"His eyes were as a flame of fire, the hair of his head was white like the pure snow, his countenance shone above the brightness of the sun, and his voice was as the sound of the rushing of great waters, even the voice of Jehovah, saying—
"I am the first and the last, I am he who liveth, I am he who was slain, I am your advocate with the Father.
* * * * * * * * * * *
"After this vision closed, the heavens were again opened unto us, and Moses appeared before us, and committed unto us the keys of the gathering of Israel from the four parts of the earth, and the leading of the ten tribes from the land of the north.
"After this, Elias appeared, and committed the dispensation of the gospel of Abraham, saying, that in us, and our seed, all generations after us should be blessed.
"After this vision had closed, another great and glorious vision burst upon us, for Elijah the prophet, who was taken to heaven without tasting death, stood before us, and said—
"Behold, the time has fully come, which was spoken of by the mouth of Malachi, testifying that he (Elijah) should be sent before the great and dreadful day of the Lord come,
"To turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the children to the fathers, lest the whole earth be smitten with a curse.
"Therefore the keys of this dispensation are committed into your hands, and by this ye may know that the great and dreadful day of the Lord is near, even at the doors."—(D. and C. 110:1-4, 11-16.)
Elijah's Mission.—"Why send Elijah?" asks the Prophet, and he answers his own question thus: "Because he holds the keys of the authority to administer in all the ordinances of the Priesthood; and without the authority is given, the ordinances could not be administered in righteousness." In the same connection he informs us that "Elijah was the last prophet who held the keys of the Priesthood."—("History of the Church," Vol. IV, p. 211.)
Salvation for the Dead.—The mission of Elijah—the turning of the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to the fathers, to the end that past and present might be bound together, and the dead as well as the living saved and glorified, was the all-engrossing thought in the mind of the Prophet, as his last day on earth drew near. From his place of retirement, during a period of trouble and persecution, he wrote thus to the Saints upon this all-important theme:
"Verily thus saith the Lord, let the work of my temple, and all the works which I have appointed unto you, be continued on and not cease."
* * * * * * * * * * *
"When any of you are baptized for your dead, let there be a recorder, and let him be eye witness of your baptisms: let him hear with his ears, that he may testify of the truth, saith the Lord.
* * * * * * * * * * *
"You may think this order of things to be very particular, but let me tell you, that it is only to answer the will of God, by conforming to the ordinance and preparation that the Lord ordained and prepared before the foundation of the world, for the salvation of the dead who should die without a knowledge of the gospel.
* * * * * * * * * * *
"Whatsoever you record on earth, shall be recorded in heaven; and whatsoever you do not record on earth, shall not be recorded in heaven; for out of the books shall your dead be judged, according to their own works, whether they themselves have attended to the ordinances in their own propria persona, or by means of their own agents.
* * * * * * * * * * *
"To be immersed in the water and come forth out of the water, is in the likeness of the resurrection of the dead, in coming forth out of their graves; hence this ordinance was instituted to form a relationship with the ordinance of baptism for the dead, being in likeness of the dead.
"Consequently the baptismal font was instituted as a simile of the grave, and was commanded to be in a place underneath where the living are wont to assemble.
* * * * * * * * * * *
"And now, in relation to the baptism for the dead, * * * I will give you a quotation from one of the prophets, who had his eye fixed on the restoration of the Priesthood, the glories to be revealed in the last days, and in an especial manner this most glorious of all subjects belonging to the everlasting gospel, viz., the baptism for the dead; for Malachi says, last chapter, verses 5th and 6th, 'Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet, before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord; and he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.'
"I might have rendered a plainer translation to this, but it is sufficiently plain to suit my purpose as it stands. It is sufficient to know, in this case, that the earth will be smitten with a curse, unless there is a welding link of some kind or other, between the fathers and the children, upon some subject or other, and behold what is that subject? It is the baptism for the dead. For we without them cannot be made perfect; neither can they without us be made perfect."—(D. and C. 127, 128.)
A Gathering Dispensation.—The mission of the Everlasting Gospel in the Dispensation of the Fulness of Times is the gathering together of all things in Christ—things in heaven, and things upon the earth; the consummation decreed concerning the sanctification and glorification of this planet. It is distinctively the day of gathering—the spiritual harvest—time of all the ages.
