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Revelation, 6 April 1830 [D&C 21]

Source Note

Revelation,
Fayette Township

Located in northern part of county between Seneca and Cayuga lakes. Area settled, by 1790. Officially organized as Washington Township, 14 Mar. 1800. Name changed to Fayette, 6 Apr. 1808. Population in 1830 about 3,200. Population in 1840 about 3,700. Significant...

More Info
, Seneca Co., NY, to JS and
Oliver Cowdery

3 Oct. 1806–3 Mar. 1850. Clerk, teacher, justice of the peace, lawyer, newspaper editor. Born at Wells, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of William Cowdery and Rebecca Fuller. Raised Congregationalist. Moved to western New York and clerked at a store, ca. 1825–1828...

View Full Bio
, 6 Apr. 1830. Featured version, titled “17th. Commandment AD 1829 Ap[r]il 6 1830,” copied [ca. Mar. 1831] in Revelation Book 1, pp. 28–29; handwriting of
John Whitmer

27 Aug. 1802–11 July 1878. Farmer, stock raiser, newspaper editor. Born in Pennsylvania. Son of Peter Whitmer Sr. and Mary Musselman. Member of German Reformed Church, Fayette, Seneca Co., New York. Baptized by Oliver Cowdery, June 1829, most likely in Seneca...

View Full Bio
; CHL. Includes redactions. For more complete source information, see the source note for Revelation Book 1.

Historical Introduction

JS dictated this revelation at the home of
Peter Whitmer Sr.

14 Apr. 1773–13 Aug. 1854. Farmer. Born at Harrisburg, Dauphin Co., Pennsylvania. Son of Peter Whitmer and likely Maria Salome. Member of Presbyterian church. Married Mary Musselman, before 1798, in Pennsylvania. Lived in Lebanon Township, Dauphin Co., by...

View Full Bio
in
Fayette Township

Located in northern part of county between Seneca and Cayuga lakes. Area settled, by 1790. Officially organized as Washington Township, 14 Mar. 1800. Name changed to Fayette, 6 Apr. 1808. Population in 1830 about 3,200. Population in 1840 about 3,700. Significant...

More Info
, New York, after the meeting at which the
Church of Christ

The Book of Mormon related that when Christ set up his church in the Americas, “they which were baptized in the name of Jesus, were called the church of Christ.” The first name used to denote the church JS organized on 6 April 1830 was “the Church of Christ...

View Glossary
was organized.
1

JS History, vol. A-1, 37; see also Anderson, “Who Were the Six?,” 44–45; and Porter, “Study of the Origins,” 374–386, appendix H.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Anderson, Richard Lloyd. “Who Were the Six Who Organized the Church on 6 April 1830?” Ensign, June 1980, 44–45.

Porter, Larry C. “A Study of the Origins of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the States of New York and Pennsylvania, 1816–1831.” PhD diss., Brigham Young University, 1971. Also available as A Study of the Origins of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the States of New York and Pennsylvania, 1816–1831, Dissertations in Latter-day Saint History (Provo, UT: Joseph Fielding Smith Institute for Latter-day Saint History; BYU Studies, 2000).

Such a meeting had been anticipated by JS and his followers for over a year, in part because JS’s revelations had foretold the establishment of a church. A March 1829 revelation to
Martin Harris

18 May 1783–10 July 1875. Farmer. Born at Easton, Albany Co., New York. Son of Nathan Harris and Rhoda Lapham. Moved with parents to area of Swift’s landing (later in Palmyra), Ontario Co., New York, 1793. Married first his first cousin Lucy Harris, 27 Mar...

View Full Bio
, for example, prophesied that a church would be established after three witnesses testified that they had seen the
gold plates

A record engraved on gold plates, which JS translated and published as the Book of Mormon. The text explained that the plates were an abridgment of other ancient records and were written by an American prophet named Mormon and his son Moroni. The plates were...

View Glossary
and after the words found on the plates were “sent forth.”
2

See Revelation, Mar. 1829 [D&C 5:11–20] .


Another JS revelation in spring 1829 confirmed that a church would be established,
3

Revelation, Spring 1829 [D&C 10:53].


even as the texts translated from the gold plates prompted JS and
Oliver Cowdery

3 Oct. 1806–3 Mar. 1850. Clerk, teacher, justice of the peace, lawyer, newspaper editor. Born at Wells, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of William Cowdery and Rebecca Fuller. Raised Congregationalist. Moved to western New York and clerked at a store, ca. 1825–1828...

