Bible Interpretation

Bible Interpretation Latest

Jun 18 Blog

Josephus on the Essenes

By: Biblical Archaeology Society Staff

Josephus’s commentaries on the laws and characteristics of the Essene community have been invaluable to scholars studying ancient Jewish laws and customs.

Jun 6 Blog

Love Your Neighbor: Only Israelites or Everyone?

By: Richard Elliott Friedman

The Book of Leviticus tells us to love our neighbors, but who are our neighbors? Does the command mean to just love fellow Israelites—or everyone?

Jun 3 Blog

The Hungry Jesus

By: Andrew McGowan

Andrew McGowan challenges the tradition that Jesus was a welcoming host at meals.

May 17 Blog

What Was Life Like for Roman Slaves?

By: Biblical Archaeology Society Staff

In the southwest of Asia Minor, at the site of Aphrodisias, Turkey, archaeology has provided insight into the lives of Roman slaves, including a man named Zoilos who earned his freedom.

May 2 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.

Apr 19 Blog

Jesus’ Last Supper Still Wasn’t a Passover Seder Meal

By: Jonathan Klawans

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 post, Boston University Professor of Religion Jonathan Klawans provides an update to his popular Bible Review article questioning this common assumption.

Apr 19 Blog

Was Jesus’ Last Supper a Seder?

By: Biblical Archaeology Society Staff

Many assume that Jesus' Last Supper was a Seder, the ritual Passover meal. Examine evidence from the synoptic Gospels with scholar Jonathan Klawans.

Apr 10 Blog

Jesus Before Pilate

By: Marek Dospěl

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 with the itinerant rabbi from Galilee, they reveal a governor determined to promote Roman religion in Judea and to ruthlessly suppress any form of dissent.

Apr 8 Blog

Hierapolis and the Gateway to Hell

By: Noah Wiener

Italian archaeologists excavating the Phrygian city of Hierapolis in southwestern Turkey uncovered the remains of Pluto’s Gate, a site considered an entrance into the underworld in the Greco-Roman period.

Apr 7 Blog

The Church of Laodicea in the Bible and Archaeology

By: Megan Sauter

Laodicea was a wealthy city in western Turkey that flourished for centuries. Why does the author of the Book of Revelation call the church of Laodicea “lukewarm”—neither hot nor cold? Recent excavations at the site might provide the answer.

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