"And when he had taken the book, the four beasts, and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odors, which are the prayers of saints. And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof; for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; and hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth."—Rev., v, 8-10.
Thus it would seem that the redeemed of the Lord from all nations and peoples are indebted to the Lord Jesus Christ, through His atonement, for the position that they will occupy in the state of exaltation here referred to; and if they are exalted to be kings and priests unto God, it is through the ordinances which He has appointed for the accomplishment of this object, as the wise will understand. As regards the Book mentioned in the above passage, an explanation thereof will be found in the Key to the Revelation of John.—Doc. and Cov., Sec. lxxvii, page 277. (Latest edition.)
"And it was given unto him [the Dragon] to make war with the Saints, and to overcome them; and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world."—Rev., xiii, 7, 8.
CHAPTER IV.
Extracts from the Pearl of Great Price and Inspired Translation of
Genesis—Record of Moses regarding Adam, Enoch, Noah, Abraham and
Joseph, and of their faith in the Coming of the Savior.
We shall now introduce some extracts from the Pearl of Great Price and the Inspired Translation of the Book of Genesis, which replace some of those parts, "plain and most precious," which are said to have been taken from the version of the Holy Scriptures known as King James' or the authorized version. These extracts are taken from the revelations and writings of the Prophet Joseph Smith.
"And God spake unto Moses, saying, Behold, I am the Lord God Almighty, and Endless is my name; for I am without beginning of days or end of years; and is not this Endless? And, behold, thou art my son; wherefore look, and I will show thee the workmanship of mine hands, but not all; for my works are without end, and also my words; for they never cease; wherefore, no man can behold all my works, except he behold all my glory; and no man can behold all my glory, and afterwards remain in the 'flesh on the earth. And I have a work for thee, Moses, my son; and thou art in the similitude of mine Only Begotten; and my Only Begotten is and shall be the Savior, for he is full of grace and truth; but there is no God beside me, and all things are present with me, for I know them all."—Pearl of Great Price.
"And in that day the Holy Ghost fell upon Adam, which beareth record of the Father and the Son, saying, I am the Only Begotten of the Father from the beginning, henceforth and for ever, that as thou hast fallen thou mayest be redeemed; and all mankind, even as many as will."—Ibid.
"But God hath made known unto our fathers that all men must repent. And he called upon our father Adam by his own voice, saying, I am God: I made the world, and men before they were in the flesh. And he also said unto him, If thou wilt turn unto me, and hearken unto my voice, and believe, and repent of all thy transgressions, and be baptized, even in water, in the name of mine Only Begotten Son, who is full of grace and truth, which is Jesus Christ, the only name which shall be given under heaven, whereby salvation shall come unto the children of men, ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, asking all things in his name, and whatsoever ye shall ask, it shall be given you. And our father Adam spake unto the Lord, and said, Why is it that men must repent and be baptized in water? And the Lord said unto Adam, Behold, I have forgiven thee thy transgression in the Garden of Eden. Hence came the saying abroad among the people, That the Son of God hath atoned for original guilt, wherein the sins of the parents cannot be answered upon the heads of the children, for they are whole from the foundation of the world."—Ibid.
"Wherefore teach it unto your children, that all men, everywhere, must repent, or they can in no wise inherit the kingdom of God, for no unclean thing can dwell there, or dwell in his presence; for, in the language of Adam, Man of Holiness is his name; and the name of his Only Begotten, is the Son of Man, even Jesus Christ, a righteous Judge who shall come in the meridian of time. Therefore I give unto you a commandment, to teach these things freely unto your children, saying, That by reason of transgression cometh the fall, which fall bringeth death, and inasmuch as ye were born into the world by water, and blood, and the spirit, which I have made, and so became of dust a living soul, even so ye must be born again into the kingdom of heaven, of water, and of the Spirit, and be cleansed by blood, even the blood of mine Only Begotten; that ye might be sanctified from all sin, and enjoy the words of eternal life in this world, and eternal life in the world to come, even immortal glory: For by the water ye keep the commandment; by the Spirit ye are justified, and by the blood ye are sanctified; therefore it is given to abide in you; the record of heaven; the Comforter; the peaceable things of immortal glory; the truth of all things; that which quickeneth all things, which maketh alive all things; that which knoweth all things, and hath all power, according to wisdom, mercy, truth, justice, and judgment. And now, behold, I say unto you, This is the plan of salvation unto all men, through the blood of mine Only Begotten, who shall come in the meridian of time."—Ibid.