D&C 85: Record Keeping, Consecration, and the One Mighty

I have a ledger in my shop. It is a spiral-bound notebook with a coffee ring on the cover and sawdust ground into the spine. I write down every board I buy, every cut I make, every measurement I take. Writing it down is the only way I keep the project straight. If I skip that step, the project goes wrong somewhere down the line.

D&C 85 is a letter about a ledger. Joseph Smith wrote it to William W. Phelps, who was serving as the church clerk in Missouri. On the surface, it is about record keeping. But the ledger in this chapter is not made of paper and ink. It is the book of the law of God, and the names written in it belong to people who have consecrated their properties and received an inheritance in Zion.

What Does the Law of Consecration Teach About Inheritances

Verses 1 through 5 lay out the terms for how inheritances in Zion were supposed to work. The saints who gathered in Missouri were supposed to receive their inheritances legally from the bishop, but only after they had consecrated their properties. The record of who had done this and who had not was kept in the church records.

The warning is direct. Verse 3 says that if a man does not consecrate his properties, his name will not be enrolled in the book of the law of God. And it does not stop with him. Verse 5 says the names of his fathers and his children will also be absent.

I read that and I think about the ledger in my shop. Recording a board means I can account for it later. The project will be missing a piece, and I will not know where it went. The same thing happens spiritually. Accounting for what we have been given is how we earn trust with what comes next.

The law of consecration is not about the church needing money. It is about the Lord knowing who he can trust. The inheritance in Zion is not a reward for showing up. It is a stewardship for people who have proven they will use it the right way.

Who Is the One Mighty and Strong in D&C 85

Verses 6 through 11 shift from administration to prophecy. Joseph Smith describes a revelation that came to him as a still small voice, but one that made his bones quake. There is a tension in that image. The voice is gentle, but the message is not.

The Lord promises to send one mighty and strong, clothed with light, holding a scepter of power, who will set in order the house of God and arrange the inheritances of the saints. There has been a lot of speculation about who this person is. Some have pointed to specific leaders in church history. Others see it as a future figure.

I do not have a strong opinion on the identity. What I notice is the job description. The one mighty and strong does not come to tear down or start over. He comes to set things in order. That is a different kind of work. It is the work of arranging what is already there, making sure everything is in its proper place.

And the Lord shall say, Behold, I will send one mighty and strong, holding the scepter of power, clothed with light, whose mouth shall utter words, eternal words; while his bowels shall be a fountain of truth, to set in order the house of God, and to arrange by lot the inheritances of the saints. (D&C 85:7)

Meaning of Steadying the Ark of God in D&C 85

Verse 8 contains a warning that has stayed with me. It says, "Let no man therefore set at naught the counsels of God, and let no man attempt to steady the ark of God."

The reference is to 2 Samuel 6, where Uzzah reached out to steady the Ark of the Covenant when the oxen stumbled. He was trying to help. The ark was about to fall, and he reached out to catch it. But the Lord smote him for his presumption.

I have done this in my shop. I have walked past someone else's workbench and seen a joint that was not quite right, and I have reached out to fix it without being asked. Every time, I have made it worse. The person who was building it had a plan. I did not know the plan. I just saw something that looked wrong and tried to steady it.

The warning in verse 8 is not about standing by while things fall apart. It is about trusting the Lord's process. He has a plan for setting his house in order, and he has people he has called to do it. My job is to make sure my own name is in the book, not to reach for the ark.

Importance of Church Records in LDS Scripture

The chapter ends with a sobering note. Those who are cut off from the church or who apostatize will not receive an inheritance among the saints, regardless of their previous priesthood office. The high priest who falls away has no more claim than anyone else.

I read D&C 84: The Oath and Covenant of the Priesthood Explained a while back, and there is a line in there about how the oath and covenant of the priesthood is tied to faithfulness, not office. The same principle shows up here. The record is not about titles, and the ledger does not care if you are the shop foreman or the apprentice. It only cares if the work got done.

Consequences of Apostasy in Doctrine and Covenants 85

I keep coming back to the still small voice that made Joseph's bones quake. I have felt something like that. Not often, and not loudly. But there have been mornings in the shop, before the sun is fully up, when I have been sitting with a passage of scripture and the weight of it settles into my chest. It is not fear. It is the feeling of being seen.

That is what this chapter does, and it is worth sitting with for a minute. It is a letter about record keeping, but it is really about being seen. The book of the law is not a bureaucratic form. It is the Lord's knowledge of who we are and what we have done with what he gave us. I read about the Lord's storehouse in D&C 83 a while back, and the same principle runs through both sections. The storehouse and the book of the law are two sides of the same thing. One is about providing for the needy, and the other is about accounting for what we have been given.

The warning about names not being found is not a threat. It is a statement of fact. Consecrating our lives is what puts us in the work. And being in the work is what puts our names in the book. It is that simple.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is the one mighty and strong mentioned in D&C 85

The scripture describes this person as a divine instrument sent by God to set the house of the Lord in order and arrange the inheritances of the faithful. There are many interpretations about the specific identity, but the focus of the passage is on the Lord's power to restore order to his kingdom through appointed leadership.

What does it mean to steady the ark of God

This is a reference to 2 Samuel 6, where Uzzah was struck dead for touching the Ark of the Covenant. It is a warning against trying to correct or direct the Lord's work through unauthorized means, even when the motives appear helpful. The lesson is to trust the Lord's process and his chosen leaders.

Why is keeping a record of faith and works so important in Section 85

The records serve as evidence of a person's faithfulness and willingness to enter into the law of consecration. In the context of Zion, the record is the evidence required to receive a legal inheritance from the bishop. It links temporal stewardship with spiritual integrity.

How does the warning about names not found apply to us today

The specific administrative records of the 1830s are the immediate context, but the principle is eternal. Our relationship with God is based on our covenants and our consistency in keeping them. The book of the law symbolizes the divine record of our lives and our commitment to the Lord's kingdom.

I closed the ledger and put it back on the shelf. The coffee ring is still there and the sawdust is still ground into the spine. But I looked at it differently this time. It is not just a record of what I have done. It is a record of what I am building.

— D.