6  Pass ye over to Tarshish; howl, ye inhabitants of the isle.
7  Is this your joyous city, whose antiquity is even from ancient days?
   And whose own feet hath carried her afar off to sojourn there?
8  Who hath determined and taken this counsel against Tyre,
   The crowning city, whose merchants are princes,
   Whose traders are the chief men of earth?
9  The LORD of hosts hath purposed it,
   To stain the pride of all glory,
   And to bring into contempt,
   The chief men of earth.
10 Pass through thy land as a river,
   O daughter of Tarshish, there is no more strength.
11 He stretched out his hand over the sea, and he shook the kingdoms.
   The LORD hath given a commandment against the merchant city,
   To destroy the strong holds thereof.
12 And he said,
   Thou shalt no more rejoice,
   O thou oppressed maiden, daughter of Sidon.
   Arise, pass over to Chittim; there also shalt thou have no rest.

6. Howl, ye children of Satan, whose origin dates back to the beginning with God. It was their own feet, or doings, that got them cast out of heaven to sojourn on earth for a time. (See Rev. 12:4,7-9.) Who has done this to the "princes" and dealers in worldly things?
7. Jesus is purposed to defeat and rule over Satan/sea. He also brings down the proud. Because the sea represents Satan, you should quickly see how important a sign it was (or should have been for the Jews) for Jesus to calm the seas, and even to walk upon it, showing his complete mastery over Satan, symbolically.
10. Following the Atonement of Jesus, Satan is defeated and will eventually lose all of his power.
11. The success of Jesus shook all of the kingdoms of the sea/Satan, to destroy his strongholds.
12. No matter where Satan looks for it, he will never find rest/peace, which is promised to only the righteous.

 

 

13 Behold the land of the Chaldeans; this people was not till the Assyrian founded it.
   For them that dwell in the wilderness, they set up the towers thereof,
   And raised up the palaces thereof; and he brought it to ruin.
14 Howl, ye ships of Tarshish,
   For your strength is laid waste.
15 And it shall come to pass in that day,
   That Tyre shall be forgotten seventy years,
   According to the lifetime of a king.
   After the end of seventy years,
   Shall Tyre sing as an harlot:
16 Take an harp, go about the city,
   Thou harlot that hast been forgotten;
   Make sweet melody, sing many songs,
   That thou mayest be remembered.
17 And it shall come to pass after the end of seventy years,
   That the LORD will again visit Tyre; and she shall turn to her hire,
   And shall commit fornication with all of the kingdoms upon the face of the earth.
18 But her merchandise and her hire shall be holiness unto the LORD.
   It shall not be treasured up, nor laid up;
   For her merchandise shall be for them,
   That dwell before the LORD,
   To eat sufficiently,
   And for durable clothing.

13. The Chaldeans and the Assyrians dwelt in the wilderness in the sense of not having the truth about God. Again, they represent Satan's earth of mighty worldly things, and it is their own doing that it will be brought to ruin.
15-17. Meanings unknown even though Israel was in exile for seventy years.

 

 

CHAPTER 24

1  Behold, the LORD maketh the earth empty,
   And maketh it waste,
   And turneth it upside down,
   And scattereth abroad the inhabitants thereof.
2  And it shall be, as with the people, so with the priest;
   As with the servant, so with his master; as with the maid, so with her mistress;
   As with a buyer, so with a seller; as with a lender, so with a borrower;
   And as with the taker of usury, so with the giver of usury to him.
3  The land shall become utterly emptied and utterly spoiled;
   For the LORD hath spoken this word.
4  The earth mourneth and fadeth away,
   The world languisheth and fadeth away,
   The haughty people of the earth do languish.
5  The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof,
   Because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance,
   And broken the everlasting covenant.

1-15. All of these verses, in hyperbole, most likely apply in the larger sense to the fall of mankind. In a very real way, mankind is destroyed because of Adam's fall. Then in the last verse there is shouting and happiness because the Lord has saved the world through the atonement.
1. This opening and declarative statement makes it perfectly clear who is all powerful and in charge. The image of overturning the earth and shaking of its inhabitants might be meant hyperbolically, but surely such a total destruction is possible for God. The "Behold" means to look into the future and see.
2. These lines indicate that the destruction will be for all.
3. This line means that all the Jews world will come to an end, no matter how great some of Abraham's children think they are. .
5. This tells us that the earth itself is offended because of all the sins that have been committed. Primarily, he speaks of Israel, for these indictments are the same throughout Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Zechariah. (Cf. D&C 1:15.)

 

 

6  Therefore hath a curse devoureth the earth,
   And all they that dwell therein are left desolate;
   Therefore the inhabitants are burned, and very few men are left.
7  The new wine mourneth, and the vine languisheth; all the merry hearted do sigh.
8  The mirth of tabrets ceaseth, the noise rejoicing endeth, the joy of the harp ceaseth.
9  They shall not drink wine with a song, strong drink shall be bitter unto them that drink it.
10 The city of confusion is broken down; every house is shut up, that no man may come in.
11 There is crying for wine in the streets; all joy is darkened, the mirth is gone.
12 In the city is left desolation, and the gate is smitten with destruction.
13 When thus it shall be in the midst of the land among the people,
   There shall be as the shaking out of an olive tree,
   And as the gleaning of grapes when the vintage is done.
14 They shall lift up their voice, they shall sing for the majesty of the LORD,
15 They shall shout aloud from the sea. Wherefore glorify ye the LORD in the fires,
   Even the name of the LORD God of Israel in the isles of the sea.

6. Israel is cursed, but again Isaiah speaks of the remnant that will be left.
7. The vine/people languish because they no longer receive wine/revelations.
9. Strong wine/truth shall be bitter to the proud and blind children of Abraham.
10. Their houses/minds are shut up. They will not listen.
11. Sadness has been the lot of the Jews for 2000 years.
12. There will be no entering in at the "strait gate" for a long time.
13. Finally the Jews are to be harvested, even like a gleaning takes nearly everything.
14. Then the Jews shall shout with joy, after receiving the truth once more. "From the sea" refers to the planet of water on which we live, or the world. "Fires" is paralleled with "isles of the sea" and so must also mean our planet, referring to a planet of volcanoes. They are all admonished to glorify the Lord from the far east to the far west, they have heard of glories of the Lord.

 

16 From the uttermost part of the earth have we heard songs,
   Even glory given to the righteous; but I said,
   My leanness, my leanness, woe unto me!
   The treacherous dealers have dealt treacherously,
   Yea, the treacherous dealers have dealt very treacherously.
17 Fear, and the pit, and the snare are upon thee, O inhabitant of the earth.
18 And it shall come to pass, that he who fleeth from the fearful noise shall fall in the pit,
   And he that cometh up out of the midst of the pit shall be taken in the snare.
   For the windows on high are open, and the earth's foundations do shake.
19 The earth is utterly broken down, the earth is dissolved,
   The earth is moved exceedingly.
20 The earth shall reel,
   To and fro like a drunkard;
   And it shall be moved like a shanty,
   And the sins thereof shall be heavy upon it;
   And it shall fall down, and it shall not rise again.
21 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the LORD shall punish,
   The hosts of high ones that are on high, the kings of the earth upon the earth.
22 And they shall be gathered together as prisoners are gathered in a pit,
   And they shall be shut up as if in prison.
   And after many days they shall be visited there.
23 Then the moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed,
   When the LORD of hosts shall reign in mount Zion, and in Jerusalem,
   And before his ancients gloriously.

16. "my leanness" refers to the lack of fatness. Fat or fatness refers to having an abundance of truth and knowledge (bread and water), to be well nourished by the word of the Lord.  Everywhere they have heard of "those"/Saints that are glorious. But they worry that it is too late because treacherous dealers (Satan's hosts) have misled them into many false ways.
17. This life is a test of our faith and great perils await us of every kind.
18. All are in danger of being snared and taken by the "treacherous ones," meaning Satan and his followers. In other words, not one will escape completely.
19-20. This describes the condition of the world, in hyperbole, after the fall, lost to sin.
21. Following the end of the world, he shall punish the proud ones on Judgment Day.
22. The proud and wicked are gathered like prisoners, and will be taught by missionaries in the spirit world for many days during the Millennium----until the end of the world.
23. Relative to the Light of Christ, the sun, moon, and stars will be dimmed, even ashamed. This also refers to the shame that the truth will bring to those who worship the sun, the moon, and the stars. The Lord will overcome and rule in the presence of his glorious ones that aare to be saved. This leads directly to chapter 25.

CHAPTER 25

1  O LORD, thou art my God.
   I will extol thee,
   I will praise thy name;
   For thou hast done wonderful things,
   Thy counsels of old are faithfulness and truth.
2  For thou hast made a city an heap, a defensed city a ruin,
   A palace of strangers to be no city; for it shall never be built.
3  Therefore shall the strong people give glorify thee,
   The city of the terrible nations shall fear thee.
4  For thou hast been a strength to the poor,
   A strength to the needy in his distress,
   A refuge from the storm, a shadow from the heat,
   When the blast of the terrible ones is a storm against the wall.
5  Thou shalt bring down the noise of strangers, as the heat in a dry place,
   Even as the heat is brought down by the shadow of a cloud.
   The branch of the terrible ones shall be brought low.
6  And in this mountain shall make unto all people,
   A feast of fat things, a feast of wines on the lees well refined.
   
1. Jesus Christ did all the Father asked of him in the pre-existence. He created the world. Then he came into the world and atoned for our sins, that we may not suffer a spiritual death.
2. The city and palace that will never be built is the kingdom that Satan thought would be his, but it will never be, because Jesus has defeated him.
3. Therefore the previously strong and terrible will become faithful, and will glorify his name, while the wicked cringe and hide.
4. He is a strength to the poor in spirit (the humble), and a refuge of safety from Satan, who is as a blasting storm against us. We are the needy in distress because of our sins.
5. Jesus will bring down the branch of Satan, where "branch" is used in the same sense as it is used to describe the righteous part of the vine of the Lord's vineyard (Cp. Isa. 4:2, 14:19, 60:21). God's branch will be saved, unlike the branches of the "vine" that will be pruned and cast into the fire. Others replace branch with song.
6. In the Lord's mountain where the righteous are found, there will be a feast of more than "bread," which represents truth and knowledge. This feast will include truth and knowledge as it as heretofore never been revealed. Compared to "bread" this feast will be the most fat, richest "food" there is. And wine, the purest of the pure, meaning that which is made from the free-flow, following the crushing. No pits, no skins, no stems, which make up the "lees"; just pure juice will be used in this fermentation---the very best in other words. But least we forget, we are again talking about rich wine compared to "living waters." This is probably also referring to the rewards in the hereafter for the righteous, namely, Eternal Life or Salvation, which is suggested by the next line.

7  And he will destroy in this mountain the face of the covering cast over all people,
   And the veil that is spread over all the nations.
8  He will swallow up death in victory,
   And the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from off all faces,
   And the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth,
   For the LORD hath spoken it. And it shall be said in that day,
   Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him,
   And he will save us.
   This is the LORD;
   We have waited for him.
   We will be glad and rejoice in his salvation.
10 For in this mountain shall the hand of the LORD rest,
   And Moab shall be trodden down,
   Even as straw is trodden down for the dunghill.
11 And he shall spread forth his hands in the midst of them,
   As he that swimmeth spreadeth forth his hands to swim in water.
   And he shall bring down their pride together with the spoils of their hands.
12 And the fortress of the high fort of thy walls shall he bring down,
   Lay low, and bring to the ground,
   Even to the dust.

7. The Lord, Jesus Christ, will destroy or remove the covering or veil of spiritual death that is cast over all people because of sin.
8. (Repeat of v7) He will destroy a spiritual death with his victory. The Atonement will wipe away the tears from all faces, by removing any reproach for their sins. The KJV uses "rebuke" in this line. JV, RSV, and Gileadi all use "reproach." "K.D. uses "shame. "Rebuke" means punishment, but either seems to work.
9. The underlining indicates the parallels in a synonymous parallelism. We have waited for him (Cf. Ps. 37:9, 25:21), and he will save us. We have waited for him; we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation. To be saved (salvation), is to have the covering of death removed.
10. For in the earth shall the hand of the LORD rest [bring peace], and Moab [the wicked world, with Satan] shall have a ugly end, if it is at all like this image of a dung hill.
11. Jehovah shall spread forth his hands, showing them his spoils, which are the scars in the palms of his hands. The spoils of his hands), will bring the spoils of their hands, to humility. He will spread his hands like paddles, with the hands flattened and the fingers extended, which will reveal his palms, showing them the scars from the nails.
12. "The fortress of the high fort of thy walls" means their pride. It is what keeps them from hearing the Lord.

 

CHAPTER 26

1  In that day shall this song be sung in the land of Judah.
   We have a strong city; salvation will God appoint for walls and bulwarks.
2  Open ye the gates, that the righteous nation which keepeth the truth may enter in.
3  Thou wilt keep him in thy perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee.
*  Because he trusteth in thee, trust ye in the LORD for ever;
   For in the LORD JEHOVAH there is everlasting strength.
5  He bringeth down all them that dwell on high;
   The lofty city, he layeth it down low;
   He layeth it low, unto the ground,
   He bringeth it even to the dust.
6  The foot shall tread it down,
   Even the feet of the poor,
   And the steps of the needy.
7  The way of the just is uprightness;
   Thou, most upright, dost weigh the path of the just.
8  Yea, in the way of thy judgments, O LORD, have we waited for thee.
   The desire of our soul is thy name, and to the remembrance of thee.

1. Chapter twenty-five celebrates the accomplishments of Jesus, these verses are a song of joy because of what those accomplishments mean to all of the world, including the Jews. "City" means a group or community of people like the Jews. This is a statement pertaining to the righteous who repent and take advantage of the mercy God, which has been made available through the atonement of Jesus. See Heb.11:10.
2. Open the "strait gates" to the "narrow way" that the righteous may enter in. This statement is after the fact, because Jesus opened the gates.
3. For those who "stay" (trust and depend) on the Lord, Jesus Christ, there will be peace, real eternal peace.
4. There is no other in whom we can put our trust, only in Jehovah, who has been revealed to be Jesus Christ.
5. He bringeth down the proud to nothing, to be walked on by the righteous, figuratively.
7. The way is "made level" (made easy) for the righteous, as opposed to peaks and valleys for the wicked. The KJV uses "weigh," but on a balance scale it is to level.
8. This seems to be the words of all, in a general way, waiting for Jesus to accomplish his sacrifice and atonement. In a more specific way, it is said by the Jews of today who have waited so long for the Messiah, their "bridegroom." This should remind us of the covenants made at the sacrament table----to always remember him.

 

9  With my soul have I desired thee in the night;
   Yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early,
   For when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants will learn righteousness.
10 Let favor be shown to the wicked, yet will he not learn righteousness;
   In a land of uprightness, will he deal unjustly,
   And will not behold the majesty of the LORD.
11 LORD, when thy hand is lifted up, they will not see;
   But they shall see, and be ashamed for their envy at the people,
   Yea, the fire of thine enemies shall devour them.
12 LORD, thou wilt ordain peace for us;
   For thou also hast wrought all our works in us.
13 O LORD our God, other lords besides thee have had dominion over us,
   But by thee only will we make mention of thy name.
14 They are dead, and they shall not live;
   They are deceased, and they shall not rise;
   Therefore hast thou visited them and destroyed them,
   And made all their memory of thee to perish.
15 Thou hast increased the nation, O LORD,
   Thou hast increased the nation, and art glorified.
   Thou hast removed it far unto all the ends of the earth.
16 LORD, in trouble have they visited thee, and poured out a prayer,
   When thy chastening was upon them.

