Joseph Smith’s ”Second Vision” and the Coming Forth of the Book of Mormon

About three and a half years after his “first vision,” Joseph Smith experienced his “second vision.” It occurred on the evening of the 21st of September 1823 in Palmyra, New York, when Joseph was only seventeen years old. In this vision he met a stunning angelic messenger named Moroni who delivered an even more stunning message: that the preparatory work for the second coming of the Messiah was soon to commence, and that the fulness of the Gospel was soon to be preached in power to all nations to prepare a people for his Millennial reign and to fulfill an ancient covenant between God and the house of Israel. Joseph was informed by this messenger that there was a sacred record in the form of ancient plates buried in a hill near his home that was somehow connected to fulfilling this joyful news.  In this episode we discuss Joseph’s second vision and explore the ups, the downs, and the insights of those preparatory years between his first meeting with Moroni at age 17 and when he was finally trusted with the sacred record at age 21. For show notes for this episode go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/