Latter-day Saint Seminar Volume 4, Number 9 February 4, 2001 ________________________________________________________________________ Table of Contents ________________________________________________________________________ GD9 - 2 Nephi 11-25 Article 1 - Comments by S. Kurt Neumiller kurtn@cybcon.com Article 2 - Structure by D. Lynn Johnson dlj5@voyager.net ________________________________________________________________________ Comments, by S. Kurt Neumiller ________________________________________________________________________ General Comments on 2 Nephi 11-24 In these chapters Nephi quotes Isaiah 2-14, providing a brief explanation of why he is quoting them in ch. 11. In selecting these chapters, why does Nephi omit these chapters and exclude others? Nephi would have stopped at ch. 14 and not included subsequent chapters because Isa. 15-23 are a series of curses hurled at Gentile nations neighboring Israel. As such, the material there is less relevant to the Lehites in the New World. Nephi probably omits Isa. 1 as it is a summary of the entire book of Isaiah. Nephi's present intent is to focus specifically on the interaction between Israel and her Gentile nations by likening it to his descendants and their future interaction with Gentiles. He also draws on messianic texts in those chapters to emphasize their belief in Christ as the Redeemer. Isaiah 1 doesn't discuss either of these topics, suggesting this the reason Nephi omits it. Nephi's omission of Isa. 1 has caused some LDS authors to speculate the text was either a later addition or was placed elsewhere, perhaps last, and subsequently moved to the front of the book later by someone other than Isaiah. I don't see any internal evidence to support these ideas. The fact that Isa. 1 summarizes the rest of the book suggests it was deliberately intended as an introduction. Comments on 2 Nephi 11 v1 Nephi lets the reader know that the preceding sermon was just a sample of Jacob's preaching. v2-8 After including a couple of chapters of Isaiah in Jacob's sermon (cf. ch. 7-8) Nephi decides to add some more Isaiah because his "soul delighteth in his words" (v. 2). Why does his soul delight in these words? Because he can liken them to his people and because Isaiah also has seen Christ the Redeemer (v. 3), as has Nephi and Jacob (v. 4). He wants his descendants to know these two things (v. 2). Nephi then elaborates on these two points in an A-B-B-A fashion: 4 Behold, my soul delighteth in proving unto my people the truth of the coming of Christ; for, for this end hath the law of Moses been given; and all things which have been given of God from the beginning of the world, unto man, are the typifying of him. 5 And also my soul delighteth in the covenants of the Lord which he hath made to our fathers; yea, my soul delighteth in his grace, and in his justice, and power, and mercy in the great and eternal plan of deliverance from death. 6 And my soul delighteth in proving unto my people that save Christ should come all men must perish. 7 For if there be no Christ there be no God; and if there be no God we are not, for there could have been no creation. But there is a God, and he is Christ, and he cometh in the fulness of his own time. Nephi starts each refrain with "my soul delighteth in..." as a clear rhetorical marker. Given these two points of interest we should be looking for material related to them in the subsequent chapters of Isaiah quoted by Nephi. Nephi closes the introduction by stating those of his descendants who read this should lift up their heads and rejoice, as should all men, because all people can liken them to themselves (v. 8). The reader of these chapters of Isaiah should rejoice over the same two points that delight Nephi, that Christ is the Redeemer and they are covenant Israel. v7 This verse is something of a restate of Lehi's argument in 2:11-13, but its primary intention is to parallel the v. 4 Law of Moses references to "all things...from the beginning of the world". Also, the Creation and divine Creatorship of the Lord is a pivotal subject of Isa. 40-47. Comments on 2 Nephi 12-24 See my comments on Isaiah on the LDS Seminar archive at: http://www.cybcon.com/~kurtn/exegesis.html General Comments on 2 Nephi 25-30 These chapters are Nephi's comments on the Isaiah text he has just quoted. Chapter 25 is a repetition of the themes of 1 Ne. 11-14, but this time the emphasis is placed upon Israel rather than the Gentiles. Chapter 26 parallels the Lehites in the New World with the ch. 25 theme of Israel in the old world. In ch. 27, Nephi then likens the text of Isa. 29 to the Gentile's general rejection of his words. And in ch. 30, Nephi predicts the restoration of Israel via the Gentiles who do not reject his writings, with this leading up to the Millennial reign of Christ. Ideally, chapters 25-30 would be dealt with together in a single class. I suspect the assignment of 2 Ne. 11-25 for lesson 9 was done so there would be one chapter on each end of the Isaiah