2 Ne 15:1-7 The song of
the vineyard
This song likens the house
of Israel to a wine vineyard. The structure of this song is the same as the
allegory of the olive tree found in Jacob 5. The servant is the prophet,
Isaiah. The lord of the vineyard, spoken of as ‘my
well-beloved’, is the Lord of Hosts. And the vineyard is the house of
Israel. One difference is that the fruit of this vineyard is grapes and the
fruit of the vineyard in the allegory of the olive-tree is olives. Doctrinally,
the most important difference is that the song of the vineyard does not deal
with the scattering and gathering of Israel as does the allegory of the olive
tree. Rather, it explains why it is that the kingdoms of Israel and Judah were
allowed to be destroyed—because of their wickedness, for when the lord came to
his vineyard, ‘he looked for judgment, and behold,
oppression; for righteousness, but behold, a cry’ (v. 7).
“The
Israelites had a yearly festival, at the end of their year, called the feast of
ingathering (Ex. 23:16;34:22), because on that occasion the people were
required to give thanks especially for the harvest of fields and vineyards. It
has been suggested that this song, or poem, was composed and recited on such an
occasion. It contains a parable in which Israel is represented as a vineyard
(as in Is. 3:14), and the consequences of the neglect of unfaithful keepers.
(Matt. 21:33–41) As a literary composition, no less than as a prophetic
utterance, it is regarded as an outstanding piece of sacred reading.” (Reynolds
and Sjodahl, Commentary on the Book of Mormon, vol. 1, p. 333)
2 Ne 15:2 planted it with the choicest vine
The house of Israel became
the covenant people of the Lord because of the faith of the patriarchs,
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. ‘For the promise, that he
should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed,
through the law, but through the righteousness of faith’ (Rom 4:13).
Abraham was favored of the Lord for his righteousness and faith. He could be
considered ‘the choicest vine’ which the Lord
planted in his vineyard, for Abraham was both choice and chosen
(Abr. 3:23).
2 Ne 15:4 What could have been done more to my vineyard?
The Lord laments that in
spite of all his nurturing, tender care, and mercy, the vineyard continues to
produce wild fruit. This is astonishing because the vine that was planted was
choice, the land was good, and the lord of the vineyard had done all he could
do to produce good fruit. The language of this verse is much like that in the
allegory of the olive tree, ‘What could I have done
more for my vineyard?’ (Jacob 5:41). Jeremiah prophesies in a similar
fashion, ‘Yet I had planted thee a noble vine,
wholly a right seed: how then art thou turned into the degenerate plant of a
strange vine unto me?’ (Jer 2:21).
2 Ne 15:5 I will take away the hedge thereof…and…break down the wall
The hedge and the wall
represent the protective care that the Lord had given the kingdoms of Israel
and Judah. Because of their wickedness, the Lord will no longer protect them
from their enemies. Therefore, the kingdom of Israel was sacked by the
Assyrians (~722 BC), and the kingdom of Judah was sacked by the Babylonians
(~589 BC). ‘Therefore, my people are gone into
captivity, because they have no knowledge’ (v. 13).
2 Ne 15:7 he looked for judgment, and behold, oppression; for
righteousness, but behold, a cry
“What
is that special form of sin which Isaiah sees? It is human selfishness—the
unbrotherhood of man to man….the cry which rises into his ears is the cry of
stricken humanity—the cry of the poor and needy, the cry of the sad and
weary…He hears God call him to lash the sins of the nation; but to him all the
sins of the nation are forms of a single sin—selfishness….The burden of
Isaiah is the burden of human compassion. It is the desire to right the wrongs
which man has done to his brother.” (George Matheson, The Old Testament and
the Fine Arts, 561-562 as taken from Commentaries on Isaiah in the Book
of Mormon, ed. by K. Douglas Bassett, [American Fork, UT: Covenant
Publishing Co., 2003], 100)
2 Ne 15:8 Wo unto them that join house to house
Isaiah is speaking of greedy
landowners who would displace the poor from their homes by purchasing their
land. As Micah prophesied, ‘they covet fields, and
take them by violence; and houses, and take them away: so they
oppress a man and his house, even a man and his heritage’ (Micah 2:2).
