D&C 36 — The Spotted Apron, the Clean Start

I have an apron I wear in the shop. Canvas, heavy, with pockets for chisels and a pencil and a square. It has glue marks and stain smears and a burn from the time I set a soldering iron down without looking. The apron works fine for the work I am doing. But I would not wear it to church.

There is a point where a garment that tells the story of your work stops being useful and starts being a problem. You oil a bearing and the stain soaks through to your shirt. You lean against a wet rail and the mark travels. The apron tells the truth about what you have been doing, but it also becomes a thing you have to step out of if you want to be clean.

D&C 36 is seven verses long. Edward Partridge receives his call to preach, Sidney Rigdon is told to ordain him, and the revelation closes with a command to forsake a world that is described as burning. It is a short chapter, but the imagery is dense.

Who Was Edward Partridge in Early LDS History

Edward Partridge ran a hat shop in Painesville, Ohio and had been searching through Reformed Baptist and Campbellite circles before he ever laid eyes on the Book of Mormon. He read it almost immediately after it was published and within days of meeting Joseph Smith in September 1830 he was baptized. This revelation came three months later.

"Thus saith the Lord God, the Mighty One of Israel: Behold, I say unto you, my servant Edward, that you are blessed, and your sins are forgiven you, and you are called to preach my gospel as with the voice of a trump." (D&C 36:1)

I think it matters that the forgiveness comes first. Before the call, before the ordination, before the preaching, the Lord tells Edward his sins are forgiven. He does not have to earn the right to be called. He does not have to prove himself first. The cleansing is the starting point, not the reward at the end.

Significance of the Comforter Teaching Peaceable Things in D&C 36

The call itself uses military language. The "voice of a trump" is an alarm loud enough to get anyone's attention. But verse 2 says Sidney will lay his hands on Edward and he will receive the Holy Ghost, which will teach him the peaceable things of the kingdom. The Comforter teaches peaceable things, not urgent things or loud things. The voice may carry but the formation happens in quiet. The Holy Ghost does not yell. It sets things in order the way a clamp holds a joint steady while the glue dries, with steady pressure until the bond is set.

"Green Wood: Orson Pratt, Age 19, and the Call That Came Before the Seasoning" covers a similar theme. Another young convert called before he was ready, ordained before he was seasoned. The pattern repeats because the Lord calls who he needs rather than waiting until they are finished.

What Does It Mean to Come Forth Out of the Fire in D&C 36

The second half of the revelation shifts from Edward personally to everyone who will approach the elders with singleness of heart.

"And now, behold, I say unto you, that it is the voice of the Spirit of the Lord to all men, that save yourselves from this untoward generation, and come forth out of the fire, hating even the garments spotted with the flesh." (D&C 36:6)

The image is of a building burning around you. When the roof is catching and the smoke is thickening you do not stop to gather your things. You get out. The "garments spotted with the flesh" are the habits and compromises that keep you attached to a culture that is headed for collapse. You do not just step away from them. You hate them enough to leave them behind without reaching for them on the way out the door.

I think about this when I look at the shop apron. The stains tell a story, but at some point you have to decide if the story is worth keeping. The Lord is saying the world is burning and your spotted clothes are not worth saving. Leave them and come out.

"False Supports: What the Stay and Staff Mean in 2 Nephi 13" covers the same kind of warning about trusting the wrong supports.

Meaning of Singleness of Heart in Doctrine and Covenants

Verse 7 says those who go to Joseph and Sidney with "singleness of heart" will be received, ordained, and sent out into the work. "Singleness of heart" is not the same as perfection. Edward Partridge was three months old in the gospel when he got this revelation. He was not a seasoned elder. But his heart was single. He was not looking in two directions at once. He had found what he was looking for and he did not need a backup plan. There is a freedom in that kind of focus. You stop dividing your energy between God and your alternatives and you just go.

How to Apply the Command to Gird Up Your Loins Today

"Wherefore, gird up your loins lest you be found among the wicked." (D&C 36:8)

Girding the loins is an old way of saying prepare for action. In biblical times you tucked your robes into your belt so you could run or work without tripping. For me the modern equivalent is putting on my shop boots in the morning. The act is small but the signal is real. I am getting ready to do what needs to be done.

For the modern reader the question is what you do in the first ten minutes of the day. If you pick up your phone and scroll before you pray, you have girded your loins for something. Just not the thing the Lord is asking for.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the main message of D&C 36?

The chapter calls Edward Partridge to preach the gospel with the assurance that his sins are forgiven first. It extends the same invitation to everyone who approaches the elders with singleness of heart to come out of a corrupt world and be ordained to serve.

Who was Edward Partridge and why does he matter?

Edward Partridge was one of the earliest converts to the restored Church. He owned a hat shop in Painesville, Ohio. He went on to become the first Bishop of the Church and served through intense persecution until his death in 1840.

What does it mean to hate the garments spotted with the flesh?

It is a strong call to distance yourself from the values and habits of a fallen world. The language is deliberately intense. You do not just avoid sin. You develop an aversion to it the way you would avoid wearing a shirt covered in grease stains into a clean house.

Why is the Holy Ghost called the teacher of peaceable things?

The external call to preach is urgent. But the internal growth of a disciple happens through quiet steady instruction from the Spirit. The Comforter teaches peace, patience, and the slow work of becoming like Christ, which cannot be learned in a hurry.

What does singleness of heart mean in the Doctrine and Covenants?

It means an undivided intent. Not serving God with one eye and the world with the other. The phrase appears in multiple early revelations and always points to the same thing: whole-hearted commitment that does not need a backup plan.

Closing

I keep that apron in the shop. The stains are still there. But I put on a clean one when I am finishing a piece I care about. The work matters too much to bring the old marks into the final pass.

Edward Partridge did not serve because he was ready. He served because he was clean and his heart was pointed in one direction. That was enough for the Lord and it probably still is.

— D.