2 Nephi 15

(All of my own thoughts are in red type.5/20 Green 2/21 Orange 5/22 Brown 2023)

Chapter 15

The Lord’s vineyard (Israel) will become desolate, and His people will be scattered—Woes will come upon them in their apostate and scattered state—The Lord will lift an ensign and gather Israel—Compare Isaiah 5. About 559–545 B.C.

  1 ^aAnd then will I Isaiah sing to my well-beloved Christ a song of my beloved, touching his ^bvineyard. the world? In verse 7 he says it is the house of Israel. Does that change the meaning of the rest of the verses? My well-beloved hath a vineyard in a very fruitful hill. The Promised Land (USA)? 
  2 And he fenced it, the house of Israel and gathered out the stones thereof, and planted it with the choicest ^avine, and built a tower in the midst of it, and also made a wine-press therein; and he looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought forth wild grapes. Is the “tower” the prophet of the church? Is the “wine-press” the refining tests? Or is it the covenants that make the Atonement possible for us? (Gileadi) He removes the former wicked occupants and prepares the ground for planting the new.  The tower is for the prophets to keep vigil.  The winepress is so the people can bring forth the fruits of their labors. But wild grapes are fruit that rots before it ripens.
  3 And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem, and men of Judah, judge, I pray you, betwixt me and my vineyard. He again separates Jerusalem and men of Judah. Two different groups? He will expose our actions for what they are, not what we think they are, which fall short of His expectations.   
  4 What could have been done more to my vineyard that I have not done in it? Wherefore, when I looked that it should bring forth grapes it brought forth wild grapes. Here's another reason I think God could show forth His power and give people one more chance to know the gospel. So he can say, "What more could I have done..." 
  5 And now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard—House of Israel (Is this the latter-day covenant Israel? I will ^atake away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up; and I will break down the wall thereof, and it shall be trodden down;
  6 And I will lay it waste; it shall not be pruned nor digged; but there shall come up ^abriers and thorns; I will also command the clouds that they ^brain no rain upon it. The USA loses all protection; famine Or is this about the great Apostasy? Or a future one? Gileadi - the king of Assyria/Babylon is the one who burns and tramples Jehovah's reprobate people  
  7 For the ^avineyard of the Lord of Hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant; Ok, so here they are two groups. Not clear still who the men of Judah are. What does he mean by they are his “pleasant plant”  and he looked for ^bjudgment, and behold, ^coppression; for righteousness, but behold, a cry. Gileadi - Israel and Judah are codenames of Jehovan's covenant people in our day.  
  8 Wo unto them that join ^ahouse to house, till there can be no place, that they may be placed alone in the midst of the earth!
  9 In mine ears, said the Lord of Hosts, of a truth many houses shall be desolate, and great and fair cities without inhabitant.
  10 Yea, ten acres of vineyard shall yield one ^abath, and the seed of a homer shall yield an ephah. Compared to the whole, few convert. 1/10? If there are 330,000 Americans, that's only 33,000. There were 248,000 converts last year. In the world of 7.8 billion, 1/10th would be 780,000. Maybe those numbers would be concentrated in the USA? Hoping... Gileadi - this is literal. Covenant curses come upon the people.  Homes and fields lie desolate and wasted.  The people have produced inferior fruit and so does the land. 
  11 Wo unto them that rise up early in the morning, that they may ^afollow strong drink, that continue until night, and ^bwine inflame them!
  12 And the harp, and the ^aviol, the tabret, and pipe, and wine are in their feasts; but they ^bregard not the work of the Lord, neither consider the operation of his hands. Gileadi - "hands" refers to his servant who will deliver Jehovah's final warning. The self-indulgent pleasure seekers and all who disregard what Jehovah is doing, bring upon themselves his covenant curse.  
  13 Therefore, my people are gone into ^acaptivity, because they have no ^bknowledge; and their honorable men are famished, and their multitude dried up with thirst. who are His people here? If it is his church, who are the honorable men? or is it just those we esteem as honorable? Gileadi - without divine revelation from God, his people are vulnerable to the the world determining her fate.  His people no longer know God and are taken captive by their enemies.
  14 Therefore, hell hath enlarged herself, and opened her mouth without measure; and their glory, and their multitude, and their pomp, and he that rejoiceth, shall descend into it. It feels like we are in captivity to the lies of the devil and people have no knowledge of the Lord. The deep state have enlarged themselves and opened their mouth without measure! Gileadi - "mouth" is a codename for the archtryrant. 
