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"Within the Pearl of Great Price are two accounts of the creation, one written by Abraham and one by Moses. The account given by Abraham is the oldest one given anywhere in the scriptures; and it is the only account which Joseph Smith actually published during his lifetime. In December, 1830, the Prophet made those corrections in the account in Genesis that are now found in the Book of Moses, but this information was not published until 1851, when it appeared in the Millennial Star, [MS, 13 (March 15, 1851), pp. 90-93] and in the first edition of the Pearl of Great Price, published by Franklin D. Richards in England.
"... the material now contained in the Book of Moses was originally intended by the Prophet to be part of his Inspired Revision of the Bible [also known as the Joseph Smith Translation--JST or Inspired Version]. There is evidence that he intended to go over his work and make further corrections and revisions within the manuscript before publishing it, but this was not done. For example, in criticizing the statements now found in Moses 2:2 and Abraham 4:2, the Prophet said: 'In the translation "without form and void" it should read, "empty and desolate.' " [Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, pg. 181.] The term 'without form and void' is found in the account of the creation given in the Book of Moses, whereas the term 'empty and desolate' is found in the Book of Abraham. According to Joseph Smith, the wording in the Book of Abraham is more nearly correct.
"It is the writer's opinion that the Book of Abraham should be considered by Latter-day Saints as the basic source of information on the creation, giving the most accurate account of the organization of the earth. This does not mean, however, that the information found in the Book of Moses is of no value. When the Prophet made changes in the account given in Genesis, those changes are valid and are to be relied upon as being given to him by revelation. But when no changes were made in the text of Genesis and a definite difference of statement exists in the texts of Moses and Abraham, the statement by Abraham should take priority.
Conflicting opinions on the story of the creation
"Several different views of the creation story may be found
in Latter-day Saint literature, depending upon the approach the
given writer takes in treating the subject. Some have viewed the
creation in light of the 'geological ages' of the earth, and some
in light of the theory of evolution. Here the approach has been
to interpret the creation according to the opinions of men. There
are writers who have given primary attention to the account of
the creation recorded in Genesis, at the exclusion of what is
said in the Book of Abraham and the Book of Moses. Still others
have drawn attention to the account given in the Book of Abraham
as being merely a blueprint and not a statement, in addition,
of that which was done. For these and other reasons, a conflict
of opinion exists....
Abraham's Blueprint and Account of the Creation
"Each account of the creation found in the Pearl of Great
Price contributes important insights by which man may better understand
the organization of the earth. The statement given by Abraham
is both a blueprint and an account of the creation. As such, it
must be seen in context with the greater vision of the orderly
cosmos that was given to him. The vision which Abraham beheld
began with a view of the stars and the worlds which belong to
that great system over which Kolob presides as the governing sphere....
"Because of such a setting, Abraham's account is in some respects a blueprint of the creation combined with an actual account of that which occurred in the organization of the earth. By means of the Urim and Thummim, Abraham was taken back in vision to the time of the Grand Council of the Gods in the pre-earth life. He was shown the plans and decisions of the Gods as they proposed to carry them out in preparing the physical earth for life. This statement of plans made prior to their fulfillment may be called a blueprint of the creation. It is combined in Abraham's record with an actual account of the preparations that were made during the six creative periods in which the physical earth was organized and brought to a state of paradisiacal glory on the seventh day. Thus, for example, the Gods are reported to have said on the third day: 'Let us prepare the earth to bring forth grass,' etc. Here is Abraham's report of their plans, or their blueprint. After reporting their plans as he had seen them formulated in the Council of the Gods in the pre-earth life, Abraham then related the actual implementation of those plans, stating: 'And the Gods organized the earth to bring forth grass,' etc. Evidence of a prior statement of intent is found in Abraham's report of the activities of the Gods on the first, third, fifth, sixth, and seventh days. In this way, Abraham combined a blueprint of the creation with an actual account of that which later took place.
Moses' Clarification of the Spirit Creation of Life
"The account of the creation given by Moses has no setting
such as Abraham's account. There is no prior statement that man
had a pre-earth existence as an organized spirit. For this reason
Moses makes clear that all life to be placed on earth had been
organized in spirit form before its physical organization. This
clarification he makes in the midst of his account of the physical
creation of the earth.
