Mormon Life - Old Testament tag

Old Testament Lesson 48: Malachi

Tue, 21 Dec 2010 11:33:00 -0700

source: feastuponthewordblog.org

1 Approach

These represent the notes I made during my reading of the scriptural text for this lesson. It is not a lesson outline or a lesson plan but really notes about issues and questions that struck me as interesting during my reading. Consequently, the notes do not have a conclusion and very little mention of application. I like to let those things arise while I teach.

2 Introduction

2.1 The Prophet Malachi

Little is known about the prophet Malachi. Even his name has been seriously debated by scholars.

Old Testament Lesson 48: The Great and Dreadful Day of the Lord

Wed, 08 Dec 2010 00:01:00 -0700

by Ted L. Gibbons
source: MormonLife.com

Mormon Life says: That coming will indeed be dreadful for some, but for us, it will be truly great. AUTHOR’S NOTE: With this lesson we come to the end of the Old Testament Manual. A time or two we have strapped on the aqua lung and gone deep, but most of the time we have floated serenely on the surface of this marvelous reservoir of knowledge and experience and power. Forty-eight lessons are hardly enough time and space to do justice to a book of this depth and complexity. I hope you will not assume that you have now studied the Old Testament. You have studied the parts of the Old Testament that the Gospel Doctrine Manual emphasizes, and (in these lessons) the brief segments of this book that I have highlighted. And even in those chapters, verses, and passages that were a part of these lessons, we cannot be said to have examined the record, but only to have examined a word or two, a phrase, and idea and an application. The Old Testament is worth revisiting many times in your life, with hearts opened and prepared to receive the lessons the Lord has taught us there.

INTRODUCTION: I am now going to tell you the day of the Second Coming. You probably thought no one knew, but the Doctrine and Covenants is quite clear on the matter.

Behold, now it is called today until the coming of the Son of Man, and verily it is a day of sacrifice, and a day for the tithing of my people; for he that is tithed shall not be burned at his coming (D&C 64:23).

“Now it is called today” and will be until the Son of Man comes.

For after today cometh the burning--this is speaking after the manner of the Lord--for verily I say, tomorrow all the proud and they that do wickedly shall be as stubble; and I will burn them up, for I am the Lord of Hosts; and I will not spare any that remain in Babylon (D&C 64:24).

The Second Coming—the day of burning—comes after today. It comes tomorrow! What could be clearer? Of course, this is “speaking after the manner of the Lord.” And “One day in Kolob is equal to a thousand years according to the measurement of this earth . . .” (Book of Abraham, Facsimile 2, figure 1).

D&C 77: tells us that the temporal existence of the earth is seven thousand years, or one week of God’s time.

Q. What are we to understand by the book which John saw, which was sealed on the back with seven seals?

A. We are to understand that it contains the revealed will, mysteries, and the works of God; the hidden things of his economy concerning this earth during the seven thousand years of its continuance, or its temporal existence.

Q. What are we to understand by the seven seals with which it was sealed?

A. We are to understand that the first seal contains the things of the first thousand years, and the second also of the second thousand years, and so on until the seventh (D&C 77:6,7).

We thus reckon that we are living somewhere near the end of the six thousandth year, which is called today, and that the Lord will return after the opening of the seventh seal, which will be tomorrow, and which, according to the manner or reckoning of the Lord, will be the seventh day or somewhere near the beginning of the seven thousandth year.

1. ZECHARIAH AND MALACHI PROPHESY OF MANY EVENTS IN THE LAST DAYS.

Zechariah speaks of a day when Joseph will be strengthened (10:6), and Ephraim will be mighty (10:7), a day when the heart of Ephraim “shall rejoice in the Lord” (10:7). He talks of a gathering from the “far countries” (10:9), and of families “with their children” that will repent and come to the Lord (10:9). Surely we are seeing, indeed, are a part of, that gathering.

Zechariah and other Old Testament prophets also speak of a great war to be fought in and around Jerusalem. Ezekiel speaks of the attacking army as a “great company” (38:4), and says they will be like “a cloud to cover the land” (39:9,16). They will be “a great company, and a mighty army” (38:15) John, in the book of Revelation, actually describes this soldiers of this army with a number which he heard.

And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them (Revelation 9:16).

In digits, that number is 200,000,000, which is by any reckoning, a pretty large collection of troops.

Zechariah describes the time of this battle with these words:

Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem. And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it (Zech. 12:2,3).

For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city (Zech. 14:2).

But the Lord will defend his people.

n that day shall the LORD defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the LORD before them. And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem (Zech. 12:8,9).

Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle (Zech. 14:3).

The nature of this divine defense will include, according to Ezekiel, both earthquakes (a great shaking: 38:19), and great hailstones, with fire, rain, and brimstone (38:22).

Once again we find in the book of Revelation what seems to be a more detailed description of this earthquake.

And there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great. And the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell: and great Babylon came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath (Rev. 16:18,19).

We also find a most interesting note about the hailstones.

And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent: and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great (Rev. 16:21)

Hailstones of a talent? According to the Bible Dictionary (page 789), a talent weights 75.6 pounds. If one of those whacked you on the noggin, it could ruin your whole day. It could ruin a lot of days.

One of the effects of the earthquake seems to be included in the writings of Zechariah.
And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south (14:4).

The Jews, who will have been sorely pressed in the siege of Jerusalem, will flee into this new valley in the Mount of Olives.

And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee (Zech. 14:5).
The Doctrine and Covenants tells us this:

Then shall the arm of the Lord fall upon the nations. And then shall the Lord set his foot upon this mount, and it shall cleave in twain, and the earth shall tremble, and reel to and fro, and the heavens also shall shake (D&C 45:47,48).

As the remnant of the Jews flees into the valley in the Mount of Olives, they will meet there the Messiah for whom they have waited for so long—the great military deliverer who will destroy their enemies and set them free from bondage. But as they fall before him to worship and welcome him, they will see the wounds in his hands and feet.

. . . and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn . . . And one shall say unto him, What are these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall answer, Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends (Zech 12:10; 13:6).

An account of this same event in the D&C is more direct.

And then shall the Jews look upon me and say: What are these wounds in thine hands and in thy feet? Then shall they know that I am the Lord; for I will say unto them: These wounds are the wounds with which I was wounded in the house of my friends. I am he who was lifted up. I am Jesus that was crucified. I am the Son of God. And then shall they weep because of their iniquities; then shall they lament because they persecuted their king (D&C 45:51-53).
At his coming, the wicked will be destroyed.

And this shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes, and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth. And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult from the LORD shall be among them; and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour (Zech. 14:12,13).

Ezekiel describes the destruction of the wicked and the aftermath thereof in some detail in Ezekiel 39. His report is that the destruction at the Lord’s coming will leave only a “sixth part” of the attacking army alive (39:2). If John’s number of two hundred million is accurate, that means a lot of dead people and abandoned equipment will litter the “mountains of Israel” (39:4). In fact, the record suggests that for seven years, Israel will not need to use any of its own resources for energy and fuel because what is left from the destroyed army.
And they that dwell in the cities of Israel shall go forth, and shall set on fire and burn the weapons, both the shields and the bucklers, the bows and the arrows, and the handstaves, and the spears, and they shall burn them with fire seven years: So that they shall take no wood out of the field, neither cut down any out of the forests; for they shall burn the weapons with fire: and they shall spoil those that spoiled them, and rob those that robbed them, saith the Lord GOD (Ezek 39:9,10).

We also learn in this chapter that burying the dead will require seven months (39:12) and that everybody will be involved in the project (39:13). After those months, the Jews will employ men full-time for the express purpose of burying those missed in the initial cleanup,
And they shall sever out men of continual employment, passing through the land to bury with the passengers those that remain upon the face of the earth, to cleanse it: after the end of seven months shall they search. And the passengers that pass through the land, when any seeth a man's bone, then shall he set up a sign by it, till the buriers have buried it in the valley of Hamongog (39:14,15).

Malachi’s description of this awful day is the most frequently quoted:

For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall. And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do [this], saith the LORD of hosts (Mal. 4:1-3).

Speaking of these days to his disciples, the Lord said, “be not troubled, for, when all these things shall come to pass, ye may know that the promises which have been made unto you shall be fulfilled” (D&C 45:35; JS-M 1:23).

2. MALACHI TEACHES ABOUT THE BLESSINGS THAT COME TO THOSE WHO PAY TITHES AND OFFERINGS.

Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation. Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it (Mal. 3:8-10)  
Many of you are involved in tithing settlement. I have been deeply moved by the contemplation of what is happening throughout the world at this time of the year as disciples of the Lord present themselves to his servants and declare their faithfulness to this commandment. But I am also aware that there are many who have not yet realized the spiritual and temporal blessings that come from obedience..

Let me give you a story of a woman in São Paulo, Brazil. She worked while going to school to provide for her family. I use her own words in telling this story. She says:

“The university in which I studied had a regulation that prohibited the students that were in debt from taking tests. For this reason, when I received my salary I would first separate the money for tithing and offerings, and the remainder was allotted for the payment of the school and other expenses.

“I remember a time when I … faced serious financial difficulties. It was a Thursday when I received my salary. When I figured the monthly budget, I noticed that there wouldn’t be enough to pay [both] my tithing and my university. I would have to choose between them. The bimonthly tests would start the following week, and if I didn’t take them I could lose the school year. I felt great agony. … My heart ached. I had a painful decision before me, and I didn’t know what to decide. I pondered between the two choices: to pay tithing or to risk the possibility of not obtaining the necessary credits to be approved in school.

“This feeling consumed my soul and remained with me up to Saturday. It was then that I remembered that when I was baptized I had agreed to live the law of tithing. I had taken upon myself an obligation, not with the missionaries, but with my Heavenly Father. At that moment, the anguish started to disappear, giving place to a pleasant sensation of tranquility and determination. …

“That night when I prayed, I asked the Lord to forgive me for my indecision. On Sunday, before the beginning of sacrament meeting, I contacted the bishop, and with great pleasure I paid my tithing and offerings. That was a special day. I felt happy and peaceful within myself and with Heavenly Father.

“The next day I was in my office; I tried to find a way to be able to take the tests that would begin on Wednesday. The more I thought, the further I felt from a solution. At that time I worked in an attorney’s office, and my employer was the most strict and austere person I had ever met.

“The working period was ending when my employer approached and gave the last orders of the day. When he had done so, with his briefcase in his hand he bid farewell. … Suddenly, he halted, and looking at me he asked, ‘How is your college?’ I was surprised, and I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. The only thing I could answer with a trembling voice was, ‘Everything is all right!’ He looked . . . at me and bid farewell again. . . .

“Suddenly the secretary entered the room, saying that I was a very fortunate person! When I asked her why, she simply answered: ‘The employer has just said that from today on the company is going to pay fully for your college and your books. Before you leave, stop at my desk and inform me of the costs so that tomorrow I can give you the check.’

“After she left, crying and feeling very humble, I knelt exactly where I was and thanked the Lord for His generosity. I … said to Heavenly Father that He didn’t have to bless me so much. I only needed the cost of one month’s installment, and the tithing I had paid on Sunday was very small compared to the amount I was receiving! During that prayer the words recorded in Malachi came to my mind: ‘Prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it’ (Mal. 3:10). Up to that moment I had never felt the magnitude of the promise contained in that scripture and that this commandment was truly a witness of the love that God, our Heavenly Father, gives to His children here on earth.” (Pres. Gordon B. Hinckley, “We Walk by Faith,” CR, April 2002)

3. MALACHI PROPHESIES OF ELIJAH ‘S RETURN TO THE EARTH TO RESTORE THE KEYS OF THE SEALING POWER.

We live in a day when “the love of many shall wax cold” (JS-M 1:10), and when men “are without affection, and they hate their own blood” (Moses 7:33). But we are not a part of that. Elijah’s return with the sealing power has not only given us the power to bind families together in eternity, but also to bind them in love. This turning of the hearts” must be emotional as well as literal. How can anyone describe the joy that comes from knowing that the sweetest feelings of the heart are eternalized by the sealing power Elijah brought back to the earth.
Malachi’s description of the restoration of this sealing power is wonderful.

Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD: And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse (Malachi 4:5,6).
President Kimball spoke with conspicuous eloquence about the dangers of choosing any other way to bind a family.

Are you willing to jeopardize your eternities, your great continuing happiness, your privilege to see God and dwell in his presence? For the want of investigation and study and contemplation; because of prejudice, misunderstanding, or lack of knowledge, are you willing to forego these great blessings and privileges? Are you willing to make yourself a widow for eternity or a widower for endless ages—a single, separate individual to live alone and serve others? Are you willing to give up your children when they die or when you expire, and make them orphans? Are you willing to go through eternity alone and solitary when all of the greatest joys you have ever experienced in life could be “added upon” and accentuated, multiplied, and eternalized? Are you willing, with the Sadducees, to ignore and reject these great truths? I sincerely pray you stop today and weigh and measure and then prayerfully proceed to make your happy marriage an eternal one. Our friends, please do not ignore this call. I beg of you, open your eyes and see; unstop your ears and hear (Spencer W. Kimball, “Temples and Eternal Marriage,” Ensign, Aug. 1974, 6).

CONCLUSION: Just more that sixteen years ago I snapped a photo of my three youngest sons. They were three, five, and seven years old, I think. They posed on a dirt road in the mountains, with expressions that match almost perfectly their personalities. On the 20th of October of this year, the two youngest shared a sacrament meeting as one reported his mission and the other prepared to depart for his. At the house later I took the three of them into the back yard, all in white shirts and ties (the oldest served a mission in California a few years ago), and had them recreate the expressions and positions of that earlier photo. I then took another picture. The two prints hang together, enlarged and delightful on a prominent wall in my house. I looked at them the other day and was moved almost beyond reason by my love and their goodness. How can I possibly thank the Lord adequately for his blessing in having given them to me and my wife forever by means of the sealing power?

How thankful I am for the blessings of the Lord. His Second Coming will not interrupt my joy, but confirm it. Elijah’s promises cannot be undone by a little fire and vapor and smoke. That coming will indeed be dreadful for some, but for us, it will be truly great. I want to find a way to do what Nephi suggested, and “shout praises to the Holy One of Israel” (2 Nephi 31:13).

Sunday School Lesson 48: Zechariah 10-14, Malachi

Mon, 06 Dec 2010 10:09:00 -0700

source: feastuponthewordblog.org

Zechariah

1:7-6:8: We may be able to read the first six chapters of Zechariah as having a roughly chiastic structure. As with many chiasmi, however, deciding whether this is a chiasmus is a matter of judgment rather than fact.

Sunday School Lesson 47: Ezra 1-8; Nehemiah 1-2, 4, 6, 8

Mon, 06 Dec 2010 10:07:00 -0700

source: feastuponthewordblog.org

Note that the books of Ezra and Nehemiah were considered one book until well after the time of Christ.

The rough chronology below will help place this week’s material in its historical context.

606 The fall of Nineveh, capital of Assyria. Babylon becomes the major power. Daniel and others are taken to Babylon from Israel 604 Nebuchadnezzar is king of Babylon 598 Judah’s king, Jehoiachin, and the prophet Ezekiel (with thousands of others) are carried captive into Babylon. Lehi leaves Jerusalem. Habakkuk and Ezekiel prophesy 587 The fall of Jerusalem; much of the population of Judah is taken captive into Babylon. Some, including Jeremiah (who is a hostage), escape to Egypt. Mulek leaves Jerusalem 562 The death of Nebuchadnezzar and the beginning of the decline of Babylon.

Sunday School Lesson 46: Daniel 2

Mon, 06 Dec 2010 10:06:00 -0700

source: feastuponthewordblog.org

Verses 4-5: Why does the king make this demand on his wise men?

Verses 10-12: What did it mean to be a wise man in Babylon? Why was the king angry? Why do you think that the gods of Babylon are never mentioned in this story, not even negatively?

Verse 24: Why does Daniel save the other wise men of Babylon? Verse 28: Why would a king living hundreds of years before Christ’s birth be interested in what would happen at the age when the end of the world would come? (“Latter days” is probably better translated “at the end of days.”) Why should anyone but those who live in the latter days care about them? Books about the last days and prophecies of them were not uncommon during the time after the Jewish exile in Babylon, but why? Why are they important to us?

Old Testament Lesson 47: Let Us Rise Up and Build

Fri, 03 Dec 2010 00:02:00 -0700

by Ted L. Gibbons
source: MormonLife.com

Mormon Life says: This work in the House of the Lord is a high and holy work, one that is continuously and bitterly opposed by the enemies of righteousness. INTRODUCTION: I have taken particular delight in pointing out to my students places in the scriptures that are about them. Last week as my New Testament students studied John 17, I suggested that certain verses in this great prayer were about them.

Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me (John 17:20-23).

I believe that Jacob 5:72 refers to those being sent to labor in the vineyard in our day.
And it came to pass that the servants did go and labor with their mights; and the Lord of the vineyard labored also with them; and they did obey the commandments of the Lord of the vineyard in all things.

Here are some other prophecies of modern events and people you might want to read:

    1.    2 Nephi 3:6-15
    2.    2 Nephi 27:12
    3.    Isaiah 29"11
    4.    Daniel 2:44
    5.    Deut. 33:7
    6.    Isaiah 4:1,2
    7.    Isaiah 5:27-29
    8.    Micah 4:13; 5:8

I have always been delighted to find these passages that speak to me and of me, and I have looked into my life to see if I meet the descriptions suggested in such verses. But these passages are nearly all general in nature—messages to all the faithful of our day. Imagine what you would feel to find your own name in a scriptural passage written many years before your birth. That is what happened to Cyrus.

That saith of Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure: even saying to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be built; and to the temple, Thy foundation shall be laid. Thus saith the LORD to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden, to subdue nations before him; and I will loose the loins of kings, to open before him the two leaved gates; and the gates shall not be shut; I will go before thee, and make the crooked places straight: I will break in pieces the gates of brass, and cut in sunder the bars of iron: And I will give thee the treasures of darkness, and hidden riches of secret places, that thou mayest know that I, the LORD, which call thee by thy name, am the God of Israel For Jacob my servant's sake, and Israel mine elect, I have even called thee by thy name: I have surnamed thee, though thou hast not known me. I am the LORD, and there is none else, there is no God beside me: I girded thee, though thou hast not known me:(Isaiah 44:28-45:1-5).

Cyrus had access to the Jewish records and read this passage, written 150 years before he was born, and it certainly got his attention. Notice his reaction:

NOW in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying, Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia, The LORD God of heaven hath given me all the kingdoms of the earth; and he hath charged me to build him an house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Who is there among you of all his people? his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and build the house of the LORD God of Israel, (he is the God,) which is in Jerusalem. And whosoever remaineth in any place where he sojourneth, let the men of his place help him with silver, and with gold, and with goods, and with beasts, beside the freewill offering for the house of God that is in Jerusalem (Ezra 4:1-4)

President George Albert Smith said of this:

Having access to the Jewish records, Cyrus learned that the God of Israel had decreed that he was to rebuild Jerusalem. He promptly issued a proclamation to the Jews to return to Jerusalem and for the nations to assist them in rebuilding the city and the temple. This was accomplished exactly seventy years after Jerusalem was destroyed, thus fulfilling Jeremiah's prophecy uttered more than one hundred years before (C.R., April 1945).

Did you notice the first requirement made of Cyrus? He was to make it possible for the covenant people to “ build the house of the LORD God of Israel” at Jerusalem. This building was to come first, and to be the center of the reconstruction of Jerusalem. We mentioned in an earlier lesson that the communities of Independence and Far West and Nauvoo and Salt Lake were all intended to be built around a place designated for the temple.

Pres Hinckley was a prophet who had a sense of the importance of congregations who have access to temples.

I have a burning desire that a temple be located within reasonable access to Latter-day Saints throughout the world (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Of Missions, Temples, and Stewardship,” Ensign, Nov. 1995, 52–53).

President Kimball shared at least some of that vision:

The day is coming soon when no one will need to die without a temple marriage . . . The day will come when there will hundreds of temples all over the world, when there ill not be one soul in the world, probably, who is more than a thousand miles away; and for a one-time experience in all one’s life, a thousand miles is not far to go. It wouldn’t be far to crawl if one knew what he was getting and what he was missing if he didn’t go (“Marriage is Honorable,” BYU Speeches, 1973, p. 269).

President Monson continues with that same fire:

The temple built by Solomon was probably one of the most expensive buildings ever constructed. This new temple would not involve the same level of expenditures, but it would still be expensive. Cyrus knew that.

And all they that were about them strengthened their hands with vessels of silver, with gold, with goods, and with beasts, and with precious things, beside all that was willingly offered. Also Cyrus the king brought forth the vessels of the house of the LORD, which Nebuchadnezzar had brought forth out of Jerusalem, and had put them in the house of his gods; Even those did Cyrus king of Persia bring forth . . . And this is the number of them: thirty chargers of gold, a thousand chargers of silver, nine and twenty knives, Thirty basons of gold, silver basons of a second sort four hundred and ten, and other vessels a thousand. All the vessels of gold and of silver were five thousand and four hundred. All these did Sheshbazzar bring up with them of the captivity that were brought up from Babylon unto Jerusalem (Ezra 1:6-11).

People of the covenant gave freely according to their resources.

And some of the chief of the fathers, when they came to the house of the LORD which is at Jerusalem, offered freely for the house of God to set it up in his place: They gave after their ability unto the treasure of the work threescore and one thousand drams of gold, and five thousand pound of silver, and one hundred priests' garments (Ezra 2:68, 69).

Notice the reaction of the people when the laid the foundation of the Temple:

And when the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the LORD, they set the priests in their apparel with trumpets, and the Levites the sons of Asaph with cymbals, to praise the LORD, after the ordinance of David king of Israel. And they sang together by course in praising and giving thanks unto the LORD; because he is good, for his mercy endureth for ever toward Israel. And all the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised the LORD, because the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid. But many of the priests and Levites and chief of the fathers, who were ancient men, that had seen the first house, when the foundation of this house was laid before their eyes, wept with a loud voice; and many shouted aloud for joy: So that the people could not discern the noise of the shout of joy from the noise of the weeping of the people: for the people shouted with a loud shout, and the noise was heard afar off (Ezra 3:10-13).

This passion for the Temple 0ught to move us and teach us. What a joy we ought to feel with every new dedication. Our excitement ought to be as powerful as the dismay in “the dark and benighted dominion of Sheol” (D&C 121:4). Brigham said “we never begin to build a temple without the bells of hell beginning to ring” (JD vol. 8, 355, 356).

Those bells were ringing around Jerusalem.

Now when the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the children of the captivity builded the temple unto the LORD God of Israel; Then they came to Zerubbabel, and to the chief of the fathers, and said unto them, Let us build with you: for we seek your God, as ye do; and we do sacrifice unto him since the days of Esarhaddon king of Assur, which brought us up hither. . . . Then the people of the land weakened the hands of the people of Judah, and troubled them in building . . . . Rehum the chancellor and Shimshai the scribe wrote a letter against Jerusalem to Artaxerxes the king . . . . Then sent the king an answer unto Rehum the chancellor, and to Shimshai the scribe, and to the rest of their companions that dwell in Samaria, and unto the rest beyond the river, Peace, and at such a time. The letter which ye sent unto us hath been plainly read before me. And I commanded, and search hath been made, and it is found that this city of old time hath made insurrection against kings, and that rebellion and sedition have been made therein. There have been mighty kings also over Jerusalem, which have ruled over all countries beyond the river; and toll, tribute, and custom, was paid unto them. Give ye now commandment to cause these men to cease, and that this city be not builded, until another commandment shall be given from me. Take heed now that ye fail not to do this: why should damage grow to the hurt of the kings? Now when the copy of king Artaxerxes' letter was read before Rehum, and Shimshai the scribe, and their companions, they went up in haste to Jerusalem unto the Jews, and made them to cease by force and power. Then ceased the work of the house of God which is at Jerusalem. So it ceased unto the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia (Ezra 4:1,2,4,8,17-24).

So the work ceased for a time but once again the Lord provided help and support for the rebuilding.

Then Darius the king made a decree, and search was made in the house of the rolls, where the treasures were laid up in Babylon . . . and therein was a record thus written [by Cyrus] . . . Let the house be builded, the place where they offered sacrifices, and let the foundations thereof be strongly laid . . . Now therefore, Tatnai, governor beyond the river, Shetharboznai, and your companions the Apharsachites, which are beyond the river, be ye far from thence: Let the work of this house of God alone; let the governor of the Jews and the elders of the Jews build this house of God in his place. Moreover I make a decree what ye shall do to the elders of these Jews for the building of this house of God: that of the king's goods, even of the tribute beyond the river, forthwith expenses be given unto these men, that they be not hindered. And that which they have need of, both young bullocks, and rams, and lambs, for the burnt offerings of the God of heaven, wheat, salt, wine, and oil, according to the appointment of the priests which are at Jerusalem, let it be given them day by day without fail: That they may offer sacrifices of sweet savours unto the God of heaven, and pray for the life of the king, and of his sons. Also I have made a decree, that whosoever shall alter this word, let timber be pulled down from his house, and being set up, let him be hanged thereon; and let his house be made a dunghill for this (Ezra 6:1-12).

But political support is not enough. The people must be willing. These many temples that now dot the earth will sit empty and useless unless we do what the Lord has asked us to do. Who, according to Ezra 5:1, reminded the Jews of their duty in the rebuilding of the temple at Jerusalem?

We have at least a part of the teachings of Haggai on this matter:

In the second year of Darius the king . . . came the word of the LORD by Haggai the prophet unto Zerubbabel . . . Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, This people say, The time is not come, the time that the LORD'S house should be built. Then came the word of the LORD by Haggai the prophet, saying, Is it time for you, O ye, to dwell in your cieled [paneled] houses, and this house lie waste? Now therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts; Consider your ways. Ye have sown much, and bring in little; ye eat, but ye have not enough; ye drink, but ye are not filled with drink; ye clothe you, but there is none warm; and he that earneth wages earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes. Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Consider your ways. Go up to the mountain, and bring wood, and build the house; and I will take pleasure in it, and I will be glorified, saith the LORD. Ye looked for much, and, lo, it came to little; and when ye brought it home, I did blow upon it. Why? saith the LORD of hosts. Because of mine house that is waste, and ye run every man unto his own house. Therefore the heaven over you is stayed from dew, and the earth is stayed from her fruit. And I called for a drought upon the land, and upon the mountains, and upon the corn, and upon the new wine, and upon the oil, and upon that which the ground bringeth forth, and upon men, and upon cattle, and upon all the labour of the hands (Haggai 1:1-11).

This message seems to direct the Israelites to put first things first. How will we explain new cars and new houses and new toys to the Lord if our ancestors wait in the Spirit World with their work undone? The Lord chastened the Jews because they had built themselves houses, but the House of the Lord was unfinished. These prophetic instructions also remind them (and us) that much of our effort will be unproductive if we neglect the work of the temple. Crops will be meager. Clothes will not keep us warm. It will be as though we put our money in bags with holes. The rain will not fall as is should.   I suspect that as a people we sometimes suffer needlessly because our hearts are not on the House of the Lord as they should be.

After Haggai delivered this stirring message:

The LORD stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest, and the spirit of all the remnant of the people; and they came and did work in the house of the LORD of hosts, their God (Haggai 1:14).

2. NEHEMIAH GOES TO JERUSALEM AND LEADS THE PEOPLE IN REBUILDING THE WALLS TO PROTECT THE CITY

And we must all go to work. Nehemiah gives us a wonderful picture of the rebuilding of the city and the temple.

The God of heaven, he will prosper us; therefore we his servants will arise and build . . . (Nehemiah 2:20).

Read the first twelve verses of Nehemiah 3. Notice that every person is in his or her (3:12) place, building. They build where they are assigned to build. These verses describe work on the walls of Jerusalem. Can you see what would happen in one person failed to complete his or her assigned portion? When an enemy attacked, where would the attack come? In our own day, we must not neglect our duties, lest by our lack of diligence we allow the enemy entrance into our lives or our families or our congregations.

The Lord our God wants the children of men to do something. He wanted Noah to build an ark, and Noah built it. You cannot build ark and temples, you cannot gather Israel and establish the kingdom of God, on one principle of the Gospel alone. You cannot make a watch or clock go with only one of its wheels. You cannot make the human body active by separating the head or the feet from it. The body as created is perfect, in beautiful symmetry, and it cannot be complete if we take one part of it and reject the rest; it takes the whole to make the perfect man. It is so with the kingdom of God (Elder John W. Taylor, C.R., Oct. 1903, p. 40).

Where are your places to build? Are the families you home teach or visit teach safe behind the walls you have built for them? Have you given yourself to the building of the kingdom wherever you are?

In the Latter-day Saint colonies in Mexico, after the groundbreaking for the Colonia Juarez Chihuahua Mexico Temple, members helped clear boulders, dead trees, and branches from the dry, hard-packed earth. Robena Ortiz and her family were among those who helped. “My mother, who is 92 years old, brought a rake and raked the ground in the heat of the summer,” says Sister Ortiz. “I encouraged her to stop and rest in the shade, but she said, ‘No. I am doing it for mi templo (my temple)’” (“Taking Temples to the People,” Ensign, March 2000. p. 15).

The Lord, through Haggai, commanded his people to “go up to the mountain . . . and build the house . . . (Haggai 1:8). Now the actual building is done by others. We will not be required to make many trips to the mountains. The granite will be cut from the canyon walls by others. Professionals will lay the blocks and the carpet and the lawns. But when the temples are completed, what will you do?

But there are many areas of the Church that are remote, where the membership is small and not likely to grow very much in the near future. Are those who live in these places to be denied forever the blessings of the temple ordinances? While visiting such an area a few months ago, we prayerfully pondered this question. The answer, we believe, came bright and clear.

We will construct small temples in some of these areas, buildings with all of the facilities to administer all of the ordinances. They would be built to temple standards, which are much higher than meetinghouse standards. They would accommodate baptisms for the dead, the endowment service, sealings, and all other ordinances to be had in the Lord’s house for both the living and the dead (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Some Thoughts on Temples, Retention of Converts, and Missionary Service,” Ensign, Nov. 1997, 49).

But this new order of building temples does not mean we do not have our own work to do and our own places to build. How far are you from a temple? What would the Lord command you to do? Have the bells of Hell and the enemies of righteousness kept you from your duty to the dead? We live in a day when there are more temples on the earth than have existed in all other ages combined. What a blessing and a responsibility this is.

CONCLUSION: The Lord made powerful promises to the Jews regarding their temple. He said
Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land; And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the LORD of hosts. The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the LORD of hosts. The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former, saith the LORD of hosts: and in this place will I give peace, saith the LORD of hosts (Haggai 2:6-9).

This work in the House of the Lord is a high and holy work, one that is continuously and bitterly opposed by the enemies of righteousness. If you elect to involve yourself in it, you will be required to swim against the current and climb the steep hills into the mountains. It will not often be easy to resist the opposition that will arise. Nehemiah learned this and taught a lesson.

Now it came to pass, when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and Geshem the Arabian, and the rest of our enemies, heard that I had builded the wall, and that there was no breach left therein; (though at that time I had not set up the doors upon the gates;) That Sanballat and Geshem sent unto me, saying, Come, let us meet together in some one of the villages in the plain of Ono. But they thought to do me mischief. And I sent messengers unto them, saying, I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down: why should the work cease, whilst I leave it, and come down to you? Yet they sent unto me four times after this sort; and I answered them after the same manner.

The world will invite and encourage us to come down—to descend from the lofty halls and hallowed rooms of the temple to engage in activities of lesser significance. Let us say with Nehemiah. “I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down: why should the work cease whilst I leave it, and come down . . .?”

Sunday School Lesson 45: Daniel 1, 3, and 6; Esther 3-5, 7-8

Tue, 23 Nov 2010 09:46:00 -0700

source: feastuponthewordblog.org

Let me begin, once again, with a reminder that these are not intended for notes to help teachers, though they may also serve that purpose. I write them for people who want to study the lesson materials more thoroughly. So you’ll find explanatory notes and study questions (fewer for this lesson than for most), but few answers.

There is considerable material in the readings for this lesson, so I am going to focus the study questions on the book of Esther (the entire book rather than only the parts assigned for Sunday School). I want to focus on Esther because it is one of the books of the Old Testament with which I believe Latter-day Saints are least familiar. That lack of familiarity is ironic, given that Esther is perhaps the Old Testament book best known among the Jews outside the Torah, the first five books of the Old Testament. Esther is the only book that is still usually read from a scroll on ceremonial occasions, and Jews often publish beautiful editions of it.

Sunday School Lesson 44: Ezekiel 43-44, 47

Thu, 18 Nov 2010 11:55:00 -0700

source: feastuponthewordblog.org

Ezekiel’s book goes back and forth between telling of the literal return from Babylon to Jerusalem in ways that we can also read to refer to the last days to speaking directly of the last days. (But when he thinks of the last days, is he thinking of the same event or events that we are thinking of?) Beginning in chapter 40, he has a vision of the temple in Jerusalem and of the order of temple worship there. What kind of vision do you think this is?

In Ezekiel 37:26-28, the Lord promised the temple as part of the covenant of peace that he will make with Israel. You may wish to review those verses to prepare for this lesson. What is the covenant of peace and why does the Lord call it specifically a covenant of peace? What kind of peace? Peace with whom? For whom? How is the temple relevant to that covenant? What do the end of verse 26 and the end of verse 28 suggest about the purpose of the temple?

Old Testament Lesson 45: “If I Perish, I Perish”

Mon, 15 Nov 2010 10:53:00 -0700

source: keepapitchinin.org

The stories of Daniel and Esther are used in this year’s manual as examples of courage “in living gospel standards.” The following pair of lessons, from a 1937 seminary text (J.A. Washburn, Story of the Old Testament) will not, I’m afraid, be particularly helpful to teachers preparing this year’s lesson because these old lessons merely retell the narratives and ask the obvious questions.

But come to think of it, that’s pretty much all this year’s lesson does, too.

Lesson 43: Ezekiel 18, 34, and 37

Mon, 15 Nov 2010 10:22:00 -0700

source: feastuponthewordblog.org

Chronologically we turn backwards at this point. Jeremiah was the prophet in 595 B.C. when Jerusalem was finally captured and destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar and its people were carried into Babylon. Like Lehi, Ezekiel was a contemporary of Jeremiah, but Ezekiel did not prophesy with them. Instead, like Daniel, Ezekiel was with the large group from Judah taken captive into Babylon earlier. He began to prophesy only after arriving in Babylon, so prophets in Jerualem, like Lehi and Jeremiah, may not even have known about Ezekiel. Tradition has it that he died and was buried in Babylon. With that in mind, as you read Ezekiel, ask yourself what difference the absence of the Temple makes to his preaching and teaching.

Chapter 18

Verses 1-4: The people of Israel seem to have used the proverb of verse 2 against the Lord. Can you explain how the proverb works as a complaint? Why might that complaint have arisen in Babylon? Why does the Lord speak here of his ownership of all souls? What point is he making when he speaks of the soul of the father and the soul of the son? How is he responding to the criticism of him implicit in the proverb?

