--- title: Improvement Era description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930. authors: - Talmage, James Edward collections: - periodicals tags: - magazine - improvement-era periodical: Improvement Era volume: 9 number: 2 published: 1905-12 publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations publisher_place: Salt Lake City language: en type: magazine reference: 'James E. Talmage, "Joseph Smith, the Prophet of the Living God," *Improvement Era* 9, no. 2 (December 1905): 154–165.' source: url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera0902unse transcription: Transcribed from the Internet Archive scan of each issue (the item for each issue is named in the issue's own source); unnumbered advertising leaves are omitted, printed page numbers are kept as page markers. identifier: improvementera0902unse start_page: 154 end_page: 165 rights: status: public-domain basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1905-12) source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera0902unse publication_year: 1905 note: The Internet Archive item metadata carries a blanket "© Copyright by Intellectual Reserve, Inc." notice. The library owner judged it inapplicable because this issue was published in 1905, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright. --- # Joseph Smith, the Prophet of the Living God ; 152 IMPROVEMENT ERA. even as the glory of the stars differs from that of the glory of the moon in the firmament. These are they who received not the gospel of Christ, neither the tes- timony of Jesus. These are they who deny not the Holy Spirit. These are they who are thrust down to hell. These are they who shall not be redeemed from the devil until the last resurrection, until the Lord, even Christ the Lamb shall have finished his work. These are they who receive not of his fullness in the eternal world, but of the Holy Spirit through the ministration of the terrestrial; and the terrestrial through the ministration of the celestial ; and also the telestial receive it of the administering of angels who are appointed to minister for them, or who are appointed to be ministering spirits for them, for they shall be heirs of salvation. And the glory of the celestial is one, even as the glory of the sun is one. And the glory of the terrestrial is one, even as the glory of the moon is one. And the glory of the telestial is one, even as the glory of the stars is one, for as one star differs from another star in glory, even so differs one from another in glory in the telestial world For these are they who are of Paul, and of Apollos, and of Cephas. These are they who say they are some of one and some of another some of Christ and — some of John, and some of Moses, and some of Elias, and some of Esaias, and some of Isaiah, and some of Enoch but receive not the gospel, neither the testimony of ; neither the prophets, neither the everlasting covenant. * * * Jesus, These are they who are liars, and sorcerers, and adulterers, and whoremongers, and whosoever loves and makes a lie. These are they who suffer the wrath of God on earth. These are they who suffer the vengeance of eternal fire. These are they who are cast down to hell and suffer the wrath of Almighty God, until the fullness of times,when Christ shall have subdued all enemies under his feet, and shall have perfected his work when he shall deliver up the kingdom, and present it unto the ; Father spotless, saying — have overcome and have trodden the winepress alone, I even the wine-press of the fierceness of the wrath of Almighty God. Then shall he be crowned with the crown of his glory, to sit on the throne of his power to reign for ever and ever. But behold, and lo, we saw the glory and the inhabitants of the telestial world, that they were as innumerable as the stars in the firmament of heaven, or as the sand upon the sea shore, and heard the voice of the Lord saying —these all shall bow the knee, and every tongue shall confess to him who sits upon the throne for ever and ever ; for they shall be judged according to their works, and every man shall receive according to his own works, his own dominion, in the mansions which are prepared. And they shall be servants of the Most High, but where God and Christ dwell they cannot come, worlds without end. This is the end of the vision which we saw, which we were commanded to write while we were yet in the Spirit. The glory of such a vision must have been indescribable. Who but Joseph Smith could have portrayed it even in part ? He at- tempted on one occasion to express some of these same truths in JOSEPH SMITH IN LITERATURE. 153 verse, but the attempt was a comparative failure. No rhyme could do justice to such a theme. The effort proved, however, that this prophet was no exception to his class; that he had a taste for poetizing, and could have been a master in the art had he prac- ticed for the necessary skill. But his time on earth was too short for every accomplishment; his life too full of toil and trouble for the cultivation of belle lettres. Whatever may be said or thought by others, I affirm that the mind which could grasp such splendid and exalted principles, and utter them in a manner so powerful, was essentially a literary mind, the mind of a prophet and a poet, than whom none mightier, save the very Son of God, ever struck the harp of truth and made it vibrant with the music of the spheres. "What poem did Joseph Smith produce?" He produced the great poem called "Mormonism, " the grandest and sublimest epic ever conceived and brought forth by the mind of man. The high- est concepts of former poets and prophets are but parts of his concept, mere chapters of his book; even as the dispensations in which they figured were but tributary to this greatest of dispensa- tions over which he presides. They are the rivers to his ocean, the forerunners to his fulfilment. And yet he was not the great ful- filment. He stands upon the shoulders of the former prophets, and sees farther than any of the earlier seers. But above and be- yond all, is Christ, the Creator, the divine Author of this divinest of poems, which, sounded as a prophecy in pre-existent spheres, finds its fullest human expression in the heaven-inspired song sung by the Prophet of the mst Dispensation. Salt Lake City, Utah. JOSEPH SMITH, THE PROPHET OF THE LIVING GOD. BY JAMES E. TALMAGE, ph.d.,F.G.S.,F.R.S.