Apostle Marriner W. Merrill's Prophetic Promise of Sustenance
Published October 13, 2026 at 4:29 AM
Contributed by
Millennial Star Research
Marriner W. Merrill, a young man of twenty years, arrived in Salt Lake City on September 11, 1853, after an arduous journey from New Brunswick across the plains with a company captained by Jesse W. Crosby. As a stranger in the city without family or acquaintances, he sought out President Brigham Young for a blessing. During this meeting, President Young laid his hands on Merrill’s head and promised that if he remained faithful, kept the commandments of the Lord, and paid his honest tithing, neither he nor his children would ever want for bread. Merrill encountered significant challenges during his early years in Utah, including difficult employment situations, harsh winters, and times of scarcity when many settlers lacked adequate food due to famine and insect plagues. Despite these hardships, Merrill testified that the promise was fulfilled throughout his life; he always had sufficient bread in his home for his family and enough to share with neighbors who were less fortunate. Merrill noted that this blessing continued to manifest through his posterity, who never suffered from want, serving as a testament to the words spoken by the Prophet to a 'stranger lad.'
In Their Own Words
“I first landed in Salt Lake City in the fall of 1853. I was then a lad of about twenty years. I came alone, without father or mother or relatives, and when I reached the city there was not a face there that I ever saw before. I felt very lonely and strange. I had been told that President Brigham Young was a man of God, and I felt a desire to see him and get a blessing from him. I went to his office and waited my turn to see him. When I was ushered into his presence, I felt very small and insignificant. He asked me where I was from and how I came to the valley. I told him I came with Captain Jesse W. Crosby's company. He asked me if I had any relatives in the city, and I told him I had not. He asked me what I intended to do, and I told him I did not know, but I wanted to do right and keep the commandments of the Lord. When the conversation had lasted for some little time he arose, placed his right hand on my head and blessed me. Amongst other things, he promised me that if I would keep the commandments of the Lord and pay my honest tithing, neither I nor my children should ever want for bread. I have passed through many hardships since that time. I have seen the grasshoppers and the crickets destroy the crops, and I have seen the time when bread was very scarce in the land, and many people were in want. But in fulfillment of the words of President Young I always had bread in my house, enough for myself and my family, and some to divide with my neighbors who were not blessed as I was. And from that time until the present neither I nor any of my posterity have wanted bread. And thus the promise of the Lord’s servant to this stranger lad has been completely fulfilled.”
— Marriner W. Merrill, 'An Inspired Promise Fulfilled,' Juvenile Instructor
Sources & References
The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star (Manchester, later Liverpool, England, May 1840–1970), 5 December 1901 (Vol. 63, No. 49). https://archive.org/details/per_utah-and-the-mormons_the-latter-day-saints-millennial-star_1901-12-05_63_49 (account extracted verbatim from the issue's Internet Archive OCR text; research confidence: high) Additional sources (periodical research): Marriner W. Merrill, 'An Inspired Promise Fulfilled,' Juvenile Instructor 36, no. 19 (October 1, 1901): 579–580. https://historicalgeneralconferences.weebly.com/marriner-w-merrill.html Full first-person account: Marriner W. Merrill, 'An Inspired Promise Fulfilled,' Juvenile Instructor 36, no. 19 (October 1, 1901): 579–580. https://historicalgeneralconferences.weebly.com/marriner-w-merrill.html
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