Beloved Friends and Brethren—It appears to have fallen to my lot to be
your speaker at this time, and to call your attention to a subject
that was proposed in the former part of the day.
At the time I gave out the appointment for this evening's meeting, my
eye was fixed upon another person to deliver the lecture. I shall try
to do the subject as good justice as my abilities, aided by the faith
of the Saints and the Spirit of God, may enable me to do. I desire not
only your candid and undivided attention, but I trust I shall also
have your prayers, that the Lord may inspire me with those arguments
and reasons that are well pleasing in His sight, that I may acquit
myself before Him, if it may not be my good fortune to acquit myself
so amply before you as my heart would desire.
While reflecting upon the subject of this evening's lecture, those
words occurred to my mind, which our Savior spake to the Jews, who
considered themselves righteous, and looked upon others with distrust
and disdain—in short, who looked upon others as sinners; to reprove
them, he said, "Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but
God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men
is abomination in the sight of God."
I do not know that I shall confine myself to this text particularly.
Although I have repeated these words for the text, yet the text is not
a guide at all times for the servant of God. It is the letter that
killeth, we read, but it is the Spirit that giveth life. The Spirit
of the Almighty is the agent by which His servants should ever be led.
The words contained in this Bible are merely a history of what is gone
by; it was never given to guide the servant of God in the course he
should pursue, any more than the words and commandments of God, given
to a generation under one set of circumstances, would serve for
another generation under another set of circumstances. There must be
something to suggest or to draw forth the command to answer the
circumstance under which we are placed at the time.
It is so with the servants of God. There is a Spirit that is ever
ready, and points out, under varied and conflicting circumstances, the
very course which the servants of God should pursue. The Bible is not
a sufficient guide; it is only the history of the people who lived
1,800 years ago. The history of our Church in this day, presents the
scenes and transactions of this people—the revelations and words of
God to them; but if an individual living an hundred, or eighteen
hundred, years hence, under different circumstances, were to adopt the
history of this people for his guide in all things, he would not find
it sufficient to answer the circumstances surrounding him.
Hence, it is the letter that killeth, and the Spirit giveth life. In
the light of that celestial agent I ever hope to walk. I hope
that it may be not only my helm and guide, but yours also, through all
the labyrinths and windings of this mortal life, until we attain a
standing upon ground celestial.
I have heard it remarked sometimes, by individuals who were not
identified or connected with our Church, that if they could only be
convinced that polygamy was true, they would become "Mormons" at once.
Do you believe the Bible? "Certainly I do," says the inquirer. Did
father Abraham and the ancient Patriarchs live in this relation, and
practice this doctrine? You say they did. Then if what they practiced
is true, you are bound to become a "Mormon," upon your own hypothesis
and reasons. But, gentlemen, if I knew that that was the
all-convincing argument, and if that was the principal doctrine that
alone influenced you to become a "Mormon," I should at once say, let
me never baptize such a person, let me never be the agent to bring
such a person into the Church and kingdom of God.
God despises every character who would enter His Church for no other
purpose than to criminally indulge his natural propensities. Then,
gentlemen, do not indulge the expectation, if you should be convinced
by the arguments. I may adduce in favor of the doctrine of polygamy,
as it is called, that that will prove a sufficient groundwork for your
faith. But where is the ground upon which to base your faith? Where
shall you go to find out "Mormonism" from the foundation to the
topstone, from the root to the uttermost branch in the tree? Begin at
the beginning. If men wish to accomplish any work, they must begin at
the beginning of that work, not in the middle of it, or at the end. I
must begin at the beginning, and if I know that the first stone is
laid upon a permanent foundation, I can then with safety add another
to that already laid; but if I cannot lay the first stone upon ground
that is solid—if I cannot lay it upon a rock, I may despair of ever
rearing a fabric or superstructure that will resist the rain and winds
that may be hurled against it by the power of nature. We must begin at
the beginning, and not content ourselves by grasping at that which may
be beautiful in illustration and enlist our attention, and begin to
build upon it as a foundation. In such a case we may have branches,
but we do not bear the root.
I know that this doctrine is made the subject of a great deal of
ridicule. I know that the world at large who profess to be pious, or,
if not pious, morally upright, look upon it as a damning sin, as a
stain upon the bright escutcheon of their country, here in the very
heart of the United States territory, surrounded by tall mountains;
they consider it a dark spot in the country's history. Many of the
great politicians of the day view it in this point of light.
Religionists are still more scrupulous—they regard it as a heinous and
damning sin.
