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I MUST confess it is not always very pleasant to read of the wickedness of our follow-man, or of his depravity; but duty sometimes imposes upon us the task of disclosing, and exposing to view, the high-handed abominations of others, and the attendant effects of the same, that posterity may take warning and shun those vices that were fraught with so many fatal consequences to their ancestors. And certainly, nothing but a feeling sense of duty, prompted me to disclose the awful condition and apostacy of the Christian world, in the manner exhibited in the preceding chapter. Indeed, the exigency of the case requires much plainness; therefore, I have thus far avoided flattery, knowing that truth [page 97] in its original simplicity, is the most effectual remedy for the infatuation of a set of' apostates; although, its effect is rather severe upon the mind, it is certainly the only proper antidote yet discovered.

I have set down nought in malice; but have recorded facts as they are without any false colouring, yet the picture I have necessarily drawn, is not one of the most pleasing character; but if there is any blame, it should not be attached to me; for my circumstances are so peculiar, that it would not become me to speak well of the evil that men do, or to praise them for their abominations.--But according to the old adage: "The darkest hour is just before day;" so reader I trust, it is in this case; therefore, we will let the past suffice for the present, and look, or at least hope, for better things to come; hence, I earnestly request you to divest yourself of all incoherent prejudice, and proceed with me, in the investigation, with liberal feelings: for I shall not take you into the speculative wilderness or confusion of the vague opinions of men, and conflicting comments upon the scriptures; but into the harmonious field of prophecy, and prophetic vision, where I shall exhibit to you the true church, or kingdom of God with all its attendant blessings, coming up out of the wilderness progressing in its onward course amidst the confusion of the world, and opposition of those who have the mark of the beast, and many flocking to its folds, which will increase its magnitude until Christ shall come with all His saints and angels, and commence His reign with them, as King of kings and Lord of lords; also many other important events connected with this glorious work, which are of great importance to all mankind.

In the preceding chapter, I proved that the whole Christian world are destitute of the holy priesthood, and to a certain extent in a state of apostacy; but in this, I shall establish beyond successful contradiction, that it was to be restored, [page 98] and the kingdom of God reorganized, and also that majestic works are to be performed. And I wish the reader to distinctly understand, that I do it in defence of the doctrine of the "Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints:" for the position taken by this society, is, that in consequence of the apostacy before mentioned, the power of the priesthood has been taken from the church; hence, it is necessary that it should be restored, or given to such men as the Lord shall choose as instruments to perform His work, that His kingdom may be organized on earth in fulfillment of numerous predictions of the prophets: and the attentive reader will see hereafter, whether or not our position is a correct one. But I will here observe that it would be unreasonable for me to attempt to give all the particulars of our doctrine in its relative connection with important events that are the subjects of prophecy; therefore, I shall only reason upon the most prominent points, and particularly, those that distinguish us from other religious societies, and leave the intelligent reader to fill up the interstices by the assistance of the scriptures, and several interesting books, published by men of talent in good standing in the society.

Again, one of the principal objects I have had in view throughout the former part of this work, is the justification of the doctrine of the above society; therefore, if there is any strength or force in my argument, the base or foundation upon which we rest our sentiments is good; if not, the whole super structure will ultimately fall to ruin. But as the idea of a new revelation is so much objected to by the Christian community, I deem it necessary to make a few remarks upon this point, before I enter upon the subject-matter of the chapter,

Many individuals of the present age suppose that a new revelation cannot be given without revealing a new gospel; but such imbecility in judgment is a more fit characteristic [page 99] of a wild barbarian, than of one that bears the name of an enlightened Christian. The gospel is the invariable rule or, plan of salvation, and its antiquity is certainly equal to that of the earth, and through an obedience to its precepts, the ancients were adopted into the family of God; hence, they became the Sons of God. Indeed, the gospel is an established principle, and there never was such a thing known as a revelation being given to reveal a new one. The Lord has had many notable works to perform at different periods of the world, and He has ever given such revelations as were adapted to these works. For instance, He led Noa into the secret of the purposed flood, and commanded him to build an ark for his temporal safety. This command answered for him, and no other person. Lot was saved by fleeing to Zoar, as he was commanded, and not by building an ark. Moses did not build an ark in order to deliver Israel from Egyptian bondage; but obeyed the commands that the Lord gave him; and it would be folly for individuals of the present age to build an ark, or to leave Egypt in order to save themselves, either temporally or spiritually. God gave revelations to these man for special purposes; hence, each one was adapted to the work for which it was given. Again, when the Lord has had any noted work to perform, He has generally sent an angel with a message to His servant or servants, whom He made instruments of to accomplish the work then at hand; and it is reasonable for us to suppose that the message or revelation was adapted to the work for which it was given. Christ gave special revelations, and directions, to His disciples, because He had given them a particular work to do. In the latter-days, He has a majestic work to perform, as will be seen hereafter; therefore, He will send His angel with special messages and directions, that this great work may be done according to His will: yet no other gospel will be revealed; for it is unchangable, and adapted to all people in every age, and under [page 100] all circumstances.-But now a word about the mode of interpreting prophecy.

It is a fact, that example or precedent is the best rule for the interpretation of the predictions of the prophets, that are yet to be fulfilled; hence, all the prophecies which are not written in a figurative style, and have no metaphorical sign prefixed to them, should be regarded as a literal revelation of God; for it is notoriously true, that all the prophecies of the Old Testament, that were fulfilled in the person of our Saviour, were literally fulfilled; also, those that related to other events, without an exception; therefore, wherein is the propriety of the idea, that those which relate to the future will not be fulfilled in the same way? Peter says: "No prophecy of the Scripture is of any private interpretation." (2 Pe. I :20.) Metaphors and parables, should be understood as such; yet they are either explained, or are so plain there is no difficulty in understanding them; but where it is written, thus and thus Saith the Lord, certain events shall take place, I look for a literal fulfilment of every word.--But now to the subject.

Now according to the view I take of the subject, the consistency of the whole position of the before mentioned society, in a great degree, depends upon the establishment of the idea, that the Lord was to raise up servants, and give them the holy priesthood, and reorganize His kingdom, in order that His great work may be accomplished, and the way prepared for the second advent of the Messiah, &c, &c.; therefore, I shall now make it my business to place the above idea beyond successful contradiction.-But now for the evidence.

The disciples of Christ interrogated Him thus: "Tell us, when these things shall be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming and the end of the world?" (See Mat. 24 chap.) The first question relates to the destruction of Jerusalem, which they had previously conversed about; but the latter to Christ's second [page 101] advent, and the end of the world, that is to take place at the same time; but the manner in which He answered them is according to the old custom of the prophets, which was to first give a brief or general outline of the subject, and afterwards to take up each item by itself and particularize upon it. After He had given them a brief sketch of some important events that were to transpire before, and at, the destruction of Jerusalem, He outlined some of the most prominent things or events, that are to precede His second appearance or the end of the world, as omens of its near approach; the greatest of which is as follows: "And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come." From this we learn that the gospel is to be preached to all the world as a warning or witness, that the end is at hand. It is true, Paul says that in his day, the gospel was preached to every creature under heaven; but it certainly was not in fulfilment of the above prediction; for this reason, the apostles were not sent to warn the world that the end, in the sense Christ used the term, was to immediately come; therefore, we must receive it as a prediction of an event that is to immediately precede the second Advent of the Messiah.

Connect our Saviour's parable of the "wheat and the tares," and His explanation of it, with this, and it makes the subject perfectly plain and consistent.--He said: "And in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn." He explained as follows: "The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one: the enemy that sowed them is the devil: the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels (or servants.) As therefore the tares are gathered [page 102] and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world, &c." (Mat. 13, chap.) From this we discover that the universal destruction of the wicked, will be the end of the world, which the prophets and apostles, agree will take place at the second appearance of Christ.

Now the matter stands thus, it would be unjust for the Lord to bring an overwhelming destruction upon the world without first giving them a timely warning of it, that all may if they will, prepare for it by turning to the Lord; therefore, previous to the end, He will renew the gospel dispensation by restoring the holy priesthood, with which He will commission efficient men, and send them to preach the gospel of the kingdom to all nations as above. Some individuals however, infer from the following, that all this was fulfilled, at or before the destruction of Jerusalem: "Verily I say unto you, this generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled." In order to understand this, the reader should keep in mind the questions that the apostles propounded to Christ; the first of which as I before observed, relates to the destruction of Jerusalem. After He had dispensed with this, He informed them what shall be the signs at His second coming, when He shall appear in great glory with His angels, and destroy the wicked. The signs of this latter event, are the preaching of the gospel as before mentioned, wars and rumors of wars, pestilence, famine, signs in the sun, moon and stars, also on the earth, distress of nations, and men's hearts failing them for fear while looking for those things which are coming upon the earth, and said He, "This generation shall not pass till all these things be fulfilled." This declaration is governed by the parable of "the fig-tree," that immediately precedes it; hence, it alludes to the generation in which these signs shall begin to appear: or to read the passage thus: "The gene- [page 103] ration in which these signs shall begin to appear shall not pass," &c., explains the whole matter.

Our Saviour's parable of&e "Labourers and the vineyard," is plain upon this subject: in which He compares the kingdom of heaven to a man that went out in the morning, and also at the third, sixth, ninth, and eleventh hours of the day, and hired labourers to work in his vineyard. (See Mat. 20 chap.) It is evident that the term hour, here stands for a noted epoch of the world, or the commencement of an important dispensation; and the day, stands for the world: for instance, in the morning of the creation, the Lord sent labourers into the vineyard; in the days of Noah and Abraham, He sent others into it; and also at the commencement of the Mosaic dispensation. At the opening of the Christian, which was the ninth hour, He had a great work to do; therefore, He sent many into the vineyard; but in the latter-days, which is the eleventh hour He will call many, and commission them to go to the nations, and preach the gospel of the kingdom. This eleventh hour, must certainly apply to an age, as late as the nineteenth century, from the fact, it is but one hour before the evening or time of recompense; or in other words, the elapse of the time from the eleventh hour to the time of the recompense, is very short in comparison to that of the others. Again It will be remembered, that three hours of time passed away between each time of calling except the latter. This does not a little favour the idea, that the Lord's work of the latter-days, will be a short one. All admit, that the time of reckoning and reward, will take place at the end of the day or the world, when Christ shall come and make an end of the present state of things, and put the saints in possession of the kingdom, and the greatness of it under the whole heavens. Therefore, I regard this parable as conclusive evidence, to sustain my position.

