Podcast Summary

Episode Overview

Podcast: The Dr. Josh Axe Show
Episode Title: Pharmakeia: Did the Bible Predict Big Pharma’s Rise?
Release Date: September 16, 2025
Guests: Dr. Josh Axe (Host), Jordan Rubin (Co-author of "The Biblio Diet")
Theme:
This episode explores the biblical concept of "pharmakeia" (sorcery/pharmaceuticals), the spiritual and historical roots of the modern pharmaceutical industry, and the Bible’s approach to healing through prayer, community, food, herbs, and particularly the healing power of fruit tree leaves. Dr. Axe and Jordan Rubin analyze both the controversy and the practical steps for Christians seeking to align their health choices with biblical principles.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Meaning of "Pharmakeia" and Its Biblical Roots

• Pharmakeia is discussed as the Greek root for both “pharmaceutical” and “sorcery,” referenced in Revelation 18 and elsewhere.
• Jordan Rubin frames modern physicians not as evil, but as "servants of Pharmakeia" due to their training, funding, and tools being tied to the pharmaceutical industry.
  • Quote (Jordan Rubin, 00:23): "I don't believe that physicians are evil... But their tools, their training, their funding all comes from Big Pharma or Big PharmaKEA. And when man tries to play God, there's always something missing."
• Both speakers note the spiritual dangers of entrusting health to a system biblically synonymous with sorcery/witchcraft, emphasizing that biblical healing is holistic and spiritual.

2. Biblical Principles in Health, Hygiene, and Disease Prevention

• The Bible’s wisdom on sanitation, nutrition, and community is highlighted as crucial to health:
  • Sanitation/Cleanliness: Old Testament laws predate modern bacterial theory, with instructions such as burying waste, handling menstruation, and food purity.
  • Quote (Jordan Rubin, 04:53): "God's hygiene principles, sanitation principles...if applied, could have averted the bubonic plague in the Middle Ages."
• The hosts argue that advances in sanitation, as taught in the Bible, rather than pharmaceuticals, account for most increased longevity in modern times.

3. Critique of Big Pharma and Modern Medicine

• Pharma’s Corruption: Dr. Axe links the emergence of Big Pharma to industrialists like John Rockefeller, who shifted medicine from herbal/natural to synthetic drug-based treatments for profit.
  • Quote (Dr. Axe, 06:48): "When you look at the corruption, when you look at the level of evil that's infiltrated the pharmaceutical industry... it's really scary."
• They critique the “God complex” in modern medicine (ref: Dr. Fauci and COVID), and the way dissent from “standard of care” is punished.

4. When (if ever) to Use Pharmaceuticals

• Life-threatening/Emergency Use: Both admit rare cases for pharmaceutical intervention (emergencies, trauma, selected infections).
  • Quote (Dr. Axe, 14:54): "I believe there are categories in certain pharmaceuticals today that people can benefit from if they're in a life threatening emergency."
  • Jordan shares family examples: minimal use of drugs/anesthesia during surgeries only when unavoidable, and always after prayer and natural remedies first.
    • Quote (Jordan Rubin, 17:15): "We have chosen medical interventions and medications very infrequently, but always after prayer and after lifestyle changes or natural remedies."
• Standard of Care Problem: Chronic disease management with incessant medication is condemned as dangerous and spiritually misaligned.

5. Biblical Healing Protocol – Prayer, Community, and Natural Medicine

• First Response: Prayer, laying on of hands, anointing with oil as commanded in James, and use of God-given herbs and foods.
  • Quote (Dr. Axe, 24:25): "If you're dealing with depression, anxiety, anything like that, the first thing we should be doing is going to church, getting prayed for, seeking community, praising God."
  • Quote (Jordan Rubin, 22:27): "Prayer supersedes natural remedies the same way it supersedes pharmaceutical remedies."

6. Deep Dive: Antidepressants, Anxiety Meds, and Spiritual Health

• Spiritual Impact: Jordan asserts that antidepressants can block spiritual sensitivity/creativity and make people “numb” or “zombie-like.”
  • Quote (Jordan Rubin, 27:31): "It is my firm belief that antidepressant and anti anxiety medicines interfere with our ability to hear God and connect in the spirit."
• Personal Stories:
  • Jordan recounts mental health struggles/adoption issues in his family; shares healing through prayer, natural remedies, community, and perseverance with biblical principles rather than medication.
  • Dr. Axe shares his own ADHD diagnosis and brief medication usage, then his turnaround through diet and faith.
    • Quote (Dr. Axe, 32:25): "I was the kid diagnosed with ADHD. I got put on Ritalin... But I experienced those drugs, and it was God that helped change me."
• Discuss biblical and natural remedies for mental/emotional health: saffron, St. John’s Wort, ashwagandha, omega-3s, sunshine, fasting, community, exercise.
  • Quote (Jordan Rubin, 34:57): "Ashwagandha root extract is absolutely amazing for all things brain... Exercise in general, if bottled, could be the greatest antidepressant known to man."
• Warn about high rates of legal/illegal antidepressant usage and their dangers, especially for youth.