I always consider it my duty, under proper circumstances, to give a
reason of the hope that is in me, with meekness and fear; and if I
have imbibed a principle, and am unable to defend it upon the
principles of truth, justice, equity, and true philosophy, I should
consider I was walking in the dark.
Whenever truth is manifested by revelation to the servants of God, it
never comes without a reason for it. When the light of revelation
bursts upon the mind, it not only unfolds one principle, but many. For
instance, to illustrate this idea, suppose this room were in total
darkness, and we were seated as we now are, if a brilliant light were
introduced in the midst of the room, it would enable us to see not
only one person, but the whole multitude.
So it is with the light of revelation. When it bursts into the human
mind, it not only reveals one principle, but casts a halo of light
upon all connected with it. An individual thus favored, walks in the
light of Jehovah's countenance. I have a desire that in this light we
may walk; and he whose eye is single, says the Savior, his whole body
shall be full of light, and there is no darkness in him, nor occasion
of stumbling.
What is the condition of the world at large, both religious and
political, who regard us as being in the depths of sin, iniquity, and
transgression? What are their customs? Go, if you please, to the large
cities of every nation and clime. I have visited many of them in the
four quarters of the earth, and in the islands of the sea. I have had
some little experience in relation to these things, so far as common
observation could give it to me, and I pretty well understand the
manner of life of the world at large.
A man, for instance, who has the most riches, the man who can command
the most wealth, I do not say this is the case with all, but it is
the case with the majority—they not only have their wives and families
with whom they publicly live and associate, but they also have in
secret places their mistresses, whom they maintain not honorably, but
under a cloak as it were. When by their illegitimate connections they
are likely to increase their race, what means do they resort to, to
save their credit, to keep their honor unsullied in the eyes of the
multitude, to cover up their iniquity, hide their crimes, and smother
their shame? A skillful practitioner is employed to destroy the embryo
offspring. This is murder.
Nor is this the only means used to hide their shame, and save
themselves from reproach. They may be successful in hiding their
iniquity from the eye of man, but they cannot hide it from the eye of
the Omnipotent Jehovah. Is there not a day coming when these acts will
be searched out, and proclaimed abroad, and that, too, by a mind that
penetrates the secret thoughts and intents of the hearts of the
children of men? "What! Is there indeed such a day approaching?" Yes.
It may be hid for a little season from the view of the wicked, but it
is steadily approaching, and will come as a thief in the night; and
those very persons, both male and female, who often throw out their
anathemas against the "Mormons," against their course, and manner of
life, will be overwhelmed with it.
Then how will apply the words of our text—"Ye are they that justify
yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is
well pleasing in the sight of men is an abomination to God." What is
well pleasing in the eyes of worldly men—men devoid of principle, and
destitute of the righteousness of God? It is pleasing to them to hide
and smother up anything that would tend to cast reproach and infamy
upon their name. The blackness of their character they seek to conceal
from the public gaze, and appear good Christians, and honorable men in
society, men of principle, virtue, and integrity. If they can hide
their shame, no matter what the expense or suffering caused in
destroying the embryo coming into being. They care not to risk the
life of her who would become a mother. All this is well pleasing in
the eyes of unprincipled men, and that their iniquity should not come
to light.
But that that is well pleasing in the sight of men, is an abomination
in the sight of God. I will venture to say, that you may go into the
most populous cities of the world, and you will find a considerable
part of those who give tone to Christianity as it is in the world,
standing in these miserable re lations, under cover, and in
secret. These things are true, and it is enough to pain the heart of
the philanthropist, and wound the feelings of any man who is the
friend of suffering humanity, to read their history, and observe their
course. I would not follow them in all their filthy windings, were I
able. Had I the discerning eye of an angel, or of a God, I would not
wish to follow them up, and disclose to you the corruptions that are
practiced in the world, and all under the cloak of popularity,
shrouded by high standing, and worldly authority; and thus they are
protected in their unlawful relations.
I am not disposed to charge home upon the lawgivers of our country
things of this kind; I will not presume to do it; yet at the same
time, if I can credit their own statements in relation to the acts of
one another touching these matters, it is enough to make the nations
blush and hide their heads in shame, from such miserable, MISERABLE,
corrupt proceedings.
But we do not wish to sustain our own position upon the corruptions of
others—our own position, as it is in the mind and revelations of God.
God forbid that our faith should be founded upon the corruptions of
the world. Our faith is founded upon the purity of the word of life,
and there let it be grounded.
