Lesson 119: Isaiah 10–16
Introduction
Isaiah
foretold the destruction of both Assyria and Babylon, which can be likened to
the destruction of the wicked at the Second Coming. He prophesied of the
latter-day Restoration of the Church and its role in gathering Israel. He also
prophesied of the destruction of Moab.
I. Isaiah 10
Isaiah prophesies that Assyria
will punish Israel and that Assyria will also be destroyed
---Write the
word woe on the board, and ask students to recall what it means. (Intense
sorrow or suffering.)
---After
they respond, invite a student to read Isaiah 10:1–2 aloud. Ask the class to follow
along and look for what actions would bring intense sorrow and suffering upon
Israel.
---What actions would bring suffering upon
Israel?
---Summarize
Isaiah 10:3–4 by explaining that because the
leaders and people of Israel had turned away from the Lord through their
wickedness, they would be punished and not have the Lord’s help.
---Read Isaiah 10:5–6 aloud, including the footnote to
verse 5. Ask the
class to follow along and look for how Israel would be punished for its
wickedness.
---Who would the Lord use to punish Israel?
---Summarize
Isaiah 10:7–19 by explaining that Isaiah
prophesied that after the Assyrians had fulfilled the Lord’s purposes in
punishing Judah and the Northern Kingdom of Israel, the Lord would destroy the
Assyrians as well because of their pride and wickedness. This destruction is
symbolic of the destruction the proud and wicked will experience at the Second
Coming.
---Summarize
Isaiah 10:20–34 by reminding them that Isaiah
foretold that the Assyrian army would destroy many cities as it marched toward
Jerusalem; however, Jerusalem would be miraculously spared (see 2 Kings 19).
---Invite a
student to come to the board.
----After
the drawing is complete, ask the class if they understand what Isaiah was talking
about. Also ask the student who drew on the board to remain at the board and
adjust the drawing as needed to match the explanations that will follow.
---Explain
that sometimes we can better understand the meaning of symbols in the
scriptures by referring to explanations found in other scriptures or in the
words of modern prophets.
---What
objects did Isaiah refer to? (A rod, a stem, a branch, roots, and an ensign.)
---Explain
that the word stem in Isaiah 11:1 is translated from a Hebrew word
that can refer to the stump of a tree that has been cut down.
---Ask the
student at the board to revise the drawing to include a tree stump, if needed,
and to write Stem near the stump. Then ask the student to add roots, if needed,
and label them Roots.
---Ask the
student at the board to draw new growth coming from the stump, if needed, and
to label it Rod.
---Point out
that the Prophet Joseph Smith’s explanations of what the stem, rod, and
roots represent are recorded in Doctrine and
Covenants 113.
---Invite
students to read Doctrine and Covenants
113:1–6 silently,
looking for the meanings of these symbols.
---Invite
the student at the board to write Jesus Christ on the board next to the word
Stem. You may want to suggest that students write the meanings of these objects
in their scriptures. Elder Bruce R. McConkie of the Quorum of the Twelve
Apostles clarified that the branch Isaiah mentioned also represents Jesus
Christ (see The Promised Messiah: The First Coming of Christ [1978], 192–94;
see also Jeremiah 23:5–6).
---Explain
that Elder McConkie suggested that the rod and the roots could both represent
Joseph Smith (see The Millennial Messiah: The Second Coming of the Son of Man
[1982], 339–40).
---Invite a
student to write Joseph Smith on the board next to Rod and Roots.
---Explain
that after Isaiah described some of the conditions of the Millennium (see Isaiah 11:5–9), he prophesied of Joseph Smith
and the latter days.
---Invite a
student to reread Isaiah 11:10 aloud. Ask the class to follow
along, looking for what Isaiah said that describes Joseph Smith.
---What did Isaiah say that the root of Jesse
would be for the people? (An ensign.)
---What is an ensign? (A flag or banner that
an army may sometimes gather under or march behind.)
---What is the standard, or ensign, that the
Gentiles will seek after? (The everlasting covenant, or the gospel of Jesus
Christ.)
---How is establishing an ensign similar to
what the Lord did through Joseph Smith?
---Invite a
student to read Isaiah 11:11–12 aloud. Ask the class to follow
along and look for what Isaiah prophesied would happen in the last days.
---What did Isaiah prophesy
would happen in the last days?
---Explain
that the phrase “set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of
his people” in verse 11 refers to the Restoration of the
Church and the latter-day gathering of Israel (see D&C 137:6).
---Explain
that because of latter-day revelation, we understand that the phrase “he will
set up an ensign for the nations” in verse 12 refers to the Restoration of The
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
---Write the
following phrase on the board:
The restored Church is an ensign
to …
---Based on verse 12, how would you complete the
phrase? (After students respond, complete the phrase so that it states the
following truth: The restored Church is an ensign to gather
scattered Israel back to the gospel of Jesus Christ.)
