

The Bible (Unmuted)
The Bible (Unmuted) with Dr. Matthew L. Halsted
In this podcast, author and professor Matthew Halsted helps listeners understand the Bible in light of its ancient cultural and literary context. These episodes dig deep into the world of Scripture, theology, interpretation, and religion. But don't worry: it's not all cerebral. Each episode comes with practical insights to help listeners walk away with something meaningful and applicable from a Christian worldview. Some episodes are standalone, while others are part of a longer series. Many episodes feature guests (e.g., authors and speakers) who offer their insights into a particular topic.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Apr 8, 2025 • 43min
#113: Q&A - The Dead Sea Scrolls, Studying the Bible in Light of Non-canonical Texts, and More...
Matt takes listener questions, which opens up quite a bit of discussion on some fun (and important) topics: Should the church utilize non-canonical texts (such as the Dead Scrolls, Pseudepigrapha, etc) for teaching the Bible? How can the Dead Sea Scrolls be useful for understanding the New Testament? Is the academic study of the Bible threatening to faith and personal devotion? How do the Seals, Trumpets, and Bowls relate to one another?+++Support the The Bible (Unmuted) via Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TheBibleUnmutedRead Matt's blog: matthewhalsted.substack.comDon't forget to subscribe to The Bible (Unmuted)!

Apr 1, 2025 • 47min
#112: Saving Face: An Interview with Aimee Byrd
Aimee Byrd joins us once again to chat about her latest book, Saving Face: Finding My Self, God, and One Another Outside a Defaced Church. She offers careful reflections on navigating disillusionment and pain that, sadly, sometimes comes through the church. Aimee's relentless commitment to pursuing the saving face of Jesus Christ is absolutely contagious, and she offers a lot of food for thought for those who want to think carefully about all things church, spiritual trauma, and pursing Jesus as the healer and savior.Link to Aimee's book: https://www.amazon.com/Saving-Face-Finding-Another-Outside/dp/0310167604/ Follow her on social media:https://aimeebyrd.com/https://www.instagram.com/aimeebyrdlife/https://www.facebook.com/aimee.byrd.39https://twitter.com/aimeebyrdPYWhttps://www.threads.net/@aimeebyrdlifehttps://aimeebyrd.substack.com/+++Support the The Bible (Unmuted) via Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TheBibleUnmutedRead Matt's blog: matthewhalsted.substack.comDon't forget to subscribe to The Bible (Unmuted)!

Mar 25, 2025 • 42min
#111: Women in Academia & John the Baptist: An Interview with Amber Dillon, Part 2
Part 2 of 2 Matt chats with Amber Dillon (PhD, Ridley College), who teaches at Eternity Bible College and Denver Seminary. In her doctoral work (supervised by New Testament scholar Michael Bird), she researched the literary portrait of John the Baptist, as depicted in the Gospel of John. In the previous episode (part 1/Ep #110), we kicked things off by discussing what goes into writing a dissertation and the necessity of being able to receive constructive criticism during the writing process. We also chatted about how women are underrepresented in evangelical academic circles and how certain historical events may have created that situation. In this episode (part 2), we talk specifically about her work on John the Baptist. How does the Gospel of John portray him in relation to the synoptic Gospels? Are their similarities and differences? Why are these questions important? And to what texts, exactly, does John refer when he describes Jesus as "the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world?" (Jn 1:29)? +++Support the podcast via Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TheBibleUnmutedRead Matt's blog: matthewhalsted.substack.comDon't forget to subscribe to The Bible (Unmuted)!

Mar 18, 2025 • 44min
#110: Women in Academia & John the Baptist: An Interview with Amber Dillon, Part 1
Part 1 of 2 Matt chats with Amber Dillon (PhD, Ridley College), who teaches at Eternity Bible College and Denver Seminary. In her doctoral work (supervised by New Testament scholar Michael Bird), she researched the literary portrait of John the Baptist, as depicted in the Gospel of John. In this episode (part 1), we kick things off by discussing what goes into writing a dissertation and the necessity of being able to receive constructive criticism during the writing process. We also chat about how women are underrepresented in evangelical academic circles and how certain historical events may have created that situation. In part 2 (Ep #111), we talk specifically about her work on John the Baptist. How does the Gospel of John portray him in relation to the synoptic Gospels? Are their similarities and differences? Why are these questions important? And to what texts, exactly, does John refer when he describes Jesus as "the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world?" (Jn 1:29)? +++Support the podcast via Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TheBibleUnmutedRead Matt's blog: matthewhalsted.substack.comDon't forget to subscribe to The Bible (Unmuted)!

