Skeptics said synagogues didn't exist in Galilee during Jesus' lifetime. They were wrong. They said crucified victims were never buried. They were wrong. They said the Gospel writers invented details about first-century Palestine. Wrong again.

Dr. Craig Evans, one of the world's leading scholars on the historical Jesus and New Testament archaeology, has spent decades connecting physical discoveries to the Gospel narratives. He's authored over 70 books, founded the Dead Sea Scrolls Institute, lectured at Cambridge, Oxford, and Yale, and appeared on BBC, the History Channel, Discovery Channel, and National Geographic. In this episode, he walks us through the discoveries that secular Israeli archaeologists rely on the Gospels as their primary sources, why skeptical theories collapse under the weight of evidence, and how the skeletal remains of a crucified man confirm that Jesus would have been buried exactly as the Gospels describe. This conversation will transform how you read the New Testament.

In this episode, you will learn:

• Why Israeli archaeologists, even non-believing ones, use Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, and Acts as their most reliable sources
• The discovery of first-century synagogues at Magdala and what they reveal about Jesus' ministry
• What the Theodotus Inscription proves about synagogues existing in Jerusalem before 70 AD
• How the Pilate Stone and Caiaphas Ossuary confirm key figures from the Passion narratives
• Why the Gospel writers showed remarkable restraint and integrity in recording only what Jesus actually said
• The archaeological evidence that crucified victims in Jewish Palestine were in fact buried
• How the skeletal remains of Yehohanan, a crucified man with a nail still in his heel, validates Gospel burial accounts
• Why Joseph of Arimathea's burial of Jesus is historically plausible and fits Jewish law perfectly
• The stunning continuity of village memory that preserved the location of Jesus' tomb for centuries

Check out Dr. Craig Evans' work:

• Website: https://www.craigaevans.com
• Jesus and His World: The Archaeological Evidence
• Fabricating Jesus: How Modern Scholars Distort the Gospels
• The Bible Seminary: https://www.thebibleseminary.edu

Stay Connected with Johnny Ova and The Dig In Podcast:

Subscribe and follow The Dig In Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thejohnnyova

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Grab Johnny's book, The Revelation Reset: https://a.co/d/hiUkW8H

What if the women of the early church weren't silent observers but powerful leaders, patrons, and apostles whose stories have been hidden for 2,000 years? In this groundbreaking episode, Dr. Lynn Cohick, Distinguished Professor of New Testament at Houston Christian University and author of "Women in the World of the Earliest Christians," reveals how archaeological evidence, ancient inscriptions, and business documents completely transform our understanding of women's roles in early Christianity. From Lydia's influential house church to Phoebe's role as Paul's patron, from Mary Magdalene's true identity as a businesswoman to Junia's recognition as an apostle, Dr. Cohick exposes how prescriptive ideals from ancient philosophers masked the descriptive reality of women's actual lives and leadership.

Dr. Cohick's decades of research illuminate how women navigated complex social structures through informal power networks, benefaction systems, and household authority. She explains how the house church model created unexpected leadership opportunities, how women maintained financial independence through dowries and personal property, and why understanding the actual social context of the first century radically changes how we interpret Paul's controversial passages about women. This conversation reveals how recovering these hidden stories isn't just about correcting history - it's about unleashing gospel transformation in our churches today.

In this episode you will learn:

• How women served as patrons and benefactors who financially supported Paul's ministry and the early church
• Why Mary Magdalene was likely a successful businesswoman, not a prostitute, and how this misidentification happened
• How the house church model gave women authority and leadership roles we often overlook
• What archaeological evidence like tombstones and inscriptions reveal about women serving as deacons and synagogue leaders
• How understanding patronage and reciprocity systems explains Phoebe's powerful role as Paul's prostatis
• Why Paul's "women be silent" passages make sense when understood in their specific chaotic contexts
• How Jewish women and God-fearers navigated between synagogue and church in joining the Jesus movement
• What Junia's story tells us about women being recognized as apostles in the early church
• How women's financial independence through dowries and property ownership gave them unexpected agency
• Why recognizing women's informal influence patterns transforms how we read the New Testament today

