The Bible Lore Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Ep. 30: The Assassination of Governor Gedeliah by the Davidide Ishmael Mar 11, 2026

Show notes

We get right back into the 6th century as we explore the latter years of Nebuchadnezzar's reign and the chaos of his three immediate predecessors. On the lore side, this episode features a lengthy discussion of the origins of the Sabbath, various Judahite festivals, seeing the face of Yahweh himself, and an ancient board game!

Try the Royal Game of Ur yourself: https://royalur.net/

Bibliography:

Radner, Moeller, Potts, et al, 'The Oxford History of the Ancient Near East, Volume V';

Christian Frevel, 'History of Ancient Israel';

Robert Alter, 'The Hebrew Bible: A Translation with Commentary';

Berlin, Brettler, et al, 'The Jewish Study Bible, Second Edition';

Irving Finkel, 'The Ark Before Noah';

Jon Levenson, 'Israel's Day of Light and Joy';

Jacob Wright, 'Why the Bible Began';

Moudhi Al-Rashi, 'Between Two Rivers';

Hallo & Younger, 'The Context of Scripture Vols. 1-3';

Paul-Alain Beaulieu, 'The Reign of Nabonidus, King of Babylon 556-539 B.C.';

Glassner & Foster, 'Mesopotamian Chronicles';

Wolfram von Soden, 'Der neubabylonische Funktionär simmagir und der Feuertod des Šamaš-šum-ukīn';

Rainer Albertz, 'A History of Israelite Religion in the Old Testament Period, Vol. II';

https://www.thetorah.com/article/does-a-day-begin-in-the-evening

https://www.thetorah.com/article/shabbat-of-the-full-moon

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9gF4YGKRXxc

https://www.thetorah.com/article/shabbat-mid-fifth-century-bce

BATM 5: Assassin 33 A.D. (feat. Jesse and Luke from Stores) Feb 02, 2026

Show notes

PLEASE WATCH THIS MOVIE BEFORE LISTENING. THIS IS NOT A JOKE. CLICK THIS LINK ASAP:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUkeQM_QsCA

This episode released a week early for Patreon subscribers. Join their ranks and support the show here:

https://www.patreon.com/BibleLorePodcast

This time, I've got Luke and Jesse from Stores podcast to talk about the greatest Christian movie of all time: Black Easter: Assassin 33 A.D. (Director's Cut).

Check out Stores, a podcast about stores:

https://www.patreon.com/c/storesthepodcast/home

Ep. 29: JEDP and the Thirty or So Ten Commandments Jan 20, 2026

Show notes

This episode released a week early for Patreon subscribers. Happy New Year to all, and especially all of my wonderful subscribers here! After the holidays and an extended period of congestion, we're back in the 570s BCE. I talk about the precious little archaeological evidence for the Torah outside of two magic scrolls, and the overall reasons scholars believe the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Bible, were not only five individual books but also composed of multiple source texts. That's right, today is the big introduction to the Documentary Hypothesis. There is a whole lot going on here, so I've provided some additional resources below for anyone interested in diving deeper, including a link to some helpful companion videos and a chart showing the way the Torah is divided by scholars.

Join the Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/BibleLorePodcast

David Carr's video on the composition of the Pentateuch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=myY62SoqLPk

A link to Joel Baden's division of the Pentateuch rendered in KJV, and handy chart showing the composition of the Torah's sources according to his division: https://en.wikiversity.org/wiki/Bible/King_James/Documentary_Hypothesis

Paul Davidson's video on Eden's location: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BceHNgc3dzg

Bibliography:

David Carr, 'Genesis 1-11';

David Carr, 'The Formation of Genesis 1-11';

Joel Baden, 'The Composition of the Pentateuch';

Konrad Schmid, 'Genesis and the Moses Story';

Marc van de Mieroop, 'A History of the Ancient Near East';

Stephanie Dalley, 'Myths from Mesopotamia';

Hallo, Younger, 'The Context of Scripture, Vol. 1-3';

Herodotus, de Sélincourt (translated by), 'The Histories';

Robert Alter, 'The Hebrew Bible: A Translation with Commentary';

Berlin, Brettler, et al, 'The Jewish Study Bible, Second Edition';

Richard Friedman, 'The Bible with Sources Revealed';

https://www.thetorah.com/article/the-tower-of-babel-a-polemic-against-marduks-temple-esagil

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-artifacts/inscriptions/miniature-writing-ancient-amulets-ketef-hinnom/

https://www.thetorah.com/article/the-decalogue-ten-commandments-or-ten-statements

Ep. 28: You're Canceled and That's It, Chief Dec 12, 2025

Show notes

Jerusalem is a smoldering ruin, and the king is dead. The destruction of the temple of YHWH leads to one of the most eclectic and strange and disturbing books of the Bible, as the prophet Ezekiel rants and rages about the failings of Judah. Also I talk about weed.

Get bonus content and support the show:

https://www.patreon.com/c/BibleLorePodcast

Bibliography:

Christian Frevel - 'History of Ancient Israel';

Moshe Greenberg - 'Ezekiel 1-20; 21-37';

Herodotus, de Sélincourt (tr) - 'The Histories';

Francesca Stavrakopoulou - 'God: An Anatomy';

Robert Alter - 'The Hebrew Bible: A Translation with Commentary';

Berlin, Brettler, et al - 'The Jewish Study Bible, Second Edition';

Radner, Moeller, Potts, et al - 'The Oxford History of the Ancient Near East, Volume V';

UNLOCKED: Susan Ackerman Interview Nov 27, 2025

Show notes

Hello all!

