Alma 40:12-14
12 And then shall it come to pass, that the spirits of those who are righteous are received into a state of happiness, which is called paradise, a state of rest, a state of peace, where they shall rest from all their troubles and from all care, and sorrow.
13 And then shall it come to pass, that the spirits of the wicked, yea, who are evil--for behold, they have no part nor portion of the Spirit of the Lord; for behold, they chose evil works rather than good; therefore the spirit of the devil did enter into them, and take possession of their house--and these shall be cast out into outer darkness; there shall be weeping, and wailing, and gnashing of teeth, and this because of their own iniquity, being led captive by the will of the devil.
14 Now this is the state of the souls of the wicked, yea, in darkness, and a state of awful, fearful looking for the fiery indignation of the wrath of God upon them; thus they remain in this state, as well as the righteous in paradise, until the time of their resurrection.
Joseph F. Smith (D&C 138)
12 And there were gathered together in one place an innumerable company of the spirits of the just, who had been faithful in the testimony of Jesus while they lived in mortality;
13 And who had offered sacrifice in the similitude of the great sacrifice of the Son of God, and had suffered tribulation in their Redeemer’s name.
14 All these had departed the mortal life, firm in the hope of a glorious resurrection, through the grace of God the Father and his Only Begotten Son, Jesus Christ.
15 I beheld that they were filled with joy and gladness, and were rejoicing together because the day of their deliverance was at hand.
16 They were assembled awaiting the advent of the Son of God into the spirit world, to declare their redemption from the bands of death.
17 Their sleeping dust was to be restored unto its perfect frame, bone to his bone, and the sinews and the flesh upon them, the spirit and the body to be united never again to be divided, that they might receive a fulness of joy.
18 While this vast multitude waited and conversed, rejoicing in the hour of their deliverance from the chains of death, the Son of God appeared, declaring liberty to the captives who had been faithful;
19 And there he preached to them the everlasting gospel, the doctrine of the resurrection and the redemption of mankind from the fall, and from individual sins on conditions of repentance.
20 But unto the wicked he did not go, and among the ungodly and the unrepentant who had defiled themselves while in the flesh, his voice was not raised;
21 Neither did the rebellious who rejected the testimonies and the warnings of the ancient prophets behold his presence, nor look upon his face.
22 Where these were, darkness reigned, but among the righteous there was peace;
Separation of Righteous and Wicked Upon Death
Joseph F. Smith
The spirits of all men, as soon as they depart from this mortal body, whether they are good or evil, we are told in the Book of Mormon, are taken home to that God who gave them life, where there is a separation, a partial judgment, and the spirits of those who are righteous are received into a state of happiness which is called paradise, a state of rest, a state of peace, where they expand in wisdom, where they have respite from all their troubles, and where care and sorrow do not annoy. The wicked, on the contrary, have no part nor portion in the Spirit of the Lord, and they are cast into outer darkness, being led captive, because of their own iniquity, by the evil one. And in this space between death and the resurrection of the body, the two classes of souls remain, in happiness or in misery, until the time which is appointed of God that the dead shall come forth and be reunited both spirit and body, and be brought to stand before God, and be judged according to their works. This is the final judgment. (Gospel Doctrine, p. 448)
Ezra Taft Benson
Even before the fall of Adam, which ushered death into this world, our Heavenly Father had prepared a place for the spirits who would eventually depart this mortal life. At the time of Jesus’ death, the spirit world was occupied by hosts of our Father’s children who had died – from Adam’s posterity to the death of Jesus – both the righteous and the wicked. There were two grand divisions in the world of spirits. Spirits of the righteous (the just) had gone to paradise, a state of happiness, peace, and restful work. The spirits of the wicked (the unjust) had gone to prison, a state of darkness and misery. (See Alma 40: 12-15.) Jesus went only to the righteous – to paradise. (Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson, p.37)
Joseph Fielding Smith
All spirits of men after death return to the spirit world. There, as I understand it, the righteous -- meaning those who have been baptized and who have been faithful -- are gathered in one part and all the others in another part of the spirit world. This seems to be true from the vision given to President Joseph F. Smith and found in Gospel Doctrine. (Doctrines of Salvation, 2:230; emphasis original)
A State of Rest for the Righteous
Neal A. Maxwell
Some derive from these words that rest means no work and merely languid passivity. In fact, the rest described is from the troubles, cares, and sorrows of this world.
