Archaeology has confirmed 53 people from the Hebrew Bible. What about the New Testament? In BAR, Lawrence Mykytiuk examines the political figures in the New Testament who can be identified Read more…
People & Cultures in the Bible
Groups of people and cultures in the Bible such as the Israelites, the Egyptians, the Samaritans, the Pharisees and the Sadducees, as well as Biblical figures such as Adam, Eve, Moses, Rachel, Sarah, Mary the mother of Jesus, Joseph the father of Jesus, John the Baptist, and the disciples of Jesus.
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New Testament Political Figures: The Evidence
• 08/16/2017
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Jesus Before Pilate
• 07/17/2017
The Gospels offer a surprisingly excusatory depiction of Pontius Pilate, the Roman prefect of Judea directly responsible for Jesus’ death. While the contemporary sources do not mention Pilate’s fatal involvement Read more…
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Left-Handed People in the Bible
• 06/13/2017
Were the warriors from the tribe of Benjamin left-handed by nature or nurture? Read more…
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The Sayings of Jesus in the Gospel of Thomas
• 06/04/2017
New Testament scholar Simon Gathercole examines what the sayings of Jesus in the Gospel of Thomas reveal about the early Christian world in which they were written. Read more…
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The Gospel of Thomas’s 114 Sayings of Jesus
• 06/04/2017
Read the 114 sayings of Jesus from the Gospel of Thomas as translated by Stephen J. Patterson and James M. Robinson. Read more…
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Herod Antipas in the Bible and Beyond
• 06/03/2017
Who was Herod Antipas? This son and successor of Herod the Great ruled Galilee when Jesus lived, and he participated in the trial of Jesus. In BAR, Morten Hørning Jensen Read more…
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James or Jacob in the Bible?
• 04/27/2017
How did the Jewish name Ya’akov, properly translated as Jacob, become James in English versions of the Bible? Read more…
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Nehemiah—The Man Behind the Wall
• 04/17/2017
Few people are familiar with the Biblical figure Nehemiah, and yet he was instrumental in the rebuilding and reestablishment of Jerusalem in the fifth century B.C. following the Babylonian exile. Read more…
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53 People in the Bible Confirmed Archaeologically
• 04/12/2017
How many people mentioned in the Hebrew Bible have been confirmed archaeologically? Lawrence Mykytiuk reveals the surprising number—from Israelite kings to Mesopotamian monarchs—and some lesser figures as well. Read more…
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The Edomite Stronghold of Sela
• 04/08/2017
In one of the Old Testament’s colder and more brutal episodes, King Amaziah of Judah (c. 801–783 B.C.E.), after having slain nearly 10,000 Edomites in battle near the southern end Read more…
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How Was Jesus’ Tomb Sealed?
• 04/06/2017
Urban C. von Wahlde looks at the Gospel accounts to see how the stone that sealed the tomb of Jesus is portrayed. Read more…
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Who Was Moses? Was He More than an Exodus Hero?
• 04/02/2017
Who was Moses? Was he more than an Exodus hero? Discover the Biblical Moses with Peter Machinist in his article “The Man Moses.” Read more…
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The Apostle Peter in Rome
• 03/31/2017
Brown University Religious Studies professor Nicola Denzey Lewis answers frequently asked questions about the apostle Peter. Denzey Lewis appears in the CNN series Finding Jesus: Faith, Fact, Forgery, which aims Read more…
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Jesus’ Last Supper Still Wasn’t a Passover Seder Meal
• 03/28/2017
Many people still assume that Jesus’ Last Supper was a Seder, a ritual meal held in celebration of the Jewish holiday of Passover. In this exclusive Bible History Daily guest Read more…
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Lydia and Tabitha in the Bible
• 03/27/2017
While the majority of the leaders of the early Christian church were men, the New Testament describes several prominent women leaders as well. Teresa Calpino analyzes two of these women—Tabitha Read more…
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Anna in the Bible
• 03/26/2017
Anna is one of the Bible’s most unusual women. Introduced at the end of the Birth Narrative (Luke 1:1-2:40), Anna concludes the sextet of named, pious Israelites surrounding the miraculous Read more…
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Joshua in the Bible
• 03/26/2017
World-renowned author and Nobel Peace Prize winner Elie Wiesel reflects on the Biblical figure Joshua in a Supporting Roles column for Bible Review. Read more…
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Has the Childhood Home of Jesus Been Found?
• 03/17/2017
The childhood home of Jesus may have been found underneath the Sisters of Nazareth Convent in Nazareth, Israel, according to archaeologist Ken Dark. Read more…
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Was Mary Magdalene Wife of Jesus? Was Mary Magdalene a Prostitute?
• 03/09/2017
Was Mary Magdalene a prostitute? Was Mary Magdalene wife of Jesus? These are the questions that concern author Birger A. Pearson in his article “From Saint to Sinner.” Read more…
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Herod’s Death, Jesus’ Birth and a Lunar Eclipse
• 03/02/2017
Read letters published in the Q&C section of BAR debating the dates of Herod’s death, Jesus’ birth and to which lunar eclipse Josephus was referring. Read more…
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Herod the Great: Friend of the Romans and Parthians?
• 03/01/2017
Jason M. Schlude explores how King Herod manipulated his position between two regional powers. Read more…
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Bible Scholar Brent Landau Asks “Who Were the Magi”?
• 01/27/2017
A lost Syriac manuscript, the Revelation of the Magi, translated into English by Bible scholar Brent Landau, may help answer that key question from the Christmas story: “Who were the Read more…
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Josephus on the Essenes
• 01/20/2017
Josephus’s commentaries on the laws and characteristics of the Essene community have been invaluable to scholars studying ancient Jewish laws and customs. Read more…
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Jesus Was a Refugee
• 01/15/2017
With news that over a million refugees have in the last year fled to Europe, scholar Joan E. Taylor says that it’s worth remembering that Jesus’ earliest years were, according Read more…
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Was Jesus’ Last Supper a Seder?
• 01/12/2017
Many assume that Jesus’ Last Supper was a Seder, the ritual Passover meal. Examine evidence from the synoptic Gospels with scholar Jonathan Klawans. Read more…
