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History in the Bible

220 episodes - English - Latest episode: 9 days ago - ★★★★★ - 569 ratings

A guide to the history presented in the Bible, for people of all faiths and backgrounds, presented by an independent podcaster, and biblical studies buff. I explore the religion of ancient Israel, the beginnings of Christianity, then finally the evolution of the heirs of Abraham to the year 200. I discuss every single book in every Bible (there are more than you think!). Lightly garnished with a dash of drollery, a soupçon of scrutiny, and not one ounce of objectivity. Not one ounce! The main narrative will conclude in January 2024. Bonus episodes will continue indefinitely.

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Episodes

Book Announcement: The History in the Bible Podcast Companion, volume one

March 19, 2024 09:59 - 4 minutes - 3.27 MB

Announcing the publication of the first volume in the History in the Bible Podcast Companion set of books, “Essential Resources”. You can get it from these Amazon marketplaces: https://www.amazon.com/History-Bible-Podcast-Companion-Essential/dp/0645950726/ https://www.amazon.co.uk/History-Bible-Podcast-Companion-Essential/dp/0645950726/ https://www.amazon.ca/History-Bible-Podcast-Companion-Essential/dp/0645950726/ https://www.amazon.de/-/en/Garry-Stevens-PhD/dp/0645950726/ https:/...

3.34 Show Finale- Speculations V: 100-700 CE

January 21, 2024 05:00 - 31 minutes - 43.1 MB

The last episode in the show. I give a big thank you to all my listeners, and a brief biographical sketch. Then I finish the series with three more speculations. First, what if Marcionism had become the orthodoxy of the imperial church incorporate? Second, could Manichaeism have swallowed up the church? And finally, could the church have survived and prospered had it not become the state religion of the Roman empire?

3.33 Speculations IV: 100-400 CE

January 14, 2024 05:00 - 32 minutes - 22.7 MB

Four more speculations.  I argue that an important element of Christianity’s success was that it quickly transformed itself into what I call the imperial church incorporate. Would Christianity have succeeded had it not done so?  Second, could Mithraism have triumphed over the church?  Third, could the Gnostic variants of Christianity come to dominate?  Finally, the Jewish arm of the church vanished after the Bar Kosiva revolt of 132. What might have happened had that group survived and t...

3.32 Speculations III: 35-100 CE

January 07, 2024 05:00 - 26 minutes - 18.5 MB

More speculations and alternative histories! Our first diverges from our own timeline in about the year 35. What if Jesus had not been executed by the Romans, but had lived on to see the Great Judean Revolt of 66 CE. What would he have made of it? Second, let’s say that Jesus died when did, a generation before the Great Revolt. What might have happened if his chief apostles Peter and Paul had lived to witness the Roman attack on Judea? And third, let’s move on to about the year 100, when Chr...

3.31 Speculations II: 50-66 CE

December 18, 2023 10:27 - 29 minutes - 20.1 MB

This is the second episode in a series of speculations and alternate histories. This time:  What if Christian missionaries had never preached to the pagans? Second, what may happened if Christian missionaries had ignored the Roman empire, and proselytised in Parthia, instead? Third, what would have become of Christianity if the Jewish revolts had never occurred, and the Temple stood to the end of the empire?

Bonus 58: The Gadarene Swine

December 10, 2023 08:13 - 38 minutes - 26.7 MB

In this bonus, I continue my collaboration with Steve Guerra of the "History of the Papacy" show (www.atozhistorypage.com/), and Scott McCandless of the "Retelling the Bible" podcast (retellingthebible.wordpress.com/). In this bonus we revisit Scott’s show on the Gadarene swine. I also have a reminder of Gil Kindron's and my course on Isaiah, in January 2024. For more information, go to podcastofbiblicalproportions.com/courses.

3.30 Speculations I: 30-65 CE

November 19, 2023 05:00 - 28 minutes - 19.4 MB

This is the first episode in a series of speculations and alternate histories. This time: what if John the Baptist was bigger than Jesus? What if Paul had split to form his own independent movement?

Bonus: Announcement About a Brief Course on Isaiah, with Gil Kidron

November 12, 2023 08:40 - 15 minutes - 10.4 MB

Gil Kidron and I announce a brief course about the prophet Isaiah. This will be conducted in two sessions in January 2024. Emnail me for more information.

Bonus 57: Growing Christianity, with Bernie Maopolski

November 05, 2023 05:00 - 36 minutes - 24.8 MB

In this bonus, Bernie Maopolski of Fan of History (https://shows.acast.com/history) invites me onto his "Whats New In History" segment. We discuss my ideas about how Bible scholars have it all wrong about the mathematics of the growth of Christinaity in the Roman Empire, and how I have corrected their errors. I also have some announcements about my final episodes, and about my forthcoming book of the show. 

