Pearl Of Great Price (1851)/The words of God, which he spake unto Moses
Revealed to Joseph Smith, June, 1830.
"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. And I have a work for thee, Moses, my son; and thou art in the similitude of mine Only Begotten; and mine Only Begotten is and shall be the Saviour, for he is full of grace and truth; but there is no God besides me, and all things are present with me, for I know them all. And now, behold, this one thing I shew unto thee, Moses, my son, for thou art in the world, and now I show it unto thee.
And it came to pass that Moses looked and beheld the world upon which he was created, and Moses beheld the world and the ends thereof, and all the children of men which were, and which are created: of the same he greatly marvelled and wondered. And the presence of God withdrew from Moses, that his glory was not upon Moses; and Moses was left unto himself. And as he was left unto himself, he fell unto the earth. And it came to pass that it was for the space of many hours before Moses did again receive his natural strength like unto man; and he said unto himself, now, for this cause I know that man is nothing, which thing I never had supposed; but now mine eyes, mine own eyes, but not mine eyes, for mine eyes could not have beheld; for I should have withered and died in his presence; but his glory was upon me; and I beheld his face, for I was transfigured before him.
And it came to pass that when Moses had said these words, behold, Satan came tempting him, saying, Moses, son of man, worship me. And it came to pass that Moses looked upon Satan and said, who art thou? for behold, I am a son of God, in the similitude of his Only Begotten; and where is thy glory that I should worship thee? for behold, I could not look upon God, except His glory should come upon me, and I were strengthened before him. But I can look upon thee in the natural man. Is it not so, surely? Blessed is the name of my God, for His Spirit hath not altogether withdrawn from me, or else where is thy glory? for it is darkness unto me, and I am judge between thee and God; for God said unto me, worship God, for Him only shalt thou serve. Get thou hence, Satan; deceive me not, for God said unto me, 'thou art after the similitude of mine Only Begotten.' And he likewise gave unto me commandments, when he called unto me out of the "burning bush," saying, call upon God in the name of mine Only Begotten, and worship me. And again Moses said, I will not cease to call upon God; I have these things to inquire of him, for his glory has been upon me, wherefore I can judge between Him and thee. Depart hence, Satan.
And now, when Moses had said these words, Satan cried with a loud voice, and went upon the earth, and commanded, saying, I am the Only Begotten, worship me. And it came to pass that Moses began to fear exceedingly; and as he began to fear he saw the bitterness of hell; nevertheless, calling upon God, he received strength, and he commanded saying, depart from me, Satan, for this one God only will I worship, which is the God of glory. And now Satan began to tremble, and the earth shook; and Moses received strength and called upon God, saying, in the name of Jesus Christ, depart hence, Satan. And it came to pass that Satan cried with a loud voice, with weeping and gnashing of teeth, and departed hence, even from the presence of Moses, that he beheld him not.
And now of this thing Moses bore record, but because of wickedness it is not had among the children of men. And it came to pass that when Satan had departed from the presence of Moses, he lifted up his eyes unto heaven, being filled with the Holy Ghost, which beareth record of the Father and the Son; and calling on the name of God, he beheld his glory again, for it was upon him, and he heard a voice, saying, blessed art thou, Moses, for I, the Almighty, have chosen thee, and thou shalt be made stronger than many waters; for they shall obey thy command as if thou wert God; and lo, I am with thee, even unto the end of thy days; for thou shalt deliver my people from bondage, even Israel my chosen.
And it came to pass, as Moses’ voice was still speaking, he cast his eyes, and beheld the earth, yea, even all the face of it, there was not a particle of it which he did not behold, descrying it by the spirit of God. And he beheld also the inhabitants thereof, and there was not a soul which he beheld not, and he discerned them by the spirit of God; and their numbers were great, even numberless as the sand upon the sea shore. And he beheld many lands; and each land was called earth, and there were inhabitants on the face thereof.
