Welcome to Meridian Magazine’s Come Follow Me Podcast where today we’re studying Isaiah chapters 40-49 where we are talking about the kind of help God is to His people. We have with us Dr. Kerry Muhlestein who is a professor of Ancient Scripture and Ancient Near Eastern Studies at Brigham Young University. He holds a PhD in Egyptology from UCLA, directs BYU's Egypt Excavation Project, has taught at the BYU Jerusalem Center, and was a visiting fellow at Oxford University. His scholarship brings together the world of the ancient Near East and the scriptures, including extensive teaching and research on Isaiah and the Old Testament.

I love that in our reading we get to study parts of Isaiah 29 this week where the Lord speaks with this language:

14 Therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a marvelous work among this people, even a marvellous work and a wonder: for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid. (Isaiah 29:14)

I am taken by the word marvelous. Elder LeGrand Richards published a book in 1950 that many of you have read called A Marvelous Work and a Wonder. This used to be standard reading material for full-time missionaries. That word marvelous is used in Section 4 of the Doctrine and Covenants, “Now behold, a marvelous work is about to come forth among the children of men.” (Doctrine and Covenants 4:1) But that same word is used in Section 6, Section 8, Section 11, Section 12, Section 14 and Section 18. I think the Lord means to astound us.

Welcome to this special joint podcast today. The Meridian magazine podcast, and the Scriptures are Real podcast. We are with Dr. Kerry Muhlestein, and we are Scot and Maurine Proctor, and this is such a delight as we, today, study Isaiah chapters 1 through 12, with a lesson entitled, God is my salvation. We're so thrilled to be together today.

I learned a lot of lessons, proverbs, axioms, and helpful sayings when I was young. We used to pass around Chinese proverbs like, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” My parents used to say that when I was faced with a huge school assignment, like a semester paper I had to write, and I was feeling overwhelmed. You've all heard that one. Here's another one. “He who asks is a fool for five minutes. But he who does not ask remains a fool forever.” And, of course, one of my favorites is this. “Men who waits for roast duck to fly into his mouth must wait a very, very long time. “These are fun and can be very meaningful. But this week we study the proverbs of Solomon, and we have much to learn.

We know that faith is a power stronger than electricity or lightning or the flooding of many waters. It is the first great governing principle which has power, dominion, and authority over all things.  So, of course we seek how to develop it in ourselves. In Lectures on Faith, Joseph Smith teaches us: “Three things are necessary for any rational and intelligent being to exercise faith in God unto life and salvation.

“First, the idea that he actually exists:

“Secondly, a correct idea of his character, perfections and attributes;

“And thirdly, an actual knowledge that the course of life which one is pursuing is according to His will.”

Maurine and I have been blessed to attend many temple dedications all over the world. There is nothing so joyful as seeing the Saints gather to see these beautiful Houses of the Lord dedicated and made available for the work of the dead and the living. No matter where we are or what language is spoken, the unifying feeling comes from the music that is sung both outside and inside the temple and the Spirit that follows. “High on the mountain top, A banner is unfurled, Ye nations now look up, it waves to all the world!” (Hymns, no. 5) a choir sings as the Prophet comes out of the building to set the coverstone and talk to the Saints. “We thank Thee, O God, for a Prophet to guide us in these latter days,” the Saints sing with all their hearts as tears are streaming down their faces. “On this day of joy and gladness, Lord, we praise thy holy name; In this sacred place of worship, We thy glories loud proclaim! Alleluia, Alleluia, Bright and clear our voices ring, Singing songs of exultation To our Maker, Lord, and King!” (Hymns, no. 64) You can all picture this, can’t you? Well, in order to understand more clearly our study of the Psalms, you have to realize the Psalms were mostly sung, and most of the time at the Temple in ancient times!

Today we begin study of the largest book in the Old Testament. Surprisingly, it is Psalms with 97 pages of moving poetry that particularly explores our inner journey in seeking to find God. These are prayers, prophecy, wisdom, exultations, laments and pleadings for relief. It is a very ancient book where we can find immense comfort today.

When we lead our tours to the Holy Land, we will inevitably pull out some humor from the Biblical sources, attempting to create memories of laughter in remote parts of the tour. Our Bible jokes are many and varied and of a quality that only a dad could appreciate. “Who is the great tennis player of the Bible? Of course, everyone knows it’s Joseph, because he served in Pharoah’s courts! And who was the great comedian of the Bible? It was Sampson. He brought the house down! And what kind of man was Boaz before he got married? Ruthless! … I’m waiting for all of you to finish laughing. And then we pull out the most obvious one: Who was the greatest doctor of the Bible? Some contend it was Job, because he had a lot of ‘patience.’ But most would agree it’s Moses because he delivered all the children of Israel! All humor aside, we know that the greatest physician in the Bible is the Savior Himself—the one who can heal each of us. This week we will see some of the ways that Job reminds us of Jesus and leads us to Him.

As a scholar said, “Once it happened that the crafty was taken in his own trap, the falsely condemned were saved, and the worthy were rewarded. It is not always so.” Perhaps [the] story [in Esther which we study today] has endured because it has given the comfort of hope to other oppressed people” [and demonstrates God in the details of our lives.] Although God is not expressly mentioned in the book of Esther, there appears to be evidence in it of the God whom Job describes, who can ‘set up on high those that be low; that those which mourn may be exalted to safety.’”( Job 5:11-12 ). Ellis Rasmussen, Latter-day Saint Commentary on the Old Testament.

I’ve tried to contemplate the feelings of our ancient brothers and sisters in Jerusalem, who, after 371 years of having a glorious temple, watched as the temple was destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar and his forces, and those who survived the destructions were taken captive to Babylon in 586 BC. The temple was the holiest place for them, a place where they drew near unto God, a place where they offered sacrifices and renewed their covenants and commitments to Jehovah. How their hearts were broken, their hopes dashed in an instant. It seemed to me like a far-gone, untouchable experience to contemplate until one late Wednesday evening, on July 9, 2003, we started receiving urgent messages and devastating notes from Apia (aw pee’ a), Samoa—the Temple was on fire and burning out of control!