Isaiah 52:7-10 in other scripture

In the previous post about Isaiah 52, I wanted to include all references in our standard works but it became a bit long. Having discussed the influence of Isaiah 52:7-10 in the Book of Mormon only in the last post, I will focus on the other standard works in this post. We find references to these verses in the Old Testament, New Testament and D&C.

Of particular interest is Nahum 1:15, an Old Testament prophet whose name comes from the Hebrew root for "consolation" or "mourning". He shares his name with a location on the Arabian peninsula where Ishmael was buried, as we read in 1 Nephi 16. The verse reads

Behold upon the mountains the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace! O Judah, keep thy solemn feasts, perform thy vows: for the wicked shall no more pass through thee; he is utterly cut off.

The first sentence is definitely related to Isaiah 52:7. Little is known about Nahum and I don't know if Wikipedia is the best source, but it states

Nahum's writings could be taken as prophecy or as history. One account suggests that his writings are a prophecy written in about 615 BC, just before the downfall of Assyria, while another account suggests that he wrote this passage as liturgy just after its downfall in 612 BC.

Whether it's 615 BC or 612 BC doesn't make that much of a difference to me. It is written perhaps a decade or two before Nephi took the brass plates and they headed to the promised land. Scholars who claim that Isaiah 52 was part of Deutero-Isaiah, written during the Jewish exile, must conclude that Isaiah 52 was based on Nahum, not the other way around. I think it makes more sense that Nahum borrowed from Isaiah based on the following reasons:

• Notice how this sentence is part of a longer clause in Isaiah 52:7. In Nahum 1:5, it is just this one sentence without further elaboration. It is natural for me to think that the longer clause is the original and someone borrowed a part of it, instead of one sentence being original and someone borrows it and expands on it. This is not hard proof of course, just something I find more likely.
• It is also natural to assume that the "small" prophet borrows from the "great", not the other way around.
• Since I believe in the historicity of the Book of Mormon, I am biased here, but we have noticed that Isaiah 52:7-10 is quoted multiple times in the Book of Mormon, not Nahum. If Nahum 1:15 was written shortly before Lehi and his group left Jerusalem and was based on Isaiah, it might further indicate that Isaiah in general and this passage in particular already had a prominent position in Lehi's religious environment.

In the New Testament, this is quoted once, in Romans 10:15.

And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!

Other parts of Isaiah 52 and Isaiah 53 are also quoted liberally in the New Testament. Those two chapters alone comprise 19% of all Isaiah quotes in the New Testament.

There are also two Isaiah 52:7-10 quotes in the D&C. D&C 84:98 quotes Isaiah 52:8-9:

Until all shall know me, who remain, even from the least unto the greatest, and shall be filled with the knowledge of the Lord, and shall see eye to eye, and shall lift up their voice, and with the voice together sing this new song, saying:

D&C 128:19 quotes Isaiah 52:7:

Now, what do we hear in the gospel which we have received? A voice of gladness! A voice of mercy from heaven; and a voice of truth out of the earth; glad tidings for the dead; a voice of gladness for the living and the dead; glad tidings of great joy. How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of those that bring glad tidings of good things, and that say unto Zion: Behold, thy God reigneth! As the dews of Carmel, so shall the knowledge of God descend upon them!

These examples show this Isaiah passage used in various context. In Nahum, the feet belong to the messenger who announces the destruction of Judah's enemies and her deliverance. Romans is about preaching the gospel and missionary work. The context for the Isaiah quote in D&C 84 is the ultimate spiritual redemption of Zion in the latter days and D&C 128 is about the redemption of the dead.

The beautiful feet on the mountain belong to whoever proclaims redemption, whether it is physical redemption from your enemies, personal redemption from receiving the gospel in your life, the ultimate redemption of Zion in the latter days or the redemption of the dead. The feet can belong to missionaries, messengers, angels, prophets, and even Christ himself (Mosiah 15:18). More on the symbolism of beautiful feet in Lord Wilmore's posts here, here and here.