Malachi: Joseph Smith's Commentary on the Bible

Malachi

Malachi 3:2-4

The Lord will purify the sons of Levi, good or bad, for it is through them that blessings flow to Israel. And as Israel once was baptized in the cloud and in the sea, so shall God as a refiner's fire and a fuller's soap purify the sons of Levi and purge them as gold and as silver. And then, and not till then, "shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto the Lord, as in days of old, and as in former years." fn

The purifying of the sons of Levi is by giving unto them intelligence. fn

Malachi 3:3

The offering of sacrifice also shall be continued at the last time, for all the ordinances and duties that ever have been required by the priesthood under the direction and commandments of the Almighty, in any of the dispensations, shall all be had in the last dispensation. Therefore, all things had under the authority of the priesthood at any former period shall be had again—bringing to pass the restoration spoken of by the mouth of all the holy prophets. Then shall the sons of Levi offer an acceptable sacrifice to the Lord.

It will be necessary here to make a few observations on the doctrine set forth in [this passage], as it is generally supposed that sacrifice was entirely done away when the great sacrifice was offered up and that there will be no necessity for the ordinance of sacrifice in [the] future. But those who assert this are certainly not acquainted with the duties, privileges, and authority of the priesthood, or with the prophets. The offering of sacrifice has ever been connected [with], and forms a part of, the duties of the priesthood. It began with the priesthood and will be continued until after the coming of Christ, from generation to generation. We frequently have mention made of the offering of sacrifice by the servants of the Most High in ancient days prior to the law of Moses, which ordinances will be continued when the priesthood is restored with all its authority, power, and blessings. . . .

These sacrifices as well as every ordinance belonging to the priesthood will, when the temple of the Lord shall be built and the sons [of] Levi be purified, be fully restored and attended to then, [with] all their powers, ramifications, and blessings. This ever was and will exist when the powers of the Melchizedek Priesthood are sufficiently manifested. Else how can the restitution of all things spoken of by all the holy prophets be brought to pass? It is not to be understood that the law of Moses will be established again with all its rites and variety of ceremonies; this had never been spoken of by the prophets. But those things which existed prior [to] Moses' day, namely sacrifice, will be continued. It may be asked by some what necessity [there is] for sacrifice, since the great sacrifice was offered. In answer to [this], if repentance, baptism, and faith existed prior to the days of Christ, what necessity [is there] for them since that time? fn

Malachi 3:5

He shall witness against all iniquity, as said Malachi, and shall sorely chastise those who are gone astray. fn

Malachi 4:1

The world is reserved unto burning in the last days. fn

Malachi 4:4

[The] law revealed to Moses in Horeb never was revealed to the children of Israel. fn

Malachi 4:5-6

The hearts of the children will have to be turned to the fathers, and the fathers to the children, living or dead, to prepare them for the coming of the Son of Man. If Elijah did not come, the whole earth would be smitten. fn

Elijah was the last prophet that held the keys of this priesthood, and who will, before the last dispensation, restore the authority and deliver the keys of this priesthood in order that all the ordinances may be attended to in righteousness. It is true that the Savior had authority and power to bestow this blessing, but the sons of Levi were too prejudiced. Why send Elijah? Because he holds the keys of the authority to administer in all the ordinances of the priesthood. And without the authority given, the ordinances could not be administered in righteousness. fn

[Malachi] had his eye fixed on the restoration of the priesthood, the glories to be revealed in the last days, and in an especial manner this most glorious of all subjects belonging to the everlasting gospel, namely, the baptism for the dead. . . . I might have rendered a plainer translation to this, but it is sufficiently plain to suit my purpose as it stands. It is sufficient to know, in this case, that the earth will be smitten with a curse unless there is a welding link of some kind or other between the fathers and the children, upon some subject or other—and behold what is that subject? It is the baptism for the dead. For we without them cannot be made perfect; neither can they without us be made perfect [Heb. 11:40]. Neither can they nor we be made perfect without those who have died in the gospel also. fn

"And he shall turn the hearts of the children to the covenant made with their fathers." fn

6In the end [the earth] shall be burned and few men left. But before that, God shall send unto them Elijah the prophet, and he shall reveal unto them the covenants of the fathers with relation to the children and the covenants of the children in relation to the fathers, that they may have the privilege of entering into the same, in order to effect their mutual salvation. fn

