The Millennium

The Millennium

http://emp.byui.edu/SATTERFIELDB/Quotes/Millennium/Millennium%202.htm

Teachings Concerning
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PDV Version
The Millennium – A Basic Gospel Doctrine
We believe in the literal gathering of Israel and in the restoration of the Ten Tribes; that Zion (the New Jerusalem) will be built upon the American continent; that Christ will reign personally upon the earth; and, that the earth will be renewed and receive its paradisiacal glory. The Savior Visits Each World in Its Time
D&C 88
51 Behold, I will liken these kingdoms unto a man having a field, and he sent forth his servants into the field to dig in the field.
52 And he said unto the first: Go ye and labor in the field, and in the first hour I will come unto you, and ye shall behold the joy of my countenance.
53 And he said unto the second: Go ye also into the field, and in the second hour I will visit you with the joy of my countenance. 54 And also unto the third, saying: I will visit you;
55 And unto the fourth, and so on unto the twelfth.
56 And the lord of the field went unto the first in the first hour, and tarried with him all that hour, and he was made glad with the light of the countenance of his lord.
57 And then he withdrew from the first that he might visit the second also, and the third, and the fourth, and so on unto the twelfth.
58 And thus they all received the light of the countenance of their lord, every man in his hour, and in his time, and in his season–
59 Beginning at the first, and so on unto the last, and from the last unto the first, and from the first unto the last;
60 Every man in his own order, until his hour was finished, even according as his lord had commanded him, that his lord might be glorified in him, and he in his lord, that they all might be glorified.
61 Therefore, unto this parable I will liken all these kingdoms, and the inhabitants thereof–every kingdom in its hour, and in its time, and in its season, even according to the decree which God hath made. Joseph Fielding Smith
During the millennium, the Savior will spend one thousand years here which is one day according to the Lord. In D&C, Section 88, it is written that the Savior will do the same thing in other worlds, visiting each in its turn. (Answers to Gospel Questions, 3:212) John Taylor
That is, each kingdom, or planet, and the inhabitants thereof, were blessed with the visits and presence of their Creator, in their several times and seasons. (Mediation and Atonement, Ch.9) Neal A. Maxwell
The same tutorial pattern appears in His asking, “Unto what shall I liken these kingdoms, that ye may understand?” (D&C 88:46.) We are then treated to an expansive, panoramic view of things. This should leave us breathless as to the universality of the Lord’s work, for “any man who hath seen any or the least of these hath seen God moving in his majesty and power” (D&C 88:47). [Men and Women of Christ, p.123]
Furthermore, the eventual purpose of it all is centered not on some other cosmic concern but on us – “to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.” (Moses 1:39.) President Brigham Young said there are millions of earths like this one so that certain planets, as Isaiah said, are formed to be inhabited (see Isa. 45:18) as God’s plan of salvation is executed and reexecuted! How glorious is our God! Truly, as the Psalmist said, “We are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand.” (Ps. 95:7.) Has he not even told us that his “course is one eternal round”? (D&C 3:2.) Are we not also given intriguing intimations such as how “planets … move in their times and seasons” and how “all these kingdoms, and the inhabitants thereof” are to know the joy of seeing the countenance of the Lord – “every kingdom in its hour, and in its time, and in its season”? (See D&C 88:42, 43, 61.) [“Thanks Be to God,” Ensign, July 1982, p. 51] Orson Pratt
The Lord wanted to represent these kingdoms so that we could understand what he desired to impart, and he gave it as a parable… Says the interrogator–“I do not comprehend this idea of the Lord’s withdrawing from one and going to another.” In order to comprehend this let us come back to our own globe. Do we not expect that the Lord will, by and by, come and visit us and stay a little while, about a thousand years. Yes, and then we shall be made glad with the joy of the countenance of our Lord. He will be among us, an will be our King, and he will reign as a King of kings and Lord of lords. He will have a throne in Zion, and another in the Temple at Jerusalem, and he will have with him the twelve disciples who were with him during his ministry at Jerusalem; and they will eat and drink with him at his table; and all the people of the globe who are counted worthy to be called Zion, the pure in heart, will be made glad by the countenance of their Lord for a thousand years, during which the earth will rest. Then what? He withdraws. What for? To fulfill other purposes; for he has other worlds or creations and other sons and daughters, perhaps just as good as those dwelling on this planet and they, as well as we, will be visited, and they will be made glad with the countenance of their Lord. Thus he will go, in the time and in the season thereof, from kingdom to kingdom or from world to world, causing the pure in heart, the Zion that is taken from these creations, to rejoice in his presence. (Journal of Discourses, 17:332-333) Bruce R. McConkie
With reference to the various kingdoms of his creating, to the planets and worlds that roll in their orbits, inhabited as they are with the children of the Father, the Lord in our day has given us this parable: [Quotes D&C 88:51-62] Those who dwell with their lord in the day he visits in their field shall be glorified. They are the meek who shall inherit the earth; they are the God-fearing and the righteous. And they in turn glorify their Lord, for they bring forth much fruit unto him.
“Therefore, unto this parable I will liken all these kingdoms,” he says, “and the inhabitants thereof – every kingdom in its hour, and in its time, and in its season, even according to the decree which God hath made.”
What, then, is the application of the parable? “I leave these sayings with you to ponder in your hearts,” he says, “with this commandment which I give unto you, that ye shall call upon me while I am near.” Truly, the time draws near and the day will soon arrive when he will visit us in our field, and if we are to find joy in his presence and glory in the light of his countenance, we must make ourselves worthy. (The Millennial Messiah, pp. 352-354) The Millennium is One of Four Stages of Earth’s Existence
Joseph Fielding Smith
This earth is passing through four grand degrees or stages: 1. The creation and the condition antedating the fall. 2. The telestial condition which has prevailed since the fall of Adam. 3. The terrestrial condition that will prevail when the Savior comes and ushers in the millennial era. 4. The celestial or final state of the earth when it has obtained its exaltation. There is, also, what the Lord has called a “little season,” following the millennium when Satan will be loosed and the last great battle will be fought. (Doctrines of Salvation, 1:82) The Church Exists to Prepare A People for the Millennium
Joseph Smith
On the evening on the 21st of September, A.D. 1823, while I was praying unto God, and endeavoring to exercise faith in the precious promises of Scripture, on a sudden a light like that of day, only of a far purer and more glorious appearance and brightness, burst into the room indeed the first sight was as though the house was filled with consuming fire; the appearance produced a shock that affected the whole body; in a moment a personage stood before me surrounded with a glory yet greater than that with which I was already surrounded. This messenger 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. I was informed that I was chosen to be an instrument in the hands of God to bring about some of His purposes in this glorious dispensation. (From the “Wentworth Letter,” History of the Church, 4:536; emphasis added) Heber J. Grant
The mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is one of peace. It aims to prepare the people of the world for the second coming of Christ, and for the inauguration of that blessed day when the millennium shall come and Christ shall reign as the King of kings, standing at the head of the universal brotherhood of man. (Gospel Standards, p.18) Joseph Fielding Smith
The Dispensation of the Fulness of Times is the dispensation of preparation for the second coming of the Lord and the ushering in of the Millennial reign. In fact it is the last of all and will continue until that day when Christ will have finished His work, and as stated by Paul, has delivered up the kingdom to his Father, that God may be all in all. (The Restoration of All Things, p.18) Cleansing of the Earth at The Beginning of the Millennium
D&C 77:12
We are to understand that as God made the world in six days, and on the seventh day he finished his work, and sanctified it, and also formed man out of the dust of the earth, even so, in the beginning of the seventh thousand years will the Lord God sanctify the earth, and complete the salvation of man, and judge all things, and shall redeem all things, except that which he hath not put into his power, when he shall have sealed all things, unto the end of all things; and the sounding of the trumpets of the seven angels are the preparing and finishing of his work, in the beginning of the seventh thousand years – the preparing of the way before the time of his coming. George Q. Cannon
If the destruction of the wicked among the Nephites was necessary in order to bring about a reign of peace and righteousness for three or four generations, do you not think that there will have to be [p.89] great and overwhelming destructions to cleanse the earth of the wicked and to lay the foundation of a thousand years of peace and righteousness? Will wickedness be allowed to flourish? I tell you, no.
The wicked will be destroyed, according to the words of all the Prophets, and the righteous only will survive. There will be a cleansing of the earth from the wicked as great in its place as the cleansing of the earth by the flood that came in the days of Noah, though this time it will be by fire. Malachi says the day will come when the wicked shall be ashes under the soles of the feet of the righteous.
Already, as I have said, you can see the operation of this cleansing process among us. The wicked are gradually being purged from among us. It is not very perceptible; we have got to think about it and call it to mind to become aware of it; but we can become aware of it if we will reflect. And this will be more and more the case as the power of God increases and the responsibility of the Latter-day Saints becomes greater.
Therefore, I am looking for destructions and for judgments; I am looking for the cleansing power of God among us as well as among the nations of the earth, in order that the foundation of that great and glorious time shall be laid when Jesus shall reign upon the earth. (Gospel Truth, 1:88-89) Joseph Fielding Smith
When the reign of Jesus Christ comes during the millennium, only those who have lived the telestial law will be removed. The earth will be cleansed of all its corruption and wickedness. Those who have lived virtuous lives, who have been honest in their dealings with their fellow man and have endeavored to do good to the best of their understanding, shall remain. (Doctrines of Salvation, 3:62)
When the Millennium is ushered in the earth is to pass through a cleansing. This will not be the final cleansing when the earth shall be consumed and pass away to be renewed again a celestial globe, but it will be the end of unrighteousness. ‘All who have lived the telestial law — that is those who are unclean, “they who are liars, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and whosoever loves and makes a lie” and who suffer the wrath of God on earth and “suffer the vengeance of eternal fire” — shall be swept off from the face of the earth. All of these will be cast down to hell where they shall remain until Christ shall have subdued all enemies under his feet, and shall have perfected his work. During the thousand years all of these will be in this torment of mind, having ample time to reflect over their misdeeds and receive training in obedience to law, so that they may be prepared to come forth in the resurrection at the end of the world.
It will be impossible for the people of this class to remain on the earth during the Millennium, for they would be as much out of their element as a fish out of water. The changed condition of the earth, which will be of a terrestrial order during this thousand years, will be suited to the capacity of those of the terrestrial world as well as those who have kept the celestial law, and they shall have part in the first resurrection. “And then shall the heathen nations be redeemed, and they that knew no law shall have part in the first resurrection, “And it shall be tolerable for them.” (D.C. 45:54.) But with those of the telestial order, this will not be so. These are they who are as stubble who shall be consumed when Christ comes, according to the words of Malachi. (4:1.) It is of this class the Lord speaks when he says:
“For the hour is nigh and the day soon at hand when the earth is ripe and all the proud and they that do wickedly shall be as stubble; and I will burn them up, saith the Lord of Hosts, that wickedness shall not be upon the earth;
“For the hour is nigh, and that which was spoken by mine apostles must be fulfilled; for as they spoke so shall it come to pass;
“For I will reveal myself from heaven with power and great glory, with all the hosts thereof, and dwell in righteousness with men on earth a thousand years, and the wicked shall not stand.” (D.C. 29:9-11) [The Way to Perfection, pp.302-303] Bruce R. McConkie
Enoch sought to learn from the Lord when the curse would be removed and when the earth would be blessed again. After he and his city had been translated, “Enoch looked upon the earth; and he heard a voice from the bowels thereof, saying: Wo, wo is me, the mother of men; I am pained, I am weary, because of the wickedness of my children. When shall I rest, and be cleansed from the filthiness which is gone forth out of me? When will my Creator sanctify me, that I may rest, and righteousness for a season abide upon my face?” How graphic and wondrous is this way of teaching — to let the very earth itself cry out for rest and blessings! “And when Enoch heard the earth mourn, he wept, and cried unto the Lord, saying: O Lord, wilt thou not have compassion upon the earth? Wilt thou not bless the children of Noah?” And the Lord did then bless the earth to this extent: he decreed that life on its face should never again be destroyed by a flood. But the basic questions remained unanswered, and so Enoch yet “cried unto the Lord, saying: When the Son of Man cometh in the flesh, shall the earth rest? I pray thee, show me these things.” He then saw the crucifixion, the convulsions of nature that attended it, the opening of the prison doors, and the reserving of the wicked “in chains of darkness until the judgment of the great day. And again Enoch wept and cried unto the Lord, saying: When shall the earth rest? And Enoch beheld the Son of Man ascend up unto the Father; and he called unto the Lord, saying: Wilt thou not come again upon the earth?
I ask thee if thou wilt not come again on the earth.” How great were the pleadings of this holy prophet to know what would be in the last days!
“And the Lord said unto Enoch: As I live, so will I come in the last days, in the days of wickedness and vengeance. . . . And the day shall come that the earth shall rest, but before that day the heavens shall be darkened, and a veil of darkness shall cover the earth; and the heavens shall shake, and also the earth; and great tribulations shall be among the children of men, but my people will I preserve.” Then the Lord told Enoch of the restoration of the gospel, the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, the building of the New Jerusalem, and the return of the original Zion, and gave him the promise that “for the space of a thousand years the earth shall rest. And it came to pass that Enoch saw the day of the coming of the Son of Man, in the last days, to dwell on the earth in righteousness for the space of a thousand years.” (Moses 7:48-65.) [The Millennial Messiah, p.615]
Our Blessed Lord will come at the appointed time. The great conference at Adam-ondi-Ahman will assemble to worship the King on schedule. There will be an exact moment when his foot first touches the Mount of Olives. He will stand on Mount Zion with the 144,000 high priests at a given point in time. Armageddon will spread its fire and horror and death when and as decreed in the divine timetable. The tares will be burned and the vineyard cleansed of corruption when the Lord Jesus returns. And there will be a day and an hour and a split second that marks the beginning of the Millennium. The seventh of the thousand-year periods can only commence at one single instant in tame. As we have seen, many of the events incident to the Second Coming will take place during the close of the sixth seal and others after the opening of the seventh seal. And yet the formal beginning of the Millennium will take place at a fixed and determined and set moment. It cannot be hastened by righteousness nor delayed by wickedness. The old earth will die, and the new heaven and the new earth will be born at as exact an instant as is the case with the birth or death of any form of life. We speak thus so there will be no confusion or misunderstanding when we also say that the full glory and wonder of the millennial day will unfold gradually; that there will be wicked men on earth after the Millennium has commenced; and that the final glory and triumph of Israel will take place gradually after the Millennium itself has been ushered in. Let us now see what the holy word has to say relative to these things.
