Evidence Seventy-Two: No Unrighteousness in the Revelations of Joseph Smith©

 101 Reasons Why I Believe Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God

Evidence Seventy-Two:

No Unrighteousness in the Revelations of Joseph Smith© 

On occasion I have previously called attention to a couple of important statements about the revelations of Joseph Smith and I do so again today. Early in November 1831, the prophet conducted a lengthy conference in Hiram, Ohio. The purpose was to publish the Doctrine and Covenants. During the ongoing meetings Joseph Smith received several revelations, all of which in one way or another addressed the new publication and some concerns of those in the conference. The second of those revelations is D&C 67. Apparently some looked down upon the revelations and perhaps the language of them. One man even suggested it was easy to produce such a document. The Lord directly addresses this issue and challenges any of them to produce one like the least of those given to Joseph. In verses 8 and 9 he says

8) But if ye cannot make one like unto it, ye are under condemnation if ye do not bear record that they are true. 9) For ye know that there is no unrighteousness in them, and that which is righteous cometh down from above, from the Father of lights. (Emphasis added.)

Two things stand out to me about this wonderful and remarkable passage. The first is, of course, the Lord’s testimony that there is no unrighteousness in the revelations Joseph Smith has written. But there is also an interesting implication in verse 9. “And that which is righteous come down from above...” This says to me the revelations are not neutral. There is no unrighteousness in them, and the clear implications is therefore, they are righteous, and if they are, that means they came from above, from the Father of lights. Earlier the Lord cautioned the Church, “These words are given unto you, and they are pure before me; wherefore, beware how you hold them, for they are to be answered upon your souls in the day of judgment.”(1) 

Today, in my work compiling a commentary on 3 Nephi, I reviewed some quotations I have collected about the word hearken and I came across a sweet and profound statement from Elder Delbert L. Stapley that prompted me to write this essay. Read it carefully because it lays a foundation for the principle of obedience to God and the Spirit that rings with righteousness. In addition, his last paragraph prepares us for the further teachings of President Russell Nelson. In the April 1968 General Conference Elder Stapley said:

Hearkening unto the voice of the Spirit is the key and the challenge which leads to God's eternal mansions. Hear this warning: "Every spirit of man was innocent in the beginning. . . .  And that wicked one cometh and taketh away light and truth, through disobedience, from the children of men " (D&C 93:38-39.)

It is through disobedience and man's failure to hearken unto the voice of the Spirit and the counsels of God that Satan is able to come and take away from man the light and truth of the gospel. When the light within us begins to dim, Satan moves in. When the light within us goes out, we are in his power and under his control.

When Saul, who failed to follow the instructions of the Lord, tried to justify his disobedience for doing so, the ancient prophet Samuel said: ". . . Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams." (1 Sam. 15:22.)

In latter-day scriptures the Lord uses action words in the first sentence to introduce many of his revelations. It is interesting to note that "hearken" was used 23 times. We are admonished by the Lord through the Prophet Joseph Smith to behold, to hearken, to listen, and to hear, in over 60 revelations.(2)

Hearkening to the Spirit is the key to eternal life, but disobedience leads to the loss of light and truth. So, Elder Stapley points out, the word hearken was used 23 times to introduce revelations in the Doctrine and Covenants, and together with behold and listen, the principle is repeated in over 60 revelations. Moreover the word hearken is found 80 times in the Book of Mormon, many of which stress the same doctrinal principle. For example, it appears 6 times in 3 Nephi, and only the first one in 3 Nephi 3:12 is not in this context; the rest are. 3 Nephi 21:22 declares “But if they will repent and hearken unto my words, and harden not their hearts, I will establish my church among them, and they shall come in unto the covenant and be numbered among this the remnant of Jacob...” And directly to the point, 3 Nephi 23:5 declares, “And whosoever will hearken unto my words and repenteth and is baptized, the same shall be saved.” Chapter 28:34 declares a “wo upon him that will not hearken unto the words of Jesus.” Finally, the first verse of the last chapter (30) begins, “Hearken, O ye Gentiles, and hear the words of Jesus Christ....”

