DISCOURSE
By Elder Wilford Woodruff. Tabernacle, Sun-
day Afternoon .
-[REPORTED BY J. V. LONG.]-
While I meet with the saints in this Tabernacle
and partake of the sacrament with them, es-
pecially with such a large body of people as there
are here in these valleys of the mountains, it
leads my mind in a train of reflec[t]ion and thought
concerning this work in which we are engaged,
and whether I think of it long or short I have
the same feelings and come to the same con-
clusions, and I say within myself it is the work of
God, and it is marvelous in my eyes.
There is a marked difference between the work
of God and the work of men, or the work of the
devil, and that difference is manifest in the es-
tablishment of the Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter Day Saints. There is one characteristic
connected with the work of God that has been
manifested in its establishment in these last days
as in all former periods, and that is that whenever
the Lord has attempted to establish his Church
and Kingdom upon the earth he always makes
use of instruments whose peculiar circumstances
in life will naturally lead them to acknowledge
the hand of God in all that is manifested unto
them. You have the example of all the Prophets
from the days of Adam, and as far as we have
any knowledge of them they were nearly all men
of low degree and of humble birth, and the Lord
has ever given them his Spirit to enlighten their
minds, and to qualify them for the work assigned
them. Men of this character have stepped forth
and obeyed the Lord in various ages of the world,
and they have given him the credit for what has
been accomplished. This has been very clearly
manifested in our own day.
Thirty years ago the 22nd day of last September,
the Angel of God delivered unto the hands of
Joseph Smith the plates containing the record
from which the Book of Mormon was translated,
in which is recorded the history of the ancient in-
habitants of this country. Joseph Smith was a
man of humble birth, and in one sense of the
word he was poor and illiterate and, to look at
things naturally, it looked strange that the Lord
should undertake to build up his Church and
Kingdom with such a feeble instrument. To
some this may look a very small matter, but the
work was great, and here was an honest soul, and
the Lord made choice of that soul to give unto
him the knowledge, the blessings and the glory
associated with the coming forth of the Book of
Mormon which should lay the foundation of
the Church and Kingdom of God in these last
days.
What did that Angel tell Joseph Smith when
he gave him the plates? The vision of his mind
was opened, and the Angel showed unto him the
condition of the nations of the earth, and said
this r[e]cord which I now commit unto your hand
contains the words of life, the gospel of Jesus
Christ, and the Lord is now abou[t] to establish his
K[i]ngdom upon the earth. The world are in
darknes[s], the Gentiles have departed from the
gospel of Jesus Christ; they have forsaken the
light, the glory and the power of the priesthood
of the son of God, which was given to and en-
joyed by the Gentile nations when Israel was
cut off.
The Lord promised Joseph Smith at this early
age that if he would obey his commandments and
hearken to the voice of the Holy Spirit he would
make him an instrument of bringing about this
great work, that the Church may be brought out
of the wilderness of darkness and Error and my
name glor[i]fied among men.
The words that this record contains shall be
preached to every kingdom, tongue and people,
and whenever this doctrine is preached your name
shall be had in honorable remembrance among
the virtuous, the holy, the righteous and those
who desire to do good, but the ungodly will vilify
your character, hold up your name to ridicule and
scorn wherever the sound of this gospel goes,
even to all nations.
The Lord also told Joseph Smith in the com-
mencement of this work, as you will see by the
revelations contained in the Book of Doctrine and
Covenants, that he was laying the foundation of
a great and mighty work and kingdom which
should be the kingdom of God and it should not
be thrown down but stand forever, but you can-
not now comprehend the extent of it. The mind
of the Prophet was opened by the Spirit of re-
velation so that he could see and comprehend a
gr[e]at deal, but he required the Spirit of the living
God, the inspiration of the Almighty to rest upon
him continually to qualify him for the great duties
that were constantly increasing upon him, and
the same Spirit is required by any man in this
kingdom, whether he be old or young, rich or
poor to enable him to bring about the work of
God, or to do anything that is of much con-
sequence as the upbuilding of this kingdom.
