A Blog of Biblical Proportions

Learning the Bible takes more than scripture memorization. Other keys to understand Biblical history include languages, interpretations and archaeological studies as well as a focus on culture, history in general and the variety of interpretations you may encounter. With that information in mind, the following list of top fifty Biblical history blogs were written by experts in their fields, from pastors to professors and from well-schooled individuals to those who are immersed in self-study.

The list below is categorized, and each link is listed in alphabetical order within those categories for your convenience.

New Testament History

1. An Alien and a Stranger: As a scholar and a teacher at McMaster University, David Miller’s priorities are studying the New Testament in its first-century Jewish and Greco-Roman context.
2. Biblia Theologica: Occasional biblical and theological postings of varied lengths by a student of the New Testament and of Biblical Theology.
3. Café Apocalypsis: Get your dose of Apocalypse (Book of Revelation) here, along with a metaphorical blend of Biblical studies.
4. Chrisendom: Chris Tilling is a New Testament Tutor for St Mellitus College and St Paul’s Theological Centre, London with a focus on the Christological significance of the language Paul used to describe the relationship between risen Lord and believer.
5. Confessions of a Bible Junkie: Currently a doctoral student in the Christianity and Judaism in Antiquity program at the University of Virginia, this blogger chooses to write about the historical Jesus, New Testament textual criticism, early Christian worship and the relationship between religion and popular culture.
6. Exploring Our Matrix: This blog belongs to James F. McGrath, associate professor of religion and Clarence L. Goodwin Chair of New Testament Language and Literature at Butler University, Indianapolis, Indiana.
7. New Testament Interpretation: David Stark is pursuing a PhD in Hermeneutics at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. This blog contains thoughts about New Testament interpretation and the hermeneutic contexts of that interpretation.
8. NT History Blog: Bill Heroman, a high school teacher with a penchant for New Testament history, provides this blog and a list of his history projects.
9. NT Resources Blog: Dr. Rod Decker, Professor of Greek and New Testament at Baptist Bible Seminary, Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania, discusses New Testament-related topics.
10. Philonica et Neotestamentica: This blog discusses studies of Philo of Alexandria, and the relevance for New Testament studies as well as NT issues in general.
11. Ressurection Hope: This is an evangelical blog that engages in New Testament and patristic research, with the sole purpose of strengthening religious faith.
12. Sitz im Leben: This blog focuses on the New Testament, its Greco-Roman and Jewish backgrounds and on Christian writings.
13. The Forbidden Gospels: April DeConick is an Isla Carroll and Percy E. Turner Professor of Biblical Studies at Rice University who focuses on early Jewish and Christian thought.
14. Thoughts on Exegetical, Biblical, Historical, Systematic and Practical Theology: David Naselli is working on his PhD in theological studies with a concentration on New Testament exegesis and theology.

Old Testament Studies

15. Dr. Claude Mariottini – Professor of Old Testament: Dr. Mariottini has been professor of Old Testament at Northern Baptist Seminary since 1988. His blog is a blend of Christian perspective on the Old Testament and current events.
16. Higgaion: Chris Heard, Associate Professor of Religion at Pepperdine University, focuses on the Exodus — specifically on the television program, The Exodus Decoded.
17. Narrative and Ontology: Enjoy and learn Old Testament theology, literary and cultural issues at this blog.

General Biblical Studies

18. Bible and Interpretation: This blog is dedicated to delivering the latest news, features, editorials, commentary, interpretation and excavations relevant to the study of the Bible for the public and biblical scholars.
19. Christian History Blog: Maintained by Christian History network, this blog looks at Christian history from the Middle Ages forward.
20. Hevel.org: A Chasing after Wind: Bryan Bibb is an assistant professor in the Religion Department at Furman University in Greenville, SC. This blog centers on studying the Bible within academic and religious contexts and relating ancient ethical and religious ideas to the present.
21. Matt Capps: Matt is Associate Pastor for Connections at Calvary Baptist Church, Winston-Salem, N.C., and he focuses on Biblical studies and theology.
22. Scotteriology: The lighter side of Biblical studies and theology from a graduate student (The title is a blend of the blogger’s name — Scott — and “soteriology”).

