Friday, October 23, 2009

The Prophet's Intimations of His Own Death

Ryan Reeder

Rel 393R-Scriptural Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith

Prof. Richard Galbraith

December 14, 2000



The Prophet's Intimations of His Own Death


The Prophet Joseph Smith knew that he would die. He only had the promise that it would come after his work had been fully completed. Toward the end of his life, he frequently made reference to the principle that no righteous man is ever called before his time. He also made allusions to his enemies clamoring for his blood. The prophet made these references more and more often until the last few days of his life, when he seemed assured that he was to be killed, and then he seems to allude to it constantly.

The prophet had been promised in a revelation in 1838 that "thy days are known, and thy years shall not be numbered less;" (Doctrine & Covenants 122:9). This promise was confirmed on another occasion when, shortly before his father died, Joseph Smith Sr. gave him a patriarchal blessing stating, "You shall even live to finish your work. . . .You shall live to lay out the plan of all the work which God has given you to do." (1) Apparently, there was a time when Joseph was unsure of the timing of the fulfillment of this prophecy; he stated in April 1842, "There have been times when I have had the promise of my life to accomplish such and such things, but having now accomplished those things, I have not at present any lease of my life, I am as liable to die as other men" (244) (2). However, in January 1843, he said, "I shall not be sacrificed until my time comes; then I shall be offered freely" (310). Perhaps at one point he wondered why he hadn't been taken in 1842. In August 1842, he seems to have realized more of what his mission required of him. He stated:



My feelings at the present time are that, inasmuch as the Lord Almighty has preserved me until today, He will continue to preserve me, by the united faith and prayers of the Saints, until I have fully accomplished my mission in this life, and so firmly established the dispensation of the fullness of the priesthood in the last days, that all the powers of earth and hell can never prevail against it (290).



During the King Follett address delivered toward the end of his life he said "I cannot lie down until all my work is finished" (406), and a month later on May 12, 1844 stated that "God will always protect me until my mission is fulfilled" (412). He would soon become convinced of the imminence of his death.

Joseph sought to warn his people of the approach of his death. Sometimes he referred to it directly, as he did to the Nauvoo Relief Society in April 1842 when he said that



they were going to be left to themselves; they would not long have him to instruct them; that the Church would not have his instructions long, and the world not be troubled with him a great while, . . .for according to his prayers, God had appointed him elsewhere (255).



At other times he would explain the motives of his enemies in his sermons, as he did when he pointed out the irony that men sought his life because they supposed him to be a false teacher when if he were a false teacher, he would "be hailed as a friend, and no man would seek [his] life" (388-9). He also taught that an apostate who had committed the unpardonable sin would "hunt me, seek to kill me, and never cease to thirst for my blood" (402).

Sometimes he would subtly imply his approaching death. Joseph taught "All men are born to die" (415 (3)) and "When men are prepared, they are better off to go hence" (367). Other times he would make a rhetorical objection on behalf of his foes who "would cry 'treason' and put me to death," (393) if he used extra-Biblical evidence, or if he were to say with Paul that there are Gods many and Lords many, would "cry, 'Away with him! Crucify him! Crucify him!'" (418). Through these interjections and subtleties, Joseph may have sought to prepare his people for his upcoming martyrdom.

Only four and a half months before Carthage, Joseph declared "if I lose my life in a good cause I am willing to be sacrificed on the altar of virtue, righteousness and truth, in maintaining the laws and Constitution of the United States" (374). Earlier he had remarked that if the Missourians ever got him in their power it would be "because I do not keep out of their way" (290). In June 1844, fully aware of what he was doing, he got in the way of his enemies.

Joseph received a letter from Governor Ford and presented it to his brethren on Saturday, June 22. They resolved that he and Hyrum would escape to the West, because, Joseph claimed "if I and Hyrum were ever taken again we should be massacred, or I was not a prophet of God" (425). After they had begun to leave, Joseph's wife Emma sent a letter asking him to come back. Joseph remarked to Hyrum that if they did, they would "be butchered." Hyrum replied that whether they lived or died, they would "be reconciled to [their] fate" (426). On Monday the 24th, Joseph and his brethren started for Carthage. On the way, he asked Daniel H. Wells, who was not yet a member of the Church, to "cherish my memory" (427). A short distance later, he remarked to the company that he was "going like a lamb to the slaughter, . . .and it shall be said of me, 'He was murdered in cold blood!'" (428). As the group passed his farm, he told them that it was to be the last time he saw his farm, and he wanted to take a good look at it (429). On Tuesday, after he had arrived in Carthage, he met the militia officers, and told them that he could see what was in their hearts, that "you thirst for blood, and nothing but my blood will satisfy you" (429). When meeting with Governor Ford on Wednesday, Joseph pressed him for a pledge that if he left for Nauvoo, that he would take him with him, as Joseph did not feel safe. The governor gave-and later broke-that promise (438). At one point on Wednesday, less than thirty hours before his death, he remarked to Willard Richards that "I have had a good deal of anxiety about my safety since I left Nauvoo, which I never had before when I was under arrest. I could not help those feelings, and they have depressed me" (430). Again that night, he "gave expression to several presentiments that he had to die" and later whispered to Dan Jones at about midnight "'Are you afraid to die?'" (432). These feelings and premonitions did not subside on Thursday, June 27, 1844.

That night the prophet had a dream which he related, reminiscent of one he had had just two weeks earlier. On June 13, he described having dreamed that the Law brothers had taken him and thrown him into a pit whereupon they were attacked by wild beasts and poisonous snakes, and pleaded with the prophet for help. The prophet could not help them, as they had placed him beyond their reach (415-16). The night before the martyrdom, Joseph dreamed of visiting his old, run-down barn in Kirtland, when a man, determined to quarrel with him, claimed the barn and threatened Joseph. Then many more men came in and began quarreling with knives for the barn. As Joseph was leaving the premises, the men began screaming as they fought. Joseph said that this was a "dream of vision" (440-41).

The Prophet wrote a letter to his wife that morning, including a postscript stating "I am very much resigned to my lot, knowing I am justified, and have done the best that could be done" (439). Also that morning, the prisoners sent messages to their families. Willard Richards, fearing that the messenger, Brother Wheelock, would be unable to remember all the messages, suggested writing them down. At this Hyrum, "with a look of penetration said, Brother Wheelock will remember all that we tell him, and he will never forget the occurrences of this day" (440). Though not as vocal as his brother, it appears that Hyrum, too, was keenly aware of what was about to take place. The martyrdom occurred at about 5:30 that afternoon.

Two and a half years later, at Winter Quarters, Joseph's successor, Brigham Young, received a revelation saying that the Lord had called Joseph Smith "to bring forth my work; which foundation he did lay, and was faithful; and I took him to myself. Many have marveled because of his death; but it was needful that he should seal his testimony with his blood, that he might be honored and the wicked might be condemned" (Doctrine & Covenants 136:37-39). Joseph Smith understood what his mission was, he fulfilled it, and when that work was completed, he witnessed to it with his blood. He understood that he would not be "sacrificed" before his time, but when that time arrived, as he knew and had prophesied it would come, he was "offered freely" (310).

1. Lucy Mack Smith, A History of Joseph Smith by His Mother, Bookcraft: Salt Lake City, UT, 1956, p 309-310. Notes and comments by Preston Nibley

2. Page numbers in parentheses refer to Scriptural Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, selected by Joseph Fielding Smith, annotated by Richard C. Galbraith, published by Deseret Book Company, 1993.

3. Cf. William Shakespeare's line "we were born to die" from Romeo and Juliet, III.iv.4.

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