How the Bible Was Formed E3 — Today, most Bibles are a single book that’s easy to carry and flip through. But the Bible started as an assortment of scrolls, bound together into a collection. The Hebrew Bible—or the Old Testament—went through a centuries-long, iterative development process with a variety of scribes and prophets. It didn’t come into its final form until roughly the time of Jesus. So how does this history interact with a view of Scripture as God’s word? In this episode, Jon and Tim continue exploring the formation of the Bible, discussing how to hold a high view of these sacred texts while also acknowledging the humans who shaped them. 

CHAPTERS

1. An Inspired, Collaborative Work Over Centuries (0:00-12:00)
2. A Final Shaping of the Hebrew Bible After Exile (12:00-26:59)
3. The Second Temple Period’s Flourishing Literary Culture (26:59-43:42)
4. The Tanak’s Standardization as the Masoretic Text (43:42-53:32)
5. Wisdom Literature Designed for Meditation and Formation (53:32-1:00:03)
6. Coming to Peace With the Bible’s Formation (1:00:03-1:05:02)

OFFICIAL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT

View this episode’s official transcript.

REFERENCED RESOURCES

• The Journey from Texts to Translations: The Origin and Development of the Bible by Paul D. Wegner
• You can view annotations for this episode—plus our entire library of videos, podcasts, articles, and classes—in the BibleProject app, available for Android and iOS.
• Check out Tim’s extensive collection of recommended books here.

SHOW MUSIC

• “Nice Day ft. Marc Vanparla, John Lee” by Lofi Sunday
•  “Know My Name” by Lofi Sunday, Opto Music
•  “But Hopeful ft. Maddox.” by Lofi Sunday
•  “Forever Yours ft. Cassidy Godwin” by Lofi Sunday
• BibleProject theme song by TENTS

SHOW CREDITS

Production of today’s episode is by Lindsey Ponder, producer, and Cooper Peltz, managing producer. Tyler Bailey is our supervising engineer, and he also edited today's episode and provided the sound design and mix. JB Witty does our show notes, and Hannah Woo provides the annotations for our app. Our host and creative director is Jon Collins, and our lead scholar is Tim Mackie. 

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 How the Bible Was Formed E2 — The Hebrew Bible, or Old Testament, is a collection of 24 scrolls, passed down for generations, that tells the long, complicated story of ancient Israel. But who wrote these scrolls, and how did they come together in their final form? And how do we understand the claim that these books are the very voice of God? In this episode, Jon and Tim explore the formation of the Hebrew Bible and the crew who shaped its stories, poems, and laws into intricately designed literary works.

CHAPTERS

1. The First Writing Mentioned in the Torah (2:56-13:01)
2. Prophets as a Spirit-Led, Multigenerational Literary Community (13:01-36:30)
3. Divine Inspiration in a Diverse, Literary Mosaic (36:30-1:03:20)

OFFICIAL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT

View this episode’s official transcript.

REFERENCED RESOURCES

• The Lost World Series by John H. Walton and others
• The Lost World of Scripture: Ancient Literary Culture and Biblical Authority by John H. Walton and Brent Sandy
• The Shape of the Writings (Siphrut: Literature and Theology of the Hebrew Scriptures), edited by Julius Steinberg and Timothy J. Stone
• You can view annotations for this episode—plus our entire library of videos, podcasts, articles, and classes—in the BibleProject app, available for Android and iOS.
• Check out Tim’s extensive collection of recommended books here.

SHOW MUSIC

• “StrollingThroughThePark ft. Goodiegumdrops” by Lofi Sunday
• “Radiance ft. solae” by Lofi Sunday
• BibleProject theme song by TENTS

SHOW CREDITS

Production of today’s episode is by Lindsey Ponder, producer, and Cooper Peltz, managing producer. Tyler Bailey is our supervising engineer, and he also edited today’s episode and provided the sound design and mix. JB Witty does our show notes, and Hannah Woo provides the annotations for our app. Our host and creative director is Jon Collins, and our lead scholar is Tim Mackie. 

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How the Bible Was Formed E1 — If you’ve ever compared a Protestant Bible to a Catholic Bible, you may notice some additional books in the Catholic Bible, such as Tobit, Judith, 1 and 2 Maccabees, etc. These books, called the Deuterocanon by Catholics and the Apocrypha by Protestants, are Jewish Literature from the period after the Babylonian exile but before the time of Jesus. The Jewish people were back in the land, being ruled by Syria and other empires descended from Alexander the Great. As they read the Hebrew Bible, they created many new literary works, reflecting on stories in Scripture and what was happening in their own day. So how do we understand the status and value of these books when compared to the Hebrew Bible and New Testament? In this episode, Jon and Tim explore the background, history, and content of this Second-Temple Jewish literature.

CHAPTERS

1. Multiple Bibles on the Shelf (00:00-21:10)
2. History of the Protestant Apocrypha (21:10-34:35)
3. How Jesus and the Apostles Engaged With These Books (34:35-43:05)
4. Why We’re Talking About the Deuterocanon/Apocrypha (43:05-57:36)

OFFICIAL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT

View this episode’s official transcript.

REFERENCED RESOURCES

• The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha by James H. Charlesworth
• Old Testament Pseudepigrapha: More Noncanonical Scriptures, edited by Richard Bauckham, James Davila, Alex Panayotov
• You can view annotations for this episode—plus our entire library of videos, podcasts, articles, and classes—in the BibleProject app, available for Android and iOS.
• Check out Tim’s extensive collection of recommended books here.

SHOW MUSIC

• “Pure Joy ft. John Lee” by Lofi Sunday
• “Chillbop ft. Me & The Boys” by Lofi Sunday
• “Answered Prayers ft. PAINT WITH SOUND” by Lofi Sunday
• BibleProject theme song by TENTS

SHOW CREDITS

Production of today’s episode is by Lindsey Ponder, producer, and Cooper Peltz, managing producer. Tyler Bailey is our supervising engineer, who edited today’s episode and also provided the sound design and mix. JB Witty does our show notes, and Hannah Woo provides the annotations for our app. Our host and creative director is Jon Collins, and our lead scholar is Tim Mackie. 

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The Exodus Way Q+R (E14) — What birth imagery do we find in Exodus? Are there hyperlinks elsewhere in the Bible that connect to Pharaoh’s hardened heart? And is the circumcision story with Zipporah and Moses’ son connected to Passover? In this episode, Tim and Jon respond to your questions from our Exodus Way series. Thank you to our audience for your thoughtful contributions to this episode!

View all of our resources for The Exodus Way →

CHAPTERS

1. Intro (0:00-2:27)
2. Do the seven women in Exodus mirror the seven women in Genesis? (2:27-11:31)
3. What birth imagery can we pull out of the exodus story? (11:31-24:27)
4. Are there hyperlinks elsewhere in the Bible that connect to Pharaoh’s hardened heart? (24:27-34:37)
5. Is the circumcision story with Zipporah and Moses’ son connected to Passover? (34:37-38:54)
6. How are the Passover and Yom Kippur lambs connected? (38:54-58:57)
7. Is there any connection between God’s Spirit descending on Jesus like a dove at his baptism and the dove Noah sent out of the ark? (58:50-1:07:28)

OFFICIAL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT

View this episode’s official transcript.

REFERENCED RESOURCES

• Find our special interview episode with BibleProject Fellow Tamara Knudson: The Seven Women Who Rescued Moses—and Israel
• Recovering Paul's Mother Tongue: Language and Theology in Galatians by Susan Grove Eastman
• In response to the question about God hardening Pharaoh's heart, Tim references our series on the Exodus Scroll, specifically episode 2, Yahweh and the Exodus. We also addressed this topic in the Exodus 1-18 Q+R
• Tim mentions Hebrew Bible scholars Richard Whitekettle, Jacob Milgrom, and Jonathan Klawans, though not any specific works by them.
• Jon mentions a previous episode where we discussed Zipporah and Moses’ son: Did God Try To Kill Moses?
• Lamb of the Free: Recovering the Varied Sacrificial Understandings of Jesus's Death by Andrew Remington Rillera
• You can view annotations for this episode—plus our entire library of videos, podcasts, articles, and classes—in the BibleProject app, available for Android and iOS.
• Check out Tim’s extensive collection of recommended books here.

