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The Book of Job – My Final Lesson

“Anyone who complains about how hard it is to understand Isaiah, hasn’t read Job.”

I have been pouring over the Book of Job for the last couple of weeks, trying to gather a train of thought on the direction for the gospel doctrine lesson to be given over a week from now. I had taken many notes and my mind felt scattered in a variety of different directions.

Weekends provide an opportunity for me to commit more time to focus on study, so on Saturday I found myself praying for clarity on what message the class most needed to learn from Job.

After my prayer, I sat down and in only a few minutes I was given the direction for the lesson and where the main focus needed to be. This was a completely different trajectory from where I had previously been centering my attention.

The next day (Sunday), before having the opportunity to give the lesson the following week, I was released from my calling as Gospel Doctrine teacher.

Perhaps the lesson I prepared was more for me than the class. Nevertheless, I have decided to post it here in the event these insights may benefit others as well.

I identified with this comment from a co-worker when I mentioned to him I had been studying the Book of Job. He said, “Anyone who complains about how hard it is to understand Isaiah, hasn’t read Job.”

Job is the oldest book in the Bible. By some estimates it dates “to a period of time between 1900 and 1700 B.C.“

Job is classified/categorized as belonging to the genre of wisdom literature or poetic books of the Bible.

Despair, Doubt, and Trust

From the lesson material we read:
While Job had times when he struggled with doubt and despair, ultimately his trust in the Lord sustained him in his suffering.

Despair, yes. But did Job doubt?

Job 19:25-26
For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God:

Does this sound like the words of someone who doubts? Take a look at Job 13:15

Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him: but I will maintain mine own ways before him.

We are told that it was Job’s “trust in the Lord” that “sustained him in his suffering.” Is it trust alone that we can give us assurance to sustain us in our own suffering? What is meant by “trust”?

In response to this question, let’s take a look at Lectures on Faith, Lecture 6. I’m going to read paragraphs 1 through 8. Remember, this is the curriculum used in the School of the Prophets in Kirtland, Ohio. I refer to this material because of how eloquently it addresses the question of how Job’s trust in the Lord “sustained him in his suffering.”

Having treated, in the preceding lectures, of the ideas of the character, perfections, and attributes of God, we next proceed to treat of the knowledge which persons must have that the course of life which they pursue is according to the will of God, in order that they may be enabled to exercise faith in him unto life and salvation.

This knowledge supplies an important place in revealed religion, for it was by reason of it that the ancients were enabled to endure as seeing him who is invisible. An actual knowledge to any person that the course of life which he pursues is according to the will of God is essentially necessary to enable him to have that confidence in God, without which no person can obtain eternal life. It was this that enabled the ancient saints to endure all their afflictions and persecutions and to take joyfully the spoiling of their goods, knowing (not believing merely) that they had a more enduring substance. Hebrews 10:34.

Having the assurance that they were pursuing a course which was agreeable to the will of God, they were enabled to take not only the spoiling of their goods and the wasting of their substance joyfully, but also to suffer death in its most horrid forms, knowing (not merely believing) that when this earthly house of their tabernacle was dissolved, they had a building of God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the Heavens. 2 Corinthians 5:1.

Such was and always will be the situation of the saints of God: that unless they have an actual knowledge that the course that they are pursuing is according to the will of God, they will grow weary in their minds and faint, … nothing short of an actual knowledge of their being the favorites of Heaven, and of their having embraced that order of things which God has established for the redemption of man, will enable them to exercise that confidence in him necessary for them to overcome the world and obtain that crown of glory which is laid up for them that fear God.

For a man to lay down his all, his character and reputation, his honor and applause, his good name among men, his houses, his lands, his brothers and sisters, his wife and children, and even his own life also, counting all things but filth and dross [worthless slag] for the excellency of the knowledge of Jesus Christ, requires more than mere belief, or supposition that he is doing the will of God, but actual knowledge, realizing that when these sufferings are ended he will enter into Eternal rest and be a partaker of the glory of God.

For unless a person does know that he is walking according to the will of God, it would be offering an insult to the dignity of the Creator were he to say that he would be a partaker of his glory when he should be done with the things of this life. But when he has this knowledge, and most assuredly knows that he is doing the will of God, his confidence can be equally strong that he will be a partaker of the glory of God.

Let us here observe that a religion that does not require the sacrifice of all things never has power sufficient to produce the faith necessary unto life and salvation. For from the first existence of man, the faith necessary unto the enjoyment of life and salvation never could be obtained without the sacrifice of all earthly things: it was through this sacrifice, and this only, that God has ordained that men should enjoy eternal life, and it is through the medium of the sacrifice of all earthly things that men do actually know that they are doing the things that are well pleasing in the sight of God. When a man has offered in sacrifice all that he has for the truth’s sake, not even withholding his life, and believing before God that he has been called to make this sacrifice because he seeks to do his will, he does know most assuredly that God does and will accept his sacrifice and offering, and that he has not nor will not seek his face in vain…

But now I ask, what is vain? Continuing…

It is in vain for persons to fancy to themselves that they are heirs with those, or can be heirs with them, who have offered their all in sacrifice, and by this means obtained faith in God and favor with him so as to obtain eternal life, unless they in like manner offer unto him the same sacrifice, and through that offering obtain the knowledge that they are accepted of him.

