“The Status of Those in the Telestial Glory Is Explained”
Doctrine and Covenants 76:81–90, 98–112
81 And again, we saw the glory of the telestial, which glory is that of the lesser, even as the glory of the stars differs from that of the glory of the moon in the firmament.
82 These are they who received not the gospel of Christ, neither the testimony of Jesus.
83 These are they who deny not the Holy Spirit.
84 These are they who are thrust down to hell.
85 These are they who shall not be redeemed from the devil until the last resurrection, until the Lord, even Christ the Lamb, shall have finished his work.
86 These are they who receive not of his fulness in the eternal world, but of the Holy Spirit through the ministration of the terrestrial;
87 And the terrestrial through the ministration of the celestial.
88 And also the telestial receive it of the administering of angels who are appointed to minister for them, or who are appointed to be ministering spirits for them; for they shall be heirs of salvation.
89 And thus we saw, in the heavenly vision, the glory of the telestial, which surpasses all understanding;
90 And no man knows it except him to whom God has revealed it. . . .
98 And the glory of the telestial is one, even as the glory of the stars is one; for as one star differs from another star in glory, even so differs one from another in glory in the telestial world;
99 For these are they who are of Paul, and of Apollos, and of Cephas.
100 These are they who say they are some of one and some of another—some of Christ and some of John, and some of Moses, and some of Elias, and some of Esaias, and some of Isaiah, and some of Enoch;
101 But received not the gospel, neither the testimony of Jesus, neither the prophets, neither the everlasting covenant.
102 Last of all, these all are they who will not be gathered with the saints, to be caught up unto the church of the Firstborn, and received into the cloud.
103 These are they who are liars, and sorcerers, and adulterers, and whoremongers, and whosoever loves and makes a lie.
104 These are they who suffer the wrath of God on earth.
105 These are they who suffer the vengeance of eternal fire.
106 These are they who are cast down to hell and suffer the wrath of Almighty God, until the fulness of times, when Christ shall have subdued all enemies under his feet, and shall have perfected his work;
107 When he shall deliver up the kingdom, and present it unto the Father, spotless, saying: I have overcome and have trodden the wine-press alone, even the wine-press of the fierceness of the wrath of Almighty God.
108 Then shall he be crowned with the crown of his glory, to sit on the throne of his power to reign forever and ever.
109 But behold, and lo, we saw the glory and the inhabitants of the telestial world, that they were as innumerable as the stars in the firmament of heaven, or as the sand upon the seashore;
110 And heard the voice of the Lord saying: These all shall bow the knee, and every tongue shall confess to him who sits upon the throne forever and ever;
111 For they shall be judged according to their works, and every man shall receive according to his own works, his own dominion, in the mansions which are prepared;
112 And they shall be servants of the Most High; but where God and Christ dwell they cannot come, worlds without end.
President Joseph Fielding Smith wrote:
“[President Joseph F. Smith (father of President Joseph Fielding Smith) wrote:] ‘They of the telestial glory are such as receive not the gospel (and hence, we may infer, not baptism), neither the testimony of Jesus, neither the prophets, neither the everlasting covenant. They will not be gathered with the Saints to be caught up unto the Church of the Firstborn [see D&C 76:102]. They will suffer the wrath of God, until the fulness of times, when Christ shall have subdued all enemies under His feet, and perfected His work [see D&C 76:104–6]. Then shall all these bow the knee, and every tongue shall confess to Him who sits upon the throne forever and ever; and they shall be judged according to their works, and every man shall receive according to his own works, his own dominion, in the mansions of the telestial kingdom of glory [see D&C 76:110–11]. They shall be servants of the Most High, but where God and Christ dwell, they cannot come, worlds without end [see D&C 76:112]’ [Joseph F. Smith, “Editor’s Table: Questions and Answers,” Improvement Era, Aug. 1903, 786.)
“The inhabitants of the terrestrial world will have part in the First Resurrection, but not until after the ‘morning of that resurrection’ when those who are Christ’s at His coming are raised [see D&C 88:96–99]. The inhabitants of the telestial kingdom, who have been the unclean, the liars and filthy of the earth, will not be resurrected until the close of the Millennium [see D&C 88:101–2; Revelation 20:4–6; 22:15]. When they are released from the prison and prepared to enter their glories, they will gladly bow the knee and confess Jesus Christ, as will all the other of the children of God, but this does not imply that they are entitled to receive all the blessings and ordinances of the gospel. The First Presidency of the Church has said that all of the ordinances of the gospel pertain to the celestial kingdom of God, and He has not told us what ordinances, if any, He will require of those who enter other kingdoms. President Brigham Young in one of his discourses informed the elders that they were not sent out to preach a salvation for the terrestrial or telestial kingdom, but to bring people to repentance and into the celestial kingdom of God, and that is our mission and responsibility to the people of the earth. Every soul will receive a reward according to the law he obeys. If it is the celestial law, he will receive a celestial glory; if it is a terrestrial law, he will receive a terrestrial glory, and if it is a telestial law, he will receive a telestial glory. Those who remain after their resurrection, shall go away to their own place with the devil and his angels.”
(Church History and Modern Revelation, 2 vols. [1953], 1:289–90.)
