Bible and Archaeology

The Dead Sea Scrolls are among the most important archaeological discoveries ever made, but not every fragment has turned out to be real. This week, Dr. Kipp Davis joins the podcast to explore how scholars identify which Dead Sea Scrolls are fakes, why forgers have been so successful in creating fakes, and why we are so susceptible to forgeries. This is part two of our conversation about how Dead...

The Dead Sea Scrolls are among the most important archaeological discoveries ever made, but not every fragment has turned out to be real. This week, Dr. Kipp Davis joins the Bible & Archaeology podcast to explore how early questions about authenticity emerged, why the circumstances of the Scrolls’ discovery created an environment ripe for forgery, and how the early antiquities trade laid the g...

The Nativity stories are often told as peaceful and comforting, but the historical world Jesus was born into was anything but calm. This week, historian Dr. Joan Taylor, author of Boy Jesus, joins the Bible & Archaeology podcast to explore the political violence, fear, displacement, and social instability surrounding Jesus’ birth. Rather than dismantling the Nativity, Dr. Taylor seeks to expan...

The Star of Bethlehem is one of the most famous elements of Matthew’s Nativity story, but what could it actually have been? How could a star lead travelers, stop over a location, or identify a single house? This week, physicist Dr. Aaron Adair joins Bible & Archaeology to examine the most common scientific explanations for the Star of Bethlehem and why many of them fall apart. By looking at bo...

The Proto-Gospel of James is one of the most influential non-canonical texts in Christian history, especially when it comes to how Christians came to imagine Mary and the Nativity. This early Christian gospel focuses not on Jesus’ ministry, but on the miraculous birth and early life of Mary, her betrothal to Joseph, and the circumstances surrounding Jesus’ birth. In fact, many familiar Christmas t...

Many of the Christmas traditions we take for granted, like December 25th, the Nativity, Christmas trees, the Magi, the star of Bethlehem, and even Herod’s massacre, have complex histories that don’t always match the Bible or what we’ve been taught. This week, biblical scholar Dan McClellan joins us to explain the most common Christmas misconceptions and what the historical and textual evidence act...

Ancient Egypt is far harder to reconstruct than most people imagine. Egyptologist Dr. Campbell Price joins us to explore how archaeologists and the Egypt Exploration Society pieced together Egypt’s past through 50 key discoveries. We look at the history of archaeological exploration in Egypt, how early excavations were shaped by biblical expectations and colonial agendas, and how those discoveries...

What Mesopotamian texts influenced the Hebrew Bible? Dr. Joshua Bowen from Digital Hammurabi joins us to compare ancient Near Eastern literature—including the Atrahasis, the Code of Hammurabi, and other Mesopotamian myths—with the biblical text. We explore textual dependence, shared motifs, internal tensions, and what these parallels reveal about the Bible’s development. 📺 Check out Digital Hammu...

What is the Book of Revelation actually about? Most modern readers treat Revelation as a prophecy about the end times, but ancient readers read it very differently. This week, we’re joined by Dr. Rebekah Haigh to explore how ancient apocalyptic literature works, why Revelation is full of symbols and violence, and how its first-century Roman context changes everything. 👉 Dr. Haigh helps us explore...

Are the Amarna Letters diplomacy or manipulation? The Amarna Letters, ancient tablets from Pharaoh Akhenaten’s capital in Egypt, reveal a world of royal drama, political gaslighting, and fragile alliances between the superpowers of the Late Bronze Age. These 3,000-year-old messages between the kings of Egypt, Babylon, Canaan, and the Hittites expose the psychology of empire, but how much can we re...

What can a lost Jewish temple in Egypt teach us about early Judaism? The Elephantine Papyri reveal how Jews lived, worshiped, and but why don’t they mention the Bible? This week, we’re joined by Dr. James D. Moore to explore the big questions about the Elephantine papyri and what they tell us about the Jewish community living at and around the border fortress at Elephantine. 👉 Dr. Moore helps us...

Why are witches linked with black cats, and does the Bible have anything to do with it? This week, Dr. Peter Miller joins us to uncover how biblical ideas about magic shaped later Christian traditions about witches, black cats, and the devil. 👉 We’ll discuss: – What “magic” means in the Bible – How witchcraft appears in the Bible – How biblical texts became witch-hunt propaganda 🔗 Resources &amp...

