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Over half of the revelations in the Doctrine and Covenants came between June 1830 and July 1833, the time during which Joseph Smith was working on his New Translation of the Bible. We cannot say with certainty how the JST interacted with all the individual divine communications, but we can say that they were all part of the same revelatory process. This chapter will highlight chronologically some intersections of the New Translation with other revelations Joseph Smith received.

1830

Doctrine and Covenants 29:30–45:[1] In some instances, revelations in the Doctrine and Covenants seem to reflect material in the New Translation. One example is this revelation received in September 1830. It was occasioned, at least in part, by questions Joseph Smith and others in the young Church had asked. Among the questions were some pertaining to the Fall of Adam and Eve.[2] This is significant for the JST, because the revelation was likely received shortly after Joseph Smith revised the text in Genesis that narrates the Fall. The Lord stated, “It is given unto you that ye may understand, because ye have asked it of me.”[3] In one section of the revelation, the information that the Lord gave consists of explanations on doctrinal topics that had been introduced in the JST by that time. Among the parallel words are the following:

We lack sufficient historical information to date either of these texts precisely, but in addition to the fact that the words of the revelation respond to questions that were asked, its text seems to build on that of the JST, suggesting that the JST revision came first. Moreover, the JST tells the story, providing the narrative in which the material in the revelation can best be understood.

Doctrine and Covenants 35:20:[6] Several of the revelations mention the Bible revision in progress. When Sidney Rigdon embraced the gospel in Ohio in the fall of 1830, he determined to travel to Fayette, New York, to meet Joseph Smith. Soon after his arrival in early December, the Lord told him in a revelation, “A commandment I give unto thee—that thou shalt write for [Joseph Smith].” Thus began Rigdon’s tenure as one of the Prophet’s scribes for the New Translation. His handwriting starts at Genesis 5:23.[7]

Doctrine and Covenants 37:1:[8] Near the end of December, another revelation instructed the Prophet and his scribe, “It is not expedient in me that ye should translate any more until ye shall go to the Ohio.” By that point the translation had progressed to Genesis 5:32, covering almost all of what would later be called the Book of Moses.[9]

1831

The Bible mentions Enoch in only a few verses, and it uses the word Zion mostly as another name for Jerusalem. Nowhere in the Bible is there a City of Enoch, nor a Zion community established by Enoch. The new texts revealed as part of the Joseph Smith Translation are the source for our understanding of those things, and their revelation to Joseph Smith changed the course of the Restoration. Not long after they were revealed, the Lord began building on the Enoch narrative as he taught Joseph Smith and the Church how to create Zion’s modern counterpart. The Enoch narrative provided the pattern and the example from history to model how the latter-day Zion would come to be.

Doctrine and Covenants 38:[10] Early in 1831, the Lord identified himself as “the same which have taken the Zion of Enoch into mine own bosom,” and he taught Church members to “let every man esteem his brother as himself, and practice virtue and holiness” before him. They were to “be one,” because if they were not one they were not his, and they were to “look to the poor and the needy, and administer to their relief that they shall not suffer.”[11] Unmistakable in passages like these is the echo of words revealed about Enoch and his people only weeks earlier: “They were of one heart and of one mind and dwelt in righteousness and there were no poor among them.”[12] Revelations teaching the principles of Zion came in quick succession, as God instructed his people how to proceed to create modern Zion through faith and consecration.[13]

Doctrine and Covenants 41:7:[14] After the relocation of Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon to Kirtland, another revelation mentioned the need for them to return to the work of translating the Bible: “It is meet that my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., should have a house built, in which to live and translate.” The revelations that mention the New Translation show the Lord’s acknowledgment of it, and this one suggests that the Lord intended it to be one of the Prophet’s major occupations during that season.

Doctrine and Covenants 42:12–15:[15] God instructed the Saints to teach the principles of the gospel by the Spirit and out of the Bible and the Book of Mormon. They were to do so “until the fulness of my scriptures is given,” perhaps suggesting that when the Joseph Smith Translation was available, they should teach out of that source as well.

Doctrine and Covenants 42:56:[16] God said, “Thou shalt ask, and my scriptures shall be given as I have appointed,” a reference to the JST and perhaps to other revelations also.