(edin.) PROFESSOR OF GEOLOGY, UNIVERSITY OF UTAH. In the record of the years long gone, on the pages of the years now passing, appear names and portraits beyond count, pre- senting all degrees of distinctness, of varied significance, and of graded importance. The pictured lineaments are often faint and undefined, the name almost illegible, the characters undecipherable; while other pages glow with the brilliancy of strong imprint, por- trait and biography indelible and unfading. Of those who read and examine the record, few interpret the portrait or understand the inscribed words alike. To one the engraved features and the lettered name are inspiring and potent; in the soul of another they arouse anger and hatred. The names of the truly great are known and remembered for evil as well as for good, and the noblest of men are commonly the most maligned. % Some whom the world has called great for a season —for a season of centuries even— are finally forgotten, as the specific effects of their individual labors are obscured by later and, per- chance, greater achievements. They are thought of occasionally, but their features are forgotten, and their names have lost their old-time echo of power and action. Others there are whose individuality is intensified with the passage of the years, whose forms and features are projected ever more and more sharply on the background of time; whose names are the titles, each of a separate volume listed in the world's li- brary; —men whose place in history is unique and sacred; whose life- JOSEPH SMITH THE PROPHET. 155 work perpetuates itself; whose honor is enhanced by the achieve- ments of their successors, whose thrones can not be usurped, whose names shall never be erased from the tablets of fame, nor weakened in their potency to inspire and impel. Such characters seem to be more than men; they are recognized as representatives of a power greater than that of mortals; they come to be known as havino^ taught and wrought with authority, each of them the bearer of a special message, each an embassador with a mission specifically his own. The names that live longest as titles of distinction are of men whose message to the world is in a manner new, whose mission is specific and distinctive, and whose commission bears the seal of authority. The man of whom we speak, Joseph Smith, the prophet of the Gospel of Christ in the latter days; the man through whom was opened the latest dispensation in the work of the Lord, — a dispen- sation called new, though characterized by the restoration of the au- thority and powers of all preceding epochs, — this man is one whom men cannot forget or ignore, try as they may. His place in his- tory is secure; his work is recognized as that of a mission dele- gated to him alone. The message he bore, the labor he performed among his fel- lows, the claims he made as to authority and appointment, have naturally and properly been questioned, tested, and analyzed, with keenest care and most exacting detail, at the hand of both friends and enemies. Few indeed are the historic instances in which so many ques- tions of supreme importance to mankind have turned upon the personality and claims of an individual, as are associated with the lifeand labors of the man Joseph Smith. While yet a lad he appeared on the stage of human activity and advancement, declaring, in gentle tone and simple words, that he had been personally visited and instructed by the Eternal Father, and by Jesus the Christ. If the basis of this solemn declaration was delusion or illusion, if Joseph Smith intentionally or involuntarily thus proclaimed a falsehood, in short, if he was himself mistaken and was to others an impostor or a deceiver, then the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter- 156 IMPROVEMENT ERA. day Saints is the embodiment of hypocrisy and deceit, false and corrupt in all its parts, and the incarnation of blackest blasphemy in the very name it bears. On the other hand, if the testimony of the boy, if the life- work of the man, with its tragic close in the dread scenes of mar- tyrdom, if these be genuine and true, then the perpetuity of the Church is assured, its bold claim as the repository of the Holy Priesthood is proved, its authority is vindicated, and its sanctity confirmed. The question of the age is this: Was Joseph Smith a Prophet OF THE Living God? In the interests of clearness and precision, let us first assure ourselves as to the true meaning of the title, in short, let us first seek an answer to the question: What is a Prophet? In common usage and present application of the term, a prophet is regarded as one who foretells or predicts events. True, prediction is one of the characteristics of prophecy, yet in no sense is it the only feature or even the principal function of the prophetic office. By derivation of the word itself, as also by its use and distinctive application in scripture, the term prophet denotes one who receives, interprets, and proclaims the revelations of God. His authoritative message may pertain to matters of past or present importance, not essentially to the future alone. Prior to the time of Samuel, one endowed with prophetic power was called a