The Prophet was repeatedly told of the im-
portance of the work in which he was engaged,
and was commanded to obey the voice of God in
all things, and then he was told that all that had
been promised should be fulfilled. The Prophet
saw the chains of darkness that were binding the
souls of men, and although at that time he had
not received the priesthood yet the Lord mani-
fested himself to him in various ways and at many
times before he was ordained, or before there
were any baptized into the Church. In process
of time, viz. on the 15th day of May 1829, he and
Oliver Cowdery received the Aaronic Priesthood,
and according to commandment they baptized
each other. Then on the 6th day of April follow-
ing the Church was organized, and the work of
God established on the earth no more to be rooted
out of it.
What must have been the feelings of the
Prophet when, the moment he began to unbosom
his thoughts, and to tell what the Lord had done
for him, the Christian world began to mock and
deride him. The devil opposed him, wicked men
opposed him, and there was a spirit among the
people to kick against the work of God, and there
were whole communities that were opposed to the
doctrine of administration of Angels, and con-
sequently, his path was rugged and thorny.
Sometimes he would come across individuals who
would listen to his message, and would receive
his testimony. This made his soul rejoice to see
that there were some persons who would receive
the words of eternal life.
True, in the commencement this Church was
small, and I frequently reflect upon what has
come to pass in the world since God spake to
Joseph the Seer; I also look at what has taken
place with this people, and I can clearly see the
fulfillment of the word of God spoken by the
Angel to Joseph before the Church was organized;
the Angel foretold the very scenery that I behold
to-day, and from that time to the present this
people have been fulfilling what the Angel told
the Prophet would come to pass after he gave to
him the plates containing the record of the Book
of Mormon. We are daily working for the fulfill-
ment of those things that were predicted from twen-
ty five to thirty years ago; these very things that we
are now witnessing both in relation to our friends
and our enemies are in fulfillment of those
promises made in the commencement of this
work.
The Prophet's heart was made glad while he
lived among us in beholding the signs of the
times, and there are many here to-day who re-
member the early days of this Church and King-
dom. Some of the first Elders in this Church who
went up to Kirtland to see the Prophet were made
to rejoice in his society. The Saints who were
gathered together were so few that they might all
have been put in a small schoolhouse, but where-
ver the gospel had been preached some few had
been brought to a knowledge of its truth and
occasionally a few had been gathered up to
Kirtland, perhaps one of a family and two of
a city.
When br. Brigham and br. Jeseph Young
went up to see the Prophet they found him chop-
ping wood for he was a laboring man and gained
his bread by the sweat of his brow, they made
themselves acquainted with him; he received them
gladly, invited them to his house and they rejoiced
together in the go[s]pel of Christ and their hearts
were knitted together in the spirit and bond of
union.
Those of us who gathered to Kirtland in the
early days of the Church can remember the
scenes which happened in those days. I well re-
member the time when I first met the Saints
in Kirtland, it was in the Spring of 1834. I had
never joined any Church previous to hearing this
gospel, and the first sermon I ever heard was
preached by br. Zera Pulsipher, one of the senior
Presidents of the Seventies, and my heart was
made glad; I embraced the gospel, for I knew it
was the first gospel sermon that I had ever heard in
my life. I was baptized by brother Pulsipher,
and shortly afterwards bro. Parley P. Pratt came
along to gather up the warriors of the Lord to go
up and redeem Zion.
I was deeply engaged in business at the time,
but I felt that it was my duty to do all I could
for the cause of truth, and when br. Parley came
up I felt resolved to volunteer. We called a
meeting and when br. Parley got up and said he
was weary with traveling and did not want to say
much, but he would talk a few moments, and
when he got through it was about twelve o'clock
at night; in fact he had preached about half the
night—my feelings were such when he got
through that if all the gold in the world had been
presented to me I could not have been hired to
stay at home. I went with br. Parley through
Jefferson County, to the North, and then im-
mediately prepared to go to Kirtland. I started
to Kirtland on the 11th day of April 1834, and
arrived in Kirtland on the 25th day of the same
month. I then for the first time had an interview
with the Prophet Joseph; he invited me to his
house. I rejoiced to behold his face and to hear
his voice. I was fully satisfied that Joseph was
a Prophet before I saw him. I had no pre-
judices on my mind against him, but I expected
to see a Prophet.