First, the cleansing of the vineyard, the burning of the earth, and the destruction of the wicked by fire shall all come to pass in a short time, in a single day, as it were. And then there will be but few men left on earth. “I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day,” the Lord told Zechariah. (Zech. 3:9.) And in Isaiah we find numerous prophetic expressions phrased in that imagery in which he so excelled. “Many houses shall be desolate, even great and fair, without inhabitant.” (Isa. 5:9.) Those sent to raise the warning voice to the world are to do so “until the cities be wasted without inhabitant, and the houses without man, and the land be utterly desolate, and the Lord have removed men far away.” (Isa. 6:11-12.) In the day of the Lord’s coming, “the light of Israel shall be for a fire, and his Holy One for a flame: and it shall burn and devour his thorns and his briers in one day; and shall consume the glory of his forest, and of his fruitful field, both soul and body: and they shall be as when a standard bearer fainteth. And the rest of the trees of his forest shall be few, that a child may write them.” (Isa. 10:17-19.) “Behold, the Lord maketh the earth empty, and maketh it waste, and turneth it upside down, and scattereth abroad the inhabitants thereof. . . . The land shall be utterly emptied, and utterly spoiled. . . . Therefore hath the curse devoured the earth, and they that dwell therein are desolate: therefore the inhabitants of the earth are burned, and few men left.” (Isa. 24:1-6.) Who can doubt that there will be but few men left at the beginning of the Millennium?
The prophetic word that sets forth what is to be during the Millennium speaks of “new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.” (2 Pet. 3:13.) It says that every corruptible thing shall be consumed when the vineyard is burned. And yet the Prophet Joseph Smith said: “There will be wicked men on the earth during the thousand years. The heathen nations who will not come up to worship will be visited with the judgments of God, and must eventually be destroyed from the earth.” (Teachings, pp. 268-69.) Taken together, these concepts mean that wickedness that is telestial in nature, wickedness that consists of living after the manner of the world, that wickedness which is carnal, sensual, and devilish by nature – all such shall cease. Those who so live will be destroyed. They are the tares of the earth.
But wickedness is a matter of degree, and even those who are upright and decent by worldly standards but who reject the gospel and do not worship the true God are considered to be wicked by gospel standards. They are “under the bondage of sin.” They do not accept the message of the restoration and gain a remission of their sins in the waters of baptism. “And by this you may know the righteous from the wicked, and that the whole world groaneth under sin and darkness even now.” (D&C 84:49-53.) Thus the divine word, as given by Zechariah, says that “it shall come to pass” – in the millennial day — that every one that is left [after Armageddon] of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles. And it shall be, that who so will not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain. And if the family of Egypt go not up, and come not, that have no rain; there shall be the plague, wherewith the Lord will smite the heathen that come not to keep the feast of tabernacles. This shall be the punishment of Egypt, and the punishment of all nations that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles.” (Zech. 14:16-19.) Thus there will be many churches on earth when the Millennium begins. False worship will continue among those whose desires are good, “who are honorable men of the earth,” but who have been “blinded by the craftiness of men.” (D&C 76:75.) Plagues will rest upon them until they repent and believe the gospel or are destroyed, as the Prophet said. It follows that missionary work will continue into the Millennium until all who remain are converted. Then “the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.” (Isa. 11:9.) Then every living soul on earth will belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. (The Millennial Messiah, pp.649-652) Second Coming Initiates Millennium
D&C 29
11 For I will reveal myself from heaven with power and great glory, with all the hosts thereof, and dwell in righteousness with men on earth a thousand years, and the wicked shall not stand. Heber J. Grant
The mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is one of peace. It aims to prepare the people of the world for the second coming of Christ, and for the inauguration of that blessed day when the millennium shall come and Christ shall reign as the King of kings, standing at the head of the universal brotherhood of man. (Gospel Standards, p.18) Bruce R. McConkie
We are not living in the millennium now; nor do millennial conditions now prevail upon the earth; nor will they until Christ comes and the earth is renewed and receives its paradisiacal glory. (Tenth Article of Faith.) Christ’s coming will mark the beginning of the millennium. The changes in men, all forms of life, and the earth itself, which will be incident to the new order of things, will take place in the day of that coming. (Mormon Doctrine, p.493) Neal A. Maxwell
Thus gospel hope is a very focused and particularized hope that is based upon justified expectations. It is a virtue that is intertwined with faith and charity, which virtues are not to be understood either when they are torn apart from each other or apart from the Lord Jesus Christ, without whom they are all vague virtues. Doubt and despair go together, whereas faith and hope are constant companions. Those, for instance, who “hope” in vain for (and speak of) the day of world peace when men “shall beat their swords into plowshares” ignore the reality that the millennial dawn will be ushered in only by the second coming of Jesus Christ. (Notwithstanding My Weakness, pp. 41-42) A Day Of Judgement At the Beginning of Millennium
Matthew 25
31 When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:
32 And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats: 33 And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.
[JST Matthew 25:34 And he shall sit upon his throne, and the twelve apostles with him.]
34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
35 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:
36 Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.
37 Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? 38 When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? 39 Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?
40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.
41 Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:
42 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink:
43 I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.
44 Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?
45 Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.
46 And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal. D&C 29
11 For I will reveal myself from heaven with power and great glory, with all the hosts thereof, and dwell in righteousness with men on earth a thousand years, and the wicked shall not stand.
12 And again, verily, verily, I say unto you, and it hath gone forth in a firm decree, by the will of the Father, that mine apostles, the Twelve which were with me in my ministry at Jerusalem, shall stand at my right hand at the day of my coming in a pillar of fire, being clothed with robes of righteousness, with crowns upon their heads, in glory even as I am, to judge the whole house of Israel, even as many as have loved me and kept my commandments, and none else. Bruce R. McConkie
With the return of our Lord in the clouds of heaven in all the glory of his Father’s kingdom, to usher in the millennial era of peace, will come the first great formal day of judgment. At that day shall be gathered before him all the nations of the living, and he shall separate the sheep from the goats, rewarding the righteous with an inheritance in his Father’s kingdom and cursing the wicked with everlasting punishment. (Matt. 25:31-46.) At that day the Twelve who were with the Lord in Jerusalem shall be in glory, even as he, and shall judge the righteous hosts of “the whole house of Israel.” (D. & C. 29:9-13.) And beginning at that day, the worthy saints, having been resurrected with celestial bodies, shall live and reign on earth a thousand years. (Rev. 20:4.) [Mormon Doctrine, p.494]
One of the grandest expressions in all literature is the sweet yet awesome account Jesus gives of himself, seated on his glorious throne, in the coming day of judgment. He says: “When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him” — it is the day of his glorious return attended by legions of exalted beings from ages past — “then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory.” The judgment is set and the books are opened, as it were. “And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats: And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.” (Matt. 25:31-33.) The standard by which the assembled hosts will then be judged is whether they have lived Christian lives; whether they have ministered to the needs of their fellowmen; whether they have fed the hungry, clothed the naked, and visited the sick and imprisoned. It will be whether they have lived the laws revealed by him who is the Judge. (The Millennial Messiah, pp.519-520) First (Celestial) Resurrection At Beginning of Millennium
Revelation 20
4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and [I saw] the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received [his] mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
5 But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This [is] the first resurrection. D&C 29
13 For a trump shall sound both long and loud, even as upon Mount Sinai, and all the earth shall quake, and they shall come forth–yea, even the dead which died in me, to receive a crown of righteousness, and to be clothed upon, even as I am, to be with me, that we may be one. D&C 45
44 And then they shall look for me, and, behold, I will come; and they shall see me in the clouds of heaven, clothed with power and great glory; with all the holy angels; and he that watches not for me shall be cut off.
45 But before the arm of the Lord shall fall, an angel shall sound his trump, and the saints that have slept shall come forth to meet me in the cloud.
46 Wherefore, if ye have slept in peace blessed are you; for as you now behold me and know that I am, even so shall ye come unto me and your souls shall live, and your redemption shall be perfected; and the saints shall come forth from the four quarters of the earth. D&C 88
96 And the saints that are upon the earth, who are alive, shall be quickened and be caught up to meet him.
97 And they who have slept in their graves shall come forth, for their graves shall be opened; and they also shall be caught up to meet him in the midst of the pillar of heaven–
98 They are Christ’s, the first fruits, they who shall descend with him first, and they who are on the earth and in their graves, who are first caught up to meet him; and all this by the voice of the sounding of the trump of the angel of God. James E. Talmage
Such are some of the glories to attend the resurrection of the just. And the company of the righteous will include all who have lived faithfully according to the laws of God as made known to them; children who have died in their innocence; and even the just among the heathen nations who have lived in comparative darkness while groping for light, and who have died in ignorance. This doctrine is made plain by modern revelation: “And then shall the heathen nations be redeemed, and they that knew no law shall have part in the first resurrection.” The Millennium then is to be inaugurated by a glorious deliverance of the just from the power of death; and of this company of the redeemed it is written: “Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.” (Articles of Faith, pp.389-390) Joseph Fielding Smith
While there was a general resurrection of the righteous at the time Christ arose from the dead, it is customary for us to speak of the resurrection of the righteous at the Second Coming of Christ as the first resurrection. It is the first to us, for we have little thought or concern over that which is past. The Lord has promised that at the time of his Second Advent the graves will be opened, and the just shall come forth to reign with him on the earth for a thousand years. (Doctrines of Salvation, 2:295) Bruce R. McConkie
Many persons have already come forth from the grave in their resurrected and glorified bodies. Righteous saints who lived from the day of Adam to the day of Christ were with him in his resurrection. (Matt. 27:52-53; D. & C. 133:54-55; Hela. 14:25.) To us, however, the first resurrection, the resurrection of the just, will come with the return of our Lord and the commencement of his millennial reign.
“Yea, and blessed are the dead that die in the Lord, from henceforth, when he Lord shall come, and old things shall pass away, and all things become new, they shall rise from the dead and shall not die after and shall receive an inheritance before the Lord, in the holy city.” (D. & C. 63:49.) [Mormon Doctrine, p.493] Joseph Smith to Stand at Head of The Resurrection of the Last Dispensation Brigham Young
In the Millennium, when the Kingdom of God is established on the earth in power, glory and perfection, and the reign of wickedness that has so long prevailed is subdued, the Saints of God will have the privilege of building their temples, and of entering into them, becoming, as it were, pillars in the temples of God, and they will officiate for their dead. Then we will see our friends come up, and perhaps some that we have been acquainted with here. If we ask who will stand at the head of the resurrection in this last dispensation, the answer is – Joseph Smith, Junior, the Prophet of God. He is the man who will be resurrected and receive the keys of the resurrection, and he will seal this authority upon others, and they will hunt up their friends and resurrect them when they shall have been officiated for, and bring them up. And we will have revelations to know our forefathers clear back to Father Adam and Mother Eve, and we will enter into the temples of God and officiate for them. Then man will be sealed to man until the chain is made perfect back to Adam, so that there will be a perfect chain of Priesthood from Adam to the winding-up scene. (Discourses of Brigham Young, p.116) Resurrection of Terrestrial Bodies
D&C 88
99 And after this another angel shall sound, which is the second trump; and then cometh the redemption of those who are Christ’s at his coming; who have received their part in that prison which is prepared for them, that they might receive the gospel, and be judged according to men in the flesh. Joseph Fielding Smith
Following this great event [the resurrection of the Celestial], and after the Lord and the righteous who are caught up to meet him have descended upon the earth, there will come to pass another resurrection. This may be considered as a part of the first, although it comes later. In this resurrection will come forth those of the terrestrial order, who were not worthy to be caught up to meet him, but who are worthy to come forth to enjoy the millennial reign. (Doctrines of Salvation, 2:296) Bruce R. McConkie
At his coming, the Lord will sit in judgment on all nations, dividing the sheep from the goats, sending some to everlasting punishment and others to life eternal. (Matt. 25:31-46.) At his coming, also, those who have earned the right to come forth in the resurrection of the just will rise from their graves and inherit their places in a celestial or a terrestrial kingdom. (D. & C. 88:95-99.) [Mormon Doctrine, p.697] Wicked Remain in Spirit Prison During Millennium
Joseph Fielding Smith
However, if we have not kept the commandments of the Lord, if we have been unjust, and lovers of sin and our hearts have been set upon evil, then we shall die and shall not live again until the thousand years are ended. It is decreed that the unrighteous shall have to spend their time during this thousand years in the prison house prepared for them where they can repent and cleanse themselves through the things which they shall suffer.
John, in his great vision, saw the rest of the dead and they lived not again until the thousand years were ended. That is a calamity — it is a dreadful thing to contemplate, for there shall be a great host of men swept off the face of the earth because of their wickedness. The bodies of these will have to remain in the grave and their spirits in the spirit house to be taught repentance and faith in God while the thousand years of peace are progressing upon the earth.
