Isaiah 58: The true law of the fast, with its purposes and attendant blessings, is set forth, the commandment to keep the Sabbath is given. The Lord decries the hypocrisy of those who profess to be faithful and yet their behaviors mock God. They ignore the hungry, the naked and the oppressed.
1 Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins. 2 Yet they seek me daily, and delight to know my ways, as a nation that did righteousness, and forsook not the ordinance of their God: they ask of me the ordinances of justice; they take delight in approaching to God.
3 ¶ Wherefore have we fasted, say they, and thou seest not? Wherefore have we afflicted our soul, and thou takest no knowledge? Behold, in the day of your fast ye find pleasure, and exact all your labours. 4 Behold, ye fast for strife and debate, and to smite with the fist of wickedness: ye shall not fast as ye do this day, to make your voice to be heard on high. 5 Is it such a fast that I have chosen? a day for a man to afflict his soul? is it to bow down his head as a bulrush, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? Wilt thou call this a fast, and an acceptable day to the Lord? 6 Is not this the fast that I have chosen? To loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke? 7 Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? When thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh? [You care for your own]
The true disciple of the Messiah will follow the Savior’s teachings in (Matt 25:34-45) regarding feeding the hungry, clothing the naked and in general being compassionate to one another. The works of righteousness will speak louder than the words of righteousness. When our behaviors mirror those of good men and women we become a light to the world. The Lord is quick to answer the prayers of the faithful. Those who fast so that another may eat will shows forth the true love of God.
8. ¶ Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the Lord shall be thy rearward. 9 Then shalt thou call, and the Lord shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, “Here I am.” If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity; 10 And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noonday: 11 And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not. 12 And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, “The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in.”
The phrase “The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in” means future generations will honor your name as the one who served the Lord and stood steadfast in honoring the Sabbath day and keeping the commandments.
13 ¶ If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words: 14 Then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.
Isaiah 59: The people of Israel are separated from their God by iniquity, their sins testify against them, the Messiah will intercede, come to Zion, and redeem the repentant. This chapter is similar to Proverbs 6:12-19. “A naughty person, a wicked man, walketh with a froward mouth. He winketh with his eyes, he speaketh with his feet, he teacheth with his fingers; Frowardness is in his heart, he deviseth mischief continually; he soweth discord. Therefore shall his calamity come suddenly; suddenly shall he be broken without remedy. These six things doth the Lord hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him: A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief, 19 A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.”
1 Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear: 2 But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear. 3 For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, your tongue hath muttered perverseness. 4 None calleth for justice, nor any pleadeth for truth: they trust in vanity, and speak lies; they conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity. 5 They hatch cockatrice’ eggs, and weave the spider’s web: he that eateth of their eggs dieth, and that which is crushed breaketh out into a viper. 6 Their webs shall not become garments, neither shall they cover themselves with their works: their works are works of iniquity, and the act of violence is in their hands. 7 Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood: their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; wasting and destruction are in their paths. 8 The way of peace they know not; and there is no judgment in their goings: they have made them crooked paths: whosoever goeth therein shall not know peace.
The Lord looks for “Charity and Justice” and all he can see is transgression. Charity and Justice come from the heart of the person. The Lord declares that the wicked walk in the light of the noonday sun and stumble because they are blinded by their unrighteous and unholy hearts.
9 ¶ Therefore is judgment [Charity and Justice] far from us, neither doth justice overtake us: we wait for light, but behold obscurity; for brightness, but we walk in darkness. 10 We grope for the wall like the blind, and we grope as if we had no eyes: we stumble at noonday as in the night; we are in desolate places as dead men. 11 We roar all like bears, and mourn sore like doves: we look for judgment, [Charity and Justice] but there is none; for salvation, but it is far off from us. 12 For our transgressions are multiplied before thee, and our sins testify against us: for our transgressions are with us; and as for our iniquities, we know them; 13 In transgressing and lying against the Lord, and departing away from our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood. 14 And judgment [Charity and Justice] is turned away backward, and justice standeth afar off: for truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter. 15 Yea, truth faileth; and he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey: and the Lord saw it, and it displeased him that there was no judgment [Charity and Justice].