And it came to pass that Moses called upon God, saying, tell me, I pray thee, why these things are so, and by what thou madest them? And behold, the glory of God was upon Moses, so that Moses stood in the presence of God, and he talked with Moses face to face; and the Lord God said unto Moses, for mine own purpose have I made these things. Here is wisdom, and it remaineth in me. And by the word of my power have I created them, which is mine Only Begotten Son, who is full of grace and truth. And worlds without number have I created; and I also created them for mine own purpose; and by the Son I created them, which is mine Only Begotten. And the first man of all men have I called Adam, which is many. But only an account of this earth, and the inhabitants thereof, give I unto you. For behold, there are many worlds which have passed away by the words of my power. And there are many which now stand, and innumerable are they unto man, but all things are numbered unto me, for they are mine and I know them.
And it came to pass, that Moses spake unto the Lord, saying, be merciful unto thy servant, O God, and tell me concerning this earth, and the inhabitants thereof, and also the heavens, and then thy servant will be content. And the Lord God spake unto Moses, saying, the heavens, they are many, and they cannot be numbered unto man, but they are numbered unto me, for they are mine, and as one earth shall pass away, and the heavens thereof, even so shall another come; and there is no end to my works, neither to my words.
Behold, this is my work to my glory, to the immortality and eternal life of man. And now, Moses, my son, I will speak unto thee concerning this earth upon which thou standest; and thou shall write these things which I shall speak, and in a day when the children of men shall esteem my words as nought, and take many of them from the book which thou shalt write, behold, I will raise up another like unto thee, and they shall be had again among the children of men; among as many as shall believe those words were spoken unto Moses in the Mount, the name of which shall not be known among the children of men. And now they are spoken unto you. Amen."
"And it came to pass that the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Behold, I reveal unto you concerning this Heaven, and this Earth; write the words which I speak. I am the Beginning and the End, the Almighty God; by mine Only Begotten I created these things; yea, in the beginning I created the Heaven, and the Earth upon which thou standest. And the Earth was without form, and void; and I created darkness to come upon the face of the deep; and my Spirit moved upon the face of the waters; for I am God. And I, God, said, let there be light, and there was light; and I, God, saw the light, and the light was good. And I, God, divided the light from the darkness: and I, God, called the light, Day; and the darkness, I called Night; and this I did by the word of my power, and it was done as I spake; and the evening and the morning were the first Day.
And again, I, God, said, let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and it was so, even as I spake; and I said, let it divide the waters from the waters, and it was done; and I, God, made the firmament, and divided the waters, yea, the great waters under the firmament, from the waters which were above the firmament, and it was so even as I spake; and I, God, called the firmament, Heaven; and the evening and the morning were the second Day.
And I, God, said, let the waters under heaven be gathered together into one place, and it was so; and I, God, said, let there be dry land, and it was so; and I, God, called the dry land, Earth; and the gathering together of the waters, called I the Seas; and I, God, saw that all things that I had made were good. And I, God, said, let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, the fruit tree yielding fruit, after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed should be in itself upon the earth, and it was so even as I spake; and the earth brought forth grass, every herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed should be in itself, after his kind; and I, God, saw that all things which I had made were good; and the evening and the morning were the third Day.
And I, God, said, let there be lights in the firmament of the Heaven to divide the Day from the Night, and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and for years; and let them be for lights in the firmament of the Heaven to give light upon the Earth, and it was so. And I, God, made two great lights; the greater light to rule the Day, and the lesser light to rule the Night, and the greater light was the Sun, and the lesser light was the Moon; and the stars were made even according to my word. And I, God, set them in the firmament of heaven to give light upon the earth, and the Sun to rule over the Day, and the Moon to rule over the Night, and to divide the light from the darkness; and I God, saw that all things which I had made were good; and the evening and the morning were the fourth Day.
And I, God, said, let the waters bring forth abundantly every moving creature that hath life, and fowl which may fly in the open firmament of heaven. And I, God, created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and I, God, saw that all things which I had made were good. And I, God, blessed them, saying, be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the Seas; and let fowl multiply in the earth: and the evening and the morning were the fifth Day.
