September 2018 – The North Star Chronicle

Ignoring Signs Can Be Hazardous to your Health

While preparing my last post where I delved into the meaning of the Jewish High Holy Days I came across some interesting events, or signs, that were given during the Day of Atonement in the year of Christ’s death and resurrection and leading up to the destruction of Jerusalem 40 years later. I hope you find them as interesting as I did. There is of course a moral and a warning to us in these accounts.

During the Feast Day of Atonement, two goats were brought before the High Priest in the temple. The High Priest would choose which goat would be “for the Lord” and sacrificed in the temple, and which goat would be “Azazel” or scapegoat. The scapegoat would be led outside the temple and pushed out over a cliff. The scapegoat would carry with it the sins of the people. The High priest chose the goats randomly by lots. Two stones, one black (for Azazel) and one white (for the Lord) would be selected, which was entirely ruled by the law of chance. Either he was blindfolded or reached into a bowl where he could not see the stones, or something like that. Records were kept of the stones selected first each year. Previous to year 31 AD it was a 50/50 chance statistically that he would choose one or the other stone first. But for 40 years in a row, starting the year of the Saviors crucifixion and resurrection, the High Priest chose the Black Stone first. The odds of picking the same stone 40 times in a row are astronomical, in fact are 5 billion to 1. The Temple was destroyed 40 years later in 70 AD, ending the sacrifice of goats.

When you add this account with the signs that accompanied Jesus’ crucifixion you wonder how could the Jews not have linked this amazing account, and all the other signs that happened, with Jesus? After a few years of this, they must have realized something extraordinary was going on. They would have traced back to the year when this started and asked themselves what significant event occurred in that year to bring about such an amazing statistic. They would have known that God was behind it. But, my guess is that no one would dare suggest that this had anything to do with the Crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth and the rumored resurrection. PLEASE! Heaven Forbid! Pondering how an entire people could ignore blatant heavenly signs makes me think that we can become so blinded by fears of men, tradition, and keeping things going the same way and not rocking the boat, that we truly become blind to the signs the Lord showers upon us to get our attention.

A fragmented copy of a portion of the lost Gospel of Peter was discovered in 1886 by the French archaeologist Urbain Bouriant, buried in the tomb of a monk at Akhmim in Upper Egypt. This fragment gives an interesting additional account to the crucifixion of the Savior. One of the things described in the fragment is that the sky darkened while Christ hung on the cross. It was so dark that the people were afraid that destruction had come upon them.

And it was noon, and darkness came over all Judaea: and they were troubled and distressed, lest the sun had set, whilst he was yet alive: [for] it is written for them, that the sun set not on him that hath been put to death. And one of them said, Give him to drink gall with vinegar. And they mixed and gave him to drink, and fulfilled all things, and accomplished their sins against their own head. And many went about with lamps, supposing that it was night, and fell down. And the Lord cried out, saying, My power, my power, thou hast forsaken me. And when he had said it he was taken up. And in that hour the vail of the temple of Jerusalem was rent in twain.

6 And then they drew out the nails from the hands of the Lord, and laid him upon the earth, and the whole earth quaked, and great fear arose. Then the sun shone, and it was found the ninth hour: and the Jews rejoiced,
Gospel of Peter,”Early Christian Writings”, translated by Raymond Brown.

In this account, there was mention of a great earthquake, and the vail of the temple was torn. The Book of Mormon gives evidence that great darkness covered the earth and great earthquakes accompanied the death of Christ. There is another account that testifies of peculiar things occuring at the time of the crucifixion. The Jewish accounts of the time don’t mention Jesus, but they mention some strange events that coincide with the time of the crucifixion. These records give an account of destruction that took place in 31 AD, which was probably in conjunction with the death and resurrection of the Savior. Dating the death of Christ is a tenuous exercise at best. Ask a dozen scholars to date the crucifixion and you will get a dozen answers. Lets just say that 31 AD is approximate, and fits the historical descriptions and religious records we have of the events at the time.

The Jewish Talmud, Yoma 39b, tells of events that happened 40 years before the temple was destroyed; the temple was destroyed on April 30, 70 AD by the Romans. It tells how the gates of the Hekel (Holy Place) opened themselves and the vail in the Holy of Holies was rent so that people in the courtyards of the temple could see right into the Holy of Holies. Rabbi Yohanan B. Zakkai rebuked the gates saying, “Hekel, Hekel, why alarmist thou us? We know that thou are destined to be destroyed.” In another account it was said that it took some time to close the massive gates because the lintel that supported them was destroyed. The gates were meant never to be opened except during feast days and eventually to welcome the Messiah into the Temple proper.

