Ben - the Amateur Exegete

Joel Christensen: ChatGPT and Making Meaning Joel Christensen, Storylife: On Epic, Narrative, and Living Things (Yale University Press, 2025), 13. One of the reasons I am interested in how ChatGPT and similar programs work is that it helps us explore the limits of the analogies provided by Natural Language Processing for the way language and narratives function in our embodied minds. Words on a page are nothing without someone to read them and create their meaning.

"Our embodied experience provides nuance to what we do with texts and what they do to us in turn."

Grant Macaskill: NT Scholars Need to Be Better Aware of the Provenance of Ancient Texts Grant Macaskill, "Israel's Scriptures in Early Jewish Literature," in Israel's Scriptures in Early Christian Writings: The Use of the Old Testament in the New, edited by Matthias Henze and David Lincicum (Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2023), 133. Any New Testament scholars who seek to make use of works typically categorized as "early Jewish writings" need to disabuse themselves of naïveté around the provenance of these works.

Grant Macaskill: NT Scholars Need to Be Better Aware of the Provenance of Ancient Texts

Grant Macaskill, "Israel's Scriptures in Early Jewish Literature," in Israel's Scriptures in Early Christian Writings: The Use of the Old Testament in the New, edited by Matthias Henze and David Lincicum (Wm.…

The Roundup – 3.1.26 "'Christianity.' 'The faith.' 'The church.' By using these terms in the singular, we repeat the rhetoric of the retrospectively 'orthodox,' and we obscure the vital variety that always characterized this protean movement." - Paula Fredriksen, Ancient Christianities: The First Five Hundred Years (Princeton University Press, 2024), 198. Robyn Faith Walsh talks the "real" Paul over at the YouTube channel…

Here's the latest Roundup! It has Sea Monsters and the apostle Paul and cherubim and more!

John Collins: “The Bible Does Not Mean Anything Until It Is Interpreted” John J. Collins, What Are Biblical Values? What the Bible Says on Key Ethical Issues (Yale University Press, 2019), 212-213. Strictly speaking, the Bible does not mean anything until it is interpreted. Appeal to textual agency ("but the Bible says") is far too simple an evasion of the reader's responsibility. The more important question, however, is whether it is possible to interpret the Bible with a degree of objectivity so that people who approach it with different prejudices and faith commitments can reach consensus.

John Collins: “The Bible Does Not Mean Anything Until It Is Interpreted”

John J. Collins, What Are Biblical Values? What the Bible Says on Key Ethical Issues (Yale University Press, 2019), 212-213. Strictly speaking, the Bible does not mean anything until it is interpreted. Appeal to textual…

Joseph Allen: The λόγος as a Creative Word in James 1:18 Joseph G. Allen, "God's λόγος in James and Early Judaism," NovT 67 (2025), 368. [I]t is difficult to read James 1:18 independently of its allusions to God's creation of the world. James's allusions to Genesis 1 in chapter 3 indicate that he is familiar with this portion of Scripture, and James has a penchant for grounding his ethical exhortation in the nature of the created order and humanity's responsibility as creatures.

Joseph Allen: The λόγος as a Creative Word in James 1:18

Joseph G. Allen, "God's λόγος in James and Early Judaism," NovT 67 (2025), 368. [I]t is difficult to read James 1:18 independently of its allusions to God's creation of the world. James's allusions to Genesis 1 in chapter 3 indicate that he…

Mark Goodacre: “Why Are You Looking for the Living One among Dead People?” Mark Goodacre, "How Empty Was the Tomb," JSNT 44 no. 1, (2021), 144. The interesting and rarely mentioned possibility that there were other bodies in the tomb may be echoed in the angels’ question in Lk. 24.5, Τί ζητεῖτε τὸν ζῶντα μετὰ τῶν νεκρῶν; It is usually translated with a nice poetic ring, ‘Why do you seek the living among the dead’, but it would be more precise to translate it, ‘Why are you looking for the living one among dead people?’ Is the question purely a Lukan rhetorical flourish, or is it a tacit admission that the tomb was not, after all, empty of corpses?

Mark Goodacre: “Why Are You Looking for the Living One among Dead People?”

Mark Goodacre, "How Empty Was the Tomb," JSNT 44 no. 1, (2021), 144. The interesting and rarely mentioned possibility that there were other bodies in the tomb may be echoed in the angels’ question in Lk. 24.5, Τί ζητεῖτε…

Some really interesting chapters in this!

