| Book of Commandments | |
|---|---|
 Title page of a 1903 reprint | |
| Information | |
| Religion | Latter Day Saint movement |
| Period | 19th century |
| Chapters | 65 |
| Full text | |
 Book of Commandments at English Wikisource | |
The Book of Commandments is the earliest published book to contain the revelations of Joseph Smith Jr. Text published in the Book of Commandments is now considered scripture by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) as part of the larger Doctrine and Covenants.
| Part of a series on the |
| Doctrine and Covenants |
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The Book of Commandments was planned as a compilation of Joseph Smith Jr.'s early prophecies. Smith, leader of the Latter Day Saint movement, gathered several of his revelations for a High Priests council in November 1831. The ten-man council voted to print 10,000 copies, but the actual number of prints was reduced to between three and five thousand.
W. W. Phelps, publisher of the book, ran a press in Independence, Missouri. A faithful Mormon, Phelps also edited an historically important Mormon periodical, The Evening and Morning Star from September 1831 to July 1833. Most revelations in the Book of Commandments had been previously published by Phelps in the Star.
On July 20, 1833 an anti-Mormon and pro-slavery mob destroyed the press. The mob, purportedly frightened of Mormon political power, was incensed by an editorial in Phelps's Evening and Morning Star perceived to be abolitionist. Breaking down the door, they razed Phelps's home and business. At that point, 65 revelations of the Book of Commandments, about two thirds the total, were already printed. Totaling 160 pages, most of the uncut and unbound sheets were destroyed in the ensuing fire. However, some neighbors including teenage sisters Caroline and Mary Elizabeth Rollins [1] saved remnants of nearly 100 copies.
Fewer than 30 are known to exist today, including several incomplete versions. Further enhancing the book's scarcity, several copies of the Book of Commandments are held in permanent collections. For example, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) and the Community of Christ have multiple copies, and the rare books divisions of the University of Utah Marriott Library, Brigham Young University Harold B. Lee Library, The Library of Congress, and the New York Public Library each own a copy. When sold on the open market, the book regularly fetches over $100,000. An incomplete copy changed hands for $200,000 in 2001, and a complete volume sold at auction for $391,000. [2] Rare books dealer Ken Sanders claims a copy was sold privately in Utah for $500,000. [3]
Many of the revelations in the Book of Commandments were also printed in the official church newspaper Evening and Morning Star , with relatively superficial and typographical edits.
A much more ambitious revision was made in 1835, when all the revelations contained in the Book of Commandments were edited for inclusion in a larger text of Mormon scriptures called the Doctrine and Covenants. In addition to many superficial changes, this latter work contains significant redactions, deletions, and additions of new material to the older revelations, and the nature of these changes has been controversial, in part because these changes are not widely known by Mormon adherents, and in part because the changes have been used by secular Mormon scholars to support a hypothesis that Mormon theology developed gradually, and underwent theological reversals and significant changes. Apologetic scholars tend to minimize the significance of these changes, or to read the two editions of scripture in a way that makes them roughly consistent.
For example, mention of biblical apostles Peter, James, and John imparting Joseph Smith Jr. with the Priesthood is in section 27 of the Doctrine and Covenants, but is omitted from the equivalent chapter in the Book of Commandments.
Secular Mormon scholars[ which? ] argue that these changes reflect the changing doctrines of Joseph Smith, but Mormon apologetic scholars are more likely to hold[ weasel words ] that the changes are elaborations or clarifications of previously revealed doctrine. For example, a scripture often cited by Mormon critics says,
This passage refers to Joseph Smith in third person. However, the re-numbered Doctrine and Covenants reads:
Note that the units of the Book of Commandments are chapters, while the Doctrine and Covenants has sections. Chapters of the book correspond exactly to modern D&C sections except for the revisions discussed above.