View Full Bio
to consider questions foundational to a church organization and described how Christ established his church in ancient America.
4

See, for example, Book of Mormon, 1830 ed., 191–194, 574–576 [Mosiah 18; Moroni 2–6]; see also Oliver Cowdery, Norton, OH, to William W. Phelps, 7 Sept. 1834, LDS Messenger and Advocate, Oct. 1834, 1:15.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.

By June, a revelation commanded Cowdery to “build up my church,” and he subsequently drafted a text, which he titled “A commandment from God unto Oliver how he should build up his Church & the manner thereof.”
5

Revelation, June 1829–B [D&C 18:5]; “Articles of the Church of Christ,” June 1829.


The document read as though it was intended for immediate implementation.
JS, however, later reported that he was directed to delay the establishment of the Church of Christ. His history explained that a revelation “pointed out to us the precise day upon which, according to his will and commandment, we should proceed to organize his Church once again, here upon the earth.” Apparently once a separate June 1829 text, it was incorporated as part of “Articles and Covenants,” a foundational document outlining the governing beliefs, principles, and offices of the church.
6

JS History, vol. A-1, 29; see also Historical Introduction to Articles and Covenants, ca. Apr. 1830 [D&C 20].


JS’s history described another divine communication, received that June at the home of
Peter Whitmer Sr.

14 Apr. 1773–13 Aug. 1854. Farmer. Born at Harrisburg, Dauphin Co., Pennsylvania. Son of Peter Whitmer and likely Maria Salome. Member of Presbyterian church. Married Mary Musselman, before 1798, in Pennsylvania. Lived in Lebanon Township, Dauphin Co., by...

View Full Bio
in
Fayette

Located in northern part of county between Seneca and Cayuga lakes. Area settled, by 1790. Officially organized as Washington Township, 14 Mar. 1800. Name changed to Fayette, 6 Apr. 1808. Population in 1830 about 3,200. Population in 1840 about 3,700. Significant...

More Info
, New York, when the “word of the Lord” instructed JS and
Cowdery

3 Oct. 1806–3 Mar. 1850. Clerk, teacher, justice of the peace, lawyer, newspaper editor. Born at Wells, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of William Cowdery and Rebecca Fuller. Raised Congregationalist. Moved to western New York and clerked at a store, ca. 1825–1828...

View Full Bio
to wait to
ordain

The conferral of power and authority; to appoint, decree, or set apart. Church members, primarily adults, were ordained to ecclesiastical offices and other responsibilities by the laying on of hands by those with the proper authority. Ordinations to priesthood...

View Glossary
each other
elders

A male leader in the church generally; an ecclesiastical and priesthood office or one holding that office; a proselytizing missionary. The Book of Mormon explained that elders ordained priests and teachers and administered “the flesh and blood of Christ unto...

View Glossary
“untill, such times, as it should be practicable” to meet with all the believers who would vote “to accept us as spiritual teachers, or not.” JS and Cowdery were instructed that when the time came they should “then call out such men as the Spirit should dictate, and ordain them, and then attend to the laying on of hands for the
gift of the Holy Ghost

A right or privilege bestowed through the confirmation ordinance. Individuals were confirmed members of the church and received the gift of the Holy Ghost through the laying on of hands. The Book of Mormon explained that remission of sins requires not only...

View Glossary
.”
7

JS History, vol. A-1, 27.


Describing the fulfillment of those instructions, JS’s history explained that JS and his associates “met together for that purpose, at the house of . . .
Mr Whitmer [Peter Whitmer Sr.]

14 Apr. 1773–13 Aug. 1854. Farmer. Born at Harrisburg, Dauphin Co., Pennsylvania. Son of Peter Whitmer and likely Maria Salome. Member of Presbyterian church. Married Mary Musselman, before 1798, in Pennsylvania. Lived in Lebanon Township, Dauphin Co., by...

View Full Bio
” on 6 April 1830.
8

JS History, vol. A-1, 37. David Whitmer, one of the few attendees who wrote about the event, stated: “We attended to our business of organizing, according to the laws of the land, the church acknowledging us six elders as their ministers; besides, a few who had recently been baptized and not confirmed were confirmed on that day; some blessings were pronounced, and we partook of the Lord’s supper.” (Whitmer, Address to All Believers in Christ, 33.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Whitmer, David. An Address to All Believers in Christ. Richmond, MO: By the author, 1887.