"Because latter-day scriptures teach that there was a pre-earth spirit organization of all life followed by the more gross [physical] organization, certain problems have arisen in relation to the creation story as given by Moses. Some writers have erroneously referred to Genesis 1 and Moses 2 as being accounts of the 'spirit' creation of the earth, man, animals, etc. Having taken this view, they then conclude that the statements of the creation in Genesis 2 and Moses 3 are declarations concerning the physical organization of life. But this conclusion as it concerns Genesis 1 and Moses 2 is not consistent with what the Lord has revealed.
"Though there was a spirit creation of the earth and of all life that was placed thereon, that creation occurred ages before the physical organization. It may therefore be argued that there was no need for God to give a detailed account of the spirit creation, since it was not related in time to the physical creation. A statement that all things were first organized in spirit form is sufficient. The spirit creation was an organization of life from that pure, fine substance called spirit [intelligence--see Bruce R. McConkie, "Intelligence," Mormon Doctrine, 2nd definition]. Spirit is light. This fact alone makes it evident that Genesis 1 and Moses 2 do not deal with the spirit organization of life. Darkness, for example, could not reign upon the face of the deep on an earth that was being formed from elements of light or spirit [or intelligence]. How could the waters be gathered together unto one place and the dry land appear in such an organization? Was the organization of the earth in relation to the sun necessary in the pre-earth spirit creation, where all things were in the midst of everlasting burnings--in the presence of God? Did marine life in its spirit form swim in water amid the everlasting burnings of God? Obviously, the above chapters do not give an account of the spirit creation of the earth and of all life. President Joseph Fielding Smith has said:
"There is no account of the creation of man or other forms of life when they were created as spirits. There is just the simple statement that they were so created before the physical creation. The statements in Moses 3:5 and Genesis 2:5 are interpolations thrown into the account of the physical creation, explaining that all things were first created in the spirit existence in heaven before they were placed upon this earth.
"We were all created untold ages before we were placed on this earth. We discover from Abraham 3:22-28, that it was before the earth was formed that the plan of salvation was presented to the spirits, or 'intelligences.' This being true, then, man, animals and plants were not created in the spirit at the time of the creation of the earth, but long before....
"The account of creation in Genesis was not a spirit creation, but it was in a particular sense, a spiritual creation. This, of course, needs some explanation. The account in Genesis, chapters one and two, is the account of the creation of the physical earth. The account of the placing of all life upon the earth, up and until the fall of Adam, is an account, in a sense, of the spiritual creation of all these, but it was also a physical creation....
"Adam's body was created from the dust of the earth, but at that time it was a spiritual earth. Adam had a spiritual body until mortality came upon him through the violation of the law under which he was living, but he also had a physical body of flesh and bones.
"Now what is a spiritual body? It is one that is quickened by spirit and not by blood. Our Father in heaven and our Savior and all those who have passed through the resurrection have physical bodies of flesh and bones, but their bodies are quickened by spirit and not by blood, hence they are spiritual bodies and not blood bodies. The immortal body is quickened by spirit, but the mortal body is quickened by blood....
"Now when Adam was in the Garden of Eden, he was not subject to death. There was no blood in his body and he could have remained there forever. This is true of all the other creations. This statement may not be very pleasing to our evolutionists, but it is true. [Doctrines of Salvation 1:75-77.]
"To illustrate and give support to the above view, it should be noted that the resurrected body is a spiritual body. Said a revelation of the resurrection of the righteous: 'Notwithstanding they die, they...shall rise again, a spiritual body.' [D&C 88:27.] Observed Amulek: 'This mortal body is raised to an immortal body, that is from death, even from the first death unto life, that they can die no more; their spirits uniting with their bodies, never to be divided; thus the whole becoming spiritual and immortal, that they can no more see corruption [change].' [Alma 11:45.] The apostle Paul also indicated that in temporal death man is 'sown a natural body,' while in the resurrection he is 'raised a spiritual body.' Said he, 'There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.' [1 Cor 15:43-45.]