SHOW MUSIC

• BibleProject theme song by TENTS 

SHOW CREDITS

Production of today’s episode is by Lindsey Ponder, producer, and Cooper Peltz, managing producer. Tyler Bailey is our supervising engineer, who edited today’s episode and also provided the sound design and mix. JB Witty does our show notes, and Hannah Woo provides the annotations for our app. Our host and creative director is Jon Collins, and our lead scholar is Tim Mackie. 

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The Exodus Way E13 (Bonus Interview) — The exodus from Egypt was a foundational story for ancient Israel, but without a special group of seven often overlooked women, the exodus would have never happened! In this episode, Jon and Tim have a conversation with BibleProject Scholarship Fellow Tamara Knudson about the seven women in Exodus 1-4 who save Moses—and by extension—all of Israel.

View all of our resources for The Exodus Way →

CHAPTERS

1. Introducing Tamara and the Seven Women of Exodus 1-4 (0:00-6:29)
2. The Two Midwives and Moses’ Mother (6:29-21:20)
3. Pharaoh’s Daughter and Moses’ Sister, Miriam (21:20-31:08)
4. Zipporah, Moses’ Wife (31:08-46:39)
5. Other Books of the Bible That Start With Women (46:39-54:54)

OFFICIAL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT

View this episode’s official transcript.

REFERENCED RESOURCES

• Read the BibleProject article that Tamara contributed to: “7 Powerful Women in the Bible Who Help Rescue God's People.”
• Tim references a previous Q+R episode, “Did God Try To Kill Moses?” where they responded to an audience member’s question about Exodus 4:24-26.
• Tamara references Carmen Imes’ Exodus Overview Classroom course.
• You can view annotations for this episode—plus our entire library of videos, podcasts, articles, and classes—in the BibleProject app, available for Android and iOS.
• Check out Tim’s extensive collection of recommended books here.

SHOW MUSIC

• “Hope in the Morning ft. CRFT & GXNXSIS” by Lofi Sunday
• “Redeemer ft. Cassidy Godwin” by Lofi Sunday
• “That Gospel ft. Bobcat” by Lofi Sunday
• “Eden Dreaming ft. sxxnt.” by Lofi Sunday
• BibleProject theme song by TENTS

SHOW CREDITS

Production of today’s episode is by Lindsey Ponder, producer, and Cooper Peltz, managing producer. Tyler Bailey is our supervising engineer, who edited today’s episode and also provided the sound design and mix. JB Witty does our show notes, and Hannah Woo provides the annotations for our app. Our host and creative director is Jon Collins, and our lead scholar is Tim Mackie. Special thanks to Tamara Knudson.

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The Exodus Way E12 (Bonus Interview) — If we come to the New Testament without much knowledge of the Hebrew Bible, we may think that baptism is just something that John the Baptist made up and Jesus carried on for new disciples. But there are multiple levels of meaning in this practice, including ritual purification, Israel’s passage through the Red Sea, entry into the promised land, and, most importantly for Jesus, a symbol of his death on our behalf. In this episode, Jon and Tim have a wide-ranging conversation with prolific author and theologian N.T. Wright about the meaning of baptism and its connections to the Exodus story.

View all of our resources for The Exodus Way →

CHAPTERS

1. Welcoming N.T. Wright (0:00-10:20)
2. Baptism as Repentance and Ushering in the Kingdom (10:20-33:17)
3. Baptism as Death and New Life in the Messiah (33:17-47:37)

OFFICIAL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT

View this episode’s official transcript.

REFERENCED RESOURCES

• N.T. Wright mentions the online learning platform Admirato, which hosts dozens of his theology courses.
• God's Big Picture Bible Storybook by N. T. Wright
• “Sonnet X” or “Death, be not proud” from Holy Sonnets by John Donne
• You can view annotations for this episode—plus our entire library of videos, podcasts, articles, and classes—in the BibleProject app, available for Android and iOS.
• Check out Tim’s extensive collection of recommended books here.

