(Note: This episode includes references to on-screen map demos. For the full visual experience, watch on YouTube — but the teaching stands on its own as audio.)

When you read "nation" in the Old Testament, what do you picture? A country on a map with borders and a flag? That's not what the word means — and the difference changes how you read the entire Bible.

In this episode, we explore how the ancient world understood nations, states, and peoplehood — why you can't draw a nation on a map, and why this distinction is the engine of the whole Old Testament story.

This is Episode 3.1, the first in our Nations & Empires series.

Episode links:

• OT in Context App: https://otincontext.com
• YouTube (with visual demos): https://youtube.com/@OTinContext
• Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/oldtestamentincontext

Previous: The Land of Canaan: Why This Specific Place? (Episode 1.5)

Next: Suzerains, Vassals, and Satrapies: How Ancient Politics Worked (Episode 3.2)

Of all the places God could have planted His people — the fertile Nile, the rich plains of Mesopotamia — He chose a narrow, contested strip of land wedged between empires. Why?

In this episode, we explore the geography of Canaan: a land so compact you could walk across it in a few days, yet packed with more geographic diversity than regions ten times its size. From the coastal plain to the central hills to the Dead Sea — the lowest land elevation on earth — this land was built for dependence, exposure, and encounter.

⏱️ TIMESTAMPS

0:00 - Why there?

0:34 - What this series is about

1:10 - The space between empires

3:15 - A land of remarkable diversity

6:10 - Why this place? Position, dependence, exposure

9:24 - Many names, one land

10:24 - What's next

🔗 LINKS

OT in Context App: https://otincontext.com

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/oldtestamentincontext

🎬 PREVIOUS: Jericho: 11,000 Years of History

🎬 NEXT: Coming soon

#OldTestament #BibleStudy #BiblicalGeography #Christianity #BibleHistory #Archaeology

Quick—tell me the story of the Old Testament. Not a story FROM the Old Testament. The story. The whole thing. If that's hard to answer, you're not alone.

Most of us know the pieces—David and Goliath, the Exodus, a talking donkey somewhere in the middle—but we've never seen how they fit together. Today, we fix that.

⏱️ TIMESTAMPS

0:00 - Tell me the story

0:37 - Intro

1:09 - The puzzle problem

2:49 - Four words that change everything

4:43 - The thread that holds it together

6:34 - Everything points forward

8:15 - Why this changes how you read

9:07 - What's next

🔗 LINKS

OT in Context App: https://otincontext.com

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/oldtestamentincontext

🎬 PREVIOUS: Let Me Show You: Your First Exploration of the Ancient World

🎬 NEXT: The Land of Canaan: Why This Specific Place?

#OldTestament #BibleStudy #BiblicalGeography #Christianity #BibleHistory

Think the oldest cities are in Europe? Think again. Jericho has been inhabited, conquered, and rebuilt for over 11,000 years—older than Stonehenge, older than the pyramids, older than widespread agriculture.

Most people only know Joshua 6, but this city appears throughout the Old Testament at every major transition point: Balaam's blessing, the conquest, Ehud's assassination of Eglon, David's humiliated ambassadors, Hiel's curse, and Elijah's departure.

Let's explore the city that won't stay dead.

🔗 LINKS

OT in Context App: https://otincontext.com

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/oldtestamentincontext

🎬 PREVIOUS: Let Me Show You: Your First Exploration of the Ancient World

🎬 NEXT: The Exodus Route Debate

In the last two episodes, I told you geography changes everything about how you read the Bible. Now let me show you.

This is OT in Context—the tool I built because I couldn't find what I needed anywhere else. In this episode, I'll walk you through your first exploration: finding Abraham, tracing his thousand-mile journey from Ur to Canaan, and watching 1,400 years of history unfold.

We'll look at Joshua's tribal allotments around 1400 BC—with Egypt and Mittani looming nearby—then jump forward 700 years to see Assyria at its terrifying peak. This is the world of the Old Testament, and now you can explore it yourself.

🔗 LINKS

OT in Context App: https://otincontext.com

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/oldtestamentincontext

🎬 PREVIOUS: Stop Reading the Bible Like Fantasy: Why Geography Matters

🎬 NEXT: Jericho: 11,000 Years of History

I realized I was reading biblical place names the same way I'd read Tolkien or Lewis—familiar words with no real meaning. Bethel. Beersheba. Babylon. I couldn't point to any of them on a map.

The Bible isn't fiction. Old Testament history IS world history. Same places. Same terrain. Same story. And when we read it like fantasy, we miss so much.

In this episode, I start building the mental map we need—explaining why geography shapes everything in Scripture, why Israel's location made them both wealthy and vulnerable, and how the Fertile Crescent explains almost every story in the Old Testament.

⏱️ TIMESTAMPS0:00 - I was reading the Bible like fantasy0:57 - The Middle Earth Problem1:32 - The Bible isn't fiction (same places, same terrain)1:56 - Abraham's journey (measured!)2:55 - Why geography shapes history3:40 - The Fertile Crescent explained5:03 - Israel: The Land Between6:52 - Building your mental map8:14 - The Bible happened in a real place9:15 - What's next

🔗 LINKSOT in Context App: https://otincontext.comFacebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/oldtestamentincontextYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@otincontext

🎬 PREVIOUS: Why Modern Readers Struggle with the Old Testament🎬 NEXT: The Fertile Crescent: Crossroads of Civilization

How much of your Bible do you actually use? If you're like most Christians, the answer is about a third. The Old Testament remains a mystery—but it doesn't have to be.

In this first episode, I explore why modern readers struggle with the Old Testament, why we're actually less equipped than the Pharisees were (and they still missed Jesus), and what we can do about it.

I'm Scott Smith—not a scholar, just a Sunday School teacher from Michigan who got frustrated and started digging. This series is what I've learned.

⏱️ TIMESTAMPS

0:00 - How much of your Bible do you use?0:23 - Who I am and why I made this0:34 - The uncomfortable truth about our ignorance3:00 - What Scripture did the Apostles have?3:54 - The Road to Emmaus5:03 - The Pharisees Problem (the key insight)7:13 - But there's hope7:50 - What this series will cover10:00 - What's next

🔗 LINKS

OT in Context App: https://otincontext.com

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/oldtestamentincontext

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

📚 THIS SERIES COVERS:

- Geography of the biblical world

- History and empires

- The story from creation to Christ

- Archaeology and evidence

- Theology and deeper meaning

🎬 NEXT EPISODE: Why Geography Matters

Join us as we explore the names of God in the Old Testament, from El to Yahweh-Tsidkenu. Discover their cultural significance, how they reveal God's character, and their connection to His covenant with Israel. Read the article here: https://discovering-the-ot-as-they-knew-it.beehiiv.com/p/the-unfolding-names-of-god-in-the-old-testament

And subscribe to our newsletter at https://discovering-the-ot-as-they-knew-it.beehiiv.com/