“The Prisoners Shall Go Free”
Doctrine and Covenants 128:22
22 Brethren, shall we not go on in so great a cause? Go forward and not backward. Courage, brethren; and on, on to the victory! Let your hearts rejoice, and be exceedingly glad. Let the earth break forth into singing. Let the dead speak forth anthems of eternal praise to the King Immanuel, who hath ordained, before the world was, that which would enable us to redeem them out of their prison; for the prisoners shall go free.
Elder Quentin L. Cook said:
“Think of those on the other side of the veil waiting for the saving ordinances that would free them from the bondage of spirit prison. Prison is defined as ‘a state of confinement or captivity’ [Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, 11th ed. (2003), ‘prison’]. . . .
“One faithful sister shared a special spiritual experience in the Salt Lake Temple. While in the confirmation room, after a vicarious confirmation ordinance was pronounced, she heard, ‘And the prisoner shall go free!’ She felt a great sense of urgency for those who were waiting for their baptismal and confirmation work. Upon returning home, she searched the scriptures for the phrase she had heard. She found Joseph Smith’s declaration in section 128 of the Doctrine and Covenants [D&C 128:22; see also D&C 138:42].”
(“Roots and Branches,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2014, 46.)