“This
judgment falls upon wealthy landowners who buy up all the property then can
until their lands border one another. This results in a monopoly of property that
should be divided among others, especially the poor. This practice violates the
spirit of the Law of Jubilee, the property law of ancient Israel, which states
that ‘the land shall not be sold forever.’
(LEV. 25:33) Instead, land was to remain within families and clans as a
perpetual inheritance…The hoarding of land described in verse 8 was in
violation of this law, for when all property was purchased by a few wealthy
individuals, there was no place for the original families to dwell. Having no
homeland, they were forced to move to the cities or live on the property of the
owner as indentured servants or slaves.” (Isaiah: Prophet, Seer, and Poet,
by Victor L. Ludlow, p. 117)
“Property acquired for selfish purposes is not a
blessing. Greed is never satisfied. Ownership of property is not condemned. The
only question is, how did the owner get it, and to what use does he put it?”
(Reynolds and Sjodahl, Commentary on the Book of Mormon, vol. 1, p. 334)
“The surplus property of this community, as poor as
we are, has done more real mischief than everything else besides…A man has no
right to property,…[when the property doesn’t] do good to himself and his
fellow-man…If the people of this community feel as though they wanted the whole
world to themselves…and would hoard up their property, and place it is a
situation where it would not benefit either themselves or the community, they
are just as guilty as the man who steals my property.” (Journal of
Discourses, 1:252, 255 as taken from Commentaries on Isaiah in the Book
of Mormon, ed. by K. Douglas Bassett, [American Fork, UT: Covenant
Publishing Co., 2003], 102)
James E. Faust
“It is frequently astounding to see the dereliction
of people in keeping the standards of ordinary fairness and justice….It is
sometimes evident in commercial transactions, as well as in private
contacts….This unfairness and injustice results principally from one person
seeking an advantage or an edge over another. Those who follow such a practice
demean themselves greatly. How can those of us who do not practice ordinary
fairness and justice have serious claim on the blessings of a just and a fair
God? Do some of us seek to justify our taking of shortcuts and advantage of
others by indulging in the twin sophistries, ‘There isn’t any justice’ and
‘Everybody does it’?” (Ensign, Nov. 1986, p. 10 as taken from Latter-day
Commentary on the Book of Mormon compiled by K. Douglas Bassett, p. 136)
Spencer W. Kimball
“Woe unto them who will rationalize, who will explain
away their errors in these matters, who justify their oppressions. Farm hands,
domestic help, and unprotected people are often oppressed, when economic
circumstances place them in the position where they must accept what is offered
or remain unemployed. And we sometimes justify ourselves in underpaying and
even boast about it.” (Conference Report, Oct. 1, 1953, p. 53)
2 Ne 15:10 ten acres of vineyard shall yield one bath
This verse uses three
unfamiliar measures, “bath,” “homer,” and “ephah.” In the Bible Dictionary,
under “weights and measures,” we learn that a bath is a volume of
liquid—approximately 8 ¼ gallons. An ephah is the dry equivalent to a bath, and
a homer is ten times the amount of an ephah.
The significance in these
verses is that the crops and land will be cursed so that they will produce much
less than would be expected.
“In
verse ten the seriousness of the desolation in the fields is demonstrated by
the terms used. Ordinarily, a farmer would hope to get a thirty-, sixty-, or
even a hundred-fold increase from the seed he planted. But instead he would
only get one tenth back, because one homer of seed (equal to ten ephahs) would
yield only one ephah of harvest. This is a unique type of “reverse tithing.”
(Victor L. Ludlow, Unlocking the Old Testament, 149 as taken from
Commentaries on Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, ed. by K. Douglas Bassett,
[American Fork, UT: Covenant Publishing Co., 2003], 103)
2 Ne 15:11 Wo unto them that rise up early in the morning, that they
may follow strong drink
One of the many signs of
alcoholism is drinking in the morning. Isaiah is describing those that drink
from morning until night. Under the Law of Moses, there were no proscriptions
against wine or strong drink but there are many Old Testament scriptures which
warn against drunkenness and excess.
