Regarding Revelations and Translations for the Church

 

Occasionally various individuals will come forward claiming to possess some new revelation or supposed translation of some ancient scripture that they try to pass of as divinely inspired. This is not new and has happened in this dispensation ever since the Church was organized in 1830.

In each and every instance these supposed revelations and translations can be dismissed by Latter-day Saints. While many might seem like they might contain some profound truths or insights, the Lord has provided a clear way to detect true from false revelations in this dispensation.

What exactly has the Lord said in this regard? Quite a lot, actually.

The Lord’s Word: How Revelation Is to Be Received for the Church

When establishing the Church, many questions remained for the early Saints. Through Joseph Smith, the Saints were given many keys of knowledge whereby they could be sure that a given revelation was of God. From the day the Church was organized, the Saints were told that they should give heed to Joseph Smith as a prophet and revealer of the word of God:

Wherefore, meaning the church, thou shalt give heed unto all his words and commandments which he shall give unto you as he receiveth them, walking in all holiness before me; for his word ye shall receive, as if from mine own mouth, in all patience and faith. (D&C 21:4–5)

Within a few months, this principle would be challenged when Hiram Page purportedly received revelations through a seer stone, much like Joseph Smith would. In response to Page’s revelations, which went contrary to the word of God, the Lord declared:

No one shall be appointed to receive commandments and revelations in this church excepting my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., for he receiveth them even as Moses. … For I have given him the keys of the mysteries, and the revelations which are sealed, until I shall appoint unto them another in his stead. … For all things must be done in order, and by common consent in the church, by the prayer of faith. (D&C 28:2, 7, 13)

In short: only Joseph Smith could receive revelation for the Church, and would be the only one authorized to do so until another was appointed in his stead. Fortunately, Hiram Page accepted this revelation, burned the false revelations he had received, and destroyed his seer stone.

The Lord would restate this principle shortly afterwards:

I have given unto him the keys of the mystery of those things which have been sealed, even things which were from the foundation of the world, and the things which shall come from this time until the time of my coming, if he abide in me, and if not, another will I plant in his stead. (D&C 35:18)

The ability to receive revelation for the Church includes the keys of translation: that is, only the prophet is authorized to translate ancient scripture yet to come forth as well:

And again, the duty of the President of the office of the High Priesthood is to preside over the whole church, and to be like unto Moses— Behold, here is wisdom; yea, to be a seer, a revelator, a translator, and a prophet, having all the gifts of God which he bestows upon the head of the church. (D&C 107:91–92)

The most detailed revelation on this matter, furthermore, explains at length why only the prophet can receive revelation for the Church that we may not be deceived:

O hearken, ye elders of my church, and give ear to the words which I shall speak unto you. For behold, verily, verily, I say unto you, that ye have received a commandment for a law unto my church, through him whom I have appointed unto you to receive commandments and revelations from my hand. And this ye shall know assuredly—that there is none other appointed unto you to receive commandments and revelations until he be taken, if he abide in me.

But verily, verily, I say unto you, that none else shall be appointed unto this gift except it be through him; for if it be taken from him he shall not have power except to appoint another in his stead. And this shall be a law unto you, that ye receive not the teachings of any that shall come before you as revelations or commandments; and this I give unto you that you may not be deceived, that you may know they are not of me. For verily I say unto you, that he that is ordained of me shall come in at the gate and be ordained as I have told you before, to teach those revelations which you have received and shall receive through him whom I have appointed.

…

And if ye desire the glories of the kingdom, appoint ye my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., and uphold him before me by the prayer of faith. And again, I say unto you, that if ye desire the mysteries of the kingdom, provide for him food and raiment, and whatsoever thing he needeth to accomplish the work wherewith I have commanded him. (D&C 43:1–7, 12–13)

Transmission of the Keys to Brigham Young and the Apostles

As the Lord had repeatedly mentioned in the Doctrine and Covenants, he did appoint someone to receive revelation for the Church following Joseph Smith’s death. This was done in March 1844 as he bestowed the keys necessary to leading the Church on the heads of the Twelve Apostles. According to Orson Hyde, who later recorded this event, Joseph began addressing the Twelve as follows:

Some important scene is near to take place. It may be that my enemies will kill me, and in case they should, and the keys and power which rest on me not be imparted to you, they will be lost from the Earth; but if I can only succeed in placing them upon your heads, then let me fall a victim to murderous hands if God will suffer it, and I can go with all pleasure and satisfaction, knowing that my work is done, and the foundation laid on which the kingdom of God is to be reared in this dispensation of the fulness of times. Upon the shoulders of the Twelve must the responsibility of leading this church hence forth rest until you shall appoint others to succeed you. Your enemies cannot kill you all at once, and should any of you be killed, you can lay your hands upon others and fill up your quorum. Thus can this power and these keys be perpetuated in the Earth. Brethren, you have many storms to pass through, and many sore trials await you. You will know what it is to be bound with chains and with fetters for this cause sake. God knows I pity you and feel for you; but if you are called to lay down your lives, die like men, and pass immediately beyond <​the​> reach of your enemies. After they have killed you, they can harm you no more. Should you have to walk right into danger and the jaws of death, fear no evil; Jesus Christ has died before you.

Orson Hyde continued:

After the appointment was made, and confirmed by the holy anointing under the hands of Joseph and Hyrum [Smith], Joseph continued his speech unto them, saying, while he walked the floor and threw back the collar of his coat upon his shoulders, “I roll the burthen and responsibility of leading this church off from my shoulders on to yours. Now, round up your shoulders and stand under it like men; for the Lords is going to let me rest a while.” Never shall we forget his feelings or his words on this occasion. After he had thus spoken, he continued to walk the floor, saying: “Since I have rolled the burthen off from my shoulders, I feel as light as a cork: — I feel that I am free. I thank my God for this deliverance.”[1]

This would serve as the fulfilment of the promises in the Doctrine and Covenants seen above that successors would be ordained and given the keys so they would not be lost from the earth. Because Joseph himself did not become a fallen prophet, he was entirely within his right to do so. The Twelve Apostles have since called others in an unbroken line of succession, and these keys rest today with President Russell M. Nelson.

“Whatsoever They Shall Speak”: Doctrine and Covenants 68

One counter example that may be brought up is Doctrine and Covenants 68:1–5. In this section, the Lord promised those called as missionaries:

And whatsoever they shall speak when moved upon by the Holy Ghost shall be scripture, shall be the will of the Lord, shall be the mind of the Lord, shall be the word of the Lord, shall be the voice of the Lord, and the power of God unto salvation. (D&C 68:4)

What does this scripture mean? Can anyone’s words be scripture?

That depends on how the word scripture is used. In the sense of being part of the canon of scripture, no.

It is also worth noting that a survey of how this scripture has been used by prophets in recent years. Almost universally, when this scripture is evoked in General Conference, it refers to those who spoke in General Conference, and most especially with regards to the Prophet and Apostles.[2] As such, when we consider this scripture today, this is one of the primary contexts we should apply this in.

However, it is true that people can receive revelation for those under their stewardships. This can be seen as missionaries teach others, as Bishops pray for the needs of their ward, and so forth. In these cases, the words they speak can rightfully be viewed as scripture. This scripture, however, is limited to a certain context, and in no way is it comparable to the words of apostles and prophets, who speak for the whole church. Nor is this comparable to the scriptures that compose the scriptural canon: the Bible, Book of Mormon, and so forth.

In no way, however, does this passage mean we can receive revelations for the Church as a whole.

What If We Receive Revelation Outside Our Stewardship?

One more item to note is that revelation regarding certain doctrines can occasionally be received.  However, if one claims to have received a revelation outside their stewardship and they share it publicly, we can be almost certain they have not received such a revelation. This was taught by Brigham Young in 1857:

Should you receive a vision or revelation from the Almighty, one that the Lord gave you concerning yourselves, or this people, but which you are not to reveal on account of your not being the proper person, or because it ought not to be known by the people at present, you should shut it up and seal it . . . as secret as the grave. The Lord has no confidence in those who reveal secrets, for he cannot safely reveal himself to such persons.[3]

Other prophets have similarly taught this principle. In the words of Joseph F. Smith:

Not even a revelation from God should be taught to his people until it has first been approved by the presiding authority—the one through whom the Lord makes known His will for the guidance of the saints. … The spirit of revelation may rest upon any one, and teach him or her many things for personal comfort and instruction. But these are not doctrines of the Church, and, however true, they must not be inculcated until proper permission is given.[4]

Likewise, in the words of Joseph Fielding Smith:

If a man comes among the Latter-day Saints, professing to have received a vision or a revelation or a remarkable dream, and the Lord has given him such, he should keep it to himself. … The Lord will give his revelations in the proper way, to the one who is appointed to receive and dispense the word of God to the members of the Church.[5]