9. The voice of the Jews continues. "In the night," means in this life of darkness/ignorance where we must search out the truth and come into the "light." (Cf. 8:20.) For the Jews, "in the night" means the time they were scattered about the world in ignorance of the truth.
11.The fire of the Lord's enemies will consume them, or the fires of hell.
12. The Lord has been in total control all the way for Israel, or the Jews. He has been behind everything that has happened to them. Now they will be ready for peace, the true God.
13. Isaiah and the other prophets told how Israel chased after other lords. All of us have chased after other lords of one form or another in our lifetimes. Power, money and social acceptance are only a few examples.
14. This refers back to the "other lords" of v13.
15. The Jews have been scattered like seed all across the world, and when they find the truth about God and are converted, the Lord's community, Zion, will fill the whole world. This seeding of the world to spread Gospel truths was in God's design from the beginning.
16. This could be meant as a criticism that they have only prayed unto their God when they have been in distress, and not all the time as they should.

 

 

17 Like as a woman with child,
   That draweth near the time of her delivery, is in pain,
   And crieth out in her pangs, so have we been in thy sight, O LORD.
18 We have been with child, we have been in pain, but we have as it were brought forth wind.
   We have not wrought any deliverance, neither have the inhabitants of the world fallen.
19 Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise.
   Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust;
   For thy dew is as the dew of herbs,
   And the earth shall cast out the dead.
20 Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers,
   And shut thy doors about thee.
   Hide thyself as it were,
   For a little moment,
   Until the indignation be overpassed.
21 For, behold, the LORD cometh out of his place,
   To punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity.
   The earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain.

17. Both Israel and mankind has been struggling with this world, much like a woman giving birth.
18. Israel had a beginning, but it lasted for a relative short time. After all of their "labors" they have not "delivered" a nation (Cf. 66:7), and neither has any of mankind delivered themselves from the power of Satan (a deliverance from sin).
18b. This line appears to be a synonymous parallelism, and so both phrases must mean the same; that their has been no deliverance for Israel or the world (not until Christ).
19. Double meaning: First, Israel has been as though dead but they shall live again as a nation; second, there shall be a resurrection of the dead, just as Jesus was resurrected. It will happen like the dew causes plants to come forth from the earth.
20. This is a promise that things will get better for Israel.
21. The Lord will come forth to "punish" the wicked. His "punishment" consists of his paying for the wicked's sins by dying on the cross. As a result, the earth shall no longer hold the dead, because they will be resurrected.

 

CHAPTER 27
 
1  In that day the LORD with his sore and great and strong sword shall punish leviathan,
   The piercing serpent, even leviathan that crooked serpent;
   And he shall slay the dragon that is in the sea.
2  In that day, sing ye unto her:
   A vineyard of red wine.
3  I the LORD do keep it;
   I will water it every moment;
   Lest any hurt it, I will keep it night and day.
4  Fury is not in me; who would set briers and thorns against me in battle?
   I would go through them; I would burn them together.
5  Or let them take hold of my strength,
   That he may make peace with me;
   And he shall make peace with me.
6  He shall cause them that come of Jacob to take root.
   Israel shall blossom and bud, and fill the face of the world with fruit.
7  Hath he smitten him, the same as he hath smitten those that have smitten him?
   Or is he slain according to the slaughter of them that are slain by him?
8  Measure for measure, when it shooteth forth, thou wilt debate with it.
   He stayeth his rough wind in the day of the east wind.
   
1. In the last day, Satan (the serpent of the deep) will be utterly destroyed by Jesus Christ. The following are the same: Satan, Leviathan, piercing serpent, dragon of the deep.
2. Because of Satan's defeat by Jesus, a song is in order. This song is sung to "her," the Lord's vineyard, meaning Israel, all Israel not just the Jews.
3. The Lord's love of Israel has never been in question, and this image of his great care for "her" supports this. The "anger" that is no more suggests that these lines especially apply to the time of the gathering, when all the righteous are gathered.
4. "Briars and thorns" are those who fight against the Lord, the opposite of pleasant vines. The Lord would "war" with them in order to convert them, to get them to change their ways. He desires to burn them with a fire of baptism, which is the Holy Ghost.
5-6. In other words, trust in "me" and the gathering of Jacob/Israel  will take place.
7. In these lines "He" is the Lord, "Him" is Israel. This is a question suggesting that the Lord hasn't punished Israel the same as he has punished Assyria and Babylon, because unlike them, Israel still exists, although fragmented. It is plain, then, that Israel's sins were not considered by the Lord to be as bad as theirs. But we should remember that the Lord said, in chapter one, that they were as Sodom and Gomorrah. He even referred to them by these names, indicating how sinful they were.
8. This answers the questions of (7): No. The Lord didn't wipe the Israelites off the earth completely. The Lord exiled them, just as they had exiled him---even measure for measure. In the day of the dreaded East Wind the Lord held back his hand somewhat.

9  By this therefore shall the iniquity of Jacob be purged,
   And this is the only fruit to take away his sin:
   When he maketh all the stones of the altar,
   As chalk stones beaten in sunder,
   The groves and images shall not stand.
10 Yet the defensed city shall be desolate,
   And the habitation forsaken, and left like a wilderness.
   There shall the calf feed, and there shall he lie down, and consume the branches thereof.
11 When the boughs thereof are withered, and shall be broken off: the women come,
   And set them on fire; for it is a people of no understanding,
   Therefore he that made them will not have mercy on them,
   And he that formed them will show them no favor.
12 And then it shall come to pass in that day,
   That the LORD shall beat off,
   From the channel of the river unto the stream of Egypt,
   And ye shall be gathered, one by one, O ye children of Israel.
13 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the great trumpet shall be blown,
   And they shall come which were ready to perish in the land of Assyria,
   And the outcasts in the land of Egypt, and shall worship the LORD,
   In the holy mount at Jerusalem.

9. The Lord declares that their exile will purge them of their sins. He expects the exile to free them from idolatry and the worship of false gods.
10. The fortified "city" represents Israel's false confidence in being God's chosen people. This image is one of a quiet pasture where the "vines" will be eaten as mere fodder. The House of Israel, as it was known, will be left desolate.
11. The boughs or branches of the Lord's vine will wither and die, and be used for fuel. Israel has lost the truths that they once had. Historically, they had fallen away from God again and again, even until Babylon took them away. They never had a true prophet after Babylon. The third line should probably end with "any longer," because once they did have understanding.
12. Now we jump back to the Lord's promises for our day. Then ye (Israel) shall in that day be harvested with a stick (beat off) from the vine. This suggests that all the fruit will be dropped to the ground, and the choice ones picked out carefully, one by one---like separating the wheat from the tares. "The channel of the river" means the Euphrates, and the "stream of Egypt" means the Nile, which really means they will be harvest out or the whole world since the area between these rivers is emblematic of the world.
13. In that day they shall worship the Lord God of Israel on the temple mount in Israel. This line not only promises the gathering of the Jews but also promises a return of the temple mount to them; and most likely a rebuilding of the Lord's House there.

 

CHAPTER 28

1  Woe to the crown of pride, to the drunkards of Ephraim, whose glorious beauty is as a fading flower,
   Which are on the head of the fat valleys of them that are overcome with wine!
2  Behold, the Lord hath a mighty and strong one, which as a tempest of hail,
   And a destroying storm, as a flood of mighty waters overflowing,
   Shall cast them down to the earth with the hand.
3  The crown of pride, the drunkards of Ephraim,
   Shall be trodden under foot.
4  And the glorious beauty,
   Which is on the head of the fat valleys of fat ones,
   Shall be a the fading flower,
   And as early fruit before the summer;
   Which when he that looketh upon it seeth it,
   While it is yet in his hand, he quickly eateth it up.
5  In that day the LORD of hosts shall be for a crown of glory,
   And for a diadem of beauty unto them that are left of his people;
6  And for a spirit of justice to him that sitteth in judgment,
   And for strength to them that battle to the gate.

1. The once glorious Israel (northern kingdom) is swollen/fat with pride until it is likened to a drunkard; i.e., they stagger and stumble in their judgments because of pride. The LDS Bible Dictionary explains it: "Ephraim was notorious for its jealousy of any success gained by any other tribe, Judg. 8:1;12:1; cf. 2 Sam 19:41-43. It was Ephraim's jealousy of Judah which in real measure brought about the separation of the two kingdoms,..." This jealousy was the result of extreme pride, which had its roots in their being the chosen people of God; and so Ephraim is a crown of an example of the pride that the Jews still carry today, therefore it is used as a type by Isaiah.
2. Isaiah uses the pseudonym of "hand" to identify Assyria, who becomes a servant to the Lord when they carry off the northern kingdom into captivity. But, because of the linking words, "as a flood of mighty waters" (the image from chapter eight) this also refers to the Gentile nations who will come in as a flood, to bring down Israel's pride in the last days, even to repentance and conversion.
4. The translation "Fat ones" is from 1QIsa2, of the Dead Sea Scrolls. Their fading beauty will be consumed, as quickly as the first ripe fruit of the year.
5-6. But the Lord promises in the last days that the people will know and obey the Lord of Hosts. He will be a help to his missionaries who battle at the "strait gate.

 

7  But they also have erred through wine,
   And through strong drink are out of the way.
   The priest and the prophet have erred through strong drink,
   They are swallowed up of wine, they are out of the way through strong drink.
   They err in visions, and they stumble in giving judgment.
8  For all tables are full of vomit and filthiness,
   So that now there is no place clean.
9  Whom shall he teach knowledge?
   And whom shall he make to learn doctrine?
   Them that are weaned, and drawn from the breasts?
10 For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept;
   Line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little;
11 For with stammering lips and another tongue will he speak to this people,
12 To whom he said, This is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest,
   And this is the refreshing; yet they would not hear.
13 But the word of the LORD was unto them,
   Precept upon precept,
   And precept upon precept;
   Line upon line, line upon line;
   Here a little, and there a little;
   That they might go, and fall backward,
   And be broken, and be snared, and be taken.

7. "They also" refers to those that are left (verse 6), meaning the remnant of Jews after the destruction of Israel by Assyria, Babylon and Rome. Some think this means Judah, the southern kingdom.
8. This verse is referring to the same metaphor of eating that Jesus uses so many times. It means the place for eating, "the tables," contains fouled food, not wholesome "bread" (truth). It means, there is no knowledge on the table that is clean to "eat," that all of "the bread" of God that should be there has been fouled by men. God's truths have been turned into what the philosophies of men turn "bread" into--vomit and/or excrement, metaphorically of course. (Cf. 36:12, where Isaiah uses dung and piss for a similar purpose.)
9. Who is left to be taught? They have not advanced from "milk?" Who is there then?
10. They can't move on until they learn the basics. (Cf. D&C 128:21.)
11. "Stammering lips and another tongue" insinuates that they haven't heard through his clear speech, so now he will speak with another tongue----English perhaps.
12. "This is the rest" means the Gospel. The truths that it teaches will bring them to peace and rest if they will only listen.
13. They would not live the very basics, which they even polluted. They were never worthy for more. An example of this was their refusal to go with Moses up Mount Sinai, and so they were not given the Higher Priesthood. Eventually they even lost the Lesser Priesthood, or the Aaronic Priesthood.

 

14 Wherefore then, hear now the word of the LORD,
   Ye scornful men that rule this people in Jerusalem;
15 Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death;
   And with hell are agreed, when the overflowing scourge passes through,
   It shall not come unto us, for we have made lies our refuge,
   And under falsehood have we hid ourselves.
16 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD,
   Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation, a stone,
   A tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation,
   And he that believeth shall not make haste.
17 And justice also will I make the line,
   And righteousness the plummet;
   And hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies,
   And the waters shall overflow all your hiding places.
18 And your covenant with death shall be disannulled,
   Your agreement with hell shall not stand.
   When the overflowing scourge,
   Shall pass through,
   Then ye shall be trodden down by it.
19 From the time it goeth forth it shall take you.
   For morning by morning shall it pass over, by day and by night,
   And it shall be a vexation only to understand the report.

15. This verse confirms that the "overflowing scourge" is actually truth, or the gospel, which would wash away their lies and falsehoods if they would only hear.
16. The "stone," of course, is Jesus Christ, who is the truth.
17. "Justice" will be straight and true as a line, and "righteousness" on the square. Truth and knowledge (hail) will sweep away the lies. From v15 they have hid themselves behind lies. Therefore the hail and waters that sweep away the lies, and reveal their hiding place is truth. Hail, like "living water," represents truth.
18. The overflowing scourge (the missionaries), will bring the truth, which means their salvation, which will annul any agreement with hell. It will be their pride that will be trodden down.
19. The truth that is brought by the flood of missionaries (the overflowing scourge) in chapter 28 will be relentless and troublesome. It will be troublesome because it will be difficult for them to believe it.

 

20 For the bed is too short than a man can stretch himself out on,
   And the covering narrower than he can wrap himself in.
21 For the LORD shall rise up as in mount Perazim,
   He shall be wroth as in the valley of Gibeon,
   That he may do his work, his strange work,
   Bring to pass his act, his strange act.
22 Now therefore be ye not mockers,
   Lest your bands be made strong;
   For I have heard from the Lord GOD of hosts,
   Of destruction, even determined upon the whole earth.
23 Give ye ear, and hear my voice; hearken, and hear my speech.
24 Doth the plowman that plows to sow go on all the day,
   To open up and to break the clods of his ground?
25 When he hath made plain the face thereof,
   Doth he not cast abroad the dill,
   And scatter the cummin,
   And cast in the principal wheat?
   And the appointed barley and spelt in their place?
26 For his God doth instruct him to discretion, and doth teach him;
27 For the dill is not threshed with a threshing instrument,
   Neither is a cart wheel turned about upon the cummin.
   But the dill is beaten out with a staff,
   And the cummin also with a rod.
28 Bread grain is ground; because he will not ever thresh it.
   Nor brake it with the wheels of his cart, nor grind it with his horsemen,
29 This also cometh from the LORD of hosts, which is wonderful in counsel,
   And excellent in workings.

20. They will squirm and squirm when they hear the truth, trying to "cover" themselves with what they think they know; but they will not be able to escape from the truth.
21. "His strange work" is the "new thing" coming right from under their noses, even from their own Bible. It cannot be denied. (Cf. D&C 95:4, 101:95, Isa. 29:14.) The Lord will fight for them again. However, until they see the truth, they will think he is fighting against them.
22. Accept it. Don't kick against the prick. The decree of destruction is against the earth, because most of the world is in error.
23-29. It is time for the harvesting of Israel. They have been prepared as expertly as a farmer knows how to plant and harvest his many types of "crops." The casting of seed is the source of the term "broadcasters." It also means to spread the word (news), in the same sense as the Lord would use it; i.e., spreading "grain," or "bread," meaning spreading or teaching the words of God(v26).

 

CHAPTER 29

1  Woe to Ariel, to Ariel, the city where David dwelt!
   Add ye year to year, let them kill sacrifices,
2  Yet I will distress Ariel.
   And there shall be heaviness and sorrow,
   And ye shall become to me like an alter hearth.
3  And I will encamp against thee, in a circle all around thee,
   And will lay siege against thee with a mount, and raise forts against thee.
4  And then thou shalt be brought down, and shalt speak as if from out of the ground.
   And thy speech shall sound low out of the dust, and thy voice shall be,
   As of one that hath a familiar spirit, out of the ground,
   And thy speech shall whisper out of the dust.
5  Moreover the multitude of thy strangers shall be like small dust,
   And the multitude of the terrible ones shall be as chaff that passeth away.
   Yea, it shall be in an instant, suddenly,
   And thou shalt be visited of the LORD of hosts,
   With thunder, and with earthquake, and great noise,
   With storm and tempest, and the flame of devouring fire.
7  And the multitude of all the nations that fight against Ariel,
   Even all that fight against her and her stronghold, that distress her,
   Shall be as a dream of a night vision.
8  It shall even be as when a hungry man dreameth.
   And behold, he eateth; but when he awaketh, his soul is empty.
   Or as when a thirsty man that dreameth, and behold, he drinketh,
   But when he awaketh, behold, he is faint, and his soul hath appetite.
   So shall the multitude of all the nations be, that fight against Mount Zion.