| Book of Commandments 1833 Chapter (out of 65) | D&C 1835 Section (of 102) | LDS D&C 1981 Section (of 138) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| 2 | 30 | 3 | |
| 3 | 31 | 4 | |
| 4 | 32 | 5 | D&C changes to "and I have commanded that you should pretend to no other gift until my purpose is fulfilled in this" as discussed above. Also, specific mention of three witnesses removed, perhaps because 8 more witnesses were allowed to view the Golden Plates. |
| 5 | 8 | 6 | |
| 6 | 33 | 7 | Concurrent with the Book of Mormon, this is the first translation project of a parchment Joseph Smith. It was the translation of a parchment that contained the Account of John the apostle. The 1835 and later D&C versions were expanded to include prophesies that Peter James and John would restore the priesthood. |
| 7 | 34 | 8 | |
| 8 | 35 | 9 | Oliver Cowdery was told that he had the gift of "working with the sprout, behold it hath told you things. Behold there is no other power save God that can cause this thing of Nature<sic> to work in your hands." [4] This refers to a divining rod. Wording was changed in later editions of the Doctrine and Covenants referring to Cowdery's rod as the "gift of Aaron". [4] |
| 9 | 36 | 10 | The term " Urim and Thummim" is introduced in the 1835 version, while absent in the 1833 version. |
| 10 | 37 | 11 | |
| 11 | 38 | 12 | |
| 12 | 39 | 14 | |
| 13 | 40 | 15 | |
| 14 | 41 | 16 | |
| 15 | 43 | 18 | |
| 16 | 44 | 19 | |
| 17-21 | 45 | 23 | These short chapters contained revelations of no more than 4 sentences each directed toward associates of Joseph Smith. They were combined into one D&C chapter. |
| 22 | 46 | 21 | |
| 23 | 47 | 22 | |
| 24 | 2 | 20 | The duties of Elders in the church and specifics of baptism elaborated in D&C. |
| 25 | 9 | 24 | |
| 26 | 48 | 25 | |
| 27 | 49 | 26 | |
| 28 | 50 | 27 | Additional material in D&C constitutes more than half of this section. D&C includes new passages about Joseph Smith being visited by Elijah, Elias (who is separate from Elijah in Mormonism), Peter, James, John, Archangel Michael (who is Adam in Mormonism), and others. This chapter has the most controversial difference between the Book of Commandments and the Doctrine and Covenants. |
| 29 | 10 | 29 | |
| 30 | 51 | 28 | |
| 31-33 | 52 | 30 | Short revelations to David Whitmer, Peter Whitmer Jr. and John Whitmer combined into one chapter. It concerns missionary work to the "Lamanites" |
| 34 | 53 | 31 | |
| 35 | 55 | 33 | |
| 36 | 56 | 34 | |
| 37 | 11 | 35 | |
| 38 | 57 | 36 | |
| 39 | 58 | 37 | |
| 40 | 12 | 38 | |
| 41 | 59 | 39 | |
| 42 | 60 | 40 | |
| 43 | 61 | 41 | |
| 44 | 13 | 42 | This chapter was combined with chapter 47 in D&C. |
| 45 | 14 | 43 | |
| 46 | 62 | 44 | |
| 47 | 13 | 42 | This chapter appended to chapter 44 to become one section of D&C. |
| 48 | 15 | 45 | |
| 49 | 16 | 46 | |
| 50 | 63 | 47 | |
| 51 | 64 | 48 | |
| 52 | 65 | 49 | |
| 53 | 17 | 50 | |
| 54 | 66 | 52 | |
| 55 | 66 | 53 | Two sections of the 1835 D&C were inadvertently numbered 66. Thus there were actually 103 sections (although they only numbered to 102). |
| 56 | 67 | 54 | |
| 57 | 68 | 55 | |
| 58 | 69 | 56 | |
| 59 | 18 | 58 | |
| 60 | 19 | 59 | |
| 61 | 70 | 60 | |
| 62 | 71 | 61 | |
| 63 | 72 | 62 | |
| 64 | 20 | 63 | |
| 65 | 21 | 64 | This chapter of the Book of Commandments incomplete when the press was destroyed. |
The Standard Works of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are the four books that currently constitute its open scriptural canon. The four books of the standard works are:
The Doctrine and Covenants is a part of the open scriptural canon of several denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement. Originally published in 1835 as Doctrine and Covenants of the Church of the Latter Day Saints: Carefully Selected from the Revelations of God, editions of the book continue to be printed mainly by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the Community of Christ.
Mormonism is the theology and religious tradition of the Latter Day Saint movement of Restorationist Christianity started by Joseph Smith in Western New York in the 1820s and 1830s. As a label, Mormonism has been applied to various aspects of the Latter Day Saint movement, although since 2018 there has been a push from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to distance itself from this label. One historian, Sydney E. Ahlstrom, wrote in 1982 that, depending on the context, the term Mormonism could refer to "a sect, a mystery cult, a new religion, a church, a people, a nation, or an American subculture; indeed, at different times and places it is all of these."
In Mormonism, the Melchizedek priesthood, also referred to as the high priesthood of the holy order of God or the Holy Priesthood, after the Order of the Son of God, is the greater of the two orders of priesthood, the other being the Aaronic priesthood.
The Joseph Smith Translation (JST), also called the Inspired Version of the Holy Scriptures (IV), is a revision of the Bible by Joseph Smith, the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, who said that the JST/IV was intended to restore what he described as "many important points touching the salvation of men, [that] had been taken from the Bible, or lost before it was compiled". Smith was killed before he deemed it complete, though most of his work on it was performed about a decade beforehand. The work is the King James Version of the Bible (KJV) with some significant additions and revisions. It is considered a sacred text and is part of the canon of Community of Christ (CoC), formerly the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and other Latter Day Saint churches. Selections from the Joseph Smith Translation are also included in the footnotes and the appendix of the Latter-day Saint edition of the LDS-published King James Version of the Bible. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' edition of the Bible includes selections from the JST in its footnotes and appendix. It has officially canonized only certain excerpts that appear in the Pearl of Great Price. These excerpts are the Book of Moses and Smith's revision of part of the Gospel of Matthew.
The Latter Day Saint movement is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded by Joseph Smith in the late 1820s.
According to Latter Day Saint theology, seer stones were used by Joseph Smith, as well as ancient prophets, to receive revelations from God. Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believe that Smith used seer stones to translate the Book of Mormon.