Well, now, friends and brethren, will you listen to me for a short
time, and let me conduct you as far as I shall be able this evening,
through the volume of inspiration that is universally acknowledged by
all Christendom to be the word of God, the truth of heaven? Will you
listen to some of the sayings contained in that book? And then say
whether we possess the same spirit now that inspired the breasts of
the ancients, whose history is penned upon these pages. Judge for
yourselves whether it be so or not.
In the first place, then, we will look unto Abraham our father, and to
Sarah who bore us, for if we are Christ's, then we are Abraham's seed,
and heirs according to the promise. Let any story be told of my father
whereby dishonor is laid to his charge, or let any reproach be cast
upon my mother, and if the feelings of the loyalty of a son towards
his parents dwell in my bosom I will resist all such reproach. No
matter how sinful they might have been, their sins must not be
portrayed before me. I look then unto Abraham as my father, and unto
Sarah as my mother who bore me. How was it, then, with Abraham? He is
said to be the father of the faithful, and the great head of the
Church in the days of the Patriarchs, and the head of those who have
been adopted into the covenant of Jehovah through the blood of His
only begotten; for if we are Christ's then we are Abraham's seed, and
heirs according to the promise. If, by the virtue of the Savior's
blood, our sins are washed away, we are the children of Abraham; we
hail him as our father, and Sarah as our mother; he is the father of
the faithful, he is the father of many nations. How was it with
Abraham? Did he please God, walk before Him uprightly, and obtain this
testimony that he pleased God, and obtain promises that no other man
has obtained since the days of Abraham, the Son of God excepted?
Jehovah promised that in him and in his seed all the nations of the
earth should be blessed, as a pattern of piety, and as the great head
of the Church. Because of his faithfulness in keeping the commandments
of Jehovah on earth, he drew from on high this great promise. Who has
lived since that time who has been thus blessed? I will venture to say
not one. Then if we are his children, will we not do the works of
faithful Abraham? So said the Savior, whoever spoke the truth,
whoever declared the mind and will of his Father in heaven. Are we
Abraham's seed, or are we bastards and not sons? That is the question.
Let us see what Abraham's works were. Abraham obtained promises. What
promise have you obtained? What promise has the Christian world
obtained? "Why," says one, "the Bible is all full of promises made to
the people of God long ago." But what have the promises to the people
of God long ago to do with us? Have we obtained promises to ourselves?
There is the point. If our fathers obtained promises that they should
be fed, and were fed, their eating and drinking does not satisfy my
appetite. It satisfied them, but that has nothing to do with me, I
want the same kind of substantial food myself. If Abraham obtained
promises, I want to obtain promises also. "What! A man that has more
than one wife obtain promises from God?" I tell you there were but few
in olden times whoever did obtain promises from God, that had not
more than one wife, if the Bible be true. There was David, and there
was Solomon; there were the whole line of the kings of Israel. Says
one, "That Old Bible was for the Jews, and has nothing to do with us;
that is the Old Testament; and having more wives was according to
their law, and according to their custom, but it does not apply to us;
the Savior of the world is our great pattern, he is our great
lawgiver."
And how is it with him? Let us inquire. Did the Savior of the world
consider it to be his duty to fulfil all righteousness? You answer,
yes. Even the simple ordinance of baptism he would not pass by, for
the Lord commanded it, and therefore it was righteousness to obey what
the Lord had commanded, and he would fulfil all righteousness. Upon
this hypothesis I will go back to the beginning, and notice the
commandment that was given to our first parents in the garden of Eden.
The Lord said unto them, "Multiply and replenish the earth." I will
digress here for a moment from the thread of the subject, and bring an
idea that may perhaps have a bearing upon it.
The earth, you remember, was void and empty, until our first parents
began at the garden of Eden. What does the term replenish mean? This
word is derived from the Latin; "re" and "plenus;"
"re" denotes
repetition, iteration; and "plenus" signifies full, complete; then the
meaning of the word replenish is to refill, recomplete. If I were to
go into a merchant's store, and find he had got a new stock of goods,
I should say—"You have replenished your stock, that is, filled up your
establishment, for it looks as it did before." "Now go forth," says
the Lord, "and replenish the earth;" for it was covered with gloomy
clouds of darkness, excluded from the light of heaven, and darkness
brooded upon the face of the deep. The world was peopled before the
days of Adam, as much so as it was before the days of Noah. It was
said that Noah became the father of a new world, but it was the same
old world still, and will continue to be, though it may pass through
many changes.
