The Chastisement of Our Peace

One of the most well-known verses in the Book of Mormon about the Savior’s atonement is this one: “And he shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will take upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people” (Alma 7:11). President Oaks commented on this verse in these words: “Our Savior feels and knows our temptations, our struggles, our heartaches, and our sufferings, for He willingly experienced them all as part of His Atonement.” President Nelson said this: “The Savior suffered ‘pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind’ so that He can comfort us, heal us, rescue us in times of need.” Elder Gong spoke about this verse this way: “Because ‘God himself atoneth for the sins of the world,’ the Lord’s Atonement can make whole not only what was but also what can be. Because He knows our pains, afflictions, sicknesses, our ‘temptations of every kind,’ He can, with mercy, succor us according to our infirmities.” President Oaks also taught, “Most scriptural accounts of the Atonement concern the Savior’s breaking the bands of death and suffering for our sins. In his sermon recorded in the Book of Mormon, Alma taught these fundamentals. But he also provided our clearest scriptural assurances that the Savior also experienced the pains and sicknesses and infirmities of His people. Alma described this part of the Savior’s Atonement: ‘And he shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will take upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people’ (Alma 7:11; also see 2 Nephi 9:21). Think of it! In the Savior’s Atonement, He suffered ‘pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind.’” President Oaks then quoted these words from President Packer, “He had no debt to pay. He had committed no wrong. Nevertheless, an accumulation of all of the guilt, the grief and sorrow, the pain and humiliation, all of the mental, emotional, and physical torments known to man—He experienced them all.” These words of Alma help us to see that the Savior’s sacrifice was for more than sins; it was for all the pains and grief and sorrow we might have.

            Another scripture that teaches about the expansive nature of the Savior’s sacrifice is this one by Isaiah: “But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5). The phrase “the chastisement of our peace was upon him” may be somewhat difficult to understand; the NIV version of the Bible puts it this way: “The punishment that brought us peace was on him.” Because He was chastised and punished, we can obtain peace. Surely that peace He offers includes the peace of forgiveness of sins, but it also encompasses the peace He can bring us in times of trial and struggle. The next chapter in Isaiah includes these words, “O thou afflicted, tossed with tempest, and not comforted, behold, I will lay thy stones with fair colours, and lay thy foundations with sapphires.” All of us at times surely feel that we are tossed with tempest and not comforted because of the difficulties of life, but He promises us peace: “For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee.” One of the most encouraging verses of all of scripture then follows: “And all thy children shall be taught of the Lord; and great shall be the peace of thy children” (Isaiah 54:10-13). For parents surely there is no greater joy than to know that our children are taught of the Lord and have found peace in Him.

            The great vision of Enoch is a powerful example of the peace that the Lord seeks to offer us through His atonement despite the troubles of mortality. When Enoch saw the terrible wickedness of the children of men as well as their destruction through the flood, he “had bitterness of soul, and wept over his brethren, and said unto the heavens: I will refuse to be comforted.” But the Lord did not want him to be bitter and troubled for long. He said to Enoch, “Lift up your heart, and be glad; and look.” This is what he saw: “And behold, Enoch saw the day of the coming of the Son of Man, even in the flesh; and his soul rejoiced, saying: The Righteous is lifted up, and the Lamb is slain from the foundation of the world; and through faith I am in the bosom of the Father, and behold, Zion is with me” (Moses 7:44, 47). What brought him peace and joy in the midst of his bitterness and sorrow? It was the knowledge of the Savior’s coming and His great atoning sacrifice for all mankind. The words of the Savior at the end of His life invite us all to find this peace despite the anguish and trauma of mortality: “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid” (John 14:27). Because the “chastisement of our peace was upon him,” and because He suffered “pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind,” we can find rest and peace in all our troubles.