Isaiah chapter 1
January 19, 2006
Chapters 1-39 = Book of Doom
Chapters 40-66 = Book of Hope
Scholars believe that there were two or three
different writers of Isaiah. One man
could not have possibly written the entire book, stating names of individuals
(Cyrus the Great) who were not alive at the time of the writing, etc. I guess they never heard of Revelation!
Additional witnesses
for the single authorship of Isaiah. A variety of additional facts support Isaiah
as the author of the book of Isaiah:
1. Jesus Christ named
him as the author and quoted him specifically in the New Testament and the Book
of Mormon. (Matt. 13:14-15; 15:8-9; Luke 4:18-19; 3 Ne. 16, 20-22.)
2. Many New Testament
writers quoted from the second half of Isaiah, naming him in their quotations.
(Matt. 8:17; 12:18-21; John 1:23; 12:38; Acts 8:30-33; Rom. 10:16, 20-21.)
3. The earliest Bible
manuscripts, such as the Dead Sea Scrolls, have all recorded Isaiah as one
book.
4. Writers and
historians as early as 185 B.C. attribute authorship of Isaiah only and
specifically to the eighth-century prophet and record that he prophesied
concerning the future and Cyrus. (Ben Sira in Ecclesiasticus 49:17-25
and Josephus in Antiquities, XI, 1-2.)
5. The Jewish and
Christian tradition from the earliest times to the last couple of centuries has
supported the single authorship of Isaiah. For example, the Septuagint and
other ancient versions give no hint of multiple authorship.
6. Book of Mormon
writers quoted from both halves of Isaiah (especially Isa. 48-55, in the second
half) and attributed the material to Isaiah. Since Lehi left Jerusalem decades
before Cyrus ruled and the "Deutero-Isaiah" lived in Babylon, many
major portions of the last half of Isaiah had to have been written by 600 B.C.
(Whether a prophet prophesies 60 or 160 years before the time of Cyrus, he
would still have to receive revelation from God to see into the future.)
7. The critical
attitudes and anti-dogmatic beliefs in the 1800s encouraged the higher
criticism of the Bible beyond its natural bounds. These attitudes even called
into question the authorship of Shakespeare's works and other famous writings.
This "vogue" attitude of the scholars manifested itself in radical
criticism, which has since moderated somewhat, especially as further evidences
for the creative genius of ancient writers come forth.
8. Internal evidences
in the book of Isaiah provide striking characteristics common to the whole book
and support its unity. Isaiah uniquely uses some techniques and phrases
uncommon in other works, such as imagery, parallelism, psalms, repetition,
paronomasia, and expressions such as "the Holy One of Israel." Also,
there is no record of anyone besides Isaiah writing the last half of his book.
If the "Deutero-Isaiah" is one of the greatest prophets in the Old
Testament, why is no mention made of him? All other prophetic writings at least
mention their source, even the small, comparatively insignificant Obadiah. As
one Jewish scholar records:
If the author of the
latter part [of Isaiah] were another prophet, who was contemporary and lived
among the people whom he consoled, how can it possibly be believed that his
name would be entirely forgotten? Isaiah ben Amoz who lived centuries before
the Exile was well remembered and details of his life recorded. Furthermore it
is indeed strange that Isaiah ben Amoz who denounced the people and whose
message was certainly not welcome at the time should be remembered and his
writings preserved but the name of this supposed Second Isaiah who preached a
message of consolation whose message must have been quite welcome should be
forgotten and, indeed, so completely forgotten that we do not even know his
name. (Freehof, Isaiah, pp. 199-200.)
9. Contemporary
apostles, who are prophets, seers, and revelators, have witnessed concerning
Isaiah's authoring his whole book. (James E. Talmage, CR, April 1929, pp.
45-47; Bruce R. McConkie, Ensign, Oct. 1973, pp. 78-83.)
10. A personal
testimony about Isaiah's book and his efforts in its composition is available
to everyone who seeks for a witness through the Holy Ghost.
In summary, some
questions about Isaiah's reception and recording of his prophecies remain
unanswered. It is also unknown how much of his writings was later changed and
edited. From the evidence available, however, it appears obvious that Isaiah
authored the sixty-six chapters in his book. The truth is that Isaiah received
prophetic visions centuries into the future, many of his teachings and
prophecies are recorded in his book, and eventually all of his prophecies will
be fulfilled. (3 Ne. 23:1-3.)
In studying Isaiah's
work in the light of contemporary scholarship, we should follow the Lord's
admonition given in modern scripture and seek "out of the best books words
of wisdom; seek learning, even by study and also by faith."
(D&C 88:118, italics added.) As we combine the study of the scholars'
critical evaluations with the faith of the scriptural writers, we will come to
a greater understanding of Isaiah. As we build upon the best of man's knowledge
about the scriptures and also follow the promptings of the Spirit, we emulate
Joseph Smith, who, though endowed with the spirit of revelation, also studied
Hebrew and German to better understand the Bible and Isaiah. The positive,
constructive elements of biblical criticism can enrich the process of study and
meditation that prepares us for the spirit of revelation, which can then tell
us in our minds and hearts what we need to learn from the scriptures. (Compare
D&C 8:2 and Moro. 10:3-5.)
(Victor L. Ludlow, Isaiah: Prophet, Seer,
and Poet [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1982], 546.)
In the Book of Mormon, Nephi quotes from all
over Isaiah’s book, beginning, middle and end of the book.
|
758 |
Jotham |
740 |
Isaiah begins to prophesy. |
|
|
|
Pekahiah (R.C.) |
737 |
|
Era of Nabonassar, 747. |
|
|
Pekah (R.C.) |
735 |
|
|
|
742 |
Ahaz |
734 |
|
Tiglath-pileser II, king of |
|
730 |
Hoshea |
733 |
|
|
|
726 |
Hezekiah |
728 |
|
Shalmaneser IV, king of |
|
721 |
End of the |
722 |
Micah prophesies. |
Sargon. Merodach- Baladan, king of |
|
697 |
Manasseh |
697 |
|
|
Amos is a counterpart to Isaiah.
The Abrahamic covenant was essential to obey
and keep for the blessing of
(Genesis
12:5-6.)
And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his
brother's son, and all their substance that they had gathered, and the souls
that they had gotten in
6 ¶ And
Abram passed through the land unto the place of Sichem, unto the plain of
Moreh. And the Canaanite was then in the land.
(Exodus
2:23-25.)
23 ¶ And it
came to pass in process of time, that the king of
24 And God
heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac,
and with Jacob.
25 And God
looked upon the children of
Respect = remembering the covenant.
(Exodus
3:8-12.)
8 And I am
come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them
up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk
and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the
Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites.
9 Now
therefore, behold, the cry of the children of
10 Come now
therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my
people the children of
11 ¶ And
Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I
should bring forth the children of
12 And he
said, Certainly I will be with thee; and this shall be a token unto
thee, that I have sent thee: When thou hast brought forth the people out of
(Exodus
19:5-6.)
