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Isaiah was a prophet and seer who ministered between the years 740 and 700 BC (or perhaps 699 BC or even later; scholars do not always agree on the dates of Isaiah’s ministry). His father’s name was Amoz (see Isaiah 1:1), not to be confused with the prophet Amos. Isaiah lived and prophesied in Jerusalem, during the reigns of Kings Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah (1:1), and he personally knew some or all of these kings (see the discussion below). Isaiah’s ministry may have begun about the time that he saw the Lord, which was during the year that King Uzziah died (6:1). An old Jewish tradition states that King Manasseh executed Isaiah, perhaps by sawing him asunder (see also Hebrews 11:37). Several Old Testament chapters provide us with information regarding Isaiah and his ministry (see Isaiah 36–39; 2 Kings 14–20; 2 Chronicles 26–32). This chapter details this available information, giving insight into Isaiah’s family, his visions, and his relationships with the various kings of Jerusalem.

Figure 3.1. Genealogical tree of Isaiah

Isaiah’s Family

Isaiah was married to the “prophetess” (Isaiah 8:3; we do not know her name). Whether she was called a “prophetess” because she possessed prophetic gifts, similar to Miriam (see Exodus 15:20), Deborah (see Judges 4:4), and Huldah (see 2 Kings 22:14), or whether she earned this name because she was the wife of Isaiah the prophet, is unclear.

Isaiah and his wife were the parents of at least two children—Shearjashub and Mahershalalhashbaz. One ancient Jewish source suggests that Isaiah also had a daughter,[1] but there is no scriptural support for this. Isaiah and his children served as “signs,” or types and shadows: “Behold, I and the children whom the Lord hath given me are for signs and for wonders in Israel from the Lord of Hosts” (Isaiah 8:18). For example, the name Isaiah (Jehovah is Salvation), prophesies of Jesus Christ and the salvation that comes through his Atonement. The names Shearjashub and Mahershalalhashbaz are also prophetic. Mahershalalhashbaz (speed, spoil, hasten, plunder) speaks of the disaster that would come upon the Israelite people when the Assyrians would speedily conquer them and then plunder their possessions (see Isaiah 8:1–4). Shearjashub (a remnant will return) refers to the time when a remnant of Israel will return to the lands of promise (see Isaiah 7:3; 10:20–22). See table 3.1 for more on the significance of the names in Isaiah’s family.

Table 3.1. Meanings of the Names of Isaiah and His Children—“Signs and Wonders in Israel” (Isaiah 8:18).

Isaiah’s Ministry

Isaiah wrote and prophesied on scores of significant topics, including the nature and character of God and his power and holiness. Isaiah also prophesied of Jesus Christ’s birth, ministry, Atonement, death, Resurrection, Second Coming, and millennial reign; God’s judgments against wicked people and their punishments; the peace and joy that come to the righteous when they keep God’s commandments; God’s sacred temples and the covenants associated with them; the nothingness of idols and false gods and the empty outcomes of false and counterfeit worship; the Restoration of the gospel and the building of Zion in the last days; the scattering and gathering of Israel; and many other events and doctrines. As Isaiah wrote about all of these and other topics, he used poetry and a variety of symbols.

Isaiah prophesied concerning “Judah and Jerusalem”—essentially the entire house of Israel (see 1 Nephi 19:24; 2 Nephi 6:5; 3 Nephi 23:2). Isaiah was also a prophet to many nations and kingdoms (see chapter 4 in this volume). Isaiah’s words are relevant throughout the ages to all nations and peoples.

Figure 3.2. Michelangelo’s painting of the prophet Isaiah. (Fresco by Michelangelo. “Jesaja.” Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)

Isaiah Sees the Lord on His Throne

Isaiah, who was a seer, actually saw in vision many of the items that are written in his book. Isaiah 1:1 claims to be “the vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz, which he saw" (compare also Isaiah 13:1). Isaiah also had a grand vision of the Lord in his temple: “In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple. Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly.[2] And one cried unto another, and said, ‘Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory’” (6:1–3).