I wish, my good brethren and sisters, that we would read these revelations, that we would make ourselves more familiar with that which they contain, for there shall be a judgment when Christ comes. We are informed that the books shall be opened, the dead shall be judged out of the things which are written in the books and among the books will be the book of life. We shall see its pages; we shall see ourselves just as we are. And we are to understand with a righteous understanding that the judgments which are meted out to us are just and true, whether we come into the kingdom of God, to receive these glorious blessings, or whether we are banished into the realm of the dead. (Doctrines of Salvation, 3:59-60) Renewal of the Earth — The Paradisiacal Earth
Articles of Faith 10
We believe in the literal gathering of Israel and in the restoration of the Ten Tribes; that Zion (the New Jerusalem) will be built upon the American continent; that Christ will reign personally upon the earth; and, that the earth will be renewed and receive its paradisiacal glory. Ezekiel 36:35
And they shall say, This land that was desolate is become like the garden of Eden; and the waste and desolate and ruined cities are become fenced, and are inhabited. Revelation 21:1
And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. Ether 13:9
And there shall be a new heaven and a new earth; and they shall be like unto the old save the old have passed away, and all things have become new. D&C 29:23-25
And the end shall come, and the heaven and the earth shall be consumed and pass away, and there shall be a new heaven and a new earth.
For all old things shall pass away, and all things shall become new, even the heaven and the earth, and all the fulness thereof, both men and beasts, the fowls of the air, and the fishes of the sea;
And not one hair, neither mote, shall be lost, for it is the workmanship of mine hand. John Taylor
This habitation [i.e., the earth during the Millennium] may be compared to Paradise, from whence man, in the beginning, was driven.When Adam was driven from the Garden, an angel was placed with a flaming sword to guard the way of the Tree of Life, lest man should eat of it, and become immortal in his degenerate state, and thus be incapable of obtaining that exaltation, which he would be capable of enjoying through the redemption of Jesus Christ, and the power of the resurrection, with his renewed and glorified body. Having tasted of the nature of the fall, and having grappled with sin and misery, knowing, like the gods, both good and evil; having like Jesus overcome the evil, and through the power of atonement, having conquered death, hell, and the grave, he regains that Paradise, from which he was banished, not in the capacity of ignorant man, unacquainted with evil, but like unto a god. He can now stretch forth, and partake of the Tree of Life, and eat of its fruits, and live and flourish eternally in possession of that immortality which Jesus long ago promised to the faithful: “To him that overcomes, will I grant to sit with me in my throne; and eat of the Tree of Life which is in the midst of the Paradise of God.” (The Government of God, Ch.12) Joseph Fielding Smith
Now in time past this earth had a paradisiacal glory, and then came the fall, bringing a change, and that change has been upon the earth in the neighborhood of 6,000 years.
What is meant by the restoration of the earth? This earth is to be renewed and brought back to the condition in which it was before it was cursed through the fall of Adam. When Adam passed out of the Garden of Eden, then the earth became a telestial world, and it is of that order today. I do not mean a telestial glory such as will be found in telestial worlds after their resurrection, but a telestial condition which has been from the days of Adam until now and will continue until Christ comes. (Doctrines of Salvation, 1:85) Ezra Taft Benson
The Resurrection is a reality. Activity to help promote our Father’s work is going forward among the disembodied spirits who have left this life. It will continue to go forward until every one of God’s children has had an opportunity to receive the gospel, to hear it and to have it explained to them. And then at the end of that millennial period we will all stand judgment. There is a partial judgment before, but the final judgment will be at the end. Then this earth will undergo a change and receive its paradisiacal glory and will be made a fit abode for the celestial beings. Those who live to inherit the celestial kingdom will live on this earth eternally. This is made very clear in the scriptures. (Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson, p.38) Bruce R. McConkie
We are approaching the day when there will be a new heaven and a new earth. By earth we mean this planet, this orb, this abiding place for mortal men; we mean the lands and the seas, the ground whereon we walk, and the pleasant valleys and towering mountains; we mean the great rivers and small streams, the Edenic gardens and the desert waste lands; we mean all of the places where the soles of our feet have trod. By heaven we mean the atmospheric heavens, the layers of air and moisture that surround the earth, the clouds of heaven and the free-moving breezes; we mean the life-giving breath that is breathed into the nostrils of living creatures; we mean the blue skies and the rainbow-hued panoramas of color that attend the rising and setting sun. And when we say the heavens and the earth shall be made new, we have in mind changes so dramatic and alterations of such giant proportion that things as they are now will scarcely be remembered or brought to mind. . . .
“We believe” – it is an official, a formal, a canonized pronouncement – “that the earth will be renewed and receive its paradisiacal glory.” (A of F 10.) All things when first created – the earth and all forms of life — were paradisiacal in nature and were pronounced by their Creator as “very good.” (Moses 2:31.) There was no sin, no sorrow, and no death in that day. And the Great Creator blessed the earth and all things on its face. Then came the fall, and the earth which God had blessed was cursed. “Cursed shall be the ground for thy sake,” he said to Adam; “in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life. Thorns also, and thistles shall it bring forth to thee, and thou shalt eat the herb of the field.” (Moses 4:23-24.) To Cain the Lord said: “When thou tillest the ground it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength.” (Moses 5:37.) And later, with reference to all men, the divine account says: “And God cursed the earth with a sore curse, and was angry with the wicked, with all the sons of men whom he had made.” (Moses 5:56.) That curse now prevails; it is in full operation, and it will continue so to be until the millennial day. Then the earth and all things that remain after the day of burning will return to a paradisiacal state, a state in which all things will be blessed and prospered as they were in the primeval day. A thing cannot be renewed unless it was new in the first instance. The earth was paradisiacal once, and it will become so again. (The Millennial Messiah, pp.613-616) Earth in Terrestrial Condition During Millennium
Neal A. Maxwell
We understand, of course, that there will be many nonmembers of the Church living during the Millennium, but there will be a clear willingness by all the good and decent men and women of all the races, creeds, and cultures to abide by a terrestrial law. (Sermons Not Spoken, p.81) Joseph Fielding Smith
When our Savior comes, the earth will be changed to a terrestrial condition and will then be made the fit abode for terrestrial beings, and this condition will last until after the close of the millennium when the earth will die and be raised again in a resurrection to receive its glory as a celestial body, which is its final state. We are living in the great day of restoration. The Lord has declared that all things are to be restored to their primitive condition. Our Tenth Article of Faith says, “We believe . . . that Christ will reign personally upon the earth; and, that the earth will be renewed and receive its paradisiacal glory.” Too many have the idea that this has reference to the celestialized earth, but this is not the case. It refers to the restored earth as it will be when Christ comes to reign. This is taught in Isaiah 65:17-25, and in the Doctrine and Covenants, section 101:23-31. (Doctrines of Salvation, 1:85)
Now in time past this earth had a paradisiacal glory, and then came the fall, bringing a change, and that change has been upon the earth in the neighborhood of 6,000 years. What is meant by the restoration of the earth? This earth is to be renewed and brought back to the condition in which it was before it was cursed through the fall of Adam. When Adam passed out of the Garden of Eden, then the earth became a telestial world, and it is of that order today. I do not mean a telestial glory such as will be found in telestial worlds after their resurrection, but a telestial condition which has been from the days of Adam until now and will continue until Christ comes. (Doctrines of Salvation, 1:85) The Holy Ghost in the Millennium
Joseph Fielding Smith
This does not mean that when we come into the presence of God after the resurrection or in the millennium, we will not have the gift of the Holy Ghost, although Christ is there. When things come to that perfect state, and especially after the resurrection, I think we will be in the presence of all three – Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. (Doctrines of Salvation, 1:46) Satan Bound During the Millennium
Revelation 20
1 And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.
2 And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,
3 And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season. 1 Nephi 22
26 And because of the righteousness of his people, Satan has no power; wherefore, he cannot be loosed for the space of many years; for he hath no power over the hearts of the people, for they dwell in righteousness, and the Holy One of Israel reigneth. 2 Nephi 30
18 Wherefore, all things which have been revealed unto the children of men shall at that day be revealed; and Satan shall have power over the hearts of the children of men no more, for a long time. D&C 43
30 For the great Millennium, of which I have spoken by the mouth of my servants, shall come.
31 For Satan shall be bound, and when he is loosed again he shall only reign for a little season, and then cometh the end of the earth. Brigham Young
The Millennium consists in this – every heart in the Church and Kingdom of God being united in one; the Kingdom increasing to the overcoming of everything opposed to the economy of heaven, and Satan being bound, and having a seal set upon him. All things else will be as they are now, we shall eat, drink, and wear clothing. (Discourses of Brigham Young, p.115) How Satan is Bound
Joseph B. Wirthlin
A third period of perfect peace will come during the Millennium. “Satan shall be bound, that he shall have no place in the hearts of the children of men.” (D&C 45:55.) As they live the gospel of Jesus Christ, the righteousness of the people will banish Satan from their midst. We look forward to that day of universal peace and justice, when Christ will reign upon the earth. (“Peace Within,” Ensign, May 1991, p. 38) George Q. Cannon
We talk about Satan being bound. Satan will be bound by the power of God; but he will be bound also by the determination of the people of God not to listen to him, not to be governed by him. The Lord will not bind him and take his power from the earth while there are men and women willing to be governed by him. That is contrary to the plan of salvation. To deprive men of their agency is contrary to the purposes of our God.
There was a time on this continent, of which we have an account, when the people were so righteous that Satan did not have power among them. Nearly four generations passed away in righteousness. They lived in purity and died without sin. That was through their refusal to yield to Satan. It is not recorded that Satan had no power in other parts of the earth during that period. According to all history that we have in our possession Satan had the same power over men who were willing to listen to him. But in this land he did not have power, and he was literally bound. I believe that this will be the case in the Millennium. (Conference Report, Oct. 6, 1897, p. 52; also Gospel Truth, 1:86)
Satan only gains power over man through man’s exercise of his own agency; and when Satan shall be bound, as the Lord says he will be for a thousand years, one of the great powers that will help bring this to pass will be man’s agency. The Lord has never forced men against their will to obey Him. He never will do so. If Satan, therefore, has power with man, it is because man yields to his influence.
Children can resist Satan. They can obey the Lord. They can be righteous. They can take a course which will give them power over Satan. And every child which takes this course helps bring to pass the fulfillment of the words of the Lord concerning the binding of Satan. (Gospel Truth, 1:86)
My view of the Gospel is that when it is obeyed by mankind the power of the devil will cease. That is my view respecting a part of the power that will be brought to bear to bind Satan. Satan will be bound because he will not have power over the hearts of the children of men. Why? One reason will be because they will have obeyed the more perfect law which will have relieved them from his power….
In the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ as God has revealed it unto us there are laws so perfect that when this people called Latter-day Saints shall obey them they will be so far lifted up above the power of Satan that he will have but little power to tempt them. We never shall be emancipated from the power of Satan until we do obey these laws of God. An obedience thereto will bring emancipation to us and to every human being on the face of the earth, and it is upon no other principle that emancipation can be brought.
It will not be as many suppose by our being withdrawn without volition on our part from the influences of Satan; but it will be by our obedience to the laws of God, by our conforming to the requirements which He makes of us, by our putting into practice all those higher laws which God has revealed and which He designs we shall practice. Any soul that is waiting for some outward deliverance, waiting for some time to come when by some extraneous means and independent of our action and the exercise of our agency deliverance will be brought, will wait in vain, I am afraid.
Not that I would convey the idea that God is not going to help us, that God is not going to do it by His power; I would not convey any such idea because I know and you know that without God’s help all our efforts are powerless, and it is vain to seek to do anything in and of ourselves; we cannot do it. Human nature is too fallible to do anything of this kind; but we must exercise the powers God has given to us by obeying His law, by conforming to His requirements.
In this way we will be emancipated through the blessing and aid of God upon us, and in this way the earth will be redeemed from the power of Satan. The more people obey the laws of God as God has revealed them and as they are embodied in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the nearer they approach unto God, the more they become like Him, the more power they get over themselves and over the adversary. (Gospel Truth, 1:86-88) Probationary Nature of the Earth Continues During the Millennium Bruce R. McConkie
How, then, will Satan be bound during the Millennium? It will be by the righteousness of the people. Thus Nephi says: “The time cometh speedily that Satan shall have no more power over the hearts of the children of men; for the day soon cometh that all the proud and they who do wickedly shall be as stubble; and the day cometh that they must be burned.” The destruction of the wicked sets the stage for millennial righteousness. When the wicked are burned, those who are left will not be susceptible to the promptings from beneath. “And the time cometh speedily that the righteous must be led up as calves of the stall, and the Holy One of Israel must reign in dominion, and might, and power, and great glory.” During the Millennium, when the Lord reigns, children will grow up in an environment of righteousness. No longer will the calves of Abraham’s herds and the lambs of Jacob’s flocks be lost in the deserts of sin; no longer will they forage for food by the wayside and drink water from stagnant pools; no longer will they be pulled down by the evils and designs of conspiring men. In the millennial day, in the household of faith, children will be brought up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, as calves in the stall, as lambs in the sheepcote.
And in that day, the Holy One of Israel “gathereth his children from the four quarters of the earth; and he numbereth his sheep, and they know him; and there shall be one fold and one shepherd; and he shall feed his sheep, and in him they shall find pasture.” It is, then, in this blessed millennial setting that the great proclamation about the binding of Satan is made. “And because of the righteousness of his people, Satan has no power; wherefore, he cannot be loosed for the space of many years; for he hath no power over the hearts of the people, for they dwell in righteousness, and the Holy One of Israel reigneth.” (1 Ne. 22:15, 24-26.) Thus Satan is bound because he “shall have power over the hearts of the children of men no more, for a long time.” (2 Ne. 30:18.) Thus the probationary nature of man’s second estate is preserved even during the Millennium. It is not that men cannot sin, for the power is in them to do so – they have their agency — but it is that they do not sin because Satan is subject to them, and they are not enticed by his evil whisperings. (The Millennial Messiah, pp.668-669) Resurrected Saints Will Visit But Will Probably Not Dwell Upon Earth Joseph Smith
While in conversation at Judge Adams’ during the evening, I said, Christ and the resurrected Saints will reign over the earth during the thousand years. They will not probably dwell upon the earth, but will visit it when they please, or when it is necessary to govern it. There will be wicked men on the earth during the thousand years. The heathen nations who will not come up to worship will be visited with the judgments of God, and must eventually be destroyed from the earth. (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p.268) Millennial Conditions
George Q. Cannon
Now, how will it be on this earth when Christ reigns?…When the Millennium dawns, Satan bound and the elements of the earth at our disposal and under our control, there will be no hunger, no thirst, no nakedness, no vagrants, no houseless people; all will have that which is necessary to supply their physical wants. But there will be no waste. One man will not be allowed to lord it over another and take possession of more than he needs; but all will have a fulness, Satan will be bound. He will not have power to inflict the misery he has done and is doing.
