The Interpreter Foundation Podcast

Abstract: Isaiah’s oracle in Isaiah 22 regarding a man named Eliakim employs significant and unique language regarding a “nail in a sure place.” This language is accompanied by clear connections to the ancient temple, including the bestowal of sacred clothing and authority, offering additional significant context through which to understand this phrase. Additionally, according to early leaders of the Church, this oracle may not be translated correctly into English, which has caused some confusion regarding the true meaning of the oracle’s conclusion. As such, I offer a new translation of this oracle based on intertextual clues that resolves some of the apparent issues regarding this text and further highlights the temple themes employed by Isaiah.

A unique oracle in Isaiah 22 relates that a court official named Eliakim would be given additional power and responsibility from the Lord. Although not unique in historical content, as other political or ecclesiastical figures are referred to throughout Isaiah’s corpus of prophesies, this oracle is unique in language employed by the prophet Isaiah. Quoting from the King James Version of the Bible, the Bible most familiar to English-speaking Latter-day Saints, we read the following:

And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will call my servant Eliakim the son of Hilkiah: and I will clothe him with thy robe, and strengthen him with thy girdle, and I will commit thy government into his hand: and he shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to the house of Judah. And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder; so he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open. And I will fasten him as a nail in a sure place; and [Page 38]he shall be for a glorious throne to his father’s house. And they shall hang upon him all the glory of his father’s house, the offspring and the issue, all vessels of small quantity, from the vessels of cups, even to all the vessels of flagons. In that day, saith the Lord of hosts, shall the nail that is fastened in the sure place be removed, and be cut down, and fall; and the burden that was upon it shall be cut off: for the Lord hath spoken it. (Isaiah 22:20–25)1

This oracle contains specific imagery relating to the temple in addition to the referent to “a nail in a sure place.” This language regarding a nail is seldom touched upon in the scriptures, but I will argue that it, too, was understood by ancient authors to be related to the temple and appears to have been understood in a temple context by the prophet Joseph Smith and other leaders of the Church.

For instance, in December 1844, an unsigned editorial was published in the Times and Seasons simply entitled “Keys.” This editorial offered commentary on this oracle against Shebna and the prophesied rise of Eliakim to power. The editor of the Times and Seasons states that this oracle is “[t]he first important passage in the bible” relating to Priesthood keys and contains “some other very curious knowledge unexplained” by the ancient prophet.2 The apostle John Taylor was the leading editor for the Church newspaper at this time, and so it is likely that he was the principal author of this editorial.3

Regarding the final three verses of this oracle, John Taylor wrote,

“The nail fastened in a sure place,

Presented at:

2016 Temple on Mount Zion ConferenceSaturday, November 5, 2016https://interpreterfoundation.org/conferences/2016-temple-on-mount-zion-conference/

Conference Proceedings:

Sacred Time, Sacred Space, & Sacred Meaning at https://interpreterfoundation.org/books/sacred-time-sacred-space-sacred-meaning/

Listen to an audio recording of this talk:

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In the August 6 Come, Follow Me segment of the Interpreter Radio Show, our hosts Martin Tanner, Spencer Kraus, Brent Schmidt, and Hales Swift discuss New Testament lesson 36, “Ye Are the Body of Christ” covering 1 Corinthians 8-13.

You can listen to or download the New Testament in Context segment of the August 6 broadcast of the Interpreter Radio Show below. It will also be included in our podcast feed (https://interpreterfoundation.org/feeds/podcast). The other segments of the August 6 radio show can be accessed at https://interpreterfoundation.org/interpreter-radio-show-august-6-2023.

The Interpreter Radio Show can be heard Sunday evenings from 7 to 9 PM (MDT), on K-TALK, AM 1640, or you can listen live on the Internet at ktalkmedia.com.

 

Original air date: August 6, 2023. This recording has been edited to remove commercial breaks.

The Interpreter Radio Show is a weekly discussion of matters of interest to the hosts, guests, and callers of the show. The views expressed on the Interpreter Radio Show are those of the individuals involved and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Interpreter Foundation, nor should statements made on the show be construed as official doctrinal statements of the Church.

