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Prophecies of Joseph Smith, Jr.
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1805 to 1827 - 1827 to 1830 |
Joseph Smith Jr., the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, claimed to be a prophet in the tradition of the ancient prophets recorded in the Bible. This page examines some of the prophecies attributed to him.
It should be pointed out that most faithful Mormons see no contradiction in the prophesies listed here. Mormons believe that prophecies are dependent upon worthiness, and reveal potential rather than certainty. For example, a prophecy could state that a person should go on a mission. The person is free to accept or reject this calling. The fact that the person didn't go on a mission doesn't negate the truthfulness of the prophecy.
- "President Smith then stated that the meeting had been called, because God had commanded it; and it was made known to him by vision and by the Holy Spirit. . . . it was the will of God that they should be ordained to the ministry and go forth to prune the vineyard for the last time, for the coming of the Lord, which was nigh — even fifty six years should wind up the scene.[1] [This was uttered in 1835, and 56 years was completed in 1891]
Doctrine & Covenants 130:15 states:
- 15 Joseph, my son, if thou livest until thou art eighty-five years old, thou shalt see the face of the Son of Man; therefore let this suffice, and trouble me no more on this matter.
One way to interpret this passage is that if Smith had lived until he was 85, the second coming would occur some time before his death; however, since Smith was killed before he was 85, this prophecy is not in effect. As with other prophecies listed in this article, Mormons do not believe there is a problem with this passage.
On December 25, 1832, Smith prophesied about a coming war:
- "... concerning the wars that will shortly come to pass, beginning at the rebellion of South Carolina, which will eventually terminate in the death and misery of many souls. And the time will come that war will be poured out upon all nations, beginning at this place. For behold, the Southern States shall be divided against the Northern States, and the Southern States will call on other nations, even the nation of Great Britain, as it is called, and they shall also call upon other nations, in order to defend themselves against other nations; and then war shall be poured out upon all nations."(The Doctrine and Covenants, Covenant 87:1-3)
This section of the Doctrine and Covenants also says that slaves would rise up against their masters. (The Doctrine and Covenants, Covenant 87:4)
This is a list of prophecies taken from different versions of the Doctrine and Covenants.
In The Doctrine and Covenants, Covenant 84:3-5, Smith prophesied that a temple would be built "in the western boundaries of the State of Missouri", "which temple shall be reared in this generation." Previous to this revelation (3 August 1831) Joseph Smith and others had placed stones to mark two of the corners where the temple would be built.
In The Doctrine and Covenants, Covenant 124:49-51 the project was postponed.
Most Latter Day Saint adherents generally believe that the temple will eventually be constructed on the site prepared, based on additional statements by Smith. For more information regarding the relevant events and controversy following this prophecy, please see the Church of Christ (Temple Lot), whose headquarters now resides on the grounds of the temple's predicted location. Also see the Community of Christ, whose headquarters and a temple are across the street from the Temple Lot site.
That the prophesy of Elijah would be fulfilled, in that the hearts of the children be turned to their fathers. (The Doctrine and Covenants, Covenant 2:2)
Smith and Oliver Cowdery claimed that Elijah returned and gave them priesthood keys in April 1836. They said Elijah was one of several heavenly messengers sent to the Kirtland Temple. (The Doctrine and Covenants, Covenant 110:13-15)
The Doctrine and Covenants, Covenant 104:1 says that the United Order was "commanded to be organized and established, to be a united order, and an everlasting order for the benefit of my church, and for the salvation of men until I come--With promise immutable and unchangeable, that inasmuch as those whom I commanded were faithful they should be blessed with a multiplicity of blessings; But inasmuch as they were not faithful they were nigh unto cursing." The LDS church does not currently practice a communal living system generally among its general membership. However various Mormon Fundamentalist groups do.[citation needed]
An Ensign article provides the LDS explanation of the revelation made by Smith.
In the Word of Wisdom (a code of health), Smith prophesied that there are now and will be conspiring men in the last days (The Doctrine and Covenants, Covenant 89:4).
- In consequence of evils and designs which do and will exist in the hearts of conspiring men in the last days...
In The Doctrine and Covenants, Covenant 114:1, Smith prophesied that Captain David W. Patten (one of the Twelve Apostles) would perform a mission journey in the company of 11 others (presumably the 11 other Apostles) "next spring" (that being, the spring of 1839).
Patten died October 25, 1838, prior to such a mission as a mortal person.
