Mrs. Laura Owen's

DEFENCE [DEFENSE] AGAINST THE VARIOUS CHARGES THAT HAVE GONE ABROAD.

[Continued.]

I will now call your attention to 2nd Timothy, 3d chap. This know also that in the last days, perilous times shall come.

2nd. For men shall be lovers of their ownselves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemous, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy.

3d. Without natural affectien [affection], trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,

4th. Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God.

5th. Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof; from such turn away.

7th. Ever learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

9th. But they shall proceed no further: for their folly shall be manifest unto all men.

2nd Timothy. 4: 3d verse. For the times will come, when they will not endure sound doctrine: but after their own lusts shall they heep [heap] to themselves teachers, having itching ears.

4th. And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

Now my dear readers, can you believe (when your minds are open to this subject,) that it takes a long course of study to qualify a man to preach the gospel; when the bible says it is so plain that the wayfairing man, though no fool, need not err therein. And so it is, when the understanding is open to its sublime truths. And after all their study, do they preach the same gospel that Christ commanded them to preach? Mark 16:15th verse. "And he said unto them, go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature," 16th verse. "He that believeth and is baptized, shall be saved, and he that believeth not shall be damned." And he goes on in the same chapter, telling what signs shall follow those that believe. Now, for instance, suppose they could bring it about to send the gospel to all nations of the earth. What an imperfect gospel they would have; what a variety of opinions; how far short of the original.-Can you for a moment, suppose (that seeing as you must see, that the gospel in its purity was carried from the Jews to the Gentiles,) that when God is about to gather his covenant people home to the land of their inheritance, that he would be pleased, or suffer such a perverted gospel to go from the Gentiles to the Jews. O fatal darkness that reigns over the Gentile world! How little do you know what belongs to your everlasting welfare! Rend the vail [veil] of prejudice, and embrace the fullness of the gospel, and come into the glorious liberty of the children of God. As you hope to enjoy a millenium [millennium]: as you hope to come into the elestial [celestial] glory of God and enjoy his presence; Oh! search your heart, try it by the word of God, for it is by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God that your soul is to be tried. Is your foundation laid sure, dug deep, founded upon the rock? Are you prepared to abide the second coming of Christ? How unexpected will that come to the greatest part of the world! And how could any of us be prepared to "abide it, or to escape the heavy judgments of God that are coming upon this nation, were it not for the opening of the prophecies, by men inspired of God; that have the teachings of the Holy Ghost? A gentleman told me the other day, we were not to understand the prophecies faster than their fulfilment [fulfillment]. That, indeed, is a strange idea. If that be the case, what is the use of them? "All scripture is written by inspiration, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, and instruction in rightousness [righteousness]." And there is a new dispensation given to this generation, and they may now read and understand, and to those that believe, those things that have been kept secret, will be brought to light, and the hidden mysteries revealed. For this generation will enjoy greater light than the apostolic order did. For mysteries that have been kept secret from the foundation of the world, will be made known. For the bible says-"there is nothing hid that shall not be made known-neither secret but shall come abroad." And while you vainly boast of this enlightened age of the world; let me tell you that it is the darkest age we have any account of since the world was created: For why? Because now for more than twelve hundred years, we have had no revelation from God. And man cannot search out the deep things of God. And by searching the bible, you will find that in all ages of the world there were prophets that had direct revelation from God. I have heard it frequently remarked of late, "we are not to have any more prophets." Where do they get their knowledge? I can answer-It is from the traditions of men. I wish them to tell me what prophet the priests and Levites had reference to, when they came to John, St. John, 1st chap. 21st verse. He told them he was not the Christ, neither Elias; nor yet that prophet. Now it is evident they were looking for a prophet, when he had told them he was

not the Christ, nor that prophet. The enquiry [inquiry] was, who art thou? Then it seems they were at a great loss to know who he was. Further-Acts 3d chap; 22nd verse. For Moses truly said unto the Fathers-A Prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you, of your brethren like unto me, him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you 23d. And it shall come to pass; that every soul that will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people.

Now have we ever had any such prophet: that people have all been destroyed that did not believe in him?-No, never, some will pretend to say that it had reference to Christ, but were all the people destroyed that did not believe in him? On the other hand, a great part of those that did believe in him suffered martyrdom. And that man of sin will never triumph over the true saint of God again as he did then. I mean the Roman Catholic church. For God will fight for them and there will be deliverance for those who embrace the fullness of the gospel among the Gentiles; for they will dwell with the children of Israel, in peace and safety. Now I will call your attention to the prophecies concerning the gathering in of the scattered tribes of the children of Israel. Jeremiah 23d chap. 27, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42 verses.-33d chap. 6, 7, 8, 9, 14, 15, 16, 24, 25, 26, verses. Ezekiel 20th chap. 33, 34, 40, 41, 42, verses. In the 39th chap. of Ezekiel you can read the awful destruction of human lives, among the nations of the earth, about the time of the gathering of Israel. In the 2nd chap. of Joel, you can see where there shall be deliverance. And in the 3d chap. you will find the blessings that God's people will enjoy after their enemies are destroyed. I will now call your attention to the 3d chap. of Acts, 19th verse. "Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the time of refreshing shall come, from the presence of the Lord." Now here is a subject of vast importance to this generation; and how little understood! Now the Jews were not so blind on this subject as we are at the present day. For they expected Christ to establish his kingdom here, and reign over them, and rejected him because he would not be their king. And even after his resurection [resurrection] they asked him (Acts 1, 6th verse,) if he would restore the kingdom to Israel, at this time, 7th verse, he said unto them, "It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power. But their mistake was the time; for it is at his second coming that he will establish his kingdom on the earth. But to return to the subject--times of refreshing. It is evident that it has direct reference to the time when all the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdoms of our Lord. 20th verse. "And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you" 21st verse. "Whom the heavens must receive until the times of ressitution [restitution] of all things which God hath spoken by all his holy prophets, since the world began." (Until the times of restitution of all things.) How much is comprised in these words! In short until the earth is restored to its former paradisical [paradise], then he will shake the earth and the heavens and they shall roll together as a scroll, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat. And for your fervant [fervent] instruction read the 3d chap. of 2nd Peter, and the 19th and 20th chap. of Revelations; and you will there see what is to transpire about the time of Christ second coming.-[To be continued.]

TIMES AND SEASONS.

D. C. SMITH, EDITOR.

CITY OF NAUVOO,`

FRIDAY, JANUARY, 15, 1841.