Letter to the Church in Caldwell County, Missouri, 16 December 1838, Extract, Phebe Carter Woodruff Copy
Source Note
JS, Letter, , Clay Co., MO, to the church in , MO, 16 Dec. 1838. Extract copied [between 16 Dec. 1838 and 27 May 1857]; handwriting of Phebe Carter Woodruff; docket in handwriting of ; seven pages; JS Collection, CHL.
determined to defend the lives of the saints at the expense of our own. I say unto you that those who have thus vilely treated us like Haman shall be hanged on their own gallows or in other words shall fall into their own gins and snares and ditch and traps which they have prepared for us, and shall go backwards and stumble and fall, and their names shall be blotted out and God sall reward them according to all their abominations. Dear brethren do not think that our hearts faint as thoug some strange thing had happened unto us for we have sean and been assured of all these things beforehand and have had an assurance of a better hope than that of our persecutors; thefore therefore God hath made broad our shoulders for the burden. We glory in our tribulations because we know that God is with us that he is our friend and that he will save our souls. We do not care for them that kill the body they cannot harm our souls We ask no favors at the hand of mobs nor of the world nor of the devil nor of his emissaries the dissenters and those who love and make and swear falsehoods to take away our lives. We have never dissembled nor will we for the sake of our lives forasmuch then as we know that we have been endeaveouring with all our minds might and strength to do the will of God and all things whatsoever he hath commanded us and as to our light observations from time to time they have nothing to do with the fixed principles of our hearts therefore it is sufficient for us to say that our souls were vexed from day to day; and we refer you Isaiah who considers those who make a man an offender for a word and lay a snare for him that reproveth in the gate. We believe the old prophet verily told the truth.
We have no retraction to make. We have reproved in the gate and men have laid snares for us. We have spoken words and men have made us offenders and notwithstanding all this we feal that our minds are not yet darkened but feal strong in the Lord but behold the words of the saviour if the light which is in you become darkness behold how great is that darkness, look at the dyssentres again— if ye were of the world the world would love its own, look at a wolf in s[h]eeps clothing— look at his brethern brother — look at the beloved who took him by the hand and aided him in leading us as the Saviour was led into the camp as a lamb prepared for the slander slaughter [p. [2]]