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First, the Danites were not formed by Joseph Smith nor at the command or with the consent of Joseph or the Church. Second, they were soon disbanded and their leader and founder excommunicated. You are buying into a lot of fiction created only to rile people up and sell books.

While you are in the process of asking questions though, have you considered asking why God told the children of Israel to form an army to rid their land of Canaanites rather then send a few legions of angles to do it for them? Does that lead you to question the prophetic call of Moses or Joshua?

Maybe this is why they had to take the land.

Exd 23:28 And I will send hornets before thee, which shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite, from before thee.

Exd 23:29 I will not drive them out from before thee in one year; lest the land become desolate, and the beast of the field multiply against thee.

Exd 23:30 By little and little I will drive them out from before thee, until thou be increased, and inherit the land.

And then this happened....

Num 13:32 And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, [is] a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it [are] men of a great stature.

Num 14:4 And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt.

Num 14:8 If the LORD delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey.

Num 14:9 Only rebel not ye against the LORD, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they [are] bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the LORD [is] with us: fear them not.

Num 14:10 But all the congregation bade stone them with stones.....

Then 40 years later...

Num 32:7 And wherefore discourage ye the heart of the children of Israel from going over into the land which the LORD hath given them?

Num 32:8 Thus did your fathers, when I sent them from Kadeshbarnea to see the land.

Num 32:9 For when they went up unto the valley of Eshcol, and saw the land, they discouraged the heart of the children of Israel, that they should not go into the land which the LORD had given them.

Num 32:15 For if ye turn away from after him, he will yet again leave them in the wilderness; and ye shall destroy all this people.

First, the Danites were not formed by Joseph Smith nor at the command or with the consent of Joseph or the Church. Second, they were soon disbanded and their leader and founder excommunicated.

COMPREHENSIVE HISTORY OF THE CHURCH

The testimony which was most effective in holding these men to investigation before grand juries was the sworn statements of apostates--Dr. Sampson Avard, John Corrill, Reed Peck, W. W. Phelps, George M. Hinkle, John Whitmer, Burr Riggs, and other less prominent. It is in this testimony and principally in the statement of Dr. Avard, that the existence of the "Danites" in the "Mormon" church is affirmed. Avard declared that about four months before the date of his testimony,--which would be in the month of July, 1838--"a band called the `Daughter of Zion' (afterwards called the `Danite Band'), was formed of the members of the Mormon church, the original object of which was to drive from the county of Caldwell all those who dissented from the Mormon church; in which they succeeded admirably and to the satisfaction of all concerned." [B. H. Roberts, Comprehensive History of the Church, Vol.1, Ch.36, p.501].

DR. SAMSON AVARD

DANITE LEADER TESTIMONY

Sampson Avard, a witness, produced, sworn, and examined, in behalf of the state, deposeth and saith:--

That about four months since, a band called the Daughters of Zion, (since called the Danite band,) was formed of the members of the Mormon church, the original object of which was to drive from the county of Caldwell all those who dissented from the Mormon church; in which they succeeded admirably, and to the satisfaction of all concerned. I consider Joseph Smith, jr., as the prime mover and organizer of this band.

The officers of the band, according to their grades, were brought before him, at a school house, together with Hiram Smith and Sidney Rigdon; the three composing the first presidency of the whole church.

It was stated by Joseph Smith, jr., that it was necessary this band should be bound together by a covenant, that those who revealed the secrets of the society should be put to death.

COVENANT TAKEN BY DANITES

The covenant taken by all the Danite band was as follows, to wit: They declared, holding up their right hand, "In the name of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, I do solemnly obligate myself ever to conceal and never to reveal the secret purposes of this society, called the Daughters of Zion. Should I ever do the same, I hold my life as the forfeiture."

The prophet Joseph Smith, jr., together with his two counsellors, (Hiram Smith and Sidney Rigdon,) were considered as the supreme head of the church; and the Danite band feel themselves as much bound to obey them as to obey the Supreme God.

Instruction was given by Joseph Smith, jr., that if any of them should get into difficulty, the rest should help him out; and that they should stand by each other, right or wrong.

This instruction was given at a Danite meeting, in a public address.

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