THE DOCTRINE AND COVENANTS
SECTION 8
Revelation given through Joseph Smith the Prophet to Oliver Cowdery, at Harmony, Pennsylvania, April 1829. HC 1: 36—37. In the course of the translation of the Book of Mormon, Oliver, who continued to serve as scribe, writing at the Prophet’s dictation, desired to be endowed with the gift of translation. The Lord responded to his supplication by granting this revelation.
1—5, Revelation comes by the power of the Holy Ghost; 6—12, Mysteries of God and the power to translate ancient records come by faith.
1 OLIVER Cowdery,
[ Section 8 is addressed specifically to Oliver Cowdery. ] verily, verily, I say unto you, that assuredly as the Lord liveth,
who is your God and your Redeemer, even so surely shall you receive a knowledge of
whatsoever things you shall ask in
faith, [ Oliver was given the gift thru revelation to to be able to perceive the great and marvelous mysteries of God thru revelation so that be can bring others to the truth D&C 6:10-13. He could discern the meaning of the scriptures and then be able to bear witness of their truth. ] with an honest heart,
believing that you shall receive a knowledge concerning
the engravings of old records,
[ Defined as: this is what Oliver wanted a knowledge of… that the scriptures
that Joseph Smith was translating were true and correct. ] which are
ancient, which contain those parts of my scripture of which has been
spoken by the manifestation of my spirit.
[ Having dealt with the specific problem - then the Lord reveals a principle
that applies to Olivers concerns and all other like situations. ]
2 Yea, behold, I will
tell you
in your mind [ Not in the wind, not in the fire, but in the still small voice. see D&C 9: 8. ] and
in your heart,
by the Holy Ghost,
[ "I remind all of us that the Holy Ghost is not given to control us. some of us unwisely seek the Holy Ghost’s direction on every minor decision in our lives. This trivializes His sacred role. The Holy Ghost honors the principle of agency. He speaks to our minds and our hearts gently about many matters of consequence." The Holy Ghost By Elder Robert D. Hales Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles April Conference 2016 ] which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart.
[ While Oliver has been blessed with a specific gift - the ability to understand the scriptures; he had an idea of how to use revelation to understand the scriptures - here the Lord broadens the vision of Oliver to one of receiving revelation in general. ]
3 Now, behold,
this is the spirit
of revelation;
[ The definition of revelation is that the Lord will tell us in our mind and in our heart - using the Holy Ghost to reveal truths to us; however there is a price that we must pay in order for this to occur - we need to study it out in our mind, and ask in faith - see D&C 9:7-8. Oliver then did what a good many of us would have done. He had that instruction and he assumed that it meant what it seemed on the surface to say. Which was. that if in faith he (Oliver) asked God he would have power to translate. However in his then state of spiritual immaturity he had not realized what was involved in asking of God. Or how to gain the specific faith required in order to do the thing which has to be done in order to get an answer to a prayer. And so he asked, and as we know he failed. Was totally unable to translate. This caused some concern to himself and the prophet. The matter was taken back to the Lord, the one to whom the promise they had been attempting to conform to, and the reason came as to why he could not translate. See D&C 9:7 "you have not understood" ] behold,
this is the spirit by which Moses brought the children of Israel through the Red Sea on dry ground. [ So Moses and his people are up against the shores of the red sea. Moses has been told by God that the people need to keep moving forward. If we look at Talmudic legend we learn that Moses was sitting on the rock overlooking the red sea. He is there with Nahshon and Aaron and Nahshob says to Moses " Hey Moses we are in a bad place right now. The army of the Pharaoh are coming after us, quickly. What do you want us to do?" ]
4 Therefore this is thy gift; apply unto it, and blessed art thou, for it shall deliver you out of the hands of your enemies, when, if it were not so, they would slay you and bring your soul to destruction.
5 Oh, remember these words, [ How often do we like Oliver receive inspiration only to forget to be diligent to it within a short time later? How easy is it to forget. Here the Lord is encouraging him to keep his gift in the forefront of his mind, to remember and contemplate upon it often, Good advice for us as well. Good advice for us in relation to our patriarchial blessinga as well - read and remember them often - study and improve on the gift s the Lord has blessed us with as well. ] and keep my commandments. Remember, this is your gift.