[page 104] But I will now call the attention of the reader to the testimony of John the Revelator.--He first saw the rise of the beasts, the saints overcome, and the prevalence of Babylon the Great; but as the prophetic vision rolled before his mind, and he penetrated futurity, he saw the time when the Lamb of God shall stand upon Mount Zion with an hundred and fortyfour thousand of His saints. After this, he saw the manner in which this glorious event shall be brought about, which is as follows. "And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, [or firmament] having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud voice, fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment is come: and worship Him, that made heaven and the earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters." (Re. 14:6, 7.) It is not the business of an angel to act the part of a priest on earth; therefore, the idea conveyed in the above, is that an angel was to appear with a commission to preach the gospel to all the world as a witness that the end or hour of God's judgment is at hand. I have not been a little amused at the various opinions of modern divines with regard to the meaning of this prophetic vision.--Some suppose that it alludes to the foreign missionaries, others to the bible societies, or the translation of the bible into the languages of the heathen nations; but another celebrated writer contends that it will be fulfilled by the aerial flight of the missionaries under an advanced state of balloon navigation; but all I have to say about these opinions, is that they carry their own refutation with them, and that the writers should be commended for their fruitful imaginations. But I will venture to say, that the only sensible interpretation of this vision, is that the Lord made known to John, that at some future period, He would send an angel with the holy priesthood to commission His [page 105] servants to go to all nations, and people, and preach the gospel to them in its original purity, and gather the honest in heart and good among men from the midst of Babylon, and thus prepare the way for the second advent of the Messiah. Again, if there was no other evidence in the scriptures, that there was to be an apostacy after the days of the apostles, this alone would be sufficient to convince any rational person of this fact: for this reason, the angel was to have the everlasting gospel to preach to all nations, tongues and people, consequently to every society, sect or denomination. But the strength of the evidence is seen in the following: if all Christendom, have legal authority to preach the gospel, and administer the ordinances of it, and are not in a state of apostacy, it would be superfluous for God to send an angel with it to preach to them after they had even legally obeyed it. It would be nonsense for the Lord to undertake to reveal a thing or principle, that the human family are already acquainted with, or to give authority to them that they already possess. To be plain, the Lord knew there would be a great falling away, and that the church would become so corrupt, that He would not acknowledge its authority; therefore, He disclosed to John that in His own due time, He would restore the priesthood in order that His great work may be accomplished. And mark, this gospel is for all people or every society; therefore, all the priests and ministers of the Christian world are to have the gospel preached to them, as a witness that the hour of God's judgment is at hand.

The reader can satisfy himself, that this prophetic vision alludes to the latter-day work, by an examination of the whole chapter from which it is extracted, and from which it will be seen, that the events that are to immediately follow after the appearance of the angel, have not yet transpired: for instance, first, it is said, that when the gospel shall be proclaimed, it shall be said, that the hour of God's judgment or the [page 106] time of recompense is at hand. Paul speaking of the future, says; "Christ shall judge the world at His appearing and kingdom." Secondly, the destruction of Babylon the Great: this was not fulfilled at the destruction of Jerusalem, nor in the first century; for it is a settled point, that this Babylon did not rise or exist until several hundred years after Christ. Thirdly, the harvest of the earth or universal destruction of the wicked: it will be remembered that Christ said, "the harvest is the end of the world." Paul applies the term "end of the world," to the end of the Jewish or Mosaic economy; but I am certain that neither Christ, nor John, allude to this; for John was banished to the Island of Patmos, where he wrote his Revelation, more than twenty years after the destruction of Jerusalem; and the harvest of the earth was one of the things that the angel showed him, which was in the future, and which at once excludes the possibility of its being accomplished at the above destruction; hence, as we know, that it has been fulfilled at no time since, we must look for it in the future. Fourthly, about the time of the down fall of Babylon, and the harvest of the earth, those that have died in the faith of the Lord, are to be resurrected and rewarded; therefore, John was commanded to write thus: "Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: yea saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours: and their works do follow them." Certainly, every rational person will admit that these events are in the future; consequently, it must be admitted that the appearance of the angel is a latterday work.

The following is illustrative of this subject: "And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree. And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a [page 107] loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea, saying, hurt not the earth neither the sea, nor, the trees, till we have sealed the servants of God in their foreheads." (Re. 7:1-3) This is certainly most sublime and exquisite, yet directly to the point. John frequently mentions that he saw angels that had power to trouble the earth, and its inhabitants with plagues and destructions; and the four angels mentioned in the above, are represented as having a work of this description to perform. But just at the time they were ready to commence their work of plagues and destruction, the angel with the seal of God appeared, and cried with a loud voice, and commanded them to hold still, or to stay their work until the servants of God were sealed. Now it is evident, that this angel with the seal, and the one that was seen flying in the midst of heaven "having the everlasting gospel to preach," &c., is the same one; and the seal of God, is evidently the holy priesthood, and the gospel connected together. By the authority of the priesthood, as I have before explained, individuals are adopted into the family of God, and thus become fit temples for the reception of the Holy Spirit, by which the apostle says, "We are sealed unto the day of redemption." (Ep. 4:30.) But by the means of the priesthood, in one sense of the word, the blessings of the gospel of peace are received; therefore, it is plain that the seal, which the angel had, that John saw, is the priesthood; for it is the power to preach the gospel, administer its ordinances, and by which the servants of God are sealed; or in other words, it is the sealing power. Again, if we regard it as a figure, it is a very good one; for the priesthood is conferred by the imposition of hands, and the members of the church are confirmed and receive the Holy Ghost in the same way.

Most certainly the foregoing scripture, is a prediction of [page 108] the restoration of the priesthood just in time for the honest in heart, and those who love the truth to be sealed, and prepared to meet Christ when He comes. John first enumerates a hundred and forty-four thousand that are to be sealed; after this, he saw another company which no man could number, which he says, "are to pass through great tribulation, and wash their robes, and make them pure in the blood of the Lamb." These are the church or people, the Lord will raise up to meet Him when He appears the second time.

The following corroborates the above: "And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, come out of her, (that is, Babylon, which is mentioned in the preceding verses,) my people, that ye be not partakers' of her sins, and that ye receive not her plagues. For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities. (Re. 18:4, 5.) From this and the context, we learn that just previous, or at the time of the destruction or downfall of Babylon, the Lord is to raise up a people; or in other words, to call His people out from the sects and parties that compose Babylon the Great, and prepare them to receive Him as follows: "And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and so the voice of' any waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying; Alleluia; for the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth. Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to Him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and His wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints. And he saith unto me, write, blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, these are the true sayings of God." (Re. 19:6-9.) This harmonizes with Christ's parable of the "marriage of the kings son," in which it is said, that servants were sent to bid men to come to the wedding feast. (see Mat. 22:1-14.) It [page 109] must be admitted, that the "marriage supper of the Lamb," is yet in the future; therefore, the sending of servants to bid guests to come to it, must be a latter-day work.

Now reader, I opine that no unprejudiced person can read the foregoing investigation without being convinced, that the most sanguine expectation of Christ and the apostles, was that there would first be a great "falling away" from the ancient order of the church; but that in the latter-times, the Lord would restore the priesthood, and cause His church to be reorganized, that the before mentioned work may be accomplished. Indeed, is not the evidence incontrovertible, that God made a firm decree that He would do this latter work?--But we will now see what the prophets have to say about this important transaction.

Nothing could he more plain upon this subject, than the prophetic testimony of Daniel, which is recorded in the second chapter of his "Book."-The reader will do well to examine the whole chapter;--I allude to the dream of Nebuchadnezzar, and Daniel's interpretation of it.--The prophet opens the subject by saying to the king "There is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets, and maketh known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter-days. Thy dream, and the visions of thy head upon thy bed, are these." "Thou, 0 king, sawest, and, behold, a great image. This great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee, and the form thereof was terrible. This image's head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass, his legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay. Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and broke them to pieces. Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer [page 110] thrashing-floors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth." It will be seen from Daniel's interpretation of this, that the different metals of the image stand for noted kingdoms; and it is agreed upon by Daniel, and the learned, that the first which is represented by the gold was the Babylonian empire; the second, by the silver, was the MedoPersian; the third, by the brass, the Greek or Macedonian; the fourth by the iron, the Roman. It is also agreed upon, that the feet and toes, which are a mixture of iron and clay, represent the various kingdoms that arose upon the ruins of Roman empire, or within the bounds of its dominion. Daniel in the seventh chapter of his "Book," settles this point in a very conclusive way.--He describes the fourth universal empire, which every modern historian admits to be the Roman, by the figure of a beast which he saw that had ten horns. In the explanation, he says that the, ten horns are ten kings, and it will be remembered that in both Daniel's and John's writings, kings stand for kingdoms; therefore, I set it down as a settled point, that the Roman empire was to be divided into ten different kingdoms, and which are most certainly represented by the toes of the image.

Daniel explains the "stone which was cut out of the mountain without hands," to be a symbolical representation of the kingdom of God, which he says shall destroy all the above kingdoms, fill the whole earth, and stand forever. But now the question to be decided is, at what point of time, was this kingdom to be sat up; or in other words, at what time was this stone of the mountain to commence rolling? The majority of the Christian world hold forth that it commenced at the opening of the Christian dispensation; but the idea is so vague, so far-fetched, and in such direct hostility to what the prophet says, that certainly, no impartial person will for [page 111] a moment receive it: for mark, it is said, the stone was to strike the feet or toes of the image first, or as Daniel explains it: "And in the days of these kings shall, the God of heaven set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever." In the days of what kings, I ask, does this allude to? I reply, the ten kingdoms represented by the toes of the image; but they were not in existence as independent kingdoms, at the birth of Christ; or in other words, the feet and toes of the image were not formed at this period: for at this time the Roman empire was at the zenith of its glory, and was not broken up or divided, as above, until more than three hundred years after it; hence, if the stone smote the image in this age, the stroke must have been upon the legs, and not upon the feet as Daniel says.

These ten kingdoms have experienced several revolutions and changes; but the principal part, if not all of them, now exist as the modern kingdoms of Europe. The Government of the United States in one sense of the word, is the offspring of one, of these kingdoms. Indeed, the greatest portion of the emigrants to the New World emigrated from them; consequently, the toes of the image, to a certain extent, reach to this continent; therefore, I see no impropriety in the idea, that the kingdoms which the prophet says, the stone shall smite, are now in existence; and that if God should set the stone in motion, in this our day, it would not conflict with any scripture; but be in exact fulfilment of Daniel's prophecy.