The Ensign Lifted.—The founding of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints lifted the Ensign for the gathering of scattered Israel, a step preliminary to the mightier achievements that are to follow; and it devolved upon Joseph Smith, a lineal descendant of Joseph of old, to raise the standard and begin the work, particularly that portion of it affecting the fortunes of the children of Ephraim. For thus saith the Lord:
"I AM A FATHER UNTO ISRAEL, AND EPHRAIM IS MY FIRST BORN."
Dispersion and Gathering of Israel
CHAPTER I
A Chosen People
History and Destiny.—"He that scattered Israel will gather him, and keep him as a shepherd doth his flock." In these words of Jeremiah the Prophet, are summarized the past and future, the history and destiny, of God's chosen people; a people from whom the Latter-day Saints claim lineal descent.
"Prince of God."—The name "Israel" means "Prince of God," and is first used in the Scriptures as the surname of Jacob, grandson of Abraham, and father of the twelve patriarchs, from whom sprang the twelve tribes of Israel. Returning from Padan-Aram, whither he had fled from the jealous wrath of his brother Esau, Jacob came to the ford Jabbok, where "there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day." We are left to infer that Jacob believed this "man" to be God; for he "called the name of the place Peniel," saying, "I have seen God face to face."
"Let me go," demanded the heavenly visitant, "for the day breaketh."
"I will not let thee go," said Jacob, "except thou bless me."
The "man" then blessed him, and changed his name from Jacob to Israel, "for," said he, "as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed."—(Genesis 32:28.)
Jacob's Blessing Confirmed.—Subsequently the name Israel was confirmed upon Jacob at Bethel, where the Lord appeared to him and blessed him, promising that a nation and a company of nations should be of him, and that kings should come out of his loins."—(Gen. 35:10, 11.)
The Father of the Faithful.—But while this was the origin of the name Israel, as applied to Jacob, it was not the origin of the race of which he was the titular head. It was the four wives of Jacob, with their twelve sons, that did "build the house of Israel;" but the foundation of that house had already been laid by Abraham, the Father of the Faithful Jehovah's promises to Jacob and to his father Isaac, concerning their posterity, were virtually repetitions of promises that had been made to their great ancestor. Those promises are couched in the following language of scripture:
"Now the Lord had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee:
"And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:
"And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee; and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed."—(Gen. 12:1-3.)
Definition of "Hebrew."—Abraham, or, as he was then called, Abram, was a dweller in Ur of the Chaldees, a city of Mesopotamia, which means "between the rivers." One of these rivers was the Tigris, and the other the Euphrates. Abram had to cross the Euphrates in order to reach Canaan, the land that the Lord showed him. Because he came from beyond the Euphrates, he was called by the Canaanites a "Hebrew," which signifies "one from beyond the river." Some of the Jews, however, hold that the name Hebrew comes from Heber, or Eber, one of the ancestors of Abraham.
God's Promise to Abraham.—Mesopotamia was the fountainhead of idolatry in Western Asia. On that account, and because the Lord wished to raise up a people who would worship him, and him only, Abram was required to separate himself from his idolatrous surroundings. After his removal from Chaldea to Canaan, and the trial of his faith in the offering of Isaac, the Lord gave to him this promise:
"In blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies:
"And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed."—(Gen. 22:17, 18.)
Why was Abraham Blessed?—It will be observed that the blessing formerly pronounced,—"In thee shall all families of the earth be blessed,"—is here expanded to: "In thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed." Before showing how this great promise was fulfiled, let us inquire into the cause or causes why it was made. Why was Abraham, with his seed, chosen for such a mission? What had he done to deserve it? For he must have done something: God rewards men according to their works, and not even an Abraham would have received from him an honor that was unmerited.
