Jeffrey P. Arroyo García (Nails or Knots—How Was Jesus Crucified?) is Associate Professor of Biblical Studies at Gordon College. He specializes in the Gospels and Greco-Roman Jewish literature.

Jennie Ebeling (New Directions: How Archaeology Illuminates the Bible) is Associate Professor of Archaeology at the University of Evansville. Her research focuses on ancient food technologies and women in Canaan and ancient Israel.

Yuval Gadot (A Decade of Discoveries in Biblical Jerusalem) is Professor of Archaeology at Tel Aviv University in Israel. He co-directs the Givati Parking Lot excavation in Jerusalem.

Angela Kim Harkins (Are We Still Searching for the Teacher of Righteousness?) is Professor of New Testament at Boston College. She specializes in prayer, emotion, and religious experience in early Jewish and Christian sources.

Ralph K. Hawkins (Between Moses and the Ancestors: Israelite Religion in Egypt) is professor of religion at Averett University and author of Discovering Exodus: Content, Interpretation, Reception (Eerdmans, 2021).

Sabine Kleiman (Prize Find: Azekah’s Stunning New Do) is a teaching and research fellow at Tel Aviv University in Israel. She is the field director of the Lautenschläger Azekah Expedition.

Oded Lipschits (Prize Find: Azekah’s Stunning New Do) is Professor of Jewish History and Director of the Sonia and Marco Nadler Institute of Archaeology at Tel Aviv University in Israel. He co-directs the Lautenschläger Azekah Expedition and the Tel Moza Excavation.

Jodi Magness (Why Is Biblical Archaeology So Focused on the Old Testament?) is the Kenan Distinguished Professor for Teaching Excellence in Early Judaism at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She directs the Huqoq Excavation Project in Israel.

Lauren Monroe (Book Review: The Ten Commandments) is Associate Professor in the Department of Near Eastern Studies at Cornell University. She is a specialist in the Hebrew Bible and ancient Israelite religious and social history.

Manfred Oeming (Prize Find: Azekah’s Stunning New Do) is Professor of Old Testament Theology at the University of Heidelberg in Germany. He co-directs the Lautenschläger Azekah Expedition.

Yiftah Shalev (A Decade of Discoveries in Biblical Jerusalem) is an archaeologist with the Israel Antiquities Authority. He co-directs the Givati Parking Lot excavation in Jerusalem.

Joe Uziel (A Decade of Discoveries in Biblical Jerusalem) is the head of the Dead Sea Scrolls Unit at the Israel Antiquities Authority. He has excavated several areas in the City of David in Jerusalem and the Western Wall Tunnels.

—–

BAR and its publisher, the Biblical Archaeology Society (BAS), are now 50 years old! It’s a milestone that any organization would find worth celebrating.

And so we celebrate with this issue; we celebrate with a special dinner party at Bible and Archaeology Fest in Boston this November; and, most importantly, we celebrate with you, the readers who have made this moment possible. We are so grateful to you, not only for your subscriptions, but also for your ongoing engagement with the fascinating world of biblical archaeology—the lifeblood that keeps BAR fresh, vibrant, and healthy.

Over the past few months, I’ve been thinking a lot about what enables entities to endure. Like every organization, BAS has had its touch-and-go moments. My favorite of these is from the early days, when BAR’s subscriber file—all 4,000 names—was on paper cards, one per subscriber. On this occasion, the printer picked up the names, but didn’t properly secure the back of his truck. Around one of Washington, D.C.’s many traffic circles, the truck hit a bump, the back flew open, and three of the four boxes fell out. It was expensive to have any backup of data back then; the boxes contained the only copy of the file. All seemed lost! Without its subscribers, BAR might have ceased publication.

However, Susan Laden—BAR’s longest-serving Publisher—had failed to throw out the old subscriber file from the previous mailer. From that garbage—literally scraps of paper shoved into paper bags—she was able to reconstruct most of the file. It was a pivotal moment for BAR’s survival—the first of many. Over time, such moments become organizational myths: tales of survival that strengthen internal bonds and bolster the organization’s sense of validity.

But this wasn’t simple destiny. It took luck and hard work to get BAR past that particular speed bump. At so many points along the way, the people running and working for BAS put in the hard work and resourcefulness necessary for BAR to survive. It is an important reminder about the institutions we personally care about: Our efforts so often are what make the difference.

