Biblical Time Machine

Latest Episodes:

Samson: Hero or Psychopath? May 13, 2024

Show notes

Of all the problematic heroes in the Hebrew Bible, Samson takes first prize. Samson is hailed as a hero of the Israelites — a "Nazirite" consecrated to God with superhuman strength — but he's also a mass murderer, womanizer and all-around menace to society. Helen and Dave welcome Mahri Leonard-Fleckman to the podcast to try to make sense of the wild (and wildly entertaining) Samson cycle.
SUPPORT BIBLICAL TIME MACHINE!
If you enjoy the podcast, please show your support through the Time Travelers Club, our Patreon. We love making the show, but since we don't run ads we rely on listener contributions to cover our costs. Please help us continue to showcase high-quality biblical scholarship with a $5/month subscription. (Think of it as $1.25 an episode!)

GET YOUR BIBLICAL TIME MACHINE MUG
The Biblical Time Machine Store is open! Check out our 4-part audio study guide called "The Gospel of Mark as an Ancient Biography." Or get yourself a handsome Biblical Time Machine mug or a cool sticker for your water bottle.

Support the show

Theme music written and performed by Dave Roos, creator of Biblical Time Machine. Season 4 + 5 produced by John Nelson.

Gnosticism and the Nag Hammadi Library Explained May 06, 2024

Show notes

In 1945, dozens of previously unknown Christian texts were discovered near the Egyptian desert town of Nag Hammadi. Some texts were closely tied to the New Testament, like the Gospel of Thomas, but others were pretty wild, portraying the God of the Hebrew Bible as a demon trickster. All of these texts were labeled "gnostic," but scholars continue to debate what "gnostic" really means and what to make of these curious works from the early centuries of Christianity.
Helen and Dave are joined by Kimberley Fowler, a scholar of early Christianity who spends her days reading cryptic texts like The Second Discourse of the Great Seth.
Learn more at Bible Odyssey:

SUPPORT BIBLICAL TIME MACHINE!
If you enjoy the podcast, please show your support through the Time Travelers Club, our Patreon. We love making the show, but since we don't run ads we rely on listener contributions to cover our costs. Please help us continue to showcase high-quality biblical scholarship with a $5/month subscription. (Think of it as $1.25 an episode!)

Support the show

Theme music written and performed by Dave Roos, creator of Biblical Time Machine. Season 4 + 5 produced by John Nelson.

Surgery or Spit? Healthcare in the Ancient World Apr 29, 2024

Show notes

Countless things could sicken or injure you in the ancient world, so where did people turn for help? Much like today, there were no shortage of healthcare options: herbs, drugs, surgery, saliva — even a literal hole in the head! Helen and Dave welcome historian Jared Secord to discuss what passed for medical care in the ancient Mediterranean and why Jesus fits the profile of a faith healer.
Check out Jared's cool new book, co-authored with Kristi Upson-Saia and Heidi Marx, Medicine, Health, and Healing in the Ancient Mediterranean 500 BCE–600 CE: A Sourcebook.
More from our content partner Bible Odyssey:

Support the show

Theme music written and performed by Dave Roos, creator of Biblical Time Machine. Season 4 + 5 produced by John Nelson.

Passover: Did the Exodus Really Happen? Apr 22, 2024

Show notes

Every Passover, Jewish families gather to recount the miraculous story of Moses leading the Hebrews out of captivity in Egypt. But how much of this age-old tale is true? Helen and Dave welcome Carol Meyers back to the podcast to talk about the limits of Exodus archeology and to put forward some intriguing theories about the historical origins of the Ancient Israelites.
For even more from Carol about the Exodus and Moses, check out this terrific interview she did with PBS NOVA and her book Exodus (New Cambridge Bible Commentary).
SUPPORT BIBLICAL TIME MACHINE!
If you enjoy the podcast, please show your support through the Time Travelers Club, our Patreon. We love making the show, but since we don't run ads we rely on listener contributions to cover our costs. Please help us continue to showcase high-quality biblical scholarship with a $5/month subscription. (Think of it as $1.25 an episode!)