Some may suppose that the sacrifice involved in the offering of Isaac was the sole and sufficient reason; and it is proverbially true that "sacrifice brings forth the blessings of heaven." But this promise was made to Abraham before he had offered Isaac, and was repeated and enlarged after the offering had been made. Others may hold that it was Abraham's fidelity to God among the idolatrous inhabitants of Chaldea, and his obedience to the divine behest to leave his country and kindred and migrate to another land, that caused him to be chosen. "Because thou hast obeyed my voice," is a reason assigned by the Almighty for his promise. Such acts were undoubtedly to Abraham's credit; but how could they be placed to the credit of his posterity?—not merely Isaac and Jacob, but the millions that were to "come of them." "In thee and in thy seed shall all the families or nations of the earth be blessed." His posterity, as well as himself, must have deserved well of the Lord in this connection.
The Problem Solved.—The patriarch himself helps us to a solution of the problem. In the Book of Abraham it is written:
"Now the Lord had shown unto me, Abraham, the intelligences that were organized before the world was; and among all these there were many of the noble and great ones;
"And God saw these souls that they were good, and he stood in the midst of them, and he said: These I will make my rulers; for he stood among those that were spirits, and he saw that they were good; and he said unto me: Abraham, thou art one of them: thou wast chosen before thou wast born."—(Abraham 3:22, 23.)
Noble and Great.—Here, then, is given the reason, the main reason, why Abraham was chosen; the time, also, when the divine choice was made. He was chosen before he was born, and it was because of his nobility and greatness—manifested, of course, by obedience, the only principle upon which blessings can come to anyone.
Pre-Mortal Judgment.—The intelligences shown unto Abraham were the pre-existent spirits of the human race, waiting for an earth to be made, that they might pass through a mortal probation; a step necessary to their further progress and development. They were to be rewarded according to their works—not only after this life, but in this life, at its very beginning. For rewards and punishments are not all deferred until the final judgment at the end of the world. There is a judgment passed upon the spirits of men before they are permitted to tabernacle in mortality. "Did this man sin, or his parents, that he was born blind?"—asked the disciples of the Savior, who had probably taught them the principle involved in the question—namely, the possibility of sinning in a former state of existence.
Sowing and Reaping.—"Whatsoever a man soweth," in this world or in any other, "that shall he also reap." Justice was not done away in Christ, who taught it, with emphasis, even while inculcating charity and mercy. "Vengeance is mine," saith the Lord, "I will repay." We are required to forgive all men, for our own sakes, since hatred retards spiritual growth; but all men must answer, just the same, for the deeds done in the body or out of it; justice and mercy each claiming its own. The principle of sowing and reaping is plainly taught in other passages of the Book of Abraham:
"And there stood one among them that was like unto God, and he said unto those who were with him: We will go down, for there is space there, and we will take of these materials, and we will make an earth whereon these may dwell;
"And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them;
"And they who keep their first estate shall be added upon; and they who keep not their first estate shall not have glory in the same kingdom with those who keep their first estate; and they who keep their second estate shall have glory added upon their heads for ever and ever."—(Abraham 3:24-26.)
First and Second Estates.—The "first estate," as already explained, means the pre-existence, in which the spirits of men "walked by sight;" while the "second estate" signifies life on earth, where these same spirits—"added upon" by being given mortal bodies, with opportunities for development, are required to "walk by faith," with their knowledge of the past temporarily obscured; a greater test of integrity, and one that results, to those who overcome, in a far more glorious reward than any previously bestowed.
Reward and Punishment.—In my opening theme, "The Story of God," it was shown how Lucifer and his legions rebelled over the choice of the Christ, and were cast down. Failing to keep their first estate, they could not be "added upon." This was their punishment—that they should not have bodies, by means of which spirits become souls, capable of eternal progression. All the rest—two-thirds of the population of the spirit world—were given bodies as a reward for keeping their first estate, and were promised a glorious resurrection after death, as a further reward, if they succeeded in keeping their second estate.
All Not Alike.—All who kept the first estate were added upon; but not all alike. The rewards were not the same in every case, though they were undoubtedly just and appropriate. Some of those "intelligences" were more deserving than others; some nobler and greater than others; and because of their superior merit and larger capacity, they were made "rulers" over the rest. And Abraham, "thou art one of them: thou wast chosen before thou wast born"—chosen to bear the priesthood, the divine right to rule, and to stand at the head of a dispensation, ministering in holy things for the salvation of mankind.
Such is "Mormonism's" presentation, in part, of the Abrahamic or Israelitish problem.
