Old Testament - Isaiah 62-63 - October 6, 2022

10/6/2022 – Isaiah 62-63

Isaiah 62: Isaiah continues to prophesy of Christ’s Second Coming and the Millennium which will follow. This chapter is a bit difficult for me to understand, so I’ve gone to my study guide: “Isaiah refers to the Old and New Jerusalems. Both are to possess “righteousness” witch will “go forth as brightness” and offer salvation “as a lamp that burneth” (v1)” Zion is to be called by a “new Name” (v 2), the New Jerusalem, and the Old Jerusalem shall “no more be termed Forsaken” nor ‘Desolate” (v 4) Once again Zion shall be married to the Lord. This symbol represents Zion’s return to spiritual righteousness, for “as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall God rejoice over [Jerusalem’s restoration] (v 5).”

V's 4-5 speak of the shifting of continents. D&C 133:24 also speaks of this amazing shift. The JST of these verses says that the lands, like a man and woman in holy wedlock, will be sealed by the authority of the one officiating. 

In v’s 6-7 He says “I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night: ye that make mention of the Lord, keep not silence, and give him no rest, till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth.”  I take this to mean that we are to not only live the gospel, but we should share the gospel with all people—for the Lord wants us all to be those who “have gathered…and praise the Lord; and they that have brought it together shall drink it in the courts of my holiness [or sanctuary]” (v 9). And then in v 10 he encourages us to “Go through, go through the gates; prepare ye the way of the people…”

V's 11 & 12 tell us that there will be an end to our world as we know it. The earth shall be changed and “the holy people, The redeemed of the Lord” will live there in peace and harmony.

Isaiah 63: Once again, the synopsis of this chapter is so very helpful to me: “Second Coming shall be a day of vengeance and also the year of the redeemed of the Lord—Then shall the saints praise the Lord and acknowledge him as their father.”

V 1 indicates that when the Lord returns to our earth, it will be with glory and great wonder among the people. He will then re-introduce Himself and speak of when he lived on the earth and worked to establish the gospel among the people.

Once again, I have turned to my study manual for help in understanding: Isaiah 63:10-19 depicts a people gone astray, a people who have broken their covenants with the Lord. These verses speak of the great judgment of the earth described in verses 1-9. V 17 in the JST contains a significant alteration Instead of “O Lord why hast thou made us to err from thy ways and hardened our heart,: It reads, “O Lord, why hast thou suffered us to err from thy ways, and to harden our heart?” God does not compel people to sin or to harden their hearts.  We control whether our heart is hardened or softened. We can always ask for help from our Heavenly Father when we find ourselves growing hard. I want to always keep a soft heart, a mailable heart-- certainly a soft heart, but also a strong heart, that pushes me to kindness, helpfulness, understanding…basically giving love to all those I come into contact with. My daily prayers help me in this, my deep desire.

 

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