And I, God, said, let the Earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping things, and beasts of the earth after their kinds, and it was so: and I, God, made the beasts of the earth after their kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing which creepeth upon the earth after his kind; And I, God saw that all these things were good. And I, God, said unto mine Only Begotten, which was with me from the beginning, let us make man in our own image, after our likeness; and it was so. And I, God, said, let them have dominion over the fishes of the sea, and over the fowls of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
And I, God, created Man in mine own image, in the image of mine Only Begotten created I him; male and female created I them. And I, God, blessed them, and I, God, said unto them, be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it; and have dominion over the fishes of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. And I, God, said unto Man, behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which shall be the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat; and to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein I grant life, there shall be given every clean herb for meat; and it was so, even as I spake. And I, God, saw every thing that I had made, and, behold, all things which I had made were very good; and the evening and the morning were the sixth Day.
Thus the Heaven and the Earth were finished, and all the host of them; and on the seventh Day, I, God, ended my work, and all things which I had made; and I rested on the seventh Day from all my work, and all things which I had made were finished, and I, God, saw that they were good, and I, God, blessed the seventh Day, and sanctified it; because I had rested from all my work which I, God, had created and made.
And now, behold, I say unto you that these are the generations of the Heaven and of the Earth when they were created, in the day that I, the Lord God, made the heaven and the earth, and every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew. For I, the Lord God, created all things, of which I have spoken, spiritually before they were naturally upon the face of the earth. And I, the Lord God, had created all the children of men; and not yet a man to till the ground, for in heaven created I them; and there was not yet flesh upon the earth; neither in the water, neither in the air; but I, the Lord God, spake, and there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground. And I, the Lord God, formed Man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and Man became a living soul, the first flesh upon the earth, the first Man also: nevertheless, all things were before created; but, spiritually, were they created and made according to my word.
And I, the Lord God, planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there I put the Man whom I had formed. And out of the ground I, the Lord God, made to grow naturally, every tree that is pleasant to the sight of Man; and Man could behold it. And they became also a living soul. It was spiritual in the day that I created it; for it remaineth in the sphere which I, God, created it in, yea, even all things which I prepared for the use of Man; and Man saw that it was good for food. And I, the Lord God, placed the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and also the tree of knowledge of good and evil. And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads. And I, the Lord God, called the name of the first Pison, and it compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there was created much gold; and the gold of that land was good, and there was bdelium and the onyx stone. And the name of the second river was called Ghihon: the same was it that compassed the whole land of Ethiopia. And the name of the third was Hiddekel; that was it that goeth towards the east of Assyria. And the fourth river was Euphrates.
And I, the Lord God, took the Man, and put him into the Garden of Eden to dress it, and to keep it. And I, the Lord God, commanded the Man, saying, of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat, but of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it; nevertheless thou mayest choose for thyself, for it is given unto thee; but, remember that I forbid, for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. And I, the Lord God, said unto mine Only Begotten, that it was not good that the Man should be alone; wherefore, I will make a help meet for him.
And out of the ground I, the Lord God, formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and commanded that they should be brought unto Adam, to see what he would call them: and they were also living souls, and it was breathed into them, the breath of life: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof. And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found a help meet for him. And I, the Lord God, caused a deep sleep to come upon Adam, and he slept: and I took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh in the stead thereof; and the rib which I, the Lord God, had taken from Man, made I a Woman, and brought her unto the Man. And Adam said, this I know now is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. Therefore shall a Man leave his father and mother, and cleave unto his Wife: and they twain shall be one flesh: and they were both naked, the Man and his Wife, and were not ashamed.
