The Bible Lore Podcast

REUPLOAD: Ep. 31: The Writing on the Wall 11.06.2026 1h 5min

Apologies to my Spotify listeners, I thought I had addressed an issue to their satisfaction but they removed the episode anyway. Here is a reupload of episode 31. This one's all about Nabonidus, the last king of Babylon, an oddball devotee of the moon god Sin whose reign ends up becoming the basis for some of Daniel's most infamous stories. Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/BibleLorePodcast Buy Between Two Rivers by Moudhy Al-Rashid: https://bookshop.org/p/books/between-two-rivers-ancient-mesopotamia-and-the-birth-of-history-moudhy-al-rashid/9a6c9713e7d1cb21 Keyvan Golsorkhi on Iran: https://www.thenation.com/article/world/iran-diaspora-war-trump-israel/ Data Over Dogma on seeing the face of God: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ohh4Huzfn2U Bibliography: Paul-Alain Beaulieu - 'Nabonidus the Mad King'; Paul-Alain Beaulieu - 'Reign of Nabonidus, King of Babylon'; Moudhy Al-Rashi - 'Between Two Rivers'; John Collins - 'Daniel'; Hallo & Younger - 'The Context of Scripture Vol 1-3'; Marc van de Mieroop - 'A History of the Ancient Near East'; Radner, Moeller, Potts, et al - 'The Oxford History of the Ancient Near East, Volume V'; Berlin, Brettler, et al - 'The Jewish Study Bible, Second Edition'; Robert Alter - 'The Hebrew Bible: A Translation with Commentary'; Pietersma, Wright - 'A New English Translation of the Septuagint';

Ep. 32: The Messiah, Pt. 1 10.06.2026 1h 5min

Cyrus the Great arrives, Nabonidus falls, and several people eat human meat as we sort through Herodotus to tell the story of the rise of Persia in the mid-6th century BCE. Support the show by joining the Patreon: https://patreon.com/biblelorepodcast Helpful map: https://www.worldhistory.org/image/265/empire-of-cyrus-the-great/ Check out the episode of Super Structure I was featured in: https://www.patreon.com/SuperStructure/posts/late-great-earth-159135809 Bibliography: https://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/cyaxares-gk/ https://www.livius.org/sources/content/nabonidus-cylinder-from-sippar/ Paul-Alain Beaulieu - 'Reign of Nabonidus'; Matt Waters - 'King of the World'; Herodotus, Sélincourt (trnsl.) - 'The Histories'; C.J. Gadd - 'The Fall of Nineveh: The Newly Discovered Babylonian Chronicle'; M. David Litwa - 'How the Gospels Became History';

Bonus Interview: David Perry on Public Scholarship, Medieval Popes, and Disability 19.05.2026 1h 12min

David M. Perry stops by the show to promote his new book, The Public Scholar: A Practical Handbook, a book that is good enough that you'll forget you're reading a manual on how to pitch op-eds and trade volumes. Because David has a wide knowledge base, I used his book as a platform to discuss a variety of subjects, from "Who are your guys?" for medieval popes to how changes in disability policy could impact millions of Americans today to even a little discussion of what the Bible meant to people before the advent of the printing press. This one's good, gang! Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/BibleLorePodcast Buy the book: https://www.press.jhu.edu/books/title/54219/public-scholar Read David's recent article on disability policy: https://www.ms.now/opinion/social-security-disability-payments-trump-new-rule

Ep. 31: The Writing on the Wall 05.05.2026 1h 5min

This one's all about Nabonidus, the last king of Babylon, an oddball devotee of the moon god Sin whose reign ends up becoming the basis for some of Daniel's most infamous stories. Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/BibleLorePodcast Buy Between Two Rivers by Moudhy Al-Rashid: https://bookshop.org/p/books/between-two-rivers-ancient-mesopotamia-and-the-birth-of-history-moudhy-al-rashid/9a6c9713e7d1cb21 Keyvan Golsorkhi on Iran: https://www.thenation.com/article/world/iran-diaspora-war-trump-israel/ Data Over Dogma on seeing the face of God: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ohh4Huzfn2U Bibliography: Paul-Alain Beaulieu - 'Nabonidus the Mad King'; Paul-Alain Beaulieu - 'Reign of Nabonidus, King of Babylon'; Moudhy Al-Rashi - 'Between Two Rivers'; John Collins - 'Daniel'; Hallo & Younger - 'The Context of Scripture Vol 1-3'; Marc van de Mieroop - 'A History of the Ancient Near East'; Radner, Moeller, Potts, et al - 'The Oxford History of the Ancient Near East, Volume V'; Berlin, Brettler, et al - 'The Jewish Study Bible, Second Edition'; Robert Alter - 'The Hebrew Bible: A Translation with Commentary'; Pietersma, Wright - 'A New English Translation of the Septuagint';