Support the show

Theme music written and performed by Dave Roos, creator of Biblical Time Machine. Season 4 + 5 produced by John Nelson.

How Horrible Were Ancient Prisons? LIVE from SBL Apr 15, 2024

Show notes

If you thought everyday life in the 1st century was disgusting, wait until you step inside a Roman prison. In our very first LIVE episode, we talk with Matthew Larsen, historian of ancient incarceration, about the conditions Paul and other early Christians experienced in ancient prisons — nasty food, nastier smells and what it meant to be sent off to the mines.
Members of the Time Travelers Club can watch a video version of the podcast! This episode was recorded LIVE at the 2024 SBL Global Virtual Meeting. Special thanks to Christopher Hooker and the SBL staff for including us in this international showcase of biblical scholarship.
For even more from Matthew Larsen, check out his six-part documentary series "Nobody Liked Paul" on Qava. The first episode is free on YouTube.
GET YOUR BIBLICAL TIME MACHINE MUG
The Biblical Time Machine Store is open! Check out our 4-part audio study guide called "The Gospel of Mark as an Ancient Biography." Or get yourself a handsome Biblical Time Machine mug or a cool sticker for your water bottle.

Support the show

Theme music written and performed by Dave Roos, creator of Biblical Time Machine. Season 4 + 5 produced by John Nelson.

Enslaved Christians and the Making of the Bible Apr 08, 2024

Show notes

In the 1st-century Roman world where Christianity was born, 20% of the population was enslaved. Enslaved people were laborers, farmers, artisans, scribes, teachers, servants and sex workers. And as our guest Candida Moss explains, enslaved people also played a critical role in the spread of Christianity, including the authorship of biblical texts.
How does it change our understanding of the Bible and Early Christianity when we recognize the influence of enslaved people? Does Jesus's revolutionary message—and his ignoble "slave's" death—make more sense when we think about how many of Jesus's early followers may have been enslaved?
To learn more, get a copy of Candida's terrific new book: God's Ghostwriters: Enslaved Christians and the Making of the Bible.
GET YOUR BIBLICAL TIME MACHINE MERCH
The Biblical Time Machine Store is open! Check out our 4-part audio study guide called "The Gospel of Mark as an Ancient Biography." Or get yourself a handsome Biblical Time Machine mug or a cool sticker for your water bottle.

Support the show

Theme music written and performed by Dave Roos, creator of Biblical Time Machine. Season 4 + 5 produced by John Nelson.

Easter: Behind the Scenes of "The Chosen" Apr 01, 2024

Show notes

"The Chosen" is a global phenomenon. The streaming series about the life of Jesus is now in its 4th season, which is building toward Jesus's final week in Jerusalem. Helen and Dave were thrilled to chat with actor Richard Fancy, who plays high priest Caiaphas on "The Chosen."
Richard did some serious research to prepare for his role — he even read Helen's book! Find out why Richard sympathizes with Caiaphas, a biblical "baddie" who was caught between warring political factions. And learn how Richard worked hard to portray Caiaphas without the ugly antisemitic tropes so often attached to Jewish characters in the New Testament.
If you missed it, check out our episode "Who Was High Priest Joseph Caiaphas?" from Season 1.
GET YOUR BIBLICAL TIME MACHINE MERCH
The Biblical Time Machine Store is open! Check out our 4-part audio study guide called "The Gospel of Mark as an Ancient Biography." Or get yourself a handsome Biblical Time Machine mug or a cool sticker for your water bottle.

Support the show

Theme music written and performed by Dave Roos, creator of Biblical Time Machine. Season 4 + 5 produced by John Nelson.

