The Eight
Witnesses
As he was completing the Book of Mormon, Joseph
showed the golden plates to eight other witnesses.
Who were these men? Were they trust worthy?
Did they ever deny their testimonies?
The Testimony of the Eight Witnesses
Be it known unto all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people, unto whom this work shall come: That Joseph Smith, Jun., the translator of this work, has shown unto us the plates of which hath been spoken, which have the appearance of gold; and as many of the leaves as the said Smith has translated we did handle with our hands; and we also saw the engravings thereon, all of which has the appearance of ancient work, and of curious workmanship. And this we bear record with words of soberness, that the said Smith has shown unto us, for we have seen and hefted, and know of a surety that the said Smith has got the plates of which we have spoken. And we give our names unto the world, to witness unto the world that which we have seen. And we lie not, God bearing witness of it.
Christian Whitmer
Jacob Whitmer
Peter Whitmer, Jun.
John Whitmer
Hiram Page
Joseph Smith, Sen.
Hyrum Smith
Samuel H. Smith
Prophecy of the Eight Witnesses
The only reference in the Book of Mormon to the eight witnesses comes from 2 Nephi 27:12-13 that reads: “the eyes of none shall behold it save it be that three witnesses shall behold it, by the power of God, besides him to whom the book shall be delivered; and they shall testify to the truth of the book and the things therein. And there is none other which shall view it, save it be a few according to the will of God, to bear testimony of his word unto the children of men.”
"Summary" of the
Eight Witnesses
In volume 1, the story of the eight witnesses is summarized in this manner:
“Soon after these things had transpired, the following additional testimony was obtained”
B. H. Roberts notes that Lucy Mack Smith’s history gives further details. B. H. Roberts explains the difference between the three and eight witnesses:
“The difference between the testimony given the Three Witnesses and that given to the Eight, is that the former was attended by a splendid display of the glory and power of God and the ministration of an angel, while the latter was attended by no such display, but was a plain, matter-of-fact exhibition of the plates by the Prophet to his friends…”
Lucy Mack Smith
1845
Martin Harris said he you have got to humble yourself before your God this day and obtain if possible a forgiveness of your sins for <and> if you will do this it is his will that you and Oliver Cowdray and David Whitmer should look upon the plates, soon after this these three <four> left the house and went into a grove a short distance from the house— here they continued in earnest supplication to God untill he permitted an angel from his presence to bear to them a message declaring the truth and verity of the pretensions which Joseph made with regard to the plates which were at the same time shown to them by the angel.
They all that is the male part of the company repaired to a little grove where it was customary for the family to offer up their secret prayers— as Joseph had been instructed that the plates would be carried there by one of the ancient Nephites. Here <it> was that those 8 witnesses recorded in the Book of Mormon looked upon the plates and handled them of which they bear witness in the following words,
“Be it known unto all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people unto whom this work shall come that Joseph Smith Jr. the translator of this work has shewn unto us the plates of which hath been spoken which have the appearance of Gold; and as many of the leaves as the said smith has translated we did handle with our hands and we also saw the engravings thereon all of which has the appearance of ancient work and curious workmanship. And this we bear record with words of sobernness, that the said Smith has shewn unto us for we have seen and hefted and know of as <a> surety that the said Smith has got the plates of which we have spoken and we give our names unto the world to witness unto the world that which we have seen and we lie not God bearing witness of it - Christian Whitmer, Jacob Whitmer, Peter Whitmer Jr., John Whitmer, Hyrum [Hiram] Page, Joseph Smith Sen, Hyrum Smith, Samuel H Smith
After the witnesses returned to the house the Angel again made his appearance to Joseph and received the the plates from his hands
About the witness statement
In both of the witnesses statements there was no date given, or time of day, or a location for the event.
Each of the witnesses signed an already written statement.
Originally, as you can see, the witness statements were published at the end of the book, whereas today they are published at the beginning.
Since its original publication in 1830, the witness statements have been edited.
It originally said: “Joseph Smith, Jr. the Author and Proprietor of this work.”
