Section 67
Overview
Doctrine and Covenants Section 67 was given in November 1831 during a conference in Hiram, Ohio, where early church leaders were preparing to publish Joseph Smith's revelations as the 'Book of Commandments.' Historical context indicates that some elders, noting Smith's lack of formal education and poor grammar, hesitated to testify of the revelations' divine origin. In response, this text issues a divine challenge: the elders are instructed to select the wisest among them to attempt to write a revelation equal to the 'least' of Smith's. If they succeed, they are justified in their doubts; if they fail, they are under divine condemnation unless they bear record of the revelations' truthfulness. Furthermore, the text addresses the elders' spiritual state, noting that their fears prevented them from receiving blessings. It concludes with a profound but highly conditional promise: if the elders strip themselves of jealousy and fear, humble themselves, and continue in patience until they are 'perfected' and 'worthy,' the veil will be rent, and they will see God. This establishes a theological framework where access to God's presence is contingent upon human moral achievement and where the authenticity of scripture is validated by a pragmatic test of literary duplication.
Key Figures
- The Lord: The first-person speaker of the text, asserting omniscience, sovereignty over heaven and earth, and the authority to condemn or bless.
- Joseph Smith, Jun.: The prophet whose language limitations and imperfections are explicitly acknowledged, yet whose revelations are defended as divinely originating.
- Elders of the Church: The audience of the revelation, characterized as having fears and jealousies, who are challenged to duplicate the revelations and commanded to achieve perfection.
Doctrines Analyzed
Key theological claims identified in this text:
Pragmatic Epistemology of Scripture
Assertion
The divine authenticity of a revelation can be proven by the inability of a wise human to duplicate its spiritual or literary quality.
Evidence from Text
But if ye cannot make one like unto it, ye are under condemnation if ye do not bear record that they are true. (D&C 67:8)
Evangelical Comparison
In D&C 67, the Lord establishes a unique epistemological test for the canon: if the wisest man cannot write a revelation that matches the 'least' of Joseph Smith's, the text must be accepted as divine. This is a pragmatic, subjective test based on human inability. In contrast, Evangelical Christianity relies on the objective tests established in Deuteronomy 13:1-5 and 18:20-22, as well as the Berean method (Acts 17:11) of comparing new teachings against established, closed-canon Scripture. The inability of a 19th-century farmer to mimic the King James cadence, or the inability of his peers to do so, does not constitute biblical proof of divine inspiration.
Conditional Theophany and Access to God
Assertion
Seeing God and abiding His presence requires the believer to be personally perfected, worthy, and stripped of all jealousies and fears.
Evidence from Text
Ye are not able to abide the presence of God now... wherefore, continue in patience until ye are perfected. Let not your minds turn back; and when ye are worthy, in mine own due time, ye shall see and know... (D&C 67:13-14)
Evangelical Comparison
Verses 10, 13, and 14 explicitly condition the renting of the veil and the ability to abide God's presence on the believer's personal worthiness and perfection. The text states, 'continue in patience until ye are perfected' and 'when ye are worthy... ye shall see'. This places the burden of access to God squarely on human moral achievement. Evangelical theology, rooted in Sola Fide and Sola Gratia, teaches that the veil was already rent by Christ's finished work on the cross (Matthew 27:51). Believers are invited to enter boldly into the holy places by the blood of Jesus (Hebrews 10:19-22), clothed in His imputed righteousness (2 Corinthians 5:21), rather than waiting until they achieve personal perfection.
Open Canon and Continuing Revelation
Assertion
The commandments compiled by Joseph Smith are divine truth, and rejecting them brings condemnation.
Evidence from Text
And now I, the Lord, give unto you a testimony of the truth of these commandments which are lying before you. (D&C 67:4)
Evangelical Comparison
This text serves as a divine endorsement of the 'Book of Commandments' (the precursor to the Doctrine and Covenants), placing Joseph Smith's revelations on par with biblical scripture. It explicitly commands the elders to bear record of their truthfulness under threat of condemnation. This directly violates the Evangelical pillar of Sola Scriptura, which maintains that the biblical canon is closed and sufficient for all matters of faith and practice (Jude 1:3, Revelation 22:18-19, 2 Timothy 3:16-17).
Comparative Analysis
Theological Gap (Summary)
The text diverges fundamentally on how a believer gains access to God's presence and how scripture is authenticated. It requires personal perfection for access to God and uses a subjective duplication test to validate an open canon.
Theological Gap (Explained)
The theological gap between D&C 67 and Evangelical Christianity centers on Soteriology (specifically justification and access to God) and Bibliology (canon and epistemology). In verses 10-14, the text establishes a works-righteousness paradigm for theophany and divine communion. It explicitly states that believers cannot abide God's presence 'now' and must 'continue in patience until ye are perfected' and 'when ye are worthy... ye shall see and know.' This directly contradicts the Evangelical doctrine of Justification by Faith Alone (Sola Fide), which posits that Christ's alien righteousness is imputed to the believer at the moment of salvation, granting immediate, unhindered access to the Father (Hebrews 4:16, 10:19-22). The veil was torn at the crucifixion; D&C 67 sews it back up, requiring the believer to rend it themselves through perfection. Furthermore, the text violates Sola Scriptura by demanding adherence to new revelations (the Book of Commandments) under threat of condemnation (v8). The epistemological test provided—challenging the wisest man to duplicate the revelation—is a pragmatic fallacy. Evangelicalism maintains that the canon is closed and that any new prophetic claim must be tested against the objective standard of the completed Bible, not by a subjective literary contest.
