Isaiah 28: The phrase “crown of the pride” refers to Ephraim as the head of the Ten Northern Tribes known as Israel. Also the symbol for the tribe of Ephraim was a flowering bush. Obviously drunkard is a derogatory term representative of Ephraim’s apostasy. Verse one: ¶ “Woe [unhappiness and sorrow] to the crown of the pride, to the drunkards of Ephraim, whose glorious beauty is a fading flower, which are on the head of the fat [fertile] valleys of them that are overcome with [the wine of apostasy!].” 2 Behold, the Lord hath a mighty and strong one, [temporally, the mighty and strong one that was going to punish Israel was the Assyrians. Spiritually the mighty and strong one is Jesus who will bring down the wicked at his Second Coming] which as a tempest of hail and a destroying storm, as a flood of mighty waters overflowing, shall cast down to the earth with the hand. 3 The crown of pride, the drunkards of Ephraim, shall be trodden under feet: 4 And the glorious beauty, which is on the head of the fat valley, shall be a fading flower, and as the hasty [first] fruit before the summer; which when he that looketh upon it seeth, while it is yet in his hand he eateth it up. [Quickly]
¶ 5 In that day [Second Coming] shall the LORD of hosts be for a crown of glory, and for a diadem [a jeweled crown] of beauty, unto the residue [remnant] of his people, 6 And for a spirit of judgment [charity/justice] to him that sitteth in judgment, and for strength to them that turn the battle to the gate. [‘Turn the battle to the gate’ also translated as ‘the remnant who turned or converted unto the Lord][1]
¶ 7 But they also have erred through wine [of apostasy], and through strong drink are out of the way; the priest and the prophet have erred through strong drink, they are swallowed up of wine, they are out of the way through strong drink; they err in vision, they stumble in judgment. 8 For all tables are full of vomit and filthiness, so that there is no place clean. ¶9. Whom shall he teach knowledge? And whom shall he make to understand doctrine? [The older generation was in apostasy and the only chance for the Lord to save his chosen people was to teach the young and rising generation. The young will have to learn line upon line].Them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts. 10 For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little: [However the older generation will have to suffer the consequences of their apostasy. They will be punished by those who speak a foreign tongue. They rejected the ‘rest’ offered by the Lord] 11 For with stammering lips and another tongue will he [God] speak to this people. 12 To whom he said, “This is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear.” 13 But the word of the LORD was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little; that they might go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken. Sarcasm is often used by Isaiah. The Lord desires only the best for his children. Isaiah is saying, “Do you think that I gave you line upon line so that you would be overwhelmed and fall backward or be broken, snared or taken?”
¶14 The Lord applies the same standard to Judah and Jerusalem as he did to Israel. He warns the prideful people of Jerusalem who believed that they could continue in iniquity and not suffer because of their political alliances. Wherefore hear the word of the LORD, ye scornful men that rule this people which is in Jerusalem. 15 Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge [The Assyrian in their day and the Lord at the Second Coming] shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves:
¶16 [Christ is the precious corner stone. The Apostle Paul refers to Christ as ‘the chief corner stone.’ Ephesians 2:20, see also D&C 50:44, Helaman 5:12 ] 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. 17 Judgment [Justice and charity] also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place.
¶18. And your covenant [political alliance with Assyria] with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge [the Assyrians and later Christ] shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it. 19 From the time that it goeth forth it shall take you: for morning by morning shall it pass over, by day and by night: and it shall be a vexation only to understand the report. 20 For the bed is shorter than that a man can stretch himself on it: and the covering narrower than that he can wrap himself in it. 21 For the LORD shall rise up as in mount Perazim, [This is where David gained a victory over the Philistines ( 2 Samuel 5:20 )] he shall be wroth as in the valley of Gibeon [This valley was the place where God made the sun stand still during the Israelites’ war with the Amorites (Joshua 10:12], that he may do his work, his strange work; and bring to pass his act, his strange act [the restoration of the Gospel]. 22 Now therefore be ye not mockers, lest your bands be made strong:[you become prisoners] for I have heard from the Lord GOD of hosts a consumption, even determined upon the whole earth.
