The Assyrian King’s Commission to Destroy the World

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Isaiah prophesied in detail the war between good and evil in the last days. He paints a vivid picture of a great Assyrian king, who rises to power and coerces the nations of the earth into bondage and submission to the evil order. The Lord fulfills His promise to protect His covenant people by sending the end-time servant to deliver the faithful from impending doom and to reinstate Zion. 

📖 Study guide

Isaiah’s prophecy to Ahaz about the birth of his son Hezekiah is a metaphor for the Lord’s end-time servant. The Assyrian King is commissioned to destroy the world (Isaiah 9 / 2 Nephi 19).

2 Nephi 19 (Book of Mormon)Isaiah 9 (Isaiah Institute Translation)
1 Nevertheless, the dimness shall not be such as was in her vexation, when at first he lightly afflicted the land of Zebulun, and the land of Naphtali, and afterwards did more grievously afflict by the way of the Red Sea beyond Jordan in Galilee of the nations.
2 The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light; they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.
3 Thou hast multiplied the nation, and increased the joy—they joy before thee according to the joy in harvest, and as men rejoice when they divide the spoil.
4 For thou hast broken the yoke of his burden, and the staff of his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor.
5 For every battle of the warrior is with confused noise, and garments rolled in blood; but this shall be with burning and fuel of fire.
6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder; and his name shall be called, Wonderful, Counselor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
7 Of the increase of government and peace there is no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth, even forever. The zeal of the Lord of Hosts will perform this.
8 The Lord sent his word unto Jacob and it hath lighted upon Israel.
9 And all the people shall know, even Ephraim and the inhabitants of Samaria, that say in the pride and stoutness of heart:
10 The bricks are fallen down, but we will build with hewn stones; the sycamores are cut down, but we will change them into cedars.
11 Therefore the Lord shall set up the adversaries of Rezin against him, and join his enemies together;
12 The Syrians before and the Philistines behind; and they shall devour Israel with open mouth. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.
13 For the people turneth not unto him that smiteth them, neither do they seek the Lord of Hosts.
14 Therefore will the Lord cut off from Israel head and tail, branch and rush in one day.
15 The ancient, he is the head; and the prophet that teacheth lies, he is the tail.
16 For the leaders of this people cause them to err; and they that are led of them are destroyed.
17 Therefore the Lord shall have no joy in their young men, neither shall have mercy on their fatherless and widows; for every one of them is a hypocrite and an evildoer, and every mouth speaketh folly. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.
18 For wickedness burneth as the fire; it shall devour the briers and thorns, and shall kindle in the thickets of the forests, and they shall mount up like the lifting up of smoke.
19 Through the wrath of the Lord of Hosts is the land darkened, and the people shall be as the fuel of the fire; no man shall spare his brother.
20 And he shall snatch on the right hand and be hungry; and he shall eat on the left hand and they shall not be satisfied; they shall eat every man the flesh of his own arm—
21 Manasseh, Ephraim; and Ephraim, Manasseh; they together shall be against Judah. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.		1 But it shall not be gloomy to those who have been in anguish for her. In the past he humbled the lands of Zebulun and Naphtali, but at the last he will exalt the Sea Route by the Jordan in Galilee of the nations.
2 The people walking in darkness have seen a bright light; on the inhabitants of the land of the shadow of Death has the light dawned.
3 You have enlarged the nation and increased its joy; they rejoice at your presence as men rejoice at harvest time,or as men are joyous when they divide spoil.
4 For you have smashed the yoke that burdened them,the staff of submission,the rod of those who subjected them,as in the day of Midian’s defeat.
5 And all boots used in battle and tunics rolled in blood have become fuel for bonfires.
6 For to us a child is born, a son appointed, who will shoulder the burden of government. He will be called Wonderful Counsellor, One Mighty in Valor, a Father for Ever, a Prince of Peace—
7 that sovereignty may be extended and peace have no end; that, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, his rule may be established and upheld by justice and righteousness from this time forth and forever. The zeal of Jehovah of Hosts will accomplish it.
8 This message my Lord sent to Jacob, and it shall befall Israel.
9 And the entire people—Ephraim and those who dwell in Samaria—shall know of it, who say in pride and arrogance of heart,
10 The bricks have fallen down, but we will rebuild with hewn stone; the sycamores have been felled, but we will replace them with cedars!
11 But Jehovah will strengthen Rezin’s enemies against them when he stirs up their adversaries:
12 Aramaeans from the east and Philistines from the west will devour Israel with open mouth. Yet for all this his anger is not abated; his hand is upraised still.
13 But the people do not turn back to him who smites them, nor will they inquire of Jehovah of Hosts.
14 Therefore Jehovah will cut off from Israel head and tail, palm top and reed, in a single day;
15 the elders or notables are the head, the prophets who teach falsehoods, the tail.
16 The leaders of these people have misled them, and those who are led are confused.
17 My Lord is not pleased with their young men, nor does he pity their fatherless and widows, because all alike are godless malefactors, and every mouth utters profanities. Yet for all this his anger is not abated; his hand is upraised still.
18 Wickedness shall be set ablaze like a fire, and briars and thorns shall it consume; it shall ignite the jungle forests, and they shall billow upward in mushrooming clouds of smoke.
19 At the wrath of Jehovah of Hosts the earth is scorched, and people are but fuel for the fire. Men will have no compassion for one another.
20 They will snatch on the right, yet remain hungry; they will devour on the left, but not be satisfied: men will eat the flesh of their own offspring.
21 Manasseh will turn against Ephraim and Ephraim against Manasseh, and both will combine against Judah. Yet for all this his anger is not abated; his hand is upraised still.