"In the final analysis, man as a resurrected being will be a spiritual body; and in somewhat the same manner the earth and all things thereon were spiritual in the creation, even though they were organized physically at that time. These two spiritual organizations--the initial organization of physical life on earth and the final organization of life in the resurrection--were spoken of in a revelation that said:
"...by the power of my Spirit created I them; yea, all things both spiritual and temporal--
"First spiritual [in the initial creation of physical life on the earth], secondly temporal [in the subsequent re-organization of life under the present temporal law {caused by the fall}], which is the beginning of my work; and again [looking at things from our mortal state into the future] first temporal, and secondly spiritual [resurrection], which is the last of my work--
"Speaking unto you that you may naturally understand; but unto myself my works have no end, neither beginning.... [D&C 29:31-33.]
"Some have supposed that the word 'spiritual' in the first instance above has reference to the organization of life in the pre-earth spirit state, which occurred ages before the creation of the physical earth. This conclusion, however, is not warranted for the following reason: The second time the word 'spiritual' is used in the above statement, it has definite reference to a physical state--the resurrected state. This being true, it follows that the first time the word 'spiritual' is used in the above quotation it should also have reference to a physical state--to the state of physical life before the fall. [Temporal also means temporary, or time-kept.] Again, a revelation specifically refers to the seven thousand years of the earth's 'temporal existence.' [D&C 77:6.] The period of the earth's temporal existence began with the fall of Adam. Until then the earth was not a temporal state, but a physical-spiritual sphere....
Major Outlines of the Creation
"According to the story of the creation, the Gods took
certain materials in space and, having brought them together to
form the earth, prepared the newly formed orb in order for life
to be placed upon it in a physical-spiritual state of existence.
On the first day the earth was formed as an orb which was then
empty and desolate. [Abr 4:2; Moses 2:2; Teachings of the Prophet
Joseph Smith, pg. 181.] During that day and the five days
that followed, the earth was prepared for life. There was no life
placed upon the earth until the seventh day [See D&C 77:12],
when a garden was planted and man was placed upon the earth as
the first flesh. [Moses 3:7.]...
"Having gathered the waters together until one place and caused the earth to come up and become dry [Abr 4:9-13; Moses 2:9-13], the Gods then prepared the earth to bring forth grass, herbs, and trees. Abraham indicates that they did not place the various forms of vegetable life upon the earth at this time. Instead, they merely prepared it to sustain such life. Abraham therefore reports that 'the Gods organized the earth to bring forth grass,... and the herbs,... and the tree from its own seed' [Abr 4:12.] A superficial reading of the account by Moses would seem to indicate that such forms of life as are here mentioned were placed upon the earth on the third day. But a more thorough study shows Moses to be in full harmony with Abraham. After relating the activities of the first six days of creation, Moses explains (as he begins his report of the seventh day) that God has not caused it to rain upon the earth. The Lord then made a mist come up and water the whole face of the ground, after which the various forms of vegetable life were placed upon the earth. [Moses 3:5-6, 8-9.] It must therefore be concluded that God's statement regarding the third day that the earth brought forth grass herbs, and trees is but an affirmation of Moses, many years after the creation, that His command concerning these forms of life had been fulfilled--not that His command was then, on the third day, fulfilled....
"Regarding the fifth day of creation, Abraham states that 'the Gods prepared the waters that they might bring forth great whales, and every living creation that moveth, which the waters were to bring forth abundantly after their kind; and every winged fowl after their kind.' [Abr 4:21.] Again there was no actual placement of life upon the earth during the fifth day, merely a preparation of the waters for such life as is here mentioned. This view is supported by the fact that the Gods spoke in the future tense when, on the fifth day, they referred to the actual placement of marine life and fowls upon the earth, stating: 'We will bless them and cause them to be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters ion the seas or great waters; and cause the fowl to multiply in the earth.' [Abr 4:22.] The statement of the Lord to Moses, on the fifth day, that He 'created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly,... and every winged fowl after his kind' [Moses 2:21] is, again, God's affirmation to Moses several years later that the full intent of this day's activities had been realized. God also stated to Moses that He blessed these forms of life when they were placed upon the earth. [Moses 2:22.]...
"Again, it is evident from Abraham's account of the sixth day that no life was placed upon the earth at that time. Instead, he reports, 'And the Gods prepared the earth to bring forth the living creatures after his kind, cattle and beasts of the earth after their kind.' [Abr 4:24.] The Gods 'organized the earth to bring forth the beasts' [Abr 4:25]; they did not then place beasts upon the earth.