A More Excellent Hope

As it relates to trust, and being sustained by the Lord in suffering, let’s turn out attention to Job 8:11-14

Can the rush grow up without mire? can the flag [reeds] grow without water? Whilst it is yet in his greenness, and not cut down, it withereth before any other herb. So are the paths of all that forget God; and the hypocrite’s hope shall perish: Whose hope shall be cut off, and whose trust shall be a spider’s web.

Bildad’s words here indicate how empty and void is hope for the unrighteous. Continuing on the theme of hope, Zophar elaborates:

Job 11:15,18
For then shalt thou lift up thy face without spot; yea, thou shalt be steadfast, and shalt not fear: … And thou shalt be secure, because there is hope; yea, thou shalt dig about thee, and thou shalt take thy rest in safety.

In the Book of Mormon we are given a key to the significance of what is meant by “hope“.

Ether 12:32
And I also remember that thou hast said that thou hast prepared a house for man, yea, even among the mansions of thy Father, in which man might have a more excellent hope; wherefore man must hope, or he cannot receive an inheritance in the place which thou hast prepared.

This verse includes this wonderful phrase on hope: “man must hope, or he cannot receive.” What a delightful link between something within us, to something without. It is a link between our future inheritance, and a present expectation. It is a link between looking forward now, to a reality to come. We see the wonderful intangibility of a present-day thought linked to what is to become concrete in the future.

“Hope,” particularly as it is used here, is not well understood. We sometimes view it as a weak virtue; something of a wisp, a phantom. But in this context, it is much more. It is a concrete assurance, based upon a promise or covenant.

“Hope” comes from knowing the Lord has promised a person something. As the Lord has assured us, He does not make and then break promises. When He promises something, He will deliver it. As He has said in D&C 1:38: “What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled.” Anyone who receives a promise from Him has an absolute certainty. However, the promises of the Lord are invariably about the future, even if the immediate future. To Abraham, the promise of a son (Gen 18:10) preceded Isaac’s birth by many years (Gen 21:1-2). To Joseph the promise of his brothers and father bowing to him (Gen 37:5-11) was given in a dream many years before he was actually sitting in power in Egypt (Gen 45:7-10). From the time of the promise to Moses that Israel would be delivered by his hand (Exo 8:10), to the time Israel was delivered out of Egypt (Exo 12:31), there were many months, trials, confrontations and difficulties. Between the promise given, and the realization of the promise, there was only “hope.” It was “hope” linked to faith, but hope, nonetheless. This is the kind of “hope” spoken of here. It is not a vague notion, or whimsical possibility. It was trust and confidence springing from a promise given to a person by God. It is something far greater, more profound, more strongly felt, more firmly based than just expectancy from vague desire.

Promise of Eternal Life

In a letter to his uncle, Silas Smith, written in Kirtland Mills, Ohio, 26 September 1833, Joseph Smith writes:

I admit that by reading the scriptures, of truth, the saints in the days of Paul could learn, beyond the power of contradiction, that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob had the promise of eternal life confirmed to them by an oath of the Lord; but that promise or oath was no assurance to them of their salvation, but they could, by walking in the footsteps and continuing in the faith of their fathers, obtain for themselves an oath for confirmation that they were meet to be partakers of the inheritance with the saints in light.

If the saints in the days of the apostles were privileged to take the ancients for examples, and lay hold of the same promises, and attain to the same exalted privilege of knowing that their names were written in the Lamb’s Book of Life and that they were sealed there as a perpetual memorial before the face of the Most High, will not the same faithfulness, the same purity of heart and the same faith bring the same assurance of eternal life, and that in the same manner, to the children of men now in this age of the world?

I have no doubt but that the holy prophets and apostles and saints in ancient days were saved in the kingdom of God; neither do I doubt but that they held converse and communion with him while they were in the flesh, as Paul said to his Corinthian brethren that the Lord Jesus showed himself to above five hundred saints at one time after his resurrection. Job said that he knew that his Redeemer lived and that he should see him in the flesh in the latter days. I may believe that Enoch walked with God and by faith was translated. I may believe that Noah was a perfect man in his generation and also walked with God. I may believe that Abraham communed with God and conversed with angels. I may believe that Isaac obtained a renewal of the covenant made to Abraham by the direct voice of the Lord. I may believe that Jacob conversed with holy angels, and heard the voice of his Maker, that he wrestled with the angel until he prevailed and obtained the blessing. I may believe that Elijah was taken to Heaven in a chariot of fire with fiery horses. I may believe that the saints saw the Lord and conversed with him face to face after his resurrection. I may believe that the Hebrew church came to Mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, the Heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels. I may believe that they looked into eternity and saw the Judge of all, and Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant. But will all this purchase an assurance for me, and waft me to the regions of eternal day, and seat me down in the presence of the King of kings with my garments spotless, pure, and white?

Or must I not rather obtain for myself, by my own faith and diligence in keeping the commandments of the Lord, an assurance of salvation for myself? And have I not an equal privilege with the ancient saints? And will not the Lord hear my prayers and listen to my cries as soon as he ever did to theirs, if I come to him in the manner they did? Or, is he a respecter of persons?

In Conclusion – The Horse

The problem we must overcome to obtain salvation is our profound ignorance. And what the gospel offers defies ignorance, subdues it, challenges it, destroys it, and leaves it in the dark. So let’s try and search into, and obtain some illumination.

