Talking Scripture

→ Show Notes: https://www.ldsscriptureteachings.org/2022/10/28/jonah-micah-ep-180-quotes-and-notes/

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00:26 – The historical background and an overview of the book of Jonah.

05:00 – Jonah’s struggle shows the battle we all have with the “natural man” inside us. God’s commandments are calculated to bring us great happiness.

21:34 – Jonah’s descent and ascent is a perfect type of Jesus’ death and resurrection.

30:12 – Jonah is offended that God showed mercy to his enemies. We can learn from this and have gratitude for God’s power of forgiveness.

35:24 – Heavenly Father has paternal care and regard for his children.

38:03 – An overview of the book of Micah.

39:31 – Isaiah and Micah both speak of the mountain of the house of the Lord being established in the top of the mountains.

44:14 – Micah speaks of the sheaves being gathered into the floor. This passage is quoted by Jesus in 3 Nephi. The biblical threshing floor was the foundation of the Holy of Holies.

50:50 – There are significant prophecies about the birth of the Messiah and of his Second Coming in Micah. The remnant of Jacob shall be as a lion among sheep (Micah 5.8). This passage is quoted several times in the Book of Mormon.

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The post Ep 180 | Jonah; Micah, Come Follow Me (November 21-27) appeared first on LDS Scripture Teachings.

→ Show Notes: https://www.ldsscriptureteachings.org/2022/10/22/amos-obadiah-ep-179-quotes-and-notes/

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00:26 – The historical background and an overview of Amos.

05:03 – Three aspects of the fullness of iniquity, beginning with violence against the innocent. Molech worship, as discussed in Amos, involved child sacrifice. Amos challenged his audience to protect the innocent among them.

14:32 – Establishing judgement or fairness at the gate, the place of contracts.

17:31 – Refusal to listen to God and his prophets is another sign that a land is reaching the fullness of iniquity. Amaziah, a priest at the shrine in Bethel, contends with Amos and tells him to go back to his country.

25:03 – The Divine Council and the role of prophets. Amos tells his hearers that prophets have entered into the sôd, or the Divine Council in heaven.

32:20 – The Lord reminds Israel of all that he has done for them and invites them to follow Him.

40:55 – A list of tendencies that are on the path that ends at the fulness of iniquity. First, don’t let your worship become a checklist. The worship of the Lord is not the end, but the means. Living the Gospel is meant to lead us to become like the Savior.

48:46 – Amos warns us to not be “at ease in Zion.” The story of Lehonti coming down the mountain illustrates this idea.

54:49 – Israel is told, “Ye which rejoice in a thing of nought” (Amos 6.13).

1:01:32 – Amos’ words of warning about captivity and how the Cosmic Covenant is tied to the land.

1:05:58 – The Book of Amos ends with a positive message of hope. The Lord says, “I will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob.”

1:09:17 – Obadiah speaks of a warning to Edom, an adversary of Judah and a people who rejoiced in the destruction of the temple in 586 B.C. Edom can also represent the world and the worldly. Obadiah ends with a message of hope.

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The post Ep 179 | Amos; Obadiah, Come Follow Me (November 14-20) appeared first on LDS Scripture Teachings.

→ Show Notes: https://www.ldsscriptureteachings.org/2022/10/24/hosea-joel-ep-178-quotes-and-notes/

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00:26 – The historical background of Hosea.

06:59 – Four main themes are discussed, beginning with the goodness of God.

13:16 – Hosea represents Christ and symbolically marries an unfaithful wife, who represents Israel.

17:56 – Israel rejects God’s plea to stop worshipping false gods. God responds with enduring love.

22:09 – Hosea gives four instructions to his wife.

27:26 – Three ways God is not like man.

38:45 – Israel is portrayed as an empty vine. The calves of Bethhaven refer to Bethel.

46:51 – Hosea prophesies of the latter days, when Ephraim will repent and return to the Lord.

53:38 – The historical background of Joel.

56:22 – Joel responds to the question, “When will the earth rest?” He describes cosmic signs relating to the Coming of Christ.

1:01:36 – Moroni quotes Joel to the young prophet Joseph Smith. War and desolation will precede the Second Coming.

1:04:55 – The Lord will show wonders in the Last Days.

1:10:53 – Joel’s vision contains temple images.

→ Bryce Dunford’s Website

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The post Ep 178 | Hosea; Joel, Come Follow Me (November 7-13) appeared first on LDS Scripture Teachings.

→ Show Notes: https://www.ldsscriptureteachings.org/2022/10/11/daniel-ep-177-quotes-and-notes/

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00:26 – A brief overview of the Book of Daniel.

04:53 – The historical background of the Book of Daniel.

07:51 – This book encourages its readers to be brave, stand strong, and not become like the world.