But we will admit for a moment, that the stone commenced rolling at the onset of the Christian era, and see what a curious dilemma we shall place Daniel in, and how senseless our reasoning must necessarily be. First, according to Daniel, this kingdom was to smite the toes and feet of [page 112] the image first; but it could not do this; for as I have already observed, the feet and toes were not formed until more than three hundred years after this date. Secondly, it is said, this kingdom shall not be destroyed or left to other people, but shall stand forever. Here again we are compelled to join issue, with not only Daniel, but many of the prophets, and apostles: for they have positively predicted, as I have before shown, that there would be a general apostacy or "falling away" between the first and second advent of Christ. Indeed, I have before proved to a demonstration, that the Christian world are in a state apostacy and that the kingdom of God has been disorganized; therefore, if we admit that the stone commenced its motion as above, we must also admit that it has been in a manner annihilated. Furthermore, the kingdom that was organized in the days of the apostles, was left to other people; or in other words, a popish hierarchy arose upon its ruins. Thirdly, this stone was to beat fine, or destroy the kingdoms represented by the image, and may I not say, all the kingdoms of the world, so that but one should be left, which is the kingdom of God. And admitting, that it commenced as is before stated, we will now see what progress it has made. The church apparently prospered during the first and second centuries, and the number of its members was greatly increased; after this, the work of apostacy gained ground more rapidly, till at length, the church went into the wilderness, lost its original decorations or gifts and blessings; the Catholic hierarchy arose upon its ruins, which for the time being we will say is the stone of the mountain; but as we trace its course through succeeding ages, we discover that instead of its beating fine all the kingdoms of the world, it took a place in the rank of temporal kingdoms, waged war with some, built up and supported others, and was itself sustained or supported by several of those ten kingdoms; but this is not the only difficulty that [page 113] we are getting the prophet into,--It continued its course for a while; but contrary to what he says or expected, a barrier happened to be in the way which rent it in twain, (I here allude to the separation of the Greek church from the Latin;) but it partially recovered itself from the shock, and although somewhat maimed, it pursued its course; but alas! it was again forced against an obstacle, which concussion split or rent it into separate parts, and some of these parts were ultimately fractured and torn into atoms; or to be plain, after the famous reformation, the Protestant societies were divided into scores of conflicting sects or factions, and in several instances with them, and also with the Catholics, church and state have been, and are now united, and that too, with the very kingdoms that Daniel says shall be destroyed; and what is still more singular, John the Revelator speaking of those ten kingdoms, says they shall make war with Christ when He comes in Power and in His glory. And it certainly, would be almost an impossibility for them to wage war, without the churches being more or less concerned in it. Indeed, I might enumerate many more difficulties, that we would plunge the prophet into, if we should fix the time for the stone to be set in motion at the commencement of the Christian dispensation; but I will forbear, lest I weary the patience of the reader.

Now the only idea that will in every respect harmonize with what the prophet says, is that the kingdoms, which the toes of the image represent, are now in existence, and that the kingdom of God indicated by the stone of the mountain, is a latter-day work.--But now for the particular application.

The church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, contend that God has sent His angel with the priesthood, which has been conferred upon some of the leading men of the society, and by this means the kingdom of God has been legally organized. We also contend, that America is the land upon which this kingdom was to be first established; and from [page 114] whence the servants of God shall go to all the world, and proclaim the fulness of the everlasting gospel. How exactly this corresponds with Nebuchadnezzar's dream.--The head of this image was located in Asia; but his feet and toes in Europe; and when we consider that the American nations, are the offspring of the European kingdoms, may I not say, that the toes reach even to this land; hence, here is the place for the stone to be set in motion: and remember, the course of the stone, is to be exactly to the reverse from that of the growth of the image from head to feet. But the force and consistency of the above, will be seen from our remarks hereafter upon the xviii. chap. of Isaiah.--But perhaps a little explanation as to the manner in which this kingdom was to be established, will be serviceable to the reader.

I have before set forth the manner in which the kingdom of God was organized or established in the days of the apostles; but the Lord foresaw, that it would be disorganized; but He also foretold, that in His own due time, He would re-establish it in order that His great work may be carried into effect. But says one, if this kingdom represented by the stone, is only a reorganization of the one that previously existed, wherein is the impropriety of saying that it was set up at the first appearance of Christ? I answer, that God has had a kingdom on earth, at intervals, ever since the beginning of the world; consequently, the one of the apostolic age, was in a great degree, only a reorganization of one that existed before; therefore, Daniel must not be understood to allude to something entirely new; but to a particular, or specified time when God was to permanently establish His kingdom so that it shall never be destroyed or disorganized. The manner in which this stone is to strike the image; or in other words, the affect that the kingdom of God, will have upon the kingdoms of the world, seems to me to be as follows. This kingdom was to be organized according to the [page 115] example set forth in the New Testament, and of course, at first be disconnected with territory; but as it is a time for the people of God to gather together, in order to prepare for the appearance of Christ, the officers of it, or the Lord's ministers, will go to all the nations of the earth, and especially the kingdoms of Europe, to proclaim the gospel; and they will gather out from them the honest in heart, and sincere lovers of the truth; or to use a favourite maxim of Christ, they will gather out the salt or savers of the earth. This will increase the magnitude of the church, and gradually weaken the kingdoms of the world: for there will not be righteousness enough left among them, to move them from destruction; therefore, the Lord will let loose upon them the arrows of His judgements, and in His hot displeasure vex them so that nation after nation, shall feel the force of His avenging power, and tremble, and ultimately fall to ruin. In the meanwhile, the stone of the mountain will increase in magnitude; the Jews will be awakened at this, take the warning, and flee to Jerusalem, and the land of their fathers, to await the awful crisis. The remaining nations will be alarmed at all this, and consequently, will wage war against them, and succeed in rallying their forces around Jerusalem: at this moment, the heavens will be unveiled, the Son of God shall appear, and save His people, and destroy His enemies, or as John says: "These (ten kingdoms) shall make war with the Lamb and the Lamb shall overcome them: for He is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with Him, are called, and chosen, and faithful." (Re. 17:14) Thus the stone of the mountain, will beat the image, and make it fine like the chaff of the summer threshing-floor, and no place shall be found for it. Then Christ will destroy all the regal power of the political kingdoms of the world, subject the earth to himself, and connect territory with His kingdom, which shall [page 116] then fill the whole earth; or in other words, the saints shall possess territory, or inherit the earth; at which time it will be said, the kingdoms of this world, have become the kingdom of Christ. Thus the Millennium, the sabbath of creation, or rest for the people of God, will commence.

Daniel beautifully describes this happy period as follows: "I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought Him near before him. And there was given Him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations and languages, should serve Him: His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom that which shall not be destroyed." In the sequel he says: "But the saints of the Most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom forever, even forever and ever." "I beheld the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them; until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the Most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom." "And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the saints of the Most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey Him." (Da. 7 chap.) From this we discover that this latter-day kingdom, was not to be set up until near the close of the reign of the little horn, or the kingdom of popes; and it is also evident that the kingdom of God here alluded to, is the same as the one that is represented by the stone of the mountain. Again, all that Daniel, says about the kingdom of God, perfectly agrees with what John says about the angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach to all nations, and people; and therefore, it is evident that they both allude to the same thing.

[page 117] I will now invite the attention of the reader to the xviii chap. of Isaiah, which certainly contains an account of a most pleasing view that he had, of not only the establishment of the before mentioned kingdom; but of the place or land upon which it was to be commenced, which he thus describes: "Woe to the land shadowing with wings, which is beyond the rivers of Ethiopia; that sendeth ambassadors by the sea, even in vessels of bulrushes upon the waters, saying go ye swift messengers, to a nation scattered and peeled, to at people terrible from their beginning hitherto; a nation meted out and trodden down, whose land the rivers have spoiled! All the inhabitants of the world and dwellers on the earth, see ye, when He lifteth up an ensign upon the mountains; and when He bloweth the trumpet hear ye."

Now any person who is acquainted with the Hebrew language, knows that an improvement in the translation of the above can he made with propriety:--It should read thus: "Ho! to the land shadowing with (or in the symbol of,) wings, that lies beyond the rivers of Cush. This by no means changes the sense; but reduces it to the modern style of phraseology, which I trust will greatly assist the reader in understanding the true meaning of the prophet.

But now the question is, what land does the prophet address these words to? In order to correctly come at this, we must first consider that the prophet resided at Jerusalem, or somewhere near that city; secondly, to find the land that he speaks of, it is necessary to be certain as to the location of the land of Cush or Ethiopia.

The general name that the Jews gave to all the north-part of Africa was, "the land of Cusheamm." Ethiopia proper, is situated south, and south-west of, Egypt, and is now called Abbysinia; but according to Herodotus, the Ethiopian nations were very numerous; and it is evident that the Greeks, and Romans, called the most of. the African nations Ethiopians. [page 118] The writer of the celebrated voyage of Hanno, (which is to be found in Mr. H. Murray's Encyclopedia of Geography,) a Carthagenian navigator who attempted to sail round Africa, gives an account of Ethiopians near the Straits of Gibraltar, or Pillars of Hercules; also that he sailed twelve days along the western coast of Africa, which he says, was then inhabited by Ethiopians, who were very numerous. This coast in now called the coast of Morocco; hence, the ancient Moors were called Ethiopians or Cushites. Indeed, after a careful research into the history of this people, I have come to the following conclusion.--Cush was the son of Ham, and his progeny, soon after the flood, settled somewhere in the neighborhood of the river Euphrates; but at a very early period, some of them emigrated to Africa, and at first, located somewhere about the head waters of the Nile. According to Josephus, these Ethiopians were a powerful nation in the days of Moses; and also, that they inhabited the country that lies south, and south-west of Egypt; but they were a warlike people and had a great desire for conquest; hence, they soon spread over the north part of Africa: and in consequence of their inhabiting the greatest part of this continent, which was then known to the civilized nations, the Jews called it the land of Cush or Cusheam; but the Greeks, and Romans gave it the general name of Ethiopia, and the people they called Ethiopians, the same as we give the inhabitants of all Europe, the general name of Europeans; although, they are divided into many nations; therefore, it is evident that in the days of Isaiah, the north part of Africa was called Cush, and the rivers that the prophet alludes to, are those that flow into the Mediterranean sea along the coast of the Barbary states; and also those that flow into the Atlantic Ocean along the coast of Morocco. Now I presume that from the foregoing, the reader will readily discover that the prophet alludes to a land that lies directly west of Jerusalem, which [page 119] course strikes the Atlantic somewhere on the coast of Morocco; but still beyond this, is the land in the symbol of wings, which must certainly be America; for this reason, no other land will answer the description of the prophet. Indeed, if the prophet does not speak of this land, then he has wrote a mess of incomprehensible nonsense.

But there is also another view, that may be taken of this subject, which perhaps will reflect new light upon it. The word Nahar not only means river, but has another signification, which is, light or knowledge. In Isaiah's day, the Carthagenians were the greatest navigators of the world, and it is asserted, that they considered as exclusively theirs, all the Mediterranean sea, west of a line stretched across from Carthago to Sicily, and that they captured all the vessels, and put to death the crews, of all other nations that were found navigating within these forbidden precincts. They were also the first that navigated about the Pillars of Hercules, the south western coast of Europe, and the western coast of Africa. In a word, in these ancient times they had the most extensive knowledge of the sea, coasts, and islands, in these parts, of any other nation; therefore, as the word Nahar signifies light or intelligence as well as river, perhaps, the prophet alludes to a land that is beyond the extreme knowledge of the Ethiopian or Cushite navigators. However, either of the above explanations, makes the idea perfectly plain, that the prophet points to America.

