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Understanding the Book of Revelation as an Apocalypse
In my previous post I tried to explain that the Apocalypse of John, as bizarre and weird and unfathomable as it may seem to most modern readers, would not have seemed that way at all to ancient readers who were accustomed to the ways “apocalypses” (Jewish and Christian) actually worked. These readers may have had trouble getting their minds around science fiction novels or limerick poems, but apocalypses were something they knew. Since Revelation was written as an apocalypse, it followed most of the expected protocols of apocalypses, as I described these in the previous posts: As I explain in my book The Bible: A Historical and Literary Introduction (Oxford University Press), it is a firsthand account written by a prophet who has been shown a vision of heaven that explains the realities of earth, a vision that is mediated by angels and full of bizarre and mysterious symbolism. The nature of the book is indicated at the outset in the magnificent vision of the exalted Christ that the prophet describes in chapter 1. Here […]
October 21, 2025
Lecturing on a Cruise up the Coast of Norway to Svalbard. Wanna Go With Me?
Some of you have asked when / where my next lecture tour would be, and now I’ve decided. Sometimes I do kinda obvious ones (Greece, Turkey, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, etc.) and sometimes less obvious (or, well, unexpected) ones because … I’ve never done them before. And so this time. It’s supposed to be flippin’ amazing. A cruise from Bergen Norway up the gorgeous coast to Svalbard and check out the polar bears (and lots of other things). It’ll be this June. I’ll be lecturing on a topic of key interest for anyone connected with the blog. (It will not be related to Polar Bears; others will be doing that. ‘Cause we’ll be seeing them). Wanna come? I’ll be giving out more information anon, but for now, here is the description that I’ve written for the forthcoming brochure. Give it some thought for now, with more details coming soon.
October 22, 2025
Hebrews and James: “At a Glance” and “Questions for Reflection”
I continue here with my posts that give brief bullet-point summaries of each book of the New Testament “At a Glance” along with questions for reflection to help think through some of the major issues each book presents. Here I cover the first two books of the “General (or Catholic) Epistles,” Hebrews and James.
October 23, 2025
Questions on Jesus as God, the Belief in the Resurrection, Secretaries in Early Christianity, and the KJV!
Here are some of the scintillating questions I’ve received recently, on a range of topics, that I thought more readers would enjoy seeing, along with my responses. QUESTION: Dr. Ehrman, I read a number of your trade books (inc. How Jesus became God) and found it really interesting that you showed the increasing exaltation of Jesus toward his current state of being coequal with God. Your book mentioned the “how” behind this exaltation process but I wanted to hear from you if you knew the “why”. Why did early Christians feel the need to exalt Jesus to that level? Why not be content with understanding him as a divine servant of God (as what the Synoptics portrayed)? Were there theological difficulties with limiting Jesus to a divine servant? RESPONSE:
October 25, 2025
Three Common Misunderstandings of the Book of Revelation
This post is directed to several widely held views about the book of Revelation that I think are probably wrong: Did the author make it so highly symbolic because he didn’t want the authorities to realize what he was saying for fear of reprisal? Does the book claim that non-believers will be consciously tormented forever in the Lake of Fire? Does it indicate that anyone who denies or alters a single one of its prophecies be damned forever (22:18-19)? I deal with these issues in my book The Bible: A Historical and Literary Introduction (Oxford University Press). Here’s what I say there: ****************************** The Book of Revelation as Underground Literature? Some readers of the book of Revelation have taken its mysterious symbols to suggest that it was “underground” literature. The symbolic language of the book, according to this interpretation, was used to keep the governing authorities from realizing that they themselves were under attack. There may be an element of truth in this view, but one might wonder whether a Roman administrator was likely to […]
October 28, 2025
Having Some Fun with 666!
As to the book of Revelation. And one of its best known mysteries, the Number of the Beast (the antiChrist figure), 666! Many moons ago I posted on how people in the modern period have interpreted 666 to refer to someone/something in their own day. When I was in college, books were published to prove conclusively that it referred to Henry Kissinger, or the Pope; later there were books on it referring to Gorbachov. Normally the guesses — always wrong, need I point out — have been politicians or public figures that the guesser despises. But that doesn’t mean we can’t see them as rather humorous. (Well, OK, I see most things as humorous….) I thought I’d repost the post, with the same caveat I made back then. As you know (I hope) , I try to keep my personal politics out of the blog (and I have a policy of not post overtly political comments, on either/any side). I want the blog to be open and welcoming to all people, whatever their political views […]
October 26, 2025
Personal Annoucement: My Retirement from the University
Teaching has long been a passion of mine, even before I took my first university position at Rutgers in 1984, gulp, forty-one years ago. After four years there I moved to Chapel Hill and have taught in the Religious Studies Department here since 1988. And now I have decided it is time for me to retire. This semester will be my last. As of January 1, 2026, I will be gainfully unemployed. At least, at the university. I will still be engaging – actually, having more time to pursue – my other academic interests: my research and publications (Books!), the Blog, and what we originally called BEPS (my company, co-owned with Chris Huntley, that produces online courses, holds conferences, provides consultation services, and so on; if you don’t know about it, see my website bartehrman.com). In short, now that I’m moving out of the ABC’s it will be almost entirely the BBB’s (Books, Blog, BEPS). Well, not exactly. In addition I will also be able to put more attention to those things that matter most […]
October 20, 2025
Blog Dinner in Chapel Hill!! Come Celebrate My Retirement with Me!