Bonus 56: Abraham's Three Mysterious Visitors

October 01, 2023 05:00 - 38 minutes - 26.4 MB

In this bonus, I continue my collaboration with Steve Guerra of the "History of the Papacy" show (https://www.atozhistorypage.com/), and Scott Mcandless of the "Retelling the Bible" podcast (https://retellingthebible.wordpress.com/). In this show we revisit Scott’s show on Abraham's three mysterious vistors. I also have an announcement about the final episodes in my main narrative, and a forthcoming book.

3.29 The Last Heirs of Abraham III: Survivors of the Jungle

August 05, 2023 17:28 - 28 minutes - 19.5 MB

The revolt of Bar Kosiva against Rome failed, as had the Great Revolt. The Roman punishment destroyed almost all the many blooms living in the mighty jungle that was Second Temple Judaism. Only two species escaped the immolation: rabbinic Judaism, and Christianity. The imperial punishment also destroyed the Jewish wing of the church incorporate, leaving the franchise to follow its own path. With a shout-out to the great Rabbi Akiva.

3.28 The Last Heirs of Abraham II: Fall of the Temple

July 16, 2023 05:00 - 20 minutes - 13.9 MB

The Temple's destruction also destroyed all the many varieties of Second Temple Judaism, save for the emerging rabbinic movement, and the nascent Christian movement.

Bonus 55: Peter, Paul, and Clement with Popeular History

July 09, 2023 05:00 - 1 hour - 48 MB

In this bonus, Gregg Gassman of the Popeular History Podcast (www.popeularhistory.com) and and I discuss Peter, Paul, and Clement. Gregg is a Catholic, and I was brought up in the Anglican tradition. So we have some differences about Peter, as you will soon hear. We also try to work out where Clement fits in the papal succession. 

3.27 The Last Heirs of Abraham I: Setting the Stage

June 18, 2023 05:00 - 26 minutes - 18.3 MB

Only two of Abraham's heirs survived to the year 200 CE/AD: rabbinic Judaism, and the imperial church incorporate. My final epiodes explore how that happened.

Bonus 54: Manoah, father of Samson

June 04, 2023 05:00 - 30 minutes - 21.1 MB

In this collaboration with Steve Guerra of the History of the Papacy show (https://www.atozhistorypage.com/), and Scott McAndless of the Retelling the Bible podcast (https://retellingthebible.wordpress.com/2021/09/15/5-19-me-myself-and-manoah/), we discuss Scott's episode "Me, Myself, and Manoah".

Bonus 53: Joshua and the Day the Sun Stood Still

May 14, 2023 05:00 - 33 minutes - 23.2 MB

In this bonus, I launch a new mini-series. My co-hosts are Steve Guerra of the History of the Papacy show (https://www.atozhistorypage.com/), and Scott Mcandless of the Retelling the Bible podcast (https://retellingthebible.wordpress.com/). In these bonus episodes, we will discuss one of Scott’s re-tellings. In this show we revisit Scott’s show on Joshua and the day the sun stood still.

Bonus 52: Behind the Scenes with John Brooks of Pod Only knows

April 30, 2023 05:00 - 35 minutes - 24.3 MB

In this bonus, John Brooks of the “Pod Only Knows” podcast interviews me about the genesis and making of my show. I think it turned out pretty well.  This episode formed the last show of John’s former podcast, “Hard to Believe”. It is published here with his kind permission. With his new podcast, “Pod Only Knows”, John is off to fresh ventures, along with Dr. Kelly J. Baker. They are both from the serious world of religious studies. In their new show, they take a sometimes serious, sometim...

3.26 Christianity in the Year 200

April 10, 2023 10:07 - 31 minutes - 21.9 MB

Irenaeus died around the year 200. In his final decades, pagan intellectuals first turned their sights on the Christians. The first was Celsus. Christians counter-attacked with more apologies. They also produced homilies, such as the 2nd letter of Clement.  Fans also produced some fanciful acts and gospels of the various disciples, and two biographies of the young Jesus: the Paidika, and the Protevangelium of James. I finish with a look at two accounts of local persecutions during the pe...

Bonus 51: Maccabees, Sadducees, and Pharisees With Gil Kidron

March 19, 2023 05:00 - 34 minutes - 24 MB

Gil Kidron and I discuss how a small rural priest called Mattathias started an insurgency against Judea’s overlords, the mighty Seleucid kingdom, heir to the empire of Alexander the Great. His descendants became rulers of the tiny region. They are known to history as the Maccabeans. In this period, we see the emergence of two political or social groups. First, the Sadducees, or Tsadokites. Second, the Pharisees. 