Those who attended the meeting, the history further explained, “consented by an unanimous vote. I then laid my hands upon
Oliver Cowdery

3 Oct. 1806–3 Mar. 1850. Clerk, teacher, justice of the peace, lawyer, newspaper editor. Born at Wells, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of William Cowdery and Rebecca Fuller. Raised Congregationalist. Moved to western New York and clerked at a store, ca. 1825–1828...

View Full Bio
and ordained him an Elder . . . after which he ordained me also to the office of an Elder of said Church.” They then partook of the
sacramental

Primarily referred to the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper, or Communion, as opposed to other religious sacraments. The “Articles and Covenants” of the church directed “that the church meet together often to partake of bread and wine in remembrance of the Lord...

View Glossary
bread and wine and “then laid . . . hands on each individual member of the Church present that they might receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, and be confirmed members of the Church of Christ.” Then, while the group was “yet together,” JS dictated the revelation featured below.
9

JS History, vol. A-1, 37.


It began, “Behold there Shall a Record be kept among you,” and affirmed that in that record JS would be known as a “
seer

The Book of Mormon identified a seer as a “revelator, and a prophet also,” specifying, however, that a seer was “greater than a prophet.” A seer could “know of things which has past, and also of things which is to come.” The work of a seer included translation...

View Glossary
& Translater & Prop[h]et an
Apostle

A title indicating one sent forth to preach; later designated as a specific ecclesiastical and priesthood office. By 1830, JS and Oliver Cowdery were designated as apostles. The “Articles and Covenants” of the church explained that an “apostle is an elder...

View Glossary
of Jesus Christ an Elder of the Church.” The revelation instructed “
Oliver

3 Oct. 1806–3 Mar. 1850. Clerk, teacher, justice of the peace, lawyer, newspaper editor. Born at Wells, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of William Cowdery and Rebecca Fuller. Raised Congregationalist. Moved to western New York and clerked at a store, ca. 1825–1828...

View Full Bio
mine Apostle” to ordain JS.
David Whitmer

7 Jan. 1805–25 Jan. 1888. Farmer, livery keeper. Born near Harrisburg, Dauphin Co., Pennsylvania. Son of Peter Whitmer Sr. and Mary Musselman. Raised Presbyterian. Moved to Ontario Co., New York, shortly after birth. Attended German Reformed Church. Arranged...

View Full Bio
, who was at the meeting, wrote that “Joseph received a revelation that he should be the leader; that he should be ordained by Oliver Cowdery as ‘Prophet Seer and Revelator’ to the church, and that the church should receive his words as if from God’s own mouth.”
10

Whitmer, Address to All Believers in Christ, 33.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Whitmer, David. An Address to All Believers in Christ. Richmond, MO: By the author, 1887.

When Cowdery was later asked, “To what did you ordain Joseph on the 6th of April, 1830?” he answered, “I ordained him to be a Prophet, Seer, &c., just as the revelation says.”
11

[William E. McLellin], “The Successor of Joseph the Seer,” Ensign of Liberty, Dec. 1847, 42.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Ensign of Liberty. Kirtland, OH. Mar. 1847–Aug. 1849.

Eyewitness accounts affirm the date and place this document was dictated; nevertheless, early documents indicate some confusion about both.
12

David Whitmer explained, “The reason why we met on that day was . . . that we should organize according to the laws of the land. On this account we met at my father’s house in Fayette, N. Y., on April 6, 1830.” Whitmer also referred to this revelation being given at that occasion. (Whitmer, Address to All Believers in Christ, 33; see also An Act to Provide for the Incorporation of Religious Societies [5 Apr. 1813], Laws of the State of New-York [1813], vol. 2, p. 214, sec. 3; see also JS History, vol. A-1, 37.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Whitmer, David. An Address to All Believers in Christ. Richmond, MO: By the author, 1887.

Laws of the State of New-York, Revised and Passed at the Thirty-Sixth Session of the Legislature, With Marginal Notes and References. 2 Vols. Albany: H. C. Southwick and Company, 1813.

In the heading to the text itself in Revelation Book 1, the earliest extant copy, and in the table of contents to that volume,
John Whitmer

27 Aug. 1802–11 July 1878. Farmer, stock raiser, newspaper editor. Born in Pennsylvania. Son of Peter Whitmer Sr. and Mary Musselman. Member of German Reformed Church, Fayette, Seneca Co., New York. Baptized by Oliver Cowdery, June 1829, most likely in Seneca...