seer; thus runs the record: "for he that is now called a prophet was before time called a seer." (I Sam. 9: 9). The specific office of the seer is included in that of the prophet, and the powers of both seer and prophet are united in the calling of the revelator. The functions of the three may be and commonly are combined in the same person; and he, when authoritatively called and di- vinely invested, stands as an intermediary between Deity and mor- tals. As a seer, he is permitted to behold in fitting plainness the manifestations of the divine purposes and plans; as prophet, he is enlightened to comprehend in part the mind and will of his Lord; as revelator, he is empowered, and ofttimes commanded, to pro- claim the same to the people. Unto him it is given to ascend the cloud-capped Sinai, while the multitude waits below; his privilege it is to enter the Holy of Holies; there to see and hear and learn as JOSEPH SMITH THE PROPHET. 157 his calling and appointment may require. From the enshrouded heights, sanctified by the Divine Presence, the prophet returns, bearing the new message —not always writ on tables hewn from the mountain rock, but imprinted and deeply graven on mind and heart, — the proclamation of counsel and command unto those who wait and listen for the word divine, as it is voiced by Heaven's em- bassador. Since the beginning of history, the prophet has been as truly a fulfiller of earlier prophecy, as a proclaimer of new. Adam, the patriarch of the race, first seer, prophet, and revelator to the human family, was the fore-ordained medium through whom the blessing of mortality was conferred on the spirit-children of God; and in the life-work so wrought, he became the fulfiller of prophecy uttered, and the executor of plans decreed, in the primeval councils of the Gods. A prophet or revelator truly sent of God will bear power and authority to instruct and administer in the ordinances of the gos- pel of Christ.No envoy from the courts of Heaven, no embassador from the throne of the Great King, will be sent out unprovided with the credentials by which his appointment is authenticated; nor will such a messenger present himself and assert his claims among men unequipped with the insignia of his oflice. In the effective discharge of his duties, the true prophet will not only testify in words as to his authoritative appointment and ordination, but will manifest his actual possession of spiritual gifts and specific powers pertaining to the prophetic ofiice, by duly exer- cising the same as conditions require. Furthermore, a prophet of the Lord officiating in any one dis- pensation or period will be consistent in his official utterances and acts with the prophets of earlier days; even as his successors will be in harmony with him. Consistency and harmony as here referred to diminish in no sense the distinctive and individual character of the calling and appointment with which every succeeding prophet is charged and commissioned; indeed, unity of the divine purpose is even more forcibly declared through the differences that isolate each prophet from all others than would be possible in any mere repetition. The true prophet is no imitator, blindly following step by step 158 IMPROVEMENT ERA. the footprints of a predecessor; he is, perforce, path-finder and path-maker himself; for though he travels as others have done, as yet others shall do, toward destination fixed and known, his special duties often lead him over ground before untrodden. Originality, relative originality at least, is essentially associated with the pro- phetic calling. The Hebrew equivalents of our word prophet sig- nified one from whom inspired utterances bubbled forth sponta- neously, as water from a fountain; one who was a source of right counsel, a well-spring of truth. The prophet of God is without predecessor or successor in his own particular mission; yet his words and his works must be consistent with those of the prophets before him, and of assured agreement with the prophecies that shall appear as the scroll of futurity unrolls. Through ordination one may be installed in the place of a prophet who has departed this life; yet, in the labors and official administration of each, a marked individuality as to the work and its execution appears. We affirm that by the foregoing, and by all other tests involv- ing the characteristics essential to and distinctive of the exalted calling and office of the prophet, Joseph Smith was a Prophet of THE Living God. 1. The man and his mission were proclaimed in ancient times; therefore, he stands forth as a fulfiller of prophecy, and by his works he confirms the claims of earlier prophets. As instances, the following are in point. John, known as the Revelator of olden time, describes in part a vision in which he, as seer and prophet, was shown certain de- velopments that would occur in the last dispensation —the dispen- sation of fulness, the modern present. These are the words of the record as rendered in our tongue: "And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kin- dred, and tongue and people." This prophetic utterance by the lone seer on Patmos found partial fulfilment in the early revela- tions made to the boy-prophet, Joseph Smith. He solemnly testi- fies that he was visited by an angel, whose person he plainly saw, whose voice he distinctly heard, and by whom he was instructed. This celestial visitant gave his name—Moroni; his mission he declared to be that of a messenger sent of God; his station, while a JOSEPH SMITH THE PROPHET. 