The New Jerusalem and Its Temple

The New Jerusalem and Its Temple By JOSEPH FIELDING SMITH Church Historian and Member of the Council of Twelve FROM the time of the organ- ization of the Church until now the Latter-day Saints have been looking forward to the day of the building of the city New Jerusalem with its holy sanc- tuary. Early in 1830 some spec- ulation arose over the building of this city which the Saints learned from the Book of Mormon was to be built upon this American con- tinent. Ether was shown in vi- sion many things even down to the close of time. He was shown the city of Jerusalem in Palestine and the ministry of Jesus Christ. He was also taught that there should be a holy city built upon this land of promise in the latter days. Moroni, in recording what Ether saw, has given us the fol- lowing: "For behold, they rejected all the words of Ether; for he truly told them of all things, from the beginning of man; and that after the waters had receded from off the face of this land (i. e. this western continent) it became a choice land above all other lands, a chosen land of the Lord; wherefore the Lord would have that all men should serve him who dwell upon the face thereof: "And that it was the place of the New Jerusalem, which should come down out of heaven, and the holy sanctuary of the Lord. "Behold, Ether saw the days of Christ, and he spake concerning a New Jerusalem upon this land; "And he spake also concerning the house of Israel, and the Jerusalem from whence Lehi should come — after it should be des- troyed it should be built up again, a holy city unto the Lord; wherefore, it could not be a New Jerusalem for it had been in a time of old; but it should be built up again, and become a holy city of the Lord; and it should be built unto the house of Israel. "And that a New Jerusalem should be built up upon this land, unto the remnant of the seed of Joseph, for which things there had been a type. "For as Joseph brought his father down into the land of Egypt, even so he died there; wherefore, the Lord brought a remnant of the seed of Joseph out of the land of Jerusalem, that he might be merciful unto the seed of Joseph that they should perish not, even as he was merciful unto the father of Joseph that he should perish not. "Wherefore, the remnant of the house of Joseph shall be built upon this land; and it shall be a land of their inheritance; and they shall build up a holy city unto the Lord, like unto the Jerusalem of old ; and they shall no more be confounded, until the end come when the earth shall pass away. "And there shall be a new heaven and a new earth; and they shall be like unto the old save the old have passed away, and all things have become new. "And then cometh the New Jerusalem; and blessed are they who dwell therein, for it is they whose garments are white through the blood of the Lamb; and they are they who are numbered among the remnant of the seed of Joseph, who were of the house of Israel. "And then cometh the Jerusalem of old; and the inhabitants thereof; blessed are they, for they have been washed in the blood of the Lamb; and they are they who were scattered and gathered in from the four quarters of the earth, and from the north countries, and are partak- ers of the fulfilling of the covenant which God made with their father, Abraham." (Ether 13:2-11). TTfHEN the Savior w Nephites he visited the spoke of the New Jerusalem on this land, and said: "And behold, this people will I es-» tablish in this land, unto the fulfilling THE AUTHOR of the covenant which I made with your father Jacob ; and it shall be a New Jerusalem. And the powers of heaven shall be in the midst of this people; yea, even I will be in the midst of you." '(3 Nephi 20:22). "For it shall come to pass, saith the Father, that at that day whosoever will not repent and come unto my Beloved Son, them will I cut off from among my people, O house of Israel; "And I will execute vengeance and fury upon them, even upon the heathen, such as they have not heard. "But if they will repent and hearken unto my words and harden not their hearts, I will establish my church among them, and they will come in unto the covenant and be numbered among this the remnant of Jacob, unto whom Ihave given this land for their inheritance; "And they shall assist my people, the remnant of Jacob, and also as many of the house of Israel as shall come, that they may build a city, which shall be called the New Jerusalem. "And then shall they assist my people that they may be gathered in, who are scattered upon all the face of the land, in unto the New Jerusalem. "And then shall the power of heaven come down among them; and I also will be in the midst. "And then shall the work of the Fath- er commence at that day, even when this gospel shall be preached among the rem- nant of this people. Verily I say unto you, at that day shall the work of the Father commence among all the dispersed of my people, yea, even the tribes which have been lost, which the Father hath led away out of Jerusalem. "Yea, the work shall commence among all the dispersed of my people, with the Father, to prepare the way whereby they may come unto me, that they may call on the Father in my name. "Yea, and then shall the work com- mence, with the Father, among all na- tions, in preparing the way whereby his people may be gathered home to the land of their inheritance. "And they shall go out from all na- tions; and they shall not go out in haste, nor go by flight, for I will go before them, saith the Father, and I will be their rearward." (3 Nephi 21 :20-29) . THIS western continent is known as the land of Joseph and is also designated as the land of Zion. Isaiah and other ancient prophets have so referred to it. The holy- city which is to be built upon this land is sometimes called the City