The Roundup – 2.15.26 "For Paul, some things are Jewish, others goyish (or rather, in Paul’s Greek idiom: ἐθνικóς, ethnikos, gentile). Paul is Jewish. The apostles are Jewish. The addressees of Paul’s letters are goyish. Circumcision is Jewish. Having a foreskin is goyish. Idol temples are so goyish that Jews won’t go near them. Lust is goyish. Men having sex with other men is definitely goyish.

The Roundup – 2.15.26

"For Paul, some things are Jewish, others goyish (or rather, in Paul’s Greek idiom: ἐθνικóς, ethnikos, gentile). Paul is Jewish. The apostles are Jewish. The addressees of Paul’s letters are goyish. Circumcision is Jewish. Having a foreskin is goyish. Idol temples are so…

The level of detail is just insane!

Matthew Thiessen: The Halakically Minded Jesus of the Gospels Matthew Thiessen, "Ritual Impurity," in The Next Quest for the Historical Jesus, edited by James Crossley and Chris Keith (Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2024), 455-456. What all four gospels give their readers is a portrayal of Jesus who believes that ritual impurity exists, that the laws dealing with this ritual impurity matter, and that he has the power to remove ritual impurity from people, thereby restoring them to a condition where they can access the realm of the holy.

Matthew Thiessen: The Halakically Minded Jesus of the Gospels

Matthew Thiessen, "Ritual Impurity," in The Next Quest for the Historical Jesus, edited by James Crossley and Chris Keith (Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2024), 455-456. What all four gospels give their readers is a portrayal of Jesus…

The Roundup – 2.8.26 Heather Thiessen has the latest Biblical Studies Carnival. Lots of interesting stuff there! Over at The Conversation, Christy Cobb writes about Thecla, a purportedly early follower of the apostle Paul, at least as we read about it The Acts of Paul and Thecla. Arguing that the Matthean story of Herod's slaughters of the innocents didn't happen (and that had it did Josephus surely would have included it), …

The Roundup – 2.8.26

Heather Thiessen has the latest Biblical Studies Carnival. Lots of interesting stuff there! Over at The Conversation, Christy Cobb writes about Thecla, a purportedly early follower of the apostle Paul, at least as we read about it The Acts of Paul and Thecla. Arguing that the…

Craig Evans: Mark as an Interpretation of Matthew and Luke “Makes Little Sense” Craig A. Evans, "The Two Source Hypothesis," in The Synoptic Problem: Four Views, edited by Stanley E. Porter and Bryan R. Dyer (Baker Academic, 2016), 34-35. Matthew and Luke make good exegetical sense as interpretations and adaptations of Mark, but Mark makes little sense as an interpretation and conflation of Matthew and Luke. When compared to Mark, Matthew's interest in showing how Jesus fulfills both prophecy and law is plainly evidence.

Craig Evans: Mark as an Interpretation of Matthew and Luke “Makes Little Sense”

Craig A. Evans, "The Two Source Hypothesis," in The Synoptic Problem: Four Views, edited by Stanley E. Porter and Bryan R. Dyer (Baker Academic, 2016), 34-35. Matthew and Luke make good exegetical sense as…

The Roundup – 2.1.26 Abolish ICE. Jordan Jones talks about recent archaeological work on Jericho, work that some have claimed corroborates biblical claims about its conquest by the Israelites. In short, it doesn't. Jordan Jones also recently talked to Mark Goodacre about Q. Paul Clark has a view of Robert Price's The Christ Myth Theory and Its Problems. From the final lines: "But it is a mistake for lay readers who want to learn about the origins of Christianity to take Price seriously.

The Roundup – 2.1.26

Abolish ICE. Jordan Jones talks about recent archaeological work on Jericho, work that some have claimed corroborates biblical claims about its conquest by the Israelites. In short, it doesn't. Jordan Jones also recently talked to Mark Goodacre about Q. Paul Clark has a view…

Annette Yoshiko Reed: Canonical Consciousness in Early Christianity and Apocryphal Texts Annette Yoshiko Reed, "Canon," in The Jewish Annotated Apocrypha, edited by Jonathan Klawans and Lawrence M. Mills (Oxford University Press, 2020), 573-574. When canonical consciousness first arose among early Christians in the second and third centuries CE, it was sparked largely by a concern to control the variety of early Christian writings claiming apostolic authority to promote competing images of Jesus.