Again, North and South America, as will be seen from a miniature drawing of them on a map, in form and shape, very much resemble the wings of a bird; hence, it is a land in the symbol of wings, and in this respect, no other part of the globe will answer this description of the prophet. Some writers however, contend that the prophet alludes to the eagle with outspread wings upon the American ensign or flag; [page 120] but let this be as it may, the case is equally plain if we take it either way.

"That sendeth ambassadors by the sea, even in vessels of bulrushes upon the waters, saying, go ye swift messengers of the nations," &c. From this it appears, that ambassadors or the servants of the Lord, are to be sent from this land to the nations of the earth; but the idea of their being transported over the sea in "vessels of Bulrushes," is a novel affair indeed; however, it is probable that the prophet did not intend to convey any such idea. The Hebrew word gomey which is here rendered bulrushes, has at least three significations; the first, is to drink or swallow hastily; the second, is to impress; it is also a general name for certain species of the vegetable kingdom, such as reeds, bulrushes, and papyrus. But in my opinion the second import of the word should be used; for it makes the passage read intelligibly, and seems to convey the intended idea of the prophet. Job speaking of the war horse, says, as it is translated in the bible: "He (yegomey) swalloweth the ground with the fierceness of his rage:" (Job. 39:24.) a horse does not swallow the ground; therefore, it should be rendered, "he impresseth the ground" that is, he maketh pits in the earth with his feet, deep impressions or tracks with his hoof, by which he prevents any retrograde motion; but rusheth or propels himself forward with force, and great velocity; therefore, it is certainly more sensible to read the above, "vessels impressing the face of the waters," instead of "vessels of bulrushes:" for it is not probable that vessels will ever be made of such material to escort the servants of God over the sea.

Indeed, does not the prophet aptly describe our steamvessels or ships: for it is by the action of the wheels upon the water, that propels the vessel swiftly forward; or in other words, the prophet saw in vision swift running, or rushing vessels, that move speedily [page 121] along against the wind and tide. If this is not the meaning of the prophet, then it certainly should be translated "vessels of papyrus." Historians say, that papyrus, is a flaggy shrub that grows in the marshes about the river Nile; the roots and body of it, were anciently used for fuel, and sometimes for timber, for ships or vessels, (such as were used in early times;) the bark was used as a substitute for paper, (which was not then invented,) for weaving apparel, and for ropes and sails for ships; hence, as the prophet saw our land with all the modern improvements; and also, our majestic maritime vessels, with all their sails spread, and the servants of God on board, he called them vessels of papyrus, perhaps, for the want of a better term; for he had probably seen vessels that were propelled by the action of the wind upon papyrus canvass, and those which he saw in vision, resembled them more than any others that he had ever beheld. Either one of the foregoing explanations, makes the subject perfectly plain; but for my own part I prefer the former.

This certainly alludes to the Jews or house of Israel, who were a powerful people at their beginning; but since that, they have been scattered among the nations, and in a manner trodden down. "All the inhabitants of the world, and dwellers on the earth, see ye, when He lifteth up an ENSIGN upon the mountains," &c. An ensign is a flag or banner having on it figures, and emblematical representations of the nation to which it belongs: for instance, when the noble patriots of America, declared themselves a free and independent people, they hoisted an ensign, upon which was inscribed an appropriate motto, which they carried with them into the field of battle, where they manfully maintained their cause. This ensign was a new one; hence, it signified, that a new nation had, or was just in the act of taking its place in rank of political governments. Therefore, this ensign of [page 122] the Lord, implies nothing more nor less, than His kingdom established on this land, figuratively speaking, with its flag, the banner of truth or the gospel, held up to the world, which plainly indicates, not only its character, but shows that God has established a rallying point for His people: or in short, as the prophetic vision rolled before the prophet's mind, he saw the establishment of the kingdom of God in the latter-days upon this continent, from whence the servants of the Lord shall go, and proclaim the fullness of the everlasting gospel to all the nations of the earth. This corresponds with my previous dissertation upon what Daniel says about the "stone of the mountain." Mr. Jackson a Jew by birth, and an excellent Hebrew scholar, and also the editor of a periodical called "The Jew," says, while discoursing upon this vision of Isaiah, that the work of God, will commence in America, that will ultimately effect the restoration of the house of Israel, and prepare the way for the appearance of the Messiah. And to me, the subject is perfectly plain; therefore, I set it down as a fact, which is incontrovertible, that the Lord has foretold by Isaiah, that he would first organize His kingdom in the latter-days upon this land.

The prophet after speaking of this ensign, illustrates by figures, the awful destruction, and calamity that will come upon the wicked soon after this kingdom is organized, and the messengers or servants of the Lord are sent to the nations, which harmonizes with what John says, in the latter part of the xiv chap. of his Revelation. The prophet concludes by saying, that a people that were "scattered and trodden down," shall be brought to Zion, for a present to the Lord.

Isaiah speaks of this ensign in another place thus "And He will lift up an ensign to the nations from far, and will hiss unto them from the end of the earth: and, behold they shall come with speed swiftly." (Is. 5:26.) The reader will see, by an [page 123] examination of the context, that the above is a latter-day work, which is evident from the fact, the ensign is to be first raised, and then the work that is to follow immediately after, is the gathering of the house of Israel from their dispersed condition. But it is evident, that the prophet does not allude to any ensign, that ever was, or will be, first lifted up at Jerusalem: for this reason, he says it was to be lifted up "from far," that is, upon some distant land. He certainly would not have said this of anything that was to transpire in his own neighborhood.

Thus far I have commented upon the evidence, that I have presented, upon somewhat of an extensive scale, in order to settle the question with regard to the place where the kingdom of God of the last days, was to be established, and thus to lay a good foundation for my argument; but hereafter, I shall comment upon the testimony in a more general way. Indeed, a prospect of more volubility than I desire at present, admonishes me to pursue this course.

In order for the reader to comprehend or understand, the various passages of scripture which I shall hereafter insert as evidence, he should bear in mind one important fact, which is, that when Christ made His appearance the first time, He did not gather the Israelites that were then dispersed, neither did He restore the kingdom to them. Although, the most sanguine expectation of the Jews, and even of the apostles at the onset of their calling, was that He would do it; but the Jews as a nation rejected Him, after which He said to them: "How oft would I have gathered you, as a hen gather her chickens under her wings, and ye would not." "Behold, your house shall be left unto you desolate." "Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord." Instead, of gathering them at that time, He transfered His spiritual kingdom to the Gentiles; but said of the Jews: "They shall fall by the [page 124] edge of the sword, and shall be led captive into all nations, and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled." The apostles interrogated Him thus: "Lord wilt thou at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?" His answer was: "It is not for you to know the times and seasons, which the Father has put in His own power." This shows that the apostles were not called to go and gather Israel; therefore, all the predictions of the prophets that relates to their general restoration, and the re-establishment of the kingdom with them, were not fulfilled in the days of the apostles; but will be in the latter-days.--But I must hasten.

Isaiah in the xi chap. of his prophecy, is very plain upon this subject; after speaking of the triumphant appearance of Christ, he says, that the wolf and the lamb shall dwell together, the lion eat straw like the ox, and that nothing shall hurt or destroy in all the Lord's holy mountain; also that the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea. He then tells how all this shall be brought about, which is as follows: "And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and His rest shall be glorious." The servants of the Lord will proclaim to all nations, that Christ is the Saviour of mankind, and that He is the founder of this kingdom that I have been speaking about; therefore, they will hold Him up as an ensign, to all the world, and many out of all nations, will be inducted into this kingdom, and thus place themselves under His protection.

The prophet thus proceeds: "And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set His hand the second time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shiner, and from Hamath, and [page 125] from the Islands of the sea. And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth." We know when the Lord set His hand the first time to establish His people upon their land; but the question is, when did or will He, do it the second time? It certainly was not done at the return of the Jews from the Babylonish captivity, because they were not then gathered "from the four corners of the earth;" neither were the outcasts, or ten tribes of Israel, who were taken away as captives by Shalmaneser king of Assyria, and located in the cities of the Medes, restored at that time: for Josephus, who flourished sometime after the birth of Christ, says they had not then returned. And we know that He did not do it, at the commencement of the Christian dispensation: for He pronounced a woe upon them, and their city; and also said, they should be carried captive into all nations; therefore, the above must be received as a prediction of the establishment of the kingdom. of God, and gathering of Israel in the last days. Indeed, the fact that it is to immediately precede the happy day of rest or Millenium, when the knowledge of God shall cover the earth, establishes this idea beyond doubt.

The following shows that in the execution of this majestic work, mighty miracles will be performed: "And the Lord shall utterly destroy the tongue of the Egyptian sea; and with His mighty wind shall He shake His hand over the river, and smite it in the seven streams, and make men go over dry shod. And there shall be an highway for the remnant of His people, which shall be left, from Assyria; like, as it was to Israel in the day that He came up out of the land of Egypt."

But says one, if the Latter-day Saints, are called of God to assist in the performance of the above work, why not go to the Israelites immediately with this boon of consolation, [page 126] and not disturb the quiet of the Gentiles, who are so prejudiced against it? The following serves as an answer to this: "Thus saith the Lord God, behold, I will lift my hand to the Gentiles, and set up my standard to the people; and they shall bring thy sons in their arms, and thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders." (Is. 49:22.) It will be seen from the context, that the prophet is here speaking of the work, that is to effect the restoration of Israel. Indeed, the whole chapter is most sublime, and positive upon this important subject. But according to the above quotation, the Lord was to first lift up His hand to the Gentiles; or in other words, He was to organize His kingdom among them. The idea is, that it was to be vice versa from what it was at the opening of the Christian dispensation, whereas then, the work was commenced among the Jews, that is, Christ called His apostles from among them, offered to give them the kingdom, sent His disciples to preach the gospel to them; and in a word, He lifted up His ensign to them; but they refused to rally around it, or to enlist in His cause; therefore, it was taken to the Gentiles, who were ultimately benefited by it: for said Paul: "Seeing ye count yourselves unworthy of eternal life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles." But the Lord was to commence His work of the last days among the Gentiles, raise up servants, and send them to all the nations, to preach the gospel, and warn them of the important events that are to immediately transpire; and as soon as this is done, He will send His servants to the scattered tribes of Israel, and thus they will be brought to a knowledge of the truth, and ultimately restored to their legal inheritance, and thus be benefited by this work, which is agreeable to what our Saviour said: "The first shall be last, and the last first."

There is no necessity for anything more positive than the following: "Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the [page 127] Lord, that it shall no more be said, the Lord liveth that brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; but, the Lord liveth that brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north, and from all the lands whither He had driven them: and I will bring them again into their land that I gave unto their fathers. Behold, I will send for many fishers, saith the Lord, and they shall fish them; and after will I send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks." (Je. 16:1416) So great and majestic will be the work of the Lord, and so marvellous the deliverance of the house of Israel, that they, in order to extol the power of God, will not refer to His works and miracles, that He performed when He delivered them from Egyptian bondage; but to the power and majesty, that He will display in restoring them from the north country, and all parts of the earth. The fishers and hunters, alluded to, are certainly the servants of God; and mark, they are to be called, and sent by Him, and not by men.