16 ¶ And he saw that there was no man, [to intercede and demand charity and justice] and wondered that there was no intercessor: [no one to declare truth and right therefore Christ stood alone and depended upon his own righteousness to sustain him] therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him. [The imagery used by Paul in Ephesians 6:13-17 is based on these passages in Isaiah; “Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:]
17 For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloak. 18 According to their deeds, accordingly he will repay, fury to his adversaries, recompence to his enemies; to the islands [far distant places] he will repay recompence. 19 So shall they fear the name of the Lord from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun. When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard against him. [Those filled with the Holy Ghost will turn away from the evil of the last days and stand as an ensign and for their faithfulness the Lord will reward them with the continued companionship of the Holy Ghost unto the second and third generation and forever.]
20 ¶ “And the Redeemer shall come to Zion, and unto them that turn [repent] from transgression in Jacob,” saith the Lord. 21 “As for me, this is my covenant with them”, saith the Lord; “My spirit that is upon thee, and my words which I have put in thy mouth, shall not depart out of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of thy seed, nor out of the mouth of thy seed’s seed,” saith the Lord, “from henceforth and forever.”
Isaiah 60: In the last days, Israel will rise again as a mighty nation, the gentile peoples will join with and serve Israel, Zion will be established, finally, Israel will dwell in celestial splendor.
1 Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. 2 For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: [apostasy] but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. 3 And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. [All the gentiles and former heathens that survive in the latter days shall come unto the Lord from the four corners of the earth.] 4 Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side. 5 Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee. 6 The multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all they from Sheba shall come: they shall bring gold and incense; and they shall shew forth the praises of the Lord. []
7 All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together unto thee, the rams of Nebaioth [Nebo known for their goat herds] shall minister unto thee: they shall come up with acceptance on mine altar, and I will glorify the house of my glory. [The once foreign nations converted unto the Lord will offer up their lambs as an acceptable sacrifice unto the Lord.] 8 Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows? 9 Surely the isles [far away places] shall wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish [Spain] first, to bring thy sons from far, their silver and their gold with them, unto the name of the Lord thy God, and to the Holy One of Israel, because he hath glorified thee. 10 And the sons of strangers [gentiles] shall build up thy walls, and their kings shall minister unto thee: for in my wrath I smote thee, but in my favour have I had mercy on thee. 11 Therefore thy gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night; that men may bring unto thee the forces of the Gentiles, and that their kings may be brought. 12 For the nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish; yea, those nations shall be utterly wasted.
13 The glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee, the fir tree, the pine tree, and the box together, to beautify the place of my sanctuary [Temple]; and I will make the place of my feet glorious. [All the good and beautiful things will be brought to the temple of the Lord] 14 The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee; and all they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet; and they shall call thee, [Jerusalem] The city of the Lord, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel. 15 Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through thee, I will make thee [Jerusalem] an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations. 16 Thou shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles, and shalt suck the breast of kings: and thou shalt know that I the Lord am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob. 17 For brass I will bring gold, and for iron I will bring silver, and for wood brass, and for stones iron: I will also make thy officers peace, and thine exactors righteousness. 18 Violence shall no more be heard in thy land [Jerusalem], wasting nor destruction within thy borders; but thou shalt call thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise.
The scene described below is a glorious Celestial world for those who will abide in the presence of God.
19 The sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee: but the Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory. 20 Thy sun shall no more go down; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself: for the Lord shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended. 21 Thy people also shall be all righteous: they shall inherit the land for ever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified. 22 A little one shall become a thousand, and a small one a strong nation: I the Lord will hasten it in his time.