St. Jerome in a letter to Hedibia writes that the huge lintel of the temple was broken and splintered due to a massive earthquake. This caused the curtain rods to fall and rip the large and heavy vail that concealed the Holy of Holies. The lintel was reported to be a single massive stone weighing 30 or 40 tons and was 30 feet long.

In the same year, 31 AD, the Sanhedrin had to abandon the Chamber of Hewn Stones near the Holy Place in the Temple, which was its official seat, because of the earth quake. This was about 40 yards SE of the entrance to the Holy Place. They had to move to another location called “The Trading Place”, which was further to the east and much less a significant spot. To be forced to move from the prominence of the Chamber of Hewn Stones next to the temple to one much less beautiful, prominent, and very pedestrian must have been humiliating.

“Forty years before the destruction of the temple, the Sanhedrin was banished from the Chamber of Hewn Stones and sat in the trading station.”
Talmud, Shabbot 15

Matthew 24 contains the great prophecy by the Savior of the destruction of Jerusalem, which would come in 40 years. This account also was meant to describe conditions at the time just proceeding His second coming in glory. Christ warns His disciples that when they see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel, “stand in the holy place“, …”then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains.” He warns them not to take the time to go into the house and take provisions, so swift will the danger descend upon the city. After the Jews had defeated the Roman cohorts and run off the Roman legion sent to put down the Jewish Rebellion in 67-68 BC, political factions fought over rule within the city. At one point, as Josephus describes it, the faction in power took control of the temple and instituted some new practices. Some say idols were introduced and placed in the Holy of Holies. This happened just before the three Roman legions under Titus arrived at Jerusalem at the time of the Passover and sealed off escape from the city. Their arrival was so swift that it is estimated over 2 million people became trapped in the city and were unable to escape. It is believed that the Christians all heeded the warning that Jesus gave them and were able to escape into the mountains and desert to the West of Judaea just before the Romans arrived on the scene. It is estimated that 1 to 3 million Jews perished in the siege of Jerusalem.

Josephus tells us that there were plenty of signs before the Romans destroyed Jerusalem. Unfortunately, most of the people interpreted the signs as good omens, While the scholars and men in charge knew that the signs were portents of destruction, but in their wickedness they declared the signs to be good. ” Now there were was then a great number of false prophets suborned by the tyrants to impose upon the people, who denounced this to them, that they should wait for deliverance from God; and this was in order to keep them from deserting, and that they might be buoyed up above fear and care by such hopes.” (“The Wars of the Jews”, 6.5)

Some of the signs that Josephus tells us in the days immediately preceding the final destruction of Jerusalem and the temple:

A star resembling a sword appeared above the city
A comet was seen for a year before the destruction
Just prior to the rebellion against the Romans in 68 AD during the Passover, a bright light shone around the altar in the temple. It was described as above the brightness of the sun
For a second time the heavy gates of the temple which was secured by great bolts sealed into the floor of the temple, which take 20 men to close, swung open on its own.
Just before sunset a few days after the Passover feast of 68 AD, chariots and troops of soldiers were were seen running about in the sky among the clouds.
At Pentecost the same year, the priests doing their duties in the temple heard a loud noise coming from the Holy Place. It sounded like a multitude of voices shouting, “Let us remove hence.”
A prophet, by the name of Jesus, son of Ananus, came to the Feast of Tabernacles four years before the destruction and began declaring, “A voice from the East, a voice from the west, a voice from the four winds, a voice against Jerusalem and the holy house, a voice against the bridegrooms and the brides, and a voice against this whole people. He went about the streets of the city and on the walls of the city making this same declaration for four years until during the siege that the Romans set against Jerusalem, he was killed upon the walls of the city.

All those people perished because they did not pay attention. They did not believe the signs nor the words of the prophets but paid attention to the soothing words of false prophets or their leaders. Jesus would have protected Jerusalem; He would have gathered them as a hen to its chicks and protected them, but they rejected His message. They were not attracted to the light, but were caught up in their world of self interest and convenience.

“Some people can be too religious to repent.” (Even when presented with evidence that can not really be disputed.) “They fail to understand that their religious zealousness can cause them to be judgemental, religious bigots, proud, and liable to reject the more refined doctrine which is only available to those with the ears to hear. When Zion does come, there will be Gentile opposition to it, especially from the Gentile church. Those who aren’t initially invited will find the idea of Zion without them offensive. They should repent, but instead, because of blindness and jealousy, will fight against Zion.” *

God bless.