But how has Satan obtained such power? By men obeying him instead of God. That is the root of all the misery that comes upon mankind. When Satan is bound, this will be stopped. He will not be able, for a thousand years at least, to inflict upon mankind the misery and the sorrow that they have suffered through their obedience to him.
After the thousand years he will regain some of his present power. It will be as it was among the Nephites…. Men will arise who will object to working for the benefit of others; class distinctions will once more make themselves apparent; Satan will regain his power and will maintain it until the great battle shall take place which is spoken of in the scriptures.
We have a good prospect before us. We are at the beginning, not the end, of the thousand years of peace. If we are faithful, we are to be the happy pioneers of this new order of things that is to be established upon the earth. Our children, if they are faithful, will live generation after generation in this glorious condition.
We shall build temples, and we shall go forth in peace and in righteousness, doing the works of redemption that have to be done for those that have died in ignorance of the Gospel and without receiving these saving ordinances. We shall find plenty of employment during the thousand years in doing these works, and the earth will be cleansed from sin There will be no war, for swords will be beaten into plowshares, and spears into pruning hooks, and there shall be peace from one end of the earth to the other. (Gospel Truth, 1:89-90) Peace Reigns During the Millennium
Isaiah 2:4
And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. Brigham Young
According to my definition of the word, there is not a strictly and fully civilized community now upon the earth. Is there murder by wholesale to be found in a strictly civilized community? Will a community of civilized nations rise up one against another, nation against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, using against each other every destructive invention that can be brought to bear in their wars? When will they be civilized? When the Lord shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people; and they shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruninghooks; when nations shall not lift up sword against nation, neither learn war any more. When the world is in a state of true civilization, man will have ceased to contend against his fellow-man, either as individuals, parties, communities, sects, or nations. This state of civilization will be brought about by the holy Priesthood of the Son of God; and men, with full purpose of heart, will seeks unto him who is pure and holy, even our great Creator — our Father and God; and he will give them a law that is pure — a government and plan of society possessed by holy beings in heaven. Then there will be no more war, no more bloodshed, no more evil-speaking and ill-doing; but all will be contented to follow in the path of truth, which alone is calculated to exalt and dignify the whole man, mentally and physically, in all his operations, labors, and purposes. Short of this, mankind cannot be said to be truly civilized. (Discourses of Brigham Young, p.117) Some Things Will Be the Same as They are Now
Brigham Young
The Millennium consists in this — every heart in the Church and Kingdom of God being united in one; the Kingdom increasing to the overcoming of everything opposed to the economy of heaven, and Satan being bound, and having a seal set upon him. All things else will be as they are now, we shall eat, drink, and wear clothing. (Discourses of Brigham Young, p. 115) Mortal Life Will Continue But With A Difference
D&C 63:50-51
And he that liveth when the Lord shall come, and hath kept the faith, blessed is he; nevertheless, it is appointed to him to die at the age of man. Wherefore, children shall grow up until they become old; old men shall die; but they shall not sleep in the dust, but they shall be changed in the twinkling of an eye. D&C 45:57-58
For they that are wise and have received the truth, and have taken the Holy Spirit for their guide, and have not been deceived — verily I say unto you, they shall not be hewn down and cast into the fire, but shall abide the day. And the earth shall be given unto them for an inheritance; and they shall multiply and wax strong, and their children shall grow up without sin unto salvation. Isaiah 65:18-23
“Be ye glad and rejoice for ever in that which I create: for, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy. And I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in my people: and the voice of weeping shall be no more heard in her, nor the voice of crying. . . .
“And they shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards and eat the fruit of them. They shall not build, and another inhabit; they shall not plant, and another eat: for as the days of a tree are the days of my people, and mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands. They shall not labour in vain, nor bring forth for trouble; for they are the seed of the blessed of the Lord, and their offspring with them.” Bruce R. McConkie
Great and marvelous though the changes will be incident to life during the millennial era, yet mortality as such will continue. Children will be born, grow up, marry, advance to old age, and pass through the equivalent of death. Crops will be planted, harvested, and eaten; industries will be expanded, cities built, and education fostered; men will continue to care for their own needs, handle their own affairs, and enjoy the full endowment of free agency. Speaking a pure language (Zeph. 3:9), dwelling in peace, living without disease, and progressing as the Holy Spirit will guide, the advancement and perfection of society during the millennium will exceed anything men have supposed or expected.
Physical bodies of those living on earth during the millennium will not be subject to the same ills that attend us in our present sphere of existence. Men in that day will still be mortal; children will be born to them; spirits coming into the physical or natural bodies born in that day will then go through their mortal probation as we are now going through ours. Those born during the millennium will not be immortal, that is, their bodies and spirits will not be inseparably connected as is the case with resurrected beings. But their bodies will be changed from conditions as they now exist so that disease cannot attack them, and death as we know it cannot intervene to cause a separation of body and spirit. (Mormon Doctrine, pp.496-497) What Form Will Man Be Found in During Millennium?
D&C 101
29 And there shall be no sorrow because there is no death.
30 In that day an infant shall not die until he is old; and his life shall be as the age of a tree;
31 And when he dies he shall not sleep, that is to say in the earth, but shall be changed in the twinkling of an eye, and shall be caught up, and his rest shall be glorious. Bruce R. McConkie
During the Millennium there will, of course, be two kinds of people on earth. There will be those who are mortal, and those who are immortal. There will be those who have been changed or quickened or transfigured or translated (words fail us to describe their state), and those who have gone through a second change, in the twinkling of an eye, so as to become eternal in nature. There will be those who are on probation, for whom earth life is a probationary estate, and who are thus working out their own salvation, and those who have already overcome the world and have entered into a fulness of eternal joy. There will be those who will yet die in the sense of being changed from their quickened state to a state of immortality, and those who, having previously died, are then living in a resurrected state. There will be those who are subject to the kings and priests who rule forever in the house of Israel, and those who, as kings and priests, exercise power and dominion in the everlasting kingdom of Him whose we are. There will be those who, as mortals, provide bodies for the spirit children of the Father, for the spirits whose right it is to come to earth and gain houses for their eternal spirits, and those who, as immortals (Abraham is one), are already begetting spirit children of their own. There will be those for whom the fulness of eternal glory is ahead, and those who, again like Abraham, have already entered into their exaltation and sit upon their thrones and are not angels but are gods forever and ever. (The Millennial Messiah, pp.644-645)
During the Millennium all men will be translated, as it were; in that day “there shall be no sorrow because there is no death. In that day an infant shall not die until he is old; and his life shall be as the age of a tree; And when he dies he shall not sleep, that is to say in the earth, but shall be changed in the twinkling of an eye, and shall be caught up, and his rest shall be glorious.” (D&C 101:29-31.) [The Mortal Messiah, 4:391]
This old earth is also destined to die and to be resurrected in the day of quickening. During the Millennium it will, in effect, be in a translated state, which, as pertaining to men, is the state Enoch and his people and some others attained. Thus, the earth was first a spirit planet and then a terrestrial globe. It is now a telestial earth; during the Millennium it will become terrestrial again; and finally, it will become a celestial earth. With an awareness of all this, we are ready to consider the new heaven and new earth that is soon to be. (The Millennial Messiah, pp.613-614) Advance Social Development
Bruce R. McConkie
During the millennium the most advanced social development ever known on earth will take place; civilization will then reach its zenith as far as mortal beings are concerned. (Mormon Doctrine, p.145 ) Enmity of Man and Animal Shall Cease
D&C 101
26 And in that day the enmity of man, and the enmity of beasts, yea, the enmity of all flesh, shall cease from before my face. Bruce R. McConkie
All things includes all things, and although the scriptures do not speak with particularity about the millennial status of plants and herbs and trees and the vegetable kingdom, we do know that they will go back to that state of existence which was theirs in the Edenic day. But the revealed word does have somewhat to say about the animal kingdom. “In that day,” for one thing, “the enmity of man, and the enmity of beasts, yea, the enmity of all flesh, shall cease from before my face,” the Lord says. (D&C 101:26.) There will be no wild animals. The coyote will not stalk the deer, and the wolf will not kill the sheep, and all forms of life will be the friends and servants of men.
Isaiah gives us these poetically phrased particulars about animal life during the Millennium. “The wolf and the lamb shall feed together,” he says, “and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock.” Implicit in this pronouncement is the fact that man and all forms of life will be vegetarians in the coming day; the eating of meat will cease, because, for one thing, death as we know it ceases. There will be no shedding of blood, because man and beast are changed (quickened) and blood no longer flows in their veins. “And dust shall be the serpent’s meat,” meaning, as we suppose, that they shall no longer eat mice and vermin and animal life. “They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, saith the Lord.” (Isa. 65:25.) And further: “The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. And the suckling child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice den [adders’ den]. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain.” (Isa. 11:6-9.) (The Millennial Messiah, pp.657-658) The Kingdom of God Before and After the Second Coming
John Taylor
In making a brief summary of what we have said before in relation to the means to be employed for the establishment of the Kingdom of God, we find the following: –
1st – That it will be not only a spiritual kingdom, but a temporal and literal one also. 2nd – That if it is the Kingdom of Heaven, it must be revealed from the heavens. 3rd – That a standard is to be lifted up, by the Lord, to the nations.
4th – That an Angel is to come with the everlasting Gospel, which is to be proclaimed to every nation, kindred, people, and tongue; that it is to be the same as the ancient one, and that the same powers and blessings will attend it.
5th – That not only will the Ancient Gospel be preached, but there will accompany it a declaration of judgment to the nations.
6th – That there will be a literal Zion, or gathering of the Saints to Zion, as well as a gathering of the Jews to Jerusalem.
7th – That when this has taken place, the Spirit of God will be withdrawn from the nations, and they will war with and destroy each other.
8th – That judgments will also overtake them from the Lord; plague, pestilence, famine, etc.
9th – That the nations, having lost the Spirit of God, will assemble to fight against the Lord’s people, being full of the spirit of unrighteousness, and opposed to the rule and government of God.
10th – That when they do, the Lord will come and fight against them himself; overthrow their armies, assert his own right, rule the nations with a rod of iron, root the wicked out of the earth, and take possession of his own kingdom. I might here further state, that when the Lord does come to exercise judgment upon the ungodly, to make an end of sin, and bring in everlasting righteousness, he will establish his own laws, demand universal obedience, and cause wickedness and misuse to cease. He will issue his commands, and they must be obeyed; and if the nations of the earth observe not his laws, “they will have no rain.” And they will be taught by more forcible means than moral suasion, that they are dependant upon God; for the Lord will demand obedience, and the Scriptures say, time and again, that the wicked shall be rooted out of the land, and the righteous and the meek shall inherit the earth. The Lord, after trying man’s rule for thousands of years, now takes the reins of government into his own hands, and makes use of the only possible means of asserting his rights. For if the wicked never were cut off, the righteous never could rule; and if the Devil was still suffered to bear rule, God could not, at the same time; consequently after long delay, he whose right it is, takes possession of the kingdom; and the kingdom; and the greatness of the kingdom under the rule of the whole heavens, shall be given to the Saints of the Most High God; and the world will assume that position for which it was made. A King shall rule in righteousness, and Princes shall decree judgment. The knowledge of the Lord will spread, and extend under the auspices of this government. Guided by his counsels, and under his direction, all those purposes designed of Him, from the commencement, in relation to both living and dead, will be in a fair way for the accomplishment. (The Government of God, Ch.11) Jerusalem, New Jerusalem, and the Return of the City of Enoch Moses 7
61 And the day shall come that the earth shall rest, but before that day the heavens shall be darkened, and a veil of darkness shall cover the earth; and the heavens shall shake, and also the earth; and great tribulations shall be among the children of men, but my people will I preserve;
62 And righteousness will I send down out of heaven; and truth will I send forth out of the earth, to bear testimony of mine Only Begotten; his resurrection from the dead; yea, and also the resurrection of all men; and righteousness and truth will I cause to sweep the earth as with a flood, to gather out mine elect from the four quarters of the earth, unto a place which I shall prepare, an Holy City, that my people may gird up their loins, and be looking forth for the time of my coming; for there shall be my tabernacle, and it shall be called Zion, a New Jerusalem.
63 And the Lord said unto Enoch: Then shalt thou and all thy city meet them there, and we will receive them into our bosom, and they shall see us; and we will fall upon their necks, and they shall fall upon our necks, and we will kiss each other;
64 And there shall be mine abode, and it shall be Zion, which shall come forth out of all the creations which I have made; and for the space of a thousand years the earth shall rest. Ether 13
1 And now I, Moroni, proceed to finish my record concerning the destruction of the people of whom I have been writing.
2 For behold, they rejected all the words of Ether; for he truly told them of all things, from the beginning of man; and that after the waters had receded from off the face of this land it became a choice land above all other lands, a chosen land of the Lord; wherefore the Lord would have that all men should serve him who dwell upon the face thereof;
3 And that it was the place of the New Jerusalem, which should come down out of heaven, and the holy sanctuary of the Lord.