Isaiah 61: Isaiah speaks about the Messiah—The Messiah will have the Holy Ghost to guide him, preach the gospel, and proclaim liberty—In the last days, the Lord will call His ministers and make an everlasting covenant with the people. Verse 1 was quoted by Jesus after he was baptized and the Holy Ghost descended upon him and he returned to Nazareth to read the scriptures in his hometown synagogue. On that occasion Jesus said that this scripture in Isaiah declaring who was the Messiah had been fulfilled by Jesus. (Luke 4:18-21) The village people of Nazareth wanted to throw him off a cliff. Notice also that two of the beatitudes are mentioned. Blessed are the meek and blessed are those that mourn for they shall be comforted. (Matt. 5:4-5). Jesus’ quote that the “Lord hath anointed me” is a direct reference to Him being the Messiah and Christ. Messiah is the Hebrew word for the “Anointed One” while Christos or Christ is the Greek word for the “Anointed One.”
1 The Spirit of the Lord God [The Holy Ghost] is upon me [Christ]; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; 2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; 3 To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified. 4 ¶ And they shall build the old wastes, they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations of many generations. 5 And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, and the sons of the alien shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers. 6 But ye shall be named the Priests of the Lord: men shall call you the Ministers of our God: ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves.
7 ¶ For your shame ye shall have double; and for confusion they shall rejoice in their portion: therefore in their land they shall possess the double: everlasting joy shall be unto them. 8 For I the Lord love judgment [Charity and Justice], I hate robbery for burnt offering; and I will direct their work in truth, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them. 9 And their seed shall be known among the Gentiles, and their offspring among the people: all that see them shall acknowledge them, that they are the seed which the Lord hath blessed.
This is the song of the righteous; the garments of salvation and the robe of righteousness
10 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. 11 For as the earth bringeth forth her bud, and as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth; so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations.
Isaiah 62: In the last days, Israel will be gathered—Zion will be established in both America and in Jerusalem—Her watchmen will teach about the Lord—The gospel standard will be lifted up—The people will be called holy, the redeemed of the Lord.
1 For Zion’s sake [American Zion in Jackson County, Missouri] will I not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem’s sake [Old World Jerusalem] I will not rest, until the righteousness thereof go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burneth. 2 And the Gentiles shall see thy righteousness, and all kings thy glory: and thou shalt be called by a new name, which the mouth of the Lord shall name. 3 Thou shalt also be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God. 4 Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken; neither shall thy land any more be termed Desolate: but thou shalt be called Hephzi-bah [Desirable], and thy land Beulah [Married]: for the Lord delighteth in thee, and thy land shall be married. [to the Lord]
5 ¶ For as a young man marrieth a virgin, so shall thy sons marry thee: and as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee. 6 I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night: ye that make mention of the Lord, keep not silence, 7 And give him no rest, till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth. 8 The Lord hath sworn by his right hand, and by the arm of his strength, Surely I will no more give thy corn to be meat for thine enemies; and the sons of the stranger shall not drink thy wine, for the which thou hast laboured: 9 But they that have gathered it shall eat it, and praise the Lord; and they that have brought it together shall drink it in the courts of my holiness.
10 ¶ Go through, go through the gates; prepare ye the way of the people; cast up, cast up the highway; gather out the stones; lift up a standard for the people. 11 Behold, the Lord hath proclaimed unto the end of the world, Say ye to the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy salvation cometh; behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him. 12 And they shall call them, “The holy people,” “The redeemed of the Lord:” and thou shalt be called, Sought out, A city not forsaken.
Isaiah 63: The Second Coming will be a day of vengeance and also the year of the redeemed of the Lord—Then the Saints will praise the Lord and acknowledge Him as their father. Bozrah was the capital of the territory of Edom or the land of Esau. The land around Bozrah is much like the red earth in St. George, Utah. If you went walking in a white robe the dust would turn the bottom of your robe red. This has reference to the Lord’s Second Coming when he will be wearing a red robe symbolic of the blood he shed in the Garden of Gethsemane for the sins of the world. The second comparison deals with a wine vat where the grapes are squashed and would stain one’s skin and clothing a dark red. First a question is asked, “Who is this in red?” the answer is, “I that speak…mighty to save.