468 The Improvement Era for May, 1930 of Zion. We should keep in mind that these terms, City of Zion and New Jerusalem, have reference to the same sanctified place from whence shall go forth the law with the word of the Lord from Jeru- salem. Enoch's city was also called Zion, which means by interpre- tation, the pure in heart. The Lord said to Enoch: "And righteousness will I send down out of heaven; and truth will I send forth out of the earth, to bear testimony of mine Only Begotten; his resurrection from the dead; yea, and also the resurrection of all men; and righteousness and truth will I cause to sweep the earth as with a flood, to gather out mine elect from the four quarters of the earth, unto a place which I shall prepare, an Holy City, that my people may gird up their loins, and be looking forth for the time of my coming; for there shall be my tabernacle, and it shall be called Zion, a New Jerusalem. "And the Lord said junto Enoch; Then shalt thou and all thy city meet them there, and we will receive them unto our bosom, and they shall see us; and we will fall upon their necks, and they shall fall upon our necks, and we will kiss each other. "And there shall be mine abode, and it shall be Zion, which shall come forth out of all the creations which I have made, and for the space of a thousand years the earth shall rest." ^l7HEN Christ comes in fulfill- ment of this promise, there will be on the earth two great cities made holy, with holy sanc- tuaries, or temples. One will be the city of Jerusalem in the land of Judah, which shall be re-built; the other the city Zion, or the New Jerusalem, in the land of Joseph. When it was made known that the New Jerusalem was to be built in America, the Saints began to wonder where the city would be. Hiram Page, one of the Witnesses of the Book of Mormon, secured a "peep stone" by means of which he claimed to receive revelation for the Church. Among the things he attempted to make known was where this city was to be built. Considerable commotion naturally prevailed, and even Oliver Cow- dery was deceived into accepting what Hiram Page had given. The Prophet Joseph Smith had some difficulty in correcting this evil and composing the minds of the members of the Church. Good came out of this incident, how- ever, for the Lord made it known that there was but one at a time who was empowered with the gift of receiving revelation for the Church, and this was to be a law by which the Church was to be governed. In this same revelation the Lord corrected the false teach- ing of Hiram Page and informed the Church that the site for the New Jerusalem had not been re- vealed, but when it was revealed it would be on the "borders of the Lamanites." Oliver Cowdery was appointed to go on a mission to the Lamanites and, later, Parley P. Pratt and Ziba Peterson were called to accompany him. In this way the Gospel message was taken into Jackson County, Missouri. p ARLY in 1831, the headquar- ters of the Church were trans- ferred from Fayette, New York, to Kirtland, Ohio, where the Lord said he would give to the Church his law, and where they should be endowed with power from on high. (D. and C 38:32.) The Lord also promised to reveal to the Saints the place of their inheri- tance: "And this shall be my cove- nant with you, ye shall have it for the land of your inheritance, and for the inheritance of your children forever, while the earth shall stand, and ye shall possess it again in eternity, no more to pass away." When the members of the Church gathered to Kirtland the Lord gave them his law. He also gave instruction for the purpose of preparing them for their in- heritance. He called upon the el- ders to go forth declaring his word "into the regions westward," and to build up his Church, "until the time shall come when it shall be revealed unto you from on high when the city of the New Jeru- salem shall be prepared, that ye may be gathered in one that ye may be my people and I will be your God." The Bishop of the Church was instructed in relation to the property of the Saints; the care of the storehouse; in looking after the wants of the poor and needy, and also in laying up funds for the purchase of lands and the building up of the New Jerusalem, the site of which was soon to be revealed. Early in June, 1831, a conference was held in Kirtland. At the close of this conference, June 7th, the Lord said: "I the Lord, will make known unto you what I will that ye shall do from this time until the next conference, which shall be held in Missouri, upon the land which I will conse- crate unto my people, which are a remnant of Jacob, and those who are heirs according to the cove- nant. * * * And thus, even as I have said, if ye are faithful ye shall assemble yourselves together to rejoice upon the land of Mis- souri, which is the land of your inheritance, which is now the land of your enemies. But, behold, I, the Lord, will hasten the city in its time, and will crown the faith- ful with joy and with rejoicing." QBEDIENT to this command - ment the elders journeyed forth two by two and in due time arrived in Jackson County, Mis- souri. There, in answer to their earnest prayer, the Lord revealed the site of the New Jerusalem and the place for the building of his temple, or holy sanctuary, which had been seen by Enoch and also by Ether, as being established in the last days. In making this site known the Lord said: "Hearken, 0 ye elders of my Church, saith the Lord your God, who have as- sembled yourselves together, ac- cording to my commandments, in this land which is the land of Missouri, which is the land which 1 have appointed and consecrated for the gathering of the Saints. Wherefore, this is the land of promise, and the place for the city of Zion." The place for the build- ing of the temple was then pointed out. August 2, 1831, the land was dedicated by Sidney Rigdon as a possession and inheritance for the Saints, and the following day the Prophet Joseph Smith dedi- cated the site for the temple on a spot a short distance west of the court house in Independence. "THAT the New Jerusalem, or City Zion, was to be built at once and the temple erected also, naturally was the thought of the assembled brethren. The Lord has previously given them a com- mandment respecting their duties and had instructed them in relation to his law to be observed in Zion. He indicated, also, that the city was not to be built at that time. "Ye cannot behold with your na- tural eyes, for the present time, the design of God concerning those