View Full Bio
dated the revelation to 1829.
13

See Revelation Book 1, pp. 28, [207].


Later, that date was crossed out multiple times by
Oliver Cowdery

3 Oct. 1806–3 Mar. 1850. Clerk, teacher, justice of the peace, lawyer, newspaper editor. Born at Wells, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of William Cowdery and Rebecca Fuller. Raised Congregationalist. Moved to western New York and clerked at a store, ca. 1825–1828...

View Full Bio
, who subsequently inserted “April 1830,” after which John Whitmer inserted the number “6” to specify the date as 6 April. Whitmer may have originally written “1829” because the revelation was situated in Revelation Book 1 next to a revelation that does date from 1829. In any case, the text of the revelation supports Cowdery’s redaction by referring to the establishment of the church in the past tense.
Even though this, the earliest extant version of the revelation, gives
Fayette

Located in northern part of county between Seneca and Cayuga lakes. Area settled, by 1790. Officially organized as Washington Township, 14 Mar. 1800. Name changed to Fayette, 6 Apr. 1808. Population in 1830 about 3,200. Population in 1840 about 3,700. Significant...

More Info
, New York, as the place of dictation, the earliest printed version changed the location to
Manchester

Settled 1793. Formed as Burt Township when divided from Farmington Township, 31 Mar. 1821. Name changed to Manchester, 16 Apr. 1822. Included village of Manchester. Population in 1825 about 2,700. Population in 1830 about 2,800. JS reported first vision of...

More Info
. The mistake seems to have been the result of confusion on the part of typesetter and printer
William W. Phelps

17 Feb. 1792–7 Mar. 1872. Writer, teacher, printer, newspaper editor, publisher, postmaster, lawyer. Born at Hanover, Morris Co., New Jersey. Son of Enon Phelps and Mehitabel Goldsmith. Moved to Homer, Cortland Co., New York, 1800. Married Sally Waterman,...

View Full Bio
in
Independence

Located twelve miles from western Missouri border. Permanently settled, platted, and designated county seat, 1827. Hub for steamboat travel on Missouri River. Point of departure for Santa Fe Trail. Population in 1831 about 300. Latter-day Saint population...

More Info
, Missouri, as he prepared this and other revelations for publication in the 1833 Book of Commandments.
14

For the historical background of the Book of Commandments, see its historical introduction.


Phelps, who joined the church in June 1831 and therefore had no firsthand knowledge of the date or place of organization, added “6” to five short April 1830 revelations from Manchester and then followed them with this 6 April text—but he ignored the statement “given at Fayette Seneca County” on the manuscript and instead inserted Manchester to match the others for which he had supplied the same date.
15

See Revelation Book 1, pp. 28–30; and Revelations, 6 Apr. 1830 and Apr. 1830–A through E, in Book of Commandments, 17–22 [D&C 21, 23].


Although Phelps and others elsewhere repeated that the church was organized in Manchester,
16

William W. Phelps, for example, stated in The Evening and the Morning Star that the church was established in Manchester.a A pamphlet by Orson Pratt published in 1840 likewise named Manchester, but in the 1848 edition of the pamphlet, Pratt changed the establishment location from Manchester to Fayette.b William E. McLellin is another who believed the organizational meeting took place in Manchester.c For other accounts pointing to a Manchester establishment, see JS, “Church History,” Times and Seasons, 1 Mar. 1842, 3:708; Smith, William Smith on Mormonism, 14; William H. Kelley, Interview of Benjamin Saunders, ca. Sept. 1884, in Vogel, Early Mormon Documents, 2:138–139; and “C. R. Stafford,” Naked Truths about Mormonism (Oakland, CA), Jan. 1888, 3.(a“Prospects of the Church,” The Evening and the Morning Star, 1 Mar. 1833, [4]; see also “Communicated,” The Evening and the Morning Star, May 1834, 160.bPratt, Interesting Account, 23–24; Pratt, Remarkable Visions, 12.c[William E. McLellin], Editorial, Ensign of Liberty, Mar. 1847, 2.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

The Evening and the Morning Star. Independence, MO, June 1832–July 1833; Kirtland, OH, Dec. 1833–Sept. 1834.

