Naomi Raffensparger is an assistant editor for the Joseph Smith Papers. She has an MA in writing, rhetoric, and media from Clemson University and previously worked as an editor for the South Carolina Review. She also completed an internship with Clemson University Press.

The latest content release on the Joseph Smith Papers website is a treasure trove of Latter-day Saint history. Readers can find multispectral imaging of the original Book of Mormon manuscript and documents related to the trial of the accused assassins of Joseph Smith. My favorite document of them all, though, is the crown jewel of the Financial Records series, the Nauvoo-era record book known as the Book of the Law of the Lord.

The significance of the Book of the Law of the Lord is tied not only to its history as an artifact, but also to the spiritual value it was given in its time. This book stands as a witness of the early Saints’ sacrifice and devotion, and that testimony can speak volumes to Latter-day Saints today.

What is the Book of the Law of the Lord?

The Book of the Law of the Lord is a record book kept by scribes of Joseph Smith. It contains a variety of record types, from journal entries to revelations to tithing records, and it was a crucial record to include in the Joseph Smith Papers Project. In fact, the existence of this book and its tithing records is what prompted the existence of the Financial Records series of the Joseph Smith Papers. And now, this 477-page record has been fully transcribed and is available for viewing on the Joseph Smith Papers website.

The Book of the Law of the Lord contains many types of tithing from people in all walks of life. There are traditional cash donations, but the majority are donations of goods or services. It’s inspiring to see that even when people didn’t have much, they still faithfully paid their tithing, wanting to do their part to build Zion. People also donated labor hours to build the Nauvoo temple, material to help in its construction, or even clothing for the temple workers.

Many of the donations noted were made as consecrations, meaning the tithe payer brought their donation and then had it returned to them because of their need. For example, page 54 of the Book of the Law of the Lord lists a donation from a widow named Jane Judd, describing the contribution as “her mite.” She donated a cow and a straw bonnet. The church returned this donation to her in consecration, so she could care for her physical needs.

The Nauvoo Penny Fund is also recorded in the book. This Penny Fund was organized by sisters Mercy Fielding Thompson and Mary Fielding Smith, who asked the women of the church to donate one penny a week towards the temple construction. The Book of the Law of the Lord contains Penny Fund donations from sisters all over the United States and the United Kingdom. This is a remarkable demonstration of faith and devotion to the temple and the covenants it represents, especially considering that many of these women were donating to a temple they would never see.

Preparing the Historical Record for Publication

Getting a record of this size ready for digital publication was no easy task. It took years of effort by historians, editors, and volunteer missionaries to transcribe, research, annotate, stylize, and format the Book of the Law of the Lord.

There were many church employees and missionaries working together to transcribe this record. Once their work was complete, the transcript had to be verified. This process involves two people working as a team, with one person reading the image of the document and the other reading the transcript to make sure they match. After verification, I worked with editor Stephanie Steed to carefully review the text and make sure it was presented in a way that would be most useful for members and scholars.

As the editors worked, historians Elizabeth Kuehn, Susan Fife, Chase Kirkham, and Christian Heimburger researched the many individuals listed in the Book of the Law of the Lord. They were able to positively identify nearly 3,000 names of the 5,000 listed in the book, and we added these people to the website’s biographical database. Positive identification or no, every name in the book will be searchable, so users can locate the names of their ancestors.

The Financial Series team, including Kuehn, Kirkham, and Mark Ashurst-McGee, also drafted introductions and other annotation to help clarify some of the more unique aspects of the record. For example, there are a lot of donations by British Saints, and footnotes in the Book of the Law of the Lord explain nineteenth-century British currency.

Tithing donations were also different than modern church members would be used to. Most of the donations were in goods rather than money, since Nauvoo was a cash-poor society. Annotation explains the process for donating goods and how they were distributed among the poorest members and in support of the construction of the Nauvoo temple. Editors Nicole Fernley and Kaytee Johnson provided textual feedback and source verification on all the annotation, so the footnotes and introductions are as clear and well-researched as possible.

After all the research, verification, annotation, and stylizing were completed, the text could be posted online. Sharon Nielsen and members of the web development team provided the final look at the text and ensured that it functioned correctly on josephsmithpapers.org. Images of each page were linked to the transcript so both text and image appear together on the website. And after weeks of checking every link and page to make sure it all worked properly, the Book of the Law of the Lord has finally been published.

Why Does It Matter?

The historical significance of the Book of the Law of the Lord comes from the spiritual weight it carried as a tithing record. Joseph Smith said, “But the names of the faithful are what I wish to record in this place. . . . These love the God that I serve; they love the truths that I promulge; they love those virtuous, and those holy doctrines that I cherish in my bosom with the warmest feelings of my heart; and with that zeal which cannot be denied.” Having one’s name and full tithing recorded in the book was seen almost as a temple recommend would be today. Saints who had their name listed in the book were granted access to do baptisms for the dead and eventually to receive their endowments inside the Nauvoo temple.

The Book of the Law of the Lord is not just an old record book. It describes the lives and belongings of everyday Saints. People donated clothing, books, livestock—anything they could because it was all they had to give. Their sacrifices are inspiring. And now that modern readers have a fully searchable transcript, they can study the book, gain new historical insights, search out their own ancestors, and make personal connections to the past. It is a remarkable gift; one that has been a privilege to bring to light.

To me, one particular entry in the Book of the Law of the Lord captures its larger meaning. On page 71 of the record book, William Clayton recorded this promise to Nancy Johnson Hyde as he listed her tithing: “This offering shall be her memorial to all generations. wherever the knowledge of the building of the Temple of the Lord in the city of Nauvoo shall come.” The publication of the Book of the Law of the Lord on the Joseph Smith Papers website helps fulfill that promise.