Liberty Jail and the Prophet Joseph Smith

In 1838, at the height of the Great Apostasy when many important leaders were leaving the church, Joseph Smith was arrested and thrown in Liberty Jail. Although it was a great learning period for the church as it found ways to survive without its prophet, it was also a period of great growth for Joseph Smith. The prison bars may have separated him from his fellow saints but they seemed to bring him close to God. The prophesies seen in sections 121-123 of the Doctrine and Covenants show this growth.
First, Joseph Smith gained a greater eternal perspective regarding his suffering and the grace of God. This is easily seen in both sections 121 and 122. In Doctrine and Covenants 121:7-8 it reads, “peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment; and if thou endure it well…thou shalt triumph over all they foes”. I try and picture Joseph being in a prison cell so small he can’t even stand up straight, eating food that is quite possibly poisoned, and quickly losing hope of seeing his family again. Then I think of the great comfort this revelation must have brought to him. God is teaching Joseph that the things that seem horrible in this moment are really small compared to the grand eternal plan and that they must be endured well. Besides a greater eternal perspective, I think that Joseph learned to accept God’s will and was reminded of the suffering of others including Christ’s pains as he hung on the cross. This idea is further explored in section 122: 8 where it states, “The Son of Man hath descended below them all. Art thou greater than he?”. I find this verse as a great comfort to me when I feel the forces of evil knocking at my door. It is a reminder that God triumphs over all so I, just like Joseph Smith, should not fear the world.
Perhaps a more noticeable change in Joseph Smith was his seeming increase in confidence in public speaking. Before his imprisonment in 1839, people such as Parley P. Pratt and Sidney Rigdon often did the majority of public speaking and preaching in the church due to Joseph Smith’s lesser orating skills. After his Liberty Jail experience, however, Joseph Smith is recorded to have given numerous talks preaching and teaching the doctrine given in previous revelations. There are records of extremely powerful and moving talks given by this man that was previously considered a weak speaker. I believe this change occurred when Joseph was brought closer to God than he ever had been before. As he got to know the mercy of his Father in Heaven and learned better his role in the great spreading of the church, he was blessed with the ability to speak powerfully about the gospel he was about to sacrifice his life for. Joseph Smith’s whole experience in Liberty Jail shows how God and His gospel can change human character more than any earthly force.