We can even see this principle lived by other prophets who have received such revelations. One example can be drawn from the life of President Russell M. Nelson. Once, he was requested to perform a risky heart surgery on then-Elder Spencer W. Kimball. In President Nelson’s own words,

From that very first maneuver until the last one, everything went as planned. There was not one broken stitch, not one instrument had fallen from the table, not one technical flaw had occurred in a series of thousands of intricate manipulations. … But even more special than that was the overpowering feeling that came upon me as we shocked his heart, and it resumed its beating immediately with power and vigor. The Spirit told me that I had just operated upon a man who would become president of the Church![6]

President Nelson only told Spencer W. Kimball of this experience. Twenty months later, President Kimball was ordained the president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in fulfilment of this prompting.

Consider also this example from Lorenzo Snow regarding a new doctrine that would later be introduced to the Church:

Now I will say what I received in vision, which was just as clear as the sun ever shone. The knowledge that was communicated to me I embraced in this couplet:

As man now is, God once was,
As God now is, man may be.

That is a very wonderful thing. It was to me. I did not know but that I had come into possession of knowledge that I had no business with; but I knew it was true. Nothing of this kind had ever reached my ears before. It was preached a few years after that; at least, the Prophet Joseph taught this idea to the Twelve Apostles. Now, however, it is common property.[7]

Note especially President Snow’s response. While he accepted the revelation, he made no move to publicize this or teach it. It was not his place. He “had no business with” receiving it nor promulgating it. Only the Prophet Joseph Smith could do so, and it was done a few months later.

Prophetic Teachings: What Do We Do When Confronted with Purported Revelation?

Despite the clear and repeated declaration from the Lord that scripture can only come through His prophet, the Saints have needed repeated reminders from these prophets. While this list is not all-inclusive, this offers a substantial list of teachings from modern prophets and apostles on this subject.

Leading up to the April 1931 General Conference, a man was claiming revelations and published them as the Book of Elias, beginning at Section 137. This was clearly seen as a continuation of the Doctrine and Covenants, which then ended at Section 136. He was a recent convert, with no priesthood keys. Elder James E. Talmage responded to this issue powerfully:

The Lord does not work miracles to satisfy idle curiosity or to gratify the lust of the evil-doer. When you hear, if hear you should, of men who are receiving revelations concerning the conduct of this Church, and those men are not such as you have sustained by the uplifted hand before the Lord as your representatives with the Lord, and as his prophets and revelators unto you, you may know that those men are not speaking by the power of God.

Now, do not be deceived. If men come to you and tell you that they have received manifestations and revelations telling of great developments that are to come, beware! So live that you may have the power of discernment.[8]

Elder Dale G. Renlund recently shared an experience in which an individual attempted to convince him of such purported revelations. In his words:

Years ago, I received a phone call from an individual who had been arrested for trespassing. He told me it had been revealed to him that additional scripture was buried under the ground floor of a building he tried to enter. He claimed that once he obtained the additional scripture, he knew he would receive the gift of translation, bring forth new scripture, and shape the doctrine and direction of the Church. I told him that he was mistaken, and he implored me to pray about it. I told him I would not. He became verbally abusive and ended the phone call.

I did not need to pray about this request for one simple but profound reason: only the prophet receives revelation for the Church. It would be “contrary to the economy of God” for others to receive such revelation, which belongs on the prophet’s runway.[9]

Then-Elder Dallin H. Oaks similarly noted two lines of revelation: the personal and priesthood lines. While we are all entitled to personal revelation, there are some things we can only receive through “the additional and necessary intermediaries of our Savior, Jesus Christ; His Church; and His appointed leaders.” President Oaks continues:

The priesthood line is the channel by which God has spoken to His children through the scriptures in times past. And it is this line through which He currently speaks through the teachings and counsel of living prophets and apostles and other inspired leaders. This is the way we receive the required ordinances. This is the way we receive calls to service in His Church. His Church is the way and His priesthood is the power through which we are privileged to participate in those cooperative activities that are essential to accomplishing the Lord’s work. These include preaching the gospel, building temples and chapels, and helping the poor.[10]

Elder Lawrence E. Corbridge also spoke about those who lie in wait to deceive, including those who claim false revelations:

There are many who deceive, and the spectrum of deception is broad. At one end we meet those who attack the Restoration, the Prophet Joseph Smith, and the Book of Mormon. Next we see those who believe in the Restoration but claim the Church is deficient and has gone astray. There are others who also claim to believe in the Restoration but are disillusioned with doctrine that conflicts with the shifting attitudes of our day. There are some who, without authority, lay claim to visions, dreams, and visitations to right the ship, guide us to a higher path, or prepare the Church for the end of the world. Others are deceived by false spirits.

