OGDEN HERALD:
SEMI-WEEKLY.

Issued Wednesdays and Saturdays,
BY THE
OGDEN HERALD PUBLISHING COMPANY.

E. H. ANDERSON, - Business Manager.

Office in Dooly-Stevens Block, corner of
Main and Fourth Streets.

All business communications should
be addressed to the Company; those
intended for publication, to the
Editor.

Entered at the Post Office at Ogden City,
Utah, as Second-class matter.

SATURDAY. NOV. 27, 1886.

AN EPISTLE.

Apostle Woodruff's Cheering Coun-
sels to the Saints.

To the Saints Scattered Abroad, Greet-
ing:

DEAR BRETHREN:-I feel desirous to
express myself upon the present con-
dition of Zion and its inhabitants.
The history of which we are making as
Latter-day Saints is strictly in fulfil-
ment of the revelations of God, as
given through the mouths of Prophets
and inspired men to the inhabitants
of the earth in every dispensation
when God has had an acknowledged
people on the earth. The God of
heaven, who created this earth and
placed His children upon it, gave
unto them a law whereby they might
be exalted and saved in a kingdom of
glory. For there is a law given unto
all kingdoms, and all things are
governed by law throughout the
whole universe. Whatever law any-
one keeps he is preserved by that
law, and he receives whatever re-
ward that law guarantees unto him.
It is the will of God that all His chil-
dren should obey the highest law,
that they may receive the highest
glory that is ordained for all immor-
tal beings. But God has given all
His children an agency to choose
what law they will keep.

These two principles do exist—
good and evil; God and the Devil.
Whatever leads to good and to do
good is of God. Whatever leads to
evil and to do evil is of the Devil.
God has labored from the creation of
man to lead him to keep the celestial
law, that he may inherit a celestial
glory and partake of eternal life, the
greatest of all the gifts of God to man:
while the Devil, with all the fallen
angels, has labored from the creation
to lead man astray, to lead him down
to the perdition of ungodly men, that
he may have dominion over him.

These two principles have governed
and controlled the acts of all the chil-
dren of men, and laid the foundation
for all the history of the whole world
for the last six thousand years, or
from the creation of man. This
power of the Devil, and of all the
fallen angels, who are represented to
have been one-third part of all the
hosts of heaven, who were cast down
from heaven to earth, has been at
war against God and His Christ, and
against every Prophet and Apostle
and inspired man whom God has
raised up, from the creation of the
world to the present day. The first
man, Adam, under the influence of
the Devil, transgressed a law by
which death came into the world.
God the Eternal Father gave His only
begotten Son, as a great sacrifice, to
shed His blood to redeem man from
death. For as in Adam all die, even
so in Christ shall all be made alive. [1 Corinthians 15:22]

The God of heaven, whom we wor-
ship, is represented as the Father,
the Son and the Holy Ghost. The
Father and Son have tabernacles, and
they created man after their own
image. But the Holy Ghost is a
spirit and a witness and a testimony
of the Father and the Son. This
Holy Ghost and witness are promised
unto all men who will obey the law
of the Gospel, which God has re-
vealed to the human family. This
Holy Ghost rested upon Adam when
he blessed in posterity in Adam-
ondi-Ahman, three years previous to
his death.

The Lord gave unto Adam and
many of his sons the Holy Priest-
hood, whereby they could administer
in the ordinances of the Gospel of
life and salvation. The Lord has
raised up men in every dispensation,
when He has had a people on earth
unto whom He has given the Priest-
hood, and all people have been
blessed when they hearkened to
the voice of the Lord. On the other
hand, when the inhabitants of the
earth have become wicked, and have
transgressed the law of God, they
have been chastised, and when they
have become ripened in iniquity they
have been cut off from the earth, as
in the case of Noah and Lot, and “as
it was in the days of Noah, so shall it
be also in the days of the Son of
Man.” [Luke 17:26] The righteous were saved
while the wicked were destroyed.

The whole history of the dealings
of the Lord with man has shown the
benefits and blessings of obeying the
Lord and keeping His command
ments. The history of the dealings
of the Lord with ancient Israel shows
that He blessed the righteous and
cursed the wicked and brought His
judgements upon them. Whenever
Israel hearkened to the teachings of
Moses and the prophets, they pros-
pered, and their enemies were a prey
unto them. But when they depart-
ed from the Lord and set up altars to
Baal, and committed sin, the Lord
forsook them, as in the case of Judah
and Jerusalem, in the days of Zede-
kiah the King. He forsook the Lord,
and led the people astray. They
were full of blood and murder and
whoredom and all manner of abomi-
nations, and the Lord warned them
through His Prophets, Isaiah, Jere-
miah and Ezekiel. These Prophets
told the king and the people what
judgments would come upon them,
and the Lord said by Ezekiel unto
the king and the people, “What I
have spoken shall be done.” Now
all that these Prophets said came to
pass. Not one jot nor tittle fell un-
fulfilled. The Jews put to death the
Savior and the Apostles and rejected
the Lord and the Gospel; and all that
Moses, Jesus, the Apostles and the
Prophets spoke concerning Israel,
Judah and Jerusalem, came to pass to
the very letter.