Doctrine and Covenants 43:13:[17] The Prophet was to dedicate himself wholly to the work of the Church, and thus the Lord instructed its members, “If ye desire the mysteries of the kingdom, provide for [Joseph Smith] food and raiment, and whatsoever thing he needeth to accomplish the work wherewith I have commanded him.” The Prophet’s need for support from the Saints was ongoing. That fall he told a group of members that “the greatest blessings which God had to bestow should be given to those who contributed to the support of his family while translating the fulness of the scriptures.”[18]

Doctrine and Covenants 45:60–61:[19] The work on the Bible revision continued in Ohio, and by early March, 1831, Joseph Smith and his scribe had arrived at Genesis 24:41. It was then that in another revelation God instructed them to put the Old Testament on hold and begin translating the New Testament. The revelation included information about end-time events. God said, “And now, behold, I say unto you, it shall not be given unto you to know any further concerning this chapter, until the New Testament be translated, and in it all these things shall be made known; wherefore I give unto you that ye may now translate it, that ye may be prepared for the things to come.” The chapter was Matthew 24. Obeying the revelation, the following day they began the translation of the New Testament. God revealed the fuller account of the last days, as promised, when they arrived at Matthew 24 several weeks later.

Doctrine and Covenants 68:25–27:[20] In a revelation of November 1831, the Lord told parents in the Church that sin would be on their heads if they failed to teach their children “to understand the doctrine of repentance, faith in Christ the Son of the living God, and of baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of the hands, when eight years old.” Their children, the Lord said, “shall be baptized for the remission of their sins when eight years old, and receive the laying on of the hands.” This was not the first reference in modern revelation to children’s accountability at age eight, because earlier, as Joseph Smith revised the book of Genesis, he learned that “children are not accountable before me until they are eight years old.”[21] The JST revelation preceded that in the Doctrine and Covenants by eight or nine months.

1832

Doctrine and Covenants 73:3–4:[22] Joseph Smith’s various responsibilities meant that the translation was interrupted frequently and thus did not continue at a steady pace. In January 1832, at the end of a period in which other duties took precedence, the Lord addressed the translation once more and instructed the Prophet and Rigdon to return to it: “It is expedient to translate again. . . . It is expedient to continue the work of translation until it be finished.” Because of the uneven progress of translation, it is impossible to know with certainty where they were in the Bible at that time, but they were perhaps in Mark or Luke.

Doctrine and Covenants 76:[23] By mid-February they had arrived at John 5:29. Concerning the Prophet’s revision of that verse, they recorded the following (for clarity, the JST revision is in quotation marks):

While we were doing the work of translation, which the Lord had appointed unto us, we came to the twenty-ninth verse of the fifth chapter of John, which was given unto us as follows—speaking of the resurrection of the dead, concerning those who shall hear the voice of the Son of Man: “And shall come forth; they who have done good, in the resurrection of the just; and they who have done evil, in the resurrection of the unjust.” Now this caused us to marvel, for it was given unto us of the Spirit.[24]

A comparison of the King James translation (left) and the Joseph Smith Translation shows the following:

John 5:28–29

In the Joseph Smith Translation, the sentence ends with a reminder that Jesus Christ is the judge of all, but it appears that the words that caused the Prophet and his scribe to marvel were those that redefine the nature of the resurrection. Phrases like “resurrection of life” and “resurrection of damnation” are not clear theologically. Does “resurrection of life” imply that “resurrection of damnation” is not to some form of life? We saw in chapter 15 that the JST edits out words like damnation in several passages, and this one is among them. The Prophet’s revision emphasizes what Jesus stated early in the sentence—that all would come forth from the grave, and it also makes clear that the just and the unjust will resurrect separately. Note that the Prophet and his scribe wrote that the wording “was given unto” them, showing that they were not the source of the JST here but its recipients through revelation. Their marveling, like the inspired text, was also given them of the Spirit.

What followed was one of the profound moments of the Restoration—the vision of the degrees of glory. It is not a verbal embellishment of the JST of John 5:29, but it is an expansive revelation on the nature of multiple resurrections, their causes, and their outcomes. It came as the direct result of the translation and during the translation work, but it is something separate from the Bible revision itself. The Prophet and his scribe wrote, “While we were yet in the Spirit, the Lord commanded us that we should write the vision.”[25] They did write it, not on the JST manuscript but on other sheets of paper. Sometime following the vision, they continued the revision of John 5.

Doctrine and Covenants 77:[26] Dating to March 1832 is another revelation that came out of the process of the Bible translation. It is a question-and-answer text with its focus on chapters 4–11 of the book of Revelation. Sidney Rigdon was the scribe for those chapters of the JST. In his later history Joseph Smith stated: “In connection with the translation of the scriptures, I received the following explanation of the Revelations of Saint John.”[27] In the text, the Prophet asks fifteen questions and receives revealed answers. In some cases there is overlap between verses revised in the JST and those that are mentioned in the revelation, but it generally appears that the topics are not outgrowths of the JST itself but are questions that came to mind as the two men went through the chapters. The March date of the revelation coincides perfectly with the dating of the Bible revision.