Old Testament Lesson 44: Every Thing Shall Live Whither the River Cometh

Fri, 12 Nov 2010 00:04:00 -0700

by Ted L. Gibbons
source: MormonLife.com

Mormon Life says: Along with the blessings that flow to us from the temple, like a river to the Dead Sea , we have obligations to those who have gone before us. What a work we have to do! And what a blessing of joy and happiness it is to do it. INTRODUCTION:

Temples are popping up like dandelions in an untended lawn. We have the joy of living when only the most remote and economically deprived of people cannot make arrangements to visit a temple.

Nephi wrote that he and his people, after they had abandoned their wicked brethren and traveled into the wilderness,“Lived after the manner of happiness” (2 Nephi 5:27 ). One of the things they did to make such a life possible was to build a temple:

And I, Nephi, did build a temple; and I did construct it after the manner of the temple of Solomon save it were not built of so many precious things; for they were not to be found upon the land, wherefore, it could not be built like unto Solomon's temple. But the manner of the construction was like unto the temple of Solomon ; and the workmanship thereof was exceedingly fine (2 Nephi 5:16 ).

I believe Nephi knew what Joseph Smith knew and what Brigham Young knew and what President Hinckley knows: Temple experiences are one of the keys to true happiness. Ezekiel knew it too.

When I was in Brazil 35 years ago, we thought the organization of a single stake signaled the Second Coming. Now a fifth temple has been announced in what I have long considered the “only true country.” I know this not earth-shaking, but it is hell-shaking. When the federal government sent an Army to Utah in 1857, work on the temple came to a halt and the foundation was buried and the groung plowed to conceal what was happening there. When the threat had passed, President Young suggested that it was time to go back to work, but that the work might cause some problems for the people:

Some say, "I do not like to do this [build temples], for we never began to build a temple without the bells of hell beginning to ring." I want to hear them ring again. All the tribes of hell will be on the move, if we uncover the walls of this temple. But what do you think it will amount to? You have all the time seen what it has amounted to.

I can say, for my comfort and consolation, and for yours, too, that we did build two temples, and commenced another. We completed a temple in Kirtland and in Nauvoo; and did not the bells of hell toll all the time we were building them? They did, every week and every day (Brigham Young, JD, vol. 8:p. 356).

President Packer wrote:

Temples are the very center of the spiritual strength of the Church. We should expect that the adversary will try to interfere with us as a church and with us individually as we seek to participate in this sacred and inspired work. Temple work brings so much resistance because it is the source of so much spiritual power to the Latter-day Saints and to the entire Church (“The Holy Temple,” Ensign, Feb. 1995, 36).

The truth is that people who have access to temples and temple experiences have a greater opportunity to be happy. In Ezekiel’s vision of the temple in Ezekiel 40-47, he describes certain qualities and attributes of the temple that can make us happy.

1. EZEKIEL IS SHOWN A VISON OF THE TEMPLE IN JERUSALEM .

1. [43:2,4,5] The glory of the Lord fills the temple. Ezekiel speaks of a glory that shines (43:2), and spiritually sensitive people will see that glory radiating from the temple. The lights at night make these holy houses visible symbols of Mormon faith, but they also suggest the reality of what Ezekiel saw. These are houses of glory (see D&C 88:119). But a part of God’s work and glory is an effort to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man, and that glory—that work for the everlasting souls of men—also fills the temple.

2. [43:7] The temple is the Lord’s throne on earth. The throne is the place from which the King rules and dispenses blessings. On the earth, the place from which the Lord will do these things is his own house, the temple.

3. [43:7] The temple is the place of the soles of his feet. My mother spent 30 years serving in three different temples. She remembered when a member of the Quorum of the Twelve was asked if there were any accounts of the Savior visiting the Logan Temple . The reply, as she shared it with me was, “Of course he has visited this temple. It is his home. He often walks the halls and watches the work that is performed here.” We would expect that his houses in our day would often experience the reality of his presence. The temple is a place for the soles of his feet. Next time you go to the temple, look at the carpets and think of this declaration from Ezekiel.

4. [43:7} The temple is the place where the Lord dwells among the Children of Israel (see Exodus 25:8). I have mentioned this before, I believe, but repetition is the mother of memory. My son sent me a picture from his mission that showed him on the hill overlooking Meg Ryan’s House. How nice to work in an area where a movie star has a home. But I live and work in an area where God has a home.

Brigham Young said:

Brethren, we are the Lord's, and all we possess; and I have determined, by the help of the Lord and this people, to build Him a house. You may ask, "Will He dwell in it?" He may do just as He pleases; it is not my prerogative to dictate to the Lord. But we will build Him a house, that if He pleases to pay us a visit, He may have a place to dwell in, or if He should send any of His servants, we may have suitable accommodations for them. I have built myself a house, and the most of you have done the same, and now shall we not build the Lord a house? (Journal of Discourses, Vol.1, p.376, Brigham Young, December 16, 1851).

5. [43:11] The temple is a place for teaching and providing ordinances and laws in a specific and prescribed manner.

And if they be ashamed of all that they have done, shew them the form of the house, and the fashion thereof, and the goings out thereof, and the comings in thereof, and all the forms thereof, and all the ordinances thereof, and all the forms thereof, and all the laws thereof: and write it in their sight, that they may keep the whole form thereof, and all the ordinances thereof, and do them.

A written standard details the ordinances and forms and laws of the temple, and it specifies all the coming and goings associated therewith.

6. [43:12] Even the grounds are most holy.

Upon the top of the mountain the whole limit thereof round about shall be most holy.

Many years ago I took my wife to the grounds of the Mesa Temple for a farewell. I was to leave the next morning for a couple of weeks of active duty associated with my assignment to an Army Reserve unit. It was late at night, long after the last patrons had departed. We had walked on the grass west of the temple for only a few moments when a security guard approached us with much kindness and asked us to stay on the paved pathways. His concern was to protect the grounds—the growing things—located in a holy place. All of you have marveled at the care given to the landscaping of the temples. When my son was married in the Bountiful Temple a in 2005, I was both astonished and delighted at the arrangement and color of the tulips planted around the building. I took dozens of photos. Such work is done because we want these places to be attractive and because we the grounds are part of a house of the Lord, but also because “the whole limit thereof round about shall be most holy.”

7. [44:6-9] Only the worthy may enter. Once a temple is dedicated, entrance and participation are limited to those who are able to meet certain rather rigorous requirements.

You must possess a current recommend to be admitted to the temple. This recommend must be signed by the proper officers of the Church. Only those who are worthy should go to the temple. Your local bishop or branch president has the responsibility of making inquiries into your personal worthiness. This interview is of great importance, for it is an occasion to explore with an ordained servant of the Lord the pattern of your life. If anything is amiss in your life, the bishop will be able to help you resolve it. Through this procedure, as you counsel with the common judge in Israel , you can declare or can be helped to establish your worthiness to enter the temple with the Lord’s approval (Boyd K. Packer, “The Holy Temple,” Ensign, Feb. 1995, p. 32).

8. [44:17, 18] Patrons and workers wear special clothing.

And it shall come to pass, that when they enter in at the gates of the inner court, they shall be clothed with linen garments; and no wool shall come upon them, whiles they minister in the gates of the inner court, and within. . . .

9. [44:23] The Priesthood teaches the difference between the holy and the profane

And they shall teach my people the difference between the holy and profane, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean.

The Lord has charged modern priesthood leaders not to “suffer [allow] any unclean thing to come into” his houses. This is a serious responsibility. Relatives of mine presided over a temple that had, in the beginning of their service, a parking lot covered with blacktop. When the weather was extremely hot, those crossing the lot to enter the temple occasionally tracked tar into the building itself, discoloring the carpets and floors. One of the responsibilities of Bishops and Stake Presidents and others is to teach members that no one tracks “spiritual tar” into the temple.

2. EZEKIEL SEES A RIVER FLOWING FROM THE TEMPLE THAT GIVES LIFE TO THE DESERT AND HEALS THE DEAD SEA .

Afterward he brought me again unto the door of the house; and, behold, waters issued out from under the threshold of the house eastward: for the forefront of the house stood toward the east, and the waters came down from under from the right side of the house, at the south side of the altar (Ezek. 47:1).

This river is real, a waterway that will one day come from under the temple and flow to the Dead Sea .

Judah must return, Jerusalem must be rebuilt, and the temple, and water come out from under the temple, and the waters of the Dead Sea be healed. It will take some time to rebuild the walls of the city and the temple, Etc.; and all this must be done before the Son of Man will make his appearance (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, Section Six 1843–44, p.286)

But this river is also an image rich in symbolism. If we visualize the river as a symbol for the blessings of the temple, we can absorb some wonderful lessons taught by Ezekiel. Notice what Ezekiel 37 tells us about this river and its effects.

“Behold, at the bank of the river were very many trees on the one side and on the other” (47:7). The Judean Wilderness is a desert, a barren desolate landscape where any tree is an abnormality. But this river will be lined with trees. It will heal any desert through which it passes.
“These waters issue out toward the east country, and go down into the desert, and go into the sea: which being brought forth into the sea, the waters shall be healed . . . and there shall be a very great multitude of fish, because these waters shall come thither: for they shall be healed . . .(47:8,9) The Dead Sea is the saltiest, most mineral-laden water in the world, located at the lowest point on the planet at 400 meters below sea level. What kind of miracle will be required to heal these waters which are currently so salty that they do not allow fish and other marine life?
And it shall come to pass, that every thing that liveth, which moveth, whithersoever the rivers shall come, shall live . . . and every thing shall live whither the river cometh. Everything that the river touches will live. Ponder that. What are the life-giving effects of temple participation?
And by the river upon the bank thereof, on this side and on that side, shall grow all trees for meat, whose leaf shall not fade, neither shall the fruit thereof be consumed: it shall bring forth new fruit according to his months, because their waters they issued out of the sanctuary: and the fruit thereof shall be for meat, and the leaf thereof for medicine (Ezek. 47:12). The river will provide a growing environment for fruit trees with different kinds of fruit, and the leaves of these trees will have medicinal qualities. John the Revelator had a vision of this river and the throne of God [see Ezek. 43:7] from whence it issues.

And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations (Rev. 22:1,2).

These passages are profuse with meaning and promises for those who embrace the work and the power of temples.

3. EZEKIEL MEASURES THE RIVER’S DEPTH.

Ezekiel, in his vision, crossed this river three times and tried to cross a fourth. He reports his experience in these provocative words:

At the first crossing, a thousand cubits from the temple, “the waters were to the ankles.”

At the second crossing, a thousand cubits further downstream, “the waters were to the knees”

At the third crossing, another thousand cubits away, “the waters were to the loins” (Ezek. 47:3-4).

After another thousand cubits, “It was a river that I could not pass over: for the waters were risen, waters to swim in, a river that could not be passed over (Ezek. 47:5).

What do the numbers in this passage suggest to you? What ought we to learn from the increasing depth of the river? What might finally happen after years of temple attendance that might be compared to “a river that could not be passed over”? What does the learning curve from your temple visits look like? Do you learn more or less now than you did when you first attended? Certainly you have gone to the temple and discovered things that were not clear to you. What does Ezekiel’s account here suggest we ought to do? We ought to wade into the river of temple instruction over and over again.

This is the kind of instruction that the Lord promises in the temples:

I, the Lord, require at their hands, that there may be a house built unto me for the salvation of Zion-- For a place of thanksgiving for all saints, and for a place of instruction for all those who are called to the work of the ministry in all their several callings and offices; That they may be perfected in the understanding of their ministry, in theory, in principle, and in doctrine, in all things pertaining to the kingdom of God on the earth . . . (D&C 97:12-14).

CONCLUSION:

We have a part in all of this. Along with the blessings that flow to us from the temple, like a river to the Dead Sea , we have obligations to those who have gone before us. What a work we have to do! And what a blessing of joy and happiness it is to do it.

To accomplish this work there will have to be not only one temple but thousands of them, and thousands and tens of thousands of men and women will go into those temples and officiate for people who have lived as far back as the Lord shall reveal (Discourses of Brigham Young, p.394).

Old Testament Lesson 43: The Shepherds of Israel

Fri, 05 Nov 2010 00:02:00 -0600

by Ted L. Gibbons
source: MormonLife.com

Mormon Life says: What has the voice of the Shepherd asked you to do with the sticks of Judah and Joseph? What has he asked you to do for the sheep and lambs he has assigned to you in your wards and branches? Historical Note: Ezekiel was “A priest of the family of Zadok, and one of the captives carried away by Nebuchadnezzar along with Jehoiachin. He settled at Tel Abib on the Chebar, and prophesied [in Babylon ] during a period of 22 years, 592-470 B.C.” (See Bible Dictionary: Ezekiel)

INTRODUCTION: We fought a war over agency in the pre-earth life, and are therefore permitted to live lives without undue coercion. But the Lord does have some pretty high expectations. When we enter into covenants with him, he expects us to keep them, and he examines our commitment to those covenants in many ways:

I have decreed in my heart, saith the Lord, that I will prove you in all things, whether you will abide in my covenant, even unto death, that you may be found worthy. For if ye will not abide in my covenant ye are not worthy of me (D&C 98:14,15).

One of the things we are under covenant to do is feed his sheep. We are all shepherds in one way or another, and he has often reminded us of our duty to take cake of each other. Ezekiel gives powerful lessons on our responsibilities as shepherds.

In April of 1988, Elder John R, Lasater gave a wonderful description of a true shepherd in Morocco .

Some years ago, it was my privilege to visit the country of Morocco as part of an official United States government delegation. As part of that visit, we were invited to travel some distance into the desert to visit some ruins. Five large black limousines moved across the beautiful Moroccan countryside at considerable speed. I was riding in the third limousine, which had lagged some distance behind the second. As we topped the brow of a hill, we noticed that the limousine in front of us had pulled off to the side of the road. As we drew nearer, I sensed that an accident had occurred and suggested to my driver that we stop. The scene before us has remained with me for these many years.

An old shepherd, in the long, flowing robes of the Savior’s day, was standing near the limousine in conversation with the driver. Nearby, I noted a small flock of sheep numbering not more than fifteen or twenty. An accident had occurred. The king’s vehicle had struck and injured one of the sheep belonging to the old shepherd. The driver of the vehicle was explaining to him the law of the land. Because the king’s vehicle had injured one of the sheep belonging to the old shepherd, he was now entitled to one hundred times its value at maturity. However, under the same law, the injured sheep must be slain and the meat divided among the people. My interpreter hastily added, “But the old shepherd will not accept the money. They never do.”

Startled, I asked him why. And he added, “Because of the love he has for each of his sheep.” It was then that I noticed the old shepherd reach down, lift the injured lamb in his arms, and place it in a large pouch on the front of his robe. He kept stroking its head, repeating the same word over and over again. When I asked the meaning of the word, I was informed, “Oh, he is calling it by name. All of his sheep have a name, for he is their shepherd, and the good shepherds know each one of their sheep by name.”

It was as my driver predicted. The money was refused, and the old shepherd with his small flock of sheep, with the injured one tucked safely in the pouch on his robe, disappeared into the beautiful deserts of Morocco .

As we continued our journey toward the ruins, my interpreter shared with me more of the traditions and practices of the shepherds of that land. Each evening at sundown, for example, the shepherds bring their small flocks of sheep to a common enclosure where they are secured against the wolves that roam the deserts of Morocco . A single shepherd then is employed to guard the gate until morning. Then the shepherds come to the enclosure one by one, enter therein, and call forth their sheep—by name. The sheep will not hearken unto the voice of a stranger but will leave the enclosure only in the care of their true shepherd, confident and secure because the shepherd knows their names and they know his voice (John R. Lasater, “Shepherds of Israel,” Ensign, May 1988, 74)

1. THE SHEPHERDS OF ISRAEL

AND the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD unto the shepherds; Woe be to the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! should not the shepherds feed the flocks? Ye eat the fat, and ye clothe you with the wool, ye kill them that are fed: but ye feed not the flock.

Who are these shepherds and why does the Lord pronounce a woe upon them? Don’t these verses give you the impression that these shepherds are more concerned about themselves than about their sheep? The Lord could not be very pleased with that.

Ezekiel describes in great detail what shepherds are supposed to do. All of the following references are in Ezekiel:

(34:4) strengthen
(34:4) heal
(34:4) bind up
(34:4,13) bring again
(34:4,6,11) seek
(34:6,11) search
(34:10) deliver
(34:13) gather
(34:16) bind up
(34:22) save
(34:27,28) keep safe; allow to dwell safely
(34:2,3,15,23) feed

You might want to consider in the light of your own calling or stewardship just what these verbs imply. The final verb—feed—is probably a summary and reminds us immediately of the experience of Peter and the account in John 21:15-17.

To these instructions we might add the declaration of the Lord in John 10 that he is the Good Shepherd, and will lay down his life for the sheep.

In your experiences as a shepherd you will meet sheep who will not respond no matter what you do. That probably will not happen often.

We realize, as in times past, that some of the sheep will rebel and are “as a wild flock which fleeth from the shepherd.” (Mosiah 8:21.) But most of our problems stem from lack of loving and attentive shepherding, and more shepherds must be developed.

With a shepherd’s care, our new members, those newly born into the gospel, must be nurtured by attentive friendshipping as they increase in gospel knowledge and begin living new standards. Such attention will help ensure that they will not return to old habits.

With a shepherd’s loving care, our young people, our young lambs, will not be as inclined to wander. And if they do, the crook of the shepherd’s staff—a loving arm and an understanding heart—will help retrieve them.

With a shepherd’s care, many of those who are now independent of the flock can still be reclaimed (Ezra Taft Benson, “Feed My Sheep,” Ensign, Sept. 1987, 4, emphasis added).