5 Now
therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall
be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is
mine:
6 And ye
shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the
words, which thou shalt speak unto the children of
BIBLE
DICTIONARY
PECULIAR
One’s very
own, exclusive, or special; not used in the Bible as odd or eccentric. The
Hebrew word segullah, which is translated peculiar in Deut. 14: 2 and Deut. 26: 18, is translated special
in Deut. 7: 6. Compare the
various translations of the same word in Ex. 19: 5; Ps. 135: 4; Eccl. 2: 8; Mal. 3: 17. Titus 2: 14 and 1 Pet. 2: 9 should carry the
meaning of the saints’ being the Lord’s own special people or treasure.
The importance of
verse 5, a temple people
Obey – In Hebrew means
to hear the voice of the Lord and follow.
Keep – In Hebrew
means to guard the covenant, place it in a special place and watch over it.
The people were not
ready to obey the Lord or keep the covenant, even though they stated 3 times to
Moses they would do whatever the Lord asked.
(Exodus
19:8.)
8 And all
the people answered together, and said, All that the LORD hath spoken we will
do. And Moses returned the words of the people unto the LORD.
(Exodus
24:3, 7)
3 ¶ And
Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD, and all the
judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words
which the LORD hath said will we do.
7 And he
took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people: and they
said, All that the LORD hath said will we do, and be obedient.
Aaronic Priesthood – outer
court of the tabernacle, outer ordinances of the gospel, ward building,
Baptism, Sacrament
Melchizedek
Priesthood – inner court of the tabernacle, inner (higher) ordinances of the
gospel, temple, Gift of the Holy Ghost, temple ordinances
(Doctrine
and Covenants 84:19-27.)
19 And this
greater priesthood administereth the gospel and holdeth the key of the
mysteries of the kingdom, even the key of the knowledge of God.
20 Therefore,
in the ordinances thereof, the power of godliness is manifest.
21 And
without the ordinances thereof, and the authority of the priesthood, the power
of godliness is not manifest unto men in the flesh;
22 For
without this no man can see the face of God, even the Father, and live.
23 Now this
Moses plainly taught to the children of
24 But they
hardened their hearts and could not endure his presence; therefore, the Lord in
his wrath, for his anger was kindled against them, swore that they should not
enter into his rest while in the wilderness, which rest is the fulness of his
glory.
25
Therefore, he took Moses out of their midst, and the Holy Priesthood also;
26 And the
lesser priesthood continued, which priesthood holdeth the key of the
ministering of angels and the preparatory gospel;
27 Which
gospel is the gospel of repentance and of baptism, and the remission of sins,
and the law of carnal commandments, which the Lord in his wrath caused to
continue with the house of Aaron among the children of
The movie “Ten
Commandments” did not stay with the gospel script in Exodus, the people heard
what was happening on the mountain.
Bruce emphasized the
point to “cut” a covenant; we do not make a covenant. In Jeremiah 34, the Lord describes what it
means to cut a covenant.
(Jeremiah
34:18-19.)
18 And I
will give the men that have transgressed my covenant, which have not performed
the words of the covenant which they had made before me, when they cut the calf
in twain, and passed between the parts thereof,
19 The
princes of
Shechem is mentioned
numerous times in the Pentateuch; for example, Gen. 12:6; 33:18; 35:4; 37:14.
Shechem was the site of the covenant renewal ceremony mentioned in Joshua 24
and was the place where the bones of Joseph were interred. (Josh. 24:32.)
(Kent P. Jackson and
Robert L. Millet, eds., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 5: The Gospels [
Deuteronomy 1-26 –
Reviewed the covenants they needed to keep.
Deuteronomy 27-34 –
Moses gave 3 speeches to the people.
Deut 28:1-14 – All of
the blessings
Deut 28:15-68 – All
of the curses, in verse 64, they will be cursed to loss the land, the worst
curse.
(Deuteronomy
29:19-20.)
19 And it
come to pass, when he heareth the words of this curse, that he bless himself in
his heart, saying, I shall have peace, though I walk in the imagination of mine
heart, to add drunkenness to thirst:
20 The LORD
will not spare him, but then the anger of the LORD and his jealousy shall smoke
against that man, and all the curses that are written in this book shall lie
upon him, and the LORD shall blot out his name from under heaven.
The eternal nature of
blessings and curses, Satan and his hosts always lie and beguile (garden)
Subsequent to the
invasion of
(John M. Lundquist and Stephen D. Ricks,
eds., By Study and Also by Faith: Essays in Honor of Hugh W. Nibley on the
Occasion of His Eightieth Birthday, 27 March 1990, 2 vols. [Salt Lake City and
Provo: Deseret Book Co., Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies,
1990], 2: 218.)986],)
See
website Old Testament 302 for pictures Bruce took at the site.
Break
a covenant = we will die
Keep
a covenant = we will live with Him forever
After
living in
But was this a God
that men could get very near to? Could they appreciate such a divinity and worship
him in a satisfactory manner? Could the yearning soul of man, longing to draw
near to its maker, feel that such a divinity as this was its Father in heaven?
Down in
Such were the ideas
prevailing in these three centers of religious thought and philosophy when
Moses the man of God, came forth. He proclaimed against these practices, this
idolatry. He said in effect: You must not worship the sun, or the moon, or any
object in nature. These are the creations of God, they are not the Creator. You
must worship God in heaven, the invisible Jehovah, the Eternal Father, the
Maker of heaven and of earth, who created man in His likeness, in His image,
male and female. Lift your thoughts above the visible things of life. Walk not
by sight, but walk by faith, and believe in God and trust in Him, although you
do not see Him." This was the substance of the teaching of Moses regarding
the personality of God. He taught them that the being they were to worship had
created man in His own image. That was not the sun, nor the moon, nor the
trees, nor the flowers. It meant that God was in the form of man; for if he had
created man in His own image, He Himself must be in the image of man.
This was the great
service that Moses rendered to mankind. It is an old song, and oft-told tale to
us who have inherited this knowledge even by tradition from the earliest times,
and have had it restored to us in these latter times. We cannot half
appreciate, except by a great effort of imagination, the value of the service
rendered by Moses, the Prophet of God, when he taught men whom they were to
worship.
(Brian
H. Stuy, ed., Collected Discourses, 5 vols. [
The
children of
How
do we coax God to listen to us? The
Golden Calf, maybe he will see this and come unto us! Wrong!
We
do not bring God to our level; He raises us to His level.
A
question came up about Outer Darkness and who will live there, a discussion of
the Atonement then took place. Bruce was
very direct about those who do not repent and accept Christ.
Those
who do not repent do not inherit a kingdom of glory; they have nothing without
the Atonement. We must repent and enter
into covenants with the Lord.
(2 Nephi
9:6-10.)
6 For as
death hath passed upon all men, to fulfil the merciful plan of the great
Creator, there must needs be a power of resurrection, and the resurrection must
needs come unto man by reason of the fall; and the fall came by reason of
transgression; and because man became fallen they were cut off from the
presence of the Lord.