*Ihttp://denversnuffer.blogspot.com/2012/03/nephis-brother-jacob-part-5.html

Signs that 2017 was a year of Prophecy

Sept 19 was the end of the 25 hour Day of Atonement, or Yom Kippur this year. On this day, which is one of the Jewish High Holy Days, the Jewish people seek atonement or forgiveness of sins, both of the people and individually. During the months of September and October there is a series of three high feasts, or Holy Days, that the Torah commands the Isrealites to observe. These three feasts, which come in quick succession are: 1. Rosh Hashanah, which is the New Year. This was celebrated September 9 through 11th this year. 2. Yom Kippur, which comes 8 days later. And 3. Feast of Tabernacles, or Sukkot which is celebrated September 23 through 30 this year.

These feast days were established at the time of Moses to be a remembrance of future actions surrounding the coming of the Messiah. Rosh Hashanah, the new year, was the day of judgement. The Messiah, or Christ, would come to judge the righteous and the wicked. Yom Kippur is the day of atonement where not only is forgiveness of sins sought for, but in a Jubilee year, the slaves are freed and ancestral lands are restored. The Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot) was a celebration of the Messiah being enthroned.

Originally Rosh Hashanah was established in Leviticus 23 as the first day of the month Tishri. This was to be a sabbath. The first day of each month was established by the Temple priests observing the first hint of the crescent moon appearing. Messengers were sent out to proclaim the start of each month, which would be a sabbath. Once the Israelites and Jews were scattered throughout many nations, it was not possible to get the word to them in time of the actual day of Rosh Hashanah, so the practice evolved into a two day feast. If you count this way, from the end of Rosh Hashanah 2 Tishri to 10 Tishri, start of Yom Kippur, there are eight days.

During the 8 days of Sukkot, at the time of Christ, water is poured over the altar in the temple. Every morning at daybreak a group of Levites and priests went down to the Shiloh stream on the south of the Temple and drew water. Great ceremony accompanied this ordinance with great blasts of trumpets when the priests arrived at the temple with the water. In the evening the water would be poured over the altar in the temple. This event would be accompanied with joyous music, dancing, and singing all night. John 7 records Christ teaching in the temple during the Feast of Tabernacles. On the last day of the feast Christ stood in the temple and shouted to the crowd: “If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.” (John 7:37-38) Christ was in effect saying, “You are praying for the Messiah to come who will give life giving water. All this celebrating is for me, I am here, NOW.” In seven months Christ would be crucified.

This drama is enacted in the stars in the heavens. The zodiac constellation that presides over the age after Pisces (the Fish) is Aquarius, the water bearer. Due to the procession of the stars each of the constellations in the zodiac takes a turn having the earth’s North Pole oriented in their direction, which changes approximately every 2,100 years. Christ was born at the beginning of the age of Pisces, and we are now entering the beginning of the age of Aquarius. This all makes me wonder if the Lord will make his 2nd appearance to the world, this time in glory, on the last day of the Sukkot in a time not too far distant.

The theme of these High Holy Days is this: Judgement, Atonement, and Salvation. The sequencing and separation of days between the Holy Days is significant. Keep in mind that there are eight days between Judgement (Rosh Hashanah) and Atonement (Yom Kippur). The cycle of judgement is seven days plus one day before the Atonement is complete. Christ entered into Jerusalem in triumph on Sunday (Palm Sunday) and the Voice of the Father was heard to declare His acceptance of Christ and His sacrificial offering, “I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.” To which the Savior said,”Now is the judgement of the world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out.” (John 12:28 & 31) It would be eight days until the Lord completes His atonement and is resurrected the following Sunday.

Eight signifies a beginning in sacred numerology. Seven is the number that signifies completeness. Feast of Tabernacles is seven days plus one day. Jubilees is forty-nine (7 x 7) years plus one year. Judgement to Atonement is seven plus one. This will become useful when we discuss the signs that occurred during the year 2017.

Rosh Hashanah was on September 21-22 in 2017. The sign of Revelation 12 was manifest on September 22-23 of the same year.

