The Lord promised that Lyman Sherman would be present at a “solemn assembly” in which Sherman would be “remembered with the first of mine elders” (D&C 108:4). This promise was fulfilled when Lyman was invited to participate in the Kirtland endowment. On January 22, 1836, Joseph Smith wrote of “the glorious scenes that transpired . . . while attending to the ordinance of holy anointing.”¹ The Prophet continues, “We met . . . with the council of the 12 and the presidency of the 70 who were to receive this ordinance; the high councils of Kirtland and Zion [Missouri] were present also: we called to order and organized; the Presidency then proceeded to consecrate the oil.”² Thomas B. Marsh, the President of the Quorum of the Twelve, was anointed and blessed first. President Marsh “then anointed and blessed his brethren from the oldest to the youngest.”³ Joseph “laid [his] hands upon them and pronounced many great and glorious [blessings] upon their heads; the heavens were opened and angels ministered unto us.”⁴ Afterward, “the 12 then proceeded to anoint and bless the presidency of the 70 [among them Lyman Sherman] and seal upon their heads power and authority to anoint their brethren.”⁵

The Lord’s promise to Sherman in verse 4 may have also been fulfilled when Sherman was sustained as a member of the Presidency of the Seventy in a solemn assembly held on March 30, 1836, in the Kirtland Temple. During this meeting the members of the leading quorums of the Church participated in the ordinance of the washing of feet and had “many prophecies and blessings” pronounced upon them “in the name of the Lord Jesus.”⁶

Sherman remained a faithful and fierce advocate for the Church the rest of his life. When Kirtland fell into apostasy, he defended the Prophet Joseph Smith. According to one source, when he discovered that apostates were planning on using the Church printing press to publish material designed to discredit Joseph Smith, Sherman set fire to the printing office, completely destroying it. Sherman later relocated with his family to Far West, Missouri, where he served as a member of the high council. In a letter written from Liberty Jail in January 1839, Joseph Smith, Sidney Rigdon, and Hyrum Smith appointed Sherman to the Quorum of the Twelve. They intended for him to replace Orson Hyde, who fell temporarily into apostasy. Unfortunately, Sherman died on January 27, 1839—eleven days after the letter was written—before he could be ordained to the Twelve.⁷

1. JS Journal, 1835–1836, p. 140, JSP.

2. JS Journal, 1835–1836, p. 140, JSP.

3. JS Journal, 1835–1836, p. 140, JSP.

4. JS Journal, 1835–1836, p. 140, JSP.

5. JS Journal, 1835–1836, p. 140, JSP.

6. JS History, vol. B-1, p. 724, JSP.

7. See Lyndon W. Cook, “Lyman Sherman—Man of God, Would Be Apostle,” BYU Studies, vol. 19 (Fall 1978).