Revelation, 20 March 1832:[28] By March 20 they had completed through Revelation 11. On that date the Prophet and his scribes, Sidney Rigdon and Newel K. Whitney, asked God two questions regarding their upcoming trip to Missouri.[29] One of the questions pertained to the New Translation: “Shall we finish the translation of the New Testament before we go to Zion or wait till we return?” The response was, “It is expedient saith the Lord that there be no delays and this saith the Lord for the greatest good and benefit of the Church. Wherefore omit the translation for the present time.” The interruption for the trip to Missouri marks the end of Rigdon’s service as the Prophet’s scribe for the New Translation.[30]

Doctrine and Covenants 84:24–27:[31] In September 1832 Joseph Smith received a revelation on the priesthood that contains important information with a parallel in the Joseph Smith Translation of Exodus 34. As we compared the two revelations in chapter 9, we saw that both texts show that God offered the ancient Israelites the Melchizedek Priesthood with its attendant blessings, but they hardened their hearts and forfeited the opportunities they might have had. Thus, God took the priesthood from them and gave them the lesser law and its lesser blessings. There is no way to tell which of these revelations came first. Section 84 of the Doctrine and Covenants is dated to September 22 and 23, 1832, and the best estimate for the date of the JST insertion places it sometime between the middle of August and the end of September of that year, thus overlapping the dates of the revelation. Whichever came first, they are clearly part of the same revelatory process to teach members of the restored Church about God’s priesthood.

Doctrine and Covenants 86:1–7:[32] In December Joseph Smith recorded in his journal, “Translating and received a revelation explaining the parable [of] the wheat and the tares,” referring to the parable in Matthew 13:24–30.[33] In the revelation, the Lord told Church members, “Let the wheat and the tares grow together until the harvest is fully ripe; then ye shall first gather out the wheat from among the tares, and after the gathering of the wheat, behold and lo, the tares are bound in bundles, and the field remaineth to be burned.”[34] In this revelation the order of events (gathering the wheat first) is the reverse of the order in Matthew’s parable. Working on the New Translation, Joseph Smith had revised Matthew 13 over a year and a half earlier without changing the order of events. But sometime later, during the review process, he reversed the order.

Matthew 13:30

It is impossible to date this JST change, but it makes the text consistent with the wording in the Doctrine and Covenants. This may be a case of the revelation now in the Doctrine and Covenants following something already made known during the Bible revision, or it may be a JST revision the Prophet made to match what he had learned in the revelation.

1833

Revelation, 5 January 1833:[35] Joseph Smith received a revelation in January addressed to his scribe, Frederick G. Williams, with whom he was working on the translation somewhere near the middle of the Old Testament. The revelation reads, in part, “Thou hast desired of me to know which would be the most worth unto you. Behold blessed art thou for this thing. Now I say unto you, my servant Joseph is called to do a great work and hath need that he may do the work of translation for the salvation of souls—Verily verily I say unto you, thou art called to be a counselor & scribe unto my servant Joseph.” Williams’s scribing for the New Translation would be among the things of “most worth” to him, because the Bible revision was “a great work.”

Doctrine and Covenants 90:13:[36] In a revelation received in March, the Lord instructed Joseph Smith, “When you have finished the translation of the prophets, you shall from thenceforth preside over the affairs of the Church and the school.” We cannot tell with certainty how far the translation had progressed by that date, but it is likely that the Prophet and Williams were near the beginning of Isaiah, the first of the prophetic books. The Old Testament ends with the prophetic books, so finishing those books meant finishing the Old Testament translation.

Doctrine and Covenants 91:1–6:[37] A revelation of the following day addressed the question of the Apocrypha, a collection of ancient books dating from after the Old Testament period that continued in the tradition of the Hebrew Bible but were not part of it. They are included in Roman Catholic Bibles as part of the Old Testament, but Protestants, for the most part, have considered them nonscriptural. Early Bible printers often included them as a separate section between the testaments. In the Bible Joseph Smith used, the Apocrypha was inserted on separately numbered pages after the Old Testament, printed in smaller type.[38] On March 9, when the Prophet received the revelation, he was still three months away from finishing the Old Testament but apparently looked ahead for divine direction about the translation of the apocryphal books. His instructions were, “It is not needful that the Apocrypha should be translated.”[39]

Doctrine and Covenants 93:53:[40] In a revelation in May, while the Prophet and Williams were perhaps in Isaiah or Jeremiah, they received a revelation seemingly meant to motivate them in the work: “It is my will that you should hasten to translate my scriptures.” The work then moved ahead and, as we have seen, on July 2, 1833, Joseph Smith announced that the translation of the Bible was finished.[41] The remaining reference to the project in the Doctrine and Covenants are not about translating but about printing.