“The
liquor fight is an eternal battle and moves from scene to scene and sin to sin.
“Alcoholic Beveragesa-Kimball, Spencer W.TPThere are numerous people who profit financially-some
politicians, manufacturers, wholesalers, deliverers, dispensers, and the
underworld. Added to that army are the rationalizers who demand their liquor,
regardless of harm to others. Do they pray over their work?
“Alcoholic Beveragesa-Kimball, Spencer W.TP’The liquor traffic is
sacrilege, for it seeks profit from the damnation of human souls.’ (Harry
Emerson Fosdick.)
“Alcoholic Beveragesa-Kimball, Spencer W.TPArguments are specious, but to the gullible, unsuspecting, righteous, busy people, they are made to seem plausible. The tax argument, the employment one, the school lunch program, the freedom to do as one pleases-all are like sieves with many holes. There is just enough truth in them to deceive. Satan deals in half truths.” (The Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, edited by Edward L. Kimball [Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1982], 206-207 as taken from Commentaries on Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, ed. by K. Douglas Bassett, [American Fork, UT: Covenant Publishing Co., 2003], 104)
2 Ne 15:14 hell hath enlarged herself, and opened her mouth
Apparently, hell has a large
mouth which is hungry to consume the souls of men. To Joseph Smith, the Lord
said, ‘if the very jaws of hell shall gape open the
mouth side after thee, know thou, my son, that all these things shall give thee
experience, and shall be for they good’ (DC 121:7).
2 Ne 15:18 Wo unto them that draw iniquity with cords of vanity
“Isaiah
condemned those who think they can give up one sin and yet cling tenaciously ot
others. ‘Woe unto them that draw iniquity with cords of vanity, and sin as it
were with a cart rope’ (Isa. 5:18). Occasionally we cut the ‘cords of vanity’
and let go of a favorite sin, but all too often we only periodically cast off
from our cart a sin here and there rather than just letting go of the cart
rope.” (Brent L. Top, A Peculiar Treasure, 160 as taken from
Commentaries on Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, ed. by K. Douglas Bassett,
[American Fork, UT: Covenant Publishing Co., 2003], 107)
2 Ne 15:19 Let him make speed, hasten his work, that we may see it
The people described in this
verse are the wicked described in verse 18. They have no interest in the work
and counsel of the Holy One of Israel. They are sign seekers. They want to see
to consume it upon their lusts, not to understand righteousness. Of these the
Lord has said, ‘A wicked and adulterous generation
seeketh after a sign’ (Matt 16:4).
2 Ne 15:20 Wo unto them that call evil good, and good evil
“Satan offers a strange mixture of just enough good to disguise the evil along his downward path to destruction…He forges a Rembrandt-quality representation by calling evil good and good evil. He has confused many people, even nations and leaders, to the point of an immoral approach to moral issues…
“First, he says individual agency is justification for the destruction of a human life through abortion; second, same-gender intimate associations and even marriages are acceptable; and third, chastity and fidelity are old-fashioned and narrow-minded—to be sexually active with free expression is acceptable.
“At
this very moment, international heroes in sports, music, and movies not only
live immoral lives but teach that immorality around the world through the
powerful influence of the media. They are idolized and accepted by millions
worldwide. The world in general seems to have lapsed into a coma of
unrighteousness.” (Ensign, Nov. 1995, 84-85 as taken from
Commentaries on Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, ed. by K. Douglas Bassett,
[American Fork, UT: Covenant Publishing Co., 2003], 111)
Spencer W. Kimball
“Fornication
results from lust, not love. Across the desk from me sat a handsome
nineteen-year-old boy and a beautiful, shy, but charming eighteen-year-old
girl. They appeared embarrassed, apprehensive, near-terrified. He was defensive
and bordering on belligerency and rebellion. They admitted they had broken the
moral code and thus gone contrary to some standards, but they quoted magazines
and papers and speakers approving premarital sex and emphasizing that sex was a
fulfillment of human existence. ... Had it not been fairly well established,
then, in their world, that sex before marriage was not so wrong? Did there not
need to be a trial period? How else could they know if they would be compatible
for marriage?