The Improvement Era for May, 1930 469 things which shall come hereafter, and the glory which shall follow after much tribulation. For after much tribulation come the bless- ings. Wherefore the day cometh that ye shall be crowned with much glory; the hour is not yet, but is nigh at hand." (D. and C. 58:3-4). It is true that the Lord would have blessed the Saints and would have commenced the establishment of the Holy City at that time, had they hearkened faithfully to his commandments, but from these words of the Lord it is plain to see that the glory of Zion was future, although in the spiritual sense "near at hand." In other revelations it was made plain that the elders would have to be endowed with power from on high and go forth to declare the Gospel to the nations and "push the peo- ple together from the ends of the earth," before Zion could be built. So the Lord in the very beginning instructed the Saints that the building of the New Jerusalem and its sacred temple would be de- ferred until many other things were accomplished and they had passed through much tribulation. "\T EARLY one hundred years have passed since the site of Zion was dedicated and the spot for the temple was chosen, and some of the members of the Church seem to be fearful lest the word of the Lord shall fail. Others have tried to convince themselves that the original plan has been changed, and that the Lord does not require at our hands this mighty work which has been predicted by the prophets of ancient times. We have not been released from this respon- sibility, nor shall we be. The word of the Lord will not fail. If we look back and examine his word carefully we will discover that nothing has failed of all that he has predicted, neither shall one jot or tittle pass away unfulfilled. It is true that the Lord commanded the Saints to build to his name a temple in Zion. This they at- tempted to do, but were prevented by their enemies, so the Lord did not require the work at their hands at that time. The release from the building of the temple in 1833, did not, however, cancel the re- sponsibility of building the City and the house of the Lord, at some future time. When the Lord gets ready for it to be accom- plished, he will command his peo- ple, and the work will be done. In a revelation given September 22 and 23, 1832, the Lord said: "Verily this is the word of the Lord, that the city New Jerusalem shall be built by the gathering of the saints, beginning at this place, even the place of the temple, which temple shall be reared in this generation. "For verily this generation shall not all pass away until an house shall be built unto the Lord, and a cloud shall rest upon it, which cloud shall be even the glory of the Lord, which shall fill the house." HTHERE have been various in- terpretations given to the term "generation." There are those who hold that a generation is one hun- dred years; that it can not mean more or less; others maintain a generation to be one hundred and twenty years. Some references in the scriptures indicate that the term should be applied to those who are living at any one period of time, or the people of the same period or age. It seems to me, however, that the meaning should be interpreted by the reading of the context. When the Lord said "These are the gen- erations of the heavens and of the earth," he had something more in mind than a period of time of one hundred years. When the Savior said: "An evil and adulterous gen- eration seeketh after a sign," he had in mind the people, not a period of time. So, it appears, we may be justified in concluding that the reading of the aforemen- tioned revelation: "For verily this generation shall not all pass," has reference to those then living, not to the period of one hundred years. I firmly believe that there will be some of that generation who were living when this revelation was given who shall be living when this temple shall be reared. And I do not believe that the Lord has bound himself to accomplish the matter within one hundred years from 1832, but he has the power to accomplish this before 1932, if he wills. No matter what the correct in- terpretation may be, the fact re- mains that the City Zion, or New Jerusalem, will eventually be built in Jackson County, Missouri, and the temple of the Lord will also be constructed. I have full con- fidence in the word of the Lord and that his word shall not fail. XTEITHER will the Lord call ■^ upon those who are cut off from his people to accomplish his holy work. The temple will not be built by those who say that Joseph Smith was a fallen prophet, and who have failed to accept the fulness of the word of the Lord as it came through him. No peo- ple will be commanded and di- rected by revelation from the Lord to build his temple, when they know nothing of temple building and the ordinances performed in temples. The Latter-day Saints may be assured that when the time comes for the building of the house of the Lord, he will call upon his people who have remained true and have been faithful in the purposes of the Lord in bringing to pass the salvation of the living and of the dead. We may be doubly sure that the Lord did not send Elijah the prophet with the keys of the sealing ordinances which are per- formed in the temple so that the earth will not be smitten with a curse when the Redeemer shall come, and then call into favor a people who rejected the coming of Elijah and all the authority and keys he was sent to bestow, and ask them to build the temple of the Lord. Those who hold the portion of the temple site where the dedi- cation took place in 1831 are with- out divine authority. We may say of them as the Lord said of those of old : "Woe unto you * * * for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in." When the Lord shall speak, the way shall be opened for the ac- complishment of his purposes, and all opposition will melt like the hoar frost before the rising sun. "For thus saith the Lord, I will cut short my work in righteous- ness, for the day come that I will send forth judgment unto vic- tory." "Behold, I will hasten my work in its time." "And verily, verily, I say unto you, that whatsoever you seal on earth shall be sealed in heaven; and whatsoever you bind on earth, in my name and by my word, saith the Lord, it shall be eternally bound in the heavens." *•-■ (Doc. andCov. 132:46.)