The Old Testament in the Doctrine and Covenants

Yesterday I wrote about how important the Old Testament was to beginning of the Restoration of the gospel as seen in the Book of Mormon and the messages of Moroni to young Joseph. We further see the relevance of the Old Testament as we notice how intertwined it is with the revelations of the Doctrine and Covenants. This is clear from the beginning of the book. The earliest revelation recorded, section 2, is a paraphrase of Malachi 4:5-6 about the turning of the hearts of the children to their fathers. In another early revelation when the Lord taught about receiving inspiration to Oliver Cowdery he used the example of Moses from Exodus: “Now, behold, this is the spirit of revelation; behold, this is the spirit by which Moses brought the children of Israel through the Red Sea on dry ground.” In the same section He spoke of the “gift of Aaron,” referring to the brother of Moses in the Old Testament (8:3,6-7). Soon thereafter “the Priesthood of Aaron” was restored by John the Baptist, and later the priesthood of Melchizedek by Peter, James, and John (13:1). Those two priesthoods, both named after Old Testament figures, were restored before the organization of the Church in 1830 and were subsequently referred to numerous times in the Doctrine and Covenants, particularly in section 107. Thus still today as we speak about the lesser and higher priesthoods and call them by their most common names, we are implicitly testifying of the reality and importance of two men of the Old Testament. Another very early revelation speaks of the “house of Jacob,” referring to the twelve tribes of Israel which figure so prominently in the Old Testament (10:60). References to Israel and its gathering in the last days are found in at least 30 different sections in the Doctrine and Covenants, intricately linking what happened in the Old Testament to the Restoration today. From the very beginning, the revelations received by Joseph Smith were steeped in Old Testament people and stories.     

                Many other Old Testament figures are found throughout the words of the Doctrine and Covenants. Adam is mentioned in at least nine different sections as we learn that he is “the father of all, the prince of all, the ancient of days” who shall come one day to Adam-ondi-Ahman “to visit his people” (27:11, 116:1). Abraham is spoken of in ten different sections, he who “was commanded to offer up his only son” and who now “hath entered into his exaltation and sitteth upon his throne” (101:4, 132:29). We find Moses or his law in at least fourteen sections and most prominently in the vision in the Kirtland Temple when he returned in person “and committed unto [Joseph and Oliver] the keys of the gathering of Israel from the four parts of the earth, and the leading of the ten tribes from the land of the north” (110:11). That same vision records the advent of Elijah with keys of his own, and he is referenced in seven different revelations, mostly in connection with his role of turning the hearts of the fathers to the children. We see Noah in four different revelations and learn that he “was ten years old when he was ordained under the hand of Methuselah” for the great work that he would do (107:52). We learn of David, Solomon, and Nathan in section 132 about “the principle and doctrine of their having many wives and concubines” (v1). In the final section we find additional references to “our glorious Mother Eve” as well as Abel, Seth, Shem, Isaiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, and Elias, all important figures of the Old Testament. And of course we have countless allusions to and quotations of the words of Isaiah, such as section 113 which contains questions and answers to Isaiah 11. Section 133 alone has references to at least 8 different chapters (Isaiah 8,35,40,50,52,54,63,64), and it contains as well quotations from or allusions to at least 7 other books in the Old Testament (Genesis, Deuteronomy, Psalms, Jeremiah, Isaiah, Joel, Zechariah, Malachi). Quotations from these books and others in the Old Testament are scattered throughout the Doctrine and Covenants—the above references are far from complete. In short, the Old Testament is everywhere in modern revelation. To believe in the Restoration through the Prophet Joseph Smith is to affirm the reality of the people and stories of the Old Testament and their importance and relevance to us today.