Isaiah’s grand vision of the Lord probably took place near the beginning of his ministry. The Lord referred to here is none other than Jesus Christ (see 2 Nephi 11:2–3; John 12:41), and the temple is the temple in heaven—that is, the celestial temple. Isaiah saw Jesus Christ sitting on his exalted throne in the temple’s throne room (for descriptions of the throne room, see Ezekiel 1:26; Revelation 4:2–4; Doctrine and Covenants 137:3), which is the holy of holies. Isaiah relates the vision in the first person, using the pronouns I and me.

Joseph Smith spoke of Isaiah and other ancients and taught that their great visions came after they had received the second Comforter:

When any man obtains this last Comforter, he will have the personage of Jesus Christ to attend him, or appear unto him from time to time, and even He will manifest the Father unto him, and they will take up their abode with him, and the visions of the heavens will be opened unto him, and the Lord will teach him face to face, and he may have a perfect knowledge of the mysteries of the Kingdom of God; and this is the state and place the ancient Saints arrived at when they had such glorious visions—Isaiah, Ezekiel, John upon the Isle of Patmos.[3]

Isaiah’s Dramatization—the Conquest of Egypt and Ethiopia (Isaiah 20:1–6)

Following this description of Isaiah’s vision, Isaiah 20 presents a perplexing text regarding Isaiah “walking naked and barefoot”:

In the year that Tartan came unto Ashdod, (when Sargon the king of Assyria sent him,) and fought against Ashdod, and took it; At the same time spake the Lord by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, Go and loose the sackcloth from off thy loins, and put off thy shoe from thy foot. And he did so, walking naked and barefoot. And the Lord said, Like as my servant Isaiah hath walked naked and barefoot three years for a sign and wonder upon Egypt and upon Ethiopia; So shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptians prisoners, and the Ethiopians captives, young and old, naked and barefoot, even with their buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt. (vv. 1–4)

Was Isaiah really naked? Sackcloth was an outer garment that signified repentance, humility, or mourning (see Psalm 35:13; Matthew 11:21). It is likely that God commanded Isaiah to remove the sackcloth and his sandals. Naked may have meant that he was without this outer garment and his sandals—in other words, without his usual covering. Isaiah was most likely not nude, which would be contrary to God’s teachings regarding modesty. In any case, we simply do not know what covering Isaiah was wearing during this time period.

Why did the Lord instruct Isaiah to remove some of his clothing? Isaiah’s physical appearance was a sign to Egypt and Ethiopia that the cruel Assyrian army would conquer Egypt and Cush and lead their captives away, forcing them to walk “naked and barefoot.” Isaiah’s dramatization, then, served as a prophecy that Assyria would capture and enslave many Egyptians and Ethiopians.

There are several other prophets in the Old Testament who also acted out or dramatized prophecies, and there are several prophecies that consisted of symbolic gestures and movements (we call them nonverbal prophecies).[4] For example, Moses lifted a brazen serpent on a pole (see Numbers 21:6–9), symbolizing that Jesus would be lifted on the cross; Ahijah ripped a garment into twelve pieces and gave ten pieces to Jeroboam, signifying the division of the kingdom of Israel and Jeroboam’s rule over ten of the tribes (see 1 Kings 11:29–31); and Ezekiel made slashing movements with a sword (see Ezekiel 21:8–17), symbolizing that many from Israel would die by the sword (because of their sins).

Isaiah and Ahaz, King of Judah

The prophet Isaiah personally knew Ahaz, King of Judah, and had important dealings with him. King Ahaz was an extremely wicked king—he burned his own children with fire, established false temple worship, made idols for Baal, and more (see 2 Chronicles 28:1–25). During his reign, the armies of two other kingdoms—Israel (also called Ephraim) and Syria (Aram)—invaded Judah. The war was fierce, and Judah lost 120,000 warriors in a single day “because they had forsaken the Lord God” (2 Chronicles 28:6). In this context of false worship and warring kingdoms, Isaiah met King Ahaz at an aqueduct of the Upper Pool in Jerusalem (see Isaiah 7:3) and uttered the following three prophecies (see 7:4–25):

Figure 3.3. Isaiah and his son Shearjashub meet King Ahaz at the aqueduct. (“The Art Bible, Comprising the Old and New Testaments—with Numerous Illustrations [1896].” Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)

Prophecy #1

Isaiah prophesied, in the presence of Ahaz, that Judah’s two enemies (at that time)—Syria and Israel and their kings and armies—would be like smoldering sticks of firewood; their power would soon be extinguished and their plans for conquering Judah would be unsuccessful (see Isaiah 7:4–9). The Lord’s promise was assertive: “It shall not stand, neither shall it come to pass” (v. 7). God, who is omnipotent and in charge of the affairs of nations, knows the future. He foresees not only what will happen but also what will not happen.

