Despite the promise of the Spirit given him years earlier after a skirmish with Indians in the Tooele mountains — that if he did not seek the blood of the Lamanites, he should not die by their hands — Jacob Hamblin faced several perilously close calls with death.

Perhaps the most notable brush with death started in early winter of 1874, when four Navajo young men came to trade with the Mormon settlers on the promise of Hamblin that no harm would befall them if they crossed the Colorado River to trade in Utah. The young Navajos ventured across the river but, caught in a snowstorm, found refuge on a ranch owned by outlaws. From this ranch, the outlaws launched a career of violence that soon made them notorious with the law and wanted as criminals.

These outlaws found the Navajo young men and killed three while seriously wounding the fourth, who struggled in great pain to return to his people.

In response, the Navajos declared war on all whites in Utah and began raiding the Mormon herds around Kanab.

Hamblin was determined that this should not happen between the whites and Navajos. He left Kanab by himself, since others thought the journey to be suicidal. A short distance into the journey, Hamblin received a message delivered by his son from the local bishop in Kanab warning Hamblin that it had been learned that the Navajos were to retaliate by killing the first white man on sight, especially Jacob Hamblin.

But Hamblin had been directed by Brigham Young to visit with the Navajos to prevent a war and continued on his journey.

Hamblin's son, Joseph, returned again that night on the bishop's request to prevent him from going. But Hamblin continued his plans.

Along the way the next day, Hamblin met a Navajo messenger, who appeared pleased to see him. The messenger pointed to a distant mesa where the Navajos were encamped and said the Navajo council wished to see him.

It was another day before the council was assembled in a large log lodge. For an estimated 12 hours, the council listened to young Navajo men eager for revenge. When given the opportunity, Hamblin spoke in defense of his people, explaining the details of events. He was accused of lying and asked to pay 100 head of cattle for each killed Navajo and 50 cattle for the wounded man.

Hamblin rejected the offer, saying his people were not guilty of the crime.

At one point, when tensions were high, a Piute chief who stood in the doorway of the lodge asked Hamblin if he was scared.

"What is there to scare me?" Hamblin responded.

"The Navajos," said the Piute chief.

"I was not afraid of my friends," Hamblin said.

"Friends," said the chief, "you have not a friend in the Navajo nation."

After further lengthy discussion, the tenor of discussion turned more amiable toward Hamblin as the council recounted 15 years of honest friendship. It was decided to give Hamblin 25 days to resolve the issue. His venture into the lair of the Navajo nation was a rare devotion to duty. But his most difficult challenge lay ahead: keeping his promise to return after 25 days, when family and friends would plead with him to remain home.

With tensions high, and a proud Navajo nation incensed and determined to exact justice, Hamblin met again with council leaders. With the assistance of a fair-minded leader among the Navajos named Hastele who visited the site in Grass Valley, Hamblin persuaded the Navajo chieftains to understand that the culprits were non-Mormons. The council reversed a longtime Navajo tradition to exact revenge.

The truth was brought to light and those who wished to throw the blame of murder of the three young Navajos on the Mormons were confounded.

"I felt that the Lord had greatly blessed me in filling the mission assigned me," Hamblin said in review of the matter in August 1875.