My first introduction to him was rather singular.
I saw him out in the field with his br. Hyrum;
he had on a very old hat, and was engaged shoot-
ing at a mark. I was introduced to him and he
invited me home with him.
I accepted the invitation and I watched him
pretty closely, to see what I could learn. He re-
marked, while passing to his house, that this was
the first hour he had spent in recreation for a long
time.
Shortly after we arrived at his house he went
into an adjoining room and brought out a wolf-
skin, and said, 'br. Woodruff, I want you to help
me to tan this,' so I pulled off my coat, went to
work and helped him, and felt honored in so doing.
He was about going up with the brethren to re-
deem Zion, and he wanted this wolf's skin to put
upon his wagon seat as he had no buffalo robe.
This was my first introduction to the Prophet
Joseph Smith, the great Seer of this last dispen-
sation.
I was not there long before I heard him talk
about going to Zion, and it did my soul good to
hear him speak of many things concerning Zion,
the gathering of Israel and the great latter day
work, and I felt truly satisfied with what I saw
and heard.
I recollect that in the evening after I got there,
several of the brethren came in and talked with
br. Joseph, and asked what they should do, for
they had not means to bear their expenses from
there to Missouri. Br. Joseph said, 'I am going
to have some money soon,' and the next morning
he received a letter containing a hundred and fifty
dollars, sent to him by sister Voce of Boston; I
don't know but she is in the congregation to-day.
I have felt to rejoice exceedingly in what I saw
of br. Joseph, for in his public and private career
he carried with him the Spirit of the Almighty,
and he manifested a greatness of soul which I had
never seen in any other man.
The reason I speak of these things is because I
want to refer to this congregation, and to this peo-
ple generally as they have passed along, for truly,
it has required a stretch of faith to be enabled to
comprehend the accomplishment of all that has
been done for the last twenty-five years. The
Lord said by revelation in an early day, 'The har-
vest is ripe, and any man that desires in his heart
to preach the gospel and will thrust in his sickle,
he is called of God.' [Doctrine and Covenants 6:3-4]
The Elders that are called in this church, you
can notice in them the spirit and disposition to
preach the gospel and redeem the people from sin,
tradition and error. At the commencement of the
church, the Lord gave revelations to the church
and to individuals, through the Prophet, to
tell them what to do, be baptized, ordained, go on
missions and anything that was required at their
hands, and hence you can see in the Book of
Doctrine and Covenants revelations given to Mar-
tin Harris, Parley P. Pratt, Orson Pratt, the
Whitmers, and many others, calling them to go
forth and preach the gospel to the world. In
those revelations are promised many great and
glorious things, and the pattern is given and the
foundation laid for a great and mighty work—a
work not to be accomplished in ten, twenty, thir-
ty, forty, nor fifty years, but a work that em-
braces the gathering together of all things which
are to be saved both in heaven and on earth, and
the establishing of the kingdom of God to remain
for ever; and the Lord said, you are laying the
foundation for a great and mighty work, but we
did not understand nor comprehend its extent.
He called upon us to go forth and warn the world
of the judgments to come, and to call upon them
to learn the ways of righteousness and to walk
therein, and what has been the result?
Every man that has embraced it, whose heart
was honest before God, has been inspired by the
Spirit of God; he has been ready to engage in
the work, to shoulder their knapsack and go forth
and preach this gospel to all people whenever an
opportunity presented itself, and the first Elders
of this Church did preach diligently and faith-
fully, and many received the word with gladness
and rejoiced in the truth.
Finally br. Heber C. Kimball was called to go
to England, as you learn by the Church History,
and he laid the foundation of a great work, as the
Angel declared to Joseph should be the case.
