Today's guest, historian Steve Mason, has called Josephus's The Jewish War "perhaps the most influential non-biblical text of Western history." And he's got a point! Read alongside the Bible, The Jewish War tells the "rest of the story" — specifically, how the Romans came to destroy the Temple in 70 CE.

The trouble is, The Jewish War isn't "history" in the modern sense. It's a narrative written to make moral arguments about "good" and "bad" leaders in both Jerusalem and Rome. In today's episode, Mason explains how historians like himself try to reconstruct the past from a wide variety of sources, not just narrative.

To learn much (much) more, check out some of Steve's excellent books:

• A History of the Jewish War, AD 66-74 (2016)
• Josephus and the New Testament (2002)
• Jews and Christians in the Roman World: From Historical Method to Cases (2023)

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If you enjoy the podcast, please consider supporting the show through the Time Travelers Club, our Patreon. We love making the show, but since we don't run ads we rely on listener contributions to cover our costs. Please help us continue to showcase high-quality biblical scholarship with a $5/month subscription.

DOWNLOAD OUR STUDY GUIDE: MARK AS ANCIENT BIOGRAPHY

Check out our 4-part audio study guide called "The Gospel of Mark as an Ancient Biography." While you're there, get yourself a Biblical Time Machine mug or a cool sticker for your water bottle.

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Theme music written and performed by Dave Roos

Of course Helen and Dave have a fully functioning, very real Time Machine. But if you can't wait your turn (the line is ridiculously long), check out "documentary papyri." These scraps of ancient writing — letters, legal documents, shopping lists — offer a firsthand glimpse into everyday life in the 1st century CE. Even better, scholars like our guest Christina Kreinecker use clues from these ancient everyday texts to illuminate thorny passages of the New Testament.

Check out Christina's book (co-edited with John S. Kloppenborg and James R. Harrison) Everyday Life in Graeco-Roman Times: Documentary Papyri and the New Testament.

SUBSCRIBE AND GET A FREE MUG!

Dave's mom has another holiday gift for BTM listeners! The first 5 people to subscribe to the Time Travelers Club will receive a handsome Biblical Time Machine mug courtesy of Arlene Roos. Subscribe today!

SUPPORT BIBLICAL TIME MACHINE

If you enjoy the podcast, please consider supporting the show through the Time Travelers Club, our Patreon. We love making the show, but since we don't run ads we rely on listener contributions to cover our costs. Please help us continue to showcase high-quality biblical scholarship with a $5/month subscription.

DOWNLOAD OUR STUDY GUIDE: MARK AS ANCIENT BIOGRAPHY

Check out our 4-part audio study guide called "The Gospel of Mark as an Ancient Biography." While you're there, get yourself a Biblical Time Machine mug or a cool sticker for your water bottle.

Support the show

Theme music written and performed by Dave Roos

The prophet Isaiah lived in the 8th century BCE, yet his writings are quoted throughout the New Testament and especially around Christmas. Who was the historical Isaiah? And who (or what) was he writing about when he prophesied the birth of a king 700 years before Jesus?

For this special holiday episode, Helen and Dave are joined by Daniel Stulac, a Christian scholar of the Hebrew Bible who approaches the book(s) of Isaiah in both their historical and theological contexts.

SUBSCRIBE AND GET A FREE MUG!

Dave's mom has another holiday gift for BTM listeners! The first 5 people to subscribe to the Time Travelers Club will receive a handsome Biblical Time Machine mug courtesy of Arlene Roos. Subscribe today!

SUPPORT BIBLICAL TIME MACHINE

If you enjoy the podcast, please consider supporting the show through the Time Travelers Club, our Patreon. We love making the show, but since we don't run ads we rely on listener contributions to cover our costs. Please help us continue to showcase high-quality biblical scholarship with a $5/month subscription.

DOWNLOAD OUR STUDY GUIDE: MARK AS ANCIENT BIOGRAPHY

Check out our 4-part audio study guide called "The Gospel of Mark as an Ancient Biography." While you're there, get yourself a Biblical Time Machine mug or a cool sticker for your water bottle.

Support the show

Theme music written and performed by Dave Roos

In the Gospel of Luke, Joseph and a very pregnant Mary travel to Bethlehem because Caesar Augustus has ordered a census of the entire Roman Empire. But does Jesus's birth story in Luke align with what we know about censuses in the ancient world? How were people counted? Who conducted these censuses? And did people really need to travel back to their ancestral homes to register with Rome?

For this special holiday episode, Helen and Dave are joined by Andrew Whitby, a data scientist and author of The Sum of the People: How the Census Has Shaped Nations from the Ancient World to the Modern Age.

GIVE (& RECEIVE) THE GIFT OF BIBLICAL TIME MACHINE

Dave's mom has a Hanukkah gift for all of our listeners! The first 5 people to email us will receive a free, 2-month subscription to the Time Travelers Club. And if you're looking for the perfect gift for a Bible history nerd, you can buy them a membership with a Biblical Time Machine Gift Card.

SUPPORT BIBLICAL TIME MACHINE

If you like the podcast, please consider supporting the show through the Time Travelers Club, our Patreon. We love making the show, but since we don't run ads we rely on listener contributions to cover our costs. Please help us continue to showcase high-quality biblical scholarship with a $5/month subscription.

DOWNLOAD OUR STUDY GUIDE: MARK AS ANCIENT BIOGRAPHY

Check out our 4-part audio study guide called "The Gospel of Mark as an Ancient Biography." While you're there, get yourself a handsome Biblical Time Machine mug or a cool sticker for your water bottle.

Support the show

Theme music written and performed by Dave Roos

Hanukkah celebrates a miraculous event, when the eternal light of the temple burned for 8 days without being extinguished. In this special holiday episode, scholar Gregg Gardner tells Helen and Dave all about ancient oil lamps, including the magnificent and mysterious 7-branched menorah of the Second Temple.

