SUNDAY SCHOOL & SEMINARY Interactive Activities – SEPTEMBER (week 2) Come Follow Me – Old Testament Lesson 37 “God Is My Salvation” (Isaiah 1–12)

• Speaking of Isaiah, the Savior taught that “all things that he spake have been and shall be, even according to the words which he spake” (3 Nephi 23:3). You might start a discussion about Isaiah by sharing this scripture and the statement in “Additional Resources.” You could then write on the board Isaiah’s day, The Savior’s mortal ministry,(see activity below) and The latter days. (see activity below) Class members could look for passages in Isaiah 1–12 that might apply to one or more of the phrases on the board (for example, Isaiah 2:1–5; 7:1–7; 7:10–14; 9:2–7; 10:20; 11:10; 12:1). Why is it a blessing to have these prophecies available to us today?

• You might ask class members to share what they learned from their personal and family study of Isaiah 1, 3, 5 about the spiritual condition of the Kingdom of Judah in the days of Isaiah. Perhaps they could review these chapters and create a list of verses and the conditions they describe. What messages of hope did we find in these chapters? (If needed, you could refer class members to Isaiah 1:16–20, 25–27; 3:10.) (see activity below – REPENTANCE) If ancient Judah had a message for us, what might it be?

• Class members could pretend that they were living in Jerusalem when Isaiah prophesied. You could interview a few of them, asking them what Isaiah said and how they felt about it. For example, you might ask class members to talk about Isaiah’s words found in Isaiah 1:16–20; (see activity below – BUILD ZION) 3:16–26; 5:20–23. What did Isaiah say that inspires us to repent?

• To help class members ponder how Isaiah’s prophecies about the last days are being fulfilled, you could select some verses from Isaiah 2; 4; 11–12 (such as Isaiah 2:2–3; 4:5–6). Then ask class members to find the future-tense verbs in these verses (such as “shall be” or “shall go”). Invite them to replace some of these with present-tense verbs (such as “is being” or “are going”). How are these prophecies being fulfilled in our lives? Why is it important to know about these prophecies?

• You might point out that when Moroni visited Joseph Smith in 1823, he quoted Isaiah 11 and said that it was about to be fulfilled (see Joseph Smith—History 1:40; see also Doctrine and Covenants 113:1–6). Class members could read a few verses from Isaiah 11 (such as verses 6–12) and summarize in their own words what Isaiah foresaw. What is our role in fulfilling these prophecies?

President Dallin H. Oaks taught: “The book of Isaiah contains numerous prophecies that seem to have multiple fulfillments. One seems to involve the people of Isaiah’s day or the circumstances of the next generation. Another meaning, often symbolic, seems to refer to events in the meridian of time, when Jerusalem was destroyed and her people scattered after the crucifixion of the Son of God. Still another meaning or fulfillment of the same prophecy seems to relate to the events attending the Second Coming of the Savior. The fact that many of these prophecies can have multiple meanings underscores the importance of our seeking revelation from the Holy Ghost to help us interpret them” (“Scripture Reading and Revelation,” (see activity below – GODHEAD FAN) Ensign, Jan. 1995, 8).