Bonus: Announcement About the Future of the Podcast

March 12, 2023 05:00 - 4 minutes - 2.94 MB

An announcement about the future of the podcast.

3.25 Remaking Paul II: Luther and Beyond

February 26, 2023 06:37 - 24 minutes - 17.1 MB

After Irenaeus rescued Paul from the Marcionites and Gnostics, Paul’s letters were honoured and uncontroversial documents, testaments to a great missionary and theologian. Martin Luther weaponised them to attack the established church, and so birthed the Protestant movement. In the 1970s, the New Perspective on Paul movement tried to rescue Paul from Luther. I also finish up my discussion of the Acts of Paul, and make an assessment of Paul’s real significance to Christianity. 

Bonus 50: With the Conspirinormal Podcast

February 12, 2023 05:00 - 1 hour - 57.8 MB

The Conspirinormal podcast people kindly invited me onto their show. The  hosts Adam Sayne and Serfiel Stevenson have generously allowed me to publish our conversation here.

Bonus 49: Top Moments in the Old Testament/Tanakh II

January 29, 2023 05:00 - 31 minutes - 21.9 MB

In this bonus episode, Steve Guerra of the History of the Papacy podcast and I continue our look at some of our favourite moments in the Old Testament or Tanakh. First, Steve investigates the unfortunate incident of Dinah and the Hebites. Then Garry shows a little-known side to Joseph's rule in Egypt.

3.24 Remaking Paul I: Irenaeus

January 15, 2023 05:00 - 25 minutes - 17.7 MB

During the middle of the 2nd century, Paul was rescued from the Marcionites and Gnostics. He was elevated from honoured missionary to master theologian. I also discuss the Acts of Paul and his acolyte Thecla.

3.23 The Imperial Church Incorporate III: The Heresy Hunter

December 24, 2022 14:00 - 36 minutes - 25.4 MB

The imperial church of the late 2nd century was bedevilled by external competitors -- Gnostics, Marcionites, Montanists – and vexed by internal division over the nature of Christ. Was he man, god, or both? The church brought forth fighters to defend its corporate markets. These were the heresy hunters. Justin Martyr and Hegesippus the Holy were early soldiers.  Bishop Irenaeus of Lyon was the greatest of these warriors. His works was enormously influential. For a start, he decisively moved...

Bonus 48: Mel Gibson's Passion of the Christ

December 04, 2022 05:00 - 1 hour - 41.5 MB

Steve Guerra of the History of the Papacy podcast and I turn a quizzical eye on Mel Gibson's movie The Passion of the Christ.

Bonus 47 The Twelve Minor Prophets IX: Real Finale

November 20, 2022 05:00 - 1 hour - 46.5 MB

Steve Guerra from the History in the Papacy podcast and I concluded our series on the Twelve minor prophets of the OT some time ago. That was a fake-out. We managed to rope in a real expert to conclude our mini-series. Let me introduce Prof Kip Swinney.

3.22 The Imperial Church Incorporate II: The Martyr

November 06, 2022 05:00 - 29 minutes - 20.2 MB

Justin Martyr is the second of the great Christian figures of the second century. He is one of the earliest for whom we have a substantial biography from the man himself. He wrote at length and often, creating the largest body of Christian literature to his time. Later Christians quoted from him endlessly, and lauded him as a writer, apologist, philosopher, and intellectual. But he introduced a pronounced anti-Jewish animus into Christianity. He also creates the concept of “heresy”, which wo...

3.21 The Imperial Church Incorporate I: The Heretic

October 16, 2022 05:00 - 28 minutes - 19.8 MB

The rest of the show covers the second half of the second century. In this period, the little Jesus clubs evolved into the imperial church incorporate. This and the next few episodes cover the three dominant personalities of that period. In this episode I investigate the ‘heretic’ Marcion of Sinope. Marcion shook the church to its foundations when he moved to Rome. He rejected the idea that Christianity was based on Judaism and the Old testament. He constructed the first Christian canon: ten...

Bonus 46: The Twelve Minor Prophets VIII: Finale

October 02, 2022 05:00 - 43 minutes - 29.9 MB

Steve Guerra from the History in the Papacy podcast and I conclude our mini-series on the Twelve minor prophets of the OT. In this episode we have a bit of fun and rank the Twelve using our own entirely ridiculous criteria.

Bonus 45: Biblical Chronology with Gil Kidron II

September 18, 2022 06:00 - 33 minutes - 23.4 MB

In this bonus episode, Gil Kidron of a Podcast of Biblical Proportions and I finish our discussion of biblical chronology.

