his brothr. And it came to pass that wile they wer in th field, Cain rose up against Abel, his brothr, and slew him. 33 And Cain gloried in that wich he had don, sayng: I am fre; surely th flocks of my brothr falleth into my hands. 34 And th Lord said unto Cain: Wher is Abel, thy brothr? And he said: I no not. Am I my brothr's keeper? 35 And th Lord said: Wat hast thou don? Th voice of thy brothr's blod cries unto me from th ground. 36 And now thou shalt be cursed from th earth wich hath opened her mouth to receve thy brothr's blod from thy hand. 37 Wen thou tillest th ground it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength. A fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in th earth. 38 And Cain said unto th Lord: Satan tempted me because of my brothr's flocks. And I was wroth also; for his ofrng thou didst accept and not mine; my punishment is gretr than I can bear. 39 Behold thou hast driven me out this day from th face of th Lord, and from thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in th earth; and it shall com to pass, that he that findeth me wil slay me, because of mine iniquities, for these things ar not hid from th Lord. 40 And I th Lord said unto him: Whosoever slayeth thee, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And I th Lord set a mark upon Cain, lest any findng him shud kil him. 41 And Cain was shut out from th presence of th Lord, and with his wife and many of his brethren dwelt in th land of Nod, on th east of Eden. 42 And Cain new his wife, and she conceived and bare Enoch, and he also begat many sons and dautrs. And he builded a city, and he cald th name of th city aftr th name of his son, Enoch. 43 And unto Enoch was born Irad, and othr sons and dautrs. And Irad begat Mahujael, and othr sons and dautrs. And Mahujael begat Methusael, and othr sons and dautrs. And Methusael begat Lamech. 44 And Lamech took unto himself two wives; th name of one being Adah, and th name of th othr, Zillah. 45 And Adah bare Jabal; he was th fathr of such as dwell in tents, and they wer keepers of cattle; and his brothr's name was Jubal, ho was th fathr of al such as handle th harp and organ. 46 And Zillah, she also bare Tubal Cain, an instructor of evry artificer in brass and iron. And th sister of Tubal Cain was cald Naamah. 47 And Lamech said unto his wives, Adah and Zillah: Hear my voice, ye wives of Lamech, hearken unto my speech; for I hav slain a man to my wounding, and a yung man to my hurt. 48 If Cain shall be avenged sevenfold, truly Lamech shall be seventy and sevn fold; 49 For Lamech havng entered into a covenant with Satan, aftr th manner of Cain, wherein he became Master Mahan, master of that gret secret wich was administered unto Cain by Satan; and Irad, th son of Enoch, havng known ther secret, began to reveal it unto th sons of Adam; 50 Wherefore Lamech, being angry, slew him, not like unto Cain, his brothr Abel, for th sake of getng gain, but he slew him for th oath's sake. 51 For, from th days of Cain, ther was a secret combination, and ther works wer in th dark, and they new evry man his brothr. 52 Wherefore th Lord cursed Lamech, and his house, and al them that had covenanted with Satan; for they kept not th commandments of God, and it displeased God, and he ministered not unto them, and ther works wer abominations, and began to spread among al th sons of men. And it was among th sons of men. 53 And among th dautrs of men these things wer not spoken, because that Lamech had spoken th secret unto his wives, and they rebelled against him, and declared these things abroad, and had not compassion; 54 Wherefore Lamech was despised, and cast out, and came not among th sons of men, lest he shud die. 55 And thus th works of darkness began to prevail among al th sons of men. 56 And God cursed th earth with a sore curse, and was angry with th wicked, with al th sons of men whom he had made; 57 For they wud not hearken unto his voice, nor beleve on his Only Begotten Son, even him whom he declared shud com in th meridian of time, ho was prepared from befor th foundation of th world. 58 And thus th Gospel began to be preached, from th beginning, being declared by holy angels sent forth from th presence of God, and by his own voice, and by th gift of th Holy Ghost. 59 And thus al things wer confirmed unto Adam, by an holy ordinance, and th Gospel preached, and a decree sent forth, that it shud be in th world, until th end thereof; and thus it was. Amen.
Chapter 6[]
1 And Adam hearkened unto th voice of God, and cald upon his sons to repent. 2 And Adam new his wife again, and she bare a son, and he cald his name Seth. And Adam glorified th name of God; for he said: God hath appointed me anothr seed, instead of Abel, whom Cain slew. 3 And God revealed himself unto Seth, and he rebelled not, but offered an acceptable sacrifice, like unto his brothr Abel. And to him also was born a son, and he cald his name Enos. 4 And then began these men to cal upon th name of th Lord, and th Lord blessed them; 5 And a book of remembrance was kept, in th wich was recorded, in th language of Adam, for it was given unto as many as cald upon God to rite by th spirit of inspiration; 6 And by them ther children wer taut to red and rite, havng a language wich was pure and undefiled. 7 Now this same Priesthood, wich was in th beginning, shall be in th end of th world also. 8 Now this prophecy Adam spake, as he was moved upon by th Holy Ghost, and a genealogy was kept of th children of God. And this was th book of th generations of Adam, sayng: In th day that God created man, in th likeness of God made he him; 9 In th image of his own body, male and female, created he them, and blessed them, and cald ther name Adam, in th day wen they wer created and became living souls in th land upon th footstool of God. 10 And Adam lived one hundred and thirty years, and begat a son in his own likeness, aftr his own image, and cald his name Seth. 11 And th days of Adam, aftr he had begotten Seth, wer eit hundred years, and he begat many sons and dautrs; 12 And al th days that Adam lived wer nine hundred and thirty years, and he died. 13 Seth lived one hundred and five years, and begat Enos, and prophesied in al his days, and taut his son Enos in th ways of God; wherefore Enos prophesied also. 14 And Seth lived, aftr he begat Enos, eit hundred and sevn years, and begat many sons and dautrs. 15 And th children of men wer numerous upon al th face of th land. And in those days Satan had gret dominion among men, and raged in ther harts; and from thenceforth came wars and bloodshed; and a man's hand was against his own brothr, in administering deth, because of secret works, seekng for powr. 16 Al th days of Seth wer nine hundred and twelve years, and he died. 17 And Enos lived ninety years, and begat Cainan. And Enos and th residue of th peple of God came out from th land, wich was cald Shulon, and dwelt in a land of promise, wich he cald aftr his own son, whom he had named Cainan. 18 And Enos lived, aftr he begat Cainan, eit hundred and fifteen years, and begat many sons and dautrs. And al th days of Enos wer nine hundred and five years, and he died. 19 And Cainan lived seventy years, and begat Mahalaleel; and Cainan lived aftr he begat Mahalaleel eit hundred and forty years, and begat sons and dautrs. And al th days of Cainan wer nine hundred and ten years, and he died. 20 And Mahalaleel lived sixty-five years, and begat Jared; and Mahalaleel lived, aftr he begat Jared, eit hundred and thirty years, and begat sons and dautrs. And al th days of Mahalaleel wer eit hundred and ninety-five years, and he died. 21 And Jared lived one hundred and sixty-two years, and begat Enoch; and Jared lived, aftr he begat Enoch, eit hundred years, and begat sons and dautrs. And Jared taut Enoch in al th ways of God. 22 And this is th genealogy of th sons of Adam, ho was th son of God, with whom God, himself, conversed. 23 And they wer preachers of righteousness, and spake and prophesied, and cald upon al men, everywhere, to repent; and faith was taut unto th children of men. 24 And it came to pass that al th days of Jared wer nine hundred and sixty-two years, and he died. 25 And Enoch lived sixty-five years, and begat Methuselah. 26 And it came to pass that Enoch journeyed in th land, among th peple; and as he journeyed, th Spirit of God descended out of heaven, and abode upon him. 27 And he herd a voice from heaven, sayng: Enoch, my son, prophesy unto this peple, and say unto them -- Repent, for thus saith th Lord: I am angry with this peple, and my fierce anger is kindled against them; for ther harts hav waxed hard, and ther ears ar dull of hearng, and ther eyes canot se afar off; 28 And for these many generations, evr since th day that I created them, hav they gon astray, and hav denied me, and hav sought ther own counsels in th dark; and in ther own abominations hav they devised murder, and hav not kept th commandments, wich I gave unto ther fathr, Adam. 29 Wherefore, they hav foresworn themselvs, and, by ther oaths, they hav brot upon themselvs deth; and a hell I hav prepared for them, if they repent not; 30 And this is a decree, wich I hav sent forth in th beginning of th world, from my own mouth, from th foundation thereof, and by th mouths of my servants, thy fathrs, hav I decreed it, even as it shall be sent forth in th world, unto th ends thereof. 31 And wen Enoch had herd these words, he bowed himself to th earth, befor th Lord, and spake befor th Lord, sayng: Wy is it that I hav found favor in thy sight, and am but a lad, and al th peple hate me; for I am slow of speech; wherefore am I thy servant? 32 And th Lord said unto Enoch: Go forth and do as I hav commanded thee, and no man shall pierce thee. Open thy mouth, and it shall be fild, and I wil giv thee utterance, for al flesh is in my hands, and I wil do as seemeth me good. 33 Say unto this peple: Choose ye this day, to serv th Lord God ho made u. 34 Behold my Spirit is upon u, wherefore al thy words wil I justify; and th mountains shall flee befor u, and th rivers shall turn from ther corse; and thou shalt abide in me, and I in u; therefore walk with me. 35 And th Lord spake unto Enoch, and said unto him: Anoint thine eyes with clay, and wash them, and thou shalt se. And he did so. 36 And he beheld th spirits that God had created; and he beheld also things wich wer not visible to th natrl eye; and from thenceforth came th sayng abroad in th land: A seer hath th Lord rased up unto his peple. 37 And it came to pass that Enoch went forth in th land, among th peple, standng upon th hills and th hy places, and cryd with a loud voice, testifying against ther works; and al men wer offended because of him. 38 And they came forth to hear him, upon th hy places, sayng unto th tent-keepers: Tarry ye here and keep th tents, wile we go yonder to behold th seer, for he prophesieth, and ther is a strange thing in th land; a wild man hath com among us. 39 And it came to pass wen they herd him, no man laid hands on him; for fear came on al them that herd him; for he walked with God. 40 And ther came a man unto him, hos name was Mahijah, and said unto him: Tel us plainly ho thou art, and from whence thou comest? 41 And he said unto them: I came out from th land of Cainan, th land of my fathrs, a land of righteousness unto this day. And my fathr taut me in al th ways of God. 42 And it came to pass, as I journeyed from th land of Cainan, by th sea east, I beheld a vision; and lo, th heavens I saw, and th Lord spake with me, and gave me commandment; wherefore, for this cause, to keep th commandment, I speak forth these words. 43 And Enoch continued his speech, sayng: Th Lord wich spake with me, th same is th God of heaven, and he is my God, and yr God, and ye ar my brethren, and wy counsel ye yourselves, and deny th God of heaven? 44 Th heavens he made; th earth is his footstool; and th foundation thereof is his. Behold, he laid it, an host of men hath he brot in upon th face thereof. 45 And deth hath com upon our fathrs; nevertheless we no them, and canot deny, and even th first of al we no, even Adam. 46 For a book of remembrance we hav written among us, acordng to th pattern given by th finger of God; and it is given in our own language. 47 And as Enoch spake forth th words of God, th peple trembled, and cud not stand in his presence. 48 And he said unto them: Because that Adam fel, we ar; and by his fal came deth; and we ar made partakers of misery and woe. 49 Behold Satan hath com among th children of men, and tempteth them to worship him; and men hav becom carnal, sensual, and devilish, and ar shut out from th presence of God. 50 But God hath made known unto our fathrs that al men must repent. 51 And he cald upon our fathr Adam by his own voice, sayng: I am God; I made th world, and men befor they wer in th flesh. 52 And he also said unto him: If thou wilt turn unto me, and hearken unto my voice, and beleve, and repent of al thy transgressions, and be baptized, even in watr, in th name of mine Only Begotten Son, ho is ful of grace and truth, wich is Jesus Christ, th only name wich shall be given undr heaven, whereby salvation shall com unto th children of men, ye shall receve th gift of th Holy Ghost, askng al things in his name, and whatsoever ye shall ask, it shall be given u. 53 And our fathr Adam spake unto th Lord, and said: Wy is it that men must repent and be baptized in watr? And th Lord said unto Adam: Behold I hav forgiven thee thy transgression in th Garden of Eden. 54 Hence came th sayng abroad among th peple, that th Son of God hath atoned for original guilt, wherein th sins of th parents canot be ansrd upon th heds of th children, for they ar hole from th foundation of th world. 55 And th Lord spake unto Adam, sayng: Inasmuch as thy children ar conceived in sin, even so wen they begin to gro up, sin conceiveth in ther harts, and they taste th bitter, that they may no to prize th good. 56 And it is given unto them to no good from evil; wherefore they ar agents unto themselvs, and I hav given unto u anothr law and commandment. 57 Wherefore teach it unto yr children, that al men, everywhere, must repent, or they can in nowise inherit th kingdom of God, for no unclean thing can dwell ther, or dwell in his presence; for, in th language of Adam, Man of Holiness is his name, and th name of his Only Begotten is th Son of Man, even Jesus Christ, a righteous Judge, ho shall com in th meridian of time. 58 Therefore I giv unto u a commandment, to teach these things freely unto yr children, sayng: 59 That by reasn of transgression cometh th fal, wich fal bringeth deth, and inasmuch as ye wer born into th world by watr, and blod, and th spirit, wich I hav made, and so became of dust a living soul, even so ye must be born again into th kingdom of heaven, of watr, and of th Spirit, and be cleansed by blod, even th blod of mine Only Begotten; that ye myt be sanctified from al sin, and enjoy th words of eternal life in this world, and eternal life in th world to com, even immortal glory; 60 For by th watr ye keep th commandment; by th Spirit ye ar justified, and by th blod ye ar sanctified; 61 Therefore it is given to abide in u; th record of heaven; th Comforter; th peaceable things of immortal glory; th truth of al things; that wich quickeneth al things, wich maketh alive al things; that wich knoweth al things, and hath al powr acordng to wisdom, mercy, truth, justice, and judgment. 62 And now, behold, I say unto u: This is th plan of salvation unto al men, thru th blod of mine Only Begotten, ho shall com in th meridian of time. 63 And behold, al things hav ther likeness, and al things ar created and made to bear record of me, both things wich ar temporal, and things wich ar spiritual; things wich ar in th heavens above, and things wich ar on th earth, and things wich ar in th earth, and things wich ar undr th earth, both above and beneath: al things bear record of me. 64 And it came to pass, wen th Lord had spoken with Adam, our fathr, that Adam cryd unto th Lord, and he was caut away by th Spirit of th Lord, and was carrid down into th watr, and was laid undr th watr, and was brot forth out of th watr. 65 And thus he was baptized, and th Spirit of God descended upon him, and thus he was born of th Spirit, and became quickened in th inner man. 66 And he herd a voice out of heaven, sayng: Thou art baptized with fire, and with th Holy Ghost. This is th record of th Fathr, and th Son, from henceforth and forever; 67 And thou art aftr th ordr of him ho was without beginning of days or end of years, from al eternity to al eternity. 68 Behold, thou art one in me, a son of God; and thus may al becom my sons. Amen.