159 mortal being, had been that of a prophet among the people who cen- turies before had inhabited the western continent. Moroni instructed Joseph concerning the restoration of the gospel then pending; im- pressed the youth with the importance of the part assigned to him in the working out of the divine purpose; and prophesied that his name would come to be known as a symbol of good and of evil among all nations. The angel further declared that an ancient record, engraven on plates of gold, lay buried near by; that this record comprised a history of the ancient peoples from whom he had descended; described the personal ministrations of Jesus Christ among them; and embodied "the fulness of the everlasting gospel." This record it was Joseph's privilege and appointed duty to translate into modern speech, through the power of divine inspir- ation. Let it be remembered that this angelic visitation was directly in harmony with the predictions of John the Revelator, whose place in the brotherhood of true prophets is not disputed by the Christ- ian world; and whose prophetic calling is attested by the fulfilment noted in this instance.The gospel of Christ, the everlasting gos- pel,was to be brought to earth again by an angel, and its truths were to be made known among all nations and peoples. Moroni quoted certain parts of ancient scripture, including the predictions of Malachi as to the fate of the wicked, and con- cerning the coming of Elijah the prophet, in the last dispensation, to inaugurate a special work pertaining to both the living and the dead; he cited the prophecies of Isaiah concerning the gathering of the dispersed tribes of Israel, and declared the fulfilment of these predictions to be near at hand. Thus was the restoration of the gospel inaugurated —through the ofiicial ministration of an angel, as had been foretold. Other heavenly personages visited Joseph Smith, each coming as a special messenger with a particular message to deliver, and a specific duty to perform. In the translation of the graven record described by Moroni, and in its publication to the world as the Book of Mormon, appears the literal fulfilment of other ancient prophecy through the work of the modern seer and revelator. Isaiah's fateful prediction over disobedient Israel ran in part as follows: "And thou shalt be ' 160 IMPROVEMENT ERA. brought down, and shalt speak out of the ground, and thy speech shall be low out of the dust, and thy voice shall be as one that hath a familiar spirit, out of the ground, and thy speech shall ' whisper out of the dust. From the ground came forth the Book of Mormon record;— it is the voice of the past speaking from the dust, a voice that tells of peoples brought low, some even to the state of actual extinc- tion. This volume —the record or stick of Ephraim, is now pub- lished as openly as is the book or stick of Judah —the Holy Bible; and each is the other's essential complement. Thus they are one, for neither alone is complete as even a pretended record of both Judah and Ephraim. (Read Ezekiel 37: 16-19.) The Book of Mormon was given to the world through the in- strumentality of Joseph Smith, specially authorized and empowered for the work, a prophet fulfilling prophecy. The prophecies of Malachi, reiterated and emphasized by Mor- oni when he first appeared to Joseph Smith, specifically predicted the return of Elijah, with power to inaugurate the vicarious ser- vice by the living in behalf of the dead. This found fulfilment on the third day of April, 1836, when Elijah visited in person Joseph Smith and his fellow-servant Oliver Cowdery, declaring that the time designated by Malachi had fully come. Then he conferred the power and authority for the work of salvation for the dead, that, as a link in a chain, binds earth to heaven. The labor thus begun in the present dispensation, precisely as foretold, through the ministra- tion of the prophet, named centuries before the meridian of time, has been prosecuted with earnestness, with zeal, and with sacrifice, to which the majestic temples reared by modern Israel testify with an eloquence surpassed only by that in which is told the story of the sacred rites and saving ordinances administered within. The few instances cited must suffice as illustrative of the many wherein this modern prophet, while following the path specifically prescribed for him, unconsciously effected the realization of pre- dictions already hoary with age. 2. Joseph Smith received the Holy Priesthood through ordina- tion under the hands of those who held it aforetime. The fact that no one can impart to another what he does not himself possess re- quires no demonstration. In the bestowal of the Holy Priesthood, JOSEPH bMITH THE PROPHET. 161 in the conferring of authority to act in the name of the Lord, this truth finds literal application. In the testimony of his life, in his testament bearing the blood-red seal of martyrdom, Joseph Smith affirms without qualification that the several powers and functions pertaining to the priesthood were conferred upon him by those who held and used the keys of those separate callings in ear- lier periods. Thus, the angel Moroni, who delivered to Joseph Smith the record of old containing * 'the fulness of the everlasting and who in so doing fulfilled the prediction of John as de- ' gospel, ' scribed,was the very person who, while yet a mortal being, had completed and sealed that record, and then had buried it where it was found under his direction fourteen centuries later. In May, 1829, Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery were ordained to the order of the lesser or Aaronic Priesthood; the officiating priest was John, surnamed the Baptist, — he whose voice was heard in the wilderness of Judea crying repentance and proclaiming the coming of the Messiah, he who baptized the Savior in Jordan, the priest after the order of Aaron to whose authority Jesus submitted. Who more fit than John to restore to earth the authority of the priestly oflRce to which pertained the preaching of repentance and the