6 Now this is not all thy gift; for you have another gift,
which is the gift of Aaron;
[ What is the gift of Aaron? Joseph Fielding Smith said "There was another gift bestowed upon Oliver Cowdery, and that was the gift of Aaron. Like Aaron with his rod in his hand going before Moses as a spokesman, so Oliver Cowdery was to go before Joseph Smith. Whatever he should ask the Lord by power of this gift should be granted if asked in faith and in wisdom. Oliver was blessed with the great honor of holding the keys of this dispensation with Joseph Smith, and like Aaron [Ex. 4:10-17], did become a spokesman on numerous occasions. It was Oliver who delivered the first public discourse in this dispensation."(Roy W. Doxey, comp., Latter-day prophets and the Doctrine and Covenants [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1978], 1: 82.). How could Oliver Cowdery hold the gift of Aaron in his hands? A review of the first edition of the Book of Commandments makes this verse more clear. In the original, the preceding verses read as follows:"Now this is not all, for you have another gift, which is the gift of working with the rod: behold it has told you things: behold there is no other power save God, that can cause this rod of nature, to work in your hands, for it is the work of God." (Melvin J. Petersen, "Preparing Early Revelations for Publication," Ensign, Feb. 1985, 20) Oliver held this rod (symbolic of the rod of Aaron and the gift of Aaron) in his hands. Oliver was in possession of a rod-an instrument for divining the Lord's will which worked much like a Urim and Thummim. The possession of such a rod explains why the next verse says, 'you shall hold it in your hands.and no power shall be able to take it away out of your hands.' "It seems evident that the Lord entrusted Oliver with a sacred instrument through which he could translate by the Spirit of revelation. Having received instructions on the use of the sacred instrument which he possessed, Oliver Cowdery sought to translate from the Plates of Mormon, probably through the instrument which had been entrusted into his care. But he failed." (Hyrum L. Andrus, Doctrinal Commentary on the Pearl of Great Price [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1967], 6.)Aaron was called to assist Moses - So is Oliver called to assist Joseph See D&C 28:3; 124;85. Brigham Young explained why some alterations were made in the Book of Commandments:"When revelations are given through an individual appointed to receive them, they are given to the understandings of the people. These revelations, after a lapse of years, become mystified to those who were not personally acquainted with the circumstances at the time they were given." (Journal of Discourses, 3:333.). Melvin J. Petersen wrote, "The meaning of this revelation as recorded in the Book of Commandments and in the Doctrine and Covenants is not clear. History does not record that Oliver Cowdery or anyone else living at the time it was given had a problem understanding it, but today some of the revelation (as given in the original) is unclear to us." (Melvin J. Petersen, "Preparing Early Revelations for Publication," Ensign, Feb. 1985, 20). ] behold, it has told you many things;
7 Behold, there is no other power, save the power of God, that can cause this gift of Aaron to be with you.
8 Therefore, doubt not, for it is the gift of God; and you shall hold it in your hands, and do marvelous works; and no power shall be able to take it away out of your hands, for it is the work of God.
9 And, therefore, whatsoever you shall ask me to tell you by that means, that will I grant unto you, and you shall have knowledge concerning it.
10 Remember that without faith you can do nothing; therefore ask in faith.
Trifle [ The term "trifle" also appears in and D&C 32:5, although not in reference to Cowdery, also cp. Mosiah 2:9.] not with these things; do not ask for that which you ought not.
11 Ask that you may know
the mysteries of God, [ The mysteries of God are the things that God knows and not everyone else does. ] and that you may translate and receive knowledge from all those ancient records which have been hid up, that are sacred; and according to your faith shall it be done unto you.
12 Behold, it is I that have spoken it; and I am the same that spake unto you from the beginning. Amen.
[ Historical Material Pertaining to Doctrine & Covenants 8 We know very little of the historical context of this revelation. Smith only very briefly commented on it, and Cowdery, in his commenting on that time period, completely glossed over it. We might assume this is a result of Cowdery’s unsuccessful attempt at translating, as detailed in D&C 9. Excerpt from History of the Church Whilst continuing the work of translation, during the month of April, Oliver Cowdery became exceedingly anxious to have the power bestowed upon him, and in relation to this desire the following revelations were obtained: [text of D&C 8 follows] (Joseph Smith, History of the Church, Vol. 1, page 36) Excerpt from Messenger & Advocate Near the time of the setting of the sun, Sabbath evening, April 5th, 1829, my natural eyes, for the first time beheld this brother [Joseph Smith]. On Monday the 6th, I assisted him in arranging some business of a temporal nature, and on Tuesday the 7th, commenced to write the Book of Mormon. These were days never to be forgotten—to sit under the sound of a voice dictated by the inspiration of heaven, awakened the utmost gratitude of this bosom! Day after day I continued, uninterrupted, to write from his mouth, as he translated, with the Urim and Thummim, or, as the Nephites would have said, "Interpreters," the history, or record, called the Book of Mormon. (Oliver Cowdery, Messenger & Advocate, Vol. 1, page 14, October 1834) 8.3Comparison of Original 1833 Text with Emended 1835 Version In the original text it reads as though Cowdery has some kind of device akin to Aaron’s staff (see Exod. 7-8 for the various miracles performed with the rod, and see Num. 17:6-8 to see the ultimate fate of the rod) and this staff had some sort of revelatory power. However, there is no historical record suggesting Cowdery had any such device or what the device was used for. The 1835 version emends the text such that the gift is that of Aaron and the explicit references to the rod are omitted. These two things taken together suggests that while the 1833 account reads quite literally, it should be read figuratively instead. The figurative reading would be along the lines of Cowdery being called to “bear the rod” as did Aaron, and while Aaron bore a literal rod in his station Cowdery only does so figuratively. Aaron was Moses’ assistant and performed considerable miracles as such at the Lord’s command. The rod was employed in these various miracles, but nobody reads the text of Exod. 7-8 as the rod being some sort of magical device by which the miracles are performed. It is plain the miracles are the work of the Lord, and the rod is simply a symbolic device. In both versions of the present text faith in the Lord’s work is emphasized as the key element (v. 4 in the 1833 version, v. 10 in the 1935 version), so that is the real point being addressed. ]