When God said, Go forth and replenish the earth; it was to replenish
the inhabitants of the human species, and make it as it was before.
Our first parents, then, were commanded to multiply and replenish the
earth; and if the Savior found it his duty to be baptized to fulfil
all righteousness, a command of far less importance than that of
multiplying his race (if indeed there is any difference in the
commandments of Jehovah, for they are all important, and all
essential), would he not find it his duty to join in with the rest of
the faithful ones in replenishing the earth? "Mr. Hyde, do you really
wish to imply that the im maculate Savior begat children? It is
a blasphemous assertion against the purity of the Savior's life, to
say the least of it. The holy aspirations that ever ascended from him
to his Father would never allow him to have any such fleshly and
carnal connections, never, no never." This is the general idea; but the
Savior never thought it beneath him to obey the mandate of his Father;
he never thought this stooping beneath his dignity; he never despised
what God had made; for they are bone of his bone, and flesh of his
flesh; kindred spirits, that once basked in rays of immortality and
eternal life. When he found them clothed upon and surrounded with the
weaknesses of mortal flesh, would he despise them? No. It is this, I
have seen men who became poor and miserable all at once, and then
those who were their friends in the days of their prosperity turn from
them, and scarcely deign to bestow them a look, it being too
humiliating to associate with them in their poverty. But it was not so
with the Savior; he associated with them in other spheres, and when
they came here, descending below all things, he did not despise to
associate with these same kindred spirits. "Then you really mean to
hold to the doctrine that the Savior of the world was married; do you
mean to be understood so? And if so, do you mean to be understood that
he had more than one wife?"
The Christian world by their prejudices have driven us away from the
Old Bible, so we must now appeal to the New Testament, for that seems
to suit the prejudice of the people; though to me it is all alike, both
the Old and New Testaments; for the scribe that is well instructed,
brings out of his treasury things both new and old. This is my
treasury, or rather, it is one of my treasuries, and what I cannot
find there, I trust will come down from on high, and lodge in my
heart. The gift of God is also my treasury, even the Holy Spirit.
Now suppose I should set out myself, and travel through the cities of
the nation as a celebrated reformer, preaching revelations and
sentiments as lofty as the skies, and rolling out ideas strange and
new, to which the multitude were entirely unaccustomed; and wherever I
went, suppose I had with me three or four women—one combing my head,
another washing my feet, and another shedding tears upon them, and
wiping them with the hair of her head. Suppose I should lean upon
them, and they upon me, would it not appear monstrous in the eyes of
the world? Would they ride me into Jerusalem upon our ass's colt, and
cast branches of the palm tree beneath my feet, shouting, "Hosannah,
Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosannah in the
highest?" I guess they would give me a coat of tar and feathers, and
ride me on a rail; and it is my opinion they would serve the Savior
the same, did he go about now as he did eighteen hundred years ago.
There is an old prophecy of Isaiah, which I cannot stop to read, but
you will find it in the 53rd chapter of his prophecies; read the whole
of the chapter. This particular prophecy speaks of Christ all the way
through. It is there said, "When thou shalt make his soul an offering
for sin, he shall see his seed." What constitutes the soul? The spirit
and body of man united; for you know it is said in one place that so
many souls were slain in the night by the angel of God. The immortal
part was not slain, but a disunion of the mortal and immortal parts
took place. When they shall make his soul an offering for sin, he
shall see his seed. If he has no seed, how could he see them? "When
they make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, and
prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in
his hand." By and by the Prophet goes on to say, "And who shall
declare his generation," for his life is taken from the earth. If he
had no generation, who could declare it? I told you there was an agent
who would bring out every subject in bold relief, which is the Holy
Ghost, who searcheth all things, even the deep things of God, and
until that celestial agent should fire some man's heart to declare his
generation, it could never be made known. Who shall declare it? He
could not, for he was cut off from the earth. I have noticed the
prophecy of Isaiah, that portion of it which was fulfilled in the
person of the Savior, for the Lord divided him a portion with the
great, "and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath
poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the
transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for
the transgressors." Upon him was laid the iniquity of us all; he was
numbered with thieves, and in his expiring moments he said, "Father,
forgive them; for they know not what they do." "He was oppressed, and
he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb
to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he
openeth not his mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment: and
who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land
of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken."
Now if one portion of this prophecy has been fulfilled, the other
portion has, or will be.
