Church History
Doctrine and Covenants 3–5


Doctrine and Covenants Historical Resources: Doctrine and Covenants 3–5, Doctrine and Covenants Historical Resources (2025)

Doctrine and Covenants 3–5, Doctrine and Covenants Historical Resources

Doctrine and Covenants 3–5

Photograph of a red clapboard house with a rail fence in the foreground and sunset in the background.

The reconstructed home of Joseph and Emma Smith in Harmony (now Oakland Township), Pennsylvania, USA. Joseph and Emma lived at this location when Doctrine and Covenants sections 3–5 were received.

Historical Background

Revelations in Context

Essays on the background of each revelation

The Contributions of Martin Harris

D&C 3, 5, 10, 17, 19

Joseph Smith’s Support at Home

D&C 4, 11, 23

Painting of a woman wearing a bonnet.

This portrait, drawn by Sutcliffe Maudsley from life, celebrates and memorializes the Prophet’s mother. Sutcliffe Maudsley, Lucy Mack Smith 1776–1855, before 1844, gouache, Church History Museum.

Saints: The Story of the Church of Jesus Christ in the Latter Days

Narrative history of events surrounding the revelations

Volume 1, Chapter 5

All Is Lost

Volume 1, Chapter 6

The Gift and Power of God

Volume 1, Chapter 7

Fellow Servants

People

Biographical facts and historical images of individuals associated with the revelations

Places

Maps and information about places associated with the revelations from The Joseph Smith Papers, Historic Sites, and other helpful sources

Events

Timeline placing each revelation in the context of key events in the Church’s first century

View the chronology

Pot with Hopi patterns, figures, and a depiction of the gold plates.

As prophesied, millions have gained a testimony of the Book of Mormon. Navajo artist Lucy Lueppe McKelvey shares her witness, showing how the scriptures speak to her in her cultural language. Lucy Lueppe McKelvey, Pot with Hopi Dwellings and Gold Plates, 1988, ceramic, Church History Museum.

Topics

Essays on subjects related to the revelations

Book of Mormon Translation

Lost Manuscript of the Book of Mormon

Witnesses of the Book of Mormon

Sources

Historical background and the earliest version of each section of the Doctrine and Covenants, as published in The Joseph Smith Papers and the Church History Library catalog

Revelation, July 1828 [D&C 3]

Revelation, February 1829 [D&C 4]

Revelation, March 1829 [D&C 5]

Painting showing Emma Smith writing as Joseph translates

Emma Smith served as Joseph’s scribe for the initial translation process. Robert Taylor Pack, Emma as Scribe, 2016, oil on copper, Church History Museum.