History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Volume 1Smith, Joseph, Jr.
Religion
History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Volume 1
Smith, Joseph, Jr.
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; Smith, Joseph, Jr., 1805-1844
18. Behold, I, the Lord, am merciful and will bless them, and they
shall enter into the joy of these things. Even so. Amen.
Footnotes
1. It would be more proper to say "revision of the Bible" than
"translation" of it; as the Prophet did not at any time pretend to a
knowledge of the ancient languages that would enable him to translate
from the Hebrew or the Greek as "translation" is commonly understood.
But what he did was to revise the English text of the Bible under
the inspiration of God; and that led him not only to give different
renderings of various passages, but also to supply missing parts.
2. The miracle here referred to is thus related in _Hayden's History
of the Disciples_ (a Campbellite work), pp. 250-1. "Ezra Booth, of
Mantua, a Methodist preacher of much more than ordinary culture, and
with strong natural abilities, in company with his wife, Mr. and Mrs.
Johnson, and some other citizens of this place [Hiram], visited Smith
at his home in Kirtland, in 1831. Mrs. Johnson had been afflicted for
some time with a lame arm, and was not at the time of the visit able
to lift her hand to her head. The party visited Smith partly out of
curiosity, and partly to see for themselves what there might be in
the new doctrine. During the interview the conversation turned on the
subject of supernatural gifts, such as were conferred in the days of
the apostles. Some one said, 'Here is Mrs. Johnson with a lame arm; has
God given any power to man now on the earth to cure her?' A few moments
later, when the conversation had turned in another direction, Smith
rose, and walking across the room, taking Mrs. Johnson by the hand,
said in the most solemn and impressive manner: 'Woman, in the name of
the Lord Jesus Christ I command thee to be whole,' and immediately left
the room. The company were awe-stricken at the infinite presumption of
the man, and the calm assurance with which he spoke. The sudden mental
and moral shock--I know not how better to explain the well-attested
fact--electrified the rheumatic arm--Mrs. Johnson at once lifted it up
with ease, and on her return home the next day she was able to do her
washing without difficulty or pain."
3. See page 212, verses 15, 16.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account