All the Prophets and Apostles who
have written since man was placed
upon the earth have seen our day,
and have prophesied of the events
which were to take place on the earth
in the last dispensation and fullness
of times. They have seen the Church
of God, the Zion of God, and the
Kingdom of God established on the
earth, and the gathering of the peo-
ple from all nations to build them up,
and the judgments of God which
were to rest, in the last days, upon
all nations who should fight against
Mount Zion and the people of God.
Now, I wish to ask the Latter-day
Saints if they can for a moment think
that the Lord will fail in these days
in fulfilling His promises any more
than He has in other dispensations?
No; He will not.

In fulfillment of his sayings through
the mouths of those ancient Apostles
and Prophets, the Lord has set His
hand once more, for the last time, to
prune His vineyard and to establish
His Church and Kingdom upon the
earth, to be thrown down no more
forever. He has raised up His Pro-
phets and Apostles and revealed unto
them the fulness of the everlasting
priesthoods of Aaron and
of Melchisedek. Joseph Smith was
raised up by the power of God, and
the administration of angels, and he
brought forth the Book of Mormon,
the record and stick of Joseph in the
hands of Ephraim, as spoken of by
the Prophet Ezekiel in the 37th chap-
ter. This Prophet of God, Joseph
Smith, had power to organize the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints, according to the ancient or-
der of the Church of Christ, with
Apostles and Prophets, Evangelists,
Bishops, Pastors and Teachers. And
the Church has been led continually
by living oracles and the revelations
of God from Heaven until the present
day. It has now stood fifty-six years
since its organization, and its history
is before the heavens and the earth.
The Prophets and Apostles and many
Elders have gone forth and preached
the Gospel of Jesus Christ to many
nations, and tens of thousands of the
inhabitants of the earth have em-
braced the Gospel, been baptized for
the remission of their sins, have re-

ceived the Holy Ghost by the laying
on of hands, and have been gathered
home to Zion from many nations, in
fulfillment of the ancient Prophets,
who spoke as they were moved upon
by the Holy Ghost. Earth and hell
have been combined to stop the little
stone from rolling, and from becom-
ing a mountain and filling the whole
earth, as Daniel said it should in the
last days. Joseph Smith, his brother
Hyrum, with several of the Apostles
and Elders and many Saints, have
already sealed their testimony with
thir blood, and to-day prisons are
crowded with the Elders of Israel for
keeping the commandments of God,
and many others have been driven
into exile for the same cause.

Many of the inhabitants of the land
are stirred up and are desirous to de-
stroy the Church and Kingdom of
God from off the earth. But they
know not the thoughts of the Lord,
neither understand they His ways. [Micah 4:12#]
The Gentile or Christian world to-day
can no more commit sins, and be
guilty of lying, stealing, blasphemy,
whoredoms, or murder, or commit
any abominations, and escape the
wrath of God, than could Sodom and
Gomorrah, or the antediluvian world,
or ancient Israel. The word of the
Lord has been proclaimed against the
Gentiles and all the inhabitants of
the earth in the last days who com-
mit sin, and it will as assuredly be
fulfilled as in ancient days. The Lord
has a controversy with this genera-
tion, and He will judge the inhabi-
tants according to the deeds done in
the body, and none can stay His
hand.

The Lord said to Ezekiel, “I have
made thee a watchman unto the
House of Israel.” [Ezekiel 3:17] “When I say unto
the wicked, Thou shalt surely die;
and thou givest him not warning, nor
speakest to warn the wicked from his
wicked way, to save his life; the same
wicked man shall die in his iniquity;
but his blood will I require at thine
hand. Yet if thou warn the wicked,
and he turn not from his wickedness,
nor from his wicked way, he shall
die in his iniquity; but thou hast de-
livered thy soul.” [Ezekiel 3:18-19] This is precisely
our condition to-day. As Apostles,
Seventies, High Priests, and Elders,
we and all men who bear any portion
of the Holy Priesthood, are watch-
men upon the walls of Zion and mes-
sengers to all the inhabitants of the
earth, and all of us will be held re-
sponsible if we donot improve ourtime
and lift the warning voice, as far as
we have opportunity, and warn this
generation of the judgments of God
which await them.