Chapter 7[]
1 And it came to pass that Enoch continued his speech, sayng: Behold, our fathr Adam taut these things, and many hav beleved and becom th sons of God, and many hav beleved not, and hav perished in ther sins, and ar lookng forth with fear, in torment, for th fiery indignation of th wrath of God to be poured out upon them. 2 And from that time forth Enoch began to prophesy, sayng unto th peple, that: As I was journeying, and stood upon th place Mahujah, and cryd unto th Lord, ther came a voice out of heaven, sayng, Turn ye, and get ye upon th mount Simeon. 3 And it came to pass that I turnd and went up on th mount; and as I stood upon th mount, I beheld th heavens open, and I was clothed upon with glory; 4 And I saw th Lord; and he stood befor my face, and he talkd with me, even as a man talketh one with anothr, face to face; and he said unto me: Look, and I wil sho unto thee th world for th space of many generations. 5 And it came to pass that I beheld in th valley of Shum, and lo, a gret peple wich dwelt in tents, wich wer th peple of Shum. 6 And again th Lord said unto me: Look; and I lookd towards th north, and I beheld th peple of Canaan, wich dwelt in tents. 7 And th Lord said unto me: Prophesy; and I prophesied, sayng: Behold th peple of Canaan, wich ar numerous, shall go forth in battle array against th peple of Shum, and shall slay them that they shall utterly be destroyed; and th peple of Canaan shall divide themselvs in th land, and th land shall be barren and unfruitful, and none othr peple shall dwell ther but th peple of Canaan; 8 For behold, th Lord shall curse th land with much heat, and th barrenness thereof shall go forth forever; and ther was a blackness came upon al th children of Canaan, that they wer despised among al peple. 9 And it came to pass that th Lord said unto me: Look; and I lookd, and I beheld th land of Sharon, and th land of Enoch, and th land of Omner, and th land of Heni, and th land of Shem, and th land of Haner, and th land of Hanannihah, and al th inhabitants thereof; 10 And th Lord said unto me: Go to this peple, and say unto them, Repent, lest I com out and smite them with a curse, and they die. 11 And he gave unto me a commandment that I shud baptize in th name of th Fathr, and of th Son, wich is ful of grace and truth, and of th Holy Ghost, wich beareth record of th Fathr and th Son. 12 And it came to pass that Enoch continued to cal upon al th peple, save it wer th peple of Canaan, to repent; 13 And so gret was th faith of Enoch that he led th peple of God, and ther enemies came to battle against them; and he spake th word of th Lord, and th earth trembled, and th mountains fled, even acordng to his command; and th rivers of watr wer turnd out of ther corse; and th roar of th lions was herd out of th wilderness; and al nations feared greatly, so powerful was th word of Enoch, and so gret was th powr of th language wich God had given him. 14 Ther also came up a land out of th depth of th sea, and so gret was th fear of th enemies of th peple of God, that they fled and stood afar off and went upon th land wich came up out of th depth of th sea. 15 And th giants of th land, also, stood afar off; and ther went forth a curse upon al peple that fought against God; 16 And from that time forth ther wer wars and bloodshed among them; but th Lord came and dwelt with his peple, and they dwelt in righteousness. 17 Th fear of th Lord was upon al nations, so gret was th glory of th Lord, wich was upon his peple. And th Lord blessed th land, and they wer blessed upon th mountains, and upon th hy places, and did flourish. 18 And th Lord cald his peple ZION, because they wer of one hart and one mind, and dwelt in righteousness; and ther was no poor among them. 19 And Enoch continued his preaching in righteousness unto th peple of God. And it came to pass in his days, that he bilt a city that was cald th City of Holiness, even ZION. 20 And it came to pass that Enoch talkd with th Lord; and he said unto th Lord: Surely Zion shall dwell in safety forever. But th Lord said unto Enoch: Zion hav I blessed, but th residue of th peple hav I cursed. 21 And it came to pass that th Lord showd unto Enoch al th inhabitants of th earth; and he beheld, and lo, Zion, in process of time, was taken up into heaven. And th Lord said unto Enoch: Behold mine abode forever. 22 And Enoch also beheld th residue of th peple wich wer th sons of Adam; and they wer a mixture of al th seed of Adam save it was th seed of Cain, for th seed of Cain wer blak, and had not place among them. 23 And aftr that Zion was taken up into heaven, Enoch beheld, and lo, al th nations of th earth wer befor him; 24 And ther came generation upon generation; and Enoch was hy and liftd up, even in th bosom of th Fathr, and of th Son of Man; and behold, th powr of Satan was upon al th face of th earth. 25 And he saw angels descending out of heaven; and he herd a loud voice sayng: Wo, wo be unto th inhabitants of th earth. 26 And he beheld Satan; and he had a gret chain in his hand, and it veiled th hole face of th earth with darkness; and he lookd up and lafd, and his angels rejoiced. 27 And Enoch beheld angels descending out of heaven, bearing testimony of th Fathr and Son; and th Holy Ghost fel on many, and they wer caut up by th powrs of heaven into Zion. 28 And it came to pass that th God of heaven lookd upon th residue of th peple, and he wept; and Enoch bore record of it, sayng: How is it that th heavens weep, and shed forth ther tears as th rain upon th mountains? 29 And Enoch said unto th Lord: How is it that thou canst weep, seing thou art holy, and from al eternity to al eternity? 30 And wer it posbl that man cud numr th particles of th earth, yea, milions of earths like this, it wud not be a beginning to th numr of thy creations; and thy curtains ar stretched out stil; and yet thou art ther, and thy bosom is ther; and also thou art just; thou art merciful and kind forever; 31 And thou hast taken Zion to thine own bosom, from al thy creations, from al eternity to al eternity; and naught but peace, justice, and truth is th habitation of thy throne; and mercy shall go befor thy face and hav no end; how is it thou canst weep? 32 Th Lord said unto Enoch: Behold these thy brethren; they ar th workmanship of mine own hands, and I gave unto them ther knowledge, in th day I created them; and in th Garden of Eden, gave I unto man his agency; 33 And unto thy brethren hav I said, and also given commandment, that they shud lov one anothr, and that they shud choose me, ther Fathr; but behold, they ar without affection, and they hate ther own blod; 34 And th fire of mine indignation is kindled against them; and in my hot displeasure wil I send in th floods upon them, for my fierce anger is kindled against them. 35 Behold, I am God; Man of Holiness is my name; Man of Counsel is my name; and Endless and Eternal is my name, also. 36 Wherefore, I can stretch forth mine hands and hold al th creations wich I hav made; and mine eye can pierce them also, and among al th workmanship of mine hands ther has not been so gret wickedness as among thy brethren. 37 But behold, ther sins shall be upon th heds of ther fathrs; Satan shall be ther fathr, and misery shall be ther doom; and th hole heavens shall weep over them, even al th workmanship of mine hands; wherefore shud not th heavens weep, seing these shall suffer? 38 But behold, these wich thine eyes ar upon shall perish in th floods; and behold, I wil shut them up; a prison hav I prepared for them. 39 And that wich I hav chosen hath pled befor my face. Wherefore, he suffereth for ther sins; inasmuch as they wil repent in th day that my Chosen shall return unto me, and until that day they shall be in torment; 40 Wherefore, for this shall th heavens weep, yea, and al th workmanship of mine hands. 41 And it came to pass that th Lord spake unto Enoch, and told Enoch al th doings of th children of men; wherefore Enoch new, and lookd upon ther wickedness, and ther misery, and wept and stretched forth his arms, and his hart swelled wide as eternity; and his bowels yearned; and al eternity shook. 42 And Enoch also saw Noah, and his famly; that th posterity of al th sons of Noah shud be saved with a temporal salvation; 43 Wherefore Enoch saw that Noah bilt an ark; and that th Lord smiled upon it, and held it in his own hand; but upon th residue of th wicked th floods came and swallowed them up. 44 And as Enoch saw this, he had bitterness of soul, and wept over his brethren, and said unto th heavens: I wil refuse to be comforted; but th Lord said unto Enoch: Lift up yr hart, and be glad; and look. 45 And it came to pass that Enoch lookd; and from Noah, he beheld al th famlis of th earth; and he cryd unto th Lord, sayng: Wen shall th day of th Lord com? Wen shall th blod of th Righteous be shed, that al they that mourn may be sanctified and hav eternal life? 46 And th Lord said: It shall be in th meridian of time, in th days of wickedness and vengeance. 