emoval of Babylon and bilding of the
New Jerusalem. "Behold I come as a thief." Revelation xvi: 15. He came
so secretly, that neither on the 7th Jan., 1838, while those 144
witnesses were signing their names into my catalogue nor afterwards,
while they were performing each his task, we understood much of what was
behind the vail, till after the great excommunication on Easter Sunday,
1838, the great mystery commenced gradually to be developed, and I
received on the third Sunday after Easter, 1838, directly before the
service, from my guardian the direction to deliver the valedictory
sermon in order that all which, was to be executed in that church
according to prophecies, had been accomplished. The church had prepared
for our use on that Sunday the 16th chapter of John. And I selected the
text: "A little while, and ye shall not see me: and again a little while
and ye shall see me, because I go to the Father." John, xvi: 16.

If you have comprehended this book to this page, you know, that I am
Jesus Christ's first-born son in the Dispensation of the Fullness of
Times. Ephes. 1: 10. But also after having been publicly initiated to
this ministry on Sunday Sexagesima, February 18th, 1838, at the altar of
the Cathedral Church of Boston, I progressed slowly in the development
of the mystery.

All disclosures which I give are preparatory for an easier understanding
of the great testimony of the three witnesses named at the caption of
this treatise. I am partly going around and applying to all kinds of
mediums in the cities of New York and Brooklyn, and in all directions is
somewhat prepared for an illustration of the testimony of the three
extraordinary witnesses. On Sunday, 24th inst., when the message of "the
Treaty of Peace" between the Emperors of Austria and France arrived in
America but was not communicated to us on that day, I wrote some of the
last disclosures before this paragraph. After that I wrote two letters.
But before having finished the second, I was inspired to go and I
thought that I was going to a Conference meeting of Spiritualists; but
on my way I met with one who is holding his own meetings publicly to
draw the incautious into private "Free Love Meetings," and I went with
him to his public meeting. When I returned to my room I was tired, went
to bed, and then I arose yesterday, July 25th, and finished at fish-oil
light the second letter of July 24th, 1859. Then I wrote three other
letters before breakfas