4 Behold, Ether saw the days of Christ, and he spake concerning a New Jerusalem upon this land.
5 And he spake also concerning the house of Israel, and the Jerusalem from whence Lehi should come–after it should be destroyed it should be built up again, a holy city unto the Lord; wherefore, it could not be a new Jerusalem for it had been in a time of old; but it should be built up again, and become a holy city of the Lord; and it should be built unto the house of Israel.
6 And that a New Jerusalem should be built upon this land, unto the remnant of the seed of Joseph, for which things there has been a type.
7 For as Joseph brought his father down into the land of Egypt, even so he died there; wherefore, the Lord brought a remnant of the seed of Joseph out of the land of Jerusalem, that he might be merciful unto the seed of Joseph that they should perish not, even as he was merciful unto the father of Joseph that he should perish not.
8 Wherefore, the remnant of the house of Joseph shall be built upon this land; and it shall be a land of their inheritance; and they shall build up a holy city unto the Lord, like unto the Jerusalem of old; and they shall no more be confounded, until the end come when the earth shall pass away.
9 And there shall be a new heaven and a new earth; and they shall be like unto the old save the old have passed away, and all things have become new.
10 And then cometh the New Jerusalem; and blessed are they who dwell therein, for it is they whose garments are white through the blood of the Lamb; and they are they who are numbered among the remnant of the seed of Joseph, who were of the house of Israel.
11 And then also cometh the Jerusalem of old; and the inhabitants thereof, blessed are they, for they have been washed in the blood of the Lamb; and they are they who were scattered and gathered in from the four quarters of the earth, and from the north countries, and are partakers of the fulfilling of the covenant which God made with their father, Abraham.
12 And when these things come, bringeth to pass the scripture which saith, there are they who were first, who shall be last; and there are they who were last, who shall be first. Joseph Smith
First, I shall begin by quoting from the prophecy of Enoch, speaking of the last days: “Righteousness will I send down out of heaven, and truth will I send forth out of the earth, to bear testimony of mine Only Begotten, His resurrection from the dead (this resurrection I understand to be the corporeal body); yea, and also the resurrection of all men; righteousness and truth will I cause to sweep the earth as with a flood, to gather out mine own elect from the four quarters of the earth, unto a place which I shall prepare, a Holy City, that my people may gird up their loins, and be looking forth for the time of my coming, for there shall be my tabernacle, and it shall be called Zion a New Jerusalem.” (Moses 7:62, 1902 edition.)
Now I understand by this quotation, that God clearly manifested to Enoch the redemption which He prepared, by offering the Messiah as a Lamb slain from before the foundation of the world; and by virtue of the same, the glorious resurrection of the Savior, and the resurrection of all the human family, even a resurrection of their corporeal bodies, is brought to pass; and also righteousness and truth are to sweep the earth as with a flood. And now, I ask, how righteousness and truth are going to sweep the earth as with a flood? I will answer. Men and angels are to be co-workers in bringing to pass this great work, and Zion is to be prepared, even a new Jerusalem, for the elect that are to be gathered from the four quarters of the earth, and to be established an holy city, for the tabernacle of the Lord shall be with them.
Now Enoch was in good company in his views upon this subject: “And I heard a great voice out of heaven, saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people and God Himself shall be with them, and be their God” 21:3).
I discover by this quotation, that John upon the isle of Patmos, saw the same things concerning the last days, which Enoch saw. But before the tabernacle can be with men, the elect must be gathered from the four quarters of the earth. And to show further upon this subject of the gathering, Moses, after having pronounced the blessing and cursing upon the children of Israel, for their obedience or disobedience, says thus:
“And it shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and the curse which I have set before thee, and thou shalt call them to mind, among all the nations whither the Lord thy God hath driven thee, and shalt return unto the Lord thy God, and shalt obey His voice, according to all that I command thee, this day, thou and thy children, with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that then the Lord thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the nations whither the Lord thy God hath scattered thee. If any of thine be driven out unto the outmost parts of heaven, from thence will the Lord thy God gather thee, and from thence will He fetch thee (Deut. 30:1-4). . . .
And again (see Book of Mormon, 3 Nephi 20:22, current edition, which says), “Behold this people will I establish in this land, unto the fulfilling of the covenant which I made with your father Jacob, and it shall be a New Jerusalem.” Now we learn from the Book of Mormon the very identical continent and spot of land upon which the New Jerusalem is to stand, and it must be caught up according to the vision of John upon the isle of Patmos.
Now many will feel disposed to say, that this New Jerusalem spoken of, is the Jerusalem that was built by the Jews on the eastern continent. But you will see, from Revelation 21:2, there was a New Jerusalem coming down from God out of heaven, adorned as a bride for her husband; that after this, the Revelator was caught away in the Spirit, to a great and high mountain, and saw the great and holy city descending out of heaven from God. Now there are two cites spoken of here. As everything cannot be had in so narrow a compass as a letter, I shall say with brevity, that there is a New Jerusalem to be established on this continent, and also Jerusalem shall be rebuilt on the eastern continent (see Book of Mormon, Ether 13:1-12). “Behold, Ether saw the days of Christ, and he spake also concerning the house of Israel, and the Jerusalem from whence Lehi should come; after it should be destroyed, it should be built up again, a holy city unto the Lord, wherefore it could not be a New Jerusalem, for it had been in a time of old.” This may suffice, upon the subject of gathering, until my next. (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, pp.84-86) Orson F. Whitney
And what of other gospel dispensations? What of Enoch, the seventh from Adam in the patriarchal succession? What of him and his period? Was it not prophetic of our day–symbolical of the building up of Zion in this dispensation? What is said of Enoch and his city, sanctified by the Law of Consecration, without which there can be no Zion, and consequently no coming of the Christ? Moses says: “And the Lord called his people Zion, because they were of one heart and one mind, and dwelt in righteousness, and there was no poor among them.” Such a condition will be again, and the Lord will come again, as he has promised:
“As I live, even so will I come in the last days, in the days of wickedness and vengeance. And righteousness will I send down out of heaven, and truth will I send forth out of the earth, to bear testimony of mine Only Begotten; and righteousness and truth will I cause to sweep the earth as with a flood, to gather out mine elect from the four quarters of the earth, unto a place which I shall prepare, an Holy City, that my people may gird up their loins, and be looking forth for the time of my coming; for there shall be my tabernacle, and it shall be called Zion, a New Jerusalem.
“And the Lord said unto Enoch: Then shalt thou and all thy city meet them there, and we will receive them into our bosom, and they shall see us; and we will fall upon their necks, and they shall fall upon our necks, and we will kiss each other. And there shall be mine abode, and it shall be Zion, which shall come forth out of all the creations which I have made; and for the space of a thousand years the earth shall rest.” (Pearl of Great Price, Moses 7:60-64.)
In other words, the Zion of Enoch foreshadowed the Zion of the Last Days, with which it is destined to blend. And not only Enoch, but all the patriarchs, prophets, and apostles who have lived on Earth since Time began, will come with Christ “when the Lord brings again Zion.” (Conference Report, April 1927, pp. 99-100) Joseph Fielding Smith
When all this comes to pass, surely the earth will be in commotion as it readjusts itself to assume its paradisiacal glory. All this must come to pass, because it is a part of the great restoration, and all things are to be restored, both in heaven and in earth in this dispensation. Among these changes the City of Enoch with its inhabitants is to return and join in the grand celebration at the coming of Christ to reign, and all the prophets of old and the righteous saints shall be gathered in the grand assembly of rejoicing. (The Way to Perfection, p.310) God Will Take Over the Government of Men
John Taylor
Nothing but the Spirit of God can enlighten man’s minds. Standing on this platform, we view all things of a political and religious nature associated with the earth we are living on as being very uncertain, intangible, and unphilosophical. We expect to see the nations waste, crumble, and decay. We expect to see a universal chaos of religious and political sentiment, and an uncertainty much more serious than anything that exists at the present time. We look forward to the time, and try to help it on, when God will assert his own right with regard to the government of the earth; when, as in religious matters so in political matters, he will enlighten the minds of those that bear rule, he will teach the kings wisdom and instruct the senators by the Spirit of eternal truth; when to him “every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is the Christ.” Then “the earth shall, be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea. (Isaiah 11:9.) Then shall the mists of darkness be swept away by the light of eternal truth. Then will the intelligence of heaven beam forth on the human mind, and by it they will comprehend everything that is great, and good, and glorious. (The Gospel Kingdom, p.348) The Kingdom of God Reigns During the Millennium
Daniel 7:27
And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him. D&C 103:7
And by hearkening to observe all the words which I, the Lord their God, shall speak unto them, they shall never cease to prevail until the kingdoms of the world are subdued under my feet, and the earth is given unto the saints, to possess it forever and ever. Matthew 5:5
Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
Matthew 6:9-10
After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. John Taylor
What is the kingdom of God? It is God’s government upon the earth and in heaven. What is his priesthood? It is the rule, authority, administration, if you please, of the government of God on the earth or in the heavens; for the same priesthood that exists upon the earth exists in the heavens, and that priesthood holds the keys of the mysteries of the revelations of God; and the legitimate head of that priesthood, who has communion with God, is the prophet, seer, and revelator to his church and people on the earth.
When the will of God is done on earth as it is in heaven, that priesthood will be the only legitimate ruling power under the whole heavens; for every other power and influence will be subject to it. When the millennium . . . is introduced, all potentates, powers, and authorities — every man, woman, and child will be in subjection to the kingdom of God; they will be under the power and dominion of the priesthood of God: then the will of God will be done on the earth as it is done in heaven. (The Gospel Kingdom, p.206-207) Joseph Fielding Smith
When our Savior comes to rule in the millennium, all governments will become subject unto his government, and this has been referred to as the kingdom of God, which it is; but this is the political kingdom which will embrace all people whether they are in the Church or not. Of course, when every kindred, tongue and people become subject to the rule of Jesus Christ such will be in that political kingdom. We must keep these two thoughts in mind. But the kingdom of God is the Church of Jesus Christ, and it is the kingdom that shall endure forever. When the Savior prayed, “Thy kingdom come,” he had reference to the kingdom in heaven which is to come when the millennial reign starts.
When Christ comes, the political kingdom will be given to the Church. The Lord is going to make an end to all nations; that means this nation as well as any other. The kingdom of God is the Church, but during the millennium, the multitudes upon the face of the earth who are not in the Church will have to be governed, and many of their officers, who will be elected, may not be members of the Church. (Doctrines of Salvation, 1:229-230) Bruce R. McConkie
With the millennial advent, the kingdom of God on earth will step forth and exercise political jurisdiction over all the earth as well as ecclesiastical jurisdiction over its own citizens. When the saints pray, according to the Lord’s pattern, “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven” (Matt. 6:10), they are petitioning the Father to send the political or millennial kingdom so that complete righteousness, both civically and religiously, will prevail on earth. That will be the day when, “The kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.” (Dan. 7:27) [Mormon Doctrine, p. 500] Kingdom of God Perfected During the Millennium
Bruce R. McConkie
The three phases of this great latter-day work are as follows:
Phase I–From the First Vision, the setting up of the kingdom on April 6, 1830, and the coming of Moses on April 3, 1836, to the secure establishment of the Church in the United States and Canada, a period of about 125 years.
Phase II–From the creation of stakes of Zion in overseas areas, beginning in the 1950s, to the second coming of the Son of Man, a period of unknown duration.
Phase III–From our Lord’s second coming until the kingdom is perfected and the knowledge of God covers the earth as the waters cover the sea, and from then until the end of the Millennium, a period of 1,000 years. . . .
As is clear from the inspired account, Zion shall be built up–she shall obtain that perfection and glory which is hers–when the Lord appears in his glory. She shall then become as she once was. This will be during the Millennium when the restoration of all things is completed. Zion shall be perfected after the second coming of Christ.(“Come: Let Israel Build Zion,” Ensign, May 1977, 115-116) Two World Capitals During Millennium
Isaiah 2:3
And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. James E. Talmage
When the people of the house of Jacob are prepared to receive the Redeemer as their rightful king, when the scattered sheep of Israel have been sufficiently humbled through suffering and sorrow to know and to follow their Shepherd, then, indeed, will He come to reign among them. Then a literal kingdom will be established, wide as the world, with the King of kings on the throne; and the two capitals of this mighty empire will be Jerusalem in the east and Zion in the west. Isaiah speaks of the glory of Christ’s kingdom in the latter days, and ascribes separately to Zion and to Jerusalem the blessings of triumph: “O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God!” (Articles of Faith, p.346) Orson F. Whitney
But Christ’s kingdom will have two capitals, one in the Old World, one in the New; “for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.” (Conference Report, October 1920, p.33) Joseph Fielding Smith
TWO HOLY CITIES: ZION AND JERUSALEM. In this great day of gathering, the Lord has commanded that those of the house of Israel who are scattered among the Gentiles should flee unto Zion, and those who are of the house of Judah should flee unto Jerusalem, “unto the mountains of the Lord’s house,” which is their gathering place.
In each land a holy city shall be built which shall be the capital from whence the law and the word of the Lord shall go forth to all peoples. The Savior said to the Nephites: “Behold, this people will I establish in this land, unto the fulfilling of the covenant which I made with your father Jacob; and it shall be a New Jerusalem. And the powers of heaven shall be in the midst of this people; yea, even I will be in the midst of you.”
Moroni, writing of the Jaredites, has said: “Behold, Ether saw the days of Christ, and he spake concerning a New Jerusalem upon this land. And he spake also concerning the house of Israel, and the Jerusalem from whence Lehi should come — after it should be destroyed it should be built up again, a holy city unto the Lord; wherefore, it could not be a new Jerusalem for it had been in a time of old; but it should be built up again, and become a holy city of the Lord; and it should be built unto the house of Israel.”