Assyrian King’s Rampage & Lord Protects His People

Isaiah 10 and 2 Nephi 20 describe the Assyrian King’s destruction of the world and the Lord saving his people through the end time servant (2 Nephi 20 / Isaiah 10 IIT).

2 Nephi 20 (Book of Mormon)Isaiah 10 (Isaiah Institute Translation)
1 Wo unto them that decree unrighteous decrees, and that write grievousness which they have prescribed;
2 To turn away the needy from judgment, and to take away the right from the poor of my people, that widows may be their prey, and that they may rob the fatherless!
3 And what will ye do in the day of visitation, and in the desolation which shall come from far? to whom will ye flee for help? and where will ye leave your glory?
4 Without me they shall bow down under the prisoners, and they shall fall under the slain. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.
5 O Assyrian, the rod of mine anger, and the staff in their hand is their indignation.
6 I will send him against a hypocritical nation, and against the people of my wrath will I give him a charge to take the spoil, and to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets.
7 Howbeit he meaneth not so, neither doth his heart think so; but in his heart it is to destroy and cut off nations not a few.
8 For he saith: Are not my princes altogether kings?
9 Is not Calno as Carchemish? Is not Hamath as Arpad? Is not Samaria as Damascus?
10 As my hand hath founded the kingdoms of the idols, and whose graven images did excel them of Jerusalem and of Samaria;
11 Shall I not, as I have done unto Samaria and her idols, so do to Jerusalem and to her idols?
12 Wherefore it shall come to pass that when the Lord hath performed his whole work upon Mount Zion and upon Jerusalem, I will punish the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his high looks.
13 For he saith: By the strength of my hand and by my wisdom I have done these things; for I am prudent; and I have moved the borders of the people, and have robbed their treasures, and I have put down the inhabitants like a valiant man;
14 And my hand hath found as a nest the riches of the people; and as one gathereth eggs that are left have I gathered all the earth; and there was none that moved the wing, or opened the mouth, or peeped.
15 Shall the ax boast itself against him that heweth therewith? Shall the saw magnify itself against him that shaketh it? As if the rod should shake itself against them that lift it up, or as if the staff should lift up itself as if it were no wood!
16 Therefore shall the Lord, the Lord of Hosts, send among his fat ones, leanness; and under his glory he shall kindle a burning like the burning of a fire.
17 And the light of Israel shall be for a fire, and his Holy One for a flame, and shall burn and shall devour his thorns and his briers in one day;
18 And shall consume the glory of his forest, and of his fruitful field, both soul and body; and they shall be as when a standard-bearer fainteth.
19 And the rest of the trees of his forest shall be few, that a child may write them.
20 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the remnant of Israel, and such as are escaped of the house of Jacob, shall no more again stay upon him that smote them, but shall stay upon the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.
21 The remnant shall return, yea, even the remnant of Jacob, unto the mighty God.
22 For though thy people Israel be as the sand of the sea, yet a remnant of them shall return; the consumption decreed shall overflow with righteousness.
23 For the Lord God of Hosts shall make a consumption, even determined in all the land.
24 Therefore, thus saith the Lord God of Hosts: O my people that dwellest in Zion, be not afraid of the Assyrian; he shall smite thee with a rod, and shall lift up his staff against thee, after the manner of Egypt.
25 For yet a very little while, and the indignation shall cease, and mine anger in their destruction.
26 And the Lord of Hosts shall stir up a scourge for him according to the slaughter of Midian at the rock of Oreb; and as his rod was upon the sea so shall he lift it up after the manner of Egypt.
27 And it shall come to pass in that day that his burden shall be taken away from off thy shoulder, and his yoke from off thy neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing.
28 He is come to Aiath, he is passed to Migron; at Michmash he hath laid up his carriages.
29 They are gone over the passage; they have taken up their lodging at Geba; Ramath is afraid; Gibeah of Saul is fled.
30 Lift up the voice, O daughter of Gallim; cause it to be heard unto Laish, O poor Anathoth.
31 Madmenah is removed; the inhabitants of Gebim gather themselves to flee.
32 As yet shall he remain at Nob that day; he shall shake his hand against the mount of the daughter of Zion, the hill of Jerusalem.
