Times and Seasons (, Hancock Co., IL), 15 Mar. 1842, vol. 3, no. 10, pp. 719–734; edited by JS. For more complete source information, see the source note for Letter to Isaac Galland, 22 Mar. 1839.
Historical Introduction
The 15 March 1842 issue of the ’s , Illinois, newspaper, Times and Seasons, was the third issue that identified JS as editor. This issue contained four editorial passages, each of which is featured here with accompanying introductions. Several other JS texts printed in this issue, including an excerpt from the Book of Abraham and several pieces of correspondence, are featured as stand-alone documents elsewhere in this volume.
Note that only the editorial content created specifically for this issue of the Times and Seasons is annotated here. Articles reprinted from other papers, letters, conference minutes, and notices, are reproduced here but not annotated. Items that are stand-alone JS documents are annotated elsewhere; links are provided to these stand-alone documents.
While JS likely authored many of the paper’s editorial passages, John Taylor reportedly assisted him in writing content. No matter who wrote individual editorial pieces, JS assumed editorial responsibility for all installments naming him as editor except the 15 February issue. (Woodruff, Journal, 19 Feb. 1842; Historical Introduction to Times and Seasons, 1 Mar. 1842.)
Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.
14. And the Lord appeared unto me in answer to my prayers, and said unto me, unto thy seed I will give this land. And I, Abraham, arose from the place of the Altar which I had built unto the Lord, and removed from thence unto a mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched my tent there; Bethel on the West, and Hai on the East; and there I built another altar unto the Lord, and called again upon the name of the Lord.
15. And I, Abraham, journeyed, going on still towards the South; and there was a continuation of a famine in the Land, and I Abraham concluded to go down into Egypt, to sojourn there, for the famine became very grievious. And it came to pass when I was come near to enter into Egypt, the Lord said unto me, behold, Sarai, thy wife, is a very fair woman to look upon, therefore it shall come to pass when the Egyptians shall see her, they will say she is his wife; and they will kill you, but they will save her alive; therefore see that ye do on this wise, let her say unto the Egyptians, she is thy sister, and thy soul shall live. And it came to pass that I, Abraham, told Sarai, my wife, all that the Lord had said unto me; therefore say unto them, I pray thee, thou art my sister, that it may be well with me for thy sake, and my soul shall live because of thee.
16. And I, Abraham, had the Urim and Thummim, which the Lord my God had given unto me, in Ur of the Chaldees; and I saw the stars also that they were very great, and that one of them was nearest unto the throne of God; and there were many great ones, which were near unto it; and the Lord said unto me, these are the governing ones; and the name of the great one is Kolob, because it is near unto me: for I am the Lord thy God, I have set this one to govern all those which belong to the same order of that upon which thou standest. And the Lord said unto me, by the Urim and Thummim, that Kolob was after the manner of the Lord, according to its times and seasons in the Revolutions thereof, that one revolution was a day unto the Lord, after his manner of reckoning, it being one thousand years according to the time appointed unto that whereon thou standest; this is the reckoning of the Lord’s time, according to the reckoning of Kolob.
17. And the Lord said unto me, the planet, which is the lesser light, lesser than that which is to rule the day, even the night, is above, or greater than that upon which thou standest, in point of reckoning, for it moveth in order more slow: this is in order, because it standeth above the earth upon which thou standest, therefore, the reckoning of its time is not so many as to its number of days, and of months, and of years. And the Lord said unto me, now, Abraham, these two facts exist, behold thine eyes seeth it; it is given unto thee to know the times of reckoning, and the set times, yea the set time of the earth upon which thou standest, and the set time of the greater light, which is set to rule the day, and the set time of the lesser light, which is set to rule the night.
18. Now the set time of the lesser light, is a longer time as to its reckoning, than the reckoning of the time of the earth upon which thou standest; and where these two facts exist, there shall be another fact above them, that is, there shall be another planet whose reckoning of time shall be longer still; and thus there shall be the reckoning of the time of one planet above another, until thou come nigh unto Kolob, which Kolob, is after the reckoning of the Lord’s time; which, Kolob, is set nigh unto the throne of God, to govern all those planets which belong to the same order of that upon which thou standest. And it is given unto thee, to know the set time of all the stars, that are set to give light, until thou come near unto the throne of God.
19. Thus I, Abraham, talked with the Lord, face to face, as one man talketh with another; and he told me of the works which his hands had made; and he said unto me, my son, my son, and his hand was stretched out, behold I will shew you all these. And he put his hand upon mine eyes, and I saw those things, which his hands had made, which were many; and they multiplied before mine eyes, and I could not see the end thereof: and he said unto me this is Shinehah, (which is the sun.) And he said unto me, Kokob, which is star. And he said unto me, [p. [719]]