The Two Testaments

Join us as we talk to Dr. Jason Staples about Romans 9:20–23. We discuss a number of things including: the image of God as a potter, the temperamental nature of clay, the potter-clay metaphor in Jeremiah, and how this image asserts God's justice.

Thanks for Listening

Thank you for joining us on Season 1 of The Two Testaments. Ten scholars guided us through the book of Job, and eleven scholars led us through Paul’s letter to the Romans. We hope you have enjoyed—and benefitted from—this guided journey through Scripture.

As we develop and produce Season 2, we would love to hear from you.

Win a $100 Gift Card

Please complete this survey for your chance to win a $100 gift card for Bookshop.org. Your feedback will help us improve the podcast as we develop Season 2 of The Two Testaments.

Coming this Fall: Season 2 of The Two Testaments

This fall (2022) we will release Season 2 of The Two Testaments. We will take you on a guided journey through Deuteronomy and the Gospel of Matthew. In the coming months, we will introduce you to the experts who will guide us through these books. Stay tuned!

Wishing you all the best for the summer,

Rony and Will

Visit our website at thetwotestaments.com, where you can subscribe, listen to all the episodes, and meet our guides through Job and Romans.

Sign up now so you don’t miss an episode. Find us on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Vurbl, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, and Pocket Casts.

You can also watch us on Youtube.

Episode on Romans 16 is Live

Join us for our season finale as Dr. Beverly Gaventa (Baylor University) talks to us about the women that appear in Romans 16. We discuss a number of things including: the women who appear in the list of names at the end of Paul’s letter; Phoebe’s role in relaying Paul’s letter to the Romans; and if Junia was an apostle.

Relevant books by Beverly Gaventa

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* When in Romans: An Invitation to Linger with the Gospel According to Paul. Baker Academic, 2018.

* Our Mother St. Paul. Westminster John Knox, 2007.

This Week’s Blurbs

In this episode, Beverly Gaventa recommends:

* The Freedom app.

Visit our website at thetwotestaments.com, where you can subscribe, see our release schedule, and meet our guides through Romans.

Sign up now so you don’t miss an episode. Find us on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Vurbl, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, and Pocket Casts.

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Join us as Carol A. Newsom (Candler School of Theology) talks to us about Job’s response and the epilogue in Job 42. We discuss a number of things including: how to understand Job’s enigmatic response to God, why the translation of 42:6 in your English Bible is likely wrong, God’s surprising approval of Job’s speech, how the epilogue fits (or doesn’t) with the rest of the book, why readers find it disturbing, Job’s re-embrace of life, and the significance of Job’s daughters.

Relevant Work by Carol Newsom

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Carol Newsom is the author of numerous influential works, including two particularly relevant to our discussion:

* “The Book of Job.” Pages 317–637 in 1 & 2 Maccabees, Introduction to Hebrew Poetry, Job, Psalms. New Interpreters Bible 4. Abingdon, 1996. 

* The Book of Job: A Contest of Moral Imaginations. Oxford University Press, 2003.

This Week’s Blurb

In this episode, Carol Newsom recommends:

* Chödrön, Pema. When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times. Shambhala, 2016.

Recent world events have raised with a new intensity the question of how to respond to unjust suffering. This conversation with Dr. Tremper Longman (Westmont College) on Job’s complaints addresses that very issue, so we’re re-releasing it this week. We hope you find it helpful.

From the Archives

Join us as Dr. Tremper Longman (Westmont College) talks to us about Job 6–7. We discuss a number of things including: the translation of Job, the book’s connections with ancient Near Eastern texts, Job’s bold complaints, and the merits of lament as a response to suffering.

Relevant Work by Tremper Longman

Tremper Longman is the author of stacks of books, including two particularly relevant to our discussion:

* Job. Baker Commentary on the Old Testament Wisdom and Psalms. Baker Academic, 2012.

* The Fear of the Lord is Wisdom: A Theological Introduction to Wisdom in Israel. Baker Academic, 2017.

This Week’s Blurbs

In this episode, Tremper Longman recommends:

* Tisby, Jemar. The Color of Compromise: The Truth about the American Church’s Complicity in Racism. Zondervan, 2019.

* McCauley, Esau. Reading While Black: African American Biblical Interpretation as an Exercise in Hope. IVP Academic, 2020.

* The TV show, WandaVision, directed by Matt Shakman, starring Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany.

Other Books and Articles Mentioned in This Episode

* Walton, John and Tremper Longman III. How to Read Job. IVP Academic, 2015.

Episode on 15:14–16:27 is Live

Join us as Dr. Rafael Rodriguez (Johnson University) talks to us about Romans 15:14–16:27. We discuss a number of things including: (1) Paul’s priestly ministry of the Gentiles; (2) the ethnicity of Paul’s audience.

Books by Rafael Rodriguez

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Dr. Rodriguez is the author and co-editor of these two relevant books:

* If You Call Yourself a Jew: Reappraising Paul’s Letter to the Romans. Cascade Books, 2014.

* ed. with Matthew Thiessen. The So-Called Jew in Paul’s Letter to the Romans. Fortress Press, 2016.

This Week’s Blurbs

In this episode, Rafael Rodriguez recommends HBO’s:

* “Mare of Easttown,” starring Kate Winslet, Julianne Nicholson, and Guy Pearce.

Visit our website at thetwotestaments.com, where you can subscribe, see our release schedule, and meet our guides through Romans.

Sign up now so you don’t miss an episode. Find us on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Vurbl, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, and Pocket Casts.

You can also watch us on Youtube.

