| 529 On the 29th of November, 1834, Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery made covenant, which will be seen to be quite in harmony with the general law of tithing. A few items from the pen of Joseph Smith will be of interest here:-
"On the evening of the 29th of November, I united in prayer with Brother Oliver, for the continuance of blessings. After giving thanks for the relief which the Lord had lately sent us by opening the hearts of the brethren from the east, to loan us four hundred and thirty dollars; after commencing and rejoicing before the Lord on this occasion, we agreed to enter into the following covenant with the Lord; viz.:-
"'That if the Lord will prosper us in our business, and open the way before us, that we may obtain means to pay our debts, that we be not troubled nor brought into disrepute before the world, nor his people; after that, of all that he shall give us, we will give a tenth, to be bestowed upon the poor in his church, or as he shall command; and that we will be faithful over that which he has intrusted to our care, that we may obtain much; and that our children after us, shall remember to observe this sacred and holy covenant; and that our children, and our children's children, may know of the same, we have subscribed our names with our own hands.
"'JOSEPH SMITH, JR.
"'OLIVER COWDERY.
"'And now, O Father, as thou didst prosper our father Jacob, and bless him with protection and prosperity wherever he went, from the time he made a like covenant before and with thee; as thou didst, even the same night, open the heavens unto him, and manifest great mercy and power, and give him promises, so wilt thou do with us his sons; and as his blessings prevailed above his progenitors unto the utmost bounds of the everlasting hills, even so may our blessings prevail like his; and may thy servants be preserved from the power and influence of wicked and unrighteous men; may every weapon formed against us fall upon the head of him who shall form it; may we be blessed with a
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