power to administer in the essential ordinance of baptism? The higher or Melchizedek order of priesthood was afterward conferred on Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery, each of whom was ordained to the holy apostleship, with authority to officiate in all the ordinances of the gospel. By whom could this higher authority be more properly restored to earth than by those who last officiated as presiding officers therein? — And by these, Peter, James, and John, who constituted the presidency of the apostles in the primi- tive church, — were Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery ordained apostles of the Lord Jesus. In the same orderly manner, the special appointment pertain- ing to the gathering of Israel in the last days was conferred by — Moses the leader of unscattered Israel. Furthermore, as already cited, the commission and authority relating to the labor of the living for the salvation of the dead came through Elijah, who, not having passed the portals of death, yet quickened to a life continued, was particularly qualified to officiate in matters pertaining to both the living and the dead. 162 IMPROVEMENT ERA. The last dispensation—that of the fulness of times, was long— ago foretold, as a period of restoration and restitution, a time of re-establishment, when all things before revealed shall be again made plain, and the sublime consummation of another part of the great plan of salvation be accomplished, Elias, the restorer, came to earth and transmitted to Joseph Smith the keys of authority in the work of restoration and re- establishment. The claims made by and for the first prophet of this, the last dispensation — as to the source of his authority, the means and manner of his ordination — are consistent and logical. In view of the great apostasy, following the Messianic dispen- sation and the apostolic period immediately succeeding, whereby the Church of Christ ceased to exist among men, and the Holy Priesthood was no longer represented by organized quorums of men duly ordained —the apostasy predicted by Christ and the apostles, and proved by rational interpretation of later history, it was impossible for any mortal to re-establish the Church without the restoration of the powers, gifts, and authority, of the priest- hood. This re-establishment, as foretold and as now realized, was no mere revival; no fanning a flame from a heap of smouldering cinders; no rejuvenation of a weak and decrepit church. It was to be and it proved to be the creation of a church new to modern times, though in reality older than time — the Church of Jesus Christ resoored to earth. Men are the instruments, the agents, through and by whom the Omnipotent brings about the realization of purposes which may be but in small degree comprehended by human minds; indeed, the authorized and appointed agents may fail to fathom the divine thought to its depths; and may see but dimly the outlines of the great edifice they help to rear. Prophets have ever builded better than they knew. 3. That Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God is conclusively proved by his life work and its results. A nomination or call to office, even when followed by valid election, does not assure active and efficient service. Actual quali- fication for any position of authority is manifested through ef- fective administration under the authority vested in the oflScial. That men through their organizations, —municipal, state, and ' JOSEPH SMITH THE PROPHET. 163 national, frequently nominate and elect from among themselves those who are unfit to exercise official powers, will not be seriously- disputed. Authority may be delegated under the laws enacted by men; qualification cannot be so conferred. But when God calls and ordains a man to any office, qualification and power are given as required. Joseph Smith was not a prophet by election nor an apostle by ordination alone; his works confirm and prove his actual possession of the authority he professed. In relation to the power of pre- diction as a feature of the prophet's calling, a test by which to distinguish the true prophet from the pretender was given of old, and is equally applicable today; it was this: — "When a prophet speaketh in the name of the Lord, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the Lord hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously; thou shalt not be afraid of him" (Deut. 18:22). The rule implies that the fulfilment of prediction is at bast strong evidence that he who so prophesied was indeed a prophet. A prophecy given to the world through Joseph Smith, though described as the words of the angel Moroni, referred to the Book of Mormon, which at that time was untranslated, and declared: ' ' 'The knowledge that this record contains will go to every nation, etc. Already the book has been published in all the principal languages of earth, and the work is still progressing. The persecutions of the Latter-day Saints, the mobbings and drivings that awaited them, their painful and perilous journey to the west, and their growth as a mighty people amongst the moun- tains, were all foretold by the prophet Joseph, many years before the exodus began. The literal fulfilment is a matter of current history, and a subject that claims the attention of philosopher, his- torian, and statesman alike. In 1832, Joseph Smith gave to the Church this revelation: — "Verily thus saith the Lord, concerning the wars that will shortly come to pass, beginning at the rebellion of South Carolina, which will eventually terminate in the death and misery of many souls. The days will come that war will be poured out upon all nations, beginning at that place; for, behold, the Southern States shall be divided against the Northern States, and the Southern States will