…

Some would say that gloom [Elder Corbridge felt as he read material critical of the Church] is the product of belief bias, which is the propensity to pick and choose only those things that accord with our assumptions and beliefs. The thought that everything one has believed and been taught may be wrong, particularly with nothing better to take its place, is a gloomy and disturbing thought indeed. But the gloom I experienced as I listened to the dark choir of voices raised against the Prophet Joseph Smith and the Restoration of the Church of Jesus Christ—the gloom that came as I waded, chest deep, through the swamp of the secondary ­questions—is different. That gloom is not belief bias and it is not the fear of being in error. It is the absence of the Spirit of God. That is what it is. It is the condition of man when “left unto himself.” It is the gloom of darkness and the “stupor of thought.”[11]

The prophetic voice is clear: only the prophet can receive scripture for the Church.

Conclusion

For any Latter-day Saint, the Lord has given us the above criteria. Those who adhere to the teachings of false revelations will have to eventually come to a head with what the Lord has said. They will eventually have to choose: was Joseph Smith a prophet, or wasn’t he? If he was, how do they justify the statements that the keys and the Priesthood would not be lost, and that only the authorized representative of the Lord can reveal new scripture? Invariably they will have to choose between Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, and every prophet up to and including President Nelson or the author of the supposed writings they adhere to. There is no middle ground.

It is not always clear when someone is being honest or truthful. However, we can always trust the Lord’s servants to steer us in the right direction. Dollar-store, would-be prophets come by the hundreds, each vying to pull us in one direction or another. The Lord’s servants, the Prophet and Apostles, only guide us towards Jesus Christ and our Father in Heaven. As we follow them, we will only be led in the right path.

I echo the words of Elder Corbridge and the prophet Daniel: The prophet Daniel said that in the last days

shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever. (Daniel 2:44)

The kingdom of God is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It will “stand for ever.”

 

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[1] Appendix 3: Orson Hyde, Statement about Quorum of the Twelve, circa Late March 1845, 1–2, The Joseph Smith Papers, https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/appendix-3-orson-hyde-statement-about-quorum-of-the-twelve-circa-late-march-1845/1.

[2] A survey of this can be found on BYU’s Scripture Citation Index, https://scriptures.byu.edu/#::c12e444.

[3] Brigham Young, “Our Relatives, etc.,” in Journal of Discourses 4:288 (15 March 1857), https://scriptures.byu.edu/#:t9c74:j04.

[4] Joseph F. Smith Correspondence, Personal Letterbooks, 93–94, Film Reel 9, Ms. F271; cited in Dennis B. Horne (ed.), Determining Doctrine: A Reference Guide for Evaluation Doctrinal Truth (Roy, Utah: Eborn Books, 2005), 221–222. Also in Statements of the LDS First Presidency, compiled by Gary James Bergera (Signature, 2007), 121. Bergera indicates it is a letter from Joseph F. Smith to Lillian Golsan, 16 July 1902.

[5] Joseph Fielding Smith, Conference Report (April 1938): 65–67; see also Joseph Fielding Smith, Doctrines of Salvation, comp. Bruce R. McConkie, 3 vols. (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1954–56), 1:288.

[6] Russell Marion Nelson, From Heart to Heart: An Autobiography (Quality Press, 1979), 164–165. See also Russell M. Nelson, “Sustaining the Prophets,” October 2014 general conference, https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2014/10/sustaining-the-prophets?lang=eng; Spencer J. Condie, Russell M. Nelson: Father, Surgeon, Apostle (2003), 153–156.

[7] Deseret Weekly, 3 November 1894, 610, https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=2700652.

[8] James E. Talmage, address in Conference Report (April 1931), 29, https://catalog.churchofjesuschrist.org/assets/02a7dbcf-5e3d-48b0-b177-e3d78f51385e/0/30.

[9] Dale G. Renlund, “A Framework for Personal Revelation,” October 2022 general conference, https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2022/10/14renlund?lang=eng.

[10] Dallin H. Oaks, “Two Lines of Communication,” October 2010 general conference, https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2010/10/two-lines-of-communication?lang=eng.

[11] Lawrence E. Corbridge, “Stand Forever,” speech delivered to BYU Campus, 19 January 2019, https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/lawrence-e-corbridge/stand-for-ever/.