Connect with Dr. Lynn Cohick:

• Center for Women in Leadership: leadershipwithoutapology.org
• Houston Christian University: hc.edu
• Book: "Women in the World of the Earliest Christians: Illuminating Ancient Ways of Life"

Stay Connected with Johnny Ova & The Dig In Podcast:

• Subscribe to our YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thejohnnyova
• Follow Johnny: https://linktr.ee/johnnyova
• Get Johnny's Book "The Revelation Reset": https://a.co/d/hiUkW8H

What happens when a biblical scholar with degrees from Oxford and Exeter decides to take on misinformation where it lives... on TikTok? Dr. Dan McClellan has built a following of nearly one million people by doing something radical: telling the truth about what the Bible actually says. In this conversation, Dr. McClellan takes us on his journey from serving as an LDS missionary in Uruguay, to getting kicked out of college, to earning his PhD and becoming one of the most recognized voices in public biblical scholarship. His motto is "data over dogma," and he's not afraid to challenge the assumptions that have shaped how Christians read Scripture for centuries.

This episode goes deep. We explore Dr. McClellan's argument that "the Bible doesn't say anything" on its own, and why that statement isn't an attack on faith but an invitation to read more honestly. We dig into what the Bible actually says about same-sex relationships (hint: the ancient world had no concept of sexual orientation), and we unpack what Scripture really teaches about hell and eternal punishment. If you've ever been told "the Bible clearly says" something and felt like there had to be more to the story, this conversation is for you.

In this episode you will learn:

- Why Dr. McClellan says "the Bible doesn't say anything" and what that means for how we interpret Scripture
- The difference between how scholars study the Bible and how it's taught in most churches
- What the concept of "univocality" is and why it's the foundation of most biblical misinformation
- What Leviticus and the New Testament actually say about same-sex intercourse in their ancient context
- Why the ancient world had no concept of homosexuality as a sexual orientation
- The three different views of hell found in the New Testament (annihilation, temporary punishment, eternal torment)
- Why eternal conscious torment became the dominant view and what the Bible actually indicates
- How Dr. McClellan balances scholarship and faith without needing to "deconstruct"

Connect with Dr. Dan McClellan:
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@maklelan
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/maklelan
Podcast: Data Over Dogma- https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/data-over-dogma/id1681418502
Book: The Bible Says So: What We Get Right (and Wrong) About Scripture's Most Controversial Issues — https://a.co/d/fJuNxi0
Website and Online Classes: maklelan.org
Patreon: patreon.com/maklelan

Subscribe to The Dig In Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thejohnnyova

Follow Johnny Ova and stay connected: https://linktr.ee/johnnyova

Grab Johnny's book, The Revelation Reset: https://a.co/d/hiUkW8H

Everything we thought we knew about women in the Bible was shaped by centuries of erasure. In this groundbreaking episode, I sit down with Professor Tal Ilan, one of the world's leading historians on Jewish women in late antiquity, to uncover the real lives of women in the first century. From synagogue leaders to economic powerhouses, from temple participation to early Christian leadership, Prof. Ilan reveals the evidence that's been hiding in plain sight. Her research in the Lexicon of Jewish Names and the Feminist Commentary on the Babylonian Talmud Project has reshaped how scholars understand women's roles in ancient Judaism, and this conversation will transform how you read the New Testament.

This isn't just history. This is about recovering the stories that were written out of Scripture and discovering what happens when we put them back in. Prof. Ilan walks us through inscriptions, archaeological evidence, and ancient texts that prove Jewish women held far more agency, influence, and leadership than we've been taught. And when we apply that context to figures like Mary Magdalene, Phoebe, Priscilla, and Junia, the New Testament comes alive in ways you've never seen before.