47 And behold, Enoch saw th day of th coming of th Son of Man, even in th flesh; and his soul rejoiced, sayng: Th Righteous is liftd up, and th Lamb is slain from th foundation of th world; and thru faith I am in th bosom of th Fathr, and behold, Zion is with me. 48 And it came to pass that Enoch lookd upon th earth; and he herd a voice from th bowels thereof, sayng: Wo, wo is me, th mothr of men; I am pained, I am weary, because of th wickedness of my children. Wen shall I rest, and be cleansed from th filthiness wich is gon forth out of me? Wen wil my Creator sanctify me, that I may rest, and righteousness for a seasn abide upon my face? 49 And wen Enoch herd th earth mourn, he wept, and cryd unto th Lord, sayng: O Lord, wilt thou not hav compassion upon th earth? Wilt thou not bless th children of Noah? 50 And it came to pass that Enoch continued his cry unto th Lord, sayng: I ask thee, O Lord, in th name of thine Only Begotten, even Jesus Christ, that thou wilt hav mercy upon Noah and his seed, that th earth myt nevr mor be covrd by th floods. 51 And th Lord cud not withhold; and he covenanted with Enoch, and sware unto him with an oath, that he wud stay th floods; that he wud cal upon th children of Noah; 52 And he sent forth an unalterable decree, that a remnant of his seed shud always be found among al nations, wile th earth shud stand; 53 And th Lord said: Blessed is he thru hos seed Messiah shall com; for he saith -- I am Messiah, th King of Zion, th Rock of Heaven, wich is broad as eternity; whoso cometh in at th gate and climbeth up by me shall nevr fal; wherefore, blessed ar they of whom I hav spoken, for they shall com forth with songs of everlasting joy. 54 And it came to pass that Enoch cryd unto th Lord, sayng: Wen th Son of Man cometh in th flesh, shall th earth rest? I pray thee, sho me these things. 55 And th Lord said unto Enoch: Look, and he lookd and beheld th Son of Man liftd up on th cross, aftr th manner of men; 56 And he herd a loud voice; and th heavens wer veiled; and al th creations of God mourned; and th earth groaned; and th rocks wer rent; and th saints arose, and wer crowned at th ryt hand of th Son of Man, with crowns of glory; 57 And as many of th spirits as wer in prison came forth, and stood on th ryt hand of God; and th remainder wer reserved in chains of darkness until th judgment of th gret day. 58 And again Enoch wept and cryd unto th Lord, sayng: Wen shall th earth rest? 59 And Enoch beheld th Son of Man ascend up unto th Fathr; and he cald unto th Lord, sayng: Wilt thou not com again upon th earth? Forasmuch as thou art God, and I no thee, and thou hast sworn unto me, and commanded me that I shud ask in th name of thine Only Begotten; thou hast made me, and given unto me a ryt to thy throne, and not of myself, but thru thine own grace; wherefore, I ask thee if thou wilt not com again on th earth. 60 And th Lord said unto Enoch: As I liv, even so wil I com in th last days, in th days of wickedness and vengeance, to fulfil th oath wich I hav made unto u concernng th children of Noah; 61 And th day shall com that th earth shall rest, but befor that day th heavens shall be darkened, and a veil of darkness shall covr th earth; and th heavens shall shake, and also th earth; and gret tribulations shall be among th children of men, but my peple wil I preserve; 62 And righteousness wil I send down out of heaven; and truth wil I send forth out of th earth, to bear testimony of mine Only Begotten; his resurrection from th ded; yea, and also th resurrection of al men; and righteousness and truth wil I cause to sweep th earth as with a flood, to gather out mine elect from th four quarters of th earth, unto a place wich I shall prepare, an Holy City, that my peple may gird up ther loins, and be lookng forth for th time of my coming; for ther shall be my tabernacle, and it shall be cald Zion, a New Jerusalem. 63 And th Lord said unto Enoch: Then shalt thou and al thy city meet them ther, and we wil receve them into our bosom, and they shall se us; and we wil fal upon ther necks, and they shall fal upon our necks, and we wil kiss each othr; 64 And ther shall be mine abode, and it shall be Zion, wich shall com forth out of al th creations wich I hav made; and for th space of a thousnd years th earth shall rest. 65 And it came to pass that Enoch saw th day of th coming of th Son of Man, in th last days, to dwell on th earth in righteousness for th space of a thousnd years; 66 But befor that day he saw gret tribulations among th wicked; and he also saw th sea, that it was troubled, and men's harts failing them, lookng forth with fear for th judgments of th Almighty God, wich shud com upon th wicked. 67 And th Lord showd Enoch al things, even unto th end of th world; and he saw th day of th righteous, th our of ther redemption, and receved a fulness of joy; 68 And al th days of Zion, in th days of Enoch, wer thre hundred and sixty-five years. 69 And Enoch and al his peple walked with God, and he dwelt in th midst of Zion; and it came to pass that Zion was not, for God receved it up into his own bosom; and from thence went forth th sayng, Zion is Fled.
Chapter 8[]
1 And al th days of Enoch wer four hundred and thirty years. 2 And it came to pass that Methuselah, th son of Enoch, was not taken, that th covenants of th Lord myt be fulfilled, wich he made to Enoch; for he truly covenanted with Enoch that Noah shud be of th fruit of his loins. 3 And it came to pass that Methuselah prophesied that from his loins shud spring al th kingdoms of th earth (thru Noah), and he took glory unto himself. 4 And ther came forth a gret famine into th land, and th Lord cursed th earth with a sore curse, and many of th inhabitants thereof died. 5 And it came to pass that Methuselah lived one hundred and eighty-sevn years, and begat Lamech; 6 And Methuselah lived, aftr he begat Lamech, sevn hundred and eighty-two years, and begat sons and dautrs; 7 And al th days of Methuselah wer nine hundred and sixty-nine years, and he died. 8 And Lamech lived one hundred and eighty-two years, and begat a son, 9 And he cald his name Noah, sayng: This son shall comfort us concernng our work and toil of our hands, because of th ground wich th Lord hath cursed. 10 And Lamech lived, aftr he begat Noah, five hundred and ninety-five years, and begat sons and dautrs; 11 And al th days of Lamech wer sevn hundred and seventy-sevn years, and he died. 12 And Noah was four hundred and fifty years old, and begat Japheth; and forty-two years afterward he begat Shem of her ho was th mothr of Japheth, and wen he was five hundred years old he begat Ham. 13 And Noah and his sons hearkened unto th Lord, and gave heed, and they wer cald th sons of God. 14 And wen these men began to multiply on th face of th earth, and dautrs wer born unto them, th sons of men saw that those dautrs wer fair, and they took them wives, even as they chose. 15 And th Lord said unto Noah: Th dautrs of thy sons hav sold themselvs; for behold mine anger is kindled against th sons of men, for they wil not hearken to my voice. 16 And it came to pass that Noah prophesied, and taut th things of God, even as it was in th beginning. 17 And th Lord said unto Noah: My Spirit shall not always strive with man, for he shall no that al flesh shall die; yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years; and if men do not repent, I wil send in th floods upon them. 18 And in those days ther wer giants on th earth, and they sought Noah to take away his life; but th Lord was with Noah, and th powr of th Lord was upon him. 19 And th Lord ordained Noah aftr his own ordr, and commanded him that he shud go forth and declare his Gospel unto th children of men, even as it was given unto Enoch. 20 And it came to pass that Noah cald upon th children of men that they shud repent; but they hearkened not unto his words; 21 And also, aftr that they had herd him, they came up befor him, sayng: Behold, we ar th sons of God; hav we not taken unto ourselves th dautrs of men? And ar we not eatng and drinking, and marrying and givng in marriage? And our wives bear unto us children, and th same ar mighty men, wich ar like unto men of old, men of gret renown. And they hearkened not unto th words of Noah. 22 And God saw that th wickedness of men had becom gret in th earth; and evry man was liftd up in th imagination of th thots of his hart, being only evil continually. 23 And it came to pass that Noah continued his preaching unto th peple, sayng: Hearken, and giv heed unto my words; 24 Beleve and repent of yr sins and be baptized in th name of Jesus Christ, th Son of God, even as our fathrs, and ye shall receve th Holy Ghost, that ye may hav al things made manifest; and if ye do not this, th floods wil com in upon u; nevertheless they hearkened not. 25 And it repented Noah, and his hart was pained that th Lord had made man on th earth, and it grieved him at th hart. 26 And th Lord said: I wil destroy man whom I hav created, from th face of th earth, both man and beast, and th creeping things, and th fowls of th air; for it repenteth Noah that I hav created them, and that I hav made them; and he hath cald upon me; for they hav sought his life. 27 And thus Noah found grace in th eyes of th Lord; for Noah was a just man, and perfect in his generation; and he walked with God, as did also his thre sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. 28 Th earth was corrupt befor God, and it was fild with violence. 29 And God lookd upon th earth, and, behold, it was corrupt, for al flesh had corrupted its way upon th earth. 30 And God said unto Noah: Th end of al flesh is com befor me, for th earth is fild with violence, and behold I wil destroy al flesh from off th earth.
The Book of Abraham[]
Translated from th Papyrus, by Joseph Smith.
A translation of som ancient records, that hav fallen into our hands, from th catacombs of Egypt; th writings of Abraham wile he was in Egypt, cald th Book of Abraham, written by his own hand, upon papyrus.
