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Annotations |
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Chapter 6
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1 The words of Jacob, the brother of Nephi, which he spake
unto the people of Nephi:
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2 Behold, my beloved brethren, I, Jacob, having been
called of God, and ordained after the manner of his holy order, and having
been consecrated by my brother Nephi, unto whom ye look as a king or a
protector, and on whom ye depend for safety, behold ye know that I have
spoken unto you exceedingly many things.
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3 Nevertheless, I speak unto you again; for I am desirous
for the welfare of your souls. Yea, mine anxiety is great for you; and ye
yourselves know that it ever has been. For I have exhorted you with all
diligence; and I have taught you the words of my father; and I have spoken
unto you concerning all things which are written, from the creation of the
world.
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4 And now, behold, I would speak unto you concerning
things which are, and which are to come; wherefore, I will read you the words
of Isaiah. And they are the words which my brother has desired that I should
speak unto you. And I speak unto you for your sakes, that ye may learn and
glorify the name of your God.
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5 And now, the words which I shall read are they which
Isaiah spake concerning all the house of Israel; wherefore, they may be
likened unto you, for ye are of the house of Israel. And there are many
things which have been spoken by Isaiah which may be likened unto you,
because ye are of the house of Israel.
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6 And now, these are the words: Thus saith the Lord God:
Behold, I will lift up mine hand to the Gentiles, and set up my standard to
the people; and they shall bring thy sons in their arms, and thy daughters
shall be carried upon their shoulders.
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2 Ne 6:6-7
He is quoting Isaiah 49:22-23 in these verses. There seems to
be a consensus among serious biblical scholars that this was written during
the Babylonian exile, in other words, it appears to have been written after
Lehi left Jerusalem.
“Modern scholarship considers the Book of Isaiah to be an anthology, the two
principal compositions of which are the Book of Isaiah proper (chapters 1-39,
with some exceptions), containing the words of the prophet Isaiah himself,
dating from the time of the First Temple, around 700 BCE, and Second Isaiah
(Deutero-Isaiah, chapters 40-66), comprising the words of an anonymous
prophet, who lived some one hundred and fifty years later, around the time of
the Babylonian exile”
(RationalWiki: Book of Isaiah).
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7 And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens
thy nursing mothers; they shall bow down to thee with their faces towards the
earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the
Lord; for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.
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Annotation for 2 Ne 6:6-7 above
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8 And now I, Jacob, would speak somewhat concerning these
words. For behold, the Lord has shown me that those who were at Jerusalem,
from whence we came, have been slain and carried away captive.
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9 Nevertheless, the Lord has shown unto me that they
should return again. And he also has shown unto me that the Lord God, the
Holy One of Israel, should manifest himself unto them in the flesh; and after
he should manifest himself they should scourge him and crucify him, according
to the words of the angel who spake it unto me.
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10 And after they have hardened their hearts and stiffened
their necks against the Holy One of Israel, behold, the judgments of the Holy
One of Israel shall come upon them. And the day cometh that they shall be
smitten and afflicted.
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11 Wherefore, after they are driven to and fro, for thus
saith the angel, many shall be afflicted in the flesh, and shall not be
suffered to perish, because of the prayers of the faithful; they shall be
scattered, and smitten, and hated; nevertheless, the Lord will be merciful
unto them, that when they shall come to the knowledge of their Redeemer, they
shall be gathered together again to the lands of their inheritance.
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12 And blessed are the Gentiles, they of whom the prophet
has written; for behold, if it so be that they shall repent and fight not
against Zion, and do not unite themselves to that great and abominable
church, they shall be saved; for the Lord God will fulfil his covenants which
he has made unto his children; and for this cause the prophet has written
these things.
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13 Wherefore, they that fight against Zion and the
covenant people of the Lord shall lick up the dust of their feet; and the
people of the Lord shall not be ashamed. For the people of the Lord are they
who wait for him; for they still wait for the coming of the Messiah.
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14 And behold, according to the words of the prophet, the
Messiah will set himself again the second time to recover them; wherefore, he
will manifest himself unto them in power and great glory, unto the
destruction of their enemies, when that day cometh when they shall believe in
him; and none will he destroy that believe in him.
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15 And they that believe not in him shall be destroyed,
both by fire, and by tempest, and by earthquakes, and by bloodsheds, and by
pestilence, and by famine. And they shall know that the Lord is God, the Holy
One of Israel.
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16 For shall the prey be taken from the mighty, or the
lawful captive delivered?
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2 Ne 6:16-18
He is quoting Isaiah 49:24-26 in these verses. There seems to
be a consensus among serious biblical scholars that this was written during
the Babylonian exile, in other words, it appears to have been written after
Lehi left Jerusalem.
“Modern scholarship considers the Book of Isaiah to be an anthology, the two
principal compositions of which are the Book of Isaiah proper (chapters 1-39,
with some exceptions), containing the words of the prophet Isaiah himself,
dating from the time of the First Temple, around 700 BCE, and Second Isaiah
(Deutero-Isaiah, chapters 40-66), comprising the words of an anonymous
prophet, who lived some one hundred and fifty years later, around the time of
the Babylonian exile”
(RationalWiki: Book of Isaiah).
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17 But thus saith the Lord: Even the captives of the
mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered;
for the Mighty God shall deliver his covenant people. For thus saith the
Lord: I will contend with them that contendeth with thee—
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Annotation for 2 Ne 6:16-18 above
Also, note the bold text in verses 17 and 18. It didn’t quite work out this way for the gentiles who are
blamed for driving the Saints to Utah. Of course, other branches of the
Mormon restoration movement stayed in the Midwest without much contention
from their gentile neighbors, so was the oppression of the early saints as
horribly one-sided and unprovoked as often described?
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18 And I will feed them that oppress thee, with their
own flesh; and they shall be drunken with their own blood as with
sweet wine; and all flesh shall know that I the Lord am thy Savior and thy
Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.
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Annotation for 2 Ne 6:16-18 above
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