King Benjamin’s Sermon as a Type of Temple Endowment PDF feed of Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship
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Abstract: To more permanently unify the Mulekites and the Nephites as a reunited kingdom of Israel, King Benjamin gathered his people at the temple, and in his role as a king and priest after the order of Melchizedek, imparted teachings that bear resemblance to the Latter-day Saint temple endowment ceremony first introduced in Nauvoo. Several of these similarities are explored in depth. Since the book of Mosiah is one of the earliest extant texts of Joseph Smith’s prophetic ministry, this finding adds to a growing body of literature that suggests that temple themes are apparent in the unfolding Restoration earlier than has been commonly recognized. King Benjamin’s sermon also provides a model for how the latter-day covenant people of the Lord can establish a modern “kingdom of priests” in preparation for the second coming of Jesus Christ.
On May 3, 1842, Joseph Smith, with the help of Lucius Scovil and others, prepared the upper room of his Red Brick Store in Nauvoo, Illinois, to represent “the interior of a temple as much as the circumstances would permit.”1 The next day, Joseph Smith invited a small number of faithful men to meet with him at the store.
On the wall was a newly painted mural. Small trees and plants stood nearby, suggesting a garden setting. Another part of the room was sectioned off with a rug hung up like a curtain. . . .
For the rest of the afternoon, the prophet introduced an ordinance to the men. . . .
The new ordinance . . . drew upon scriptural accounts of [Page 2]the Creation and the Garden of Eden . . . to guide the men step-by-step through the plan of salvation. . . .
They received knowledge that would enable them to return to the presence of God. Along the way, the men made covenants to live righteous, chaste lives and dedicate themselves to serving the Lord.
Joseph called the ordinance the endowment and trusted the men not to reveal the special knowledge they learned that day. . . . As soon as the temple was finished, both men and women would be able to receive the ordinance.2
Notably, certain elements of the endowment ceremony3 bore close resemblances to symbols and language found in Masonic rituals, a connection that was observed by participants at the time. For example, one of the first men to receive the endowment, Master Mason Heber C. Kimball,
wrote of this experience to fellow Apostle Parley P. Pratt, who was on a mission in England. “We have received some precious things through the Prophet on the priesthood,” Kimball wrote of the endowment, noting that “there is a similarity of priesthood in masonry.” He told Pratt that Joseph believed Masonry was “taken from priesthood but has become degenerated.”a id="footnote4anc" href="#footnote4sym" title="4. “Masonry,” Church History Topics, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,
Abstract: To more permanently unify the Mulekites and the Nephites as a reunited kingdom of Israel, King Benjamin gathered his people at the temple, and in his role as a king and priest after the order of Melchizedek, imparted teachings that bear resemblance to the Latter-day Saint temple endowment ceremony first introduced in Nauvoo. Several of these similarities are explored in depth. Since the book of Mosiah is one of the earliest extant texts of Joseph Smith’s prophetic ministry, this finding adds to a growing body of literature that suggests that temple themes are apparent in the unfolding Restoration earlier than has been commonly recognized. King Benjamin’s sermon also provides a model for how the latter-day covenant people of the Lord can establish a modern “kingdom of priests” in preparation for the second coming of Jesus Christ.
On May 3, 1842, Joseph Smith, with the help of Lucius Scovil and others, prepared the upper room of his Red Brick Store in Nauvoo, Illinois, to represent “the interior of a temple as much as the circumstances would permit.”1 The next day, Joseph Smith invited a small number of faithful men to meet with him at the store.
On the wall was a newly painted mural. Small trees and plants stood nearby, suggesting a garden setting. Another part of the room was sectioned off with a rug hung up like a curtain. . . .
For the rest of the afternoon, the prophet introduced an ordinance to the men. . . .
The new ordinance . . . drew upon scriptural accounts of [Page 2]the Creation and the Garden of Eden . . . to guide the men step-by-step through the plan of salvation. . . .
They received knowledge that would enable them to return to the presence of God. Along the way, the men made covenants to live righteous, chaste lives and dedicate themselves to serving the Lord.
Joseph called the ordinance the endowment and trusted the men not to reveal the special knowledge they learned that day. . . . As soon as the temple was finished, both men and women would be able to receive the ordinance.2
Notably, certain elements of the endowment ceremony3 bore close resemblances to symbols and language found in Masonic rituals, a connection that was observed by participants at the time. For example, one of the first men to receive the endowment, Master Mason Heber C. Kimball,
wrote of this experience to fellow Apostle Parley P. Pratt, who was on a mission in England. “We have received some precious things through the Prophet on the priesthood,” Kimball wrote of the endowment, noting that “there is a similarity of priesthood in masonry.” He told Pratt that Joseph believed Masonry was “taken from priesthood but has become degenerated.”a id="footnote4anc" href="#footnote4sym" title="4. “Masonry,” Church History Topics, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,