7. The Healing Power of Leaves and "Traditional Biblical Medicine"

• Scriptural Foundation:
  • Revelation 22:2 is cited: "the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations."
  • Ezekiel 47:12 is referenced as inspiration for "Traditional Biblical Medicine" (TBM): using fruit tree leaves as a God's provision.
  • Quote (Jordan Rubin, 41:40): "Leaves from fruit trees are our God given medicine. I call it TBM, traditional biblical medicine."
• Research and Examples:
  • Oak tree leaves: high in antioxidants, source of quercetin (immune booster, COVID remedy), can be brewed like tea.
  • Mulberry leaves: effective for blood sugar balance and diabetes.
  • Hawthorn leaves: cardioprotective.
  • Fruit tree leaves are a renewable, potent, and neglected source of healing.
    • Quote (Jordan Rubin, 47:06): "Nature's greatest quercetin supplement is oak tree leaves."
    • Quote (Jordan Rubin, 49:17): "Medicine grows on trees."
• Practical Guidance:
  • Advises listeners to forage fruit tree leaves (oak, mulberry, raspberry, etc.), dry them, and use as tea.
  • Encourages use of plant ID apps or AI tools to safely forage; links this back to biblical stewardship and self-reliance.
    • Quote (Dr. Axe, 53:41): "You can actually take a picture of a tree leaf and ask what type of tree leaf that is and what are its medicinal benefits."

8. Essential Oils and Anointing Practices

• Encourages following the biblical model (Book of James) of anointing the sick with oil (olive oil, myrrh, calamus, cassia, cinnamon).
• Shares family ritual combining shot of olive oil and leaf tea at dinner, quoting Acts 1:8 for spiritual/physical health.
  • Quote (Jordan Rubin, 55:53): "Our behavior is lining up with our beliefs. That's what's called integrity. And it brings me a great sense of peace as a father, that my children and my wife and myself are partaking of God's healing medicine each and every night."

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments (with Timestamps)

• [00:23] Jordan Rubin: “I don't believe that physicians are evil... But their tools, their training, their funding all comes from Big Pharma... And when man tries to play God, there's always something missing.”
• [06:48] Dr. Josh Axe: “When you look at the corruption...in the pharmaceutical industry and even its inceptions, it's really scary... Rockefeller... said... we're not going to use plants anymore, these things from creation, these things that are natural.”
• [22:27] Jordan Rubin: “Prayer supersedes natural remedies the same way it supersedes pharmaceutical remedies.”
• [24:25] Dr. Josh Axe: “If you're dealing with depression, anxiety… the first thing we should be doing is going to church, getting prayed for, seeking community, praising God.... people are taking a drug, feeling like it's fixing them, but in fact it's just numbing them.”
• [27:31] Jordan Rubin: “It is my firm belief that antidepressant and antianxiety medicines interfere with our ability to hear God and connect in the spirit.... they say, I feel like a zombie or I just feel numb.”
• [41:40] Jordan Rubin: “Leaves from fruit trees are our God given medicine. I call it TBM, traditional biblical medicine.”
• [47:06] Dr. Josh Axe: "It's amazing to think that nature's greatest quercetin supplement is oak tree leaves."
• [49:17] Jordan Rubin: "Medicine grows on trees."
• [55:53] Jordan Rubin: “Our behavior is lining up with our beliefs. That's what's called integrity.”

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:00–03:00: Opening remarks, introduction of Pharmakeia concept (skip ads)
• 03:31–06:37: Biblical health and the importance of biblical sanitation
• 06:37–10:56: Revelation, the origin of Big Pharma, and spiritual dangers
• 10:56–17:15: Spiritual implications of pharmaceuticals; standard of care critique
• 17:15–20:50: Personal stories—interfacing with medicine in emergencies
• 20:50–22:27: Outcomes: US healthcare vs. other countries and lifestyle prioritization
• 22:27–24:25: Healing sequence: prayer, natural medicine, then drugs as last resort
• 24:25–32:25: Antidepressants, anxiety drugs, and their spiritual/mental impact
• 32:25–36:50: Dr. Axe’s ADHD and mom’s healing testimonies; biblical alternatives for mental health
• 36:50–41:40: Prevalence and dangers of psychiatric drugs; black market issues
• 41:40–53:41: The biblical basis and practical use of healing tree leaves
• 53:41–58:10: Foraging, family rituals, essential oils, and holistic healing

Conclusion & Practical Takeaways

• Always seek prayer, community, and biblical remedies as the first response to illness.
• Reserve pharmaceuticals for true emergencies; scrutinize the chronic and casual use ingrained in the modern medical system.
• Cultivate a lifestyle of biblical obedience and stewardship of natural healing—from dietary choices to anointing with oils, to consuming healing leaves from fruit trees.
• Trust in Scripture over modern propaganda: “Medicine grows on trees.”
• Educate family and community; model, teach, and pass on biblical healing wisdom.

Further Resources

• Book Recommendation: The Biblio Diet by Dr. Josh Axe & Jordan Rubin
  (Practical protocols for biblical healing, including recipes for leaf teas and herbal remedies)
• Relevant Verses: Revelation 18, Revelation 22:2, Ezekiel 47:12, James (on anointing and prayer), Proverbs

Recommended Action:
Take God at his word: if you are sick, pray first, seek community, use anointing oil, and then explore God-given herbs, foods, and especially the leaves of fruit trees for healing, aligning lifestyle and belief with biblical wisdom.

Dr. Axe (58:10): "If you're sick, pray for yourself. Have others pray for you for healing, and you will be made well."