king of the jews

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.

By: Robin Ngo

Visitors to Jerusalem’s Old City can explore remains of King Herod’s palace, which may be where Roman governor Pontius Pilate tried and condemned Jesus of Nazareth to death.

By: James Tabor

On Wednesday Jesus began to make plans for Passover. He sent two of his disciples into the city to prepare a large second-­story guest room where he could gather secretly and safely with his inner group.

By: Lawrence Mykytiuk

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 in the archaeological record and by extra-Biblical writings.

By: Biblical Archaeology Society Staff

Bearing gifts for the infant Jesus, the three wise men from the east traversed afar to reach Bethlehem. What do we really know about the magi, who are so central to the traditional telling of the Christmas story?

By: James Tabor

According to the gospel of Mark, when Jesus is on trial before the Roman Prefect Pontius Pilate he was asked if he claimed to be the “King of the Jews,” and his ambiguous answer was “You say so.”

By: Robin M. Jensen

The legend of the magi has fired the imagination of Christians since the earliest times. In art, the adoration of the magi appeared earlier and far more frequently than any other scene of Jesus’ birth and infancy, including images of the babe in a manger.

By: James Tabor

In this post I want to to consider what I call the “textual dynamics of messianic self-identity.” I realize that is a mouthful but bear with me here, as this subject is quite fascinating and I think we can see some light on this issue if we take all our evidence into account, both ancient and modern.

By: Suzanne F. Singer

Herod the Great—The King’s Final Journey reveals the Herodian world and the end of the illustrious king’s life, as brought to light by the late archaeologist Ehud Netzer.

By: Reviewed by David Hendin

It turns out that Herod the Great was great at a lot of things—but making coins was not one of them. “Herod’s numismatic legacy is disappointing to say the least,” according to a new book on the coins of Herod by Donald T. Ariel and Jean Philippe Fontanille. “Considering Herod’s larger-than-life persona, most of his coinage is particularly unimpressive.” Herod was named king of the Jews in 40 B.C.E. by a declaration of the Roman Senate. At the time, however, Herod was without a kingdom, since Mattatayah Antigonus, the last Hasmonean ruler, was king on the ground in Judea and remained so until 37 B.C.E., when Herod captured Antigonus and his Parthian sponsors.