Doctrine and Covenants 94:10–12:[42] In August the Lord gave instructions for the construction of a building in Kirtland for the printing of the New Translation: “The second lot on the south shall be dedicated unto me for the building of a house unto me, for the work of the printing of the translation of my scriptures, and all things whatsoever I shall command you. . . . And this house shall be wholly dedicated unto the Lord from the foundation thereof, for the work of the printing, in all things whatsoever I shall command you, to be holy, undefiled, according to the pattern in all things as it shall be given unto you.” It is not difficult to see from these words the importance that God placed on the New Translation and other projects anticipated for the building. The structure itself, dedicated to the Lord from the ground up, would be holy, because the work that would be done in it would be holy.

1834

Doctrine and Covenants 104:58:[43] Printing the scriptures was a constant concern for the Prophet Joseph Smith. In April 1834 he received a revelation in which God instructed him and other Church leaders, “I have commanded you to organize yourselves, even to print my words, the fulness of my scriptures, the revelations which I have given unto you, and which I shall, hereafter, from time to time give unto you.” The phrase “the fulness of my scriptures” may not refer exclusively to the Joseph Smith Translation, but the Bible revision is certainly included in it. The original text of the revelation also included instructions for Church leaders to obtain a copyright for the New Translation.[44]

1841

Doctrine and Covenants 124:89–90:[45] A revelation of early 1841 to William Law, at the time of his call to be a counselor in the First Presidency, mentions the Bible revision. The Lord instructed Law, among other things, to “publish the new translation of my holy word unto the inhabitants of the earth.” He was to do so, along with supporting the poor, “with his interest.” The command came with promised blessings for Law and his posterity. It is not clear what the intent of the revelation was with respect to him and the Joseph Smith Translation. At the time of the revelation, the Prophet’s pleas for donations from Church members to pay for the printing had fallen on many deaf ears. Law was not a wealthy man, and perhaps the instruction was for him to dedicate not only some of his resources but also his consecrated service in the Church to make the publication happen. In either case, Law apostatized, and the longed-for publication did not happen at that time.

1843

Doctrine and Covenants 132:[46] The revelation on eternal marriage does not mention the Joseph Smith Translation of the Bible, yet its origin is perhaps located in that work. The date July 12, 1843, represents when the words were put into writing, but the revelation came much earlier. The text itself tells us that it was given in response to a question Joseph Smith had: “Inasmuch as you have inquired of my hand to know and understand wherein I, the Lord, justified my servants Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as also Moses, David and Solomon, my servants, as touching the principle and doctrine of their having many wives and concubines—behold, and lo, I am the Lord thy God, and will answer thee as touching this matter.”[47] Joseph Smith’s Bible translation brought him to the accounts of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in February and March 1831 and again in the summer of 1832. References to Moses, David, and Solomon probably came later in 1832. While the Prophet’s question regarding marriage in the Bible perhaps came to mind as a result of his translation work, there is no way of knowing what passages may have contributed or whether there was a single passage that led to the question.[48] Marriage in the afterlife is generally not thought of as a biblical concept, but if this revelation resulted from the Joseph Smith Translation, then one of its significant contributions to the Restoration is the knowledge it brings on topics such as the new and everlasting covenant, eternal marriage, sealing by the Holy Spirit of Promise, and couples coming forth in the first resurrection to inherit “thrones, kingdoms, principalities, and powers, [and] dominions.”[49]

Woven Threads of the Restoration

The Joseph Smith Translation is a unique part of the Restoration of the fullness of the gospel, but it is only a part. The Restoration included the coming forth of a book that had been written in antiquity but preserved for our day, revelations on a variety of topics to meet administrative needs of the Church and proclaim its doctrines, the return of ancient priesthoods and sacred ordinances to bind and seal on earth and in heaven, and a dramatic revision of the Bible that had been in the Christian world for almost two millennia. Each played an important role in weaving the tapestry of the Restoration. By divine design, the Book of Mormon came at the beginning, so that before we even had a latter-day Church of Jesus Christ we already had its fundamental teachings regarding Christ and his plan of salvation. Priesthood also preceded the Church, the restoration of which set in place the authorized framework on which the Church could be built. Revelations from the beginning of Joseph Smith’s ministry, throughout his life, and continuing to the present set and maintain the Church on its appointed course.