Eight years later in 1837, it was changed to read: “Joseph Smith, Jun., the translator of this work.”
All eight witnesses were related
All eight of the witnesses were related to either the Smith's or the Whitmers.
Christian Whitmer
Jacob Whitmer
Peter Whitmer
John Whitmer
Hiram Page (was married to Catherine Whitmer)
Joseph Smith, Senior
Hyrum Smith
Samuel Smith
"The entire Whitmer family"
In his book “Roughing It” published in 1871, Mark Twain stated:
“And when I am far on the road to conviction, and eight men, be they grammatical or otherwise, come forward and tell me they have seen the plates too; and not only seen those plates but “hefted” them, I am convinced. I could not feel more satisfied and at rest if the entire Whitmer family had testified.”
None of the
witnesses signed?
Handwriting of Oliver Cowdery
While one could argue that the original eight witnesses signed what was on the Original Manuscript and not what was on the Printer's Manuscript [pictured here], there is no evidence that such a document ever existed.
The church says that, "Of the nearly 500 pages placed in the Nauvoo House cornerstone, portions of 232 pages survive. The Church now possesses most of those fragments and leaves. Others are in private hands. Their owners graciously allowed those pieces to be photographed and included in this volume."
I'd be curious to know if that original witnesses statement survived and if the handwriting belongs to Oliver Cowdery.
Regardless, having individuals sign a collective statement written by someone else is not as credible as having them make their own personal witness statements.
Limited number of accounts
Two of the eight witnesses never gave any personal accounts of their witnesses of the golden plates, and aside from John Whitmer the rest are very limited.
Christian Whitmer (no other testimony)
Jacob Whitmer (2 other testimonies)
Peter Whitmer Jr. (no other testimony)
John Whitmer (9 other testimonies)
Hiram Page (1 other limited account)
Joseph Smith, Sr. (1 other interview)
Hyrum Smith, (5 other testimonies)
Samuel Smith (2 other testimonies)
John Whitmer
Messenger and Advocate March 6, 1836
Despite the fact that the witness statement is ambiguous about holding and inspecting the plates, a few of the witnesses said they handled the plates.
"I desire to testify to all that will come to the knowledge of this address, that I have most assuredly seen the plates from whence the Book of Mormon is translated, and that I have handled these plates, and know of a surety that Joseph Smith, Jr., has translated the Book of Mormon by the gift and power of God. And in this thing the wisdom of the wise most assuredly has perished. Therefore, know ye, O ye inhabitants of the earth, wherever this address may come, that I have in this thing freed my garments of your blood, whether you believe or disbelieve."
Letter from Stephen Burnett to Br. Johnson
15 April, 1838
...when I came to hear Martin Harris state in public that he never saw the plates with his natural eyes only in vision or imagination, neither Oliver nor David & also that the eight witnesses never saw them & hesitated to sign that instrument for that reason, but were persuaded to do it, the last pedestal gave way, in my view our foundation was sapped & the entire superstructure fell in heap of ruins, I therefore three week since in the Stone Chapel...renounced the Book of Mormon...after we were done speaking M. Harris arose & said he was sorry for any man who rejected the Book of Mormon for he knew it was true, he said he had hefted the plates repeatedly in a box with only a tablecloth or a handkerchief over them, but he never saw them only as he saw a city throught [sic] a mountain. And said that he never should have told that the testimony of the eight was false, if it had not been picked out of—–— [him/me?] but should have let it passed as it was...
-Letter from Stephen Burnett to "Bro. Johnson," April 15, 1838, in Joseph Smith Letter Book, p. 2
Hyrum Smith
Times and Seasons, 1839
Published in the Times and Seasons, Hyrum Smith gave us this testimony of seeing the golden plates:
“I thank God that I felt a determination to die, rather than deny the things which my eyes had seen, which my hands had handled, and which I had borne testimony to, wherever my lot has been cast.”
John Whitmer
April 1839
John Whitmer reportedly said to Theodore Turley in April 1839: “I handled those plates; there was fine engravings on both sides. I handled them… [T]hey were shown to me by a supernatural power.”