Easter: A Closer Look at the Resurrection Mar 25, 2024

Show notes

The Resurrection of Jesus is the cornerstone of Christianity, but the reality of the empty tomb is largely a matter of faith, not history. All of the evidence pertaining to the Resurrection is found within the New Testament. So how can anyone definitively prove that the Resurrection did or did not happen?
If anyone can do it, Dale Allison can. Dale is a committed Christian and unblinking scholar who isn't satisfied with either the apologetic or skeptical arguments around the Resurrection. In today's Easter episode, we dive into the mysteries and inconsistencies of this remarkable story as it's told in the Bible, and walk away with more questions than answers.
For a deep dive into all of the arguments and theories about the Resurrection, check out Dale's exhaustive and fascinating book, The Resurrection of Jesus: Apologetics, Polemics, History.
GET YOUR BIBLICAL TIME MACHINE MERCH
The Biblical Time Machine Store is open! Check out our 4-part audio study guide called "The Gospel of Mark as an Ancient Biography." Or get yourself a handsome Biblical Time Machine mug or a cool sticker for your water bottle.

Support the show

Theme music written and performed by Dave Roos, creator of Biblical Time Machine. Season 4 + 5 produced by John Nelson.

Easter: Crucifixion in the Roman Empire Mar 18, 2024

Show notes

Jesus's mortal life ended on a Roman cross, one of the cruellest execution methods known to man. But how common was crucifixion in the Roman world and how accurate was the New Testament's portrayal of Jesus's agonizing end?
In this fascinating (and somewhat gruesome) episode, we dive into the debate over the true shape of Roman crosses, whether Jesus carried his entire cross, and the ultimate cause of death from crucifixion. Special thanks to our expert guest John Granger Cook, author of Crucifixion in the Mediterranean World.
For images of Roman graffiti and other ancient depictions of crucifixion, visit the Academia site of Yale historian Felicity Harley-McGowan.
GET YOUR BIBLICAL TIME MACHINE MERCH
The Biblical Time Machine Store is open! Check out our 4-part audio study guide called "The Gospel of Mark as an Ancient Biography." Or get yourself a handsome Biblical Time Machine mug or a cool sticker for your water bottle.

Support the show

Theme music written and performed by Dave Roos, creator of Biblical Time Machine. Season 4 + 5 produced by John Nelson.

Capernaum: the Archeology of a Jewish and Christian Village Mar 11, 2024

Show notes

Capernaum is known as "the Town of Jesus," since so many of Jesus's miracles and preaching happened in this small town on the Sea of Galilee. In the centuries after Jesus's death, Capernaum transformed from a Jewish fishing village into a Christian holy site. Thanks to archeology, we can learn more about Jewish-Christian relations in Capernaum during this much-debated period in the history of the Holy Land.
Helen and Dave are joined by Wally Cirafesi, an archeologist and New Testament scholar who has spent years excavating in the Galilee. At first glance, Capernaum feels like a village with clear divisions between Jews and Christians, since the most visible archeological remains are a large synagogue and church facing off in the center of town.
But in his research, Wally paints a much messier picture of ancient Capernaum in which Jews and Christians (and Jewish Christians) lived "cheek by jowl" in multi-family dwellings and may even have worshipped in each other's houses of prayer.
BUY BIBLICAL TIME MACHINE MERCH
The Biblical Time Machine Store is open! Check out our 4-part audio study guide called "The Gospel of Mark as an Ancient Biography." Or get yourself a handsome Biblical Time Machine mug. Everything tastes better when it's biblical.
WIN STUFF
Join the Time Travelers Club, our Patreon site, and you'll be automatically entered in two cool giveaways:
1. We're giving away a free pass to the SBL Global Virtual Meeting scheduled for April 1-4, 2024. Join hundreds of biblical scholars from around the world for 4 days of research presentations and talks. Helen and I will also be recording a "live episode"! The winner will be announced soon, so join today.
2. We're also giving away 10 copies of the newly revised SBL Study Bible. This academic Bible is tailor-made for fans of Biblical Time Machine. It takes a scholarly approach to understanding the Bible — full of essays, footnotes, maps and more — and doesn't assume any past knowledge or religious background. It's the perfect companion for a fresh look at these ancient texts.

For legal reasons, the SBL Study Bible giveaway is only available to Time Travelers Club members 18 or older and living in the continental United States.

Support the show

Theme music written and performed by Dave Roos, creator of Biblical Time Machine. Season 4 + 5 produced by John Nelson.

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