After I posted on the discovery of an ancient manuscript of the Quran (years ago; but I reposted it yesterday) I received a bunch of comments (years ago) that I responded to (years ago).  Here's a repost of the back and forth, with a couple of tough ones here. ********************* My post on Saturday about [...] The post Responses to my Post on the Discovery of an Ancient Manuscript of the Quran appeared first on The Bart Ehrman Blog ..read more

In my previous posts I've mentioned the course I'll be doing on the Quran and the NT with scholar of Islam, Javad Hashmi.  In the course I won't myself be dealing with the Quran, since it's not my expertise and I prefer as a rule talking about things I know about.  But in past years [...] The post An Astounding Quran Manuscript Discovery appeared first on The Bart Ehrman Blog ..read more

In my previous post I announced the new course I'll be doing on May 4 and 5, with scholar of Islam, Javad Hashmi, in which we both apply rigorous historical methods to analyzing the NT (me) and the Quran (Javad).  To register for the course, go to  https://ehrman.thrivecart.com/bibleandquran. For a $5 blog member discount, simply [...] The post Major Ways to Compare and Contrast the Quran with the New Testament appeared first on The Bart Ehrman Blog ..read more

Most Muslims argue that the Quran is absolutely perfect in every way: it represents God's words, accurately recorded, with no contradictions, and no textual changes by scribes.  Most fundamentalist Christians argue the same thing about the New Testament.  Is either one true? I'm pleased to announce that I will be hosting a special event on [...] The post The Bible and the Quran: Their Historical Problems. A New Course!! appeared first on The Bart Ehrman Blog ..read more

In the previous post I began discussing the intriguing story of 1 Samuel 28, where the king of Israel, Saul, illicitly consults a medium in an attempt to communicate with his now-dead advisor and predecessor, the prophet Samuel.  This is the only case of necromancy in the entire Bible.   In this post I want to [...] The post What’s It Like in Sheol? appeared first on The Bart Ehrman Blog ..read more

Do you have fundraising experience? Are you a fan of the mission of this blog--to disseminate scholarly knowledge of the New Testament and the earliest periods of the Christian church to a non-scholarly audience, and (most importantly) to raise funds for charity? The blog has raised over $2,000,000 for our charities (The Urban Ministries of [...] The post We Need An Experienced Fundraiser! appeared first on The Bart Ehrman Blog ..read more

In thinking about Sheol and death in the Hebrew Bible, it is worth reflecting on passages where the dead come back to life or are contacted by the living.  This does not happen much at all – a couple of instances of resuscitation and one of necromancy. Probably the most famous resuscitation – the bringing [...] The post What About People Who Come Back From the Dead in the Hebrew Bible? appeared first on The Bart Ehrman Blog ..read more

The Jewish scriptures contain a variety of different views about what happens to a person at death.   Most commonly, a person who dies is simply said to have gone to “death” – a term used some thousand times in the Bible.   Better known, but far less frequent, a person’s ultimate destination is sometimes called “Sheol,” [...] The post More on Sheol: Was it an Actual Place? appeared first on The Bart Ehrman Blog ..read more

Here's a provocative post by your fellow Platinum member, Cyrene: can Moses be identified with another known figure from history, the Egyptian overseer of the Borderlands, Thutmose?  Read her case and let us know what you think!   ****************************** Could Moses be Thutmose, the Overseer of the Borderlands? 15-point checklist Hi Platies! Thank you so [...] The post Could Moses be Thutmose, the Overseer of the Borderlands? – Platinum Post from Cyrene appeared first on The Bart Ehrman Blog ..read more

I was recently asked what the Old Testament teaches about "hell" and whether that's what "Sheol" refers to.  If not (or if so), what it the view of the afterlife in the Hebrew Bible?   This is a topic I dealt with in my book Heaven and Hell (Simon & Schuster, 2020) and I posted on [...] The post What Is Sheol in the Hebrew Bible? appeared first on The Bart Ehrman Blog ..read more