15:35 – The examples in Daniel encourage us to cultivate relationships of respect, even those we disagree with.

26:42 – Daniel interprets the king’s dream. He sees that the Kingdom of God will eventually replace all other kingdoms, like the stone cut out of the mountain without hands. Good government must align with true principles.

44:16 – Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, has a dream of a world tree and watchers. The king experiences seven years of madness.

48:02 – Belshazzar sees writing on the wall, which is interpreted as a message of Babylon’s destruction.

53:55 – Daniel is put into a lion’s den. Daniel remains steadfast and true to his faith amid opposition. The king declares that Daniel’s God is the “living God,” and that “his kingdom shall not be destroyed.”

1:00:29 – Daniel experiences four apocalyptic visions in chapters 7-12.

1:04:49 – The Son of Man prophecies during this time period.

1:09:15 – The final three apocalyptic visions of Daniel.

1:17:35 – We live in digital Babylon, surrounded by pressures to bow to the images of the world. May the book of Daniel inspire us to maintain our focus on Christ.

→ Bryce Dunford’s Website

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The post Ep 177 | Daniel, Come Follow Me (October 31-November 6) appeared first on LDS Scripture Teachings.

→ Show Notes: https://www.ldsscriptureteachings.org/2022/10/08/ezekiel-ep-176-quotes-and-notes/

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00:26 – A brief overview and the historical background of Ezekiel.

05:47 – Ezekiel’s vision of the throne of God.

18:43 – The righteous people of Ezekiel’s day receive a mark on their forehead, similar to John’s vision in Revelation.

21:21 – The glory of God leaves the temple in Jerusalem and goes eastward. Jehovah does not abandon his people during the Exile.

24:49 – Ezekiel 16 is an allegory of an abandoned newborn girl cast away in a field. The Lord washed and clothed her, but when she grew up, she left the Lord. The Lord compares this image to Israel.

27:39 – Why does God punish? The destruction of the temple in Jerusalem was a deeply troubling dilemma for the Jews in exile.

40:48 – Past works of righteousness do not permit us to abandon our faith in God today.

44:01 – Ezekiel’s oracle against Tyre is partially fulfilled in the days of Alexander the Great.

50:22 – The rule of the prophets.

56:32 – The rule of the shepherds.

1:05:03 – The promise of the restoration. “Behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out” (Ezk. 34.11).

1:09:29 – Ezekiel’s vision of the valley of dry bones and the restoration of the House of Israel.

1:14:19 – Ezekiel is told that the stick of Joseph and the stick of Judah will “become one in thine hand.”

1:20:01 – The Lord destroys Gog and Magog and makes his holy name known.

1:23:00 – Ezekiel’s visionary experience of the future temple in Jerusalem, with sacred waters coming forth and the healing the land.

1:32:08 – Ezra Taft Benson shared that “the temple will be a standing witness that the power of God can stay the powers of evil in our midst.” Our communities and families will be protected by living the gospel and being connected to the temple.

→ Bryce Dunford’s Website

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The post Ep 176 | Ezekiel, Come Follow Me (October 24-30) appeared first on LDS Scripture Teachings.

→ Show Notes: https://www.ldsscriptureteachings.org/2022/10/08/jeremiah-21-52-lamentations-ep-175-quotes-and-notes/

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→ Timestamps:

00:26 – A brief overview of the historical background of these chapters.

08:42 – Qualities Jeremiah sees in future Israel.

24:53 – “David shall never want a man to sit upon the throne.” This prophecy can be read as being fulfilled in the kingship of Jesus Christ.

26:40 – Zedekiah’s court opposes Jeremiah’s message. Discerning voices of truth from error is a challenge today like it was in Jeremiah’s day.

29:41 – True friends find a proper and affectionate manner with which to reclaim you.

37:05 – Jeremiah 31 contains a message of hope. “I will turn their mourning into joy, and will comfort them, and make them rejoice from their sorrow…my people shall be satisfied with my goodness, saith the Lord.”

40:54 – The people of Zarahemla in the Book of Mormon are descendants of Zedekiah. Jeremiah 32 shows Jeremiah redeeming his family land in Anathoth. This symbolic action could portray a reconciliation with his family and the future hope of the Jewish people reclaiming the land.

48:45 – The Rechabites left Jerusalem after the king purged them out of the temple in Jerusalem. This righteous group of pious believers were told by Jeremiah that their family line will continue. The Rechabites are an example of how the visionaries of Lehi’s day were rejected by the authorities in Jerusalem.

53:14 – Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, lays siege to Jerusalem in 586 B.C. and “puts out the eyes of Zedekiah.” Jehoiakim burns Jeremiah’s prophecy, which Baruch wrote upon a scroll. Jeremiah’s scribe Baruch is seen by some scholars as the person who compiled and edited much of the Old Testament.

