Liberty jail is a unique place to visit (and an ironic name for a jail, eh?). Joseph Smith and a few other men
spent several months trapped in here while the Saints were driven from Far
West, Missouri, to Nauvoo. My favorite section of the Doctrine and Covenants
was revealed here. In the midst of all the persecution facing the Saints
and their imprisonment, Joseph was feeling discouraged. He wrote these words:
“O GOD, where are thou? And where is the pavilion that covereth thy hiding place? How long shall thy hands be stayed, and thine eye, yea thy pure eye, behold from the eternal heavens the wrongs of thy people and of thy servants, and thine ear be penetrated with their cries?
Yea, O Lord, how long shall they suffer these wrongs and unlawful oppressions, before thine heart shall be softened toward them, and thy bowels be moved with compassion toward them?
O Lord God Almighty, maker of heaven, earth, and seas, and of all things that in them are, and who controllest and subjectest the devel, and the dark and benighted dominion of Sheol—stretch forth thy hand; let thine eye pierce; let thy pavilion be taken up; let thy hiding place no longer be covered; let thine ear be inclined; let thine heart be softened, and thy bowels moved with compassion toward us.
Let thine anger be kindled against our enemies; and, in the fury of thine heart, with thy sword avenge us of our wrongs.
Remember thy suffering saints, O our God; and thy servants will rejoice in thy name forever.” (Doctrine and Covenants 121 1-6)
The Lord answered Joseph with this:
"My son, peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment;Joseph was a different man after this experience, and the spirit there is very interesting. One of the sister missionaries, our tour guide, started a very nice presentation to try and make the experience seem a bit more real. The visitor's center is built around the original jail. Most of the walls had collapsed by the time the church bought it, but it's been reconstructed to be the size of the original. In the cell part of the jail are four life-size figures representing those incarcerated there. It’s actually pretty nifty.
And then, if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high; thou shalt triumph over all thy foes;
Thy friends do stand by thee, and they shall hail the again with warm hearts and friendly hands.
Thou are not yet as Job; thy friends do not contend against thee, neither charge thee with transgression, as they did Job.” (Doctrine and Covenants 121 7-10)
"Sorry...I just thought with the captain issue in question, I'd throw
in my name for consideration."
Pintel