Hebrew and Judaic Studies

23. Biblia Hebraica: This blog stays centered on the Hebrew Bible, Biblical interpretation and related topics.
24. Biblicaltext dot org: Barry Bandstra, professor of religion at Hope College in Holland, Michigan, blogs about reading Hebrew and the Hebrew Bible, teaching online and motorcycling.
25. Finitum non capax infiniti: This “lifetime student,” who is pursuing his M.Div. at Princeton Theological Seminary, focuses on the Hebrew side of the Bible, including textual criticism, literature and reception history.
26. Hebrew Online Blog: This is one of many blogs provided by eTeacher. Learn Hebrew, study archealogy and more from this site and its links.
27. Paleojudaica: This scholarly blog focuses on ancient Judaism and its historical and literary context from roughly the beginning of the Second Temple period (late 500s B.C.E.) to the rise of Islam (early 600s C.E.).
28. TaborBlog: James Tabor (Ph.D. 1981, University of Chicago) is Chair of the Department of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. He is chief editor of the Original Bible Project, a new scholarly translation of the Bible for the year 2012.

Church History

29. Ancient Evangelical Future: David Neff is editor-in-chief of the Christianity Today Media Group and he is helping tp create a Robert E. Webber Center for an Ancient Evangelical Future.
30. Grateful to the Dead: Chris Armstrong (Ph.D., Duke University), is associate professor of church history at Bethel Seminary in St. Paul, Minnesota. This blog is structured around three courses he has taught at the seminary.

Archaeology and Place

31. Bible Places: This blogger served as a professor in Israel in 1996-2007. The blog remains focused on Biblical geography, history and archaeology.
32. Daniel O. McClellan: This student of the ancient Near East provides a format for research, thoughts and experiences on that topic.
33. Deus Artefacta: This site is dedicated to archaeological artifacts and discussion that point to historical Biblical accuracies.
34. Got Bible? This personal blog discusses the geography, history and Bible contents and attempts to study these topics in relation to current events.
35. Luke Chandler’s Blog: Chandler focuses on Biblical archaeology, culture and travel.
36. PaleoBabble: This blog may be your “antidote to cyber-twaddle and misguided research about the ancient world,” brought to you by Mike Heiser, a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania (M.A., Ancient History) and the University of Wisconsin-Madison (M.A., Ph.D., Hebrew Bible and Semitic Studies).
37. Ritmeyer Archaeological Design: Leen Ritmeyer, an archaeological architect, comments on issues related to the Temple Mount and Jerusalem.
38. The ASOR Blog: This blog supports the mission behind the American Schools of Oriental Research, which is to “initiate, encourage and support research into, and public understanding of, the peoples and cultures of the Near East from the earliest times.”
39. The Tell es-Safi/Gath Excavations Official (and Unofficial) Weblog: You can join in on the discoveries vicariously through this exciting blog, which chronicles the discoveries found at Tell es-Safi/Gath.

Other Studies and Study Tools

40. 5-Minute Bible: Rushed? Take a look at this blog, which covers a wide variety of Biblical history topics in short and easy-to-absorb spurts. Written by Tim Bulkeley, the man who prepared the prototype Hypertext Bible Commentary on Amos.
41. Bible Films Blog: If you prefer films over reading, this blog is for you. Matt Page has given a number of talks and led groups in discussion on ‘Jesus in Film’ and was a consultant for the documentary, The Passion: Films, Faith and Fury.
42. Biblioblogs: John Hobbins and Brandon Wason offer a blog that focuses on blogs that study the Bible, along with a good number of interviews.
43. Codex: Tyler F. Williams, currently Assistant Professor of Theology at The King’s University College in Edmonton, Alberta, provides resources for Biblical, theological and religious studies at this popular blog.
44. Feeling Finite…: Alan Lenzi is a humanities professor at the University of the Pacific. His blog posts center on varied interests, including religion, the ancient world and other classical studies.
45. Religion in American History: This is a group blog about American religious history and culture.
46. Religions of the Ancient Mediterranean: This blog provides an entryway into social and religious life among Greeks, Romans, Jews, Christians, and others in the Roman empire.
47. Resources for Biblical Studies: This site contains more than a blog, with Biblical resources, bookmarks (links) to other resources, and learning tools such as Greek flashcards.
48. Resources for Christian Theology: This blog contains Douglas Knight’s essays on systematic theology, scripture, Christian doctrine, Biblical hermeneutics and contemporary theologians. It also has a selection of papers by Metropolitan John Zizioulas, some of them not available anywhere else.
49. Review of Biblical Literature Blog: If you want to learn more about current Biblical literature, follow this blog. You’ll discover links to new reviews posted on a continuous basis.
50. Trivium Pursuit: This blog pursues Christian classical education for homeschoolers, including a basic Biblical history.