Peter while preaching to the Jews, alluded to this important work in the following words: "Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; and He shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: whom the heaven must receive [retain] until the times of the restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began." (Ac. 3:19-21) It appears from this, that just before Christ comes the second time, He will commence the work of restoration. In the apostolic age, the Jews were dispersed; but just before Christ comes, they shall be gathered together again. The church has apostatized, and thus corrupted the priesthood; but the prophets that Peter refers to, have said that it should be re- [page 128] stored; or in other words, they have predicted that which implies it. Indeed, I infer from the above, that Peter was aware that God would do a great work in the latter-days; and also, that Christ shall come at the time this work of restoration is going on, and finish it.

Paul speaks of this work thus: "Wherein He hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence; having made known unto us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He hath purposed in Himself that in the dispensation of the fulness of times, He might gather together in one, all things in Christ, both which are in the heaven and which are on earth, in Him." (Ep. 1:8-10) I presume by this time, the reader has no doubt but that God has yet a majestic work to perform, a portion of which is to gather all His saints together, from all parts of the world; therefore, admitting the apostle alludes to the gospel dispensation, and as he knew, there would be a general "falling away;" consequently, he must refer to the renewal of it, that the great work of God may be carried into execution: and it will be remembered, that the Latter-Day Saints, do not contend for something altogether new in this respect; but for a renewal of the above dispensation.

I have now arrived to the proper place for the introduction of the subject of the Book of Mormon, that is, the evidence by which it is sustained; a synopsis of which, I intend to give. And although, it is inseparably connected with the subject, that the attention of the reader has latterly been called to; but not being partial to long chapters, I close this one here, and shall commence a new one with the above subject.

The subject of the "Book of Mormon," or the evidence by which it is sustained, is immediately connected with the one that is briefly discoursed upon in the preceding chapter; therefore, in this I only continue the subject, in order to give the reader a correct, and general idea of the majestic work that the Lord has promised to perform in the latter-days.

It would be unreasonable for me to attempt, to present to the reader all the evidence that there is to sustain the authenticity of this Book, in the narrow space that I have in this work to devote to it: for it would require volumes larger than this to contain it; therefore, I shall only present in a very brief manner, some of the most important parts of it.--But I will first give a historical sketch of the manner in which it was discovered; of what people it is a history, and of the doctrine it inculcated.

This Book was discovered to Mr. Joseph Smith, about A.D., 1827, by the agency of an angel: from this to 1830, he [page 130] occupied a good portion of his time in translating it, in which year it was published to the world. It contains a history of a people that were Israelites of the tribe of Joseph, who emigrated from Jerusalem to this continent about six hundred years before Christ. The account runs thus. A short time before the Babylonish captivity, the Lord commanded a man by the name of Lehi, who was a righteous or just person, to lead his own family, and another one by the name of Ishmael, out of Jerusalem, promising them, that He would direct them to a choice and good land. This command was obeyed, and the company at length reached the shore of the ocean, where they were directed by the Lord to build a ship of sufficient dimensions to transport them over the sea. After every thing was made ready, they set sail, and in a reasonable length of time, they safely landed upon this land. Lehi had several sons; but soon after they came here a separation took place between them, and in process of time they became two powerful nations, who were called Lamanites and Nephites; the former took their name from Laman the eldest son of Lehi; and the latter, from Nephi his third son. The Lamanites were a stubborn and warlike people, and of a roving disposition; the present aborigines of this continent, are their progeny. The Nephites were agriculturists, and a civilized people, who built splendid cities; and also, large temples and spacious edifices, in which they held public worship. The remains of these cities and temples, are to be seen in Central America, and elsewhere, in both the north and south parts of the continent; the discovery of which has excited the curiosity and astonishment of the learned so much of late.

The Nephites at times were faithful to God, at others, they were rebellious. The Book of Mormon, is an abridgement of the writings of the prophets, and good men of this people, and gives an account of their religion, some of their revelations, their wars with the Lamanites, and also their final [page 131] overthrow as a nation. But the manner in which this book was preserved, is as follows.

In the latter part of the fourth century, the Nephites began to rapidly degenerate into apostacy, and the Lord foreseeing their final destruction, commanded Mormon, who was one of their prophets, to collect together the sacred writings of their former prophets, and to compile them, and engrave an abridgement of them upon metalic plates or tablets, (which was the material they used for writing upon). He however, was slain by his enemies before the completion of this work; consequently, it fell into the hands of his son Moroni, who saw the entire destruction of the Nephites by the hands of the Lamanties; and also finished writing or engraving this work, and then prepared a safe and convenient place, in which he deposited it with the expectation, and indeed, with a promise from the Lord, that it should be brought to light in the latter-days, for an important purpose.

This record was deposited in an archive prepared for it on a hill that was anciently called Cumora, now in the township of Manchester, Ontario county, New York; where it remained in safety, until it was discovered to Mr. Smith, as I have already mentioned, who translated it into the English language, by the means of the Urim and Thummim, (a similar instrument to the one that is mentioned in the former part of this work,) and the power of God. For other particulars concerning the manner in which this Book has been brought before the public, I refer the reader to the Book itself, and other works in which an elaborate account of the whole transaction is given.

This Book contains no new code of morals nor any new gospel or doctrine; but in this respect perfectly harmonizes with the bible. It however, contains several prophecies concerning the work of the Lord in the latter-days, that are new and interesting to us, yet they do not conflict with the bible. [page 132] The historical part of it, differs from that of the bible, because it is a history of a different nation or branch of the house of Israel.

The utility of this Book, or rather, the objects, the Lord had in view in bringing it to light, are as follow. First, it reveals or brings to light many important things that were before hid in the labyrinth of mystery and darkness, which will help to fill up the library of sacred intelligence, that is to deluge the earth, as the water does the sea. Secondly, it reveals an important fact, which is that the aborigines of this continent are Israelites, so that when the fishers and hunters, that Jeremiah mentions, are sent to gather Israel, may know that they are a branch of this people. Isaiah says, that when the Lord shall make an everlasting covenant with the house of Israel: "Their seed shall be known among the Gentiles, and their offspring among the people: and all that see them shall acknowledge them, that they are the seed that the Lord hath blessed." (Is. 61:8, 9) Many of the Israelites are mixed with the Gentiles; therefore, how are they to be designated, so that the Gentiles shall know that they are of that race? I reply, that the only way of doing it, is by revelation from the Lord. Indeed, the Book of Mormon, is intended to be of particular benefit to the Red men of the forest: for it will in the due time of the Lord, be taken to them; and thus they shall have a knowledge of their origin, and many prophecies that relate to their conversion, which with the attendant power of God, will have a most desirable effect upon them, and cause them to lay down their weapons of warfare, and to engage in the service of God. Thirdly, this Book contains the testimony of a nation or people that inhabited this land, who affirm that Christ is the Son of God or true Messiah. This people at the time this testimony was written, were secluded from the oriental nations, without any means of communication, which [page 133] rendered it impossible for them to form any collusion; therefore, as the Book of Mormon is well authenticated, by not only scriptural and internal evidence, but by the testimony of thousands of living witnesses, who are persons of undoubted veracity, when the servants of God go to Israel, and even to the heathen nations that do not believe in Christ, it will be of great service to them, because it and the bible contain the testimony of two nations widely separated from each other, agreeing to one thing, and that is, to the truth of the Christian religion: "By the mouth of two or three witnesses, shall every word he established." Certainly, the testimony of two nations, is better than one, especially when they perfectly agree. In a word, the effect that this Book is intended to have, is this, it is to be an instrument in the hand of God, to convince Israel, and others, that Christ is the true Messiah, and to cause Zion's watchmen to see eye to eye, and all the honest followers of Christ to believe, know, see, and practice alike. And any person, who says that a belief in it tends to, or even does, have any other effect upon its advocates than the above, shamefully misrepresents it. Other causes may influence individuals to do wrong; but such causes, are abstract from the bible, or Book of Mormon.

The following are the principal objections that are urged against this work; first, that it contains a new gospel; but every person that has ever read this Book, knows this to be false; therefore, it is no objection, because it is founded upon nothing but an imagination. Secondly, that the bible contains all the revelations, and inspired writings that God ever intended the human family should have; or in other words, that the canon of the scriptures is full; therefore, we need no more. This idea, is one of the greatest pieces of ignorance and bigotry, that pretended Christians, have ever favoured us with. Whoever has carefully read the scriptures, knows that the prophets, and apostles, refer to several inspired books [page 134] that are not in the bible; such, for instance, as the Book of Gad the Seer, of Nathan the prophet, of Shemeiah the prophet, Visions of Iddo the Seer, &c., &c. Indeed, if we credit the scriptures, we must believe that God never gave any unnecessary revelations, and also, that but a portion of them have been perpetuatad to us; therefore, the idea that the bible contains all the sacred writings that God intends His people shall ever possess, is only fit for a bigot to amuse a silly multitudes with. Thirdly, it is argued from the following, that no revelations were to be given after the days of the apostles: "For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, if any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book." (Re. 22:18.) John only refers to his Book of Revelation, and not to the bible: for at this time, the New Testament writings were not compiled; and it is probable he had never seen them all. If he by this expression debarred God of the privilege of giving a revelation, or any person of the right of receiving one, and of writing by inspiration, then the curse must have fallen upon himself; for it is a historical fact, that he wrote his three Epistles, and Gospel, after this. But if we adopt this as a rule by which we reject all revelations, and inspired writings after John, then by the same rule, we must discard nearly all the bible: for both Moses and Soloman, have given a similar commandment. (See De. 4:2: and Pro. 30:6.) The Book of Mormon, is no addition to John's Revelation; but like any other book, it is independant by itself; therefore, it does not in the least conflict with John. Certainly, there are no reasonable objections against this Book to be found: men may fancy them; but they are instantaneously put to flight, when the brilliancy of truth is brought to bear upon them, like the rebellious rabble before the mighty host of warriors.

[page 135] Now the contents of this Book, are not so much objected to, as the miraculous manner in which it was brought to light, and indeed, this is the uniform objection that has ever been urged against all the great and marvellous works of God: for it is the disposition of man, to credit a thing so far as God has nothing to do with it; but when it borders on the miraculous, then it becomes odious to him: for this reason, the Greek philosophers regarded the idea of the resurrection of Christ as foolishness. Again, the Jews at times found no particular difficulty in believing in the prophets, and their testimony, who were dead and gone; but with wanton cruelty, they oppressed, and persecuted those that were cotemporary with them. Christ and His disciples were dispised in their day; but now it is a disgrace not to believe in them. But if God should send an apostle or prophet, to the Christian world in this our day, he would meet with scorn, and abuse from every quarter. Indeed, if the apostle Paul who has so many fine chapels and churches named after him, should disguise his person, appear and preach the same doctrine, believe in immediate revelation, the administration of angels, exhort the people to contend for the same spiritual gifts, and to earnestly contend for the same faith, in our own times, that he did in his day, he would be denied the privilege of even standing upon their steps, much. less in their fine pulpits, to proclaim his sentiments.