From what has been said thus far that the word “hearken” means more than just listen or hear what the Lord says. It most definitely implies "heed," “do,” or “obey.” That conclusion is stressed in considerable commentary on the meaning of the word by President Russell Nelson. The word hearken and its meaning is important to him; he has addressed the subject several times through his ministry, as illustrated below. The first I am aware of is in a footnote to his April 1991 General Conference address. In that address he said: [numbered footnotes follow]

Scriptures recorded in all dispensations teach that we show our love of God as we hearken to His commandments and obey them.14 These actions are closely connected. In fact, the Hebrew language of the Old Testament in most instances uses the same term for both hearkening (to the Lord) and obedience (to His word).15

14  See Ex. 20:6; Deut. 5:10; Deut. 7:9; Deut. 11:1; Deut. 30:16; Josh. 22:5; Neh. 1:5; Dan. 9:4; John 14:15; John 15:10; 1 Jn. 5:2–3; 2 Jn. 1:6; Mosiah 13:14; D&C 42:2; D&C 46:9; D&C 124:87.

15 That term was שָ מַע (shâma’), which means “to hear intelligently.” The term was used hundreds of times in the Hebrew Old Testament, as Israel was counseled to hearken to the word of the Lord and obey it.

Different terms were used in some instances in the Hebrew text whenever reference was made to hearing or responding without implied obedience.

Examples:

• “They have ears, but they hear not.” (Ps. 135:17; see also Ps. 140:6; italics added.) אָזַן (’âzan) to give ear—to listen

• “I will hear, saith the Lord, I will hear the heavens, and they shall hear the earth.” (Hosea 2:21; italics added.) עָנָה (’ânâh) to pay attention—to answer

• “Lift up thy voice, O daughter … : cause it to be heard.” (Isa. 10:30; italics added; see also Ps. 10:17.) קָשַ ב (qâshav) to give heed

Still different terms were employed in the Old Testament when referring to obedience not to Deity but to other people.  

Examples:

• “The eye that mocketh at his father, and despiseth to obey his mother.” (Prov. 30:17; italics added.) יִקָהָה (yiqqâhâh) obedience, to obey

• “The children of Ammon shall obey them.” (Isa. 11:14; italics added.) מִשְ מַעַת (mishma’ath) audience—obedience

That link between listening and obedience is found not only in Hebrew, but in Latin and Greek. The word obey comes from two Latin roots: the prefix ob “to” or “toward,” and the root audio, audire “to hear” or “to listen.” This root occurs in words such as audio, audience, or auditorium. Literally, then, the word obey means “to hear or to listen toward,” that is, “to comply.”

The word for obey in Greek, ὑπακούω (hupakouo), literally means “listen under,” from hypo “under” as in hypo-dermic, also “in subjection or subordination” and the root akouo “hear, listen” as in acoustics. In New Testament times, its use was gradually broadened to less sacred realms, including expressions such as “children, obey parents” (see Eph. 6:1; Col. 3:20), “wives, [obey] husbands” (see 1 Pet. 3:1), “servants, obey … masters” (see Col. 3:22), and so on.

A parallel pattern is found in the Book of Mormon. Use of terms such as listen, hear, and hearken, written at the time of the Old Testament, generally carried the same implication of obedience to Deity. Those terms in Book of Mormon scriptures written after the earthly advent of Christ were also broadened to include the more familiar usage, as in the language of the New Testament.(3)

In June of 1998 he addressed the new mission president’s seminar as follows:

Obedience is the act of obeying. The verb to obey comes from the Latin audire meaning “to hear.”  Audio-, audition, auditorium are also words that come from audire.

Even deeper meaning unfolds from study of the Hebrew language. If you will bear with me, I’d like to pursue that a little, ever mindful of the teaching of the Prophet Joseph Smith. With respect to “the present translation of the Bible,” he said, “our latitude and longitude can be determined in the original Hebrew with far greater accuracy than in the English version.”

One of the most powerful and pivotal words in the Hebrew text of the Old Testament is shama' {shaw-mah'}, עמש. It occurs more than 1,000 times in the Old Testament.  It appears in each of the 39 books of the Old Testament. It is a strong verb that means “to hearken,” “to listen attentively,” “to hear.” It connotes more than merely to perceive by ear.  It means that one hears a message with real intent to obey.