Original Excellence.—What had given Abraham his superior standing in the heavens? Had he always been noble and great? Was it an original or an acquired excellence, or both? That there is such a thing as original excellence, with different degrees of intelligence among pre-existent spirits, appears from the teachings in this very Book of Abraham—not only the passages cited, but others, in which the Lord is represented as saying:
"If there be two spirits, and one shall be more intelligent than the other, yet these two spirits, notwithstanding one is more intelligent than the other, have no beginning; they existed before, they shall have no end; they shall exist after, for they are gnolaum, or eternal. * * * These two facts do exist, that there are two spirits, one being more intelligent than the other; there shall be another more intelligent than they; I am the Lord thy God, I am more intelligent than they all."—(Abraham 3:18, 19.)
"I Know Abraham."—Was it not Abraham's worthy conduct in a previous life that caused the Lord to say of him while in the flesh: "I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment; that the Lord may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him?"—(Gen. 18:19.) Who can doubt that the Father of the Faithful was one of the choice spirits whom Alma had in mind when he said concerning the priests whom "the Lord God ordained":
"And this is the manner after which they were ordained; being called and prepared from the foundation of the world, according to the foreknowledge of God, on account of their exceeding faith and good works; in the first place being left to choose good or evil; therefore, they, having chosen good, and exercised exceeding great faith, are called with a holy calling."—(Alma 13:3.)
The Foreknowledge of God.—The authors and compilers of "The Compendium," Elders Franklin D. Richards and James A. Little, commenting upon these words of Alma, relative to the priests thus ordained, have this to say: "Their calling and preparation from the foundation of the world, was evidently based on their faith and good works previous to their being called, and not on the possibilities of their future good conduct." In other words, the foreknowledge of God has history as well as prophecy for a foundation.
Abraham Not Alone.—Abraham was not the only priest called and prepared in that manner. There were "many of the noble and great ones." Israel was "a kingdom of priests," "a holy nation," and as such must have been called and prepared even as was Abraham. We have seen that Jehovah, the God of Israel, "the great High Priest of our profession," was fore-ordained to be the Savior; and that his servant Jeremiah, before being formed in the flesh, was known to God in the spirit, and sanctified and ordained "a prophet unto the nations." Undoubtedly the same could be said of others, and Paul doubtless had them in mind when he wrote: "For whom he did fore-know, he also did predestinate, to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the first born among many brethren."—(Romans 8:29.)
Princes and Servants.—If the name Israel means "prince of God," when applied to Jacob, may it not mean princes of God, when applied to his posterity? Jacob was told that kings should come out of his loins. And have they not come?—princes and priests and kings, the nobility of heaven, though not always recognized and honored upon the earth. The greatest among them was not recognized even by "his own;" for when he came unto them, they "received him not." The wise Solomon was never wiser than when he said: "I have seen servants upon horses, and princes walking as servants upon the earth" (Ecc. 10:7). Even the God of heaven, the mighty. Prince of Peace, walked unknown, unhonored, by his own servants, in the dust of his own footstool.
Degrees of Greatness.—There are degrees of greatness in heaven as upon earth, choice spirits and choicer. But all God's servants are noble. No position in the Church of Christ is insignificant. David was right in saying: "I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness." It is greater, infinitely greater, to hold the humblest office in the priesthood, than to reign, an alien from God, over all the kingdoms of the world.
Israel's Pre-existence.—In view of what the prophets have spoken, are we not justified in believing that the house of Israel was chosen in the heavens for the mission it had to perform, and is still performing, upon the earth? What other inference can be drawn from these words of Moses:
"Remember the days of old, consider the years of many generations: * * *
"When the Most High divided to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel.—(Deut. 32:7-8.)
The period here mentioned, when the sons of Adam were separated, and the nations received their inheritance, evidently antedated by many generations the times of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Those events were probably much earlier, and certainly no later, than the days of Japheth, Shem, and Ham, by whose families the nations were "divided in the earth after the flood" (Gen. 10:32). It looks very much as if Moses, when he wrote those words, had in mind, not a temporal Israel, unborn at the early period indicated, but a spiritual Israel, according to whose numbers, known in the heavens before they had taken bodies upon the earth, the boundaries of "the people" were determined.