1 Who is this that cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah? This that is glorious in his apparel, travelling in the greatness of his strength? I that speak in righteousness, mighty to save. 2 Wherefore art thou red in thine apparel, and thy garments like him that treadeth in the winefat? 3 I have trodden the winepress alone; and of the people there was none with me: for I will tread them in mine anger, and trample them in my fury; and their blood shall be sprinkled upon my garments, and I will stain all my raiment. 4 For the day of vengeance is in mine heart, and the year of my redeemed is come. 5 And I looked, and there was none to help; [Jesus had to carry out the Atonement alone.] and I wondered that there was none to uphold: therefore mine own arm brought salvation unto me; and my fury, it upheld me. 6 And I will tread down the people in mine anger, and make them drunk in my fury, and I will bring down their strength to the earth. [The wicked will be destroyed at the Second Coming, however those sufficiently righteous will rejoice in the loving kindness of the Lord and will “Praise the Lord.”]
7 ¶ I will mention the loving kindnesses of the Lord, and the praises of the Lord, according to all that the Lord hath bestowed on us, and the great goodness toward the house of Israel, which he hath bestowed on them according to his mercies, and according to the multitude of his loving kindnesses. 8 For he said, Surely they are my people, children that will not lie: so he was their Saviour. 9 In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them: in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; and he bare them, and carried them all the days of old.
The people inquire about the God that brought Moses out of Egypt
10 ¶ But they rebelled, and vexed his holy Spirit: therefore he was turned to be their enemy, and he fought against them. 11 Then he [the people] remembered the days of old, Moses, and his people, saying, “Where is he that brought them up out of the sea with the shepherd of his flock?” Where is he that put his Holy Spirit within him? 12 That led them by the right hand of Moses with his glorious arm, dividing the water before them, to make himself an everlasting name? 13 That led them through the deep, as an horse in the wilderness, that they should not stumble? 14 As a beast goeth down into the valley, the Spirit of the Lord caused him to rest: so didst thou lead thy people, to make thyself a glorious name.”
15 ¶ Look down from heaven, and behold from the habitation of thy holiness and of thy glory: where is thy zeal and thy strength, the sounding of thy bowels and of thy mercies toward me? Are they restrained? 16 Doubtless thou art our father, though Abraham be ignorant of us, and Israel acknowledge us not: thou, O Lord, art our father, our redeemer; thy name is from everlasting.
17 ¶ O Lord, why hast thou made us to err from thy ways, and hardened our heart from thy fear? Return for thy servants’ sake, the tribes of thine inheritance. 18 The people of thy holiness have possessed it but a little while: our adversaries have trodden down thy sanctuary. [Temple]. 19 We are thine: thou never barest rule over them; they were not called by thy name.
Isaiah 64: The people of the Lord pray for the Second Coming and for the salvation that will then be theirs. The glory of the reward for being faithful surpasses the ability of man to comprehend. The people of the Lord acknowledge their sins but repent and seek for the Lord to guide them again.
1 Oh that thou wouldest rend the heavens, that thou wouldest come down, that the mountains might flow down at thy presence, 2 As when the melting fire burneth, the fire causeth the waters to boil, to make thy name known to thine adversaries, that the nations may tremble at thy presence! 3 When thou didst terrible things which we looked not for, thou camest down, the mountains flowed down at thy presence. 4 For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him. 5 Thou meetest him that rejoiceth and worketh righteousness, those that remember thee in thy ways: behold, thou art wroth; for we have sinned: in those is continuance, and we shall be saved. 6 But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away. 7 And there is none that calleth upon thy name, that stirreth up himself to take hold of thee: for thou hast hid thy face from us, and hast consumed us, because of our iniquities. 8 But now, O Lord, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand.
9 ¶ Be not wroth very sore, O Lord, neither remember iniquity for ever: behold, see, we beseech thee, we are all thy people. 10 Thy holy cities are a wilderness, Zion is a wilderness, Jerusalem a desolation. 11 Our holy and our beautiful house, [Temple] where our fathers praised thee, is burned up with fire: and all our pleasant things are laid waste. 12 Wilt thou refrain thyself for these things, O Lord? wilt thou hold thy peace, and afflict us very sore?