[“Theodore Turley’s Memorandums,” Church Archives, handwriting of Thomas Bullock, who began clerking in late 1843; cited in Dan Vogel (editor), Early Mormon Documents (Salt Lake City, Signature Books, 1996–2003), 3:468 and 5:241]
Hiram Page
The Ensign of Liberty, March 1847
A letter from Hiram Page was published in The Ensign of Liberty in March 1847. It reads as follows:
“As to the Book of Mormon, it would be doing injustice to myself, and to the work of God of the last days, to say that I could know a thing to be true in 1830, and know the same thing to be false in 1847. To say my mind was so treacherous that I had forgotten what I saw. To say that a man of Joseph’s ability, who at that time did not know how to pronounce the word Nephi, could write a book of six hundred pages, as correct as the book of Mormon, without supernatural power. And to say that those holy Angels who came and showed themselves to me as I was walking through the field, to confirm me in the work of the Lord of the last days –three of whom came to me afterwards and sang an hymn in their own pure language; yes, it would be treating the God of heaven with contempt, to deny these testimonies, with too many others to mention here.” [William E. McLellin, The Ensign of Liberty, March 1847, pg. 63]
Marvin S. Hill
"Brodie Revistied: A Reappraisal" by Marvin S. Hill
Mormon Historian Marvin S. Hill said: “With only a veiled reference to "what I saw," Page does not say he saw the plates but that angels confirmed him in his faith. Neither does he say that any coercion was placed upon him to secure his testimony. Despite Page's inconsistencies, it is difficult to know what to make of Harris' affirmation that the eight saw no plates in the face of John Whitmer's testimony. The original testimony of these eight men in the Book of Mormon reads somewhat ambiguously, not making clear whether they handled the plates or the "leaves" of the translated manuscript. Thus there are some puzzling aspects to the testimonies of the witnesses. If Burnett's statement is given credence it would appear that Joseph Smith extorted a deceptive testimony from the eight witnesses. But why should John Whitmer and Hiram Page adhere to Mormonism and the Book of Mormon so long if they only gave their testimony reluctantly? It may be that like the three witnesses they expressed a genuine religious conviction. The particulars may not have seemed as important as the ultimate truth of the work”
Governor
Thomas Ford
1854
In his book, A History of Illinois, from Its Commencement as a State in 1818 to 1847, Thomas Ford gives some details concerning the Mormon Church.
And the prophet was not without his witnesses. Oliver Cowdney, Martin Harris, and Daniel Whiteman, solemnly certifiy " that we have seen the plates which contain the records; that they were translated by the gift and power of God, for his voice hath declared it unto us, wherefore we know of a surety that the work is true ; and we declare with words of soberness that an angel of God came down from heaven and brought and laid before our eyes, that we beheld and saw the plates and tho engravings thereon."
Eight other witnesses certify that "Joseph Smith, the translator, had shown them the plates spoken of, which had the appearance of gold; and as many of fie plates as the said Smith had translated, they did handle with their hands, and they also saw the engravings thereon, all of which had the appearance of andent work and cunous workmanship."
The most probable account of these certificates is, that the witnesses were in the conspiracy, aiding the imposture; but I have been informed by men who were once in the confidence of the prophet, that he privately gave a different account of the matter. It is related that the prophet's early followers were anxious to see the plates; the prophet had always given out that they could not be seen by the carnal eye, but must be spiritually discerned; that the power to see them depended upon faith, and was the gift of God, to be obtained by fasting, prayer, mortification of the flesh, and exercises of the spirit; that so soon as he could see the evidences of a strong and lively faith in any of his followers, they should be gratified in their holy curiosity.