In Ezekiel 1 and Ezekiel 33, the Lord talks about another kind of shepherd. He tells Ezekiel that he is to be a watchman (See Ezek. 3:17 ). Watchmen are usually placed on the tops of towers where they can see approaching danger from a greater distance than those below. With that calling, Ezekiel received instruction about two things watchmen or shepherds must not do. First, the must not be paralyzed by fear.

And thou, son of man, be not afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns be with thee, and thou dost dwell among scorpions: be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house (Ezek. 2:6).

As an adamant harder than flint have I made thy forehead: fear them not, neither be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house (Ezek. 3:9; see also D&C 60:2).

Second, they must not waste time. Read what happened when Ezekiel came to the captives at Telabib:

Then I came to them of the captivity at Telabib, that dwelt by the river of Chebar , and I sat where they sat, and remained there astonished among them seven days. And it came to pass at the end of seven days, that the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel : therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me (Ezek. 3:13 -17).

It seems as though the Lord wanted Ezekiel to do something besides sit around for seven days. He had a message and he was supposed to deliver it. I think another way to say this would be “Magnify your calling.”

2. REPENTANCE AND FORGIVENESS

The Lord does not keep a ledger of all of our past mistakes. He speaks of his reactions to repentance with phrases like this one in Ezekiel 18:

But if the wicked will turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die. All his transgressions that he hath committed, they shall not be mentioned unto him: in his righteousness that he hath done he shall live (Ezek. 18:21 ,22, emphasis added).

Past (forsaken) transgressions will not be mentioned. Their color will go from crimson to snow (see Isaiah 1:18); the Lord will put them out of sight (see Is. 38:17; 44:22); they will be out of reach (see Micah 7:19; Ps. 103:12); out of mind (see Jer. 31:34; also D&C 58:42); out of consideration (see Ezek 33:15,16); and out of existence (see Ps. 51:1,9; also Is. 43:25).

3. EZEKIEL’S VISION OF THE VALLEY OF BONES

The Lord promised to bring life back to Israel . “So shall the waste cities be filled with flocks of men . . .” (Ezek. 36:38). Chapter 37 is a vision of the restoration of Israel to her lands in the resurrection (see the chapter heading for Ezek. 37). Note that 37:11 tells us precisely what these bones represent.

Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel . And ye shall know that I am the LORD, when I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves, And shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land: then shall ye know that I the LORD have spoken it, and performed it, saith the LORD (Ezek. 37:12,14).

4. THE STICK OF JUDAH AND THE STICK OF JOSEPH

Not only does the Lord promise to give Israel renewed life. He promises to give her direction. We know from the title page that one of the major purposes of the Book of Mormon is to convince the Jews that Jesus is the Christ. That sacred volume, united with the Bible, with become a great force for righteousness in the last days.

With the passing of years, these scriptures [the sticks of Judah and Joseph] will produce successive generations of faithful Christians who know the Lord Jesus Christ and are disposed to obey His will.

The older generation has been raised without them, but there is another generation growing up. The revelations will be opened to them as to no other in the history of the world. Into their hands now are placed the sticks of Joseph and of Judah . They will develop a gospel scholarship beyond that which their forebears could achieve. They will have the testimony that Jesus is the Christ and be competent to proclaim Him and to defend Him (Boyd K. Packer, “Scriptures,” Ensign, Nov. 1982, 53).

After all, one of the great purposes of the Book of Mormon is to demonstrate that the Bible is true.

“These last records, which thou hast seen among the Gentiles, shall establish the truth of the first . . .” (1 Nephi 13:40 ).

“But a seer will I raise up out of the fruit of thy loins; and unto him will I give power to bring forth my word unto the seed of thy loins—and not to the bringing forth my word only, saith the Lord, but to the convincing them of my word, which shall have already gone forth among them” (2 Nephi 3:11).

“For behold, this is written for the intent that ye may believe that” (Morm. 7:9).

“And [the Lord] gave [Joseph] power from on high, by the means which were before prepared, to translate the Book of Mormon . . . . Proving to the world that the holy scriptures are true . . .” (D&C 20:8,11).

Review the promises made by the Lord about the power of these two records when they are joined together.

Wherefore, the fruit of thy loins shall write; and the fruit of the loins of Judah shall write; and that which shall be written by the fruit of thy loins, and also that which shall be written by the fruit of the loins of Judah, shall grow together, unto the confounding of false doctrines and laying down of contentions, and establishing peace among the fruit of thy loins, and bringing them to the knowledge of their fathers in the latter days, and also to the knowledge of my covenants, saith the Lord (2 Nephi 3:12).

CONCLUSION: We will have a part in this work. We are shepherds and we are the custodians of the stick of Joseph, but we are also sheep. I love the descriptions in John 10 of what sheep are supposed to do.

The sheep hear his voice (John 10:3)
The sheep follow him (John 10:4,27)
The sheep know his voice (John 10:4)
The sheep will not listen to thieves and robbers (John 10:8)
The sheep go in and out by the door (John 10:9) who is Christ

What has the voice of the Shepherd asked you to do with the sticks of Judah and Joseph? What has he asked you to do for the sheep and lambs he has assigned to you in your wards and branches?

OT Lesson 41: Jeremiah 1-2,15,20,26,36-38

Tue, 02 Nov 2010 10:39:00 -0600

source: feastuponthewordblog.org

1 Approach These represent the notes I made during my reading of the scriptural text for this lesson. It is not a lesson outline or a lesson plan but really notes about issues and questions that struck me as interesting during my reading. Consequently, the notes do not have a conclusion and very little mention of application. I like to let those things arise while I teach. 2 Introduction

The book of Jeremiah’s organizational structure is rather loose. It doesn’t appear to be organized chronologically or by topic. Some parts of the book do have biographical details. For example, there are accounts that touch on or describe conflicts with officials of state (Jeremiah 26, 36-37), priests (20:1-6), and other prophets (28-29).

Old Testament Lesson 42: I Will Write It in Their Hearts

Fri, 29 Oct 2010 00:03:00 -0600

by Ted L. Gibbons
source: MormonLife.com

Mormon Life says: Perhaps as members of the Church trust with all their hearts, transform their hopes and beliefs into action, and seek to align themselves with the will of the Lord, the answer to the question the Savior asked 2,000 years ago will be a resounding "Yes, He will find faith. He will find faith among those who take upon themselves His name. He will find it among those who are living His divine principles." INTRODUCTION:

A great deal has been said and written in recent months by Church leaders about the need to get the gospel deeper into the hearts of the people. I believe that modern Israel is as righteous as Israel has ever been, but listening to ten hours of conference in October (especially President Hinckley’s final talk) has convinced me that we can do better. We seem to know a lot of the questions about the gospel, and many of the answers, but some of us may have missed the power of real conversion. Benjamin’s people, generally faithful members, heard their king speak and experienced a mighty change of heart. You may remember what Abinadi said to the priests of Noah.

And now I read unto you the remainder of the commandments of God, for I perceive that they are not written in your hearts . . . (Mosiah 13:11 ).

These men were scholarly enough to quote Isaiah, even to try and challenge Abinadi on doctrine, but they did not have the commandments written in their hearts.. But the Lord says that one day he will have a generation that will have his law in their hearts. I believe he was speaking of us.

1. JEREMIAH FORESEES THE LATTER-DAY GATHERING OF ISRAEL .

If you could watch the Old Testament event of your choice, which one would you select? The creation? The gathering of the animals and the loading of the ark? The declaration of the 10 Commandments by the voice of God from Mt. Sinai ? The destruction of the Assyrians at the walls of Jerusalem ?

I have tried to imagine the dividing of the Red Sea . Could the Israelites see fish swimming behind those towering walls of water? Was the ground, after having been soaked by millennia of water, really dry? Did it require a special act of courage for the Egyptians to pursue Israel between those lethal, towering, liquid barricades?

Anyway, Jeremiah observed (or at least prophesied of) an event from our days—an event that in his opinion would eclipse every other for drama and importance.

Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that it shall no more be said, The LORD liveth, that brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; But, The LORD liveth, that brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north, and from all the lands whither he had driven them: and I will bring them again into their land that I gave unto their fathers. Behold, I will send for many fishers, saith the LORD, and they shall fish them; and after will I send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks (Jer. 16:14 -16).

Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that they shall no more say, The LORD liveth, which brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; But, The LORD liveth, which brought up and which led the seed of the house of Israel out of the north country, and from all countries whither I had driven them; and they shall dwell in their own land (Jer. 23:7,8).

It must have been a great joy for Jeremiah to see a day when Israel would arise and shine forth. He had not seen any of it in his day. Notice these verses from the beginning of Jeremiah 23.

WOE be unto the pastors that destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture! saith the LORD. Therefore thus saith the LORD God of Israel against the pastors that feed my people; Ye have scattered my flock, and driven them away, and have not visited them: behold, I will visit upon you the evil of your doings, saith the LORD. And I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all countries whither I have driven them, and will bring them again to their folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase. And I will set up shepherds over them which shall feed them: and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall they be lacking, saith the LORD (Jer. 23:1-4).

Jeremiah knew about wicked shepherds (priests). He was told at the time of his call that he would have to stand against the priests of the whole land (see Jer. 1:18 ).

He lamented that the priests said not, Where is the LORD? and they that handle the law knew me not: the pastors also transgressed against me, and the prophets prophesied by Baal, and walked after things that do not profit (Jer. 2:8).

In that same chapter he said that the priests of Israel would be ashamed (Jer. 2:26 ). In chapter 13 he promised to fill the priests, the kings, and the people with drunkenness (vs. 13). In a later chapter he declared that Jerusalem (her priests and others) had provoked him to anger.

And they have turned unto me the back, and not the face: though I taught them, rising up early and teaching them, yet they have not hearkened to receive instruction (Jer. 32:32).

Near the end of Jeremiah we read this frightening prophecy:

Howl, O Heshbon, for Ai is spoiled: cry, ye daughters of Rabbah, gird you with sackcloth; lament, and run to and fro by the hedges; for their king shall go into captivity, and his priests and his princes together (Jer. 49:3).

That rebellious, destructive attitude of the pastors and priests would change in the last days, when God would gather his people again and give them priests that would feed them.

And I will satiate the soul of the priests with fatness, and my people shall be satisfied with my goodness, saith the LORD (Jer. 31:14).

And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding (Jer. 3:15 ).

The gathering that would accompany this re-emergence of Israel as a great spiritual power would be conducted by hunters and fishers. The following two paragraphs are from last week’s lesson:

Behold, I will send for many fishers, saith the LORD, and they shall fish them; and after will I send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks (Jer. 16:14 -16).

It is my impression that in Jeremiah’s day, most fishing was done with nets. And many people who have fished for converts have used nets, like Peter and John and Andrew. They were not interested in a fish or two. They wanted multitudes. Wilford Woodruff in England ; Dan Jones in Wales ; Zebedee Coltrin in Winchester , Indiana —they were all fishers, baptizing hundreds. But after the fishers, the Lord would send for many hunters. Hunting is more precise work. You don’t usually hunt a heard, You hunt individual animals, “from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks.”

The call for fishers and hunters has gone forth. A multitude of missionaries in this generation have responded with full-time service. Have you responded? Have you been hunting of fishing lately?

2. GOD WILL WRITE HIS LAW IN THE HEARTS OF HIS PEOPLE.

Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD: But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more (Jer. 31:31-34).

Part of this passage speaks of a time when we will not need to teach our neighbors about the Lord because “they shall all know [him], from the least of them unto the greatest of them.”

The D&C teaches that one purpose of the restoration is so that “every man might speak in the name of God the Lord” (D&C 1:24 ). And the book of Moses tells us that righteousness will cover the earth like a flood!

Righteousness will I send down out of heaven; and truth will I send forth out of the earth, to bear testimony of mine Only Begotten; his resurrection from the dead; yea, and also the resurrection of all men; and righteousness and truth will I cause to sweep the earth as with a flood, to gather out mine elect from the four quarters of the earth . . . (Moses 7:62).

Jeremiah, speaking of this wonderful time in yet another chapter declared

Therefore fear thou not, O my servant Jacob, saith the LORD; neither be dismayed, O Israel : for, lo, I will save thee from afar, and thy seed from the land of their captivity; and Jacob shall return, and shall be in rest, and be quiet, and none shall make him afraid. For I am with thee, saith the LORD, to save thee: though I make a full end of all nations whither I have scattered thee, yet will I not make a full end of thee: but I will correct thee in measure, and will not leave thee altogether unpunished (Jer. 30:10,11).

This report of a time when there will be a renewed heart in Israel appears other times in the scriptures:

Ezek. 11:19,20—“And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh: That they may walk in my statutes, and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God.

Ezek. 36:26,27—“A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.”

CONCLUSION:

We must give our hearts to this work. Helaman gives us the pattern for making this sacrifice.

Nevertheless they did fast and pray oft, and did wax stronger and stronger in their humility, and firmer and firmer in the faith of Christ, unto the filling their souls with joy and consolation, yea, even to the purifying and the sanctification of their hearts, which sanctification cometh because of their yielding their hearts unto God (Hel. 3:35 ).

Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin spoke of this in October Conference.

And one day, we will fully see through the darkness into the light. We will understand His eternal plan, His mercy, and His love.

"When the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?" (Luke 18:8)

Perhaps as members of the Church trust with all their hearts, transform their hopes and beliefs into action, and seek to align themselves with the will of the Lord, the answer to the question the Savior asked 2,000 years ago will be a resounding "Yes, He will find faith. He will find faith among those who take upon themselves His name. He will find it among those who are living His divine principles" (“Shall He Find Faith on the Earth?”; Sunday Afternoon, October 6, 2002 ).

Old Testament Lesson 41: I Have Made Thee This Day ... An Iron Pillar

Fri, 22 Oct 2010 00:03:00 -0600

by Ted L. Gibbons
source: MormonLife.com

Mormon Life says: The call for fishers and hunters has gone forth. Have you responded? Are you willing to be like an iron pillar and do your part of the same work Jeremiah did? INTRODUCTION:

I have sometimes taught Jeremiah with a picture of home with eight 10 windows. On each window I have written one of the qualities of this spectacular seer. I have called such lesson, “Windows into the soul of a propjhet. And Jeremiah was a extraordinary prophet. Called to work with people though rampant apostasy and bitter opposition, he never faltered and rarely flinched throughout his ministry. His life and writings are exceptional treasures and worth a great investment of time and reflection. And some of the verses will require time and reflection. Jeremiah is distanced from us not just by time and geography, but by language and idiom and circumstance and translation. But your knowledge of the plan of salvation and the unchangeableness of God will sustain you. Pay a price and the results will be spectacular.

The environment in which Jeremiah preached was one rife with political intrigue and implications.   Babylon had defeated Egypt in 605 BC, and then had conquered Jerusalem . But Jerusalem would not submit

“Even though Jehoiakim was now a vassal king to Babylon , for some reason not fully explained in the scriptures he still gave his allegiance to Egypt . Both Jeremiah and Ezekiel warned that Egypt was weak and not to be trusted . . . Ignoring the prophetic warnings, Jehoiakim decided that Babylon wasn't nearly as strong as Nebuchadnezzar had claimed, and he openly switched his allegiance to Egypt and stopped paying tribute to Babylon” (Religious Studies Monograph Series, Isaiah and the Prophets, Vol. 10, p.80).

This action, Jeremiah would warn repeatedly, was contrary to the will of God and would bring the judgements of God upon the covenant people.

Window #1. A CALL TO SERVE. Jeremiah was called to his ministry in Judah during the reign of King Josiah.

“Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations” (Jer. 1:4,5)

Why would it matter to Jeremiah to know that he was called and ordained before he was born? Why would the Lord want Jeremiah to know this? Why does it matter that you know it, about Jeremiah and about yourself?

Jeremiah, like so many others called and sent was afraid.

“Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child. But the LORD said unto me, Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak. Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the LORD” (Jer. 1:6-8).

This was not important to the Lord. Jeremiah was not expected to do this alone.   Everything he was to speak the Lord would give him.

“Then the LORD put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the LORD said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth” (Jer. 1:9).

Notice the two kinds of things Jeremiah was called to do:

“See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant” (Jer. 1:10 ).

Jeremiah was to root out, pull down, destroy, and throw down. He was also to build and to plant. Which do you think prophets would rather do? Which do they most often have to do? Consider the following verses and determine which Jeremiah would be doing most of the time:

“For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water” (Jer. 2:13).

“RUN ye to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, and see now, and know, and seek in the broad places thereof, if ye can find a man, if there be any that executeth judgment, that seeketh the truth; and I will pardon it” (Jer. 5:1).

You may remember that the Lord offered to spare Sodom if 10 righteous people could be found therein (see Gen. 18:32). Here he offers to save Jerusalem in any righteous can be found there.

In is in the framework of the Lord’s awareness of the animosity that Jeremiah’s call will generate that the Lord says to him,

“Thou therefore gird up thy loins, and arise, and speak unto them all that I command thee: be not dismayed at their faces, lest I confound thee before them. For, behold, I have made thee this day a defenced city, and an iron pillar, and brasen walls against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, against the princes thereof, against the priests thereof, and against the people of the land. And they shall fight against thee; but they shall not prevail against thee; for I am with thee, saith the LORD, to deliver thee” (Jer. 1:17 -19).

Would these words, which are part of the call the Lord issued, have comforted Jeremiah? Would he be more confident against adversity knowing that the Lord had made him truly unbreakable—a defended city, an iron pillar, and brasen walls—against the whole land?

Window #2: PERSECUTION. In his call, the Lord warned Jeremiah that the kings, the princes, the priests, and the people would oppose him, and they did. But the antagonism against him become much more personal than that.