Isaiah 65: Ancient Israel was rejected for rejecting the Lord—The Lord’s people will rejoice and triumph during the Millennium. Gentiles seeking truth find God, a nation not called beholds God, while the nation called of God ignores the Lord. Adding insult to injury those called of God offer sacrifices to false gods and idols in pagan groves. The health law given in Leviticus 11 forbidding the eating of swine and unclean beasts are ignored. At the same time the hypocrite proclaims, “I am holier than thou,” while they blaspheme the Lord.
1 I am sought of them that asked not for me; I am found of them that sought me not: I said, Behold me, behold me, unto a nation that was not called by my name. 2 I have spread out my hands [prayed] all the day unto a rebellious people, which walketh in a way that was not good, after their own thoughts; 3 A people that provoketh me to anger continually to my face; that sacrificeth in gardens, and burneth incense upon altars of brick; 4 Which remain among the graves, and lodge in the monuments, which eat swine’s flesh, and broth of abominable things is in their vessels; 5 Which say, Stand by thyself, come not near to me; for I am holier than thou. These are a smoke in my nose, a fire that burneth all the day. 6 Behold, it is written before me: “I will not keep silence, but will recompense, even recompense into their bosom, 7 Your iniquities, and the iniquities of your fathers together”, saith the Lord, “which have burned incense upon the mountains, and blasphemed me upon the hills: therefore will I measure their former work into their bosom.”
8 ¶ Thus saith the Lord, ‘As the new wine is found in the cluster,’ and one saith, ‘Destroy it not; for a blessing is in it:’ so will I do for my servants’ sakes, that I may not destroy them all. [A promised remnant will be preserved] 9 And I will bring forth a seed out of Jacob, and out of Judah an inheritor of my mountains: and mine elect shall inherit it, and my servants shall dwell there. 10 And Sharon shall be a fold of flocks, and the valley of Achor a place for the herds to lie down in, for my people that have sought me. [The righteous remnant will prosper in fruitful hills and pleasant valleys with herds and flocks.
11 ¶ But ye are they that forsake the Lord, that forget my holy mountain [the Temple], that prepare a table for that troop [an army], and that furnish the drink offering unto that number. 12 Therefore will I number you to the sword, and ye shall all bow down to the slaughter: because when I called, ye did not answer; when I spake, ye did not hear; but did evil before mine eyes, and did choose that wherein I delighted not. 13 Therefore thus saith the Lord God, ‘Behold, my servants shall eat, but ye shall be hungry: behold, my servants shall drink, but ye shall be thirsty: behold, my servants shall rejoice, but ye shall be ashamed: 14 Behold, my servants shall sing for joy of heart, but ye shall cry for sorrow of heart, and shall howl for vexation of spirit. 15 And ye shall leave your name for a curse unto my chosen: for the Lord God shall slay thee, and call his servants by another name: 16 That he who blesseth himself in the earth shall bless himself in the God of truth; and he that sweareth in the earth shall swear by the God of truth; because the former troubles are forgotten, and because they are hid from mine eyes. [The Lord contrasts the rewards of righteousness with the consequences of wickedness].
The New Heaven for the Telestial earth is to leave this orbit (Isa. 13:13, 24:19-20) and leave behind the Sun and the Moon and the New Earth will be the Terrestrial earth of the Millennium. (10th Art of Faith). The wicked will have been destroyed and men and women will leave in peace and joy. The wicked can no longer afflict the righteous. The good people that abide in the Millennium will be guided by the Holy Ghost. “Before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.”
17 ¶ For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind. 18 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. 19 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. 20 There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed. 21 And they shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them. 22 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. 23 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. 24 And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear. 25 The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock: and dust shall be the serpent’s meat. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain [Temple Mount or Jerusalem], saith the Lord.
Isaiah 66: At the Second Coming, Israel, as a nation, will be born in a day; the wicked will be destroyed; and the Gentiles will hear the gospel. Since heaven is the throne of God and the earth is his footstool what could man offer to God that would be worthwhile? Answer: “A broken heart and a contrite spirit.” God wants only the best for his children and those who are humble and teachable allow God to bless them. God rejects those who show an outward appearance of obedience by offerings of an ox, sacrificing a lamb symbolic of Christ, or burn incense when their hearts are corrupt and their deeds abominable. They might as well murder a man, cut off a dog’s head or bless an idol as to offend God who sees and knows the intents of their hearts. (D&C 6:16).
