1 Hearken and hear this, O house of Jacob, who are called by the name of Israel, and are come forth out of the waters of Judah, or out of the waters of baptism, w ho swear by the name of the Lord, and make mention of the God of Israel, yet they swear not in truth nor in righteousness.1 Hear ye this, O house of Jacob, which are called by the name of Israel, and are come forth out of the waters of Judah, which swear by the name of the LORD, and make mention of the God of Israel, but not in truth, nor in righteousness.2 Nevertheless, they call themselves of the holy city, but they do not stay themselves upon the God of Israel, who is the Lord of Hosts; yea, the Lord of Hosts is his name. [1 Nephi 20:1–2]2 For they call themselves of the holy city, and stay themselves upon the God of Israel; The LORD of hosts is his name. [Isaiah 48:1–2]
The first two verses of this chapter show that Isaiah is describing a period of time when Judah, the southern nation of the divided kingdom of Israel, was in a state of apostasy. This was probably in Isaiah’s day. The phrase “out of the waters of Judah” refers to those of Judah who are baptized into the Church. The Prophet Joseph Smith added the phrase “or out of the waters of baptism” to the text in the third edition of the Book of Mormon (1840). This clarifies the meaning of the term “waters of Judah.” Their false swearing, hypocritical actions, and failure to trust in the Lord depicts their apostasy. The Book of Mormon retains the words “but they do not” (v. 2) which helps us see the apostate condition of Judah. It also retains the phrase “who is the Lord of Hosts” to further identify or describe the God of Israel, but this does not add meaning to the text.