2 Nephi 12:2-4

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Reference Search: 2 Nephi 12:2-4

2 And it shall come to pass in the last days when the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills, and all nations shall flow unto it.

3 And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths; for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.

4 And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plow-shares, and their spears into pruning-hooks—nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.

Quote for Discussion

Interestingly, the first words Isaiah records in verses 2-4 of chapter 2 are also found with only slight variations in Micah 4:1-4. It may be that Isaiah “saw” the words of Micah or that he “saw” his own vision and Micah borrowed his words. Or, both prophets may have read the prophecy of some earlier prophet. Scholars differ in their opinions on which of these possibilities best explains the textual similarities. There is yet a fourth possibility, however, that seems plausible, particularly to Latter-day Saints: Isaiah and Micah, by virtue of their prophetic callings, each ‘saw” the same heavenly vision and were inspired to record it in essentially the same words. Since Isaiah and Micah were contemporaries dealing with the same people and problems, it seems likely that they would share similar spiritual manifestations. Precedents for this explanation exist elsewhere in the scriptures, because several prophets far distant from each other have recorded the same inspired messages: compare the “charity” sermon in 1 Corinthians 13 with Moroni 7, and the discourse on gifts of the Spirit in 1 Corinthians 12 with Moroni 10 and Doctrine and Covenants section 46. Certainly it is possible for two prophets to use the same vocabulary in recording revelations if, as the Lord said, “these words are not of men, nor of man, but of me” (D&C 18:34).

The important point here is that these verses have authority, regardless of their authorship. They are authentic and prophetic, and carry a beautiful message concerning the Lord’s kingdom in the last days.

Victor L. Ludlow, Isaiah: Prophet, Seer, and Poet, 85-86