Chapter 1[]
1 In th land of th Chaldeans, at th residence of my fathr, I, Abraham, saw that it was needful for me to obtain anothr place of residence; 2 And, findng ther was gretr happiness and peace and rest for me, I sought for th blessings of th fathrs, and th ryt whereunto I shud be ordained to administer th same; havng been myself a follower of righteousness, desiring also to be one ho possessed gret knowledge, and to be a gretr follower of righteousness, and to possess a gretr knowledge, and to be a fathr of many nations, a prince of peace, and desiring to receve instructions, and to keep th commandments of God, I became a rightful heir, a Hy Priest, holdng th ryt belonging to th fathrs. 3 It was conferred upon me from th fathrs; it came down from th fathrs, from th beginning of time, yea, even from th beginning, or befor th foundation of th earth, down to th present time, even th ryt of th firstborn, or th first man, ho is Adam, or first fathr, thru th fathrs unto me. 4 I sought for mine appointment unto th Priesthood acordng to th appointment of God unto th fathrs concernng th seed. 5 My fathrs havng turnd from ther righteousness, and from th holy commandments wich th Lord ther God had given unto them, unto th worshiping of th gods of th heathen, utterly refused to hearken to my voice; 6 For ther harts wer set to do evil, and wer wholly turnd to th god of Elkenah, and th god of Libnah, and th god of Mahmackrah, and th god of Korash, and th god of Pharaoh, king of Egypt; 7 Therefore they turnd ther harts to th sacrifice of th heathen in ofrng up ther children unto these dumb idols, and hearkened not unto my voice, but endeavored to take away my life by th hand of th priest of Elkenah. Th priest of Elkenah was also th priest of Pharaoh. 8 Now, at this time it was th custom of th priest of Pharaoh, th king of Egypt, to ofr up upon th altar wich was bilt in th land of Chaldea, for th ofrng unto these strange gods, men, women, and children. 9 And it came to pass that th priest made an ofrng unto th god of Pharaoh, and also unto th god of Shagreel, even aftr th manner of th Egyptians. Now th god of Shagreel was th sun. 10 Even th thank-ofrng of a child did th priest of Pharaoh ofr upon th altar wich stood by th hill cald Potiphar's Hill, at th hed of th plain of Olishem. 11 Now, this priest had offered upon this altar thre virgins at one time, ho wer th dautrs of Onitah, one of th royal descent directly from th loins of Ham. These virgins wer offered up because of ther virtue; they wud not bow down to worship gods of wood or of stone, therefore they wer kild upon this altar, and it was don aftr th manner of th Egyptians. 12 And it came to pass that th priests laid violence upon me, that they myt slay me also, as they did those virgins upon this altar; and that u may hav a knowledge of this altar, I wil refer u to th representation at th commencement of this record. 13 It was made aftr th form of a bedstead, such as was had among th Chaldeans, and it stood befor th gods of Elkenah, Libnah, Mahmackrah, Korash, and also a god like unto that of Pharaoh, king of Egypt. 14 That u may hav an undrstandng of these gods, I hav given u th fashion of them in th figrs at th beginning, wich manner of figrs is cald by th Chaldeans Rahleenos, wich signifies hieroglyphics. 15 And as they liftd up ther hands upon me, that they myt ofr me up and take away my life, behold, I liftd up my voice unto th Lord my God, and th Lord hearkened and herd, and he fild me with th vision of th Almighty, and th angel of his presence stood by me, and immediately unloosed my bands; 16 And his voice was unto me: Abraham, Abraham, behold, my name is Jehovah, and I hav herd thee, and hav com down to deliver thee, and to take thee away from thy fathr's house, and from al thy kinsfolk, into a strange land wich thou knowest not of; 17 And this because they hav turnd ther harts away from me, to worship th god of Elkenah, and th god of Libnah, and th god of Mahmackrah, and th god of Korash, and th god of Pharaoh, king of Egypt; therefore I hav com down to visit them, and to destroy him ho hath liftd up his hand against thee, Abraham, my son, to take away thy life. 18 Behold, I wil led thee by my hand, and I wil take thee, to put upon thee my name, even th Priesthood of thy fathr, and my powr shall be over thee. 19 As it was with Noah so shall it be with thee; but thru thy ministry my name shall be known in th earth forever, for I am thy God. 20 Behold, Potiphar's Hill was in th land of Ur, of Chaldea. And th Lord broke down th altar of Elkenah, and of th gods of th land, and utterly destroyed them, and smote th priest that he died; and ther was gret mourning in Chaldea, and also in th cort of Pharaoh; wich Pharaoh signifies king by royal blod. 21 Now this king of Egypt was a descendant from th loins of Ham, and was a partaker of th blod of th Canaanites by birth. 22 From this descent sprang al th Egyptians, and thus th blod of th Canaanites was preserved in th land. 23 Th land of Egypt being first discovered by a womn, ho was th dautr of Ham, and th dautr of Egyptus, wich in th Chaldean signifies Egypt, wich signifies that wich is forbidden; 24 Wen this womn discovered th land it was undr watr, ho afterward setld her sons in it; and thus, from Ham, sprang that race wich preserved th curse in th land. 25 Now th first govrnmnt of Egypt was established by Pharaoh, th eldest son of Egyptus, th dautr of Ham, and it was aftr th manner of th govrnmnt of Ham, wich was patriarchal. 26 Pharaoh, being a righteous man, established his kingdom and judged his peple wisely and justly al his days, seekng earnestly to imitate that ordr established by th fathrs in th first generations, in th days of th first patriarchal reign, even in th reign of Adam, and also of Noah, his fathr, ho blessed him with th blessings of th earth, and with th blessings of wisdom, but cursed him as pertaining to th Priesthood. 27 Now, Pharaoh being of that lineage by wich he cud not hav th ryt of Priesthood, notwithstanding th Pharaohs wud fain claim it from Noah, thru Ham, therefore my fathr was led away by ther idolatry; 28 But I shall endeavor, hereafter, to delineate th chronology running bak from myself to th beginning of th creation, for th records hav com into my hands, wich I hold unto this present time. 29 Now, aftr th priest of Elkenah was smitten that he died, ther came a fulfilment of those things wich wer said unto me concernng th land of Chaldea, that ther shud be a famine in th land. 30 Accordingly a famine prevailed throughout al th land of Chaldea, and my fathr was sorely tormented because of th famine, and he repented of th evil wich he had determined against me, to take away my life. 31 But th records of th fathrs, even th patriarchs, concernng th ryt of Priesthood, th Lord my God preserved in mine own hands; therefore a knowledge of th beginning of th creation, and also of th planets, and of th stars, as they wer made known unto th fathrs, hav I kept even unto this day, and I shall endeavor to rite som of these things upon this record, for th benefit of my posterity that shall com aftr me.
Chapter 2[]
1 Now th Lord God caused th famine to wax sore in th land of Ur, insomuch that Haran, my brothr, died; but Terah, my fathr, yet lived in th land of Ur, of th Chaldees. 2 And it came to pass that I, Abraham, took Sarai to wife, and Nahor, my brothr, took Milcah to wife, ho was th dautr of Haran. 3 Now th Lord had said unto me: Abraham, get thee out of thy cuntry, and from thy kindred, and from thy fathr's house, unto a land that I wil sho thee. 4 Therefore I left th land of Ur, of th Chaldees, to go into th land of Canaan; and I took Lot, my brothr's son, and his wife, and Sarai my wife; and also my fathr folod aftr me, unto th land wich we denominated Haran. 5 And th famine abated; and my fathr tarried in Haran and dwelt ther, as ther wer many flocks in Haran; and my fathr turnd again unto his idolatry, therefore he continued in Haran. 6 But I, Abraham, and Lot, my brothr's son, prayed unto th Lord, and th Lord appeared unto me, and said unto me: Arise, and take Lot with thee; for I hav purposed to take thee away out of Haran, and to make of thee a minister to bear my name in a strange land wich I wil giv unto thy seed aftr thee for an everlasting possession, wen they hearken to my voice. 7 For I am th Lord thy God; I dwell in heaven; th earth is my footstool; I stretch my hand over th sea, and it obeys my voice; I cause th wind and th fire to be my chariot; I say to th mountains -- Depart hence -- and behold, they ar taken away by a whirlwind, in an instant, suddenly. 8 My name is Jehovah, and I no th end from th beginning; therefore my hand shall be over thee. 9 And I wil make of thee a gret nation, and I wil bless thee above measure, and make thy name gret among al nations, and thou shalt be a blessing unto thy seed aftr thee, that in ther hands they shall bear this ministry and Priesthood unto al nations; 10 And I wil bless them thru thy name; for as many as receve this Gospel shall be cald aftr thy name, and shall be accounted thy seed, and shall rise up and bless thee, as ther fathr; 11 And I wil bless them that bless thee, and curse them that curse thee; and in thee (that is, in thy Priesthood) and in thy seed (that is, thy Priesthood), for I giv unto thee a promise that this ryt shall continu in thee, and in thy seed aftr thee (that is to say, th literal seed, or th seed of th body) shall al th famlis of th earth be blessed, even with th blessings of th Gospel, wich ar th blessings of salvation, even of life eternal. 12 Now, aftr th Lord had withdrawn from speakng to me, and withdrawn his face from me, I said in my hart: Thy servant has sought thee earnestly; now I hav found thee; 13 Thou didst send thine angel to deliver me from th gods of Elkenah, and I wil do wel to hearken unto thy voice, therefore let thy servant rise up and depart in peace. 14 So I, Abraham, departed as th Lord had said unto me, and Lot with me; and I, Abraham, was sixty and two years old wen I departed out of Haran. 15 And I took Sarai, whom I took to wife wen I was in Ur, in Chaldea, and Lot, my brothr's son, and al our substance that we had gathrd, and th souls that we had won in Haran, and came forth in th way to th land of Canaan, and dwelt in tents as we came on our way; 16 Therefore, eternity was our covrng and our rock and our salvation, as we journeyed from Haran by th way of Jershon, to com to th land of Canaan. 17 Now I, Abraham, bilt an altar in th land of Jershon, and made an ofrng unto th Lord, and prayed that th famine myt be turnd away from my fathr's house, that they myt not perish. 18 And then we pasd from Jershon thru th land unto th place of Sechem; it was situated in th plains of Moreh, and we had alredy com into th borders of th land of th Canaanites, and I offered sacrifice ther in th plains of Moreh, and cald on th Lord devoutly, because we had alredy com into th land of this idolatrous nation. 19 And th Lord appeared unto me in ansr to my prayers, and said unto me: Unto thy seed wil I giv this land. 20 And I, Abraham, arose from th place of th altar wich I had bilt unto th Lord, and removed from thence unto a mountain on th east of Bethel, and pitched my tent ther, Bethel on th west, and Hai on th east; and ther I bilt anothr altar unto th Lord, and cald again upon th name of th Lord. 21 And I, Abraham, journeyed, going on stil towards th south; and ther was a continuation of a famine in th land; and I, Abraham, concluded to go down into Egypt, to sojourn ther, for th famine became very grievous. 22 And it came to pass wen I was com near to entr into Egypt, th Lord said unto me: Behold, Sarai, thy wife, is a very fair womn to look upon; 23 Therefore it shall com to pass, wen th Egyptians shall se her, they wil say -- She is his wife; and they wil kil u, but they wil save her alive; therefore se that ye do on this wise: 24 Let her say unto th Egyptians, she is thy sister, and thy soul shall liv. 25 And it came to pass that I, Abraham, told Sarai, my wife, al that th Lord had said unto me -- Therefore say unto them, I pray thee, thou art my sister, that it may be wel with me for thy sake, and my soul shall liv because of thee.
Chapter 3[]
1 And I, Abraham, had th Urim and Thummim, wich th Lord my God had given unto me, in Ur of th Chaldees; 2 And I saw th stars, that they wer very gret, and that one of them was nearst unto th throne of God; and ther wer many gret ones wich wer near unto it; 3 And th Lord said unto me: These ar th governing ones; and th name of th gret one is Kolob, because it is near unto me, for I am th Lord thy God: I hav set this one to govern al those wich belong to th same ordr as that upon wich thou standest. 4 And th Lord said unto me, by th Urim and Thummim, that Kolob was aftr th manner of th Lord, acordng to its times and seasns in th revolutions thereof; that one revolution was a day unto th Lord, aftr his manner of reckoning, it being one thousnd years acordng to th time appointed unto that whereon thou standest. This is th reckoning of th Lord's time, acordng to th reckoning of Kolob. 5 And th Lord said unto me: Th planet wich is th lesser lyt, lesser than that wich is to rule th day, even th nyt, is above or gretr than that upon wich thou standest in point of reckoning, for it moveth in ordr mor slow; this is in ordr because it standeth above th earth upon wich thou standest, therefore th reckoning of its time is not so many as to its numr of days, and of months, and of years. 6 And th Lord said unto me: Now, Abraham, these two facts exist, behold thine eyes se it; it is given unto thee to no th times of reckoning, and th set time, yea, th set time of th earth upon wich thou standest, and th set time of th gretr lyt wich is set to rule th day, and th set time of th lesser lyt wich is set to rule th nyt. 7 Now th set time of th lesser lyt is a longr time as to its reckoning than th reckoning of th time of th earth upon wich thou standest. 8 And wher these two facts exist, ther shall be anothr fact above them, that is, ther shall be anothr planet hos reckoning of time shall be longr stil; 9 And thus ther shall be th reckoning of th time of one planet above anothr, until thou com nigh unto Kolob, wich Kolob is aftr th reckoning of th Lord's time; wich Kolob is set nigh unto th throne of God, to govern al those planets wich belong to th same ordr as that upon wich thou standest. 10 And it is given unto thee to no th set time of al th stars that ar set to giv lyt, until thou com near unto th throne of God. 11 Thus I, Abraham, talkd with th Lord, face to face, as one man talketh with anothr; and he told me of th works wich his hands had made; 12 And he said unto me: My son, my son (and his hand was stretched out), behold I wil sho u al these. And he put his hand upon mine eyes, and I saw those things wich his hands had made, wich wer many; and they multiplied befor mine eyes, and I cud not se th end thereof. 13 And he said unto me: This is Shinehah, wich is th sun. And he said unto me: Kokob, wich is star. And he said unto me: Olea, wich is th moon. And he said unto me: Kokaubeam, wich signifies stars, or al th gret lyts, wich wer in th firmament of heaven. 14 And it was in th nyt time wen th Lord spake these words unto me: I wil multiply thee, and thy seed aftr thee, like unto these; and if thou canst count th numr of sands, so shall be th numr of thy seeds. 15 And th Lord said unto me: Abraham, I sho these things unto thee befor ye go into Egypt, that ye may declare al these words. 16 If two things exist, and ther be one above th othr, ther shall be gretr things above them; therefore Kolob is th greatest of al th Kokaubeam that thou hast seen, because it is nearst unto me. 17 Now, if ther be two things, one above th othr, and th moon be above th earth, then it may be that a planet or a star may exist above it; and ther is nothing that th Lord thy God shall take in his hart to do but wat he wil do it. 18 Howbeit that he made th gretr star; as, also, if ther be two spirits, and one shall be mor intelligent than th othr, yet these two spirits, notwithstanding one is mor intelligent than th othr, hav no beginning; they existed befor, they shall hav no end, they shall exist aftr, for they ar gnolaum, or eternal. 19 And th Lord said unto me: These two facts do exist, that ther ar two spirits, one being mor intelligent than th othr; ther shall be anothr mor intelligent than they; I am th Lord thy God, I am mor intelligent than they al. 20 Th Lord thy God sent his angel to deliver thee from th hands of th priest of Elkenah. 21 I dwell in th midst of them al; I now, therefore, hav com down unto thee to declare unto thee th works wich my hands hav made, wherein my wisdom excelleth them al, for I rule in th heavens above, and in th earth beneath, in al wisdom and prudence, over al th intelligences thine eyes hav seen from th beginning; I came down in th beginning in th midst of al th intelligences thou hast seen. 22 Now th Lord had shown unto me, Abraham, th intelligences that wer organized befor th world was; and among al these ther wer many of th noble and gret ones; 23 And God saw these souls that they wer good, and he stood in th midst of them, and he said: These I wil make my rulers; for he stood among those that wer spirits, and he saw that they wer good; and he said unto me: Abraham, thou art one of them; thou wast chosen befor thou wast born. 24 And ther stood one among them that was like unto God, and he said unto those ho wer with him: We wil go down, for ther is space ther, and we wil take of these materials, and we wil make an earth whereon these may dwell; 25 And we wil prove them herewith, to se if they wil do al things whatsoever th Lord ther God shall command them; 26 And they ho keep ther first estate shall be added upon; and they ho keep not ther first estate shall not hav glory in th same kingdom with those ho keep ther first estate; and they ho keep ther secnd estate shall hav glory added upon ther heds for evr and evr. 27 And th Lord said: Whom shall I send? And one ansrd like unto th Son of Man: Here am I, send me. And anothr ansrd and said: Here am I, send me. And th Lord said: I wil send th first. 28 And th secnd was angry, and kept not his first estate; and, at that day, many folod aftr him.