---What does it mean to “gather” scattered
Israel back to the gospel of Jesus Christ? (To help others join The Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints [see Doctrines of Salvation, comp.
Bruce R. McConkie, 3 vols. (1954–56), 3:255].)
---What can we do as members of the Church to
help gather scattered Israel to the Lord?
---Summarize
Isaiah 11:13–16 by explaining that Isaiah
prophesied that the Lord would use miraculous means to help gather Israel
again.
---Invite
students to read Isaiah 12:1–3 silently, looking for what these
Israelites will do during the Millennium because they have been brought to the
gospel of Jesus Christ.
---Why do you think they will praise the Lord
and have great joy?
---Invite
students to think of someone they know who is a convert to the Church. Ask a
few students to describe how that person felt when he or she joined the Church.
---Summarize
Isaiah 12:4–6 by explaining that those who are
gathered into the gospel of Jesus Christ will praise the Savior during the
Millennium.
III. Isaiah 13–16
The destruction of Babylon can
be likened to the destruction of the wicked at the Second Coming
---Ask
students to imagine that they have the opportunity to join one of two teams.
One team is led by a captain who cares very much about his team and wants each
team member to succeed. The other team is led by someone who promises great
victory and success, but the captain only cares for himself.
---Which team would you join? Why?
---Explain
that these teams can represent the Lord’s side and Satan’s side.
---Write on
the board:
The Lord’s side and Satan’s side.
---Invite students as they study Isaiah 13–16 to look for gospel truths that
will help them know why they should choose to be on the Lord’s side instead of
Satan’s side.
---Summarize
Isaiah 13:1–10 by explaining that Isaiah
prophesied of the destruction of Babylon and that these events can be seen as a
type or similitude of the destruction of the wicked that will take place at the
Second Coming of the Savior.
---Invite a
student to read Isaiah 13:11 aloud. Ask the class to look for
what the Lord said He would do to the wicked in Babylon.
---If the punishments described in this verse
are a type or similitude of what will occur at the Second Coming, what can we
learn about what the Lord will do to the wicked when He comes again? (Using
students’ words, write the following truth on the board: When the
Lord comes again, He will destroy the wicked.)
---Summarize
Isaiah 13:12–22 by explaining that Isaiah
continued to prophesy about the destruction of Babylon.
---Invite a
student to read Isaiah 14:3 aloud. Ask the class to follow
along and look for what the Lord will do for His people after Babylon is
destroyed.
---If the events described in this verse are
a type or similitude of what will occur at the Second Coming, what can we learn
about what the Lord will do for His people when He comes again? (Using students’
words, write the following truth on the board: When the Lord comes again, He
will be merciful to His people and give them rest.)
---What kind of rest do you think the Lord’s
people will receive?
---Summarize
Isaiah 14:4–11 by explaining that Isaiah
prophesied of the downfall of the Babylonian king and compared this to the
downfall of Lucifer, or Satan.
---Invite a
student to read Isaiah 14:12–14 aloud. Ask the class to follow
along, looking for what Satan desired.
---According to these verses, what did Satan
desire? (Satan wanted to take God’s power [see also Moses 4:1; D&C 29:36–37].)
---Invite
several students to take turns reading aloud from Isaiah 14:15–20. Ask the class to follow along
and look for what will ultimately happen to Satan.
---According to verses 15–16, what will ultimately happen to
Satan? What will people say about him? (After students respond, write the
following truth on the board: Satan will lose his influence and power over
mankind, and he will be cast out forever.)
---How might the truths written on the board
help us choose to be on the Savior’s side and not Satan’s?
---Why do you think Satan
succeeds in luring some people to his side, even though he will ultimately
lose?
---Encourage
students to remember the fate of Satan and his followers when they are tempted
to leave the Lord’s side.
---You may
want to conclude the lesson by testifying of the truths discussed in this
lesson.
Commentary and Background
Information
Isaiah 11:1.
“A rod out of the stem of Jesse”
Jesse was
the father of King David; thus, the term “stem of Jesse” refers to someone who
will reign as king over Israel. Elder Bruce R. McConkie of the Quorum of
the Twelve Apostles taught that Joseph Smith was the rod that Isaiah saw:
“Are we
amiss in saying that the prophet here mentioned is Joseph Smith, to whom the
priesthood came, who received the keys of the kingdom, and who raised the
ensign for the gathering of the Lord’s people in our dispensation? And is he
not also the ‘servant in the hands of Christ, who is partly a descendant of
Jesse as well as of Ephraim, or of the house of Joseph, on whom there is laid
much power’? (D&C 113:4–6.)” (The Millennial Messiah: The
Second Coming of the Son of Man [1982], 339–40).