Mar 11, 2025 • 15min
#109: Q&A - Is it ever okay to lie?
Is it ever okay to lie? That's the question Matt takes up on the show today. Interestingly, this question is not merely an ethical one but also has bearing upon larger issues related to theology, anthropology, and hermeneutics. Resources mentioned on the show: (1) David Bentley Hart,You Are Gods: On Nature and Supernature // see chapter 4: Pia Fraus: Our Words and God's Truth(2) Craig G. Bartholomew, Introducing Biblical Hermeneutics: A Comprehensive Framework for Hearing God in Scripture +++Support the podcast via Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TheBibleUnmutedRead Matt's blog: matthewhalsted.substack.comDon't forget to subscribe to The Bible (Unmuted)!

Mar 4, 2025 • 47min
#108: Revelation, Part 26 (Rev 15)
Revelation 15 is a remarkable passage, for it offers a vision of a christologized exodus. This is a powerful illustration of the ways in which the New Testament employs Old Testament material and bridges the story of Jesus of Nazareth to the story of Israel -- especially the Exodus story. There are a number of insights this conceptual bridging affords -- not least in how it illuminates the way the Gospel frees people from evil empires and the spiritual realities that empower them.+++Support the podcast via Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TheBibleUnmutedRead Matt's blog: matthewhalsted.substack.comDon't forget to subscribe to The Bible (Unmuted)!

Feb 25, 2025 • 39min
#107: Revelation, Part 25 (Rev 14:6-20)
This passage centers around the proclamations and actions of several angels, who play a decisive role in the eschaton. Readers are also confronted with further images of divine judgment. How should one interpret these judgment texts, specifically, the gruesome picture given in v. 20? +++Support the podcast via Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/TheBibleUnmutedRead Matt's blog: matthewhalsted.substack.comDon't forget to subscribe to The Bible (Unmuted)!

Feb 18, 2025 • 36min
#106: Revelation, Part 24 (Rev 14:1-5)
In Revelation 14:1-5, we meet once again 144,000 people who are marked on their foreheads. This mirrors the content of Revelation 7, furthering the narrative of the text as a whole. But new material is introduced in the process. Matt analyzes this new content, revealing important allusions that tie Rev. 14 back to Old Testament passages found in Deuteronomy, Zephaniah, and Isaiah. +++Support the podcast via Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/TheBibleUnmutedRead Matt's blog: matthewhalsted.substack.comDon't forget to subscribe to The Bible (Unmuted)!

Feb 11, 2025 • 20min
#105: Q&A - Evangelism, Imago Dei, and the Story of Scripture
Matt answers a listener's question about evangelism, specifically: Should Christians first preach about sinbefore talking about grace? The answer to that question requires a story...+++Support the podcast via Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/TheBibleUnmutedRead Matt's blog: matthewhalsted.substack.comDon't forget to subscribe to The Bible (Unmuted)!

Feb 4, 2025 • 1h 1min
#104: An Interview with Paul Wilson: Acts and Migration
Matt chats with Paul Wilson, a PhD candidate at the University of Edinburgh. His research focuses on migration in the book of Acts. This is a topic that not only garners attention among biblical scholars but also among those engaged in modern political discourse. It's a hot topic, to say the least. In this conversation, Paul guides listeners to think through the subject of migration and, specifically, forced migration, in a way that leans into the insights of the New Testament and Christ's vision for the church to be a loving and welcoming community.
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Support the podcast via Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TheBibleUnmuted
Read Matt's blog: matthewhalsted.substack.com
Don't forget to subscribe to The Bible (Unmuted)!


