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Chapter Sixteen
THE WORD OF WISDOM
In the printing of the Word of Wisdom in 1835 aSBHW, Vol.
11, Part Second, Page 207) the first four verses of the
revelation were an introductory explanation written by Orson
Pratt.
In the Deseret News Church Section, February 20, 1983, an
explanation at the side of the photograph of a written copy
of the revelation has this to say:
"Orson Pratt divided the revelation into verses, placing
explanatory text, bottom photo, in first three verses. "
This explanatory text has since found its place into the
body of the original revelation which is contradictory since
its contents inform us that it is a "greeting, " not a
"commandment. " The original revelation without the
introductory explanation begins with "Behold.
verily. thus saith the Lord unto you :" which
certainly makes it a commandment since all revelations that
can be called commandments have begun with the salutation,
"Thus saith the Lord."
Let us quote from the 1835 printing - first Orson Pratt's
explanation:
JSBHW, Vol. 11, Part Second, Page 207 "A word of wisdom for
the benefit of the council of high priests, assembled in
Kirtland, and church; and also, the saints in Zion: to be
sent greeting: not by commandment, or constraint: but by
revelation and the word of wisdom: showing forth the order
and will of God in the temporal salvation of all saints in
the last days. Given for a principle with promise, adapted
to the capacity of the weak, and the weakest of all saints,
who are or can be called saints."
Beginning with the original revelation:
"Behold, verily THUS SAITH THE LORD UNTO
YOU , in consequence of evils and designs which do,
and will exist in the hearts of conspiring men in the last
days, I have warned you, and forwarn you, by giving unto you
his word of wisdom by revelation, that inasmuch as any man
drinketh wine or strong drink among you, behold it is not
good, neither meet in the sight of your Father, only in
assembling yourselves together, to offer up your sacraments
before him. And behold, this should be wine, yea, pure wine
of the grape of the vine, of your own make. And again,
STRONG DRINKS are not for the belly. BUT FOR THE
WASHING OF YOUR BODIES . And again, TOBACCO is not
for the body, neither for the belly; and is not good for
man; but is AN HERB FOR BRUISES, AND ALL SICK CATTLE, to be
used with judgment and skill. And again, HOT DRINKS are not
for the body, or belly. 2 And again, verily I say unto you,
all wholesome herbs God hath ordained for the constitution,
nature, and use of man.
Every herb in the season thereof, and every fruit in the
season thereof. All these to be used with prudence and
thanksgiving."
My doctor (reared by a mother who was nutrition minded)
informed me that I did not need a bottled peach soaked in
sugar water in January and come to think of it along with
the bottled peaches I also had my fair share of the flu bug
and cold after cold. Nevertheless, I was amazed at this
suggestion. He told me to buy all fresh fruits and
vegetables that were available in the winter as these winter
foods supplied the body with heat and other necessities for
the cold
weather and were also the cheapest, since they were in
season. After much menta1 threshing I decided to follow his
advice and soon the common cold and the flu became an
uncommon occurrence.
Continuing:
" Yea, flesh also of beasts and of the fowls of the
air , I the Lord hath ordained for the use of man
with thanksgiving. Nevertheless, they are to be used
sparingly; and IT IS PLEASING UNTO ME. THAT THEY
SHOULD NOT BE USED ONLY IN TIMES OF WINTER OR OF COLD, OR
FAMINE ."
Another scripture is consistent with the
foregoing:
D & C 49:18 "And whoso forbiddeth to
abstain from meats. that man should not eat the same is not
ordained of God ;
.................
20 But it is not given that one man should possess that
which is above another, wherefore the world lieth in
sin.
21 And WO BE UNTO MAN THAT SHEDDETH BLOOD OR THAT
WASTETH FLESH AND HATH NO NEED ."
RB, Gen. 9:9 "Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat
for you; even as the green herb have I given you all
things.
....................
11 AND SURELY. BLOOD SHALL NOT BE SHED! ONLY FOR
MEAT. TO SAVE YOUR LIVES ; and the blood of every
beast will I require at your hands."
The Essenes were followers of Christ during his advent on
earth. The following is from their teachings:
Essenes, Book One, Page 44 "Whither should we go, Master,
for with you are the words of eternal life? Tell us, what
are the sins which we must shun, that we may nevermore see
disease?" Jesus answered: "Be it so according to your
faith," and he sat down among them, saying: "lt was said to
them of old time, 'Honour thy Heavenly Father and thy
Earthly Mother (Mother Earth), and do their commandments,
that thy days may be long upon the earth.' And next
afterward was given this commandment, 'Thou shalt
not kill ' for life is given to all by God. and that which
God has given. let not man take away ..........For I tell
you truly, he who kills. kills himself and WHOSO EATS THE
FLESH OF SLAIN BEASTS EATS OF THE BODY OF DEATH .