The words of life that were engraven upon
those plates have been preached to almost all na-
tions, and have not the people had an opportuni-
ty of hearing? They have in a great degree, for
the servants of the Lord have been inspired to
go forth and bear a true and faithful testimony
to the nations of the earth and the isles of the
sea and have preached unto them the gospel of
Christ, and what has been the consequence?
The words of the Lord have been fulfilled to the
very letter, for wherever this gospel has been
preached there have been hypocrites, the wicked
and ungodly, and there also have been the honest
and the meek of the earth, and whoever have re-
ceived this testimony, been baptized for the re-
mission of sins, received the laying on of hands
for the gift of the Holy Ghost—have had their
minds enlightened, and they have looked forward
with an eye of faith to see the fulfillment of
what God has promised.
Have we as a Church been disappointed in
anything? No, we have not, but the Lord has
fulfilled his promises in relation to the things of
his kingdom.
The Lord has chosen men like Joseph and Hy-
rum, the Smith family and the Twelve Apostles,
and they have been humble men in this church
and kingdom, and almost all the officers have been
called from the laboring class, from the plow,
from the hammer and the anvil, and from nearly
every occupation, and their words have pierced
the honest in heart, for they have had all the
power, blessings and knowledge which the Lord
has given unto them, and they have given the
honor and glory to God. I will venture to say
there is no people upon the earth who have been
picked up as we have been, for we have been
gathered from all religions and sects.
The Elders have gone forth teaching and bap-
tizing the people; they have laid their hands upon
the sick and healed them, cast out devils, and had
power to do all those things which the Lord has
promised unto believers. Wherever the people
have received the truth the signs have followed—
the lame have been made to walk, the deaf to
hear, the blind to see; fevers have been rebuked
and the elements have been subject to the Elders
of Israel. Where is there a man who has gone
out to preach the gospel who has not been con-
strained by the Spirit to warn the people, as mes-
sengers of salvation, of the judgments that are
coming upon the earth?
We have been called upon to warn all who
came in our way, including kings, rulers, the
rich and learned, as well as the poor and humble.
It is true that the Lord might have enlightened
the minds of the rulers, the rich and learned and
chosen them to have performed his work in the
establishment of his church upon the earth, but
he never has seen fit to work through that chan-
nel, but he has ever chosen the poor and humble
as his messengers upon the earth.
There is another thing which I desire to allude
to, and that is the very excellent discourse we
have heard to-day, and the testimony of the ser-
vants of God in relation to our present position.
The opposition that we have had and the perse-
cutions we have passed through have been allud-
ed to by br. Taylor, and all those matters are in
fulfillment of what the angel told br. Joseph, and
as long as Satan rules in the world this spirit of
mobocracy will manifest itself, even until the
scenery shall be wound up, and until he who
holds the keys of the bottomless pit shall bind him
with a chain, cast him into the pit and shut
him up, and put a seal upon him.
We expect this, it is what we are looking for,
and yet we above all people have reason to re-
joice; we have reason to rejoice in him who
stands at the helm, and who has nourished and
sustained this kingdom from the beginning. The
God of heaven has never forsaken this work, but
he has ever backed up his servants and opened
their way before them.
How the soul of the Prophet rejoiced when he
beheld the work of God spreading abroad in the
earth, the truth received by the children of men,
and the promises of God verified to the letter, in
the gathering of the Saints and a way prepared
for the establishment of Zion upon the earth.
We have had the holy Priesthood conferred
upon us, and the power of God has surrounded
us, so that we have been preserved thus far from
the hands of our enemies in the midst of the many
circumstances in which we have been placed.
Those things should increase our faith before the
Lord and give us confidence in his promises, and
it should inspire our hearts to diligence in the
fulfillment of every duty required of us.