I do not believe there was ever a
generation of men who inhabited the
earth who were more wicked, or who
were practising greater abominations,
or who were sinning against greater
light and knowledge, or who had a
greater flood of judgments proclaimed
against them by the word of the
Lord, than the generation in which we live.
Therefore, as Saints of the living God,
who bear the Holy Priesthood, we shall
be under condemnation if we do
not lift up the warning voice against the
evils and abominations which ex-
ist, so far as we have opportunity.
How many woes the Prophets
and Apostles have proclaimed against
those who fight against Zion. “Woe
unto all those who discomfort my
people, and drive and murder them,
and testify against them, saith the
Lord of hosts. A generation of vipers
shall not escape the damnation of
hell. Behold, mine eyes see and
know all their works, and I have in
reserve a swift judgment, in the sea-
son thereof, for them all. For there
is a time appointed for every man,
according at his work shall be.” [Doctrine and Covenants 121:23-25]

It is true that the Elders who are
called to bear record of the Gospel of
Christ to the nations of the earth are
many times called to pass through
prosecutions for the Gospel’s sake,
and in some instances to lay down
their lives, as did the ancient Saints,
and quite a number in our day, for
Christ’s sake. But there seems to be
a special crown of glory laid up for
every man who is martyred for Christ’s
sake and the Gospel’s. No
matter in what age of the world he
lays down his life for Christ’s, he will
find it again, and eternal life in the
world to come. Therefore, brethren,
let us be diligent in our labors in this
last hour in the vineyard. The Lord
said to Oliver Cowdery, if he labored
all the days of his life and saved but
one soul, how great would be his joy
in the Kingdom of Heaven with that
one soul. We have everything to en-
courage us in our labors in the vine-
yard of the Lord.

While this labor is going on among
the nations of the earth, there is a
great labor and responsibility resting
upon the whole ministry who dwell
in Zion. There is labor sufficient for
every man who bears any portion of
the Holy Priesthood in the various
capacities in which the brethren are
called to act. The High Priests,
whose calling is to preside, are called
upon to officiate in Zion as High
Councilors, Presidents of Stakes and
Counselors, Bishops and Counselors,
Superintendents of Sabbath Schools
and mutual improvement associa-
tions. In every capacity in which
they are called to act, they have an
immense field in which to improve
their talents and magnify their call-
ings. Here is where the High Priests
are mainly called to preside, officiate
and labor.

There never was a time when the
Holy Priesthood, in all its various
branches, offices and labors, had a
greater work to perform than in our
day. The searching out of iniquity,
the purifying, sanctifying and cleans-
ing of the people, the uniting of the
Saints and the general perfecting of
Zion resting upon the brethren and
the Holy Priesthood who dwell in
Zion.

The whole Church, both priest and
people, should give diligent heed to
the late Epistle of the First Presiden-
cy, which has been published to the
world. The counsel they have given
upon the various items they have re-
ferred to should be strictly carried
out. The breaking of the Sabbath
day and pleasure excursions upon
that day should not be indulged in
by the Latter-day Saints. The Pres-
idents of Stakes and their counselors,
the Bishops and their counselors,
whose immediate duty it is to watch
over the stakes and wards, have a
great responsibility and duty to per-
form. Iniquity must be sought out.
Zion cannot prosper when sin and in-
iquity are permitted to dwell in her
midst.

One of the most important and re-
sponsible fields of labor in Zion is
that committed to the care of those
who preside over and teach in the
primaries, Sabbath schools, and im-
provement associations, and those
who are teaching private day schools
among the Latter-day Saints. Who
can comprehend the result of the la-
bor performed by the Elders of Israel
in these branches? No man, unless
filled with the revelations of Heaven
and the inspiration of Almighty God.
We send out hundreds of Elders, who
go to the nations of the earth to
preach the Gospel of Christ. After
spending two of three years as mis-
sionaries, if they have converted a
dozen souls and brought them into
the Church, they think they have
done a good work, which they cer-
tainly have. But here, the Elders
who are presiding over and teaching
in these institutions in Zion, filled
with the children of the Saints, have
an army of immortal souls before
them to guide and teach, and to di-
rect their minds, that they may
be qualified to step forth and take
hold of the Church and kingdom of
God and build it up and bear it off
triumphantly, after their fathers and
elders are laid in the tomb. O what a
mission is given to the sons of Eph-
raim, the Elders of Israel, the Latter-
day Saints! To warn the whole world of
the judgments which are to come,
preach the Gospel to all people, gath-
er the saints from all nations, build
up Zion, and prepare for the coming
of the Son of Man, standing in holy
places, while judgments waste the
wicked.

There is one admonition of our
Savior that all the Saints of God
should observe, but which, I fear, we
do not as we should, and that is, to
pray always and faint not. I fear, as
a people, we do not pray enough, in
faith. We should call upon the Lord
in mighty prayer, and make all our
wants known unto Him. For if He
does not protect and deliver us and
save us, no other power will. There-
fore our trust is entirely in Him.
Therefore our prayers should ascend
into the ears of our heavenly Father
day and night.

I want to say a few words to our
brethren who are in prison, or under
bonds, or driven into exile for our
religion, or for keeping the command-
ments of God. You should not think
that any strange thing has happened
unto you. Persecution is a legacy
that has been handed down from
father Adam to our day. It was said
of old that all men who lived godly
in Christ Jesus should suffer perse-
cution. If we meet with no persecu-
tion in our day, we shall hardly feel
at home when we go into the spirit
world and meet with the ancient
prophets and with Christ and the
Apostles, who passed through
much persecution and tribulation. Many
of them were crucified or otherwise
put to death. They sealed their tes-
timony with their own blood, as was
the case with Joseph and Hyrum and
several of the Apostles, Elders, and
Saints in our day.