7
Wherefore, it must needs be an infinite atonement—save it should be an infinite
atonement this corruption could not put on incorruption. Wherefore, the first
judgment which came upon man must needs have remained to an endless duration.
And if so, this flesh must have laid down to rot and to crumble to its mother
earth, to rise no more.
8 O the
wisdom of God, his mercy and grace! For behold, if the flesh should rise no
more our spirits must become subject to that angel who fell from before the
presence of the Eternal God, and became the devil, to rise no more.
9 And our
spirits must have become like unto him, and we become devils, angels to a
devil, to be shut out from the presence of our God, and to remain with the
father of lies, in misery, like unto himself; yea, to that being who beguiled
our first parents, who transformeth himself nigh unto an angel of light, and
stirreth up the children of men unto secret combinations of murder and all
manner of secret works of darkness.
10 O how
great the goodness of our God, who prepareth a way for our escape from the
grasp of this awful monster; yea, that monster, death and hell, which I call
the death of the body, and also the death of the spirit.
(
40 And he
shall come into the world to redeem his people; and he shall take upon him the
transgressions of those who believe on his name; and these are they that shall
have eternal life, and salvation cometh to none else.
41
Therefore the wicked remain as though there had been no redemption made, except
it be the loosing of the bands of death; for behold, the day cometh that all
shall rise from the dead and stand before God, and be judged according to their
works.
"Outer
darkness" and its attendant suffering are mostly related to judgments for
members of the kingdom, particularly for those who are in some state of
apostasy. From Moses 1:22, it appears that Satan and his servants suffer the
same type of torment. Passages in the Doctrine and Covenants imply that others
besides members could fall under this condemnation in certain circumstances
(see D&C 101:81-91) and indicate that many people (D&C 76:109) will be
saved in the telestial kingdom who have been guilty of committing serious sins
(D&C 76:103). Joseph Smith explained that the torment inflicted upon people
for their sins is "as exquisite as a lake burning with fire and
brimstone," but if they repent they can still be saved. fn Thus,
"outer darkness" and exquisite torment "as a lake burning with
fire and brimstone" are descriptive of how people suffer for their sins as
the devil himself is tormented. In some instances the judgment appears to be
permanent; in others, only temporary. That is, some receive only a portion of
the decreed judgment (D&C 85:9; JST Matthew 24:55), while others suffer a
fulness (JST Matthew 8:12; compare Luke 13:25-28). The issue seems to be the
amount of knowledge one possesses, the application of it to stewardship
responsibility, and whether one in transgression chooses to repent.
There are those who
refuse to repent. These, of course, are the sons of perdition (D&C 76:44).
The type of suffering implied by the scriptural terms appears to be the same in
intensity for all, but one's willingness or unwillingness to repent may
determine the duration of the suffering. Repentance requires temporary
suffering. Those who refuse to accept this requirement will be doomed to
eternal torment. The wickedness being punished here seems to be something apart
from, or in addition to, slothfulness, which is a sin the servant who received
one talent was guilty of.
(Bruce
A. Van Orden and Brent L. Top, eds., The Lord of the Gospels: The 1990
Sperry Symposium on the New Testament [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co.,
1991], 14.)
14Outer darkness, or
hell, is made up of those who in mortality spurned the ways of righteousness,
those who defied the word of truth, those who chose to walk in their own paths
or in paths of disobedience. Joseph Smith pointed out, "The great misery
of departed spirits in the world of spirits, where they go after death, is to
know that they come short of the glory that others enjoy and that they might
have enjoyed themselves, and they are their own accusers" (Teachings, pp.
310-11; compare p. 358). Thus hell or outer darkness is both a place- a
part of the world of spirits where suffering and sorrow and appropriate
preparation go on- and a state- a condition of the mind
associated with remorseful realization.
SCAlma
40 13Alma 40 14The
righteous, those who have received the ordinances of salvation and proven
faithful to the attendant covenants, go into paradise at the time of their
physical death. It would appear that all others, including the good and noble
men and women of the earth who died without a knowledge of the gospel, enter
into hell, outer darkness, or what is sometimes called (in a narrower sense than
above- see Bruce R. McConkie, Mormon Doctrine, p. 755) spirit prison.
This second division is not simply a place of suffering, but also a place of
preparation and learning. Joseph Smith taught concerning the necessity of
ordinances for entrance into paradise: "Every man that has been baptized
and belongs to the, kingdom has a right to be baptized for those who have gone
before; and as soon as the law of the Gospel is obeyed here [the gospel
ordinance] by their friends who act as proxy for them, the Lord has
administrators there to set them free" (Teachings, p. 367, italics
added; see also D&C 138:58; Joseph Fielding Smith, Doctrines
of Salvation 2:158, 230).
SCAlma
40 13Alma 40 14Elder
Bruce R. McConkie has written: "Before Christ bridged the gulf between
paradise and hell- so that the righteous could mingle with the wicked and
preach them the gospel- the wicked in hell were confined to locations which
precluded them from contact with the righteous in paradise. . . . Now that the
righteous spirits in paradise have been commissioned to carry the message of
salvation to the wicked spirits in hell, there is a certain amount of mingling
together of the good and bad spirits. Repentance opens the prison doors to the
spirits in hell; it enables those bound with the chains of hell to free
themselves from darkness, unbelief, ignorance, and sin. As rapidly as they can
overcome these obstacles- gain light, believe truth, acquire intelligence, cast
off sin, and break the chains of hell- they can leave the hell that imprisons
them and dwell with the righteous in the peace of paradise." (Mormon
Doctrine, p. 755.)
Doctrinal
Commentary of the Book of Mormon, Vol. 3 Alma 40:6-15
The
Law of Moses was given to teach
Good
TV – Edifies, Bad TV – Defiles
How to Read Isaiah and Enjoy It!
The study of Isaiah is
a lifelong project. Nobody is going to master Isaiah in one hour or a month or
a year. But if we can get excited about the learning process, we will make a
lot of progress on our own. In this chapter I'd like to approach the book of
Isaiah from the standpoint of why we ought to study it and what kinds of things
are there and how to understand it.
Isaiah, a Much-Quoted Prophet
One thing I have noticed about Isaiah is that
everybody who is anybody quotes him. In making a study about Isaiah I
discovered that Jesus quoted Isaiah more than he did any other prophet. Most
prophets quote the Lord, but when you get the Lord quoting one of the prophets,
that's a real recommendation for that prophet. I discovered that Paul quotes
Isaiah at least twenty times, which is more than he quotes any other Old
Testament prophet. Peter quotes Isaiah seven times, which is more than he
quotes any other Old Testament prophet. John quotes much from Isaiah in the
book of Revelation. Many things we are familiar with in the book of Revelation
are also in Isaiah. John quotes from Isaiah more than he does from anyone else,
with at least four direct quotes and many paraphrases. In the Book of Mormon,
Nephi quotes Isaiah, and his brother Jacob quotes Isaiah. These two Book of
Mormon prophets quote Isaiah more than they quote anyone else. In the Doctrine
and Covenants there is a great amount of language and information similar to
that in the book of Isaiah, as well as a number of direct quotes, so that in
the Doctrine and Covenants Isaiah is also cited more than any other Old
Testament prophet.