Compare to 2 Nephi 27.
1-2. Ariel is another name for Jerusalem, which is emblematic of the Jews. Their sacrifices may continue year upon year, but the Lord will still bring them great sorrows, even until Jerusalem is like a sacrificial alter because of all the death. "Ariel" or "alter-hearth," is a play on words in the Hebrew since they are the same.
5. The "strangers"/Gentile missionaries will be as plentiful as dust. Suddenly the Jews will be consumed by them (by the Lord). (Cf. 5:26, 8:7-8, 9:1-3, 11:10-12, 13:3-5, 21:7-9, 22:1-7, 24:21, 25:7). The "terrible ones," meaning the missionaries that bring "hard" things to believe, will soon "pass away" being terrible, when the truth is finally learned.
6. The message of the Lord, which they bring, is like earthquakes, thunderstorms, etc. but the "devouring flame of fire" is the Holy Ghost, which is so effective in changing people.
7-8. The "multitude of nations" that fight against Zion are missionaries from all over the world; they will at first appear to be enemies to the Jews, but like a thirst in a dream such a notion will disappear quickly when they "wake up."

 

9  For behold, all ye that doeth iniquity,
   Stay yourself, and wonder; 
   For ye shall cry out, and cry.
   Yea, ye shall be drunken, but not with wine,
   And ye shall stagger, but not with a strong drink.
10 For the LORD hath poured upon you the spirit of deep sleep;
   For behold, ye have closed your eyes, and rejected the prophets,
   And your rulers, and the seers hath he covered because of your iniquity.
   And it shall come to pass then that the Lord God shall bring forth unto you,
   The words of a book, and they shall be the words of them which have been slumbering.
11 The vision of all this is become unto you as the words of a book that is sealed,
   Which, when men shall deliver it unto one that is learned, and they say,
   Read this, I pray thee; and he saith, I cannot, for it is sealed.
12 And the book is delivered unto him that is not learned,
   Saying unto him, Read this, I pray thee; and he saith, I am not learned.
13 Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth,
   And with their lips they do honor me, yet they have removed their hearts far from me,
   And their fear toward me is commandments learned from the precepts of men;
14 Therefore, behold, I will do a marvelous work among this people,
   Yea, a marvelous work and a wonder;
   For the wisdom of their wise and learned is perished,
   And the understanding of their prudent men has all been hidden.
15 Woe unto them that go to great depths to hide the counsel of the LORD,
   And their works are in the dark, and they say, Who seeth us, and who knoweth us?
16 But surely, your turning of things upside down shall be esteemed as unto the potters clay.
   For behold, I will show unto them, saith the Lore of Hosts, I know all their works.
   For shall the work say of him that made it, He made me not?
   Or shall the thing framed say of him that framed it,
   He hath no understanding?

9-10.. Israel has been blinded from seeing the truth, and their prophets and seers have been taken away. They are left to stagger in their ignorance.
11-12.. Many think this only refers to the Book of Mormon, but Job is sealed because they lack the Spirit to read it. They have not been able to read their own Bible because they have not had the Spirit of revelation.
13. To fear the Lord is to reverence him. These lines suggests that due to the false precepts of men they cannot reverence him properly because they really don't know him.
14. The "marvelous work and wonder" is to make their Bible understandable, and the truths of it will destroy their "wise men." (Cf. Matt. 15:8-9.)
15. This seems to be a condemnation of the leaders who pour out falsehoods, who have created their own laws and ordinances that are even contrary to the Lord's commandments. Jesus, in his day, laid this very accusation upon the Sadducees and Pharisees. Nothing has changed.
16. The Lord is accusing them of a very great pride, where they think they know more than their maker, or maybe even worse, that he doesn't exist. Maybe they would even accuse the Lord of making a mistake, or not knowing what he is doing.

17 But behold, saith the Lord of Hosts:
   I will show the children of men,
   That it is in only a very little while,
   And Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field,
   And the fruitful field shall be esteemed as a forest.
18 And in that day shall the deaf hear the words of the book,
   And the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity and out of darkness.
19 The meek also shall increase, and their joy shall be in the LORD,
   And the poor among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.
20 For assuredly as the Lord liveth they shall see
   that the terrible one is brought to naught,
   and the scorner is consumed,
   And all that watch to do iniquity shall be cut off:
21 They that make a man an offender for a word,
   And lay a snare for him that reproveth in the gate,
   And turn aside the just for a thing of naught.
22 Therefore thus saith the LORD, who redeemed Abraham,
   Concerning the house of Jacob: Jacob shall not now be ashamed,
*  Neither shall his face now wax pale, but when he seeth his children,
   The work of mine hands, in the midst of him, they shall sanctify my name,
   And sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and shall fear the God of Israel.
24 They also that erred in spirit shall come to understanding,
   And they that murmured shall learn doctrine.

17. It is not for us to turn things upside down as suggested in verse 16, but the Lord is going to turn things upside down when all that this book says will happen happens. The great forested mountains of Lebanon will seem flat, and the flat fertile fields will seem like forested mountains, figuratively speaking. There will be a big upheaval in the thinking of the Jews when the Lord pours out his abundance of knowledge. Others have called this awakening a great earthquake (see Rev. 11:13; 16:;21).
18. They shall see and hear the words that they have possessed all along, namely, the Old Testament, especially Isaiah, Job and Jonah. The Lord will remove the veil from their understanding.
19. The logical result of all this truth and knowledge will be their conversion, which will lead to humbleness and meekness.
20. This promises that all wickedness will cease, suggesting the beginning of the  Millennium.
21. The first line refers to those who bear false witness. The next lines refer to those who do harm to an honest witness, especially one who bears testimony of the truth to possible converts at the "strait gate." The last line refers to those who would convict the innocent for a bribe; or, in a more spiritual sense, would reject the truth of the Gospel, their Lord, for a block of wood/idol.
23-24. These lines sum up what the whole chapter is going to bring about; i.e., that  all of the House of Israel, who have erred in the past, will come to know the true God and worship him only. To fear the Lord is to reverence him. This also implies to listen to him, to follow him, and to keep his commandments.

 

CHAPTER 30

1  Woe to the rebellious children, saith the LORD,
   That take counsel, but not of me;
   And that cover with a covering,
   But not of my spirit;
   They that add sin to sin;
2  That walk to go down into Egypt,
   And they have not asked at my mouth,
   To strengthen themselves with the Pharaoh,
   And to place their trust in the shadow of Egypt!
3  Therefore the strength of Pharaoh shall be your shame,
   And your trust placed in the shadow of Egypt your confusion.
4  For his princes were at Zoan, and his ambassadors are come to Hanes,
5  They were all ashamed of a people that could not profit them,
   Nor be an help nor profit, but a shame and a reproach.
6  An oracle concerning the beasts of the south:
   Into the land of trouble and anguish,
   From whence came the young and the old lion,
   The poisonous viper, and the fiery flying serpent,
   They will carry their riches upon the shoulders of young asses,
   And their treasures upon the humps of camels,
   Unto a people that shall not be a profit unto them.
7  For the Egyptian's help shall be in vain, and to no purpose;
   Therefore have I cried concerning this: Their strength is to sit still.
8  Now go, write it before them in a tablet, and note it in a book,
   That it may be for the time to come for ever and ever;

1. This chapter, historically, refers to Israel's hope in Egypt to save them from the Assyrians, but it is also emblematic of how Israel has not trusted in the Lord and looked elsewhere for guidance. Compare this "covering" with 25:7-8, 22:17, and 61:10.
2-5. Egypt, being a symbol of the world, lets us equate these words to all of God's children, how useless it is to trust in anything of this world.
6. The beasts of the south, historically, refers to the Egyptians and their land (See note 46:8). But a broader spiritual meaning refers to the great hippopotamus, as it is used in Job. The sea monster, leviathan, serpent of the deep, all represent Satan (Cp. Job 26:12; 9:13; Psa.68:317; Isa. 51:9). Going down into Egypt is likened to our going down to this world from the presence of God, into the world of the lion (the devourer of men) and the serpent, both meaning the devil. (Cf. Psa. 41:13; Isa. 33:9; Job 4:10,11; 28:8.)
7. The world will be of no help to God's children. The world's strength is to sit still, or to do nothing, which is to say: The world is to be esteemed as nothing.
8. The Hebrew translation reads: ". . . that it may be for the latter days.

 

 

9  That this is a rebellious people, lying children,
   That will not hear the law of the LORD;
10 Which say to the seers, See not;
   And to the prophets,
   Prophesy not unto us right things;
   Speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits;
11 Get you out of the way, turn aside out of the path,
   And cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from before us.
12 Wherefore thus saith the Holy One of Israel:
   Because ye despise this word,
   And trust in oppression and deceit, and stay thereon;
13 Therefore this iniquity shall be to you as a breach ready to fall,
   Swelling out in a high wall, whose breaking cometh suddenly, in an instant.
14 And he shall break it, as the breaking of the potters' vessel that is broken into pieces.
   He shall not spare, so there shall not be found in the bursting of it a shard,
   To take fire from the hearth, or to take water withal out of a pit.
15 For thus saith the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel,
   In repentance, and rest should ye be saved;
   In quietness, and in confidence,
   Should be your strength;
   But ye would not.

9-11. These line describe most people of the world, but this is especially applicable to the Jews. Not just in the time of Isaiah, but also to the total history of Israel or the Jews.
12-14.. In their past this describes the how quickly Assyria, as a flood, came down on Israel to destroy them or carry them away because of their iniquity. Speaking of that "time to come" (v8), their iniquity (not them) is what is to be broken. It is saying that there will not be any iniquity left in them. It is interesting that it will happen suddenly, in an instant. One wonders how that can happen. I am sure it means it in a relative sense; that is, if it takes a few years compared to the thousands that they have been in exile, then it is suddenly.

 

16 You said, No,
   We will flee on horses.
   So, therefore, shall ye flee.
   And ye said, We will ride upon the swift.
   Therefore, shall they that pursue you be more swift.
17 One thousand shall flee at the rebuke of one; at the rebuke of five, ye shall all flee,
   Till ye be left as a beacon upon the top of a mountain, as an ensign upon an hill.
18 And therefore will the LORD wait, that he may be gracious unto you.
   And therefore will he exalt himself, that he may yet have mercy upon you,
   For the LORD is a God of judgment; and blessed are all they that wait for him.
19 For the people shall dwell in Zion at Jerusalem, thou shalt weep no more,
   And he will be very gracious unto thee at the voice of thy cry,
   For as soon as he shall hear it, he will answer thee.
20 And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity, and the water of affliction,
   Yet shall not thy teachers be removed away any more, but thine eye shall see thy teachers.
21 And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, Saying, This is the way, walk ye in it,
   When ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left.

17. Anciently, five did make Israel flee: Assyria, Babylon, Egypt, Greece, and Rome. In our time the five will be the books of Job, Jonah, Isaiah, Joel, and maybe Psalms too.. Rather than meaning like a single staff, an "ensign on a hill" or a "beacon on a mountain top," are terms referring to the Church, the true Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, or in other words, "till" you find the true God and His Son Jesus Christ. This is expanded in v19-20.
18. Anciently, this suggests that the Lord had to withdraw (wait) from the wicked Jews
during their exile so that he could extend mercy to them. That way he could defer a more terrible judgment upon them. To wait for the Lord is to wait for the Bridegroom with your lamps trimmed and filled with oil. Be ready for the wedding feast, trusting in the Lord.
19. Zion in Jerusalem refers to Zion as a state of mind or spiritual condition; so this means Jerusalem, emblematic of the Jews, will repent and live the laws of God once more, enough to be part of Zion--spiritual Zion. These verses promise that he will wipe away all of their tears forever after their conversion to the truth (cf. 25:8). Also consider Matt.7:7 that say: "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:" He will respond as soon as they begin to see the light.
20.  "bread" and "water" here refers to the same metaphors discussed earlier. But now, because they rejected the true bread and water, they have been given those of adversity instead. This harks back to the that they once had, the kind  of bread and water that lead to eternal life--it again refers to the true word of God. It was rejected by them. This seems to apply only to the future when Israel will again have real live prophets, following their conversion. Then they shall see/come to know the Lord, Jesus Christ.
21. This is a promise that they will have the Holy Ghost and prophets to be with them, to whisper in a still small voice which is the right way to go. It means on a daily basis for the rest of their lives, not just during their conversion. (Cf. 30:28.)

 

22 Ye shall defile also the covering of thy graven images of silver,
   And the ornament of thy molten images of gold.
   Thou shalt cast them away from you,
   As a menstrual cloth.
   Thou shalt say, Get thee hence.
23 Then shall he give rain for thy seed,
   That thou shalt have sown the ground withal;
   And bread of the increase of the earth,
   And it hall be fat and plenteous.
   In that day shall thy cattle,
   Feed in large pastures.
24 The oxen likewise, and the young asses,
   That till the ground shall eat clean provender,
   Which hath been winnowed with the shovel and with the fan.
25 And there shall be upon every high mountain, and upon every high hill,
   Rivers and streams of waters in the day of the great slaughter,
   When the towers fall.
26 Moreover the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun,
   And the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days,
   In the day that the LORD bindeth up the breach of his people,
   And healeth the wounds inflicted by his stroke.
27 Behold, the name of the LORD cometh,
   From far, burning with his anger;
   And the burden thereof is heavy.
   His lips are full of indignation,
   And his tongue as a devouring fire.

22. In that day false gods, or idols of gold etc. will be no problem because of the flood of truth that is made available to them.
23. "Rain"/water is used metaphorically for truth and knowledge, just as "bread" is, which should be a little easier to see since it is used this way so clearly in the New Testament. "Cattle" represents people, who, now will have an abundance of truth to "feed" upon.
24. The "oxen" and others are also used metaphorically to represent people, and they will have knowledge in abundance, "to eat." Not knowledge which has been fouled by the precepts of men for ages, but "cleaned provender," winnowed with a fan to remove the chaff.
25. This line reveals a great truth about God's prophecies; i.e., the "day of great slaughter" is a day of conversion, of change, of giving up old false traditions, of conquering Satan and his host of lies. Truth will abound, when proud traditions fall.
26. The "light of truth" will be so great it will seem like the light of one day is as bright as the light of seven days combined. Ezekiel expressed it by saying that water/truth from under the temple began as a small stream and increased until it was above the chest.
27. The name of the Lord, Jesus Christ, will come from afar, and the burden of learning this truth will be heavy, indeed, for the Jews.

 

28 And his breath, as an overflowing stream, shall reach to the midst of the neck,
   To sift the nations with the sieve of vanity.
   And there shall be a bridle,
   In the jaws of the people causing them to err,
29 Ye shall have a song, as in the night when a holy solemnity is kept,
   And gladness of heart, as when one goeth with a pipe,
   To come into the mountain of the LORD, to the mighty One of Israel.
30 And the LORD shall cause his glorious voice to be heard,
   And shall show the lightning down of his arm,
   With the indignation of his anger,
   And with the flame of a devouring fire,
   With scattering, and tempest, and hailstones.
31 For through the voice of the LORD,
   Shall the Assyrian be beaten,
   Which smote with a rod.
32 And in every sweep,
   Where the staff shall pass,
   Which the LORD shall lay upon him,
   It shall be with sounds of tablets and harps;
   And in the battle of shakings, will he fight with it.
33 For Tophet is ordained of old, yea, for the king it is prepared.
   He hath made it deep and large, the pile thereof is fire and much wood.
   The breath of the LORD, like a stream of brimstone, doth kindle it.
 

