Why the Bible Loves Cyrus the Great
Cyrus II was the founder of the Persian Empire, arguably the greatest empire of the Ancient Near East. Cyrus wasn't only a hero to the Persians. In the Hebrew Bible, Cyrus is the only non-Jew that God...
19 Touko 202557min
Biblical Law—Was 'Eye for an Eye' Really Enforced?
The laws and punishments meted out in the Bible sound pretty harsh. Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth—not to mention all of the commandments that are punishable by death! Ancient law expert Bruce Well...
12 Touko 202554min
What Was the Council of Nicaea (Really)?
According to The Da Vinci Code, all sorts of wild things happened at the Council of Nicaea in 325 CE. Constantine, the first Christian Roman emperor, chose the books of the New Testament. The role of ...
5 Touko 202553min
The End of the World According to Paul
Matthew Novenson is back and he's brought some exciting (wild, even) new ideas about our old friend Paul. In his latest book, Paul and Judaism at the End of History, Matt argues that Paul believed he ...
28 Huhti 202555min
A Second Look at the Second Coming
With Easter in the rear view mirror, we take a long-overdue look at the next chapter in the story of Jesus: the Second Coming. Scholar Tucker Ferda is making waves with some compelling new ideas about...
21 Huhti 202550min
Easter: What's the Story with Barabbas?
The enigmatic figure of Barabbas appears in all four gospels as a "bandit" or "insurrectionist" who is released from prison by Pontius Pilate instead of Jesus. In this special Easter episode, Helen an...
14 Huhti 202544min
The Bible Says What?! with Dan McClellan
What does the Bible really say about controversial topics like slavery, abortion, homosexuality, Satan and the Apocalypse? Everybody has their take, but few have the ability to interrogate the texts a...
7 Huhti 20251h 5min
Ancient Synagogues and the New Testament
Before it was called Christianity, the "Jesus movement" was born in 1st-century synagogues. In today's episode, Anders Runneson joins Helen and Dave to talk about the important role of ancient synagog...
31 Maalis 20251h 2min