SHOW MUSIC

• “Faithful” by Marc Vanparla
• “Sanctuary” by Asaph’s Arrows
• BibleProject theme song by TENTS 

SHOW CREDITS

Production of today’s episode is by Lindsey Ponder, producer, and Cooper Peltz, managing producer. Tyler Bailey is our supervising engineer, who edited today’s episode and also provided the sound design and mix. JB Witty does our show notes, and Hannah Woo provides the annotations for our app. Our host and creative director is Jon Collins, and our lead scholar is Tim Mackie. Special thanks to N.T. Wright.

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The Exodus Way E11 — After Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension, his followers grew into a movement known simply as “The Way”—a new exodus people delivered from sin and death, following the narrow way of Jesus through the wilderness of our present world and awaiting entry into a promised new creation. The Apostle Paul is a central figure in this movement, commissioned by the risen Jesus to spread the good news of the new exodus to the nations. He planted churches in several Roman cities and wrote letters to congregations of Jewish and Gentile believers. Paul was a Jewish man steeped in Israel's Scriptures, which is why we see him infusing Exodus language and imagery into his letters to the early Church. In this episode, Jon and Tim explore Paul’s letters to the churches in Corinth, Galatia, and Rome, discovering how Paul saw the death and resurrection of Jesus, the life of the Christian, and the larger story of creation as a cosmic exodus.

View all of our resources for The Exodus Way →

CHAPTERS

1. Recap of Where We’ve Been (0:00-3:01)
2. Exodus Imagery in 1 Corinthians 5 (3:01-14:03)
3. Exodus Language in Galatians (14:03-31:41)
4. The Cosmic Exodus in Romans 8 (31:41-44:33)

OFFICIAL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT

View this episode’s official transcript.

REFERENCED RESOURCES

• The Homilies of St. John Chrysostom on the Epistles of St. Paul to the Corinthians by John Chrysostom
• Paul and His Story: (Re)Interpreting the Exodus Tradition by Sylvia Keesmaat
• You can view annotations for this episode—plus our entire library of videos, podcasts, articles, and classes—in the BibleProject app, available for Android and iOS.
• Check out Tim’s extensive collection of recommended books here.

SHOW MUSIC

• “Lilo” by The Field Tapes & Middle School
• “Loving Someone You Lost” by The Field Tapes
• BibleProject theme song by TENTS

SHOW CREDITS

Production of today’s episode is by Lindsey Ponder, producer, and Cooper Peltz, managing producer. Tyler Bailey is our supervising engineer. Frank Garza and Aaron Olsen edited today’s episode. Aaron Olsen and Tyler Bailey provided the sound design and mix. JB Witty does our show notes, and Hannah Woo provides the annotations for our app. Our host and creative director is Jon Collins, and our lead scholar is Tim Mackie. 

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The Exodus Way E10 — The Exodus story was core to the identity of ancient Israel. Inspired by the prophet Isaiah’s words, 1st-century Israelites were awaiting a new exodus, where a new Moses-like figure would deliver them from Roman oppression. The gospels present Jesus as that figure, who saves people from sickness, hunger, spiritual oppression, and even death itself. And following Jesus’ resurrection and the coming of the Holy Spirit, the early Jesus movement became known as “The Way,” carrying a message of salvation for all nations. In this episode, Jon and Tim explore how the new exodus people in the book of Acts embody the prophet Isaiah’s vision.

CHAPTERS

1. Recap and Acts as an “Isaianic” New Exodus (0:00-9:44)
2. Isaiah’s New Exodus Language in Luke-Acts (9:44-26:18)
3. Exodus and Acts’ Shared Theme of the Victorious Creator God (26:18-35:03)
4. A New Exodus for All Nations (35:03-45:24)

OFFICIAL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT

View this episode’s official transcript.

REFERENCED RESOURCES

• Acts and the Isaianic New Exodus by David W. Pao
• You can view annotations for this episode—plus our entire library of videos, podcasts, articles, and classes—in the BibleProject app, available for Android and iOS.
• Check out Tim’s extensive collection of recommended books here.

SHOW MUSIC

• “Nimbus” by Toonorth
• “Silk” by El Train
• “Wistful” by Toonorth
• BibleProject theme song by TENTS

SHOW CREDITS

Production of today’s episode is by Lindsey Ponder, producer, and Cooper Peltz, managing producer. Tyler Bailey is our supervising engineer. Frank Garza and Aaron Olsen edited today’s episode. Aaron Olsen and Tyler Bailey provided the sound design and mix. JB Witty does our show notes, and Hannah Woo provides the annotations for our app. Our host and creative director is Jon Collins, and our lead scholar is Tim Mackie. 