[The Lord has a plan with an expected outcome. You don’t plow the ground unless you expect a harvest. After you have harvested the cumin, the barley, the wheat, and the rye, you treat each one differently to achieve a finished product. You thresh the grains to separate the husk from the grain and then you winnow it. Cumin is a hard seed found inside a pod and is broken with a rod. You don’t run over it with a cart.]
¶ 23 Give ye ear, and hear my voice; hearken, and hear my speech. 24 Doth the plowman plow all day to sow? Doth he open and break the clods of his ground? 25 When he hath made plain the face thereof, doth he not cast abroad the fitches [black aromatic seeds with the finished product a lot like pepper but with a different taste.], and scatter the cumin, and cast in the principal wheat and the appointed barley and the rye in their place? 26 For his God doth instruct him to discretion, and doth teach him. 27. For the fitches are not threshed with a threshing instrument, neither is a cart wheel turned about upon the cummin; [cumin seeds are dried in the sun and you don’t run over them with a cart] but the fitches are beaten out with a staff, and the cummin with a rod. 28. Bread corn is bruised; because he will not ever be threshing it, nor break it with the wheel of his cart, nor bruise it with his horsemen. 29 This also cometh forth from the LORD of hosts, which is wonderful in counsel,[2] and excellent in working.
Isaiah 29: [Ariel in Hebrew means “the Lion of God” and was the name given to the ‘altar’ in the Temple at Jerusalem. This is where whole burnt offerings were consumed with fire. Ariel became a synonym for Jerusalem.[3] ‘Ariel’ is both a burning place and a name for Jerusalem. The Lord tells them that year after year they continue with outward sacrifices on the altar of the Temple but they remain corrupt in their hearts. Following is the Joseph Smith Translation of Isaiah 29: 1-8.
¶1 Woe to Ariel, to Ariel, the city where David dwelt! add ye year to year; let them kill sacrifices. 2 Yet I will distress Ariel, and there shall be heaviness and sorrow; for thus hath the Lord said unto me, It shall be unto Ariel; 3 That I the Lord will camp against her round about, and will lay siege against her with a mount, and I will raise forts against her. [Jerusalem will eventually be destroyed and the people of Judah scattered to the four corners of the world. However scattered Judah will keep written records which shall come forth like the Book of Mormon and other histories (2 Nephi 29:11-14). 4 And she [scattered Judah]shall be brought down, and shall speak out of the ground, and her speech shall be low out of the dust; and her voice shall be as of one that hath a familiar spirit, out of the ground, and her speech shall whisper out of the dust. 5 Moreover the multitude of her strangers [enemy nations] shall be like small dust, and the multitude of the terrible ones shall be as chaff that passeth away; yea, it shall be at an instant suddenly. 6 For they shall be visited of the Lord of hosts with thunder, and with earthquake, and great noise, with storm and tempest, and the flame of devouring fire.
In spite of the punishment that the Lord allows the covenant people to suffer because of their apostasy, he will not allow the enemy nations to utterly destroy the chosen people. God will preserve a remnant. However, he will utterly destroy the nations that try to annihilate the remnant of God’s chosen people. The plans of the enemy nations will come to naught, the enemy nations are compared to a hungry man who dreams of eating only to awake and find out he is hungry still.
¶7 And the multitude of all the nations that fight against Ariel, [Jerusalem or the righteous remnant anywhere on earth] even all that fight against her and her munition, and that distress her, shall be as a dream of a night vision. 8 Yea, it shall be unto them even as unto a hungry man who dreameth, and behold, he eateth, but he awaketh and his soul is empty; or like unto a thirsty man who dreameth, and behold, he drinketh, but he awaketh, and behold, he is faint, and his soul hath appetite. Yea, even so shall the multitude of all the nations be that fight against mount Zion. The Prophet Zechariah describes this event that will yet take place when “all nations” (United Nations?) gather in the final battle against Jerusalem and half of Jerusalem is destroyed and the Lord comes to the Mount of Olives and delivers the Jews. They fall down in front of him and ask, “What are these wounds in thine hands? Then shall he answer, ‘Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends.’” (Zechariah 12-14).