And I, the Lord God, spake unto Moses, saying, that Satan, whom thou hast commanded in the name of mine Only Begotten, is the same which was from the beginning, and he came before me, saying, behold me; send me, I will be thy son, and I will redeem all mankind, that one soul shall not be lost, and surely I will do it: wherefore give me thine honour. But, behold, my Beloved Son, which was my Beloved and Chosen from the beginning, said unto me; Father, thy will be done, and the glory be thine for ever. Wherefore, because that Satan rebelled against me, and sought to destroy the agency of man, which I, the Lord God, had given him, and also, that I hould give unto him mine own power, by the power of mine Only Begotten; I caused that he should be cast down, and he became Satan, yea, even the Devil, the father of all lies, to deceive, and to blind men, and to lead them captive at his will, even as many as would not hearken unto my voice. And now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which I, the Lord God, had made. And Satan put it into the heart of the serpent, (for he had drawn away many after him,) and he sought also to beguile Eve, for he knew not the mind of God: wherefore he sought to destroy the world, yea, and he said unto the Woman; yea, hath God said ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden, (and he spake by the mouth of the serpent,) but of the fruit of the tree which thou beholdest in the midst of the garden, God hath said ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye taste it, lest ye die. For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. And when the Woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it became pleasant to the eye, and a tree to be desired to make her wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her, and he did eat. And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they had been naked."
"And they heard the voice of the Lord God, as they were walking in the garden, in the cool of the day; and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. And the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where are you going? And he said, I heard your voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I beheld that I was naked, and I hid myself.
And the Lord God said unto Adam, Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree whereof I told you that you should not eat? If so you should surely die! And the man said, The woman whom you gave me, and commanded that she should remain with me, gave me of the fruit of the tree, and I did eat.
And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this which you have done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.
And again, the Lord said unto the woman, I will greatly multiply your sorrow, and your conception. In sorrow you shall bring forth children, and your desire shall be to your husband, and he shall rule over you.
And the Lord God said unto Adam, because you have hearkened unto the voice of your wife, and have eaten of the fruit of the tree of which I commanded you, saying, you shall not eat of it; cursed shall be the ground for your sake: in sorrow you shall eat of it all the days of your life. Thorns also, and thistles shall it bring forth to you; and you shall eat the herb of the field. By the sweat of your face shall you eat bread, until you shall return unto the ground—for you shall surely die—for out of it you were taken: for dust you were, and unto dust you shall return."
"After Adam had been driven out of the garden, he began to till the earth, and to have dominion over all the beasts of the field, and to eat his bread by the sweat of the brow as the Lord had commanded him. And Eve also, his wife, did labor with him, and he knew her, and she bare unto him sons and daughters, and they began to multiply and to replenish the earth. And from that time forth, the sons and daughters of Adam began to divide two and two in the land, and to till the land, and to tend flocks; and they also begat sons and daughters.
And Adam called upon the name of the Lord, and Eve also, his wife, and they heard the voice of the Lord from the way towards the garden of Eden, speaking unto them, and they saw Him not, for they were shut out from his presence. And he gave unto them commandment, that they should worship the Lord their God, and should offer the firstlings of their flocks, for an offering unto the Lord. And Adam was obedient unto the commandments of the Lord.
And after many days an angel of the Lord appeared unto Adam, saying, why dost thou offer sacrifices unto the Lord? And Adam said unto him, I know not, save the Lord commanded me. And then the angel spake, saying, this thing is a similitude of the sacrifice of the Only Begotten of the Father, which is full of grace and truth. Wherefore, thou shalt do all that thou doest in the name of the Son, and thou shalt repent and call upon God in the name of the Son for evermore.
And in that day the Holy Ghost fell upon Adam, which bore record of the Father, and the Son, saying, I am Jesus Christ from the beginning, henceforth and for ever, that as thou hast fallen thou mayest be redeemed; and all mankind, even as many as will.
And in that day Adam blessed God and was filled, and began to prophesy concerning all the families of the earth: blessed be the name of God for my transgression, for in this life I shall have joy, and again in my flesh I shall see God.
And Eve, his wife, heard all these things and was glad, saying, were it not for our transgression we should never have had seed, and should never have known good and evil, and the joy of our redemption, and the eternal life which God giveth unto all the obedient.
And Adam and Eve blessed the name of God; and they made all things known unto their sons and their daughters. And Satan came also among them, saying, I am also a son of God; and he commanded them, saying, believe it not, and they believed it not, and loved Satan more than God. And men began from that time forth to be carnal, sensual, and devilish.
