Doctrine and Covenants 65: The Kingdom of God on Earth Prepares the Way for the Kingdom of Heaven

Doctrine and Covenants and Church History Student Study Guide, (2005), 77–78

In the New Testament, the Lord instructed His disciples to pray for God’s kingdom to come (Matthew 6:10). What and where is God’s kingdom? Is the kingdom of God the same as the kingdom of heaven?Doctrine and Covenants 65, which the Prophet Joseph Smith said was a prayer given to him by revelation, provides some important answers to these questions.

Understanding the Scriptures

Doctrine and Covenants 65

Keys of the kingdom of God(v. 2)Priesthood authority to preside over the Church 
Committed(v. 2)Given, assigned 
Subdued(v. 6)Conquered, overcome 

Doctrine and Covenants 65:2—What Is the “Stone Which Is Cut Out of the Mountain without Hands”?

The image of the stone that would roll forth and fill the whole earth comes from an Old Testament prophecy of the restoration of the kingdom of God in the latter days (Daniel 2:28–45). Speaking of that restoration, President Gordon B. Hinckley said:

“We are citizens in the greatest kingdom on earth—a kingdom not directed by the wisdom of men but led by the Lord Jesus Christ. Its presence is real. Its destiny is certain. This is the kingdom of which the prophet Daniel spoke—a stone, as it were, that should be cut out of the mountain without hands and roll forth and fill the earth. (Dan. 2:34–35.)

“No mortal man created this kingdom. It came through revelation from its divine head. And since the nineteenth-century days of its inception, it has gone forth like a rolling snowball gathering mass” (“Pillars of Truth,”Ensign,Jan. 1984, 4).

Doctrine and Covenants 65:5–6—What Is the Difference between the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of Heaven?

Elder James E. Talmage, who was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, explained:

“The expression ‘Kingdom of God’ is used synonymously with the term ‘Church of Christ’; but the Lord had made plain that He sometimes used the term ‘Kingdom of Heaven’ in a distinctive sense. In 1832 He called attention to that in these words, addressing Himself to the elders of the Church: [D&C 65:1–6].

“Such was the prayer, such is the prayer, prescribed for this people to pray, not to utter in words only, not to say only, but to pray—that the Kingdom of God may roll forth in the earth to prepare the earth for the coming of the Kingdom of Heaven. That provision in the Lord’s prayer, ‘Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven’ has not been abrogated. We are praying for the Kingdom of Heaven to come, and are endeavoring to prepare the earth for its coming. The Kingdom of God, already set up upon the earth … ks not to overthrow any existing forms of government; it does not profess to exercise control in matters that pertain to the governments of the earth, except by teaching correct principles and trying to get men to live according to the principles of true government, before the Kingdom of Heaven shall come and be established upon the earth with a King at the head. But when He comes, He shall rule and reign, for it is His right” (in Conference Report, Apr. 1916, 128–29).

Studying the Scriptures

Do activity A or B as you studyDoctrine and Covenants 65.

Activity A iconMatch the Phrase to a Verse

Match the phrase fromDoctrine and Covenants 65with the statement that best represents its meaning.

1. “Make his paths straight” (v. 1)

a. Authority of the priesthood

2. “Keys of the kingdom of God” (v. 2)

b. Gathering of the faithful to meet Christ

3. “The stone … cut out of the mountain” (v. 2)

c. Displaying great light and power

4. “The supper of the Lamb” (v. 3)

d. The restored Church in the latter days

5. “Clothed in the brightness of his glory” (v. 5)

e. Prepare a way; get things ready

Activity B iconSummarize the Prayer

Summarize what Joseph Smith prayed would happen inDoctrine and Covenants 65:4–6, and then explain what you can do to help with those events.