Make Bare His Arm

The prophet Isaiah made this prophecy about the last days: "The Lord hath made bare his holy arm in the eyes of all the nations; and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God" (Isaiah 52:10).  This statement that the Lord will may bare his arm has been repeated numerous times in other scriptures.  When Nephi was explaining the words of Isaiah to his brothers, he said, "And I would, my brethren, that ye should know that all the kindreds of the earth cannot be blessed unless he shall make bare his arm in the eyes of the nations.  Wherefore, the Lord God will proceed to make bare his arm in the eyes of all the nations, in bringing about his covenants and his gospel unto those who are of the house of Israel" (1 Nephi 22:10-11).  Abinadi quoted the same verse as he stood condemned before Noah and his priests, and the Savior quoted it as well on His first day with the Nephites saying that it would be fulfilled in the last days (see Mosiah 15:31, 3 Nephi 16:20).  The next day the Savior was with the Nephites He paraphrased it again to them: "The Father hath made bare his holy arm in the eyes of all the nations; and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of the Father; and the Father and I are one" (3 Nephi 20:35).  The fact that the Savior, with all of the prophets He could have quoted from the Old Testament, would quote this passage twice in two days underscores its importance.

               So what exactly did Isaiah mean by this phrase that the Lord would make bare His arm?  The literal sense seems to be one of the Lord making His arm visible for us to see, and the symbolism suggests that the Lord will help us and show His power and provide miracles in our lives.  Here’s how Wilford Woodruff used the scripture to teach the Saints: “He is in the midst of this people, and that he will contend for the rights of his Saints, and will ward off every weapon which is formed against Zion. So far at least we have been sustained; the arm of Jehovah has been made bare in our behalf ever since we have been in these valleys, and all Israel whose eyes are open to see, and whose minds can comprehend the dealings of God with his people, know it.”  The Prophet Joseph used it in the context of the Lord providing protection for His Saints when he prayed at the dedication of the Kirtland Temple: "But if they will not, make bare thine arm, O Lord, and redeem that which thou didst appoint a Zion unto thy people" (D&C 109:51).  In another section of the Doctrine and Covenants the language of the verse also seems to suggest that it has to do with the events leading up to and at the Lord’s Second Coming: “The Lord who shall suddenly come to his temple; the Lord who shall come down upon the world with a curse to judgment; yea, upon all the nations that forget God, and upon all the ungodly among you.  For he shall make bare his holy arm in the eyes of all the nations, and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of their God” (D&C 133:2-3).  The Lord is of course working all the time for the benefit of the children of men, but in the last days he will, the phrase suggests, reveal Himself more fully to us.  We must work towards our salvation in such a way that the first time we see the Lord revealed to us is not when He comes in glory to cast out the wicked and reign upon the earth.