Annette Yoshiko Reed: Canonical Consciousness in Early Christianity and Apocryphal Texts

Annette Yoshiko Reed, "Canon," in The Jewish Annotated Apocrypha, edited by Jonathan Klawans and Lawrence M. Mills (Oxford University Press, 2020), 573-574. When canonical consciousness first arose among early…

britney spears is smiling and looking at the camera . ALT: britney spears is smiling and looking at the camera .

Oh. No thank you. I probably have something going on [insert date here]. But maybe next time.

The Roundup – 1.25.26 "That's life for you, Rose thought. Tragedy and celebration, all mashed up next to each other like tuna salad and white bread. You needed both to make a sandwich. Thinking back on her joyful marriage to Charlie, and the devastating pain of being widowed, she figured that the sad times and the happy times were all part of the big picture.

The Roundup – 1.25.26

"That's life for you, Rose thought. Tragedy and celebration, all mashed up next to each other like tuna salad and white bread. You needed both to make a sandwich. Thinking back on her joyful marriage to Charlie, and the devastating pain of being widowed, she figured that the…

A Chat about Undesigned Coincidences This past Sunday I had the opportunity to go onto the YouTube channel What Your Pastor Didn't Tell You to talk about undesigned coincidences, specifically in the context of a back-and-forth between Wes Huff and Dan McClellan and a video Erik Manning published in response to McClellan. I have serious reservations about UCs in the Gospels, particularly because I think there is a literary relationship between all of them that precludes any notion of their independence.

A Chat about Undesigned Coincidences

This past Sunday I had the opportunity to go onto the YouTube channel What Your Pastor Didn't Tell You to talk about undesigned coincidences, specifically in the context of a back-and-forth between Wes Huff and Dan McClellan and a video Erik Manning published…

The Roundup – 1.18.26 "They say ignorance is bliss, and, yeah, maybe, but it's still fucking ignorance." - Rachel Harrison, Play Nice (Berkley, 2025), "After" The latest issue of Vetus Testamentum is out and there are a few open access articles that look pretty interesting, especially Idan Dershowitz and Na'ama Pat El's "The Forgotten Meaning of אֹות." Alexandria Frisch talks Moses and his extra-biblical portrayals…

The Roundup – 1.18.26

"They say ignorance is bliss, and, yeah, maybe, but it's still fucking ignorance." - Rachel Harrison, Play Nice (Berkley, 2025), "After" The latest issue of Vetus Testamentum is out and there are a few open access articles that look pretty interesting, especially Idan…

Luke the (Apologetic) Historian Recently, Mark Goodacre put out a new episode of his excellent podcast. This one probed the question of Luke's role as a historian. Here is the video version of that episode. Goodacre makes a lot of great observations, some I've never really considered or at least haven't thought about in some time. And he is absolutely correct that Luke is a historian of the ancient variety.

Luke the (Apologetic) Historian

Recently, Mark Goodacre put out a new episode of his excellent podcast. This one probed the question of Luke's role as a historian. Here is the video version of that episode. Goodacre makes a lot of great observations, some I've never really considered or at least…

The Roundup – 1.11.26 "[L]et everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger" - James 1:19, NRSVue Back in December, Marc Zvi Brettler announced his retirement, which will happen officially later this year. I've benefited from Brettler's work time and again, from his contributions to volumes like The New Oxford Annotated Bible and, more importantly, The Jewish Annotated New Testament…

The Roundup – 1.11.26

"[L]et everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger" - James 1:19, NRSVue Back in December, Marc Zvi Brettler announced his retirement, which will happen officially later this year. I've benefited from Brettler's work time and again, from his contributions to…

I often remember what Theoden laments but not the determination of Aragorn. Good reminder.

Florence Gillman, Mary Ann Beavis, and HyeRan Kim-Cragg: 1 Thess 2:13-16 in Postcolonial Perspective Florence M. Gillman, Mary Ann Beavis, and HyeRan Kim-Cragg, 1-2 Thessalonians, Wisdom Commentary 52 (Liturgical Press, 2016), 55-56. Some commentators hold that Paul's thought in 1 Thess 2:13-16 may be illuminated through a postcolonial interpretation. From that perspective Paul is understood to have been aware that he was spreading a subversive movement that was "an alternative to the Roman imperial order," which, as he saw it, was subject to God's negative judgment.

