It’s the end of 1832.
Joseph is reading newspaper reports every day about South Carolina’s new drama.
The federal government had established new tariffs (taxes), and South Carolina nullified them (AKA refused to pay them).
United States Pres Andrew Jackson threatened South Carolina. They better pay the tariffs, or they would go to war.
It was in this mindset that Joseph prayed and received the revelation known as D&C 87.
This was a uniquely specific prophecy that actually mentioned specific locations and events:
It mentioned the rebellion of South Carolina, a war between the Southern and Northern states, the Southern states calling on Great Britain for help, and slaves rising up against their masters.
So… I’m sure you know what happened next, right?!
… the federal government and South Carolina made a pretty quick and easy compromise where the government lowered the tariffs and the state agreed to pay them.
That was it.
All that political tension and turmoil, and then add on a very specific prophecy from a prophet about war.
And then, an anticlimactic resolution.
Was the prophet wrong?
Well, if you are familiar with U.S. history, you know the power of hindsight.
30 years later, South Carolina did lead a rebellion that brought unprecedented war between the north and the south, the south called on Great Britain for help, and slaves rose against their masters.
Long after Joseph had died, and long after the saints had already moved west to Utah.
God’s timing is so dramatically different than our timing.
The early saints believed Christ’s return was imminent… and here we are 200 years later.
And this war prophecy did not come true even when current events seemed to point toward it happening right away.
Feeling a sense of “urgency” has always been something that the Lord has tried to evoke.
Change now. Keep the commandments immediately. Follow the prophet.
But we don’t do these things because we know we’ve got a deadline approaching.
We do these things because He knows we will feel so much more peace in our lives as soon as we decide to turn to Him.
God’s timing is His own.
Happy Studying!
-Cali Black