And you, the reader, have been most critical of all. From the very first issue, you have responded, not only with your subscriptions, but with your engagement. At first, it was letters to the editor, in dialogue with the discoveries, controversies, and new understandings of the cultural and religious past of the lands of the Bible. BAS even published a book titled Please Cancel My Subscription! celebrating the back-and-forth style of mutual learning that has come from BAR’s many letters to the editor.

In the 21st century, this engagement has expanded to comments on our blog posts at Bible History Daily (biblicalarchaeology.org/blog) and participation in seminars and tours, whether in person or online. BAR is not only BAS’s flagship publication; it is the cornerstone of a community of interest that is sustained by your engagement and support.

Please continue aiding the most important institutions in your life. It is a profound honor for all of us at the Biblical Archaeology Society to have been one of those institutions for 50 years. And it is our intention to make sure we continue to deserve your interest and support for the next 50 and beyond.—JONATHAN LADEN

ERIC CARLSON

“Weren’t we predicted to win hands down?”
—Andy Magid, Norman, Oklahoma

Thank you to all those who submitted caption entries for our Fall 2024 cartoon, based on Exodus 17:11–12: “Whenever Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed; and whenever he lowered his hand, Amalek prevailed. But Moses’ hands grew weary; so they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side; so his hands were steady until the sun set.” We are pleased to congratulate Andy Magid of Norman, Oklahoma, who wrote the winning caption, and our runners-up:

RUNNERS-UP:

“Think jazz hands, Moses. Jazz hands!”
—Mark Schaefer, Arvada, Colorado

“A last-second field goal gives Team Moses a stunning victory!”
—M. Meloney, Columbia, Virginia

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

“Fellas, I hate to tell you, but I need a bathroom break pretty bad.”
—Ronald Wood, Fort Scott, Texas

“I keep my hands high with a little help from my friends.”
—Kelly Bianchi, Bergen, New York

ERIC CARLSON

For additional caption entries, as well as past cartoons and captions, please visit biblicalarchaeology.org/captioncontest.

Write a caption for the cartoon based on John 2:9–10: “When the steward tasted the water that had become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the steward called the bridegroom and said to him, ‘Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now.’” Submit it via our website at biblicalarchaeology.org/captioncontest.

Please include your name and address. The deadline for entries is May 15, 2025. The author of the winning caption will receive a BAS All-Access membership and three gift subscriptions to give BAR to friends. Runners-up will receive an All-Access membership and two gift subscriptions for friends.

2025 CALL FOR ENTRIES

BAS Publication Awards

Nominations are invited for the 2025 Biblical Archaeology Society Publication Awards for books published in 2023 and 2024.

The biennial BAS Publication Awards for books about archaeology and the Bible have been presented since 1985. These prestigious awards have been made possible by a grant from: The Rohr Family in memory of Sami Rohr.

Awards are presented in the following categories:

Best Popular Book on Archaeology

Best Scholarly Book on Archaeology

Hershel Shanks Award for Best Dig Report

Judges:

Daniel Master Wheaton College
Dennis Mizzi University of Malta
Alexandra Ratzlaff Brandeis University

Best Book Relating to the Hebrew Bible

Judges:

Kevin Burrell Wilfrid Laurier University
Alice Mandell Johns Hopkins University
Tina Wray Salve Regina University

Best Book Relating to the New Testament

Judges:

Matthew Grey Brigham Young University
Lee Jefferson Centre College
Elizabeth Schrader Polczer Villanova University

QUALIFICATIONS AND RULES

1. Nominations: Publishers, authors, or others should send one copy of every nominated book to each of the judges in the relevant category, as well as BAS. Please mark “BAS Publication Awards.” For address information, please email info@bib-arch.org.

2. Judges may not nominate books, nor can they judge books they have authored or edited.

3. All nominated books must have been published in print and/or digitally in 2023 or 2024.

4. Publishers may nominate a maximum of eight books. All nominated books must be in English, and no self-published titles will be accepted.

5. Nominations must be received by June 5, 2025. At least three diff erent titles must be submitted in a category for a prize to be awarded.

6. The judges’ decisions are final.

7. The winning authors will receive a digital award certificate and a prize of $500.

For more information, or to nominate a book, please email info@bib-arch.org.