 

Abstract: Nephi, in composing his psalm (2 Nephi 4:15–35), incorporates a poetic idiom from Psalm 18:10 (2 Samuel 22:11) and Psalm 104:3 to describe his participation in a form of divine travel. This experience constituted a part of the vision in which he saw “the things which [his] father saw” in the latter’s dream of the tree of life (see 1 Nephi 11:1–3; 14:29–30). Nephi’s use of this idiom becomes readily apparent when the range of meaning for the Hebrew word rûaḥ is considered. Nephi’s experience helps our understanding of other scriptural scenes where similar divine travel is described.

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Recent studies have shown that 2 Nephi 4:15–35, what Sidney B. Sperry originally identified as Nephi’s “psalm,”1 relies heavily on the language of the biblical psalms.2 In 2 Nephi 4:25, he states, “And upon the wings of his Spirit hath my body been carried away upon exceedingly high mountains.” In making this statement, Nephi poetically referred to the experience he describes in greater depth in 1 Nephi 11:1 (“I was caught away in the Spirit of the Lord, yea, into an exceedingly high mountain”) [Page 20]and 1 Nephi 14:30 (“I was carried away in the Spirit”). Nephi’s use of the phrase “upon the wings of his Spirit” reflects a poetic idiom found in Psalm 18:10/2 Samuel 22:11 and Psalm 104:3, ʿal-kanpê-rûaḥ, usually translated “upon the wings of the wind.”

The textual dependency of 2 Nephi 4:25 on Psalm 18:10/2 Samuel 22:11 and Psalm 104:3 becomes especially clear when the polysemy of Hebrew rûaḥ as both “wind” and “spirit” is considered. Moreover, when Nephi’s use of the phrase “upon the wings of his Spirit” is analyzed in the context of what Nephi experiences with “the Spirit of the Lord” in 1 Nephi 11 and in the broader contexts of theophanies and iconography in ancient Israel,

Presented at:

2016 Temple on Mount Zion ConferenceSaturday, November 5, 2016https://interpreterfoundation.org/conferences/2016-temple-on-mount-zion-conference/

Conference Proceedings:

Sacred Time, Sacred Space, & Sacred Meaning at https://interpreterfoundation.org/books/sacred-time-sacred-space-sacred-meaning/

Listen to an audio recording of this talk:

  Download audio recording

 

 

In the July 30 Come, Follow Me segment of the Interpreter Radio Show, our hosts Terry Hutchinson and Martin Tanner discuss New Testament lesson 35, “Be Perfectly Joined Together” covering 1 Corinthians 1–7.

You can listen to or download the New Testament in Context segment of the July 30 broadcast of the Interpreter Radio Show below. It will also be included in our podcast feed (https://interpreterfoundation.org/feeds/podcast). The other segments of the July 30 radio show can be accessed at https://interpreterfoundation.org/interpreter-radio-show-july-30-2023.

The Interpreter Radio Show can be heard Sunday evenings from 7 to 9 PM (MDT), on K-TALK, AM 1640, or you can listen live on the Internet at ktalkmedia.com.

 

Original air date: July 30, 2023. This recording has been edited to remove commercial breaks.

The Interpreter Radio Show is a weekly discussion of matters of interest to the hosts, guests, and callers of the show. The views expressed on the Interpreter Radio Show are those of the individuals involved and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Interpreter Foundation, nor should statements made on the show be construed as official doctrinal statements of the Church.

 

 

In this episode of The Interpreter Radio Show, our hosts are Terry Hutchinson and Kevin Christensen. During the final hour they are joined by Jared Marcum, the author of a recent article in Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship, “Withstanding Satan’s Siege through Christ’s Iron Rod: The Vision of the Tree of Life in Context of Ancient Siege Warfare”. They discuss Come, Follow Me New Testament lesson 37, Kevin’s recent interview on From the Desk about Margaret Barker, the recently released Annotated Book of Mormon by Grant Hardy, as well as Jared’s article. You can listen to or download the August 6th broadcast of the Interpreter Radio Show below. These audio tracks are also included in our podcast feed (https://interpreterfoundation.org/feeds/podcast).