Isaiah is hard to understand. There are
sixty-six chapters and 1,292 verses. People who have made a careful study of
the vocabulary find that the book of Isaiah has the largest vocabulary of any
book in the Bible. That's rather interesting because the book of Isaiah is
written by one man, who was a prophet for nearly fifty years. The vocabulary
used in Isaiah is stated as being 2,186 words. The book of Ezekiel contains a
vocabulary of 1,535 words; Jeremiah, 1,653; Psalms, 2,170. Compare the
vocabulary in Isaiah to the vocabulary in the book of Psalms. Psalms was
written by several persons. Whenever there is more than one author, there will
certainly be an increase in the vocabulary. Yet the book of Isaiah has a
greater variety of words, a greater vocabulary than even the book of Psalms.
The astuteness, the greatness, the literary value, the spiritual value, and
other aspects of the book of Isaiah make it quite a remarkable scripture. It is
almost a course in religion by itself. It is big, complex, but worth the
struggle to read it.
We could spend much
time reading from the Book of Mormon prophets who recommend Isaiah, but I will
read one place where the Savior mentions Isaiah and its value to us. The Savior
is speaking specifically to the Nephites, but we could take Nephi's lead and
liken the Savior's words to ourselves. In 3 Ne. 23:1 Jesus says, "And now,
behold, I say unto you, that ye ought to search these things." Jesus has
just been quoting Isaiah, so "these things" means Isaiah's words; the
Lord is telling the Nephites they ought to search the writings of Isaiah. Then,
as though that isn't strong enough language, the Lord says, "Yea, a
commandment I give unto you that ye search these things diligently" (3 Ne.
23:1). It isn't simply a matter of something nice to do someday when and if we
get around to it. It's a commandment that we search the words of Isaiah
diligently, "for great are the words of Isaiah. For surely he spake as
touching all things concerning my people which are of the house of
In the book of Isaiah
we have a record of what the Lord calls "all things concerning my people
of
The Book of Isaiah
Is Not a Continuous Story
There is something I
learned about Isaiah which, as soon as I realized it, made the book of Isaiah a
little easier for me. Although it consists of sixty-six chapters and they are
numbered consecutively from one to sixty-six, the book of Isaiah is not a
continuous story. It's a group of books that have been put together. That one
concept alone makes the book plainer to us. When we read the book of Genesis,
we read fifty chapters that make up a continuous story. If we start in chapter
20, we start in the middle of the story. If we start in chapter 40, we are
starting towards the end of the story—a continued story. But when we read
Isaiah, we might just as well start anywhere. It will be just as plain to us as
if we had started somewhere else. I don't say that jokingly. The book of Isaiah
is as if we took all of President Joseph Fielding Smith's books, tore the
covers off of them, took the page numbers off, and kept each book intact; but
we put them all together under one cover, numbering everything
consecutively—chapter 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. There would be sections that would be very
meaningful; then all of a sudden the whole subject matter would shift, from one
page to the next, from one chapter to the next. Someone who had not witnessed
the process of organizing President Smith's works might think, I don't
understand that. If the reader had seen it in its original form, he would know
it was not written to be a continued story but it is a series of articles
written at different times in a prophet's life.
The book of Isaiah is
written by the man Isaiah, a prophet who lived in
Turn to the book of
Isaiah, chapter 13. I will illustrate what I'm talking about as to there being
different books. Chapter 13 says, "The burden of
Chapter 14 is a continuation of 13. But look
at chapter 15—"The burden of
Isaiah was living among the Jews. They were
surrounded by nations that worshiped idols and had a different religion than
the worship of Jehovah. Those neighbors didn't have the true religion. The
neighboring countries had considerable influence on the house of
There are at least
nine chapters that deal expressly with the character of God. When Isaiah talks
about the character and attributes of God and the knowledge of God, almost all
of these references are in chapters 40 through 48, with most of the additional
references falling in chapters 43 and 44. In that portion of the book (chapters
40-48), Isaiah's style changes, his vocabulary changes, and his subject matter
changes from other portions of the book. Within these particular chapters there
is somewhat of a continued story, but it's a different subject from what comes
before, and it's different from what comes after. It was probably written at a
different time in Isaiah's life. But it is a very definite area, or portion, of
the book of Isaiah. Isaiah says there is only one true God, and that is
Jehovah. He also says that God is supreme and has all power. In essence, Isaiah
is saying, "God is above all and has all power, and he's greater than all
other gods and greater than all other beings." Isaiah says that God is
eternal and everlasting. This statement shows the contrast between God and the
idol gods made by man. With idols there is a day when they are created, a
period of time during which they get old and decay, and a day when they end—are
cast aside, broken, etc. But not so with Jehovah. He is eternal and
everlasting. God is the Redeemer and the Savior. He is the Creator. He is a
holy being. He is a being of knowledge who reveals future events.
This section of Isaiah is altogether different
from the earlier chapters that talk about
Commentaries on Isaiah
The Book of Mormon is
our greatest help and commentary in understanding Isaiah, and the Doctrine and
Covenants is next. I became excited about Isaiah when I was serving a mission
in southern
Isa. 1:16-17 reads, "Cease to do evil,
learn to do well." Similar words are found in D&C 88:123-24.
"Come now, and let us reason together" is in Isa. 1:18. It is also in
D&C 50:10. "The willing and the obedient shall eat the good of the
land" is in both Isaiah and the Doctrine and Covenants. Look at Isa.
63:1-6, which tells about the Lord coming from heaven clothed in red. It also
mentions a winepress and the anger of the Lord, his fury, the day of his
vengeance, the year of his redeemed. It says there will be none to help. It
mentions the loving kindness of the Lord and that he is afflicted with all the
afflictions of his Saints, that he carries them, sends angels to watch over
them, and so on. All of that is in Isa. 63. In fact, the wording in Isaiah is also
in the same order and uses words almost identical to those in D&C
133:46-51. If you want a latter-day prophetic commentary and a clarification of
Isaiah's words, study D&C 133 in which a chapter of Isaiah is explained.
The idea is that when the Savior comes again, he'll be clothed in red, not
white. That's very clearly taught in D&C 133 and also in Isa. 63. This is
just a sample. The more one becomes familiar with the scriptures, the more it
is obvious that the Doctrine and Covenants is a great commentary on the
writings of Isaiah.
There is more interest in the Church today in
Isaiah than there was in past years. In 1955 I had a little difficulty
persuading the Education Week office that we ought to have a lecture on Isaiah.
They said, "That isn't interesting to anybody." And it turned out
almost that way. As I remember, there were only a few people who came. About
four or five years later, I persuaded the office to let me talk again at
Education Week in southern California on Isaiah, and that time we had about
three times as many people as before. In recent years there has been a
tremendous surge of interest in Isaiah among members of the Church. Books have
been written about studying and understanding Isaiah. We teach several classes
about Isaiah at BYU and in our LDS institutes every semester. That is as it
ought to be.