“Finally,
the boy said, ‘Yes, we yielded to each other, but we do not think it was wrong
because we love each other.’ I thought I had misunderstood him. Since the world
began there have been countless immoralities, but to hear them justified by a
Latter-day Saint youth shocked me. He repeated, ‘No, it is not wrong, because
we love each other.’ ...
“The
Savior said that if it were possible the very elect would be deceived by
Lucifer. He uses his logic to confuse and his rationalizations to destroy. He
will shade meanings, open doors an inch at a time, and lead from purest white
through all the shades of gray to the darkest black.
“This
young couple looked up rather startled when I postulated firmly, ‘No, my
beloved young people, you did not love each other. Rather, you lusted for each
other.’ ... The beautiful and holy word of love they had defiled until it had
degenerated to become a bed fellow with lust, its antithesis. As far back as
Isaiah, deceivers and rationalizers were condemned: ‘Woe
unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and
light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!’ (Isaiah
5:20.)
“If
one really loves another, one would rather die for that person than to injure
him. At the hour of sin, pure love is pushed out of one door while lust sneaks
in the other. Affection has then been replaced with desire of the flesh and
uncontrolled passion. Accepted has been the doctrine which the devil is so
eager to establish, that illicit sex relations are justified. When the
unmarried yield to lust, that is called fornication. When married fall into
this same sin, that is called adultery.” (The Teachings of Spencer W.
Kimball, edited by Edward L. Kimball, pp. 278-9)
“In the summertime one of our responsibilities was to haul hay from the fields into the barn for winter storage….One day, in one of the loose bundles pitched onto the wagon was a rattlesnake? When I looked at it, I was concerned excited, and afraid. The snake was laying in the nice, cool hay. The sun was glistening on its diamond back. After a few moments the snake stopped rattling, became still, and I became very curious. I started to get closer and leaned over for a better look, when suddenly I heard a call from my father: ‘David, my boy, you can’t pet a rattlesnake?’…
“I
would like to talk to you about the dangers of petting poisonous snakes…today’s
popular entertainment often makes what is evil and wrong look enjoyable and
right. Let us remember the Lord’s counsel: ‘Woe unto
them that call evil good, and good evil’ (Isa. 5:20).
“Pornography, though billed by Satan as entertainment, is a deeply poisonous, deceptive snake that lies coiled up in magazines, the Internet, and the television. Pornography destroys self-esteem and weakens self-discipline. It is far more deadly to the spirit than the rattlesnake my father warned me not to pet.” (Ensign, May 2001, 41 as taken from Commentaries on Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, ed. by K. Douglas Bassett, [American Fork, UT: Covenant Publishing Co., 2003], 108)
Spencer W. Kimball
“Jesus
Christ our Lord is under no obligation to save this world. The people have
ignored him, disbelieved him, failed to follow him. They stand at his mercy
which will be extended only if they repent. But to what extent have we
repented? Another prophet said, ‘We call evil good,
and good evil.’ Men have rationalized themselves into thinking that they
are ‘not so bad.’ Are they fully ripe? Has the rot of age and flabbiness set
in? Can they change? They see evil in their enemies, but none in themselves. Even
in the true Church numerous of its people fail to attend their meetings, to
tithe their incomes, to have their regular prayers, to keep all the
commandments. We can transform, but will we? It seems that we would rather tax
ourselves into slavery than to pay our tithes; rather build protections and
walls than drop to our knees with our families in solemn prayers night and
morning.” (Conference Report, Oct. 1, 1961, p.31)
2 Ne 15:21 Wo unto the wise in their own eyes
N. Eldon Tanner
“[when
people] become learned in the worldly things such as science and philosophy,
[they] become self-sufficient and are prepared to lean unto their own
understanding, even to the point where they think they are independent of God;
and because of their worldly learning they feel that if they cannot prove
physically, mathematically, or scientifically that God lives, they can and
should feel free to question and even to deny God and Jesus Christ. Then many
of our professors begin to teach perverse things, to lead away disciples after
them; and our youth whom we send to them for learning accept them as authority,
and many are caused to lose their faith in God…
“How
much wiser and better it is for man to accept the simple truths of the gospel
and to accept as authority God, the Creator of the world, and his Son Jesus
Christ, and to accept by faith those things which he cannot disprove and for
which he cannot give a better explanation. He must be prepared to acknowledge
that there are certain things—many, many things—that he cannot understand.” (Conference
Report, Oct. 1968, pp.48-9 as taken from the 1981 Old Testament Institute
Manual)
2 Ne 15:23 Who justify the wicked for reward,
and take away the righteousness
Hugh Nibley
“This
recalls how the Gadianton robbers, when they finally got control of the
government and the law courts, when ‘they did obtain
the sole management of the government,’ at once turned ‘their backs upon the poor and the meek’ (Helaman
6:39), ‘filling the judgment-seats’ with
their own people (Helaman 7:4), ‘letting the guilty
and the wicked go unpunished because of their money.’ (Helaman 7:5.)
