Wilford Woodruff

“ Let us try to be faithful and to live our religion; let us try to believe in the revelations of God. I think it will be better for our daughters, for our wives, for our sons and for ourselves to lay aside the New York Ledger and yellow covered literature generally, and take hold and read the revelations of God, and comprehend them. When I read the revelations, whether in the Bible, Book of Mormon, or Book of Doctrine and Covenants, I look upon them as true, and I look for their fulfillment. ”

“ I do not find fault with a man getting rich, I find fault with our selling the kingdom of God, our birthright, selling the Gospel and depriving ourselves of eternal life, for the sake of gratifying the lusts of the flesh, the pride of life and the fashions of the world ”

“ When he came to the Jews, his own Father's house, the house of Israel, as the great shiloh of Judah, and the Savior of the world, a more unpopular man than he never dwelt in Judea or Jerusalem, from the day of his birth to the day of his death, when he gave up the ghost on the cross, and went home to glory as a martyr for the word of God and the testimony which he bore. And this is why I say that when any man, in any age of the world, is called of God to declare the words of life, he has to contend with the traditions of ages that rest upon the minds of the in-habitants of the earth. ”

“ How often have the Elders of Israel lifted up their voices to the inhabitants of the earth and been rejected? Will not these things rise in judgment against them? Yea, verily they will. The Lord has offered the fullness of the everlasting Gospel to the inhabitants of the earth to-day, and they refuse to receive it. Brother Pratt, here, myself and thousands of us have traveled ten thousand miles on foot, without purse or scrip, carrying our knapsack or valise, and we have waded swamps, swam rivers, and begged our bread from door to door to preach the Gospel to this generation. ”

“ I marvel very much at the little interest manifested by the inhabitants of the earth generally in their future state. There is not a person here to-day but what is going to live on the other side of the vail as long as his Creator—to the endless ages of eternity, and the eternal destiny of every individual depends upon the manner in which the few short years of the life in the flesh are spent. ”

“ When Christ was upon the mount, Lucifer, the devil, showed him all the glory of the world and offered to give it to him if he would fall down and worship him. But do you know that that poor devil did not own a single foot of land in the whole world, and that he had not, even a body, or tabernacle? The earth is the footstool of the Lord, and if we ever have any of it for our own the Lord will give it to us ”

“ Darkness has prevailed upon the earth, and does to-day, in all the nations, and this causes silence to reign, and all eternity is pained because of the sin, wickedness, and abominations which prevail throughout the whole Christian or Gentile world, and throughout the whole Jewish world, for darkness prevails upon the face of all the earth, and the Lord is calling upon all the inhabitants thereof to repent and receive the Gospel, and when they have done so to gather out of Babylon to the place he has appointed for the dwelling place of his Saints. ”

“ I consider that as a people and as Elders of Israel we occupy one of the most important positions ever occupied on the face of the earth by those who have been called to work for the Lord. We have received our appointment for this work, and we should prepare ourselves to perform the duties devolving upon us in connection with it. Truth is one of the attributes of the Lord, and he never makes a declaration but what is certain and true. ”

“ This Gospel is offered to the world, and that men generally have such a desire to root it out of the earth, is the strongest proof imaginable that they are under the dominion and control of the father of lies. If any man has a truth that we have not got, we say, "Let us have it." ”

“ No man can point to any of the revelations of God in the old prophets concerning events up to our day, but what have had their fulfillment. Everything that Jesus Christ spake concerning Judea and Jerusalem has had its fulfillment to the very letter. The Temple at Jerusalem was overthrown until not one stone was left upon another, and the Jews have been scattered and trodden under the feet of the Gentiles now for eighteen hundred years, and so they will remain until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled, and that is pretty near. ”

“ We all dwelt in the presence of God before we came here, and such men as Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, the ancient Prophets, Jesus and the Apostles received their appointments before the world was made. They were ordained before the foundation of the world to come and tabernacle here in the flesh and to work for the cause of God, and this because of their faith and faithfulness. You can see the great variety of spirits that have dwelt in the presence of God, from those who are in the presence of God, down to the devils. ”

“ I think, many times, that we, as Elders of Israel and as Latter-day Saints, come far short of realizing our position before the Lord. The work required at our hands is great and mighty; it is the work of Almighty God. ”

“ I have no objection to the ladies—our wives daughters and mothers—in Zion adorning themselves as much as they please, if they only make what they wear. Set out your mulberry trees and make your own silk; get straw and make your own bonnets; make your artificial flowers to adorn yourselves with, and let all be the workmanship of your own hands, and do not import these things at the expense of the means we have in the Territory. ”

“ Up to the present day, one jot or tittle of them has never gone unfulfilled, and, as the Lord has said—"What I have spoken I have spoken, and I excuse not myself, and though the heavens and the earth pass away, not one jot or tittle of my word shall go unfulfilled, whether by my own voice or by the voice of my servants it is the same. ”

“ Illiterate fishermen, men of the lowest calling almost in Judea, Salt Lake City, or anywhere else; but fishermen can be just as honorable men as any others, and they are generally regarded as very humble men, and that is the kind of men God has always chosen. ”

“ That will be about as much as we can expect, unless we repent of our sins and turn from our follies, fooleries, and the fashions of Babylon—things which our hearts have been set upon instead of upon building up the kingdom of God. ”

“ While his body lay three days and nights in the tomb he went and preached to the spirits in prison, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, that they might receive part in the resurrection, according to the testimony which they received. ”