Another important point: God commanded Isaiah to take his son, Shearjashub, to meet King Ahaz at the aqueduct. Why take Shearjashub? Because Isaiah and his children were “for signs and for wonders” (Isaiah 8:18), or symbols, in Israel. The Hebrew name Shearjashub means “a remnant will return.” In view of the imminent wars and destruction, Shearjashub was a living symbol that a remnant of Israel would eventually return to its land and God, notwithstanding that Israel would soon be scattered and, for the most part, destroyed.

Prophecy #2

To give King Ahaz confidence in Isaiah’s prophecy (see Prophecy #1), the Lord invited King Ahaz to ask for a sign; however, Ahaz, a wicked man, refused this magnanimous gift from the Lord. The Lord determined to give Ahaz a sign anyway—the sign of Immanuel, which is a sign of the birth of Jesus Christ (see Isaiah 7:10–16; Matthew 1:21–23).

Prophecy #3

Isaiah prophesied that the Lord would use Assyria as an instrument to invade the kingdom of Judah (see Isaiah 7:17–25). This prophecy was possibly fulfilled when the Assyrian King seized much of Judah (ca. 701 BC). The Lord would protect Jerusalem, which would later fall to the Babylonians (see Isaiah 36–39). Why would the Lord allow this invasion into the kingdom of Judah? Because King Ahaz and many of his people had turned to idolatry and a variety of gross sins.

Isaiah and Hezekiah, King of Judah

The prophet Isaiah did not only have associations with King Ahaz; he also had connections with King Hezekiah, Ahaz’s son. Unlike Ahaz, who was wicked, Hezekiah was a God-fearing man. The author of the book of 2 Kings describes Hezekiah as a king who “did that which was right in the sight of the Lord. . . . He trusted in the Lord God of Israel; so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor any that were before him. For he clave to the Lord, and departed not from following him, but kept his commandments” (2 Kings 18:3, 5–6). According to Jewish legend, Isaiah was Hezekiah’s father-in-law.[6] If this is true, this may help explain why the prophet had direct access to the king.

Isaiah interacted with Hezekiah with regard to the following: (1) the Assyrian King Sennacherib, (2) King Hezekiah’s sickness, and (3) Isaiah’s prophecy of Babylonian captivity.

The Assyrian King Sennacherib (Isaiah 36 and 37)

During Hezekiah’s reign as Judah’s king, King Sennacherib of Assyria and his armies conquered most of Judah’s fortified cities (see Isaiah 36:1). After that, Sennacherib sent his armies, led by his chief officer, to Jerusalem (v. 2) to demand gifts and inform Judah of the terms of surrender, which included the deportation of the inhabitants of Jerusalem (see vv. 8, 16–17). The chief officer instructed Jerusalem’s inhabitants not to rely on Egypt (see vv. 4–6) or God (see vv. 7, 10, 15, 18–20) for deliverance. Hezekiah paid Sennacherib 30 talents of gold and 300 talents of silver (an immense amount of money) with the hope that the Assyrians would depart from the land and allow Jerusalem’s inhabitants to live in peace (see 2 Kings 18:14). It is also possible that Hezekiah was trying to buy time with this payment so that he could take time to prepare Jerusalem for Assyria’s attack.

After King Sennacherib of Assyria conquered several cities of Judah and threatened the capital city Jerusalem, King Hezekiah demonstrated humility and grief (see Isaiah 37:1), sought Isaiah’s advice (see vv. 2–7), and prayed to the Lord in the temple precinct (see vv. 14–20).

