Monthly Archives: December 2011
Philip Davies Prophesies The End of Biblical Minimalism Is Not Near
In the May/June 2011 edition of the populist American magazine, Biblical Archaeology Review, Yosef Garfinkel made the at best premature, at worst uninformed, announcement that “biblical minimalism” had died: “The Birth & Death of Biblical Minimalism” (free copy available here). … Continue reading
Filed under Archaeology
2012: A Giant Year for Giant Movies!
Giants are so cool. 2011 may be almost over, and the Hitch and Kim Jong Il are no longer with us – but 2012 brings us two movies featuring Giants! 1. Wrath of the Titans – featuring the titanomachy in 3-D, … Continue reading
Filed under Fairy-tale Giants, Film, Greek Giants
Remnant of Giants (Jan – Dec 2011) …
… provided a year’s worth of examples of the reception and effect of the Giants mentioned in the Bible – the Rephaim, Nephilim, Gibborim, Anakim, etc, who once stood tall in the the imaginary land of “Israel” and in the … Continue reading
Filed under Biblical Giants
The Biblical Myth of Giants: It is all true, or it ought to be
From Winston S. Churchill, A History of the English-Speaking Peoples. Vol 1: The Birth of Britain. London: Cassell and Company Ltd, 1956: p. 46: True or false, they [the Arthurian legends] have gained an immortal hold upon the thoughts of … Continue reading
Filed under Books on Giants
The European Origins of the Book of Genesis: Dmitri Panchenko on the Giants of Gen. 6.1-4
In a recent article, “Европейские элементы в Книге Бытия (6: 1-16)” ["European Elements in the Book of Genesis (6.1-16)"], Dmitri Panchenko argues that the Nephilim of Genesis 6.1-4 have European origins. The argument for Greek origins to biblical giant stories is not … Continue reading
Filed under 1 Enoch, Anakim, Genesis 6.1-4, Nephilim
Did David’s Stone Hit Goliath On the Forehead or On the Leg?
When I attended the Evangelical Theological Society (ETS) Annual Conference last month, I heard a good argument about the David and Goliath narrative from Gregory T.K. Wong, in his paper, ”A Farewell to Arms: The Rhetoric of Arms and the Death of Goliath” … Continue reading
Filed under 1 Samuel 17, Biblical Giants, Goliath
How tall were the Giant Anakim? Out with the biblical scholars; in with the biblical conspiracy theorists, children’s books authors, government propagandists, homeschoolers, and pre-moderns!
When the Israelite spies explore the land in Numbers 13, they report seeing giants: the “descendents of Anak” . The question that most people ask me is: how tall were these Anakim? They were remarkably tall, if we accept the comparison the spies make … Continue reading
Biblical Studies Carnival 69 (November 2011)
This is Biblical Studies Carnival no. 69 – showcasing the best of biblical studies blogging for the month of November 2011: Giants, Conferences, Important Issues in Biblical Studies, Early Judaism, Early Christianity, Text and Translation, and Biblioblogging. Have fun! Giants Biblical … Continue reading
Filed under Biblical Giants