Chapter 4[]
1 And then th Lord said: Let us go down. And they went down at th beginning, and they, that is th Gods, organized and formd th heavens and th earth. 2 And th earth, aftr it was formd, was empty and desolate, because they had not formd anythng but th earth; and darkness reigned upon th face of th deep, and th Spirit of th Gods was brooding upon th face of th watrs. 3 And they (th Gods) said: Let ther be lyt; and ther was lyt. 4 And they (th Gods) comprehended th lyt, for it was bright; and they divided th lyt, or caused it to be divided, from th darkness. 5 And th Gods cald th lyt Day, and th darkness they cald Nyt. And it came to pass that from th evenng until mornng they cald nyt; and from th mornng until th evenng they cald day; and this was th first, or th beginning, of that wich they cald day and nyt. 6 And th Gods also said: Let ther be an expanse in th midst of th watrs, and it shall divide th watrs from th watrs. 7 And th Gods ordered th expanse, so that it divided th watrs wich wer undr th expanse from th watrs wich wer above th expanse; and it was so, even as they ordered. 8 And th Gods cald th expanse, Heaven. And it came to pass that it was from evenng until mornng that they cald nyt; and it came to pass that it was from mornng until evenng that they cald day; and this was th secnd time that they cald nyt and day. 9 And th Gods ordered, sayng: Let th watrs undr th heaven be gathrd togethr unto one place, and let th earth com up dry; and it was so as they ordered; 10 And th Gods pronounced th dry land, Earth; and th gathering togethr of th watrs, pronounced they, Gret Watrs; and th Gods saw that they wer obeyed. 11 And th Gods said: Let us prepare th earth to bring forth grass; th herb yielding seed; th fruit tre yielding fruit, aftr his kind, hos seed in itself yieldeth its own likeness upon th earth; and it was so, even as they ordered. 12 And th Gods organized th earth to bring forth grass from its own seed, and th herb to bring forth herb from its own seed, yielding seed aftr his kind; and th earth to bring forth th tre from its own seed, yielding fruit, hos seed cud only bring forth th same in itself, aftr his kind; and th Gods saw that they wer obeyed. 13 And it came to pass that they numbered th days; from th evenng until th mornng they cald nyt; and it came to pass, from th mornng until th evenng they cald day; and it was th third time. 14 And th Gods organized th lyts in th expanse of th heaven, and caused them to divide th day from th nyt; and organized them to be for syns and for seasns, and for days and for years; 15 And organized them to be for lyts in th expanse of th heaven to giv lyt upon th earth; and it was so. 16 And th Gods organized th two gret lyts, th gretr lyt to rule th day, and th lesser lyt to rule th nyt; with th lesser lyt they set th stars also; 17 And th Gods set them in th expanse of th heavens, to giv lyt upon th earth, and to rule over th day and over th nyt, and to cause to divide th lyt from th darkness. 18 And th Gods wachd those things wich they had ordered until they obeyed. 19 And it came to pass that it was from evenng until mornng that it was nyt; and it came to pass that it was from mornng until evenng that it was day; and it was th fourth time. 20 And th Gods said: Let us prepare th watrs to bring forth abundantly th moving creatures that hav life; and th fowl, that they may fly above th earth in th open expanse of heaven. 21 And th Gods prepared th watrs that they myt bring forth gret whales, and evry living creature that moveth, wich th watrs wer to bring forth abundantly aftr ther kind; and evry winged fowl aftr ther kind. And th Gods saw that they wud be obeyed, and that ther plan was good. 22 And th Gods said: We wil bless them, and cause them to be fruitful and multiply, and fil th watrs in th seas or gret watrs; and cause th fowl to multiply in th earth. 23 And it came to pass that it was from evenng until mornng that they cald nyt; and it came to pass that it was from mornng until evenng that they cald day; and it was th fifth time. 24 And th Gods prepared th earth to bring forth th living creature aftr his kind, cattle and creeping things, and beasts of th earth aftr ther kind; and it was so, as they had said. 25 And th Gods organized th earth to bring forth th beasts aftr ther kind, and cattle aftr ther kind, and evry thing that creepeth upon th earth aftr its kind; and th Gods saw they wud obey. 26 And th Gods took counsel among themselvs and said: Let us go down and form man in our image, aftr our likeness; and we wil giv them dominion over th fish of th sea, and over th fowl of th air, and over th cattle, and over al th earth, and over evry creeping thing that creepeth upon th earth. 27 So th Gods went down to organize man in ther own image, in th image of th Gods to form they him, male and female to form they them. 28 And th Gods said: We wil bless them. And th Gods said: We wil cause them to be fruitful and multiply, and replenish th earth, and subdue it, and to hav dominion over th fish of th sea, and over th fowl of th air, and over evry living thing that moveth upon th earth. 29 And th Gods said: Behold, we wil giv them evry herb bearing seed that shall com upon th face of al th earth, and evry tre wich shall hav fruit upon it; yea, th fruit of th tre yielding seed to them we wil giv it; it shall be for ther meat. 30 And to evry beast of th earth, and to evry fowl of th air, and to evry thing that creepeth upon th earth, behold, we wil giv them life, and also we wil giv to them evry green herb for meat, and al these things shall be thus organized. 31 And th Gods said: We wil do evrything that we hav said, and organize them; and behold, they shall be very obedient. And it came to pass that it was from evenng until mornng they cald nyt; and it came to pass that it was from mornng until evenng that they cald day; and they numbered th sixth time.
Chapter 5[]
1 And thus we wil finish th heavens and th earth, and al th hosts of them. 2 And th Gods said among themselvs: On th seventh time we wil end our work, wich we hav counseled; and we wil rest on th seventh time from al our work wich we hav counseled. 3 And th Gods concluded upon th seventh time, because that on th seventh time they wud rest from al ther works wich they (th Gods) counseled among themselvs to form; and sanctified it. And thus wer ther decisions at th time that they counseled among themselvs to form th heavens and th earth. 4 And th Gods came down and formd these th generations of th heavens and of th earth, wen they wer formd in th day that th Gods formd th earth and th heavens, 5 Acordng to al that wich they had said concernng evry plant of th field befor it was in th earth, and evry herb of th field befor it grew; for th Gods had not caused it to rain upon th earth wen they counseled to do them, and had not formd a man to till th ground. 6 But ther went up a mist from th earth, and watered th hole face of th ground. 7 And th Gods formd man from th dust of th ground, and took his spirit (that is, th man's spirit), and put it into him; and breathed into his nostrils th breath of life, and man became a living soul. 8 And th Gods planted a garden, eastward in Eden, and ther they put th man, hos spirit they had put into th body wich they had formd. 9 And out of th ground made th Gods to gro evry tre that is pleasant to th sight and good for food; th tre of life, also, in th midst of th garden, and th tre of knowledge of good and evil. 10 Ther was a river running out of Eden, to watr th garden, and from thence it was parted and became into four heds. 11 And th Gods took th man and put him in th Garden of Eden, to dress it and to keep it. 12 And th Gods commanded th man, sayng: Of evry tre of th garden thou mayest freely eat, 13 But of th tre of knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it; for in th time that thou eatest thereof, thou shalt surely die. Now I, Abraham, saw that it was aftr th Lord's time, wich was aftr th time of Kolob; for as yet th Gods had not appointed unto Adam his reckoning. 14 And th Gods said: Let us make an help meet for th man, for it is not good that th man shud be alone, therefore we wil form an help meet for him. 15 And th Gods caused a deep sleep to fal upon Adam; and he slept, and they took one of his ribs, and closed up th flesh in th stead thereof; 16 And of th rib wich th Gods had taken from man, formd they a womn, and brot her unto th man. 17 And Adam said: This was bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh; now she shall be cald Womn, because she was taken out of man; 18 Therefore shall a man leve his fathr and his mothr, and shall cleave unto his wife, and they shall be one flesh. 19 And they wer both naked, th man and his wife, and wer not ashamed. 20 And out of th ground th Gods formd evry beast of th field, and evry fowl of th air, and brot them unto Adam to se wat he wud cal them; and whatsoever Adam cald evry living creature, that shud be th name thereof. 21 And Adam gave names to al cattle, to th fowl of th air, to evry beast of th field; and for Adam, ther was found an help meet for him.
Writings of Joseph Smith 1[]
An Extract from a Translation of th Bible.
Being th twenty-fourth chapter of Matthew, commencing with th last verse of th twenty-third chapter, King James' Translation.