Zuzana Chovanec (Arch-Tech: Slumbering Dreams: Testing for Ancient Opium) is a research associate at the State University of New York at Albany. Her research focuses on organic residue analysis and the history of the opium poppy and other plants used in the eastern Mediterranean.

Rangar Cline (Classical Corner: The Power of Love in Roman Magic) is Associate Professor in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of Oklahoma. He is a historian and archaeologist who specializes in the Greek, Roman, and late antique Mediterranean worlds.

William G. Dever (How the Ten Tribes of Israel Were Lost) is Professor Emeritus of Near Eastern Archaeology and Anthropology at the University of Arizona. He directed excavations at Gezer from 1966 to 1971 and is a prior director of the W.F. Albright Institute of Archaeological Research in Jerusalem.

Yitzhaq Feder (Getting Down and Dirty with Impurity) is a lecturer in the Department of Biblical Studies at the University of Haifa in Israel. His research synthesizes the traditional philological study of ancient texts with the cognitive science of religions.

Christopher A. Frilingos (Christianity’s First Family) is Professor of Religious Studies at Michigan State University. He writes and teaches about biblical literature and early Christianity.

Igor Kreimerman (Projecting Prestige: Egyptian Statues from Canaanite Hazor) is Senior Lecturer in the Department of Archaeology and Ancient Near Eastern Studies at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He is a specialist in the Bronze and Iron Age archaeology of Israel and directs the Selz Foundation Hazor Excavations.

Christian Locatell (Symbols of the Goddess) is a research associate in the Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Cambridge and Peterhouse. His research focuses on ancient languages, biblical archaeology, and theology.

Jeanne-Nicole Mellon Saint-Laurent (Book Review: Encountering Syriac Christianity) is Associate Professor of Religious Studies in the Department of Theology at Marquette University. She is an expert in Syriac studies and early Christianity, with a special interest in hagiography.

Jordan J. Ryan (The Life of Jesus Written in Stone) is Associate Professor of New Testament at Wheaton College in Illinois. His research focuses on ancient synagogues and churches as architectural artifacts of early Judaism and Christianity.

Elizabeth Schrader Polczer (The Mystery of Mary and Martha) is Assistant Professor of New Testament at Villanova University. Her studies focus on textual criticism, Mary Magdalene, and the Gospel of John.

K. Lawson Younger (Milestone: Alan Millard (1937–2024)) is Professor Emeritus of Old Testament, Semitic Languages, and Ancient Near Eastern History at Trinity International University’s Divinity School. His book A Political History of the Arameans (SBL Press, 2016) won a 2017 BAS Publication Award.

ERIC CARLSON

“I don’t mind the anointing, but whatever happened to ‘a little dab will do ya’?”
—Kevin Whitehead, Columbia, Tennessee

Thank you to all those who submitted caption entries for our Summer 2024 cartoon, based on 1 Samuel 16:13: “Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the presence of his brothers; and the spirit of the Lord came mightily upon David from that day forward.” We are pleased to congratulate Kevin Whitehead of Columbia, Tennessee, who wrote the winning caption, and our runners-up:

RUNNERS-UP:

“Jehovah sent me to anoint you. Or did he mean ‘ewe’?”
—Jack Helser, Sequim, Washington

“Israel’s new perfume craze: Samuel No. 5.”
—Keith Gates, Winnfield, Louisiana

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

“This oil should last you five years or 5,000 miles, whichever comes first.”
—Kevin Johnson, Carson City, Nevada

“Man, this oil feels better than conditioner!”
—Theresa Parkinson, Glendale, California

ERIC CARLSON

For additional caption entries, as well as past cartoons and captions, please visit biblicalarchaeology.org/captioncontest.

Write a caption for the cartoon based on Matthew 8:24–26: “A windstorm arose on the sea, so great that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but [Jesus] was asleep. And they went and woke him up, saying, ‘Lord, save us! We are perishing!’ And he said to them, ‘Why are you afraid, you of little faith?’ ” Submit it via our website at biblicalarchaeology.org/captioncontest.

Please include your name and address. The deadline for entries is February 15, 2025. The author of the winning caption will receive a BAS All-Access membership and three gift subscriptions to give BAR to friends. Runners-up will receive an All-Access membership and two gift subscriptions for friends.