33 Behold, the Lord, the Lord of Hosts shall lop the bough with terror; and the high ones of stature shall be hewn down; and the haughty shall be humbled.
34 And he shall cut down the thickets of the forests with iron, and Lebanon shall fall by a mighty one.		1 Woe to those who enact unjust laws, who draft oppressive legislation—
2 denying justice to the needy, depriving the poor of my people of their right, making plunder of widows, mere spoil of the fatherless!
3 What will you do in the day of reckoning when the holocaust overtakes you from afar? To whom will you flee for help? Where will you leave your wealth?
4 There shall nothing remain but to kneel among the captives or fall among the slain. Yet for all this his anger is not abated; his hand is upraised still.
5 Hail the Assyrian, the rod of my anger!He is a staff—my wrath in their hand.
6 I will commission him against a godless nation, appoint him over the people deserving of my vengeance, to pillage for plunder, to spoliate for spoil, to tread underfoot like mud in the streets.
7 Nevertheless, it shall not seem so to him; this shall not be what he has in mind.His purpose shall be to annihilate and to exterminate nations not a few.
8 He will say, Are not my commanders kings, one and all?
9 Has not Calno fared like Carchemish? Is not Hamath as Arpad Samaria no better than Damascus?
10 As I could do this to the pagan states, whose statues exceeded those of Jerusalem and Samaria,
11 shall I not do to Jerusalem and its images even as I did to Samaria and its idols?
12 But when my Lord has fully accomplished his work in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, he will punish the king of Assyria for his notorious boasting and infamous conceit,
13 because he said, I have done it by my own ability and shrewdness, for I am ingenious. I have done away with the borders of nations, I have ravaged their reserves, I have vastly reduced the inhabitants.
14 I have impounded the wealth of peoples like a nest, and I have gathered up the whole world as one gathers abandoned eggs; not one flapped its wings, or opened its mouth to utter a peep.
15 Shall an axe exalt itself above the one who hews with it, or a saw vaunt itself over him who handles it?As though the rod wielded him who lifts it up!As though the staff held up the one who is not made of wood!
16 Therefore will the Lord, Jehovah of Hosts, send a consumption into his fertile lands, and cause a fire to flare up like a burning hearth, to undermine his glory:
17 the Light of Israel will be the fire and their Holy One the flame, and it shall burn up and devour his briars and thorns in a single day.
18 His choice forests and productive fields it will consume, both life and substance, turning them into a rotting morass.
19 And the trees left of his forest shall be so few, a child could record them.
20 In that day those who survive of Israel and who escape of the house of Jacob will no longer rely on him who struck them, but will truly rely on Jehovah, the Holy One of Israel:
21 of Jacob a remnant will return to the One Mighty in Valor.
22 For though your people, O Israel, be as the sands of the sea, only a remnant will return; although annihilation is decreed, it shall overflow with righteousness.
23 For the Lord, Jehovah of Hosts, will carry out the utter destruction decreed upon the whole earth.
24 Therefore, thus says my Lord,Jehovah of Hosts:O my people who inhabit Zion, be not afraid of the Assyrians, though they strike you with the rod or raise their staff over you, as did the Egyptians.
25 For my anger will very soon come to an end; my wrath will become their undoing.
26 Jehovah of Hosts will raise the whip against them, as when he struck the Midianites at the Rock of Oreb. His staff is over the Sea, and he will lift it over themas he did to the Egyptians.
27 In that day their burdens shall be lifted from your shoulders, their yoke removed from your neck:the yoke that wore away your fatness shall by fatness wear away.
28 He advances on Aiath, passes through Migron; at Micmash he marshals his weaponry.
29 They cross over the pass, stopping overnight at Geba. Ramah is in a state of alarm, Gibeah of Saul is fleeing.
30 Cry out, O Daughter of Gallim! Hear her, Laishah; answer her, Anathoth!
31 Madmenah has moved out of the way, the inhabitants of Gebim are in full flight.
32 This same day he will but pause at Nob and signal the advance against the mountain of the Daughter of Zion, the hill of Jerusalem.
33 Then will my Lord, Jehovah of Hosts, shatter the towering trees with terrifying power; the high in stature shall be hewn down, the lofty ones leveled.
34 The dense forests shall be battered downwith the force of iron,and Lebanon fall spectacularly.

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