For All Ages
Imagine you want to visit the King in his castle. This text says you have to work really hard, get rid of all your fears, and become absolutely perfect before you are 'worthy' to go inside and see him. If you aren't perfect yet, you have to wait. But the Bible teaches something completely different! The Bible says we can never be perfect on our own. Instead, Jesus was perfect for us. Because of what Jesus did on the cross, He opened the door to the castle forever. We don't have to wait until we are perfect; we can talk to God right now because Jesus makes us worthy. Also, this text says we know a book is from God if no one else can write a book just like it. But the Bible says we know something is true if it matches what God has already told us in the Bible.
Friction Points
Sola Scriptura
Validates the Book of Commandments as divine scripture and condemns those who do not bear record of it, adding to the closed biblical canon.
Sola Fide / Sola Gratia
Conditions the ability to see God and abide His presence on personal worthiness and achieving perfection, denying the sufficiency of Christ's imputed righteousness.
Semantic Warnings
Terms that have different meanings between traditions:
"Perfected"
In This Text
A future state of moral and spiritual achievement required to be worthy to abide God's presence.
In Evangelicalism
In terms of justification, believers are already 'perfected forever' by Christ's single offering (Hebrews 10:14). In terms of sanctification, it is an ongoing process of becoming like Christ, but not the prerequisite for accessing God's presence.
"Natural Man"
In This Text
The state of mortals who are not quickened by the Spirit, often associated with physical embodiment and the inability to endure a physical theophany.
In Evangelicalism
The unregenerate state of human nature, totally depraved and dead in sin, unable to understand spiritual truths (1 Corinthians 2:14).
Soteriology (Salvation)
Salvation Defined: In the context of this text, ultimate salvation (exaltation) is defined as the ability to pierce the veil, see God, and abide His presence and the ministering of angels.
How Attained: Attained by stripping oneself of jealousy and fear, humbling oneself, and continuing in patience until one is 'perfected' and 'worthy'.
Basis of Assurance: Assurance is entirely subjective and future-oriented, based on the believer's ongoing effort to become worthy and perfect.
Comparison to Sola Fide: The text stands in stark contrast to Sola Fide. Romans 5:1-2 declares, 'Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand.' D&C 67 demands perfection for access; the Bible grants access through faith in Christ's perfection.
Mandates & Requirements
Explicit Commands
- Behold and hearken (v1)
- Seek ye out of the Book of Commandments, even the least that is among them (v6)
- Appoint him that is the most wise among you (v6)
- Bear record that they are true [if unable to duplicate them] (v8)
- Strip yourselves from jealousies and fears (v10)
- Humble yourselves before me (v10)
- Continue in patience until ye are perfected (v13)
- Let not your minds turn back (v14)
Implicit Obligations
- Accept Joseph Smith as the exclusive prophetic mouthpiece despite his acknowledged imperfections and language limitations.
- Submit to the authority of the newly compiled Book of Commandments.
- Overcome personal doubts regarding the divine origin of the church's revelations.
Ritual Requirements
- Must be 'ordained unto this ministry' to receive the specific promise of seeing God mentioned in verse 10.
Evangelism Toolkit
Practical tools for engagement and dialogue:
Discovery Questions
Open-ended questions to promote reflection:
- When you read verse 13, 'continue in patience until ye are perfected,' how does that make you feel about your current standing before God?
- If someone today wrote a beautiful, profound religious text that no one else could duplicate, would that automatically mean it was scripture?
- Verse 10 talks about the veil being rent so you can see God. How does that compare to what happened to the veil in the temple when Jesus died on the cross?
Redemptive Analogies
Bridges from this text to the Gospel:
Rending the Veil
The desire to have the veil removed and to be in God's presence is a beautiful, God-given desire. The Gospel declares that this has already been accomplished! We don't have to rend the veil through our own perfection; Christ rent the veil for us through His sacrifice.
Spiritual Weight
Burdens this text places on adherents:
The text places a severe burden on the believer by conditioning the ultimate spiritual goal (seeing God) on becoming 'perfected' and 'worthy.' This creates a perpetual treadmill of works-righteousness, where the believer can never be certain they have done enough to abide God's presence, leading to spiritual exhaustion or self-deception.
Verse 8 places believers under 'condemnation' if they do not bear record that the revelations are true, based solely on their inability to duplicate them. This forces adherents to publicly testify of things they may still privately doubt, creating cognitive dissonance and a fear of divine punishment for intellectual honesty.