I want to read a passage from Job and misapply it, if you will. I want you to imagine that what I am reading is not merely a description of a mortal horse. What I am reading is a description of those horses which pull the chariot upon which Elijah ascended to heaven. This is the horse you need to ride in your quest for heaven. This is the way you to are to mount up:

Job 39:19-25
Hast thou given the horse strength? hast thou clothed his neck with thunder? Canst thou make him afraid as a grasshopper? the glory of his nostrils is terrible. He paweth in the valley, and rejoiceth in his strength: he goeth on to meet the armed men. He mocketh at fear, and is not affrighted; neither turneth he back from the sword. The quiver rattleth against him, the glittering spear and the shield. He swalloweth the ground with fierceness and rage: neither believeth he that it is the sound of the trumpet. He saith among the trumpets, Ha, ha; and he smelleth the battle afar off, the thunder of the captains, and the shouting.

As the battle engages, ride the horse. Not away, but toward the sound.

Zion’s Camp: Part 2

It’s interesting to me God’s use of aggressive language in this parable. Why has God illustrated these things using vocabulary that conjures up imagery of war and destruction?

If we are to make sense of the events surrounding Zion’s camp, we need to understand the parable given in D&C 101:44-62.

According to the account in Matthew, the reason the Lord taught in parables was because the people were not open to truth in its plainness (see Matt 13:10-17). Therefore, that the saints were given this parable can be seen as an indication of the stiffneckedness of the people to whom the parable was given. In the account in Matthew, the disciples were blessed with an explanation of the parable of the sower by the Lord. Fortunately for us, the Lord has also give a few keys to help us interpret meaning from this parable of the nobleman in D&C 101.

Keys to Understanding the Parable of the Nobleman

In this parable we read of a tower that was commanded to be built, watchmen to be set round about olive trees in the vineyard, as well as a watchman upon the tower. The parable also speaks of one servant to whom additional commandments were given. In D&C 97:20 we are given a definition of who the tower represents:

And he hath sworn by the power of his might to be her salvation and her high tower.

Later, in D&C 103:21, we are told plainly that Joseph Smith is the servant in the parable. By this I think it is safe to infer that he is also the watchman who was to be on the tower.

Additionally, in verse 12, before we arrive at the parable itself, we read:

And in that day all who are found upon the watch-tower, or in other words, all mine Israel, shall be saved.

Here we have “all who are found upon the watch-tower” equated with “all mine Israel“. It is apparent that the intent is that there be more than one watchman upon the tower.

Remember the account of Eldad and Medad:

And there ran a young man, and told Moses, and said, Eldad and Medad do prophesy in the camp. And Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of Moses, one of his young men, answered and said, My lord Moses, forbid them. And Moses said unto him, Enviest thou for my sake? would God that all the Lord’s people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his spirit upon them!
(Num 11:27-29)

That “all mine Israel” are to be found upon the watch-tower should remind us of the day referred to by Jeremiah:

But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them
(Jeremiah 31:33-34)

Parable of the Nobleman

Now I would like to take a look at the parable, starting at verse 43:

And now, I will show unto you a parable, that you may know my will concerning the redemption of Zion.

A certain nobleman had a spot of land, very choice; and he said unto his servants: Go ye unto my vineyard, even upon this very choice piece of land, and plant twelve olive trees; And set watchmen round about them, and build a tower, that one may overlook the land round about, to be a watchman upon the tower, that mine olive trees may not be broken down when the enemy shall come to spoil and take upon themselves the fruit of my vineyard.
Now, the servants of the nobleman went and did as their lord commanded them, and planted the olive trees, and built a hedge round about, and set watchmen, and began to build a tower. And while they were yet laying the foundation thereof, they began to say among themselves: And what need hath my lord of this tower? And consulted for a long time, saying among themselves: What need hath my lord of this tower, seeing this is a time of peace? Might not this money be given to the exchangers? For there is no need of these things. (v. 44-49)

Here take note how these servants twist words from an earlier parable to justify their neglect to do what has been asked of them. In the parable of the talents (found in Matthew 25:24-30), it was the Lord who told the slothful servant he should have put his money to the exchangers. Here, in this parable of the nobleman however, these slothful servants justify their actions by quoting something the Lord said in the earlier parable. Does quoting the Lord or using scripture to justify wrong actions make one any less slothful of a servant? It is obedience to the Lord only that matters.

Also take note how the reference to “seeing this is a time of peace” relates to the words earlier in this revelation, “In the day of their peace they esteemed lightly my counsel” (v. 8).

And while they were at variance one with another they became very slothful, and they hearkened not unto the commandments of their lord. (v. 50)

Again, note how these words relate to what we read earlier in this revelation, “there were jarrings, and contentions, and envyings, and strifes, and lustful and covetous desires among them; therefore by these things they polluted their inheritances.” (v. 6)

And the enemy came by night, and broke down the hedge; and the servants of the nobleman arose and were affrighted, and fled; and the enemy destroyed their works, and broke down the olive trees. (v. 51)

What is the significance that “the enemy came by night“? Why does the Lord come “as a thief in the night?” (1 Thes 5:2) What is it about night that we need to be aware of as it relates to being ready for when the enemy or the Lord appears?