1:02:24 – Lamentations depict the great sadness the Jews felt after the destruction of the temple and their captivity in Babylon.

1:05:24 – Jeremiah emphasizes that the Lord loves Ephraim. The Abrahamic covenant is still in force today and remembered by God.

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The post Ep 175 | Jeremiah 21-52; Lamentations, Come Follow Me (October 17-23) appeared first on LDS Scripture Teachings.

→ Show Notes: https://www.ldsscriptureteachings.org/2022/09/24/jeremiah-1-20-ep-174-quotes-and-notes/

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00:26 – The historical context of Jeremiah.

07:32 – Jeremiah’s words are both haunting and hopeful. They depict the destruction of Jerusalem and the hope of Israel.

10:28 – Organizing the book of Jeremiah.

14:34 – Jeremiah 1.5 depicts Jeremiah’s premortal life and foreordination. The Lord knew him before he formed him.

20:35 – The Lord assures Jeremiah that he will be with him in his service. The Lord will be with us in our challenges as well.

23:50 – Jeremiah has a vision of enemies coming from the north around 627 B.C. The Scythian invasion into this region could have been viewed as a prophecy of Jeremiah that did not come to pass. Later, the Babylonians will fulfill this prophecy.

29:48 – Be careful to not put our expectations on blessings. Let the Lord do his work in his timing. Waiting upon the Lord to see how he fulfills his promises can be a trial of our faith.

33:39 – Jeremiah laments that people in his hometown want to kill him and feels like he has been deceived by God.

36:29 – An angel helped Nephi understand the visions that he had, showing that perhaps prophets receive revelation in parts and also need to have patience and faith.

41:11 – Jeremiah is in the stocks and wants to stop prophesying, but God’s word is as a burning fire shut up in his bones.

44:35 – A middle position can be found between the extremes of innocent optimism and disillusioned pessimism. The church can be filled with human error and still be the kingdom of God.

48:10 – Jeremiah curses the day he was born, as nothing fits his expectations.

51:43 – The character of God extending his arms and inviting Israel back.

59:16 – The people of Judah have forsaken the fount of living water. “Your own sword has devoured your prophets.” (Jer. 2.30)

1:03:19 – In Jeremiah’s temple sermon he reminds his listeners to amend their ways. Shiloh was attacked and Jerusalem can be destroyed too.

1:07:23 – Jeremiah’s Symbolic Acts. He takes his girdle near the Euphrates (Jer. 13), visits the house of a potter (Jer. 18), and smashes an earthen bottle (Jer. 19). These acts show God’s power to send the Jews into captivity and to reshape them as a potter reshapes clay.

1:10:54 – Jeremiah’s vision of our day. The tragedy and failure of Judah can inspire us to rise up and be what ancient prophets saw we would be.

→ Bryce Dunford’s Website

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The post Ep 174 | Jeremiah 1-20, Come Follow Me (October 10-16) appeared first on LDS Scripture Teachings.

→ Show Notes: https://www.ldsscriptureteachings.org/2022/09/16/isaiah-58-66-ep-172-quotes-and-notes/

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00:26 – These chapters reflect tension between two different groups of Jews returning from the Exile.

08:36 – “And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcases of the men that have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh” (Isa. 66.24).

15:04 – Isaiah pleads with those returning from Babylon to keep the Law of the Fast and the Sabbath. Developing celestial character includes having the right motives.

24:15 – Chapter 59 is a lament concerning the separation of man and God. The crooked path is described and we see ways that sin can come into our lives. The redemption of the Messiah straightens that path and provides a way back through repentance.

35:49 – The covenant between God and Israel remains in force. God remembers us and our posterity.

40:00 – Israel will rise again as a mighty nation. Zion will be established and the gates shall be open continually.

44:02 – “Thou shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles, and shalt suck the breast of kings: and thou shalt know that I the Lord am thy Savior and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob” (Isa. 60.16).

47:26 – Isaiah speaks about the coming Messiah and a future day when the Messiah will proclaim liberty to the captives. Jesus reads Isaiah 61.1-2 in a synagogue in Nazareth and announces, “This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.”

51:50 – Temple and wedding imagery in Isaiah 61-62.

57:25 – Jesus Christ comes wearing dyed garments “red in thine apparel.” The Lord gives revelation to his servants after the manner of their language, that they might come to understanding.

1:02:34 – Isaiah’s intercessory prayer for Israel (Isa. 63.7-64.12).

1:07:52 – The righteous works of men are described as rags that fade as a leaf in Isaiah 64.6. Lehi reminds us that we are saved through Christ and his righteousness.

1:10:00 – The great and dreadful day of the Lord. The Savior will bring a new heaven and a new earth where the sting of death is removed and “the former troubles are forgotten.”