As Elders of Israel, while we are
passing through these afflictions, let us
not cherish revenge or hatred
in our hearts towards our persecutors.
“Vengeance is mine; I will repay,
saith the Lord.” [Romans 12:19] Jesus Christ, the
Son of God, when nailed to the cross,
and while in the agony of death, cried,
“Father, forgive them; for they know
not what they do.” [Luke 23:34] Why did
He say this to His Father in Heaven?
Because the Son of God knew full
well what would be the result of
His death upon the heads of His mur-
derers. He knew what awaited the
whole Jewish nation, when that peo-
ple said, “Let His blood be on us
and on our children.” [Matthew 27:25] He fully com-
prehended the great suffering that
awaited the Jews and their posterity
for the next eighteen hundred years.
He knew that all that Moses and the
Prophets, as well as what He had
spoken Himself, against the Jewish
nation, would come to pass; for God
had spoken it through them, and
his words never fail.

No infidel on earth can deny the
fact that Jerusalem was overthrown,
the foundation of the Temple dug up
and not one stone left upon another.

The Jews fell by famine, by pestilence
and by the sword, until twelve hun-
dred thousand dead bodies were car-
ried through the gates outside of the
walls of Jerusalem during the dis-
tress of the siege under Titus, and a
remnant was taken captive and scat-
tered throughout the world among
the Gentile nations, and the Jews
have been a hiss and a byword, and
have been trampled under the feet
of the Gentiles until the present day,
and the end is not yet, the yoke is
not yet broken from off their necks.

All this has come to pass in fulfil-
ment of the Word of God to the
Jewish nation. So I say to all my
brethren who are in exile, or in
prison, for the Gospel’s sake, or for
keeping the commandments of God,
do not harbor any vengeance of ha-
tred against this nation, or against
those who have aided or abetted in
your sufferings, but rather go before
the Lord and pray that He will sof-
ten the hearts of the rulers of the na-
tion, that they will give unto the
Latter day Saints the same rights and
privileges in the worshiping of God
according to the dictates of their own
consciences as are guaranteed by the
Constitution of our Government,
which was given by the inspiration
of the God of heaven for a wise pur-
pose in Himself.

If I am asked why I make this re-
quest of my brethren, I answer,
for the same reason that Jesus said,
“Father, forgive them; for they know
not what they do.” [Luke 23:34] For as the God
of heaven fulfilled all His words
which He spoke concerning Judea
and Jerusalem, so will He fulfill all
that He has spoken concerning the
Gentiles and all the nations of the
earth in the last days.

I will here say, as truly as the God of
heaven lives, and has established
His throne on high, just so truly
will He bring to pass the fulfilment
of His words. He will pour out that
flood of judgments upon our nation
and upon all the nations of the earth,
which has been proclaimed by every
inspired man since the world began.
The seals will be opened, the plagues
poured out, and Great Babylon will
fall. This generation has been warn-
ed for the last fifty years by inspired
and righteous men, and after their
testimony will come the testimony of
thundering, of lightning, of floods,
of earthquakes, and of pestilence,
and famine, and war, and the flames
of devouring fire, for by fire and by
sword will the Lord plead with all
flesh and the slain of the Lord will
be many. [Isaiah 66:16] For the Lord has said,
“My sword is bathed in heaven, and
it shall fall upon Idumea, or the
world: and who is able to stand?” [Isaiah 34:5]

I will close by quoting the testi-
mony of Ezekiel in the Ezekiel 24:14|24th chapter
14th verse##—"I the Lord have spoken
it; it shall come to pass, and I will do
it; I will not go back, neither will I
repent; according to thy ways, and
according to thy doings, shall they
judge thee, saith the Lord God.”

WILFORD WOODRUFF.
October, 26, 1886

OGDEN HERALD: SEMI-WEEKLY.

Issued Wednesdays and Saturdays, BY THE OGDEN HERALD PUBLISHING COMPANY.

E. H. ANDERSON, - Business Manager.

Office in Dooly-Stevens Block, corner of Main and Fourth Streets.

All business communications should be addressed to the Company; those intended for publication, to the Editor.

Entered at the Post Office at Ogden City, Utah, as Second-class matter.

SATURDAY. NOV. 27, 1886.

AN EPISTLE.

Apostle Woodruff's Cheering Counsels to the Saints.