The Lord says in the revelations contained in
the Book of Doctrine and Covenants that this
gospel shall be preached in all the world, and he
commands his servants to call upon all nations to
repent and obey the voice of God, to receive the
gospel and the words of eternal life. He says:
'Lift up your voices and spare not. Call upon
the nations to repent, both old and young, both
bond and free; saying—Prepare yourselves for
the great day of the Lord: for if I, who am a
man, do lift up my voice and call upon you to
repent, and ye hate me, what will ye say when
the day cometh when the thunders shall utter
their voices from the ends of the earth, speaking
to the ears of all that live, saying: Repent and
prepare for the great day of the Lord! yea, and
again, when the lightnings shall streak forth from
the east unto the west, and shall utter forth their
voices unto all that live, and make the ears of all
tingle, that hear, saying these words: Repent ye,
for the great day of the Lord is come!
6 And again, the Lord shall utter his voice out
of heaven, saying: Hearken, O ye nations of the
earth, and hear the word of that God who made
you. O, ye nations of the earth, how often
would I have gathered you together as a hen
gathereth her chickens under her wings, but ye
would not! How oft have I called you by the
mouth of my servants, and by the ministering of
angels, and by mine own voice, and by the voice
of thunderings, and by the voice of lightnings,
and by the voice of tempests, and by the voice of
earthquakes, and great hailstorms, and by the
voice of famines and pestilences of every kind,
and by the great sound of a trump, and by the
voice of judgment, and by the voice of mercy all
the day long, and by the voice of glory and honor,
and the riches of eternal life, and would have
saved you with an everlasting salvation, but ye
would not! Behold the day has come, when the
cup of the wrath of mine indignation is full.
7 Behold, verily I say unto you, that these are
the words of the Lord your God: wherefore, la-
bor ye, labor ye in my vineyard for the last time:
for the last time call upon the inhabitants of the
earth, for in my own due time will I come upon
the earth in judgment; and my people shall be re-
deemed and shall reign with me on earth; for the
great millenial, of which I have spoken by the mouth
of my servants, shall come; for satan shall be
bound; and when he is loosed again, he shall
only reign for a little season, and then cometh the
end of the earth; and he that liveth in righteous-
ness, shall be changed in the twinkling of an eye;
and the earth shall pass away so as by fire; and
the wicked shall go away into unquenchable fire,
and their end no man knoweth on earth, nor ever
shall know, until they come before me in judg-
ment'— -[Doc. and Covs, sec. xiv, page 177.
I look upon these things; I reflect upon our
government in the manner which has been re-
ferred to to-day; I look at the liberal laws and
Constitution that exist in our land upon which
our government is founded, and yet in the midst
of all this we have not had the privilege of en-
joying our rights, or worshipping God or enjoying
our religion without persecution and oppression.
The Lord has frequently given us revelations upon
these things, and he has spoken concerning our
government and Constitution, and he has said 'ye
are justified in maintaining the Constitution and
laws of the land for they make you free and the
gospel maketh you free, and you shall seek to
sustain good and wise men for rulers, and what-
soever is more or less than this cometh of evil.' [Doctrine and Covenants 98:5-10]
Do you blame the Latter Day Saints? Can the
Lord, can angels, or can anybody blame the Lat-
ter Day Saints for rejecting such cursed, corrupt
scoundrels as we have had here? The laws of
heaven command us not to uphold and sustain
men except they are good men, who will sustain
the Constitution of our country, and we are ful-
filling the revelations in this respect as in many
others, and we are carrying out the requirements
of the Constitution of the United States.
We have fulfilled the law of God, and we have
always been willing to receive and respect all
good and wise men in carrying out the laws and
Constitution of our country.
We have plead with the government, we have
plead with the President and we have plead with
the Senate of the United States to send us good
men; br. Taylor has told us they will not do it,
and why? Because they are not good themselves;
they are not virtuous, they are not holy, and they
will not acknowledge the hand of God at all, but
seek to overthrow the blessings and spirit of that
rich legacy bequeathed to us through the blood of
our fathers—the Constitution. Here is where
I consider that our nation, and the whole people
of the United States, are under condemnation; it
is because they have a constitution and laws of
government, which the people control, for they
elect their own officers, for all citizens have the
right to vote for their governors, presidents and
officers in general, and hence they come under
condemnation. -[Blessed the sacramental cup.]-
The whole people have a vote in the selection
of their officers and if they appoint wicked men
for their governors and for their rulers, and then
those rulers go to work and rule unrighteously,
tyrannize over the poor and humble, and sacrifice
human life to satisfy their wicked ambition, at
whose hands will the Lord require the blood of
the innocent? He will require it of those who
elected the officers, for the responsibility does not
rest alone upon the presidents, or governors, or
judges, but it rests in a great measure with the
people who placed them in power, when a nation
becomes corrupt and appoint corrupt and wicked
rulers and sustain them in their wickedness.