How was it with Mary and Martha, and other women that followed him? In
old times, and it is common in this day, the women, even as Sarah,
called their husbands Lord; the word Lord is tantamount to husband in
some languages, master, lord, husband, are about synonymous. In
England we frequently hear the wife say, "Where is my master?" She
does not mean a tyrant, but as Sarah called her husband Lord, she
designates hers by the word master. When Mary of old came to the
sepulchre on the first day of the week, instead of finding Jesus she
saw two angels in white, "And they say unto her, Woman, why weepest
thou? She said unto them, Because they have taken away my Lord," or
husband, "and I know not where they have laid him. And when she had
thus said, she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew
not that it was Jesus. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou?
whom seekest thou? She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto
him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid
him, and I will take him away. Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned
herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni; which is to say, Master." Is
there not here manifested the affections of a wife. These words speak
the kindred ties and sympathies that are common to that relation of
husband and wife. Where will you find a family so nearly allied by the
ties of common religion? "Well," you say, "that appears rather
plausible, but I want a little more evidence, I want you to find where
it says the Savior was actually married."
Have you ever read your Bibles? I must confess I have not read it for
some time, but looked more to Him who rules on high, and to those who
hold the words of life in the inspiration of the Holy Ghost; I look to
them more frequently than to it. I have once memorized the Bible, and
when anyone quoted one verse, I could quote the next. I have
memorized it in English, German, and Hebrew, still I do not profess to
be very familiar with it now, yet the sentiments and spirit of it are
in my heart, and will be as long as I live, and still remain
when I am gone to another sphere. When does it say the Savior was
married? I believe I will read it for your accommodation, or you might
not believe my words were I to say that there is indeed such a
Scripture.
We will turn over to the account of the marriage in Cana of Galilee,
and the mother of Jesus was there. Yes, and somebody else too. You
will find it in the 2nd chapter of John's Gospel; remember it and read
it when you go home. "And the third day there was a marriage in Cana
of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there: And both Jesus was
called, and his disciples, to the marriage. And when they wanted wine,
the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine. Jesus saith unto
her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come.
His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do
it. And there were set there six water pots of stone, after the manner
of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three firkins apiece.
Jesus saith unto them, Fill the water pots with water. And they filled
them up to the brim. And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear
unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it. When the ruler of
the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence
it was: (but the servants which drew the water knew;) the governor of
the feast called the bridegroom, And saith unto him" —that is, the
ruler of the feast saith unto the bridegroom, "Every man at the
beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then
that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now."
Gentlemen, that is as plain as the translators, or different councils
over this Scripture, dare allow it to go to the world, but the thing
is there; it is told; Jesus was the bridegroom at the marriage of Cana
of Galilee, and he told them what to do.
Now there was actually a marriage; and if Jesus was not the bridegroom
on that occasion, please tell who was. If any man can show this, and
prove that it was not the Savior of the world, then I will acknowledge
I am in error. We say it was Jesus Christ who was married, to be
brought into the relation whereby he could see his seed, before he was
crucified. "Has he indeed passed by the nature of angels, and taken
upon himself the seed of Abraham, to die without leaving a seed to
bear his name on the earth?" No. But when the secret is fully out, the
seed of the blessed shall be gathered in, in the last days; and he who
has not the blood of Abraham flowing in his veins, who has not one
particle of the Savior's in him, I am afraid is a stereotyped Gentile,
who will be left out and not be gathered in the last days; for I tell
you it is the chosen of God, the seed of the blessed, that shall be
gathered. I do not despise to be called a son of Abraham, if he had a
dozen wives; or to be called a brother, a son, a child of the Savior,
if he had Mary, and Martha, and several others, as wives; and though
he did cast seven devils out of one of them, it is all the same to me.
Well, then, he shall see his seed, and who shall declare his
generation, for he was cut off from the earth? I shall say here, that
before the Savior died, he looked upon his own natural children, as we
look upon ours; he saw his seed, and immediately afterwards he was cut
off from the earth; but who shall declare his generation? They had no
father to hold them in honorable remembrance; they passed into the
shades of obscurity, never to be exposed to mortal eye as the seed of
the blessed one. For no doubt had they been exposed to the eye of the
world, those infants might have shared the same fate as the children in
Jeru salem in the days of Herod, when all the children were
ordered to be slain under such an age, with the hopes of slaying the
infant Savior. They might have suffered by the hand of the assassin,
as the sons of many kings have done who were heirs apparent to the
thrones of their fathers.
History is replete with circumstances of neck-or-nothing politicians
dyeing their hands in the blood of those who stood in their way to the
throne or to power.