To the Saints Scattered Abroad, Greeting:

DEAR BRETHREN:-I feel desirous to express myself upon the present condition of Zion and its inhabitants. The history of which we are making as Latter-day Saints is strictly in fulfilment of the revelations of God, as given through the mouths of Prophets and inspired men to the inhabitants of the earth in every dispensation when God has had an acknowledged people on the earth. The God of heaven, who created this earth and placed His children upon it, gave unto them a law whereby they might be exalted and saved in a kingdom of glory. For there is a law given unto all kingdoms, and all things are governed by law throughout the whole universe. Whatever law anyone keeps he is preserved by that law, and he receives whatever reward that law guarantees unto him. It is the will of God that all His children should obey the highest law, that they may receive the highest glory that is ordained for all immortal beings. But God has given all His children an agency to choose what law they will keep.

These two principles do exist— good and evil; God and the Devil. Whatever leads to good and to do good is of God. Whatever leads to evil and to do evil is of the Devil. God has labored from the creation of man to lead him to keep the celestial law, that he may inherit a celestial glory and partake of eternal life, the greatest of all the gifts of God to man: while the Devil, with all the fallen angels, has labored from the creation to lead man astray, to lead him down to the perdition of ungodly men, that he may have dominion over him.

These two principles have governed and controlled the acts of all the children of men, and laid the foundation for all the history of the whole world for the last six thousand years, or from the creation of man. This power of the Devil, and of all the fallen angels, who are represented to have been one-third part of all the hosts of heaven, who were cast down from heaven to earth, has been at war against God and His Christ, and against every Prophet and Apostle and inspired man whom God has raised up, from the creation of the world to the present day. The first man, Adam, under the influence of the Devil, transgressed a law by which death came into the world. God the Eternal Father gave His only begotten Son, as a great sacrifice, to shed His blood to redeem man from death. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.

The God of heaven, whom we worship, is represented as the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost. The Father and Son have tabernacles, and they created man after their own image. But the Holy Ghost is a spirit and a witness and a testimony of the Father and the Son. This Holy Ghost and witness are promised unto all men who will obey the law of the Gospel, which God has revealed to the human family. This Holy Ghost rested upon Adam when he blessed in posterity in Adamondi-Ahman, three years previous to his death.

The Lord gave unto Adam and many of his sons the Holy Priesthood, whereby they could administer in the ordinances of the Gospel of life and salvation. The Lord has raised up men in every dispensation, when He has had a people on earth unto whom He has given the Priesthood, and all people have been blessed when they hearkened to the voice of the Lord. On the other hand, when the inhabitants of the earth have become wicked, and have transgressed the law of God, they have been chastised, and when they have become ripened in iniquity they have been cut off from the earth, as in the case of Noah and Lot, and “as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of Man.” The righteous were saved while the wicked were destroyed.

The whole history of the dealings of the Lord with man has shown the benefits and blessings of obeying the Lord and keeping His command ments. The history of the dealings of the Lord with ancient Israel shows that He blessed the righteous and cursed the wicked and brought His judgements upon them. Whenever Israel hearkened to the teachings of Moses and the prophets, they prospered, and their enemies were a prey unto them. But when they departed from the Lord and set up altars to Baal, and committed sin, the Lord forsook them, as in the case of Judah and Jerusalem, in the days of Zedekiah the King. He forsook the Lord, and led the people astray. They were full of blood and murder and whoredom and all manner of abominations, and the Lord warned them through His Prophets, Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel. These Prophets told the king and the people what judgments would come upon them, and the Lord said by Ezekiel unto the king and the people, “What I have spoken shall be done.” Now all that these Prophets said came to pass. Not one jot nor tittle fell unfulfilled. The Jews put to death the Savior and the Apostles and rejected the Lord and the Gospel; and all that Moses, Jesus, the Apostles and the Prophets spoke concerning Israel, Judah and Jerusalem, came to pass to the very letter.

All the Prophets and Apostles who have written since man was placed upon the earth have seen our day, and have prophesied of the events which were to take place on the earth in the last dispensation and fullness of times. They have seen the Church of God, the Zion of God, and the Kingdom of God established on the earth, and the gathering of the people from all nations to build them up, and the judgments of God which were to rest, in the last days, upon all nations who should fight against Mount Zion and the people of God. Now, I wish to ask the Latter-day Saints if they can for a moment think that the Lord will fail in these days in fulfilling His promises any more than He has in other dispensations? No; He will not.

In fulfillment of his sayings through the mouths of those ancient Apostles and Prophets, the Lord has set His hand once more, for the last time, to prune His vineyard and to establish His Church and Kingdom upon the earth, to be thrown down no more forever. He has raised up His Prophets and Apostles and revealed unto them the fulness of the everlasting priesthoods of Aaron and of Melchisedek. Joseph Smith was raised up by the power of God, and the administration of angels, and he brought forth the Book of Mormon, the record and stick of Joseph in the hands of Ephraim, as spoken of by the Prophet Ezekiel in the 37th chapter. This Prophet of God, Joseph Smith, had power to organize the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, according to the ancient order of the Church of Christ, with Apostles and Prophets, Evangelists, Bishops, Pastors and Teachers. And the Church has been led continually by living oracles and the revelations of God from Heaven until the present day. It has now stood fifty-six years since its organization, and its history is before the heavens and the earth. The Prophets and Apostles and many Elders have gone forth and preached the Gospel of Jesus Christ to many nations, and tens of thousands of the inhabitants of the earth have embraced the Gospel, been baptized for the remission of their sins, have re-