The following was written by Smith in October, 1838:
- In the pursuit, one of the mob fled from behind a tree, wheeled, and shot Captain Patten, who instantly fell, mortally wounded, having received a large ball in his bowels. ... Captain Patten was carried some of the way in a litter, but it caused so much distress that he begged to be left by the way side. He was carried into Brother Winchester's, three miles from the city of Far West, where he died that night. ... Brother David Patten was a very worthy man, beloved by all good men who knew him. He was one of the Twelve Apostles, and died as he had lived, a man of God, and strong in the faith of a glorious resurrection ... (Smith 1902 3:171)
The LDS belief is that "the faithful elders of this dispensation, when they depart from mortal life, continue their labors in the preaching of the gospel of repentance and redemption, through the sacrifice of the Only Begotten Son of God, among those who are in darkness and under the bondage of sin in the great world of the spirits of the dead." (Doctrine and Covenants 138:57)
In 1838, after most of the Latter Day Saints had left Kirtland and settled in Far West, Missouri, Oliver Granger was asked by the First Presidency to return to Kirtland to be the church's agent in settling outstanding church debts and selling property the Latter Day Saints owned in Ohio. This calling was extended to Granger in a revelation given to Joseph Smith on July 8, 1838, which is today printed as the 117th section of the LDS Church's edition of the Doctrine and Covenants.[2] The portion of the revelation addressed to Granger reads as follows:
And again, I say unto you, I remember my servant Oliver Granger; behold, verily I say unto him that his name shall be had in sacred remembrance from generation to generation, forever and ever, saith the Lord. Therefore, let him contend earnestly for the redemption of the First Presidency of my Church, saith the Lord; and when he falls he shall rise again, for his sacrifice shall be more sacred unto me than his increase, saith the Lord. Therefore, let him come up hither speedily, unto the land of Zion; and in the due time he shall be made a merchant unto my name, saith the Lord, for the benefit of my people. Therefore let no man despise my servant Oliver Granger, but let the blessings of my people be on him forever and ever.[3]
Some critics of Joseph Smith and the Latter Day Saint movement have pointed to Smith's revelation to Granger as an example of a "false prophecy"; the critics allege that even though Smith's revelation stated that Granger's name would be held "in sacred remembrance from generation to generation, forever and ever", most Mormons are unfamiliar with Granger's name or his activities.[4] A Latter-day Saint apologist has responded to these charges by stating that "the words 'sacred remembrance' most likely refer to the fact that the Lord would remember him. After all, the verse begins with the Lord saying, 'I remember my servant Oliver Granger.'"[5] Another Latter-day Saint apologist has written:
"Detractors ... imply that the Doctrine and Covenants says everyone will remember him. That is not what the revelation says. As long as we have the Doctrine and Covenants, Oliver Granger's name will be there, and therefore this declaration is fulfilled. The Bible student will find an interesting parallel in Matt. 26:13. Here the Savior states that wherever the gospel is preached, the act of the woman anointing him will be as a memorial to her. Last time the gospel was preached, did anyone tell the story about this woman? Not likely. But this doesn't detract from the truthfulness of the statement in the Bible any more than it would have regarding the Doctrine and Covenants, if that had been what D & C 117 had said. Her act was preserved in the Bible, and therefore this prophecy is fulfilled."[6]
In the Times and Seasons 5:21, November 15, 1844, Joseph Smith published a letter predicting:
- And now I am prepared to say by the authority of Jesus Christ, that not many years shall pass away, before the United States shall present such a scene of bloodshed as has not a parallel in the history of our nation; pestilence, hail, famine, and earthquakes will sweep the wicked of this generation from off the face of the land, to open and prepare the way for the return of the lost tribes of Israel from the north country.
- there are those now living upon the earth whose eyes shall not be closed in death until they see all these things, which I have spoken, fulfilled.
After meeting with Stephen A. Douglas, Smith prophesied:
- I prophesy in the name of the Lord of Israel, unless the United States redress the wrongs committed upon the saints in the state of Missouri and punish crimes committed by her officers, that in a few years the government will be utterly overthrown and wasted, and there will not be so much as a potsherd left, for their wickedness in permitting the murder of men, women and children and the wholesale plunder and extermination of thousands of her citizens to go unpunished, thereby perpetrating a foul and corroding blot upon the fair fame of this great republic, the very thought of which would have caused the high-minded and patriotic framers of the Constitution of the United States to hide their faces with shame. (Smith 1902 5:394) [2]
That he and his companions would not be killed in Liberty Jail, despite evidence that his captors intended to kill him. Joseph said on the morning after their capture after the Mormon War that "the word of the Lord came to me last night that ... whatever we may suffer during this captivity, not one of our lives shall be taken" (Dona Hill, Joseph Smith: The First Mormon, Doubleday and Company, Garden City, NY, 1977, p. 244).
That although he was captured by Missouri agents in Illinois, he would not step foot in Missouri dead or alive. (Smith 1902 5:216)
Joseph Smith may have said the following in 1842:
- I prophesied that the Saints would continue to suffer much affliction and would be driven to the Rocky Mountains, many would apostatize, others would be put to death by our persecutors or lose their lives in consequence of exposure or disease, and some of you will live to go and assist in making settlements and build cities and see the Saints become a mighty people in the midst of the Rocky Mountains (Smith 1902 5:85)
Smith 1902 6:225 may also refer to this prophecy.