That seed has had its influence upon the chosen of God in the last
days. The same spirit inspires them that inspires their father, who
bled and died upon the cross after the manner of the flesh.
"Well, but," says one, "there was certainly an injunction laid upon
the Bishops in New Testament times, that they should have but one
wife." This is brought up as a great argument against the position the
Latter-day Saints have taken. In olden times they might have passed
through the same circumstances as some of the Latter-day Saints had to
in Illinois. What would it have done for us, if they had known that
many of us had more than one wife when we lived in Illinois? They
would have broken us up, doubtless, worse than they did. They may
break us up, and rout us from place to another, but by and by we
shall come to a point where we shall have all the women, and they will
have none. You may think I am joking about this, but I can bring you
the truth of God to demonstrate it to you. I have not advanced anything
I have not got an abundance of backing for. There is more truth than
poetry in this as sure as you live.
The Bishops anciently, in their office and callings, had a great deal
to do with temporal matters—serving tables, attending to the poor, &c.
And inasmuch as so much trust was reposed in them of a temporal
character, they were required to have a fair reputation, and must not
stand in any relation that would in the least prejudice their
reputation with the world of mankind.
In certain countries, plurality of wives is legal. Christendom think
they are about everybody, and the "rest of mankind" are few and far
between. I have traveled among nations and countries where this
doctrine was tolerated by law, and I will venture to say, if we were
to take a walk through the world tonight and find out those who are
in favor of, or against, this doctrine, the majority would be in its
favor. Could the whole world be assembled here before me, and a vote
taken upon this subject, they would give us the right of conscience in
this matter.
Has not the Muhammadan a right to be in favor of it? Did not God make
him? And is not his right as dear to him as ours? Why should we set
ourselves up as a little family of nations in Christendom, and say to
the rest of the great family of the world, "You shall not do so and
so, and you shall do this or that?" Why should we be restricted in
this matter, while the great majority of the world decide in its
favor?
Take this question up upon political principles, and what do the
majority of the world say about it? They establish our right. Then
take it upon the principles of natural philosophy, and the truth of
our position is made still more apparent. Had I language to portray to
the most delicate ear the principles of our existence, and the laws of
our nature, the most stubborn skeptic would be obliged to yield to the
power of truth. I might take up the subject in this point of light,
but I will forbear, I will spare you. If I had a congregation of men,
I would not spare them one whit.
The Bishop is to be the husband of one wife. And as for old
Paul, everybody says he lived and died a bachelor; but he said all
things were lawful for him, and that he had power to lead about a
sister, a wife, as well as other Apostles, and as the brethren of the
Lord, and Cephas. Paul did not make known all things, for all things
were not lawful to tell. He said himself, he knew a man that was
caught up to the third heavens, and heard things unlawful to utter. If
he did not take a wife, and multiply, and replenish the earth, he did
not fulfil the first great fundamental law of nature.
There are many living now who are bachelors. I do not complain of the
very old men, for they cannot help themselves at all times, but I am
going to complain of the old bachelors; and I tell you what it is, if
you do not step forward and marry, and try to carry on the great work
of Jehovah, it will be left for a better man to do than you. [Voice in
the stand, "There is but one old bachelor in the Territory, and he has
gone to the States."] O! I beg your pardon; President Young says he
does not know of but one old bachelor in all the Territory of Utah,
and he has gone to the States; therefore I have nothing more to say on
this particular point. Look abroad, upon the world at large, and how
many are there who are too niggardly to take a wife, and support her
and her offspring honorably, and rear up a family that will reflect
honor upon them in their old age! No—they cannot afford to do this,
but they go where they can gratify their fleshly desires, leaving the
consequences altogether with the confiding females whom they dishonor,
and who in that state despair of ever being reinstated in society with
a good character, give themselves to prostitution, and in rottenness
go down to a premature grave with ten thousand curses on the heads of
their deceivers.
Do you suppose these things are going to escape the all-seeing eye of
the Great Jehovah? And will He not visit the guilty sensualist with a
dreadful punishment? He will. Why not in honorable wedlock raise up
offspring to glorify God? Why this niggardly disposition? No wonder
the Lord Almighty sends the pestilence to lay them waste, and reduce
nations and cities to ruins.
Brethren and sisters, it is for us to have the light of truth shining
in our eyes, and honor that truth in all our intercourse with one
another.