Throughout the entire Old Testament, “shama” is an oft-repeated cry of God’s prophets to His people. You remember the declaration recorded in First Samuel: “To obey (shama) is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.” 

In the King James translation of the Hebrew text, shama was translated into many terms—such as hearken, heed, obey, listen, or understand, in their many forms.

It is not surprising that the long-promised “restitution of all things,” would include restoration of the powerful concept of shama.  Its English equivalents are scrolled across the pages of scriptures of the restoration.

Let us turn to the very first verse in the Doctrine and Covenants: “Hearken, O ye people of my church, saith the voice of him who dwells on high, and whose eyes are upon all men; yea, verily I say: Hearken ye people from afar; and ye that are upon the islands of the sea, listen.”  That first verse features hearken twice and listen once. Hallelujah! Shama has been restored! Those first words of “Preface to the doctrines, covenants, and commandments” of this dispensation are not written as optional language. They are divine imperatives. You may be interested in knowing that 58 of the 138 (or 42 percent) of the  sections of the Doctrine and Covenants contain some form of the words hearken, heed, hear, listen, or obey. Moreover, in the Book of Mormon, those words appear more than 200 times. Thus, the concept of obedience is not only evident in restoration scripture, it is another confirming evidence of the restoration.”(4)

And most recently he again addressed the subject in his April 2020 General Conference talk:

The very first word in the Doctrine and Covenants is hearken. It means “to listen with the intent to obey.”13 To hearken means to “hear Him”—to hear what the Savior says and then to heed His counsel. In those two words—“Hear Him”—God gives us the pattern for success, happiness, and joy in this life. We are to hear the words of the Lord, hearken to them, and heed what He has told us!

As we seek to be disciples of Jesus Christ, our efforts to hear Him need to be ever more intentional. It takes conscious and consistent effort to fill our daily lives with His words, His teachings, His truths.

13 In the Old Testament, the word hearken is translated from the Hebrew shama, which is a strong verb that means to “listen with the intent to obey.” Hearken is a scriptural word that occurs in 40 sections of the Doctrine and Covenants. 

Now back to Joseph Smith and the righteousness in his revelations. The plea for God’s children to “hearken” to him, begins in and permeates in the Old Testament. A pattern of use similar to that already discussed can be discerned in the 8 or so times the word is found in the New Testament. For example Mark has Jesus introducing the famous parable of the sower in the following words: “Hearken; Behold, there went out a sower to sow....” And it continues the drum beat of pleas to God’s children in the scriptures of the Restoration.

So, if Joseph Smith is indeed a servant of Satan as many opponents believe and proclaim him to be, I think they must explain why he writes scripture that continually repeats the plea--scores of times--to listen to and obey God? And, by the way, isn’t it nifty that his usage of the word hearken is of one piece with the linguistic definitions which come down to us from ancient times as President Nelson shows?  Do you suppose Joseph knew that? Where would he have encountered it in his first quarter century of life? Or, is it possible that he was just lucky to use the word with the same meaning in the same context the ancients gave it because he was just a good copycat? Or is the truth really that there is no unrighteousness in his revelations, and therefore as God says, they come from above? I choose to believe the latter. His doctrine tastes good. It is good. Nay, it is more than good, it is righteous and holy, something that is not highly revered in today’s secular society, and in many cases even among those professing to be his followers.

Thank God for Joseph Smith!

Let’s think together again, soon.

Notes:

1. D&C 41:12, emphasis added. On another occasion the Prophet Joseph said, “I never told you I was perfect; but there is no error in the revelations which I have taught.” Joseph Fielding Smith, comp., Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1967, 368.

2.  Delbert L. Stapley, “Light and Truth Forsake Evil,” Improvement Era (June 1968): 52.

3.  Russell M. Nelson, “Learn to Listen,” Ensign (May 1991), 24 and 25 n. 15.

4.  Russell M. Nelson, “Obedience,” address to New Mission Presidents, 25 June 1998, 1-2.

5.  Russell M. Nelson, “Hear Him,” Ensign (May 2020): 89, 92, n. 13.