artifacts and the bible

artifacts and the bible Latest

Mar 2 Blog

Bible Animals: From Hyenas to Hippos

By: Rabbi Dr. Natan Slifkin

Lions and crocodiles and monkeys, oh my! There are about a hundred different types of animal species mentioned in the Bible.

A rock-hewn altar carved out of limestone located about a mile from Shiloh. The four corners point to the four directions on a compass (Exodus 27:1-2). Photo: Yoel Elitzur

Feb 22 Blog

High Places, Altars and the Bamah

By: Ellen White

The open-air altar shrine, called a bamah (plural bamot), is known through several books of the Biblical canon. Often referred to as “high places” in translations of the Bible, bamot were worship sites that usually contained an altar.

Feb 1 Blog

Mark and John: A Wedding at Cana—Whose and Where?

By: James Tabor

James Tabor discusses the wedding at Cana from the Gospels of Mark and John. Whose wedding was this and why were Jesus and his family present?

Jan 23 Blog

What Is Coptic and Who Were the Copts in Ancient Egypt?

By: Megan Sauter

When did the ancient Egyptians stop writing in hieroglyphs, and what came next? From the fourth to ninth centuries C.E., Egypt was predominantly Christian. During this time, the language used by the masses was Coptic.

Jan 21 Blog

How the Serpent in the Garden Became Satan

By: Shawna Dolansky

The serpent in the Garden of Eden is portrayed as just that: a serpent. The story in Genesis 2–3 contains no hint that he embodies the devil, Satan or any other evil power. So where does the devil come into the details of Eden? Biblical scholar Shawna Dolansky examines how the serpent became Satan.

The Repentant St. Peter by El Greco. Photo: The Phillips Collection.

Jan 21 Blog

The Apostle Peter in Rome

By: Nicola Denzey Lewis

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 to investigate artifacts that shed light on the world in which Jesus lived.

Jan 4 Blog

King David’s Palace and the Millo

By: Robin Ngo

In the study of Biblical archaeology, Biblical texts and archaeological finds must be examined critically and independently, but ultimately, they must be interpreted together. Such an approach can be applied to King David’s Palace and the Millo.

Dec 31 Blog

Who Were the Ammonites, Moabites and Edomites in the Bible?

By: Megan Sauter

During the Iron Age, when Israel and Judah ruled Canaan, the kingdoms of Ammon, Moab and Edom ruled east of the Jordan River. Recent archaeological discoveries vastly increase our understanding of these kingdoms and their religion.

Dec 19 Blog

Understanding Israel’s 10 Commandments

By: Shawna Dolansky

Are the 10 Commandments really a moral code, or did the ancients understand them rather as the constitutional basis of a political theocracy?

Dec 17 Blog

Titus Flavius Josephus and the Prophet Jeremiah

By: Biblical Archaeology Society Staff

In the first century C.E., during the First Jewish Revolt, the Jewish historian Josephus urged his besieged countrymen in Jerusalem to surrender to the Romans. Half a millennium earlier, Jeremiah did the same thing with respect to the Babylonians.

Must-Read Free eBooks

The Dead Sea Scrolls: Past, Present, and Future

Biblical Peoples—The World of Ancient Israel

Who Was Jesus? Exploring the History of Jesus’ Life

Ancient Israel in Egypt and the Exodus

More Free eBooks

Want more Bible history?

Join Us on an Educational Journey

For more than 40 years, the Biblical Archaeology Society has partnered with world-renowned hosts and guides to provide you exceptional educational offerings in the archaeology of the Biblical lands and in Biblical studies.

Learn More