Florence Gillman, Mary Ann Beavis, and HyeRan Kim-Cragg: 1 Thess 2:13-16 in Postcolonial Perspective

Florence M. Gillman, Mary Ann Beavis, and HyeRan Kim-Cragg, 1-2 Thessalonians, Wisdom Commentary 52 (Liturgical Press, 2016), 55-56. Some commentators hold that Paul's thought in 1 Thess 2:13-16…

F. Scott Spencer: The Raising of Jairus’s Daughter and the Raising of Jesus F. Scott Spencer, Reading Mark: A Literary and Theological Commentary, Reading the New Testament Second Series (Smyth & Helwys, 2023), 86-87. The younger girl, Jairus's daughter, relates more proximally with Jesus's sleeping and more remotely with his rising from the dead, although the connections are disrupted by key distinctions. Jesus slept in the storm-tossed boat as a sign of his peaceful confidence in God's protection and awoke - or rather was awakened by deathly terrified disciples - to calm the tempest and preserve life (4:38-41).

F. Scott Spencer: The Raising of Jairus’s Daughter and the Raising of Jesus

F. Scott Spencer, Reading Mark: A Literary and Theological Commentary, Reading the New Testament Second Series (Smyth & Helwys, 2023), 86-87. The younger girl, Jairus's daughter, relates more proximally with Jesus's…

I grew up in Oswego County, NY. My parents still live in the house I grew up in. My dad just sent me this.

Bart Ehrman’s Final Lecture Happy New Year! In case you missed it, Bart Ehrman has retired from teaching at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Ehrman has been a force for good in the world (evangelical ire notwithstanding), both in terms of his scholarship on the Bible as well as the money he has raised through his blog for food banks, the unhoused, and more…

Bart Ehrman’s Final Lecture

Happy New Year! In case you missed it, Bart Ehrman has retired from teaching at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Ehrman has been a force for good in the world (evangelical ire notwithstanding), both in terms of his scholarship on the Bible as well as the…

Phillip Long: The Evil of Writing Phillip J. Long, The Book of Enoch for Beginners: A Guide to Expand Your Understanding of the Biblical World (Rockridge Press, 2022), 82. Modern readers of 1 Enoch might be surprised that one of the great evils the rebellious watchers introduced into the world is writing. In this section , Enoch says humans should not prove their trustworthiness through pen and ink.

Phillip Long: The Evil of Writing

Phillip J. Long, The Book of Enoch for Beginners: A Guide to Expand Your Understanding of the Biblical World (Rockridge Press, 2022), 82. Modern readers of 1 Enoch might be surprised that one of the great evils the rebellious watchers introduced into the world is…

John P. Meier: Matthew’s and Luke’s Differing Geographical Plots John P. Meier, A Marginal Jew: Rethinking the Historical Jesus (Doubleday, 1991), 1:211-212. More difficult to harmonize are the differing accounts of the journeys of Joseph and Mary in the two Infancy Narratives and the two "geographical" plots at the basis of the two stories. In the case of Matthew, the first place name that occurs in his narrative proper (1:18-2:23) is Bethlehem of Judea (2:1).

John P. Meier: Matthew’s and Luke’s Differing Geographical Plots

John P. Meier, A Marginal Jew: Rethinking the Historical Jesus (Doubleday, 1991), 1:211-212. More difficult to harmonize are the differing accounts of the journeys of Joseph and Mary in the two Infancy Narratives and the two…

V. George Shillington: Luke’s Reliance on Mark V. George Shillington, An Introduction to the Study of Luke-Acts, second edition) T&T Clark Approaches to Biblical Studies (T&T Clark, 2015), 17. For the Gospel of Luke, it is reasonably safe to say that the author relied on Mark, although less so than Matthew did. The sequence of events in Luke 1:1 to 22:53 is essentially the sequence of Mark - even though Luke has only about seven-tenths of the material of Mark.

V. George Shillington: Luke’s Reliance on Mark

V. George Shillington, An Introduction to the Study of Luke-Acts, second edition) T&T Clark Approaches to Biblical Studies (T&T Clark, 2015), 17. For the Gospel of Luke, it is reasonably safe to say that the author relied on Mark, although less so…