He set them to continual prayer, and other spiritual exercises, to acquire this lively faith by means of which the hidden things of God could be spiritually discerned; and at last, when he could delay them no longer, he assembled them in a room, and produced a box, which he said contained the precious treasure. The lid was opened; the witnesses peeped into it, but making no discovery, for the box was empty, they said, "Brother Joseph, we do not see the plates." The prophet answered them, "O ye of little faith! how long will God bear with this wicked and perverse generation. Down on your knees, brethren, every one of you and pray God for the forgiveness of your sins, and for a holy and living faith which cometh down from heaven." The disciples dropped to their knees, and began to pray in the fervency of their spirit, supplicating God for more than two hours with fenatical earnestness; at the end of which time, looking again into the box, they were now persuaded that they saw the plates. I leave it to philosophers to determine whether the fumes of an enthusiastic and fanatical imagination are thus capable of blinding the mind and deeeiV' ing tie senses by so absurd a delusion.
Samuel Smith
The Latter-Day Saints' Millennial Star, 1863
Published in The Latter-Day Saints’ Millennial Star, on June 6, 1863, the story of Phineas Young’s (brother of Brigham Young) conversion was printed.
“While engaged in conversation with the family, a young man came in, and walking across the room to where I was sitting, held a book towards me, saying, – “There is a book, sir, I wish you to read.” The thing appeared so novel to me that for a moment I hesitated, saying, – “Pray, sir, what book have you?” “The Book of Mormon, or, as it is called by some, the Golden Bible.” “Ah, sir, then it purports to be a revelation.” “Yes,” said he, “It is a revelation from God.” I took the book, and by his request looked at the testimony of the witnesses. Said he – “If you will read this book with a prayerful heart, and ask God to give you a witness, you will know of the truth of this work.”
I told him I would do so and then asked him his name. He said his name was Samuel H. Smith. “Ah,” said I, you are one of the witnesses.” “Yes,” said he, “I know the book to be a revelation from God, translated by the gift and power of the Holy Ghost, and that my brother Joseph Smith, jun., is a Prophet, Seer and Revelator.” [The Latter-day Saints’ Millennial Star, June 6, 1863, pg. 360-361]
What did the
Eight Witnesses see?
One of my tik toks, going over the story of Governor Ford and the Eight Witnesses.
Joseph Smith, Sr.
Historical Magazine, May 1870
In the Historical Magazine “Interview with the Father of Joseph Smith, the Mormon Prophet, Forty Years Ago. His Account of the Finding of the Sacred Plates” a man named Fayette Lapham gives the following account:
…Joseph persevered and brought the article safely home. “I weight it,” said Mr. Smith, Senior, “and it weighed thirty “pounds.” In answer to our question, as to what it was that Joseph Smith had thus obtained, he said it consisted of a set of gold plates, about six inches wide, and nine or ten inches long. They were in the form of a book, half an inch thick, but were not bound at the back, like our books, but where held together by several gold rings, in such a way that the plates could be opened similar to a book. Under the first plate, or lid, he found a pair of spectacles, about one and a half inches longer than those used at the present day, the eyes not of glass but of diamond. On the next page were representations of all the masonic implements, as used by the masons at the present day. The remaining pages were closely written over in characters of some unknown tongue, the last continuing the alphabet of this unknown language.”
[The Historical Magazine, No. 2, Vol. 7, May 1870, pg. 305-308]
Description of the plates
On average, the witnesses of the golden plates give roughly the same description:
- “6 in x 8 in” - Lucy Smith; “7 in x 8in” - Martin Harris
- “Four inches thick” - Martin Harris
- Six inches thick, 2 inches of that contained the Book of Mormon
- Bound by three “D” shaped rings - David quoting Mary Whitmer; “silver rings” - Martin Harris
- “Pages as thick as parchment.” -David Whitmer
- Weighed “40-60 pounds” - Martin Harris; Emma moved them, Martin Harris’ daughter could lift them and Catherine Smith found them “very heavy”
Joseph Smith, Senior
Based on the description given to Fayette Lapham, Joseph Smith, Senior's description of the plates is very different:
- “About six inches wide, and nine or ten inches long”
- “Half an inch thick”
- “Held together by several gold rings”
- “It weighed thirty pounds”
- No description of sealed portion
John Whitmer
Deseret News August 14, 1878
I - Did you handle the plates with your hands?