3.20 Gnowing Me, Gnowing You II: The Crusade of Valentinus

September 04, 2022 06:00 - 29 minutes - 20.6 MB

Unlike the Sethian Gnostics, the Valentinian Gnostics are clearly rooted in Christianity. They were founded by Valentinus, an Egyptian who may have stood for the bishopric of Rome. Valentinus founded a popular crusade that borrowed from the Sethians and the apostle Paul. The movement produced a copious literature: the apocalypse of Paul, the apocalypse of Peter, the apocalypse of Adam, the gospel of Mary, the gospel of Phillip, and the gospel of truth. All of these books were recovered only ...

3.19 Gnowing Me, Gnowing You I: The Children of Seth

August 14, 2022 06:00 - 24 minutes - 17 MB

Until the late 19th century, the Gnostic works were known only from their opponents, who regarded them as aberrant and vile Christians.  Discoveries since then have uncovered a wealth of Gnostic literature. The Gnostics are now usually divided into two groups: Sethians and Valentinians. The Sethians are the older. Many scholars hold that their roots are in Second Temple Judaism, not Christianity.

Bonus 44: Biblical Chronology with Gil Kidron I

July 31, 2022 10:41 - 25 minutes - 17.4 MB

In this bonus episode, Gil Kidron of a Podcast of Biblical Proportions and I wade into biblical chronology.

3.18 Christians Under the Roman Gaze

July 17, 2022 06:00 - 33 minutes - 23.2 MB

In the second century, there were three groups of Jewish-leaning Jesus clubs: the Johhanines, the Nazoreans, and the Ebionities. These had either vanished or been absorbed into gentile Christanity by the year 200. While that was happening, the Christian movement came to the attention of the imperial authorities. Writing in 110, governor Pliny only knew they seemed to be vaguely seditious, and had depraved practices, such as meeting before dawn. Forty years later, Christians had gained an ap...

Bonus 43: Top Moments in the Old Testament/Tanakh I

June 26, 2022 06:00 - 39 minutes - 26.9 MB

In this bonus episode, Steve Guerra of the History of the Papacy podcast and I take a look at some of our favourite moments in the Old Testament or Tanakh. First, Steve wonders what the deal is with Melchizedek. Then Garry shows how a single verse about the patriarch Enoch spawned a whole literature. Back to Steve, who finds some surprising verses in Psalm 137. We conclude with the old she’s not my wife she’s my sister scam, which Abraham and Isaac pull three times

Bonus 42: The Twelve Minor Prophets VII: Malachi and Joel

June 12, 2022 05:00 - 47 minutes - 32.5 MB

Malachi writes in Persian times. The rebuilt Temple has not ushered in an ideal age, the governors of Yehuda are not Davidic, and the priests and people have lost their watchfulness about God’s coming. Malachi attacks this malaise. The priests are corrupt. The people are unfaithful. All must repent. Joel writes of locusts and famine. An ecological catastrophe is divine retribution for apostasy. He exhorts the people of Judah to repent, fast, and pray to avert these calamities.

Update on the Intelligent Speech Conference 2022

June 08, 2022 09:41 - 5 minutes - 3.65 MB

I will be appearing at the Intelligent Speech Conference 2022, on 25 June (US and European time zones). Get your tickets from https://www.intelligentspeechconference.com/

3.17 Quest for the Rabbis II: The Mishnah

May 29, 2022 06:00 - 26 minutes - 18.6 MB

The Mishnah is the first great product of the rabbis. Traditionally it was codified around 200 CE by Rabbi Yehuda haNasi. It appears from nowhere. The Mishnah bears no resemblance to anything in the Tanakh/Old Testament, nor in the vast Jewish apocalyptic literature of preceding centuries. 

Special Event: Intelligent Speech Conference 2022

May 26, 2022 09:47 - 6 minutes - 4.18 MB

I will be appearing at the Intelligent Speech Conference 2022, on 25 June (US and European time zones). Hear all about it.

3.16 Quest for the Rabbis I: Origins

May 08, 2022 09:45 - 28 minutes - 19.7 MB

The origins of the rabbis, dated to the second century CE, are shrouded in fog, for reasons we do not understand. Why did the Jews cease writing histories after the year 100? Why do we have no histories from the Babylonian Jews. Where did the Mishnah, the foundational document of Rabbinic thought, dome from? I also discuss the evidence that historians of antiquity use, and how they assess that evidence. Especial thanks to Dr. Bret C. Devereaux, from the University of North Carolina at Chapel...