Now, behold, the nobleman, the lord of the vineyard, called upon his servants, and said unto them, Why! what is the cause of this great evil? Ought ye not to have done even as I commanded you, and—after ye had planted the vineyard, and built the hedge round about, and set watchmen upon the walls thereof—built the tower also, and set a watchman upon the tower, and watched for my vineyard, and not have fallen asleep, lest the enemy should come upon you? (v. 52-53)

“… and not have fallen asleep” What’s wrong with falling asleep? Should we not sleep? Isn’t needed rest and sleep a good thing? What is it about being “watchful” that suggests we be willing and ready at a moment’s notice to be inconvenienced in our sleeping hours to “awake and arise”?

And behold, the watchman upon the tower would have seen the enemy while he was yet afar off; and then ye could have made ready and kept the enemy from breaking down the hedge thereof, and saved my vineyard from the hands of the destroyer.
And the lord of the vineyard said unto one of his servants: Go and gather together the residue of my servants, and take all the strength of mine house, which are my warriors, my young men, and they that are of middle age also among all my servants, who are the strength of mine house, save those only whom I have appointed to tarry; And go ye straightway unto the land of my vineyard, and redeem my vineyard; for it is mine; I have bought it with money. Therefore, get ye straightway unto my land; break down the walls of mine enemies; throw down their tower, and scatter their watchmen. And inasmuch as they gather together against you, avenge me of mine enemies, that by and by I may come with the residue of mine house and possess the land. (v. 54-58)

If Christ is the tower of our vineyard, and Joseph Smith is the watchman there, then what is the enemy’s tower and who/what are their watchmen?

If the enemy’s tower is the devil or the devil’s kingdom, then how do you throw that down?

It is a misnomer to speak of the “kingdom of the devil,” because the description presumes something more organized than is the case. It is difficult to organize when fear, hatred, and anger are the primary motivations. Love is a far more cohesive, creative, and loyalty-producing motivation. All that Satan does is designed to destroy itself, as well as all those who follow him.

Satan’s aim is to cause division and create contention and anger and keep us in fear. So how do you scatter those watchmen and break down that tower? Can you do it with the same tools of anger, accusation, and contention that Satan uses? Will that work?

What if the tools you employ included persuasion, long-suffering, gentleness, meekness, and love unfeigned? (see D&C 121:41-42) Could that be effective in breaking down the enemy’s tower?

How would having a prophet on the tower help the situation? Do messengers of God shed light on things? Do they reveal the truth? What affect does that have on lies and deceit?

When truth is revealed, and people turn their attention to it, then what is untrue dissolves. Then that kingdom simply fades, it can’t stand, because you’ve revealed its motive. You’ve shown it for what it is, and when people see that and recognize it, and respond to the truth of it, then it just goes away. Darkness flees from light, not the other way around.

So how does this approach relate to the call for Zion’s camp to arm themselves and march forth to rescue their bretheren in Missouri?

It’s interesting to me God’s use of aggressive language in this parable. Why has God illustrated these things using vocabulary that conjures up imagery of war and destruction? Will God give us what we ask for? (See D&C 50:29-30)

Recall that by virtue of the fact that these teachings are being presented in the form of a parable is an indication of the stiffneckdness of those to whom it is being given. Take a look at the Lord’s explanation:

And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables? He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath. Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.
(Matt 13:10-15)

Consider the example of John Whitmer’s response to what is now section 84:

Some readers may have missed the implications of the priesthood revelation. John Whitmer was most excited by the verse warning Boston, New York, and Albany of coming desolation. Those verses reflected the millenarian thinking of the gathering to Zion and constructing the New Jerusalem, which had occupied the Saints for the last two years. The part about “exaltation” – the preparation to stand in God’s presence and commune with Him – did not register with Whitmer. Eager as the Saints were for spiritual gifts, not all were ready for the mysticism of the priesthood revelation.
Richard Bushman, Rough Stone Rolling, p. 204-205

Continuing with the parable:

And the servant said unto his lord: When shall these things be? And he said unto his servant: When I will; go ye straightway, and do all things whatsoever I have commanded you; And this shall be my seal and blessing upon you—a faithful and wise steward in the midst of mine house, a ruler in my kingdom. And his servant went straightway, and did all things whatsoever his lord commanded him; and after many days all things were fulfilled. (v. 59-62)

In a scriptural sense, a ruler is a teacher of truth. We were spirits before we were born. We were all there when some were chosen to be rulers, or in other words, teachers. (see Abraham 3:22-28). To rule is to be responsible to teach all those in one’s dominion. A ruler is a teacher responsible for instructing others (see 1 Nephi 2:22).

If, on the other hand, we view the term “ruler” in a modern day gentile sense, we get an image of one who rules with a fierce strong hand, tearing down walls, taking the offensive, and aggressively conquering an enemy.

If you are more like John Whitmer, focused on the condemnation of New York over the beauty and light of exaltation … if that’s the mindset from which you approach things, then this parable has all the elements in it that would justify an aggressive offensive approach.

In fact we see this was the case for some, in response to the revelation disbanding the camp:

Others protested, feeling that it denied them a chance to do more for the Missouri Saints. A few people were angry and ashamed that they had to return home without a fight.
Saints Vol 1, p. 205

By using the kind of imagery in this parable that He did, God exposed their hearts. If we are to do better in our day, then we need to have different hearts.

Zion’s Camp: Part 1

After gathering their forces for two months and marching over 800 miles for another month and a half more, God gave a revelation that essentially disbanded the camp without accomplishing the mission they set out to do?