quotations the teachers could work with rather than assigning only ch. 12-14 and thereby forcing the teacher to have to present a class on Isaiah. However, a subtheme which both ch. 11 and 25 share in common is that of the Law and Prophets testifying of Christ. If ch. 11 and ch. 25 are read in tandem and the interviening Isaiah material is skipped (as it is so long the reader will have forgotten what ch. 11 was about by the time they get to ch. 25) this focus on types of Christ becomes apparent (cf. 11:4-6, 25:20, 25:24-25). Despite the repeated admonitions within the BofM to study the words of Isaiah (cf. 2 Ne. 6:4-5, 2 Ne. 25:1-8, 3 Ne. 20:11, 3 Ne. 23:1, Mormon 8:23) they are commonly glossed over in class. Comments on 2 Nephi 25 v1-8 After quoting a substantial section of Isaiah, Nephi admits the meaning of this text is obscure. This is because the manner of prophesying in which the text is written is not generally understood (v. 1). Nephi states he has not taught the "manner of the Jews" to his people because they included abominable things (v. 2). But, even though he has not taught them the manner of the Jews, Nephi still wants his people to know the covenants of the Lord which apply to his people, as well as all people (v. 3). Nephi then informs the reader that despite their not necessarily understanding Isaiah, he will explain it to them via the two keys of understanding: the spirit of prophecy (v. 4) and the manner of the Jews (v. 5-6). Thus, Nephi will deliver a prophecy which is easy for the reader to understand. But, regardless, the time will come in the last days when people will understand Isaiah's prophecies because they will be fulfilled in their own eyes (v. 7). Thus, they are of worth to all people. And to those who don't think they are of worth to them, especially those of his own people, Nephi wants to specifically address. Nephi states plainly that he knows for a fact that Isaiah's writings are addressing the latter-days, and this is why he has written them for a latter-day reader audience (v. 8). v2 Clearly, if the manner of prophesying employed by Isaiah was among the "manner of the Jews", and is one Nephi himself is familiar with, then this "manner" was not wholly an abomination. I suspect what Nephi intends is to convey is something along the lines of 9:28-29 and D&C 121:34-40. This Jewish system of prophesying which Isaiah employs is an effective one, but one prone to causing pride, which leads to abominations. "the manner of the Jews", one of the keys in understanding the book of Isaiah. This one is presented as not being the same as "the spirit of prophecy" (v. 4), and oftentimes being antithetical to it because of the abominations which may attend it. v3 The subsequent prophecy of v. 9-19 is about the Jews, not the Lehites. But, Nephi wants his people to know the covenants of the Lord do not apply only to the Jews, but to all of covenant Israel. This includes the Lehites because they are lineage of Joseph. Nephi's comments here reemphasize those of Jacob in ch. 6-10 wherein Jacob emphatically insists the Nephite group is still part of covenant Israel. But, Nephi's comments go well beyond his present audience of the present Nephites and future Lehites as he wants to make it clear the words of Isaiah apply to all nations. As Isaiah spoke to Israel as well as Gentiles, Nephi wants to emphasize these words are then relevant to everyone. v4 "the spirit of prophecy", this is another of the keys to understanding Isaiah. If one has this spirit and is familiar with this spirit, then the words of Isaiah can be readily understood. I would assume Nephi means the person has the Holy Spirit with them as well as has the experience of prophesying, as it is by experience people come to perceive the true nature of the subject. v5-6 Nephi makes it clear he knows the manner of the Jews and can therefore more easily understand Isaiah's message. Note Nephi considers the "things of the Jews", which I would take to be referring to their culture, and the "regions round about [Jerusalem]" as things that assist him in understanding Isaiah. Thus, if one wants to serious study Isaiah, then familiarizing yourself with these two things will help. Also recall in 1 Ne. 1:1-2 Nephi states "I was taught somewhat in all the learning of my father" and that he writes a record "which consists of the learning of the Jews", suggesting at least some kind of formal training. v7-8 Nephi's primary intent is to address his own contemporary people, especially those who do not believe the words of Isaiah pertain to them. We can determine this from v. 30 in that Nephi is addressing an audience that must observe the Law of Moses until it is fulfilled. Nephi has seen the future of his people, he knows full well the Gentiles will not be receiving this book and carrying to his latter-day descendants until well after the Law of Moses is fulfilled. So neither group can be his primary target. Naturally, it would ultimately apply to his latter-day