Bonus 41: Baruch and Jeremiah, with Gil Kidron

April 17, 2022 05:00 - 47 minutes - 32.9 MB

In this bonus episode, Gil Kidron and I discuss Gil's theory that the scribe Baruch was instrumental in writing (or editing or redacting) the book of Genesis, using the life of his master the prophet Jermiah as a model.

3.15 Tumultus Iudaeorum

March 27, 2022 05:00 - 35 minutes - 24.4 MB

On the death of Herod the Great in 4 BCE, the Judean state was a prosperous, self-governed, and stable kingdom. It was Rome’s best buddy in the Levant, with territories extending beyond the Jordan and into Syria. Thriving Jewish communities could be found from Spain to Egypt. Over a span 70 years, the Judeans launched three insurrections against the Romans. The consequences were catastrophic. 140 years after Herod’s death, the Temple and Jerusalem had been razed, the Judean self-governing pr...

Bonus 41 The Twelve Minor Prophets VII: Malachi and Joel

March 27, 2022 05:00 - 47 minutes - 32.5 MB

Malachi writes in Persian times. The rebuilt Temple has not ushered in an ideal age, the governors of Yehuda are not Davidic, and the priests and people have lost their watchfulness about God’s coming. Malachi attacks this malaise. The priests are corrupt. The people are unfaithful. All must repent. Joel writes of locusts and famine. An ecological catastrophe is divine retribution for apostasy. He exhorts the people of Judah to repent, fast, and pray to avert these calamities.

3.14 After the Apostles II: Holy Books and Blessed Bishops

March 06, 2022 05:00 - 26 minutes - 18.6 MB

My second ep about the apostolic fathers, those who followed the disciples. Here I discuss the anonymous authors of the epistle of Barnabas, the gospel of Peter, and the Shepherd of Hermas. All of them were candidates for inclusion in the New Testament. We should be grateful that the virulent anti-Jewishness of the epistle of Barnabas never made it. The gospel of Peter was a best-seller, more popular than the gospel of Mark. It gives an account of the actual resurrection, which none of our ca...

3.13 After the Apostles I: Out of the Mist

February 13, 2022 05:00 - 34 minutes - 23.8 MB

By the year 70, all of the disciples save perhaps John, were dead. Their inheritors are traditionally known as the Apostolic fathers, although many scholars would object to that appellation. I explore the fathers in this and the next episode. In this show I present the very earliest: Bishop Clement of Rome, and the anonymous author of the Didache, a fascinating look into earliest Christian practices. Along the way I speculate about the relationship between Jewish and Christian practices of t...

Bonus 40 Noah: The Movie, with Pod Academy

January 23, 2022 05:00 - 1 hour - 46.5 MB

In this bonus episode, Gil Kidron and Rutger Vos graciously invite me on to their long-running show Pod Academy. This show is dedicated to applying a critical intellect to popular media, especially movies or TV series. In this bonus we discuss the 2014 movie Noah, staring Russell Crowe, Anthony Hopkins, Jennifer Connelly, and Emma Watson. With a special appearance by Ray Winstone, doing what Ray Winstone always does: being himself.

Bonus 39 The Twelve Minor Prophets VI: Haggai and Zechariah

January 09, 2022 05:00 - 46 minutes - 31.7 MB

Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi are the three post-exilic prophets. In Jewish tradition, they are the last of the prophets. After them, prophecy ceased. Haggai is a pragmatic man relaying God’s words to the Jewish leadership. Although contemporary with Haggai, Zechariah is his polar opposite. Zechariah is off his nut, with the trippiest imagery outside of Ezekiel, Daniel, and Revelation.

Bonus 38 The Twelve Minor Prophets V: Zephaniah and Habakkuk

December 27, 2021 10:52 - 47 minutes - 33 MB

I'm joined by Steve Guerra as we continue our series on the twelve minor Old Testament prophets. Here we tackle Zephaniah and Habakkuk. Both are short. Zephaniah ranted during the last decades of the kingdom of Judea. Zephaniah is doom, doom, doom. Habakkuk tackles with a fundamental problem about God's goodness: why is God about to let the wicked Babylonians overcome Judah?

3.12 Earliest Christians IV: Conflicts in John’s Community

December 05, 2021 05:00 - 32 minutes - 22.2 MB

I finish my discussion of Revelation, cheekily asking if the book implies that only gays will go to heaven. The Greek East only grudgingly accepted the book. The book sulked in the shadows of Christianity until the 19th century, incomprehensible and unwanted. British Protestants re-interpreted the book as the veriest key to the whole Bible. That obsession took root in North America. I also peruse the amusing Acts of John, and the intriguing three letters attributed to John. Theme music "I...

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