Did Joseph Smith Receive Revelation?

Latter-day Saints say Joseph Smith saw two Personages in a grove, and that one called the other his Beloved Son and said, Hear Him. They also say God restored scripture and authority through him. The Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price stand beside the Bible in their canon. Hebrews 1 says that in these last days God has spoken by his Son.

Key Points

• Joseph Smith—History 1:14Joseph Smith—History 1:17 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgIt no sooner appeared than I found myself delivered from the enemy which held me bound. When the light rested upon me I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other—This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!Joseph Smith—History 1:17 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgOpen the Source places the prayer “early in the spring of eighteen hundred and twenty.” Verse 7 says, “I was at this time in my fifteenth year.”
• Joseph Smith—History 1:17Joseph Smith—History 1:17 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgIt no sooner appeared than I found myself delivered from the enemy which held me bound. When the light rested upon me I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other—This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!Joseph Smith—History 1:17 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgOpen the Source says he saw two Personages, and one said, pointing to the other, This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him.
• Doctrine and Covenants 1:4–6Doctrine and Covenants 1:4–6 · English, churchofjesuschrist.org⁴ And the voice of warning shall be unto all people, by the mouths of my disciples, whom I have chosen in these last days. ⁵ And they shall go forth and none shall stay them, for I the Lord have commanded them. ⁶ Behold, this is mine authority, and the authority of my servants, and my preface unto the book of my commandments, which I have given them to publish unto you, O inhabitants of the earth.Doctrine and Covenants 1:4–6 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgOpen the Source calls this “the voice of warning” to all people “in these last days,” and “my preface unto the book of my commandments.”
• Moroni 10:4–5Moroni 10:4–5 · English, churchofjesuschrist.org⁴ And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost. ⁵ And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.Moroni 10:4–5 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgOpen the Source says to ask God “if these things are not true,” and that the Holy Ghost “will manifest the truth of it.”
• Hebrews 1:1–2Hebrews 1:1–2 · King James Version^1:1 God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, ^1:2 Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;Hebrews 1:1–2 · King James VersionOpen the Source says God spoke by the prophets and, in these last days, has spoken by his Son. The verse sets Jesus, not a later restorer, as that speech. It does not by itself prove that no one after the apostles could be told anything.
• Galatians 1:2Galatians 1:2 · King James VersionAnd all the brethren which are with me, unto the churches of Galatia:Galatians 1:2 · King James VersionOpen the Source names the churches of Galatia. Galatians 1:8Galatians 1:8 · King James VersionBut though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.Galatians 1:8 · King James VersionOpen the Source says another gospel, even from an angel, is not the gospel they had preached.
• Critics raise historical questions about the translation, the witnesses, and changes in the telling of the First Vision. Those questions exist. This page is not a verdict on them.

What Was Joseph Smith’s First Vision?

Joseph Smith—History 1:14Joseph Smith—History 1:17 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgIt no sooner appeared than I found myself delivered from the enemy which held me bound. When the light rested upon me I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other—This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!Joseph Smith—History 1:17 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgOpen the Source, English, churchofjesuschrist.org, says he retired to the woods “on the morning of a beautiful, clear day, early in the spring of eighteen hundred and twenty.” Verse 7 says, “I was at this time in my fifteenth year.” Verse 28 speaks of the time “between the time I had the vision and the year eighteen hundred and twenty-three.” The account gives the year in words. (1)

Joseph Smith—History 1:17Joseph Smith—History 1:17 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgIt no sooner appeared than I found myself delivered from the enemy which held me bound. When the light rested upon me I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other—This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!Joseph Smith—History 1:17 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgOpen the Source, English, churchofjesuschrist.org:

It no sooner appeared than I found myself delivered from the enemy which held me bound. When the light rested upon me I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other—This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!

Joseph Smith—History 1:17 · English, churchofjesuschrist.org

The account tells of a vision of two Personages, of confusion among the churches, and of a later commission to translate an ancient record. Latter-day Saints read the first Personage as God the Father and the one called “My Beloved Son” as Jesus Christ. The sentence itself says two Personages, and it puts “My Beloved Son” and “Hear Him” in the mouth of one of them.

