Isaiah is known for dual, or multiple, prophecies. While he is best understood in the context of his day, there are many future fulfillments. When Moroni appeared to Joseph Smith, he recited Isaiah 11 “saying that it was about to be fulfilled,” and indeed it came to fruition in Joseph’s lifetime. It’s almost certain that Joseph Smith became the “root of Jesse” spoken of “unto whom rightly belongs the priesthood, and the keys of the kingdom, for an ensign, and for the gathering of my people in the last days.” (D&C 113:6). As the Melchizedek Priesthood was restored in our dispensation, the Lord said, “Unto whom I have committed the keys of my kingdom, and a dispensation of the gospel for the last times; and for the fulness of times, in the which I will gather together in one all things, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth” (D&C 27:13). And every time you see the word ensign in Isaiah, you can translate it as the “restored gospel.”
But before we can understand Isaiah 11, we first must look at chapter 10, which is about the destruction of Assyria and its parallel with the destruction of the wicked in the last days. Another thing about Isaiah is that when he talks about trees, he is almost always talking about people. So, to get to the “stem of Jesse” in Isaiah 11:1, the Lord has to cut down most of the trees. Isaiah writes, “And the rest of the trees of his forest shall be few, that a child may write (count) them” (Isaiah 10:19).
So, Isaiah 11 begins with a stump. Stem actually means “stump or trunk of a tree.” But out of this stump will grow a Branch (Christ), who was a descendant of Jesse and his son, David.
Speaking of Jesus Christ, Isaiah 11:5 says, “And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins.” This is speaking of the symbolic clothing of Jesus Christ. Reins are literally kidneys, but the term applies to the “center of feeling, awareness, such as joy or pain, much as current English uses heart” (Bible Dictionary). The Hebrew word for righteousness is tsedeq, and the Hebrew word for faithfulness is ’emuwnah, which can mean “verily, truly, or truth.” We see righteousness and truth paired together in many examples of scripture. In Psalm 85:11 and Moses 7:62, we see righteousness coming down from heaven in the form of revelation and truth coming out of the earth in the form of the Book of Mormon.
We examined in an earlier post how the veil of the temple was split into three sections, representing three gateways to the throne of God in the Holy of Holies. The veil was hung on four pillars creating three sections of the veil (Exodus 26:32). Scholars, such as Matthew Brown, have equated these sections of the veil with the traits of righteousness, truth, and uprightness as described in temple Psalm 15:2. These three virtues are repeated in 1 Kings 3:6, where they appear to be prerequisites of kingship. Nephi speaks of these three virtues in 1 Nephi 16:3, where they are required for one to be “lifted up at the last day.”
We also examined Psalm 89:8, where the same Hebrew word for truth appears in conjunction with the Hebrew word cabiyb, meaning “circuit or compass.” We will look at more symbolism for righteousness in the next section of Isaiah (hopefully next week).