“But I was like a lamb or an ox that is brought to the slaughter; and I knew not that they had devised devices against me, saying, Let us destroy the tree with the fruit thereof, and let us cut him off from the land of the living, that his name may be no more remembered. But, O LORD of hosts, that judgest righteously, that triest the reins and the heart, let me see thy vengeance on them: for unto thee have I revealed my cause. Therefore thus saith the LORD of the men of Anathoth, that seek thy life, saying, Prophesy not in the name of the LORD, that thou die not by our hand” (Jer. 112:19-21).

We learn in Jeremiah 1:1 that the prophet was from the village of Anathoth . Note in the passage above that “the men of Anathoth” seek Jeremiah’s life. These would be people who had known him for years, who had been friends and neighbors. But the prophecies of Jeremiah moved them to a homicidal rage.

Window #3: LOVE. If we were to wait till the end of the Lesson to peek through this Window, its impact would probably be more dramatic. But as it appears here in sequence,. We’ll mention it here in the hope that you will remember in throughout the lesson. Jeremiah had charity for his people, deaf and wicked and hateful though they were. He loved them. The following is one of the most touching passages in this great book.

“Hear ye, and give ear; be not proud: for the LORD hath spoken. Give glory to the LORD your God, before he cause darkness, and before your feet stumble upon the dark mountains, and, while ye look for light, he turn it into the shadow of death, and] make it] gross darkness. But if ye will not hear it, my soul shall weep in secret places for your pride; and mine eye shall weep sore, and run down with tears, because the LORD'S flock is carried away captive” (Jer. 13:15-17).

Have you ever grieved so much for an unrepentant loved one that you have wept in secret places? I have. After praying and pleading and hoping, I have gone away to weep. The first time I remember this happening was in the mission field when a particularly beautiful family who had seemed to love us and our message had withdrawn from us on the day of baptism and asked us not to visit them again. There was nothing left to do but cry.

Window #4: DISCOURAGEMENT. Nearly everyone gets discouraged. Bad days come with distressing regularity. But Jeremiah’s discouragement was on a different level. Things got so bad that Jeremiah seemed to regret having been born.

“Woe is me, my mother, that thou hast borne me a man of strife and a man of contention to the whole earth! I have neither lent on usury, nor men have lent to me on usury; [yet] every one of them doth curse me” (Jer. 15:10 )

Jeremiah must have begun to understand why he needed to be an iron pillar and a brasen wall . . .

“O LORD, thou knowest: remember me, and visit me, and revenge me of my persecutors; take me not away in thy longsuffering: know that for thy sake I have suffered rebuke. Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O LORD God of hosts. I sat not in the assembly of the mockers, nor rejoiced; I sat alone because of thy hand: for thou hast filled me with indignation. Why is my pain perpetual, and my wound incurable, which refuseth to be healed? wilt thou be altogether unto me as a liar, and as waters that fail?” (Jer. 15:15-18).

If you have ever been discouraged while doing the Lord’s work, consider these words the Lord revealed to Jeremiah at this time.

“Therefore thus saith the LORD, If thou return, then will I bring thee again, [and] thou shalt stand before me: and if thou take forth the precious from the vile, thou shalt be as my mouth: let them return unto thee; but return not thou unto them. And I will make thee unto this people a fenced brasen wall: and they shall fight against thee, but they shall not prevail against thee: for I [am] with thee to save thee and to deliver thee, saith the LORD. And I will deliver thee out of the hand of the wicked, and I will redeem thee out of the hand of the terrible” (Jer. 15:19 -21).

Window #5: NO SUCCESS. In our day, the Lord said frequently that the field was white, already to harvest (see D&C 4:4; 6:3; 11:3; 12:3; 14:3; 33:3; and 33:7). But in Jeremiah’s day the field was useless and ready to be burned. No one was repenting.

“Then said they, Come, and let us devise devices against Jeremiah; for the law shall not perish from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet. Come, and let us smite him with the tongue, and let us not give heed to any of his words. Give heed to me, O LORD, and hearken to the voice of them that contend with me. Shall evil be recompensed for good? for they have digged a pit for my soul. Remember that I stood before thee to speak good for them, [and] to turn away thy wrath from them” (Jer. 18:18 -20).

Consider the following verses. They are only a few of the many in Jeremiah that tell us how hard-hearted these people were

2:24 “who can turn her away??”
2:30 “In vain have I smitten your children; they received no correction”
3:3 “thou refusedst to be ashamed.”
3:7 “And I said after she had done all these things, Turn thou unto me. But she returned not”
3:10 “for all this her treacherous sister Judah hath not turned unto me with her whole heart”
4:14 “How long shall thy vain thoughts lodge within thee?”
4:22 “but to do good they have no knowledge”
5:1 “ if there be any that executeth judgment . . . I will pardon it”
5:3 “thou hast stricken them, but they have not grieved. they have refused to receive correction: they have made their faces harder than a rock; they have refused to return”
5:23 “But this people hath a revolting and a rebellious heart; they are revolted and gone”
6:15 “they were not at all ashamed, neither could they blush”
7:13 “I spake unto you, rising up early and speaking, but ye heard not; and I called you, but ye answered not”
7:24 “they hearkened not, nor inclined their ear, but walked in the counsels and in the imagination of their evil heart, and went backward, and not forward”
7:28 “This is a nation that obeyeth not the voice of the LORD their God, nor receiveth correction”

That will do, won’t it? Here are other references you can check if you want to overwhelm someone with a detailed report on the rebelliousness of these people. 8:6-12,20; 13:11,23; 15:1,7; 17:23; 22:21; 23:14; 25:3-8; 26:3-5; 29:19; 32:33; 44:4,9,10.

Window #6: TESTIMONY. Some people change paths when the road is too difficult, choosing instead a path that is not so steep and rugged, or even reversing directions entirely. Jeremiah had enough excuses and enough difficulty to consider such an alternative. But he could not turn away from the thing the Lord had commanded him to do.

Things got particularly bad when Pashur, “chief governor in the house of the Lord,” in an angry reaction to his prophesying, beat Jeremiah and put him in “stocks” (see Jeremiah 20:1,2). Even with the mistreatment and abuse, Jeremiah would not back down. He had been prophesying that the Babylonians were coming and that Judah would pay an awful price for her iniquities. Notice what he said to the man who beat him and put him in the stocks.

“For thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will make thee a terror to thyself, and to all thy friends: and they shall fall by the sword of their enemies, and thine eyes shall behold it. and I will give all Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon , and he shall carry them captive into Babylon , and shall slay them with the sword. Moreover I will deliver all the strength of this city, and all the labours thereof, and all the precious things thereof, and all the treasures of the kings of Judah will I give into the hand of their enemies, which shall spoil them, and take them, and carry them to Babylon. And thou, Pashur, and all that dwell in thine house shall go into captivity: and thou shalt come to Babylon , and there thou shalt die, and shalt be buried there, thou, and all thy friends, to whom thou hast prophesied lies” (Jer. 20:44 -6).

What was it that moved him to such courage? His testimony! Even when he wanted to hold his peace, he could not. The passage below presents one of the great descriptions of testimony in the standard works.

“I am in derision daily, every one mocketh me. For since I spake, I cried out, I cried violence and spoil; because the word of the LORD was made a reproach unto me, and a derision, daily. Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay” (Jer. 20:7-9).

This witness of Jeremiah reminds me of the feelings of Brigham Young about preaching the gospel.

“I wanted to thunder and roar out the Gospel to the nations. It burned in my bones like fire pent up¼. Nothing would satisfy me but to cry abroad in the world, what the Lord was doing in the latter-days¼. I had to go out and preach, lest my bones should consume within me” (Deseret News Weekly, 24 August 1854, p. 1).

Does your testimony motivate you to that kind of determination?

Window #7: COMMITMENT. The testimony of Jeremiah sustained him when his instructions were difficult, dangerous, and even deadly. That testimony became the foundation of his commitment to the work and the word of the Lord.

“Thus saith the LORD; Stand in the court of the LORD'S house, and speak unto all the cities of Judah, which come to worship in the LORD'S house, all the words that I command thee to speak unto them; diminish not a word: If so be they will hearken, and turn every man from his evil way, that I may repent me of the evil, which I purpose to do unto them because of the evil of their doings” (Jer. 26:2,3).

Jeremiah’s continuing message of the impending judgements of God antagonized nearly everybody in the land of Judah . Now he had been commanded to call Judah to repentance one more time. His message was direct and unambiguous. And he did not have permission to write it and mail it in from Moab or Mona. He was to deliver it in person in the court of the temple. And he did.

“Now it came to pass, when Jeremiah had made an end of speaking all that the LORD had commanded him to speak unto all the people, that the priests and the prophets and all the people took him, saying, Thou shalt surely die . . . Then spake the priests and the prophets unto the princes and to all the people, saying, This man is worthy to die; for he hath prophesied against this city, as ye have heard with your ears” (Jer. 26:8,11).

He was not “worthy to die.” But he was willing. His commitment to the calling he had received was such that he put his obedience ahead of his life again and again. He must have known that his commitment to his covenants—his willingness to keep them regardless of the sacrifice required—would make him acceptable to the Lord.

“Verily I say unto you, all among them who know their hearts are honest, and are broken, and their spirits contrite, and are willing to observe their covenants by sacrifice—yea, every sacrifice which I, the Lord, shall command—they are accepted of me” (D&C 97:8).

When Jeremiah was in captivity again for his most recent message, he spoke again:

“Then spake Jeremiah unto all the princes and to all the people, saying, The LORD sent me to prophesy against this house and against this city all the words that ye have heard. Therefore now amend your ways and your doings, and obey the voice of the LORD your God; and the LORD will repent him of the evil that he hath pronounced against you. As for me, behold, I am in your hand: do with me as seemeth good and meet unto you. But know ye for certain, that if ye put me to death, ye shall surely bring innocent blood upon yourselves, and upon this city, and upon the inhabitants thereof: for of a truth the LORD hath sent me unto you to speak all these words in your ears” (Jer 26:12-15).

Window #8: SUFFERING. Jeremiah’s labors with Judah seem to have dragged him into a state of almost continuous suffering. We have already seen several examples. There are many others. Even with Nebuchadnezzar at the gates, Judah continued to resist the message op their prophet.

“For then the king of Babylon 's army besieged Jerusalem : and Jeremiah the prophet was shut up in the court of the prison, which was in the king of Judah 's house. For Zedekiah king of Judah had shut him up, saying, Wherefore dost thou prophesy, and say, Thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall take it . . .” (Jer. 32:2,3).

In Jeremiah 36, the prophet sent his scribe with a message which he himself could not deliver.

“Then Jeremiah called Baruch the son of Neriah: and Baruch wrote from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of the LORD, which he had spoken unto him, upon a roll of a book. And Jeremiah commanded Baruch, saying, I am shut up; I cannot go into the house of the LORD: Therefore go thou, and read in the roll, which thou hast written from my mouth, the words of the LORD in the ears of the people in the LORD'S house upon the fasting day: and also thou shalt read them in the ears of all Judah that come out of their cities. It may be they will present their supplication before the LORD, and will return every one from his evil way: for great is the anger and the fury that the LORD hath pronounced against this people” (Jer. 36:4-7).

After the scroll had been read to the leaders of the Jews, they took it to the king. His reaction is interesting:

“Now the king sat in the winterhouse in the ninth month: and there was a fire on the hearth burning before him. And it came to pass, [that] when Jehudi had read three or four leaves, he cut it with the penknife, and cast [it] into the fire that [was] on the hearth, until all the roll was consumed in the fire that [was] on the hearth” (Jer. 36:22,23).

As is the reaction of Jeremiah when he heard what had happened. He not only rewrote the previous message; he added many words to it..

“Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, after that the king had burned the roll, and the words which Baruch wrote at the mouth of Jeremiah, saying, Take thee again another roll, and write in it all the former words that were in the first roll, which Jehoiakim the king of Judah hath burned. . .Then took Jeremiah another roll, and gave it to Baruch the scribe, the son of Neriah; who wrote therein from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of the book which Jehoiakim king of Judah had burned in the fire: and there were added besides unto them many like words” (Jer. 36:27,28,32).

In Jeremiah 37:12-14, as Jeremiah tries to leave Jerusalem, he is accused of treason and arrested again. After spending “many days” in a dungeon (Jer. 36:16), King Zedekiah removed him secretly and asked if there were any new revelations. Jeremiah assured him that there were, including the oft-repeated message, “thou shalt be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon” (Jer. 37:17).

Jeremiah was then sent to a new (more comfortable?) incarceration, with the injunction from the king that he be fed daily as long as there was bread in the city (Jer. 37:21).

But the princes (elders) of the Jews would have none of it. Now that the very thing Jeremiah had prophesied had happened, they were angrier than ever. They prevailed upon the king to allow them to decide the fate of Jeremiah, and

“Then took they Jeremiah, and cast him into the dungeon of Malchiah the son of Hammelech, that was in the court of the prison: and they let down Jeremiah with cords. And in the dungeon there was no water, but mire: so Jeremiah sunk in the mire” (Jer. 38:6).

His confinement this time was in what is often called a pit prison. The only way in and out was through a hole in the top, through which he was lowered with cords. Since there was no drainage, the bottom was a sea of mud into which Jeremiah sunk.

One of the King’s servants begged the king for permission to rescue Jeremiah from a situation in which he would probably die from hunger (see Jer.8:9). He was accordingly drawn from the prison with cords and remained

“in the court of the prison until the day that Jerusalem was taken: and he was there when Jerusalem was taken” (Jer. 38:28).

He offered Zedekiah one final opportunity to save his life, and to save the city from the torch (see Jer. 38:17-23), but Zedekiah refused to hearken.

Window #9: ENDURING. In chapter 39, Jerusalem fell to the Babylonians. Lehi was by this time somewhere in the Saudi-Arabian Peninsula, free from the danger of the Chaldeans and trying to get his family to the Promised Land.

Jeremiah was set free by the conquering army and given permission to stay in Judah or go to Babylon at his will (see Jer. 40:2-5).

In Jeremiah 42, the leader of the remnant of Judah came to Jeremiah for direction. Should they remain in Judah, or should they go to Egypt? The people entered into a covenant to do whatever the Lord told them to do (Jer. 42:5,6). Jeremiah prayed about this for ten days and then brought them the word of the Lord. If they stayed in the land of Judah, the Lord would bless them and protect them, but if they went to Egypt, they would die by the sword and by famine and by pestilence (see Jer. 42:13-22).

What do you think happened next? Judging from the previous obedience of the Jews, do you think they will follow the prophet this time, even though every word he spoke to them before has been fulfilled?

Of course they went to Egypt, and they took everybody, including Jeremiah, with them (see Jer. 43:8,9).

Window #10: LAMENTATIONS. We will not take time to examine the content of this book. The title alone is a fitting conclusion to the lesson. Every word of Jeremiah was fulfilled. Many times the people and the princes and the priests imprisoned him. Often they determined to kill him. But when the judgements of which he had prophesied had finally come, what did he do? He lamented over the loss of his people.

I love Jeremiah. I hope you do too.

CONCLUSION:

Jeremiah looked forward with great anticipation to our day. He knew it would be a greater day for Israel than even the day when the Lord led his people from Egypt toward the promised land.

“Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that they shall no more say, The LORD liveth, which brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; But, The LORD liveth, which brought up and which led the seed of the house of Israel out of the north country, and from all countries whither I had driven them; and they shall dwell in their own land” (Jer. 23:7,8).

Jeremiah speaks of this latter-day gathering at least five times, in chapters 16, 23, 30, 31, and 33. He identifies the two great professions of latter-day disciples.

“Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that it shall no more be said, The LORD liveth, that brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; But, The LORD liveth, that brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north, and from all the lands whither he had driven them: and I will bring them again into their land that I gave unto their fathers. Behold, I will send for many fishers, saith the LORD, and they shall fish them; and after will I send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks (Jer. 16:14 -16).

It is my impression that in Jeremiah’s day, most fishing was done with nets. In many ages of Church history, people who fished for converts also used nets, like Peter and John and Andrew. They were not interested in a fish or two. They wanted multitudes. Wilford Woodruff in England ; Dan Jones in Wales ; Zebedee Coltrin in Winchester , Indiana —they were all fishers, baptizing hundreds. But after the fishers, the Lord would send for many hunters. Hunting is more precise work. You don’t usually hunt a heard, You hunt individual animals, “from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks.”

The call for fishers and hunters has gone forth. Have you responded? Are you willing to be like an iron pillar and do your part of the same work Jeremiah did?

Old Testament Lesson 40: Enlarge the Place of Thy Tent

Fri, 15 Oct 2010 00:05:00 -0600

by Ted L. Gibbons
source: MormonLife.com

INTRODUCTION:

When I served in the US Army, I had the opportunity on occasion to assist in the erecting of tents. Aside from the personal tents used by soldiers for their own shelter, administrative tents came in three sizes: GP (General Purpose) Small, GP Medium, and GP Large. I do not remember the dimensions of these tents, but I have the impression that there was room under a GP Large for St. Peter’s Basilica.

We used sturdy poles to support the tent and numerous stakes to keep it in place. Those stakes were not the same as the ones used for our personal shelters. They needed to be much stronger because they were supporting a structure of much more size and weight.

The Church is much like a GP Large, except that the dimensions are not fixed for the tent of Zion as they are for Army issue items.

In the 1970's, I traveled to Fayetteville , North Carolina , to speak at the 1st Youth Conference of the North Carolina , Fayetteville stake. The plaque I was given on that occasion indicates that this newly organized stake was the 700th in the Church. At the end of 2001 there were 2601 stakes. As the leaders of the Church have often commented, one of the great challenges of the church is the need to continually lengthen the cords and strengthen the stakes.

