Recent Posts
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S3E14: Numbers and Apocalyptic Typology
In this episode we look at several themes in the book of Numbers that are pushed forward apocalyptically by second-temple literature and the New Testament. Many events in the Book of Numbers–for example, the manna, the snake on the pole, and the wanderings of Israel in the wilderness–are interpreted typologically within a Jewish apocalyptic framework. Though typology has been used throughout church history to change the Jewish hope, Jesus and the apostles simply assume an apocalyptic narrative when they speak of people and events from the Tanakh typologically.
Show notes
- An overview of Numbers (1:58)
- Manna in Numbers 11: 2 Baruch 29:5-30:2; Matthew 6; Psalm 78:25-28; 2 Corinthians 5:1-2; Midrash Rabbah on Eccl.
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S3E13: Leviticus and the “Apocalypticizing” of the Sacrifice, Priesthood, and the Calendar
In this episode we look at how Second Temple Jews, Jesus, and the apostles understand and project forward the major themes of Leviticus. Similar to how other themes in the Tanakh are “apocalypticized,” offering and sacrifice, the priesthood, and the calendar of feasts and holidays are understood in light of apocalyptic eschatology. For Jesus and the apostles, the major themes in Leviticus reinforce their native worldview and apocalyptic expectations rather than redefine them.
Show notes
- EP Sanders: Jews had multiple interests (7:33)
- Leviticus: offerings and sacrifices – Leviticus 5:17-18; 1 Enoch 19:1; Isaiah 1:11; Malachi 1:10; Jeremiah 6:20; 2 Enoch 45:3-46:2; Psalm 51; Hebrews 9:26-28 (9:25)
- Leviticus: the priesthood – Leviticus 8-10; Leviticus 10:10-11; Exodus 19; Ezekiel 44:23; 11QMelch; 2 Enoch 71-72; Psalm 110; 1 Peter 2:5-12; Acts 3; Acts 21; Acts 23 (21:02)
- Leviticus: the calendar – Leviticus 23-25; Exodus 23; 1 Enoch 72-82; Jubilees.
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S3E12: The Apocalyptic Moses and Mount Sinai
In this episode we discuss how Second Temple Jews understood Moses and Mount Sinai. The giving of the Torah accompanied by angels, the revelation of the age to come, and the projection of Sinai eschatologically are all presumed by Jews at the time. These ideas, for example, are reflected in the account of the Mount of Transfiguration and in encounters with angels throughout the New Testament.
Show notes
- Moses and Mount Sinai: The involvement of angels – Jubilees 2:1; Galatians 3:19; Hebrews 2:2; Acts 7:53; Deuteronomy 33:2; 4Q377.2.11 (1:20)
- Angels revealing the New Jerusalem and Israel’s eschatological future – 2 Baruch 4:4-6 cf.
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S3E11: The Apocalyptic Moses – The Deliverer
In this episode we discuss the important figure of Moses, who takes on a unique authority in Second Temple literature, extending the narrative found in the Tanakh. Because of his special relationship with God, he is given unique revelation of the end times and the coming Messiah. Moses is also viewed as something of a precursor to the Messiah, one who will build God’s house and restore the kingdom to Israel.
Show notes
- Who is Moses? (2:06)
- How Moses shapes the hermeneutic of the Tanakh and Second Temple literature – Acts 15:21; Deuteronomy 4:30, 31:29; 4 Ezra 14:3-5 (3:52)
- Moses’ prophetic authority – 2 Baruch 59:4-8 (12:00)
- The “angelization” of Moses – 1 Enoch 89:35-36, 90:28-28; Hebrews 3; Testament of Moses 9:6-10:5 (14:47)
- Moses as a precursor to the Messiah – Hebrews 11:23-31; Deuteronomy 18:15-19; Acts 3:22, 7:37; Antiquities 20:97-99 (21:19)
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S3E10: The Patriarchs and the Apocalyptic Narrative
In this episode we look at Isaac, Jacob, and his twelve sons and how Second Temple Jews read and interpreted them. Particularly, The Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs gives us insight into how Jews framed the election and future of Israel. Jews at the time were not myopic nationalists who were unconcerned and uninformed about the nations, but rather they extended the Tanakh’s framework of the redemption of the nations by means of the salvation of Israel.
