Revelation, 30 October 1831 [D&C 65]
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Source Note
Revelation, [, OH], 30 Oct. 1831. Featured version, titled “69 Revelation Oct. 30th. 1831,” copied [ca. Nov. 1831] in Revelation Book 1, p. 112; handwriting of ; CCLA. Includes redactions. For more complete source information, see the source note for Revelation Book 1.
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Historical Introduction
On 30 October 1831, JS dictated a revelation later characterized as a “revelation on prayer.” , who may have been present when the revelation was dictated and who made a copy of it soon after, wrote that it related to Matthew 6:10—the passage of the Lord’s Prayer in which Christ petitions, “Thy kingdom come.” Although JS was working on his revision of the Bible at this time, he had already reached the last chapters of Matthew or even the first chapters of Mark. His review of Matthew 6:10 came more than six months earlier, suggesting that the revelation was not connected to the revision of that passage, although, as McLellin stated, the two certainly had a thematic tie. The revelation, which declares that the keys of God’s kingdom have been returned to the earth to prepare it for the second coming of Jesus Christ, culminates with a prayer for the growth of that kingdom.The revelation may have been dictated as part of a church service held at and Alice (Elsa) Jacobs Johnson’s home on Sunday, 30 October 1831. wrote in his journal that he preached there that day in a meeting attended by JS and several others of “the brethren & sisters.” McLellin did not refer to this revelation in his journal, but since JS was present, this may have been the venue where the revelation was dictated.It is unclear who served as scribe for the original manuscript. inscribed a revelation just the day before, but , , and , all of whom had worked or were working as JS’s scribes, were at the Johnson home that Sunday. In any case, within three weeks both and McLellin made copies of the revelation. It is difficult to determine which of the two is the earliest extant version, but because Whitmer’s copy (which he included in Revelation Book 1 and which is featured here) shows less punctuation, it may more closely represent the original.
Footnotes
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1
JS History, vol. A-1, 155.
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2
Revelation, 30 Oct. 1831, in William E. McLellin, Papers, CHL.
McLellin, William E. Papers, 1831–1836, 1877–1878. CHL. MS 13538.
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3
Faulring et al., Joseph Smith’s New Translation of the Bible, 64–67.
Faulring, Scott H., Kent P. Jackson, and Robert J. Matthews, eds. Joseph Smith’s New Translation of the Bible: Original Manuscripts. Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 2004.
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4
McLellin, Journal, 30 Oct. 1831.
McLellin, William E. Journal, Apr.–June 1836. William E. McLellin, Papers, 1831–1836, 1877–1878. CHL. MS 13538, box 1, fd. 6. Also available as Jan Shipps and John W. Welch, eds., The Journals of William E. McLellin, 1831–1836 (Provo, UT: BYU Studies; Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1994).
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5
See Revelation, 29 Oct. 1831 [D&C 66].
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6
McLellin, Journal, 30 Oct. 1831.
McLellin, William E. Journal, Apr.–June 1836. William E. McLellin, Papers, 1831–1836, 1877–1878. CHL. MS 13538, box 1, fd. 6. Also available as Jan Shipps and John W. Welch, eds., The Journals of William E. McLellin, 1831–1836 (Provo, UT: BYU Studies; Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1994).
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7
McLellin noted in his journal that he copied revelations during a three-week period between 29 October and 16 November. Whitmer made his copy before leaving for Missouri on 20 November. (McLellin, Journal, Oct.–Nov. 1831; Revelation, 30 Oct. 1831, in McLellin, Copies of Revelations, [8]; Whitmer, History, 38.)
McLellin, William E. Journal, Apr.–June 1836. William E. McLellin, Papers, 1831–1836, 1877–1878. CHL. MS 13538, box 1, fd. 6. Also available as Jan Shipps and John W. Welch, eds., The Journals of William E. McLellin, 1831–1836 (Provo, UT: BYU Studies; Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1994).
McLellin, William E. Copies of Revelations, early Nov. 1831. In “W. E. Mc.Lellan Jan— 1877,” 1877, William E. McLellin, Papers, 1831–1878. CHL. MS 13538, box 1, fd. 7.
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