The Bishop shall have but one wife. If you were in a country where
only one wife is allowed by law, then you would be obliged to have but
one. What shall I say? A Bishop in England, where he knew polygamy to
be contrary to law, must have but one wife; if you want another, and
the law will not allow it, you must go where it is allowed by law. It
was the case with the Bishops in olden times. We must submit to the
laws of man until he shall reign whose right it is to reign.
This is the cord that shall revolutionize the whole world, and it will
make the United States tremble from the very head to the foot; it is
like leaven hid in three measures of meal until the whole is leavened.
There is such a tide of irresistible arguments that, like the grand
Mississippi, it bears on its bold current everything that dares to
oppose its course.
Says one, "Why is it that men in your society may have more than one
wife? What is the policy of it?" The men of God who hold the
priesthood of heaven, and imbibe the light of the Holy Ghost, have the
privilege and right. Now let me illustrate one thing, and let me bring
it home to you. There may be some under the sound of my voice that the
case will fit. Some man will perhaps marry a wife of his youth. She
dies—he loved her as he loves himself, and her memory ever
lingers about his heart. He marries another, and she dies, and he
loved her equally as well. He marries a third, and so on, and he loved
them all. By and by he dies, and he dies with devoted affection and
love to them all.
Now in the resurrection, which of those wives will he claim? There is
no difference in his love to any of them, and they have all perhaps
borne children to him. He loves the children of one mother as well as
the children of another. What say you? Which shall he have in the
resurrection? Why, let him have the whole of them. To whom are they
nearer allied?
There is a case opposite to this, where a woman married a husband, and
he died, and so on, until she was married to seven husbands, and then
she died. The question was asked the Savior, "Whose wife will she be
in the resurrection!" for they all had her. The Savior gave a curious
answer. Says he, "In the resurrection they neither marry, nor are
given in marriage, but are as the angels of God." Now tell me how the
angels are in heaven, and then we shall have the secret.
It is said, "In the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my
spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall
prophesy, and your old men shall see visions, and your men shall dream
dreams: And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in
those days of my spirit; and they shall prophesy." You are praying
every day, "Thy kingdom come, and thy will be done on earth as it is
in heaven." You never can know how it is done in heaven, unless you
can see it by vision; or the kingdom, when it does come, unless it is
revealed to you by the spirit of prophecy, or in dreams and visions;
then you know it.
This is the benefit of dreams and visions, although this power is
lightly spoken of, and repudiated in the Christian world. The
revelation of the Almighty from God to a man who holds the Priesthood,
and is enlightened by the Holy Ghost, whom God designs to make a ruler
and a governor in His eternal kingdom is, that he may have many wives,
that when he goes yonder to another sphere he may still continue to
perpetuate his species, and of the increase of his kingdom and
government there shall be no end, says Daniel. How does the kingdom of
God increase, but by the increase of its subjects? Everything
increases, everything multiplies. As brother Benson said this morning,
even the mosquitoes of Nebraska increase and multiply. If they do, why
not high orders of the creation have a better right? These mosquitoes
and insects are the result of a fallen world, but by and by there
will be nothing to hurt or destroy in all God's holy mountain.
These men of God who are married here by the authority of heaven are
sealed on earth and in heaven. The good old book says, that which is
sealed on earth is sealed in heaven; and whosoever sins ye remit on
earth shall be remitted in heaven, and whatsoever ye bind on earth
shall be bound in heaven. That Priesthood that has not this power is
no better than a rope of sand. The true Priesthood alone possesses it.
The Priesthood that has not this power is a mock Priesthood, and not
the Priesthood of the Almighty. Little did the world know when they
treated the Savior as they did, that he held their destiny in his
hands; the world knew him not; he came to his own and they received
him not; but the time will come that they will know him, and the power
of his Priesthood.
When the servants of God and their wives go to heaven there is an
eternal union, and they will multiply and re plenish the world
to which they are going.
It is not every man in the United States that can be the president, or
that can be a governor, or a judge, but all are within the pale of the
government of the United States, though they do not all bear rule;
many are called, and few are chosen. But in yonder world those who
bear the Priesthood, and by their faith and obedience obtain the
sanction of the Almighty, they are sealed on earth and in heaven, and
will be exalted to rule and govern forever; while those who would not
listen to the holy commandments, and died without having a wife sealed
to them, are angels; they are lower spirits, and servants to them that
rule. Therefore, this family of old, which the Savior spoke of,
saying, "In the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in
marriage," are not Gods, but angels, who neither marry nor are given
in marriage, while the men that magnify their callings are they that
bear rule, and hold dominion, and receive their crown, and are one
with the Savior, as he is one with the Father. Hence, he that is
faithful over a few things shall be made ruler over many things.
I have a few words more to say, and a great deal more can be said; for
I have only just dipped into the subject a little. I want to say a few
things more, and perhaps this is the most fitting occasion on which
they could be said. You never see a "Mormon" man who bears the
Priesthood, unless it is some characters that only bear it in form,
who are devoid of principle, who have transgressed, and have escaped
being dealt with—I say you never see a true-hearted "Mormon" man
running after a lewd woman; but there are women among the Latter-day
Saints who are loose in their conduct, notwithstanding they have
embraced the Gospel. We only wish to apply this where it belongs; do
not any of you have your feelings hurt, for God knows I would hold the
virtuous and good as sacred as I would my own life. At the same time I
am bound to speak in plainness, and I feel that the Spirit is on me
now, I am warmed with it, and it presses me to speak on this subject,
and to speak it out. There are families in this town that have bowed
externally to the yoke of Christ, but they are as corrupt as hell, and
I can point where they are, in what direction they dwell. When I
approach their habitations, I feel that they are an abomination in my
sight. "Have you any tangible evidence of this?" Yes, I have, and more
than I want, which I shall keep to myself, but the day will come when
it will all come out. Do you see "Mormon" men running there? No.
Wherever you find a house among the Latter-day Saints where no
"Mormon" men go, you may know it is not all sound in Denmark. I will
tell you whom you see there in particular—men who fear not God nor
regard man. What have I got to say concerning women that will come
into the Church and kingdom of God, and bring dishonor upon
themselves, and endeavor to bring it upon the whole Church, by
cohabiting with those cursed scapegraces who are passing through here
to California, who make their boast of what they did in Great Salt
Lake City? I know their secret talk in their chambers, for the Spirit
of God searcheth all things. It may not be with me to the same extent
all the time, but sometimes the whole vision of my mind is lit up, and
I see and understand it all.
I am going to say something upon those who dishonor the Church and
kingdom of God in this way. I will tell you what shall happen to those
men and women who commit lewdness, and go and boast of it, and laugh
in the face of heaven. The day shall come when their flesh shall rot
upon their bones, and as they are walking it shall drop, and
become a nauseous stink upon the highway. Now go and boast that you
can get all you want for a dress pattern, or a yard of ribbon; go and
boast of it, and the Lord Almighty shall curse you all the day long.
[Voice in the stand, "Amen."] And when you step, chunks of your flesh
shall drop off your bones, and stink enough to sicken a dog.
I speak this to both men and women that practice this iniquity in the
midst of this people; and if you do not refrain from such intercourse,
this prediction shall begin to take effect, and by this you shall know
whether I have spoken in the name of the Lord, or in the name of Orson
Hyde. For such abominable practices to come in our midst under the
robes of sanctity, because there are liberal, holy, and righteous
principles practiced by the Saints, I say, curse their habitation and
their persons; and if this is your mind, let all Israel say amen. [The
whole of the congregation at the top of their voices said, "Amen!"]
And let these contemptible wretches feel the "Mormon" spirit, not by
"Mormon" hands, but by the power of God on high.
I feel charged with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven, and it burns
in my heart like a flame, and this is the testimony I bear. If I do
mingle in the streets with the crowd to engage in business as any
other man, I am not always asleep, and insensible to what is passing
around me. I do not profess to know a great deal, but some things I do
know, and some things I do not know.
I have endeavored to illustrate this subject for the benefit of the
honest inquirer. I have only just touched it, endeavoring to throw out
a few hints for your consideration, that you may know we are not
without some reason for our faith and practice touching the subject of
polygamy. I wish you to mind the admonition I have given. I have given
it to you in faith; I have given it to you regardless of consequences,
for I ask no odds of anybody, except of my Father in heaven, and of
my brethren whose hearts I know to be pure; and I want to be
identified with them in time and in all eternity, and with my sisters
too; and wish to be exalted with them, and they with me, where the
Saints may join hands after passing through much tribulation, and
gaining crowns, to rejoice together forever and ever.
I feel as though I had borne a faithful testimony, and I now say, in
the presence of God and angels, that I have given the guilty persons
warning, and my garments are clean from your blood. Take warning, and
never do a thing that will throw dishonor upon the Saints of the Most
High.
May God add His blessing, and preserve us to His heavenly kingdom,
which may He grant. Amen.