"And now Alma began to expound these things unto him, (Zeezrom), saying, It is given unto many to know the mysteries of God; nevertheless they are laid under a strict command, that they shall not impart only according to the portion of His word, which He doth grant unto the children of men; according to the heed and diligence which they give unto Him; and therefore he that will harden his heart, the same receiveth the lesser portion of the word; and he that will not harden his heart, to him is given the greater portion of the word, until he know them in full; and they that will harden their hearts, to them is given the lesser portion of the word, until they know nothing concerning his mysteries; and then they are taken captive by the devil, and led by his will down to destruction. Now, this is what is meant by the chains of hell."
It is because Reorganites have hardened their hearts that they have not received the greater portion of the word, even the mysteries, and therefore they are, through their hard-heartedness and unbelief, captives of the devil and in danger of the chains of hell.
If the Lord places His servants under a strict command not to reveal His word, "only according to the portion of His word, which He doth grant unto the children of men, according to the heed and diligence which they give unto Him;" and, therefore, they withhold some of those things from the world that have been revealed unto them does that make them cowardly? If so, not only Brigham Young, but Joseph Smith, yes, even the Son of Man Himself would be cowardly. No, the fact that they have refused to do this thing proves them to possess the greatest courage, for it has caused them to face persecutions, even death.
We are told that the Book of Mormon contains the fulnesss of the Gospel, yet the greater parts of the teachings of the Savior to that people are not yet revealed, because of the unbelief of the people. This is from III. Nephi, 26th chapter:
"And now there cannot be written in this book even a hundredth part of the teachings which Jesus did truly teach unto the people; but behold the plates of Nephi do contain the more part of the things which He taught the people; and these things have I written, which are a lesser part of the things which He taught the people; and I have written them to the intent that they may be brought again unto this people, from the Gentiles, according to the words which Jesus hath spoken.
"And when they shall have received this, which is expedient that they should have first, to try their faith, and if it shall so be that they shall believe these things, then shall the greater things be made manifest unto them. And if it so be that they will not believe these things, then shall the greater things be withheld from them, unto their condemnation. Behold I was about to write them all which were engraven upon the plates of Nephi, but the Lord forbid it, saying, I will try the faith of my people." (Verses 6-11).
The calling of Brigham Young a coward for withholding some things that the Lord has revealed to His Church, may be excused because of the ignorance of the accusers; but who dare presume to say the Lord was cowardly because He withheld the greater things from His people? And yet if you have done it unto one of His servants ye have done it unto Him.
Again:
"Behold, I have written upon these plates the very things which the brother of Jared saw: and there never was greater things made manifest, than that which was made manifest unto the brother of Jared; wherefore the Lord hath commanded me to write them; and I have written them. And He commanded me that I should seal them up; and He also hath commanded that I should seal up the interpretation thereof; wherefore I have sealed up the interpreters, according to the commandment of the Lord. For the Lord said unto me, They shall not go forth unto the Gentiles until the day that they shall repent of their iniquity, and become clean before the Lord." (Ether 4:4-6).
Joseph the Prophet was commanded to keep some things from going out into the world that had been revealed unto him and the Church. He also received revelations that he could not teach to the Church in the beginning, no more than Jesus could teach all things to His disciples. When he did reveal some of the "mysteries" there were many who left Him and denied the faith, just as they did when Jesus told His disciples He was the bread of life (John 6:66). "Many of them went back and walked no more with Him." The Prophet said at Kirtland, April 6, 1837: "If the Church knew all the commandments, one half they would condemn through prejudice and ignorance. (Hist. of Church, Vol. 2:477). A great many did fall away at that time, not being able to endure, and among them were the Witnesses of the Book of Mormon, one of whom afterwards set up a church of his own, declaring that Joseph Smith was a fallen Prophet, and rejecting all his commandments given after about 1835.
The Lord gave a revelation to the Prophet, March 7, 1831, at Kirtland (Sec. 45), in which He revealed many things to take place before His second coming, and at the close of the revelation He said: