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Article


Celestial Glory


Hebrews 12:1-2
1 Wherefore, seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,
2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

When I read these two verses, there are two questions brought to my mind. The writer speaks of a joy set before Jesus, for which he endured the crucifixion. The first question is: What was the joy that Jesus looked forward to? For whatever joy it was, it gave him the fortitude to endure the extreme agony and humiliating shame of the cross, while maintaining forgiveness in his heart toward his torturers?

Now, I say that because in Luke 23:34-35 , Luke quotes Jesus saying “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” Luke then comments that he was speaking of the soldiers who had just stripped Jesus naked as the day he was born, hammered nails through his wrists and heels into the stake, dropped it into a hole and left him to die. Then, to add insult to injury, they gambled over the clothes they had confiscated.

In that position, Jesus was the raw Jesus. Everything, physically, mentally and spiritually, had been stripped away. There could be no pretense of who he was, no feigned reaction, no artificial response. Yet... Jesus asks the Father to forgive the soldiers.

Where other men would have cursed them for their cruelty, Jesus’ raw nature of forgiveness is shown. This then was the moment where Jesus proved that he had the Father’s forgiving nature. Think about that for a moment. If Jesus forgave his torturers in his worst moment, what do you think he will do if you come to him with your honest, humble repentance.

Jesus passed his final test. The Father had better things to come to him after this.

The second question is inferred: What joy is set before us to entice us to lay aside every burden, the sins which hold us back and run with patience the race that is set before us and endure our cross, despising the shame as he did?


Proving Jesus is the Messiah


First, I want to focus on what the writer to the Hebrews is endeavoring to prove with these verses. I want to piece together a few scriptures, like a puzzle, to fill out the message that the writer of Hebrews is trying to covey. Then, understanding that, I want to then derive the joy that was set before Jesus, then the joy that is set before us.

The first piece of the puzzle from Hebrews is in the phrase “is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.” The Rabbis knew their scriptures; forwards and backwards, inside and out. Their teaching style was to use a phrase of scripture to prompt their audience to recall an associated verse with which the fuller context would be understood. The author of Hebrews, speaking of Jesus, uses the phrase “is set down at the right hand” to prompt the reader to recall the psalm of David,
Psalm 110:1-2

1 The Lord said unto my lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool.
2 The Lord shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion; rule thou in the midst of thine enemies.

The author of Hebrews is saying this prophetic psalm is fulfilled. So the first puzzle piece is: Jesus is sat down at the right hand of God.

This being sat down at the right hand of God and given a ruler-ship should then bring to mind another prophecy, Daniels vision of the Son of Man, found in Daniel 7:13-14

13 I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of Man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.
14 And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.
Observe here the similarities to Psalm 110:1-2 . In that verse “my lord” is seated at the right hand of “the Lord.” Here the Son of Man comes with the clouds of heaven. This is a power attributed only to God himself in Psalm 104:1-3 .

Observe also the Son of Man is brought near the Ancient of days, and he is given an everlasting dominion over all people. So the second puzzle piece of the joy set before Jesus is: Jesus has been given an everlasting dominion.

Returning to Psalm 110 , notice the ruler-ship is not one that comes from "my lord" conquering his enemies. The ruler-ship is one in which the Lord, God himself, conquers his enemies and gives them to "my lord." The third puzzle piece of the joy set before Jesus is: Jesus ruler-ship is in the midst of his enemies.

This verse is important for a second reason, because it also connects Jesus to being the Messiah. In Matthew 22:40-44 , we read of this interaction:

40 While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, saying, What think ye of Christ? Whose son is he?
41 They say unto him, The Son of David.
42 He said unto them, How then doth David, in spirit, call him Lord, saying, The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool?
43 If David then called him Lord, how is he his son?
44 And no man was able to answer him a word, neither durst any man from that day forth ask him any more questions.
The first thing to understand about this interaction is the question Jesus asks, “What think ye of Christ?” Christ is a title, it means “anointed one.” Christ is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew word Messiah. As such, Jesus is asking the Pharisees “What think ye of the Messiah? Whose son is he?”

What’s important here is equivalency that Jesus makes between the psalm of David where it says “The Lord said unto my lord,” and the Messiah. The Pharisees tacitly agree that Psalm 110 is, in fact, speaking of the Messiah. If they had an objection to Jesus associating this psalm to the Messiah, they would have raised it, but they have no answer. Indeed from this moment on, no man dared directly challenge him.

So then, Hebrews 12:2, by making reference to Psalm 110:1, we can associate it to Daniel 7:13-14 and connect it with Matthew 22:40-44 showing us what the writer of Hebrews is endeavoring to prove: Jesus is the Messiah, sitting at the right hand of God, given an everlasting dominion over all people and all power in heaven and earth, and will rule in the midst of his enemies.

After he was resurrected, Jesus returned and confirmed this to his disciples in Matthew 28:17

17 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.

The Joy Set Before Jesus


Turning from the authority given to Jesus let us look for the joy that was set before him as he endured the agony of the crucifixion. There are prophesies made of the Messiah all over the scriptures, but we will just examine three. The first is in Isaiah 53:10-12 .

10 Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief; when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.
11 He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied; by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
12 Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death; and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.

Examining this scripture closely, there are two categories of promises made of the Messiah. The first category are promises made about the Messiah and what he shall accomplish.


  • It pleased the Lord to bruise the Messiah
  • The Lord put the Messiah to grief
  • The Lord shall make the Messiahs' soul an offering for sin
  • The Messiah shall bear their iniquities; because the Messiah poured out his soul unto death
  • The Messiah was numbered with the transgressors
  • The Messiah bare the sin of many
  • The Messiah made intercession for the transgressors

The second category is the promises made to the Messiah as reward for having accomplished them. It is this set of promises with which this article is concerned.


  • The Messiah shall see his seed
  • The Messiah shall prolong his days
  • The pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in the Messiahs' hand
  • The Messiah shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied
  • By the Messiahs' knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many
  • Therefore will I divide the Messiah a portion with the great
  • The Messiah shall divide the spoil with the strong

Turning to Isaiah 49:6 we read of the Messiah in relation to the Gentiles:

6 And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel; I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.

This scripture is in the first category, the promises made about the Messiah.


  • To raise up the tribes of Jacob
  • To restore the preserved of Israel
  • To be a light to the Gentiles
  • To be the Lords' salvation unto the end of the earth

Yet it is the setup for the promises made to the Messiah in relation to the Gentiles in Isaiah 42:1-7 .

1 Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my Spirit upon him; he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles.
2 He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street.
3 A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench; he shall bring forth judgment unto truth.
4 He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set judgment in the earth; and the isles shall wait for his law.
5 Thus saith God the Lord, he that created the heavens, and stretched them out, he that spread forth the earth, and that which cometh out of it; he that giveth breath unto the people upon it, and spirit to them that walk therein;
6 I the Lord have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thine hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles;
7 To open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house.

Again we have the two categories: Promises of what the Messiah shall accomplish.


  • To bring forth judgment to the Gentiles
  • He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street.
  • A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench

And promises to the Messiah


  • The isles shall wait for his law
  • The Lord... will hold thine hand
  • The Lord... will keep thee
  • The Lord... give thee for a covenant of the people
  • To open the blind eyes
  • To bring out the prisoners from the prison,
  • To bring... them that sit in darkness out of the prison house

All of these promises, and many more, are laid out in the scriptures to the one who should be the Messiah. So, if Jesus, as he is going to Jersualem for his crucifixion, knew that he was the Messiah of the Old Testament, the Christ of the New Testament, then he would rightly be the recipient of the promises made of the Messiah in Isaiah 53, 49 and 42.


Jesus’ joy is then

  • To see his seed
  • To prolong his days
  • To see the travail of his soul, and be satisfied
  • By his knowledge to justify many
  • That God will divide him a portion with the great
  • He shall divide the spoil with the strong
  • He shall restore the preserved of Israel
  • He shall be a light to the Gentiles
  • He shall be God’s salvation to the ends of the earth
  • He shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles
  • He shall set judgment in the earth
  • He shall open the blind eyes
  • He shall bring out the prisoners from the prison,
  • He shall bring them that sit in darkness out of the prison house

Consider then all the glory, honor and majesty that awaited Jesus when he contemplated the test set before him in the garden of Gethsemane; why he sweat drops of blood in his distress and said “O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me.” But, he endured the cross, despising the shame of the treatment, and looked instead to the joy the Father had promised to him.


The Joy Set Before Us


Having answered the question of the joy was set before Jesus to endure the cross, let's remember Hebrews 12:2 inspired a second question:
What joy is set before us to entice us to lay aside every burden, the sins which hold us back and run with patience the race that is set before us and endure our cross, despising the shame as he did?
Jesus is not going to make judgment alone, because he makes a powerful declaration to his twelve disciples in Luke 22:28-30
28 Ye are they who have continued with me in my temptations;
29 And I appoint unto you a kingdom, as my Father hath appointed unto me;
30 That ye may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom; and sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

Added to that, in 1st Nephi 3:114-116 Nephi’s relates.

114 And the angel spake unto me, saying, Behold the twelve disciples of the Lamb, who are chosen to minister unto thy seed.
115 And he said unto me, Thou remembereth the twelve apostles of the Lamb? Behold they are they who shall judge the twelve tribes of Israel:
116 Wherefore, the twelve ministers of thy seed shall be judged of them; for ye are of the house of Israel; and these twelve ministers whom thou beholdest, shall judge thy seed.

And when Jesus visits the Nephites, he confirms that prophecy to his, disciples in the Book of Mormon, in 3rd Nephi 13:4

4 And know ye that ye shall be judges of this people, according to the judgment which I shall give unto you, which shall be just;

So we have scriptures which begin to describe an authority structure where Jesus is the King of kings, his disciples in Jerusalem are given to judge the tribes of Israel and the twelve disciples in the Book of Mormon are given to judge under the disciples in Jerusalem and over the Americas.

Now I want to add another. The scriptures say in Revelation 1:5-7

5 Therefore, I, John, the faithful witness, bear record of the things which were delivered me of the angel, and from Jesus Christ the first begotten of the dead, and the Prince of the kings of the earth.
6 And unto him who loved us, be glory; who washed us from our sins in his own blood, and hath made us kings and priests unto God, his Father. To him be glory and dominion, forever and ever. Amen.
7 For behold, he cometh in the clouds with ten thousands of his saints in the kingdom, clothed with the glory of his Father. And every eye shall see him; and they who pierced him, and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.

So now, added to the New Testament disciples in Jerusalem and in the Book of Mormon in America who are to judge, there are added to this power structurex tens of thousands who accompany Jesus at his return who, some or all of which, are made kings and priests unto God.

In Revelation 2 and 3 are the letters to the seven churches in Asia. in these letters are promises given to those who overcome. In these promises are descriptions of the kings and priests. Who the kings are can be found in Revelation 2:26-27

26 And to him who overcometh, and keepeth my commandments unto the end, will I give power over many kingdoms;
27 And he shall rule them with the word of God; and they shall be in his hands as the vessels of clay in the hands of a potter; and he shall govern them by faith, with equity and justice, even as I received of my Father.

Who the priests are can be found in Revelation 3:12

12 Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out; and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, this is New Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God; and I will write upon him my new name.

Going back to Revelation 1:7, it says in part "For behold, he cometh in the clouds with ten thousands of his saints in the kingdom, clothed with the glory of his Father." Additional understanding of whom these kings and priests are coming from is in Revelation 5:9-10 .

9 And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof; for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;
10 And hast made us unto our God kings and priests; and we shall reign on the earth.

Add to the picture now that the ten thousands accompanying Jesus who are made kings and priests are “out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation.” This should remove the idea that they are just Jews, or even just those who are lineally descended Israelite's who are given these positions of authority. There are gentiles included in this number also. This is also attested to in Isaiah 56:1-8.

