Prophetic Promise of Protection for Zion's Camp
Published September 3, 2026 at 8:35 AM
Before Joseph Young joined the expedition known as Zion's Camp, the Prophet Joseph Smith promised him that if he joined the camp, 'not a hair of his head would be hurt.' Joseph Young later reflected on the extreme difficulty of the march, noting that it was a severe trial of faith and that they walked one hundred miles in three days during intense heat, yet he remained safe throughout the journey.
In Their Own Words
“While debating whether to join Zion's Camp, the Prophet Joseph Smith promised him that if he joined the camp “not a hair of his head would be hurt.” Of that march, Joseph wrote, “I never went through a more severe trial of my faith. It was as much as we all could bear. We walked one hundred miles in three days in the hottest weather.””
— Joseph Young, autobiographical sketch (Church History Library), quoted in Susan Easton Black, 'Joseph Young,' Doctrine and Covenants Central
Sources & References
Susan Easton Black, “Joseph Young,” Doctrine and Covenants Central: https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/people-of-the-dc/joseph-young/ ; original: Joseph Young, “Autobiographical Sketch of Joseph Young,” comp. Merrill S. Lofthouse, Church History Library; the prophetic promise is documented in James L. Bradley, ‘Zion's Camp 1834: Prelude to the Civil War’ (1990), 26 — research note: Joseph Young (1797–1881), elder brother of Brigham Young, joined Zion's Camp after receiving the Prophet's promise of protection and walked unharmed through the march's severest trials; he was later named the senior president of the First Council of the Seventy in February 1835 (History of the Church, 2:181).
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