Was Zion’s Camp a failed mission? This last week’s Sunday School lesson on D&C 98-105 focused on the trial of the saint’s march in 1834 on a rescue mission to Jackson County Missouri to “redeem” Zion. There were some important takeaways I gained from my reflection and lesson on this topic.

Historical Sketch

I am assuming the reader will be familiar with these events from Church history, but to give some context, here is a brief sketch of a few highlights:

Tension between local Missourians in Jackson County and the growing body of Mormon immigrants was rising to a point where in July of 1833, demands were made that the Mormons leave on threat of physical expulsion. On July 23 they were given 6 months to leave Independence. In August, over 800 miles East in Kirtland Ohio, Joseph Smith recorded two revelations where God gave direction and counsel regarding the situation with their fellow saints in Missouri.

In November 1833 Missouri saints were expelled from Jackson County. On December 16-17 Joseph received another revelation known today as Doctrine and Covenants section 101. In it the Missouri saints are told that their sufferings were in consequence of their transgressions, and a parable was given, “that you may know my [the Lord’s] will concerning the redemption of Zion.” “Zion,” referring to the place, Jackson County Missouri, and “redemption” being understood to mean recovery of the lands that had been lost to them. In a revelation given on February 24 of 1834, Joseph Smith was directed to gather a number “of the strength of [God’s] house” to “go up with you unto the Land of Zion.”

A body of volunteers (close to 200 men and a number of women) gathered and in early May, left on the near 900 mile journey toward Missouri. The main purpose of the mission does not appear entirely clear from what we read in D&C 101:35-36, but the call to go was given and men and women responded.

“The redemption of Zion must needs come by power,” is what the D&C 101 revelation says, and the Lord would “raise up unto my people a man who shall lead them as Moses led the children of Israel.” As one historian put it, “It sounds like a call to action, but the comparison was to Moses leading Israel out of bondage, and not Joshua invading Canaan.” (Richard Bushman, Rough Stone Rolling, p. 236)

The trek took over a month. As might be imagined, when an organized and armed band of Mormons began to approach the territory where Missourians had driven their fellow adherents away (and with no intent of letting them return) it had all the makings for an impending armed conflict. Joseph had no desire to engage in a battle of arms and hoped that his petition for help from Governor Dunklin to assist in the saint’s cause, would result in assistance from the state militia to help recover their lost lands. No such help was granted, and on July 22 a revelation (D&C 105) was given, and the camp was disbanded. Some stayed in Missouri, while others, including Joseph Smith, returned home.

Rebellious Hearts

So, what are we to make of this account? In response to the suffering and loss of property from persecution that the saints in Missouri were enduring, Joseph was called by God to organize a body to go redeem their brothers in Zion (D&C 103:1). Then, after gathering their forces for two months and marching over 800 miles for another month and a half more, God gave a revelation that essentially disbanded the camp without accomplishing the mission they set out to do.

In the hours of reflection over the course of a month of study and preparation for the lesson I was to give in Gospel Doctrine class, I was drawn to conclude that the outcome, known by the Lord from the beginning, was immutable, and any attempt to change the course of things would be futile. This, because of something Joseph later wrote from his own conclusion of what took place at the end of the journey. As the camp disbanded, a devastating outbreak of cholera attacked its ranks.

“Long afterward, Joseph remembered the suffering that week. ‘While some were digging the grave others stood sentry with their fire arms, watching their enemies.’ The camp was trapped between the hatred of the Missourians and the onslaught of cholera. Responding to the shrieks of pain that filled the camp, Joseph gave the victims flour and whiskey and ministered by laying on hands. Nothing worked. Each time Joseph laid hands on a victim, the diseased passed into his own body. ‘I quickly learned by painful experience,’ he later wrote, ‘that when the Great Jehovah decrees destruction upon any people, makes known his determination, man must not attempt to stay his hand.’ … Joseph remembered the unsettling contradictions. ‘Elder John S. Carter was the first man who stepped forward to rebuke it, and upon this, was instantly seized, and became the first victim in the camp.’ The men who buried Carter ‘united, covenanted and prayed, hoping the ideas would be staid; but in vain, for while thus covenanting, Eber Wilcox died.'”
(Richard Bushman, Rough Stone Rolling, p. 245-246. emphasis mine)

I reasoned that perhaps the attempts to mingle in something that God had already decreed applied to more than the cholera outbreak. What if Joseph’s prayers and attempts to intervene were futile gestures, even from the onset of the trek to Missouri?

It was because of their “jarrings, and contentions, and envyings, and strifes, and lustful and covetous desires” that they “polluted their inheritances” (D&C 101:6). They had failed to bring forth the required fruit, remaining heedless of the Lord’s warnings (see for example the Lord’s warnings in D&C 97:25-26; 98:21-22; 103:8-10). The Lord used the Missouri citizens as His hand of judgment to scourge the condemned saints in His attempt to persuade them to repent and no longer treat lightly His word (see for example D&C 97:25-27; 101:1-2, 51; 103:3-4, 8; 105:2, 6). Still seeing no Divine purpose behind their distress, they railed against their Missouri persecutors. Despite their suffering, they were not sufficiently humbled to repent. Instead, they breathed out threats and expressed hope to gain vengeance against the same Missouri mobs to whom the Lord had given power to afflict and inspire them to repent.