Doctrine and Covenants 1:4–6Doctrine and Covenants 1:4–6 · English, churchofjesuschrist.org⁴ And the voice of warning shall be unto all people, by the mouths of my disciples, whom I have chosen in these last days. ⁵ And they shall go forth and none shall stay them, for I the Lord have commanded them. ⁶ Behold, this is mine authority, and the authority of my servants, and my preface unto the book of my commandments, which I have given them to publish unto you, O inhabitants of the earth.Doctrine and Covenants 1:4–6 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgOpen the Source, English, churchofjesuschrist.org, says: “And the voice of warning shall be unto all people, by the mouths of my disciples, whom I have chosen in these last days.” The next verse says they shall go forth and none shall stay them, “for I the Lord have commanded them.” Verse 6 says, “Behold, this is mine authority, and the authority of my servants, and my preface unto the book of my commandments, which I have given them to publish unto you, O inhabitants of the earth.” (2)

Moroni 10:4Moroni 10:4–5 · English, churchofjesuschrist.org⁴ And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost. ⁵ And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.Moroni 10:4–5 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgOpen the Source, English, churchofjesuschrist.org, says: “ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.” Verse 5 says, “by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.” (4)

For a member who receives this account, the vision is how they say God spoke again so that plain truths could be recovered. The invitation in Moroni 10 is part of that claim: ask God.

Critics, including many Christians, raise historical questions about the translation, the witnesses, and changes in the telling of the First Vision. Those questions exist. This page is not a verdict on them.

What Hebrews 1:1–2 Says

Hebrews 1:1–2Hebrews 1:1–2 · King James Version^1:1 God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, ^1:2 Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;Hebrews 1:1–2 · King James VersionOpen the Source (King James Version) says: (3)

God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;

Hebrews 1:1–2 · King James Version

“Sundry times” is πολυμερῶς, in many parts. “Divers manners” is πολυτρόπως, in many ways. “Spake” is λαλέω. The prophets are προφήτης. “Last” in “these last days” is ἔσχατος. “Son” is υἱός. The opening sets two kinds of speech side by side: speech of old, by the prophets, and speech in these last days, by the Son. Hebrews 1:3–4Hebrews 1:3–4 · King James Version^1:3 Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high; ^1:4 Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.Hebrews 1:3–4 · King James VersionOpen the Source goes on: the Son is the brightness of God’s glory, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, and he is better than the angels.

The verse does not by itself prove that no one after the apostles could be told anything. It does set the Son, not a later restorer, as the speech of “these last days.” The argument is whether Smith’s message fits that Son or revises him.

Galatians 1:1–2Galatians 1:1–2 · King James Version^1:1 Paul, an apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead;) ^1:2 And all the brethren which are with me, unto the churches of Galatia:Galatians 1:1–2 · King James VersionOpen the Source (5) names the writer as Paul, an apostle “by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead,” and it addresses “the churches of Galatia.” Galatians 1:8–9Galatians 1:8–9 · King James Version^1:8 But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. ^1:9 As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.Galatians 1:8–9 · King James VersionOpen the Source says that if Paul, or an angel from heaven, preaches “any other gospel” than the one they preached and the churches received, “let him be accursed.” Other is ἕτερος. Gospel is εὐαγγέλιον. The warning is about another gospel. It is not a name for the person who asks a question. Does the Bible Warn Against a Later Revelation? quotes Joseph Smith—History 1:33 beside that verse.

Moroni 10:4Moroni 10:4–5 · English, churchofjesuschrist.org⁴ And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost. ⁵ And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.Moroni 10:4–5 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgOpen the Source invites the reader to ask God whether the book is true. A warm assurance is not nothing in the Christian life. It is not, by itself, a method that checks a historical claim.