The tent described in Isaiah is constantly expanding, making room for as many of God’s children as are willing to seek shelter therein.

1. “LENGTHEN THY CORDS, AND STRENGTHEN THY STAKES” (Isaiah 54:2).

“Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not travail with child: for more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the LORD. Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes; For thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on the left; and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, and make the desolate cities to be inhabited” (Is. 54:1-3).

In the Book of Mormon, the passage from Isaiah 54:1-3 is cited in 3 Nephi 22:1-3. The following verses (3N21:27-29) precede the quotation this passage. They testify that there will one day be a profound work done among the dispersed of Israel .

“. . . to prepare the way whereby they may come unto [the Son], that they may call on the Father in [his] name. Yea, and then shall the work commence, with the Father among all nations in preparing the way whereby his people may be gathered home to the land of their inheritance. And they shall go out from all nations; and they shall not go out in haste, nor go by flight, for I will go before them, saith the Father, and I will be their rearward” (3N21:27-29).

It is as a result of this work by the Father that the barren will begin to sing. And the work will be so successful that the “the children of the desolate” will outnumber “the children of the married wife” (Isaiah 54:1). What does this suggest will happen as the outcasts of Israel begin to accept Christ and join his church?

The growth will be so rapid that it will become necessary to enlarge the tent of Zion by hanging new curtains, lengthening cords, and strengthening stakes. For the truth is that Israel will “break forth on the right hand and on the left.”

What is our part in all of this? What can you do to strengthen the stake in which you live. How can you help prevent your stake from being pulled from the ground, causing a part of the tent of Zion of sag? What individual efforts can we make to strengthen the Church in our own areas?

I have just listened to President Hinckley’s final remarks from General Conference (October 2004). They provide a worthwhile pattern for members of the church who want to be better and stronger.

“ I, for one, have made a stronger resolution within myself to be a better person than I have been in the past. I hope that I will be a little kinder to any I meet who may be in distress. I hope that I will be a little more helpful to those who are in need. I hope that I will be a little more worthy of your confidence. I hope that I will be a better husband, a better father and grandfather. I hope that I will be a better neighbor and friend. I hope that I will be a better Latter-day Saint, with an increased understanding of the wonderful aspects of this glorious gospel” (October 2002, Sunday Afternoon

Most of us have a longing to be better. President Hinckley said all of us can be better. He mentioned specific ways we can strengthen ourselves and thus our stakes. He spoke of such things as:

lowering our voices
returning good for evil
dismissing any affront levied against us
being happy
working harder at being parents
etc.

How can our stakes help us in our endeavor to improve?

2. “WITH GREAT MERCIES WILL I GATHER THEE”

At least 6 times in the scriptures, the Lord promises to “set his hand to gather Israel the second time” (see Isaiah 11:11 ; 2N21:11; 2N25:17; 2N29:1; Jac. 6:2; D&C 137:6). Although that phrase does not appear in the following verses, they are a clear description of the character of the Lord, a character that impels him to try over and over again to reclaim those who wander. In these verses, the Lord preserves the image of the marriage between the Lord and Israel .

For thy Maker is thine husband; the LORD of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called.
For the LORD hath called thee as a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit, and a wife of youth, when thou wast refused, saith thy God.
For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee.
In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the LORD thy Redeemer.
For this is as the waters of Noah unto me: for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth; so have I sworn that I would not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee.
For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the LORD that hath mercy on thee (Isaiah 54:5-10).

Think about the implications of the following phrases taken from the verses above.

“My kindness shall not depart from thee . . .”

“I sworn that I would not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee.”

“With everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee . . .”

“With great mercies will I gather thee.”

May we not be confident that these promises are sure not only for all the house of Israel , but also for individuals within the house of Israel ? I believe that the Lord will set his hand over and over again to gather his children, and will continue to do so as long as there is any hope of any kind that they will respond.

The invitation to participate in the blessings to be found withing the shelter of the stakes of Zion is extended to all the world. Isaiah mentions some groups in particular.

1. Anyone who is thirsty for the waters of life, or anyone who is dissatisfied with the broken cisterns of Jeremiah 2:13:

“Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness. Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David” (Isaiah 55:1-3)

2. Anyone who is willing to repent:

“Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon” (Isaiah 55:7).

3. The righteous:

“Blessed is the man that doeth this, and the son of man that layeth hold on it; that keepeth the sabbath from polluting it, and keepeth his hand from doing any evil” (ISAIAH 56:2).

4. Strangers, non-Israelites, Gentiles:

“Also the sons of the stranger, that join themselves to the LORD, to serve him, and to love the name of the LORD, to be his servants, every one that keepeth the sabbath from polluting it, and taketh hold of my covenant; Even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer: their burnt offerings and their sacrifices [shall be] accepted upon mine altar; for mine house shall be called an house of prayer for all people” (Isaiah 56:6,7).

5. The outcasts of Israel:

“The Lord GOD which gathereth the outcasts of Israel saith, Yet will I gather others to him, beside those that are gathered unto him” (Isaiah 56:8).

Sometimes auto dealerships and department stores will erect huge tents in their parking lots and have sales. I have occasionally received invitations to attend such sales in the newspaper or the mail.

Earlier this year my daughter conscripted me to go with her to deliver invitations to her birthday party. She had 14 of them, I believe, and a list of who they were and where they lived. We went to the home of each child with those invitations to insure that they knew they were invited to the celebration. This was a fairly easy task. We had the names and we had the addresses. But all of us who have been gathered have other invitations, a great stack of them, and we do not usually know who they are for. And so we must offer them to everybody. The Lord is having a “tent sale” and has charged us to carry the invitations. We must not be too selective about them. Our duty as disciples is to offer them to everyone on the Lord’s list, and, amazingly, everyone is on the list.

3. THE MILLENNIUM WILL BE A TIME OF PEACE AND JOY.

In chapter 11 of Isaiah, we get a dramatic picture of millennial conditions.

“The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice' den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea” (Isaiah 11:6-9).

Animals will learn to live in peace at this time, with each other and with people.

In Isaiah 65, promises are made to the people who will inhabit this planet after the Second Coming.

A. For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind v(65:17)

B. But be ye glad and rejoice for ever [in that] which I create: for, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy. And I will rejoice in Jerusalem , and joy in my people: and the voice of weeping shall be no more heard in her, nor the voice of crying (Isaiah 65:18,19).

C. There shall be no more thence an infant of days . . . (Isaiah 65:20)

D. There shall be no more . . . an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old . . . (Isaiah 65:20)

E. And they shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them. They shall not build, and another inhabit; they shall not plant, and another eat: for as the days of a tree are the days of my people, and mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands. They shall not labour in vain, nor bring forth for trouble; for they are the seed of the blessed of the LORD, and their offspring with them (Isaiah 65:21-23).

F. And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear (Isaiah 65:24).

CONCLUSION:

What would you sacrifice to live in a society like the one described above? It is for this eventuality that we hope and labor. Promises like these cause my wife to pray frequently for the coming of the Lord. The dimensions of needless human suffering make her long for a millennial peace. But when Christ comes, he will come with power and drama and fire.

“For the presence of the Lord shall be as the melting fire that burneth, and as the fire which causeth the waters to boil. O Lord, thou shalt come down to make thy name known to thine adversaries, and all nations shall tremble at thy presence-- When thou doest terrible things, things they look not for; Yea, when thou comest down, and the mountains flow down at thy presence, thou shalt meet him who rejoiceth and worketh righteousness, who remembereth thee in thy ways” (D&C 133:41-44).

In fact, his return to the earth will be among the most dramatic events in recorded history:

“And so great shall be the glory of his presence that the sun shall hide his face in shame, and the moon shall withhold its light, and the stars shall be hurled from their places. And his voice shall be heard: I have trodden the wine-press alone, and have brought judgment upon all people; and none were with me. And I have trampled them in my fury, and I did tread upon them in mine anger, and their blood have I sprinkled upon my garments, and stained all my raiment; for this was the day of vengeance which was in my heart” (D&C 133:49-51).

But when he comes, when the cataclysmic events described here are over and he descends to reign among his people and to heal the ravages of mortality, what will his people speak of?

“They shall mention the loving kindness of their Lord, and all that he has bestowed upon them according to his goodness, and according to his loving kindness, forever and ever” (D&C 133:52).

It is of that loving kindness that these chapters in Isaiah testify. And since we will speak of it then, why not now?

Old Testament Lesson 39: How Beautiful Upon the Mountains

Wed, 06 Oct 2010 00:02:00 -0600

by Ted L. Gibbons
source: MormonLife.com

INTRODUCTION:

I asked my institute students if they had beautiful feet. They thought I had gone mad, of course, but the question was asked in perfect seriousness. Isaiah’s poetic imagery about the messengers of the atonement includes the moving assurance that those who carry such a message have beautiful feet. In Isaiah’s time, messages were always carried by runners, and he described those privileged to carry the most meaningful of messages as having beautiful feet.

The following verses show the honor associated with carrying good tidings, and the way in which they were carried.

Then said Ahimaaz the son of Zadok, Let me now run, and bear the king tidings, how that the LORD hath avenged him of his enemies. And Joab said unto him, Thou shalt not bear tidings this day, but thou shalt bear tidings another day: but this day thou shalt bear no tidings, because the king's son is dead. Then said Joab to Cushi, Go tell the king what thou hast seen. And Cushi bowed himself unto Joab, and ran. Then said Ahimaaz the son of Zadok yet again to Joab, But howsoever, let me, I pray thee, also run after Cushi. And Joab said, Wherefore wilt thou run, my son, seeing that thou hast no tidings ready? But howsoever, said he, let me run. And he said unto him, Run. Then Ahimaaz ran by the way of the plain, and overran Cushi. And David sat between the two gates: and the watchman went up to the roof over the gate unto the wall, and lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold a man running alone. And the watchman cried, and told the king. And the king said, If he be alone, there is tidings in his mouth. And he came apace, and drew near. And the watchman saw another man running: and the watchman called unto the porter, and said, Behold another man running alone. And the king said, He also bringeth tidings. And the watchman said, Me thinketh the running of the foremost is like the running of Ahimaaz the son of Zadok. And the king said, He is a good man, and cometh with good tidings (2 Sam. 18:19 -27).

Another example:

In 490 BC the Athenians had miraculously defeated a much stronger force of invading Persians on the Plains of Marathon. Pheidippides was selected to carry the good news back to Athens . The fleet runner ran the grueling 25 miles as fast as he could. Upon reaching the walls of the Acropolis, Pheidippides cried out, “Rejoice, we conquer!” and promptly fell dead. (Webster’s Word Histories, p. 291).

It is with this spirit and determination that we ought to carry this message to the world.

1. ISAIAH SPEAKS OF MESSENGERS WHO BRING GLAD TIDINGS.

“How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion , Thy God reigneth! Thy watchmen shall lift up the voice; with the voice together shall they sing: for they shall see eye to eye, when the LORD shall bring again Zion . Break forth into joy, sing together, ye waste places of Jerusalem : for the LORD hath comforted his people, he hath redeemed Jerusalem ” (Is. 52:7-9).

Notice in the verses above the words that describe the message being delivered: words like peace, good tidings, good tidings of good, salvation. And notice the words that describe the reaction of those who receive the message: lift up the voice, sing, see eye to eye, break forth into joy, sing together.

Have you ever seen people react to the good news of the gospel in this way? Have you ever had such feelings about the mission and message of Christ yourself? There are no better tidings, no messages more able to cause singing and rejoicing than this message!

In early October of this year, during General Conference, we will have the privilege of sitting for two days at the feet of men and women with beautiful feet. They will bear testimony of the atonement and teach the eternal truths that will guide us back into the presence of the Father.

Over 60,000 men and women now carry this message to nearly every part of the world, but they must not be left to do it alone. All of us need to increase the attractiveness of our feet.

2. ISAIAH PROPHESIES OF THE SAVIOR’S ATONING SACRIFICE.

Speaking Mesianically, Isaiah paints a word-picture that I find more stirring and moving than any Old Testament testimony of the Atonement. That portrait is composed of several parts.

1: “The Lord GOD hath opened mine ear, and I was not rebellious, neither turned away back.”

In the face of the greatest agony ever inflicted, confronted with what Elder Maxwell called the "awful arithmetic of an atonement” (Neal A. Maxwell, For the Power is in Them, Dedication), the Savior had reasons to “turn away back” and to rebel against the duty assigned him, but he did not. Even though he was “sorrowful, even unto death” (see Matt. 26:38), and even though he asked the Father to find another way and to remove the cup from him (see Matt. 26:39), still he went forward when he knew it was the Father’s will.

“And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross (Phil. 2:8).”

2: “I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair. I hid not my face from shame and spitting . . .” (Is. 50:6).

The verb at the beginning of this verse is important: “I gave my back . .

I am certain that Romans who abused and mistreated the Messiah, and the leaders of the Jews who smote him and spit upon him, thought he had no choice in the matter. But he did. His suffering from first to last was voluntary. Nephi said,

“And the world, because of their iniquity, shall judge him to be a thing of naught; wherefore they scourge him, and he suffereth it; and they smite him, and he suffereth it. Yea, they spit upon him, and he suffereth it, because of his loving kindness and his long-suffering towards the children of men” (1N. 19:9).

Note that he suffered it, not simply endured it. In the Garden of Gethsemane , when Peter tried to defend Christ with the sword, the Lord sais to him,

“Then said Jesus unto him, Put up again thy sword into his place: for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword. Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels?” (Matt. 26:52,53).

For an interesting note on the shame of having hair removed, as Isaiah mentioned, see 2 Samuel 10:4, 5.

3: “For the Lord GOD will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed” (Is. 50:7).

The phrase in this verse that teaches me most is this one: ”I have set my face like a flint.” Flint is of course hard and inflexible. I believe this verse refers to the Savior’s feelings as he set himself to go to Jerusalem for the final time. He knew what would happen there, of course, but refused to be turned out of his path, no matter how difficult it was.

“But I have a baptism to be baptized with; and how am I straitened till it be accomplished!” (Luke 12:50).

He knew that the Jews wanted to take him (John 7:30 ) and kill him (John 7:1), and refused to accompany his kinsman to the Passover feast in Jerusalem .

“But when his brethren were gone up, then went he also up unto the feast, not openly, but as it were in secret” (John 7:10 ).

Flint indeed!

4: “Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look upon the earth beneath: for the heavens shall vanish away like smoke, and the earth shall wax old like a garment, and they that dwell therein shall die in like manner: but my salvation shall be for ever, and my righteousness shall not be abolished” (Is. 51:6).

The atonement is more durable than planets and stars. It is infinite and eternal.

“For it is expedient that there should be a great and last sacrifice; yea, not a sacrifice of man, neither of beast, neither of any manner of fowl; for it shall not be a human sacrifice; but it must be an infinite and eternal sacrifice” ( Alma 34:10).

“And behold, this is the whole meaning of the law, every whit pointing to that great and last sacrifice; and that great and last sacrifice will be the Son of God, yea, infinite and eternal” (Alma 34:14).

How infinite? Elder Nelson said

“His Atonement is infinite . . . in that all humankind would be saved from never-ending death. It was infinite in terms of His immense suffering. It was infinite in time, putting an end to the preceding prototype of animal sacrifice. It was infinite in scope—it was to be done once for all. And the mercy of the Atonement extends not only to an infinite number of people, but also to an infinite number of worlds created by Him. It was infinite beyond any human scale of measurement or mortal comprehension” (Russell M. Nelson, “The Atonement,” Ensign, Nov. 1996, 35).

5: “Thus saith thy Lord the LORD, and thy God that pleadeth the cause of his people . . .” (Is. 51:22).

The Savior will assume different roles at the time of the judgement. He will be a judge (2 Nephi 9:41 ; Is. 50:5) for all and a prosecuting attorney for the wicked (D&C 19:16 ,17), but for the righteous he will take the responsibility of a defense attorney, pleading our cause before the Father.

“Listen to him who is the advocate with the Father, who is pleading your cause before him-- Saying: Father, behold the sufferings and death of him who did no sin, in whom thou wast well pleased; behold the blood of thy Son which was shed, the blood of him whom thou gavest that thyself might be glorified; Wherefore, Father, spare these my brethren that believe on my name, that they may come unto me and have everlasting life” (D&C 45:3-5).

And notice that he pleads for us on the basis of his righteousness, not ours. Thus Lehi tells Jacob, one of the most righteous men that ever lived, “Wherefore, I know that thou art redeemed, because of the righteousness of thy Redeemer . . .” (2N2:3).

6: “Behold, I have taken out of thine hand the cup of trembling, even the dregs of the cup of my fury; thou shalt no more drink it again” (Is. 51:22).

This cup the Savior has taken from us must be the cup of justice. We all deserve to drink it for “all have sinned and come short of the Glory of God” (Rom. 3:23 ). But Christ, in his agony in the Garden and on the cross, took that cup from us and drank it.

“For behold, I, God, have suffered these things for all, that they might not suffer if they would repent; But if they would not repent they must suffer even as I; Which suffering caused myself, even God, the greatest of all, to tremble because of pain, and to bleed at every pore, and to suffer both body and spirit--and would that I might not drink the bitter cup, and shrink–“(D&C 19:16-19).

He has required us to drink a cup in its place, the sacramental cup, a cup of remembering wherein we recall and reflect upon what he has done for us.

7: “For thus saith the LORD, Ye have sold yourselves for nought; and ye shall be redeemed without money” (Is. 52:3).

The price for our redemption is a debt we cannot pay. Therefore we are not required to. We “shall be redeemed without money.” Or, as Lehi said, “Salvation is free” (2N2:4) Nephi said of the Lord

“Hath he commanded any that they should not partake of his salvation? Behold I say unto you, Nay; but he hath given it free for all men . . .” (2N26:27).

