The Holy Ghost writes a letter to the President of the United States (124)

Episode 110: The Holy Ghost writes a letter to the President of the United States (124)

Doctrine and Covenants

Section 124

Revelation given to Joseph Smith at Nauvoo, Illinois, January 19, 1841

The Holy Ghost will write a proclamation to the President Elect of the United States and all the kings of the world

¹ I, the Lord, am well pleased with you, Joseph Smith. ^2-3 I like your prayers, and I'd like you to make a proclamation to all the kings of this world, to the president elect, governors, and to all nations. ⁴ It will be written by the Holy Ghost. 5 And the Holy Ghost will give the proclamation to you. ⁸ When I come to visit, I'll reveal my face. The oppressors and hypocrites will gnash their teeth, if they reject the proclamation. ¹¹ Oh you kings of the earth, give your gold and silver to the people of Zion. ^12-13 Robert B. Thompson will help you write the proclamation. I'll bless him with lots of blessings and he'll be great in my eyes.

John C. Bennett will be great. I will crown him with blessings and glory

¹⁵ I, the Lord, love Hyrum Smith. ¹⁶ Let John C. Bennett stand by Joseph Smith while sending my word to the kings and people of the earth. ¹⁷ If he does this, he'll be mine, and I'll crown him with blessings and glory.

¹⁸ Lyman Wight will keep preaching in Zion. He'll beget glory and honor to himself and my name. ¹⁹ I'll receive him like I did David Patten, who is here with me at this time, along with Edward Partridge and Joseph Smith, Sen., who is sitting at Abraham's right hand. He is holy and he is mine.

²⁰ George Miller is without guile. He loves my testimony and I, the Lord, love him. ²¹ I am making him a bishop. Don't let any man despise him.

²² Let George [Miller], Lyman [Wight], John Snider, and others build a house for me. Joseph [Smith] will show them how and where to build it.

Baptism of the dead

²⁶ Send swift messengers to tell everyone to bring their gold, silver, precious stones, and antiques, along with box, fir, and pine trees, and all the other precious trees of the earth. ²⁷ Have them bring iron, copper, brass, zinc, and other precious things to build a house for me to live in. ²⁹ And build a baptismal font to baptize dead people. ³¹ I command all you saints to build me a house. ³² If you don't, your baptisms for dead people won't be acceptable to me. ³³ I originated the law of baptism for the dead before the world began. ³⁶ You can only baptize dead people in Zion, Jerusalem, and other places I've appointed for refuge. ³⁸ Your anointings, washings, baptisms for the dead, assemblies, memorials, sacrifices, oracles, conversations, statutes, judgments, revelations, glory, honor, and endowment must be in my holy house.

Let Joseph Smith and his seed live in Nauvoo House forever

⁴¹ I'll reveal to my church things that have never been revealed. ⁴² I'll show Joseph [Smith] things about this house. ⁴³ Build it on the spot I tell you to build it on. ⁴⁴ If you work hard, I'll make the spot holy. ⁴⁸ But if not, there will be cursings, indignation, and judgments on your heads for all of your follies and abominations. ⁵⁰ I'll visit on the heads of those who hinder my work - to the third and fourth generation.

⁵¹ I accepted the offerings of those whom I commanded to build me a house in Jackson County, Missouri. But they were hindered by their enemies. ⁵² They will pay with wailing, anguish, and gnashing of teeth upon their heads to the third and fourth generations.

⁵⁴ I'll save all the pure of heart who were slain in Missouri.

⁵⁵ I command you again to build me a house in this place. ⁵⁷ I've put a blessing on Joseph [Smith]'s head and on the head of his posterity. ⁵⁸ Everyone on earth is blessed by Joseph [Smith]'s seed. ⁵⁹ So let Joseph [Smith] and his seed live in that house forever. 60 It'll be called the Nauvoo House.

Buy $50 to $15,000 stock in my house

^62-66 George Miller, Lyman Wight, John Snider, and Peter Haws may buy $50 to $15,000 of stock in the house.

Almon Babbitt set up a golden calf for my people to worship

⁸³ I, the Lord, have a scourge prepared for the inhabitants of that city. ⁸⁴ I'm not pleased with Almon Babbitt. He set up a golden calf for my people to worship.

William Law will heal the sick, raise the dead, and cast out devils

⁸⁷ William [Law] should stop worrying about his family's health. ⁸⁹ He should obey Joseph [Smith] and publish the new translation of the Bible. ⁹⁰ If he does this, his seed won't have to beg for bread. ⁹¹ I appoint William [Law] as Joseph Smith's counselor, and Hyrum [Smith] to the office of Priesthood and Patriarch. ⁹³ Whoever he [Hyrum Smith] blesses will be blessed and whoever he curses will be cursed. Whatever he binds on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever he looses on earth will be bound in heaven. ⁹⁴ From now on he is a prophet, seer, revelator to my church, along with Joseph [Smith]. ⁹⁵ He'll have the same gifts and honor that Oliver Cowdery once had.