Isaiah 29 verses 9-10 focus on the apostasy of Judah who are in a spiritual stupor. In the middle of this spiritual famine the Lord commands one who is learned to read a sealed book, and one who is not learned to read. Verses 11-12 portray the coming forth of the Book of Mormon. This prophesy was fulfilled when Martin Harris in February of 1828 took the characters from the Book of Mormon reformed Egyptian to Professor Charles Anthon at Columbia University in New York. (JS-H 1:63-65).
¶9 ¶ Stay yourselves, and wonder; cry ye out, and cry: they are drunken, but not with wine; they stagger, but not with strong drink [but with apostasy]. 10 For the Lord hath poured out [allowed] upon you the spirit of deep sleep, and hath [watched while you] closed your eyes: the prophets and your rulers, the seers hath he covered. [or allowed because of your apostasy, yet another witness will the Lord give you] 11 And the vision of all is become unto you as the words of a book that is sealed, [Book of Mormon] which men deliver to one that is learned, saying, Read this, I pray thee: and he saith, I cannot; for it is sealed: 12 And the book is delivered to him that is not learned, saying, Read this, I pray thee: and he saith, I am not learned.
¶13 ¶ Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men: 14 Therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a marvellous work among this people, even a marvelous work and a wonder: [The Restored Gospel] for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid. 15 Woe unto them that seek deep to hide their counsel from the Lord, and their works are in the dark, and they say, “Who seeth us? and who knoweth us? “16 Surely your turning of things upside down [corrupt doctrines] shall be esteemed as the potter’s clay: for shall the work say of him that made it, “He made me not?” or shall the thing framed say of him that framed it, “He had no understanding?” 17 Is it not yet a very little while, and Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field, and the fruitful field shall be esteemed as a forest? The Lord’s marvelous work and a wonder is the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ with another witness of the Resurrected Christ called the Book of Mormon.
¶18 ¶ And in that day shall the [spiritually] deaf hear the words of the book, and the eyes of the [spiritually] blind shall see out of obscurity, and out of [spiritual] darkness. 19 The meek [humble] also shall increase their joy in the Lord, and the poor [in Spirit shall receive the Holy Ghost] among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel. 20 For the terrible one [Lucifer] is brought to nought, and the scorner [unrighteous] is consumed, and all that watch for iniquity are cut off: 21 That make a man an offender for a word, and lay a snare for him [judges] that reproveth in the gate,[4] and turn aside the just for a thing of nought. 22 Therefore thus saith the Lord, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob, Jacob shall not now be ashamed, neither shall his face now wax pale. 23 But when he seeth his children, the work of mine hands, in the midst of him, they shall sanctify my name, and sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and shall fear [respect] the God of Israel. 24 They also that erred in spirit shall come to understanding, and they that murmured [in ignorance] shall learn doctrine.
Isaiah 30: Judah and Egypt were by proximity economic trading partners. The merchants of Jerusalem depended on trade with Egypt. Many of these wealthy merchants persuaded the kings of Judah to form a military alliance with Egypt. The Lord through the Prophet Isaiah warns against such a foolish political involvement 150 years before Judah is destroyed. Pharaoh Necho II won a battle against Judah at the Hill Megiddo[5] in 609 BC in northern Israel where Josiah, the king of Judah, was killed by the Egyptians. Later the Egyptians lost a battle at Carchemish against the Babylonians. Judah paid a heavy tribute to Egypt to protect them from the Babylonians. Pharaoh Necho II accepted the tribute but on his way to fight, he was informed that he would encounter the same army that defeated him at Carchemish. He took the money and returned to Egypt. This allowed Babylon to conquer Judah and carry them captive to Babylon in 587 BC. What the Lord is saying is don’t turn to Assyria to save you and don’t turn to Egypt. Turn to God.