As I'm currently putting together a few episodes that have taken a touch longer than anticipated, I thought I'd unlock some Patreon-exclusive content for everyone to enjoy.

Find more bonus content here and become a subscriber to support the show:

https://www.patreon.com/BibleLorePodcast

Ep. 27: The End is the Beginning (feat. Eric Harvey) Nov 14, 2025

Show notes

It's the grand finale of the first part of the history of the Bible: the destruction of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar the Second. The last king of Jerusalem, Zedekiah, repeats the same mistake made by his brother Jehoiakim and bets against Babylon. As we explore this fateful event, scholar Eric Harvey takes us through the way the elites of ancient society exploited the working class, and how some of the most famous creation stories in all of mythology act as justification for this economic arrangement.

Get Eric's book:

https://bookshop.org/a/117081/9781009559911

And check out his website:

https://www.blindscholar.com/

And subscribe to the Patreon:

https://patreon.com/biblelorepodcast

Bibliography:

Eric Harvey - 'Reading Creation Myths Economically in Ancient Mesopotamia and Israel';

Mario Liverani - 'Israel's History and the History of Israel';

Christian Frevel - 'History of Ancient Israel';

Marc van de Mieroop - 'A History of the Ancient Near East';

Robert Alter - 'The Hebrew Bible: A Translation with Commentary';

Berlin, Brettler, et al - 'The Jewish Study Bible, Second Edition';

Radner, Moeller, Potts, et al - 'The Oxford History of the Ancient Near East, Volume V';

Ep. 26: The Storm Before the Storm (With Apologies to Mike Duncan) Oct 30, 2025

Show notes

We bring Jerusalem to the brink of total destruction and explore the roots of astrology, as we near the end of the Judahite monarchy.

Support the show:

https://www.patreon.com/BibleLorePodcast

Bibliography:

Mario Liverani - 'Israel's History and the History of Israel';

Christian Frevel - 'History of Ancient Israel';

Robert Alter - 'The Hebrew Bible: A Translation with Commentary';

Moudhy al-Rashid - 'Between Two Rivers';

Geza Vermes - 'The Complete Dead Sea Scrolls in English';

Berlin, Brettler, et al - 'The Jewish Study Bible, Second Edition';

Seth Schwartz - 'Imperialism and Jewish Society';

Radner, Moeller, Potts, et al - 'The Oxford History of the Ancient Near East, Volume V';

Hallo, Lawson, and Younger - 'The Context of Scripture';

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/ancient-cultures/ancient-near-eastern-world/nabonidus-the-first-archaeologist/

https://www.livius.org/sources/content/mesopotamian-chronicles-content/abc-5-jerusalem-chronicle/

Ep. 25: The Long Seventh Century, Pt. 6 – Armageddon (feat. Kipp Davis) Oct 15, 2025

Show notes

Kipp Davis joins the pod again, as we say farewell to a king and an empire. Josiah's time on the throne meets an abrupt and unexpected end, leaving the kingdom of Judah reeling, and Assyria gets its send-off, as the kingdom is conquered by the Babylonians.

Buy Kipp's book:

https://bookshop.org/a/117081/9781069638502

Support the show and join the Patreon:

https://www.patreon.com/BibleLorePodcast

Buy books mentioned in the show from this affiliate link:

https://bookshop.org/shop/biblelorepodcast

Bibliography:

Radner et al - 'The Oxford History of the Ancient Near East Volume IV';

Radner et al - 'The Oxford History of the Ancient Near East: Volume V';

Kipp Davis - 'God's Propaganda';

Eckart Frahm - 'Assyria';

Andrew George - 'The Babylonian Gilgamesh Epic';

Robert Cargill - 'The Cities That Built the Bible';

Vicente Dobroruka - 'Persian Influence on Daniel and Jewish Apocalyptic Literature';

Robert Alter - 'The Hebrew Bible';

Charles Dickens - 'A Tale of Two Cities';

Berlin, Brettler, et al - 'The Jewish Study Bible';

Christian Frevel - 'History of Ancient Israel';

Stephanie Dalley - 'The Mystery of the Hanging Garden of Babylon';

Ep. 24: The Long Seventh Century, Pt. 5 – The Inquisition (feat. Kipp Davis) Oct 08, 2025

Show notes

Dead Sea Scrolls scholar Kipp Davis returns to walk us through the reign of Josiah, the monarch against which all others are measured in the book of Kings. The Assyrian Empire crumbles, Jerusalem rejoices, and the righteous king begins his crusade to centralize all worship in Judah's capital.

Check out Kipp's book here: https://bookshop.org/a/117081/9781069638502

And his YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/@DrKippDavis

Bibliography: Eckart Frahm - 'Assyria'; Radner et al - 'The Oxford History of the Ancient Near East Volume IV'; Radner et al - 'The Oxford History of the Ancient Near East: Volume V'; Robert Alter - 'The Hebrew Bible'; Berlin et al - 'The Jewish Study Bible, Second Edition'; Frevel - 'History of Ancient Israel'; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N7l37SSVImE

BATM 4: Deux heures moins le quart avant Jésus-Christ ft. Max aka Palma Sep 25, 2025

Show notes

This episode came out early for Patreon subscribers, so make sure to become a supporter here:

https://www.patreon.com/BibleLorePodcast

Max (Palma) introduces me to the terrific French Bible epic parody, Deux heures moins le quart avant Jésus-Christ. Join us as we determine whether the movie is racist and homophobic and Orientalist or just French!

Check out The Drain: https://www.patreon.com/thedrain/home

And buy some of the books you've heard mentioned on the show from my affiliate shop: https://bookshop.org/shop/biblelorepodcast

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