Latter-day Saint Revelation and Trinitarian Christianity Compared

Latter-day Saints receive Joseph Smith—History, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Book of Mormon as scripture beside the Bible. The First Vision account says two Personages stood above him, and one called the other “My Beloved Son” and said “Hear Him.” Doctrine and Covenants 1 calls the work a voice of warning “in these last days” and the Lord’s preface to the commandments. Hebrews 1 uses “these last days” for the speech of the Son, who is heir of all things and the one by whom God made the worlds. Galatians 1 tells the churches of Galatia that another gospel is not the gospel the apostle preached.

Historic Trinitarian churches confess one God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and that the Son is Jesus, God made flesh. The place a Latter-day Saint reading revises that confession is the Godhead: three beings, one in purpose. The pages that state that confession are The Trinity, What vs. Who: One Being, Three Persons, Did Jesus Ever Claim to Be God?, and Is the Holy Spirit God?.

Passages

• Joseph Smith—History 1:17Joseph Smith—History 1:17 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgIt no sooner appeared than I found myself delivered from the enemy which held me bound. When the light rested upon me I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other—This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!Joseph Smith—History 1:17 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgOpen the Source, the First Vision account, in the Pearl of Great Price.
• Doctrine and Covenants 1Doctrine and Covenants 1 · English, churchofjesuschrist.org¹ Hearken, O ye people of my church, saith the voice of him who dwells on high, and whose eyes are upon all men; yea, verily I say: Hearken ye people from afar; and ye that are upon the islands of the sea, listen together. ² For verily the voice of the Lord is unto all men, and there is none to escape; and there is no eye that shall not see, neither ear that shall not hear, neither heart that shall not be penetrated. ³ And the rebellious shall be pierced with much sorrow; for their iniquities shall be spoken upon the housetops, and their secret acts shall be revealed. ⁴ And the voice of warning shall be unto all people, by the mouths of my disciples, whom I have chosen in these last days. ⁵ And they shall go forth and none shall stay them, for I the Lord have commanded them. ⁶ Behold, this is mine authority, and the authority of my servants, and my preface unto the book of my commandments, which I have given them to publish unto you, O inhabitants of the earth. ⁷ Wherefore, fear and tremble, O ye people, for what I the Lord have decreed in them shall be fulfilled. ⁸ And verily I say unto you, that they who go forth, bearing these tidings unto the inhabitants of the earth, to them is power given to seal both on earth and in heaven, the unbelieving and rebellious; ⁹ Yea, verily, to seal them up unto the day when the wrath of God shall be poured out upon the wicked without measure— ¹⁰ Unto the day when the Lord shall come to recompense unto every man according to his work, and measure to every man according to the measure which he has measured to his fellow man. ¹¹ Wherefore the voice of the Lord is unto the ends of the earth, that all that will hear may hear: ¹² Prepare ye, prepare ye for that which is to come, for the Lord is nigh; ¹³ And the anger of the Lord is kindled, and his sword is bathed in heaven, and it shall fall upon the inhabitants of the earth. ¹⁴ And the arm of the Lord shall be revealed; and the day cometh that they who will not hear the voice of the Lord, neither the voice of his servants, neither give heed to the words of the prophets and apostles, shall be cut off from among the people; ¹⁵ For they have strayed from mine ordinances, and have broken mine everlasting covenant; ¹⁶ They seek not the Lord to establish his righteousness, but every man walketh in his own way, and after the image of his own god, whose image is in the likeness of the world, and whose substance is that of an idol, which waxeth old and shall perish in Babylon, even Babylon the great, which shall fall. ¹⁷ Wherefore, I the Lord, knowing the calamity which should come upon the inhabitants of the earth, called upon my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., and spake unto him from heaven, and gave him commandments; ¹⁸ And also gave commandments to others, that they should proclaim these things unto the world; and all this that it might be fulfilled, which was written by the prophets— ¹⁹ The weak things of the world shall come forth and break down the mighty and strong ones, that man should not counsel his fellow man, neither trust in the arm of flesh— ²⁰ But that every man might speak in the name of God the Lord, even the Savior of the world; ²¹ That faith also might increase in the earth; ²² That mine everlasting covenant might be established; ²³ That the fulness of my gospel might be proclaimed by the weak and the simple unto the ends of the world, and before kings and rulers. ²⁴ Behold, I am God and have spoken it; these commandments are of me, and were given unto my servants in their weakness, after the manner of their language, that they might come to understanding. ²⁵ And inasmuch as they erred it might be made known; ²⁶ And inasmuch as they sought wisdom they might be instructed; ²⁷ And inasmuch as they sinned they might be chastened, that they might repent; ²⁸ And inasmuch as they were humble they might be made strong, and blessed from on high, and receive knowledge from time to time. ²⁹ And after having received the record of the Nephites, yea, even my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., might have power to translate through the mercy of God, by the power of God, the Book of Mormon. ³⁰ And also those to whom these commandments were given, might have power to lay the foundation of this church, and to bring it forth out of obscurity and out of darkness, the only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth, with which I, the Lord, am well pleased, speaking unto the church collectively and not individually— ³¹ For I the Lord cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance; ³² Nevertheless, he that repents and does the commandments of the Lord shall be forgiven; ³³ And he that repents not, from him shall be taken even the light which he has received; for my Spirit shall not always strive with man, saith the Lord of Hosts. ³⁴ And again, verily I say unto you, O inhabitants of the earth: I the Lord am willing to make these things known unto all flesh; ³⁵ For I am no respecter of persons, and will that all men shall know that the day speedily cometh; the hour is not yet, but is nigh at hand, when peace shall be taken from the earth, and the devil shall have power over his own dominion. ³⁶ And also the Lord shall have power over his saints, and shall reign in their midst, and shall come down in judgment upon Idumea, or the world. ³⁷ Search these commandments, for they are true and faithful, and the prophecies and promises which are in them shall all be fulfilled. ³⁸ What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same. ³⁹ For behold, and lo, the Lord is God, and the Spirit beareth record, and the record is true, and the truth abideth forever and ever. Amen.Doctrine and Covenants 1 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgOpen the Source.
• Moroni 10:4–5Moroni 10:4–5 · English, churchofjesuschrist.org⁴ And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost. ⁵ And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.Moroni 10:4–5 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgOpen the Source.
• Hebrews 1:1–2Hebrews 1:1–2 · King James Version^1:1 God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, ^1:2 Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;Hebrews 1:1–2 · King James VersionOpen the Source.
• Galatians 1:8–9Galatians 1:8–9 · King James Version^1:8 But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. ^1:9 As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.Galatians 1:8–9 · King James VersionOpen the Source.