TWO HOLY CITIES: JERUSALEM FIND NEW JERUSALEM. We are informed in the revelation given to Joseph Smith the Prophet, that the city of Zion and the New Jerusalem is one and the same. In a number of revelations the Lord speaks of the New Jerusalem which is to be built. For instance, we read: “And it shall be called the New Jerusalem, a land of peace, a city of refuge, a place of safety for the saints of the Most High God; And the glory of the Lord shall be there, and the terror of the Lord also shall be there, insomuch that the wicked will not come unto it, and it shall be called Zion.”
Also: “Yea, the word of the Lord concerning his church, established in the last days for the restoration of his people, as he has spoken by the mouth of his prophets, and for the gathering of his saints to stand upon Mount Zion, which shall be the city of New Jerusalem.”
Jerusalem of old, after the Jews have been cleansed and sanctified from all their sin, shall become a holy city where the Lord shall dwell and from whence he shall send forth his word unto all people. Likewise, on this continent, the city of Zion, New Jerusalem, shall be built and from it the law of God shall also go forth. There will be no conflict, for each city shall be headquarters for the Redeemer of the world, and from each he shall send forth his proclamations as occasion may require. Jerusalem shall be the gathering place of Judah and his fellows of the house of Israel, and Zion shall be the gathering place of Ephraim and his fellows, upon whose heads shall be conferred “the richer blessings.”
ZION AND JERUSALEM SEPARATE CITIES. Many prophecies in the Bible refer to Jerusalem and to Zion as separate places. It is evident that these references do not apply to the hill Zion which is a part of the city of Jerusalem. Among these predictions we cite the following:
“O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God!”
“The Lord also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; . . . So shall ye know that I am the Lord your God dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain: then shall Jerusalem be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her any more.”
In Isaiah, Zion and Jerusalem are called cities: “Thy holy cities are a wilderness, Zion is a wilderness, Jerusalem a desolation.” Isaiah and other prophets also predict that headquarters for Zion in the last days should be established in the mountains, and people from all nations should say: “Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.”
ZION AND JERUSALEM: TWO WORLD CAPITALS. When Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon, he learned that America is the land of Zion which was given to Joseph and his children and that on this land the City Zion, or New Jerusalem, is to be built. He also learned that Jerusalem in Palestine is to be rebuilt and become a holy city. These two cities, one in the land of Zion and one in Palestine, are to become capitals for the kingdom of God during the millennium.
In the meantime, while the work of preparation is going on and Israel is being gathered, many people are coming to the land of Zion saying: “Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob.” The Latter-day Saints are fulfilling this prediction, since they are being gathered from all parts of the earth and are coming to the house of the Lord in these valleys of the mountains. Here they are being taught in the ways of the Lord through the restoration of the gospel and by receiving blessings in the temples now erected. Moreover, before many years have passed away, the Lord will command the building of the City Zion, and Jerusalem in Palestine will in due time be cleansed and become a holy city and the habitation of the Jews after they are cleansed and are willing to accept Jesus Christ as their Redeemer.
TEMPLES IN ZION AND JERUSALEM. “And righteousness will I send down out of heaven; and truth will I send forth out of the earth, to bear testimony of mine Only Begotten; his resurrection from the dead; yea, and also the resurrection of all men; and righteousness and truth will I cause to sweep the earth as with a flood, to gather out mine elect from the four quarters of the earth, unto a place which I shall prepare, an Holy City, that my people may gird their loins, and be looking forth for the time of my coming; for there shall be my tabernacle and it shall be called Zion, a New Jerusalem.
“And the Lord said unto Enoch: Then shalt thou and all thy city meet them there, and we will receive them into our bosom, and they shall see us; and we will fall upon their necks, and they shall fall upon our necks, and we will kiss each other; And there shall be mine abode, and it shall be Zion, which shall come forth out of all the creations which I have made; and for the space of a thousand years the earth shall rest.”
When Christ comes in fulfillment of this promise, there will be on the earth two great cities made holy with holy sanctuaries, or temples. One will be the city of Jerusalem in the land of Judah, which shall be rebuilt; the other the city Zion, or the New Jerusalem, in the land of Joseph. (Doctrines of Salvation, 3:68-72) Bruce R. McConkie
First, Israel shall gather to prepare for the Second Coming of the Son of Man; she shall gather to Zion in all nations; she shall gather into the stakes created everywhere among all peoples. “I will gather my people together as a man gathereth his sheaves into the floor,” was the promise of the Risen Lord to his Nephite sheep. “And it shall come to pass that I will establish my people, O house of Israel.” This is the gathering that is now going on. And every gathering place, for the scattered remnants who there assemble, becomes to them as a New Jerusalem. It becomes a City of Holiness, a place where they can worship the Father in spirit and in truth, a place where temples are available in which they may receive the fulness of the priesthood, a place where no blessing is denied them.
Then, before the Second Coming, gathered Judah, as directed by Ephraim, shall build up anew the Old Jerusalem and prepare therein a holy temple; and gathered Ephraim, aided by Manasseh, shall build a New Jerusalem in an American Zion and prepare therein a holy temple. It is to these two temples in particular that the Lord shall come at his glorious return, and it is from these two cities – Zion in America and Jerusalem in Old Canaan – that the governance and worship of the world will be directed. Thus Jesus, continuing his preaching to the Nephites, said: “And behold, this people” – this Lehite remnant of Israel – will I establish in this land, unto the fulfilling of the covenant which I made with your father Jacob; and it shall be a New Jerusalem. Jacob is Israel, and Israel is the one with whom the Lord made covenant that his seed should inherit the blessings of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel. “And the powers of heaven shall be in the midst of this people; yea, even I will be in the midst of you.” (3 Nephi 20:18, 21-22.) After gathered Israel builds the New Jerusalem, the Lord will come and dwell with his people.
The building of these two world capitals will commence before the Second Coming and continue during the Millennium. Classifying scattered Israel as Gentiles, because they are not nationals of the kingdom of Judah (the Jews), the Lord Jesus said: “If they will repent and hearken unto my words, and harden not their hearts, I will establish my church among them, and they shall come in unto the covenant and be numbered among this the remnant of Jacob, unto whom I have given this land for their inheritance.” We are the ones here named; the gospel spoken of came through Joseph Smith; we are of the house of Joseph to whom the land of America has been given as an inheritance, even as it was given to the Nephite portion of Joseph’s seed. “And they [the Latter-day Saints] shall assist my people, the remnant of Jacob, and also as many of the house of Israel as shall come, that they may build a city, which shall be called the New Jerusalem.” Israel – all gathered remnants assisting each other – shall build the New Jerusalem in America.
“And then shall they [that Israel which builds the New Jerusalem] assist my people that they may be gathered in, who are scattered upon all the face of the land, in unto the New Jerusalem. And then shall the power of heaven come down among them; and I also will be in the midst.” Israel gathers; the New Jerusalem is built; Israel continues to gather; and the Lord comes to reign personally in the midst of his people. Then an even greater gathering takes place, which includes the restoration of the Ten Tribes to the lands of their inheritance. Then when the Lord is in the midst of his people, “shall the work of the Father commence at that day, even when this gospel shall be preached among the remnant of this people. Verily I say unto you, at that day shall the work of the Father commence among all the dispersed of my people, yea, even the tribes which have been lost, which the Father hath led away out of Jerusalem.” (3 Nephi 21:22-26.) [A New Witness for the Articles of Faith, pp.587-588] All Things Shall Be Revealed During the Millennium
D&C 101
Yea, verily I say unto you, in that day when the Lord shall come, he shall reveal all things-
33 Things which have passed, and hidden things which no man knew, things of the earth, by which it was made, and the purpose and the end thereof-
34 Things most precious, things that are above, and things that are beneath, things that are in the earth, and upon the earth, and in heaven. Bruce R. McConkie
We have the fulness of the everlasting gospel, meaning that we have all that is needed to gain the fulness of salvation. We have every truth, doctrine, and principle, every rite, power, and ordinance — all that is needed — to gain exaltation in the highest heaven of the celestial world. But we do not know all things; there are doctrines in endless array of which we know next to nothing; indeed, there are more things in the darkness of the unknown than there are in the light of the known. We do not even know what the faithful knew in Enoch’s Zion, nor among the Nephites when they dwelt in righteousness for generations. We do not know what is on the sealed portion of the plates from which the Book of Mormon came. Ours is a day for drinking milk; the day when we, as a people at least, can partake of the meat of the word is in the future.
That future is millennial. In that day, “all things shall become new,” saith the Lord, “that my knowledge and glory may dwell upon all the earth. . . . Yea, verily I say unto you, in that day when the Lord shall come, he shall reveal all things — Things which have passed, and hidden things which no man knew, things of the earth, by which it was made, and the purpose and the end thereof — Things most precious, things that are above, and things that are beneath, things that are in the earth, and upon the earth, and in heaven.” (D&C 101:25, 32-34.) As we ponder these heaven-sent words, we are led to exclaim: Thanks be to him who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, who knows all things and who seeks to pour out his revelations, and all the knowledge of eternity, upon all who will receive them. Ere long the dark veil of ignorance and unbelief that covers the earth and blinds the minds of men shall be pierced. Light and truth will fall from heaven as does rain from the clouds above.
The knowledge of God, the knowledge of those Gods whom it is life eternal to know, shall be in every heart. No longer will theologians suppose that God is a spirit essence that fills immensity while he dwells in the human heart. No longer will philosophers pontificate about some great first cause that inexplicably brought order into a chaotic universe. No longer will Babylonish churches place crucifixes in the hands, or the images of Diana of the Ephesians, as it were, and no longer will they worship the works of their own hands in the great cathedrals of Christendom. The knowledge of God, the truth about God, the fact that he is a Holy Man, will come by revelation into every human heart. The knowledge of God will cover the earth.
All things are to be revealed in the millennial day. The sealed part of the Book of Mormon will come forth; the brass plates will be translated; the writings of Adam and Enoch and Noah and Abraham and prophets without number will be revealed. We shall learn a thousand times more about the earthly ministry of the Lord Jesus than we now know. We shall learn great mysteries of the kingdom that were not even known to those of old who walked and talked with the Eternal One. We shall learn the details of the creation and the origin of man and what fools mortals are to follow the fads of the evolving evolutionary nonsense that litters the textbooks of academia. Nothing in or on or over the earth will be withheld from human ken, for eventually man, if he is to be as his Maker, must know all things.
Hear in this connection these words of Nephi: In that day, “the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. Wherefore, the things of all nations shall be made known; yea, all things shall be made known unto the children of men. There is nothing which is secret save it shall be revealed; there is no work of darkness save it shall be made manifest in the light; and there is nothing which is sealed upon the earth save it shall be loosed. Wherefore, all things which have been revealed unto the children of men shall at that day be revealed.” (2 Ne. 30:15-18.) Surely man could not ask for more than this in the way of light and truth and knowledge, and yet expect to remain in the flesh as a mortal and be in process of working out his salvation. Surely this is the day in which the Lord shall fulfill the promise of holy writ that says: “God shall give unto you knowledge by his Holy Spirit, yea, by the unspeakable gift of the Holy Ghost, [knowledge] that has not been revealed since the world was until now; which our forefathers have awaited with anxious expectation to be revealed in the last times, which their minds were pointed to by the angels, as held in reserve for the fulness of their glory; a time to come in the which nothing shall be withheld, whether there be one God or many gods, they shall be manifest.” (D&C 121:26-28.) That this outpouring of divine goodness has already commenced is not open to question. That it will continue, in far greater measure, after our Lord comes again, who can doubt? (The Millennial Messiah, pp.675-677) All Shall Know the Lord
Isaiah 11:9
They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea. Jeremiah 31:31-34
Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:
Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD:
But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.
And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more. The Day of the Second Comforter
Jeremiah 31
34 And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more. Bruce R. McConkie
Complete realization of the blessings here promised [Jer. 31:34] is Millennial, and the knowledge of God spoken of shall be manifest by the receipt of the Second Comforter, as the Prophet then proceeds to state, and as we shall now consider. (Doctrinal New Testament Commentary, 3:338)
“This generation shall have my word through you” (D&C 5:10). Joseph Smith has given the word, and we echo the message, and a great part of the message is that every one of us – equally precious – has power to get in tune with the Holy Spirit and learn personally what the prophet receives. There is going to be a day – it is millennial, the ancient prophets (Jeremiah, for one) foretold it – “when no man need say to his neighbor, Know ye the Lord; for all shall know Him … from the least to the greatest” (History of the Church, 3:380). The Prophet Joseph Smith said that this promise has reference to personal revelation, to a visitation of the Lord to an individual (see History of the Church, 3:381). [“This Generation Shall Have My Word through You,” Ensign, June 1980, p. 59]
Men will know God in the millennial day because they see him. He will teach them face to face. They will know the mysteries of his kingdom because they are caught up to the third heaven, as was Paul. They will receive the Second Comforter. The millennial day is the day of the Second Comforter, and whereas but few have been blessed with this divine association in times past, great hosts will be so blessed in times to come.