Again, we are very apt to say that God done many marvellous works some thousands of years ago, and will perhaps, do the like at some period hence; but nothing of the kind in our day or generation. But why not these things be done in our time, if the occasion calls for them, as well as before or after? Reader, let us lay aside all our bigotry, our superstition, our prejudice, our creeds, our delusions, our sectarianism, our fears, our unbelief, and our partyisms, and thus untrammel our sober senses, and then, under the con- [page 136] sideration that God is the same in all ages, our reply to the above question will be, that it is just as reasonable for us to believe that God will do such things now as at any other time, and that a belief in the present, an immediate performance of these things, should be no more diffcult for our capacities to digest than in those past or future. But now add to this the incontestible fact, that God has foretold by His prophets that in the latter-days, He would do a miraculous or majestic work, and where is any room left for doubt.--But now for the evidence by which this work is sustained, a synopsis of which, I intend to give.

Now the most important class of evidence by which the authenticity of this work is established, is the predictions of the prophets, relative to a thing of the kind. When we succeed in adducing an overwhelming amount of testimony of this character, then all that will remain to be authenticated, is whether or not this Book, is the one the prophets allude to, or a forgery, which can only be determined by its effects, also by circumstances, its internal evidence, and the testimony of living witnesses; when all these return a verdict in its favour, then it is established beyond successful contradiction, and entitled to the full confidence of the community. But slander, sarcasm, disgusting epithets, shameful misrepresentation, traducing of character, persecution, mobs, wanton denunciations from the pulpit, the cry of delusion, fanaticism, Mormonism, false prophets, and imposture, is no argument to countermand anything that is sustained by the above evidence.--But I must hasten.

In order to sustain the authenticity of this Book, I shall first prove that America was inhabited by a civilized nation more than a thousand years ago; secondly, that this people together with the Indians of the forest, were and are, the progeny of Joseph; thirdly, that it was not only their privilege to receive revelations from the Lord and write them, but [page 137] that they did do it; fourthly, that these sacred writings were to be preserved, and be brought forth by the power of God, and be instrumental in commencing His great work, which shall affect the restoration of the house of Israel.

The recent discoveries of American antiquities, such as the remains of once splendid cities, spacious temples and edifices, and extensive quantity of hieroglyphics, catacombs, obelisks, acquaducts, viaducts, &c., &c., is sufficient to convince any rational person that a nation existed upon this continent anterior to its discovery by Columbus, who were enlightened, and understood arts and sciences to no inconsiderable extent; however, this is a matter of public notoriety, and admitted by all the learned of the age. A celebrated writer, speaking of the antiquity of one of these cities that lies near Palenque, remarks: "In surveying its ruins, the traveller is led to believe that it was founded at as early a period as the renowned cities of Egypt." "The antiquity of this city is manifest not only from its nameless hieroglyphics and other objects; but from the age of some of the trees growing over the buildings where once the hum of industry and voice of merriment were heard. The concentric circles of some of these trees were counted, which showed that they were more than nine hundred years of age." Again, if this people possessed the power, or understood the art of writing their thoughts, it is quite probable that they wrote a history of their national affairs, if not of their religion.-But I shall now show that they were Israelites.

The reader will doubtless remember that it was customary with the ancient patriarchs previous to their death, to collect their children together, and lay their hands upon them, and bless them with a patriarchal blessing, and predict what was to befall them, and their posterity in future ages. For this purpose, Jacob collected his twelve sons around him, and blessed them as above; but when he placed his hands upon [page 138] Joseph's head, he said: "Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a well, whose branches run over the wall: The archers have sorely grieved him, and shot at him, and hated him; but his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob; (from thence is the shepherd, the stone of Israel:) Even by the God of thy father who shall help thee; and by the Almighty, who shall bless thee with blessings of heaven above, blessings of the deep that lieth under, blessings of the breast and of the womb: the blessings of thy father have prevailed above the blessings of my progenitors, unto the utmost bound of the everlasting hills: they shall be on the head of Joseph, and on the crown of the head of him that was separated from his brethren." (Ge. 49:22-26) It must be admitted that this blessing relates to a temporal inheritance, as well as to the blessing of heaven; but we will examine it specifically; first, Joseph was to be like a bough by a well and his branches or posterity were to run over the wall. This is a comparison to show the fruitfulness of Joseph, and that his branches should become numerous, and extend over some supposed limits or given boundary; but match with this what David says about Joseph, whom he also, compares to a vine, and it makes the subject plain. "Thou prepardest room before it, and didst cause it to take deep root, and it filled the land. The hills were covered with the shadow of it, and the boughs thereof were like goodly cedars; she sent out her boughs unto the sea, and her branches into the river." (Ps. 80:9-11) From this we learn that the tribe of Joseph, after they were located in the land of Canaan, were to increase to an astonishing rate, and their branches to extend beyond the given boundary of their inheritance in that land, and reach unto the sea; also that his blessing prevailed above or was greater, and reached beyond the blessing of Jacob's ancestors, who [page 139] were Abraham, and Isaac, and the inheritance they ceded to him as a blessing, was the land of Canaan. Indeed, it is abundantly evident that Joseph, was to have a land, not only beyond Canaan, but one larger than it is. Furthermore, his blessing, or rather his branches in fulfilment of it the above, were to extend to the utmost bound or most distant hills, (of course from where Jacob then stood.) Thus we discover, that the branches of Joseph were to extend, or emigrate to the most distant hills of the earth. The foregoing is a prophetic history of Joseph's progeny, which traces them to Canaan where they became numerous, and from thence, branches of them extended to the most distant part of the earth, where they have inhabited the land, that Jacob promised them, which is even greater than that which was given to him by his fathers.

Now this prophecy must apply to America, its ancient inhabitants, and present aborigines; for the most obvious reason, it cannot be with any propriety applied any where else. But we will now turn back to the xlviii chap. of Genesis, in which we shall find something that is still more positive. Jacob blessed Joseph's sons, and thus predicted what should happen to them or their posterity in future ages: "And now thy two sons Ephraim and Manasseh," "are mine: as Reuben and Simeon, they shall be mine." "And Israel stretched out his right hand, and laid it upon Ephraim's head, who was the younger, and his left hand upon Manasseh's head, guiding his hands wittingly." "And he blessed Joseph and said," "the angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name be named on them and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth." "And Joseph said unto his father, not so, my father; for this is the first born; put thy right hand upon his head. And his father refused, and said, I know it, my son, I know [page 140] it: he also shall become a people, and he also shall be great; but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his seed shall become a multitude of nations." When we put the sense of the above together, we discover that Ephraim and Manassah, were to grow into a multitude of nations in the midst of the earth. Now let the learned search from one extremity of the earth to the other, to find where this prophecy has been fulfilled, and when they are done, they will be obliged to admit that nothing of the kind ever transpired upon any part of the Old world. Indeed, Jacob aptly describes the present condition of the American Indians: for they are divided into several hundred different tribes or nations; in a word, they are a multitude of nations in the midst of the earth.

It is said in the v. chap. of 1 Chro., that in consequence of the transgression of Reuben, the birth-right fell to the sons of Joseph; therefore, Jacob named his name upon them, commit them to the charge of his guardian angel, and conferred the greatest blessing upon them, with regard to a temporal inheritance; and certainly, under the consideration that Joseph was to have a land even larger than Canaan at the extremity of the earth, is not the evidence conclusive, that this delightful land, is a land of promise to the progeny of Joseph.

Moses while blessing this tribe, or rather while prophecying concerning them, says; "Blessed of the Lord be his land, for the precious things of heaven, and for the precious fruits of the earth," &c. (De. 33:13-17) The prophet Hosea speaking of the children of Ephraim says: "When the Lord shall roar, they shall tremble from the west." (He. 11:10.) This at once settles the point that the Ephramites were to inhabit a land somewhere west of Palestine; but we cannot find them in any age to a multitude of nations, either in Europe or Africa; hence, the [page 141] rational conclusion must follow, which is that the foregoing predictions relate to a branch of the tribe of Joseph upon this continent.

Christ said on a certain occasion: "I am not sent, but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel." This shows that His mission in person was exclusively to the Israelites. But with a view of executing it, He said at another time: "And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd." (Jne. 10:16.) Some suppose that this alludes to the preaching of the gospel to the Gentiles; but this cannot be: for this reason, Christ was to visit the people that He alluded to in person, and they were to hear His voice. The Book of Mormon accounts for this singular declaration by recording the fact, that Christ after His resurrection, visited the people upon this continent, proclaimed to them the same gospel that He did to the Jews, commissioned individuals to preach it to the people throughout the land, and to establish His church. Thus the people upon this land, and the primitive Christians of the Old world, had one universal fold, and but one shepherd. One of the prophets, while speaking of the glorious effects of the work of the Lord in the latter-days, says: "From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia my suppliants, even the daughter of my dispersed, shall bring mine offering." (Zeph. 3:10.) In the preceding chapter, we settled the point with regard to the land that lies beyond the rivers of Ethiopia; therefore, I only add, that the above alludes to the Israelites upon this continent.--But according to promise, I will now prove that the above people received revelations from the Lord.

Paul said in his discourse to the Athenians "And [God] hath made of one blood all nations of men, for to dwell on all the face of the earth, (of course America not [page 142] excepted;) and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; that they should seek the Lord, if happily they might feel after Him, and find Him though He be not far from every one of us." (Ac. 17:26, 27) It is plain from this, that it is the privilege of all nations to seek after the Lord, and find Him, or to receive immediate information from Him. But I again cite the reader to Jacob's prediction concerning the posterity of Joseph, in which he said, that God would bless them with the blessings of heaven. Moses makes a similar declaration, which must allude, to the Spirit of prophecy, and other Spiritual blessings which they were to receive. The gospel is certainly a precious thing from heaven.

