KIRTLAND, January 11, 1833.
Brother Wm. W. Phelps:
I send you the Olive Leaf which we have plucked from the tree of Paradise, the Lord's message of peace to us; for though our brethren in Zion indulge in feelings towards us which are not according to the requirements of the new covenant, yet we have the satisfaction of knowing that the Lord approves of us and has accepted us, and established his name in Kirtland for the salvation of the nations; for the Lord will have a place from which his word will go forth, in these last days, in purity, for if Zion will not purify herself, so as to be approved of in all things, in his sight, he will seek another people; for his work will go on until Israel is gathered, and they who will not hear his voice must expect to feel his wrath. Let me say unto you, seek to purify yourselves, and also the inhabitants of Zion, lest the Lord's anger be kindled to fierceness. Repent, repent, is the voice of God to Zion; and strange as it may appear, yet it is true, mankind will persist in self-justification until all their iniquity is exposed, and their character past being redeemed, and that which is treasured up in their hearts be exposed to the gaze of mankind. I say to you (and what I say to you, I say to all), hear the warning voice of God, lest Zion fall, and the Lord swear in his wrath, "The inhabitants of Zion shall not enter into my rest."
The brethren in Kirtland pray for you unceasingly, for, knowing the terrors of the Lord, they greatly fear for you. You will see that the Lord commanded us, in Kirtland, to build a house of God, and establish a school for the prophets; this is the word of the Lord to us, and we must, yea, the Lord helping us, we will obey; as on conditions of our obedience he has promised us great things; yea, even a visit from the heavens to honor us with his own presence. We greatly fear before the Lord lest we should fail of this great honor, which our Master proposes to confer upon us; we are seeking for humility and great faith lest we be ashamed in his presence. Our hearts are greatly grieved at the spirit which is breathed both in your letter and that of Brother G——'s; the very spirit which is wasting the strength of Zion like a pestilence; and if it is not detected and driven from you, it will ripen Zion for the threatened judgments of God. Remember, God sees the secret springs of human action, and knows the hearts of all living.
Brother, suffer us to speak plainly, for God has respect for the feelings of his saints, and he will not suffer them to be tantalized with impunity. Tell Brother G——that low insinuations God hates; but he rejoices in an honest heart, and knows better who is guilty than he does. We send him this warning voice, and let him fear greatly for himself, lest a worse thing overtake him; all we can say by way of conclusion is, if the fountain of our tears is not dried up, we will still weep for Zion. This from your brother who trembles for Zion, and for the wrath of heaven which awaits her if she repent not.
JOSEPH SMITH, JUN.
P.S.—I am not in the habit of crying peace, when there is no peace, and, knowing the threatened judgments of God, I say, Woe unto them that are at ease in Zion; fearfulness will speedily lay hold of the hypocrite. I did not expect that you had lost the commandments, but thought from your letters you had neglected to read them, otherwise you would not have written as you did.
It is in vain to try to hide a bad spirit from the eyes of those who are spiritual, for it will show itself in speaking and in writing, as well as in all our other conduct. It is also needless to make great pretensions when the heart is not right; the Lord will expose it to the view of his faithful saints. We wish you to render the Star as interesting as possible, by setting forth the rise, progress and faith of our Church, as well as the doctrine; for if you do not render it more interesting than at present, it will fall, and The Church suffer a great loss thereby.
J. S.
A council of high priests at Kirtland also appointed Hyrum Smith and Orson Hyde to write a letter of reproof and warning, in which they cried, "Repent! repent! or Zion must suffer, for the scourge and judgment must come upon her." The whole of this communication, however, is likewise so full of prophetic warning to the saints in Zion that I consider it too important to be omitted, and hence give it in extenso:
KIRTLAND MILLS, GEAUGA COUNTY, OHIO,
January 14, 1833.
From a conference of twelve High Priests, to the Bishop, his Council, and the inhabitants of Zion:
Orson Hyde and Hyrum Smith being appointed by the said conference to write this epistle in obedience to the commandment, given the 22nd and 23rd of September last which says: "But verily I say unto all those to whom the kingdom has been given, from you it must be preached unto them that shall repent of their former evil works, for they are to be upbraided for their evil hearts of unbelief; and your brethren in Zion, for their rebellion against you at the time I sent you."
Brother Joseph, and certain others, have written to you on this all-important subject, but you have never been apprized of these things by the united voice of a conference of those high priests that were present at the time this commandment was given.
We, therefore, Orson and Hyrum—the committee appointed by said conference to write this epistle—having received the prayers of said conference, that we might be enabled to write the mind and will of God upon this subject, now take up our pen to address you in the name of the conference, relying upon the arm of the great Head of The Church.
In the commandment alluded to, the children of Zion were all, yea, even every one, under condemnation, and were to remain in that state until they repented and remembered the new covenant, even the Book of Mormon, and the former commandments, which the Lord had given them, not only to say but to do them, and bring forth fruit meet for the Father's Kingdom; otherwise there remaineth a scourge and a judgment to be poured out upon the children of Zion; for "shall the children of the kingdom pollute the holy land? I say unto you, nay!"
The answers received from those letters which have been sent to you upon this subject, have failed to bring to us that satisfactory confession and acknowledgment, which the spirit of our Master requires. We, therefore, feeling a deep interest for Zion, and knowing the judgments of God that will come upon her except she repent, resort to these last and most effectual means in our power to bring her to a sense of her standing before the Most High.
At the time Joseph, Sidney and Newel left Zion, all matters of hardness and misunderstanding were settled and buried (as they supposed), and you gave them the hand of fellowship; but afterwards you brought up all these things again, in a censorious spirit, accusing Brother Joseph in rather an indirect way of seeking after monarchial power and authority. This came to us in Brother Carroll's letter of July 2nd. We are sensible that this is not the thing Brother Joseph is seeking after, but to magnify the high office and calling whereunto he has been called and appointed by the command of God, and the united voice of this Church. It might not be amiss for you to call to mind the circumstances of the Nephites, and the children of Israel rising up against their prophets, and accusing them of seeking after kingly power, etc., and see what befell them, and take warning before it is too late.
Brother Gilbert's letter of December 10th has been received and read attentively, and the low, dark, and blind insinuations which were in it were not received by us as from the fountain of light, though his claims and pretensions to holiness were great. We are not unwilling to be chastened or rebuked for our faults, but we want to receive it in language that we can understand, as Nathan said to David, "Thou art the man." We are aware that Brother G——is doing much and has a multitude of business on hand, but let him purge out all the old leaven, and do his business in the spirit of the Lord, and then the Lord will bless him, otherwise the frown of the Lord will remain upon him. There is manifestly an uneasiness in Brother Gilbert, and a fearfulness that God will not provide for his saints in these last days, and these fears lead him on to covetousness. This ought not to be, but let him do just as the Lord has commanded him, and then the Lord will open his coffers, and his wants will be liberally supplied. But if this uneasy, covetous disposition be cherished by him, the Lord will bring him to poverty, shame and disgrace.
Brother Phelps' letter of December 15th, is also received, and carefully read,