This book captures many ancient voices, a collection of literary excerpts from ancient Jewish books: Jubilees, Josephus, 4 Ezra, Qumran Scrolls, Talmud, Enoch, Baruch, Maccabees, Mishna, Judith, Apocalypse of Moses, Philo, Mishna, Ben Sira, and many others, fifty passages to be exact. The excerpts are mostly short, sometimes even intentionally
Apostle Paul was a first-century religious Jew, trained at the feet of the best rabbis of his time. Though he addresses primarily non-Jewish audiences, Shaul often writes as a rabbi, resorting to midrash and employing metaphors to illustrate his ideas. Sadly, his readers are not used to this
I wanted to share with you a Morning Prayer and, more specifically, a musical piece I created based on it. The words of this song are inspired by the words of the traditional morning blessings found in the Siddur (Jewish Prayer Book). The person who is praying in the early
What is this Sign of Jonah? The traditional thinking is that it's Jesus' resurrection, three days and three nights... But the passage may not be so simple as it appears on the surface. Interested in taking a closer look and discovering another way to read the text?
Over the years of teaching, I have often referred my students to the books of Enoch. But most of the time, I did so with some reservations. I knew that the broadly distributed copies they would likely come across would be littered with archaic and hard-to-digest language. Finally,
Over the years of teaching, I have often referred my students to the books of Enoch. But most of the time, I did so with some reservations. I knew that the broadly distributed copies they would likely come across would
In Vayikra, in Leviticus 21, verses 10-11 speak to a priest, who is the greatest among his brothers because he was anointed, should not tear his garments or bare his head. He should not defile himself even if his
Recently, I created several videos where I offer some audio readings of segments from Jewish compositions that people might have never read, which I have translated. If you are not familiar, The Apocalypse of Abraham (התגלות אברהם, hitgalut Avraham) is
Are the Essenes the same people as the Jewish Qumran Sect? Who are the Zealots, and why does Josephus dislike them so much? Pinchas Shir helps us better understand the diverse beliefs among the Jews during the Second Temple Period
The Pool of Siloam in Jerusalem carries a unique name, alluding to the "one who was sent." I have recently shared a couple of articles about the connection between this unique place and Jesus' miracles. I realize
We start with the Hasidim and discuss how the Pharisees emerged from this group. While the Sadducees were Temple-focused, the Pharisees were focused on purity in everyday life. They were an of-the-people-for-the-people kind of
What was Judaism like in the Second Temple period? It was diverse. Very diverse. In this discussion, Pinchas Shir tells us about where that diversity came from and why we primarily talk about four divisions of Judaism from that time.
When this particular Hebrew poem is read in translation, its words sound very familiar to many Christian audiences. Why? Like Moses, Yeshua spoke very similar words, repeating the words preserved in Deuteronomy. Like Moshe, he criticized certain people who surrounded
To readers of the Bible, Siloam (Σιλωάμ) is a familiar water source in ancient Jerusalem. It was there that Jesus healed the man born blind (John 9). In Hebrew, the pool is called Shiloach (שִׁלֹחַ) or Shiloah, meaning
Psalms are ancient Jewish poetry, composed in classical Hebrew, yet somehow, these ancient songs, even in translation, still move people all over the world. Psalm 24 anticipates the King of Glory (mekekh hakavod, מֶלֶךְ הַכָּבוֹד)
As an educator, I experiment with different types of teaching. Most often, in my videos, I present all sorts of academic, historical, biblical, and religious information in classroom lecture format. Periodically, I also lead spiritual discussions, which are educational, but
When Jews celebrate Passover today, the festive tables feature a special plate with traditional foods tased during the celebration. There are bitter herbs of several kinds to remember the bitterness of slavery in Egypt (Num 9:11). There is also