And the Lord God called upon men by the Holy Ghost every where, and commanded them that they should repent; and as many as believed in the Son, and repented of their sins, should be saved; and as many as believed not and repented not, should be damned: and the words went forth out of the mouth of God in a firm decree; wherefore they must be fulfilled.
And Adam ceased not to call upon God; and Eve also, his wife. And Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the Lord; wherefore he may not reject His words.”
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“In process of time, Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord. And Abel also brought of the firstlings of his flock, and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel, and to his offering; but unto Cain, and his offering, he had not respect. Now Satan knew this, and it pleased him. And Cain was very angry, and his countenance fell. And the Lord said unto Cain, Why are you angry? Why is your countenance fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not well, sin lies at the door, and Satan desires to have you; and except you shall hearken unto my commandments, I will deliver you up, and it shall be unto you according to his desire.
And Cain went into the field and talked with his brother Abel. And while they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and slew him. And Cain gloried in what he had done, saying, I am free; surely the flocks of my brother will now fall into my hands.
But the Lord said unto Cain, Where is Abel, your brother? And he said, I know not. Am I my brother's keeper? And the Lord said, What have you done? the voice of your brother's blood cries unto me from the ground. And now you shall be cursed from the earth which has opened her mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand. When you till the ground she shall not henceforth yield unto you her strength. A fugitive, and a vagabond also, you shall be in the earth.
And Cain said unto the Lord, Satan tempted me because of my brother's flocks. And I was also angry; for his offering was accepted, and mine was not; my punishment is greater than I can bear. Behold, you have driven me out this day from the face of men, and from your face shall I be hid also; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; And it shall come to pass, every one that finds me will slay me because of my oath, for these things are not hid from the Lord. And the Lord said unto him, Therefore, whoever slays Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the Lord set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him."
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"And it came to pass, that Noah and his sons hearkened unto the Lord, and gave heed, and they were called the sons of God. And when these men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, that the sons of men saw that their daughters were fair, they took them wives even as they chose. And the Lord said unto Noah, the daughters of thy sons have sold themselves; for behold mine anger is kindled against the sons of men, for they will not hearken to my voice. And it came to pass, that Noah prophesied, and taught the things of God, even as it was in the beginning. And the Lord said unto Noah, my Spirit shall not always strive with man, for he shall know that all flesh shall die; yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years; and if men do not repent, I will send in my floods upon them.
And in those days there were giants on the earth, and they sought Noah to take away his life; but the Lord was with Noah, and the power of the Lord was upon him. And the Lord ordained Noah after His order, and commanded him he should go forth and declare His gospel unto the children of men, even as it was given unto Enoch.
And it came to pass that Noah called upon men that they should repent; but they hearkened not unto his words; and also, after that they had heard him, they came up before him, saying, behold, we are the sons of God: have we not taken unto ourselves the daughters of men? and are we not eating and drinking, and marrying and giving in marriage? Our wives bear unto us children, and the same are mighty men, which are like unto them of old, men of great renown. And they hearkened not to the words of Noah.
And God saw that the wickedness of men had become great in the earth; and every man was lifted up in the imagination of the thoughts of his heart being only evil continually.
And it came to pass that Noah continued his preaching unto the people saying, hearken, and give heed unto my words, believe and repent of your sins, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ the Son of God, even as our fathers did, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, that ye may have all things made manifest; and if ye do not this, the floods will come in upon you. Nevertheless they hearkened not, and it repented Noah and his heart was pained that the Lord had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. And the Lord said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, and the creeping things, and the fowls of the air: for it repenteth Noah that I have created them, and that I have made them; and he hath called upon me; and they have sought his life.
But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord; and Noah was a just man, and perfect in his generations; and Noah walked with God, and also his three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. The earth was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted their way upon the earth. And God said unto Noah, the end of all flesh is come before me, for the earth is filled with violence through them, and behold I will destroy them from off the earth."