I wrote in my last post about how the sign of the virgin giving birth to the man-child was linked to Isaiah 55 and 66. I also mentioned that this sign hasn’t happened in 7,000 years, and won’t happen again for another several thousand years. There was something very unique and special about Rosh Hashanah and the High Holy Days of the year 2017. Here is a list of other signs and wonders that occurred during the year 2017:

During 2015-16 there were 4 blood moons and 2 solar eclipses visible to the areas around Jerusalem. What made these events remarkable was that they all occurred on Jewish Feast days. I don’t believe that has ever happened before.
Much has been written about the Jubilee year of 2015-2016. Jubilee is every 50 years (49 years plus one-the year of restoration and rest) 49 years minus 2016 is 1967. The most significant thing that happened in that year was the liberation of all of Jerusalem and the Temple mount during the 7 Days War. What happened 50 years before that? The British liberated Jerusalem from the Turks during the First World War, which paved the way for mass migration of Jews to Palestine. So what happened in 2017 to make it a significant year of Jubilee? The Lord established the New Covenant, hopefully for the last time, in Boise, Idaho. Remember, the 50th year is the year of restoration, when slaves are set free and the ancestral lands are restored. The Covenant made on Sept 3rd 2017 includes salvation (Freedom from the cycle) and a deed to the land if faithful (share in the land to be restored to the righteous seed of Lehi).
August 21st of 2017 was the great solar eclipse that crossed America from sea to sea. Another coast to coast eclipse will occur in North America in 2024 – 7 years later making, with the path of the previous eclipse, a big X in the center of the United States over Missouri. What was signified by this sign? Perhaps a warning to America to take seriously the call to repent? Perhaps America has seven years to repent. In the meantime the Lord is starting something; He is bringing the “church” out of the wilderness. He has established a new covenant with a small group of gentiles. America has been judged and found wanting. In seven years, according to the metaphor found in the timing of the feasts, will be the day of Atonement in America.
One of the minor signs that I was personally involved with I described in the previous past. Signs and appearances of angels were experienced during the giving of the New Covenant in Boise.
The Earth gave its testimony of the New Covenant. In the mountains just to the East of Boise a super storm of earthquakes occurred which lasted for several months. There were thousands of earthquakes and tremors registered from 2.0 to 5.0 on the Richter Scale.
On November 3, 2017 I recorded a warning that was declared to the inhabitants of Salt Lake County. I gave an account of that how that warning came about in this post: https://thenorthstarchronicle.com/2018/07/30/a-warning-to-the-people-of-salt-lake-valley/
During the last 18 months we have received other witnesses and signs from the Earth that something momentous is happening. Earthquakes are increasing in number and severity. Fires in the Western United States are worst ever recorded. Floods in the East are some of the worst ever recorded. Hurricanes are the most destructive ever recorded in any previous 18 month period.

I have never been one to pay attention to people who give dates to coming prophesied events. They are almost always wrong. But evidence tells us that something is afoot. I don’t profess to know any dates of future events, but I know that 2017 was year of prophecy, a year foretold, when the Lord reestablished a people through covenant. I believe the Judgement has been declared, that we have to step up and accept the Atonement and prepare for the Final Feast of Tabernacles (Salvation) when the Messiah, the Savior, makes His second appearance and is ensconced as the King.

God Bless.

New Covenant of 2017 was fortold

2017 was the year of the New Covenant, a new covenant offered to the Gentiles for the last time. A new covenant was necessary because of the rejection of the fulness of the gospel by the LDS church (D&C 84:54-59). The New Covenant was accepted by many in attendance in Boise, Idaho at the Egyptian Theater on September 3^rd with many others listening remotely. Some people might ask, “Was this foretold in the scriptures, and were there any signs from the Lord?” Short answer, “Yes!”

The New Covenant was offered to the Gentiles through Denver Snuffer, who received the revelation directly from the Lord. (“Teachings and Commandments”, section 157 and 158). If this was a significant event in the history of the world, you would think that there would be some scriptures that talk about this event. As it turns out you will find several that speak of it, if you look closely enough. One of them is Isaiah 55:3-5. It reads:

Incline your ear, and come unto me; hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David.
Behold, I have given him for a witness to the people, a leader and commander to the people.
Behold, thou shalt call a nation that thou knowest not, and nations that knew not thee shall run unto thee because of thy Lord thy God, and for the Holy One of Israel; for he hath glorified thee.

Denver Snuffer had been given the name David by the Lord in revelation on September 10, 2011. (T&C 162). He is the “witness” of the Lord’s work and covenant mentioned in verse 4 of Isaiah 55. The nations not known in Isaiah’s time are the Gentile nations, perhaps indicating that a covenant is offered to them and through them. The reference to David as a witness and as an example for the new covenant points to the Davidic Covenant given to David by the Prophet Nathan in 1 Samuel 7. That covenant ties the unconditional promises of the Lord to the righteousness of David, up to that time. He has already performed the conditions of having a covenant with the Lord, so the Lord promises that the kingship will pass through his descendants forever, and is tied to eventual possession in perpetuity of the lands of Palestine and beyond by his descendants. It is because of the performance of David to that point that the covenant was given. Likewise, we may also owe the Lord’s offering of a new covenant for us at this time, to the performance (“mercies”) of a modern David.