Pratt, Orson. Remarkable Visions. By Orson Pratt, One of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Liverpool: R. James, 1848.

Ensign of Liberty. Kirtland, OH. Mar. 1847–Aug. 1849.

Smith, William. William Smith on Mormonism. This Book Contains a True Account of the Origin of the Book of Mormon. A Sketch of the History, Experience, and Ministry of Elder William Smith. . . . Lamoni, IA: Herald Steam Book and Job Office, 1883.

Vogel, Dan, ed. Early Mormon Documents. 5 vols. Salt Lake City: Signature Books, 1996–2003.

Naked Truths about Mormonism: Also a Journal for Important, Newly Apprehended Truths, and Miscellany. Oakland, CA. Jan. and Apr. 1888.

the earliest manuscript and later eyewitness accounts, as well as early financial and legal documents, confirm the correct location as Fayette Township.
17

The minutes of a meeting held 3 May 1834, approving a change in the name of the church, include an attestation that the church was originally organized 6 April 1830 in Fayette. JS and Oliver Cowdery both signed the minutes. The deed of purchase for church lands in Ohio likewise identified Fayette and was signed by Oliver Cowdery. (“Communicated,” The Evening and the Morning Star, May 1834, 160; Geauga Co., OH, Deed Records, 1795–1921, vol. 18, pp. 478–479, 5 May 1834, microfilm 20,237, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

The Evening and the Morning Star. Independence, MO, June 1832–July 1833; Kirtland, OH, Dec. 1833–Sept. 1834.

U.S. and Canada Record Collection. FHL.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    JS History, vol. A-1, 37; see also Anderson, “Who Were the Six?,” 44–45; and Porter, “Study of the Origins,” 374–386, appendix H.

    Anderson, Richard Lloyd. “Who Were the Six Who Organized the Church on 6 April 1830?” Ensign, June 1980, 44–45.

    Porter, Larry C. “A Study of the Origins of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the States of New York and Pennsylvania, 1816–1831.” PhD diss., Brigham Young University, 1971. Also available as A Study of the Origins of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the States of New York and Pennsylvania, 1816–1831, Dissertations in Latter-day Saint History (Provo, UT: Joseph Fielding Smith Institute for Latter-day Saint History; BYU Studies, 2000).

  2. [2]

    See Revelation, Mar. 1829 [D&C 5:11–20] .

  3. [3]

    Revelation, Spring 1829 [D&C 10:53].

  4. [4]

    See, for example, Book of Mormon, 1830 ed., 191–194, 574–576 [Mosiah 18; Moroni 2–6]; see also Oliver Cowdery, Norton, OH, to William W. Phelps, 7 Sept. 1834, LDS Messenger and Advocate, Oct. 1834, 1:15.

    Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.

  5. [5]

    Revelation, June 1829–B [D&C 18:5]; “Articles of the Church of Christ,” June 1829.

  6. [6]

    JS History, vol. A-1, 29; see also Historical Introduction to Articles and Covenants, ca. Apr. 1830 [D&C 20].

  7. [7]

    JS History, vol. A-1, 27.

  8. [8]

    JS History, vol. A-1, 37. David Whitmer, one of the few attendees who wrote about the event, stated: “We attended to our business of organizing, according to the laws of the land, the church acknowledging us six elders as their ministers; besides, a few who had recently been baptized and not confirmed were confirmed on that day; some blessings were pronounced, and we partook of the Lord’s supper.” (Whitmer, Address to All Believers in Christ, 33.)

    Whitmer, David. An Address to All Believers in Christ. Richmond, MO: By the author, 1887.

  9. [9]

    JS History, vol. A-1, 37.

  10. [10]

    Whitmer, Address to All Believers in Christ, 33.

    Whitmer, David. An Address to All Believers in Christ. Richmond, MO: By the author, 1887.

  11. [11]

    [William E. McLellin], “The Successor of Joseph the Seer,” Ensign of Liberty, Dec. 1847, 42.

    Ensign of Liberty. Kirtland, OH. Mar. 1847–Aug. 1849.

  12. [12]

    David Whitmer explained, “The reason why we met on that day was . . . that we should organize according to the laws of the land. On this account we met at my father’s house in Fayette, N. Y., on April 6, 1830.” Whitmer also referred to this revelation being given at that occasion. (Whitmer, Address to All Believers in Christ, 33; see also An Act to Provide for the Incorporation of Religious Societies [5 Apr. 1813], Laws of the State of New-York [1813], vol. 2, p. 214, sec. 3; see also JS History, vol. A-1, 37.)