Jerald and Sandra Tanner's investigations suggest that the Rocky Mountain section of the prophecy was written in 2 copies of a manuscript in smaller writing between the lines of the rest of the prophecy.
That his name would be known for good or bad among "all people."
- He called me by name, and said unto me that he was a messenger sent from the presence of God to me, and that his name was Moroni; that God had a work for me to do; and that my name should be had for good and evil among all nations, kindreds, and tongues, or that it should be both good and evil spoken of among all people (Joseph Smith — History 1:33)
That Stephen A. Douglas, a prominent politician at the time, would run for the presidency. He also predicted that if Stephen Douglas slandered the Church then he would feel the weight of the hand of the Almighty upon him. (Smith 1902 5:394) [3] Smith was himself a presidential candidate at the time of his death.
The destruction of Jackson County, Missouri, after his death. (B. H. Roberts, Comprehensive History of the Church, 1:538)
"In the great cities, as Boston, New York, etc., there shall be stakes" (Smith 1902 6:319)
That he and his brother Hyrum Smith would die if they were re-captured. On June 22, 1844 he wrote: "I told Stephen Markham that if I and Hyrum were ever taken again we should be massacred, or I was not a prophet of God" (Smith 1902 6:546).
He also predicted that Willard Richards would escape unharmed despite being in a shower of bullets.
- "Dr. Richards' escape was miraculous; he being a very large man, and in the midst of a shower of balls, yet he stood unscathed, with the exception of a ball which grazed the tip end of the lower part of his left ear. His escape fulfilled literally a prophecy which Joseph made over a year previously, that the time would come that the balls would fly around him like hail, and he should see his friends fall on the right and on the left, but that there should not be a hole in his garment" (Smith 1902 6:619)
That Dan Jones, one of those who stayed with him in Carthage, would survive and see Wales.
- Soon after Dr. Richards retired to the bed ... and when all were apparently fast asleep, Joseph whispered to Dan Jones, "are you afraid to die?" Dan said, "Has that time come, think you? Engaged in such a cause I do not think that death would have many terrors." Joseph replied, "You will yet see Wales, and fulfill the mission appointed you before you die" (Smith 1902 6:601)
On December 25, 1843, Joseph announced, "I prophesy, in the name of the Lord, that you -- Orrin Porter Rockwell -- so long as ye shall remain loyal and true to thy faith, need fear no enemy. Cut not thy hair and no bullet or blade can harm thee." There is no known record of his having been injured by his many enemies after this day, despite a long life filled with violence.
Smith stated that he translated the Book of Abraham from papyrus rolls.[7] Although it is accepted that Smith bought the papyri from an Irishman named Michael Chandler in 1835, these hieroglyphics were not able to be translated at the time until the discovery of the Rosetta stone. The originals were thought by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to have been destroyed in a Chicago fire, yet turned up in one of the vault rooms of the New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art. In November of 1967 the Deseret News of Salt Lake City reported the rediscovery of the papyri. A detailed review of these translations is published online by the Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry. The author claims "It follows that if he did not translate the Book of Abraham by the power of God, then it would be very easy to conclude that he did not translate the Book of Mormon by the power of God either...He has been shown to be a false prophet."[8] Other explanations for the discrepancy are that a different section of the papyrus contained the Book of Abraham or the definition of "translation" may not mean a literal translation.[9]
- "False Prophecies by Joseph" from 20 Truths about Mormonism
- The False Prophet, Joseph Smith "And It Didn't Come to Pass..." from Saints Alive
- Joseph Smith, Jr. (1902) History of the Church 7 volumes; Deseret Book Company; ISBN 0-87579-486-6 (1902 Boxed Set, Paperback, 1991) Current edition only available at Deseretbook.com (Note: this book is of mixed authorship, having been only 40% complete at the time of Smith's death.)
- "Samples Of Prophecies Of Joseph Smith That Have Been Fulfilled" from FAIR
- Fulfilled Prophecies of Joseph Smith from JeffLindsay.com
- Joseph Smith Prophecies from Shields-Research.org
- Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry
- [http://www.irr.org/mit/Books/BHOH/bhoh1.html Larson, Charles M., by his own hand upon papyrus, Institute for Religious Research, Grand Rapids, Mich. 1992
.
- ^ History of the Church, Vol. 2, page 182
- ^ The revelation is not included in the edition printed by the Community of Christ.
- ^ Doctrine and Covenants 117:12-15.
- ^ See, e.g., David Henke, "Beware of False Prophets", The Watchman Expositor, vol. 6, no. 9, 1989; Ed Decker and William Schnoebelen, Upon this Prophet I will Build My Church, 1991.
- ^ John A. Tvedtnes, "The Nature of Prophets and Prophecy", fairlds.org.
- ^ Stephen R. Gibson, "Is Oliver Granger's Name Forgotten?".
- ^ B. H. Roberts, Comprehensive History of the Church, 2:236
- ^ Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry
- ^ [1] Rhodes, Michael (July 1988), "I Have A Question", Ensign: 51
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