Symbolism: This verse must be read in conjunction with verse 1. Verse 1 emphasized the branch or the shoot emerging from the root. That root represented the history of a united Israel under Davidic kings. Therefore, it signifies a return to Israel’s days of glory. In verse 10, the “root” corresponds to the “stem” in verse 1. Both refer to the lineage of the future Messiah. In verse 10, “root of Jesse” refers to a specific part of the house of Israel—the righteous remnant that will grow (be gathered) in the last day from the historical Israel. It matches Zenos’s image of the root of the olive tree (Jacob 5:8, 18).
Isaiah develops the theme of the gathering in the following verses.
Literature: The literary symbols associated with this verse may be better understood in Blenkinsopp’s translation: “On that day the root of Jesse will stand as a signal for the peoples of the world; him will the nations seek out; glory will rest on him.” This ruler, this root of Jesse, will be on his “holy mountain” (Isa. 11:9, 2 Ne. 21:9). Standing on top of that holy mountain is the way that he can be seen as a “signal.” One of the typical signals on a mountain was a fire. The word that is translated “glory” is kabod:
Since kabod derives from kabed, “to be heavy,” it lends itself to the idea that the one possessing glory is laden with riches (Gen. 31:1), power (Isa. 8:7), position (Gen. 45:13), etc.… Kabod also denoted the manifestation of light by which God revealed himself, whether in the lightning flash or in the blinding splendor which often accompanied theophanies. Of the same nature was the disclosure of the divine presence in the cloud which led Israel through the wilderness and became localized in the tabernacle.
This association with the light of the kabod/glory intensifies the imagery of the signal. The glory of the Messiah becomes the signal, or in other words, the divine light of the Messiah becomes the signal fire to all nations.
Modern Interpretation: Hoyt Brewster explains:
The Doctrine and Covenants identifies this individual [the root of Jesse] as “a descendant of Jesse, as well as of Joseph, unto whom rightly belongs the priesthood, and the keys of the kingdom, for an ensign, and for the gathering of my people in the last days” (D&C 113:5–6). The apostle Paul mistakenly identified the “root” as Christ (Rom. 15:12). Dr. Sidney B. Sperry explained the reason for this mistake: Examination of Romans 15:12 demonstrates that Paul was closely following the Septuagint (LXX, Greek translation) text of Isaiah 11:10 rather than the Hebrew. As a matter of fact, the LXX version is only a paraphrase of the original Hebrew. We notice that the Greek version of Isaiah 11:1 translates the Hebrew text, “stem of Jesse,” as the “root of Jesse” and uses the same phrase in Isaiah 11:10. Of interest is the fact that the Greek word riza (root) is used in both verses to translate different Hebrew words. Paul would be quick to discern that the “root of Jesse” of the LXX text of Isaiah 11:1–5 was the Christ. And when he observed that the phrase “root of Jesse” was used again in verse 10, he would naturally assume that it, too, had reference to the Christ. Hence the reason for his quotation in Romans 15:12.
Who, then, is the “root of Jesse?” It appears that the Prophet Joseph Smith is both the “rod” and the “root” that will come from Jesse. He is the one upon whom the keys of the kingdom were bestowed, including the keys of the gathering of Israel (see D&C 13:1, 27:12–13, 90:2–3, 110:11–16). However, Victor Ludlow suggested: “Joseph Smith might not be the only ‘root of Jesse’ in these last days. Many presidents of the Church have been related to him by blood, and all have held the priesthood and the keys of the kingdom that he held.… The ‘root of Jesse’ could also be that particular prophet who will hold the keys when Christ returns to preside personally over his kingdom. The term could even represent the office of the president of the Church. In any case, the ‘root of Jesse’ designates a great leader in the Church of Jesus Christ in this dispensation.