And it shall come to
pass in the last days, that 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. (Isa 2:2)
Isa 2:2-5 is a common “proof-text” used by some Latter-day Saints as a direct prophecy
of the then-future temple in Salt Lake City. As I have discussed before, this
is not what Isaiah is discussing; instead, per the context (v. 1), he is discussing
the future temple in Jerusalem (see: The LDS use of Isaiah 2:2-5; cf. Sidney B. Sperry on Isaiah 2:2-5). Duane Crowther, a rather conservative
Latter-day Saint writer wrote the following against this long-standing though very
errant reading of the text. Commenting on Isa 2:2, we read:
This prophecy, together with Mic. 4:1-2, is
often quoted by Latter-day Saints as pertaining to the Salt Lake Temple, which
is also high in the mountains and has been visited by the people of many
nations. While an interesting parallel can be drawn between the prophecy and
the Salt Lake Temple, there is no scriptural evidence that Isaiah was speaking
of it rather than the temple in Jerusalem. The reader should note that—
a. The preceding verse clearly defines this
prophecy as the word of Isaiah concerning Judah and its capital, Jerusalem. (1)
b. The following verse, which is clearly a
portion of the prophecy, gives a chronological clue as to when the prophecy
will be fulfilled. This is to take place at a time when the Lord will (1) judge
among the nations, (2) rebuke many people, and the people will (3) beat their
swords into plowshares and (4) cease from waging war. (4) It would seem that
this is clearly a prophecy of events immediately preceding the millennial era
and of the millennium (see Is. 11:6-9, 65:25), rather than the past seventy
years.
c. “Mountain(s) of the Lord’s house” is a
phrase which seemingly refers to the dwelling place of God. D& 133:13
clearly uses the phrase in referring to Jerusalem: “And let them who be of
Judah flee unto Jerusalem, unto the mountains of the Lord’s house.”
d. Isn’t the Salt Lake Temple an arbitrary selection
as the fulfillment of the prophecy? Why not the temples in Mani, Logan, St.
George or Idaho Falls, which all have been visited by people of many nations
and which are relatively high above sea level? (Duane Crowther, Prophets and Prophecies of the Old Testament
[Bountiful, Utah: Horizon Publishers, 1966], 361)
