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Codex Bezae. Image: Cambridge University Library/ff.288v & 289r from Nn.2.41.

Jun 19 Blog

Does the Gospel of Mark Reveal Jesus’ Anger or His Compassion?

In the fifth-century C.E. Codex Bezae, an early edition of the New Testament written in Greek, the Gospel of Mark describes Jesus’ anger before healing a leper (Mark 1:41). While later scribes changed Jesus’ anger to compassion, it is likely that Codex Bezae preserves the original reading.

May 29 Blog

Mary, Simeon or Anna: Who First Recognized Jesus as Messiah?

By: Ben Witherington III

Who was the first person to truly recognize Jesus as the messiah and understand the implications? Biblical scholar Ben Witherington III takes a close look at the account given in Luke, and sheds some light on what the Biblical narrative has to say about who was the first to recognize Jesus as the messiah.

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

May 13 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.

May 3 Blog

Where Is Golgotha, Where Jesus Was Crucified?

By: BAS Staff

Where is Golgotha, where Jesus was crucified, located in Jerusalem? Marcel Serr and Dieter Vieweger discuss past and current investigations into the site where Jesus was crucified.

Baroque artist Guido Reni depicts the apostle James, son of Zebedee, in his painting 'Saint James the Greater' (c. 1636–1638).

Apr 24 Blog

James or Jacob in the Bible?

By: Mark Wilson

How did the Jewish name Ya’akov, properly translated as Jacob, become James in English versions of the Bible?

Apr 15 Blog

Fruit in the Bible

By: David Moster

Seeds and fruit remains are exciting discoveries for archaeologists, and they provide radiocarbon data to help date buried strata. Fruit also plays an important role in the Biblical narrative.

Late-15th-century painting of The Last Supper by the Spanish artist known as the Master of Perea.

Apr 8 Blog

Was Jesus’ Last Supper a Seder?

By: Jonathan Klawans

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

Henry Osawa Tanner’s “The Three Marys,” 1910. Photo: Fisk University Galleries, Nashville, Tennessee

Apr 8 Blog

On What Day Did Jesus Rise?

By: Biblical Archaeology Society Staff

On what day did Jesus rise? After three days or on the third day? Ben Witherington III examines this question in BAR.

The Ravenna mosaic of Jesus. Photo: Sant’Apollinare Nuovo Ravenna, Italy/Bridgeman Images

Apr 3 Blog

Did Jesus Exist? Searching for Evidence Beyond the Bible

By: Lawrence Mykytiuk

Did Jesus of Nazareth, “the man Christ Jesus” (1 Timothy 2:5), really exist? What’s the evidence outside of the Bible? Classical and Jewish writings from the first several centuries C.E. give us a glimpse of the person who would become the central figure in Christianity mere decades after his crucifixion.

Apr 1 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.

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