In this episode you will learn:

- Why 70% of the "silent, secluded woman" image is historically accurate, but the 30% that isn't changes everything
- The archaeological evidence of women as synagogue leaders, donors, and patrons throughout the ancient Jewish world
- How women participated in temple festivals, sacred spaces, and religious life in ways that contradict common assumptions
- Why Mary Magdalene may actually be the founder of Christianity based on her role in the resurrection narrative
- The truth about female apostles like Junia, Phoebe, and Priscilla and what their leadership tells us about early Christianity
- How the destruction of the temple actually reduced women's religious participation compared to earlier periods
- Why Paul's list of resurrection witnesses deliberately excluded women, and what that reveals about early Christian politics
- The connection between Jesus's inclusive ministry and the women who became his closest followers
- How rabbinic Judaism developed partly in response to Christianity's "New Testament" model
- What modern Christians are missing when they read the Bible without understanding first-century Jewish women's real lives

Connect with Prof. Tal Ilan:

Prof. Ilan's groundbreaking work includes:

The Lexicon of Jewish Names in Late Antiquity

Integrating Women into Second Temple History

SUBSCRIBE TO THE DIG IN PODCAST
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Get Johnny's Book, The Revelation Reset: https://a.co/d/hiUkW8H

Mary is the best known, least known woman in history. Billions recognize her name, yet the actual Jewish woman behind the icons has been almost completely erased. In this powerful conversation, Dr. James Tabor, Distinguished Fellow at Hebrew University and two-time New York Times bestselling author, reveals what 20 years of research, archaeology, and critical scholarship have uncovered about the real Mary. What emerges is not the passive, silent figure of tradition, but a revolutionary Jewish matriarch who shaped the teachings of Jesus, ran the headquarters of the early movement from Mount Zion, and whose voice we still hear in the Beatitudes.

Dr. Tabor takes us into the violent, politically charged world Mary lived through: mass crucifixions in the Galilee, Herod murdering his own family, and the constant threat facing anyone with Davidic lineage. He reveals the urban setting most people miss (Sepphoris, a major city just four miles from Nazareth), makes the case that Luke's genealogy is actually Mary's lineage showing she was "doubly royal" (descended from both King David and the priestly line of Aaron), and addresses the question most scholars avoid: the mysterious name Pantera that appears in early Jewish sources. This is history that will reshape how you understand Christianity's origins.

In this episode you will learn:

- Why Mary is the "most erased" woman in history and how it happened deliberately
- The shocking urban context of Jesus's upbringing (Sepphoris was a major city of 30,000 people just 4 miles from Nazareth)
- How Mary likely witnessed the mass crucifixions and burning of Sepphoris when Jesus was an infant
- The case for James (not John) being the "beloved disciple" at the cross
- Why the brothers and sisters of Jesus are real biological siblings, not stepchildren or cousins
- The evidence that Luke's genealogy is actually Mary's lineage, making her "doubly royal"
- What early Jewish sources in Sepphoris actually say about "Yeshua ben Pantera" (and why it's not an insult)
- How Mary functioned as the matriarch who shaped Jesus's nonviolent, revolutionary teachings
- The connection between Isaiah 11, Mary's vision, and Jesus's Beatitudes
- Why three of Mary's sons (Jesus, James, and Simon) were murdered because of their lineage

Get Dr. Tabor's new book "The Lost Mary: Rediscovering the Mother of Jesus"

More from Dr. James Tabor:
Blog: https://jamestabor.com
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@JamesTaborVideos
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/jamesdtabor

Also check out Dr. Tabor's bestsellers:

"The Jesus Dynasty"

"Paul and Jesus: How the Apostle Transformed Christianity"


Subscribe to The Dig In Podcast:
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thejohnnyova

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https://linktr.ee/johnnyova

Get Johnny's book- The Revelation Reset

For over 50 years, Dr. Kent Hovind has been one of the most fearless defenders of biblical creation. A former high school science teacher turned full-time evangelist, Dr. Hovind has debated over 390 atheists and evolutionists at universities across America. His famous creation seminar series has been translated into more than 40 languages and has impacted millions of believers around the world. He's the founder of Creation Science Evangelism and Dinosaur Adventure Land in Lenox, Alabama, where he continues to teach that the Bible is not only spiritually true but scientifically accurate.

In this conversation, Dr. Hovind and I go deep into the evidence for a young earth, why carbon dating doesn't work, what the world looked like before Noah's flood, and why dinosaurs fit perfectly into the biblical narrative. We also tackle the flat earth movement and why Dr. Hovind believes evolution isn't just scientifically wrong but dangerously deceptive. If you've ever wrestled with questions about faith and science, this episode will challenge everything you thought you knew.