ceived the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands, and have been gathered home to Zion from many nations, in fulfillment of the ancient Prophets, who spoke as they were moved upon by the Holy Ghost. Earth and hell have been combined to stop the little stone from rolling, and from becoming a mountain and filling the whole earth, as Daniel said it should in the last days. Joseph Smith, his brother Hyrum, with several of the Apostles and Elders and many Saints, have already sealed their testimony with thir blood, and to-day prisons are crowded with the Elders of Israel for keeping the commandments of God, and many others have been driven into exile for the same cause.

Many of the inhabitants of the land are stirred up and are desirous to destroy the Church and Kingdom of God from off the earth. But they know not the thoughts of the Lord, neither understand they His ways. The Gentile or Christian world to-day can no more commit sins, and be guilty of lying, stealing, blasphemy, whoredoms, or murder, or commit any abominations, and escape the wrath of God, than could Sodom and Gomorrah, or the antediluvian world, or ancient Israel. The word of the Lord has been proclaimed against the Gentiles and all the inhabitants of the earth in the last days who commit sin, and it will as assuredly be fulfilled as in ancient days. The Lord has a controversy with this generation, and He will judge the inhabitants according to the deeds done in the body, and none can stay His hand.

I want to say to the Saints of God who dwell in the flesh to-day, that the 56 years which have passed away since the organization of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, have taken into the spirit world all our Prophets, Apostles, Elders and Saints, who have finished their testimony in the flesh. Their voice is hushed in death and their testimony is closed. They are mingling with the spirits of the righteous and waiting for the great day of the coming of the Son of Man, when Jesus Christ will come in the clouds of heaven to reward every man according to the deeds done in the body. But though they have passed away, is the work of God finished on the earth? Verily no. Has the warning voice ceased to be heard by the inhabitants of the earth? It has not. All of us who remain in the flesh are under as much obligation to lift the warning voice and reap while the day lasts as were those who have passed away.

The Lord said to Ezekiel, “I have made thee a watchman unto the House of Israel.” “When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand. Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul.” This is precisely our condition to-day. As Apostles, Seventies, High Priests, and Elders, we and all men who bear any portion of the Holy Priesthood, are watchmen upon the walls of Zion and messengers to all the inhabitants of the earth, and all of us will be held responsible if we donot improve ourtime and lift the warning voice, as far as we have opportunity, and warn this generation of the judgments of God which await them.

I know the judgments of God are very nigh unto the door of this nation and this generation, and they will overtake the world before it is prepared for that time. Even the coming of the Son of Man is nigh, and he will come as a thief in the night. Who is prepared to abide the day of His coming? It is our duty to labor and reap. Then every man should be diligent in that sphere in which he is called to act, that his garments may be clean from the blood of all men.

I do not believe there was ever a generation of men who inhabited the earth who were more wicked, or who were practising greater abominations, or who were sinning against greater light and knowledge, or who had a greater flood of judgments proclaimed against them by the word of the Lord, than the generation in which we live. Therefore, as Saints of the living God, who bear the Holy Priesthood, we shall be under condemnation if we do not lift up the warning voice against the evils and abominations which exist, so far as we have opportunity. How many woes the Prophets and Apostles have proclaimed against those who fight against Zion. “Woe unto all those who discomfort my people, and drive and murder them, and testify against them, saith the Lord of hosts. A generation of vipers shall not escape the damnation of hell. Behold, mine eyes see and know all their works, and I have in reserve a swift judgment, in the season thereof, for them all. For there is a time appointed for every man, according at his work shall be.”

I will say to the Apostles, our responsibility is very great. The Prophets who organized the Church and laid the foundation of this last dispensation, with a whole quorum of Apostles, have finished their testimony had gone into the spirit world. We have been called to take their places. What manner of men ought we to be? The whole earth is ripening in iniquity, and the Zion of God should be prepared for the coming of the bridegroom. We should humble ourselves before the Lord and be in a position to be filled with the spirit of our calling, with the Holy Ghost, and with the revelations of Jesus Christ, that we may know the mind and will of God concerning us, and be prepared to magnify our calling and bring to pass righteousness, and be valiant in the testimony of Jesus Christ to the end of our pilgrimage, here in the flesh. The Prophets, Apostles, and all the heavenly hosts are watching over us. There never was a time when the work of God required a more faithful testimony and labor from the Apostles and Elders than to-day.