28. Again we have the linking words of "overflowing stream" or "flood" along with "up to the neck" as it is used in chapter 8, it ties this prophecy to the others. All falsehood will be screened out, and they will be given a guide/bridle, to know right from wrong, which is the Gift of the Holy Ghost. (Cf. 30:21.)
29-30. All will be joyous to learn the truth, which is represented, metaphorically, by fire, tempest, and hailstones.
31. The Assyrian, meaning Satan and the world, will be defeated by the words of the Lord's mouth. Knowledge will expose Satan for what he is.
32. Tablets and harps are instruments of celebration, which is brought about because of the truth and knowledge that is brought to them. The "battle of shakings" is most likely referring to earthquakes, especially the great earthquake that Rev. 11:13 speaks of. It even mentions "great hailstones" in 16:11. Both of these events are metaphorical and refer to this time when a great abundance of knowledge is given to Israel.
33. Satan and his wicked world shall be beaten, or consumed like a sacrifice at Tophet, even burned up by fire (the fire of the Holy Ghost). The breath/life of the Lord will bring it about.

 

CHAPTER 31

1  Woe to them that go down to Egypt for help;
   And stay on horses, and trust in chariots because they are many,
   And in horsemen because they are very strong in numbers;
   But they look not unto the Holy One of Israel,
   Neither do they seek the LORD.
2  Yet he also is wise,
   And can bring them disaster;
   And he will not call back his words,
   But will arise against the house of evildoers,
   And also against the help of all them that work iniquity.
3  Now because the Egyptians are only men, and not God,
   And their horses are made of flesh, not spirit,
   When the LORD shall stretch out his hand,
   Both he that helpeth shall fall,
   And he that is helped,
   Shall fall down;
   And they all shall fail together.

1. Egypt is again used emblematically for the world. "Stay on horses" means to rely of depend on horses, or in other words, to trust on the strengths of this world. This means woe to those who look to the world for help, or to the solutions of men. They put their trust on the many, but this suggests they need only to rely on one.
2. He has told them that Egypt/the world will fail them and it will lead to their disaster, and here he informs them that he can also give them disaster if they sin. He is insinuating, tongue in cheek, that he can do anything they can do---so to speak.
3. This echoes Matt. 6:19, "Lay not up . . .where moth and rust doth corrupt," . . . If you do trust on the things of the world, you shall fall.

 

4  For thus hath the LORD spoken unto me:
   As the lion, and a young lion roaring on his prey,
   When a multitude of shepherds is called forth against him,
   He will not be afraid of their voice, nor disturbed for the noise of them.
   So shall the LORD of hosts come to fight for mount Zion and for the hill thereof.
5  As birds flying over their nest, so will the LORD of hosts defend Jerusalem;
   Defending also he will deliver it, and passing over he will preserve it.
6  Turn ye unto him from whom Israel has so deeply revolted against;
7  For in that day every man shall cast away his idols of silver,
   And his idols of gold, which your sinful hands have made.
8  Then shall the Assyrian fall by a sword, not of a man;
   And the sword, not of a man, shall devour him.
   But he shall flee from before the sword,
   And his young men shall be discomfited.
9  And his shall pass over to his stronghold for fear,
   And his princes shall be afraid of the ensign, saith the LORD,
   Whose fire is in Zion, and his furnace is in Jerusalem.

4 -5. The Lord shall fight for Zion like a greedy young lion, or like attacking birds, even to the point of giving his own life---and he will "deliver" it, and "preserve"/save it. This comparison to birds brings to mind Isaiah's earlier use of a bird to represent the Lord. (See Isa. 8:8, and the footnote for verse 6).
7-8. The sinners/Assyrians shall fall from God's sword of truth, or in other words, they are converted to the truth.
8c. Others translate discomfited as "sent to labor" or "put to labor" which could refer to sending the young men on missions.
9. Some translate 9a as: "Their rock shall pass away or fail for fear." If this is the case then it means their god or champion fails. This would reflect that the true "rock" never fails.  9b is translated as "Their princes desert their standard or ensign in fear," which would mean they abandon their position in fear, as opposed to anyone leaving the church in fear. "Ensign" is a pseudonym for " His Church" or the Gospel.

 

CHAPTER 32

1  Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness, and princes shall rule in judgment.
2  And a man shall be as an hiding place from the blast of a raging wind,
   A covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place,
   As the shadow of a great rock in a weary land.
3  The eyes of them that see shall not be dim,
   And the ears of them that hear shall hearken.
4  The heart also of the rash shall understand knowledge,
   And the tongue of the stammerers shall be ready to speak plainly.
5  The vile person shall no more be called noble, nor the knave said to be bountiful
6  For the vile person will speak villainy, and his heart will work iniquity,
   To practice hypocrisy, and to utter error against the LORD,
   To make empty the soul of the hungry;
   And he will cause the drink of the thirsty to fail.
7  The instruments also of the knave are evil, he deviseth wicked devices,
   To destroy the poor with lying words, even when the needy speaketh the right.
8  But the noble deviseth noble things, and by noble things shall he stand.
9  Rise up ye women that are at ease, and hear my voice;
   Ye careless daughters, give ear unto my speech.
10 Many years shall ye be troubled ye careless women;
   For the vintage shall fail, the gathering shall not come.

1. The only king that will reign in righteousness is the Messiah, Jesus Christ.
2. He, who had been a man---even Jesus Christ, shall be a shelter against the raging of Satan, a river of water/knowledge where they have lost the truth, and as the cooling shadow of a great "rock" (Jesus Christ) in a scorching desert/world. Consider that image, of Jesus being like a calming, saving shadow under the blazing, angry, scorching sun (Satan).
3. The veil that has been over the Jews preventing them from hearing or seeing the truth will now be lifted. They will both see and hear.
4. The previously wicked and proud will change to the good.
5. This sounds like honesty will reign so that the perverse will be made known.
6. Speak obscenities, work iniquity, practice hypocrisy, and to utter error all refer to spreading lies, which is the opposite of providing "bread" and "drink." The last two lines mean the same thing as the first two lines. Rain or any form of water, represents knowledge and truth. The villain spreads dryness, not the living waters.
7. "Poor" means poor in spirit, or humble, or teachable.
9. "Ye women," and "careless daughters," can mean any women in general, but this primary refers to the daughters of Israel, or the cities of Israel. (Cf. 1:8; l0:32; 16:1,2.)
10. This prophecy predicts the near term captivities of Israel and Judea by Assyria and Babylon, but should be taken in the broader sense, applying it to the Jews in general, that they would be lost in the world for many years.

 

11 Tremble, all ye women that are at ease; be troubled, ye careless ones;
   Strip you, and make you bare, gird sackcloth upon your loins.
12 They shall lament for the teats,
   For the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vine.
13 Upon the land of my people shall come up thorns and briers,
   Yea, upon all the houses of joy in the joyous city.
14 Because the palaces shall be forsaken,
   The multitude of the city shall be left.
   The forts and towers shall be dens for ever,
   A joy of wild asses, a pasture for the flocks,
15 Until the spirit be poured out upon us from on high,
   And the wilderness shall become a fruitful field,
   And the fruitful field be counted for a forest.
16 Then justice shall dwell in the wilderness,
   And righteousness remain in the fruitful field.
17 And the work of righteousness shall yield them peace,
   The effect of righteousness, quietness and assurance for ever.
18 And my people shall dwell there in a peaceable habitation,
   And in sure dwellings, and in quiet resting places.
19 When it shall hail, coming down on the forest,
   And the city shall be low, in a low place,
20 Blessed are all ye that sow beside all waters,
   That send forth thither the feet of the ox and the ass.

11-12. Israel, or the Jews, will lament for the time when they were great in the eyes of the Lord, when they had the "milk of truth" and plentiful pastures to "eat," when they were a fruitful vine of the Lord.
13. "Thorns and briars" refers to the wicked people in the Lord's vineyard that have replaced the fruitful vines.
14. All that had been good shall become lost.
15. It will remain lost/dry until the "pouring" forth of the spirit from on high. Then it will become a well "watered" land, which will bear much fruit--many righteous people.
16-18. The promise for being righteous is peace, and then forever and ever.
19. Hail is a form of water, even hard hitting living water, and represents truth and knowledge; and when it falls on the forest (people) or (city) shall be in a "low state" meaning a state of humbleness.
20. Blessed are those that bear their children near the truth (gospel/waters), that send forth their young as cattle (another metaphor for people) etc. until they learn and accept the truths of the Gospel of Jesus Christ from the living waters.

 

CHAPTER 33

1  Woe to thee that spoilest, when thou wast not spoiled,
   And dealest treacherously, and they dealt not treacherously with thee!
   When thou shalt cease to spoil, then thou shalt be spoiled.
   When thou shalt make an end to deal treacherously,
   They shall deal treacherously with thee.
2  O LORD, be gracious unto us,
   We have waited for thee;
   Be thou their arm every morning,
   Our salvation also in a time of trouble.
3  At the noise of thy thunderous voice the people fled,
   At the lifting up of thyself all of the nations were scattered.
4  And your spoil shall be gathered like the gathering of the caterpillar;
   As the running to and fro of locusts shall he run upon them.
5  The LORD is exalted, for he dwelleth on high;
   He hath filleth Zion with judgment and righteousness.
6  And wisdom and knowledge shall be the stability of thy times,
   And strength of salvation; the fear of the LORD is his treasure.
7  Behold, their valiant ones shall cry in the streets,
   The ambassadors of peace shall weep bitterly.

1. Doesn't this sound like the eye for an eye philosophy? And does it refer to Assyria, or Israel? Hasn't Israel been like this most of its history? And now comes this warning.
2. Now, as trouble comes, they pray for mercy or graciousness.
3. This sounds like what Israel did at Mount Sinai at the sound of God's voice.
4. But the Lord will overcome the wicked completely, like a caterpillar consumes. Or like a swarm of locust, gathering every thing in sight, and very quickly.
5-6. The Lord's justice cannot allow Israel to continue in their ways. Who shall do all this? The Lord, with an abundance of wisdom and knowledge, which has been lacking.
To fear the Lord is to reverence him and constitutes the righteous, which is lacking.
7. This is a lament for what has been lost by Israel.

8  The highways lie waste, the wayfaring man ceaseth:
   He hath broken the covenant, he hath despised the cities, he regarded no man.
9  The earth mourneth and languisheth; the mighty Lebanon is ashamed and hewn down.
   Sharon is become like a wilderness; and Bashan and Carmel shake off their fruits.
10 Now will I rise up, saith the LORD; now will I be exalted; now will I lift up myself.
11 Ye shall conceive chaff, and bring forth stubble; your breath as fire shall devour you,
12 And the people shall be burned up as the burnings of lime,
   As thorn cut up, shall they be burned up in the fire.
13 Hear, ye that are far off, what I have done,
   And ye that are near, acknowledge my might.
14 The sinners in Zion are afraid,
   Fearfulness hath surprised the hypocrites.
   Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire?
   And who among us shall dwell with the everlasting burnings?
15 He that walketh righteously, and speaketh only that which is right;
   He that despiseth the gain of oppression; that shaketh his hands from holding the bribes;
   That stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil.
16 He shall dwell on high; his place of defense shall be the munitions of rocks.
   His bread shall be given him, and his waters shall be sure.
17 Thine eyes shall see the king in all his beauty,
   They shall behold a land that is very far off.
18 Thine heart shall meditate terror.
   Where is the scribe?
   And where is the receiver?
   Where is he that counteth the towers?

8. Israel has lost all its righteousness. The "high ways" are spiritual high ways, meaning truly righteous ways. A temple is considered a high way, where wayfaring men make covenants before God, angels and witnesses. All higher spirituality is lost.
9. Lebanon, Sharon, Bashan, and Carmel are all places of great trees, which are sometimes emblems of the very proud. When they are shamed, verse 10 follows.
10. Now the Lord will arise and bring changes to Israel---now, in these last days.
11. Israel is likened to chaff or stubble which will burn readily for the Lord
12. They are to be burned by the fire of the Holy Ghost.
14. The sinners and hypocrites are the only ones who need to fear the devouring fire.
    The devouring fires of hell are contrasted to the everlasting burnings for the righteous.
15. These verses describe the righteous.
16. Only the "rocks" like Christ will live on high. Bread and water represent spiritual truth and knowledge, which they will have perfectly.
17. The eyes of the righteous are promised to behold the face of the King, even Jesus Christ our Lord, in the Celestial Kingdom, a "land very far off," out of reach for the wicked. The righteous will be blessed, to see the Lord and his throne, as Isaiah did in chapter six.
18-19. The righteous shall only have memories of the "oppressor," Satan represented by Assyria, Babylon, Rome.

 

19 Thou shalt not seeth a fierce people,
   A people of deeper speech than thou canst perceive,
   of a stammering tongue thou canst not understand.
20 Look upon Zion, the city of our solemnities;
   Thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation,
   A tabernacle that shall not be taken down and moved about.
   Not one of the stakes thereof shall ever be removed,
   Neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken.
21 But there the glorious LORD will be unto us,
   A place of broad rivers and streams,
   Wherein shalt go no galleys with oars,
   Neither shall gallant ship pass thereby.
22 The LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver,
   The LORD is our king, and he will save us;
23 Thy tacklings are loosed; 
   They could not strengthen the mast, 
   And they could not spread out the sail.
   Then is the prey of the great spoil divided;
   Even the lame shall take prey.
24 And the inhabitant shall not say, I am sick.
   The people that dwell therein shall be forgiven their iniquity.

20. "Stakes and cords" refer to a tent as a dwelling. This promises that they will never have to live like they have in the past---during the exodus---during Babylon's captivity---during the Diaspora.
21. Broad rivers and streams reflect that they will have an abundance of truth and knowledge, and the gallant ships (proud) or war ships with oars (warring people) will not be there.
22. The Lord, Jesus Christ, will do it.
23. Israel's tackling hangs loose, leaving them the prey (Humble) before the Lord's missionaries. The poorest of missionaries will find success in gathering Israel back to the truth. They are the spoil or the prey.
24. Following conversion, or have been taken prey, they shall say: I am spiritually well, cleansed by baptism---forgiven by God.

 

CHAPTER 34

1  Come near, ye nations, to hear; and hearken, ye people;
   Let the earth hear, and all those that are therein,
   The world, and all things that come forth of it.
2  For the indignation of the LORD is upon all,
   And his fury is upon all their armies;
   He hath utterly destroyed them,
   Delivered them to the slaughter.
3  Their slain also shall be cast out,
   And a stink shall come out of their corpses,
   And the mountains shall be melted with their blood.
4  And all the host of heavens shall be dissolved,
   And the heavens shall be rolled as a scroll.
   And all their host shall fall down,
   As the leaf falleth off from the vine,
   And as a falling fig from off a fig tree.
5  For my sword shall be bathed in heaven,
   Behold, it shall come down upon Idumea,
   And upon the people of my curse, to judgment.

1-17. This entire chapter seems to describe, in hyperbole, the condition of the wicked world. Perhaps the condition or future of the world or all people without the atonement of Christ.
2. His indignation is on all who have or do belong to the world (the wicked).
3.  Possibly means that our "stink"/sins must come out, by forgiveness. We will all spill our blood on the Lord's mountain, figuratively, by repenting.
4. These are strong words that sound like it will be at the end of the world.  This image is one of collapsing skies and rolling up the universe, most likely at the very end.
5. This verse specifically mentions Idumea or Edom, but again it represents the wickedness of the world, which is to be completely done away with, to become desolate--desolate of sinners that is. (Cf. D&C 1:13,36.)

 

6  The sword of the LORD is filled with blood.
   It is made fat with fatness and blood,
   With the blood of lambs and goats;
   With the fat of the kidneys of rams.
   For the LORD hath a sacrifice in Bozrah,
   And a great slaughter in the land of Idumea.
7  And the unicorns shall be brought down with them,
   And the young bullocks with the mighty bulls.
   And their land shall be soaked with blood,
   And their dust made fat with fatness.
8  For it is the day of the LORD'S vengeance,
   And the year of recompenses for the controversy of Zion.
9  And the streams thereof shall be turned into pitch,
   And also the dust thereof into fiery brimstone,
   And the land thereof shall be burning pitch,
10 It shall not be quenched night nor day
   The smoke thereof shall go up from it for ever.
   From generation to generation it shall lie in waste,
   None shall pass through it or live therein for ever and ever.
11 But the cormorant and the bittern shall possess it,
   The owl also and the raven shall dwell in it.
   And he shall stretch out upon it,
   The line of confusion, and stones of emptiness.