What, then, will be the nature of worship during the Millennium? It will be pure and perfect, and through it men will become inheritors of eternal life. And in this connection, be it known that it is the privilege of the saints today to separate themselves from the world and to receive millennial blessings in their lives. And any person who today abides the laws that will be kept during the Millennium will receive, here and now, the spirit and blessings of the Millennium in his life, even though he is surrounded by a world of sin and evil. And so we say, in the language of Joseph Smith as he finished the record of the vision of the three degrees of glory: “Great and marvelous are the works of the Lord, and the mysteries of his kingdom which he showed unto us, which surpass all understanding in glory, and in might, and in dominion; Which he commanded us we should not write while we were yet in the Spirit, and are not lawful for man to utter; Neither is man capable to make them known, for they are only to be seen and understood by the power of the Holy Spirit, which God bestows on those who love him, and purify themselves before him; To whom he grants this privilege of seeing and knowing for themselves; That through the power and manifestation of the Spirit, while in the flesh, they may be able to bear his presence in the world of glory. And to God and the Lamb be glory, and honor, and dominion forever and ever. Amen.” (D&C 76:114-119.) [The Millennial Messiah, p.683] Not All Will Be Members of the Church At Beginning of the Millennium Brigham Young
When all nations are so subdued to Jesus that every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess, there will still be millions on the earth who will not believe in him; but they will be obliged to acknowledge his kingly government. (Discourses of Brigham Young, p.115)
In the Millennium men will have the privilege of their own belief, but they will not have the privilege of treating the name and character of Deity as they have done heretofore. No, but every knee shall bow and every tongue confess to the glory of God the Father that Jesus is the Christ. (Discourses of Brigham Young, p.119) Joseph Fielding Smith
Some members of the Church have an erroneous idea that when the millennium comes all of the people are going to be swept off the earth except righteous members of the Church. That is not so. There will be millions of people, Catholics, Protestants, agnostics, Mohammedans, people of all classes, and of all beliefs, still permitted to remain upon the face of the earth, but they will be those who have lived clean lives, those who have been free from wickedness and corruption. All who belong, by virtue of their good lives, to the terrestrial order, as well as those who have kept the celestial law, will remain upon the face of the earth during the millennium. Eventually, however, the knowledge of the Lord will cover the earth as the waters do the sea. But there will be need for the preaching of the gospel, after the millennium is brought in, until all men are either converted or pass away. In the course of the thousand years all men will either come into the Church, or kingdom of God, or they will die and pass away. In that day there will be no death until men are old. Children will not die but will live to the age of a tree. Isaiah says this is 100 years. When the time comes for men to die, they will be changed in the twinkling of an eye, and there will be no graves. (Doctrines of Salvation, 1:86) Neal A. Maxwell
We understand, of course, that there will be many nonmembers of the Church living during the Millennium, but there will be a clear willingness by all the good and decent men and women of all the races, creeds, and cultures to abide by a terrestrial law. (Sermons Not Spoken, p.81) Bruce R. McConkie
Thus there will be many churches on earth when the Millennium begins. False worship will continue among those whose desires are good, “who are honorable men of the earth,” but who have been “blinded by the craftiness of men.” (D&C 76:75.) Plagues will rest upon them until they repent and believe the gospel or are destroyed, as the Prophet said. It follows that missionary work will continue into the Millennium until all who remain are converted. Then “the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.” (Isa. 11:9.) Then every living soul on earth will belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. (The Millennial Messiah, pp.651-652)
Christ’s Political Kingdom Will Include All People – Member or Non-member of the Church Joseph Smith
While in conversation at Judge Adams’ during the evening, I said, Christ and the resurrected Saints will reign over the earth during the thousand years. They will not probably dwell upon the earth, but will visit it when they please, or when it is necessary to govern it. There will be wicked men on the earth during the thousand years. The heathen nations who will not come up to worship will be visited with the judgments of God, and must eventually be destroyed from the earth. (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p.268) Joseph Fielding Smith
When Christ comes, he will set up a political kingdom which will include all the inhabitants of the earth, no matter what nation they may belong to or what may be their religious faith. The Lord gave to man his free agency in the pre-existence. This great gift of agency, that is the privilege given to man to make his own choice, has never been revoked, and it never will be. It is an eternal principle giving freedom of thought and action to every soul. No person, by any decree of the Father, has ever been compelled to do good; no person has ever been forced to do evil. Each may act for himself. It was Satan’s plan to destroy this agency and force men to do his will. There could be no satisfactory existence without this great gift. Men must have the privilege to choose even to the extent that they may rebel against the divine decrees. Of course salvation and exaltation must come through the free will without coercion and by individual merit in order that righteous rewards may be given and proper punishment be meted out to the transgressor. Therefore, when the great day of the Lord shall come, the wicked who have merited banishment from a righteous government will be consumed, or the privilege of continuance on the earth will be denied.
Therefore, according to the justice of the Lord, all who have not violated the right to remain will not be consumed. We are informed that these, although they may not be members of the Church, who are entitled to the blessings of the terrestrial kingdom, will be spared. Therefore, there will be millions of people on the earth during the millennium who have not received the gospel. Missionary work will continue with greater vigor and power than at any other time. This work must go on until all who are on the earth are either converted or are taken away by death. (Answers to Gospel Questions, Vol.2, p.200). Eventually All Will Be Converted or Removed
Isaiah 11:9
They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea. Joseph Fielding Smith
The gospel will be taught far more intensely and with greater power during the millennium, until all the inhabitants of the earth shall embrace it. Satan shall be bound so that he cannot tempt any man. Should any man refuse to repent and accept the gospel under those conditions then he would be accursed. Through the revelations given to the prophets, we learn that during the reign of Jesus Christ for a thousand years eventually all people will embrace the truth.
Isaiah prophesied of the millennium as follows: “The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice’ den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.”
This chapter in Isaiah, Moroni quoted to the Prophet Joseph Smith and said to him it was about to be fulfilled. if the knowledge of the Lord covers the earth as the waters do the sea, then it must be universally received. Moreover, the promise of the Lord through Jeremiah is that it will no longer be necessary for anyone to teach his neighbor, “saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord.” (Doctrines of Salvation, 3:64)
Therefore, when the great day of the Lord shall come, the wicked who have merited banishment from a righteous government will be consumed, or the privilege of continuance on the earth will be denied. Therefore, according to the justice of the Lord, all who have not violated the right to remain will not be consumed. We are informed that these, although they may not be members of the Church, who are entitled to the blessings of the terrestrial kingdom, will be spared. Therefore, there will be millions of people on the earth during the millennium who have not received the gospel. Missionary work will continue with greater vigor and power than at any other time. This work must go on until all who are on the earth are either converted or are taken away by death. (Answers to Gospel Questions, Vol.2, p.200).
When that time shall come, the “earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.” Wickedness shall be destroyed, for with righteousness shall Jehovah “judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked.” In that day there shall be no “divided Christianity.” All who will not repent and receive the gospel shall soon be removed, and they who shall remain shall learn to worship the true and living God in spirit and in truth. The Church of Jesus Christ shall have sway over all the earth, for Christ shall be the King and Deliverer. Peace shall prevail both among men and among beasts. Satan shall be bound and his dominion, which he has held by usurpation and fraud since the beginning of the earth’s temporal existence, shall come to an end. The rightful King shall reign and his saints shall possess the kingdom according to the vision of Daniel. (Doctrines of Salvation, 1:168-169) Bruce R. McConkie
Thus there will be many churches on earth when the Millennium begins. False worship will continue among those whose desires are good, “who are honorable men of the earth,” but who have been “blinded by the craftiness of men.” (D&C 76:75.) Plagues will rest upon them until they repent and believe the gospel or are destroyed, as the Prophet said. It follows that missionary work will continue into the Millennium until all who remain are converted. Then “the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.” (Isa. 11:9.) Then every living soul on earth will belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. (The Millennial Messiah, pp.651-652)
Joseph Smith’s Statement Concerning Wicked Men Living on Earth During the Millennium Joseph Smith
While in conversation at Judge Adams’ during the evening, I said, Christ and the resurrected Saints will reign over the earth during the thousand years. They will not probably dwell upon the earth, but will visit it when they please, or when it is necessary to govern it. There will be wicked men on the earth during the thousand years. The heathen nations who will not come up to worship will be visited with the judgments of God, and must eventually be destroyed from the earth. (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p.268) Joseph Fielding Smith
The saying that there will be wicked men on the earth during the millennium has been misunderstood by many, because the Lord declared that the wicked shall not stand, but shall be consumed. In using this term wicked it should be interpreted in the language of the Lord as recorded in the Doctrine and Covenants, section 84, verses 49-53. Here the Lord speaks of those who have not received the gospel as being wicked as they are still under the bondage of sin, having not been baptized. The inhabitants of the terrestrial order will remain on the earth during the millennium, and this class is without the gospel ordinances.
The Lord said through Isaiah, speaking of the millennium: “For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind. But be ye glad and rejoice for ever in that which I create: for, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy. And I will rejoice in Jerusalem and joy in my people: and the voice of weeping shall be no more heard in her, nor the voice of crying. There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed.” (Doctrines of Salvation, 3:63-64) Bruce R. McConkie
And yet the Prophet Joseph Smith said: “There will be wicked men on the earth during the thousand years. The heathen nations who will not come up to worship will be visited with the judgments of God, and must eventually be destroyed from the earth.” (Teachings, pp. 268-69.) Taken together, these concepts mean that wickedness that is telestial in nature, wickedness that consists of living after the manner of the world, that wickedness which is carnal, sensual, and devilish by nature – all such shall cease. Those who so live will be destroyed. They are the tares of the earth.
But wickedness is a matter of degree, and even those who are upright and decent by worldly standards but who reject the gospel and do not worship the true God are considered to be wicked by gospel standards. They are “under the bondage of sin.” They do not accept the message of the restoration and gain a remission of their sins in the waters of baptism. “And by this you may know the righteous from the wicked, and that the whole world groaneth under sin and darkness even now.” (D&C 84:49-53.) Thus the divine word, as given by Zechariah, says that “it shall come to pass” – in the millennial day — that every one that is left [after Armageddon] of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles. And it shall be, that who so will not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain. And if the family of Egypt go not up, and come not, that have no rain; there shall be the plague, wherewith the Lord will smite the heathen that come not to keep the feast of tabernacles. This shall be the punishment of Egypt, and the punishment of all nations that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles.” (Zech. 14:16-19.) Thus there will be many churches on earth when the Millennium begins. False worship will continue among those whose desires are good, “who are honorable men of the earth,” but who have been “blinded by the craftiness of men.” (D&C 76:75.) Plagues will rest upon them until they repent and believe the gospel or are destroyed, as the Prophet said. It follows that missionary work will continue into the Millennium until all who remain are converted. Then “the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.” (Isa. 11:9.) Then every living soul on earth will belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. (The Millennial Messiah, pp.651-652) Work for the Dead
Brigham Young
In the Millennium, when the Kingdom of God is established on the earth in power, glory and perfection, and the reign of wickedness that has so long prevailed is subdued, the Saints of God will have the privilege of building their temples, and of entering into them, becoming, as it were, pillars in the temples of God, and they will officiate for their dead. Then we will see our friends come up, and perhaps some that we have been acquainted with here. If we ask who will stand at the head of the resurrection in this last dispensation, the answer is – Joseph Smith, Junior, the Prophet of God. He is the man who will be resurrected and receive the keys of the resurrection, and he will seal this authority upon others, and they will hunt up their friends and resurrect them when they shall have been officiated for, and bring them up. And we will have revelations to know our forefathers clear back to Father Adam and Mother Eve, and we will enter into the temples of God and officiate for them. Then man will be sealed to man until the chain is made perfect back to Adam, so that there will be a perfect chain of Priesthood from Adam to the winding-up scene. This will be the work of the Latter-day Saints in the Millennium. (Discourses of Brigham Young, p.116)
There are some of the sealing ordinances that cannot be administered in the house that we are now using; we can only administer in it some of the first ordinances of the Priesthood pertaining to the endowment. There are more advanced ordinances that cannot be administered there; we would, therefore, like a temple, but I am willing to wait a few years for it. I want to see the temple built in a manner that it will endure through the Millennium. This is not the only temple we shall build; there will be hundreds of them built and dedicated to the Lord. This temple will be known as the first temple built in the mountains by the Latter-day Saints. And when the Millennium is over, and all the sons and daughters of Adam and Eve, down to the last of their posterity, who come within the reach of the clemency of the Gospel, have been redeemed in hundreds of temples through the administration of their children as proxies for them, I want that temple still to stand as a proud monument of the faith, perseverance and industry of the Saints of God in the mountains, in the nineteenth century. (Discourses of Brigham Young, p.395)
As I have frequently told you, that is the work of the Millennium. It is the work that has to be performed by the seed of Abraham, the chosen seed, the royal seed, the blessed of the Lord, those the Lord made covenants with. They will step forth, and save every son and daughter of Adam who will receive salvation here on the earth; and all the spirits in the spirit world will be preached to, conversed with, and the principles of salvation carried to them, that they may have the privilege of receiving the Gospel; and they will have plenty of children here on the earth to officiate for them in those ordinances of the Gospel that pertain to the flesh. (Discourses of Brigham Young, p.403)
We are trying to save the living and the dead. The living can have their choice, the dead have not. Millions of them died without the Gospel, without the Priesthood, and without the opportunities that we enjoy. We shall go forth in the name of Israel’s God and attend to the ordinances for them. And through the Millennium, the thousand years that the people will love and serve God, we will build temples and officiate therein for those who have slept for hundreds and thousands of years — those who would have received the truth if they had had the opportunity; and we will bring them up, and form the chain entire, back to Adam. (Discourses of Brigham Young, p.404) John Taylor
We read sometimes about the millennium, But what do we know about it? It is a time when this work will be going on, and temples, thousands of them, will be reared for the accomplishment of the objects designed, in which communications from the heavens will be received in regard to our labors, how we may perform them, and for whom. This is the work devolving upon us. (The Gospel Kingdom, p.287) Joseph Fielding Smith
President Brigham Young has said that during the millennium those on the other side will work hand in hand with those in mortality and will furnish the names of the dead which we are unable to obtain through our research, and thus every soul that is entitled to these blessings shall be ferreted out and his work done for him. I fully believe that many among the dead, those who are worthy, are even now engaged in compiling records and arranging information, if it has not already been done, for this very purpose. Why should they not be so engaged? (Doctrines of Salvation, 2:120)
Then each generation must be joined to the one which went on before. In this way eventually all the families which are entitled to celestial exaltation are joined together, from generation to generation, back to the time of our first parents, Adam and Eve. This will not all be done before the coming of our Lord, but the great work of the millennium will be the temple ordinances for the dead who are worthy to receive it. (Doctrines of Salvation, 2:121)
The work of saving the dead has practically been reserved for the dispensation of the fulness of times, when the Lord shall restore all things. It is, therefore, the duty of the Latter-day Saints to see that it is accomplished. We cannot do it all at once, but will have the 1,000 years of the millennium to do it in. In that time the work must be done in behalf of the dead of the previous 6,000 years, for all who need it. Temples will be built for this purpose, and the labor in them will occupy most of the time of the saints.