Why, then, would the Lord call the saints in Kirtland to go on a rescue mission? In Joseph’s position, can he simply sit back and do nothing? Even as late as February when the call was given to gather their strength and march (D&C 103), the saints were told they could still repent and turn things around and recover their lost lands. We read how it was “in consequence of their transgressions” that the Lord “suffered the affliction to come upon” the saints in Missouri (D&C 101:2). But also remember that similar words of condemnation were given to the Kirtland saints, “For they do not forsake their sins, and their wicked ways, the pride of their hearts, and their covetousness, and all their detestable things.” (D&C 98:20). Were there lessons and testing and trial that those who were called to march needed to learn as well?

Prayers of the Righteous

It wasn’t until the morning of the lesson, as I sat reflecting and revisiting the lesson material, that a new perspective of these events emerged from the pages I was reading. While it was certainly true that sufferings were “in consequence of their transgressions“, I began to see that among them there was a category of “many of whom are truly humble and are seeking diligently to learn wisdom and to find truth.”

Verily, verily I say unto you, blessed are such, for they shall obtain; for I, the Lord, show mercy unto all the meek, and upon all whomsoever I will, that I may be justified when I shall bring them unto judgment.
(D&C 97:1-2)

A distinction was being made between two types of people who were enduring persecution and suffering.

[N]evertheless, there are those that must needs be chastened, and their works shall be made known. The ax is laid at the root of the trees; and every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit shall be hewn down and cast into the fire. I, the Lord, have spoken it.
(ibid v. 6-7)

While on the other hand:

Verily I say unto you, all among them who know their hearts are honest, and are broken, and their spirits contrite, and are willing to observe their covenants by sacrifice—yea, every sacrifice which I, the Lord, shall command—they are accepted of me. For I, the Lord, will cause them to bring forth as a very fruitful tree which is planted in a goodly land, by a pure stream, that yieldeth much precious fruit.
(ibid v. 8-9)

Four days later, in the August 6 revelation, the Lord addressed the saints in Missouri with some words of encouragement:

[I]n everything give thanks; Waiting patiently on the Lord, for your prayers have entered into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth, and are recorded with this seal and testament—the Lord hath sworn and decreed that they shall be granted.
(D&C 98:1-2)

A promise is given that “prayers” have been heard and a decree given that “they shall be granted“. Followed up with this powerful covenant from the Lord:

Therefore, he giveth this promise unto you, with an immutable covenant that they shall be fulfilled; and all things wherewith you have been afflicted shall work together for your good, and to my name’s glory, saith the Lord.
(ibid v. 3)

In unmistakable language that cannot be taken lightly, the Lord has promised and decreed that He will answer …

“prayers”.

We are not given any additional information or specifics about what these prayers contained. In a letter to Edward Partridge and other church leaders several days later, Joseph gives one other key of what is included in this powerful covenant that the Lord promised:

“I verily know that he will spedily deliver Zion for I have his immutible covenant that this shall be the case but god is pleased to keep it hid from mine eyes the means how exactly the thing will be done.”
(“Letter to Church Leaders in Jackson County, Missouri, 18 August 1833,” p. [1], The Joseph Smith Papers, emphasis mine)

In the language of scripture, “speedily” often means “surprisingly,” “in an unexpected way,” or “being caught off-guard.” (See e.g., Isaiah 48:3).

Four months later, in response to further requests for information from the Lord regarding the saints in Zion, the December 16-17 revelation was given. Section 101 opens with:

Verily I say unto you, concerning your brethren who have been afflicted, and persecuted, and cast out from the land of their inheritance— I, the Lord, have suffered the affliction to come upon them, wherewith they have been afflicted, in consequence of their transgressions; Yet I will own them, and they shall be mine in that day when I shall come to make up my jewels. Therefore, they must needs be chastened and tried, even as Abraham, who was commanded to offer up his only son. For all those who will not endure chastening, but deny me, cannot be sanctified.
(D&C 101:1-5)

As it relates to the two types or categories of people being tried, take note of the phrase “my jewels“. This phrase occurs four times in the standard works. In the instance found in 3 Nephi, Christ is quoting from Malachi chapter 3:

And they shall be mine, saith the Lord of Hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them as a man spareth his own son that serveth him. Then shall ye return and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth him not.
(3 Ne 24:17-18)

I want to ask the question, if God is using the Missouri mobs to inspire the saints to repent, what of the more righteous among them? Is it fair for them to suffer these indignations as well? I believe God is addressing this very thing by including the parable of wheat and tares in this revelation:

That the work of the gathering together of my saints may continue, that I may build them up unto my name upon holy places; for the time of harvest is come, and my word must needs be fulfilled. Therefore, I must gather together my people, according to the parable of the wheat and the tares, that the wheat may be secured in the garners to possess eternal life, and be crowned with celestial glory, when I shall come in the kingdom of my Father to reward every man according as his work shall be; While the tares shall be bound in bundles, and their bands made strong, that they may be burned with unquenchable fire.
(D&C 101:64-65)

Gem formation requires five things for mineral crystallization to occur. Ingredients, Temperature, Pressure, Time, and Space. To become the Lord’s “jewels“, the righteous will need to be proven by being subjected to testing, alongside the chastisement being imposed upon the unrighteous. Another way to look at it is, the response to the trials and testing can be a determining factor in which type or category of person you will become.