  15 And the mean man shall be ^abrought down, and the ^bmighty man shall be humbled, and the eyes of the ^clofty shall be humbled.
  16 But the Lord of Hosts shall be exalted in ^ajudgment, and God that is holy shall be sanctified in righteousness. Gileadi - Jehovah will restore justice and righteousness among them by sending the end time servant.  When they reject him, Jehovah is compelled to punish them.  Those who are pure he liberates.
  17 Then shall the lambs feed after their manner, and the waste places of the ^afat ones shall strangers eat. When the Day of Judgment is over, Jehovah's covenant people will inherit the wealthy estates of the wicked who perish. 
  18 Wo unto them that draw iniquity with cords of ^avanity, and sin as it were with a cart rope;
  19 That say: Let him ^amake speed, ^bhasten his work, that we may ^csee it; and let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw nigh and come, that we may know it. Gileadi - Another curse comes upon people obsessed with worldly pastimes they will not give up.  They haul their idols with them wherever they go. They mock those who anticipate the impending fulfillment of Jehovah and ask for signs to satisfy their curiosity.
  20 Wo unto them that ^acall ^bevil good, and good evil, that put ^cdarkness for light, and light for darkness, that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! Totally our day! Beside their literal meaning, good and evil represent the covenant keeping and covenant breaking, blessing and curse. Jehovah's people choose spiritual blindness over Jehovah's light.  They reject His servant who is appointed as a "light to the nations" and fall prey to the king of Assyria/Babylon who typifies the darkness of Jehovah's Day of Judgment.  
  21 Wo unto the ^awise in their own eyes and ^bprudent in their own sight! Jehovah performs "wonder upon wonder" making the knowledge of their wise men seem insignificant.  
  22 Wo unto the mighty to drink ^awine, and men of strength to mingle strong drink; "wine" is a word link to the opulent of Jehovah's people who are overcome with "wine" and their prophets laboring under a "wine" of delusion, who err as seers and blunder in their decisions. (Isaiah 29:7)
  23 Who justify the wicked for ^areward, and take away the righteousness of the righteous from him! People take bribes for unjust decisions.  There is no integrity or justice in the land for the righteous.
  24 Therefore, as the ^afire devoureth the ^bstubble, and the flame consumeth the ^cchaff, their ^droot shall be rottenness, and their blossoms shall go up as dust; because they have cast away the law of the Lord of Hosts, and ^edespised the word of the Holy One of Israel. This sounds like apostasy...
  25 Therefore, is the ^aanger of the Lord kindled against his people, and he hath stretched forth his hand against them, and hath smitten them; and the hills did tremble, and their carcasses were torn in the midst of the streets. This sounds past tense. If it is, are we talking about the Jews, here?  The reprobates of Jehovah's people perish and are cut off from all familial ties.  Because they revile against Jehovah's law they are cut off.  For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still. One way to take this is that even in judgment the Lord offers repentance. The other is that when judgment comes, there is still more to come...Gileadi - The king of Assyria/Babylon is the "hand" of punishment that God uses to enforce the consequences of the people's actions.  
  26 And he will lift up an ^aensign to the ^bnations from far, and will hiss unto them from the ^cend of the earth; and behold, they shall ^dcome with speed swiftly; none shall be weary nor stumble among them. These next references have been taken to mean airplanes and cars and trains. Gileadi - still talking about the King of A/B...he rallies and alliance of hostile nations to attack Jehovah's people and the nations of the world.  
  27 None shall slumber nor sleep; neither shall the girdle of their loins be loosed, nor the latchet of their shoes be broken; They come at a time when his people are undisciplined and caught off guard.  The enemy is highly disciplined but Jehovah's people are drowsy, have loose morals, and have grown weary so they are easy prey.
  28 Whose arrows shall be sharp, and all their bows bent, and their horses’ hoofs shall be counted like flint, and their wheels like a whirlwind, their roaring like a lion.
  29 They shall roar like young ^alions; yea, they shall roar, and lay hold of the prey, and shall carry away safe, and none shall deliver.
  30 And in that ^aday they shall roar against them like the roaring of the sea; and if they look unto the land, behold, darkness and sorrow, and the light is darkened in the heavens thereof. So maybe this is missionary work continuing even amidst judgment. That sounds like the 144,000 who are protected when they go out to gather in. Gileadi says the "they" is still the King of A/B. Even when the wicked seek refuge in the countryside to escape the archtyrant's devastation in the cities, there too the gloom confronts them.