Now if this people received the Spirit of prophecy, it was their privilege to write their predictions, which they most certainly did do: for Hosea, speaking of the Ephraimites by the Spirit of prophecy, says: "I have written to him the great things of my law; but they were counted as a strange thing." (He. 8:12.) This is indeed very plain--as I have before observed, the Book of Mormon is intended to particularly benefit the Ephraimites or aborigines of this continent; and it is surely regarded as a very strange thing. But, admitting this people had a sacred record as I have before intimated, the question now is, whether or not it was to be preserved and brought to light in the last days? David says: "The words of the Lord are pure words; as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. Thou shalt keep them, 0 Lord, thou shalt preserve them from this generation forever." (Ps. 7:6, 7)

The following is definite: Ezekiel after describing a vision that he had of the resurrection of the dead, commences a new subject by saying: "The word of the Lord came again unto me, saying, moreover thou son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, for Judah, and for the children of [page 143] Israel his companions: then take another stick and write upon it, for Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and for all the house of Israel his companions: and join them one to another into one stick; and they shall become one in thine hand: and when the children of thy people shall speak unto thee, saying, wilt thou not show us what thou meanest by these? I say unto them, thus saith the Lord God, behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his fellows, and will put them with him, even with the stick of Judah, and they shall be one in mine hand." (Eze. 37:15-19.) In order to understand the above, the reader should keep in mind, that the prophet in several of the preceding chapters wholly dwells upon the subject of the restoration of Israel, and the ushering in of the Millennium; but in this, he tells how it was to commence.--First, he was commanded to present to his brethren two sticks with writings upon them, one for Judah, and the other for Joseph in the hands of Ephraim; and when we consider that it was an, ancient custom of the Jews to write their works upon parchments, and roll them upon sticks, we conclude that these must be regarded as samples which represent two important books or writings. Then follows the prediction, which explains the matter. "Thus saith the Lord God; behold, I will take the stick of Joseph which is in the hand of Ephraim, and place it with the stick of Judah and they shall become one in mine hand." The stick of Judah evidently stands for the bible, and that of Joseph for the Book of Mormon; and mark, the latter was to be brought forth by the power of God, and placed with the former. In a word, this Book has been brought to light, in exact fulfilment of this prophecy, and is one, or agrees with the bible, as far as testimony to important truths and doctrine, is concerned.

[page 144] The prophet continues the subject as follows: "Thus saith the Lord God, behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land: And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all, and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms, any more at all." Indeed, it is plain from this, that the union of the two sticks or books, was to be the commencement of the work, that will ultimately effect the gathering of Israel. How completely this agrees with all that is said, in the preceding chapter.--The stone of the mountain was to commence its motion upon this land. The ensign of the Lord was to be raised here, His kingdom organized, and His ambassadors or messengers were also to be sent from the same place. This Book, as I infer from the foregoing, was to come forth here at the commencement of this majestic work of God, and be an instrument in His hand, to do much towards the accomplishment of His purposes. Surely, all these prophecies form a connected chain of testimony that cannot be broken, for all agree to one thing.--But more of this hereafter.

It is plain from what Ezekiel says in the latter part of the above chapter, that this is a work of the last days; for he says, that when Israel are gathered, one king shall rule over them, and that they shall never be divided or dispersed again, neither shall they sin nor defile themselves any more forever; also that God shall make an everlasting covenant with them, and that His tabernacle and sanctuary shall be in the midst of them forever more. Certainly, no intelligent person will pretend to say all of this has been fulfilled.

David while speaking of the restoration of the house of Israel, thus observes: "Mercy and truth are met together, righteousness and peace have kissed each other. Truth [page 145] shall spring out of the earth; and righteousness shall look down from heaven. Yea, the Lord shall give that which is good: and our land shall yield her increase. Righteousness shall go before Him, and shall set us in the way of His steps." (Ps. 85:1013) Christ said: "Sanctify them through thy truth, thy word is truth;" thus the word of the Lord and truth are synonymous; therefore, we learn from the above that truth was to spring up out of the earth, and heaven at the same time be propitious: and that which was to immediately follow, is the setting of Israel in the way of the Lord's steps. In short, in the above, the Psalmist aptly describes the Book of Mormon.

We will now turn to the xxix chap. of Isaiah, which is certainly very conclusive upon this important subject.--He first speaks of the destruction of Jerusalem, which he uses as a comparison to show what awful calamities, and judgments, will come upon the nations that fight against Zion: (he here alludes to the Zion of the latter-days.) He then describes the condition the of Jews and Gentiles, after the above destruction, down to this day, thus: "Stay yourselves and wonder, cry ye out, and cry: they are drunken, but not with wine; they stagger, but not with strong drink. For the Lord hath poured out upon you the spirit of deep sleep, and hath closed your eyes: the prophets and your rulers, the sears hath He covered." This is a very accurate description of the condition of both the Jews and Gentiles at the present time. They are drunk with their own folly, and superstition, they also deny immediate revelation or inspiration; therefore, the Lord has ceased to raise up prophets among them, and in a word, a spiritual darkness hovers over them, comparatively like that of Egypt, or as the prophet says: "Darkness covers the earth, and gross darkness the people." But in the midst of this darkness, or rather at the time it reigned so pre- [page 146] dominant, this astonishing Book was to be brought forth, as follows: "And the vision of all is become unto you as the words of a book that is sealed which men deliver to one that is learned, saying read this, I pray thee: and he saith, I cannot for it is sealed: and the book is delivered to him that is not learned, saying read this, I pray thee: and he saith, I am not learned. Wherefore the Lord said, forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouths, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their hearts far from me, (this has been a common complaint against the Jews, not only in the days of Christ but ever since,) and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men: therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a marvelous work among this people, even a marvelous work and a wonder: for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid." All that I have to say about the above prediction, is that the Book of Mormon has been brought to light in exact fulfillment of it, and that it is the commencement of a marvellous, and wonderful work of God, which shall produce the following astonishing effects. The deaf shall hear the words of this Book, the blind shall see out of obscurity and darkness; the meek shall increase their joy in the Lord, and the poor among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel;" the house of Israel are to be redeemed or converted to the Lord, so that they shall "sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and fear the God of Israel:" and to crown the climax, this Book is to cause "those that err in spirit to come to understanding, and those that murmur to learn doctrine."

Any person who will carefully read the Book of Mormon, will find internal evidence, (I mean positive predictions that are being fulfilled daily,) that is sufficient to entitle it to the credit of the most incredulous. But for the testimony of living witnesses, I refer the reader to the latter part of the Book itself, where you will find as definite an affirma- [page 147] tion to the truth of the work, as the prophets and apostles ever made in attestation of the important truths which they proclaimed.

Soon after this Book was discovered, the Lord sent His angel with the Holy priesthood, which was conferred upon Mr. Smith, and 0. Cowdery who as a scribe assisted in the work of translation: they immediately baptized each other, and also others that believed the work. On the sixth day of April, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and thirty, the church, which then consisted of but six members, was organized. Some of these were ordained to the ministry, who immediately commenced proclaiming the fulness of the everlasting gospel, baptizing, and organizing branches of the church. Indeed, the work commenced to spread rapidly, and has continued to do so ever since, and thousands have been gathered into the fold of Christ, not only in the United States; but in the Canadas, England, Scotland, Ireland, Germany, and elsewhere.

As soon as the church was organized as above, the Lord began to bestow His Holy Spirit upon the faithful; and some were blessed with the ministry of angels, others had heavenly visions, the sick were healed, and evil spirits cast out by faith in the name of Christ. Indeed, the Lord has not only restored the priesthood; but the gifts of the Spirit, and blessings of the gospel of peace.

As respects the officers of the church,--I will here say, that they correspond in every particular with those of primitive times; and in a word, God has restored the ancient order of His kingdom, and commenced to prepare the way for His second advent.--But as prophetic declarations concerning the establishment of Zion for the Millennium abound throughout the scriptures, I deem it prudent to make a few observations upon the same, in order to do honour to the cause of God, and to connect the subject-matter of my history together.

[page 148] The Psalmist says: "Thou shalt arise, and have mercy upon Zion: for the time to favour her, yea the set time, is come. For thy servants take pleasure in her stones, and the favour of the dust thereof." "When the Lord shall build up Zion, he shall appear in His glory." "This shall be written for the generation to come, and the people which shall be created shall praise the Lord." (Ps. 102:13-18) The Mount Zion at Jerusalem, was in existence at the time David wrote this psalm; therefore, he must refer to some other zion besides it; for the appearance of the Lord in His glory is yet in the future. Christ speaks of His coming in great glory, and with His angels, at the end of the world. John, while speaking of things he saw in the future, says: "I saw the Lamb of God standing, upon Mount Zion with a hundred and-forty-four thousand of His saints," &c.: and mark David says, "when the Lord shall build up Zion, He shall appear in His glory;" hence I contend that he alludes to a Zion to be built up just before Christ comes. The saying, "this shall be written for a generation to come," &c., carroborates this idea. David, speaking of this city in another place, says: "Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is Mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King." (Ps. 48:2.) Again, he speaks of this city as being located somewhere in the fields of the wood or wilderness. (Ps. 132:6.) I have before proved that the xviii chap. of Isaiah, is addressed to this continent; and as he speaks of the establishment of Zion in connection with the setting up of the ensign of the Lord, I infer that this land is the place where it shall be located. But according to David, it is to situated on the sides of the north; match this with what Isaiah says, and then it is plain, that Zion is to be located somewhere in North America. What is said about the fields of the wood, is an exact description of the natural fields, or the beautiful [page 149] praries that abound in the central part of the continent; therefore, I conclude that Zion is to be located near the center of North America. It is said in the Book of Mormon, that Zion or the New Jerusalem, shall be built upon this land.

Now the matter stands thus, the Jews or tribe of Judah and others, will return to Palestine, and rebuild Jerusalem, which is situated near the center of the eastern continent; but upon this, the Lord will cause the New Jerusalem or Zion to be built, to which the tribe of Joseph and the saints that receive the gospel among the Gentiles, will gather or emigrate. Joel, speaking of the great and notable day of the Lord, says: "In Mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, there shall be deliverance for those that call upon the name of the Lord." Thus these cities will be places of refuge or safety for the saints, when the Lord pours out His fury upon Babylon the Great, and the wicked in general.

The following shows that Zion and Jerusalem, were to be located upon two separate lands: "For Zion's sake I will not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest, until the righteousness thereof go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof, as a lamp that burneth. And the Gentiles shall see thy righteousness, and all kings thy glory: and thou shalt be called by a new name, which the mouth of the Lord shall name. Thou shalt also be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God. Thou shalt no more be termed forsaken: neither shall thy land any more be termed desolate; but thou shalt be called Hephzibah, and thy land Beulah; for the Lord delighteth in thee, and thy land shall be married." (Is. 62:1-4.) Now it is said, that when the Lord created the earth, He gathered the waters unto one place; therefore, the earth could not have been split up into islands and continents, as it now is. It is also said, [page 150] that in the days of Peleg, the earth, (not the human family,) was divided. It is probable that in his day some mighty convulsion of the earth took place, which rent it in twain; but when Christ comes there will be a general time of restoration; consequently, the two continents will be brought together, and thus the land of Zion, will be joined to the land of Jerusalem. Indeed, prophetical declarations about this Zion, abound throughout the writings of the prophets; but for the want of room, I am obliged to omit inserting them.

I presume the reader is by this time, convinced that America is a promised land to the tribe of Joseph; therefore, the mountains of this land are the mountains of Israel, as much so, as those of Canaan; and if any of the Israelites should gather to Zion, they would not do that which would in any respect conflict with what Ezekiel says, about Israel being made one nation upon the mountains of Israel. In short, the Lord's ensign was to be raised, the Book of Mormon or a record of the tribe of Joseph brought forth here, and Zion is also to be located here; and I shall now prove that the Lord will make instruments of this tribe, particularly the Ephraimites, to accomplish His work in the latter-days.