"Nor was man actually placed upon the earth on the sixth day. Abraham states that at that time the Gods said, 'Let us go down and form man in our image, after our likeness.' [Abr 4:26.] Abraham also reports: 'So the Gods went down to organize man in their own image.' [Abr 4:27.] On the sixth day, the Gods therefore went down to the earth to organize man. But the actual organization of man was deferred until the seventh day. [See D&C 77:12.] Meanwhile, the Gods spoke of man and the several forms of life which they intended to place upon the earth, stating of the man and woman whom they planned to create:
"Behold, we will give them every herb bearing seed that shall come upon the face of all the earth, and every tree which shall have fruit upon it; yea, the fruit of the tree yielding seed to them we will give it; it shall be for their meat.
"And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, behold, we will give them life, and also we will give to them every green herb for meat, and all these things shall be thus organized.
"And the Gods said: We will do everything that we have said, and organize them.... [Abr 4:29-31.]
"The above statements in italics indicate that, as the Gods concluded their activities of the sixth day, the several forms of life which they had prepared the earth to sustain had not then been placed upon the earth. They therefore spoke of 'every herb bearing seed that shall come upon the face of all the earth, and every tree which shall have fruit upon it.' When the tree which would bring forth fruit would be placed upon the earth, the Gods declared that they would 'give it' to man. [Abr 4:29.] This was their intent, not a statement of that which they then did. Of the beast of the earth, the fowl of the air, and those forms of life that creep upon the earth, the Gods said: 'We will give them life,... and all these things shall be thus organized.' [Abr 4:30.] Finally, at the end of the sixth day, the Gods concluded: 'We will do everything that we have said, and organize them.' All this they would do on the seventh day.
"In his report of the sixth day, Moses follows the same format that he uses in relating the activities of the preceding days. On that day the Man of Holiness said to His Only Begotten: 'Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.' To Moses, God then affirmed, 'And it was so.' [Moses 2:26.] There is no specific statement as to when it was so, merely the affirmations to Moses: 'And I, God, created man in mine own image, in the image of mine Only Begotten created I him; male and female created I them.' [Moses 2:27.] ...
"Abraham and Moses each make different contributions as they introduce the events of the seventh day. These differences stem from the approach each prophet takes in presenting the story of the creation. Abraham prefaces his account of the seventh day by quoting the intentions of the Gods as they reiterate their plans to finish the creation of the earth and its several forms of life. Of that which they planned to do on the seventh day, the Gods said: 'And thus we will finish the heaven and the earth, and all the hosts of them.' [Abr 5:1.] Again it is evident that, until the seventh day, the creation of the atmospheric heaven and earth and all the varieties of life to be placed upon the earth was not completed. Abraham then reports the plans of the Gods concerning the seventh day:
"And the Gods said among themselves: On the seventh time we will end our work, which we have counseled {see Abr 4:26 regarding the counsel held on the sixth day]; and we will rest on the seventh time from all our work which we have counseled.
"And the Gods concluded upon the seventh time, because that on the seventh time {not before} they would rest from all their works which they (the Gods) counseled among themselves to form; and sanctified it. And thus were their decisions at the time that they counseled among themselves to form the heavens and the earth. [Abr 5:2-3.]
"In the statement above, Abraham declares that on the seventh day the Gods sanctified the earth which they had formed. Joseph Smith also wrote by revelation: 'God made the world in six days, and on the seventh day he finished his work, and sanctified it.' [D&C 77:12.] The sanctification of the earth on the seventh day of creation is likened in the revelation to Joseph Smith to the sanctification of the earth when Christ comes in glory to usher in the millennial era. In the latter case, the earth will be sanctified by the manifestation of Christ's glory, when the veil is rent and the earth is renewed to its paradisiacal state of glory. [D&C 101:23-25.] It is not unreasonable therefore to conclude that the earth was sanctified on the seventh day of creation by being brought fully into the presence of God. Only then was it in the full sense of meaning a physical-spiritual sphere rolling in splendor in the presence of Elohim, the Man of Holiness, with the power of His divine intelligence shining upon it. Not until then was it fully prepared to have life placed upon it.
