Talking Scripture

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(00:00) The historical context of Jeremiah.
(07:31) Jeremiah’s words are both haunting and hopeful. They depict the destruction of Jerusalem and the hope of Israel.
(10:05) Organizing the book of Jeremiah.
(14:23) Jeremiah 1.5 depicts Jeremiah’s premortal life and foreordination. The Lord knew him before he formed him.
(20:24) The Lord assures Jeremiah that he will be with him in his service. The Lord will be with us in our challenges as well.
(23:37) 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.
(29:35) 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.
(33:25) Jeremiah laments that people in his hometown want to kill him and feels like he has been deceived by God.
(35:57) 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.
(40:56) Jeremiah is in the stocks and wants to stop prophesying, but God’s word is as a burning fire shut up in his bones.
(43:49) 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.
(47:54) Jeremiah curses the day he was born, as nothing fits his expectations.
(51:23) The character of God extending his arms and inviting Israel back.
(58:58) The people of Judah have forsaken the fount of living water. “Your own sword has devoured your prophets.” (Jer. 2.30)
(1:03:11) In Jeremiah’s temple sermon he reminds his listeners to amend their ways. Shiloh was attacked and Jerusalem can be destroyed too.
(1:07:02) 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.
(1:10:31) 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.

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The post Ep 394 | Jeremiah 1-20, Come Follow Me 2026 (Oct 19-25) appeared first on Talking Scripture.

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(00:00) These chapters reflect tension between two different groups of Jews returning from the Exile.
(08:32) “And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcasses 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).
(15:00) 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.
(24:09) 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.
(35:43) The covenant between God and Israel remains in force. God remembers us and our posterity.
(39:53) Israel will rise again as a mighty nation. Zion will be established and the gates shall be open continually.
(43:53) “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).
(47:15) 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.”
(51:40) Temple and wedding imagery in Isaiah 61-62.
(57:14) 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.
(1:02:23) Isaiah’s intercessory prayer for Israel (Isa. 63.7-64.12).
(1:07:40) 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.
(1:09:47) 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.”
(1:17:19) 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.

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The post Ep 393 | Isaiah 58-66, Come Follow Me 2026 (Oct 12-18) appeared first on Talking Scripture.

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(00:00) Contrasting the symbols of the faithful woman and the unfaithful woman in John’s Revelation and in the writings of Isaiah.
(08:02) Isaiah 57 can be seen as a subversion of the Babylonian New Year temple rites.
(12:29) Jehovah is portrayed as the faithful husband of Israel in Isaiah 50. This chapter is a message of hope to the returning exiles.
(18:26) Jacob quotes Isaiah 50-51 to his people in 2 Nephi 6-10. His words are connected to themes of the Fall Festival.
(28:22) 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.
(36:34) 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.
(44:54) 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.
(48:33) 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.
(52:16) Jesus knows our pain and sorrows. “We did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.”
(57:58) “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.
(1:01:48) “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.
(1:09:58) 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.
(1:11:49) 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.
(1:16:33) 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).

→ For more of Bryce Dunford’s podcast classes, click here.

→ Enroll in Institute

→ YouTube → Apple Podcasts → Spotify → Amazon Music → Facebook

The post Ep 392 | Isaiah 50-57, Come Follow Me 2026 (Oct 5-11) appeared first on Talking Scripture.

→ Watch on YouTube

→ Detailed Show Notes

→ Tours with Mike

(00:00) Contrasting the symbols of the faithful woman and the unfaithful woman in John’s Revelation and in the writings of Isaiah.
(08:02) Isaiah 57 can be seen as a subversion of the Babylonian New Year temple rites.
(12:29) Jehovah is portrayed as the faithful husband of Israel in Isaiah 50. This chapter is a message of hope to the returning exiles.
(18:26) Jacob quotes Isaiah 50-51 to his people in 2 Nephi 6-10. His words are connected to themes of the Fall Festival.
(28:22) 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.
(36:34) 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.
(44:54) 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.
(48:33) 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.
(52:16) Jesus knows our pain and sorrows. “We did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.”
(57:58) “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.
(1:01:48) “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.
(1:09:58) 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.
(1:11:49) 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.
(1:16:33) 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).

→ For more of Bryce Dunford’s podcast classes, click here.

→ Enroll in Institute

→ YouTube → Apple Podcasts → Spotify → Amazon Music → Facebook

The post Ep 392 | Isaiah 50-57, Come Follow Me 2026 (Oct 5-11) appeared first on Talking Scripture.

→ Watch on YouTube

→ Detailed Show Notes

→ Tours with Mike

(00:00) 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.
(11:12) In whom do you place your trust? King Benjamin invites us to remember the greatness of God.
(15:13) Isaiah 40 can be read as a temple text. Isaiah sees the council of divine beings in heaven.
(24:00) The Lord gives encouragement to Israel, and reminds them that he has always been there through their trials.
(35:34) The four Servant Songs contained in Isaiah.
(40:04) Different interpretations of “Who is blind, but my servant?” The Joseph Smith Translation opens up other ways to read this servant song.
(44:40) The Lord proclaims his loyalty to Israel, saying “I will do a new thing.”
(50:07) 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.
(53:29) 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.
(56:58) How the Cyrus prophecy is understood in scholarship. A middle path for approaching “Second Isaiah.”
(1:00:19) Isaiah foretells the destruction of Babylon. Babylon leaves the throne and Zion takes her place.
(1:06:27) The prophecy of the House of Israel in the last days. Isaiah shapes his argument in “the covenant treaty formula.”
(1:08:20) The Lord tells Israel, “I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction.”
(1:12:07) The House of Jacob has come out of the waters of Judah.
(1:17:01) The Book of Mormon adds the significant phrase “the feet of those who are in the east shall be established” in 1 Nephi 21.13. Some see this as evidence of Isaiah being edited.
(1:20:30) Israel has lost her children, but her children will be gathered again.

→ For more of Bryce Dunford’s podcast classes, click here.

→ Enroll in Institute

→ YouTube → Apple Podcasts → Spotify → Amazon Music → Facebook

The post Ep 391 | Isaiah 40-49, Come Follow Me 2026 (Sept 28-Oct 4) appeared first on Talking Scripture.