"I will send Elijah the prophet, and he shall reveal the covenants of the fathers to the children and of the children to the fathers, that they may enter into covenant with each other, lest I come and smite the whole earth with a curse." fn

He shall send Elijah the prophet, and he shall reveal the covenants of the fathers in relation to the children, and the covenants of the children in relation to the fathers. fn

How shall God come to the rescue of this generation? He shall send Elijah, . . . and he shall reveal the covenants to seal the hearts of the fathers to the children and the children to the fathers. fn

Now the word "turn" here should be translated "bind" or "seal." But what is the object of this important mission, or how is it to be fulfilled? The keys are to be delivered, the spirit of Elijah is to come, the gospel to be established, the Saints of God gathered, Zion built up, and the Saints to come up as saviors on Mount Zion. But how are they to become saviors on Mount Zion? By building their temples, erecting their baptismal fonts, and going forth and receiving all the ordinances, baptisms, confirmations, washings, anointings, ordinations, and sealing powers upon our heads in behalf of all our progenitors who are dead, and redeem them that they may come forth in the first resurrection and be exalted to thrones of glory with us. And herein is the chain that binds the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the children to the fathers, which fulfills the mission of Elijah. . . .

The Saints have none too much time to save and redeem their dead and gather together their living relatives that they may be saved also, before the earth will be smitten and the consumption decreed falls upon the world. And I would advise all the Saints to go to with their might and gather together all their living relatives to this place, that they may be sealed and saved, that they may be prepared against the day that the destroying angel goes forth. And if the whole Church should go to with all their might to save their dead, seal their posterity, gather their living friends, and spend none of their time in behalf of the world, they would hardly get through before night would come, when no man could work. . . . The question is frequently asked, "Can we not be saved without going through with all these ordinances?" I would answer, "No, not the fulness of salvation." fn

The spirit of Elijah is the sealing power, to seal the hearts of the fathers to the children and the children to the parents. fn

The spirit of Elijah is that degree of power which holds the sealing power of the kingdom, to seal the hearts of the fathers to the children and of the children [to] their fathers—not only on earth but in heaven, both the living and the dead to each other. For they (the dead) cannot be made perfect without us [Heb. 11:40]. fn

The spirit, power, and calling of Elijah is that ye have power to hold the keys of the revelations, ordinances, oracles, powers, and endowments of the fulness of the Melchizedek Priesthood and of the kingdom of God on the earth, and to receive, obtain, and perform all the ordinances belonging to the kingdom of God, even unto the sealing of the hearts of the fathers unto the children and the hearts of the children unto the fathers, even those who are in heaven. Now what I am after is the knowledge of God, and I take my own course to obtain it. What are we to understand by this in the last days? In the days of Noah, God destroyed the world by a flood and has promised to destroy it by fire in the last days. But before it takes place, Elijah should first come and turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and so forth. Now comes the point. What is this office and work of Elijah? It is one of the greatest and most important subjects that God has revealed. He should send Elijah to seal the children to the fathers and fathers to the children. Now was this merely confined to the living, to settle difficulties with families on earth? By no means; it was a far greater work. Elijah, what would you do if you were here? Would you confine your work to the living alone? No.

I would refer you to the scriptures where the subject is manifest: "Without us they could not be made perfect" [Heb. 11:40], nor we without them, the fathers without the children nor the children without the fathers. I wish you to understand this subject, for it is important, and if you will receive it, this is the spirit of Elijah: that we redeem our dead and connect ourselves with our fathers, which are in heaven, and seal up our dead to come forth in the first resurrection. And here we want the power of Elijah to seal those who dwell on earth to those which dwell in heaven. This is the power of Elijah and the keys of the kingdom of Jehovah. Let us suppose a case. Suppose the great God who dwells in heaven should reveal himself to [a man] here by the opening heavens and tell him, "I offer up a decree that whatsoever you seal on earth with your decree I will seal it in heaven." You have power then. Can it be taken off? No. Then what you seal on earth by the keys of Elijah is sealed in heaven, and this is the power of Elijah. And this is the difference between the spirit and power of Elias and Elijah, for while the spirit of Elias is a forerunner, the power of Elijah is sufficient to make our calling and election sure. . . .

Again, the doctrine or sealing power of Elijah is as follows: If you have power to seal on earth and in heaven, then we should be crafty. fn The first thing you do [is] go and seal on earth your sons and daughters unto yourself, and yourself unto your fathers in eternal glory, and go ahead and not go back. But use a little craftiness and seal all you can. And when you get to heaven, tell your father that what you seal on earth should be sealed in heaven. I will walk through the gate of heaven and claim what I seal and those that follow me and my counsel. . . .