I would say to the Saints, who stand connected with the quorum of the Twelves Apostles, as messengers to the nations of the earth, it has fal,en to your lot to go forth and assist to prune the vineyard once more, and for the last time, before the coming of the Son of Man. The Lord said, fifty seven years ago, that the field was white for the harvest, and He had set His hand to prune the vineyard once more, and for the last time. The Elders were commanded at that day to thrust in their sickle and reap while it was called to-day, for soon night would come, when no man could reap. Brethren, it is much nearer night now than it was fifty seven years ago. The Savior said at that day, that the angels were crying day and night for the privilege to go forth and reap down the earth. He informed them they must wait a little season until the harvest was fully ripe. The nations must be warned, Zion must be established, and the wheat, or the Saints, be gathered into the garner, then the angels might go forth and reap the tares, gather them in bunbles and prepare them for the burning.

Since that day many thousands of the Saints have been gathered to Zion from the nations of the earth. But you are called upon at this late day to still go forth and warn the Gentiles with the proclamation of the Gospel. Therefore, brethren, you who are called to go into the vineyard, whether Apostles, High Priests, Seventies, or Elders, do not be weary in well doing. Remember, you are messengers of salvation. Keep yourselves pure and spotless

before God and all men. Seek to bring to pass righteousness, and save the souls of men. Labor faithfully that your garments may be clean from the blood of all men, and that the nations may be left without excuse in the day of God’s judgments upon the wicked, which is nigh at hand, and those judgments will be poured out without measure.

All the messengers in the vineyard should be righteous and holy men, and call upon the Lord in mighty prayer, in order to prevail. It is the privilege of every Elder in Israel, who is laboring in the vineyard, if he will live up to his privileges, to have dreams, visions, and revelations, and the Holy Ghost as a constant companion, that he may be able thoroughly to gather out the blood of Israel and the meek of the earth and bring them into the fold of Christ.

It is true that the Elders who are called to bear record of the Gospel of Christ to the nations of the earth are many times called to pass through prosecutions for the Gospel’s sake, and in some instances to lay down their lives, as did the ancient Saints, and quite a number in our day, for Christ’s sake. But there seems to be a special crown of glory laid up for every man who is martyred for Christ’s sake and the Gospel’s. No matter in what age of the world he lays down his life for Christ’s, he will find it again, and eternal life in the world to come. Therefore, brethren, let us be diligent in our labors in this last hour in the vineyard. The Lord said to Oliver Cowdery, if he labored all the days of his life and saved but one soul, how great would be his joy in the Kingdom of Heaven with that one soul. We have everything to encourage us in our labors in the vineyard of the Lord.

While this labor is going on among the nations of the earth, there is a great labor and responsibility resting upon the whole ministry who dwell in Zion. There is labor sufficient for every man who bears any portion of the Holy Priesthood in the various capacities in which the brethren are called to act. The High Priests, whose calling is to preside, are called upon to officiate in Zion as High Councilors, Presidents of Stakes and Counselors, Bishops and Counselors, Superintendents of Sabbath Schools and mutual improvement associations. In every capacity in which they are called to act, they have an immense field in which to improve their talents and magnify their callings. Here is where the High Priests are mainly called to preside, officiate and labor.

There never was a time when the Holy Priesthood, in all its various branches, offices and labors, had a greater work to perform than in our day. The searching out of iniquity, the purifying, sanctifying and cleansing of the people, the uniting of the Saints and the general perfecting of Zion resting upon the brethren and the Holy Priesthood who dwell in Zion.

The whole Church, both priest and people, should give diligent heed to the late Epistle of the First Presidency, which has been published to the world. The counsel they have given upon the various items they have referred to should be strictly carried out. The breaking of the Sabbath day and pleasure excursions upon that day should not be indulged in by the Latter-day Saints. The Presidents of Stakes and their counselors, the Bishops and their counselors, whose immediate duty it is to watch over the stakes and wards, have a great responsibility and duty to perform. Iniquity must be sought out. Zion cannot prosper when sin and iniquity are permitted to dwell in her midst.

One of the most important and responsible fields of labor in Zion is that committed to the care of those who preside over and teach in the primaries, Sabbath schools, and improvement associations, and those who are teaching private day schools among the Latter-day Saints. Who can comprehend the result of the labor performed by the Elders of Israel in these branches? No man, unless filled with the revelations of Heaven and the inspiration of Almighty God. We send out hundreds of Elders, who go to the nations of the earth to preach the Gospel of Christ. After spending two of three years as missionaries, if they have converted a dozen souls and brought them into the Church, they think they have done a good work, which they certainly have. But here, the Elders who are presiding over and teaching in these institutions in Zion, filled with the children of the Saints, have an army of immortal souls before them to guide and teach, and to direct their minds, that they may be qualified to step forth and take hold of the Church and kingdom of God and build it up and bear it off triumphantly, after their fathers and elders are laid in the tomb. O what a mission is given to the sons of Ephraim, the Elders of Israel, the Latterday Saints! To warn the whole world of the judgments which are to come, preach the Gospel to all people, gather the saints from all nations, build up Zion, and prepare for the coming of the Son of Man, standing in holy places, while judgments waste the wicked.