If you read these posts every day, you will have learned that I’m retiring from UNC at the end of this semester, am ecstatic about it, and am highly grateful for the career the university and my department has made available and possible for me, as well as for all the students I have had over the years, from still-teenage-recent-high-school grads to seasoned veteran PhD students.
October 29, 2025
1 and 2 Peter and Jude “At a Glance,” and Questions for Reflection
1 Peter at a Glance 1 Peter claims to be written by Simon Peter, the close disciple of Jesus. Modern scholars have shown
October 23, 2025
The Revelation of John at a Glance, with Questions for Reflection
Now that I have provided some posts on the book of Revelation “in a nutshell,” including discussions of who wrote it, when, and why — along with how it is commonly misinterpreted by readers (those who read it!) today — I can give a quick summary, of Revelation at a Glance, along with three questions to spur your own thinking further.
October 30, 2025
For Further Reading: Jude and Revelation
Now that I’ve devoted several posts to summarizing the themes, emphases, authors, and occasions of the both Jude and Revelation (the final books of the New Testament!), I can provide some suggestions for further reading: important works written by scholars principally for non-scholars. I have given brief annotations for each book to give you a sense of what it’s about and so help you decide which, if any, might be worth your while. I have divided the list into three sections: Books that provide important discussion of these works. Commentaries that give lengthy introductions to all matters of importance about them, and then go passage by passage to provide more detailed interpretation (that’s where you can dig more deeply into “what does this particular word actually mean?”; “what is the real point of this passage”; “where do we find similar ideas expressed in other writings in the Greek and Roman worlds, whether pagan or Jewish?” and so on. Online resources. A good reliable one! If you turn to other materials online, caveat emptor. And since […]
November 1, 2025
June 2026 Cruise Details – Norway & Svalbard
I earlier mentioned that in June I’m doing a cruise with Thalassa Journeys that will go up the coast of Norway to Svalbard (think: Polar Bears!). This is going to be a terrific adventure; gorgeous landscapes, picturesque villages; intriguing wildlife; and scintillating fellow-travelers all on a fantastic ship that I’ve been on and can certainly vouch for. I’ll be giving lectures on “Who Chose the Gospels,” based on research I’m currently doing for my next book. Come along and you’ll be the first to hear! (When I’m not lecturing, I’ll be hanging out with my fellow travelers, sharing ideas and thinking deep thoughts!) Below is the brochure. (You can scroll through it with the sidebar on the right.) There is limited space available so you if you’re inclined — go for it. To that end, Thalassa Journeys has provided an EARLY BIRD SPECIAL. Anyone who signs up by December 15, 2025 will receive a $300 discount on the trip. AND for everyone who takes advantage of the Early Bird pricing, I will provide a free webinar, early […]
November 7, 2025
1 Clement in a Nutshell
I begin this thread of posts on “The Apostolic Fathers in a Nutshell” (see yesterday’s post) with the book of 1 Clement, which was almost certainly the first of these non-canonical proto-orthodox texts to be written. I will devote several posts to 1 Clement itself: this one will provide a brief overview. I begin with a fifty-word one-sentence summary: 1 Clement is a letter from the church of Rome to the church of Corinth that objects at length to its recent coup of leadership, urging the rival leaders to yield power back to the duly appointed original elders out of humility and obedience, for the health of the church. Now a fuller exposition. I have taken this from the Introduction to 1 Clement in my edition, The Apostolic Fathers vol. 1 (Harvard University Press, 2003) ****************************** The “First Letter of Clement” is a misnomer, as no other letter from the author survives: “Second Clement,” which is not a letter, comes from a different hand (as I will show in my post to come on Second Clement). […]
November 4, 2025
Did “Pope” Clement Write 1 Clement?