descendants, and any Jew or Gentile convert readers as well given their covenant relationship with Israel. v9-17 comprise the plain prophecy Nephi mentioned in v. 4 and 7. It is largely a chronological accounting of various important events in the future religious history of the Jews. The prophecy here is similar in content to that of 1 Ne. 11- 13, but focuses more squarely on the Jews in Jerusalem as opposed to the Gentiles. v12 "rumors of wars", i.e., political intrigue. v13 "with healing in his wings", cp. 26:9 and see my comments on Mal. 4:2 in LDSS Vol. 2, No. 48 for a discussion. v15 "Babylon shall be destroyed", Nephi is speaking of literal Babylon, the place where the exiled Jews were per v. 10. This literal collapse of the ancient Babylon results in the Jews being scattered even more. The remnants of the capital city of Babylon persisted to NT times (cf. 1 Pet. 5:13) despite being overrun first by the Persians under Cyrus, then the Macedonians, and ultimately the Romans. There was a large population of Jews residing at Babylon until NT times (cf. Josephus, Antiquities, book 15, ch. 3, para. 1, the remnants of those taken there by Nebuchadnezzar. The ruling Pharisees at Jesus' time, the Sanhedrin, was populated by Babylonian Jews imported by Herod after he slaughtered the sitting Sanhedrin upon taking power. v16 Compare Ether 4:16, Isa. 25:9, D&C 45:24-54. v17 "second time", cp. 6:14. "a marvelous work and a wonder", cp. 27:26, Isa. 29:14. v18-30 Nephi draws a parallel between the Jews (v. 18-20) and the descendants of Joseph (v. 21-28). The words the Lord will bring forth to the Jews will judge them, words given to convince them that the Messiah (v. 18) is Jesus Christ according to the Prophets (v. 19) and the Law (v. 20). So too will the words Nephi writes to the descendants of Joseph (v. 21) judge them (v. 22), words which were intended to persuade them to believe in Christ (v. 23-27) according to the Prophets and the Law (v. 28). He concludes this parallel by addressing the reader, saying the right way is to believe in Christ and worship him with all they have so they may not be rejected by him (v. 29). And, thus, the reader must observe the Law of Moses until it is fulfilled (v. 30). This parallel sets the stage for the subsequent parallel Nephi makes between the Jews in v. 9-17 and the Lehites in ch. 26. v19 "Jesus Christ, the Son of God", this is the first appearance of the name "Jesus" in the BofM. The Messiah is called the Son of God repeatedly in 1 Ne. 11-12. The more exclusive title "Christ" is applied in 10:13. It is left unclear as to where Nephi got the name "Jesus" from, whether it was from some prophet lost to us, from the angel he saw, or from the angel Jacob saw. v21 "promise...unto Joseph", cp. Alma 46:24-25. v23 "it is by grace that was are saved, after all we can do", this has become a popular passage used against people who quote Paul's "we are saved by grace, not by works" from Eph. 2:8-10. Doing so is simply contentious contradiction. From the context of what Nephi is discussing, what he means by "all we can do" is the performances and ordinances of the Law of Moses per v. 25 and 30. The argument Nephi is developing here is the Law of Moses points to Christ (cf. v. 20), and they have to keep the Law of Moses until Christ comes and fulfils it. But, salvation is not achieved through the works of the Law, but rather is through Christ, per v. 26-28. So, Nephi actually agrees 100% with Paul, only his wording is superficially ambiguous to make it sound like he is contradicting Paul. But, he isn't at all. The confusion of this phrase lies in the seeming implication of being salvation by grace being contingent upon a person doing all they can. However, from the context of the passage, that is not what Nephi intends at all. From the context of the passage a better reading on this phrase would be "we are made alive in Christ [through his grace] because of our faith, yet we [do all we can to] keep the law [of Moses] because of the commandments" (which is a quote of v. 26 with inserted portions of the phrase). v30 "until the law shall be fulfilled", cp. 3 Ne. 15:4-5, 4 Ne. 1:12. ________________________________________________________________________ Structure, by D. Lynn Johnson ________________________________________________________________________ Elder Packer urges us to not stop at the Isaiah chapters. You may have heard about the missionary who was shot in the chest. Fortunately, he had a pocket Triple Combination in his shirt pocket and the bullet couldn’t get through the Isaiah material. So much to cover in one lesson! Most must be skipped, as I will. You just might find Isaiah easier to read and understand in the reformatted version. I certainly do. The full reformatted text can be found on the LDSS Archive website, http://www.cybcon.com/~kurtn/exegesis.html. Isaiah is the master of structure, second only to the Lord himself. The structure is at several levels, and needs to be seen to be appreciated. 