6.  There will be a "great slaughter" of the wicked, some through their repentance, while still others are cast out.
7. These animals represent the proud people that will be brought down to humbleness. The ground will be covered with their pride/fatness.
8. His vengeance is taken against sin, which would bring about our death. His "recompense" is to pay for our sins. Cf. 35:4; D&C 133:50-53.
9-10. Now he returns to the image of total devastation for the wicked world, using descriptions of lava fields, etc.---completely figurative.
10. The wicked world is never to return.
11. It shall be left to the lovers of the deep and of darkness. He shall destroy the wicked world  with a leveling line of confusion and plumb bob/stones of emptiness. It shall not be a place of order, like God's kingdom. (Cf. Job 10:22.)

 

12 They shall call the nobles thereof to the kingdom,
   But not one shall be there,
   And all her princes shall be nothing.
13 And thorns shall come up in her palaces,
   Nettles and brambles in the fortresses thereof.
   And it shall be an habitation of dragons, and a court for owls.
14 The wild beasts of the desert shall also meet with the wild beasts of the island,
   And the satyr shall cry to his fellow;
   The screech owl also shall rest there, and find for herself a place of rest.
15 There shall the great owl make her nest, and lay, and hatch, and gather under her shadow.
   There shall the vultures also be gathered, every one with her mate.
16 Seek ye out of the book of the LORD, and read:
   No one of these shall fail, none shall want her mate;
   For my mouth it hath commanded, and his spirit, it hath gathered them.
17 And he hath cast the lot for them, and his hand hath divided it to them by line,
   They shall possess it for ever; from generation to generation shall they dwell therein.

12. None of the "noble and great ones" will be there. (Cf. Abraham 3:22, D&C 58:8-11.)
13-16. Briars and thorns are used by Isaiah to represent the wicked. They replace the Lord's vine, representing righteous people. All the beasts (see note of 46:8) of the night (lovers of darkness) will be there.
17. The lot of the wicked will be cast by the line of justice, forever.

 

CHAPTER 35

1  The wilderness and solitary place shall be glad for them,
   And the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as a rose.
2  It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing.
   The glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon.
   They shall see the glory of the LORD, and the excellency of our God.
3  Strengthen ye the weak hands, and confirm the feeble knees.
4  Say to them that are of a fearful heart,
   Be strong, and fear not;
   Behold, your God will come with vengeance,
   Even God with a recompense; he will come and save you.
5  Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.
6  Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb shall sing.
   For in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert.
7  And the parched ground shall become filled with pools of water,
   And the thirsty land springs of water.
   In the habitation of dragons,
   Where each lay,
   Shall be grass with reeds and rushes.

1. Where Israel was once void of righteousness, seen by Isaiah as a desert without any water/knowledge, it shall now blossom as a rose.
2. Isaiah continues the image of an abundance of knowledge in a celebration of excess descriptions, capped with the promise that they will see God. It all means that they will come to know God, through truth and knowledge.
4. Part of the truth and knowledge is that God, with "vengeance" against the oppressor, will come and save you from your sins. His "recompense" is his payment for our sins to satisfy justice through his sacrifice for us.
5. Then the Jews will know that Jesus is the Christ. Their eyes and ears will be made to see and hear.
6-7. The spiritually lame shall leap and spiritually dumb shall rejoice because of their new knowledge. In what was a spiritual wilderness/dry desert, the living waters of truth and knowledge will break out in abundance. The land of dragons, where Satan and ignorance ruled, will become abundant with "living water" (John 4:10-15; Zech.14:8).

 

 

8  And an highway shall be there,
   And a way, and it shall be called the Way of Holiness.
   The unclean shall not pass over it, but it shall be for those that go that way:
   The wayfaring men, though fools, shall not err therein.
9  No lion shall be there, nor any wild beasts;
   They shall not be found there.
   But the redeemed shall walk there;
10 And the ransomed of the LORD shall return,
   And come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads.
   They shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

8. A "highway" or "high way" means a temple, which is the  "Way of Holiness."  "Wayfaring man" refers to God's children who are "wayfaring" upon this earth, while we are away from our home in heaven. We will "pass over" to salvation via the "high way," through temple ordinances.
9. Satan (the king of this world) will not be there, nor any wild beasts (natural men) like unto him. The KJV uses "ravenous beast," which is misleading because "ravenous" is used elsewhere by Isaiah to describe a person "hungry" for the word of God (See 46:11). The scriptures generally use words consistently. Strong's exhaustive concordance indicates that the right choice of words here is even from a different root word (6530 instead of 5861). Others us ferocious. The redeemed are those redeemed from their sins, through repentance and baptism.
10. The ransomed of the Lord refers to Israel, spiritual Israel, which includes everyone  who has been ransomed from Satan--from their sins, and not just the Jews. They shall "return" to Zion via the "highway" of verse 8.

 

CHAPTER 36 

1  Now it came to pass in the fourteenth year of king Hezekiah,
   That Sennacherib, the king of Assyria, came up,
   Against all the defenced cities of Judah,
   And took them.
2  And the king of Assyria sent Rabshakeh,
   From Lachish to Jerusalem, unto king Hezekiah with a great army,
   And he stood by the conduit of the upper pool in the highway of the fuller's field.
3  Then came forth unto him Eliakim, Hilkiah's son, which was over the house,
   And Shebna, the scribe, and also Joah, Asaph's son, the recorder.
4  And Rabshakeh said unto them, Say ye now to king Hezekiah,
   Thus saith the great king, even the king of Assyria,
   What confidence is this wherein thou trusteth?
5  Thou sayest, (and they are vain words),
   I have the counsel and the strength to go to war.
   In whom dost thou trust, that thou rebellest against me?
6  Lo, thou trustest in the staff of a splintered reed, on Egypt,
   Whereon if a man leans on it, it will go into his hand and pierce it.
   So is Pharaoh, king of Egypt, to all that trust in him.
7  And if thou say to me, We trust in the LORD our God.
   Is it not he, whose high places,
   And whose altars Hezekiah hath taken away,
   And said to Judah and Jerusalem, Ye shall worship before this altar?

    Compare 2 Kings 18
 Note: Chapters 36 and 37 have many elements that convince me there is a type in this story, possible one between the forces of good and evil, or between Satan and Jesus Christ; but for some verses it seems to be less clear.

1-3. Assyria had conquered all of Israel, except for Jerusalem. Satan is the king of this world, and in general has conquered most of the world.
4. Assyria is asking in whom does Hezekiah trust. Satan has been challenging our trust in God since the pre-existence.
5. Assyria's question: Who can be worthy of your trust, enough that you can go against me? Satan says that he is so powerful that he can defeat God.
6. The king knows that Israel has been hoping for Egypt's help. But the king claims that they are not worthy of that trust, suggesting that they will never help, only hurt. Most of the world puts their trust in the world, but if Egypt represents Satan, then Satan fits this very well. He can never be trusted, even accusing us before God continually.
7. Hezekiah did exactly this, taking away the alters in the high places of false gods, turning Israel back to worship Jehovah, the true God, not a false god like Assyria is suggesting. The king of Assyria is wrong about this.  Hezekiah is a type for Jesus in this, because he called the people to repent and turn to the Lord.

 

8  Now therefore give pledges, I pray thee,
   To my master, the king of Assyria:
   And I will give unto thee two thousand horses,
   If thou be able on your part to set riders upon them.
9  How then wilt thou turn away one captain of the least of my master's servants,
   And put thy trust on Egypt for chariots and for horsemen to save you from my master?
10 And am I come up now without the LORD against this land to destroy it?
   The LORD said unto me, Go up against this land, and destroy it.
11 Then said Eliakim and Shebna and Joah unto Rabshakeh,
   Speak, I pray thee, unto thy servants in the Syrian language; for we understand it.
   And speak not unto us in the Jews' language, in the ears of the people that are on the wall.
12 But Rabshakeh said, Hath my master sent me only unto thy master, and also unto thee,
   To speak these words? hath he not sent me to the men that sit upon the wall,
   Who like you, eat their own dung, and drink their own piss with you?
13 Rabshakeh stood, and cried in a loud voice in the Jews' language,
   Saying, Hear the words of a great king, the king of Assyria.
14 Thus saith the king, Let not Hezekiah deceive you,
   For he shall not be able to deliver you.

8. This challenge is that Israel doesn't even have 200 warriors; or that Satan can defeat God's forces, that they are not very strong.
9. How can you go against me and win with so little?--Satan, boasting of his strength.
10. He claims that he was sent by the Lord, which is doubtful since we know the Lord defeats him later by killing all of his army.
12. Assyria wants everyone to hear the message and involve everyone in the decision to surrender; most likely because he knows how much everyone is suffering from hunger. He uses the well known metaphor of "eating." to convince them. He is suggesting they have only their own false beliefs to "eat," which is likened to dung and piss, instead of his truth that he is trying to convince them of--yet another falsehood. This metaphor of eating is used so often, and refers to the "bread" and the "water" of truth which comes from God. This strong language compares that to the knowledge of the world, which is vile. (Cf. 28:8 which uses vomit and excrement to describe false beliefs. )
14. He says that Hezekiah cannot deliver them or save them. Satan's claim all along.
 

 

15 Neither let Hezekiah make you trust in the LORD,
   Saying, The LORD will surely deliver us, yea, deliver us,
   For this city shall not be delivered into the hand of the king of Assyria.
16 Hearken not to Hezekiah, for thus saith the king of Assyria,
   Make an agreement with me; as a present come out to me,
   And eat ye every one of his own vine and fig tree,
   And drink ye every one of the waters of his own cistern,
17 Until I come and take you away, unto a land like your own land,
   Unto a land of grain and wine, and unto a land of bread and vineyards.
18 Beware lest Hezekiah persuade you away, by saying, The LORD will deliver us.
   Hath any gods of other nations delivered land out of the hand of the king of Assyria?
   Where are the gods of Hamath, and Arphad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim?
   And have they delivered Samaria out of my hand?
20 Who were they, among all the gods of these lands,
   That have delivereth their land from out of my hand,
   That the LORD would deliver Jerusalem out of my hand?
21 But they held their peace, and answered him not a word,
   For the king's commandment was, saying, Do not answer him.
22 Then came Eliakim, son of Hilkiah, that was over the household,
   And Shebna the scribe, and also Joah, the son of Asaph, the recorder,
   To Hezekiah with their clothes rent, and told him the words of Rabshakeh.

15. Hezekiah can't save you and neither can your God. Satan believes it and is attempting to prove it.
16. Paraphrasing Assyria: Don't listen to Hezekiah. Let me give you a present, just come out and trust me and I will give you all the the good things to eat and drink. This sounds like Satan in the pre-existence offering to save all mankind if they would support his plan of giving up the agency. They are just false promises of the wicked one.
17. This a false promise, and is similar to the promises of the wicked world where we are, that all will be saved, etc.. (Cf. 1 Cor 15:40.)
18-20. Assyria argues that none of man's gods have ever saved them from Assyria before, and neither can the the God of Israel. They take the message to Hezekiah.
 

 

CHAPTER 37

1  And it came to pass, when king Hezekiah heard it, that he rent his clothes,
   And covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of the LORD.
2  And he sent Eliakim, the palace overseer, and Shebna the scribe,
   And the elders of the priests covered with sackcloth,
   Unto Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz.
3  And they said unto him,
   Thus saith king Hezekiah,
   This day is a day of trouble,
   And of rebuke, and of blasphemy;
   For the children are come to the birth,
   But there is not enough strength to bring them forth.
4  It may be that the LORD thy God will hear the words Rabshakeh,
   Whom the king of Assyria his master hath sent to reproach the living God,
   And will now reprove the words which the LORD thy God hath heard;
   Wherefore lift up thy prayer for the remnant that is left.
5  So the servants of king Hezekiah came to Isaiah,
6  And Isaiah said unto them, Thus shall ye say unto your master,
   Thus saith the LORD, Be not afraid of the words which thou hast heard,
   Wherewith the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed me.
7  Behold, I will send a blast upon him,
   And he shall hear a rumor, and return to his own land;
   And I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land.

1-2.  These are outward evidences of Hezekiah's deep humility and righteousness, and he sends for Isaiah's help.
3. Not having the birth is similar to the Lord's words about Israel; i.e., they went through the labor of child bearing, but only gave birth to wind, not a nation (see Isaiah 26:17-18
4. God will have the answer.
5-7. Isaiah speaks for the Lord. Through God's devices, they will be done away with, and Israel will go on. They will be defeated by a blast from God. Satan, likewise will be defeated by God.

 

8  So Rabshakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria warring against Libnah;
   For he had heard that the king was departed out from Lachish.
9  He heard said concerning Tirhakah king of Ethiopia:
   He is come forth to make war with thee.
   And when he heard it,
   He sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying,
10 Thus shall ye speak to Hezekiah king of Judah, saying,
   Let not thy God, in whom thou trustest, deceive thee, saying,
   Jerusalem shall not be given to the hand of the king of Assyria.
11 Behold, thou hast heard what the kings of Assyria have done before,
   To all lands, by destroying them utterly; and shalt thou be delivered?
12 Have the gods of the nations delivered them which my fathers have destroyed,
   As Gozan? and Haran? and Rezeph? and the children of Eden which were in Telassar?
13 And where is the king of Hamath now, and also the king of Arphad?
   And the kings of the cities of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivah?
14 And Hezekiah took it from the messengers, and read it.
   And Hezekiah went up to the house of the LORD
   And spread the letter out before the LORD.
15 And then Hezekiah prayed unto the LORD,
16 Saying, O LORD of hosts, God of Israel,
   That dwellest between the cherubim's,
   Thou art the God, even thou alone,
   Of all the kingdoms of the earth;
   Thou hast made heaven and earth.

8-10. But the king of Assyria  still argues that he will win, and the Lord can't deliver Israel out of his hands. Satan has still not given up.
11-13. The king of Assyria repeats that no nation before has been saved by their many gods. It will be no different this time.
14-16. Hezekiah goes to God in prayer to pray for Jerusalem's deliverence, which we can liken to the Great Intercessory Prayer that Jesus offered in Gethsemane in behalf of all mankind. (See John 17).

 

17 Give thine ear, O LORD, and hear.
   Open up thine eyes, O LORD, and see,
   And hear all the words of Sennacherib,
   Which hath sent to reproach the living God.
18 It is of the truth, LORD, the kings of Assyria,
   Have laid waste all the nations, and their countries,
19 And have cast their gods into the fire, for they were no gods,
   But only the work of men's hands, of wood and stone;
   Therefore they were able to destroy them.
20 Now therefore, O LORD our God,
   Save us from his hand,
   That all the kingdoms of the earth,
   May know thou art the LORD, even thou only.
21 Then Isaiah, the son of Amoz, sent to Hezekiah saying,
   Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, to whom ye have prayed,
   Whereas thou hast prayed to me against Sennacherib, the king of Assyria,
22 This is the word which the LORD hath spoken concerning this king of Assyria:
   The virgin, the daughter of Zion, hath despised thee, and laughed thee to scorn.
   The daughter of Jerusalem hath shaken her head at thee,
23 Whom thou hast reproached and blasphemed;
   And against whom thou hast exalted thy voice,
   And lifted up thine eyes on high, even against the Holy One of Israel.

17-20. Hezekiah's prayer to the God of Israel, pointing out that all the countries that have fallen before Assyria's army before have only had false gods. He said, We know that thou are the only true god; show them that this is true.
21-23. The Lord's answer is sent from Isaiah, saying....The king of Assyria has lifted his voice against Jerusalem, the daughter of Zion , but she laughs at you with scorn and disgust because of your pride and arrogance. Jerusalem, is emblematic of Israel, spiritual Israel.

