The next article in the “Bible & History” series has now been posted in the Knowledge Center. This one concerns Joshua’s conquest of Canaan following the 40 wandering years:
The events of the Exodus are not genuinely historical. The conquest narratives rely on the Exodus as its context. Without it, it doesn’t nearly make as much [...]

The book of Exodus (Greek word for departure) begins a story that will continue into the next three books of the Bible. It is an epic tale that tells the story of how Israel became a nation and how it received its divine laws. Here we learn of Moses, the deliverance of the Israelites from [...]

I have published two new articles in the knowledge center under the Bible & History series. Both have to do with the so-called ‘Tower of Babel’ episode in Genesis:
The Bible & History: The Tower of Babel
Genesis 11:1-9 interrupts the genealogies of the generations of Noah with a short story giving the origins of humanity’s diverse [...]

A new article was posted in the Knowledge Center: The Bible & History: The Flood

That the flood stories in the Bible, like their ancient Mesopotamian counterparts, are mythological tales should be obvious to most. A few people, however, still try to maintain that either the story of Noah is literally true or that a worldwide [...]

Genesis 1 is a creation myth that was constructed for political and theological reasons. Older versions of Yahweh’s creation, including the parts that were preserved in Genesis 2, grew out of the ancient Mesopotamian mythic system.
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If the entire patriarchal narratives seem historical it is probably because they are written as if they are historical. Nevertheless, is there any evidence that these characters ever existed? Do these stories have any factual basis with regards to the formation of the nation of Israel?
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