For in his blood every drop of their blood turns to poison;
in his breath their breath to stink; in his flesh their
flesh to boils; in his bones their bones to chalk; in his
bowels their bowels to decay;
(Page 45) in his eyes their eyes to scales; in his ears
their ears to waxy issue. And their death will become his
death. For only in the service of your Heavenly Father are
your debts of seven years forgiven in seven days. But Satan
forgives you-nothing and you must pay him for all. 'Eye for
eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot; burning
for burning; wound tor wound; life for life, death for
death. For the wages of sin is death. Kill not
neither eat the flesh of your innocent prey. lest vou become
the slaves of Satan. For this is the path of sufferings, and
it leads unto death . But do the will of God, that
his angels may serve you on the way of life. Obey,
therefore, the words of God: 'Behold, I have given you every
herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth,
and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding
seed; to you it shall be for meat. And to every beast of the
earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to everything that
creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is breath of life, I
give every green herb for meat. Also the milk of every thing
that moveth and that liveth upon earth shall be meat for
you; even as the green herb have I given unto them, so I
give their milk unto you. But flesh, and the blood
which quickens it. shall ye not eat."
Page 49 "... IF YOU EAT LIVING FOOD, THE
SAME WILL OUICKEN YOU BUT IF YOU KILL YOUR FOOD. THE DEAD
FOOD WILL KILL YOU ALSO. FOR LIFE COMES ONLY FROM LIFE. AND
FROM DEATH COMES ALWAYS DEATH ."
Page 51 "...eat always from the table of God: the fruits of
the trees, the grain and grasses of the field, the milk of
beasts, and the honey of bees. For everything beyond these
is of Satan, and leads by the way of sins and of diseases
unto death. But the foods which you eat from the abundant
table of God give strength and youth to your body, and you
will never see disease."
Page 53 "And when you eat, never eat unto fulness.
For Satan and his power tempt vou always to eat more and
more. But live by the spirit. and resist the desires of the
body."
Essenes, Book One, Page 47 "Then another said (to Jesus):
"Moses, the greatest in Israel, suffered our forefathers to
eat the flesh of clean beasts, and forbade only the flesh of
unclean beasts. Why, therefore do you forbid us the
flesh of all beasts ? Which law comes from God?
That of Moses or your law?"
Jesus explained that they couldn't live the greater laws -
therefore, Moses broke them and they were given the lesser
law.
That which comes under the lesser law that can be eaten in
the way of meat is explained in Leviticus 11:3-30.
Continuing with the revelation:
"All GRAIN is ordained for the use of man,
and of beasts, TO BE THE STAFF OF LIFE ,
not only for man. BUT FOR THE BEASTS OF THE FIELD.
AND THE FOWLS OF HEAVEN AND ALL WILD ANIMALS that run or
creep on the earth : and these (that is the
animals) hath God made for the use of man only in times of
famine, and excess of hunger."
3 "All grain is good for the food of man, as also the fruit
of the vine, that which yieldeth fruit, whether in the
ground or above the ground. Nevertheless WHEAT FOR
MAN,52 and
corn for the ox, and oats for the horse, and rye for the
fowls, and for swine, and for all beasts of the field, and
barley for all useful animals, and for mild drinks;
as also other grain ."
52 Since wheat is the
"staff of life" it contains everything that sustains life
for man. Dr. John A. Widtsoe's report on the saints in
Germany during World War II who survived mostly on wheat
proves this.
Essenes, Book One, Page 54 ".... eat wheat, the most perfect
among all seed-bearing herbs. And let your daily bread be
made of wheat, that the Lord may take care of your
bodies.~
And all samts who remember to keep and do these sayings,
walhng in obedience to the commandments, shall receive
health in their navel, and marrow to their bones and shall
find wisdom, and great treasures of knowledge, even hidden
trasures; and shall run and not be weary, and shall walk and
not faint: and I the Lord give unto them a promise, that the
destroying angel shall pass by them, as the children of
Israel and not slay them. Amen."
Let us take this step by step:
First - "walking in obedience to the
commandments " - I believe that the following sums
up all of the commandments:
RB, St Mark 12:34 "And Jesus answered him, The first of all
the commandments is: ........
35 ...thou shalt LOVE the Lord thy God
with all thv heart! and with all thv soul. and with all thy
mind and with all thy strength .
