2
Ne 3:17 I will not make him mighty in speaking
This
phrase refers to Moses. In spite of the fact that Joseph Smith is compared to
Moses and that both Moses and Joseph Smith were given spokesmen, the similarity
between Moses and Joseph Smith does not include this phrase about being mighty
in speaking. Joseph Smith was a great speaker. The saints loved to hear his
sermons, and Joseph loved to preach. The recorded sermons of Joseph Smith are
powerful, colorful, and full of incredible doctrinal insights. The Lord said of
Joseph, I will give unto him power to be might in
testimony (DC 100:10). The testimonies of the saints regarding Joseph¡¯s
sermons are as follows:
¡°The
Prophet then arose and poured forth a golden stream of words, many of which
were verily pearls without price, setting forth the restoration of the gospel
and the great work that had commenced on the earth. With power he exhorted
everyone who was present to seek for the truth of his and his companion¡¯s words
from the source of all light, all truth, and all religion, and a knowledge of
the truth of the same should surely follow.¡± (Lydia B. Knight, They Knew the
Prophet, compiled by Hyrum and Helen Andrus, p. 44)
¡°I
heard the Prophet discourse upon the grandest of subjects. At times he was
filled with the Holy Ghost, speaking as with the voice of an archangel and
filled with the power of God. His whole person shone, and his face was
lightened until it appeared as the whiteness of the driven snow. Finally, I was
convinced of the truth sufficiently to want to be baptized, to get a knowledge
for myself of the testimony that Joseph Smith had seen God.¡± (Lorenzo Snow, They
Knew the Prophet, compiled by Hyrum and Helen Andrus, p. 34)