Joseph Smith
Truths restored through Joseph Smith
Pearl of Great Price/JS Translation
D&C
100
What scriptures have come to us through Joseph Smith?
The Book of Mormon, D&C, Pearl of Great Price, and Joseph Smith translation of the Bible. Elder LeGrand Richards of the Quorum of the Twelve said, “As far as our records show, he has given us more revealed truth than any prophet who has ever lived upon the face of the earth.” What would your life be like without these scriptures?
100
What latter-day scripture in D&C clarifies Genesis 2:24- "Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh."
D&C 131:1-4. How does this knowledge affect your actions and choices?
100
What are the five parts of the Pearl of Great Price?
1. Selections from the Book of Moses 2. Book of Abraham 3. Joseph Smith- Matthew 4. Joseph Smith- History 5. Articles of Faith
100
*Daily Double* What was the name D&C first published as?
The Book of Commandments. From 1823 to 1831, Joseph Smith received more than 60 revelations from the Lord. A few handwritten copies of these revelations were given to missionaries and others, but most Church members did not have access to them. At a conference held in Ohio in late 1831, Church leaders decided to publish the revelations in a volume called the Book of Commandments. Oliver Cowdery and John Whitmer were selected to take the revelations to Independence, Missouri, a distance of approximately 1,000 miles, where the book would be printed and bound.
200
Give an explanation for the following verse: D&C 5:10- "But this generation shall have my word through you;" Who is this verse talking about?
The verse speaks of our dispensation obtaining the Lord's word through Joseph Smith. Brigham Young said: “What I have received from the Lord, I have received by Joseph Smith” How is this verse true for you?
200
What scripture in Abraham clarifies Jeremiah 1:4-5 - "4 Then the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, 5 Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations." (Hint: Abraham 3)
Abraham 3:22-26. What does this scripture clarify about our premortal existence and how does this knowledge affect the choices we make?
200
Where can the JST be found?
Pearl of Great Price (Book of Moses and JST-Matt), footnotes, and in the appendix following the Bible Dictionary.
200
What was Joseph Smith translating when he received most of the revelations dealing with doctrinal subjects found in the Doctrine and Covenants?
The Bible. “Most of the revelations dealing with doctrinal subjects [found in the Doctrine and Covenants] were revealed to Joseph Smith…from June 1830 to July 1833, which was exactly the time he was working on the Bible translation. While the Prophet was engaged in such a concentrated study of the scriptures, it was natural for him to ask questions and ponder on various subjects, inquire of the Lord, and receive divine revelation in answer to his inquiry.” (Robert J. Matthews, “A Plainer Translation,” BYU Press, quoted in Ensign, 1/86, p. 42)
300
*Daily Double* What verses in the Book of Mormon prophecy of Joseph Smith? (Hint: 2 Nephi)
2 Nephi 3:11-15. How does the Book of Mormon help eliminate contention and establish peace?
300
What scripture in the Book of Mormon (Hint: Alma 11) clarifies Job 19:25-26? 25 For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: 26 And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God:
Alma 11:42-45
300
Who possessed the manuscript of the JST after Joseph's death?
Emma Smith/RLDS church. The manuscript of the JST was 467 pages long and contains notes as to dates, and geographical locations indicating when certain parts were being translated. Joseph completely rewrote some of the parts, in some he just wrote in some things and crossed out others. In several places, he wrote little notes and pinned them to the manuscript (since Post-It Notes and paper clips had not yet been invented). Emma Smith had put significant effort into protecting the manuscript of the JST, even tying it under her skirts in a bag to safeguard it while traveling 200 miles to safety from the mobs. At Joseph’s death, she still had the original manuscript with Joseph’s revision, and she gave it to her son, Joseph Smith III, who became the president of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ (now called Community of Christ). In 1867 the RLDS Church published the Inspired Version, or what we now call the Joseph Smith Translation. It is through the generosity of the Community of Christ that LDS Scholars have been able to use the JST in recent years, and that the excerpts we have in our LDS scriptures are there.
300
Who are the two young women who saved the pages of the Book of Commandments when the mob burned the printing press where the first 160 pages were printed?