After Hezekiah prayed for deliverance from the great Assyrian army (see Isaiah 37:16–20), Isaiah prophesied, uttering the following words to Hezekiah:

Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Whereas thou hast prayed to me against Sennacherib king of Assyria: This is the word which the Lord hath spoken concerning him; The virgin, the daughter of Zion, hath despised thee, and laughed thee to scorn; the daughter of Jerusalem [“virgin,” “daughter of Zion,” and “daughter of Jerusalem” are names of Jerusalem] hath shaken her head at thee. . . . Therefore thus saith the Lord concerning the king of Assyria, He shall not come into this city, nor shoot an arrow there, nor come before it with shields, nor cast a bank against it. By the way that he came, by the same shall he return, and shall not come into this city, saith the Lord. For I will defend this city to save it for mine own sake, and for my servant David’s sake. (Isaiah 37:21–22, 33–35)

In fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy, neither the king of Assyria nor his armies entered Jerusalem to destroy it and its inhabitants. Rather, the Lord sent his angel to destroy the king’s army: “Then the angel of the Lord went forth, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians a hundred and fourscore and five thousand: and when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses” (Isaiah 37:36).

As for the fate of King Sennacherib, Isaiah 37:37–38 states that he was murdered in the temple of his god, Nisroch: “So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed, and went and returned, and dwelt at Nineveh. And it came to pass, as he was worshipping in the house of Nisroch his god, that Adrammelech and Sharezer his sons smote him with the sword; and they escaped into the land of Armenia: and Esar-haddon his son reigned in his stead.” Sennacherib was killed by the sword, in fulfillment of a prophecy of Isaiah (see 2 Kings 19:6–7).

King Hezekiah’s Sickness (Isaiah 38:1–8)

At one point in his life, King Hezekiah became very sick, near the point of death. The prophet Isaiah came to him and prophesied, “Thus saith the Lord, Set thine house in order: for thou shalt die, and not live” (Isaiah 38:1). Hezekiah, of course was greatly disturbed by these words. So he “prayed unto the Lord, And said, Remember now, O Lord, I beseech thee, how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is good in thy sight” (vv. 2–3). The record also states that “Hezekiah wept sore” (v. 3).

Because of King Hezekiah’s faith, and for the sake of the covenant that the Lord made with King David, Hezekiah was promised fifteen more years of life. “Then came the word of the Lord to Isaiah, saying, Go, and say to Hezekiah, Thus saith the Lord, the God of David thy father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I will add unto thy days fifteen years” (Isaiah 38:4–5).

Isaiah’s Prophecy of Babylonian Captivity (Isaiah 39:1–8)

Isaiah also interacted with King Hezekiah with regard to Prince Merodach-baladan, the son of King Baladan of Babylon, during the prince’s visit to Jerusalem. When Prince Merodach-baladan visited Jerusalem, King Hezekiah showed him the great temple treasury, the armory, and other treasuries. As it turned out, showing all these things to the prince was a great mistake! Isaiah was prompted, on this occasion, to prophesy that the Babylonians would conquer the kingdom of Judah and plunder its treasuries (see Isaiah 39:1–8).

The Lord revealed through his prophet Isaiah that “nothing shall be left” (Isaiah 39:6) in the treasuries. Most importantly, some of King Hezekiah’s descendants would be taken by force and made eunuchs in the king of Babylon’s palace. “Then said Isaiah to Hezekiah, Hear the word of the Lord of hosts: Behold, the days come, that all that is in thine house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store until this day, shall be carried to Babylon: nothing shall be left, saith the Lord. And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, which thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon” (vv. 5–7). This prophecy was fulfilled when Babylon conquered Jerusalem.

Isaiah and Manasseh, King of Judah

King Manasseh, the son of King Hezekiah and Hephzibah, ascended the throne when he was twelve years old. He reigned as king of Judah in Jerusalem for 55 years (see 2 Kings 21:1). Unlike his devout father Hezekiah, Manasseh was very wicked. His evil acts included building altars to idols, practicing idolatry, participating in fortune-telling, dealing with necromancers and mediums, shedding innocent blood, and causing others to sin (see 2 Kings 21:3–11). As recorded in 2 Kings 21, Manasseh “wrought much wickedness in the sight of the Lord, to provoke him to anger. . . . Manasseh seduced [the people of Judah] to do more evil than did the nations whom the Lord destroyed before the children of Israel. . . . Manasseh shed innocent blood very much, till he had filled Jerusalem from one end to another; beside his sin wherewith he made Judah to sin, in doing that which was evil in the sight of the Lord” (vv. 6, 9, 16).