Episode on the Divine Speeches in Job is Live

Join us as William P. Brown (Columbia Theological Seminary) guides us through the wonders of the divine speeches in Job. We discuss a number of things, including: the speeches’ anti-creational move from order to chaos, the connection between creation and God’s covenant name, the whirlwind-like “logophany” of God’s words, the nature of God’s rebuke, its use of rhetorical questions, God’s care for and pride in the animals that appear, Behemoth and Leviathan, and Job’s response.

Enter the Giveaway to Win a Free Book

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This week we are giving away a copy of a Bill Brown's book on wisdom (thanks to Eerdmans):

* Wisdom’s Wonder: Character, Creation, and Crisis in the Bible’s Wisdom Literature. Eerdmans, 2014.

To enter this giveaway, look out for the giveaway posts on social media: follow us and retweet the giveaway post on Twitter, or share the giveaway post on Facebook or on Instagram. Giveaway closes Sunday, February 27 at 11:59 pm. USA only.

This Week’s Blurbs

In this episode, Bill Brown recommends:

* The wisdom of Kevin Kling.

Other Books and Articles Mentioned in This Episode

* Matitiahu Tsevat, The Meaning of the Book of Job and Other Biblical Studies: Essays on the Literature and Religion of the Hebrew Bible (New York: Ktav, 1980).

Episode on Romans 12–15 is Live

Join us as Dr. Mike Bird (Ridley College) and Dr. Nijay Gupta (Northern Seminary) talk to us about Romans 12–15:13. We discuss a number of things including: Paul’s cultic metaphors; Paul’s ethics; why Paul enjoins obedience to the government; and the identity of the strong and the weak. Speaking of metaphors—scholarship on Paul’s letters is likened to a UFC brawl and to New York City’s smelly odors and lack of parking spaces.

Enter the Giveaway to Win a Free Book

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This week we are giving away copies of books by Mike Bird and Nijay Gupta (thanks to Eerdmans):

* Mike Bird. An Anomalous Jew: Paul Among Jews, Greeks, and Romans. Eerdmans, 2016.

* Nijay Gupta. Paul and the Language of Faith. Eerdmans, 2020.

To enter this giveaway, look out for the giveaway posts on social media: follow us and retweet the giveaway post on Twitter, or share the giveaway post on Facebook or on Instagram. Giveaway closes Sunday, February 20 at 11:59 pm. USA only.

This Week’s Blurbs

In this episode, Nijay Gupta recommends:

* Mike Bird. Romans. The Story of God Bible Commentary. Zondervan, 2016.

* Scot McKnight. Reading Romans Backwards: A Gospel of Peace in the Midst of Empire (Baylor University Press, 2021).

Mike Bird recommends:

* Nijay Gupta. Paul and the Language of Faith. Eerdmans, 2020.

* Teresa Morgan. Roman Faith and Christian Faith: Pistis and Fides in the Early Roman Empire and Early Churches. Oxford University Press, 2017.

Other Books and Articles Mentioned in This Episode

* Brian Rosner. Paul and the Law: Keeping the Commandments of God. IVP Academic, 2013.

Visit our website at thetwotestaments.com, where you can subscribe, see our release schedule, and meet our guides through Romans.

Sign up now so you don’t miss an episode. Find us on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Vurbl, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, and Pocket Casts.

You can also watch us on Youtube.

Episode on Job 32–37

Join us as Dominick S. Hernández (Talbot School of Theology) guides us through Elihu’s Speeches in Job 32–37. We discuss a number of issues in this text, including: whether these chapters are a later addition, Elihu’s contribution to the book, whether his words are reliable, his appeal to revelation, his misquotations of Job, and his anticipation of the divine speeches.

Enter the Giveaway to Win a Free Book

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This week we are giving away copies of two of Hernández’s books:

Illustrated Job in Hebrew. GlossaHouse, 2020.

Proverbs: Pathways to Wisdom. Abingdon, 2020.

To enter this giveaway, look out for the giveaway posts on social media: follow us and retweet the giveaway post on Twitter, or share the giveaway post on Facebook or on Instagram. Giveaway closes Sunday, February 13 at 11:59 pm. USA entries only.

This Week’s Blurbs

In this episode, Dominick Hernández recommends:

* Greenstein, Edward. Job: A New Translation. Yale University Press, 2019.

* Hawley, Lance R. Metaphor Competition in the Book of Job. Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2018.

* His blog post, “From Hippies to the Hood: How the Jesus People Movement Changed my Life.”

Other Books and Articles Mentioned in This Episode

* Janzen, J. Gerald. Job. Interpretation. John Knox Press, 1985.

* Smith, Cooper. Allusive and Elusive: Allusion and the Elihu Speeches of Job 32–37. Brill, 2022. 

Episode on Romans 9–11 is Live

Join us as Dr. J. Ross Wagner (Duke Divinity School) talks to us about Romans 9–11. We discuss a number of things including: (1) if the Calvinism-Arminianism debates illuminate or obscure Paul’s point in these chapters; (2) Paul’s use of the metaphor of a foot race; (3) the meaning of “and so all Israel will be saved” (Rom 11:26).

Essay by Ross Wagner

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Dr. Wagner is the author of a number of books. An especially helpful and accessible essay by Dr. Wagner is:

* “‘Enemies’ Yet ‘Beloved’ Still: Election and the Love of God in Romans 9–11” in God and Israel: Providence and Purpose in Romans 9–11. Edited by Todd D. Still (Baylor University Press, 2017).

This Week’s Blurbs

In this episode, Ross Wagner recommends:

* Williams, Rowan. The Lion’s World: A Journey into the Heart of Narnia (Oxford University Press, 2013).

Visit our website at thetwotestaments.com, where you can subscribe, see our release schedule, and meet our guides through Romans.

Sign up now so you don’t miss an episode. Find us on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Vurbl, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, and Pocket Casts.

You can also watch us on Youtube.