Elias is a forerunner to prepare the way, and the spirit and power of Elijah is to come after—holding the keys of power, building the temple to the capstone, placing the seals of the Melchizedek Priesthood upon the house of Israel, and making all things ready. Then Messiah comes to his temple, which is last of all. Messiah is above the spirit and power of Elijah, for he made the world and was that spiritual rock unto Moses in the wilderness. Elijah was to come and prepare the way and build up the kingdom before the coming of the great day of the Lord, although the spirit of Elias might begin it. fn



(Kent P. Jackson, comp. and ed., Joseph Smith's Commentary on the Bible [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1994], 73.)

Second Coming: Teachings of Joseph Smith

When I contemplate the rapidity with which the great and glorious day of the coming of the Son of Man advances, when He shall come to receive His Saints unto Himself, where they shall dwell in His presence, and be crowned with glory and immortality; when I consider that soon the heavens are to be shaken, and the earth tremble and reel to and fro; and that the heavens are to be unfolded as a scroll when it is rolled up; and that every mountain and island are to flee away, I cry out in my heart, What manner of persons ought we to be in all holy conversation and godliness! (Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 Vols. 1:442)

How is it that these old Apostles should say so much on the subject of the coming of Christ? He certainly had once come; but Paul says, To all who love His appearing, shall be given the crown: and John says, When He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is. Can we mistake such language as this? Do we not offer violence to our own good judgment when we deny the second coming of the Messiah? (Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 Vols. 2:20)

We see that perilous times have truly come, and the things which we have so long expected have at last began to usher in; but when you see the fig tree begin to put forth its leaves, you may know that the summer is nigh at hand. There will be a short work on the earth. It has now commenced. I suppose there will soon be perplexity all over the earth. Do not let our hearts faint when these things come upon us, for they must come, or the word cannot be fulfilled. I know that something will soon take place to stir up this generation to see what they have been doing, and that their fathers have inherited lies and they have been led captive by the devil, to no profit; but they know not what they do. (Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 Vols. 3:286)

We see that everything is being fulfilled; and that the time shall soon come when the Son of Man shall descend in the clouds of heaven. (Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 Vols. 3:291)

I will prophesy that the signs of the coming of the Son of Man are already commenced. One pestilence will desolate after another. We shall soon have war and bloodshed. The moon will be turned into blood. I testify of these things, and that the coming of the Son of Man is nigh, even at your doors. If our souls and our bodies are not looking forth for the coming of the Son of Man; and after we are dead, if we are not looking forth, we shall be among those who are calling for the rocks to fall upon them.

The hearts of the children of men will have to be turned to the fathers, and the fathers to the children, living or dead, to prepare them for the coming of the Son of Man. If Elijah did not come, the whole earth would be smitten.

There will be here and there a Stake of Zion for the gathering of the Saints. Some may have cried peace, but the Saints and the world will have little peace from henceforth. Let this not hinder us from going to the Stakes; for God has told us to flee, not dallying, or we shall be scattered, one here, and another there. (Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 Vols. 3:390)

Explained concerning the coming of the Son of Man; also that it is a false idea that the Saints will escape all the judgments, whilst the wicked suffer; for all flesh is subject to suffer, and "the righteous shall hardly escape;" still many of the Saints will escape, for the just shall live by faith; yet many of the righteous shall fall a prey to disease, to pestilence, etc., by reason of the weakness of the flesh, and yet be saved in the Kingdom of God. So that it is an unhallowed principle to say that such and such have transgressed because they have been preyed upon by disease or death, for all flesh is subject to death; and the Savior has said, "Judge not, lest ye be judged." (Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 Vols. 4:11)

There is no other way for the Saints to be saved in these last days, than by the gathering as the concurrent testimony of all the holy Prophets clearly proves. . . .