1 Thus saith the Lord, The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: where is the house that ye build unto me? and where is the place of my rest? (Acts17:24). 2 For all those things hath mine hand made, and all those things have been, saith the Lord: but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word. 3 He that killeth an ox is as if he slew a man; he that sacrificeth a lamb, as if he cut off a dog’s neck; he that offereth an oblation, as if he offered swine’s blood; he that burneth incense, as if he blessed an idol. Yea, they have chosen their own ways, and their soul delighteth in their abominations. 4 I also will choose their delusions, and will bring their fears upon them; because when I called, none did answer; when I spake, they did not hear: but they did evil before mine eyes, and chose that in which I delighted not.
5 ¶ Hear the word of the Lord, ye that tremble [are faithful] at his word; Your brethren that hated you, that cast you out for my name’s sake, said, Let the Lord be glorified: but he shall appear to your joy, and they shall be ashamed. 6 A voice of noise from the city, a voice from the temple, a voice of the Lord that rendereth recompence to his enemies. 7 Before she travailed, she brought forth; before her pain came, she was delivered of a man child. 8 Who hath heard such a thing? Who hath seen such things? Shall the earth be made to bring forth in one day? Or shall a nation be born at once? [Yes, the Lord will bring forth the Gospel in a single day at his Second Coming] For as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children. 9 Shall I bring to the birth, and not cause to bring forth? saith the Lord: shall I cause to bring forth, and shut the womb? saith thy God. 10 Rejoice ye with Jerusalem, and be glad with her, all ye that love her: rejoice for joy with her, all ye that mourn for her: 11 That ye may suck, and be satisfied with the breasts of her consolations; that ye may milk out, and be delighted with the abundance of her glory. 12 For thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river, and the glory of the Gentiles like a flowing stream: then shall ye suck, ye shall be borne upon her sides, and be dandled upon her knees. 13 As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you; and ye shall be comforted in Jerusalem. 14 And when ye see this, your heart shall rejoice, and your bones shall flourish like an herb: and the hand of the Lord shall be known toward his servants, and his indignation toward his enemies. 15 For, behold, the Lord will come with fire, and with his chariots like a whirlwind, to render his anger with fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire. 16 For by fire and by his sword will the Lord plead with all flesh: and the slain of the Lord shall be many. [The all-consuming fire to purify the earth at the Second Coming will cause the death of all the wicked] 17 They [the hypocrites] that sanctify themselves, and purify themselves in the [pagan] gardens behind one tree in the midst, eating swine’s flesh, and the abomination, and the mouse, shall be consumed together, saith the Lord. 18 For I know their works and their thoughts: it shall come, that I will gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come, and see my glory. [As a part of the Second Coming the gospel of faith in Christ, baptism for the remission of sins, receiving the Holy Ghost and being confirmed a member of Christ’s true Church will reach the four corners of the earth and every Gentile on the surface of the earth will be joined to the kingdom of God on the earth.] 19 And I will set a sign among them, and I will send those that escape of them unto the nations, to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, that draw the bow, to Tubal, and Javan, to the isles afar off, that have not heard my fame, neither have seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the Gentiles. 20 And they shall bring all your brethren for an offering unto the Lord out of all nations upon horses, and in chariots, and in litters, and upon mules, and upon swift beasts, to my holy mountain Jerusalem, saith the Lord, as the children of Israel bring an offering in a clean vessel into the house of the Lord. 21 [Gentiles will be called to serve in the many temples that will dot the earth] And I will also take of them for priests and for Levites, saith the Lord. 22 For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the Lord, so shall your seed and your name remain. 23 And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh [all those who remain alive during the Millennium will] come to worship before me, saith the Lord. 24 And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcases of the men that have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh. [The final words of Isaiah are a reminder that the wicked will be destroyed and abide in hell until their hearts are purified and they come to accept the Atonement made for them and worship the only true and living God with a broken heart and contrite spirit.