The “New Testament in Context” portion of this show, for the Come, Follow Me New Testament lesson 37, “God Is Not the Author of Confusion, but of Peace” covering 1 Corinthians 14–16, will also be posted separately on Tuesday, August 29, 2023.

The Interpreter Radio Show can be heard Sunday evenings from 7 to 9 PM (MDT), on K-TALK, AM 1640, or you can listen live on the Internet at ktalkmedia.com.

Original air date: August 13, 2023. These recording have been edited to remove commercial breaks.

The New Testament in Context Lesson 37: “God Is Not the Author of Confusion, but of Peace” covering 1 Corinthians 14–16

Discussion, Part 1: From the Desk interview on Margaret Barker (read it here) and The Annotated Book of Mormon

Podcast: Download

Discussion: “Withstanding Satan’s Siege through Christ’s Iron Rod: The Vision of the Tree of Life in Context of Ancient Siege Warfare” by Jared Marcum

Podcast: Download

The Interpreter Radio Show is a weekly discussion of matters of interest to the hosts, guests, and callers of the show. The views expressed on the Interpreter Radio Show are those of the individuals involved and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Interpreter Foundation, nor should statements made on the show be construed as official doctrinal statements of the Church.

 

Abstract: Nothing was more terrifying in the ancient world than a siege. Besiegers disregarded normal conventions of war and either utterly slaughtered or enslaved a city’s residents. Nephi used siege warfare imagery — including fire arrows, blinding, and being led away into captivity — to teach his brothers the importance of holding fast to Christ’s iron rod (see 1 Nephi 15:24). By analyzing this scripture and the vision of the Tree of Life in context of ancient siege warfare, we learn how Satan besieges God’s people, cuts off their access to the Tree of Life, draws them away through scorn, blinds them, and yokes them with a yoke of iron. Christ, in contrast, extends his iron rod through Satan’s siege, inviting us to hold fast to his word, accept him as our covenant family head, and join him in his work by speaking his word. Those who act on Christ’s invitation will find safety and joy in Christ’s kingdom.

Shortly after Nephi received his vision in 1 Nephi 11–14, he taught a vital principle to his brothers — that the word of God provides spiritual protection from Satan’s temptation and power: “Whoso would hearken unto the word of God, and would hold fast unto it, they would never perish; neither could the temptations and the fiery darts of the adversary overpower them unto blindness” (1 Nephi 15:24). Since this principle is absent from the King James Version of the Old Testament, one might wonder where Nephi developed this idea. The Joseph Smith Translation of Genesis may indicate that Nephi had access to a similar [Page 2]teaching on the Brass Plates.1 However, even if Nephi had read Moses 4:4 — or something similar — Nephi’s insights still constitute a significant expansion on the information there. The timing and context in which Nephi states the principle — directly after experiencing his magnificent vision — strongly indicates that angelic instruction, rather than past scripture study, is the likely source of Nephi’s understanding. A close comparative analysis of Nephi’s vision with 1 Nephi 15:24 shows that the angel selectively chose visionary manifestations that helped Nephi clearly understand (a) Satan’s efforts to besiege Zion, its inhabitants, and all who seek refuge there, and (b) that the only way to withstand Satan’s siege is to give heed to God’s true word. The purpose of this paper is to illuminate connections between 1 Nephi 15:24, Nephi’s vision, and the cultural context in which Nephi received that vision, in order to better understand how he hoped that his brothers and all of his readers might endure Satan’s incessant efforts to draw people out and lead them away captive from Christ’s Kingdom.

1 Nephi 15:24 is given amidst a question-and-answer session between Nephi and his older brothers. Directly after experiencing his vision of the Tree of Life, Nephi saw his brothers arguing over the meaning of their father’s dream. Unlike Nephi, they had not “[looked] unto the Lord as they ought” (1 Nephi 15:3), and because Lehi had not explained the symbols of his visionary experience, Nephi’s brothers were left in [Page 3]the dark as to their meaning. After taking some time to recover from his own vision, Nephi directly answered their questions. During this conversation, they asked their younger brother, “What meaneth the rod of iron which our father saw?” (1 Nephi 15:23).