From the Archive: Seventies Blessings

Chad Nielsen

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I’m working hard on my Zerah Pulsipher biography and thought it would be fun to share a few items that I found interesting or fun. Today’s post focuses on blessings given to members of the newly-formed quorums of the seventies during the 1830s.

 

 

Blessings were given to many of the seventies as they were ordained that demonstrate what Joseph Smith and other Church leaders envisioned men serving in the new office accomplishing. Most followed a standard procedure of laying hands on the individual’s heads and stating that “We ordain you an Elder and one of the Seventy,” and noting (for those who served in the Camp of Israel (also known as Zion’s Camp)) that “You have given testimony that you were willing to lay down your life.” Afterwards, blessings were promised—some mundane and some fantastic. Some were promised grandiose missionary experiences in the future. Cyrus Smalling, for example, was told, “In the name of the Lord, therefore, thou Shalt go forth, and his angel shall go with thee whithersoever thou goest; for thou shalt go and nothing shall stay thee. … Thou shalt go to Europe and preach the gospel to the Kings of the earth. Thou shalt stand before bishops, archbishops and lord bishops, and even the pope himself.”[1] Darwin Richardson was told, “The Lord afar will send you afar off and you shall teach a multitude of nations in their own tongues, and you shall go [to?] the Islands and teach, and even depopulate them for you shall lead them to Zion.”[2]

Sometimes the seventy was encouraged to act in greater righteousness. Charles Kelly received a particularly ominous blessing: “Unless you seek the Lord with all your heart more than you have ever done, you shall die and not live. If you had not gone to Zion to lay down your life for your brethren you would not now receive this ministry.”[3] Levi Gifford was told “You are a strange kind of a man. curious spirits trouble you, but in the name of the Lord Jesus we rebuke all the evil Spirits that have troubled you, and say to you that you shall overcome them.”[4]

Other times, they were promised divine assistance in their missionary endeavors. Solomon Angell was told: “You shall have power to fill your days with usefulness and have favor in the eyes of God.”[5] Harrison Burgess received similar promises: “You shall have power given you to perform all the duties of your calling, and you shall bear a testimony that shall convince many.”[6] Lewis Robbins’s blessing went further, stating that “You shall yet declare that you have seen the Heavens opened <& and that the Lord Jesus lives> because you have seen him: And you shall be ministred unto by holy Angels. You shall speak to them in their own language, and you shall have great wisdom to teach and to set in order the things of Jesus.” Lewis Robbins was also blessed with “all power that is necessary even over waters, floods, fir[e]s & winds in order to accomplish your ministry,” and a similar blessing was given to Joseph Young, who was told, “You shall have power over fire water and all evil.”[7] Joseph Smith and his associates envisioned great things in the future of the seventies.

 

 

Footnotes:

[1] Ordination and Blessing of Cyrus Smalling, 30 June 1835, p. 24, The Joseph Smith Papers, accessed June 19, 2025, https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/ordination-and-blessing-of-cyrus-smalling-30-june-1835/1.

[2] Blessing to Darwin Richardson, 1 March 1835, p. 184, The Joseph Smith Papers, accessed June 19, 2025, https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/blessing-to-darwin-richardson-1-march-1835/1.

[3] Blessing to Charles Kelly, 1 March 1835, p. 175, The Joseph Smith Papers, accessed June 19, 2025, https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/blessing-to-charles-kelly-1-march-1835/1.

[4] Blessing to Levi Gifford, 1 March 1835, p. 170, The Joseph Smith Papers, accessed June 19, 2025, https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/blessing-to-levi-gifford-1-march-1835/1.

[5] Blessing to Solomon Angell, 1 March 1835, p. 178, The Joseph Smith Papers, accessed June 19, 2025, https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/blessing-to-solomon-angell-1-march-1835/1.

[6] Blessing to Harrison Burgess, 1 March 1835, p. 181, The Joseph Smith Papers, accessed June 19, 2025, https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/blessing-to-harrison-burgess-1-march-1835/1.

[7] Blessing to Joseph Young, 1 March 1835, p. 185, The Joseph Smith Papers, accessed June 19, 2025, https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/blessing-to-joseph-young-1-march-1835/1; Blessing to Lewis Robbins, 1 March 1835, p. 184, The Joseph Smith Papers, accessed June 19, 2025, https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/blessing-to-lewis-robbins-1-march-1835/1.

Comments

4 responses to “From the Archive: Seventies Blessings”

  1. ji

    This posting raises a question which I answered for myself many years ago; viz., is a priesthood blessing (a) a channeling of the word of God direct from the courts of heaven, or (b) an aspirational prayer of the hopes of the people?

    Generally, I tend towards (b) — but this doesn’t mean I discount blessings. I see them as important strengtheners of faith. I appreciate D&C 42:43-44.

  2. Brent B.

    @ji

    I’m reminded of Elder Oaks’ talk “Healing the Sick” from the April 2010 General Conference where he says,

    “Another part of a priesthood blessing is the words of blessing spoken by the elder after he seals the anointing. These words can be very important, but their content is not essential and they are not recorded on the records of the Church. In some priesthood blessings—like a patriarchal blessing—the words spoken are the essence of the blessing. But in a healing blessing it is the other parts of the blessing—the anointing, the sealing, faith, and the will of the Lord—that are the essential elements.

    Ideally, the elder who officiates will be so in tune with the Spirit of the Lord that he will know and declare the will of the Lord in the words of the blessing. Brigham Young taught priesthood holders, “It is your privilege and duty to live so that you know when the word of the Lord is spoken to you and when the mind of the Lord is revealed to you.” When that happens, the spoken blessing is fulfilled literally and miraculously. On some choice occasions I have experienced that certainty of inspiration in a healing blessing and have known that what I was saying was the will of the Lord. However, like most who officiate in healing blessings, I have often struggled with uncertainty on the words I should say. For a variety of causes, every elder experiences increases and decreases in his level of sensitivity to the promptings of the Spirit. Every elder who gives a blessing is subject to influence by what he desires for the person afflicted. Each of these and other mortal imperfections can influence the words we speak.

    Fortunately, the words spoken in a healing blessing are not essential to its healing effect. If faith is sufficient and if the Lord wills it, the afflicted person will be healed or blessed whether the officiator speaks those words or not. Conversely, if the officiator yields to personal desire or inexperience and gives commands or words of blessing in excess of what the Lord chooses to bestow according to the faith of the individual, those words will not be fulfilled. Consequently, brethren, no elder should ever hesitate to participate in a healing blessing because of fear that he will not know what to say. The words spoken in a healing blessing can edify and energize the faith of those who hear them, but the effect of the blessing is dependent upon faith and the Lord’s will, not upon the words spoken by the elder who officiated.”

    https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2010/04/healing-the-sick?lang=eng

  3. ji

    I think the principle applies for all blessings — healing the sick, naming of children, blessing of homes, father’s blessing, blessing accompanying priesthood ordinations and setting apart for callings, and the rest. Giving a blessing is an act of faith and obedience, and need not be seen as divining or channeling the word of God from the heavens above. The speaker speaks his own voice but with solemnity in the name of the Lord on behalf of the gathered saints.

  4. Chad Nielsen

    I see it as similar to how I see the process of revelation more broadly – the Spirit influences thoughts and transmits ideas to the person giving the blessing, but there is plenty of room for the person giving the blessing to express those thoughts in their own words and opportunities for them to express their own thoughts and hopes as part of the process of doing so (thanks in part to the imperfection of communication between the mortal human mind and the divine).

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