Another verse in Isaiah, 66:5-12, starts out talking about the outcasts from the congregation, from the church, who will be blessed by the Lord in the last days while those that did the casting out (excommunication?) will be ashamed. In verse 7 there is a curious reference to the birth of the “man child” (Heb: zakar) before the woman was due. Revelation 12 uses a similar word to express the birth of a son – “man child”. I will talk more about the Revelation 12 sign and what it signifies because the two scriptures are linked. The sign of the Virgin Woman giving birth to the man child is a fulfillment of both Isaiah 66 and Revelation 12. And it happened on September 23, 2017. Isaiah 66:8-12 continues to describe the coming forth of Zion before the Lord comes (before the woman is due to deliver). At that time the Gentiles will be blessed, which surely is the issuing of a new covenant to the Gentiles. Jerusalem will also be comforted and supported by the Gentiles and then in verse 14 and 15:

And when you see this, your heart shall rejoice, and your bones shall flourish like an herb; and the hand of the Lord shall be known toward his servants, and his indignation toward his enemies.
For by fire and by his sword will the Lord plead with all flesh: and the slain of the Lord shall be many.

All of Isaiah 66 is a prophecy of the last days, up to and including the millennium. The last line of this quote, surely, is describing our day. Isaiah 61:8-9 also alludes to a final, everlasting covenant to be made amongst those who dwell under the protection of the Gentiles. In Jeremiah 31 we find the conditions of our day foretold and in verse 31-34 of that chapter we find this prophecy:

“Behold the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:
Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of Egypt; which my covenant they brake…
But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.
And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”

Jeremiah speaks of the day when the new covenant will involve knowing the Lord personally. Further promise of fulfillment of that prophecy can be found in the “Covenant Ordinance”, Section 158:15 of T&C. http://scriptures.info/scriptures/tc/section/158

“I will visit my house, which the remnant of my people shall build, and I will dwell therein, to be among you, and no one will need to say, “Know ye the Lord,” for you all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.”

These words contained in the New Covenant of September 23, tie this covenant to the full completion of the prophecy in Jeremiah 31.
When Christ taught the Nephites during His ministry in America, He prophesied that the Gentiles would be destroyed by the remnant of Jacob. He did, however, give the Gentiles a chance to join with the righteous of the remnant of Lehi.

But if they will repent and hearken unto my words, and harden not their hearts, I will establish my church among them, and they shall come in unto the covenant and be numbered among this the remnant of Jacob, unto whom I have given this land for their inheritance;
3 Nephi 21:22

The new covenant of September 23 also speaks to the fulfillment of this prophecy:

I will raise you up and protect you, abide with you, and gather you in due time, and this shall be a land of promise to you as your inheritance from me.
T&C 158:13

I am aware that there are a few souls stating that the Lord was not in the covenant offered at Boise, or it was a lesser ordinance because of the unwillingness of the people to receive a greater covenant directly from the Lord personally. Their idea is that only the Lord can offer a covenant to you which He does directly, personally. Some have interpreted this to mean that you cannot get a covenant from the Lord through an intermediary. It is true that only the Lord initiates covenants, but He can and does offer it through messengers. When you are baptized it is a sign of your acceptance of a covenant that was offered by the Lord through an intermediary. Baptism of fire is the Lord showing his acceptance of your sacrifice and willingness to obey Him. In neither of those cases was it necessary for the Lord to appear to you to deliver a covenant personally. You also have the account of King Benjamin delivering a covenant to the people from the Lord through an angel. I do believe, however, that after a covenant has been offered in this way, through a human agent, and been accepted by you, there is a sacrifice required on your part, and you need to seek the Lord out to ratify the covenant to you personally. By personally I mean through the Holy Spirit or in person. You must experience this without an intermediary.

Well, this post is getting long, and I hope I have made the point that the New Covenant of September 23, 2017, is a fulfillment of prophecy. There are so many scriptural proofs and evidences this is the case that I think someone could write an entire book about it. I wanted to also talk about the signs that occurred during 2017 that made it a year of prophecy in this post, but will have to cover that in the next post.