As we look at the conclusion of this Zion’s camp story, in the revelation where the camp is disbanded, we read that God again confirms the promise that we looked at earlier in section 98:

But inasmuch as there are those who have hearkened unto my words, I have prepared a blessing and an endowment for them, if they continue faithful. I have heard their prayers, and will accept their offering; and it is expedient in me that they should be brought thus far for a trial of their faith.
(D&C 105:18-19)

There are two COVID camps. And they’re both wrong.

The two camps being, COVID is not serious, it’s an excuse for authoritarianism. And the other camp being COVID is extremely serious and the authoritarianism isn’t authoritarianism, it’s public health.

[The following remarks are my condensed version of a train of thought presented by Bret Weinstein and Heather Heying's recent Darkhorse livestream #94. Video posted below.]

We have to ask the question: To what extent are the narratives that we are battling over being fed to us by something that does not have our best collective interest at its core? This does not mean that we’re being fed narratives from somewhere, but that is at least a possibility that would explain in part why this pandemic is being managed so badly.

Both of these are wrong.

It is quite clear that COVID is a very dangerous disease. On the other hand, it does seem to be the excuse for an awful lot of authoritarianism that makes no sense. I suggest there is a litmus test that we can use to detect that there is something about the way this being handled that makes it evident that this is absolutely not about public health.

Consider the typical diminishing returns curve in complex systems. Imagine a simplified diminishing returns curve where the x-axis is investment. The y-axis is return. There is a shallow early phase that then curves up and becomes a steep, effectively a cliff face, in which your investment is low relative to the returns that you get for it. For example, in the early stages imagine you are trying to figure out how to skateboard, or whatever it may be, and it’s tough at first and then you hit some point where you are, like, “Oh, I’m getting this, I’m getting this!” And then what happens? At the inflection point in the curve you get the emergence of a plateau, where larger and larger investments net smaller and smaller gains. There are still returns on investment, but they get less and less.

The reason that you get a diminishing returns curve in a complex system in which there’s an objective, is that you have a hierarchy of interventions. You’ve got some stuff that’s actually “no-brainers” that work really well, and you do those things first. This is obvious, of course, because why wouldn’t you? The more of those “most evident” things you’ve already done, the more of the low-hanging fruit you’ve found, the more you’re forced to do things that, yes, work. But at increasingly larger costs. And so you get this reliable pattern because a reasonable person, or system, attempting to solve a problem will go after the low-hanging fruit first. Eventually you will be left with smaller and smaller interventions that are more and more expensive, eventually getting to a point of near pointlessness.

Our response to COVID does not show an indication that we have gone after the low-hanging fruit. At all. It’s completely insane with respect to the low-hanging fruit that we have left on the table and not invoked. For instance, the most obvious one, and the thing that I would suggest that we use as a litmus test, is the question of vitamin D. Now the vitamin D question is not simple. It’s not a simple matter of, take vitamin D = avoid COVID. You can take vitamin D and still get COVID. But the evidence strongly suggests that vitamin D deficiency makes you much more vulnerable to COVID. This is completely unambiguous. And what’s more, that people who live far from the equator, as many of us do, are very likely to be vitamin D deficient during the winter months. Why? Because vitamin D is naturally produced on the skin in response to sunlight, and so what that means is that vitamin D deficiency, which might not be inherent to humans, is very common amongst modern humans because of the way we live. Because we spend a lot of time indoors where climate control allows us to continue, but we are then chronically underexposed to sunlight that would produce vitamin D. And therefore vitamin D supplementation has tremendous value in terms of fending off COVID for people who are likely to experience deficiencies. What’s more, vitamin D is inexpensive, vitamin D is readily available, and not only does vitamin D not have serious downsides, but if you take reasonable amounts of vitamin D you are very likely to fend off other diseases because vitamin D is basically immunosuppressive. All this makes a great deal of sense, and yet we are somehow still not widely recommending vitamin D to everybody who are likely to have that deficiency in the winter. In spite of the fact that we have a raging pandemic and we could reduce the number of cases substantially by simply making that one intervention.

So the question is, how on earth is this not our first public health recommendation to people? That if you have any danger of a vitamin D deficiency, you should do something about it. That includes making vitamin D while the sun shines – by going outside and exposing yourself to sunlight. And as that becomes less and less useful as an intervention, supplementing with biologically available vitamin D that would compensate for a deficiency. I would say that’s a litmus test. Why is it a litmus test? Because it’s the lowest hanging fruit on the tree. There is no good reason not to address the question of vitamin D deficiency first. It should have been our first intervention. And the fact that we didn’t do it, and still are not doing it, is evidence of one of two things. It is either evidence of absolutely jaw-dropping levels of incompetence (which I admit is possible). Or, that something else is driving our policy that isn’t really obsessed with preventing COVID.

Who Else Wonders What is Going on With the COVID Vaccine?

How any given individual evaluates the risks of receiving or refusing the offered vaccine should be their health choice.

Does anyone else sense there seems to be something peculiar or off with the COVID-19 vaccination? Approaching this from a viewpoint of risk, there are a number of things to consider. How any given individual evaluates the risks of receiving or refusing the offered vaccine should be their health choice. An intelligent person could very much want to get the vaccine, and should not be condemned or called foolish for that choice. But an equally intelligent person could decide to delay or refuse the vaccine, and they should also not be condemned or called foolish for the opposite choice. An important question we should be asking is Why has this choice become such a charged, divisive issue?