1:17:33 – The travail and deliverance of Zion. Isaiah 66 is a precursor to the Christian message of gathering Israel. As a mother comforts, so will God comfort us. The image of the Tree of Life in Nephi’s vision is related to Isaiah 66.11-12.

→ Bryce Dunford’s Website

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The post Ep 173 | Isaiah 58-66, Come Follow Me (October 3-9) appeared first on LDS Scripture Teachings.

→ Show Notes: https://www.ldsscriptureteachings.org/2022/09/16/isaiah-50-57-ep-172-quotes-and-notes/

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00:26 – Contrasting the symbols of the faithful woman and the unfaithful woman in John’s Revelation and in the writings of Isaiah.

08:07 – Isaiah 57 can be seen as a parody of the Babylonian New Year temple rites.

12:31 – Jehovah is portrayed as the faithful husband of Israel in Isaiah 50. This chapter is a message of hope to the returning exiles.

19:07 – Jacob quotes Isaiah 50-51 to his people in 2 Nephi 6-10. His words are connected to themes of the Fall Festival.

28:46 – Israel is told to awake and put on her strength in Isaiah 51. She is to remember the rock from which she is hewn. These are symbols of coming back into God’s presence.

36:44 – Isaiah 52 continues the Great Exchange, as Babylon and Zion switch places. “How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that publishes peace.” The king’s feet are established and Israel will sing and see eye to eye.

45:04 – The JST of Isaiah 52.15 changes the word “sprinkle” to “gather.” Kings will shut their mouths at the presence of Christ, the Great King.

48:45 – Isaiah 53 is the heart of this week’s message and a powerful witness of Jesus Christ. “Who hath believed our report? To whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?” The core of Abinadi’s message is Isaiah 53.

53:15 – Jesus knows our pain and sorrows. “We did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.”

58:13 – “Who shall declare his generation?” (Isa. 53.8). The saints of God are to declare the physical descent of Jesus Christ, that he is the Son of God.

1:02:03 – “When thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed” (Isa. 53.10). The Savior saw us during his agony in Gethsemane. He also saw his seed in the Spirit World.

1:10:14 – God speaks of his great love for Israel in Isa. 54.8. His love is shown as a mother’s love for her newborn child.

1:12:08 – The “waters of Noah” (Isa. 54.9) can be read as a promise that when we become a Zion people, Zion will return from heaven.

1:16:52 – All have been invited to the feast. God goes after the outcasts of Israel to bring them home. “Every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters” (Isa. 55.1).

→ Bryce Dunford’s Website

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The post Ep 172 | Isaiah 50-57, Come Follow Me (September 26-October 2) appeared first on LDS Scripture Teachings.

→ Show Notes: https://www.ldsscriptureteachings.org/2022/09/02/isaiah-40-49-ep-171-quotes-and-notes/

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→ Timestamps:

00:26 – In these chapters the Lord comforts and gives hope to Israel. He promises that he will never abandon us.

03:15 – King Hezekiah seeks the Lord’s advice through the prophet Isaiah as Assyria approaches Jerusalem.

11:18 – In whom do you place your trust? King Benjamin invites us to remember the greatness of God.

15:14 – Isaiah 40 can be read as a temple text. Isaiah sees the council of divine beings in heaven.

24:02 – The Lord gives encouragement to Israel, and reminds them that he has always been there through their trials.

35:38 – The four Servant Songs contained in Isaiah.

40:09 – Different interpretations of “Who is blind, but my servant?” The Joseph Smith Translation opens up other ways to read this servant song.

44:45 – The Lord proclaims his loyalty to Israel, saying “I will do a new thing.”

50:13 – Isaiah warns of idolatry and contrasts Jehovah with the Babylonian god Marduk. He emphasizes that the God of Israel carries us, but the Babylonian god must be carried.

53:35 – Isaiah prophesies of Cyrus, the king of Persia. Cyrus is portrayed as a deliverer because he allowed the Jews to go home to Jerusalem and rebuild their temple.

57:04 – How the Cyrus prophecy is understood in scholarship. A middle path for approaching “Second Isaiah.”

1:00:25 – Isaiah foretells the destruction of Babylon. Babylon leaves the throne and Zion takes her place.

1:06:33 – The prophecy of the House of Israel in the last days. Isaiah shapes his argument in “the covenant treaty formula.”

1:08:34 – The Lord tells Israel, “I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction.”

1:12:53 – The House of Jacob has come out of the waters of Judah.

1:17:47 – The Book of Mormon adds the significant phrase “the feet of those who are in the east shall be established” (1 Nephi 21.13). Some see this as evidence of Isaiah being edited.

1:21:21 – Israel has lost her children, but her children will be gathered again.

→ Bryce Dunford’s Website

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The post Ep 171 | Isaiah 36-49, Come Follow Me (September 19-25) appeared first on LDS Scripture Teachings.