1–7 , The voice of warning is to all people; 8–16 , Apostasy and wickedness precede the Second Coming; 17–23 , Joseph Smith is called to restore to earth the Lord’s truths and powers; 24–33 , The Book of Mormon is brought forth and the true Church is established; 34–36 , Peace will be taken from the earth; 37–39 , Search these commandments.

Revelation given through Joseph Smith the Prophet, on November 1, 1831, during a special conference of elders of the Church, held at Hiram, Ohio. Many revelations had been received from the Lord prior to this time, and the compilation of these for publication in book form was one of the principal subjects passed upon at the conference. This section constitutes the Lord’s preface to the doctrines, covenants, and commandments given in this dispensation.

1 aHearken, O ye people of my bchurch, saith the voice of him who dwells on high, and whose ceyes are upon all men; yea, verily I say: Hearken ye people from afar; and ye that are upon the islands of the sea, listen together.

2 For verily the avoice of the Lord is unto all men, and there is none to bescape; and there is no eye that shall not see, neither cear that shall not hear, neither dheart that shall not be penetrated.

3 And the arebellious shall be bpierced with much csorrow; for their iniquities shall be dspoken upon the housetops, and their secret acts shall be revealed.

4 And the avoice of warning shall be unto all people, by the mouths of my disciples, whom I have bchosen in these clast days.

5 And they shall ago forth and none shall stay them, for I the Lord have commanded them.

6 Behold, this is mine aauthority, and the authority of my servants, and my preface unto the book of my bcommandments, which I have given them to cpublish unto you, O dinhabitants of the earth.

7 Wherefore, afear and btremble, O ye people, for what I the Lord have cdecreed in them shall be dfulfilled.

8 And verily I say unto you, that they who go forth, bearing these tidings unto the inhabitants of the earth, to them is power given to aseal both on earth and in heaven, the unbelieving and brebellious;

9 Yea, verily, to seal them up unto the aday when the bwrath of God shall be poured out upon the cwicked without measure—

10 Unto the aday when the Lord shall come to brecompense unto every man according to his cwork, and dmeasure to every man according to the measure which he has measured to his fellow man.

11 Wherefore the voice of the Lord is unto the ends of the earth, that all that will hear may hear:

12 Prepare ye, aprepare ye for that which is to come, for the Lord is bnigh;

13 And the aanger of the Lord is kindled, and his bsword is bathed in heaven, and it shall fall upon the inhabitants of the earth.

14 And the aarm of the Lord shall be revealed; and the bday cometh that they who will not chear the voice of the Lord, neither the voice of his dservants, neither give eheed to the words of the prophets and fapostles, shall be gcut off from among the people;

15 For they have astrayed from mine bordinances, and have cbroken mine deverlasting covenant;

16 They aseek not the Lord to establish his righteousness, but every man bwalketh in his cown dway, and after the eimage of his own god, whose image is in the likeness of the world, and whose substance is that of an idol, which waxeth fold and shall perish in gBabylon, even Babylon the great, which shall fall.

17 Wherefore, I the Lord, aknowing the calamity which should come upon the binhabitants of the earth, ccalled upon my dservant Joseph Smith, Jun., and espake unto him from heaven, and gave him fcommandments;

18 And also gave commandments to others, that they should proclaim these things unto the world; and all this that it might be fulfilled, which was written by the prophets—

19 The aweak things of the world shall come forth and break down the mighty and strong ones, that man bshould not counsel his fellow man, neither ctrust in the arm of flesh—

20 But that every man might aspeak in the name of God the Lord, even the Savior of the world;

21 That faith also might increase in the earth;

22 That mine everlasting acovenant might be established;

23 That the afulness of my bgospel might be cproclaimed by the dweak and the simple unto the ends of the world, and before ekings and frulers.

24 Behold, I am God and have spoken it; these acommandments are of me, and were given unto my servants in their weakness, after the manner of their blanguage, that they might come to cunderstanding.

25 And inasmuch as they aerred it might be made known;

26 And inasmuch as they sought awisdom they might be binstructed;

27 And inasmuch as they sinned they might be achastened, that they might brepent;

28 And inasmuch as they were ahumble they might be made strong, and blessed from on high, and receive bknowledge from time to time.

29 And after having received the record of the Nephites, yea, even my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., might have power to atranslate through the bmercy of God, by the power of God, the cBook of Mormon.

30 And also those to whom these commandments were given, might have apower to lay the foundation of this bchurch, and to bring it forth out of obscurity and out of cdarkness, the only true and living dchurch upon the face of the whole earth, with which I, the Lord, am well epleased, fspeaking unto the church collectively and not individually—

31 For I the Lord cannot look upon asin with the least degree of allowance;

32 Nevertheless, he that arepents and does the bcommandments of the Lord shall be cforgiven;

33 And he that arepents not, from him shall be btaken even the light which he has received; for my cSpirit shall not always dstrive with man, saith the Lord of Hosts.

34 And again, verily I say unto you, O inhabitants of the earth: I the Lord am willing to make these things aknown unto ball flesh;

35 For I am no arespecter of persons, and will that all men shall know that the bday speedily cometh; the hour is not yet, but is nigh at hand, when cpeace shall be taken from the earth, and the ddevil shall have power over his own dominion.

36 And also the Lord shall have apower over his bsaints, and shall creign in their dmidst, and shall come down in ejudgment upon fIdumea, or the world.

37 aSearch these bcommandments, for they are true and cfaithful, and the prophecies and dpromises which are in them shall all be fulfilled.

38 What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my aword shall not pass away, but shall all be bfulfilled, whether by mine own cvoice or by the dvoice of my eservants, it is the fsame.

39 For behold, and lo, the Lord is God, and the aSpirit beareth record, and the record is true, and the btruth abideth forever and ever. Amen.