He - I did so!
I - Then they were a material substance?
He - Yes, as material as anything can be.
I - They were heavy to lift?
He - Yes, and as you know gold is a heavy metal, they were very heavy.
I - How big were the leaves?
He - So far as I recollect, 8 by 6 or 7 inches
I - Were the leaves thick?
He - Yes, just so thick, that characters could be engraven on both sides.
I - How were the leaves joined together?
He - In three rings, each one in the shape of a D with the straight line towards the centre.
I - In what place did you see the plates.
He - In Joseph Smith's house; he had them there.
I - Did you see them covered with a cloth?
He - No. He handed them uncovered into our hands, and we turned the leaves sufficient to satisfy us.
I - Were you all eight witnesses present at the same time?
He - No. At that time Joseph showed the plates to us, we were four persons, present in the room, and at another time he showed them to four persons more.
John Whitmer
August 1878
As published in the Saints’ Herald in August of 1878, Myron H. Bond interviewed John Whitmer.
“[O]ld Father Whitmer told me last winter, with tears in his eyes, that he knew as well as he knew he had an existence that Joseph translated the ancient writing which was upon the plates, which he ‘saw and handled,’ and which, as one of the scribes, he helped to copy as the words fell from Joseph’s lips, by supernatural or almighty power.”
[Republished in Early Mormon Documents, by Dan Vogel, vol 5, 251]
Samuel Smith
Scraps of Biography, 1883
In 1883, Daniel Tyler recalled visiting Samuel Smith in Pennsylvania, in the spring of 1832, which resulted in his own conversion.
Daniel recorded: “Elder [Samuel] Smith read the 29th chapter of Isaiah at the first meeting and delineated the circumstances of the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, of which he said he was a witness. He knew his brother Joseph had the plates, for the prophet had shown them to him, and he had handled them and seen the engravings thereon. His speech was more like a narrative than a sermon.”
[Daniel Tyler, Scraps of Biography, 1883, pg. 23]
E. L. Kelley & Clark Braden
1884
We are now ready for the eight witnesses. Their testimony is worthless. They testify they saw and handled certain plates that Joe showed them. That the plates had on them characters of ancient workmanship, and were of ancient and curious workmanship. That they saw as many plates as Smith had translated. How did they know that he had translated the plates before them? How did they know that Joe had translated any plates? That the plates had been given to him by an angel? That the Book of Mormon was a translation o f the plates before them, or of any plates? The only thing they could testify was that Joe had showed them certain plates. All the rest they could not know, and lied when they said they did know. Another fatal objection to the testimony of both the three witnesses, and of the eight, is they are all of the gang of low, villainous followers of Smith, and Interested in the fraud. The thirteen are as follows: Imposter Joe, author of the fraud; old Joe, his father, a notorious drunkard, liar and thief; Hiram Smith, his brother, afterwards a leader in Mormonism; S. H. Smith, another; old [Mr]. Whitmer, David Whitmer, Christian Whitmer, Peter Whitmer, John Whitmer, Oliver Cowdery, Hiram Page, brother-in-law of the Whitmers, Martin Harris, old Mrs. Whitmer and Emma Smith, Joe's wife. Six Whitmers, one member of the family, four Smiths, Oliver Cowdery and Martin Harris.
Marvin S. Hill
Dialogue, Vol. 7, No. 4,
Mormon Historian Marvin S. Hill said: “With only a veiled reference to "what I saw," Page does not say he saw the plates but that angels confirmed him in his faith. Neither does he say that any coercion was placed upon him to secure his testimony. Despite Page's inconsistencies, it is difficult to know what to make of Harris' affirmation that the eight saw no plates in the face of John Whitmer's testimony. The original testimony of these eight men in the Book of Mormon reads somewhat ambiguously, not making clear whether they handled the plates or the "leaves" of the translated manuscript. Thus there are some puzzling aspects to the testimonies of the witnesses. If Burnett's statement is given credence it would appear that Joseph Smith extorted a deceptive testimony from the eight witnesses. But why should John Whitmer and Hiram Page adhere to Mormonism and the Book of Mormon so long if they only gave their testimony reluctantly? It may be that like the three witnesses they expressed a genuine religious conviction. The particulars may not have seemed as important as the ultimate truth of the work”
Jacob Whitmer
September 1888
According to Andrew Jenson, John C. Whitmer shared his father’s testimony.