Prophecy of the Last Days
Turn to Isa. 5:26,
which is speaking of events in the last days; there is no question about it.
Verse 26 reads, "He [the Lord] will lift up an ensign to the nations from
far." An ensign is a banner, a standard, a flag. The Lord lifts that up so
the people can see. "And he will hiss unto them from the ends of the
earth: and, behold, they shall come with speed swiftly: None shall be weary or
stumble among them; none shall slumber nor sleep; neither shall the girdle of
their loins be loosed." The Lord will hiss, which means to call (literally
to whistle), and people will travel so swiftly they won't pause to change
clothes (which sounds very much like traveling on an airplane). "Nor
[will] the latchet of their shoes be broken."
In Isaiah's day if you
were traveling a great distance, particularly if you hurried, you would get
weary. You might stumble. You would certainly need to sleep. Your clothes would
wear out and need to be changed, and you'd certainly wear out your shoes. Thus
in this passage Isaiah says, in speaking of that great day that would come,
that the Lord would lift up an ensign (or a banner or a standard) to the
nations, and people would come from great distances, and they would come
swiftly. They would not be weary, they wouldn't stumble, they wouldn't sleep,
they wouldn't need to change their clothes, and the latchets of their shoes
would not be broken.
To illustrate a little of his power and strength,
the Lord says, "Whose arrows are sharp and all their bows bent"
(5:28). Consider the figure in that expression. An archer with his bow draws
the bow, and the arrow is sharp, and the bow is bent. There is strength and
power there. "And their horses' hoofs are counted like flint" (5:28).
Now, you know, horses get sore hooves, and then they can't pull the load. But
if they had hooves like flint, they'd go a lot better. "And their wheels
are like a whirlwind, and roaring like a lion, they roar like young lions, yea,
they shall roar" (5:29). All of that is characteristic or illustrative of
strength and power. Isaiah doesn't say people will come in a Boeing 747 or a
DC-10 or anything like that. I suppose the Lord could have gotten him to say
that if it were necessary, but no one would have understood it under those
circumstances. But we can understand that he is talking about rapid means of
transportation in the last days, by which people will come to
Look in Isa. 54. We
have stakes in the Church—stake organizations, stake centers. A stake is
patterned after the central organization of the Church, like the organization
of the General Authorities: a First Presidency and a stake presidency; a high
council and a Council of the Twelve. The organization of a stake is similar to
that of the whole Church. The organization of
Isa. 54:2-3 says: "Enlarge the place of
thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare
not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes; For thou shalt break forth
on the right hand and on the left; and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, and
make the desolate cities to be inhabited."
The Lord is talking of a day of restoration
for
We talk sometimes as
if the whole Church is going to go back to
How interesting it
might be for young Latter-day Saints to learn why their local Church unit is
called a stake. It is called a stake because it's a branch of the Church that
is secure and solid.
Isaiah Teaches
about Fasting
Look at Isa. 58. So
far as I know, this is the best and the clearest statement in the Bible about
the purpose of fasting. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gave instructions
about fasting. What he said is more about how to fast than why to
fast. I guess Jesus recognized that the Jews already knew why to fast,
but they did it the wrong way, so he explained how. He said they were to
wash their faces and dress nicely so they didn't look sad on the day of fasting
and they didn't advertise to everybody that they were fasting. Jesus emphasized
the importance of fasting in secret. Isa. 58 points out the benefits of fasting—why
we ought to fast. I don't know of any other place in scripture that does this
as well.
The Lord talks to Isaiah in 58:1: "Cry
aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their
transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins." He is saying, "Now
look, Isaiah, don't go sit down in a corner and whisper this message to them. I
want you to shout this so plainly that they can hear it and that they'll
understand it and that they'll know." He said there was a strange
situation with the house of
"Wherefore have
we afflicted our soul, and thou takest no knowledge?" (58:3). And the Lord
said, in effect, "This is why I didn't respond. You fasted, but not for
the right reasons."
"In the day of
your fast ye find pleasure, and exact all your labours" (58:3). In other
words, "You fast, you have the external appearance, but you don't do it
for the right reasons. You fast for strife."
The Lord said,
"Ye fast for strife and for debate, and to smite with the fist of
wickedness" (58:4). In other words, "You did it to outdo your
neighbor or to show you are more righteous than he is. That's not the right
reason for fasting. If you do fast that way," he said, "you won't get
the proper benefit from fasting."
What is an acceptable
fast? "Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness"
(58:6). Have we been taught that we ought to fast for the remission of sins or
for forgiveness? You can find that idea implied in other literature, but it
actually says it here. I went through the Doctrine and Covenants carefully,
used every concordance I could find, read section after section, and I could
not find a categorical statement in the Doctrine and Covenants that says you
should fast for the forgiveness of sins. We all know we should, and I believe
it, and it is a true principle, but where does the scripture say it? Isa. 58 is
the place.
Another reason for fasting is to loose the
bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, to let the oppressed go free,
that you break every yoke (see 58:6). That verse is talking about sins and
transgressions. This is the reason for fasting, to undo those heavy burdens
that bind us, with which we are limited and bound down, so that the oppressed
can go free, that we break every yoke. That's a major reason for fasting.
What is another
reason? Verse 7: "Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou
bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that
thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?" The
Lord, speaking through Isaiah, gives two reasons for fasting: for our personal
salvation, or our own forgiveness, and to help the poor and the needy. I think
we do the latter quite well; that is, when we fast we usually pay fast
offerings and so on, but there is more to it than that.
Verses 8-10 continue:
"Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall
spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of
the Lord shall be thy reward.
"Then shalt thou
call, and the Lord shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am.
If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the
finger, and speaking vanity;
"And if thou draw
out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy
light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noonday."
We won't have much
darkness if things are as bright as noonday. Verse 11 promises, "And the
Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make
fat thy bones." That simply means we will prosper; it doesn't necessarily
mean that we will get fat. "And thou shalt be like a watered garden, and
like a spring of water, whose waters fail not." The first time I read
those verses, I didn't get that much out of them. But if we read them over and
over and think about them, we can see that the Lord is laying down a great
principle about the purpose of fasting, the benefits of fasting, the way it
should and should not be done, and why it might be that we fast and don't
always grow spiritually. He said the Israelites were fasting for the wrong
reasons. If you fast for the right reasons, the promise is to become "like
a watered garden."
The Lord is talking about how we should take
care of our soul, and one of the ways to do that is proper fasting. We will not
find anywhere in the Bible a more complete or pointed expression of fasting
than in Isa. 58. If we join that with what we have in the New Testament, with
what Jesus says about how to fast and hownot to fast, and we put these
together, we have the best teachings in the scriptures about the purpose, the
way, the mode, and the blessings of fasting.
