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Mysterious Melchizedek
Melchizedek is a mysterious figure in the Bible. We know little about him, but after Abraham won a war to save his nephew, this king blessed him on behalf of his god, just like a priest would. After that, the story is over and we don’t expect to see his name again. Except we do.…
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King Chedorlaomer: Giant Slayer
If you wanted to prove your strength in the ancient world of the Bible, you might start by taking out some giants. Perhaps that’s what King Chedorlaomer thought when he rose up and defeated several giant clans. After all, several kings and kingdoms that had long served him started rebelling against him, so such a…
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The Split
God told Abraham that he would give his offspring the land of Canaan, but a drought forced him to leave that land and go to Egypt. At that time, he must have been wondering if he’d ever return. He would, of course, and it would be a family situation that would thrust him back into…
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Swept Up in Madness
Because Abraham is the chosen one of God, we tend to think he can do no wrong, and we remember him fondly. But his story is one of misstep after misstep. For example, sometime after God told Abraham he would give him many children, his family took refuge in Egypt during a drought. It was…
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Jesus and Abraham Were Old Friends
According to Stephen’s message in Acts, God appeared to Abraham when he told him to leave his family. While Abraham did not see God regularly, he had seen him enough to recognize him whenever he was around. This fact is especially seen in a strange story where God is on his way to Sodom and…
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Leaving Eden
Eden was the sacred mountain where heaven and earth met. Part of God’s plan was for humans to multiply so they might eventually leave Eden and cultivate the rest of the world to look like this heavenly space. This plan faced some difficulty when humans had to be forcibly removed from the premises for their…
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Canaan’s Origin Story
After Noah got drunk and passed out naked in his tent, something very strange happened. The story goes like this: Noah’s son, Ham, “saw the nakedness of his father” and told his brothers about it. His brothers then took a sheet and walked backward to lay it on “their father’s nakedness” so that they wouldn’t…
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Growing into Sin
You’ve probably been told that you were born a sinner, which is a popular theology you can thank Augustine for. As evidence of his thinking, he spoke of a jealous baby he once saw that turned pale as he looked bitterly at his foster brother breastfeeding. Augustine clearly didn’t allow babies the same courtesies most…
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Post-Flood Giants
If the giants existed before the flood and the flood reached the highest peak of the mountains, how were there still giants after the flood? There are several answers we might propose. As a simple proposal, we might wonder if they saw what Noah was doing, took heed, and built their own boats. As a…
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New Song: Tell Me a Myth
I know it’s a struggle for some when the Bible uses myth to tell truth instead of literal history. I wrote a super short song about how I find peace with such things. Verse 1From apple trees to wardrobesThe Shire lands to MordorA wood in which worlds might exist Mythology is calling meLouder than realityTelling…
Jamin Bradley 