Ranked #1
#31: The Concubine of Gibeah – Pilegesh BaGive’ah
#31: The Concubine of Gibeah – Pilegesh BaGive’ah
In this class, we discuss the ultimate example of collective punishment gone horribly, horribly wrong: the Concubine of ... Read more
7 Mar 2019
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1hr 30mins
Ranked #2
#30: Collective and Intergenerational Punishment in the Bible – Review
#30: Collective and Intergenerational Punishment in the Bible – Review
We’re back! Join us as we engage in a high-level discussion on the different views of collective and intergenerational p... Read more
21 Feb 2019
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47mins
Ranked #3
Demons at War: Belial in the War Scroll
Demons at War: Belial in the War Scroll
Why is the War Scroll more “universal” than other Qumran texts? Why does the attitude of the Qumran Community toward ou... Read more
22 Mar 2017
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54mins
Ranked #4
Behind the Scenes of the Hanukkah Story: The Books of the Maccabees
Behind the Scenes of the Hanukkah Story: The Books of the Maccabees
What was behind Antiochus’s decrees? Was Hanukkah really the end of the fight for independence? And what was the differe... Read more
10 Dec 2017
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50mins
Ranked #5
What Bible? Scripture, Canonization & Interpretation in the Second Temple Period
What Bible? Scripture, Canonization & Interpretation in the Second Temple Period
In this episode, I discuss: The different biblical texts discovered at Qumran The nature of “Scripture” during the Seco... Read more
21 Mar 2016
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53mins
Ranked #6
Who Watches the Watchers? Genesis 6 and the Nephilim
Who Watches the Watchers? Genesis 6 and the Nephilim
In this episode, we will discuss the beginning of what is later known as the “Watchers myth”: the story of the mating of... Read more
15 Jan 2016
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29mins
Ranked #7
A Kinder, Gentler Belial? Belial in the Damascus Document
A Kinder, Gentler Belial? Belial in the Damascus Document
In this episode, we discuss Belial’s role in the Damascus Document, an important rule text in the Dead Sea Scrolls. Wha... Read more
15 Jul 2016
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Ranked #8
Fourth Ezra and the Tragedy of the Evil Heart
Fourth Ezra and the Tragedy of the Evil Heart
As we continue our series on the idea of an “evil inclination” in Second Temple literature, we return to Fourth Ezra (4 ... Read more
20 Jul 2017
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33mins
Ranked #9
The Demon in Charge? Mastema in the Book of Jubilees
The Demon in Charge? Mastema in the Book of Jubilees
In this episode, we will continue our exploration of satanic figures in Second Temple texts. After recapping our last ep... Read more
6 May 2016
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39mins
Ranked #10
Enoch and the Watchers Tradition - Asael, Shemihaza, and the Giants
Enoch and the Watchers Tradition - Asael, Shemihaza, and the Giants
In this action-packed episode, we will discuss: The status of Enoch and the Book of Enoch in Second Temple Judaism The ... Read more
27 Jan 2016
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57mins
Ranked #11
The Evil that Remains: Jubilees, the Watchers and Mastema
The Evil that Remains: Jubilees, the Watchers and Mastema
How did the author of Jubilees try to solve the “problem” of evil? In this episode we will explore how the story of the ... Read more
3 Feb 2016
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46mins
Ranked #12
#29: Ezekiel, Intergenerational Punishment & Individual Responsibility - Understanding Sin and Evil
#29: Ezekiel, Intergenerational Punishment & Individual Responsibility - Understanding Sin and Evil
This podcast is a continuation of the previous discussion on the shift of the biblical view and representation of interg... Read more
5 Jul 2018
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35mins
Ranked #13
The Lot of Belial in the Community Rule - Born that Way?
The Lot of Belial in the Community Rule - Born that Way?
In this episode, we read the Dead Sea Scrolls — specifically, the Community Rule — closely and examine the Qumran commun... Read more
20 Jun 2016
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33mins
Ranked #14
Between Fire and Water: The Evil Inclination and Free Will in Ben Sira
Between Fire and Water: The Evil Inclination and Free Will in Ben Sira
In this episode we discuss Ben Sira, and how his approach to the evil inclination is a predecessor of a prominent modern... Read more
19 May 2017
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37mins
Ranked #15
The Inevitability of Evil? The Evil Inclination and the Flood
The Inevitability of Evil? The Evil Inclination and the Flood
In this podcast, we discuss the first place an “evil inclination” is mentioned in the Bible: the description of the stat... Read more
9 Apr 2017
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40mins