1 For I say unto u, that ye shall not se me henceforth and no that I am he of whom it is written by th prophets, until ye shall say: Blessed is he ho cometh in th name of th Lord, in th clouds of heaven, and al th holy angels with him. Then understood his disciples that he shud com again on th earth, aftr that he was glorified and crowned on th ryt hand of God. 2 And Jesus went out, and departed from th temple; and his disciples came to him, for to hear him, sayng: Master, sho us concernng th bildngs of th temple, as thou hast said -- They shall be thrown down, and left unto u desolate. 3 And Jesus said unto them: Se ye not al these things, and do ye not undrstand them? Verily I say unto u, ther shall not be left here, upon this temple, one stone upon anothr that shall not be thrown down. 4 And Jesus left them, and went upon th Mount of Olives. And as he sat upon th Mount of Olives, th disciples came unto him privately, sayng: Tel us wen shall these things be wich thou hast said concernng th destruction of th temple, and th Jews; and wat is th syn of thy coming, and of th end of th world, or th destruction of th wicked, wich is th end of th world? 5 And Jesus ansrd, and said unto them: Take heed that no man deceive u; 6 For many shall com in my name, sayng -- I am Christ, and shall deceive many; 7 Then shall they deliver u up to be afflicted, and shall kil u, and ye shall be hated of al nations, for my name's sake; 8 And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one anothr, and shall hate one anothr; 9 And many false prophets shall arise, and shall deceive many; 10 And because iniquity shall abound, th lov of many shall wax cold; 11 But he that remaineth steadfast and is not overcome, th same shall be saved. 12 Wen u, therefore, shall se th abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel th prophet, concernng th destruction of Jerusalem, then u shall stand in th holy place; whoso readeth let him undrstand. 13 Then let them ho ar in Judea flee into th mountains; 14 Let him ho is on th housetop flee, and not return to take anythng out of his house; 15 Neither let him ho is in th field return bak to take his clothes; 16 And wo unto them that ar with child, and unto them that giv suck in those days; 17 Therefore, pray ye th Lord that yr flight be not in th winter, neither on th Sabbath day; 18 For then, in those days, shall be gret tribulation on th Jews, and upon th inhabitants of Jerusalem, such as was not befor sent upon Israel, of God, since th beginning of ther kingdom until this time; no, nor evr shall be sent again upon Israel. 19 Al things wich hav befallen them ar only th beginning of th sorrows wich shall com upon them. 20 And except those days shud be shortened, ther shud none of ther flesh be saved; but for th elect's sake, acordng to th covenant, those days shall be shortened. 21 Behold, these things I hav spoken unto u concernng th Jews; and again, aftr th tribulation of those days wich shall com upon Jerusalem, if any man shall say unto u, Lo, here is Christ, or ther, beleve him not; 22 For in those days ther shall also arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall sho gret syns and wondrs, insomuch, that, if posbl, they shall deceive th very elect, ho ar th elect acordng to th covenant. 23 Behold, I speak these things unto u for th elect's sake; and u also shall hear of wars, and rumors of wars; se that ye be not troubled, for al I hav told u must com to pass; but th end is not yet. 24 Behold, I hav told u befor; 25 Wherefore, if they shall say unto u: Behold, he is in th desert; go not forth: Behold, he is in th secret chambers; beleve it not; 26 For as th lyt of th mornng cometh out of th east, and shineth even unto th west, and covereth th hole earth, so shall also th coming of th Son of Man be. 27 And now I sho unto u a parable. Behold, wheresoever th carcass is, ther wil th eagles be gathrd togethr; so likewise shall mine elect be gathrd from th four quarters of th earth. 28 And they shall hear of wars, and rumors of wars. 29 Behold I speak for mine elect's sake; for nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; ther shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. 30 And again, because iniquity shall abound, th lov of men shall wax cold; but he that shall not be overcome, th same shall be saved. 31 And again, this Gospel of th Kingdom shall be preached in al th world, for a witness unto al nations, and then shall th end com, or th destruction of th wicked; 32 And again shall th abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel th prophet, be fulfilled. 33 And immediately aftr th tribulation of those days, th sun shall be darkened, and th moon shall not giv her lyt, and th stars shall fal from heaven, and th powrs of heaven shall be shaken. 34 Verily, I say unto u, this generation, in wich these things shall be shown forth, shall not pass away until al I hav told u shall be fulfilled. 35 Altho, th days wil com, that heaven and earth shall pass away; yet my words shall not pass away, but al shall be fulfilled. 36 And, as I said befor, aftr th tribulation of those days, and th powrs of th heavens shall be shaken, then shall apear th syn of th Son of Man in heaven, and then shall al th tribes of th earth mourn; and they shall se th Son of Man coming in th clouds of heaven, with powr and gret glory; 37 And whoso treasureth up my word, shall not be deceived, for th Son of Man shall com, and he shall send his angels befor him with th gret sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather togethr th remainder of his elect from th four winds, from one end of heaven to th othr. 38 Now lern a parable of th fig-tre wen its branchs ar yet tender, and it begins to put forth leves, u no that sumr is nigh at hand; 39 So likewise, mine elect, wen they shall se al these things, they shall no that he is near, even at th dors; 40 But of that day, and our, no one knoweth; no, not th angels of God in heaven, but my Fathr only. 41 But as it was in th days of Noah, so it shall be also at th coming of th Son of Man; 42 For it shall be with them, as it was in th days wich wer befor th flood; for until th day that Noah entered into th ark they wer eatng and drinking, marrying and givng in marriage; 43 And new not until th flood came, and took them al away; so shall also th coming of th Son of Man be. 44 Then shall be fulfilled that wich is written, that in th last days, two shall be in th field, th one shall be taken, and th othr left; 45 Two shall be grinding at th mill, th one shall be taken, and th othr left; 46 And wat I say unto one, I say unto al men; wach, therefore, for u no not at wat our yr Lord doth com. 47 But no this, if th good man of th house had known in wat wach th thief wud com, he wud hav wachd, and wud not hav suffered his house to hav been broken up, but wud hav been redy. 48 Therefore be ye also redy, for in such an our as ye think not, th Son of Man cometh. 49 Ho, then, is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to giv them meat in due seasn? 50 Blessed is that servant whom his lord, wen he cometh, shall find so doing; and verily I say unto u, he shall make him ruler over al his goods. 51 But if that evil servant shall say in his hart: My lord delayeth his coming, 52 And shall begin to smite his fellow-servants, and to eat and drink with th drunken, 53 Th lord of that servant shall com in a day wen he looketh not for him, and in an our that he is not aware of, 54 And shall cut him asunder, and shall appoint him his portion with th hypocrites; ther shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 55 And thus cometh th end of th wicked, acordng to th prophecy of Moses, sayng: They shall be cut off from among th peple; but th end of th earth is not yet, but by and by.
Writings of Joseph Smith 2[]
Extracts from th History of Joseph Smith.
1 Owing to th many reports wich hav been put in circulation by evil-disposed and designing persns, in relation to th rise and progress of th Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, al of wich hav been designed by th authrs thereof to militate against its caractr as a Church and its progress in th world -- I hav been induced to rite this histry, to disabuse th public mind, and put al inquirers aftr truth in possession of th facts, as they hav transpired, in relation both to myself and th Church, so far as I hav such facts in my possession. 2 In this histry I shall present th various events in relation to this Church, in truth and righteousness, as they hav transpired, or as they at present exist, being now th eighth year since th orgnization of th said Church. 3 I was born in th year of our Lord one thousnd eit hundred and five, on th twenty-third day of December, in th town of Sharon, Windsor county, State of Vermont. My fathr, Joseph Smith, Senior, left th State of Vermont, and moved to Palmyra, Ontario (now Wayne) county, in th State of New York, wen I was in my tenth year, or thereabouts. In about four years aftr my fathr's arrival in Palmyra, he moved with his famly into Manchester in th same county of Ontario. 4 His famly consisting of eleven souls, namely -- my fathr, Joseph Smith; my mothr, Lucy Smith (hos name, previous to her marriage, was Mack, dautr of Solomon Mack); my brothrs, Alvin (ho died November 19th, 1823, in th 27th year of his age), Hyrum, myself, Samuel Harrison, William, Don Carlos; and my sisters, Sophronia, Catherine, and Lucy. 5 Som time in th secnd year aftr our removal to Manchester, ther was in th place wher we lived an unusual excitement on th subject of religion. It commenced with th Methodists, but soon became general among al th sects in that region of cuntry. Indeed, th hole district of cuntry seemd affected by it, and gret multitudes united themselvs to th difrnt religious parties, wich created no smal stir and division amongst th peple, som crying, "Lo, here!" and othrs, "Lo, ther!" Som wer contending for th Methodist faith, som for th Presbyterian, and som for th Baptist. 6 For, notwithstanding th gret lov wich th converts to these difrnt faiths expressed at th time of ther conversion, and th gret zeal manifested by th respective clergy, ho wer active in getng up and promoting this extraordinary sene of religious feelng, in ordr to hav everybody converted, as they wer pleased to cal it, let them join wat sect they pleased; yet wen th converts began to file off, som to one party and som to anothr, it was seen that th seemingly good feelings of both th priests and th converts wer mor pretended than real; for a sene of gret confusion and bad feelng ensued; priest contending against priest, and convert against convert; so that al ther good feelings one for anothr, if they evr had any, wer entirely lost in a strife of words and a contest about opinions. 7 I was at this time in my fifteenth year. My fathr's famly was proselyted to th Presbyterian faith, and four of them joind that church, namely, my mothr, Lucy; my brothrs Hyrum and Samuel Harrison; and my sister Sophronia. 8 During this time of gret excitement my mind was cald up to serius reflection and gret uneasiness; but tho my feelings wer deep and ofn poignant, stil I kept myself aloof from al these parties, tho I attended ther sevrl meetngs as ofn as occasion wud permit. In process of time my mind became somewhat partial to th Methodist sect, and I felt som desire to be united with them; but so gret wer th confusion and strife among th difrnt denominations, that it was impossible for a persn yung as I was, and so unacquainted with men and things, to com to any certn conclusion ho was ryt and ho was rong. 9 My mind at times was greatly excited, th cry and tumult wer so gret and incessant. Th Presbyterians wer most decided against th Baptists and Methodists, and used al th powrs of both reasn and sophistry to prove ther errors, or, at least, to make th peple think they wer in error. On th othr hand, th Baptists and Methodists in ther turn wer equally zealous in endeavoring to establish ther own tenets and disprove al othrs. 10 In th midst of this war of words and tumult of opinions, I ofn said to myself: Wat is to be don? Ho of al these parties ar ryt; or, ar they al rong togethr? If any one of them be ryt, wich is it, and how shall I no it? 11 Wile I was laboring undr th extreme difficulties caused by th contests of these parties of religionists, I was one day redng th Epistle of James, first chapter and fifth verse, wich reads: If any of u lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to al men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. 12 Nevr did any passage of scripture com with mor powr to th hart of man than this did at this time to mine. It seemd to entr with gret force into evry feelng of my hart. I reflected on it again and again, noing that if any persn needd wisdom from God, I did; for how to act I did not no, and unless I cud get mor wisdom than I then had, I wud nevr no; for th teachrs of religion of th difrnt sects understood th same passages of scripture so differently as to destroy al confidence in settling th question by an appeal to th Bible. 13 At length I came to th conclusion that I must eithr remain in darkness and confusion, or else I must do as James directs, that is, ask of God. I at length came to th determination to "ask of God," concluding that if he gave wisdom to them that lacked wisdom, and wud giv liberally, and not upbraid, I myt venture. 14 So, in accordance with this, my determination to ask of God, I retired to th woods to make th attempt. It was on th mornng of a beautiful, clear day, erly in th spring of eighteen hundred and twenty. It was th first time in my life that I had made such an attempt, for amidst al my anxieties I had nevr as yet made th attempt to pray vocally. 15 Aftr I had retired to th place wher I had previously designed to go, havng lookd around me, and findng myself alone, I kneeled down and began to ofr up th desires of my hart to God. I had scarcely don so, wen immediately I was seized upon by som powr wich entirely overcame me, and had such an astonishing influence over me as to bind my tongue so that I cud not speak. Thick darkness gathrd around me, and it seemd to me for a time as if I wer doomed to sudden destruction. 