“When God reveals any thing from heaven it is so plain that a man need not be mistaken. The signs are portentous all we have to do is to stand still & see the salvation of God and if a man do more he will get into error as [William] Miller did.” — Joseph Smith¹

William Miller, born in Massachusetts in 1782, was a farmer, sheriff, and Baptist preacher who later founded the Advent faith, which evolved into the Seventh-day Adventist Church.² From 1831 to 1844, Miller preached that Christ would soon return.³ He eventually predicted that the Second Coming of Jesus Christ would occur on April 3, 1843.⁴ During a stake conference in Ramus, Illinois, on April 2, 1843, Joseph Smith addressed Miller’s prediction by assuring the Saints that the Lord had not revealed the exact time of His coming.⁵ Joseph also taught important doctrines about God’s nature and the eternal nature of social relationships, which are now in Doctrine and Covenants 130.⁶ Later that year, William Miller said the Lord would return by March 21, 1844, but the date passed and the Lord did not return, greatly disappointing Miller’s followers.⁷

1. Minutes and Discourses, 6–7 April 1843, as Reported by William Clayton, 9, josephsmithpapers.org

2. “Miller, William,” josephsmithpapers.org

3. “William Miller,” whiteestate.org

4. Sylvester Bliss, Memoirs of William Miller, 180, archive.org

5. “‘Our Hearts Rejoiced to Hear Him Speak,’” Revelations in Context, churchofjesuschrist.org

6. D&C 130:14-17

7. Sylvester Bliss, Memoirs of William Miller, 329, archive.org