Throughout the New Testament we’re treated to countless examples of literary influence from the older texts, including the Book of Enoch and the works of Homer. But most striking are perhaps the numerous examples of New Testament authors borrow

093_Hosea and Joel

Feb 27th, 2024 49m 22s

As the returning exiles begin settling in Judah and our timeline moves nearer the Intertestamental Period, the literature looks both forward and backward in time, to themes of a coming day of judgment that will lay the foundation for Christiani

092_Ezekiel 3 (Yahweh in Marduk's Temple)

Jan 30th, 2024 40m 22s

The influence from neighboring cultures in Second Temple Judaism cannot be overstated, but that influence shows up in some surprising places and comes from some surprising sources. Perhaps none more alarming are the Babylonians themselves who t

091_Ezekiel 2 (Yahweh vs the Dragons)

Dec 29th, 2023 38m 4s

An enemy of Judah is an enemy of Yahweh, and what better way to describe his enemies than in terms of his most ancient of foes, the great sea dragon? But this section of Ezekiel isn’t just populated with dragons, but also angels with flaming sw

090_Ezekiel 1 (Wheels within Wheels)

Nov 28th, 2023 53m 4s

The Bible is filled with strange scenes, but few can compare with the opening of Ezekiel when the sky is filled with clouds, fire, and lightning and a vision of a strange entity described as “wheels within wheels” terrifies the prophet so that

089_Jeremiah 4 (Yahweh and the Dragon)

Oct 24th, 2023 37m 35s

The Mediterranean region is littered with myths of storm gods fighting great sea monsters, and Israel is no different. Their dragon goes by the name Leviathan and wishes to swallow up the world, and Yahweh, in a great tumultuous flood. This is

088_Jeremiah 3 (Baruch's Paradox)

Sep 26th, 2023 42m 36s

As the destruction of the temple draws near, Jeremiah offers mixed messages of hope and despair, of violent ends and joyous beginnings. The city will be dismantled, no, it will be burned down. The temple will be toppled, or perhaps consumed by

087_Jeremiah 2 (Still Not a Bullfrog)

Aug 27th, 2023 38m 12s

Moses is presented as the prototypical prophet who brings Yahwism to a nation of people who have forgotten Yahweh. Under his reform and leadership they eradicate idolatry and establish a new covenant. But is Moses the true prototypical prophet,

086_Jeremiah 1 (Not a Bullfrog)

Jul 22nd, 2023 40m 26s

When the Jewish exiles returned from Babylon they brought with them sweeping changes to their religion, changes formed during and after their captivity. Many changes were unwelcome, but as they were backed by the Persian state, they held sway i

085_Isaiah 5

Jun 21st, 2023 31m 1s

Throughout human history people have attempted to explain tragedy with divine wrath. Great calamity seems to invite magical explanations as we seek meaning in our suffering. The final chapters of Isaiah attempt exactly that, ascribing their cru

084_Isaiah 4

May 27th, 2023 50m 35s

Throughout the Hebrew Bible we’ve found important sections that were inspired by older myths and stories. From the opening chapter of Genesis drawing upon the Babylonian creation epic to Jacob’s struggle with the mysterious figure by the river

083_Isaiah 3

Apr 30th, 2023 48m 38s

The Hebrew Bible is filled with prohibitions against human sacrifice as Yahweh repeatedly states he is against such practices and has never asked for them. Yet buried within the text are stories which the redactors forgot to remove, stories in

082_Isaiah 2

Mar 25th, 2023 40m 29s

The Jubilee Year was a time of change in Jewish lives, a time when property was returned to its original owner and people returned to their homes. A time to return the disrupted nation to a more orderly state. It should come as no surprise that

081_Isaiah 1

Feb 22nd, 2023 50m 31s

Throughout the story of Jesus we find countless references to Old Testament passages, and no book of the Hebrew Bible is quoted more often than Isaiah. The contents of this book is concerned with themes of judgment and atonement, the remission

080_Song of Songs

Jan 27th, 2023 48m 25s

The Song of Songs is a collection of erotic poetry that somehow made its way into Jewish scripture, but how did this occur? Apologists have long struggled with this idea, offering thee excuse that it’s secretly an allegory for the love of Yahwe

079_Ecclesiastes

Dec 25th, 2022 40m 1s

The book of Ecclesiastes, also called Qoheleth, is a curious text whose inclusion into the Hebrew canon has troubled scholars for centuries. It’s an introspective, pessimistic writing that violates traditional wisdom theology by positing that w

078_Proverbs 2

Nov 25th, 2022 25m 39s

We conclude our study of Proverbs with sections 3-8 of the book which includes the Poem of the Good Wife, a work that outlines what it means to be a good woman and the type of person a man should look for when choosing a partner. Moreover, it t

077_Proverbs 1

1 Oct 28th, 2022 48m 28s

The book of Proverbs, attributed to King Solomon despite the fact that most sections are individually attributed to other editors, provides us with poems, phrases, guidance, and sometimes-timeless advice. And in a few places it gives us a glimp

076_The Psalmiest!

Sep 23rd, 2022 56m 55s

The final episode covering the Book of Psalms includes the Thanksgiving Psalms, Liturgical Psalms, and the Acrostics. But we aren't satisfied with covering 150 psalms included in the Bible. We dig up 5 more psalms that have been discovered in v

075_Pizalm 2 Electric Boogaloo

Aug 23rd, 2022 51m 19s

We tackle 3 more genres of Psalm, the Hymns, Wisdom, and Royal Psalms and discuss their usefulness in early Christian literature.

074_Psalm Body Once Told Me

Aug 4th, 2022 45m

In the wake of the the Babylonian Conquest many Jews found themselves living in captivity, prisoners of their conquerors. Their city destroyed, their worship interrupted, they longed for the days when Yahweh would once again rule over them and

074_Come Get Psalm

1 Jul 23rd, 2022 45m

073_Job 2

Jun 25th, 2022 49m 45s

We conclude our coverage of Job by examining the subsequent layers which were added to the text over the centuries and examine the theological implications of these layers. Does the new information contradict the original narrative, and why is

072_Job 1

1 May 28th, 2022 45m 58s

This is a story all about howJob's life got twist-turned upside downGive me an episode or two and I'll explainHow God inflicted Job with a life of painThe story of Job is NOT what you think. In fact, there isn't actually one story presented in

071_Esther

Apr 24th, 2022 46m 55s

Imagine ancient Jews who didn't observe kosher laws, had no special interest in Jerusalem, didn't practice circumcision, married foreigners, and wrote stories that never mentioned their god. This may seem difficult to imagine, but for Jews livi