16 But, exerting al my powrs to cal upon God to deliver me out of th powr of this enemy wich had seized upon me, and at th very moment wen I was redy to sink into despair and abandon myself to destruction -- not to an imaginary ruin, but to th powr of som actual being from th unseen world, ho had such marvelous powr as I had nevr befor felt in any being -- just at this moment of gret alarm, I saw a pillar of lyt exactly over my hed, above th brightness of th sun, wich descended gradually until it fel upon me. 17 It no sooner appeared than I found myself delivered from th enemy wich held me bound. Wen th lyt rested upon me I saw two personages, hos brightness and glory defy al description, standng above me in th air. One of them spake unto me, calng me by name and said, pointng to th othr: This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him! 18 My object in going to inquire of th Lord was to no wich of al th sects was ryt, that I myt no wich to join. No sooner, therefore, did I get possession of myself, so as to be able to speak, than I askd th personages ho stood above me in th lyt, wich of al th sects was ryt (for at this time it had nevr entered into my hart that al wer rong) and wich I shud join. 19 I was ansrd that I must join none of them, for they wer al rong; and th personage ho addressed me said that al ther creeds wer an abomination in his sight; that those professors wer al corrupt; that: "they draw near to me with ther lips, but ther harts ar far from me, they teach for doctrines th commandments of men, havng a form of godliness, but they deny th powr thereof." 20 He again forbade me to join with any of them; and many othr things did he say unto me, wich I canot rite at this time. Wen I came to myself again, I found myself lying on my bak, lookng up into heaven. Wen th lyt had departed, I had no strength; but soon recovering in som degree, I went home. And as I leaned up to th fireplace, mothr inquired wat th matr was. I replyd, "Nevr mind, al is wel, I am wel enuf off." I then said to my mothr, "I hav lernd for myself that presbyterianism is not tru." It seems as tho th adversary was aware, at a very erly period of my life, that I was destined to prove a disturber and an annoyer of his kingdom; else wy shud th powrs of darkness combine against me? Wy th opposition and persecution that arose against me, almost in my infancy? 21 Som few days aftr I had this vision, I hapnd to be in compny with one of th Methodist preachers, ho was very active in th befor mentioned religious excitement; and, conversing with him on th subject of religion, I took occasion to giv him an account of th vision wich I had had. I was greatly surprised at his behavir; he treated my communication not only lightly, but with gret contempt, sayng it was al of th devil, that ther wer no such things as visions or revelations in these days; that al such things had ceased with th apostles, and that ther wud nevr be any mor of them. 22 I soon found, howevr, that my telng th story had excited a gret deal of prejudice against me among professors of religion, and was th cause of gret persecution, wich continued to increse; and tho I was an obscure boy, only between fourteen and fifteen years of age, and my circumstances in life such as to make a boy of no consequence in th world, yet men of hy standng wud take notice sufficient to excite th public mind against me, and create a bitter persecution; and this was comn among al th sects -- al united to persecute me. 23 It caused me serius reflection then, and ofn has since, how very strange it was that an obscure boy, of a litl over fourteen years of age, and one, too, ho was doomed to th necessity of obtaining a scanty maintenance by his daily labor, shud be thot a caractr of sufficient importance to attract th atention of th gret ones of th most popular sects of th day, and in a manner to create in them a spirit of th most bitter persecution and reviling. But strange or not, so it was, and it was ofn th cause of gret sorrow to myself. 24 Howevr, it was nevertheless a fact that I had beheld a vision. I hav thot since, that I felt much like Paul, wen he made his defense befor King Agrippa, and related th account of th vision he had wen he saw a lyt, and herd a voice; but stil ther wer but few ho beleved him; som said he was dishonest, othrs said he was mad; and he was ridiculed and reviled. But al this did not destroy th reality of his vision. He had seen a vision, he new he had, and al th persecution undr heaven cud not make it otherwise; and tho they shud persecute him unto deth, yet he new, and wud no to his latest breath, that he had both seen a lyt and herd a voice speakng unto him, and al th world cud not make him think or beleve otherwise. 25 So it was with me. I had actuly seen a lyt, and in th midst of that lyt I saw two personages, and they did in reality speak to me; and tho I was hated and persecuted for sayng that I had seen a vision, yet it was tru; and wile they wer persecuting me, reviling me, and speakng al manner of evil against me falsely for so sayng, I was led to say in my hart: Wy persecute me for telng th truth? I hav actuly seen a vision; and ho am I that I can withstand God, or wy dos th world think to make me deny wat I hav actuly seen? For I had seen a vision; I new it, and I new that God new it, and I cud not deny it, neither dared I do it; at least I new that by so doing I wud offend God, and com undr condemnation. 26 I had now got my mind satisfied so far as th sectarian world was concerned; that it was not my duty to join with any of them, but to continu as I was until furthr directed. I had found th testimony of James to be tru that a man ho lacked wisdom myt ask of God, and obtain, and not be upbraided. 27 I continued to pursue my comn vocations in life until th twenty-first of September, one thousnd eit hundred and twenty-thre, al th time suffering severe persecution at th hands of al classes of men, both religious and irreligious, because I continued to affirm that I had seen a vision. 28 During th space of time wich intervened between th time I had th vision and th year eighteen hundred and twenty-thre -- havng been forbidden to join any of th religious sects of th day, and being of very tender years, and persecuted by those ho ought to hav been my frends and to hav treated me kindly, and if they supposed me to be deluded to hav endeavored in a proper and affectionate manner to hav reclaimed me -- I was left to al kinds of temptations; and, mingling with al kinds of society, I frequently fel into many foolish errors, and displayed th weakness of youth, and th foibles of human natur; wich, I am sorry to say, led me into divers temptations, offensive in th sight of God. In making this confession, no one need suppose me guilty of any gret or malignant sins. A disposition to commit such was nevr in my natur. But I was guilty of levity, and somtimes associated with jovial compny, etc., not consistent with that caractr wich ought to be maintained by one ho was cald of God as I had been. But this wil not seem very strange to any one ho recollects my youth, and is acquainted with my native cheery temperament. 29 In consequence of these things, I ofn felt condemned for my weakness and imperfections; wen, on th evenng of th above-mentioned twenty-first of September, aftr I had retired to my bed for th nyt, I betook myself to prayer and supplication to Almighty God for forgiveness of al my sins and follies, and also for a manifestation to me, that I myt no of my state and standng befor him; for I had ful confidence in obtaining a divine manifestation, as I previously had one. 30 Wile I was thus in th act of calng upon God, I discovered a lyt apearng in my room, wich continued to increse until th room was lighter than at noonday, wen immediately a personage appeared at my bedside, standng in th air, for his feet did not touch th flor. 31 He had on a loose robe of most exquisite whiteness. It was a whiteness beyond anythng earthly I had evr seen; nor do I beleve that any earthly thing cud be made to apear so exceedingly wite and brilliant. His hands wer naked, and his arms also, a litl above th wrist; so, also, wer his feet naked, as wer his legs, a litl above th ankles. His hed and neck wer also bare. I cud discover that he had no othr clothing on but this robe, as it was open, so that I cud se into his bosom. 32 Not only was his robe exceedingly wite, but his hole persn was glorious beyond description, and his countenance truly like lightning. Th room was exceedingly lyt, but not so very bright as immediately around his persn. Wen I first lookd upon him, I was afraid; but th fear soon left me. 33 He cald me by name, and said unto me that he was a messenger sent from th presence of God to me, and that his name was Moroni; that God had a work for me to do; and that my name shud be had for good and evil among al nations, kindreds, and tongues, or that it shud be both good and evil spoken of among al peple. 34 He said ther was a book deposited, written upon gold plates, givng an account of th formr inhabitants of this continent, and th sorce from whence they sprang. He also said that th fulness of th everlasting Gospel was contained in it, as delivered by th Savior to th ancient inhabitants; 35 Also, that ther wer two stones in silver bows -- and these stones, fastened to a breastplate, constituted wat is cald th Urim and Thummim -- deposited with th plates; and th possession and use of these stones wer wat constituted "seers" in ancient or formr times; and that God had prepared them for th purpose of translating th book. 36 Aftr telng me these things, he commenced quoting th prophecies of th Old Testament. He first quoted part of th third chapter of Malachi; and he quoted also th fourth or last chapter of th same prophecy, tho with a litl variation from th way it reads in our Bibles. Instead of quoting th first verse as it reads in our books, he quoted it thus: 37 For behold, th day cometh that shall burn as an oven, and al th proud, yea, and al that do wickedly shall burn as stubble; for they that com shall burn them, saith th Lord of Hosts, that it shall leve them neither root nor branch. 38 And again, he quoted th fifth verse thus: Behold, I wil reveal unto u th Priesthood, by th hand of Elijah th prophet, befor th coming of th gret and dreadful day of th Lord. 39 He also quoted th next verse differently: And he shall plant in th harts of th children th promises made to th fathrs, and th harts of th children shall turn to ther fathrs. If it wer not so, th hole earth wud be utterly wasted at his coming. 40 In addition to these, he quoted th eleventh chapter of Isaiah, sayng that it was about to be fulfilled. He quoted also th third chapter of Acts, twenty-secnd and twenty-third verses, precisely as they stand in our New Testament. He said that that prophet was Christ; but th day had not yet com wen "they ho wud not hear his voice shud be cut off from among th peple," but soon wud com. 41 He also quoted th secnd chapter of Joel, from th twenty-eighth verse to th last. He also said that this was not yet fulfilled, but was soon to be. And he furthr stated that th fulness of th Gentiles was soon to com in. He quoted many othr passages of scripture, and offered many explanations wich canot be mentioned here. 42 Again, he told me, that wen I got those plates of wich he had spoken -- for th time that they shud be obtained was not yet fulfilled -- I shud not sho them to any persn; neither th breastplate with th Urim and Thummim; only to those to whom I shud be commanded to sho them; if I did I shud be destroyed. Wile he was conversing with me about th plates, th vision was opened to my mind that I cud se th place wher th plates wer deposited, and that so clearly and distinctly that I new th place again wen I visited it. 43 Aftr this communication, I saw th lyt in th room begin to gather immediately around th persn of him ho had been speakng to me, and it continued to do so until th room was again left dark, except just around him; wen, instantly I saw, as it wer, a conduit open ryt up into heaven, and he ascended till he entirely disappeared, and th room was left as it had been befor this heavenly lyt had made its appearance. 44 I lay musing on th singularity of th sene, and marveling greatly at wat had been told to me by this extraordinary messenger; wen, in th midst of my meditation, I suddenly discovered that my room was again beginning to get lighted, and in an instant, as it wer, th same heavenly messenger was again by my bedside. 45 He commenced, and again related th very same things wich he had don at his first visit, without th least variation; wich havng don, he informed me of gret judgments wich wer coming upon th earth, with gret desolations by famine, sword, and pestilence; and that these grievous judgments wud com on th earth in this generation. Havng related these things, he again ascended as he had don befor. 46 By this time, so deep wer th impressions made on my mind, that sleep had fled from my eyes, and I lay overwhelmed in astonishment at wat I had both seen and herd. But wat was my surprise wen again I beheld th same messenger at my bedside, and herd him rehearse or repeat over again to me th same things as befor; and added a caution to me, telng me that Satan wud try to tempt me (in consequence of th indigent circumstances of my fathr's famly), to get th plates for th purpose of getng rich. This he forbade me, sayng that I must hav no othr object in vew in getng th plates but to glorify God, and must not be influenced by any othr motive than that of bildng his kingdom; otherwise I cud not get them. 47 Aftr this third visit, he again ascended into heaven as befor, and I was again left to ponder on th strangeness of wat I had just experienced; wen almost immediately aftr th heavenly messenger had ascended from me for th third time, th cock crowed, and I found that day was aproachng, so that our interviews must hav occupied th hole of that nyt. 48 I shortly aftr arose from my bed, and, as usual, went to th necessary labors of th day; but, in attempting to work as at othr times, I found my strength so exhausted as to render me entirely unable. My fathr, ho was laboring along with me, discovered somthing to be rong with me, and told me to go home. I startd with th intention of going to th house; but, in attempting to cross th fence out of th field wher we wer, my strength entirely failed me, and I fel helpless on th ground, and for a time was quite unconscious of anythng. 49 Th first thing that I can recollect was a voice speakng unto me, calng me by name. I lookd up, and beheld th same messenger standng over my hed, surrounded by lyt as befor. He then again related unto me al that he had related to me th previous nyt, and commanded me to go to my fathr and tel him of th vision and commandments wich I had receved. 