Frequently Asked Questions

When Did Joseph Smith Say the Vision Happened?

Joseph Smith—History 1:14 says “early in the spring of eighteen hundred and twenty.” Verse 7 says he was in his fifteenth year. Verse 28 counts from that vision to “the year eighteen hundred and twenty-three.” (1)

What Was Joseph Smith’s Testimony?

The testimony this page quotes is Joseph Smith—History 1:17. He says the light rested on him, he saw two Personages, and one of them said, pointing to the other, “This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!”

What Did Joseph Smith’s Account Say About Jesus?

The sentence calls one Personage “My Beloved Son” and says “Hear Him.” Latter-day Saints read that Son as Jesus Christ. The account does not, in that verse, use the name Jesus. Do Mormons Believe in Jesus? is how the Church states the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.

What Do Latter-day Saints Say About the Second Coming?

Articles of Faith 1:10Articles of Faith 1:1 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgWe believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost.Articles of Faith 1:1 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgOpen the Source (6) says, “that Christ will reign personally upon the earth; and, that the earth will be renewed and receive its paradisiacal glory.” That article also speaks of the gathering of Israel and of Zion on the American continent. It does not list dates. This page does not decide which later events match a sentence in the Doctrine and Covenants.

Keep Reading

• What Do Mormons Believe?
• The Book of Mormon
• Do Mormons Believe in Jesus?
• Is the Bible True?
• How Was the Bible Canon Decided?
• Which Bible Translation Is Most Accurate?
• The Trinity
• What vs. Who: One Being, Three Persons
• Did Jesus Ever Claim to Be God?