The Iron Rod Podcast

When we have an incorrect understanding of one aspect of the gospel, it can prevent us from correctly understanding other aspects of the gospel. We need to correct our initial misunderstandings before we can successfully move forward. The scriptures talk about our bodies being restored, and our bodies being resurrected, and we incorrectly assume those are the same thing. In this episode, we focus in on what the prophets mean when they talk about this restoration, and begin to explain the impact that has on the plan of salvation as we know it.

Ezekiel 37:1-28

2 Nephi 10:2, 7

Alma 11:43-45

Alma 12:20

Alma 40:22-24

Alma 41:1-4, 10-14

D&C 76:72-74

D&C 43:30-32

D&C 63:50-52

D&C 128:12-13

D&C 101:29-31

3 Nephi 28:8

1 Nephi 15:19:20

2 Nephi 30:7-8

D&C 45:17

The Book of Abraham tells us about the council in heaven. But did you know the Old Testament also talks about God’s council? Perhaps one reason we don’t hear about this at church is because the Old Testament references paint a different picture of who sits on this council and how it functions than what we are taught in Sunday School. Prepare to have your traditions challenged by the word of God!

Abraham 3:22-24, 4:26, 5:2

Psalm 82:1-8

Psalm 89:5-8

Job 1:6, 2:1

1 Kings 22:19-23

Daniel 4:13-17

1 Samuel 23:1-13

Jeremiah 23:18

Genesis 11

Genesis 10

Deuteronomy 4:19-20

Deuteronomy 29:24-26

Deuteronomy 32:8-24-26

2 Kings 5:17-19

Acts 2

Acts 17:22-27

In this week’s episode, we take two hard-to-explain sections of scripture and try to make sense of them. The first is Noah’s nakedness from Genesis 9. Noah is drunk in his tent, Ham sees his father’s nakedness, and for some reason Ham’s son Canaan is punished as a result. The second is from 1 Corinthians 11 and has Paul explaining why women need to cover their hair when at church. Both stories demonstrate how trying to interpret scripture using “our” understanding can lead us astray.

Genesis 9:19-27

Abraham 1:21-27

Leviticus 20:11,20

Leviticus 18:1-8

Deuteronomy 22:30

Deuteronomy 27:20

2 Samuel 16:20-23

Genesis 35:22

Genesis 49:3-4

1 Corinthians 11:3-15

2 Nephi 31:3

Dr. Troy Martin, “Paul’s Argument from Nature for the Veil in 1 Cor. 11:13-15: A Testicle instead of a Head Covering” (Journal of Biblical Literature 123:1 [2004]: 75-84)

Bergsma and Hahn, “Noah’s Nakedness and the Curse on Canaan (Genesis 9:20-27)” (Journal of Biblical Literature 124:1 [2005]: 25-40)

Scripture informs us that there will be many who are deceived by false prophets in the last days. In this episode we explore what the Word of God teaches about false prophets and how we can identify them in order to avoid being deceived.  We analyze and apply what these Scriptures have to say to prophets both within the Institutional Church and to several groups that have splintered off recently.

3 Nephi 14:15-20
HC 4:574
Jeremiah 23:25-26, 37
Matthew 24:11, 23-24
2 Peter 2:1-4
2 Corinthians 11:13-15
Revelation 19:20
D&C 45:57
Joseph Smith Matthew 1:37
2 Timothy 4:3-4
Joseph Smith Discourse 12 May 1844
2 Nephi 26:29
3 Nephi 27:10-11
Isaiah 66:7-8
D&C 88:62-66
D&C 63:32
Deruteronomy 31:17-18
Isaiah 54:8
Lectures on Faith 6
Mormon 9:19-20
Romans 16:17-18
Galatians 1:6-9

Casually reading what the scriptures have to say about divorce can be confusing. The Law of Moses spells out the process of divorce and makes it clear that people are allowed to remarry after divorce. Yet in the New Testament Jesus makes comments that appear to condemn divorce and equate remarriage with adultery. In this episode we dig into the Greek and Hebrew, demonstrate the scriptural difference between putting away and divorce, and show how bad translations have significantly changed what Jesus was criticizing, and how the corrected view is consistent with ancient and modern scripture.

