August 31 — Was Joseph Smith Possessed? D&C 132:7 “…by revelation and commandment through the medium of mine anointed, whom I have appointed on the earth to hold this power (and I have appointed unto my servant Joseph to hold this power in the last days, and there is never but one on the earth at a time on whom this power and the keys of this priesthood are conferred)…” [emp. added]
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Leviticus 20:6 “And the soul that turneth after such as have familiar spirits, and after wizards, to go a whoring after them, I will even set my face against that soul, and will cut him off from among his people.”
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Holman’s Bible Dictionary “Medium—One possessed by (Lev. 20:22) or consulting (Deut. 18:11) a ghost or spirit of the dead, especially for information about the future. Acting as a medium was punishable by stoning (Lev. 20:27); consulting a medium, by exclusion from the congregation of Israel (Lev. 20:6). The transformation of Saul from one who expelled mediums (1 Sam. 28:3) to one who consulted a medium at En-dor (28:8-19) graphically illustrates his fall.
“The Hebrew word translated medium (ob) may refer to the spirit of a dead person, to the medium possessed by the spirit, or to images used to conjure up spirits. Manasseh made such images (2 Kings 21:6; 2 Chron. 33:6). Josiah destroyed them as part of his reforms (2 Kings 23:24). Saul’s success in quickly locating a medium (1 Sam. 28:8) points both to the popularity of the practice of consulting the dead and the difficulty of eradicating it.
“Isaiah 8:19 suggests a possible connection between the consulting of mediums and ancestor worship. Those to be consulted are termed “fathers” and “gods.” (Compare 1 Sam. 28:13 where Samuel is described as elohim or “god.”) The chirping and muttering of the spirits perhaps refers to the inarticulate sounds which must be interpreted by the medium. Consulting of mediums defiled the land and was described as prostitution. God’s people were to trust God in times of distress and not resort to other “gods” in an attempt to learn the future.”
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Any questions? I know that I had a few after reading Holman’s definition for medium.
The Church teaches the BoM is a work that speaks from the dust and here we see this is mentioned in Isaiah 8:19 with the Hebrew word “ob”.
Performing works for the dead which Jesus says doesn’t have any effect (Luke 16:19-31), the Hebrew word Elohim as pagan gods in 1 Sam 28:13 and the passage in Isaiah referring to mediums, are all signs something is seriously wrong!
Please, pray Mormons will see Smith for what he was. He was indeed a medium and who or what possessed him can be speculated on for a month of Sundays. One thing is for certain. He wasn’t from the Lord.
With Love in Christ —
Michelle ✟
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