The Scripture Study Project

Some commentators have described the book of Isaiah the climactic book of the Hebrew Bible or Old Testament. Isaiah's writings were certainly important to many later writers, including Nephi, Abinadi, Mormon, and Jesus Christ himself. When describing his own passion for the words of Isaiah, Nephi said, "my soul delighteth in his words. For I will liken his words unto my people, . . . for he verily saw my Redeemer, even as I have seen him. . . . And now I write some of the words of Isaiah, that whoso of my people shall see these words may lift up their hearts and rejoice for all men. Now these are the words, and ye may liken them unto you and unto all men" (2 Nephi 11: 2, 8). This week we begin our study Isaiah and aim for both excitement for and skill at studying the words of this pivotal prophet.

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Music: by Steve Oxen

One of my favorite things about learning from the Lord is that He teaches with images, stories, and symbols. I learned this week that the Hebrew word "māšāl" translated in verse 1 as "proverb" is translated in many other places as "parable". In other words, this book is a book of mini parables that, as we'll learn together, help us practice living a God-like life.

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Music: by Steve Oxen

I searched for the word "Psalms" on the Church homepage this week and found that almost every General Conference return going on for multiple pages was a talk with a title taken from a psalm. From Pres. Nelson's famous, "Joy Cometh in the Morning" to Elder Bednar's quotable "A Broken Heart and a Contrite Spirit" to Elder Holland's emotional "Like a Broken Vessel", it's clear that our Church leaders know and love the Psalms. Similarly, Jesus and his apostles quoted from Psalms over 100 times in the New Testament which is not only the most of any OT book quoted, but over half of the overall quotes altogether. Over the next three weeks we get to study the powerful truths and moving evocations in these collected words, and in this episode, we're providing some powerful tools to give you a fresh and faith-fulfilling study.

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Music: by Steve Oxen

One thing that took getting used to as I prepared for a mission to Germany was the Germany fairy tale. Contrary to many romantic tales where heroes prevail against evil and receive rewards for their efforts, Germany fairy tales contain stories where good and bad often happen unexpectedly and to unexpected people: often the hero loses all while the village fool gets incredible fortune. I recently listened to a discussion about the history of the fairy tale which indicated that the modern, more romantic versions of fairy tales may have a detrimental effect in conveying to children that if bad things happen to you must be doing something wrong, because only the wicked get punished and only the heroes earn rewards. In our study of Job this week we look at three different ways to read the book of Job that might help us push past the romantic and add some depth to our understanding of blessing and trial, difficulty and perfection.

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Music: by Steve Oxen

Years ago in a seminary class where we were studying a scriptural account of a woman, one of the young men blurted out that he felt the lesson didn't apply to the boys in the class because it was about a woman in the scriptures. Immediately one of the older girls in class responded that girls spent much of their scripture study efforts applying lessons learned from stories about men, and that if they could do it, so could he. That young man, hopefully, learned a valuable truth. It is an unfortunate fact that we have precious few records of women's interactions with God in scripture. However, we can make the most of these few accounts by giving them extra attention and appreciating the universal lessons that can be learned by all of us.

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Music: by Steve Oxen

I've spent the last month getting to know and serve with the newly-called seminary teachers in my local stakes. As I talk with these amazing people it's obvious that they feel the weight of undertaking one of the most demanding (and rewarding) callings in the Church. I was thinking about them when I read one of my favorite verses of scripture in this week: Nehemiah 6:3 which says, in part, "I am doing a great work". In this episode we consider our own "great work", whether that's a new calling, building or rebuilding a crucial relationship, tackling a particularly difficult self-improvement project, or ministering to someone in real need, and we'll identify a few places in our study this week that can hold important instructions for each of us.

In the Book of Mormon the prophet Nephi writes, prophetically, that people in a coming day will "trample under their feet…even the very God of Israel." In our bible study this week we see a fulfillment of that as wicked kings in both Israel and Judah turn repeatedly from the Lord to worship of false Gods. If nothing else, the tragic story of the fall of the kings we've been reading over the past weeks shows how difficult real and lasting conversion is. In this episode we highlight three scriptural phrases that can help us make lasting change.

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Music: by Steve Oxen

This week on the Scripture Study Project we start a new month, a new book of scripture (2 Kings), and a new podcast format. We dive into the miracles of Elisha, look at the unprecedented ways in which individuals are asked to show their faith to the Lord, and examine our own faithfulness.

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Music: by Steve Oxen

Years ago, Peggy Worthen, wife of newly installed BYU president Kevin Worthen, spoke to the gathered student body. In her talk she referenced highway 6, a Utah road that leads from Provo to the eastern side of the state, including the famous Arches National Park in Moab. In 1983 this road was blocked as a massive rockslide covered the road and blocked the river causing massive flooding. A new road had to be constructed. Although the temporary inconvenience was major, the newly build road was much wide, much safer, and ultimately a much better path through the mountains. Maybe it's because over the past years of living in the East we have come to appreciate the non-linear, swerving roads that spread like spiderwebs here and contrast sharply with the linear roads of the west, but I loved Sister Worthen's observation that "life is somewhat like Highway 6. Even though life in general is beautiful and scenic, the road we travel will not always be an uneventful, direct course, even when we know where we are going. We have to learn to be flexible and to deal with the unexpected."

In our study this week we look at the unexpected and hope to find a bit flexibility in our relationship with the Lord.

Show Notes:

Peggy Worthen, "An Unexpected Path," BYU Devotional 2014.

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Music: by Steve Oxen

Then Elder Hinckley told a story in general conference about a time when he worked at a trainyard and heard that a passenger train had arrived without the baggage car. He explained, “We discovered that the train had been properly made up in Oakland, California, and properly delivered to St Louis. . . . But in the St. Louis yards, a thoughtless switchman had moved a piece of steel just three inches. That piece of steel was a switch point, and the car that should have been in Newark, New Jersey, was in New Orleans, Louisiana, thirteen hundred miles away.” This week we take a look at switch points that made a significant and painful difference in the lives of David and Solomon and, by application, can be powerful to notice and avoid ourselves.

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Music: by Steve Oxen