It is also the concurrent testimony of all the Prophets, that this gathering together of all the Saints, must take place before the Lord comes to "take vengeance upon the ungodly," and "to be glorified and admired by all those who obey the Gospel." (Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 Vols. 4:272)

This messenger [Moroni] proclaimed himself to be an angel of God, sent to bring the joyful tidings that the covenant which God made with ancient Israel was at hand to be fulfilled, that the preparatory work for the second coming of the Messiah was speedily to commence; that the time was at hand for the Gospel in all its fullness to be preached in power, unto all nations that a people might be prepared for the Millennial reign. (Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 Vols. 4:536-37)

Seven or eight young men came to see me, part of them from the city of New York. They treated me with the greatest respect. I showed them the fallacy of Mr. Miller's data concerning the coming of Christ and the end of the world, or as it is commonly called, Millerism, and preached them quite a sermon; that error was in the Bible, or the translation of the Bible; that Miller was in want of correct information upon the subject, and that he was not so much to blame as the translators. I told them the prophecies must all be fulfilled; the sun must be darkened and the moon turned into blood, and many more things take place before Christ would come. (Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 Vols. 5:271-72)

[Mr. Redding] has not seen the sign of the Son of Man, as foretold by Jesus; neither has any man, nor will any man, until after the sun shall have been darkened and the moon bathed in blood; for the Lord hath not shown me any such sign; and as the prophet saith, so it must be—"Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but He revealeth His secret unto His servants the prophets." (See Amos Therefore, hear this, O earth: The Lord will not come to reign over the righteous, in this world, in 1843, nor until everything for the Bridegroom is ready. (Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 Vols. 5:291)

Were I going to prophesy, I would say the end of the world would not come in 1844, 5, or 6, or in forty years. There are those of the rising generation who shall not taste death till Christ comes.

I was once praying earnestly upon this subject, and a voice said unto me, "My son, if thou livest until thou art eighty-five years of age, thou shalt see the face of the Son of Man." I was left to draw my own conclusions concerning this; and I took the liberty to conclude that if I did live to that time, He would make His appearance. But I do not say whether He will make His appearance or I shall go where He is. I prophesy in the name of the Lord God, and let it be written—the Son of Man will not come in the clouds of heaven till I am eighty-five years old. Then read the 14th chapter of Revelation, 6th and 7th verses—"And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud voice, Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment is come." And Hosea, 6th chapter, After two days, etc.,—2,520 years; which brings it to 1890. The coming of the Son of Man never will be—never can be till the judgments spoken of for this hour are poured out: which judgments are commenced. Paul says, "Ye are the children of the light, and not of the darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief in the night." It is not the design of the Almighty to come upon the earth and crush it and grind it to powder, but he will reveal it to His servants the prophets.

Judah must return, Jerusalem must be rebuilt, and the temple, and water come out from under the temple, and the waters of the Dead Sea be healed. It will take some time to rebuild the walls of the city and the temple, &c.; and all this must be done before the Son of Man will make His appearance. There will be wars and rumors of wars, signs in the heavens above and on the earth beneath, the sun turned into darkness and the moon to blood, earthquakes in divers places, the seas heaving beyond their bounds; then will appear one grand sign of the Son of Man in heaven. But what will the world do? They will say it is a planet, a comet, &c. But the Son of Man will come as the sign of the coming of the Son of Man, which will be as the light of the morning cometh out of the east. (Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 Vols. 5:336-37)

The inhabitants of the earth are asleep: they know not the day of their visitation. The Lord hath set the bow in the cloud for a sign that while it shall be seen, seed time and harvest, summer and winter shall not fail; but when it shall disappear, woe to that generation, for behold the end cometh quickly. (Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 Vols. 5:402)

In the days of Noah, God destroyed the world by a flood, and He has promised to destroy it by fire in the last days: but before it should take place, Elijah should first come and turn the hearts of the fathers to the children. . . .

I have asked of the Lord concerning His coming; and while asking the Lord, He gave a sign and said, "In the days of Noah I set a bow in the heavens as a sign and token that in any year that the bow should be seen the Lord would not come; but there should be seed time and harvest during that year: but whenever you see the bow withdrawn, it shall be a token that there shall be famine, pestilence, and great distress among the nations, and that the coming of the Messiah is not far distant."

But I will take the responsibility upon myself to prophesy in the name of the Lord, that Christ will not come this year, as Father Miller has prophesied, for we have seen the bow; and I also prophesy, in the name of the Lord, that Christ will not come in forty years; and if God ever spoke by my mouth, He will not come in that length of time. Brethren, when you go home, write this down, that it may be remembered.

Jesus Christ never did reveal to any man the precise time that He would come. Go and read the Scriptures, and you cannot find anything that specifies the exact hour He would come; and all that say so are false teachers. (Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 Vols. 6:251, 254)