The Bible Explorer

How tall was Goliath? Was he really more than 9 feet tall, or shorter than that? Does it make any difference?

The Bible talks about many different kinds of angels. They serve God, fight for God, protect God's people, and announce important information about His plans. On this episode, we'll look at a few of the different angels in the Bible and who they are.

Many popular expressions and idioms come from the Bible. But many also come from Shakespeare! Take this fun quiz and see how well you know the difference!

Jesus asked Peter three times, "Do you love me?" And Peter replied that he did love Jesus. But he used a different word for love than Jesus used! Does that matter? What should we think about the way John records this conversation, and why is it important for us today?

The final chapters of the book of Judges are some of the most difficult and disturbing in the Bible. They are not for the faint of heart: violence, sexual assault, idolatry, and even kidnapping. What's going on with God's people? We'll discuss Judges 17-21 in this episode.

Matthew 1:23 says that Jesus was born of a virgin. Matthew was quoting Isaiah 7:14. But when you read Isaiah 7, it doesn't seem like he was talking about Jesus, or even about some future baby who would be born to a virgin! So what's going on? Is Matthew misusing the Old Testament? We'll explore that in detail in this episode.

Why did the prophet Elisha summon two vicious bears to maul 42 boys, when it seems like their only crime was making fun of his baldness? Was he especially sensitive about his appearance? Was this a disproportional response to a relatively minor offense? We'll explore this incident from 2 Kings 2:23-25 in this week's episode.

1 Peter 3:18-22 is one of the most unusual and difficult passages in the New Testament. It says that Jesus went and preached to the "spirits in prison." Who are the spirits in prison? What did Jesus say to them? And why did Peter even bring this up in the first place?

The book of Job describes a fearsome sea creature called Leviathan. What is it? A dragon? Will you run across one this summer at the beach? We talk in this episode about Leviathan: what it isn't, and (maybe) what it is. And why it even matters.

Why did Jesus rub mud into the eyes of a blind man to heal him? And why did Jesus heal so many blind people to begin with?

Which English translation of the Bible is the best one to read? We will discuss how translations are made and a few of the differences between them.

What are the longest and shortest books, chapters, and verses in the Bible? The answers might surprise you. We'll explore each of these sections of Scripture and learn a bit about what I like to call "the Guinness book of Bible records."

We are used to singing happy worship songs in church. And when we read the Bible, we often gravitate to Psalms of praise and thanksgiving. But the most common type of psalm is actually the lament psalm, where the writer cries out to God because of his struggles and pain. Those particular psalms are there for good reason: if we don't learn how to lament, we might never get to a place of complete trust in God's goodness and power.

The book of Ruth is a beautiful story of God's faithfulness to care for His people. In the midst of the book, though, we find an odd scene in which the title character lies down in the middle of the night with a man named Boaz. The passage says she "uncovers his feet," and then she tells him to "spread his garment" over her. What is going on here? Is there hanky panky happening, or something else? In this episode, we'll explore this passage along with the setting and context of the book

The book of Leviticus contains an unusual command: Don't wear clothing made of two types of thread mixed together. Why does it say that? Do we need to start wearing only pure clothing? Or maybe making our own clothes? How do Christians understand the Old Testament Law in light of Jesus?

You've probably heard of the Proverbs 31 woman. But you might not be familiar with the mom who came up with the insights that we find in this final chapter of Proverbs. We will look into the advice that King Lemuel's mother gave him, and what it means for moms (and dads) today.

In the Bible, names matter. A person's name often tells you a lot about the person's character. Some names are deeply significant, and others are just funny. We will explore a few of the more interesting names in the Scriptures, and what they mean.