Now we have a complete picture of Jesus, the Messiah, coming down to earth. With him are the twelve from Jerusalem and the twelve from the Book of Mormon who are given to judge. Also, there are ten thousands of his saints, coming out of every nation. Out of these ten thousands are kings which, under Jesus, are given the responsibility to rule with the word of God. Also there are priests who are given to minister in the temple before God. In these scriptures is the description of an authority structure for the Kingdom of heaven.

Keep that picture in mind, because I want to show that the development of this picture began deep in the past. The book of Revelation tells of the end times, Jesus return, the establishment of his kingdom, millennial reign and of the new heavens and earth. But God speaks of wanting to establish a kingdom long before the revelation to John.

The Exodus: the bringing of Israel out of their captivity to Egypt. Israel has been brought to the foot of mount Sinai where God himself will speak the ten commandments. But before that, as Israel has come to camp at the foot of mount Sinai, the very first thing God tells Moses to relay to Israel in Exodus 19:4-6 is this;

4 Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto myself.
5 Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people; for all the earth is mine;
6 And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel.

At the end of his life, Moses reaffirms the covenant God, the Father, had made with Israel at mount Sinai, to the next generation and the intent to which that covenant was made when he says in Deuteronomy 2:16-19

16 This day the Lord thy God hath commanded thee to do these statutes and judgments; thou shalt therefore keep and do them with all thine heart, and with all thy soul.
17 Thou hast avouched the Lord this day to be thy God, and to walk in his ways, and keep his statutes, and his commandments, and his judgments, and to hearken unto his voice;
18 And the Lord hath avouched thee, this day, to be his peculiar people, as he hath promised thee, and that thou shouldest keep all his commandments;
19 And to make thee high above all nations which he hath made, in praise, and in name, and in honor; and that thou mayest be a holy people unto the Lord thy God, as he hath spoken.

From the scripture in Exodus, we see that God intended, at least from the time in the past when he spoke to Israel at mount Sinai, to do what is prophesied in the future as is described in the book of Revelation. Before he gives the Israel the ten commandments, before Israel hears the voice of God coming from mount Sinai, God quietly tells Moses His intention for the whole frighteningly spectacular show He is about to put on, atop mount Sinai; that His intention is to make this group of former slaves into inheritors of the covenant given to their forefathers, a whole nation of priests, of Cohenim in the Hebrew, or representatives of God, if they will obey his voice and keep his commandments.

From the scripture in Deuteronomy, we see that the people of Israel avouched, that is, they acknowledged and assumed responsibility, for keeping the commandments, or in other words, they renewed the covenant the previous generation had made. God avouched responsibility for making of them a peculiar people; high in praise, name and honor; a holy people before him.


Selah. Stop and think about that for a moment.


And now, as Walt Kelly wrote in the cartoon Pogo, “From here on up, It’s all downhill.”

Remember, we began in Hebrews 12 which says “Jesus... is set down at the right hand of the throne of God” which affirmed David’s prophecy in Psalm 110 ? Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon also affirm that in Doctrine and Covenants 76:3g-h
3f and we beheld the glory of the Son, on the right hand of the Father, and received of his fullness; and saw the holy angels, and they who are sanctified before his throne, worshiping God and the Lamb, who worship him forever and ever.
3g And, now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the testimony, last of all, which we give of him, that he lives; for we saw him, even on the right hand of God;
Remember we spoke of Daniel’s vision in Daniel 7 which said the Son of Man was given a dominion over all people, Doctrine and Covenants 76:4g-h also confirms that by saying this:
4g And this is the gospel, the glad tidings which the voice out of the heavens bore record unto us, that he came into the world, even Jesus to be crucified for the world, and to bear the sins of the world, and to sanctify the world, and to cleanse it from all unrighteousness;
4h that through him all might be saved, whom the Father had put into his power, and made by him; who glorifies the Father, and saves all the works of his hands, except those sons of perdition, who deny the Son after the Father has revealed him;
Remember the promises made to the disciples in Luke 22:28-30 and 3rd Nephi 13:4, that they would sit and judge over Israel; Remember the prophecy in Revelation 1:5-7, Revelation 5:9-10, Revelation 2:26-27, and Revelation 3:12 which, when collated, says Jesus “...cometh in the clouds with ten thousands of his saints in the kingdom, clothed with the glory of his Father ” “...out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;” “...and hast made us unto our God kings and priests; and we shall reign on the earth…” “...And to him who overcometh, and keepeth my commandments unto the end, will I give power over many kingdoms; And he shall rule them with the word of God; and they shall be in his hands as the vessels of clay in the hands of a potter; and he shall govern them by faith, with equity and justice…” and "...Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out;..." I want you to mentally compare what is said in these scriptures to what is written in Doctrine and Covenants 76:5f-k it says, concerning them who come forth in the resurrection of the just:

5f they are they into whose hands the Father has given all things:
5g they are they who are priests and kings, who have received of his fullness, and of his glory, and are priests of the Most High after the order of Melchisedec, which was after the order of Enoch, which was after the order of the Only Begotten Son;
5h wherefore, as it is written, they are gods, even the sons of God; wherefore all things are theirs, whether life or death, or things present, or things to come, all are theirs, and they are Christ's, and Christ is God's; and they shall overcome all things;
5i wherefore let no man glory in man, but rather let him glory in God, who shall subdue all enemies under his feet;
5j these shall dwell in the presence of God and his Christ forever and ever;
5k these are they whom he shall bring with him, when he shall come in the clouds of heaven, to reign on the earth over his people;

Do you see the connection between Revelation 1:7 which says “he cometh in the clouds with ten thousands of his saints in the kingdom...” and Revelation 5:9 “...out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation” compared to D&C 76:5k which says “these are they whom he shall bring with him, when he shall come in the clouds of heaven, to reign on the earth over his people;”

The connection between the Revelation 1:7 which says “...clothed with the glory of his Father?” and D&C 76:5f-g “...into whose hands the Father has given all things” and “...who have received of his fullness, and of his glory...”

The connection between Revelation 2:26, which says “And to him who overcometh, and keepeth my commandments unto the end, will I give power over many kingdoms?” and D&C 76:5h “...they shall overcome all things”

The connection between Revelation 3:12, which says "Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out; " and D&C 76:5j "these shall dwell in the presence of God and his Christ forever and ever;..."

The connection between the scriptures in Exodus 19:6 which says “And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests,...” in Revelation 1:6 which says “...and hath made us kings and priests unto God, his Father;” and Revelation 5:19 which says “hast made us unto our God kings and priests; and we shall reign on the earth” is the same as verse D&C 5g “they are they who are priests and kings...”

I hope you now understand how many of the greatest prophecies laid out in scripture are summed up in D&C 76:5? This brings us to our last verse, to the use of that singular word we use to describe the fulfillment of all these promises:

D&C 76:5r

5r these are they whose bodies are celestial, whose glory is that of the sun, even the glory of God, the highest of all; whose glory the sun of the firmament is written of as being typical.

Do you now begin to see what celestial glory is, that it is not a kingdom, per se, but a set of attributes given to those who have overcome and are given great responsibility in the kingdom of God. Can you see the select nature of these positions when you compare the tens of thousands coming down with Jesus compared to the billions of mankind who have been born over the millenia.

Do you now see the larger picture, how the scriptures are interwoven with words and phrases which, when like puzzle pieces that are connected together, show a picture of what is to come? Can you see how that picture is woven together from the beginning of time to the end of time, unchanging?

Can you now see that Jesus did not die just so that your sins may be forgiven, but also that he may joy in seeing his work finished, in sharing his glory with those of mankind who will overcome; in giving to them the honor of becoming the Sons of God, that all things may also be theirs and that they may eat and drink at his table in Jesus’ kingdom.

Can you now see the answer to the second question I asked based upon Hebrews 12:2, What joy is set before us, to entice us to lay aside every weight, and the sin which keeps us back, and run with patience the race that is set before us and endure our cross, despising the shame as he did?
Sermon given November 5th, 2023
This article has revised and edited
the sermon for publishing
Published February 18, 2024

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