Isaiah 11:1.
Who is the “Branch”?
Elder
Bruce R. McConkie of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles taught that the
branch spoken of in Isaiah 11:1 is Jesus Christ (see The Millennial Messiah: The Second
Coming of the Son of Man [1982], 192–94, quoted in Old Testament Student
Manual: 1 Kings–Malachi, 3rd ed. [Church Educational System manual,
2003], 148).
Isaiah
11:10. “An ensign of the people”
President
Joseph Fielding Smith described the ensign and its significance:
“Over 125
years ago, in the little town of Fayette, Seneca County, New York, the Lord set
up an ensign to the nations. It was in fulfilment of the prediction made by the
Prophet Isaiah, which I have read. That ensign was the Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter-day Saints, which was established for the last time, never again to
be destroyed or given to other people [see Daniel 2:44]. It was the greatest event the
world has seen since the day that the Redeemer was lifted upon the cross and worked out the
infinite and eternal atonement. It meant more to mankind than anything else
that has occurred since that day. …
“Following
the raising of this ensign, the Lord sent forth his elders clothed with the
priesthood and with power and authority, among the nations of the earth,
bearing witness unto all peoples of the restoration of his Church, and calling
upon the children of men to repent and receive the gospel; for now it was being
preached in all the world as a witness before the end should come, that is, the
end of the reign of wickedness and the establishment of the millennial reign of
peace. The elders went forth as they were commanded, and are still preaching
the gospel and gathering out from the nations the seed of Israel unto whom the
promise was made” (Doctrines of Salvation, comp. Bruce R. McConkie,
3 vols. [1954–56], 3:254–55; see also Isaiah 5:26).
Isaiah
14:12–16. “I will ascend into heaven … ; I will be like the most
High”
Isaiah 14:12–16 describes Lucifer’s aspiration
in the premortal life to challenge God’s plan and usurp His authority. Elder
Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles clarified Satan’s
motives and desires:
“Satan, or
Lucifer, or the father of lies—call him what you will—is real, the very
personification of evil. His motives are in every case malicious. … He is
eternally opposed to the love of God, the Atonement of Jesus Christ, and the
work of peace and salvation. He will fight against these whenever and wherever
he can. He knows he will be defeated and cast out in the end, but he is
determined to take down with him as many others as he possibly can” (“We Are All Enlisted,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov.
2011, 44).
Isaiah
13–14. Multiple meanings in Isaiah’s writings
“Some of
Isaiah’s writings have a dual [more than one] meaning. That is, they can apply
to more than one situation or may be fulfilled at more than one time. He also
at times combined dualistic phrases with terms that were intended for or
understood by only a certain group. …
“In the
thirteenth and fourteenth chapters [of Isaiah], Isaiah wrote of the gathering
of Israel and their eventual triumph over Babylon. … Babylon is used to refer
both to the nation of Babylon as it existed at the time of Isaiah and also to
the wickedness of the world and the dominions of Satan in the world, which the
nation of Babylon epitomized. In his writings about Babylon in these chapters,
Isaiah used concepts that applied to the future fall of Babylon (as a nation
and as the symbol of the world), to the triumph of Israel, and to the
pre-mortal overthrow of Lucifer and his hosts (see Isaiah 14:4–23). His words are not only
dualistic but esoteric [understood only by certain people] as well, for only
those who understand the Lord’s plan of salvation can grasp the full message
Isaiah presented. Many of Isaiah’s chapters are dualistic in the sense that the
message fulfilled in Isaiah’s time is a type or shadow of events to take place
in the last days.
“This
richness of language and meaning seems to be what Nephi meant when he spoke of
the manner of prophesying among the Jews. There is frequent reference to the
law of Moses and extensive use of imagery, figurative
language, and phrases that have dualistic and esoteric meanings. Though modern
readers cannot fully grasp the culture and times of ancient Israel,
understanding the methods Isaiah used to convey his meaning can give the reader
a far greater understanding of Isaiah” (Old Testament Student Manual:
1 Kings–Malachi, 3rd ed. [Church Educational System manual,
2003], 133).
Right margin
extras:
Stem of
Jesse, Isaiah 11:1
By Small and Simple Things:
Sharing the Gospel (3:19)Emma invited a friend to dinner, and this small act was the beginning of the friend’s conversion to the gospel. As students discuss what they can do to help gather scattered Israel, consider showing this video as one example of someone sharing the gospel.
A sense of
purpose shared by the teacher and the students can increase faith and give
direction and meaning to the classroom experience.