Here’s what has me perplexed. Lawyers sue doctors and pharmaceutical companies all the time when they screw up and injure people. Even if they do so negligently with the best of intentions, lawyers sue these health professionals.

As a result of the injuries caused while providing health care, the medical industry has chosen to shift the risk from themselves to those they treat through warnings. If you are warned, and you choose to proceed, then if there is an injury you assumed the risk. You can’t blame anyone for the injury you chose to accept.

As an example, I take Vitamin C every day. I noticed that it has a warning:

Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C): You should not use ascorbic acid if you have ever had an allergic reaction to a vitamin C supplement. Ask a doctor or pharmacist about using ascorbic acid if you have: kidney disease or a history of kidney stones; hereditary iron overload disorder (hematochromatosis); or if you smoke (smoking can make ascorbic acid less effective). Your dose needs may be different during pregnancy or while you are breast-feeding a baby. Do not use ascorbic acid without your doctor’s advice in either case.

Look at warnings that you find on other common products like Asprin, and Benadryl.

And this one on Vitamin E: Ask a doctor or pharmacist if it is safe for you to use vitamin E if you have other medical conditions, especially: anemia (low red blood cells); a bleeding or blood clotting disorder such as hemophilia; liver disease; kidney disease; any allergies; an eye disorder called retinitis pigmentosa; a vitamin K deficiency; high cholesterol or triglycerides (a type of fat in the blood); diabetes; a history of cancer; a history of stroke or blood clot; or if you need surgery, or have recently had surgery. FDA pregnancy category C. It is not known whether vitamin E will harm an unborn baby… (and the warning goes on)

Here are the same kinds of warnings you get for childhood vaccines we may have all received:

Measles: Applies to measles virus vaccine: subcutaneous powder for injection. Local: Local side effects have included injection site burning/stinging, wheal and flare, erythema, swelling, and vesiculation. Hypersensitivity: Hypersensitivity reactions have included anaphylaxis, anaphylactoid reactions, angioneurotic edema (including peripheral or facial edema), and bronchial spasm. Cardiovascular: Cardiovascular side effects have included vasculitis. Dermatologic: Dermatologic side effects have included Stevens-Johnson Syndrome, erythema multiforme, urticaria, and rash. Gastrointestinal: Gastrointestinal side effects have included diarrhea. Hematologic: Hematologic side effects have included thrombocytopenia, purpura, regional lymphadenopathy, and leukocytosis. Musculoskeletal: Musculoskeletal side effects have included arthralgia and/or arthritis (usually transient and rarely chronic), polyneuritis, myalgia, paresthesia, and rarely chronic arthritis; these symptoms may also occur with natural rubella. Nervous system: Nervous system side effects have included measles inclusion body encephalitis (MIBE), encephalopathy, subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE), Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS), febrile convulsions, afebrile convulsions or seizures, ataxia, and ocular palsies. Significant central nervous system reactions such as encephalitis and encephalopathy have been very rarely temporally associated with measles vaccine (occurring within 30 days after vaccination); however, causality has not been determined in any case. A certain number of encephalitis cases unrelated to vaccines is expected to occur in a large childhood population; however, there is the possibility that some of these cases may have been caused by measles vaccine. The risk of measles vaccine-associated serious neurological disorders is much smaller than the risk for encephalitis and encephalopathy due to natural measles. Subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE) has been very rarely reported in children after measles vaccination. Some of these cases may have been due to unrecognized measles during the first year of life or possibly due to the measles vaccination. The results of a retrospective case-controlled study by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggest that measles vaccine has had the overall effect of protecting against SSPE by preventing measles with its greater risk of SSPE.

Mumps Vaccine also carries warnings about side effects that include risks of local injury, hypersensitivity, cardiovascular, dermatologic, endocrine, genitourinary, gastrointestinal, hematological, nervous system, ocular, and respiratory. (I’m omitting the details for each of these categories.)

Rubella Vaccine has similar potential side effects and warnings as measles and mumps, and also adds additional warnings about musculatoskeletal risks and and even deafness.

We know about the risks for these products because human trials allowed us to learn about the side effects through control groups (who do not receive the medication/vaccination) and those who are tested. Large samples over years of testing allow the risks to be identified. Not everyone is susceptible to each risk, and some people are more likely to suffer from specific side effects than others.

Unlike all other compounds, vitamins, medications and vaccines, this is what we are told about the COVID-19 vaccine (which has not undergone human trial testing-unless you consider what is happening at present to be that test): Covid-19 risks: COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective. You may have side effects after vaccination, but these are normal.

How can that be? There is nothing yet documented to justify the claim it is safe, so why tell us that? What does it mean that something has “normal” side effects?

By taking the effort to post these questions, what I am hoping to do is inspire the logical question: “What the hell is going on?” (Rather than just trust the appeal to emotions, shaming, and social pressure used today to influence a health decision.) Think this through for yourself. And choose wisely. But if someone makes a different choice than you, refrain from using emotion, shame and social pressure to confront them. Let them go in peace. Every person has the right to choose to be vaccinated, and to choose against it. And every person has the right to then live with the consequences of their choice.

One last matter to consider: Because all these vaccinations were developed with emergency authorization, and normal FDA requirements were waived, the pharmaceutical companies are not liable for any injuries caused by the vaccines. Even if they tell you they are “safe and effective” and the vaccines later prove to be neither safe nor effective, you can’t sue the manufacturer.