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Revelations and Confrontations

For six and a half months-between mid-September 1831 and the end of March 1832-Hiram, Portage County, Ohio, approximately thirty miles south of Kirtland, served as a temporary headquarters of the Church. During this period, Joseph Smith and his family lived in the large frame home of John Johnson, an early convert who was one of the prosperous farmers of that community. Many Latter-day Saints traveled there to meet him, to seek his counsel, and to attend meetings held in the Johnson home. There the Prophet worked on a translation of the Bible and received some of his most profound visions and revelations. However, he also encountered serious opposition, as apostates joined forces with other settlers in an attempt to interrupt the growth of the Church in Portage County. The organized resistance led to the mobbing of Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon, and they fled from Hiram. Upon their return to Geauga County, many of the central developments in the history of the Church again focused on Kirtland. Although the Prophet's stay in Hiram was brief, this six-month period was one of the significant eras in the early history of the restored Church.

Joseph Smith had become acquainted with John and Elsa Johnson early in 1831 when they had gone to Kirtland to investigate reports circulating in their community concerning a restoration of the everlasting gospel. Others from that region, including Ezra Booth, a Methodist minister from Mantua, accompanied the Johnsons to Kirtland. Prior to this trip, Elsa Johnson had been afflicted with what was believed to be chronic rheumatism. For several years she had been unable to lift her hand to her head, a handicap that interfered with many of her activities. As the party from Portage County discussed the restoration with Joseph Smith in the Newel K. Whitney home, including the manifestations of supernatural gifts during the apostolic era, one of the inquirers said, "Here is Mrs. Johnson with a lame arm. Has God given any power to man now on the earth to cure her?" Before the question was answered, the conversation shifted to another theme. Then Joseph Smith rose, walked across the room, grasped the hand of Elsa Johnson, and, in a "solemn and impressive manner," said, "Woman, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I command thee to be whole." Immediately thereafter, he went from the room, leaving the group stunned. Then, according to several contemporary accounts, Elsa Johnson lifted her arm in the air. When she returned home the next day, she was able to wash her clothes without difficulty or pain.

Joseph Smith's "Translation" of the Bible

On September 12, 1831, shortly after returning from his first trip to Missouri, Joseph Smith moved with his family from Kirtland to Hiram, establishing his new residence in the John Johnson home. There he concentrated on making corrections in the King James Version of the Bible. Sidney Rigdon, who served at this time as his principal scribe, also moved to Hiram and probably lived in a log cabin located near the Johnson home.