| 658 to flee unto for refuge and protection from the power of their oppressors.
This was also done to prepare the way for the coming forth of the Book of Mormon-the stick of Joseph-that he might lift it up (in connection with the Bible) as an ensign upan [upon] the moantains [mountains], and set it as a sign among the people for the purpose of gathering and uniting the whole house of Israel into one nation upon their own land, and also for the purpose of reestablishing the kingdom of God upon the earth with all its officers, gifts and blessings.
Now be it known unto you, O ye inhabitant of these United States, that it is by the blessings of God, put upon this land for God's good will unto Joseph, thereby making it a choice land above all other lands; and the decree of that same God, that whatsoever nation should possess it should serve him or be swept off (or dispossessed,) that you and your fathers have been permitted to dispossess the remnants of Joseph because of their transgressions; and to enjoy (in a national capacity) all those great national blessings and privileges which has caused the institutions of this nation to become the theme of philosophers and poets, and also to enjoy as individual citizens all the great blessings of civil and religious liberty which are so highly prized by every American citizen.
And be it known unto you further, that the Book of Mormon is true, and a divinely inspired record, therefore the prophecies and promises contained in it will all be fulfilled. And it has came forth in fulfilment [fulfillment] of prophecy, therefore the time has come for the restoration of the whole house of Israel to their own lands and former blessings. Now therefore, wo, wo, wo unto you, O ye Gentiles who inhabit this land, except you speedily repent and obey the message of eternal truth which God has sent for the salvation of his people-in bringing forth the Book of Mormon and setting it as a sign unto this generation-yea, except ye repent and subscribe with your hands unto the Lord, and sir-name yourselves Israel, and call yourselves after the name of Jacob, you must be swept off, for behold your sins have reached unto heaven and God hath remembered your iniquities-the cries of the red men whom ye and your fathers have dispossessed and driven from their lands which God gave unto them and their fathers for an everlasting inheritance, has ascended into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth, and he has come down to deliver them-hear their plaintive cries-
"Great spirit of our fathers lend an ear,
"Pity the red man, to his cries give ear;
"Long hast thou scourged him with thy chastening sore,
"When will thy vengeance cease, thy wrath be o'er;
"When will the white man's dire ambition cease,
"And let our scattered remnants dwell in peace?
"Or shall we (dr ven [driven] to the western shore)
"Become extinct and fall to rise no more?
"Forbid, Great Spirit; make thy mercy known,
"Reveal thy truth, thy wandering captives own,
"Make bare thine arm of power for our release,
"And o'er the earth extend the reign of peace."
And again; wo, wo, wo unto the nation of these United States, for your sins are increased before God in that ye have suffered the persecutions and oppression from which your fathers fled when they came to this land, to be practiced within your borders. Yea, he have suffered one of the free and independent states of your boasted confederacy, to rise up and persecute and oppress the people of the Lord, until many a free born son of America has bit the dust, and the soil of Joseph's 'blessed' land, has drank their blood, which has smoked to Heaven and calls for vengeance upon the murderers, and for judgment upon this nation, who still acknowledges affinity with them. Yea, and the cries of persecuted and oppressed American citizens who have been driven from their possessions and robbed of their property, and thus reduced to beggary and want, have been made to you for redress and protection in vain. The cries of helpless orphans and sorrowing widows for redress of the accumulated wrongs which they have suffered from a portion of this nation, and for protection from the murderers of their fathers and husbands, have not been regarded by you; but they have entered into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth; their cries have cried for judgment upon this nation, and it has appeared unto them, "for an account of all their sufferings shall be required of the rulers of this nation and of every one who has assisted their plunderers," saith the Lord.
And again; wo, wo, wo unto all the inhabitants in all this land, (except they speedily repent and be baptised [baptized] in the name of the Lord for the remission of their sins, by those whom God has specially commissioned by Revelation from Heaven, and sent to warn this generation
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