D&C 56: Command and Revoke, Ezra Thayre, and the Contrite Heart
There is a piece of walnut in my shop that I have been avoiding. It is a nice board. Straight grain, good color, no knots. I picked it out of the stack three months ago for a small side table. Then I measured wrong, cut wrong, and turned the whole thing into firewood at forty dollars a board foot. I walked away from the project and left the walnut leaning against the wall. Every time I go out there I see it. It is not the board's fault. It is mine.
I thought about that board while reading D&C 56, which is not a long section. It runs about twenty verses. But it has a way of pointing at things you would rather not look at. Ezra Thayre got a commandment. He did not keep it. The Lord told him to move to Missouri, and he sat still. Pride got in the way. Selfishness too. And the section does not let him off the hook.
What Does It Mean When the Lord Says He Will Command and Revoke in D&C 56
The section opens with a sobering statement.
Wherefore I, the Lord, command and revoke, as it seemeth me good.
The Lord commands and revokes as He sees fit. This is not a theoretical idea in D&C 56. Verses 5 through 7 show it happening to real people.
Thomas B. Marsh, the President of the Twelve at the time, had his calling adjusted. Selah J. Griffin was told that what had been commanded to him concerning the people in Thompson was revoked because of their stiffneckedness. Ezra Thayre had a commandment regarding his place of residence revoked for the same reason.
The Thompson community was a group of Saints whose rebelliousness made it impossible for the work to continue as planned. The Lord did not just remove one person. He restructured how things operated because the community itself had drifted. That is a lot of weight for a single verse.
The revocation principle means that callings are not permanent entitlements. They are contingent. You say yes to something, and then the reality of what it requires sets in. Maybe you handle it, maybe you do not. The Lord adjusts accordingly.
What Happened to Ezra Thayre in D&C 56
Ezra Thayre is not accused of anything elaborate. He did not commit a scandal or deny the faith. He got a commandment to move and he did not do it.
And now, I give unto you a commandment, that you receive it not from the hand of Ezra Thayre; for he hath not kept the commandments, but hath walked in his own way.
That is it, harsh in its simplicity. He has not kept the commandments but has walked in his own way. The warning that follows is direct. If he does not repent, he will be cut off from the Church.
I read that slowly the first time because there is no room for negotiation in it. The Lord gave Ezra a direction and Ezra chose his own path instead. The consequence is spelled out plainly.
This kind of broken covenant is not unique in the early Church. The section on broken covenants and betrayal in D&C 54 covers similar ground. When people failed to live up to their commitments, the Lord adjusted the plan. D&C 56 is another example of that pattern.
I did the same thing with the walnut board, knowing what I should do but not wanting to do it. The scale is different, but the shape is the same.
The Meaning of the Contrite Heart in D&C 56
The section does not stay in the territory of rebuke. It moves toward something else. Starting in verse 14, the Lord addresses the rich who hoard and the poor who will not labor. Both get a warning. Then verse 18 shifts the ground.
For the poor who are pure in heart, whose hearts are broken, and whose spirits are contrite, shall see the kingdom of God.
The word contrite comes from the same root we find in Psalm 51. It means crushed, ground down, reduced. That sounds unpleasant and it is, but what comes from it is worth having. A crushed heart does not argue or make excuses. It just opens.
The Lord draws a clear line here. It is not about how much money you have. A person can be rich and still have a broken heart. A person can be poor and still be greedy and unwilling to work. The question is not the bank account. The question is the spirit.
I think about what it takes to get to that place. Usually it takes failure. It takes measuring wrong and cutting wrong and staring at a ruined board for three months. The contrite heart is not something you manufacture. It is something you arrive at after the pride wears off.
How to Avoid Pride in LDS Callings
Ezra Thayre made a mistake that was subtle but serious. He did not reject the gospel. He just drifted, said yes to the calling and then let daily reality pull him off course. Pride in callings works quietly that way. You make small exceptions to the original commitment, and before long the drift takes you.
The cure for that is the same thing the section describes. A contrite heart. A willingness to be told you are wrong and to adjust. The Lord revokes and commands as He sees fit. The question is whether you are willing to be revoked or redirected or sent somewhere you did not plan to go.
I have had callings where I coasted. I showed up, did the minimum, went home. That is not the same as walking in my own way, and it is not contrite either. D&C 56 asks for more than showing up. It asks for a heart that stays soft enough to receive direction.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does it mean when the Lord says He will command and revoke in D&C 56
It means divine callings and instructions are not permanent entitlements. The Lord reserves the right to change a direction or remove a person from a position based on their faithfulness or the needs of the Church. The section demonstrates this by revoking callings given to Thomas B. Marsh, Selah J. Griffin, and Ezra Thayre.
Why was Ezra Thayre specifically rebuked in this section
Ezra was rebuked for pride and selfishness. He failed to obey a commandment concerning where he lived. The Lord warned him that without repentance he would be cut off from the Church. His story shows how personal pride can block a divine calling even when there is no major scandal.
Who was Selah J. Griffin and why does D&C 56 mention him
Selah J. Griffin was a leader whose calling concerning the Saints in Thompson was revoked because of the stiffneckedness of that community.
What is the difference between the poor who are warned and the poor who are blessed in D&C 56
The Lord distinguishes between those who are poor but greedy and unwilling to labor (who are warned) and those who are poor but pure in heart and contrite (who are blessed). The blessing is tied to the condition of the soul, not the size of the bank account.
That walnut board is still leaning against the wall. I have not dealt with it yet. But reading D&C 56 made me think about what it would mean to go back out there, pick it up, and figure out what can still be saved. The Lord does not just revoke. He also redirects. The contrite heart is the one that lets itself be redirected. That is what I keep coming back to from this section.
-- D.