August 6, 1830 – D&C 98 was received

[Hemidakota]

August 6, 1833 — Kirtland, Ohio. Joseph Smith received D&C 98, a revelation regarding the persecution of the Church in Missouri and including instruction on how the Saints should react to their enemies. (History of the Church, 1:403)

Historical Setting: Steven C. Harper - Oliver Cowdery wrote from Independence, Missouri, to Church leaders in Kirtland, Ohio, informing them that opposition from the Saints' Missouri neighbors was rising. By the time the letter arrived in Ohio, in Missouri Bishop Edward Partridge had been tarred and feathered, the Church's press destroyed, and the Saints given an ultimatum to leave Jackson County or face continued oppression. Joseph had not received reports about the full extent of this persecution when he received Doctrine and Covenants 98, but the Lord braced the Saints with a revelation on how to respond when attacked (Making Sense of the Doctrine and Covenants by Steven C. Harper)

Joseph Smith, Jun. – "August 6.—I received the following: . . . (HC, Vol. 1, p. 403)

Background Narration:

Joseph Fielding Smith

Seventeen days after the mobbing of the Saints in Missouri, the Prophet received a revelation [section 98] in which the Lord said that the prayers of the Saints were heard in heaven, and counsel was given them to be patient in their afflictions and not seek vengeance against their enemies. Oliver Cowdery did not leave Independence on his special mission until after the 23rd of July [1833], and if he arrived in Kirtland before the 6th of August when this revelation was received, it certainly was a miraculous journey considering the distance and the means he had of transportation. Just when he arrived we do not know, but the Prophet had learned that difficulties of a serious nature had commenced in Jackson County. Naturally the members of the Church were extremely aroused and it was only natural that in their hearts there should be some spirit of retaliation and revenge upon their enemies. Because of this the Lord gave this revelation. (CHMR,1948, 2:191.)

Boyd K. Packer

Learn how to pray and how to receive answers to your prayers. When you pray over some things, you must patiently wait a long, long time before you will receive an answer. Some prayers, for your own safety, must be answered immediately, and some promptings will even come when you haven't prayed at all.

Once you really determine to follow that guide, your testimony will grow and you will find provisions set out along the way in unexpected places, as evidence that someone knew that you would be traveling that way. (CR, April 1976, p. 47)

Steven C. Harper

Foreseeing the Saints' emotional reactions to the violence, in Doctrine and Covenants 98 the Lord prescribes "be comforted," "rejoice," "give thanks," and wait "patiently" for him, the Lord of Hosts, the defender of his people, to answer their prayers, for he has sworn to do so (vv. 1–2). This is his covenant with them. He promises that "all things wherewith you have been afflicted shall work together for your good, and to my name's glory" (v. 3).

The revelation upholds the rule of constitutional law applied without bias. The principle of freedom "belongs to all mankind," and it comes from God (v. 5). The Saints should therefore do all that lies in their power to preserve freedom for themselves and everyone else.

Section 98 reiterates the law of sacrifice described in section 97. The Saints are being tried and proven to see "whether you will abide in my covenant," the Lord says, "even unto death" (v. 14; see also Mosiah 18:8–10). He commands the Saints to "renounce war and proclaim peace" (v. 16). The Saints' work is proclaiming peace, the good news of the gospel, and the binding and sealing of hearts and families.

At verse 19 the revelation turns attention to materialistic Saints in Kirtland. "I, the Lord, am not well pleased with many who are in the church at Kirtland; for they do not forsake their sins, and their wicked ways, the pride of their hearts, and their covetousness, and all their detestable things, and observe the words of wisdom and eternal life which I have given unto them" (vv. 19–20). He then repeats the terms and conditions on which he will save or damn them.

Beginning in verse 23 the Lord reveals his law of just war, the same law on which Nephi and the Israelite patriarchs acted and which is applicable to all (vv. 32, 38). Simply put, it is to bear attacks "patiently and revile not . . . neither seek revenge" (v. 23). After three offenses, patiently endured, the Saints are to warn their attackers in the name of the Lord to stop. If they do not, the Lord says, "I have delivered thine enemy into thine hands" (v. 29). At that point the Saints can opt to spare the transgressor or deliver justice. "If he has sought thy life, and thy life is endangered by him, thine enemy is in thine hands and thou art justified" (v. 31).

The Lord's law of just war includes the commandment that his people "should not go out unto battle against any nation, kindred, tongue, or people, save I, the Lord, commanded them" (v. 33). When an enemy declares war, the Saints "should first lift a standard of peace" (v. 34). If that gesture is rejected three times, the Saints should testify to the Lord of their good faith efforts. "Then I, the Lord, would give unto them a commandment, and justify them in going out to battle against that nation," and then the Lord would be on the Saints' side (v. 36).

Beginning in verse 39, the Lord adds another dimension to the law. Enemies are to be forgiven as often as they truly repent. "If he do this, thou shalt forgive him with all thine heart," the Lord says, "and if he do not this, I, the Lord, will avenge thee of thine enemy an hundred-fold" (v. 45). The Lord's vengeance is just and sure but it evaporates as soon as there is repentance (vv. 46–48). (Making Sense of the Doctrine and Covenants by Steven C. Harper)

Section Header Notes: Revelation given through Joseph Smith the Prophet, at Kirtland, Ohio, 6 August 1833 (see History of the Church, 1:403–6). This revelation came in consequence of the persecution upon the Saints in Missouri. It was natural that the Saints in Missouri, having suffered physically and also having lost property, would feel an inclination toward retaliation and revenge. Therefore, the Lord gave this revelation. Although some news of the problems in Missouri had no doubt reached the Prophet in Kirtland (nine hundred miles away), the seriousness of the situation could have been known to him at this date only by revelation.

1–3, The afflictions of the Saints will be for their good; 4–8, The Saints are to befriend the constitutional law of the land; 9–10, Honest, wise, and good men should be supported for secular government; 11–15, Those who lay down their lives in the Lord’s cause will have eternal life; 16–18, Renounce war and proclaim peace; 19–22, The Saints in Kirtland are reproved and commanded to repent; 23–32, The Lord reveals his laws governing the persecutions and afflictions imposed on his people; 33–38, War is justified only when the Lord commands it; 39–48, The Saints are to forgive their enemies, who, if they repent, will also escape the Lord’s vengeance.

Versus amount: 48

Suggested link: D&C 1, 97, & 101

Summary and Conclusion: The principles taught in this revelation are just as pertinent now as they were when they were addressed to the saints in Missouri. If people are to stand approved of the Lord, they must follow His counsel and choose to be obedient to laws inspired of Him. (Sacred Truths of the Doctrine and Covenants , vol. 1 by L. G. Otten, C. M. Caldwell)

Edited August 6, 2010 by Hemidakota