The sisters Mary Elizabeth and Caroline Rollins. The most important project being printed at the newspaper office was the Book of Commandments, the first compilation of revelations received by the Prophet Joseph Smith. When the mob attacked the building, they tossed the unbound pages of the book into the street. Seeing this, two young Latter-day Saints, Mary Elizabeth Rollins and her sister, Caroline, at the peril of their own lives, sought to rescue what they could. Mary Elizabeth recalled: “[The mob] brought out some large sheets of paper, and said, ‘Here are the Mormon Commandments.’ My sister Caroline and myself were in a corner of a fence watching them; when they spoke of the commandments I was determined to have some of them. Sister said if I went to get any of them she would go too, but said ‘they will kill us.’” While the mob was busy at one end of the house, the two girls ran and filled their arms with the precious sheets. The mob saw them and ordered the girls to stop. Mary Elizabeth reported: “We ran as fast as we could. Two of them started after us. Seeing a gap in a fence, we entered into a large cornfield, laid the papers on the ground, and hid them with our persons. The corn was from five to six feet high, and very thick; they hunted around considerable, and came very near us but did not find us.” When the ruffians had gone, the girls made their way to an old log stable. Here, as reported by Mary Elizabeth, they found that “Sister Phelps and children were carrying in brush and piling it up at one side of the barn to lay her beds on. She asked me what I had—I told her. She then took them from us. … They got them bound in small books and sent me one, which I prized very highly.”
400
What verses in the Book of Moses prophecy of Joseph Smith?
Moses 1:40-41. How is the prophecy in verse 41 being fulfilled?
400
What is a scripture (hint: in D&C 130 or JS History) that clarifies John 4:24 (the physical nature of the Godhead)? "God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth."
D&C 130: 22 and JS History 1:17
400
*Daily Double* Who thought of the name "Pearl of Great Price"?
Franklin D. Richards. Early versions of the sections of our current Pearl of Great Price were printed individually by the Missouri press in 1832-33. Joseph Smith’s history was published in installments in periodicals. The Book of Abraham, as we have it, also was published in three installments, and more of that translation was planned to be published, but mob violence derailed that plan. Parts of the Book of Moses were published here and there. It wasn’t until 1851 (7 years after the Prophet’s death) that these “miscellaneous” writings were compiled into one body, The Pearl of Great Price, similar to the way that it is today. So who thought of the name, The Pearl of Great Price? And who thought to put these revelations together? Well, it was not the Prophet, Brigham Young. Surprise: It was not even done under the direction of the First Presidency! It was a mission president who thought of the idea, Elder Franklin D. Richards. By that year, 1851, there were 31,000 members of the Church in Great Britain and 2/3rds of those had been members of the Church for four years or less. They had never had access to those revelations published in the early church periodicals. So Elder Richards, as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve and President of the British Mission, put them together, titled it The Pearl of Great Price, and distributed it among the British saints. This publication included the Books of Moses and Abraham, as well as the History of Joseph Smith, the Articles of Faith, Joseph Smith – Matthew, some selections from the D&C, and a poem entitled “Truth.” In 1878 Elder Orson Pratt, the church historian, edited and rearranged the Pearl of Great Price, putting it in the Book of Moses in chronological order, similar to how it is today. What is now Moses 1 was titled “Visions of Moses,” and the rest of Moses, chapters 2-8, was titled “Writings of Moses.” In October Conference of 1880, the Pearl of Great Price was accepted as scripture and became part of the standard works. “Canonizing did not increase its truth or worth but did make it official Church literature.”
400
What is the section in the D&C given in response to criticisms of the language Joseph used in the revelations?
Section 67. The Lord’s will concerning the publication of the revelations was manifested when Joseph Smith received section 1, the Lord’s “preface” to the book, during an interlude. Then began a lively discussion by Joseph Smith asking the elders what testimony they were willing to attach to the commandments. Some said they were willing to testify that the revelations came from God; others, however, expressed criticism of the language in which the revelations were expressed. Out of the discussion emerged a revelation, now section 67, in which a challenge was given by the Lord to anyone present to write a revelation equal to “the least” among those already given. William E. McLellin, “having more learning than sense,” tackled the project overnight and failed. D&C 67:24- "Let not your minds turn back; and when ye are worthy, in mine own due time, ye shall see and know that which was conferred upon you by the hands of my servant Joseph Smith, Jun. Amen." How does this strengthen your testimony of the prophet Joseph's role in translating the scriptures?
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