Keywords
Messianic, Christ-centered, allegorical interpretation, Book of Mormon
Abstract
Nephi laboriously copied many of the words of Isaiah in hopes that his readers would rejoice in Christ. While Isaiah 4:1 (2 Nephi 14:1) is generally not viewed as Messianic, there may be an allegorical interpretation that would place this verse among Isaiah’s other Messianic writings. A pre-Nicene patristic writer, Victorinus of Poetovio, interpreted the seven women of Isaiah 4:1 as representing the seven churches of the Apocalypse and the one man as Christ. Victorinus’s Christ-centered interpretation of Isaiah 4:1 has received very little attention in modern scholarship. This paper uses textual analysis to determine if a Christ-centered allegorical interpretation may be considered a strong reading of the verse and the surrounding text (Isaiah 3–4). The results of this analysis show that Isaiah 4:1 may symbolize Zion’s turning point in a doctrinally rich allegory of Zion’s sin, sorrow, repentance, and redemption through Jesus Christ.
Recommended Citation
Marcum, Jared T.
(2024)
"The Seven Women Seeking the Bridegroom: Isaiah 4:1 as Transition Point in a Redemption Allegory,"
Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship: Vol. 61, Article 15.
Available at:
https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/interpreter/vol61/iss1/15