There is one admonition of our Savior that all the Saints of God should observe, but which, I fear, we do not as we should, and that is, to pray always and faint not. I fear, as a people, we do not pray enough, in faith. We should call upon the Lord in mighty prayer, and make all our wants known unto Him. For if He does not protect and deliver us and save us, no other power will. Therefore our trust is entirely in Him. Therefore our prayers should ascend into the ears of our heavenly Father day and night.

I want to say a few words to our brethren who are in prison, or under bonds, or driven into exile for our religion, or for keeping the commandments of God. You should not think that any strange thing has happened unto you. Persecution is a legacy that has been handed down from father Adam to our day. It was said of old that all men who lived godly in Christ Jesus should suffer persecution. If we meet with no persecution in our day, we shall hardly feel at home when we go into the spirit world and meet with the ancient prophets and with Christ and the Apostles, who passed through much persecution and tribulation. Many of them were crucified or otherwise put to death. They sealed their testimony with their own blood, as was the case with Joseph and Hyrum and several of the Apostles, Elders, and Saints in our day.

As Elders of Israel, while we are passing through these afflictions, let us not cherish revenge or hatred in our hearts towards our persecutors. “Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.” Jesus Christ, the Son of God, when nailed to the cross, and while in the agony of death, cried, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” Why did He say this to His Father in Heaven? Because the Son of God knew full well what would be the result of His death upon the heads of His murderers. He knew what awaited the whole Jewish nation, when that people said, “Let His blood be on us and on our children.” He fully comprehended the great suffering that awaited the Jews and their posterity for the next eighteen hundred years. He knew that all that Moses and the Prophets, as well as what He had spoken Himself, against the Jewish nation, would come to pass; for God had spoken it through them, and his words never fail.

No infidel on earth can deny the fact that Jerusalem was overthrown, the foundation of the Temple dug up and not one stone left upon another.

The Jews fell by famine, by pestilence and by the sword, until twelve hundred thousand dead bodies were carried through the gates outside of the walls of Jerusalem during the distress of the siege under Titus, and a remnant was taken captive and scattered throughout the world among the Gentile nations, and the Jews have been a hiss and a byword, and have been trampled under the feet of the Gentiles until the present day, and the end is not yet, the yoke is not yet broken from off their necks.

All this has come to pass in fulfilment of the Word of God to the Jewish nation. So I say to all my brethren who are in exile, or in prison, for the Gospel’s sake, or for keeping the commandments of God, do not harbor any vengeance of hatred against this nation, or against those who have aided or abetted in your sufferings, but rather go before the Lord and pray that He will soften the hearts of the rulers of the nation, that they will give unto the Latter day Saints the same rights and privileges in the worshiping of God according to the dictates of their own consciences as are guaranteed by the Constitution of our Government, which was given by the inspiration of the God of heaven for a wise purpose in Himself.

If I am asked why I make this request of my brethren, I answer, for the same reason that Jesus said, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” For as the God of heaven fulfilled all His words which He spoke concerning Judea and Jerusalem, so will He fulfill all that He has spoken concerning the Gentiles and all the nations of the earth in the last days.

I will here say, as truly as the God of heaven lives, and has established His throne on high, just so truly will He bring to pass the fulfilment of His words. He will pour out that flood of judgments upon our nation and upon all the nations of the earth, which has been proclaimed by every inspired man since the world began. The seals will be opened, the plagues poured out, and Great Babylon will fall. This generation has been warned for the last fifty years by inspired and righteous men, and after their testimony will come the testimony of thundering, of lightning, of floods, of earthquakes, and of pestilence, and famine, and war, and the flames of devouring fire, for by fire and by sword will the Lord plead with all flesh and the slain of the Lord will be many. For the Lord has said, “My sword is bathed in heaven, and it shall fall upon Idumea, or the world: and who is able to stand?”

No power on earth can stay the hand of God in this work. The God of heaven will teach this nation and all other nations on earth, that He is stronger than man. He pays no regard to nations or numbers, in the fulfillment of his purposes, for He holds in His hand the destiny of all men and nations, and no power beneath the heavens can hinder His work. The God of Israel has set his hand to gather His people from all nations and build up His Church and establish Zion in all that beauty, power, and glory which Isaiah and other Prophets saw, and to build up His kingdom, which shall fill the whole earth, and in which Jesus of Nazareth will establish his throne and sit thereon, and reign over the earth for one thousand years, as the Prophet David and other Prophets have declared. And it will come to pass in spite of earth and hell and all the unbelief of the whole Christian Gentile world. If our nation or the Gentiles do not believe this, let them wait and see, and they will not have to wait long before they will see the signs manifest of the beginning of these things. So far as the Saints are concerned, the Spirit of God will bear record to their spirits as they read these testimonies, of their truth.

I will close by quoting the testimony of Ezekiel in the 24th chapter 14th verse— "I the Lord have spoken it; it shall come to pass, and I will do it; I will not go back, neither will I repent; according to thy ways, and according to thy doings, shall they judge thee, saith the Lord God.”

WILFORD WOODRUFF. October, 26, 1886