These two chapters seems intrusive. The oracles against the nations ended in Ezekiel 32, followed by the announcement of Jerusalem’s fall (ch. 33) and a transition to the future hope of Israel (ch. 34). Chapters 35-36 are an oracle against Edom (“Mount Seir”) followed...
Deuteronomy
Naked Bible Podcast Episode 133: ETS-SBL – Live Q & A in San Antonio
This was our first live episode. Trey, myself and David Burnett got together with podcast listeners and a live Q & A broke out! Thank you to everyone who came and joined us in San Antonio! Ep. 133 drops the studio for a packed room at Rosella’s Coffee in San...
Naked Bible Podcast Episode 163: Other Gods and Other Religions with Gerald McDermott
Gerald R. McDermott (PhD, University of Iowa) is Anglican Chair of Divinity at Beeson Divinity School in Birmingham, Alabama. Before joining Beeson, he was the Jordan-Trexler Professor of Religion at Roanoke College. He is also associate pastor at Christ the King...
Naked Bible Podcast Episode 122 – Ezekiel 14-15
The words of Ezekiel 14-15 were addressed to Jewish elders in Babylon who had come to Ezekiel for a word from the Lord. Knowing they were still idol worshippers in their hearts, God refused to give them comfort. Instead he lowered the boom: Jerusalem’s judgment was...
Naked Bible Podcast Episode 137: Ezekiel 23
Ezekiel 23 essentially takes up where Ezekiel 16 left off. The latter chapter is perhaps the most sexual explicit in the entire Bible, as its theme is to present Jerusalem and Judah as a whore to telegraph her spiritual betrayal of Yahweh. In this chapter both the...
Naked Bible Podcast Episode 124 – Ezekiel 17
Ezekiel 17 presents a riddle or parable of two eagles about the treachery of Zedekiah, the puppet governor appointed by Nebuchadnezzar to replace Jehoiachin, the Judahite king taken captive in an earlier wave of exile of which Ezekiel had been a part. Zedekiah would...
Naked Bible Podcast Episode 123 – Ezekiel 16
Ezekiel 16 is known for being the most sexually explicit chapter in the Bible. Some scholars even consider it pornographic. The prophet casts the city of Jerusalem as a whore when articulating why God has condemned it and marked it for destruction. This episode...
Naked Bible 92: Stones of Fire
Ezekiel 28:14, 16 describe an “anointed cherub” who walked in the midst of “the stones of fire” and was removed from among “the stones of fire.” What are the stones of fire? What do these verses describe? How do the phrases relate to what’s going on in Ezekiel 28 and...
Naked Bible Podcast Episode 152: Ezekiel 38-39, Part 1: Who or What is Gog?
As was the case with Ezekiel 37, these chapters are among the most familiar in the entire book of Ezekiel. This first of two episodes on these chapters focuses on the terminology: Gog, Magog, Meshech, Tubal, and Togarmah. It also addresses the fallacies of translating...
Naked Bible Podcast Episode 130: ETS-SBL Interviews with Scholars – Part 3
During the recent annual meetings for biblical studies scholars held in San Antonio, Dr. Heiser interviewed a number of scholars about their recent work. In Part 3 of those interviews, we hear again from David Burnett, a familiar voice on the podcast, and meet Dr....
Naked Bible Podcast Episode 116 – Ezekiel 7
The episode is now live. In this episode, Dr. Michael Heiser walks through one of the most chilling chapters in the book of Ezekiel. Chapter 7 announces with repeated urgency: “The end has come.” This isn’t just a statement about the destruction of Jerusalem in 586...
Discerning the Dead, Part 3
We're at the point now in our intermittent forays into the biblical realm of the dead to flesh out (again, pardon the pun) who's who in the Underworld. I noted at the start that I wanted to start with the term metim to see if that term spoke of the human dead, as...
What Is Spiritual Warfare? Mike’s (Brief) Take
This question is asked of me so often that I've decided to post an *unedited* excerpt from my forthcoming Demons book (due out sometime in 2019 -- it's in editorial now). Here's a brief take on the issue; part of a larger discussion: What is spiritual warfare-from...
Elohim, Divine Council, Psalm 82, OT Monotheism Archive
I get a lot of email about my views on Yahweh and divine plurality. You’d think people would find my material via Google or my divine council website, but I guess not. I’m making this page for you all, of course, but also to provide myself a convenient one-stop link...
Five Differences Between Qur’anic (Sharia) Law and Old Testament Law
I'd recommend this interesting essay to readers. It was published by the Christian Research Institute. The essay has some deficiencies, in that there are other important differences (and nuances within the differences noted). For example, the OT law was also something...