36 This is the first commandment. And the second is like
this, Thou shalt LOVE thy neighbor as
thyself . There is none other commandment greater
than these."
We must learn to love the Lord and everyone as ourselves but
before we can accomplish this we must learn first to love
ourselves which should not be too difficult since we,
through the scriptures, have knowledge of our true
spir itual identity.
Second - "health in the navel " - My
personal opinion on this is health to your children since
the fetus receives nourishment through the navel the value
of that which it is receiving depends upon the health of the
mother.
Third - "marrow to the bones " - Again my
interpretation is that since the scriptures inform us that
the life of the body is in the blood 53 and
that the blood is manufactured in the bones I would say that
your quality of well being stems from the type of blood that
is produced.
53 Lev. 17:11 ".... the life of
the flesh is in the blood:..."
Fourth - "and shall find wisdom. and great treasures
of knowledge! even hidden trasures " We are
informed that "God can not dwell in unclean temples" and so
if His spirit is to communicate great treasures of knowledge
even hidden treasures our transmission better be kept
clean.
Jesus was told what to eat to help him discern the good from
the evil:
2 Ne. 17:14 "....Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and shall
bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
15 BUTTER AND HONEY shall he eat. that he may know
to refuse the evil and to choose the good ."
Fifth - "and shall run and not be weary. and shall
walk and not faint: "and I the Lord give unto them a
promise, that the destroying angel shall pass by them! as
the children of Israel and not slay them"
It sounds to me that if we keep the commandments and keep
our body clean there is a greater chance of being receptive
to the Holy Spirit and having our calling and election made
sure (the promise of the spiritual endowment permanently)
and, therefore, the possibility to be translated as was
Enoch and not taste of death. I believe that the "destroying
angel" mentioned here is death.
Joseph Smith has informed us by revelation that which we
should eat which is fruits and vegetables in their season
and grain as the "staff of life." In the beginning of the
revelation we are warned about the evil designs of
conspiring men in the last days. I do not believe that this
inference is for alcoholic beverages and tobacco alone
because they have been with us for centuries. Noah had an
encounter with strong drinks and when Columbus came to this
continent he discovered not only America but also that the
Indians raised and smoked tobacco. Much has been done with
natural foods and not for the benefit of the purchaser but
for the benefit of the seller. Degerminated grains have a
much longer shelf life than natural grains since weavels
will not touch that which has been degerminated which, as my
doctor put it, proves that weavels sometimes have more
intuition than do human beings. The effect of this tampering
can be understood when one encounters all of the advertised
medications from TV commercials.
Joseph Smith taught the use of herbs. (See Diaries, Page
243, 262 and 486, and D & C 42:43 & 44)
:
Hyrum Smith gave an excellent discourse on the Word of
Wisdom:
T & S, Vol. 3, Pages 799 and 800 " .......When God first
made man upon the earth, he was
a different being entirely to what he now is; his body was
strong, athletic, robust, and healthy; his days were
prolonged upon the earth; he lived nearly one thousand
years, his mind was vigorous and active, and his
intellectual faculties clear and comprehensive, but he has
become degenerated; his life has dwindled to a span;
......... he has found out many inventions:' his
vices have become innumerable. and his diseases multiplied;
.........God only is acquainted with the fountain of action,
and the main springs of human events; he knows where disease
is seated, and what is the cause of it: - he is also
acquainted with the spring of health;.............he knows
what course to pursue to restore mankind to their pristine
excellency and primitive vigour and health: and HE HAS
APPOINTED THE WORD OF WISDOM as one of the engines to bring
about this thing. to remove the beastly appetites. the
murderous disposition and the vitiated taste of man; to
restore his body to health. and vigour. promote peace
between him and the brute creation, .... "
The Essenes had a way of distinguishing what God had
provided for food for man; for instance, fruits and
vegetables. They grow to maturity and, if not consumed in
one season, perish. No life cycle has been interupted. Their
purpose was to sustain the life of man.
The scriptures also inform us that if we are obedient to the
commandment we are not to take honor unto ourselves and
judge others through their disobedience:
Romans 14:1 "Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, but
not to doubtful disputations.
2 For one believeth that he may eat all things: another, who
is weak, eateth herbs.
3 Let him that eateth despise him that eateth not;
and let him which eateth not judge him that eateth: for God
hath received him .
4 Who art thou that judgest another man's
servant ? to his own master he standeth or falleth.
Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is able to make him
stand.
...................
7 For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to
himself."
Nevertheless, the promises in the Word of Wisdom are
forthcoming through obedience.
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