One ancient rabbinic source suggests that the prophet Isaiah was King Manasseh’s maternal grandfather;[7] however, this source is not a scriptural text and must therefore be read with a certain amount of caution.

Other ancient rabbinic sources[8] claim that King Manasseh participated in the martyrdom of Isaiah, wherein Isaiah was sawn asunder in a tree. There are different versions of this account, and the reliability of these sources are in question. Some scholars cite Hebrews 11:36, which states that some ancient prophets “were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword,” as support that Isaiah was sawn asunder. Unfortunately, we may not know the full truth concerning Isaiah’s death until we have better sources.

Was Isaiah’s Name Recently Found on a Clay Seal?

In 2018, Israeli archaeologist Eilat Mazar reported that her team, who were working in Jerusalem, had discovered a clay seal that reads in Paleo-Hebrew “leyesha‘yah[u].” This translates in English to, “[belonging] to Isaiah.” The seal also has the Hebrew letters nvy, which is the first portion of the word translated into English as “prophet.” Unfortunately, the seal is damaged after nvy, and we cannot be certain that it once read “prophet.” Although the name “Isaiah” is certain, we do not know whether or not the seal belonged to the prophet Isaiah.[9] Of importance, this seal was discovered near another seal, which has the name Hezekiah. Isaiah and Hezekiah, as it is known, were well-acquainted when Isaiah served as the prophet.

Isaiah was a prophet of God who lived in Jerusalem, was married to a woman called the “prophetess,” and had two sons—Shearjashub and Mahershalalhashbaz. Isaiah’s ministry lasted four decades (or perhaps longer), and during these years he wrote and prophesied on scores of topics of great import, including the power and holiness of God; Jesus Christ’s birth, ministry, Atonement, and Second Coming; and the peace and joy that come to the righteous when they obey God’s commandments.

As the Lord’s seer, Isaiah saw in vision many of the items that are written in his book. As we learn more about Isaiah the man, we can come to better understand his prophecies and the majestic impact his words have had in both ancient and modern times.

Notes

[1] See the Babylonian Talmud, Berakhot 10a.

[2] Regarding the seraphs mentioned in Isaiah’s vision, they are an important class of angels. Based on the Hebrew root saraph (to burn), the term seraph may be translated “burning one” or “bright shining one,” referring to the seraphs’ glorious condition and location near the Lord’s throne. In a revelation, Joseph Smith described the “bright, shining seraphs around [God’s] throne” who shout “acclamations of praise, singing Hosanna to God and the Lamb!” (Doctrine and Covenants 109:79), some of whom are premortal spirits (see Doctrine and Covenants 38:1). The seraphs’ wings are likely not literal; rather, they are a “representation of power, to move, to act, etc” (Doctrine and Covenants 77:4).

[3] Smith, Teachings, 150–51; emphasis added.

[4] For a study of dramatized or nonverbal prophecies in the Old Testament, see Parry, “Symbolic Action as Prophecy,” 84–100.

[5] Benson, “Fourteen Fundamentals.”

[6] “[Hezekiah] finally married Isaiah’s daughter, who bore him Manasseh (Ber. 10a).” Hirsch, “Hezekiah,” Jewish Encyclopedia, 6:381. See also BT Berakhot 10a; and Ginsberg, trans., Legends of the Jews, 4:277, 279.

[7] See note 6.

[8] See Yevamot 49b; Jerusalem Talmud Sanhedrin 10. See also Charles, “Martyrdom of Isaiah,” 2:155–162; and Ginsberg, Legends of the Jews, 4:279.

[9] Mazar, “Is This the Prophet Isaiah’s Signature?,” 64–69.

[10] McConkie, “Keys to Understanding Isaiah,” 81.

[11] Mackley, Wilford Woodruff’s Witness, 278.