    Whitmer, David. An Address to All Believers in Christ. Richmond, MO: By the author, 1887.

    Laws of the State of New-York, Revised and Passed at the Thirty-Sixth Session of the Legislature, With Marginal Notes and References. 2 Vols. Albany: H. C. Southwick and Company, 1813.

  13. [13]

    See Revelation Book 1, pp. 28, [207].

  14. [14]

    For the historical background of the Book of Commandments, see its historical introduction.

  15. [15]

    See Revelation Book 1, pp. 28–30; and Revelations, 6 Apr. 1830 and Apr. 1830–A through E, in Book of Commandments, 17–22 [D&C 21, 23].

  16. [16]

    William W. Phelps, for example, stated in The Evening and the Morning Star that the church was established in Manchester.a A pamphlet by Orson Pratt published in 1840 likewise named Manchester, but in the 1848 edition of the pamphlet, Pratt changed the establishment location from Manchester to Fayette.b William E. McLellin is another who believed the organizational meeting took place in Manchester.c For other accounts pointing to a Manchester establishment, see JS, “Church History,” Times and Seasons, 1 Mar. 1842, 3:708; Smith, William Smith on Mormonism, 14; William H. Kelley, Interview of Benjamin Saunders, ca. Sept. 1884, in Vogel, Early Mormon Documents, 2:138–139; and “C. R. Stafford,” Naked Truths about Mormonism (Oakland, CA), Jan. 1888, 3.

    (a“Prospects of the Church,” The Evening and the Morning Star, 1 Mar. 1833, [4]; see also “Communicated,” The Evening and the Morning Star, May 1834, 160. bPratt, Interesting Account, 23–24; Pratt, Remarkable Visions, 12. c[William E. McLellin], Editorial, Ensign of Liberty, Mar. 1847, 2.)

    The Evening and the Morning Star. Independence, MO, June 1832–July 1833; Kirtland, OH, Dec. 1833–Sept. 1834.

    Pratt, Orson. Remarkable Visions. By Orson Pratt, One of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Liverpool: R. James, 1848.

    Ensign of Liberty. Kirtland, OH. Mar. 1847–Aug. 1849.

    Smith, William. William Smith on Mormonism. This Book Contains a True Account of the Origin of the Book of Mormon. A Sketch of the History, Experience, and Ministry of Elder William Smith. . . . Lamoni, IA: Herald Steam Book and Job Office, 1883.

    Vogel, Dan, ed. Early Mormon Documents. 5 vols. Salt Lake City: Signature Books, 1996–2003.

    Naked Truths about Mormonism: Also a Journal for Important, Newly Apprehended Truths, and Miscellany. Oakland, CA. Jan. and Apr. 1888.

  17. [17]

    The minutes of a meeting held 3 May 1834, approving a change in the name of the church, include an attestation that the church was originally organized 6 April 1830 in Fayette. JS and Oliver Cowdery both signed the minutes. The deed of purchase for church lands in Ohio likewise identified Fayette and was signed by Oliver Cowdery. (“Communicated,” The Evening and the Morning Star, May 1834, 160; Geauga Co., OH, Deed Records, 1795–1921, vol. 18, pp. 478–479, 5 May 1834, microfilm 20,237, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL.)

    The Evening and the Morning Star. Independence, MO, June 1832–July 1833; Kirtland, OH, Dec. 1833–Sept. 1834.

    U.S. and Canada Record Collection. FHL.

Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation. Revelation, 6 April 1830, Extract, in handwriting of Edward Partridge [D&C 21:9–12]
*Revelation, 6 April 1830 [D&C 21]
Revelation Book 1 Book of Commandments, 1833 Doctrine and Covenants, 1835 History, 1838–1856, volume A-1 [23 December 1805–30 August 1834] History, circa 1841, draft [Draft 3] History, circa 1841, fair copy “History of Joseph Smith” Doctrine and Covenants, 1844

Page 28

17th.
Commandment

Generally, a divine mandate that church members were expected to obey; more specifically, a text dictated by JS in the first-person voice of Deity that served to communicate knowledge and instruction to JS and his followers. Occasionally, other inspired texts...