By the time Christ comes we are expected to have done all that is within our power to do now for our dead. That does not mean we are going to do all that is to be done, because it will go on during the millennium. The great work of the millennium will be the salvation of the dead, and those who are on the other side will help us, too, by bringing us information. The ordinances for the salvation of the dead are mortal ordinances, because all these ordinances pertain to this life, and immortal beings cannot perform them. (Doctrines of Salvation, Vol.2, p.166)
Some people may think that it is impossible for us to do this work for the dead because we have not the names of people who lived in ancient times. We have not the records, we do not know how to reach them from anything we have in this life, and there have been millions of people who no doubt were honest, and did the best they knew, but died without a knowledge of the gospel, whose names it is impossible for us to obtain. How are they going to be saved? It is our duty to go to the temple and take our records and work for the dead of our own lineage as far back as we can go, but what about these others? I will tell you. The great work of the millennium, of 1,000 years, will be for the salvation of these souls. Now let us keep it clearly in our minds that we do not enter into exaltation until after the resurrection. We do not enter into exaltation in the spirit world. We have privileges there, of course, based upon faithfulness and obedience to the gospel, but during the millennium — and that is the great purpose of the millennium — we will go into the temples. (Doctrines of Salvation, Vol.2, p.166-167) Genealogical Records to Be Revealed in Millennium.
Joseph Fielding Smith
Those who will be living here then will be in daily communication with those who have passed through the resurrection, and they will come with this information, this knowledge that we do not have and will give it to those who are in mortality saying, “Now go into the temples and do this work; when you get this done, we will bring you other names.” And in that way every soul who is entitled to a place in the celestial kingdom of God will be ferreted out, and not one soul shall be overlooked. The Lord has not overlooked these things. He has seen the end from the beginning. Every name is recorded. Bless your soul, when the Lord says that a sparrow cannot fall without the notice of the Father, do you think he will overlook the people who lived upon this earth, who have tried to the best of their ability to live righteously, but never had the privilege of receiving the gospel? He will give unto them these privileges of salvation and the right, through their obedience to the gospel which shall come unto them, of receiving exaltation in his kingdom. To think anything less than this would be an evil thought. God is just. He is merciful, and while mercy cannot rob justice, yet in the wisdom of our Father in heaven every soul shall receive blessings according to his merits and according to the mercies of our Heavenly Father, and he will do for the people the best he can. (Doctrines of Salvation, 2:167) Resurrected Beings Assist Work Done For Dead During Millennium Joseph Fielding Smith
Will resurrected beings during the millennium actually take part in the endowment work of the temple along with mortal beings? The answer to this question is no! That is, they will not assist in performing the ordinances. Resurrected beings will assist in furnishing information which is not otherwise available, but mortals will have to do the ordinance work in the temples.
Baptism, confirmation, ordination, endowment, and sealings all pertain to this mortal life and are ordinances required of those who are in mortality. Provision has been made for these ordinances to be performed vicariously for those who are worthy but who died without the opportunity in this life of receiving these ordinances in person.
You can readily see that it would be inconsistent for a resurrected being to come and be baptized for the dead. The resurrected person has passed to another sphere where the laws and blessings do not pertain to this mortal life. This is equally true of every other ordinance. If it were permissible for resurrected persons to come and do work in the temples, then there would be no reason for us in this mortal life to act vicariously for them, for they would do it for themselves. (Doctrines of Salvation, 2:178)
During this time of peace, when the righteous shall come forth from their graves, they shall mingle with mortal men on the earth and instruct them. The veil which separates the living from the dead will be withdrawn and mortal men and the ancient saints shall converse together. Moreover, in perfect harmony shall they labor for the salvation and exaltation of the worthy who have died without the privileges of the gospel.
The great work of the millennium shall be performed in the temples which shall cover all parts of the land and into which the children shall go to complete the work for their fathers, which they could not do when in this mortal life for themselves.
In this manner those who have passed through the resurrection, and who know all about people and conditions on the other side, will place in the hands of those who are in mortality, the necessary information by and through which the great work of salvation for every worthy soul shall be performed, and thus the purposes of the Lord, as determined before the foundation of the world, will be fully consummated. (Doctrines of Salvation, 2:251-252) Those Who Died Without Being Married
Joseph Fielding Smith
NO MATCH-MAKING FOR THE DEAD. We never make matches for the dead in the temples. The Lord will bless all who are worthy of the blessings, and they will lose nothing. The work of the millennium will be largely work for the dead who did not have an opportunity when living to obtain the blessings, but who would have accepted the blessings if they had lived. Justice demands this. We need not worry, therefore, because young men or young women die without being married. All who are worthy will be blessed just the same as if they had lived and obtained the blessings. Where, however, a couple is engaged and the woman dies, she may be sealed to her intended husband. (Doctrines of Salvation, 2:177)
DECEASED CHILDREN TO CHOOSE MATES IN MILLENNIUM. We have people coming to us all the time just as fearful as they can be that a child of theirs who has died will lose the blessings of the kingdom of God unless that child is sealed to someone who is dead, They do not know the wishes of their child who died too young to think of marriage, but they want to go straight to the temple and have a sealing performed. Such a thing as this is unnecessary and in my judgment wrong.
The Lord has said through his servants that during the millennium those who have passed beyond and have attained the resurrection will reveal in person to those who are still in mortality all the information which is required to complete the work of these who have passed from this life. Then the dead will have the privilege of making known the things they desire and are entitled to receive. In this way no soul will be neglected and the work of the Lord will be perfected.
It is the duty of parents who have children who have died and who were old enough to be endowed, to go to the temple and perform this endowment for them. When you have done this, you may let the matter of further work rest, except the sealing of these children to their parents, until the proper time comes. (Doctrines of Salvation, 3:65-66) Adjustment of Sealing Ordinances During Millennium
Joseph Fielding Smith
Children who are legally adopted may, under proper circumstances, be sealed into the families who adopted them. It is not possible, however, to rob the dead of their children, if they are entitled to them, even if they are adopted by others.
If a man or a woman who has been sealed in the temple for time and eternity should sin and lose the right to receive the exaltation in the celestial kingdom, he or she could not retard the progress of the injured companion who had been faithful. Everyone will be judged according to his works, and there would be no justice in condemning the innocent for the sins of the guilty.
We may be sure that the Lord is not going to permit any ordinance which we perform incorrectly, through our lack of understanding, to be left binding forever without correction. During the millennium there will be a great deal of adjusting where we, for lack of proper knowledge, have performed sealings ignorantly, but according to our best judgment. (Doctrines of Salvation, 2:177) Many Problems and Relationships Fixed During Millennium
Dallin H. Oaks
Some who are listening to this message are probably saying, “But what about me?” We know that many worthy and wonderful Latter-day Saints currently lack the ideal opportunities and essential requirements for their progress. Singleness, childlessness, death, and divorce frustrate ideals and postpone the fulfillment of promised blessings. In addition, some women who desire to be full-time mothers and homemakers have been literally compelled to enter the full-time work force. But these frustrations are only temporary. The Lord has promised that in the eternities no blessing will be denied his sons and daughters who keep the commandments, are true to their covenants, and desire what is right.
Many of the most important deprivations of mortality will be set right in the Millennium, which is the time for fulfilling all that is incomplete in the great plan of happiness for all of our Father’s worthy children. We know that will be true of temple ordinances. I believe it will also be true of family relationships and experiences. (“The Great Plan of Happiness,” Ensign, Nov. 1993, p. 75)
Another idea that is powerful to lift us from discouragement is that the work of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, “to bring to pass the … eternal life of man” (Moses 1:39), is an eternal work. Not all problems are overcome and not all needed relationships are fixed in mortality. The work of salvation goes on beyond the veil of death, and we should not be too apprehensive about incompleteness within the limits of mortality. (“Powerful Ideas,” Ensign, Nov. 1995, p. 26) Temples Are Built to Last Through the Millennium
Gordon B. Hinckley
Though I live with it, this matter of temple construction is a thing of awesome wonder to me. We are trying to build in such a way and in such places across the world that these houses of the Lord may stand and serve through the Millennium. (“May We Be Faithful and True,” Ensign, May 1997, pp. 4-5) Brigham Young
There are some of the sealing ordinances that cannot be administered in the house that we are now using; we can only administer in it some of the first ordinances of the Priesthood pertaining to the endowment. There are more advanced ordinances that cannot be administered there; we would, therefore, like a temple, but I am willing to wait a few years for it. I want to see the temple built in a manner that it will endure through the Millennium. This is not the only temple we shall build; there will be hundreds of them built and dedicated to the Lord. This temple will be known as the first temple built in the mountains by the Latter-day Saints. And when the Millennium is over, and all the sons and daughters of Adam and Eve, down to the last of their posterity, who come within the reach of the clemency of the Gospel, have been redeemed in hundreds of temples through the administration of their children as proxies for them, I want that temple still to stand as a proud monument of the faith, perseverance and industry of the Saints of God in the mountains, in the nineteenth century. (Discourses of Brigham Young, p.395) Satan Loosed at End of Millennium
D&C 29:22-23
22 And again, verily, verily, I say unto you that when the thousand years are ended, and men again begin to deny their God, then will I spare the earth but for a little season;
23 And the end shall come, and the heaven and the earth shall be consumed and pass away, and there shall be a new heaven and a new earth. D&C 88:110-111
110 And so on, until the seventh angel shall sound his trump; and he shall stand forth upon the land and upon the sea, and swear in the name of him who sitteth upon the throne, that there shall be time no longer; and Satan shall be bound, that old serpent, who is called the devil, and shall not be loosed for the space of a thousand years.
111 And then he shall be loosed for a little season, that he may gather together his armies. George Q. Cannon
When Satan will be bound, he will have no power to tempt the [p.87] children of men. This happy period will cover one thousand years. Then Satan will be loosed again. Why will he be loosed again? Because a generation will arise, some of which in the exercise of their agency will listen and yield to him. Thus he will have power over them. They will become his willing servants. In this way wickedness and all the evils under which the earth now groans will be introduced among men; for whenever men will listen to Satan and exercise their agency in that direction, wickedness flourishes and righteousness lessens. (Gospel Truth, 1:86) Battle of Gog and Magog at End of Millennium
Revelation 20:7-10
7 And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,
8 And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.
9 And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.
10 And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever. Joseph Smith
The battle of Gog and Magog will be after the millennium. The remnant of all the nations that fight against Jerusalem were commanded to go up to Jerusalem to worship in the millennium. (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p.280) Bruce R. McConkie
“And again, verily, verily, I say unto you,” saith the Lord, “that when the thousand years are ended, and men again begin to deny their God, then will I spare the earth but for a little season.” The language here bears out the concept that apostasy and its consequent evil way of life will be the key that opens the prison in which Satan is bound. (The Millennial Messiah, p.695-696) Joseph Fielding Smith
Will the earth go back to the telestial order after the millennium? No, but the people on the face of the earth, many of them, will be like the Nephites who lived 200 years after the coming of Christ. They will rebel against the Lord knowingly, and the great last struggle will come, and the devil and his forces will be defeated; then the earth will die and receive its resurrection and become a celestial body. The resurrection of the wicked will take place as one of the last events before the earth dies. (Doctrines of Salvation, 1:87)
Satan will be loosed to gather his forces after the millennium. The people who will be tempted, will be people living on this earth, and they will have every opportunity to accept the gospel or reject it. Satan will have nothing to do whatever with little children, or grown people who have received their resurrection and entered into the celestial kingdom.
Satan cannot tempt little children in this life, nor in the spirit world, nor after their resurrection. Little children who die before reaching the years of accountability will not be tempted; those born during the millennium, when Satan is bound and cannot tempt them, “shall grow up without sin unto salvation.” (Doctrines of Salvation, 2:56-57) Adam Will Lead the Battle Against Satan
D&C 88:112-115
112 And Michael, the seventh angel, even the archangel, shall gather together his armies, even the hosts of heaven.
113 And the devil shall gather together his armies; even the hosts of hell, and shall come up to battle against Michael and his armies.
114 And then cometh the battle of the great God; and the devil and his armies shall be cast away into their own place, that they shall not have power over the saints any more at all.
115 For Michael shall fight their battles, and shall overcome him who seeketh the throne of him who sitteth upon the throne, even the Lamb. Mark E. Petersen
During the Millennium the devil will be bound, but afterward will be freed for a short time, during which he will rally his evil forces to make one final assault upon God.
Who will lead the defending armies of the Lord? None other than Michael himself, whose position as archangel qualifies him to be the captain of the Lord’s host. Is he not the chief of the angels? Then should he not lead them into battle against Lucifer? (“Adam, the Archangel,” Ensign, Nov. 1980, 17) Bruce R. McConkie
After the Millennium plus a little season – perhaps itself another thousand years – during which men turn again to wickedness, then cometh the end, not of the world, which occurred at the Second Coming, but the end of earth. Then the final battle against Gog and Magog, the battle of the Great God, will be fought. Michael will lead the armies of heaven and Lucifer the legions of hell. Again there will be a new heaven and a new earth, but thin time it will be a celestial earth. This earth will then be an eternal heaven, and the meek, who are the God-fearing and the righteous, shall inherit it forever and ever. (The Millennial Messiah, p.22)