 

24 By thy servants hast thou reproached and reviled the Lord, and hast said,
   By the multitude of chariots am I come up to the height of the mountains, to Lebanon.
   And I will cut down the tall cedars thereof, and the choice fir trees thereof.
   I will enter into the height of his border, the forest of his Carmel.
25 I have digged, and drunk water; and with the soles of my feet,
   Have I dried up all the rivers of the besieged places.
26 Hast thou not heard long ago, how I have done it; 
   And of ancient times, that I formed it?
   Now I have brought it to pass,
   That thou lay waste defenced cities into ruinous heaps.
27 Their inhabitants were of small power, they were dismayed and confounded;
   They were as the grass of the field, and as the green herb, as grass on the housetops,
   And as grain, blasted before it be grown up.
28 But I know of thy abode, thy going out, and thy coming in, and thy rage against me.
29 Because of thy rage against me, and thy tumult is come up into mine ears,
   Therefore I will put my hook in thy nose and my bridle in thy lips,
   And turn thee back by the way which thou camest.
30 And this shall be a sign unto thee:
   Ye shall eat this year such as groweth of itself;
   And the second year that which springeth forth of the same;
   And the third year, sow ye, and plant vineyards, and eat the fruit thereof.
31 And the remnant that is escaped of the house of Judah shall again take root downward,
   And bear fruit upward.

24-25. God tells of Assyria's doings, how she has reviled the Lord, and bragged about her vile deeds. Satan's vile deeds include bringing to destruction some the Lord's greatest spirit children (tall cedars, and choice trees), like king David.
26. The Lord, still speaking, says, stop your bragging; have you not heard, and long ago, that all that you have done was by my power. These words hark back to the questions of the axe and saw, and how either can boast in what they have done when they are only instruments in the hand of God.
27. You haven't done anything to brag about, especially since all these people were weak, like shallow rooted, short-lived grass.
28-29. The Lord continues to address the king of Assyria, informing him that he knows about the rage he has had towards him; and now how he will be controlled in the future.
30. And gives him a sign that what He says will be so.
31. And promises that Israel will succeed.

 

32 For out of Jerusalem, shall go forth a remnant,
   And they that escape out of mount Zion,
   The zeal of the LORD of hosts shall do this.
33 Thus saith the LORD concerning the king of Assyria,
   He shall not come into this city, nor shoot an arrow there,
   Nor shall they come before it with shields, nor cast a bank against it.
34 By the way that he came, by the same way shall he return;
   He shall not come into this city, saith the LORD.
35 For I will be the defense of this city,
   To save it for mine own sake,
   And also for my servant David's sake.
36 Then the angel of the LORD went forth and smote,
   In the camp of the Assyrians, an hundred eighty-five thousand.
   And when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses.
37 So Sennacherib, king of Assyria, departed, and went and returned, and dwelt at Nineveh.
38 And it came to pass, as he was worshiping in the house of Nisroch his god,
   That Adrammelech and Sharezer his sons smote him with the sword.
   And they escaped into the land of Armenia,
   And Esarhaddon his son reigned in his stead

32-35.Futhermore, the king of Assyria will never even shoot an arrow before he leaves Israel; that he, the true and only God, will defend Israel. Satan, likewise will be defeated totally and completely by Jesus Christ.
36-38. Then an angel slew all of his army and he went home to be killed by his sons. Satan's future is to be cast out into outer darkness, where he will never have any power again.

 

 

CHAPTER 38

1  In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death.
   And Isaiah the prophet,
   The son of Amoz came unto him,
   And said unto him, Thus saith the LORD,
   Set thine house in order, for thou shalt die, and not live.
2  Then Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall and prayed unto the LORD,
3  And said, Remember now, O LORD, I beseech thee, how I have walked before thee in truth, 
   And with a perfect heart, and have done only that which is good in thy sight.
   And Hezekiah wept sore; then came the word of the LORD to Isaiah, saying,
5  Go and say to Hezekiah, Thus saith the LORD, the God of David,
   I have heard thy prayer, and I have seen thy tears;
   Behold, I will add unto thy days fifteen years.
6  And I will deliver thee, and this city,
   From the hand of king Sennacherib,
   And I will defend this city.
21 And Isaiah said, Take a lump of figs,
   Lay it for a plaster upon the boil, and he shall recover.
22 Hezekiah asked, What is the sign, that I shall go up to the house of the LORD?
7  And Isaiah said, This shall be a sign unto thee from the LORD,
   That the LORD will do this thing that he hath spoken.

1.  Hezekiah is a type for Jesus. In those days, following his arrest, Jesus was very "sick," and it was prophesied that he would die, even by himself (Cf. Matt. 26:2, 18, 21, 31, 46, 47.)
2. In the scriptures "walls" represent strength, security, and protection. This was true even for the walls of tents, which were a protection from the elements, etc.. For Jesus to turn his face towards the "wall" means, then, that he turned his face toward the source of his strength and protection---where he put his trust, which, of course, is in God.
3. Jesus is the only one who could make these claims in complete honesty. "Wept sore," suggests an extremely painful weeping that might even produce "great drops of blood," as he did in Gethsemane, when he suffered for our sins.
5. Hezekiah's prayer not only saved himself but the city too. Jesus' intervention saved all mankind. Jesus lived another "15" hours after his tears of blood in Gethsemane, based on estimates.
6. Jerusalem is the symbol for Zion, so in other words, all who accept the Gospel, spiritual Zion, will be saved, delivered from Satan/Assyria.
21-22. The authorities agree that these two verses were somehow missed in the KJV and were tacked onto the end later. It is obvious that they work very well here, which is where most scholars put them.

 

8  Behold, I will bring back again the shadow of the degrees,
   Which is gone down in the sun dial of Ahaz, ten degrees backward.
   So the sun returned ten degrees, by which degrees it was gone down.
9  The writing of Hezekiah king of Judah,
   When he had been sick,
   And was recovered of sickness:
10 I said in the cutting off of my days,
   That I shall go to the gates of the grave,
   That I am deprived of the residue of my years.
11 I said, that I shall not live to see the LORD again,
   Even the LORD, while I am now in the land of the living;
   I shall behold a man no more with the inhabitants of the world.
12 Mine age is departed, and it is removed from me like a shepherd's tent.
   I have cut off like a weaver my life; he will cut me off with pining sickness.
13 I reckoned till morning, that, as a lion, so will he break all my bones;
   From day, even unto the night wilt thou make an end of me.
14 And like a crane and a swallow, so did I chatter,
   And I did mourn, even as a dove.
   My eyes fail with looking upward;
   O LORD, I am oppressed; undertake for me.

8. It is impossible to understand how this could happen. K.& D. agree that the earth could not have reversed its orbit in any way, or by a retrograde of the sun. They think it could have been accomplished "through a phenomenon of refraction."  Whatever happened, I think this verxe represents the resurrection of Jesus; in that, like the sun going backwards to rise again, the son would rise back to life again. Jesus' resurrection would be as much of a phenomenon as the sun going backwards.
9. Hezekiah reflects on his feelings during his sickness, which corresponds to Jesus' suffering. These words corresponds to what Jesus suffered.
10-11. He expected to die. But he had been told by God that life and death were in his power (John 10:18). Still, he knew he was going to die.
12-14. "pining sickness" indicates a sorrowful, longing, wistful, sickness, which is exactly how Jesus felt before he died. These words indicate his despair, and his longing to know why he had to suffer so. His words to his Father at the end, Why hast thou forsaken me? indicates how much he was in the dark, and his incorrect conclusion of failure. Compare these verses to Jonah 2, which is also a type for these moments in his life, where the depths closed about him. For a complete explanation see, INTRODUCTION TO JOB.
13. Jesus was not to have any broken bones, so why does he say here that he expected the Lord to "break my bones," like a lion would? It is figurative, and it means that he expects a total destruction, in the same way a lion breaks bones to get to the bone marrow.
14. This says that he cried out like a crane utters its shrill shriek, murmured softly like a swallow, and mourned like a mourning dove. They are, of course, images of the reality, but how descriptive they are! "Eyes" are used in the scriptures to represent understanding and knowledge. This meaning grows out of the expression, "I see," meaning that I understand; so here he says that he lacks understanding even while he looks to God, but help is not forthcoming.

 

15 What shall I say? He hath both spoken unto me, and himself hath done it.
   I shall go softly all my years in the bitterness of my soul.
16 O Lord, by these things shall the spirits of men live,
   And in all these things is the life of my spirit,
   So wilt thou recover me, and make me to live?
   And in all these things I will praise thee.
17 Behold, for peace I had great bitterness,
   But thou hast, in love unto my soul,
   Delivered it from the pit of corruption,
   For thou hast cast all of my sins behind thy back.
18 For the grave cannot praise thee, death can not celebrate thee;
   They that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth and faithfulness.
19 The living, the living, he shall praise thee, as I do this day.
   The Father to the children shall make known thy truth.
20 The LORD was ready to save me;
   Therefore we will sing my songs to the stringed instruments,
   All the days of our life in the house of the LORD.

15. The Father ordered the crucifixion and the Father has carried it out, because Jesus submitted to His will. Jesus gained humility instead of bitterness from the ordeal, as this says that he shall go softly in his bitterness.. Bitterness would have been expected since his pain and suffering was unjust and unexplained. See Job.
16. By "these things,"  or through the Atonement, men will live spiritually. It is by these same things that make up the spirit of Jesus' life. In other words, it is "these things" that Jesus lived and died for, his everything. Wilt thou, O God, resurrect me? he asks.
17. The promise of Jesus, of the Gospel, is that we find peace. Here he says that to obtain this peace for us that he suffered bitterness. At first God casting Jesus' sins behind His back sounds like it would contradict what we know about Jesus; but remember that Jesus took on himself our sins. So in a sense they become his sins and he was made a curse for us (Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is everyone that hangeth on a tree" (Gal 3:13)).
18. This echoes 1 Cor. 15:55, "O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?" The grave cannot praise or celebrate him because he has snatched us from its jaws, to use a phase from Job (29:15). There is no hope for the wicked that will suffer a spiritual death.
19. But the living will praise him for his faithfulness in completing his mission, saving them from a spiritual death.
20. He has done what is necessary, and is ready/able to give us salvation.

 

CHAPTER 39

1  At that time Merodach-Baladan,
   The son of Baladan and king of Babylon,
   Sent envoys with letters and a present to Hezekiah;
   For he had heard that he had been sick, and was recovered again.
2  And Hezekiah was glad of them, and showed them the house of his precious things.
   The silver, and the gold, and the spices, and the precious ointment,
   And his house of armor, and all that was found in his treasures.
   There was nothing in his house, nor in all his dominion,
   That Hezekiah showed them not.
3  Then came Isaiah the prophet unto king Hezekiah,
   And said unto him, What have these men said to thee?
   And from whence came they unto thee? And Hezekiah said,
   They are come from a far country unto me, even from Babylon.
4  And then said he, What treasures have they seen in thine house?
   And Hezekiah answered him, All that is in mine house have they seen.
   There is nothing among all my treasures that I have not showed unto them.
5  Then said Isaiah to Hezekiah, Hear the word of the LORD of hosts;
6  Behold, the day shall come that all that is in thine house,
   And that which thy fathers have laid up in store until this day,
   Shall be carried off to Babylon; nothing shall be left, saith the LORD.
7  And some of thy sons that issued from thee, which thou beget,
   Shall they take from thee; and they shall be eunuchs,
   In the palace of the king of Babylon.
8  Then said Hezekiah to Isaiah,
   Good is the word of the LORD which thou hast spoken,
   He said moreover, For there shall be peace and truth in my days.

 Israel's treasures were taken to Babylon; but a more important fulfillment was the loss of her knowledge of God--not to mention the Priesthood and temple ordinances. It is interesting that the New International Version and the Revised Standard Version both translate verse seven as "some of thy sons," which the LDS know is true, since Mulek, one of Hezekiah's sons left Israel with Nephi and his family before Israel was destroyed (See Helaman 6:10).
Chapter forty begins a new phase for Isaiah. Instead of using types, he speaks directly. Some argue that this means Isaiah is not the author of chapters 40-66, denying him the ability to see the future. Not only does he foresee the future of old (i.e., Cyrus and the release of the Jews from Babylon), he sees our time also, even using Cyrus as a type for the Lord's servant who will lead Israel out of ignorance. This servant is the minor theme of the next fifteen chapters. The main theme, the flood of light, continues using the same word links that were established in Isaiah 1-39 (flood, flowing, waters, river). Isaiah continues to insert brief prophecies about Jesus, as well as the Second Coming, which is the expectation or goal of the servant's efforts.

 

CHAPTER 40

1  Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.
2  Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem,
   And cry unto her,
   That her warfare is ended,
   That her iniquity has been pardoned;
   For she hath received of the LORD'S hand double for all her sins.
3  The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD,
   And make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
4  Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low;
   And the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain.
5  And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed then,
   And all of mankind shall see it together;
   For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.
6  The voice said, Cry;
   And he said,
   What shall I cry?
   That all flesh is as the grass,
   And all the goodliness thereof is as a flower of the field.
7  The grass withereth, and the flower fadeth:
   Because the spirit of the LORD,
   Bloweth upon it:
   Surely the people is grass.

1.  God is speaking to his servant (V3), instructing him to comfort Israel.
2. He is to announce: Israel's (Jerusalem's) troubles are over; she has suffered fully for her sins. The double he speaks of could be the punishment she received from Babylon and then Rome, but in keeping with the tone of being pardoned, it suggests a double favor. A double favor could be the books of Job and Jonah (the two prophets), which will help in turning Israel around spiritually.
3. Into a spiritual desert of ignorance, the voice of the Lord's servant will bring the news (of Jesus), much like John the Baptist did in the desert. See Bruce R. McConkie, D.N.T.C. vol. 1, p. 116 for a discussion on why this was only incidental to John.
4. This means that all the obstacles of the past will be removed; i.e., made level, permitting the coming forth of truth in abundance. The "way" to the truth will be made easy.
5-8. The truth to be revealed to all men, not just Israel, is the Glory of the Lord----his name, Gospel, etc, and that only his word is lasting.

 

8  The grass withereth, the flower fadeth,
   But the word of our God shall stand for ever and ever.
9  O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain.
   O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with great strength.
   Lift it up loud, and be not afraid; say unto all the cities of Judah, Behold your God!
10 Behold, the Lord GOD will come with a strong hand, and his arm shall rule for him.
   See, his reward is with him, and his work is before him.
11 He shall feed his flock like a loving shepherd;
   He shall gather the lambs in his arm,
   And carry them in his bosom,   
   And gently lead those that are with young.
12 He will do it, who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand,
   And meted out heaven with its span, and comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure,
   And weighed the great mountains in scales, and all the hills in a balance.
13 And who hath directed the spirit of the LORD, or being his counselor hath taught him?
14 With whom took he counsel, and who instructed him,
   And taught him in the path of justice,
   And taught him knowledge,
   And showed unto him,
   The way leading to understanding?
15 Behold, the nations are as a drop in a bucket,
   And are counted as small dust laying on the balance.
   And behold, he taketh up the isles as a very little thing.

9. The truth, brought by the Lord's servant, comes from Zion, another Jerusalem, even from the tops of the mountains of Utah, where the God of Israel has been known for 150 years.
10. "His reward" is everlasting salvation, which he has prepared from the beginning; however, if these two lines are synonymous parallelisms, then his reward and his work are the same thing, and would include the books of Job, Isaiah, Jonah, and others that will bring about the change in the Jews.
11. Jehovah of the Old Testament, also known as the good shepherd, will tenderly nurture and feed his sheep. This means Israel----he will nurture them with knowledge; and, figuratively, will nurture them by gathering them, his sheep, in his arms ever so tenderly.
12. Since verse 10 we have been hearing the words of the Lord who is to come, namely Jesus Christ.  He was the creator, and figuratively speaking, he held all the waters of the earth in the palm of his hand. He also measured out all the heavens and the earth by the spread (span) of his hand. Let him who can hear understand this symbolism.
13-14. The idea here is, who can question him or advise him, the great God, who is so great the nations or the earth are a very little thing to him--for sure this is in hyperbole, when we know that his work and glory is to bring to pass the eternal life of man.