Modern Usage of Isaiah
Many of our hymns have
phrases from Isaiah. "The Spirit of God" has many borrowed phrases
from Isaiah (see Isa. 41:10; 43:2). Also there is much from Isaiah in Handel's Messiah.
We are familiar with Paul's great statement: "O death, where is thy sting?
O grave, where is thy victory?" (1 Cor. 15:55). In Isa. 25:8 we find
almost the same thing. Paul's description of the Christian soldier—"Take
the shield of faith, the sword of the spirit, the helmet of salvation,"
and so on—is in Eph. 6. More people read Paul than read Isaiah, so Paul is
always thought of as being the one who said that. I'm sure Paul got that from
Isaiah. It's from Isa. 59. Paul enlarges it and polishes it up a little, but
the root of his idea is in Isaiah.
You remember Paul's
great statement "Eye hath not seen, neither hath the ear heard, neither
hath entered into the heart of man, what great things the Lord has prepared for
those that love him" (1 Cor. 2:9). Isaiah said that seven hundred years
before Paul was born. Paul must have gotten it from reading the book of Isaiah.
It's amazing how many things originated with Isaiah.
Questions and Answers
Question: With Isaiah
consisting of several books and several different collections, are they all
clearly distinguished, chapter from chapter?
Answer: Not always.
But there's enough there that you can make a good start, by categorizing it
that way.
Question: Do Bible
scholars agree that the book of Isaiah was written by only one man?
Answer: Biblical scholars are never completely
agreed with each other, but the general idea among non-LDS biblical scholars is
that there are several Isaiahs. They have retreated from this a little because
the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls seems to at least link the chapters into
one group, showing that long ago (200 b.c.), they were all linked together.
However, most biblical scholars today would still interpret these different
types of books and different literary styles as coming from different men. They
make their judgment on another basis too, and that is that any time a future
event is mentioned, some of the learned say, "Well, that must have been
written later because nobody can accurately predict future events." But if
we have faith in the gift of prophecy, that kind of foretelling does not bother
us. The fact that the Book of Mormon quotes Isaiah from the plates of brass
argues well for just one Isaiah.
Question: Mark 7
quotes Isa. 29 as saying people draw near with their lips, but their hearts are
far from the Lord. Jesus said this about the Jews. It is the same thing that
was said about the nineteenth century, in Joseph Smith's First Vision. Which
group of people was Isaiah referring to?
Answer: Like so many
of Isaiah's words, they can fit various peoples at various times. I have
developed a term that I call "pattern prophecies." That is, whenever
you encounter the same situation, the same words apply. In chapter 29 Isaiah
seems to be referring to the people of the last days; this chapter is a
"last days" prophecy. The Savior used it with reference to the Jews
because they were in a similar situation to people in the last days, having
drifted from the word of the Lord and having substituted their own doctrines. I
will summarize it this way. Isaiah talks about the desert blossoming as the
rose. Well, which desert does he mean? Does he mean Mojave or
Notes
This is an edited
version of an address given in 1975 at Education Week in southern
1. Ancient manuscripts
of the Bible were not divided into chapters and verses. That is a rather recent
thing (probably only 700 years ago). We have become accustomed to thinking of
scriptures in terms of chapter and verse. We think everything has to be
double-columned, with chapters and verses. When published that way, scripture
gains clarity as far as identification is concerned, but we lose something
because we begin to think piecemeal rather than think big and by large
concepts. If our scriptures weren't divided into chapters and verses and double
columns, it would be much harder to find particular phrases, but the larger
meaning might be detected more easily than it is now.
(Robert
J. Matthews, Selected Writings of Robert J. Matthews: Gospel Scholars Series
[Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1999], 199.)
Special
Issue: Old Testament, Exodus to Malachi
Ten Keys to
Understanding Isaiah
Nephi
wrote, “Great are the words of Isaiah.“ While many find his prophecies hard to
understand, Isaiah’s “prophetic words can and should shine brightly. …”
Bruce
R. McConkie, “Ten Keys to Understanding Isaiah,” Ensign, Oct.
1973, 78
If our eternal salvation depends upon our ability to understand the writings of
Isaiah as fully and truly as Nephi understood them—and who shall say such is
not the case!—how shall we fare in that great day when with Nephi we shall
stand before the pleasing bar of Him who said: “Great are the words of Isaiah”?
(3 Ne.
23:1.)
To Laman and
Lemuel, the words of Isaiah were as a sealed book. There older brothers of
young Nephi could read the words and understand the language written by
Israel’s great seer, but as for envisioning their true prophetic meaning, it
was with them as though they read words written in an unknown tongue.
The risen
Lord commanded the Nephites and all the house of
Laman and
Lemuel are but prototypes of most of modern Christendom. They were almost
totally unable to understand the difficult doctrines of this ancient prophet,
and for their lack of spiritual discernment they found themselves on the
downward path leading to everlasting destruction.
When father
Lehi “spake many great things unto them, which were hard to be understood, save
a man should inquire of the Lord,” they rebelled against his teachings and
refused to “look unto the Lord” to learn their true meaning. Asked by Nephi,
“Have ye inquired of the Lord?” to learn the true meaning of the prophetic
utterances, they responded, “We have not; for the Lord maketh no such thing
known unto us.”
Then Nephi
quoted to them—in the language of the Lord God himself—the great promise and
law whereby any man can come to know the true meaning of the revealed word: “If
ye will not harden your hearts, and ask me in faith, believing that ye shall
receive, with diligence in keeping my commandments, surely these things shall
be made known unto you.” (See 1 Ne. 15:1–11.)
Nephi said:
“… my soul delighteth in the words of Isaiah. …” (2 Ne. 25:5.)
Personally, I feel about Isaiah and his utterances the same way Nephi felt and
think that if I expect to go where Nephi and Isaiah have gone, I had better
speak their language, think their thoughts, know what they knew, believe and
teach what they believed and taught, and live as they lived.
It just may
be that my salvation (and yours also!) does in fact depend upon our ability to
understand the writings of Isaiah as fully and truly as Nephi understood them.
For that
matter, why should either Nephi or Isaiah know anything that is withheld from
us? Does not that God who is no respecter of persons treat all his children
alike? Has he not given us his promise and recited to us the terms and
conditions of his law pursuant to which he will reveal to us what he has
revealed to them?
If the Lord
Jehovah revealed to Isaiah that “a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son,”
whose very name shall be “God is with us” (Isa. 7:14); if this “child”
shall be “The mighty God, The everlasting Father,” who shall reign “with
judgment and with justice” forever (Isa. 9:6–7); if he is
to “make his soul an offering for sin,” and place his “grave with the wicked” (Isa. 53:9–10);
if his redemptive promise to all men is: “Thy dead men shall live, together
with my dead body shall they arise” (Isa. 26:19); if he
shall gather Israel in the last days and bring “the ransomed of the Lord … to
Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads” (Isa. 35:10); if his
people “shall see eye to eye, when the Lord shall bring again Zion” (Isa. 52:8);
if these and a great host of other glorious truths were known to Isaiah and
Nephi, should they be hidden from us? Why should either of these prophets know
what we do not know? Is not the Lord Jehovah our God also?
