2 Nephi 19:2

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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.

Quotes for Discussion

The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light.

Isaiah described this area as “dark” for perhaps three reasons: It was emotionally dark because of the battles often fought there, resulting in sadness and death; it was spiritually dark because of apostasy; and it was physically dark because of the black indigenous rock that people there used to build their dwelling places. But the prophecy states that these people in darkness will see “a great light.” Interestingly, these lands are exactly the place where Jesus spent much of his ministry. Matthew specifically mentioned the Savior’s presence in these lands as a fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy (see Matthew 4:13-16). The Savior is the “light of the world,” and brought with him emotional light through healing and mercy, spiritual light through teaching the truth, and even physical light through the miracles and wonders he performed during his ministry (see Matthew 2:2; 17:2; 3 Nephi 1:19).

John Bytheway, Isaiah for Airheads, p. 122-123

The Light Shined

The land of the shadow of death is a land peopled by those who do not know Jesus Christ, the “great light,” and his gospel. These people walk in darkness. Jesus was the great light that shone upon the inhabitants of Galilee during his mortal mission. Matthew 4:13-16 contains the fulfillment of this prophecy found in Isaiah 9:1-2. As those who follow Christ walk through mortality in the latter days, they will receive great hope, comfort, and joy when they accept Jesus as the “great light.”

Donald W. Parry, Visualizing Isaiah [Provo, Utah: The Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies, 2001], 78