The Jews of Jesus’ day lived in homes meant to house an entire extended family, with several rooms situated around a common courtyard. A family’s home in that patriarchal society was known as a “beth ab,” which means, &ldqu... MORE
When the disciples arrived with Jesus in Jerusalem, they marveled at the unbelievable beauty of the Lord’s temple. According to the Bible, the original temple built by Solomon was also absolutely stunning. And yet, in both cases it wasn't en... MORE
When the believers began to bring the message of the gospel to the world of the Gentiles, they quickly realized that their faith made them extremely countercultural. How would they explain the good news in places where they couldn't engage in the ... MORE
The apostle Paul was no stranger to the duties of a rabbi, having studied under one of the most famous rabbis in Israel before becoming one himself. He understood exactly what Jesus meant before His ascension, when He commanded the church to go ou... MORE
Sheep and shepherds were so much a part of the Biblical world, it's no wonder Jesus uses the imagery as a metaphor in several of His teachings. The shepherds of His day knew every one of the animals in their flock by sight and spent their lives pr... MORE
The Colosseum in Rome is famous for many reasons, not least of which because it was built by the spoils of war from the destruction of Jerusalem, the military defeat of the Jews. In the Roman world, it was assumed that if Caesar was... MORE
Jesus came with a unique message, preaching to the Jewish people that “the kingdom of heaven has come near” (Matthew 4:17). But from the beginning, there was another king who hates the shalom that God creates and loves life’... MORE
When the time came for God to choose a people, He didn’t pick the strongest kingdom He could find. He chose the weak, the nobodies – a family that would become the nation of Israel. God rescued them from Egypt and brought them into the... MORE
When questioned about his message, Paul tells the Athenians that the one and only God "does not live in temples made with hands" (Acts 17:24). Naturally, anyone who was curious about Jesus in the Greco-Roman world would ask the early bel... MORE
Jesus told His disciples that anyone who wished to follow Him would have to take up his own cross. Many of the early believers did just that, willingly following in their rabbi's footsteps even when it meant certain death. Count their cost as you ... MORE
Cliff at the Garden Tomb This cliff face is located just outside the garden tomb. It was originally a quarry, but the rock quality was poor. It is just outside the city of Jerusalem, near the main gate. The area in front of the cliff was probably ...
The photograph here displays a column style used by Herod on Masada. The columns were made of sandstone pieces that were plastered to look like fluted columns. When new, they probably looked like polished limestone or even marble. In the same plac...
FormIn order to make sense of covenants, people followed a certain pattern that governed the content and form of a covenant. A summary document representing the entirety of the relationship was usually provided. As the superior party, God alone de...
The Christian faith is built upon the reality of Christ's death and resurrection. Jesus' death removed the barrier of sin between humankind and God, and brought into being a new era of relationship.Prophecies given hundreds of years before Jesus w...
Soldiers of the Cross?
In November, 1095, Pope Urban II called upon all true Christians to free the Holy Land from so-called Muslim infidels. His speech sparked a period of violent conflict between Christian Europeans and the Muslims of the Middle...
Jesus used various word pictures and ideas that were familiar to the people of his time in order to communicate effectively with both religious Jews and pagans.The Bridegroom ImageFor example, Jesus described his deep love for his followers in ter...
Decapolis means "10 cities." Though the number of cities changed from time to time, the Decapolis was a group of independent city-states that were thoroughly pagan and Hellenistic. Veterans of Alexander the Great's army founded several o...
An agreement or set of promises made between two parties. When forming a covenant in ancient days, two parties gathered animals, cut each into two parts, and then placed them on the ground so their blood flowed into one stream. Each party walked t...
God created, or made, the world and the entire universe; it is all his creation. The Bible says every-thing God made was very good. All creation is now hurt by the sin in the world. But one day God will make creation perfect again.
To nail or tie a person to a cross until that person died. A cross was made of rough beams of wood nailed together in a "t" shape. Jesus died by this method, which was usually used for criminals.
Commentaries or instruction manuals for the Essene community discovered in 1947 by the Dead Sea in caves near the ruins of Khirbet Qumran. They provide valuable insights into the beliefs of one religious community from the time of Jesus; and conta...
Ten Hellenistic cities established at the time of Alexander the Great east of the Sea of Galilee and north of Perea. Later, the Roman emperor Pompey organized the cities into a league named the Decapolis, largely populated by Roman army troops. In...
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