Let us freely
acknowledge that many people find Isaiah hard to understand. His words are
almost totally beyond the comprehension of those in the Churches of the world.
Nephi said, “… Isaiah spake many things which were hard for many of my people
to understand. …” (2 Ne. 25:1.) Even in
the true church, among those who should be enlightened by the gift of the Holy
Ghost, there are those who skip the Isaiah chapters in the Book of Mormon as
though they were part of a sealed book, which perhaps they are to them. If, as
many suppose, Isaiah ranks with the most difficult of the prophets to
understand, his words are also among the most important for us to know and
ponder. Some Latter-day Saints have managed to open the seal and catch a
glimpse of the prophetic wonders that came from his pen, but even among the
Saints there is little more than a candle glow where this great treasure trove
is concerned.
But the
seeric vision of Isaiah need not be buried under a bushel; his prophetic words
can and should shine brightly in the heart of every member of the Church. If
there are those who truly desire to enlarge and perfect their knowledge of the
plan of salvation and of the Lord’s dealings with latter-day Israel—all in
harmony with his command to search diligently the words of Isaiah (3 Ne. 23:1)—I
can give them the key which opens the door to that flood of light and knowledge
that flowed from the pen of that witness of Christ and his laws who in many
respects was Israel’s greatest prophet. Here, in fact, are my ten keys to
understanding Isaiah:
The book of
Isaiah is not a definitive work that outlines and explains the doctrines of
salvation, as do 2 Nephi and
Isaiah’s love
and interests center in the chosen race. His most detailed and extensive
prophecies portray the latter-day triumph and glory of Jacob’s seed. He is
above all else the prophet of the restoration.
As foretold
by all the holy prophets since the world began, the Lord’s program calls for a
restitution of all things. That is, every truth, doctrine, power, priesthood,
gift, grace, miracle, ordinance, and mighty work ever possessed or performed in
any age of faith shall come again. The gospel enjoyed by Adam shall dwell in
the hearts of Adam’s descendants before and during the great millennial era.
These are the
things of which Isaiah wrote. Of all the ancient prophets, he is the one whose
recorded words preserve for us the good news of restoration, of the gospel
coming again, of the everlasting covenant once more being established, of the
kingdom being restored to
His chief
doctrinal contributions fall into seven categories: (a) restoration of the
gospel in latter days through Joseph Smith, (b) latter-day gathering of Israel
and her final triumph and glory, (c) coming forth of the Book of Mormon as a
new witness for Christ and the total revolution it will eventually bring in the
doctrinal understanding of men, (d) apostate conditions of the nations of the
world in the latter days, (e) messianic prophecies relative to our Lord’s first
coming, (f) second coming of Christ and the millennial reign, and (g)
historical data and prophetic utterances relative to his own day.
In all of
this, once again, the emphasis is on the day of restoration and on the past,
present, and future gathering of
It is our
habit in the Church—a habit born of slovenly study and a limited perspective—to
think of the restoration of the gospel as a past event and of the gathering of
Israel as one that, though still in process, is in large measure accomplished.
It is true that we have the fulness of the everlasting gospel in the sense that
we have those doctrines, priesthoods, and keys which enable us to gain the
fulness of reward in our Father’s kingdom. It is also true that a remnant of
But the
restoration of the wondrous truths known to Adam, Enoch, Noah, and Abraham has
scarcely commenced. The sealed portion of the Book of Mormon is yet to be
translated. All things are not to be revealed anew until the Lord comes. The
greatness of the era of restoration is yet ahead. And as to
Isaiah is
everywhere known as the messianic prophet because of the abundance, beauty, and
perfection of his prophetic utterances foretelling the first coming of our
Lord. And truly such he is. No old world prophet, whose inspired sayings have
come down to us, can compare with him in this respect. Moreover, the first
coming of the Messiah is past, and so even those among us who are not overly
endowed with spiritual insight can look back and see in the birth, ministry,
and death of our Lord the fulfillment of Isaiah’s forecasts.
But if we are
to truly comprehend the writings of Isaiah, we cannot overstate or overstress
the plain, blunt reality that he is in fact the prophet of the restoration, the
mighty seer of Jacob’s seed who foresaw our day and who encouraged our
Israelite fathers in their spiritually weary and disconsolate state, with
assurances of glory and triumph ahead for those of their descendants who would
return to the Lord in the last days and at that time serve him in truth and
righteousness.
In the book
of Isaiah, as recorded in the King James Version of the Bible, there are 66
chapters composed of 1,292 verses. Isaiah’s writings, in an even more perfect
form than found in our Bible, were preserved on the brass plates, and from this
source the Nephite prophets quoted 414 verses and paraphrased at least another
34. (In a half a dozen or so instances duplicate verses are quoted or
paraphrased.) In other words, one-third of the book of Isaiah (32 percent, to
be exact) is quoted in the Book of Mormon and about another 3 percent is
paraphrased.
And the Book
of Mormon prophets—note this carefully and let its significance dawn upon
you—the Book of Mormon prophets interpreted the passages they used, with the
result that this volume of latter-day scripture becomes the witness for and the
revealer of the truths of this chief book of Old Testament prophecies. The Book
of Mormon is the world’s greatest commentary on the book of Isaiah.
And may I be
so bold as to affirm that no one, absolutely no one, in this age and
dispensation has or does or can understand the writings of Isaiah until he
first learns and believes what God has revealed by the mouths of his Nephite
witnesses as these truths are found in that volume of holy writ of which he
himself swore this oath: “… as your Lord and your God liveth it is true.” (D&C 17:6.)
As Paul would have said, “… because he could swear by no greater, he sware by
himself” (Heb.
6:13), saying in his own name that the Book of Mormon, and therefore
the writings of Isaiah recorded therein, are his own mind and will and voice.
The saints of God know thereby that the sectarian speculations relative to
Deutero-Isaiah and others being partial authors of the book of Isaiah are like
the rest of the vagaries to which the intellectuals in and out of the Church
give their misplaced allegiance.
The Lord by
direct revelation has also taken occasion in our day to interpret, approve,
clarify, and enlarge upon the writings of Isaiah.
When
There are
also, of course, numerous allusions to and explanations of the great seer’s
words in the sermons of Joseph Smith and the other inspired teachers of
righteousness of this dispensation. So often it takes only a prophetically
uttered statement, revealing the age or place or subject involved in a
particular passage in the writings of any prophet, to cause the whole passage
and all related ones to shine forth with their true meaning and import.
It truly
takes revelation to understand revelation, and what is more natural than to
find the Lord Jehovah, who revealed his truths anciently, revealing the same
eternal verities today and so tying his ancient and modern words together, that
we may be blessed by our knowledge of what he has said in all ages.