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The Exodus Way E9 — All four gospel accounts build anticipation for Jesus to accomplish a new kind of exodus when he arrives in Jerusalem. But later in the gospel narratives, Jesus begins telling his disciples that he will be arrested and killed in Jerusalem before rising on the third day. So Jesus journeys to Jerusalem and confronts the religious establishment—notably only days before Passover! And before his arrest, he shares a Passover meal with his disciples and shockingly reinterprets the bread and wine to be about his coming death. What is Jesus doing, and how is his death related to the climactic Exodus event of Passover? In this episode, Jon and Tim trace the Holy Week story leading up to Passover and explore how Jesus’ death fulfills the cosmic Exodus story of the Bible. 

CHAPTERS

1. Recap and Jesus’ Prediction of His Death in Jerusalem (2:13-15:18)
2. Jesus Compares His Death to Noah’s Flood (15:18-23:17)
3. Jesus Enters Jerusalem, Stirs Up Trouble, and Hosts a Passover Meal (23:17-49:38)
4. The Cosmic Exodus (49:38-56:52)

OFFICIAL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT

View this episode’s official transcript.

REFERENCED RESOURCES

• The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare
• Last Supper and Lord's Supper by I. Howard Marshall
• The Historical Reliability of the Gospels by Craig L. Blomberg
• The Mishnah
• You can view annotations for this episode—plus our entire library of videos, podcasts, articles, and classes—in the BibleProject app, available for Android and iOS.
• Check out Tim’s extensive collection of recommended books here.

SHOW MUSIC

• “Chiaroscuro” by Toonorth
• “New Light” by Toonorth
• “Wistful” by Toonorth
• BibleProject theme song by TENTS

SHOW CREDITS

Production of today’s episode is by Lindsey Ponder, producer, and Cooper Peltz, managing producer. Tyler Bailey is our supervising engineer. Frank Garza and Aaron Olsen edited today’s episode. Aaron Olsen and Tyler Bailey provided the sound design and mix. JB Witty does our show notes, and Hannah Woo provides the annotations for our app. Our host and creative director is Jon Collins, and our lead scholar is Tim Mackie. 

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The Exodus Way E8 — Before the arrival of Jesus, Israelites already viewed their current circumstances and hopes for God’s salvation through the lens of the Exodus. This is why the gospel authors tell the story of Jesus with language that points back to the main beats of the Exodus story. In this first episode of two on the gospels, Jon and Tim explore the many Exodus hyperlinks found in the stories of Jesus’ birth, his baptism in the Jordan River, his testing in the wilderness, and his public ministry in Galilee. 

CHAPTERS

1. The Exodus Way in the Life of Jesus (0:00-5:42)
2. Comparing Jesus and Moses’ Birth Stories (5:42-19:45)
3. Jesus’ Baptism, Testing in the Wilderness, and “Saving” People (19:45-39:32)
4. Jesus’ Transfiguration on the Mountain Compared to Moses at Sinai (39:32-51:58)

OFFICIAL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT

View this episode’s official transcript.

REFERENCED RESOURCES

• Text & Texture by Michael Fishbane
• You can view annotations for this episode—plus our entire library of videos, podcasts, articles, and classes—in the BibleProject app, available for Android and iOS.
• Check out Tim’s extensive collection of recommended books here.

SHOW MUSIC

• “Nimbus” by Toonorth
• “Lost Love” by Toonorth
• “Effervescent” by Toonorth
• BibleProject theme song by TENTS

SHOW CREDITS

Production of today’s episode is by Lindsey Ponder, producer, and Cooper Peltz, managing producer. Tyler Bailey is our supervising engineer. Frank Garza and Aaron Olsen edited today’s episode. Aaron Olsen and Tyler Bailey provided the sound design and mix. JB Witty does our show notes, and Hannah Woo provides the annotations for our app. Our host and creative director is Jon Collins, and our lead scholar is Tim Mackie. 

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