¶1 Woe to the rebellious children, saith the Lord, that take counsel, but not of me; and that cover with a covering, but not of my spirit, that they may add sin to sin: 2 That walk to go down into Egypt, and have not asked at my mouth; to strengthen themselves in the strength of Pharaoh, and to trust in the shadow of Egypt! 3 Therefore shall the strength of Pharaoh be your shame, and the trust in the shadow of Egypt your confusion. 4 For his princes were at Zoan, [Zoan was the capital of the Hyksos rulers, or “shepherd kings,” in whose time Jacob came into Egypt] and his ambassadors came to Hanes. [Thought to be an island in the Egyptian Delta where foreign ambassadors met] 5 They [Judah] were all ashamed of a people [Egypt] that could not profit them, nor be an help nor profit, but a shame, and also a reproach. 6 The burden of the beasts of the south: [Egypt] into the land of trouble and anguish, from whence come the young and old lion, the viper and fiery flying serpent, they [Judah] will carry their [Judah’s] riches upon the shoulders of young asses, and their treasures upon the bunches of camels, to a people [Egypt] that shall not profit them. 7 For the Egyptians shall help in vain, and to no purpose: therefore have I cried concerning this, Their [Judah’s] strength is to sit still. [And trust in the God, not in political alliances.]
¶8 ¶ Now go, write it before them in a table, and note it in a book, that it may be for the time to come for ever and ever: 9 That this is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the Lord: 10 Which say to the seers, ‘See not;’ and to the prophets, ‘Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits: 11 Get you out of the way, turn aside out of the path, cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from before us.’ 12 Wherefore thus saith the Holy One of Israel, Because ye despise this word, [my doctrine and commandments] and trust in oppression and perverseness, and stay [rely on the works of men] thereon: 13 Therefore this iniquity shall be to you as a breach ready to fall, swelling out in a high wall, whose breaking cometh suddenly at an instant. 14 And he shall break it as the breaking of the potters’ vessel that is broken in pieces; [Once a breach or opening is made in a city wall the enemy pours in through that opening and utterly destroys all the inhabitants that stand in their way. Broken pottery called shards were used to carry coals from a fire or to drink from. Isaiah describes the shattering of the clay pottery to be so complete that there will be no shard large enough to use for anything1] he shall not spare: so that there shall not be found in the bursting of it a sherd to take fire from the hearth, or to take water withal out of the pit. 15 For thus saith the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel; [The Prophet stated that it was not too late for Judah to repent and trust in God and let God defend Judah. If not then Judah’s attempt to save themselves would end in bitter disappointment]. In returning and rest shall ye be saved; in quietness and in confidence [in God] shall be your strength: and ye would not. 16 But ye said, No; for we will flee upon horses; therefore shall ye flee: and, We will ride upon the swift; therefore shall they that pursue you be swift. 17 One thousand shall flee at the rebuke of one; at the rebuke of five shall ye flee: till ye be left as a beacon upon the top of a mountain, and as an ensign on a hill. There was no place to hide for fleeing Judah. Nevertheless there will be a repentant remnant unto whom the Lord will be gracious. The remnant will praise the Lord. In spite of their adversity the Lord will not forget them but will hear their prayers. The promises made in Deuteronomy 28:1-14 such as rain in due season and increases in their flocks and herds will come to pass if they keep the Lord’s commandments. They must reject the worship of false gods and the idols of gold and silver. The Lord will heal them and bind up their wounds.
¶18 ¶ And therefore will the Lord wait, [be patient until you repent] that he may be gracious unto you, and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you: for the Lord is a God of judgment: [Charity and Justice] blessed are all they that wait for him. 19 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; [prayers] when he shall hear it, he will answer thee. 20 And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity, and the water of affliction, [“My people must needs be chastened until they learn obedience, if it must be, by the things which they suffer.” D&C 105:6] yet shall not thy teachers be removed into a corner any more, but thine eyes shall see thy teachers: 21 And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, [by the Holy Ghost] “This is the way, walk ye in it,” when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left. 22 Ye [Repentant faithful] shall defile [destroy] also the covering of thy graven images of silver, and the ornament of thy molten images of gold: thou shalt cast them away as a menstruous cloth; thou shalt say unto it, “Get thee hence.” 23 Then shall he give the rain of [for] thy seed that thou shalt sow the ground withal; and bread of the increase of the earth, and it shall be fat [fertile] and plenteous: in that day shall thy cattle feed in large pastures. 24 The oxen likewise and the young asses that ear the ground shall eat clean provender, which hath been winnowed with the shovel and with the fan. 25 And there shall be upon every high mountain, and upon every high hill, rivers and streams of waters in the [Millennial] day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall. 26 Moreover the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days, in the day that the Lord bindeth up the breach of his people, and healeth the stroke of their wound. [During the Millennium].