“My father (Jacob Whitmer) was always faithful and true to his testimony in regard to the Book of Mormon, and confirmed it on his death-bed.”
[Andrew Jenson. Latter-day Saint biographical encyclopedia : a compilation of biographical sketches of prominent men and women in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. (Salt Lake City : The Andrew Jenson History Co, 1901), p. 277]
In the same year, Jacob’s other son Captain David P. Whitmer used almost the same language as Andrew Jenson:
“My father, Jacob Whitmer, was always faithful and true to his testimony to the Book of Mormon, and confirmed it on his death-bed.”
[Cited in Letter of Andrew Jenson to Deseret News (13 September 1888) from Richmond, Mo.; cited in Deseret News (17 September 1888)]
What became of the
Eight Witnesses?
The Church likes to boast that none of the witnesses ever denied their testimonies. Concerning the eight witnesses, this isn't much of a boast. Five of the witnesses died during or just after Joseph Smith's lifetime, two of them were excommunicated, and one of them left the church.
Christian Whitmer, died in 1835
Jacob Whitmer, excommunicated in 1838
Peter Whitmer, Jr., died in 1836
John Whitmer, excommunicated in 1838
Hiram Page, left the Church in 1838
Joseph Smith, Sr., died a patriarch in 1840
Hyrum Smith, died alongside the Prophet in 1844
Samuel H. Smith, died one month after his brother, the Prophet, in 1844
John Whitmer was excommunicated on March 10, 1838. There had been problems with the Kirtland Safety Society Bank. There was leadership struggles and the entire Whitmer family was excommunicated. Upon his excommunication, John Whitmer refused to give the church the documents and records he had worked on as a Church historian. He followed James Strang for a time and then later joined the Church of Christ [Bringhurst and Hamer, David Whitmer: His Evolving Beliefs and Recollections (Independence, Missouri, 2007), 132].
Not much is known about Jacob Whitmer's excommunication. It could easily have been due to the Kirtland Safety Society Bank as with the rest of the family. He joined the Church of Christ (David Whitmer’s church) with his brother, and passed away in 1856 still affirming his testimony of the golden plates.
Hiram Page left the church when the Whitmers were all excommunicated. For at least a year, Hiram Page followed James Strang from March 1846 to April 1847. Records show that on September 6, 1847, William E. McLellin baptized Page, David Whitmer, John Whitmer, and Jacob Whitmer into his newly formed Church of Christ (or the Whitmerites). McLellin had hoped that David would lead the church. Page was ordained a high priest in that church and participated in the ordination of others. Page died on his farm in Excelsior Springs, Missouri, still affirming his testimony of the Book of Mormon.
Conclusion
The three surviving eight witnesses later joined the Whitmerite Church of Christ and therefore had strong motive to never deny their testimony of the Book of Mormon.
Being a witness to a foreign language that you are not knowledgeable about, even it if is engraven on golden plates, does not mean that the translation is correct.
Never denying your testimony of the Book of Mormon is not the same as never denying that you physically saw an angel with a physical set of golden plates.
Never denying your testimony does not mean that your testimony is true.
Even if the witnesses truly saw a set of golden plates, this does not change the fact that:
- much of the content for the Book of Mormon is anachronistic (i.e. Deutero-Isaiah, the Sermon on the Mount, etc.),
- that there were thousand of changes to the text,
- that it is not supported by archeological or DNA evidence,
- that most of the ideas in the Book of Mormon coincide with material that was available to Joseph Smith at the time,
- and that scholars today acknowledge that the Book of Mormon is a nineteenth century text.
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