Do demons have bodies? And if they do, what do they look like? This week, Dr. Travis Proctor joins us to explore how ancient Jews and Christians understood demons, possession, and the world of spiritual beings. From their origins as the spirits of the Nephilim, to possession and exorcism stories in the Bible, we’ll unpack how early writers imagined the complicated role of demons in the Bible and h...

Why does Jesus appear to hold a magic wand in early Christian art? And what does that symbol really mean? This week, Dr. Robyn Walsh joins us to explore early Christian iconography, what the so-called “wand” represents, and how depictions of Jesus evolved from a youthful, beardless healer to the bearded teacher we recognize today. 👉 We’ll discuss: – What early Christian art tells us about Jesus –...

Was the Gospel of John really written independently, or did its author know and use Matthew, Mark, and Luke as sources? This week, Duke professor Dr. Mark Goodacre is back to explore John’s surprising connections to the Synoptic Gospels and how these links could completely change how we read the New Testament. Dr. Goodacre helps us explore: – Did John really know and use the other Gospels? – How “...

She seduced her father-in-law, he sacrificed his daughter, and it’s all in the Bible!  In this episode, we explore two of the most disturbing stories in the Hebrew Bible: the story of Judah and Tamar (Genesis 38) and the tragic tale of Jephthah’s daughter (Judges 11). These are two of the most shocking stories in the Bible, so why did they make it in? Are these stories misunderstood? Join us as we...

The Dead Sea Scrolls are one of the greatest archaeological discoveries ever made, but what do they actually tell us about ancient Judaism, the Bible, and the mysterious site of Qumran? Were they really part of a library, or something else entirely? This week, we’re joined by Dr. Sidnie White Crawford, author of Scribes and Scrolls at Qumran , to explore the big questions about the Scrolls. Dr. Cr...

Who was Haman, and why has he endured as one of the Bible’s most infamous villains? In the Book of Esther, Haman rises to power in the Persian court and plots against the Jewish people, but the story also raises deeper questions. Does the story portray him as a villain to be feared, mocked, or both? This week, we're talking with Dr. Adam Silverstein, author of "Haman: A Biography," a...

Did Josephus really write about Jesus? Or is the famous Testimonium Flavianum a later Christian addition? This week, we're talking with Dr. Tom Schmidt, author of "Josephus and Jesus: New Evidence for the One Called Christ," about one of the most debated passages in ancient history and what it reveals about the historical Jesus. Get a free PDF of the book HERE Access made possible by...

At the heart of Jesus’s message was a call to repentance in anticipation of the coming Kingdom of God, so why did his followers dramatically reverse this teaching after his death? Join Dr. Ehrman for his talk "A Core Teaching of Jesus—and Why His Followers Abandoned It" at the New Insights into the New Testament conference (September 26–28) HERE Affiliate Disclosure: As an affiliate we m...

This week, we're talking about Homer with Dr. Celsiana Warwick! What do we actually know about Homer? Was Homer a real person? And why does Homer still matter to us today? Join Dr. Cargill for his new online course ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Cities of the Bible⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Become a Bible & Archaeology patron on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Send us your questions: bible-archaeology@uiowa.edu...

This week, we're talking about AI with Matthew Cunningham! How does AI actually think? What is AI really? Is AI going to take over everything? And how should we think about the impact of AI on our lives? Join us for a deep dive into the complicated world of AI and its implications. Join Dr. Cargill for his new online course ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Cities of the Bible⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Become a Bible & Archaeology pat...

This week, we're talking about the Serabit El-Khadim inscriptions with Dr. Aren Wilson-Wright! Join us for a deep dive into the history and significance of these inscriptions and a discussion of some of the problems that exist with the readings proposed by Michael Bar-Ron. Sinai 357 (Photo by Cédric Paulhiac) Sinai 357 Bar-Ron (Photo by Michael Bar-Ron) Sinai 361 (Photo by Aren Wilson-Wright)...

There are a lot of archaeological news stories every month and with every story come questions. This week on the podcast, we wanted to round up three stories from July 2025 that deserve more discussion. Check out our news shorts for weekly archaeology news updates. Aeneashttps://deepmind.google/discover/blog/aeneas-transforms-how-historians-connect-the-past/https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-0...

Did plague bring an end to the age of Pax Romana? This week, Dr. Colin Elliott joins the podcast to explain the Antonine plague and the influence this wide-reaching plague had on the decline of the Roman Empire. Looking for more from Dr. Elliott? Check out his book Pox Romana: The Plague That Shook the Roman World . His podcast Or his YouTube channel Join Dr. Cargill for his new online course ⁠⁠⁠⁠...