The Lord will bless the righteous who will be filled with songs of joy, but a burning all-consuming fire awaits the wicked. While
¶27 ¶ Behold, the name of the Lord cometh from far, burning with his anger, and the burden thereof is heavy: his lips are full of indignation, and his tongue as a devouring fire: 28 And his breath, as an overflowing stream, shall reach to the midst of the neck, to sift the nations with the sieve of vanity: and there shall be a bridle in the jaws of the people, causing them to err. 29 Ye shall have a song, as in the night when a holy solemnity is kept; and gladness of heart, as when one goeth with a pipe to come into the mountain of the Lord, [the Temple] to the mighty One of Israel. 30 And the Lord shall cause his glorious voice to be heard, and shall shew the lighting down of his arm, with the indignation of his anger, and with the flame of a devouring fire, with scattering, and tempest, and hailstones. 31 For through the [Millennial] voice of the Lord shall the Assyrian [wicked] be beaten down, which smote with a rod. 32 And in every place where the grounded staff shall pass [the Lord’s punishing rod], which the Lord shall lay upon him [the wicked], it shall be with [Israel’s or the righteous] tabrets [tambourines] and harps: and in battles [with the wicked] of shaking will he [God] fight with it [God’s arm]. 33 For Tophet [place of burning, Hell] is ordained of old; yea, for the king [Lucifer] it is prepared; [1 Nephi 15: 35] he hath made it deep and large: the pile thereof is fire and much wood; the breath of the Lord, like a stream of brimstone, doth kindle it.
Isaiah 31: ¶This chapter reinforces the foolish notion that trusting in the arm of flesh or political kingdoms like Egypt could save Judah or the righteous. Trust in the Lord, let the Lord fight your battles. If you trust in God he will deliver you and save Jerusalem and the repentant remnant.
¶1 Woe to them that go down to Egypt for help; and stay on horses, and trust in chariots, because they are many; and in horsemen, because they are very strong; but they look not unto the Holy One of Israel, neither seek the Lord! 2 Yet he [God] also is wise, and will bring evil, [the consequences of a broken law] and will not call back his words: but will arise against the house of the evildoers, and against the help of them that work iniquity. 3 Now the Egyptians are men, and not God; and their horses flesh, and not spirit. When the Lord shall stretch out his hand, both he that helpeth shall fall, and he that is holpen shall fall down, and they all shall fail together. 4 For thus hath the Lord spoken unto me, Like as the lion and the young lion roaring on his prey, when a multitude of shepherds is called forth against him, he will not be afraid of their voice, nor abase himself for the noise of them: so shall the Lord of hosts come down to fight for mount Zion, and for the hill thereof. 5 As birds flying [on swift wings], so will the Lord of hosts defend Jerusalem; defending also he will deliver it; and passing over he will preserve it.
This is a call to repent and cast away the false gods and idols of gold or having faith in the works of men’s hands.
¶6 ¶ Turn ye unto him [God] from whom the children of Israel have deeply revolted. 7 For in that day [Second Coming] every man shall cast away his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which your own hands have made unto you for a sin.
¶8 ¶ Then shall the Assyrian [wicked] fall with the sword, not of a mighty man; and the sword, not of a mean man [wealthy or strong], shall devour him: but he shall flee from the sword, and his young men shall be discomfited. 9 And he shall pass over to his strong hold for fear, and his princes shall be afraid of the [Lord’s Standard Bearer] ensign, saith the Lord, whose fire is in Zion, and his furnace in Jerusalem.
Isaiah 32: Christ will reign during the Millennium. It will be a time of peace and a place of security. People who suffered from all kinds of maladies will be made whole. Righteous behaviors are contrasted with wicked and evil behaviors.