Joseph Smith’s translation of the Bible was a fundamental part of this process. It too came early in the Restoration, as a burst of light in the first three years after the Lord organized his Church. It both accompanies and adds to each of the other threads of the Restoration by providing context for them and by providing additional witnesses for their teachings. The revelations Joseph Smith received during those years both testify to its value and benefit from its revealed contributions.

Notes

[1] September, 1830. I thank Robert J. Matthews for bringing this revelation to my attention as having parallels with the Joseph Smith Translation.

[2] See the heading penned by John Whitmer, “Revelation Book 1,” p. 36, The Joseph Smith Papers.

[3] Doctrine and Covenants 29:33.

[4] Later in the Joseph Smith Translation we learn, “In the Garden of Eden man had agency” (OT2, page 22).

[5] See also “to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man” (Moses 1:39) and “raised in immortality unto eternal life” (Doctrine and Covenants 29:43); “cast down” (Moses 4:3) and “thrust down” (Doctrine and Covenants 29:37).

[6] December 7, 1830.

[7] OT1, page 15 (Moses 7:2).

[8] December 1830.

[9] OT1, page 20 (Moses 8:12).

[10] January 2, 1831.

[11] Doctrine and Covenants 38:4, 24, 27, 35.

[12] OT2, page 21 (Moses 7:18).

[13] Selected passages from the first half of 1831 that reference Enoch and his Zion and principles of building modern Zion include Doctrine and Covenants 38:4, 24–27, 34–35; 39:13; 42:2, 30–35; 44:46; 45:11, 67–71; 49:25; 51:1–20; 56:16–20.

[14] February 4, 1831.

[15] February 9, 1831.

[16] February 9, 1831.

[17] February 1831.

[18] “Minutes, 25–26 October 1831,” p. 13, The Joseph Smith Papers.

[19] March 7, 1831.

[20] November 1, 1831.

[21] OT2, page 43 (Genesis 17:7).

[22] January 10, 1832.

[23] February 16, 1832.

[24] Doctrine and Covenants 76:15–18.

[25] Doctrine and Covenants 76:28; see also 76:80, 113, 115.

[26] March 1832.

[27] “History, 1838–1856, volume A-1 [23 December 1805–30 August 1834],” p. 192, The Joseph Smith Papers.

[28] “Revelation, 20 March 1832,” p. [1], The Joseph Smith Papers. This revelation is not included in the Doctrine and Covenants.

[29] Frederick G. Williams identified this revelation as “a commandment to Joseph Sidney & Newel to . . . omit translating for the present time,” “Revelation Book 2,” The Joseph Smith Papers.

[30] But over a year later, Rigdon filled in for Frederick G. Williams to scribe for six lines in Jeremiah.

[31] September 22–23, 1832.

[32] December 6, 1832.

[33] “Journal, 1832–1834” (December 6, 1832), p. 4, The Joseph Smith Papers.

[34] Doctrine and Covenants 86:7.

[35] “Revelation, 5 January 1833,” p. [1], The Joseph Smith Papers. For the date, see the revelation’s Historical Introduction. This revelation is not included in the Doctrine and Covenants.

[36] March 8, 1833.

[37] March 9, 1833.

[38] This was a standard practice in Protestant Bibles. The H. and E. Phinney company published its Bible both with and without the Apocrypha. See Kent P. Jackson, “The Cooperstown Bible,” New York History 95, no. 2 (Spring 2014): 261.

[39] Doctrine and Covenants 91:3. The Prophet’s history, written several years after the fact, notes that he received the revelation “having come to” the Apocrypha. The dating evidence, however, shows that he was looking ahead to it at that date. “History, 1838–1856, volume A-1 [23 December 1805–30 August 1834],” p. 279, The Joseph Smith Papers.

[40] May 6, 1833.

[41] OT2, page 119; “Letter to Church Leaders in Jackson County, Missouri, 2 July 1833,” p. 51, The Joseph Smith Papers.

[42] August 2, 1833.

[43] April 23, 1834.

[44] “Revelation Book 1,” p. 196, The Joseph Smith Papers.

[45] January 19, 1841.

[46] July 12, 1843.

[47] Doctrine and Covenants 132:1–2.

[48] Orson Pratt later recalled that Joseph Smith first told some Church members early in 1832 that he had “inquired of the Lord concerning the principle of plurality of wives,” and God had revealed the principle to him. “Discourse by Elder Orson Pratt,” in Journal of Discourses, 26 vols. (London: Latter-day Saints’ Book Depot, 1855–86), 13:193 (October 7, 1869).

[49] Doctrine and Covenants 132:19.