Isaiah 55-57

Isaiah 55-57 Study Guide – to be discussed April 19

Day 1: Read Isaiah 55:1-7, 2 Nephi 26:23, 2 Nephi 9:50-51
1. Read Isaiah 55:1-2 with 2 Nephi 26:23-27. What do the waters, wine, milk and bread represent; or in other words, what does the Lord offer us at no charge? (See also 2 Nephi 9:50-51.)



2. According to Isaiah 55:3, what are the “sure mercies of David”?


3. When should we seek the Lord and call upon him? Why?



Day 2: Read Isaiah 55:8-13 (with footnote 13a), Moses 6:63
4. How does the Lord say his thoughts and ways are different from our thoughts and ways?


5. How is the word of God like rain?



6. Read Isaiah 55:12-13 with Moses 6:63. How does the earth bear witness of the divinity of Christ?



Day 3: Read Isaiah 56:1-8
7. Compare Isaiah 56:1-2 with the first phrase in the chapter heading for Isaiah 56. How can we “keep judgment” and “do justice”?


8. What is the promise to the faithful in Isaiah 56:5?



9. Which specific commandment is mentioned three times in Isaiah 56:1-8?*


Day 4: Read Isaiah 56:9-12 (with footnote 9a), John 10:12-13
10. When the watchmen are blind and watchdogs dumb, what happens to those they watch over?


11. Whose interests are the shepherds and dogs concerned with?


12. What has caused the watchmen to be blind? (See also John 10:12-13.)


Day 5: Read Isaiah 57:1-6 (with footnotes 3a, 5b), D&C 59:1-2
13. Read Isaiah 57:1-2 with D&C 59:1-2. What comfort does the Lord offer those whose righteous friends or family members have died?
14. The footnote to Isaiah 57:3a indicates those whom the Lord condemns are not born into evil, but have chosen it. List the sins mentioned in Isaiah 57:4-5.



15. Note: The German translation for the first part of Isaiah 57:6 reads (in English): “You base your whole existence on your false god, idols! You have chosen them over me, therefore, you will have to depend on them for your reward.” How does the Lord feel about our relying on idols? Does idol worship require faith?



Day 6: Read Isaiah 57:7-12 (with footnotes 7a, 8a, 9a, 10b)
16. How do we make “covenants” with idols today?


17. How far will people go to find new ways to sin? Are there really any new ways? Why do people do this?



18. Who do we fear most when we forget our covenants?


Day 7: Read Isaiah 57:13-21 (with footnotes 14a, 17c, 19a), Proverbs 10:2
19. Where and with whom does the Lord dwell?


20. Who will the Lord heal?


21. Why is there no peace for the wicked? (See also Proverbs 10:2.)


*From the Institute Manual: Isaiah 56:1–8 . Who Are the “Son of the Stranger” and the “Eunuch”? What Is Their Significance? To understand Isaiah’s meaning in 56:1–8 , one must understand the significance of three words and their meaning to ancient Israel. The words are Sabbath, strangers, and eunuchs. Sabbath. Modern readers think only of Sunday, or the Lord’s day, as the Sabbath, but for ancient Israel Sabbath had a wider meaning. The weekly sabbath was only one of several days called the Sabbath. All of the feast days, including Passover, Pentecost, Tabernacles, and the day of Atonement, were also called sabbaths (see Samuel Fallows, ed., The Popular and Critical Bible Encyclopedia and Scriptural Dictionary, s.v. “Sabbath”; James Hastings, ed., A Dictionary of the Bible, s.v. “Sabbaths.”) Thus, to “keep my sabbaths [plural]” ( v. 4 ) implied a keeping of the whole law of Moses, since the various feasts covered many aspects of the Israelites’ commitment to God. Also, by revelation, the Lord told Moses that keeping the Sabbath was a sign of the covenant between Israel and God (see Exodus 31:13, 16–17 ). When Isaiah talked about polluting the Sabbath, he meant far more than simply working or playing on Sunday (Saturday for the Jews). Strangers. “A stranger in the Mosaic law, and in the Old Testament generally, means one not of Israelitish descent dwelling with the Hebrews, as distinguished from a foreigner temporarily visiting the land [ Exodus 20:10 ; Leviticus 16:29 ; 17:8 ; 2 Samuel 1:13 ; Ezekiel 14:7 ]. The stranger was not a full citizen, yet he had recognized rights and duties. He was under the protection of God, and the Israelites were charged to treat him kindly [ Leviticus 19:33–34 ; Deuteronomy 10:18–19 ].” (Fallows, ed., Bible Encyclopedia, s.v. “strangers.”) Eunuchs. Under the Mosaic law, anyone who had been sexually mutilated was not allowed into full fellowship in the house of Israel (see Deuteronomy 23:1–2 ). The law was likely written because wholeness of body typified or symbolized spiritual wholeness. (See Old Testament Student Manual: Genesis–2 Samuel [religion 301, 2003], pp. 229–30 .) A priest or Levite who was a eunuch could not function in the priesthood offices (see Leviticus 21:17–23 ).
With an understanding of these three words, one can see the beauty of Isaiah’s promise given in Isaiah 56 . Strangers (Gentiles) and eunuchs (those previously excluded from full fellowship with the covenant people, and who felt they could produce no fruit in the covenant, being “a dry tree” [ v. 3 ]) would now find the full blessings of God extended to them if they kept the sabbaths (epitomizing the law of God). Not only will the “outcasts of Israel” (those who were scattered) be gathered in the last days, but so will “others” ( v. 8 ). Whether one is a literal descendant of Israel will not matter as much as whether one will make and keep the covenant with God. In the age of restoration, the house of God will be “an house of prayer for all people” ( v. 7 ; emphasis added).