¶1 Behold, a king [Christ] shall reign in righteousness, and princes shall rule in judgment. [Charity and Justice]. 2 And a man [of righteousness] shall be as a 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. 3 And the eyes of them that see shall not be dim, and the ears of them that hear shall hearken. 4 The heart [mind] also of the rash shall understand knowledge, and the tongue of the stammerers shall be ready to speak plainly. 5 The vile person shall be no more called liberal [noble], nor the churl [scoundrels] said to be bountiful. [Successful]. 6 For the vile person will speak villany, [evil] and his heart [mind] will work iniquity, to practise hypocrisy, and to utter error against the Lord, to make empty the soul of the hungry, and he will cause the drink of the thirsty to fail. 7 The instruments also of the churl [scoundrels] are evil: he [the wicked] deviseth wicked devices to destroy the poor with lying words, even when the needy speaketh right. 8 But the liberal [noble] deviseth liberal [noble] things; and by liberal [noble] things shall he [the noble] stand.
A voice of warning to the sisters, mothers, daughters and granddaughters in Zion. Trusting in the things of this world may appear to give you safety but they will evaporate unless you turn unto the Lord.
¶9 ¶ Rise up, ye women that are at ease [complacent]; hear my [Isaiah’s] voice, ye careless daughters; give ear unto my speech. 10 Many days and years shall ye be troubled, ye careless [complacent] women: for the vintage shall fail, the gathering [of food] shall not come. 11 Tremble, ye women that are at ease; be troubled, ye careless ones: strip you, and make you bare, and gird sackcloth upon your loins. [Humble yourself before the Lord]. 12 They shall lament for the teats [beat upon their breast as a sign of sorrow and wish for fertile fields], for the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vine, [that are gone]. Thorns and briers can mean two things. One is actual thorns and briers and the others means the dregs of humanity. In this case Isaiah is describing a land void of people, desolate and deserted. Wild animals and doleful creatures abide in the homes and palaces once occupied by people. This condition will continue until my people repent and begin to work in righteous. Only then will then enjoy peace, safety, and rest to their souls.
¶13 Upon the land of my people shall come up thorns and briers; yea, upon all the houses of joy in the joyous city: 14 Because the palaces shall be forsaken; the multitude of the city shall be left; the forts and towers [now abandoned] shall be for dens for ever, a joy of wild asses, a pasture of flocks; 15 Until the spirit [the Holy Ghost] be poured upon us from on high, and the wilderness be a fruitful field, [the desert to blossom as a rose] and the fruitful field be counted for a forest. 16 Then judgment [Charity and Justice] shall dwell in the wilderness, and righteousness remain in the fruitful field. 17 And the work of righteousness [consequences of keeping God’s commandments of love] shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance for ever. 18 And my people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, and in sure dwellings, and in quiet resting places; 19 When it shall hail [adversity], coming down on the forest; and the city shall be low in a low place [where the city is not protected from the floods]. 20 Blessed are ye that sow beside all waters, that send [safely] forth thither the feet of the ox and the ass. [Casting the seed besides all waters has reference to the rivers like the Nile that floods every year. In anticipation of the river overflowing its banks, the seed will sink into the mud and when the waters subside, the seed will rise up in the spring for an abundant harvest].
Isaiah 33: Apostasy and wickedness will precede the Second Coming—The Lord will come with devouring fire—Zion and its stakes will be perfected—The Lord is our Judge, Lawgiver, and King.