In this episode you will learn:

• Why there are only two worldviews: creation or evolution, and why it matters for everything
• The scientific evidence that points to a 6,000 year old earth, not billions
• Why carbon dating and radiometric dating methods are deeply flawed
• What the pre-flood world was really like: 900 year lifespans, greater oxygen, and giants
• How dinosaurs lived alongside humans and what happened to them after the flood
• What Behemoth and Leviathan in the book of Job really were
• Why the flat earth theory is wrong and how to respond to it biblically
• How evolutionary thinking laid the foundation for Nazism, communism, and moral decay
• Why you can believe the Bible and still be intellectually credible

Check out Dr. Kent Hovind's ministry and materials:

Call: 855-BIG-DINO

Email: drdino@drdino.com

Website: https://www.drdino.com/

Kent Hovind TV: https://kenthovind.tv/

Shop: https://dr-dino.myshopify.com/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@kenthovindofficial1

Rumble: https://rumble.com/c/kenthovindofficial

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kenthovindofficial

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@kenthovindofficial

Dinosaur Adventure Land in Lenox, Alabama (free admission!)

Subscribe and follow The Dig In Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thejohnnyova

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Grab Johnny's book, The Revelation Reset: https://a.co/d/hiUkW8H

Round 2 is here, and this time it’s face-to-face.

Johnny Ova sits down in person with Dr. Matthew Hester right here in New York for an honest, wide-ranging conversation about faith, Scripture, and what it means to follow Jesus with both heart and mind. This episode picks up where their first conversation left off, but takes an even deeper dive into one of the most foundational questions for believers today: Can we trust the Bible?

They tackle topics that many Christians quietly wonder about but don’t always feel safe enough to voice. Are there contradictions or errors in Scripture? What happens to our faith if we admit those things? Does understanding context, history, and culture change how we read the Word of God?

Throughout the conversation, Johnny and Dr. Hester affirm something powerful. Critical thinking and deep faith are not enemies. As Christian leaders and followers of Christ, it is not only okay to ask bold questions, it is essential. Wrestling with the tough stuff doesn’t weaken your faith. It strengthens it.

This is an invitation to the table. To lean in. To explore. To rediscover how a deeper understanding of Scripture can actually bring you closer to Jesus, not further away.

We would love to hear your thoughts, your questions, and your experiences. Jump into the conversation with us.

More About The Host Johnny Ova:

Follow on Youtube- https://www.youtube.com/@johnnyova
Follow on Instagram- /johnnyovaaa
Follow on Facebook- /thejohnnyova
Follow on TikTok- Johnny Ova
Website- www.soh.church

Support the show

There’s a quiet revolution happening in the Church, a reformation not of systems, denominations, or new movements, but of hearts returning to the core of it all: Jesus.

In this episode of The Dig In Podcast, Johnny sits down with Dr. Matthew Hester for a deep and refreshing conversation about what it means to strip away the noise and return to the simplicity and power of Christ at the center. Together, they explore how much of modern Christianity has drifted into complexity, cultural confusion, and even performance, while the true gospel invites us back to intimacy, clarity, and transformation through Jesus alone.

This wide-ranging dialogue covers key themes like:

• The importance of biblical context- how understanding culture, language, and history can unlock the richness of Scripture
• The validity and reliability of the Bible, especially in a time when so many are questioning it
• Overlooked principles hidden in plain sight, those small but life-changing truths we miss when we read Scripture too quickly or without the right lens

Whether you're a lifelong believer, a ministry leader, or someone rethinking your faith, this episode invites you to pause, breathe, and realign your heart with the One it's all about.

Jesus isn’t just a part of the story. He is the story.

More About The Host Johnny Ova:

Follow on Youtube- https://www.youtube.com/@johnnyova
Follow on Instagram- /johnnyovaaa
Follow on Facebook- /thejohnnyova
Follow on TikTok- Johnny Ova
Website- www.soh.church

Support the show