 

16 And all the tall forests of Lebanon are not sufficient to burn,
   Nor are the beasts thereof sufficient for a burnt offering.
17 All of the mighty nations before him are as nothing,
   And they are counted unto him less than nothing,
18 And vanity. To whom, then, will ye liken God?
   Or what likeness will ye compare unto him?
19 An idol? The workman casteth an image,
   Which the goldsmith covereth over,
   And casts silver chains for it.
20 He that is so impoverished,
   That he hath no oblation,
   Chooseth a tree that will not rot.
   He seeketh unto him the cunning workman,
   To prepare a graven image, that can not move.
21 Have ye not known better? and have ye not heard?
   And hath it not been told you even from the beginning?
   Have ye not understood from the foundations of the earth?
22 It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth,
   And the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers,
   That stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain,
   Spreading them out as a tent to dwell in,
23 That bringeth the princes to nothing.
   He maketh the judges of the earth as vanity.

15-17. Another point is that he is God, the Creator; and all the nations of the earth (referred to as isles), even in their incomprehensible immensity, as seen by us, are not only not a burden to him, but the management of them is as a very little thing to him.
18-20. He asks with what or with whom would you compare to him? Then to point out man's foolishness, he reminds us that some men would replace him (the God of loving kindness) with a dumb idol that can not even move.
20. The poor, who cannot afford silver and gold, chooses an idol of wood.
21-24. Then he reminds us that this knowledge of him has not been kept a secret, that it has been known from the foundations of the earth, that he is the only God.
23-24. Nothing of an earthly nature will survive, regardless of position or power.

 

24 Yea, they shall not be planted; yea, they shall not be sown;
   Yea, their stock shall not take root in the earth.
   And he shall also blow upon them,
   And they shall wither,
   And the whirlwind shall take them away as stubble.
25 To whom then will ye liken me, or be my equal? saith the Holy One.
26 Lift up your eyes on high and behold; who hath created all these things?
   He that can bringeth out the multitude of their hosts by number.
   He calleth them all by name by the greatness of his might;
   For he is strong in power, one that faileth not.
27 Why sayest, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel,
   My way is hid from the LORD;
   And my judgment is passed over by my God?
28 Hast thou not known better? and hast thou not heard?
   That the everlasting God, the LORD, the creator of the ends of earth;
   Fainteth not, neither does he weary; there is no searching of his understanding.
29 And he giveth his power unto the faint and the weary of heart,
   And to him that has no might, he increaseth strength.
30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary,
   And the young men shall utterly fall.
31 But they that wait upon the LORD,
   Shall renew their strength.
   They shall mount up with wings as eagles.
   They shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.

26. The point is, no one can be compared to Him, for they cannot even count all of His creations, let alone name them, as He can.
27-28. These lines suggest that most of the Jews have given up on the Lord and think that He has forsaken or forgotten them. How could Israel think that such a great and all powerful God would not see what they do? He is saying, 'Don't try to explain it. Only God knows the reasons for what has happened to the Jews for 2000 years.'
29. God gives power and understanding to the humble. This is the same promise given in Ether 12:27: "for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them." (Also compare D.C. 1:19, 50:16.)
30-31. To "wait upon the Lord" means to wait like a Hebrew bride would wait, according to their custom, for her bridegroom to come in the night. Christ is the Bridegroom. The young and healthy might fail, but those who rely upon God and keep His commandments will become stronger spiritually, even increasing in spirituality to the greatest heights of eternal salvation, even to the level of God, through the power given by him. Compare this use of wings with that of 8:6 and 16:3. Again, it is the symbol for God, and suggests that we can achieve a similar level. Verse 28 explained that God does not grow weary or faint, and this verse promises that we may be exactly the same. And why not? We are His children after all.

 

CHAPTER 41

1  Keep silent before me, O islands,
   And let the people renew their strength.
   Then let them come near, and let them speak.
   Let us come near together, to the place of judgment.
2  Who raised up the righteous man from the east, to his feet,
   And gave the nations before him, and made him a ruler over kings?
   He gave them as the dust to his sword, and as driven stubble to his bow.
3  He pursued them, and passed safely, even by a way he had not gone with his feet.
4  Who hath wrought and done this, calling the generations from the beginning?
   I, the LORD, am the first, and I shall also be the last; yea, I am he.
5  The isles saw it and feared; the ends of earth were afraid,
   Drew near, and came, and each one helped his neighbor;
   And said unto his brother, Be of good courage.
7  So the craftsman encouraged the goldsmith,
   And he that smootheth with the hammer,
   Him that smote the anvil, saying,
   It is ready for the soldering.
   He fastened it with nails,
   That it should not move.

1.  Again "O Islands" refers to the whole earth. God says, Be silent and listen for a change, for the good of people. Stop with all your preconceived notions and listen. Come forward, he says, and answer the following questions.
2. The tense seems to be wrong, even when applied to the time of Cyrus, who scholars think this applies to. It is also wrong when applied to our time unless you look at this being said sometime in the future after the servant of the Lord has commenced his mission. At that time this servant will be raised up, who will be given great power (knowledge), enough to overcome the leaders of the world, the so called wise of the earth.  It is a real stretch to apply this to Cyrus, as he was anything but righteous. This scenario could be an anti-type of Jesus, who rules over all the kings of the earth, and has even defeated the "king" of the earth----Satan.
3. The Lord's servant will aggressively pursue them, the falsehoods and kings, and be successful in changing things, perhaps without travel (by a way not using his feet).
4. Who hath done all this: God of course.
5-7. Verse 5 teaches us that "isles" means the earth since this is a synonymous parallelism (Cf. 42:3-4,42:9,49:1). So the world in fear made idols that cannot even move, except to fall down.

8  But thou, Israel,
   Thou art my servant,
   Jacob, whom I have chosen,
   And the seed of Abraham, my friend.
9  Thou whom I have taken from the ends of the earth,
   And called thee from the chief men thereof, and said unto thee,
   Thou art my servant, and I have chosen thee, and not cast thee away.
10 Therefore fear thou not; for I am with thee;
   Be not dismayed; for I am thy God.
   I will strengthen thee, yea, I will help thee,
   Yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.
11 Behold, all they that were incensed against thee shall be ashamed and confounded.
   They all shall become as nothing; and also all they that strive with thee shall perish.
12 Thou shalt seek them, and shall not find them, even them that contended with thee.
   They that war against thee shall be as nothing, and as a thing of naught.
13 For I the LORD thy God, will hold thy right hand,
   Saying unto thee,
   Fear not; I will help thee.
14 Fear not, thou worm Jacob, and ye men of Israel,
   I will help thee, saith thy LORD, and thy redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.
 

8-9. Paraphrasing, Oh Israel, the seed of Abraham, and Jacob, the Lord has promised you so much and made you his chosen people, and has not cast you away.  "Taken from the ends of the earth" refers to the gathering of Israel in the last days, which all of this refers to.
10-13. In the warmest of words, the Lord reassures Israel that they have not been rejected, that they are still his chosen people, and that he will again help them through his "right hand of righteousness," which is a pseudonym for Jesus Christ and possibly his servant also.
14-16. Fear not, thou poor remnant of a once mighty people, Jehovah will help thee, even make thee strong again, spiritually strong.
 

15 Behold, I will make thee a sharp threshing instrument having teeth.
   Thou shalt thresh the mountains, and beat them small, and make the hills as chaff.
16 Thou shalt fan them, and a wind shall carry them away, and a whirlwind shall scatter them, 
   And thou shalt rejoice in the LORD, and shalt glory in the Holy One of Israel.
17 When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none,
   And their tongue faileth for thirst,
   I, the LORD, will hear them.
   I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.
18 I will open rivers in high places, and fountains in the valleys.
   I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.
19 I will plant in the wilderness the cedar, the acacia, and the myrtle, and the oil tree.
   I will set in the desert the fir tree, and the pine, and the box tree together.
20 That they may see, and know, and consider, and understand together,
   That it was the hand of the LORD that hath done this;
   And the Holy One of Israel hath created it.
21 Produce your cause, saith the LORD;
   Bring forth your strong reasons,
   Saith the King of Jacob.
22 Let them bring them forth,
   And show us what shall happen;
   Let them show us the former things,
   What they be, that we may consider them,
   That we may also know the latter end of them;
   Or declare unto us any of the things for to come.
 
17. Water is, metaphorically, truth and knowledge, so the Lord will reveal to them an abundance of truth.
18-20. Through this "water," even living water, that the Lord will make available to them they will "see, and know, and consider, and understand." With this knowledge that is to come, the Lord will establish great trees, which means, metaphorically, spiritually great people. He will place them in what was a spiritual desert, meaning a place of spiritual ignorance. (Cf. 55:12.)
 21. Their "cause"/case is to be presented by their idols. Their strong reasons have to be meant tongue in cheek. The Lord challenges the idols to explain the past, or predict the future based on the past, as he has done.  The Lord, in making his case strong, has told them that all of his promises of old still stand, and even added what will happen in the future.

 

23 Show unto us the things that are to come hereafter,
   That we may know ye are gods; yea, do good, or do evil,
   That we shall be dismayed, and shall behold it together.
24 Behold, ye are of nothing, and your work is naught;
   An abomination is he that chooseth you.
25 I have raised up one from the north,
   And he shall come;
   From the rising of the sun shall he call upon my name.
   He shall come upon princes as upon mortar, and as a potter treadeth clay.
26 Who hath declared it from the beginning, that we might know?
   And beforetime, that we might say, He is right?
   Yea, there is none that showeth;
   Yea, and there is none that declareth;
   Yea, and there is none that heareth your words.
27 At the very first I said to Zion, Behold, behold them;
   And now I will give to Jerusalem one that bringeth the good tidings;
28 For I beheld, and there was no man, not even among them that could give counsel;
   There was no counselor, that, when I asked of them, could answer a word.
29 Behold, they are all vanity, and their works are as nothing;
   Their molten images are wind and confusion.


22-23. "To consider former things," so "that we may know the latter end of them," refers to the fact that the Lord has used the former times as types and shadows to show what will happen in the last days. They are challenged to do anything at all, but they can't even fall down because they have been nailed down.
24. The Lord closes the issue with the strongest of words, their idols are nothing.
25. This again refers to the Lord's servant who will bring truth and light to the "princes." He comes from the north, which is the Bible's way of saying from the Gentile nations. "From the rising of the sun" means that his prayers will begin when he arises in the morning. "Putting down princes" is the same idea presented before, that the Lord's servant will put down the mighty of the earth, meaning kings and princes.
26. Who has declared this from of old? Not your idols. No one has heard a word from them.
27. He is saying, I, the Lord, have told you of this, and here it is (Isaiah), behold it. All of this was available to Israel from the beginning, but there was no one that understood. He goes on: Now I give you "one" (the servant) that will show you the good tidings that you have not been understood.
28. There were no righteous among Israel that understood the message of Isaiah, or elsewhere.
29. They are in error with their traditions (their idols).

 

CHAPTER 42

1  Behold my servant, whom I uphold, mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth,
   I have put my spirit upon him; he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles.
2  He shall not cry out, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street.
3  And a bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoldering flax shall he not quench.
   He shall bring forth judgment unto truth; he shall not fail, nor be discouraged,
   Till he have set judgment in the earth, and the isles shall wait for his law.
5  Thus saith God the LORD, that created the heavens, and stretched them out;
   He that spread forth the earth, and that which cometh out of it;
   He that giveth breath unto all the people upon it,
   And spirit to them that walk therein.
6  I the LORD have called thee in righteousness,
   And I will take hold of thine hand, and I will keep thee,
   And give thee for a covenant of the people, and for a light to the Gentiles,
7  To open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison,
   And them that sit in darkness, out of the prison house.
8  I am the LORD, that is my name.
   And my glory,
   Will I not give to another,
   Neither my praise to graven images.

Verses 1-4 were fulfilled by John the Baptist, as explained by Jesus in Matt 12:18-21, but on close examination they can also apply to Jesus. And like so many other verses, there can be yet another fulfillment, such as the one by the Lord's servant in the last days. This suggests that what he brings will not be taken in person.
1. He says, Look, this is the servant I have chosen to bring forth this truth to the Gentiles.
2. This servant's voice will not be like street vendors crying in the streets.
3-4. In the image of a loving, gentle shepherd, the information he brings will not cause harm to the spiritually weak, but will actually save them; and he will not become discouraged or broken himself before he completes his mission. "Isles" means all of the lands on this world as we have seen so many times before (cp. 41:5, 42;10). It is again paralleled with earth.
5. Jehovah makes it perfectly clear that this is his doing and not that of some worthless idol as suggested by verse 8.
6. This again speaks of the Lord's servant. He is "given for a covenant" in the sense that God made covenants with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to make them a great nation of chosen people, that the Bridegroom would return and claim his bride. The servant will be an instrument in the hands of the Lord to satisfy that covenant of long ago. But the information that he brings will not be only for the apostate Jews, it will also be for the Gentiles that are in the dark.
7. The Jews have been called blind and deaf by the Lord before, and this certainly applies to them; but it also applies to any in the dark, prisoners of their own ignorance.
8. The servant will take knowledge of the Lord, his name, his Gospel, to those in the dark.

 

9  Behold, the former things are come to pass.
   And new things do I declare, and before they spring forth I tell you of them.
10 Sing unto the LORD a new song, and his praise from the end of the earth,
   Ye that go down to the sea, and all that is therein,
   The isles, and the inhabitants thereof.
11 Let the wilderness and all the cities thereof,
   Lift up their voice, the villages that Kedar doth inhabit.
   Let the inhabitants of the rock sing; let them shout from the top of the mountains.
12 Let them give glory unto the LORD, and declare his praise in the islands.
13 The LORD shall go forth as a mighty man, he shall stir up jealousy like a man of war;
   He shall cry out, yea, shout aloud; he shall prevail against his enemies.
14 I have a long time holden my peace; I have been still, and I refrained myself.
   Now will I cry like a travailing woman; I will destroy and devour at once.
15 I will make waste mountains and hills, and dry up all their herbs.
   I will make the rivers, islands, and I will dry up the pools.
16 And I will bring the blind by a way that they knew not.
   I will lead them in paths that they have not known,
   I will make the darkness light before them,
   And make the crooked things straight.
   These things will I do unto them;
   And not forsake them.
17 They shall be turned back, they shall be greatly ashamed,
   That trust in graven images, and say to molten images, Ye are our gods.

9. Everything the Lord has forecast of old has happened just as he said. Now, new things come, and again he tells of them before they happen. All via this very book.
10. Sing a new song suggests that the old song Moses taught them in Deuteronomy (31:19)is to be replaced. It was a song against Israel. The new song will be for Israel, and can be found in Job 33:27: "I have sinned and perverted that which is right, But his forgiveness and not justice shall be my delight. He will deliver my soul from going down to the pit, And all of my life I shall rejoice in the light." "Ye that go down to the sea," again means the earth.
11. "Rock" is slang for the earth, but it carries a connotation of meaning Christ. This goes along with  "tops of the mountains," which means the top of the Lord's mountain, a holy place, as opposed to the deep, which is the realm of Satan.
13-14. These lines seem to promise a very active role for the Lord in the coming events.  K.&D. even suggest that he will expend enough energy to breath heavily like  a woman in travail, which is just an image of course. His voice, meaning his scriptures, will speak, even cry out the truth as they have never done before, most likely because their eyes have been closed before by God. This suggests that the vale over the eyes of the Jews will be lifted and they will see the truth plainly, but maybe not to happily at first (the devouring part).
15. The great knowledge the Lord's servant brings will lay waste the lofty false knowledge of the "wise," represented by mountains and hills. His truths will dry up their "water"/knowledge, represented by rivers and pools.
17. They, the Jews, will be turned back to their original God, and when they learn who he really is they will be ashamed for their worship of false gods.