Aaron A. Burke (Book Review: The Bible Among Ruins) is Professor of the Archaeology of Ancient Israel and the Levant, and the Kershaw Chair in the Archaeology of the Ancient Eastern Mediterranean in the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures at the University of California, Los Angeles.

Katia Cytryn (Milestone: Donald Whitcomb (1944–2024)) is Chair of the Department of Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. She is a specialist in Islamic archaeology and directs excavations at the ancient city center of Tiberias.

Ronald Hendel (Parsing the Divine Name) is Professor of Hebrew Bible and Jewish Studies at the University of California, Berkeley. He approaches the Hebrew Bible by studying the history of religions, textual criticism, linguistics, and literature.

Hayah Katz (The Changing Landscape of Israeli Archaeology) is a senior lecturer of Iron Age archaeology and the Zev Vilnay Chair for the Study of the Knowledge of Land of Israel and Its Archaeology in the Department of Land of Israel Studies at Kinneret College on the Sea of Galilee.

Aren M. Maeir (Gath of the Philistines: A New View of Ancient Israel’s Archenemy) is Professor of Archaeology at Bar-Ilan University in Israel. He directs the Tell es-Safi/Gath Archae­o­logical Project, which is now working to publish its discoveries.

Alice Mandell (Letters to Pharaoh: The Canaanite Amarna Tablets) is the Albright Chair of Biblical and Ancient Near Eastern Studies at Johns Hopkins University. She specializes in biblical literature, Northwest Semitics, and the history of the ancient Levant.

Gary A. Rendsburg (Jews of Arabia: Ancient Inscriptions Reveal Jewish Diaspora) is the Blanche and Irving Laurie Chair in Jewish History at Rutgers University. He has extensively published on the Hebrew language and literature and on Hebrew manuscript studies.

Christopher Rollston (Too Good to Be True? Reckoning with Sensational Inscriptions) is Professor of Northwest Semitic Languages and Literatures at George Washington University. His areas of expertise include Northwest Semitic epigraphy and the origins and use of the early alphabet.

Jeffrey Stackert (What Happened to the Documentary Hypothesis?) is Professor of Hebrew Bible at the University of Chicago. His most recent book is Deuteronomy and the Pentateuch (Yale Univ. Press, 2022). He is currently writing a commentary on Deuteronomy and a monograph on the pentateuchal Priestly source.

K. Lawson Younger (Milestone: Edward Lipiński (1930–2024)) is Emeritus Professor of Old Testament, Semitic Languages, and Ancient Near Eastern History at Trinity International University’s Divinity School. His book A Political History of the Arameans (SBL Press, 2016) won a 2017 BAS Publication Award.

ERIC CARLSON

“He said take only what you need, not manna for mañana!”
—Linda Varnes, Nampa, Idaho

Thank you to all those who submitted caption entries for our Sping 2024 cartoon, based on Exodus 16:15–16: “When the Israelites saw it, they said to one another, ‘What is it?’ For they did not know what it was. Moses said to them, ‘It is the bread that the Lord has given you to eat. This is what the Lord has commanded: Gather as much of it as each of you needs, an omer to a person according to the number of persons, all providing for those in their own tents.’” We are pleased to congratulate Linda Varnes of Nampa, Idaho, who wrote the winning caption, and our runners-up:

RUNNERS-UP:

“Remember to mind your mannas!”
—Andy Stafford, Bloomington, Indiana

“Manna-m I hungry!”
—Bob Myers, Fleming Island, Florida

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

“It’s raining bread! Halleluyah! It’s raining bread!”
—Roland Sault, British Columbia, Canada

“Am I the only one with quail on the brain?”
—Bruce Krauth, Troy, Ohio

ERIC CARLSON

For additional caption entries, as well as past cartoons and captions, please visit biblicalarchaeology.org/captioncontest.

Write a caption for the cartoon based on Exodus 17:11–12: “Whenever Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed; and whenever he lowered his hand, Amalek prevailed. But Moses’ hands grew weary; so they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side; so his hands were steady until the sun set.” Submit it via our website at biblicalarchaeology.org/captioncontest.

Please include your name and address. The deadline for entries is November 15, 2024. The author of the winning caption will receive a BAS All-Access membership and three gift subscriptions to give BAR to friends. Runners-up will receive an All-Access membership and two gift subscriptions for friends.