Isaiah is a
prophet’s prophet; his words live in the hearts of those who themselves are
authoring holy writ. He is quoted at least 57 times in the New Testament. Paul
is his chief disciple, calling upon his word some twenty times in his various
epistles. Peter uses him as authority in seven instances. He is also quoted
seven times in Matthew, five times each in Mark, Luke, and Acts, and four times
in both John and Revelation. Some of these quotations are duplicates, some are
messianic in nature, and all establish the revealed meaning of the original
writing.
Other Old
Testament prophets preached the same doctrines and held out the same hopes to
One of the
reasons many of the Nephites did not understand the words of Isaiah was that
they did not know “concerning the manner of prophesying among the Jews.” (2 Ne. 25:1.)
And so it is with all Christendom, plus many Latter-day Saints.
Nephi chose
to couch his prophetic utterances in plain and simple declarations. But among
his fellow Hebrew prophets it was not always appropriate so to do. Because of
the wickedness of the people, Isaiah and others often spoke in figures, using
types and shadows to illustrate their points. Their messages were, in effect,
hidden in parables. (2 Ne. 25:1–8.)
For instance,
the virgin birth prophecy is dropped into the midst of a recitation of local
historical occurrences so that to the spiritually untutored it could be
interpreted as some ancient and unknown happening that had no relationship to
the birth of the Lord Jehovah into mortality some 700 years later. (Isa. 7.)
Similarly, many chapters dealing with latter-day apostasy and the second coming
of Christ are written relative to ancient nations whose destruction was but a
symbol, a type, and a shadow, of that which would fall upon all nations when
the great and dreadful day of the Lord finally came. Chapters 13 and 14 are an
example of this. Once we learn this system and use the interpretive keys found
in the Book of Mormon and through latter-day revelation, we soon find the
Isaiah passages unfolding themselves to our view.
In the final
analysis there is no way, absolutely none, to understand any scripture except
to have the same spirit of prophecy that rested upon the one who uttered the
truth in its original form. Scripture comes from God by the power of the Holy
Ghost. It does not originate with man. It means only what the Holy Ghost thinks
it means. To interpret it, we must be enlightened by the power of the Holy
Spirit. (2 Pet. 1:20–21.)
It takes a prophet to understand a prophet, and every faithful member of the
Church should have “the testimony of Jesus” which “is the spirit of prophecy.”
(Rev.
19:10.) “The words of Isaiah,” Nephi said, “… are plain unto all
those that are filled with the spirit of prophecy.” (2 Ne. 25:4.) This is
the sum and substance of the whole matter and an end to all controversy where
discovering the mind and will of the Lord is concerned.
Read, ponder,
and pray—verse by verse, thought by thought, passage by passage, chapter by
chapter! As Isaiah himself asks: “Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall
he make to understand doctrine?” His answer: “them that are weaned from the
milk, and drawn from the breasts. For precept must be upon precept, precept upon
precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little.” (Isa. 28:9–10.)
Let us then
glance hastily through the 66 chapters that comprise the writings of this man,
who according to tradition was sawn asunder for the testimony of Jesus which
was his, and outline enough to guide us in a more detailed analysis.
|
Chapters |
Events |
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Apostasy
and rebellion in ancient |
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Quoted by
Nephi in 2
Ne. 12–24. General interpretation in 2 Ne. 11, 2 Ne. 19,
2 Ne. 25,
2 Ne. 26. |
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2 Ne. 12. Gathering of |
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2 Ne. 13. Status of |
|
|
2 Ne. 14. Millennial. |
|
|
2 Ne. 15. Apostasy and
scattering of |
|
|
2 Ne. 16. Isaiah’s vision
and call. Isa. 6:9–10 are
messianic. |
|
|
2 Ne. 17. Local history
except Isa. 7:10–16,
which are messianic. 2 Ne. 11. |
|
|
2 Ne. 18. Local wars and
history; counsel on identifying true religion. Isa. 8:13–17 are
messianic. |
|
|
2 Ne. 19–20. Local history:
destruction of wicked |
|
|
2 Ne. 21. Restoration;
gathering of |
|
|
2 Ne. 22. Millennial. |
|
|
2 Ne. 23. Overthrow of |
|
|
2 Ne. 24. Millennial
gathering of |
|
|
Local
prophecies and history; fate of those who oppose |
|
|
Restoration;
gathering of |
|
|
Local;
salvation for |
|
|
Local. |
|
|
Local, but
typifying second coming. Isa. 22:21–25 is
messianic. |
|
|
Local. |
|
|
Latter-day
apostasy and second coming. D&C 1. |
|
|
Second coming.
Isa.
25:8 is also messianic. |
|
|
Second
coming; resurrection; millennium. |
|
|
Millennial
triumph of |
|
|
Desolations
incident to second coming. Isa. 28:16 is
messianic. |
|
|
2 Ne. 26:14–20, 27. Nephites, last
days, apostasy, Book of Mormon, and restoration. This Book of Mormon account
is one of the best illustrations of an inspired interpretation of a chapter
that is difficult to understand. |
|
|
|
|
|
The world
vs. the second coming. |
|
|
Apostasy of
|
|
|
Apostasy
followed by restoration. |
|
|
Restoration;
gathering; second coming. D&C 133. |
|
|
Local
history of inspiration and beauty. |
|
|
Second
coming. Isa. 40:1–11 are
messianic. |
|
|
God reasons
with |
|
|
Isa. 42:1–8, 16 are messianic; the
balance of the chapter praises God and bemoans |
|
|
Restoration
and gathering. |
|
|
Restoration
and gathering. |
|
|
|
|
|
Idols vs.
true God, both anciently and now. |
|
|
|
|
|
1 Ne. 20; 1 Ne. 21.
Scattering and gathering of |
|
|
2 Ne. 7; 2 Ne. 8.
Scattering, gathering, restoration, second coming. 2 Ne. 9:1–3; 2 Ne. 10.
Isa.
50:5–6 is messianic. |
|
|
Restoration
and gathering. Mosiah 12:20–25;
Mosiah
15:13–18; 3 Ne. 16, 20, 21; Moro.
10:30–31; D&C 113:7–10. Isa.
52:13–15 are messianic. |
|
|
Mosiah 14. Probably the
greatest single Old Testament messianic prophecy. Mosiah 15–16. |
|
|
Restoration
and gathering; millennial. 3 Ne. 22; 3 Ne.
23:1–6, 14. |
|
|
Apostasy;
restoration; gathering; glory of latter-day |
|
|
Second
coming. D&C
133. |
|
|
|
|
|
Restoration
and second coming. |
For our
purposes now, two things only need to be added to our recitations relative to
Isaiah the seer, Isaiah the prophet of restoration, Isaiah the messianic
prophet:
1. Scriptural
understanding and great insight relative to the doctrines of salvation are
valuable only insofar as they change and perfect the lives of men, only in so
far as they live in the hearts of those who know them; and
2. What Isaiah
wrote is true; he was God’s mouthpiece in his time and season; the glories and
wonders he promised for our day will surely come to pass; and if we are true
and faithful we will participate in them, whether in life or in death. This is
my witness.