"After the newly formed sphere was sanctified, Abraham reports that 'the Gods came down and formed these the generations of the heaven and of the earth,... according to all that which they had said concerning every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew.' [Abr 5:4-5.] They not only followed a blueprint in organizing and preparing the earth for life, but they also followed a pre-designed plan in placing life upon the earth on the seventh day. Abraham observed: 'For the Gods had not caused it to rain upon the earth when they counseled to do them [Day 6, Abr 4:26}, and had not formed a man to till the ground.' [Abr 5:5.]
"Unlike Abraham, Moses did not make clear that man had a pre-earth existence as a organized spirit before he (Moses) wrote his account of the creation. Nor is it plain from Moses' account of the first six days that the actions taken were merely preparations of the physical earth for life; not accounts of the actual placement of life upon the earth. For these reasons, Moses starts his account of the seventh day by making certain necessary clarifications.
"First, Moses states that all life to be placed upon the earth on the seventh day had been organized in a pre-earth spirit state. Of this fact, the Lord said to Moses:
"...and every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew. For I, the Lord God created all things, of which I have spoken, spiritually, before they were naturally upon the face of the earth.... I, the Lord God, had created all the children of men; and not yet a man to till the ground; for in heaven created I them....
"All things were before created; but spiritually were they created and made according to my word. [Moses 3:5, 7.]
"Second, like Abraham, Moses states that until the seventh day God 'had not caused it to rain upon the face of the earth.' [Moses 3:5.] This fact, as indicated earlier in the chapter, is supporting evidence that life was not placed upon the earth until the seventh day.
"Finally, Moses states categorically that as the seventh day began, 'there was not yet flesh upon the earth, neither in the water, neither in the air.' [Moses 3:5.] This statement by Moses, along with the fact that he then proceeds to describe the actual placement of life upon the earth on the seventh day, is conclusive evidence that Moses did not mean to convey the idea that life had been placed upon the earth before the seventh day.
"Before life was placed upon the earth on the seventh day, both Abraham and Moses state that 'there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground.' [Abr 5:6; Moses 3:6.] Having been refreshed and moistened, the newly formed and sanctified sphere was then ready for life.
"The fact that man was formed and placed upon the earth on the seventh day is declared in a revelation to Joseph Smith which states: 'God made the world in six days, and on the seventh day he {1} finished his work, and {2} sanctified it, and also {3} formed man out of the dust of the earth.' [D&C 77:12.] In reporting the creation of man on the seventh day, Abraham states:
"And the Gods formed man from the dust of the ground, and took his spirit (that is, the man's spirit), and put it into him; and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul.
"And the Gods planted a garden, eastward in Eden, and there they put the man, whose spirit they had put into the body which they had formed. [Abr 5:7-8.]
"Of the creation of man, the Lord said unto Moses:
"And I, the Lord God, formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul, the first flesh upon the earth, the first man also....
And I, the Lord God, planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there I put the man whom I had formed. [Moses 3:7-8.]
"Two things are of special importance in the above statement. First, the Lord states clearly that in the creation man was the first flesh upon the earth. The context of the Lord's statement is important. (To get this context, read Moses 3:6-7.) At this point in his account of the creation, God is clearly and unmistakably speaking of the initial placement of life upon the earth, after the earth had been formed and sanctified and before the fall of Adam. And in speaking of the initial placement of life upon the earth, God declared that man was the 'first flesh' to be put here. ["There are some who maintain that the word 'flesh' has reference to mortality, but this limitation cannot be supported scripturally. For example, Joseph Smith wrote by revelation: 'The Father has a body of flesh and bones as tangible as man's; the Son also....' (D&C 130:22.) Christ also said of His resurrected body: 'Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see, for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have.' (Lk 24:39.)"] Man therefore arrived upon the earth before the various animals, etc. After Adam had been placed upon the earth, the animals, etc., were then formed out of the ground and brought 'unto Adam to see what he would call them.' [Abr 5:20; Moses 3:19.]
Here again it is obvious that man arrived on earth first. But because man was placed upon earth as the first flesh, it does not follow that he resided here for a time in a desolate state. Before man was put upon the earth, a garden was planted, and there man was placed as a lone figure, until woman and the animals were formed.