God Bless.

Signs pointing to a New Covenant in 2017

Signs pointing to a New Covenant

It has been a year since the New Covenant was offered and accepted by many in Boise last year. There were many signs and wonders pointing to this event. I will get into writing about those signs later, but, I did want to share one wonderful event that occurred on Sept 3, 2017 in Boise during the last conference event when the Covenant was offered by the Lord through Denver Snuffer and we were asked to stand and accept.

It was a year ago that Nancy and I traveled to Boise, Idaho to the Remnant Conference. We had been counseled to be prepared to receive a covenant from the Lord. Denver Snuffer had received a revelation from the Lord telling us to seek confirmation from the Lord so that when the Covenant was read to us, we would know that the covenant came from the Lord and we would be able to accept all the conditions and principles embodied in the covenant. I took this admonition to heart and prayed for several weeks, every day, to have the truth made known to me.

“Is this truth, Lord? Do the words of the Covenant and the “Answer to Prayer”, that have been published by Denver, come from your mouth? Is it right that I stand and accept the covenant in the conference in Boise?” I prayed and fasted to receive confirmation from the Lord that this was a New Covenant that was being offered to us. I wanted to know the truth and was anxious to do the right thing. Even though I felt that there was little chance that I was being deceived, because it seemed right, it felt right, and in the words of Joseph Smith, “It tasted good”, I still wanted to be fully aware that this was the Lord’s will. But after weeks of dwelling on this need to have heaven approve what I intended to do, I received no answer. Even so I felt right about accepting the Covenant.

As I sat in the auditorium of the Egyptian Theater in Boise on Sept 3, 2017, I began to worry that I had not yet been given the go ahead from the Lord to accept the covenant. I did not have heaven’s confirmation. Should I stand and accept, or should I remain sitting? It was important to me to maintain integrity in this matter. I listened to the speakers with these thoughts going through my mind, until Chris Hammel introduced and read the “Answer to Prayer” revelation given to Denver Snuffer several months earlier. As he spoke I sensed a very peculiar change in the atmosphere inside the theater. My perception seemed to attenuate, my vision and hearing seemed to change. I heard a loud rustling sound as if thousands of pages in books were being turned. Later on reflection I thought it sounded like a fast-moving river near a rapid. Understanding flooded my mind and I knew that a door had been opened, the veil to heaven had been parted and angels were flooding the room to witness the New Covenant being offered and accepted. I was told by the spirit the angels were there to record the names of those accepting the covenant and to witness the event, which was so important and momentous. I tried to see them, but the sight of them was not given to me. I could, however, feel their presence. There were dozens of them in the room. The knowledge of their presence was as strong as if I could see them.

The joy I experienced at that moment was indescribable. I realized the Lord allowed me to experience that witness in answer to my prayers. When the time came to stand and accept the Covenant I was able to do it enthusiastically and with great emotion. It was true.

I told several other people later about what I had experienced, but no one else saw or felt what I did. They accepted what I told them, but I wondered if I should just keep this to myself. Was it meant only for me? Was it pride that impelled me to want to share this experience?

Later that night, several families from our fellowship got together to talk about the conference and share experiences at one of the local hotels. There were about 30 people gathered, which also included other families of friends. At one point, the spirit prompted me to tell my story to the group, which I finally did after much coaxing by the spirit. After I related what I saw and heard, one of the young men in our group spoke up and said, “I am a second witness that this is true. I heard the noise, but I didn’t know what it was.” I have to tell you, I was so relieved that someone else had experienced what I had, and spoken up.

Others started piping up about some of the peculiar things that happened during the conference. Several in the group related that their young children heard bells during the conference and kept asking their parents what those bells were. I have to believe that there were many such experiences that occurred during this event, felt and seen by those in the audience, or even listening remotely.

It is my witness that the New Covenant offered and accepted by us in September of 2017 was a heavenly event and was a fulfillment of prophesy. In my next post I will introduce some of the many signs and wonders, yes wonders, that occurred in fulfillment of prophesy and have continued to occur in the last year as a consequence of the Covenant. My desire is this will spur others to tell their stories, in the hope that it will cause many who have taken the covenant but have doubts or questions, to go to the next level- having the Lord confirm it to them personally.

Is “Precept Upon Precept, Line Upon Line”, Really a Curse?

Every once in a while I come across a scripture that is quoted, commented on, and interpreted in a way that was not intended by the author. Some of these scriptures are interpreted to mean something entirely different than a wider reading of the text indicates. Take for example this scripture from Isaiah 28:10:

“ For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little and there a little.”

