The Promises of Section 76
I once heard someone remark that we do not read enough or adequately pay attention to the introductory and concluding verses in section 76 of the Doctrine and Covenants. This section is perhaps the most well-known in the whole book of scripture because of its description of the three degrees of glory that accounts for most of its 119 verses. Verses 1-10, though, give an introduction from the Lord, and verses 114-119 give a concluding summary from the Prophet Joseph. Both of these sections teach important principles about the nature of God and give marvelous promises about the Lord’s willingness to reveal His mysteries to all His children. They highlight this important and generous principle taught by the prophet who said said, “God hath not revealed anything to Joseph, but what He will make known unto the Twelve, and even the least Saint may know all things as fast as he is able to bear them, for the day must come when no man need say to his neighbor, Know ye the Lord; for all shall know Him … from the least to the greatest.”
The first few
verses of this section proclaim the grandeur of God and His unchanging nature:
“Hear, O ye heavens, and give ear, O earth, and rejoice ye inhabitants thereof,
for the Lord is God, and beside him there is no Savior. Great is his wisdom,
marvelous are his ways, and the extent of his doings none can find out. His
purposes fail not, neither are there any who can stay his hand. From eternity
to eternity he is the same, and his years never fail” (v1-4). The Savior’s
purposes never fail and He is unchanging in His wisdom and power and goodness.
In short, “great and marvelous are the works of the Lord” (v114). We can trust
Him and look to Him as our only Savior. We learn of His great mercy to those
who will follow Him: “For thus saith the Lord—I, the Lord, am merciful and
gracious unto those who fear me, and delight to honor those who serve me in
righteousness and in truth unto the end” (v5). The subsequent verses then describe
the great blessings promised to this group of Saints, those who fear God and
serve Him in righteousness to the end. Here is the impressive list:
- “Great shall be their reward and eternal shall be their glory” (v6). The Lord’s promises are great to this group, as described in more details in the subsequent verses.
- “To them will I reveal all mysteries, yea, all the hidden
mysteries of my kingdom from days of old, and for ages to come, will I make
known unto them the good pleasure of my will concerning all things pertaining
to my kingdom” (v7). Those who serve Him and endure to the end will receive
revelations concerning His mysteries, surely some of which we learn as we worthily
enter His holy house.
- “Even the wonders of eternity shall they know, and things to come
will I show them, even the things of many generations” (v8). Like He has given
to so many of His prophets in days of old, He promises that we can have
knowledge about things that are to come on the earth. After all, “the testimony
of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy” and so surely the faithful who believe in
Him will know some of the mysteries of things to come (Revelation 19:10).
- “Their wisdom shall be great, and their understanding reach to
heaven; and before them the wisdom of the wise shall perish, and the
understanding of the prudent shall come to naught” (v9). The Savior’s promise
is that the knowledge and wisdom He will give to the faithful Saints will be of
greater power and importance than the wisdom of the world which denies the
power of God.
- “For by my Spirit will I enlighten them, and by my power will I
make known unto them the secrets of my will—yea, even those things which eye
has not seen, nor ear heard, nor yet entered into the heart of man” (v10).
Those who serve Him in righteousness are promised the greatest blessing
possible on earth: to have the Gift of the Holy Ghost to enlighten us and lead
us, to teach us His will and even those things which aren’t seen by the eye or
heard by the ear.
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