¶1 Woe to thee that spoilest, and thou wast not spoiled; and dealest treacherously, and they dealt not treacherously with thee! When thou shalt cease to spoil, thou shalt be spoiled; and when thou shalt make an end to deal treacherously, they shall deal treacherously with thee. [This is the fate of the wicked to be dealt with as they dealt with others] 2 O Lord, be gracious unto us; we [the faithful] have waited for thee: be thou their arm every morning, our salvation also in the time of trouble. 3 At the noise of the tumult the people fled; at the lifting up of thyself the nations were scattered. 4 And your spoil shall be gathered like the gathering of the [voracious] caterpiller: as the running to and fro of [insatiable] locusts shall he run upon them. 5 The Lord is exalted; for he dwelleth on high: he hath filled Zion with judgment [Charity and Justice] and righteousness. 6 And wisdom and knowledge shall be the stability of thy times, and strength of salvation: the fear [awe, reverence and respect] of the Lord is his treasure. 7 [However among the wicked] Behold, their valiant ones shall cry without: the ambassadors of peace shall weep bitterly. 8 The highways lie waste, the wayfaring man [those that travel by foot] ceaseth: he hath broken the covenant, he hath despised the cities, he regardeth no man. 9 The earth mourneth and languisheth: Lebanon [known for its great cedar forest] is ashamed and hewn down: Sharon [known for its fertile ground of wheat and barley] is like a wilderness; and Bashan and Carmel shake off their fruits. [Even today these areas are known for their fruit trees]. 10 Now [The Second Coming] will I rise, saith the Lord; now will I be exalted; now will I lift up myself. 11 Ye [the wicked] shall conceive chaff, ye shall bring forth stubble: your breath, as fire, shall devour you. 12 And the people shall be as the burnings of lime: as thorns cut up shall they be burned in the fire.
In Jewish writing it is common to ask a question and respond immediately. Much like the 24th Psalm, [Question] ‘Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord? [Temple] or who shall stand in his holy place? [Answer] He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart.” Here the question is asked, “Who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings?” Everlasting burnings is symbolic of the glory of the Lord’s presence. [Answer] “He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh [rejects] his hands from holding of bribes, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil.” The reward of the righteous will be to be exalted on high and fed as Elijah was with bread from ravens and water from a clear brook. However, the sinners in Zion need to be afraid.
¶13 ¶ Hear, ye that are far off, what I have done; and, ye that are near, acknowledge my might. 14 The sinners in Zion are afraid; fearfulness hath surprised the hypocrites. “Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? Who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings?” 15 He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from holding of bribes, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil; 16 He shall dwell on high: his place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks: bread shall be given him; his waters shall be sure. 17 Thine eyes shall see [Christ] the king in his beauty: they shall behold the land that is very far off. 18 Thine heart [mind] shall meditate terror. [The world order will change. The surviving righteous remnant will look for the way things were.] Where is the scribe? Where is the receiver? Where is he that counted the towers? 19 Thou shalt not see a fierce people, a people of a deeper speech than thou canst perceive; of a stammering tongue that thou canst not understand. 20 Look upon Zion, the city of our solemnities: thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a tabernacle that shall not be taken down; not one of the stakes [of Zion] thereof shall ever be removed, neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken. 21 But there the glorious Lord will be unto us a place of broad rivers and streams; wherein shall go no [War] galley with oars, neither shall gallant [War] ship pass thereby. 22 For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; he will save us. 23 Thy [ships of the wicked are left so that even a lame man will share in the abandoned wealth] tacklings [ropes on ships] are loosed; they could not well strengthen their mast, they could not spread the sail: then is the prey of a great spoil divided; the lame take the prey. 24 And the inhabitant shall not say, I am sick: the people that dwell therein shall be forgiven their iniquity. The Lord will heal the physically sick and he will spiritually forgive their sins. James 5:16 conveys a similar message, “The prayer of faith shall save the sick…if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.”
[1] New American Standard Bible, New International Bible, Amplified Bible
[2] Another name for Christ is “Wonderful Counselor.” Isaiah 9:6
[3] It is quite possible that when Lehi in the Book of Mormon (1 Nephi 1:13) was given a book to read, it was the brass plates and he was reading from Isaiah 29, ‘Wo, wo unto Jerusalem.’
[4] Judges were placed in the gates of the cities to deal with the everyday civil issues of the common people. Boaz goes to the gate to be judged as the heir qualified to marry Ruth. See Ruth 4:11
[5] Har is hill in Hebrew and Megiddo is the place where all nations gather to descend upon Jerusalem. In Greek it is called Armageddon. “Armageddon” has become a byword for the end of the world..