When Joseph and Hyrum Smith were mur-
dered the greater part of the people rejoiced in it,
and would remark that it was a pity the Smiths
had died in the way they had, but it was a good
thing they were out of the way. Governor Ford
said, when speaking to the brethren in Nauvoo,
that almost every man he talked with would say
it was a pity the Smiths should die under the
pledged protection of the Governor of the State,
but yet they were glad they were dead. Will not
God require an atonement at the hands of such
men?
In as much as we have trusted in the Lord, and
have found him true to his word, why should we
not trust him now? If the harvest was ripe
twenty or thirty years ago surely it is ripe now,
for the Elders of Israel have gone forth to the
nations, and the people have rejected their testi-
mony.
The more I look at the words which the Lord
has spoken concerning our enemies, and especially
those of this nation, the more I become satisfied
that they will not escape the judgments of the Al-
mighty any more than the Nephites of old did, or
any of the other nations who have rejected the
message sent unto them by the God of Heaven.
This nation are ripe in iniquity, and the destroy-
ing Angels are at their doors, and I am as sure
that the scourges will follow, as I am that the
servants of God have borne a true and faithful
testimony unto them. I know what the con-
sequence will be of the world rejecting the truth,
for I have the testimony of Jesus and the Spirit of
God within me, and therefore I say let us look
well to our ways, remember our covenants, our
duties and our prayers and I do hope and pray
that the Elders in Great Salt Lake City, will not
in the midst of their recreations neglect their
prayers on their duties before the Lord, nor per-
mit any thing to stand between them and the
building up the kingdom of God.
Mormonism is just as good as it was a year ago.
The gospel of Jesus Christ is as good as it was a
year ago, or as it was in Kirtland or Nauvoo, and
it is our privilege to continue to increase in bless-
ings, glory, power and virtue from this time hence-
forth and for ever, and therefore I say brethren
and sisters let us lay these things to heart, and
let us look at them as they exist before us. Let
us read the revelations of God and give heed to
the teachings of the living Oracles and have faith
in their promises, that we may thereby have the
Spirit of God to enlighten us and to guide us
through this probation.
The Presidency of this Church are good men,
they are filled with the Spirit of the Lord con-
tinually, with the spirit of teaching, of counsel,
which if we follow will lead us on to eternal life,
therefore we are blest, and saved when we obey
their teaching.
We have our leading men, and our Governor,
all of whom have proceeded out of the midst of
us; our judges, our wise men, and our rulers, are
those that have come out of the house of Israel,
and this is a blessing and a privilege that Israel
have not enjoyed for many generations. We see
that the Elders have gone forth and labored for the
upbuilding of the Kingdom of God, and for
carrying out the purposes of our heavenly
Father and for the accomplishment of the great
work of the latter days.
We have the greatest reason to be thankful of
any people upon the earth, and we should realize
that as we have been preserved heretofore so we
shall be hereafter, and though the United States,
and though all Europe and hell may make war
upon us yet if we listen to the counsel that has
been given, the blow will be warded off, and what-
ever we may be called to pass through will be
for our salvation, exaltation and glory.
I pray the Lord my heavenly Father to grant
us his Spirit that we may prize our blessings, keep
our covenants, and continually have his favor, and
continue humble and faithful, and that he will
pour out those judgments upon the wicked,
proud and the rebellious which they desire to in-
flict upon the people of God, which may the Lord
grant for Christ's sake—Amen.