The LDS Church teaches this scripture is a good thing; how the Lord will reveal light and truth a little at a time. We are taught that this is a blessing. The light of the gospel will be revealed a little at a time and builds upon previous revelations. Elder David A. Bednar said this in a recent conference talk:

“The Lord’s pattern for spiritual development is line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little. Small, steady, incremental spiritual improvements are the steps the Lord would have us take.

Elder Benjamin De Hoyas said this in his April 2017 Conference address:

“The Lord has always revealed His will to us “line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little. Therefore we should not be surprised by what may seem like small things because of their simple and repetitive nature.”

It is good that we receive knowledge that builds upon other knowledge, otherwise it wouldn’t make any sense to us. D&C 98:12 says “For he will give unto the faithful line upon line, precept upon precept; and I will try you and prove you herewith.” This idea, though, is quite different then what the author of Isaiah intended. Let’s read the whole scripture reference in Isaiah 28 that puts “line upon line” in its true meaning.

First let me set the tone of chapter 28 for you. Isaiah 28 begins, “ Woe to the crown of pride, to the drunkards of Ephraim, whose glorious beauty is a fading flower…” For the rest of the chapter Isaiah continues in this vein. Ephraim will be trodden down, with only a small residue receiving a “diadem of beauty”. The priests and prophets have erred in vision because they have drunk strong drink. They are part of the reason for Ephraim’s fall, but the people are not blameless. The priests and prophets only taught what was popular, what the people wanted to hear. And so, because the people are unwilling to receive the fulness of light and knowledge,

“Whom shall he teach knowledge? And whom shall he make to understand doctrine? Them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts.For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little. For with stammering lips and another tongue will he speak to this people. To whom he said, this is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear. But the word of the Lord was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little; that they might go and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken.” (Isaiah 28: 10-13)

I like Gileadi’s comment on these verses:

“Although Jehovah wants to give his people “instruction” and “revelation” they are but babes and sucklings who haven’t developed far enough to digest more than milk: “Everyone who uses milk is unskillful in the word of righteousness for he is a babe” (Heb. 5:13). Ephraim’s mode of learning is still “line upon line, line upon line, precept upon precept, precept upon precept, here a little, there a little”…”Assonance and alliteration parody their rote method of learning that consists of parroting back what their leaders teach.” (Avraham Gileadi, Apocalyptic Commentary of the Book of Isaiah, p.170)

If you read Isaiah 28:10 in original Hebrew you get the sense that Isaiah is making fun of the Ephraimites. Isaiah mimics the way babies talk. Where we might say a baby talks like this: “dah dah, goo goo”; in Hebrew, “precept upon precept, line upon line, here a little and there a little” is translated from this: “saw lasaw saw lasaw qaw laqaw qaw laqaw zeir sam zeir sam”. It sounds a bit like gibberish, even to the Hebrews. Isaiah loves a play on words to get his points across. He demonstrates it is by “stammering tongue” that they hear the word of the Lord. Light and knowledge sounds like nonsense to them, so the Lord cuts off or limits what He gives them.

As Latter-Day Saints we tend to understand “line upon line” as a legitimate and preferred way of the Lord to communicate with us. Revelation comes to us as a trickle so that we can absorb it and lay the basis for further light and knowledge. That is one of the reasons we get the same Sunday school lessons over and over, the same conference talks rehashed, and a very restricted list of topics for teaching and discussion. That is not the intent of Isaiah 28 at all. If you read the entire chapter you will find that Isaiah is warning us of exactly what the church practices today. Repetition, limited interpretation, limited scope of approved topics, and, did I mention repetition?

Reading 2 Nephi 28:30 and D&C 98:12, “precept upon precept, and line upon line” seems to indicate that this is the Lord’s preferred way of revealing light and knowledge to His people. But here are a few considerations to ponder:

2 Nephi 28:30 says: “…thus sayeth the Lord I will give unto the children of men line upon line, precept upon precept…and blessed are those who hearken…for they shall learn wisdom; for unto him that receiveth I will give more;” After a person receives line upon line, if he is faithful, he will receive more. Only after a person has received milk and has moved on from “line upon line” will he be ready for bread and then meat. It is a test. Once we have proven faithful we will be allowed access to the whole spectrum of light. We will no longer have to be subjected to the same lesson, the same doctrinal concept over and over again.
Joseph Smith stated, “I have tried for a number of years to get the minds of the Saints prepared to receive the things of God; but we frequently see some of them, after suffering all they have for the work of God, will fly to pieces like glass as soon as anything comes that is contrary to their traditions.” ( Joseph Smith, Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith, p.520) Hence he had to be careful, revealing only a small part of the knowledge of God. The members of the church were content to be limited to “line upon line”.
Isaiah 28:10-13 was meant as a curse to Ephraim, and ultimately to Judah. Because the people could not, nor would not, endure sound doctrine in its fulness, the Lord curtailed the amplitude and frequency of new knowledge being revealed. Are we seeing the same phenomenon today?
I would consider that the revelations that accompanied Joseph Smith’s ministry to be a full throttle outpouring of knowledge. The Book of Mormon, revelations included in the Doctrine and Covenants, the re-translation of the Bible, the Pearl of Great Price, and his recorded sermons and writings was not a “line upon line” trickle of knowledge. This was not the Lord revealing here a little and there a little, but a light switch was turned on to cause an outpouring of the knowledge of God and salvation.
Consider the brother of Jared. He received a revelation of the entire history of the world in one sitting. Mormon wrote that only when the Gentiles have exercised faith in the Lord and been sanctified, will the Lord reveal to them what he revealed to the brother of Jared.
Joseph Smith once said that if we could gaze through the veil for a moment we would learn more about heaven then all the books written.
The fulness of the gospel encompasses the revelation of Christ to us. This is a revelation where nothing will be held back from us.

It seems then, that the Lord wants to give us as much light and knowledge as we can take in. In fact, He gives us more than we can fully understand. The “line upon line” mode of communication is a second rate means for those who are struggling with milk. Since Joseph Smith we have had to be content with the “line upon line” pace of heavenly knowledge revealed to us. Because the levels of knowledge revealed to us has dropped to somewhere near zero since Joseph Smith, the LDS church has become content with what was given during that short period of time between 1828 and 1844. In order to rationalize the lack of new revelation the authorities of the church have resorted to some logical gymnastics to explain why.

“…I do not even believe that there is a single revelation among the many God has given to the church, that is perfect in its fulness. The revelations of God contain correct doctrine and principles, so far as they go; but it is impossible for the poor, weak, low, groveling, sinful inhabitants of the earth to receive a revelation from the Almighty in all its perfections. He has to speak to us in a manner to meet the extent of our capabilities.” Brigham Young, Journal of Discourses, 2:314.

“It is a good thing for us not to attempt to advance new doctrine, or new and advanced thought in relation to principles and doctrines pertaining to, or presumed to pertain to the gospel of Jesus Christ, without weighing it carefully, with the experience of years, before you attempt to make a doctrinal test and to advance it to the people of the Lord. There is so much simple truth, necessary to be understood, that has been revealed to us in the gospel that it is extreme folly in us to attempt to go beyond the truth that has been revealed, until we have mastered and can comprehend the truth that we have. There is a great deal within our reach that we have not yet mastered.” Joseph F. Smith, James R. Clark, comp., Messages of the First Presidency, 6 vols. (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1965–75),p. 97

I recall a quote by Gordon B. Hinckley in an interview with either Mike Wallace or Larry King when asked if he received revelation. His answer was something like this, “We don’t need new revelation, we don’t pay attention to all the ones we have now.” Or something like that. The idea conveyed is that the Lord has given us all that he is going to give us until we decide to accept it and live it. There is truth in the statement by President Hinkley, but it highlights what I am presenting here, that we will continue to learn “line upon line” until we are ready to receive more. We are content to receive knowledge this way. And by acceding to contentedness with this condition we damn ourselves and reject the fulness.

The author of the Book of Job asks the question, “But where shall wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding?” (Job 28:12). Where, indeed, is the fountain of understanding? Christ is the fountain of all knowledge. He knows and comprehends all (D&C 88:41). He is the gatekeeper for the dispensing of all this knowledge, and “If you are purified and cleansed from all sin, ye shall ask whatsoever you will in the name of Jesus and it shall be done…” (D&C 50:29). At that point, we are no longer cursed to receive small incremental nuggets of light; we can ask anything and the Lord will answer.

There is a curious statement in Moses 6:61 which declares: “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 judgement.” I suggest that all the knowledge is there within us, waiting to be poured out upon us when we are ready to be fed with meat. When you are dissatisfied with being subjected to rote memorization, repetitive reinforcement of concepts, and the same doctrine drummed into us over and over again, as the curse of “precept upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line” insinuates, then you will be ready to begin to open the doors to the treasure house, “the record of heaven”.