John Whitmer was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement. He was one of the Eight Witnesses of the Book of Mormon's golden plates. Whitmer was also the first official Church Historian and a member of the presidency of the church in Missouri from 1834 to 1838.
William Wines Phelps was an American author, composer, politician, and early leader of the Latter Day Saint movement. He printed the first edition of the Book of Commandments that became a standard work of the church and wrote numerous hymns, some of which are included in the current version of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' hymnal. He was at times both close to and at odds with church leadership. He testified against Joseph Smith, providing evidence that helped persuade authorities to arrest Smith. He was excommunicated three times and rejoined the church each time. He was a ghostwriter for Smith. Phelps was called by Smith to serve as assistant president of the church in Missouri and as a member of the Council of Fifty. After Smith's death, Phelps supported Brigham Young, who was the church's new president.
Egbert Bratt Grandin was a printer in Palmyra, New York, best known for publishing the first edition of the Book of Mormon, a sacred text of the churches of the Latter Day Saint movement.
The life of Joseph Smith from 1827 to 1830, when he was 22–25 years old, begins in late 1827, after Smith announced he had obtained a book of golden Plates buried in a hill near his home in Manchester, New York. Because of opposition by former treasure-seeking colleagues who believed they owned a share of the golden plates, Smith prepared to leave the Palmyra area for his wife's home town of Harmony, Pennsylvania. From late 1827 to the end of 1830, Smith wrote and published the Book of Mormon, and established the Church of Christ.
The Pearl of Great Price is part of the canonical Standard Works of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and some other Latter Day Saint denominations.
Community of Christ and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are two denominations that share a common heritage in the Church of Christ founded by Joseph Smith on April 6, 1830. Since Smith's death in 1844, they have evolved separately in belief and practices. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, and claims more than 17 million members worldwide; Community of Christ is headquartered in Independence, Missouri, and reports a worldwide membership of approximately 250,000.
The teachings of Joseph Smith include many religious doctrines as well as political ideas and theories, many of which he said were revealed to him by God. Joseph Smith is the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement and is recognized by multiple Latter Day Saint churches as the founder. Beginning in 1828, Smith began dictating the text of what later became the Book of Mormon, and also began dictating written revelations he said were inspired by God.
In the Latter Day Saint movement, the term Urim and Thummim refers to a descriptive category of instruments used for receiving revelation or translating languages. According to Latter Day Saint theology, the two stones found in the breastplate of Aaron in the Old Testament, the white stone referenced in the Book of Revelation in the New Testament, the two stones bound by silver bows into a set of spectacles (interpreters) that movement founder Joseph Smith said he found buried in the hill Cumorah with the golden plates, and the seer stone found while digging a well used to translate the Book of Mormon are all examples of Urim and Thummim. Latter Day Saint scripture states that the place where God resides is a Urim and Thummim, and the earth itself will one day become sanctified and a Urim and Thummim, and that all adherents who are saved in the highest heaven will receive their own Urim and Thummim.
The standard works of Mormonism—the largest denomination of which is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints —have been the subject of various criticisms. Latter-day Saints believe the Book of Mormon is a sacred text with the same divine authority as the Bible; both are considered complementary to each other. Other Mormon sacred texts include the Pearl of Great Price and Doctrine and Covenants, which are also recognized as scripture. Religious and scholarly critics outside Mormonism have disputed Mormonism's unique scriptures, questioning the traditional narrative of how these books came to light and the extent to which they describe actual events. Critics cite research in history, archeology, and other disciplines to support their contentions.
Mormonism: Shadow or Reality? is a 1963 book by Jerald and Sandra Tanner that is critical of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
In the theology of the Latter Day Saint movement, an endowment refers to a gift of "power from on high", typically associated with the ordinances performed in Latter Day Saint temples. The purpose and meaning of the endowment varied during the life of movement founder Joseph Smith. The term has referred to many such gifts of heavenly power, including the confirmation ritual, the institution of the High Priesthood in 1831, events and rituals occurring in the Kirtland Temple in the mid-1830s, and an elaborate ritual performed in the Nauvoo Temple in the 1840s.
Remnant fellowships are a loosely organized branch of the Latter Day Saint movement formed by individuals who accept alleged divine revelations received by Denver Snuffer Jr.. The Remnant Fellowships generally feel called to personal and social renewal preparatory to Christ's eventual second coming. According to movement beliefs, participants anticipate a coming time when remnants remain within the full restored covenant with Jesus Christ: an allusion to a belief that "The Bible, Book of Mormon, and modern revelation through the Prophet Joseph Smith, prophesy that the gospel of Jesus Christ would shift from the Gentile stewards of the gospel back to Israel in the last days." The movement places a renewed focus on individual communion with God, gifts of the spirit, tangible expressions of faith, and the eventual establishment of Zion. While the movement has no official name, the term "Snufferite" has been used to denote followers. Other designations include covenant of Christ movement and Denver Snuffer movement. Participants sometimes reference each other as "covenant Brother," "covenant Sister".
The following outline is an overview and topical guide for the Doctrine and Covenants.