Deuteronomy 24:1-4

Jeremiah 3:1

Deuteronomy 22:13-19, 28-39

Malachi 2:14-16

Matthew 5:31-32

3 Nephi 12:27-32

Matthew 19:3-9

Luke 16:18

Mark 10:11-12

1 Corinthian 7:10-15

D&C 42:22-26, 74-77

D&C 49:15-17

Article on Marriage (1835 D&C 101)

Romans 7:1-3

1 Corinthians 7:8-9

1 Timothy 5:14

The office of Presiding Patriarch was introduced in the 1830’s when Joseph Smith Sr. was ordained to that office and told that he and his posterity would hold that office. In D&C 124, the Lord specifies the duties of that office and called Hyrum to the office of Presiding Patriarch after the death of his father. Upon the death of Hyrum, efforts began immediately to minimize and marginalize the Presiding Patriarch, until in 1979 the leadership just got rid of the office. In addition to discussing what the office is supposed to be, and what that means for us today, we also reveal the traditionally accepted date of the introduction of the Presiding Patriarch is wrong, and how the actual date fits perfectly into the downgraded-church timeline.

D&C 124:28, 91-96, 123-143

D&C 104

D&C 107:39

Matthew 23:15

D&C 2 tells us that the Priesthood will be revealed by the hand of Elijah. But the scriptural record tells us nothing about Elijah conferring priesthood by hand to Joseph. The one conferral of priesthood by the hand of an angel we have record of is John the Baptist conferring the priesthood of Aaron. In this episode, we look at the scriptural links between Elijah and John the Baptist and discuss radical concepts introduced in the Inspired Version of the Bible. We kick the episode off with an email from a bishop, and a discussion about birthday parties.

Birthday parties:

Matthew 14:1-11

Mark 6:21-29

Matthew 23:5-7

Matthew 20:25

D&C 2

James 5:17-18

JST Genesis 14:26-32

Helaman 10:5-12

Helaman 11:4-6

Joseph Smith History 1:68-74

D&C 110:12-16

Luke 7:28

John 1:19-22

Mark 9:1-13

Luke 9:30

Matthew 17:1-13

Luke 1:15-17

D&C 84:28

D&C 98:16

Hebrews 9:27

D&C 45:60-61

D&C 42:14-15

D&C 43:56-58

HC 1:341, 4:425

The scriptures give fairly specific descriptions of the duties of a bishop, and as we discussed last week, that the bishop should be paid for his duties. This week we review just what the scriptures dictate that a bishop should do, and compare that with what the current role of the bishop is.

1 Timothy 3:1-6
Titus 1:5-9
1 Peter 2:25
Acts 1:20
D&C 41:9-10
D&C 42:30-35, 71-73
D&C 46:11-27
D&C 48:6
D&C 51:1-6, 10-15
D&C 57:15
D&C 58:17-20
D&C 64:37-40
D&C 85:1
D&C 68:13-24
D&C 84:29
D&C 90:30
D&C 107:72
D&C 119:1-2
D&C 120:1
Malachi 4
D&C 20:45
D&C 46:2
Moroni 6:9
Matthew 23:11-12
Luke 22:24-27
D&C 72:9-12

Mormonism has a complicated relationship with paying church leaders. We have scriptures that condemn priestcrafts and the Church has often bragged about not having a paid clergy. Yet the church also defends paying Church leaders a “living stipend”. This episode searches out what the scriptures have to say, a reveals that the D&C commands that some leaders be paid while others must not be paid…the only problem is today’s Church does the exact opposite!

2 Nephi 26:29-31

D&C 105:5

Numbers 18:

Luke 9:1-6

Matthew 10:5-11

Acts 3:1-9

Luke 10:1-9

1 Timothy 6:8

Acts 18:1-4

1 Corinthians 9:1-18

Mosiah 18:24-28

Mosiah 27:5

Alma 1:26

Alma 30:32-34

Alma 31:35-38

Alma 8:19-21

3 Nephi 13:25-34

D&C 24:18

D&C 84:77-91

D&C 70:12-14

D&C 107:68

Lectures on Faith 6:7

HC 2:300

D&C 42:71-73