They ‘justify the wicked for reward,’ says
Isaiah (5:23). (Old Testament and Related Studies, p. 228).
2 Ne 15:25 Therefore, is the anger of the Lord kindled against his
people
“Can God be angry? The Scriptures say he can. For instance, Num. 25:4; 32:14; Deut. 21:20, and many other passages. The question is similar to another: ‘Can God hear?’ Or ‘see?’ The Psalmist answers that query by propounding another: ‘He that planted the ear, shall he not hear? He that formed the eye, shall he not see? He that chastiseth the heathen, shall he not correct?’ (Psalm 94:9, 10) May we not continue and ask: ‘He that made his children sensitive to the injustice and sufferings of fellow beings, shall he be immovable, himself as a cold marble statue?’ That is unthinkable. The Scriptures speak not only of his wrath, but of his ‘fierce wrath.’ However, they also give us to understand that,
‘His anger endureth but a moment,
But his favor all our life:
There may be weeping in the evening,
But in the morning there is joy.’
-Psalm
30:6.”
(Reynolds
and Sjodahl, Commentary on the Book of Mormon, vol. 1, pp. 336-7)
During the destruction of
Jerusalem ~ 70 AD, the Romans laid siege to the city, while the inhabitants
languished with famine. Assured that the starving Jews would not be able to put
up a fight, the Roman soldiers attacked the city.
“…when
they went in numbers into the lanes of the city with their swords drawn, they
slew those whom they overtook without and set fire to the houses whither the
Jews were fled, and burnt every soul in them, and laid waste a great many of
the rest; and when they were come to the houses to plunder them, they found in
them entire families of dead men, and the upper rooms full of dead corpses,
that is, of such as died by the famine; they then stood in a horror at this
sight, and went out without touching any thing. But although they had this commiseration
for such as were destroyed in that manner, yet had they not the same for those
that were still alive, but they ran every one through whom they met with, and
obstructed the very lanes with their dead bodies, and made the whole city run
down with blood, to such a degree indeed that the fire of many of the houses
was quenched with these men's blood.” (Josephus, Wars of the Jews, Book
VI, 8:5)
2 Ne 15:26 he will lift up an ensign to the nations
The ensign spoken of means
the gospel and new and everlasting covenant brought through the organization of
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This great message will be
sent to the house of Israel in the last days,
‘And the Lord will set
his hand again the second time to restore his people from their lost and fallen
state. Wherefore, he will proceed to do a marvelous work and a wonder among the
children of men.
Wherefore, he shall
bring forth his words unto them, which words shall judge them at the last day,
for they shall be given them for the purpose of convincing them of the true
Messiah, who was rejected by them; and unto the convincing of them that they
need not look forward any more for a Messiah to come’ (2 Ne 25:17-8).
Joseph Fielding Smith
“CHURCH
IS PROMISED ENSIGN TO WORLD. Over 125 years ago, in the little town of Fayette,
Seneca County, New York, the Lord set up an ensign to the nations. It was in
fulfilment of the prediction made by the Prophet Isaiah, which I have read.
