Line upon Line:
Abraham 3:22–23

Abraham learned that we all lived before we came to the earth and that we have a mission here.

Intelligences

One definition of intelligence is “a spiritual being” (from the 1828 edition of Webster’s Dictionary of the English Language, which shows how this word was used in Joseph Smith’s day).

Organized

“In the premortal realm, spirit sons and daughters knew and worshiped God as their Eternal Father and accepted His plan by which His children could obtain a physical body and gain earthly experience to progress toward perfection and ultimately realize his or her divine destiny as an heir of eternal life.”
“The Family: A Proclamation to the World,” Ensign, Nov. 1995, 102.

Before the world was

To learn more about premortal life, read:

• True to the Faith [2004], 115–16.

• “The Fulness of the Gospel: Life before Birth,” Ensign, Feb. 2006, 30.

• The scriptures listed in the Topical Guide under “Man, Antemortal Existence of.”

Noble

Noble—having outstanding qualities and high moral character

Rulers

“The Prophet Joseph Smith … and other choice spirits … were reserved to come forth in the fulness of times. … They were also among the noble and great ones who were chosen in the beginning to be rulers in the Church of God. Even before they were born, they, with many others, received their first lessons in the world of spirits” (D&C 138:53–56).

Chosen

“Every man who has a calling to minister to the inhabitants of the world was ordained to that very purpose in the Grand Council of heaven before this world was.”
Joseph Smith, History of the Church, 6:364.

Editor’s note: This page is not meant to be a comprehensive explanation of the selected scripture verse, only a starting point for your own study.

The Lord Appearing unto Abraham, by Keith Larson