Bart D. Ehrman's Blog, page 16

Is the “Christ Poem” of Philippians Really a Poem? What Did Jesus Really Become “Equal” With God?

This is my second and final post on the "Christ-poem" of Philippians 2.   Many years ago when I talked about the poem, a reader (who apparently knew Greek!) objected that the poetic lines I suggested don't actually work. Below I'll give his question and my response.  But then I'll move on to an even more [...]

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The Death and Afterlife of Jesus: A Historical Reconstruction Part II – Guest Post by Platinum Member Mark Reichert

Here now is Platinum blog member Mark Reichert's second part of his two-part reflections in which he offers his own reconstruction of what might have happened after the crucifixion. So what do I think really happened? There is no way to know for sure but I can put together a story that seems plausible and [...]

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The Most Widely Discussed Passage of Philippians

To conclude this mini-thread on Philippians, which is part of my maxi-thread Nutshell Summaries of each of the books of the New Testament, I would like to provide two posts on the passage of this small book that is discussed by scholars (far) more than any other, the "Christ-poem" of 2:6-11, where Paul indicates that [...]

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Luke and John “At a Glance” and Controversial Questions

As I indicated a few posts ago, I have decided to add a feature to my discussion of each NT book some of the additional materials I present in my New Testament textbook the books I discuss.  These are (a) rapid fire summaries of each book that I call “At a Glance” and (b) a [...]

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Philippians: For Further Reading

Here is an list of readings on Philippians, most of the books relevant to all the undisputed Pauline epistles, with a couple of commentaries specifically on this significant, short letter.  One benefit of serious commentaries is that they always begin by discussing major critical issues in understanding a book: authorship, date, historical context, major themes, [...]

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The Death and Afterlife of Jesus: A Historical Reconstruction Part I – Guest Post by Platinum Member Mark Reichert

Today, Platinum blog member Mark Reichert offers the first part of a compelling two-part reflection on one of the most well-known—and debated—stories in history. It’s part historical reconstruction, part personal inquiry, and entirely worth the read. According to the Gospel of Mark, the Jewish preacher Jesus was crucified by Roman Governor Pontius Pilate in Jerusalem [...]

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Philippians: Who Wrote It, When, and Why?

Now that I have provided a nutshell summary of the letter to the Philippians in my previous post, I can move into the questions of authorship, date, and motivating purpose (who, when, and why). Philippians is almost always considered a Pauline letter, one of the seven “undisputed” epistles.  There seems very little reason to doubt [...]

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Philippians in a Nutshell

In this thread summarizing each book of he New Testament, I come now to the book of Philippians, one of my favorite Pauline epistles since I first started reading the New Testament seriously when I was 17!  The first biblical verse I memorized (apart from the Lord’s Prayer!) was Philippians 1:21:  “For me, to live [...]

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May 2025 Gold Q&A

Dear Gold & Platinum Members, Mark your calendars—our monthly Gold & Platinum member Q&A is here!It’s your chance to ask Bart anything related to the blog’s deep dive into early Christianity. He’ll tackle as many of your questions as possible in an exclusive, hour-long session. This month’s Q&A will be recorded live on Wednesday, May [...]

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Matthew and Mark “At a Glance” with Controversial Questions

It occurred to me that another nice resource for this “Nutshell” Series might be some of the additional materials I present in my New Testament textbook for each of the books I discuss.  Two separate items I provide there are (a) rapid fire summaries of each book that I call “At a Glance” and (b) [...]

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