You can read more about this in Isaiah 55:1,2; Romans 3:23 ,24; and Romans 10:1-4).

8: I believe that Isaiah 53 is the greatest Old Testament witness of the Atonement. Isaiah’s question at the beginning of the chapter is arresting.

“WHO hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed?” (Is. 53:1).

Isn’t he asking us if we are able to see the arm of God in the live of Christ? Does not the divinity of his message and ministry and miracles speak to you from the accounts of his mortal ministry. It is not his appearance that holds our attention,

“For he shall grow up . . . as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him” (Is. 53:2).

And we will not be drawn to him by his popularity.

“He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were [our] faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not” (Is. 53:4).

But he will nevertheless make possible our redemption.

“Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.

And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth. Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors (Is. 53:4-12)

These verses are worth volumes of commentary. I have neither time nor space. Read them over quietly and prayerfully to yourself and let the power of Isaiah’s testimony teach you.

3. ISAIAH DESCRIBES SOME OF OUR RESPONSIBILITIES.

As he describes some of the many things the Savior has done for us, Isaiah also refers to things we are obligated to do.

A. “Hearken unto me, my people; and give ear unto me, O my nation: for a law shall proceed from me, and I will make my judgment to rest for a light of the people” (Is. 51:4).

This is the call for all to listen–the people and the nation. His laws will light the way for all men.

B. “Hearken unto me, ye that know righteousness, the people in whose heart [is] my law . . .” (Is. 51:7).

Even the most righteousness among us must hearken. No matter that we are nearly perfect, or that we have heard it all before. When he speaks (or when his servants speak as they will on Oct 5 & 6), we must hearken.

C. “. . . fear ye not the reproach of men, neither be ye afraid of their revilings” (Is. 51:7).

Could the possibility of being reproached or reviled cause us to fear, to keep our mouths closed (D&C 60:2), to fail to stand as a witness (Mos. 18:9). Certainly not!

“I, even I, am he that comforteth you: who art thou, that thou shouldest be afraid of a man that shall die, and of the son of man which shall be made as grass . . .” (Is. 51:12).

D. “Awake, awake, put on strength, O arm of the LORD; awake, as in the ancient days, in the generations of old . . .” (Is. 51:9)

“Questions by Elias Higbee: What is meant by the command in Isaiah, 52d chapter, 1st verse, which saith: Put on thy strength, O Zion--and what people had Isaiah reference to? (D&C 113:7)

“He had reference to those whom God should call in the last days, who should hold the power of priesthood to bring again Zion, and the redemption of Israel; and to put on her strength is to put on the authority of the priesthood, which she, Zion, has a right to by lineage; also to return to that power which she had lost” (D&C 113:8).

Joseph told us that at least in part this verse refers to putting on the power and authority of the priesthood. Of course not everyone who has been ordained to the priesthood power, for “there are many called, but few are chosen.”

“And why are they not chosen? Because their hearts are set so much upon the things of this world, and aspire to the honors of men, that they do not learn this one lesson-- That the rights of the priesthood are inseparably connected with the powers of heaven, and that the powers of heaven cannot be controlled nor handled only upon the principles of righteousness” (D&C 21:34-36).

These verses seem to tell us that putting on the strength or power of the priesthood is inseparably connected to our righteousness

E. “Awake, awake, stand up . . .” (Is, 51:17).

We, like Jerusalem, must stand up. We must come out of obscurity and darkness (D&C 1:30; 109:73). If we are crawling or sitting around, no one will know. We must stand up, or, to follow the lead of our Prophet leader, we must stand for something. We must stand a little taller.

F. “Awake, awake . . . O Zion; put on thy beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city . . .” (Is 52:1).

We must make ourselves attractive so that the honest in heart will come to us to seek blessings and power and joy. This also is a part of bringing the church out of obscurity and darkness. Isaiah said

“I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels” (Is. 61:10).

G. “Shake thyself from the dust; arise, and sit down, O Jerusalem: loose thyself from the bands of thy neck, O captive daughter of Zion” (Is. 52:2).

I wonder if this dust is the filth of the world. The prodigal son, when he had abandoned the pigs and completed the journey home, was given the “best robe” (see Luke 15:22). We are commanded to employ the blessings of the Sabbath to “more fully keep [ourselves] unspotted from the world” (D&C 59:9). Lehi told his sons to “arise from the dust . . . and be men . . .” (2N1:21).

“Depart ye, depart ye, go ye out from thence, touch no unclean thing; go ye out of the midst of her; be ye clean, that bear the vessels of the LORD” (Is. 52:11).

We must turn off the TV more often, and walk out of the movies when they offend the Spirit. We must close our ears and our eyes and our doors to the filth that invades our lives, even our homes.

CONCLUSION:

These are all messages worth sharing, and the most important is the message of the atonement. Perhaps each morning as we bend to put on our shoes, we should take a moment to look at our feet. Are they beautiful like the feet of Isaiah and Abinadi and your missionary sons and daughters and brothers and sisters? How long has it been since you told someone what you know about Jesus Christ and what he has done for us?

Old Testament Lesson 37: "Thou Hast Done Wonderful Things"

Tue, 14 Sep 2010 00:02:00 -0600

by Ted L. Gibbons
source: MormonLife.com

Mormon Life says: What is the best thing anyone ever did for you? Have you experienced an act of service or sacrifice so stunning that you could not stop speaking of it. Have you ever used the word "wonderful" to describe such goodness? I got a call from CompUSA a few years ago. They invited me to come to the store and collect my new 21' computer monitor. I was gratified at the invitation but assured them that I had not ordered a monitor.

"Mr. Gibbons," the clerk explained, "someone did. It was ordered for you and paid for by someone else. It's yours. It's paid for. Come and get it."

"Who paid for it?" I asked. The clerk could not or would not tell me. When I asked for the retail value, I was told that it was $1021.00.

I wish I knew who paid for it. I would like to tell them that they did a wonderful thing!

Isaiah recognized in the mission and ministry of Christ a multitude of wonderful things the Redeemer had done for him and for all of us. He must have felt impelled to share his thankfulness with his readers. In celebration he wrote, "Thou has done wonderful things!" (Isaiah 25:1) In Isaiah 12:5, Isaiah says "Sing unto the LORD; for he hath done excellent things: this is known in all the earth." How many wonderful and excellent things has the Savior done for you? The presentation of these remarkable things the Savior has done fill the book of Isaiah, ascending again and again from the pages of his testimony to reverberate in our own hearts and souls. We will have a look at several of them in this lesson.

1. THE SAVIOR OPENS THE DOOR TO HIS HEAVENLY FATHER'S PRESENCE.

"And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder; so he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open" (Is. 22:22).

What doors has the Savior opened for us that no one has the power to close? The Savior has opened the door to his Father's presence. He has opened the grave. Read the following from Revelation:

"And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth; I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it . . ." (Rev. 3:7,8).


2. THE SAVIOR SHOWS MERCY FOR THOSE IN SPIRIT PRISON.

"And it shall come to pass in that day, that the LORD shall punish the host of the high ones that are on high, and the kings of the earth upon the earth. And they shall be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the pit, and shall be shut up in the prison, and after many days shall they be visited" (Is. 24:21,22).

The willingness of the Savior to visit and offer redemption to those in spirit prison is powerful evidence of his mercy and his love. What does Isaiah 42:7 say the Savior will do for some who are in prison? If he brings them out, where will they go?

In Moses, as Enoch learned about the flood, he was also taught a wonderful lesson about the Savior's love for those of that generation who would perish for their iniquities:

"But behold, these which thine eyes are upon shall perish in the floods; and behold, I will shut them up; a prison have I prepared for them. And That which I have chosen hath pled before my face. Wherefore, he suffereth for their sins; inasmuch as they will repent in the day that my Chosen shall return unto me, and until that day they shall be in torment . . ." (Moses 7:38,39).

The Savior pled before the Father for those who would drown in the floods, and suffered for their sins in accordance with their repentance.

3. THE SAVIOR IS A STRENGTH AND A REFUGE.

"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 as a storm against the wall" (Isaiah 25:4)

"Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness, and princes shall rule in judgment. And a man [the man is the king in verse 1] shall be as an hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land" (Isaiah 32:1,2).

I think most of you who are reading this lesson have turned to the Savior during personal, cataclysmic storms. He is the ultimate hiding place; a place of security into which no storm can penetrate.

4. THE SAVIOR WILL PREPARE A FEAST AND DESTROY THE VAIL.

"And in this mountain shall the Lord of hosts make unto all people a feast of fat things, a feast of wines on the lees, of fat things full of marrow, of wines on the lees well refined. And he will destroy in this mountain the face of the covering cast over all people, and the vail that is spread over all nations" (Is. 25:6,7).

The "mountain" in this passage is almost certainly the temple. What sort of feeling does Isaiah want to communicate when he discusses our experiences in this mountain as a "feast of fat things"? What do we feast on in the temple? (See 2N32:5) What vail is "spread over all nations" that will be destroyed in the temple? How does the experience of the temple help us recall and respond to our pre-existent experiences? How does it help us penetrate the vail between us and that eternal world where God dwells?

The temple also destroys the " the face of the covering cast over all people." While this phrase is certainly a chiastic form, it does seem that there is a second source of obscurity and darkness cast over all people.

"And he beheld Satan; and he had a great chain in his hand, and it veiled the whole face of the earth with darkness; and he looked up and laughed, and his angels rejoiced" (Moses 7:26).

How does the temple experience assist us in detecting and resisting the enticements of satanic darkness?

5. THE SAVIOR WIPES AWAY OUR TEARS

"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" (Isaiah 25:8).

Imagine an end to tears, to sadness, to misery. This is precisely what Christ will do for the righteous.

"And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely" (Revelation 21:4-6).

Can you comprehend a being of such limitless power as to be able to put an end to sorrow, tears, death, crying, and pain? He declared here and in may other places that he is "Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end." What else is he the "end" of?; What is he the "beginning" of?

6. THE SAVIOR WILL BRING THE RESURRECTION.

"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" (Is. 26:19).

Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust! Do you think that our joy at the resurrection will move us to anthems of praise D&C 138 is pretty clear about the sense of captivity we will feel without our bodies. Speaking of those awaiting and experiencing the advent of the Savior into the world of Spirits, President Smith said,

"I beheld that they were filled with joy and gladness, and were rejoicing together because the day of their deliverance was at hand" (D&C 138:15).

"They were assembled awaiting the advent of the Son of God into the spirit world, to declare their redemption from the bands of death" (D&C 138:16).

"While this vast multitude waited and conversed, rejoicing in the hour of their deliverance from the chains of death, the Son of God appeared, declaring liberty to the captives who had been faithful..." (D&C 138:18).

"For the dead had looked upon the long absence of their spirits from their bodies as a bondage" (D&C 138:50).

Notice in the passage below that the spirits sang praises in anticipation of their redemption.

"And the saints rejoiced in their redemption, and bowed the knee and acknowledged the Son of God as their Redeemer and Deliverer from death and the chains of hell. Their countenances shone, and the radiance from the presence of the Lord rested upon them, and they sang praises unto his holy name" (D&C 138:23,24).

My body went bad on me 10 years ago. I have things wrong with me now were I did not know I had things when I was fifty. But Amulek promises more than a return to our bodies at the time of the resurrection. He promises that we will be resurrected to or with a perfect frame. (Alma 11:43,44). Speaking as a man with bad eyes and bad ears and a bad back and a bad leg and a inconsistent heart and no hair, this seems to be to be a wonderful thing!

7. THE SAVIOR IS OUR SURE FOUNDATION.

"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: he that believeth shall not make haste" (Is. 28:16).

The progression of images in this verse is instructive. Christ is a stone. He is a tried stone. He is a precious cornerstone. Finally, he is a sure foundation. The four images overlap, but also suggest four different things he can do for us.

I had a friend who was standing on a low overhang looking at the ocean near San Diego when the ground beneath his feet gave way. He fell amid a cascade or dirt and rock and slid toward a high precipice above jagged rocks and the pounding surf of the Pacific. He arrested his descent within only a few feet of the edge and avoided a fall to serious injury or death. His foundation gave way. They all will, all but this one foundation--the sure foundation, "a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall" (Hel. 5:12)

What are some of the foundations upon which men try to construct their lives? I know a young man who played professional football. His income was staggering and his hopes were bright, until an unforseen injury caused him to be cut from the team. That foundation gave way. Fortunately, he had already begun to rebuild his life on the only sure foundation. Others have offered us a <i>piece of the rock</i>, but Christ offers us perfect security, a rock against which all other elements and events are powerless.

8. THE SAVIOR WILL RESTORE THE GOSPEL TO THE EARTH.
"Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men: Therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a marvellous work among this people, even a marvellous work and a wonder: for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid" (Is. 29:13,14).

The story of the restoration in Isaiah 29 is sufficiently clear to offer me an excuse not to examine it carefully here. Most of you know what happens, but there is a lesson about the goodness of the Savior also.

I got hopelessly lost one night in the outskirts of Las Vegas, searching for a chapel where a couple of hundred people were awaiting my arrival for a Know Your Religion presentation. I drove frantically up and down the streets trying to orient myself with what I remembered of the directions I had received. Finally, I stopped and asked for help. A kind man in a convenience store drew me a map that led me safely to my destination.

How lost would you and your family be without the Restoration. What hope would you have of finding any worthwhile destination on your own, or by the uncertain light of your own intellect or of manmade creeds?

9. THE SAVIOR KNOWS OUR TRIALS AND DIRECTS OUR PATHS.

"For the people shall dwell in Zion at Jerusalem: thou shalt weep no more: he will be very gracious unto thee at the voice of thy cry; when he shall hear it, he will answer thee. And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity, and the water of affliction, yet shall not thy teachers be removed into a corner any more, but thine eyes shall see thy teachers: 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" (Is. 30:19-21)

The Sermon on the Mount makes it clear that storms come to the lives of the obedient and the disobedient.

"Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it" (Matt. 7:24-27)

Everybody gets a portion of the "bread of affliction. and the water of affliction" The difference is not in the storms that come, but in the way we are able to deal with the storms. In your own lives, what has it meant to you to be able to seek the help and comfort of the Lord when tribulation comes? What does it mean to you to have inspired teachers who can instruct you when the hard times come? How valuable has the sweet and quiet voice from that invisible source (the one behind you)--the one telling you what to do and how to find the way--been in your life?

CONCLUSION: As mentioned in the introduction, in Isaiah 12:5, we read these words: "Sing unto the LORD; for he hath done excellent things: this is known in all the earth." Wonderful things . . . Excellent things . . . We have examined 9 of them. But there are so many more. Why not have a family home evening and invite those of your household to make a list of the wonderful things and the excellent things the Lord has done and will do for you? Perhaps at the beginning you could show a clip from the movie The Wizard of Oz. You know the part I mean, where Dorothy and Toto start down the yellow brick road while the Munchkins are singing, "You're off to see the Wizard, the wonderful Wizard of Oz"

Why make the trip?

"Because, because, because, because, because . . . Because of the wonderful things he does."

Let us be off, as well--off to see the Savior, for the very same reason

Old Testament Lesson 36: The Glory of Zion Will Be a Defense

Tue, 07 Sep 2010 18:00:00 -0600

by Ted L. Gibbons
source: MormonLife.com

Mormon Life says: The more I love Isaiah, the more I love the Savior, and the more I love the Savior, the more I love Isaiah. Introduction This amazing thing happens in 1st Nephi.

"And I did read many things unto them which were written in the books of Moses; but that I might more fully persuade them to believe in the Lord their Redeemer I did read unto them that which was written by the prophet Isaiah . . ." (IN 19:23)

Think of that! Nephi is reading Isaiah to Laman and Lemuel to help the believe in the Lord their Redeemer. They probably understood his language and his idioms better than we do, but those were not the elements that would increase their testimonies. Nephi must have believed that even hard-hearted and backsliding Israelites could be encouraged and fortified spiritually by reading Isaiah. And if it will work for Laman and Lemuel, it will clearly work for us. I know it has worked for me. The more I love Isaiah, the more I love the Savior, and the more I love the Savior, the more I love Isaiah.

I am excited by the opportunity to discuss this remarkable prophet in the next few lessons. I hope you are too. I have learned that I can learn to understand his teachings. The task requires attention and exertion, but the results are certainly worth the effort.

If you have a few moments, open your scriptures to Isaiah and begin reading in any place. You will not have read far before you find stirring and powerful testimonies of the Savior. For example:

(12:5) Thou has done excellent things
(25:1) Thou hast done wonderful things
(8:12) His hand is stretched out still
(6:3) Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory
(40:18) To whom then will ye liken God?
(40:31) They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength
(42:6) The Lord . . . will hold thy hand and will keep thee, and will give thee for a covenant of the people, and a light of the Gentiles.

There is at least one other important reason for making a careful search of this book.

"It just may be that my salvation (and yours also!) does in fact depend upon our ability to understand the writings of Isaiah as fully and truly as Nephi understood them" (Bruce R. McConkie, "Ten Keys to Understanding Isaiah," Ensign, Oct. 1973, 78).

I. ISAIAH DESCRIBES THE CONDITIONS OF THE WORLD IN THE LAST DAYS. Much of Isaiah appears to be trans-generational. The messages apply equally well to his day and to ours. The warnings are clear.

"If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land: But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it" ( 1:19,20).

Israel has often refused and rebelled.

"Why should ye be stricken any more? ye will revolt more and more: the whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint. From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrefying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment" (Isaiah 1:5,6).

Isaiah writes to a society that is almost terminally ill. The culture is filled with disease. Why?