I continue here with my discussion of the book of 1 Clement, probably unknown to many people on the blog, but an important work written at about the time of some of some of the writings of the New Testament – or so I’ll be arguing in the post after this. First I need to say something about the author. Why is it attributed to someone named Clement? Could this really have been written by a first-century pope (i.e., the Bishop of the church in Rome)? Again, I am taking this information from the Introduction to the letter, which I give in a new English translation (with the Greek text on the facing page) in the first volume of my Apostolic Fathers in the Loeb Classical Library (Harvard University Press, 2003). ****************************** The Author of the Book
November 5, 2025
Was 1 Clement Written BEFORE Some of the New Testament?
This will be my final post on the book of 1 Clement. Now that I’ve summarized what the book is about and said something about its author, I can turn to the question of when it was written. The time of its writing is an important question, for a reason you might not suspect. It is almost always said – I myself regularly say this, as a kind of simple “short hand,” knowing that it’s probably not literally true — that the books of the New Testament are the “earliest” Christian writings we have. In fact, if, as is often thought, Revelation was written around 95 CE, and 2 Peter around 120 and Acts possibly (?) around them as well, then a couple of other Christian books may have ante-dated them, including 1 Clement and the Didache, two of the apostolic fathers. The letters of Ignatius of Antioch were almost certainly written around 110 CE. So, the big question here is: when did this anonymous author from Rome write the book of 1 Clement? This […]
November 6, 2025
A New Thread! The Apostolic Fathers: In a Nutshell
Now that I’ve completed the “New Testament in a Nutshell” series, with posts summarizing each of the twenty-seven books, explaining their major themes and emphases; when, why, and by whom they were written; giving suggestions for further reading; questions to reflect on; and summaries of the summaries – it is time to move on. And where better to move than to the early Christian writings from outside the New Testament – some of which were considered to belong to the New Testament by various church leaders and authors, for centuries. Really?
November 2, 2025
How the Heavenly Lights and the Resurrection of the Phoenix Reveal God’s Will
I’ve indicated that the book of 1 Clement is rather long and seems a bit rambling in places to many of its readers, when its only real goal is to tell some usurpers in the church of Corinth to give the reins of power back to the duly appointed church leaders. I read it differently. I think that it makes rather marvelous connections between things that one would normally think of as unrelated in an extended effort to show the wayward upstarts in Corinth that they have taken over the church illicitly. Who woulda thought that the sun, moon, and stars, the seasons ,the boundaries of the sea, and the winds reveal that God wants the original leaders given their authority back? Or that the Myth of the Phoenix (first discussed in the western tradition six centuries earlier by Herodotus) would have any relevance? This author thinks so!
November 8, 2025
Christ-killers; the date of Luke; and the literacy of Matthew: Questions and Responses
Here are some of the really interesting questions I’ve received recently, and my responses. QUESTION: Bart, you have said: “1 Thessalonians is a heartfelt connection from Paul to some of his converts where he tells them how well he thinks they are doing, urges them to keep on keeping on, reminds them to avoid sinful natures, and encourages to be patient now that some have fallen asleep, because the end is near.” It’s been a long time since I’ve read the book and I am struck with the passage
November 9, 2025
The Epistle of Barnabas in a Nutshell (Part 1)
The Epistle of Barnabas, another one of the “Apostolic Fathers,” was a popular book in the early centuries of Christianity; one of our oldest manuscripts of the New Testament, Codex Sinaiticus (375 CE or so) includes it among the books of Scripture. But I think we can be glad, on the whole, it was not included in the end. It presents one of the strongest attacks against Jews and Judaism from the early second century. It is nonetheless an intriguing work that continues to be studied rigorously by experts of early Christianity today. I begin explaining it by providing a fifty-word one-sentence summary: The Epistle of Barnabas argues that the Jewish people broke their covenant with God as soon as they received it and so have always misunderstood their own Scriptures and mis-practiced their religion; only followers of Jesus are God’s people, and the Old Testament is a Christian, not a Jewish, book. I can now begin to unpack the major themes and emphases of the book. I am taking much of this from my […]
November 11, 2025
The Epistle of Barnabas in a Nutshell (Part 2)
Here I continue my discussion from the previous post of the major themes and emphases of one of the best know of the Apostolic Fathers, The Epistle of Barnabas, which embodies strong attack on Jews for misunderstanding their own religion and misinterpreting their own Scriptures. ****************************** According to this anonymous author, Jews are also wrong to take the dietary laws of the Old Testament literally. God did not mean that his people were not to eat pork or rabbit or hyena, all of which are proscribed in the Torah. The injunction not to eat pork means not to live like swine, who grunt loudly when hungry and keep silent when full. People are not to treat God in this way, coming to him with loud petitions when they are in need and ignoring him when they are not (10:3). Not to eat rabbit means
November 12, 2025