The 27 pages of sinister scripture from Brian David Mitchell, who kidnapped Elizabeth Smart

Brian David Mitchell, also known as Emmanuel and Immanuel David Isaiah, was the man responsible for the kidnapping and horrific assault of 14-year-old Elizabeth Smart. Her story is now being told in Netflix’s new documentary, Kidnapped: Elizabeth Smart.

Back in 2002, Elizabeth Smart was sleeping when she was kidnapped at knifepoint from her home in Utah. She was not found for nine months, by which point she had been plied by drugs and alcohol and raped three to four times per day.

Brian David Mitchell was found guilty of kidnapping and the unlawful transportation of a minor to engage in sexual activity in 2010. He was sentenced to life in prison without parole the following year, and while he has bounced around the prison system, he is currently housed in Central Pennsylvania’s Federal Correctional Institution-Lewisburg.

Touched on slightly in the new Netflix documentary, Brian David Mitchell fancied himself a prophet called Immanuel David Isaiah. His beliefs were contained within The Book of Immanuel David Isaiah, the same beliefs that pushed him to commit abhorrent crimes.

The Book of Immanuel David Isaiah is 27 pages long

After Brian David Mitchell was arrested, a battle was started between the defence and the prosecution about whether he was mentally fit enough to stand trial. A major piece of evidence was his Book of Immanuel David Isaiah, which was uncovered after his initial arrest. The defence argued that it demonstrated his insanity, but the prosecution said it demonstrated how his “religious expression is not ‘bizarre’ when viewed within context.”

As per the Mormonism Research Ministry, The Book of Immanuel David Isaiah was 27 pages of prophecy, doctrine, and the belief that he had “powers greater than God’s.”

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Credit: Anne Elizabeth Maurer/ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock

Brian was officially excommunicated from the Mormon church when The Book of Immanuel David Isaiah emerged. At the time, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) said he was kicked “for activity promoting bizarre teachings and lifestyle far afield from the principles and doctrines of the Church.”

Seemingly inspired with the mainstream beliefs of LDS, Brian’s self-written holy book contained seven revelations and a “Statement of Intent and Purpose.”

“Hearken! Oh ye inhabitants of the earth. Listen together and open your ears, for it is I, the Lord God of all the earth, the creator of all things that speaketh unto you. Yea, even Jesus Christ speaking by the voice of my servant whom I have called and chosen to be a light and a covenant to the world in these last days,” one quote reads.

Credit: Netflix

He says in another: “And it is the nature and disposition of almost all women, when they have a worthy bearer of the priesthood at their head, to be submissive, obedient, and faithful to all that I the Lord God ask of them, and to nurture and love my children with all tenderness and natural affection; and to teach them knowledge and wisdom and virtue and Godliness.”

Most of the doctrines boil down to one steadfast belief: Modern churches have lost trust and authority, hence they require Brian David Mitchell as God’s chosen prophet. He also branded Mormon church leadership as “false prophets who speak vain and foolish and lying words.”

Despite that, religious experts pointed out that there was nothing especially new contained within the book’s pages. Most of the doctrines and beliefs were either completely plagiarised from Christianity or LDS, or warped slightly to seem more original.

The full transcript of The Book of Immanuel David Isaiah can be viewed here.

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Featured image credit: Salt Lake City Police Dept/ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock and Netflix