Sister Cleveland's Prophetic Utterance Concerning Joseph Smith's Acquittal
Published October 21, 2026 at 11:06 PM
Contributed by
Young Woman's Journal Research
During a period when Joseph Smith had been arrested and was being held by officers of the law, Sister Cleveland visited him at the home of Sister Horne in Quincy, Illinois. Upon shaking hands with the Prophet, she spoke in tongues. After she finished, Joseph Smith interpreted the message, stating she had prophesied that he would stand trial and be acquitted, which subsequently occurred.
In Their Own Words
“Sister Cleveland, who had heard of the Prophet’s arrest, came to see him, and met him at the door just as he was leaving. As she shook hands with him she began speaking in tongues. Brother Joseph listened until she had finished, then turned to us and said, “You need not fear for me, as Sister Cleveland says I shall have my trial and be acquitted.” He was acquitted and was received with great honors on his arrival at his home.”
— M. Isabella Horne, as recorded in The Young Woman's Journal, vol. 31 no. 4 (April 1920)
Sources & References
The Young Woman's Journal, vol. 31 no. 4 (April 1920). L. Tom Perry Special Collections, Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University digital collections. https://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/digital/collection/YWJ/id/11084 (account extracted verbatim from the collection's page-level OCR; research confidence: high) Full first-person account: The Young Woman's Journal, vol. 31 no. 4 (April 1920), p. 214 https://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/digital/collection/YWJ/id/11084
Filed under
Related Miracles
More accounts involving Joseph Smith, M. Isabella Horne, Sister Cleveland, plus similar miracle types and stories from the 1830s.
Miracle of the Week
One remarkable, documented account in your inbox every Monday, drawn from the full archive.