That ensign was the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which was
established for the last time, never again to be destroyed or given to other
people. It was the greatest event the world has seen since the day that the
Redeemer was lifted upon the cross and worked out the infinite and eternal
atonement. It meant more to mankind than anything else that has occurred since
that day.
“No
event should have been heralded among the people with greater effectiveness and
received with greater evidence of joy and satisfaction. The nations should have
rejoiced and welcomed it with gladness of heart, for with it came the
establishment of divine truth in the earth-the gospel of Jesus Christ, which is
the power of God unto salvation unto all who believe. The world had been
without this gospel for many hundreds of years, ever since the great apostasy
and turning away from the truth which had been established by the primitive
Church.
“Following
the raising of this ensign, the Lord sent forth his elders clothed with the
priesthood and with power and authority, among the nations of the earth,
bearing witness unto all peoples of the restoration of his Church, and calling
upon the children of men to repent and receive the gospel; for now it was being
preached in all the world as a witness before the end should come, that is, the
end of the reign of wickedness and the establishment of the millennial reign of
peace. The elders went forth as they were commanded, and are still preaching
the gospel and gathering out from the nations the seed of Israel unto whom the
promise was made.” (Doctrines of Salvation, vol. 3, pp. 254-5)
“Many ancient prophecies foretold that in the last days the Lord would set up an ensign to the nations, a standard to which Israel and the righteous of all nations might gather. (Isa. 5:26; 11:10-12; 18:3; 30:17-26; 31:9; 49:22; 62:10; Zech. 9:16.) This ensign is the new and everlasting covenant, the gospel of salvation (D. & C. 49:9); it is the great latter-day Zion (D. & C. 64:41-43); it is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.” (Mormon Doctrine, p. 228)
2 Ne 15:26-29 they shall come with speed
swiftly
LeGrand Richards
“Since
there were no such things as trains and airplanes in that day, Isaiah could
hardly have mentioned them by name, but he seems to have described them in unmistakable
words. How better could ‘their horses’ hoofs be
counted like flint, and their wheel like a whirlwind’ than in the modern
train? How better could ‘Their roaring…be like a
lion’ than in the roar of the airplane? Trains and airplanes do not stop
for night. Therefore, was not Isaiah justified in saying ‘none shall slumber nor sleep; neither shall the girdle of
their loins be loosed, nor the latchet of their shoes be broken’? With
this manner of transportation the Lord can really ‘hiss
unto them from the end of the earth,’ that ‘they
shall come with speed swiftly.’ (A Marvelous Work and a Wonder,
p. 236)
2 Ne 15:27 None shall slumber nor sleep
Consider the marvels of
modern transportation. By plane, one can travel to almost anyplace on the earth
in less than 24 hours. In Isaiah’s day, before travelers retired, they would
change into sleeping attire, which necessitated the loosening of ‘the girdle of their loins’ and the removal of
their shoes by breaking the shoe latchet. Isaiah sees that travelers in the
last days would never need to change into sleeping attire; rather, they could
travel across the globe without needing any sleep.
“Isaiah saw many other things in connection with this gathering. He saw that the Lord would gather Israel quickly and with speed, that they would not even have time to loosen the shoe latchets of their shoes, or to slumber or sleep. (See Isa. 5:27) Imagine a statement like that way back in the days of Isaiah, thousands of years ago, with their means of transportation at that time!” (Ensign, Nov. 1975, 50 as taken from Commentaries on Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, ed. by K. Douglas Bassett, [American Fork, UT: Covenant Publishing Co., 2003], 116)
2 Ne 15:30 they shall roar against them like
the roaring of the sea
This verse is not easy to
understand as it is written. If we paraphrase this verse, and take some
liberties based on other scriptures, the meaning is more clear, “And in that
day when Zion is established in great power and glory they (the
inhabitants of Zion) shall roar against them (their enemies) like the roaring
of the sea; and if they (their enemies) look unto their own land,
behold, darkness and sorrow, and the light is darkened in the heavens thereof. But
if they look unto the land of Zion, behold, great light and joy, and the saints
are protected by a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night.”
(See DC 45:70, Moses 7:17, 61, 2 Ne. 14:5)