View Glossary
AD 1829
1

Oliver Cowdery later crossed out “1829” and inserted “Ap[r]il 1830.” Still later, John Whitmer inserted “6” to make the date “Ap[r]il 6 1830.”


A Revelation to Joseph the
Seer

The Book of Mormon identified a seer as a “revelator, and a prophet also,” specifying, however, that a seer was “greater than a prophet.” A seer could “know of things which has past, and also of things which is to come.” The work of a seer included translation...

View Glossary
by way of commandment to the
Church

The Book of Mormon related that when Christ set up his church in the Americas, “they which were baptized in the name of Jesus, were called the church of Christ.” The first name used to denote the church JS organized on 6 April 1830 was “the Church of Christ...

View Glossary
given at
Fayette

Located in northern part of county between Seneca and Cayuga lakes. Area settled, by 1790. Officially organized as Washington Township, 14 Mar. 1800. Name changed to Fayette, 6 Apr. 1808. Population in 1830 about 3,200. Population in 1840 about 3,700. Significant...

More Info
Seneca County State of New York
Behold there Shall a Record be kept among you
2

For an extended treatment of this injunction, see “Joseph Smith and His Papers;” see also Revelation, ca. 8 Mar. 1831–B [D&C 47].


& in it thou shalt be called a seer & Translater & Prop[h]et
3

See 1 Samuel 9:9; and Book of Mormon, 1830 ed., 172–173, 216 [Mosiah 8:13; 28:13–16].


an
Apostle

A title indicating one sent forth to preach; later designated as a specific ecclesiastical and priesthood office. By 1830, JS and Oliver Cowdery were designated as apostles. The “Articles and Covenants” of the church explained that an “apostle is an elder...

View Glossary
of Jesus Christ an
Elder

A male leader in the church generally; an ecclesiastical and priesthood office or one holding that office; a proselytizing missionary. The Book of Mormon explained that elders ordained priests and teachers and administered “the flesh and blood of Christ unto...

View Glossary
of the Church
4

In the Book of Mormon, Jesus’s twelve disciples “were called the Elders of the church.” (Book of Mormon, 1830 ed., 575 [Moroni 3:1].)


Comprehensive Works Cited

The Book of Mormon: An Account Written by the Hand of Mormon, upon Plates Taken from the Plates of Nephi. Palmyra, NY: E. B. Grandin, 1830.

through the will of God the Father & the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ being inspired of the Holy Ghost to lay the foundation thereof & to build it up unto the most holy faith which Church was Organized & established in the year of our Lord one thousand Eight Hundred & Thirty in the forth Month on the Sixth day of the month which is called April Wherefore meaning the Church thou shalt give heed unto all his words & commandments which he ghall [shall] give unto you as he receiveth them wa[l]king in all holyness before me for his word ye shall receive as if from mine own mouth in all Patience & faith for by doing these things the gaits of Hell shall not prevail against you yea & the Lord God will disperse the Powers of darkness from before you & cause the Heavens to shake for your Good & his names glory for thus saith the Lord God him have I inspired to move the cause of
Zion

A specific location in Missouri; also a literal or figurative gathering of believers in Jesus Christ, characterized by adherence to ideals of harmony, equality, and purity. In JS’s earliest revelations “the cause of Zion” was used to broadly describe the ...

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in Mighty power for good & his dilligence I know & his prayers I have heard yea his weeping for Zion I have seen & I will cause that [p. 28]
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Page 28

Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Revelation, 6 April 1830 [D&C 21]
ID #
6465
Total Pages
2
Print Volume Location
JSP, D1:126–130
Handwriting on This Page
  • John Whitmer

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Oliver Cowdery later crossed out “1829” and inserted “Ap[r]il 1830.” Still later, John Whitmer inserted “6” to make the date “Ap[r]il 6 1830.”

  2. [2]

    For an extended treatment of this injunction, see “Joseph Smith and His Papers;” see also Revelation, ca. 8 Mar. 1831–B [D&C 47].

  3. [3]

    See 1 Samuel 9:9; and Book of Mormon, 1830 ed., 172–173, 216 [Mosiah 8:13; 28:13–16].

  4. [4]

    In the Book of Mormon, Jesus’s twelve disciples “were called the Elders of the church.” (Book of Mormon, 1830 ed., 575 [Moroni 3:1].)

    The Book of Mormon: An Account Written by the Hand of Mormon, upon Plates Taken from the Plates of Nephi. Palmyra, NY: E. B. Grandin, 1830.

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