50 I obeyed; I returnd to my fathr in th field, and rehearsed th hole matr to him. He replyd to me that it was of God, and told me to go and do as commanded by th messenger. I left th field, and went to th place wher th messenger had told me th plates wer deposited; and owing to th distinctness of th vision wich I had had concernng it, I new th place th instant that I arived ther. 51 Convenient to th village of Manchester, Ontario county, New York, stands a hill of considerable size, and th most elevated of any in th neighborhood. On th west side of this hill, not far from th top, undr a stone of considerable size, lay th plates, deposited in a stone box. This stone was thick and rounding in th middle on th upper side, and thinner towards th edges, so that th middle part of it was visible above th ground, but th edge al around was covrd with earth. 52 Havng removed th earth, I obtained a lever, wich I got fixed undr th edge of th stone, and with a litl exertion rased it up. I lookd in, and ther indeed did I behold th plates, th Urim and Thummim, and th breastplate, as stated by th messenger. Th box in wich they lay was formd by laying stones togethr in som kind of cement. In th bottom of th box wer laid two stones crossways of th box, and on these stones lay th plates and th othr things with them. 53 I made an attempt to take them out, but was forbidden by th messenger, and was again informed that th time for bringng them forth had not yet arived, neither wud it, until four years from that time; but he told me that I shud com to that place precisely in one year from that time, and that he wud ther meet with me, and that I shud continu to do so until th time shud com for obtaining th plates. 54 Accordingly, as I had been commanded, I went at th end of each year, and at each time I found th same messenger ther, and receved instruction and intelligence from him at each of our interviews, respecting wat th Lord was going to do, and how and in wat manner his kingdom was to be conducted in th last days. 55 As my fathr's worldly circumstances wer very limited, we wer undr th necessity of laboring with our hands, hiring out by day's work and otherwise, as we cud get oprtunity. Somtimes we wer at home, and somtimes abroad, and by continuous labor wer enabled to get a comfortable maintenance. 56 In th year 1823 my fathr's famly met with a gret affliction by th deth of my eldest brothr, Alvin. In th month of October, 1825, I hired with an old gentleman by th name of Josiah Stoal, ho lived in Chenango county, State of New York. He had herd somthing of a silver mine havng been opened by th Spaniards in Harmony, Susquehanna county, State of Pennsylvania; and had, previous to my hiring to him, been digging, in ordr, if posbl, to discover th mine. Aftr I went to liv with him, he took me, with th rest of his hands, to dig for th silver mine, at wich I continued to work for nearly a month, without success in our undertaking, and finaly I prevailed with th old gentleman to cease digging aftr it. Hence arose th very prevalent story of my havng been a mony-digger. 57 During th time that I was thus employed, I was put to bord with a Mr. Isaac Hale, of that place; it was ther I first saw my wife (his dautr), Emma Hale. On th 18th of January, 1827, we wer married, wile I was yet employed in th service of Mr. Stoal. 58 Owing to my continuing to assert that I had seen a vision, persecution stil folod me, and my wife's fathr's famly wer very much opposed to our being married. I was, therefore, undr th necessity of taking her elsewhere; so we went and wer married at th house of Squire Tarbill, in South Bainbridge, Chenango county, New York. Immediately aftr my marriage, I left Mr. Stoal's, and went to my fathr's, and farmed with him that seasn. 59 At length th time arived for obtaining th plates, th Urim and Thummim, and th breastplate. On th twenty-secnd day of September, one thousnd eit hundred and twenty-sevn, havng gon as usual at th end of anothr year to th place wher they wer deposited, th same heavenly messenger delivered them up to me with this charge: that I shud be responsible for them; that if I shud let them go carelessly, or thru any neglect of mine, I shud be cut off; but that if I wud use al my endeavors to preserve them, until he, th messenger, shud cal for them, they shud be protected. 60 I soon found out th reasn wy I had receved such strict charges to keep them safe, and wy it was that th messenger had said that wen I had don wat was required at my hand, he wud cal for them. For no sooner was it known that I had them, than th most strenuous exertions wer used to get them from me. Evry stratagem that cud be invented was resorted to for that purpose. Th persecution became mor bitter and severe than befor, and multitudes wer on th alert continually to get them from me if posbl. But by th wisdom of God, they remained safe in my hands, until I had accomplished by them wat was required at my hand. Wen, acordng to arrangements, th messenger cald for them, I delivered them up to him; and he has them in his charge until this day, being th secnd day of May, one thousnd eit hundred and thirty-eit. 61 Th excitement, howevr, stil continued, and rumor with her thousnd tongues was al th time employed in circulating falsehoods about my fathr's famly, and about myself. If I wer to relate a thousandth part of them, it wud fil up volumes. Th persecution, howevr, became so intolerable that I was undr th necessity of leving Manchester, and going with my wife to Susquehanna county, in th State of Pennsylvania. Wile preparing to start -- being very poor, and th persecution so heavy upon us that ther was no probability that we wud evr be otherwise -- in th midst of our afflictions we found a frend in a gentleman by th name of Martin Harris, ho came to us and gave me fifty dolrs to assist us on our journey. Mr. Harris was a resident of Palmyra township, Wayne county, in th State of New York, and a farmer of respectability. 62 By this timely aid was I enabled to reach th place of my destination in Pennsylvania; and immediately aftr my arrival ther I commenced copying th caractrs off th plates. I copied a considerable numr of them, and by means of th Urim and Thummim I translated som of them, wich I did between th time I arived at th house of my wife's fathr, in th month of December, and th February foloing. 63 Sometime in this month of February, th aforementioned Mr. Martin Harris came to our place, got th caractrs wich I had drawn off th plates, and startd with them to th city of New York. For wat took place relative to him and th caractrs, I refer to his own account of th circumstances, as he related them to me aftr his return, wich was as folos: 64 "I went to th city of New York, and presented th caractrs wich had been translated, with th translation thereof, to Professor Charles Anthon, a gentleman celebrated for his literary attainments. Professor Anthon stated that th translation was correct, mor so than any he had befor seen translated from th Egyptian. I then showd him those wich wer not yet translated, and he said that they wer Egyptian, Chaldaic, Assyriac, and Arabic; and he said they wer tru caractrs. He gave me a certificate, certifying to th peple of Palmyra that they wer tru caractrs, and that th translation of such of them as had been translated was also correct. I took th certificate and put it into my pocket, and was just leving th house, wen Mr. Anthon cald me bak, and askd me how th yung man found out that ther wer gold plates in th place wher he found them. I ansrd that an angel of God had revealed it unto him. 65 "He then said to me, 'Let me se that certificate.' I accordingly took it out of my pocket and gave it to him, wen he took it and tore it to peces, sayng that ther was no such thing now as ministering of angels, and that if I wud bring th plates to him he wud translate them. I informed him that part of th plates wer sealed, and that I was forbidden to bring them. He replyd, 'I canot red a sealed book.' I left him and went to Dr. Mitchell, ho sanctioned wat Professor Anthon had said respecting both th caractrs and th translation." 66 On th 5th day of April, 1829, Oliver Cowdery came to my house, until wich time I had nevr seen him. He stated to me that havng been teachng scool in th neighborhood wher my fathr resided, and my fathr being one of those ho sent to th scool, he went to bord for a seasn at his house, and wile ther th famly related to him th circumstances of my havng receved th plates, and accordingly he had com to make inquiries of me. 67 Two days aftr th arrival of Mr. Cowdery (being th 7th of April) I commenced to translate th Book of Mormon, and he began to rite for me. 68 We stil continued th work of translation, wen, in th ensuing month (May, 1829), we on a certn day went into th woods to pray and inquire of th Lord respecting baptism for th remission of sins, that we found mentioned in th translation of th plates. Wile we wer thus employed, praying and calng upon th Lord, a messenger from heaven descended in a cloud of lyt, and havng laid his hands upon us, he ordained us, sayng: 69 Upon u my fellow servants, in th name of Messiah, I confer th Priesthood of Aaron, wich holds th keys of th ministering of angels, and of th gospel of repentance, and of baptism by immersion for th remission of sins; and this shall nevr be taken again from th earth until th sons of Levi do ofr again an ofrng unto th Lord in righteousness. 70 He said this Aaronic Priesthood had not th powr of laying on hands for th gift of th Holy Ghost, but that this shud be conferred on us hereafter; and he commanded us to go and be baptized, and gave us directions that I shud baptize Oliver Cowdery, and that afterwards he shud baptize me. 71 Accordingly we went and wer baptized. I baptized him first, and afterwards he baptized me,—aftr wich I laid my hands upon his hed and ordained him to th Aaronic Priesthood, and afterwards he laid his hands on me and ordained me to th same Priesthood -- for so we wer commanded. 72 Th messenger ho visited us on this occasion and conferred this Priesthood upon us, said that his name was John, th same that is cald John th Baptist in th New Testament, and that he acted undr th direction of Peter, James and John, ho held th keys of th Priesthood of Melchizedek, wich Priesthood, he said, wud in due time be conferred on us, and that I shud be cald th first Elder of th Church, and he (Oliver Cowdery) th secnd. It was on th fifteenth day of May, 1829, that we wer ordained undr th hand of this messenger, and baptized. 73 Immediately on our coming up out of th watr aftr we had been baptized, we experienced gret and glorious blessings from our Heavenly Fathr. No sooner had I baptized Oliver Cowdery, than th Holy Ghost fel upon him, and he stood up and prophesied many things wich shud shortly com to pass. And again, so soon as I had been baptized by him, I also had th spirit of prophecy, wen, standng up, I prophesied concernng th rise of this Church, and many othr things connected with th Church, and this generation of th children of men. We wer fild with th Holy Ghost, and rejoiced in th God of our salvation. 74 Our minds being now enlightened, we began to hav th scriptures laid open to our understandings, and th tru meanng and intention of ther mor mysterious passages revealed unto us in a manner wich we nevr cud attain to previously, nor evr befor had thot of. In th meantime we wer forced to keep secret th circumstances of havng receved th Priesthood and our havng been baptized, owing to a spirit of persecution wich had alredy manifested itself in th neighborhood. 75 We had been threatened with being mobbed, from time to time, and this, too, by professors of religion. And ther intentions of mobbing us wer only counteracted by th influence of my wife's fathr's famly (undr Divine providence), ho had becom very friendly to me, and ho wer opposed to mobs, and wer wilng that I shud be allowed to continu th work of translation without interruption; and therefore offered and promised us protection from al unlawful proceedings, as far as in them lay.
Writings of Joseph Smith 3[]
Th Articls of Faith of th Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
1 We beleve in God, th Eternal Fathr, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in th Holy Ghost.
2 We beleve that men wil be punished for ther own sins, and not for Adam's transgression.
3 We beleve that thru th atonement of Christ, al mankind may be saved, by obedience to th laws and ordinances of th Gospel.
4 We beleve that th first principles and ordinances of th Gospel ar:—First, Faith in th Lord Jesus Christ; Secnd, Repentance; Third, Baptism by immersion for th remission of sins; Fourth, Laying on of Hands for th Gift of th Holy Ghost.
5 We beleve that a man must be cald by God, by prophecy, and by th laying on of hands, by those ho ar in authority, to preach th Gospel and administer in th ordinances thereof.
6 We beleve in th same orgnization that existed in th Primitive Church, viz: apostles, prophets, pastors, teachrs, evangelists, etc.
7 We beleve in th gift of tongues, prophecy, revelation, visions, healing, interpretation of tongues, etc.
8 We beleve th Bible to be th word of God, as far as it is translated correctly; we also beleve th Book of Mormon to be th word of God.
9 We beleve al that God has revealed, al that He dos now reveal, and we beleve that He wil yet reveal many gret and importnt things pertaining to th Kingdom of God.
10 We beleve in th literal gathering of Israel and in th restoration of th Ten Tribes; that Zion wil be bilt upon this [th American] continent; that Christ wil reign personally upon th earth; and, that th earth wil be renewed and receve its paradisiacal glory.
11 We claim th privilege of worshiping Almighty God acordng to th dictates of our own conscience, and alow al men th same privilege, let them worship how, wher, or wat they may.
12 We beleve in being subject to kings, presidnts, rulers, and magistrates, in obeying, honoring, and sustaining th law.
13 We beleve in being honest, tru, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to al men; indeed, we may say that we folo th admonition of Paul, We beleve al things, we hope al things, we hav endured many things, and hope to be able to endure al things. If ther is anythng virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek aftr these things.
Joseph Smith.
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