"The second point of importance in the quotation above is that God declared unto Moses that Adam was the first man. There were no pre-Adamites....
The Origin of Life on Earth
"In discussing the origin of life on earth, two principles
should be kept clearly in mind: First, human, as well as animal,
life was organized by the process of procreation; plant life by
germination. Second, after the earth had been prepared and sanctified,
life was transplanted upon it from another sphere. These two principles,
properly understood, provide the keys of insight necessary to
the understanding of the origin of life on earth.
"Direct scriptural support for the doctrine that Adam received a physical body through the process of procreation is found in the pedigree of Christ, which, according to Luke, traces back to 'Enos, which was the son of Seth, which was the son of Adam, which was the son of God.' [Lk 3:38.] The Book of Moses also states: 'This is the genealogy of the sons of Adam, who was the son of God, with whom God, himself, conversed.' [Moses 6:22.] That grass, trees, and herbs from another sphere produced seeds which were then planted in the newly prepared earth to bring forth the vegetable kingdom is implied in the Lord's statement that He planted a garden eastward in Eden. [Abr 5:8; Moses 3:8.]
"For every living organism placed upon the earth there was a living precursor. Joseph Smith once observed:
" Where was there ever a son without a father? And where was there ever a father without first being a son? Wherever did a tree or anything spring into existence without a progenitor? And everything comes in this way.' [History of the Church 6:476.]
"... it is apparent that man did not originate on earth as the product of a special act of creation in which he had no affinity to God except as a creature produced by the genius of the master Mind. Instead, man's pure, original, sanctified physical body descended from God, as the offspring of God, inheriting in birth the physical image, likeness, and attributes of his exalted Parents. Here, as has been previously indicated, is a vital key to understanding the origin of life.
"Procreation is the key to the origin of human life, so far as the method of its organization is concerned, and transplantation is the key to how man arrived on earth. Having formed a body and placed man's organized spirit therein, the Gods then 'put' the man in the garden. Before this, however, seeds had been brought to the newly organized earth and planted to bring forth the garden in which Adam was placed. [Abr 5:7-8; Moses 3:7-8.] While repudiating the theory of organic evolution in its explanation of the origin of life, Joseph Fielding Smith wrote of the principle of transplantation as the means by which life was placed upon the earth:
"...does it not appear to you that it is a foolish and ridiculous notion that when God created this earth he had to begin with a speck of protoplasm, and take millions of years, if not billions, to bring conditions to pass by which his sons and daughters might obtain bodies made in his image? Why not the shortest route and transplant them from another earth as we are taught in the scriptures? [Man: His Origin and Destiny, pg. 276-277.]
"Again from President Smith:
"I tell you, life did not commence upon this earth spontaneously. Its origin was not here. Life existed long before our solar system was called into being. The fact is, there never was a time when man--made in the image of God, male and female--did not exist....
"The Lord has given us the information regarding his creations, and how he has made many earths, for there never was a beginning, never was a time when man did not exist somewhere in the universe, and when the time came for this earth to be peopled, the Lord, our God, transplanted upon it from some other earth, the life which is found here.... [Doctrines of Salvation 1:139-140.]
"The view expressed by President Smith finds support in a statement by Brigham Young, who said:
"Shall I say that the seeds of vegetables were planted here by the Characters that framed and built this world--that the seeds of every plant composing the vegetable kingdom were brought from another world? This would be news to many of you. Who brought them here? It matters little to us whether it was John, James, William, Adam, or Bartholomew who brought them, but it was some Being who had power to frame this earth with its seas, valleys, mountains, and rivers and cause it to teem with vegetable and animal life.
"Here let me state to all philosophers of every class upon the earth, When you tell me that father Adam was made as we make adobies from the earth, you tell me what I deem an idle tale. When you tell me that the beasts of the field were produced in that manner, you are speaking idle words devoid of meaning. There is no such thing in all the eternities where the Gods dwell. Mankind are because they are offspring of parents who were first brought here from another planet, and power was given them to propagate their species, and they are commanded to multiply and replenish the earth. [Journal of Discourses 7:285-286.]"
[Taken from Hyrum L. Andrus, Doctrinal Commentary on the Pearl of Great Price, (SLC: Deseret Book, 1967), pg. 137-181.]