"Therefore thou hast forsaken thy people the house of Jacob, because they be replenished from the east, and are soothsayers like the Philistines, and they please themselves in the children of strangers" (2:6)

The footnote for "be replenished from the east" (6a) says, "are filled, supplied with teachings, alien beliefs." The footnote for "please themselves in" (6c) says, "strike hands with, or make a covenant with . . ." Do we allow ourselves to be influenced by alien teachings? Do we make covenants with the children of strangers?

Other descriptions of the world in the latter days are given in the Gospel Doctrine Manual. I will write the references here for those who do not have that book.

1:3-5
1:11-15
2:7-8
2:11-12
3:5
3:9
3:14-15
3:16-24
5:8
5:11,12
5:20
5:21
5:24

You will find other descriptions throughout Isaiah. Watch for them. Ponder them and try to find application in your own life.

II. ISAIAH COUNSELS THE FAITHFUL TO STAND IN HOLY PLACES. The conditions mentioned in Isaiah saturate the world, but in Isaiah 4:5,6, Isaiah tells us how to find safety from these conditions.

"And the LORD will create upon every dwelling place of mount Zion , and upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night: for upon all the glory shall be a defence. And there shall be a tabernacle for a shadow in the daytime from the heat, and for a place of refuge, and for a covert from storm and from rain" (Isaiah 4:5,6; this passage is a bit clearer in 2N14:5,6).

Isaiah here identifies three places that will protect us from heat and storm and rain—from the spiritual assaults that will confront us in every other part of our lives. They are (1) every dwelling place of mount Zion , (2) her assemblies, and (3) a tabernacle [the temple]. Can you see why these places will assist us in our efforts of repulse the world. Our homes, our gatherings of saints, and our temples, are places where we can control the environment. And since we live in a world were Satan "maketh war with the saints of God, and encompasseth them round about" (D&C 76:29),we must have places were we can find refuge. These holy places are the very opposite of the world which becomes less and less holy with each passing moment.

D&C 45:32

"But my disciples shall stand in holy places, and shall not be moved; but among the wicked, men shall lift up their voices and curse God and die."

D&C 87:8

"Wherefore, stand ye in holy places, and be not moved, until the day of the Lord come; for behold, it cometh quickly, saith the Lord. Amen."

D&C 101:22

"Behold, it is my will, that all they who call on my name, and worship me according to mine everlasting gospel, should gather together, and stand in holy places . . ."

Isaiah provides a wonderful prophecy about temples in his writings:

"And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD'S house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it. And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem" (Isaiah 2:2,3).

This prophecy must be a reference to all the temples now in use.

"Elder McConkie noted that the gathering of Israel referred to in Isaiah, with mention of the mountain of the Lord's House 'in the tops of the mountains,' is figurative language for places where temples will be built."

"'The gathering of Israel is into the stakes of Zion in the nations of the earth. This temple is a fulfillment, as far as Australia is concerned, of that prophecy of Isaiah. It is just as literal a fulfillment as the building of the temple in Salt Lake'" ("News of the Church," Ensign, Oct. 1982, 77).

Isaiah has something else to say about the blessings of the last days. This prophecy follows right after the temple passages quoted above.

"And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more" (2:4).

This is a description of a millennial condition, but the language in which it is presented is instructional. What would happen if we were to take all the revenue now being used in this world for military affairs and apply it to the solving of social issues like hunger?

In the Gulf War, which lasted seven weeks, about $70 billion was spent. For example, one Tomahawk Cruise Missile costs $750,000. We used 288 in the war. The AGM-88 HARM missile costs $200,000. We fired at least 1000 of them. And so on.

The Plain Truth from March 1987 observed the following:

--1 M-16 automatic rifle costs $660. With that money you could purchase 82 garden spades at $8.00 each.

--1 M-1 Abrams Tank costs 2,800,000. That money could purchase 6,222 farm bullocks at $450 each

--1 F-15 fighter jet rings in at $27,000,000. 1,350 78 horsepower tractors at $20,000 each would ring in at the same price. The bill for I trident missile submarine is 2,000,000,000. That amount would purchase 25,000 homes at $80,000 each.

"American statesman Charles Sumner, commenting on the cost of war, once said: 'Give me the money that has been spent on war, and I will clothe every man, woman, and child in an attire of which kings and queens would be proud. I will build a schoolhouse in every valley over the whole earth. I will crown every hillside with a place of worship, consecrated to the gospel of peace.'" (Gordon B. Hinckley, "In Grateful Remembrance," Ensign, Mar. 1971, 20).

III. ISAIAH DESCRIBES THE GATHERING OF ISRAEL IN THE LATTER DAYS. The scattering of Israel is a product of her wickedness. In spite of the unceasing efforts of God to redeem his people, Israel will not submit.

"What could have been done more to my vineyard, that I have not done in it? wherefore, when I looked that it should bring forth grapes, brought it forth wild grapes? And now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will take away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up; and break down the wall thereof, and it shall be trodden down: And I will lay it waste: it shall not be pruned, nor digged; but there shall come up briers and thorns: I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it. For the vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant" (5:4-7).

Isaiah intersperses his descriptions of the apostasy and/or rebellion of Israel with warm and moving invitations from the Lord to Israel, invitations like this one:

"Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil; Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow. Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool" (Isaiah 1:16-18).

Isaiah 5:26-29 is a description of the latter-day gathering of Israel. The imagery is of a war. Words like ensign and arrows and horses are all images of battle in the Old Testament. The gathering will be a time when the strength of Israel goes forth to battle with Lucifer for the souls of men. The missionary force is the army marching to war.

"And he will lift up an ensign to the nations from far, and will hiss unto them from the end of the earth: and, behold, they shall come with speed swiftly: None shall be weary nor stumble among them; none shall slumber nor sleep; neither shall the girdle of their loins be loosed, nor the latchet of their shoes be broken: Whose arrows are sharp, and all their bows bent, their horses' hoofs shall be counted like flint, and their wheels like a whirlwind: Their roaring shall be like a lion, they shall roar like young lions: yea, they shall roar, and lay hold of the prey, and shall carry it away safe, and none shall deliver it."

The hiss in verse 26 is a "whistle; i.e. signal for the gathering" (fn 26b). Someone has said that missionaries must be hissers before they become kissers. I love the description of these wonderful youth and older couples as lions and young lions.

When my grandfather traveled from Kanab, Utah to Salt Lake for Conference, the trip took two weeks. But Isaiah foresaw a day when elders would travel to their fields of labor and return home very rapidly.

"None shall be weary nor stumble among them; none shall slumber nor sleep; neither shall the girdle of their loins be loosed, nor the latchet of their shoes be broken . . ."

I went to Brazil without removing my shoes, and I came home as quickly.

This force is unstoppable! Brigham young spoke of the effect of Mormonism in the last days.

"When the wicked have power to blow out the sun, that it shines no more; when they have power to bring to a conclusion the operations of the elements, suspend the whole system of nature, and make a footstool of the throne of the Almighty, they may then think to check "Mormonism" in its course, and thwart the unalterable purposes of heaven. Men may persecute the people who believe its doctrines, report and publish lies to bring tribulation upon their heads, earth and hell may unite in one grand league against it, and exert their malicious powers to the utmost, but it will stand as firm and immovable in the midst of it all as the pillars of eternity. Men may persecute the Prophet, and those who believe and uphold him, they may drive the Saints and kill them but this does not affect the truths of "Mormonism" one iota, for they will stand when the elements melt with fervent heat, and the heavens are wrapt up like a scroll and the solid earth is dissolved. "Mormonism" stands upon the eternal basis of omnipotence. Jehovah is the "Mormonism" of this people, their Priesthood and their power; and all who adhere to it will, in the appointed day, come up into the presence of the King Eternal, and receive a crown of life" (JD, vol 1, p.88).

IV. ISAIAH RESPONDED WILLINGLY TO HIS CALL TO BE A PROPHET. Isaiah saw the Lord at the time of his call to the prophetic ministry (see Isaiah 6:1). Where did he see the Lord? Where was he sitting?

Compare Isaiah 6:3,4 with D&C 110:2,3. How are these two visions the same? How are they different?

How did Isaiah react to seeing the Lord? How would you react? Why is Isaiah fearful of seeing the Lord? He is worried about his own iniquity, but he is also worried about the people among whom he lives? If the Lord came to your home, would you worry about those who live there with you or under your stewardship?

Isaiah knew the temple as a place with a great altar where sacrifices were offered and burned. From this altar a heavenly being removes a coal. Where does he place it (6:6,7)? What is it's effect on Isaiah (6:7). Are there other places in the scriptures where sin is cleansed by fire?

"I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire" (Matthew 3:11 ).

"Wherefore, my beloved brethren, I know that if ye shall follow the Son, with full purpose of heart, acting no hypocrisy and no deception before God, but with real intent, repenting of your sins, witnessing unto the Father that ye are willing to take upon you the name of Christ, by baptism—yea, by following your Lord and your Savior down into the water, according to his word, behold, then shall ye receive the Holy Ghost; yea, then cometh the baptism of fire and of the Holy Ghost; and then can ye speak with the tongue of angels, and shout praises unto the Holy One of Israel. But, behold, my beloved brethren, thus came the voice of the Son unto me, saying: After ye have repented of your sins, and witnessed unto the Father that ye are willing to keep my commandments, by the baptism of water, and have received the baptism of fire and of the Holy Ghost, and can speak with a new tongue, yea, even with the tongue of angels, and after this should deny me, it would have been better for you that ye had not known me . . . Wherefore, do the things which I have told you I have seen that your Lord and your Redeemer should do; for, for this cause have they been shown unto me, that ye might know the gate by which ye should enter. For the gate by which ye should enter is repentance and baptism by water; and then cometh a remission of your sins by fire and by the Holy Ghost" (2N31:13,14,17).

The question in 6:8 seems to grow out of Isaiah's awareness of the iniquity of Israel. "Whom shall I send?" Isaiah's answer is the answer of all true disciples: "Here am I; send me." When the Lord asked for a man to take the message of repentance to King Noah, it was Abinadi's response. When someone was needed to call Herod to repentance, John the Baptist must have said or felt words like these. When the Lord needed a messenger to Rome, Paul presented himself. Here am I; send me!

Who will take the message to your neighbors and friends? Who will tell your brother-in-law and your uncle's boss? Who will take a stand against pornography in your community? Who will volunteer following retirement to go to Lansing or Laos or London?

And we cannot say, "I'll go if it doesn't take too long. How long would Isaiah be expected to serve?

Then said I, Lord, how long? And he answered, Until the cities be wasted without inhabitant, and the houses without man, and the land be utterly desolate . . ." (6:11)

Since Isaiah is not immortal at this time, the Lord is probably telling him that the responsibility he has accepted is a lifetime duty. And so it is for us. Failure to act will result in solemn consequences.

"No assignment is menial in the work of the Lord, for each has eternal consequences. President John Taylor warned us: "If you do not magnify your callings, God will hold you responsible for those whom you might have saved had you done your duty."' And who of us can afford to be responsible for the delay of eternal life of a human soul? If great joy is the reward of saving one soul, then how terrible must be the remorse of those whose timid efforts have allowed a child of God to go unwarned or unaided so that he has to wait till a dependable servant of God comes along" ("To Learn, To Do, To Be:" President Thomas S. Monson, C.R., April 1992).

Conclusion I suspect that very few people have fulfilled their callings with as much faithfulness as Isaiah. His devotion to the work and the to the Lord, and his eloquence in testifying of the solemnities of eternity (see D&C 43:34) were part of the inducement for the Lord to say,

"AND now, behold, I say unto you, that ye ought to search these things. Yea, a commandment I give unto you that ye search these things diligently; for great are the words of Isaiah" (3N23:1).

Old Testament Lesson 36: The Glory of Zion Will Be a Defense

Tue, 07 Sep 2010 00:11:00 -0600

by Ted L. Gibbons
source: MormonLife.com

Mormon Life says: The more I love Isaiah, the more I love the Savior, and the more I love the Savior, the more I love Isaiah.

Introduction
This amazing thing happens in 1st Nephi.

If you have a few moments, open your scriptures to Isaiah and begin reading in any place. You will not have read far before you find stirring and powerful testimonies of the Savior. For example:

(12:5) Thou has done excellent things
(25:1) Thou hast done wonderful things
(8:12) His hand is stretched out still
(6:3) Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory
(40:18) To whom then will ye liken God?
(40:31) They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength
(42:6) The Lord . . . will hold thy hand and will keep thee, and will give thee for a covenant of the people, and a light of the Gentiles.

There is at least one other important reason for making a careful search of this book.

I. ISAIAH DESCRIBES THE CONDITIONS OF THE WORLD IN THE LAST DAYS.
Much of Isaiah appears to be trans-generational. The messages apply equally well to his day and to ours. The warnings are clear.

"If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land: But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it" ( 1:19,20).

Israel has often refused and rebelled.

Isaiah writes to a society that is almost terminally ill. The culture is filled with disease. Why?

Other descriptions of the world in the latter days are given in the Gospel Doctrine Manual. I will write the references here for those who do not have that book.

1:3-5
1:11-15
2:7-8
2:11-12
3:5
3:9
3:14-15
3:16-24
5:8
5:11,12
5:20
5:21
5:24

You will find other descriptions throughout Isaiah. Watch for them. Ponder them and try to find application in your own life.

II. ISAIAH COUNSELS THE FAITHFUL TO STAND IN HOLY PLACES.
The conditions mentioned in Isaiah saturate the world, but in Isaiah 4:5,6, Isaiah tells us how to find safety from these conditions.

Isaiah here identifies three places that will protect us from heat and storm and rainâ€”from the spiritual assaults that will confront us in every other part of our lives. They are (1) every dwelling place of mount Zion , (2) her assemblies, and (3) a tabernacle [the temple]. Can you see why these places will assist us in our efforts of repulse the world. Our homes, our gatherings of saints, and our temples, are places where we can control the environment. And since we live in a world were Satan "maketh war with the saints of God, and encompasseth them round about" (D&C 76:29),we must have places were we can find refuge. These holy places are the very opposite of the world which becomes less and less holy with each passing moment.

D&C 45:32

"But my disciples shall stand in holy places, and shall not be moved; but among the wicked, men shall lift up their voices and curse God and die."

D&C 87:8

"Wherefore, stand ye in holy places, and be not moved, until the day of the Lord come; for behold, it cometh quickly, saith the Lord. Amen."

D&C 101:22

"Behold, it is my will, that all they who call on my name, and worship me according to mine everlasting gospel, should gather together, and stand in holy places . . ."

Isaiah provides a wonderful prophecy about temples in his writings:

This prophecy must be a reference to all the temples now in use.

Isaiah has something else to say about the blessings of the last days. This prophecy follows right after the temple passages quoted above.

The Plain Truth from March 1987 observed the following:

--1 M-16 automatic rifle costs $660. With that money you could purchase 82 garden spades at $8.00 each.

--1 M-1 Abrams Tank costs $2,800,000. That money could purchase 6,222 farm bullocks at $450 each

III. ISAIAH DESCRIBES THE GATHERING OF ISRAEL IN THE LATTER DAYS.
The scattering of Israel is a product of her wickedness. In spite of the unceasing efforts of God to redeem his people, Israel will not submit.

Isaiah intersperses his descriptions of the apostasy and/or rebellion of Israel with warm and moving invitations from the Lord to Israel, invitations like this one:

"None shall be weary nor stumble among them; none shall slumber nor sleep; neither shall the girdle of their loins be loosed, nor the latchet of their shoes be broken . . ."

I went to Brazil without removing my shoes, and I came home as quickly.

This force is unstoppable! Brigham young spoke of the effect of Mormonism in the last days.

IV. ISAIAH RESPONDED WILLINGLY TO HIS CALL TO BE A PROPHET.
Isaiah saw the Lord at the time of his call to the prophetic ministry (see Isaiah 6:1). Where did he see the Lord? Where was he sitting?

Compare Isaiah 6:3,4 with D&C 110:2,3. How are these two visions the same? How are they different?

"Wherefore, my beloved brethren, I know that if ye shall follow the Son, with full purpose of heart, acting no hypocrisy and no deception before God, but with real intent, repenting of your sins, witnessing unto the Father that ye are willing to take upon you the name of Christ, by baptismâ€”yea, by following your Lord and your Savior down into the water, according to his word, behold, then shall ye receive the Holy Ghost; yea, then cometh the baptism of fire and of the Holy Ghost; and then can ye speak with the tongue of angels, and shout praises unto the Holy One of Israel. But, behold, my beloved brethren, thus came the voice of the Son unto me, saying: After ye have repented of your sins, and witnessed unto the Father that ye are willing to keep my commandments, by the baptism of water, and have received the baptism of fire and of the Holy Ghost, and can speak with a new tongue, yea, even with the tongue of angels, and after this should deny me, it would have been better for you that ye had not known me . . . Wherefore, do the things which I have told you I have seen that your Lord and your Redeemer should do; for, for this cause have they been shown unto me, that ye might know the gate by which ye should enter. For the gate by which ye should enter is repentance and baptism by water; and then cometh a remission of your sins by fire and by the Holy Ghost" (2N31:13,14,17).

And we cannot say, "I'll go if it doesn't take too long. How long would Isaiah be expected to serve?

Then said I, Lord, how long? And he answered, Until the cities be wasted without inhabitant, and the houses without man, and the land be utterly desolate . . ." (6:11)

Conclusion
I suspect that very few people have fulfilled their callings with as much faithfulness as Isaiah. His devotion to the work and the to the Lord, and his eloquence in testifying of the solemnities of eternity (see D&C 43:34) were part of the inducement for the Lord to say,

"AND now, behold, I say unto you, that ye ought to search these things. Yea, a commandment I give unto you that ye search these things diligently; for great are the words of Isaiah" (3N23:1).