Daniel Bodi (Biblical Profile: Abishag: Bedwarmer or Bureaucrat?) is Professor of History of Religions of Antiquity at the Sorbonne University in Paris. He has written several books on King David’s wives, including Abishag as Administrator of King David’s Household (Sheffield Phoenix Press, 2021).

Eric H. Cline (Rising from the Ashes: Israel and the Dawn of the Iron Age) is Professor of Classical and Ancient Near Eastern Studies at George Washington University and the author of several books, including After 1177 B.C.: The Survival of Civilizations (Princeton Univ. Press, 2024).

Robert Edwards (Antioch’s Silent Guardians) is Lecturer in Christian Thought and History and Director of Postgraduate Studies at Brisbane School of Theology in Australia, and Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Queensland.

Matthew J. Grey (Book Review: Excavating the Land of Jesus) is Associate Professor in the Department of Ancient Scripture and an affiliate faculty member of the Ancient Near Eastern Studies program at Brigham Young University.

Emma Maayan-Fanar (Finding Jesus: Byzantine Paintings at Shivta) is a senior lecturer in the Department of Art History at the University of Haifa, Israel.

Steven Ortiz (Solomon’s Powerplay: Gezer’s Royal Complex Confirmed) is Director of the Lanier Center for Archaeology at Lipscomb University. He co-directed the Tel Gezer Excavation Project.

Konstantinos Politis (Site-Seeing: The Land of Lot) is an archaeologist of the eastern Mediterranean lands ranging from prehistory to Ottoman times. He focuses on late antiquity to the early medieval period, particularly in Jordan and Syria.

Maggie L. Popkin (Classical Corner: Precious Memories: Souvenirs of the Roman Empire) is Associate Professor of Art History at Case Western Reserve University. She specializes in ancient Roman art and architecture.

Yotam Tepper (Finding Jesus: Byzantine Paintings at Shivta) is an academic supervisor and research archaeologist with the Israel Antiquities Authority and a research fellow at the Zinman Institute of Archaeology at the University of Haifa, Israel.

Craig W. Tyson (Into the Heart of Moab: Excavations at Khirbet Balu‘a) is Associate Professor of Religious Studies at D’Youville University. He specializes in the Hebrew Bible and the history and archaeology of the southern Levant during the Bronze and Iron Ages.

Ben Witherington III (Finding Paul’s Weakness) is Amos Professor of New Testament for Doctoral Studies at Asbury Theological Seminary and a professor emeritus at St. Andrews University in Scotland.

Samuel Wolff (Solomon’s Powerplay: Gezer’s Royal Complex Confirmed) is a retired archaeologist and ceramicist with the Israel Antiquities Authority. He co-directed the Tel Gezer Excavation Project.

ERIC CARLSON

“I will fear no evil, but I’m still afraid of heights!”
—Stephen M. Schneider, Cape Canaveral, Florida

Thank you to all those who submitted caption entries for our Winter 2023 cartoon, based on Acts 9:25: “But [Paul’s] disciples took him by night and let him down through an opening in the wall, lowering him in a basket.” We are pleased to congratulate Stephen M. Schneider of Cape Canaveral, Florida, who wrote the winning caption, and our runners-up:

RUNNERS-UP

“I guess a basket is better than a casket!”
—Stephanie Kerry, Valley, Alabama

“After all I’ve been through, no wonder I’m a basket case.”
—Danny E. Draper, Little Rock, Arkansas

HONORABLE MENTIONS

“The first game of Basket Paul.”
—Andy Stafford, Bloomington, Indiana

“A tisket, a tasket, I’m not sure I trust this basket.”
—Daryl Pearson, Sioux Falls, South Dakota

ERIC CARLSON

For additional caption entries, as well as past cartoons and captions, please visit biblicalarchaeology.org/captioncontest.

Write a caption for the cartoon based on 1 Samuel 16:13: “Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed [David] in the presence of his brothers; and the spirit of the Lord came mightily upon David from that day forward.” Submit it via our website at biblicalarchaeology.org/captioncontest.

Please include your name and address. The deadline for entries is August 15, 2024. The author of the winning caption will receive a BAS All-Access membership and three gift subscriptions to give BAR to friends. Runners-up will receive an All-Access membership and two gift subscriptions for friends.