The 12 Tribes: An Interview with Andrew Tobolowsky (plus a small announcement) 07.04.2026 1h 4min

Hello wonderful Patreon subscribers and freeloaders (whom I also love). Today's episode is a special one, an extended conversation with Andrew Tobolowsky about the myth of the 12 tribes of Israel in the Hebrew Bible and then later in everything from early Christianity to the Black Hebrew Israelites. Plus, a small announcement, now in custom written form: the pace of this show has slowed down due to my gaining of employment (steel foundry maintenance helper, an insane job for the young or delusional-and-mid-30s). Because this happened nearly overnight (I applied and started working within four days), I haven't had time to address the slowdown until now, nearly a month after my last release. My sincere apologies. Here's the rub: for the near future, I'll be shifting to releasing one episode per month, with occasional bonus content for Patrons only, and a move to two-week early access for all content for my Patreon subscribers, the blessed Shaddayim. If that's not enough content for your $5, I totally get it; I'm obviously as bummed as you are that the show has slowed down. It's no worries at all. You'll still be able to enjoy all free scripted episodes and Bible at the Movies episodes on the free tier. My main goal, which I will not abandon despite its Quixotic nature, is to tell the entire history of the Bible and how it accrued the lore it did in a format that's accessible to just about anyone. The breadth of this journey and the massive scope of this history is something that could keep this show going for many years, until I inevitably have to figure out how to tell the story of a quarter of the planet in a coherent way. I hope you'll all stick with me through this slower period, cuz I'm not leaving. Buy Andrew's books: The Myth of the Twelve Tribes of Israel Israel and its Heirs in Late Antiquity Subscribe to the Patreon to support this show: https://www.patreon.com/BibleLorePodcast

Ep. 30: The Assassination of Governor Gedeliah by the Davidide Ishmael 11.03.2026 53min

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) 02.02.2026 1h 35min

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 20.01.2026 1h 20min

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 12.12.2025 1h

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 27.11.2025 59min

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) 14.11.2025 1h 36min

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) 30.10.2025 39min

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) 15.10.2025 51min

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) 06.10.2025 1h 2min

This episode released early for Patreon subscribers. Support the show and join the ranks of the Shaddayim here: https://www.patreon.com/BibleLorePodcast 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 Buy books mentioned in the show from this affiliate link: https://bookshop.org/shop/biblelorepodcast 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 25.09.2025 1h 8min

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

Ep. 23: The Long Seventh Century, Pt. 4 – Warrior, Scholar, King (feat. Eckart Frahm) 18.09.2025 1h 28min

This episode release several early for paid subscribers. To get early access along with hours of bonus content, and to support the show, become a member of the Patreon here: https://patreon.com/biblelorepodcast This time, I'm elated to bring on Dr. Eckart Frahm, who is the John M. Musser Professor of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations at Yale University, and whose wonderful book, Assyria: The Rise and Fall of the World's First Empire, is a must-read for fans of the show (click the affiliate link). We talk about the management of empire under the idiosyncratic king Ashurbanipal, whose handling (or mishandling) of Assyria will set the stage for its downfall, and the long afterlife as a cultural figure that Ashurbanipal would have in the Greek tradition, where he was known as the corrupt king Sardanapalus.