⁹⁸ William Law will heal the sick, cast out devils, and be immune to deadly poison. ⁹⁹ He'll also go places where poisonous serpents can't bite his heel, and his thoughts will be like eagles' wings. ¹⁰⁰ And he'll raise the dead.

¹⁰⁶ Let Sidney [Rigdon] lift up his voice like a trump to warn everyone on earth of the wrath to come. ¹¹⁰ Amen.

¹¹⁵ Robert D. Foster must build a house for Joseph [Smith]. If he does that, the door will be opened to him from time to time. ¹¹⁶ But he must repent of his folly and quit doing evil things. ¹¹⁸ And obey Joseph [Smith], Hyrum [Smith], and William Law. Everything will go well for him forever. Amen.

¹¹⁹ Only believers in the Book of Mormon can buy stock in the Nauvoo House. ¹²⁰ Those who don't will receive cursings, not blessings. ¹²² Amen.

I appoint Brigham Young to be president of the Twelve

¹²⁵ Joseph [Smith] is a presiding elder over my church, to be a translator, revelator, seer, and prophet. ¹²⁶ Sidney Rigdon and William Law will be his counselors. ¹²⁷ Brigham Young will be president over the Twelve. ¹²⁸ The Twelve have the keys to my kingdom on earth. ¹⁴⁵ Amen.

A few more words about this episode

The president elect (124:3): William Henry Harrison was sworn in as president of the United States on March 4, 1841. He died a month later, on April 4.
Robert B. Thompson (124:12): Robert Thompson died on August 27, 1841, so he didn't get a chance to help the Holy Ghost write a proclamation to the President of the United States and all the kings of the world.; But a proclamation was sent to the U.S. President and all the kings of the world on April 6, 1845. You can read it here.; Here's a fun quote from this bizarre document: "[Y]ou are also hereby commanded, in the name of Jesus Christ, to put your silver and your gold, your ships and steam-vessels, your railroad trains and your hoes chariots, camels, mules, and litters, into active use, for the fulfillment of these purposes."
I'll crown John C. Bennett with blessings and glory. (124:17): John C. Bennett was a physician who seduced many women and promised to perform abortions on those who became pregnant. He was excommunicated by Joseph Smith on June 23, 1842. Later that year, he published a book called "The History of the Saints: Or, An Exposé of Joe Smith and Mormonism" where he accused Joseph Smith and the LDS church of treason, conspiracy to commit murder, prostitution, and adultery. (I guess the Lord didn't crown him with blessings and great glory.)
Lyman Wight will beget glory and honor to himself and my name. (124:18): Lyman Wight was excommunicated by Brigham Young on December 3, 1848.
David Patten is here with me at this time. (124:19): David Patten was killed in the Battle of Crooked River on October 25, 1838. He is considered a martyr by the LDS church.
George Miller is without guile. He loves my testimony and I, the Lord, love him. (124:20): Though the Lord loved George Miller, he was excommunicated from the LDS church on December 3, 1848.
Almon Babbitt set up a golden calf for my people to worship. (124:84): Almon Babbitt had a troubled history with the LDS church. He was excommunicated four times, but was later reinstated each time.; But what was the golden calf that the Lord said he had set up? Apparently it was a disagreement that he had with Joseph Smith. Babbitt encouraged the saints to stay in Kirtland, when Joseph Smith wanted them to go to Nauvoo. That's a golden calf if I ever saw one!
William [Law] should stop worrying about his family's health. (124:87): William Law disagreed with Joseph Smith on several political and economic issues, as well as polygamy. But their relationship was finally completely broken with Law found out about Joseph Smith's attempt to add Law's wife, Jane, to his growing number of wives. William and Jane law were excommunicated on April 20, 1844.
Oliver Cowdery (124:95): Oliver Cowdery was one of the three witnesses who claimed to have been shown the golden plates by an angel in 1929.; He was excommunicated from the church on April 12, 1838, but was rebaptized on November 12, 1848.; Some say that Oliver Cowdery may be the author of the Book of Mormon.
Let Sidney [Rigdon] lift up his voice like a trump (124:106): When Joseph Smith ran for president of the United States in 1844, Sidney Rigdon was his vice presidential running mate.; On on September 8, 1844, Rigdon was excommunicated from the LDS church.; (Sidney Rigdon may have written the Book of Mormon. See Wikipedia: Rigdon as purported author of the Book of Mormon)
Robert D. Foster (124:115): Robert D. Foster accused Joseph Smith of asking his wife to become one of Smith's plural wives. Foster was excommunicated from the LDS church on 18 April 1844. After his excommunication, he founded the Nauvoo Expositor which criticized Joseph Smith and the LDS church. Joseph Smith ordered the destruction of the press that produced the Expositor, leading to Smith's arrest and death in the Carthage jail.
Brigham Young (124:127): This is the first mention of Brigham Young in Mormon scripture.