If you'd like to make your own potato latkes for Hanukkah, try this recipe. Don't forget the apple sauce and sour cream (and crack a window).

GIVE (& RECEIVE) THE GIFT OF BIBLICAL TIME MACHINE

Dave's mom has a Hanukkah gift for all of our listeners! The first 5 people to email us will receive a free, 2-month subscription to the Time Travelers Club. And if you're looking for the perfect gift for a Bible history nerd, you can buy them a membership with a Biblical Time Machine Gift Card.

SUPPORT BIBLICAL TIME MACHINE

If you like the podcast, please consider supporting the show through the Time Travelers Club, our Patreon. We love making the show, but since we don't run ads we rely on listener contributions to cover our costs. Please help us continue to showcase high-quality biblical scholarship with a $5/month subscription.

DOWNLOAD OUR STUDY GUIDE: MARK AS ANCIENT BIOGRAPHY

Check out our 4-part audio study guide called "The Gospel of Mark as an Ancient Biography." While you're there, get yourself a handsome Biblical Time Machine mug or a cool sticker for your water bottle.

Support the show

Theme music written and performed by Dave Roos

Most biblical scholars — including us! — are quick to dismiss the Nativity stories in Matthew and Luke as later theological additions. But what if there are important cultural and even historical memories handed down through these well-worn Christmas stories? According to our guest Joan Taylor, there may be much more to the Nativity stories than we ever thought.

Joan's new book, Boy Jesus: Growing Up Judaean in Turbulent Times, will hit the shelves in February 2025, but you can pre-order your copy now. It's a fascinating read and an important addition to historical Jesus studies.

SUPPORT BIBLICAL TIME MACHINE

If you like the podcast, please consider supporting the show through the Time Travelers Club, our Patreon. We love making the show, but since we don't run ads we rely on listener contributions to cover our costs. Please help us continue to showcase high-quality biblical scholarship with a $5/month subscription.

BTM BOOK CLUB

The second meeting of the Biblical Time Machine Book Club will be held on Saturday, December 14 at 12pm Eastern / 5pm UK! Members of the Time Travelers Club are invited for a live Zoom discussion of James McGrath's book, Christmaker: A Life of John the Baptist. Grab a copy of the book and we'll see you in December!

DOWNLOAD OUR STUDY GUIDE: MARK AS ANCIENT BIOGRAPHY

Check out our 4-part audio study guide called "The Gospel of Mark as an Ancient Biography." While you're there, get yourself a handsome Biblical Time Machine mug or a cool sticker for your water bottle.

Support the show

Theme music written and performed by Dave Roos

Every good churchgoer knows that after we die the faithful will be welcomed into a heavenly paradise and the baddies will be consigned to eternal damnation. But don't go looking for any of that stuff in the Bible! As our guest James Tabor explains, ancient people had very different conceptions of the afterlife, including the authors of the Hebrew Bible and New Testament.

For more great stuff from James, check out his blog, JamesTabor.com and his YouTube channel. Here are some articles and books mentioned in today's episode:

• What The Bible Really Says About Death, Afterlife, and the Future (Part 1)
• What the Bible Really Says about Death, Afterlife, and the Future (Part 2)
• The Book of Genesis: A New Translation from the Transparent English Bible

SUPPORT BIBLICAL TIME MACHINE

If you like the podcast, please consider supporting the show through the Time Travelers Club, our Patreon. We love making the show, but since we don't run ads we rely on listener contributions to cover our costs. Please help us continue to showcase high-quality biblical scholarship with a $5/month subscription.

BTM BOOK CLUB

The second meeting of the Biblical Time Machine Book Club will be held on Saturday, December 14 at 12pm Eastern / 5pm UK! Members of the Time Travelers Club are invited for a live Zoom discussion of James McGrath's book, Christmaker: A Life of John the Baptist. Grab a copy of the book and we'll see you in December!

DOWNLOAD OUR STUDY GUIDE: MARK AS ANCIENT BIOGRAPHY

Check out our 4-part audio study guide called "The Gospel of Mark as an Ancient Biography." While you're there, get yourself a handsome Biblical Time Machine mug or a cool sticker for your water bottle.

Support the show

Theme music written and performed by Dave Roos

Mary Magdalene is one of the most intriguing figures in the New Testament. She clearly held a special place in Jesus's heart and in his ministry, but that popularity also made her controversial. In today's episode, scholar Elizabeth Schrader Polczer presents compelling evidence that someone in the early Church tried to erase (and replace) Mary Magdalene in the Gospel of John.

Check out Elizabeth's eye-opening journal article, "Was Martha of Bethany Added to the Fourth Gospel in the Second Century?"

SUPPORT BIBLICAL TIME MACHINE!

If you like the podcast, please consider supporting the show through the Time Travelers Club, our Patreon. We love making the show, but since we don't run ads we rely on listener contributions to cover our costs. Please help us continue to showcase high-quality biblical scholarship with a $5/month subscription.

BTM BOOK CLUB

The second meeting of the Biblical Time Machine Book Club will be held on Saturday, December 14 at 12pm Eastern / 5pm UK! Members of the Time Travelers Club are invited for a live Zoom discussion of James McGrath's book, Christmaker: A Life of John the Baptist. Grab a copy of the book and we'll see you in December!

DOWNLOAD OUR STUDY GUIDE: MARK AS ANCIENT BIOGRAPHY

Check out our 4-part audio study guide called "The Gospel of Mark as an Ancient Biography." While you're there, get yourself a handsome Biblical Time Machine mug or a cool sticker for your water bottle.

Support the show

Theme music written and performed by Dave Roos