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Mar 7 Blog

The Creation of Woman in the Bible

How was the first woman created in Genesis 2? Was she made from the man’s rib or, as recently suggested in BAR, from his os baculum?

1342 tempera painting by Ambrogio Lorenzetti titled The Presentation in the Temple. Uffizi Gallery/Public Domain

Mar 5 Blog

Mary, Simeon or Anna: Who First Recognized Jesus as Messiah?

By: Ben Witherington III

Who was the first person to truly recognize Jesus as the messiah and understand the implications? Biblical scholar Ben Witherington III takes a close look at the account given in Luke, and sheds some light on what the Biblical narrative has to say about who was the first to recognize Jesus as the messiah.

Feb 24 Blog

Ancient Pergamon

By: Sarah Yeomans

Ancient Pergamon's strategic location along both land and sea trading routes contributed to its prosperity. Pilgrims from all over the Mediterranean region would flock to the city to engage in commerce or to visit the famous Asclepion, a center of medical treatments.

Stela from El-Amarna, Egyptian King Akhenaten is seen with his wife Nefertiti and their daughters bearing offerings to the sun-disk Aten.

Feb 24 Blog

Akhenaten and Moses

By: Robin Ngo

Pharaoh Akhenaten, who abolished the Egyptian pantheon and instituted worship of a single deity, the sun-disk Aten, in the mid-14th century B.C., may have established the world’s first monotheism. Did this influence the birth of Israelite monotheism?

Feb 19 Blog

What’s Missing from Codex Sinaiticus, the Oldest New Testament?

By: BAS Staff

Compare differences in the Biblical text between the King James Version and Codex Sinaiticus, the oldest New Testament.

The presepio (“nativity scene”) is a centuries-old craft and one of Naples’s best-known traditions. Photo: Howard Hudson / Wikimedia Commons

Feb 17 Blog

Christmas Stories in Christian Apocrypha

By: Tony Burke

The modern Christmas nativity scene is drawn from apocryphal texts in addition to the infancy narratives of Matthew and Luke.

Ostraca with Hebrew inscriptions excavated from the Iron Age fortress at Arad in Israel. Photo: Michael Cordonsky, courtesy Tel Aviv University and the Israel Antiquities Authority

Feb 17 Blog

When Was the Hebrew Bible Written?

By: Robin Ngo

When was the Hebrew Bible written? Ostraca with Hebrew inscriptions excavated from the Iron Age fortress at Arad in Israel may provide clues, say researchers from Tel Aviv University.

Moses, pictured here in a painting by 17th-century Baroque artist Guido Reni. Alinari/Art Resource, NY.

Feb 14 Blog

Love Your Neighbor: Only Israelites or Everyone?

By: Richard Elliott Friedman

The Book of Leviticus tells us to love our neighbors, but who are our neighbors? Does the command mean to just love fellow Israelites—or everyone?

Feb 12 Blog

Mark and John: A Wedding at Cana—Whose and Where?

By: James Tabor

James Tabor discusses the wedding at Cana from the Gospels of Mark and John. Whose wedding was this and why were Jesus and his family present?

Illustration of left handed Benjamite slinger. Drawing by Josh Seevers, courtesy of Boyd Seevers

Feb 12 Blog

Left-Handed People in the Bible

By: BAS Staff

Were the warriors from the tribe of Benjamin left-handed by nature or nurture?

Must-Read Free eBooks

The Dead Sea Scrolls: Past, Present, and Future

Biblical Peoples—The World of Ancient Israel

Who Was Jesus? Exploring the History of Jesus’ Life

Ancient Israel in Egypt and the Exodus

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