New Witnesses for God (Volume 2 of 3)

by B. H. Roberts

CHAPTER XX.

DIRECT EXTERNAL EVIDENCES—TESTIMONY OF THE EIGHT WITNESSES.

The exact time when the Eight Witnesses obtained their view of the Nephite plates is not known, but it was evidently a few days after the Three Witnesses received their testimony. All the Prophet has seen proper to say upon the subject in his own history is—alluding to the testimony that had been received by the Three Witnesses—"soon after these things had transpired, the following additional testimony was obtained."^[[1]] Then follows the testimony of the Eight Witnesses.

According to the History of the Prophet Joseph by Lucy Smith,^[[2]] the event happened a few days after the Three Witnesses obtained their testimony. The latter, be it remembered, received their view of the plates near the Whitmer residence, in Fayette township, New York; while the Eight Witnesses obtained their view of the plates near the Smith residence in Manchester. On the completion of the translation of the Book of Mormon, Joseph sent word to his parents of the joyful event, as we have already seen, and they, in company with Martin Harris, immediately set out for Fayette, and during their brief stay at the place the vision of the Three Witnesses was given. The day following Father and Mother Smith returned to Manchester, and now the latter's statement:

In a few days we were followed by Joseph, Oliver and the Whitmers, who came to make us a visit, and make some arrangements about getting the book printed. Soon after they came, all the male part of the company, with my husband, Samuel and Hyrum, retired to a place where the family were in the habit of offering up their secret devotions to God. They went to this place because it had been revealed to Joseph that the plates would be carried thither by one of the ancient Nephites.^[[3]] Here it was that those Eight Witnesses, whose names are recorded in the Book of Mormon, looked upon them and handled them. * * * After these Witnesses returned to the house, the angel again made his appearance to Joseph; at which time Joseph delivered up the plates into the angel's hands.^[[4]]

This narrative is confirmed by the statement of Joseph himself with respect to delivering up the record to the angel. At the time the plates were first given into the Prophet's keeping he was informed that the heavenly messenger would call for them. He then recounts the efforts made to wrest the plates from him by his enemies, and adds:

But by the wisdom of God, they remained safe in my hands, until I had accomplished by them what was required at my hands. When, according to arrangements, the messenger (the angel Moroni) called for them, I delivered them up to him; and he has them in his charge until this day, being the 2nd day of May, 1838.^[[5]]

In the evening of the day that the Eight Witnesses saw and examined the Nephite plates, according to Lucy Smith, the Witnesses held meeting at the Smith residence, "in which all the Witnesses bore testimony to the facts as stated above;"^[[6]] that is, to the facts stated in their testimony as here given and which appeared in the first and in all subsequent editions of the Book of Mormon:

THE TESTIMONY OF EIGHT WITNESSES

BE IT KNOWN unto all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people, unto whom this work shall come: That Joseph Smith, Jr., the translator of this work, has shown unto us the plates of which hath been spoken, which have the appearance of gold; and as many of the leaves as the said Smith has translated we did handle with our hands; and we also saw the engravings thereon, all of which has the appearance of ancient work, and of curious workmanship. And this we bear record with words of soberness, that the said Smith has shown unto us, for we have seen and hefted, and know of a surety that the said Smith has got the plates of which we have spoken. And we give our names unto the world, to witness unto the world that which we have seen. And we lie not, God bearing witness of it.

CHRISTIAN WHITMER,

JACOB WHITMER,

PETER WHITMER, JR.,

JOHN WHITMER,

HIRAM PAGE,

JOSEPH SMITH, SR.

HYRUM SMITH,

SAMUEL H. SMITH.

The testimony of the Eight Witnesses differs from that of the Three Witnesses in that the view of the plates by the latter was attended by a remarkable display of the glory and power of God and the ministration of an angel. The glory of God shone about them; the angel turned the gold leaves of the ancient record; he spoke to them, or at least to David Whitmer, saying: "David, blessed is the Lord, and he that keeps his commandments;" and the very voice of God was heard out of the bright light shining about them, saying:

These plates have been revealed by the power of God, and they have been translated by the power of God. The translation of them which you have seen is correct, and I command you to bear record of what you now see and hear.^[[7]]

No such remarkable display of God's splendor and power was attendant upon the exhibition of the plates to the Eight Witnesses. On the contrary it was just a plain, matter-of-fact exhibition of the plates by the Prophet himself to his friends. They saw the plates; they handled them; they turned the leaves of the old Nephite record, and saw and marveled at its curious workmanship. No brilliant light illuminated the forest or dazzled their vision; no angel was there to awe them by the splendor of his presence; no piercing voice of God from a glory to make them tremble by its power. All these supernatural circumstances present at the view of the plates by the Three Witnesses were absent at the time when the Eight Witnesses saw them. Here all was natural, matter-of-fact, plain. Nothing to inspire awe, or fear, or dread; nothing uncanny or overwhelming, but just a plain, straightforward proceeding that leaves men in possession of all their faculties, and self-consciousness; all of which renders such a thing as deception, or imposition entirely out of the question. They could pass the plates from hand to hand, guess at their weight—doubtless considerable, that idea being conveyed, "we have seen and hefted, and know of a surety, that the said Smith has got the plates." They could look upon the engravings, and observe calmly how different they were from everything modern in the way of record-making known to them, and hence the conclusion that the workmanship was not only curious but ancient.

I now proceed to consider the course pursued by these Eight Witnesses with reference to their testimony. I shall take them in the order they seemed to have signed the testimony.^[[8]]