Ep. 22: The Long Seventh Century, Pt. 3 – Moloch 10.09.2025 1h 23min

This episode came out early for Patreon subscribers, so make sure to become a supporter of the show here: https://patreon.com/biblelorepodcast It's child sacrifice time again at the Bible Lore Podcast! Yay! This time I talk about the real mlk sacrifice sites discovered throughout the Mediterranean, the real Manasseh, and the way both biblical authors and modern apologists attempt to deflect and obfuscate the connection between proper Yahweh worship and child sacrifice. Follow the show on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/haydentank/ Bibliography: Francesca Stavrakopoulou - 'King Manasseh and Child Sacrifice'; Heath Dewrell - 'Child Sacrifice in Ancient Israel'; Coogan & Smith - 'Stories from Ancient Canaan'; Coogan & Metzger - 'The Oxford Companion to the Bible'; Shelby Brown - 'Late Carthaginian Child Sacrifice'; Christian Frevel - 'History of Ancient Israel'; Hallo & Younger - 'The Context of Scripture, vol. 1-3'; Charles Krahmalkov - 'Phoenician-Punic Dictionary'; Robert Alter - 'The Hebrew Bible: A Translation with Commentary'; Berlin, Brettler, et al - 'The Jewish Study Bible'; Other Bible quotations taken from the NRSVue and NJPS with adaptations https://www.thetorah.com/article/giving-your-firstborn-son-to-god https://www.thetorah.com/article/how-exodus-revises-the-laws-of-hammurabi https://www.thetorah.com/article/isaac-before-he-was-abrahams-son https://x.com/timothybarnett/status/822992422888239104

BONUS: Bob Cargill Talks Melchizedek (Patreon Preview) 28.08.2025 21min

Here's an extended preview of today's Patreon episode. To get full access to the interview, become a paid member here: https://www.patreon.com/BibleLorePodcast I am absolutely honored to welcome Bob Cargill to the show to talk about all things Melchizedek, as well as the use and abuse of archaeology to attempt to legitimize claims from Israeli settlers in the modern Palestinian West Bank. Check out more from Bob here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6TIKnUUWEhh1nspJ62komg https://classics.uiowa.edu/people/robert-cargill https://www.patreon.com/bibleandarch

BATM 3: The Chosen (pilot) feat. Jordan (@SLCLunk) 12.08.2025 1h 19min

We're BACK to watching the Bible on the screen, as I'm joined by Brigham Young Money podcast's Jordan, aka @slclunk, to dive into an evangelical/Mormon foray into prestige TV Jesus. This time it's Angel Studios' pilot for The Chosen: if the streaming era has been marked by bloat, The Chosen is conservative Christianity's answer to this boring trend. Watch as all the minutiae of the gospels are extended ad nauseam with needless and tedious backstories, long establishing shots, and heavy abuse of speedramping. This episode is out EARLY for Patreon supporters, so make sure to back the show by becoming a member here: https://www.patreon.com/BibleLorePodcast

Ep. 21: The Long Seventh Century, Pt. 2 29.07.2025 52min

Patreon subscribers get early access to this episode! This time, I'm talking about one of the most taboo and horrifying topics in the Bible: child sacrifice. This first of two episodes on the subject covers some of the biblical laws and rhetoric and folktales about child sacrifice, while the next will go over the practice in archaeology and history. Today I answer a few questions: was Isaac actually killed in his famous binding? Did Yahweh give a law commanding the sacrifice of the first born? And what does Ishtar's descent into the underworld have to do with the tragic tale of Jephthah's daughter? Join the Patreon for early access to episodes, along with bonus content: https://patreon.com/biblelorepodcast Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/haydentank/ Bibliography: Francesca Stavrakopoulou - 'King Manasseh and Child Sacrifice'; Heath Dewrell - 'Child Sacrifice in Ancient Israel'; Coogan & Smith - 'Stories from Ancient Canaan'; Coogan & Metzger - 'The Oxford Companion to the Bible'; Christian Frevel - 'History of Ancient Israel'; Hallo & Younger - 'The Context of Scripture, vol. 1-3'; Robert Alter - 'The Hebrew Bible: A Translation with Commentary'; Berlin, Brettler, et al - 'The Jewish Study Bible'; Other Bible quotations taken from the NRSVue and NJPS with adaptations https://www.thetorah.com/article/giving-your-firstborn-son-to-god https://www.thetorah.com/article/how-exodus-revises-the-laws-of-hammurabi https://www.thetorah.com/article/isaac-before-he-was-abrahams-son