Unraveling the Mysteries: Archaeological Discoveries that Illuminate Bible Stories

The present work was evidently intended to govern a ritual of baptism or ablutions. A sectarian text by virtue of its mention of the Yachad, this liturgy may have operated during the ritual washings that are discussed in the Charter (see text 5, 3:4-9; 4:21; 5:13b-14). The Liturgy's distinctive form...
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1Q29 F.1 (...) (...) the stone, just as the LORD commanded ....) and your Urim. And it (the cloud?) shall come forth with him, with the tongues of fire. The left-hand stone which is on its left side shall be uncovered before the whole congregation until the priest finishes speaking and after the clo...
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Col.2 (...) And concerning what Scripture says, "In this year of Jubilee you shall return, everyone f you, to your property" (Lev. 25;13) And what is also written; "And this is the manner of the remission; every creditor shall remit the claim that is held against a neighbor, not exacting it of a nei...
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F.1 Col.2 Please consider this, you who are wise: If a man has a fine tree, which grows high, all the way to heaven (...) (...) of the soil, and it produces succulent fruit every year with the autumn rains and the spring rains, (...) and in thirst, will he not (...) and guard it (...) to multiply th...
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On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no more wine.” “Dear woman, why do you involve me?” Jesus replied. “My time has not yet ...
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Lord, I want to be like Jesus,In my heart, in my heart…Lord, I want to be like Jesus,In my heart. Just about every one of us with even a smattering of a church background has sung this song, probably while holding hands in a circle; possibly around a campfire in a summer camp. But in order to be lik...
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One of the problems of being a Religious Person is that upon occasion you have to look ridiculous. Occasionally you have experiences that overwhelm you with the majesty and providence of God, but when you recall them afterwards or tell them to others, you feel foolish. The most important such event ...
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After this, Jesus went around in Galilee, purposely staying away from Judea because the Jews there were waiting to take his life. But when the Jewish Feast of Tabernacles was near, Jesus’ brothers said to him, “You ought to leave here and go to Judea, so that your disciples may see the miracles you...
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Mel Gibson’s movie The Passion of the Christ is basically a dramatization of the 14 traditional Stations of the Cross. Throughout the movie, the characters have flashbacks that tell the story of Jesus’ ministry. That is an excellent technique, because the New Testament doesn’t give us enough narrati...
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Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be my disciple. And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my dis...
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On a Sabbath Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues, and a woman was there who had been crippled by a spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not straighten up at all. When Jesus saw her, he called her forward and said to her, “Woman, you are set free from your infirmity.” Then ...
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See Mark 6:1-6 and Matthew 13:54-58 When I was in elementary school, I remember when all the kids in the neighborhood got together and put on a show. We rigged up a curtain of sorts by hanging an old bedspread in a screened porch, and arranged folding chairs for the audience. Then we practiced a sma...
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Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” Jesus replied, “Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?” Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of ...
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Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: “The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach. They tie up heavy loads and put them on men’s shoulders, bu...
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People were also bringing babies to Jesus to have him touch them. When the disciples saw this, they rebuked them. But Jesus called the children to him and said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth, anyone...
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Nowadays it is quite common to refer to Jesus as a carpenter from Galilee. You might even see people driving around with a bumper sticker that says, “My Boss Is a Jewish Carpenter,” by which they mean Jesus. But is Jesus really a carpenter? Let’s examine the gospels and see. They asked, “Is not this...
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Now as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside and said to them, “We are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will turn him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and fl...
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Matthew is the only gospel writer who uses the term “Kingdom of Heaven.” This is probably because Matthew wrote for a Jewish audience, for whom heaven is a euphemism for God. It is a way of speaking indirectly, and thus deferentially and respectfully. Matthew informs us that “Kingdom of Heaven” mean...
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