2 Nephi 12:1-15:30 Inverted I1 The mountain of the Lord's house shall be established in the top of the mountains. // He will lift up an ensign to the nations from far. I2 And all nations shall flow unto it. // And behold, they shall come swiftly. I2 He shall teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths. No war. // If they look unto the land, behold, darkness, sorrow, and no revelation. II Ye have all gone astray, every one to his wicked ways. Their land is full of material things and idols. // Wo unto the wicked, the wise in their own eyes, etc. III The proud shall be brought down. The Lord alone shall be exalted. They shall cast their idols to the moles and the bats. // The mean man and the might man shall be humbled. The Lord shall be exalted. IV The Lord doth take away from Jerusalem and Judah the stay of water and the staff of bread, and the mighty man, the judge, the prophet, etc. // My people are gone into captivity, because they have no knowledge, their honorable men are famished, and their multitude dried up with thirst. V Various conditions of apostasy, including no bread or clothing and wickedness. // Desolation and wickedness. VI The ancients and princes have eaten up the vineyard and the spoil of the poor, and beat my people in pieces, and grind upon the face of the poor. // The vineyard of the Lord brought forth wild grapes, despite his care. He looked for judgment, but behold oppression, for righteousness, but behold a cry. VII The daughters of Zion and the temple. 2 Nephi 13:16-4:6 Inverted A1 The daughters of Zion to be smitten by the Lord. // When the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion. A2 Instead of a sweet smell there shall be a stink... // And the Lord will create upon every dwelling-place of mount Zion...a cloud and smoke by day and a shining of a flaming fire by night...and there shall be a tabernacle. B Thy men shall fall by the sword in the war. // They that are left alive shall be called holy. C Her gates shall lament and mourn, and she shall be desolate. // The branch of the Lord shall be beautiful and glorious. D Seven women shall take hold of one man, saying: We will eat our own bread, and wear our own apparel; only let us be called by thy name to take away our reproach. Discussion: Note that the figures of bread and clothing in 13:7 appear also in 14:1. Lee Donaldson suggests that these refer to ordinances and priesthood. This system has to be charged with symbolic meanings. Maybe we can take a hint from Revelation, where the church is symbolized as a woman, a bride, with Christ as the bridegroom. Then the haughty daughters of Zion could be apostate Israel, the Lord’s intended bride. And the A2s take on a particularly significant meaning. The second includes temple imagery, while the first implies that things are not working right. Here we find a list of five (= the number of the temple, as well as mercy and grace); how much temple imagery is there in this list? Quite a bit. Girdle is Strong 2290, belt or apron or armor. Tanakh says apron. The same Hebrew word is rendered “apron” with respect to Adam and Eve’s first apparel in Gen. 3:7. Hair is Strong 4748, the only occurrence of this translation of the Hebrew, knotted up round and hard, a curl, well set hair. Tanakh says diadem of beaten-work. Stomacher is Strong 6614, probably a figured mantle for holidays. Tanakh says rich robe. We can imply that the temple is not where it is expected to be, because of the apostasy. Finally, the seven women (the seven churches of Revelation?) (seven = having reached a degree of spiritual perfection?) could be the apostate Christian churches, who shall take hold of one man (Christ), saying: we will have our own ordinances, and our own priesthood, only let us take upon ourselves thy name to take away our reproach. (There is no reproach for not being married in the world these days.) We have been told that there will be Terrestrial churches during the Millennium. The traditional churches certainly have mellowed since the darkest depths of the apostasy, and we might expect the process to continue. We already see many of the doctrines of the restoration finding wider acceptance among normative Christianity. And so much more! Check out the fall of the king of Babylon in 2 Nephi 24:4-23. ________________________________________________________________________ Next Assignment: 2 Nephi 26-30 ________________________________________________________________________ A note to readers: LDS Seminar Digest [LDSS-D] is a summary of posts made to LDS Seminar, an open forum for discussion on upcoming Gospel Doctrine lessons. LDS Seminar [LDSS] posts are open to exegesis, textual analysis, historical issues, and life applications. Submissions to LDSS will not be edited for content, but not all submissions will be automatically included in LDSS-D. LDSS-D is a one way list, subscribers cannot post to LDSS-D. If you wish to post you must join LDSS. 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