24 However, it was nevertheless a fact that I had beheld a vision. I have thought since, that I felt much like Paul, when he made his defense before King Agrippa, and related the account of the vision he had when he saw a light, and heard a voice; but still there were but few who believed him; some said he was dishonest, others said he was mad; and he was ridiculed and reviled. But all this did not destroy the reality of his vision. He had seen a vision, he knew he had, and all the persecution under heaven could not make it otherwise; and though they should persecute him unto death, yet he knew, and would know to his latest breath, that he had both seen a light and heard a voice speaking unto him, and all the world could not make him think or believe otherwise.FYI, Personage was a common term in the 1820's when you didn't want to say angel or God out of respect.
25 So it was with me. I had actually seen a light, and in the midst of that light I saw two Personages, and they did in reality speak to me; and though I was hated and persecuted for saying that I had seen a vision, yet it was true; and while they were persecuting me, reviling me, and speaking all manner of evil against me falsely for so saying, I was led to say in my heart: Why persecute me for telling the truth? I have actually seen a vision; and who am I that I can withstand God, or why does the world think to make me deny what I have actually seen? For I had seen a vision; I knew it, and I knew that God knew it, and I could not deny it, neither dared I do it; at least I knew that by so doing I would offend God, and come under condemnation.
Joseph Smith testified and like Stephen was killed for his testimony of God and Christ.
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Kid, someone needs to teach you the difference between
Stephen, a man of God ....
And Joe Smith, a dabbler in the occult, a conman who scammed his own cabal, and a sex crazed drunken, thief and murderer...
Joe Smith got himself killed during a jail break, because he shoot and killed 3 guys outside the jail he was in...
He was in jail because he was a lecher who debauched young girls,
he conned his own followers and others out of huge amounts of cash in a phony bank scam...
He burned down a private newspaper office ...
He destroyed a private printing press...
He threatened the lives of the newspaper men...
He did that because they had printed the truth about him...
They printed the truth about him
because he had indecently propositioned one of their wives...and wouldnt take no for an answer...
He had debauched several of the under aged girls ...
He had sent some of his followers on “missions” so he could seduce their wives..
He claimed he had to debauch virgins in order to go to his “celestial Kingdom”
He claimed that his motrmon god had told him to...
He also stole cattle and property from Missourians and Ohioans and Illinisians who were not in his gang...
He also laundered phony money among the same non-mormons...
He started the Danites murdered sevaral of his own gang..
and innocent non-mormons to steal their property...
He called himself the king of the world ...
He said he was greater than Jesus...
He was convicted several times for his peep stone money digging...
He used the same peep stones to pretend to write a book which he sold for profit...
He was an occultist all his life and sold fortunes and info about “hidden treasure”
He started a secret sex club for a selected few in his cabal...They wore special under wear with occult and Mason symbols..He told them to always to wear the under wear as a badge of belonging to the club...He didnt always wear his though, and he wasnt wearing them the day he got himself killed...It is suggested that his private club members had reason to think he had betrayed them or was going to...
When Stephen died he was calling upon God...
When Joe Smith died he was murdering other men and had a occult medal of Jupiter around his neck...
TN is correct, it is not clear
1827 both joey and his dad provided an account to Willard Chase stating that joey was first visited by a spirit when he was 17
1827 Harris recounted the story joey told him that when he was 18-19 after an evening of money-digging an angel appeared to Joseph in a vision telling him he has been chosen to be a prophet and bring forth a record on gold plates.
1830 In an interview of Joseph Smith by Peter Bauder, recounted by Bauder in his book The Kingdom and the Gospel of Jesus Christ, joey said an angel told him where to find a secret treasure
1832 In joey's own handwriting, he stated that when he was 15 he had a vision of Jesus
1834/35 Joey got together with Oliver Cowdery to publish the the first history of Mormonism in the LDS periodical Messenger and Advocate, Kirtland, Ohio, Dec. 1834. In it Joey said he was 17 and was visited by an angel.
1835-36 Another journal account by joey published in Joseph Smith Diary, Nov. 9, 1835 as found in Personal Writings of Joseph Smith, compiled by Dean C. Jessee. Here he was 14, saw unidentified personages, one testifies about Jesus, but neither are identified as such, plus multitudes of angels. Though this account appears in Joseph Smith's diary, it was omitted from the History of the Church, Vol. 2, p. 304
1835 Account given by Joseph Smith to Erastus Holmes on November 14, 1835, originally published in the Deseret News of Saturday May 29, 1852. joey was again 14, but only had angels visit him.
1838 - the official account written by a scribe, not smith has him at 14 speaking to two personages. One identifies the other as his son (by implication God the Father and Jesus, but not explicitly stated) Not actually released to the public until 1844
1844 Account in An Original History of the Religious Denominations at Present Existing in the United States, edited by Daniel Rupp. Joseph Smith wrote the chapter on Mormonism. Joey again visited by two unidentified individuals when he was 14
Clearly the story swerves like a drunken sailor, can't remember his age, whether he was visited by a spirit, an angel, lots of angels, Jesus, Jesus and the Father. What was it DU? only one version supports the current revelation, yet all came from Joey.
Then there is Joseph's comparison of his vision with Paul's vision and how Paul was treated:
LOL, its the 'ol Paul conversion comparison again huh DU? You have listed above 9 widely different versions of what allegedly is the same event. I double dog dare you to show that Paul's story swerved even half as much. BTW - don't forget to use your lexicon for key words and phrases or you will wind up embarrassed again.
Actually, he did, he talked about his calling as a prophet and spent lots of time telling the story to widely differing groups of people, he talked of God, and Christ and did so in reverential terms. What a load of balderdash to say he didn't say it was God and Christ.
DU, I listed 9 accounts, in only one account could it be inferred that he spoke to heavenly father and Jesus - the official version. He spoke in these of a spirit, an angel, two angels, Jesus, many angels, the Father and the Son that addressed him. Facts are facts and TN has them on her side on this. Your history is there above, go forth and embrace it and learn from it and give up your balderdash.
Who else is ever introduced by a DEMON as "This is my beloved son, hear him." and then lays out a bunch of stuff that NEVER appears in the Bible!