To begin with, a certain peacefulness and restfulness will occur in paradise, because the faithful will see things with a more complete, restful, and reassuring perspective. Nonetheless, the faithful will soon be caught up fully and be “anxiously engaged” in the vast work underway in al the spirit world (D&C 58:27). So many of the cares and demands of the of the world which press upon us here and now, including doing the chores of this world, will not dominate us there. Hence, paradise will be, comparatively, “a state of peace.” Furthermore, the spirit body will not suffer certain of the ills and constraints which now beset the mortal body. The result will be added zestfulness there, as described by Elder John Taylor: “[Death] this dark shadow and valley is so trifling . . . [one is] passed from a state of sorrow [and] grief, . . . into a state of existence where I can enjoy life to the fullest extent as far as that can be done without a body. . . . I thirst no more, I want to sleep no more, I hunger no more, I tire no more, I run, I walk, I labor, . . . nothing like pain or weariness, I am full of life, full of vigor” (“Discourse by Elder John Taylor.” Deseret News, 28 July 1874, p. 1). [The Promise of Discipleship, p. 106]
Wicked Suffer in Prison
Joseph Fielding Smith
There is an expression that the Lord made to Enoch in regard to those who should be destroyed in the flood, in the days of Noah.
He said he had prepared a prison for them, because of their disobedience, and would shut them in it. There they would remain until the time when they should be visited by the Son of God, when he should again carry to them that message which they rejected from Noah. We read in the scriptures that the Son of God, after his death, went to the spirits in prison and taught them the principles of the gospel, that they might live according to God in the spirit and be judged according to men in the flesh. Those very same spirits, who were disobedient in the days of Noah, heard the voice of the Son of God when he went to them, while his body was in the tomb, and all who were willing to receive his testimony and obey his commandments received relief from their torment.
But from the time of their death in the flood until the time of the crucifixion of the Savior, they were shut up in the prison house in torment, suffering the penalty of their transgressions, because they refused to hear a prophet of the Lord – and so it will be with every man who rejects the gospel, whether he lived anciently or whether he lives now; it makes no difference. Every man who rejects the testimony of Jesus, who denies the truth, who refuses to receive the testimony as it is declared unto him by the elders of Israel, shall be punished and shall be placed in the prison house, and there he shall stay until he has paid the penalty of his transgressions. (Doctrines of Salvation, 2:228-229; emphasis original)
Righteous Free From Earthly Troubles in Paradise
Joseph Fielding Smith
It is the righteous who go to paradise. It is the righteous who cease from those things that trouble. Not so with the wicked. They remain in torment. They have their anguish of soul intensified, if you please, when they get on the other side, because they are constantly recalling to mind their evil deeds. They are aware of their neglected opportunities, privileges in which they might have served the Lord and received a reward of restfulness instead of a reward of punishment. And so they remain in torment until the time comes for their deliverance. ...
The righteous, those who have kept the commandments of the Lord, are not shut up in any such place, but are in happiness in paradise. They cease from all this trouble, and trial, and tribulation, and anguish of soul. They are free from all these torments, because they have been true and faithful to their covenants. (Doctrines of Salvation, 2:229-230)
The Gulf Bridged Between Paradise and Prison
Joseph Fielding Smith
• We hear the objection made, from time to time, that Jesus did not come to save the dead, for he most emphatically declared himself that there was an impassable gulf that separated the righteous spirits from the wicked. In defense of their position they quote the words in Luke: “And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.”
These words, according to the story, were spoken by Abraham’s spirit to the rich man who raised his eyes and asked that Lazarus might go touch his lips and relieve his torment. Abraham replied that it could not be for there was a gulf fixed between them that the spirit of no man could pass. Therefore, say the objectors to the doctrine of universal salvation, “It is quite evident that the righteous and the wicked who are dead cannot visit each other, hence there is no salvation for the dead.” This was true before the days that Jesus atoned for sin, which is plainly shown in the passage from the Book of Moses previously quoted. And it was at this period this event occurred. However, Christ came and through his death bridged that gulf, proclaimed liberty to the captives, and the opening of this prison door to those who sat in darkness and captivity.
