In this episode of the Biblical Languages Podcast, Kevin Grasso talks with Dr. Jason Staples about the meaning of Ισραήλ (Israel) in Paul.

Jason Staples is Assistant Teaching Professor in the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies at NC State University. He’s the author of two books, The Idea of Israel in Second Temple Judaism, published with Cambridge University Press in 2021, and Paul and the Resurrection of Israel, which will come out next year, also with Cambridge University press. He also has worked in sports media for fifteen years, used to coach football, and does voiceover work to ensure his family can survive, and he will be launching the BiblePod podcast in the next few months.

Kevin and Jason discuss the difference between Ισραήλ (Israel) and Ἰουδαῖος (Jew) and how it relates to difficult texts like Romans 2:13, Romans 9:19-22, and Romans 11:25-26.

What do we mean when we say that “Jesus was a Jew?” Scripture uses a lot of labels to refer to God’s chosen people, including “Israelite,” “Judahite,” “Hebrew,” and, of course, “Jew.” In this episode, Jason Staples helps us sort through the etymologies, histories, ethnicities, and nationalities behind these labels, examining the earliest usage of “Jew” in the Hebrew Bible, its role in the Second Temple Period, and its interpretations in the modern era. He also considers key Bible passages that use these labels and helps debunk a common assumption about “Jew” as a pejorative term.

Jason Staples teaches at North Carolina State University in the areas of biblical literature, early Judaism and Christianity, and modern issues in ethics and religion. He is the author of The Idea of Israel in Second Temple Judaism: A New Theory of People, Exile, and Israelite Identity. In addition to his scholarly work, Jason has worked in sports media and voiceover narration.

Join us as we talk to Dr. Jason Staples about Romans 9:20–23. We discuss a number of things including: the image of God as a potter, the temperamental nature of clay, the potter-clay metaphor in Jeremiah, and how this image asserts God’s justice.

“This is a revelation of how things are, not so much how things have been.” -Jason Staples

Modern Christians reading the Book of Revelation tend to filter it through the lens of popular fiction (such as the Left Behind series) and a very modern concept of its strange language and imagery. From the four horsemen, to the secret thunder in chapter 10, to the mixing of metaphors throughout the text, Revelation presents a challenge for modern readers.

In this episode, Dr. Jason Staples (Assistant Teaching Professor at North Carolina State University) helps sort through the symbols in the Book of Revelation. By examining the historical context of late Second Temple Judaism, the genre of apocalypse, and key passages from the Hebrew Bible, the meanings of the symbols begin to emerge. Though many passages remain mysterious, even to trained scholars, the Book of Revelation communicates a message of central importance about the present Kingdom of God and the role of the church in the world.

Jason Staples teaches in the areas of biblical literature, early Judaism and Christianity, and modern issues in ethics and religion. He is the author of The Idea of Israel in Second Temple Judaism: A New Theory of People, Exile, and Israelite Identity. In addition to his scholarly work, Jason has worked in sports media and voiceover narration.

How did the concept of Israel impact early Jewish apocalyptic hopes of restoration? How diverse was Israelite identity in antiquity? Tune in as we talk with Jason A. Staples about his recent book, The Idea of Israel, in which he proposes a new paradigm for how the biblical concept of Israel developed in Early Judaism.

Jason A. Staples (Ph.D., UNC-Chapel Hill) is a historian, author, speaker, journalist, voice actor, and American football coach/analyst. He is an Assistant Teaching Professor in the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies at NC State University and the author of The Idea of Israel in Second Temple Judaism: A New Theory of People, Exile, and Israelite Identity (Cambridge University Press, 2021) and numerous articles in ancient Judaism and Christianity.

Michael Morales is Professor of Biblical Studies at Greenville Presbyterian Theological Seminary, and the author of The Tabernacle Pre-Figured: Cosmic Mountain Ideology in Genesis and Exodus(Peeters, 2012), Who Shall Ascend the Mountain of the Lord?: A Biblical Theology of Leviticus (IVP Academic, 2015), and Exodus Old and New: A Biblical Theology of Redemption (IVP Academic, 2020). He can be reached at [email protected]

Episode: Lynn Cohick speaks with Jason Staples about concepts of Israel, Judaism, and Jewishness that emerged in the Second Temple period, and their implications for understanding the early Judaism. Staples challenges prevailing ideas about Jewish identity around the turn of the Common Era.

Guest: Jason Staples is Assistant Professor in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences at NC State University. Jason A. Staples is a specialist in Ancient Mediterranean Religions, focusing primarily on Early Judaism and Christian Origins. He is the author of The Idea of Israel in Second Temple Judaism: A New Theory of People, Exile, and Israelite Identity​​​​​​​ (Cambridge University Press, 2021). His second book will focus on Israel in the writings of the apostle Paul. (from the NC State University site)

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Jason Staples proposes a new paradigm regarding the biblical concept of Israel and how it was shaped by Jewish apocalyptic hopes for restoration after the Babylonian Exile. Challenging conventional assumptions about Israelite identity in antiquity, his argument is based on a close analysis of a vast corpus of biblical and other early Jewish literature and material evidence. Staples demonstrates that continued hopes for Israel’s restoration in the context of diaspora and imperial domination remained central to Jewish conceptions of Israelite identity throughout the final centuries before Christianity and even into the early part of the Common Era. He also shows that Israelite identity was more diverse in antiquity than is typically appreciated in modern scholarship. His book lays the groundwork for a better understanding of the so-called ‘parting of the ways’ between Judaism and Christianity and how earliest Christianity itself grew out of hopes for Israel’s restoration.