 

 
18 Hear, ye deaf, and look ye blind, that ye may see.
19 For I will send my servant unto you, who are blind and deaf,
   Yea, a messenger to open the eyes of the blind, and unstop the ears of the deaf.
   And they shall be made perfect, notwithstanding their present blindness,
   If they will hearken unto the messenger, even the Lord's servant.
20 Thou art a people, seeing many things, but observest not,
   And opening the ears to hear, but thou hearest not.
21 The Lord is not pleased with such a people,
   But for his righteousness' sake.
   He will magnify the law,
   And make it honorable.
22 Thou art a people robbed and spoiled;
   Thine enemies, all of them, have snared thee in holes,
   And they have hidden thee in prison houses,
   And have taken thee for a prey,
   And none delivereth;
   For a spoil,
   And none saith, Restore.
23 Who among you will give ear to this?
   Who will hearken and hear in that time to come?
   Who gave Jacob for a spoil, and Israel unto the robbers?
   Did not the LORD, he against whom they have sinned?
24 For they would not walk in his ways,
   Neither were they obedient unto his laws.
25 Therefore he hath poured upon him the fury of his anger,
   And the strength of the battle, and it hath set him on fire round about,
   Yet he knew not; and it burned them, yet they laid it not to heart.

18. Israel has been identified as the blind and deaf (See 6:10, 29:18, 35:5, 42:21). He says, I will send truth and knowledge, that they do not know.
19-23. The message is consistent. The Lord's servant that is going to come, that will be the reason for such great rejoicing as in verses 10 through 16, will bring the truth and knowledge, metaphorically, water. These lines are taken from Joseph Smith's Translation. The servant is obviously an individual, and not Israel collectively, as some argue; this is especially true since he is being sent to Israel.
22-25. All of these verse clearly refers to the Jews. The terminology is unmistakable.
23. This indicates that this message is for our day----"for that time to come.

 

CHAPTER 43

1  But now thus saith the LORD that created thee, O Jacob,
   And he that formed thee, O Israel,
   Fear not;
   For I have redeemed thee.
   I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine.
2  When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee;
   And through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee.
   When thou walkest through the fire,
   Thou shalt not be burned,
   Neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.
3  For I am the LORD thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Savior.
   I gave Egypt for thy ransom, Ethiopia and Seba for thee.
4  Since thou wast precious in my sight, 
   Thou hast been honorable, and I have loved thee,
   Therefore will I give men for thee, and people for thy life.
5  Fear not; for I am with thee, and I will bring thy seed from the east,
   And I will gather thee from the west; I will say to the north, Give them up;
   And to the south, Keep not back; bring back my sons from far away,
   And all my daughters from the ends of the earth,
7  Even every one that is called by my name;
   For I have created him for my glory; I have formed him, yea, I have made him.

1.  This chapter is based upon their conversion from the previous chapter, the work of the servant. In the strongest of terms Jehovah confirms that he created Israel/the Jews, and he has not forsaken them. They are still his chosen people, so they should not fear.
2. He reminds them that he took them through the Red Sea and also across the Jordan, dry shod. These verses give an image of complete protection by the Lord; but "Passing through the waters" and "fire" alludes to the ordinances of baptism, both of water and of fire. "Passing through the fire" is the baptism by fire, or the Gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands. It is the same as the baptism of fire that is spoken of so often in the New Testament. (Acts 2:1, 4:8, 8:17,10:16, 19:1-6, Matt 3:11, 3:5, John 1:32.)
3-4. These parts of Egypt could represent the world, but what would he mean? How did the Lord give up people for Israel? Mostly he gave up Israelites for Israel.
5-7. These lines are unmistakably referring to the gathering of the Jews in the last days, signaling the end of the Diaspora. In a later chapter he says that the Gentiles will bring them, and give them suck, meaning spiritual food (Cf. 24:15; 60:3,5,11,16; 61:6;66:12.). In a broader sense, God is referring to the gathering of all the honest in heart (which will be part of Israel through adoption).

 

8  Bring forth the blind people that have eyes, and the deaf people that have ears.
9  Let all the nations be gathered together; and let the people be assembled.
   Who among them can declare this, or show us former things?
   Let them bring forth their witnesses,
   That they may be justified,
   Or let them hear,
   And say, It is truth.
10 Ye are my witnesses, Saith the LORD,
   And my servant whom I have chosen in ancient time,
   That ye may know, and believe me, and understand that I am he.
   Before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me.
11 I, even I, am the LORD, and beside me there is no savior.
12 I have declared, and have saved, and I have shown,
   When there was no strange god among you.
   Therefore ye are all my witnesses,
   Saith the LORD; that I am God.
13 Yea, even before the day was, I am he,
   And there is none that can deliver out of my hand.
   I will work, and who shall turn it back?
14 Thus saith the LORD, your redeemer,
   The Holy One of Israel,
   For you I have sent to Babylon,
   And have brought down all their nobles,
   And also the Chaldeans, whose cry is in the ships.

8-9. First, he says for Israel to come forth, the blind and the deaf, and then says for all nations to gather. Generally, they have been blind and deaf too, and he says that not one of them can do any better than the Israelites in forecasting what is going to happen. He challenges any other gods or soothsayers or whatever to foretell what is going to happen, or what the meaning is of what has happened. Then they should shut up and admit that it is true, that God did foretell these events, both then and now. No one else did.
10. It means, Ye, Israel, are my witnesses that I did foretell these things because you have lived it; therefore you know I am the same, yesterday, today, and tomorrow. This is Isaiah's third use of "servant" in a collective sense. Also see 41:8&9,44:1,2,21, and 26, 48:20, 49:3.
11-13. God told them long ago, here in Isaiah, about all that is to happen, before they turned back to follow after false gods; therefore, they can not question these things now, as they come to understand them; so they are witnesses to the world that he can say, "I am He, from the beginning, even I AM, the Self-existent One.
14. Israel was freed from Babylon long after these words were given to Israel to fulfill this prophecy, but Babylon and the Chaldeans represent the world in a broad sense, especially for their pride in their ships or worldly things; so this also means that he has gone outside of Israel, to the Gentiles, to accomplish this great work.

 

15 I am the LORD, your Holy One, the creator of Israel, and your King.
16 Thus saith the LORD, which maketh a way in the sea, a path in the mighty waters,
17 Which bringeth forth the chariot and horse, the army and the power.
   They shall lie down together, they shall not rise.
   They are extinguished, quenched as tow.
18 Remember ye not the former things, neither consider things of old.
19 Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth, shall ye not know it?
   And I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.
20 The beast of the field shall honor me, the dragons and the owls;
   I give waters in the wilderness, rivers in the desert,
   To give drink to my people, to my chosen,
21 This people I have formed for myself,
   They shall show forth my praise.

15-17. To strengthen his argument, that he is Jehovah, the same that was in the beginning, he reminds them that he created Israel, and goes on to allude in what manner he did it. The second meaning of these verses, and just as important, is the declaration that he has made "a way" through Satan's sea, or through our sea of sins. The sea, or raging sea, represents the realm of Satan that we must pass through in our trial of faith. The "way" was opened by the Atonement. Verse seventeen could be describing the results of baptism, similar to 22:13, where he says that tomorrow they shall surely die, but means in the waters of baptism, which are "mighty waters" to save.
18-21. He says to forget about the last time he brought Israel forth, that now he will do a similar thing as he did in verse sixteen, this time figuratively. He shall bring Israel out of captivity again, but this time it will be a way out of a world of ignorance and falsehoods. The new thing will even bring the beasts, dragons, and owls to know him, They symbolize the people of the spiritual wilderness who do not yet know the truth (See note 46:8).  He is referring to "water" again, which is the knowledge that is needed to find "the way." In the wilderness of ignorance, he will bring forth rivers of "living waters" for the "thirsty" to drink.
19. Pardon the pun of "spring" forth, the meaning of which is expanded in the next line. The new thing shall be known by them, and will be about truth and knowledge as reflected by the "rivers in the desert," meaning "living waters" springing forth in a place of ignorance.

 

22 But thou hast not called upon me, O Jacob;
   But thou hast not been wearied of me, O Israel.
23 Thou hast not brought me the small cattle of thy burnt offerings,
   Neither hast thou honored me with thy sacrifices.
   I have not caused thee to serve offerings,
   Nor wearied thee with incense.
24 Thou hast bought me no sweet cane with money,
   Neither hast thou filled me with the fat of thy sacrifices.
   But thou hast made me to serve with thy sins, thou hast wearied me with thine iniquities.
25 I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy many transgressions,
   For mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins.
26 Therefore put me in thy remembrance.
   Let us plead together;
   Declare thou,
   That thou mayest be justified.
27 From the first thy fathers hast sinned,
   And thy teachers have transgressed against me;
28 Therefore I have profaned the princes of the sanctuary,
   And have given Jacob to the curse, and Israel to reproaches.


22. This is a little reminder of how they have treated their God in the past. "Not been wearied" of him, means they have not been serving him. (Cf. "wearied" in 23 and 24.)
23-25. They have not been serving him, as they should. Instead, he has been serving them. It sounds like this might be meant only in a negative way (i.e., his serving them.), but it is also referring to the fact that he gave his life for them (v25), that he saved them from a spiritual death, that he drank of the bitter cup. This could also be hinting at the fact that under the new covenant they will not worship via the laws of Moses, even that they will be circumcised of the heart, not the...
26. Because he did such wonderful things for them/us, he should always be kept in remembrance. We covenant to do this in the sacramental prayer----to always remember him. He is our mediator with the Father, and so he pleads our case before Him. We should "plead"/pray with him/"together" for our souls. "Declare thou," means to confess your sins and repent, that you may be cleansed/"justified" before the Father.
27. All have sinned and have need to repent, even from Adam, and/or Abraham. Israel has also sinned from its beginning, including its leaders. There is in these statements a hint of an explanation for the reason behind the Diaspora. That through Israel's sins and consequential scattering, the entire world has been seeded with truth about the one true God, and from that beginning it will be easier to teach the world. All will come to know his teachings and become subject to his law.

 

 CHAPTER 44

1  Yet now hear,
   O Jacob, my servant,
   Israel, whom I have chosen.
2  Thus saith the LORD, that made thee,
   And formed thee from the womb, and will help thee:
   Fear not, O Jacob, my servant, and Jesurun, whom I have chosen;
3  For I will pour water on him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground.
   I will pour out my spirit upon all thy seed, and give my blessing upon all thine offspring,
4  And they shall spring up like as among the grass, as willows by by the water courses.
5  One shall say, I am the LORD'S, and another shall call himself Jacob,
   And another shall subscribe with his hand unto the LORD,
   And shall surname himself by the name of Israel.
6  Thus saith the LORD, the King of Israel,
   And his redeemer, the LORD of hosts,
   I am the first, and I am the last,
   And beside me there is no God.
7  And who, as I, shall call,
   And shall declare it,
   And set it in order for me,
   Since I appointing the ancient people?
   The things that are coming, and shall come, let them show them?

1. He begins it, "Yet," meaning "but" or "however," which signals a return to the blessings that are to come. It means that regardless of their sins, which are many, he will forgive them and they are still his chosen people.
2. This "fear not" is the fifth time since chapter 40 that he has consoled them this way.
3. They should not fear because he is going to give them great quantities of truth and knowledge/water.
4-6. This "water"/knowledge that they receive will result in their return to Jehovah the King of Israel, and they will again be known by the name of Jacob and Israel.
7. Who can bring them this wonderful news the way God  has, through the ancient people, or through the scriptures, which implies that it has been in their Bible all the time, even Isaiah, and Job, and Joel and Jonah, etc., that is, and has been God's communication with them.

 

8  Fear ye not, neither be afraid; have I not told thee this from that time,
   And have I not declared it unto thee of olden time? ye are even my witnesses.
   Is there a God beside me? yea, there is no other rock; I know not any.
9  They that make a graven image are all of them vanity,
   And their desired things shall not profit.
   And they are their own witnesses,
   For they see not, nor know,
   To even be ashamed.
10 Who hath formed a god,
   Or molten a graven image,
   That is profitable for anything?
11 Behold, all his fellows shall be put to shame;
   The workmen are only men, let them all be gathered together;
   Let them stand up; yet they shall fear, and they shall be put to shame together.
12 The smith worketh it over the coals, and fashioneth it with tools.
   He worketh it with hammers, and the strength of his arm.
   Yea, he is hungry, and his strength faileth.
   He drinketh no water, and is faint.
13 The carpenter stretcheth out his rule upon it;
   He marketh it out with a line; he fitteth it with planes,
   And he marketh it out with the compass, and maketh it after the figure of a man,
   Even according to the beauty of a man, that it may remain in the house.
14 He heweth him down cedars, and taketh the cypress, and the oak,
   Which he strengtheneth among the trees of the forest;
   He planted an ash, and the rain doth nourish it.

8. Be reassured Israel. He told you of this as early as 600 B.C. by the mouth of Isaiah; therefore you know its valid, and you will be witnesses of it to the world. "Rock" instead of "God" is used in both the New International Version and the Revised Standard Version, which is rather significant in that we know "rock" means Jesus Christ. God is referred to as the rock many times in the Old Testament (Psa. 18:31,18:46, 28:1, 31:3), and also in the New (1 Cor. 10:4).
9-10. Now, after referring to himself as "the rock" in the verse above,  he begins a long contrasting view of how foolish it is to worship other rocks, like idols of stone.
12. Jehovah makes it very clear how foolish anyone is that makes his own god out of a tree. The idol maker is hungry, metaphorically, because the god he has chosen gives him no knowledge, no "bread from heaven," no "living water." And he will never get either of them from his worthless idols, which, he is clearly reminds, are the products of men, or of his own arms.
13-20. How clearly God points out that idols are of no more value than ashes.

 

15 Then shall it be for a man to burn;
   For he will take thereof,
   And warm himself.
   Yea, he kindleth it and baketh bread.
   Yea, he also maketh a god, and worshipeth it;
   He maketh it a graven image, and falleth down thereto.
16 He burneth part thereof in the fire; with part thereof he eateth flesh,
   He roasteth roast, and is satisfied; yea, he warmeth himself,
   And saith, Aha, I am warm, I have a fire.
17 And with the residue thereof,
   He maketh a god, even his graven image.
   He falleth down unto it, and worshippeth it,
   And prayeth unto it, and saith,
   Deliver me,
   For thou art my god.
18 They have not known, nor understood;
   For he shut their eyes, that they cannot see,
   And closed their hearts, that they cannot understand.
19 And none considereth in his heart, neither is there knowledge,
   Nor the understanding to say, I have burned part of it in the fire,
   Yea, I have baked bread upon the coals thereof, and roasted flesh and eaten;
   And shall I make the residue thereof into an abomination?
   Shall I fall down to the stock of a tree?
20 He feedeth on ashes; a deceived heart hath turned him aside,
   That he cannot deliver his soul, nor say, Is there not a lie in my right hand?
21 Remember these, O Jacob and Israel, for thou art my servant;
   I have formed thee; thou art my servant;
   O Israel, thou shalt not be forgotten of me.
22 I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions,
   And, as a cloud, thy sins; return unto me; for I have redeemed thee.

18. God has closed their eyes to the truth----exiled them, figuratively, because they exiled him, by not keeping his commandments and chasing after false gods. Cf. 27:8, where Jehovah said their punishment was "measure for measure."
19. This is a summary of the previous verses (10-18), and a very strong indictment on Israel.
20. The idol worshiper cannot save his soul. He can not even recognize that the idol in his hand, or wherever, is a "lie"/false god. 
21-22.In contrast to the idol which has done nothing, Jehovah reminds them that he has made them/Israel (saving them from Egypt), and he has taken away their sins through the Atonement and can save them again, spiritually.