Show notes
- Placing the New Testament language in the conversation of the day – Matthias Henze (2:18)
- Apocalypticizing Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Esau – 4 Ezra 6:7-10 (4:17)
- Introduction to The Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs – Genesis 49:1; Testament of Levi 1:1; Testament of Benjamin 10:2-9; Romans 2:9-10; 1 Corinthians 15:51; Matthew 19:28 (6:52)
- Israel’s election for the sake of the nations – Testament of Levi 14:4; 14:8 (16:19)
- Resurrection and judgment at the end of the age – Testament of Levi 18:4-6; 18:10-14; Matthew 8:11; Testament of Zebulun 10:1-2; Testament of Judah 24:1-6; 25:1-4 (25:27)
- The language and concepts of the New Testament are not new – Matthew 12:32 (32:31)
Resource: Mind the Gap by Matthias Henze: https://amzn.to/388tuZn
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Q&A #5 with Bill, John, and Josh
Bill, John, and Josh tackle your questions in this fifth Q&A episode. Topics include realized eschatology, dispensationalism, and supersessionism, the Transfiguration, and the New Covenant.
Show notes:
- Are we “under” the kingdom of God now? (2:43)
- What do you think about Paula Fredriksen’s understanding of Romans 1 and “the resurrection of the dead”? (12:44)
- Could you explain more about the “eschatology of the American Dream”? (19:05)
- Does the Transfiguration as seen in Matthew 16 mean that the kingdom is present in some way? (28:32)
- What is fundamentalism? Are you guys fundamentalists? (37:47)
- Do you think there is a degree to which at least some of the better promises of the New Covenant can be “realized” among believers today?
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S3E9: Genesis – Abraham, Faith, and Eternal Life
In this episode we discuss how Jews in the Second Temple period framed Abraham within the apocalyptic narrative of redemptive history. The covenant with and election of Abraham was commonly understood in light of the eschatological judgment and the resurrection of the dead. Additionally, Abraham’s faith was also celebrated by Jewish writers of the period, but always in context to Israel’s eschatological hope. This helps us better understand the passages in the New Testament about Abraham and faith.
Show notes
- Abraham and eternal life in Second Temple Literature (3:12)
- How Abraham is typically understood in modern Christian tradition (4:48)
- How Abraham is interpreted in light of the larger apocalyptic narrative – 4 Ezra 3; Apoc.
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S3E8: Understanding the Torah: An Interview with Rabbi Joshua Berman
In this episode we interview Rabbi Joshua Berman, professor of Tanakh at Bar-Ilan University in Israel. Rabbi Berman discusses some of his work related to critical scholarship and the Torah as well as some of his thoughts about Jewish election, the covenant, and the purpose of the Tanakh. He explains how through the election of Abraham, God creates a national culture among his descendants to be walked out as a holy people amidst the other nations. As an orthodox Jew living in the land, Rabbi Berman also gives his thoughts about the world’s present perception of Israel and what the future might hold for them as a people.… Read more
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S3E7: Genesis – Abraham, Election, and the Redemptive Narrative
In this episode we discuss the election of Abraham and its development in Second Temple Literature and the New Testament. God’s choice of Abraham after the Tower of Babel is understood as the antidote for the idolatry and rebellion that had come to define the rest of the world. Rather than modern concepts of election as developed in the Reformation, Second Temple Jews and the apostles of Jesus maintain the native context of God’s choice of Abraham’s descendants in the administration of redemptive history.
Show notes
- The context of the election of Abraham: the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11; LIB 6:4-5) (4:50)
- The covenant with Abraham: Genesis 15 (Joshua 24:1-2; Apocalypse of Abraham 15) (10:10)
- Israel’s calling to be a light to the Gentiles (Acts 13) (13:30)
- Turning from idolatry (Acts 17) (16:01)
- The “un-election” of Abraham?
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S3E6: Genesis – Sin, Rebellion, and the Coming Judgment
In this episode we discuss the rebellion narratives found in early Genesis. In Eden’s garden in Genesis 3, in the consensual marriage of the sons of God and the daughters of men in Genesis 6, and at Babel’s tower in Genesis 11 we see not only a paradigm for the redemptive narrative, but also of the great judgment on the Last Day. We develop the consistent pattern that binds the narratives and the role that they all play in presenting a paradigm for the eschatological redemption.
Show notes
- Transgression, limitation, and promise in Genesis 3, 6, and 11 (2:53)
- Genesis 3: Eden, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and the curse – Genesis 3:4-6, 14-19; Life of Adam and Eve 49; Wisdom of Solomon 2:24; Jubilees 4:29-30; 4 Ezra 3:7-11 (3:40)
- Genesis 6: The Nephilim and the Flood – Genesis 4:19; Genesis 6:2; 1 Enoch 15-16; 1 Enoch 65 (20:01)
- Genesis 11: The Tower of Babel – Jubilees 10:21; Wisdom of Solomon 10:5 (33:11)
- The promises – Genesis 3:15; Genesis 9:9; Genesis 12:1-3 (44:41)
Studies in Torah class from our friends in The ARK Network: https://www.thearknetwork.org/studies-in-torah-class/