From that time forth this gulf is bridged so that the captives, after they have paid the full penalty of their misdeeds, satisfied justice, and have accepted the gospel of Christ, having the ordinances attended to in their behalf by their living relatives or friends, receive the passport that entitles them to cross the gulf. (Doctrines of Salvation, 2:158; emphasis original)
• Paradise is not heaven, or the place where God dwells, but a place of departed spirits. Why the belief should be so general that the thief went to heaven with the Savior is rather strange, since Jesus did not go there until after his resurrection. This fact he disclosed to Mary at the tomb. From the time his spirit left his body until he arose from the tomb, Jesus was with the thief in paradise, according to his promise. There the Savior opened the door for the salvation of the dead. Before that time the unworthy dead were shut up in prison and were not visited. (Moses 7:38-39; Isaiah 24:22.) We have good reason to believe that the righteous spirits in paradise did not mingle with the unrighteous spirits before the visit of our Lord to the spirit world. He declared that there was a gulf fixed that could not be crossed which separated the righteous from the unrighteous, therefore there was no sound of the voice of prophets and the Gospel was not declared among the wicked until Christ went into that world before his resurrection. He it was who opened the prison doors. – Isaiah 42:6-7; 61:1.
President Brigham Young declared that “Jesus was the first man that ever went to preach to the spirits in prison, holding the keys of the Gospel of salvation to them. Those keys were delivered to him in the day and hour that he went into the spirit world, and with them he opened the door of salvation to the spirits in prison.” (J.D. 4:285.) This is in full accord with the scriptures. President Joseph F. Smith, in the vision he beheld of the spirit world, confirmed this view. (Gos. Doc., pp. 596-601.) In that world Christ taught the righteous spirits and commissioned them to carry his message and sent them forth among the unbaptized dead. In this way he fulfilled his promise made to Isaiah that he would preach to the spirits of the dead and open their prison doors that they might go free. (The Way to Perfection, p.315-316)
Bruce R. McConkie
• The spirit prison is hell, that portion of the spirit world where the wicked dwell. (Moses 7:37-39.) Before Christ bridged the gulf between paradise and hell – so that the righteous could mingle with the wicked and preach them the gospel – the wicked in hell were confined to locations which precluded them from contact with the righteous in paradise. Abraham told the rich man in hell that between him and Lazarus (who was in paradise) there was a great gulf fixed so that none could go from paradise to hell or from hell to paradise. (Luke 16:19-31.) Now that the righteous spirits in paradise have been commissioned to carry the message of salvation to the wicked spirits in hell, there is a certain amount of mingling together of the good and bad spirits. Repentance opens the prison doors to the spirits in hell; it enables those bound with the chains of hell to free themselves from darkness, unbelief, ignorance, and sin. As rapidly as they can overcome these obstacles – gain light, believe truth, acquire intelligence, cast off sin, and break the chains of hell – they can leave the hell that imprisons them and dwell with the righteous in the peace of paradise. (Mormon Doctrine, p.755)
• By spirit world is meant the abiding place of disembodied spirits, those who have passed from pre-existence to mortality and have also gone on from this temporal world to another sphere to await the day of their resurrection, final redemption, and judgment. This world is divided into two parts: paradise which is the abode of the righteous, and hell which is the abode of the wicked. (Alma 40:11-14.)
Until the death of Christ these two spirit abodes were separated by a great gulf, with the intermingling of their respective inhabitants strictly forbidden. (Luke 16:19-31.) After our Lord bridged the gulf between the two (1 Pet. 3:18-21; Moses 7:37-39), the affairs of his kingdom in the spirit world were so arranged that righteous spirits began teaching the gospel to wicked ones. (Gospel Doctrine, 5th ed., pp. 473-476.)
Thus, although there are two spheres within the one spirit world, there is now some intermingling of the righteous and the wicked who inhabit those spheres; and when the wicked spirits repent, they leave their prison-hell and join the righteous in paradise. Hence, we find Joseph Smith saying: “Hades, sheol, paradise, spirits in prison, are all one: it is a world of spirits. The righteous and the wicked all go to the same world of spirits until the resurrection.” (Teachings, p. 310.) [Mormon Doctrine, p. 762]
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