The Lord says through David: "Ephraim, is the strength of my head; Judah is my lawgiver." Hosea says: "Ephraim hath mixed himself among the people." It appears from the above, that the tribe of Ephraim, with the exception of the aborigines of this country, have been scattered and mixed with the Gentiles; but the Lord can designate them from others; therefore, He will bring them into His kingdom, and make them His ministers, and thus regard them as the strength of His head. The following demonstrates this: "His glory is like the firstling of his bullock, and his horns are like the horns of unicorns: with them he shall push the people together to (or from) the ends of the earth: and they are the ten thousands of Ephraim, and they [page 151] are the thousands of Manasseh." (De. 33:17.) Thus the tribe of Joseph are to be instrumental in gathering the saints of God together, from the ends of the earth. This tribe have never as yet done a work of this kind; therefore, it is in the future. Jeremiah in the xxxi chap. of his prophecy, says: "For there shall be a day, that the watchmen upon the Mount Ephraim shall cry, arise ye, and let us go to Zion unto the Lord our God. For thus saith the Lord, sing with gladness for Jacob, and shout among the chief of the nations: publish ye, praise ye, and say, 0 Lord, save thy people, the remnant of Israel. Behold, I will bring them from the north country, and gather them from the coasts of the earth, and with them the blind and the lame, the woman with child and her that travaileth with child together: a great company shall return thither. They shall come with weeping, and with supplications will I lead them: I will cause them to walk by the rivers of waters in a straight way, wherein they shall not stumble; for I am a father to Israel, and Ephraim is my first-born." The idea is that when the Lord gathers all Israel, the tribe of Ephraim will be the first-born, because they will receive the gospel first, or be inducted into the kingdom of God, and thus be born of Him. The reader will do well to carefully examine the remainder of the above chapter, for it is most sublime upon the restoration of Israel.

Paul writes about the restoration of Israel, thus: "For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits, that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved; as it is written, there shall come out of Zion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: for this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins." (Ro. 11:25-27) It must be admitted that the apostle here alludes to the [page 152] gathering of Israel, and the restoration of the kingdom to them: and the Deliverer that is to turn ungodliness from them in cludes not only Christ, but the work that He is the author of, that was to commence in Zion, or upon this land. Again, there are several passages in the bible which intimate that Christ will appear to His people in Zion, as He did to the apostles after His resurrection, and do something that will give His work an astonishing impetus; perhaps, He will endow His servants with great power, just before they are sent to Israel.

The prophet speaking in the name of the Lord of Israel, after their restoration, says: "And I will turn my hand upon thee, and purely purge away thy dross, and take away all thy tin: and I will restore thy judges as at the first, and thy counsellors as at the beginning." (Is. 1:25, 26.) Moses, Aaron, Joshua, and others, who were priests of the Lord were the judges and counsellors of Israel at the beginning; therefore, I infer that when the Lord restores the kingdom to Israel, He will raise up prophets, and priests among them. Isaiah says, in another place: "And I will set a sign among them, and I will send those that escape of them unto the nations, to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, that draw the bow, to Tubal and Javan, to the isles afar oft, that have not heard my fame, neither have seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the Gentiles. And they shall bring all your brethren for an offering unto the Lord, out of all nations, upon horses and in chariots, and in litters, and upon mules, and upon swift beasts, to my holy mountain Jerusalem, saith the Lord, as the children of Israel bring an offering in a clean vessel into the house of the Lord. And I will also take of them for priests and for Levites, saith the Lord. For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the Lord, so shall your seed and your name re- [page 153] main." (Is. 66:19-22) In the above, we are not only informed of the manner the house of Israel will be gathered; but that the Lord will cause many of them to be ordained as priests and Levites, which shows that the fulness of the priesthood will be restored to them, even to the Aaronic order of it.

Isaiah in another place, speaking of the restoration of Israel, and the rebuilding of Jerusalem, says: "And they shall build the old wastes, they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations of many generations. And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, and the sons of the aliens, shall be your ploughmen, and your vine-dressers. But ye shall be named the priests of the Lord; men shall call you the ministers of our God: ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall you boast yourselves." (Is. 61:4-6) Can any reasonable person, after reading the above, dispute that the Lord will restore the kingdom to Israel, and in a word, make them a kingdom of priests? Moses intimates that it was the intention of the Lord in his day, to do this; but it appears, that in consequence of their wickedness, it has been deferred until they shall be restored to their lands and receive Christ as their Messiah.

Jeremiah in the xxxiii chap. of his prophecy, dwells largely upon the restoration of Israel, and says: "And I will cure them, and will reveal unto them the abundance of peace and truth. And I will cause the captivity of Judah, and the captivity of Israel, to return, and will build them as at first. And will cleanse them from all their iniquity, whereby they have sinned against me." "For thus saith the Lord, David shall never want a man to sit upon the throne of the house of Israel." We learn from the above, that the Lord will not only gather Israel; but will restore the kingdom unto them, and that a descendant of David shall reign over [page 154] them forever. The prophet continues the subject by saying, that the Levitical order of priests shall be perpetuated. Malachi, speaking of the coming of Christ, says: "He shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness." (Mal. 3:3.)

Jeremiah says, that the Lord shall make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and Judah; and after it, he says: "They shall teach no more every man his neighbor, 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, with the Lord: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more." (Je. 31:34.) Some suppose this covenant took effect with Israel, at the opening of the Christian dispensation, because the apostle Paul refers to it in his epistle to the Hebrews; but whoever will carefully examine the whole of this epistle, will discover, that he reasons to countermand a certain idea of the Jews, which is, that there was to be no other order of worship or of religion, except that which is set forth in the Mosaic economy. Paul refers to this covenant to prove that there was to be a new order, or that there was to be some change; but he does not say, that it took effect in his day. Certainly, nothing is more evident from the prophets, than that this new covenant will take effect at the time the house of Israel are restored, and they receive Christ as their Messiah.

Ezekiel is plain upon this point: "As I live, saith the Lord God, surely with a mighty hand, and with a stretched out arm; and with fury poured out, will I rule over you: and I will bring you out from the people, and will gather you out of the countries wherein ye are scattered, with a mighty hand, and with a stretched out arm, and with fury poured out; and I will bring you into the wilderness of the people, and [page 155] there will I plead with you face to face. Like as I pleaded with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so will I plead with you, with the Lord God. And I will cause you to pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant." (Eze. 20:33-37.) Now we learn from the above, that the Lord will not only gather the house of Israel, but that He will display His mighty power in the performance of miracles; and also, that He will plead or converse with them face to face as He did with their fathers, and surely no person will say, that this has been fulfilled.

It is evident from the prophets, that all the saints will be gathered together before Christ comes, whether they be Jews or Gentiles by descent. Isaiah in the lx chap. of his prophecy, speaking of the establishment of Zion, says: "Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people; but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and His glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. Lift up throe eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side. And thou shalt see, and flow together, and thoe heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee." "Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows! Surely the isles shall wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring thy sons from far, their silver and their gold with them, unto the name of the Lord thy God." "And they shall call thee, the city of the Lord, the Zion of the Holy One of Israel." It is plain from the above that many of the Gentiles will come to Zion, and bring their wealth with them to build up the city, [page 156] and make it ready to receive Christ. The prophet continues the subject by speaking of this city and the glory of it, in the Millennium, when the Lord shall dwell in it, and also, be the light of it.

The prophet in another place, speaking of the gathering of the saints, says; "Fear not; for I am with thee: I will bring thy seed from the east, and gather thee from the west; I will say to the north give up: and to the south, keep not back: bring my sons from far, and my daughters from the ends of the earth; even every one that is called by my name: for I have created him for my glory." (Is. 43:5-7) Jeremiah says: "Therefore fear thou not, 0 my servant Jacob, saith the Lord, neither be dismayed, 0 Israel: for, lo, I will save thee from afar, and thy seed from the land of their captivity; and Jacob shall return, and shall be in rest, and be quiet, and none shall make him afraid. For I am with thee, with the Lord, to save thee: though I make a full end of all nations whither I have scattered thee, yet will I not make a full end of thee; but I will correct thee in measure and will not leave thee altogether unpunished:" (Je. 30:10, 11.) It appears from the above, that about the time the Lord gathers Israel, He will destroy all the nations, among whom they have been dispersed. Christ said, that the Jews should be "carried captive into all nations;" and indeed, to what nation could we go at the present time where we should not find Jews: consequently, I infer that it its necessary for all the saints to be identified with Israel; or in other words, to be adopted into the family of Abraham, and thus be gathered and numbered with them, in order to escape the calamities that God will bring upon the wicked.

There are many more passages that are explicit upon the great work of the Lord in the Latter-Days; or in other words, upon the important subjects that are before dis- [page 157] coursed upon; but for the want of room, I will only refer to those which I have not already quoted or referred to, that the reader may, without any inconvenience, examine them at leisure.-See Ps. 1:4, 5: Is. 2nd ch: Mi. 4th ch: Is. 4th ch: De. 28:21, 22: De. 35th ch: De. 40:1-10: De. 42:9-14: De. 52nd ch: De: 54:1117: Je. 3:16-18: De 4:6, 7: De. 23:3-8: De. 30th ch: De, 32:37-42: De. 46:27, 28: Eze. 34:23-31: De. 36th ch: Ho. 3:4, 5: Joel, 2:15-32: De. 48th ch: Am. 9:8-16: Zep. 3:8-21: Zec. 1:14-17: De. 2nd ch: De. 8:1-8: De. tenth ch: De. 41:513: De. 14th ch.

As soon as the house of Israel are restored, Christ will come in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory, subject the earth unto Himself, and then reign over His people as King of kings, and Lord of lords. Indeed, the second advent of Christ, has been the theme of all the patriarchs, prophets, and saints, in all ages of the world, and should even now, be regarded as a matter of major importance to all Christians: for it is a doctrine; or in other words, it is a sure promise that administers consolation to all the faithful, and sincere lovers of the truth; but as there are different opinions with regard to the manner in which He will come, and the work to be accomplished at the time, I deem it necessary to offer a few remarks upon the same.

Some contend that He will not come personally, but spiritually, and reign in the hearts of His people; and thus produce a millennium, and fulfill the numerous passages that allude to the above important event. Nothing however is more evident to me, from the scriptures, than that Christ will come personally or literally to the earth.--The following makes this matter plain: "And when He had spoken these things, while they beheld, He was taken up; and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven, as He went up, behold, two men [page 158] stood by them in white apparel; which also said, ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven." (Ac. 1:9-11) Now if it is a fact, which but few pretend to dispute, that Christ ascended to heaven personally; hence, according to the above it must necessarily follow, that He will come in the same manner.

It appears that after the Jews are gathered back to Jerusalem, and have rebuilt it, that many nations will collect their forces, and besiege the city, and succeed in taking one half of it; but at this moment the heavens will be unveiled, and Christ will thus appear: "Then shall the Lord go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. And His feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east; and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the cast and toward the west; and there shall be a very great valley: and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south. And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains;