In the spring of 1828 with Martin Harris as his scribe, Joseph Smith Jr. began translating the gold plates he had retrieved from the Hill Cumorah into what is now known as The Book of Mormon. By the middle of June that same year they had transcribed 116 pages, and Martin Harris wanted to take the completed pages to show to some of his family. The following account is recorded:

Some time after Mr. Harris had begun to write for me, he began to importune me to give him liberty to carry the writings home and show them; and desired of me that I would inquire of the Lord, through the Urim and Thummim, if he might not do so. I did inquire, and the answer was that he must not. However, he was not satisfied with this answer, and desired that I should inquire again. I did so, and the answer was as before. Still he could not be contented, but insisted that I should inquire once more. After much solicitation I again inquired of the Lord, and permission was granted him to have the writings on certain conditions… [1]

The story continues that Martin Harris broke his promise to only show the manuscript to select individuals, and the manuscript was lost. It was never again recovered. Both Martin and Joseph were deeply grieved by the loss of the manuscript, and they were restricted from continuing the translation for a period of time as a result.

Immediately after my return home, I was walking out a little distance, when, behold, the former heavenly messenger appeared and handed to me the Urim and Thummim again–for it had been taken from me in consequence of my having wearied the Lord in asking for the privilege of letting Martin Harris take the writings…[2]

The choice of wording in this account is puzzling to me given that Joseph Smith frequently taught that we need to “weary Him [the Lord] until He blesses you.” [3] However in this instance, the Lord apparently did not appreciate Joseph’s persistence and inquiry to the point of withdrawing the Urim and Thummim (translators) from Joseph’s possession. I have often wondered what the distinction was in this instance that caused the Lord to chastise Joseph even after finally giving him permission to release the manuscript in Harris’ care.

Let’s turn to another well-known story in the Bible that stands out as an example of wearying the Lord. It is the tale of Abraham and the destruction of Sodom. Abraham asks the Lord NOT to destroy the city if he can find fifty righteous people living within the city walls, and the Lord concedes, “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes.”[4]

Abraham then reevaluates his position and begins a lengthy negotiation with the Lord hoping to spare the city from destruction. Abraham reduces the required number of righteous to forty five, and the Lord agrees. Again he lowers the number to forty, and the Lord agrees. Then Abraham drops the number to thirty righteous, and the Lord accepts; then twenty, and finally ten.

That is some serious negotiating from fifty down to ten. Unfortunately, not even the small number of ten righteous people could be found in the city of Sodom, and it was destroyed. So why was it acceptable for Abraham to “weary” the Lord in this instance yet it was unacceptable for Joseph Smith to “weary” the Lord about giving the manuscript to Martin Harris?

One possible reason that comes to mind is the different objectives of the two prophets. Abraham was appealing to the Lord to spare the lives of other people in Sodom, even though they were wicked. Joseph Smith continued to harass the Lord on behalf of Martin Harris to “boast in his own strength and set at naught the counsels of God…” [5] Did Joseph fear man more than God in this case?

We learn from the parable of the Unjust Judge that “men ought always to pray, and not to faint…” [6] in order to receive blessings. The widow in this story is so relentless in her pleas to the judge that he finally gave in to her petition just so she would cease bothering him.

To me, the commandment to pray always and not faint, like all commandments, is for our benefit and not to satisfy the Lord’s need for attention and permission. He wants our hearts and minds focused on what is important to us, and verbalizing our desires in prayer is an opportunity to seek inspiration from the Spirit. Blessings require some effort on our part before we can obtain them, and prayer, as “a form of work, … is an appointed means for obtaining the highest of all blessings.” [7]

[1] History of the Church Vol 1, Ch. 3

[3] The Words of Joseph Smith: The Contemporary Accounts of the Nauvoo Discourses of the Prophet Joseph, compiled and edited by Andrew F. Ehat and Lyndon W. Cook, p. 15