Asa's son and successor, Jehoshophat, united the houses of David, Omri, and Ithobaal into a single family tree. Music by Kevin MacLeod.

The Assyrian Empire was one of the most disgusting civilizations in the Ancient Near East. Music by Kevin MacLeod.

As Asa expanded Judah’s geopolitical power, Israel began a slow descent into internal instability. Meanwhile, in the east, a new threat began to rise.

In this sprawling one-hour episode, we review the tragic career of Jeroboam and narrate Abijam’s epic defeat and invasion of Israel around 907 BC. We also weave in a range of topics including Old Testament theodicy, epistemology, Thomas Jefferson, and Ivan the Terrible. Music by Kevin MacLeod.

The story of the unnamed Man of God in 1 Kings 12-13 is sometimes seen as the most inscrutable story in the Bible. Music by Kevin MacLeod.

Around 1200 BC, the entire Near East was invaded by aliens: mysterious “Sea Peoples” who crossed the Mediterranean from the north. The ensuing collapse cleared the way for the rise of Israel and Judah. Meanwhile, the descendants of one group of Sea People—the “Peleset”—almost certainly became the biblical Philistines. Music by Kevin MacLeod. All copyrighted material is fair use.

Easter is not a pagan holiday. Music by Kevin MacLeod.

The late tenth century saw a three-sided war between Judah under Rehoboam, Israel under Jeroboam, and Egypt under the Libyan pharaoh Shishak. Music by Kevin MacLeod.

When Solomon turned away from God, the prophet Ahijah incited a holy revolution against the United Kingdom.

If you think that a house of worship is supposed to look like a bland office building, then boy are you going to hate Solomon’s Temple.

There are good textual and archaeological reasons to think that Solomon was a historical king of the United Kingdom of Israel and Judah.

In the 10th century BC, the prophet Nathan engineered the rise of a young king. That king soon set to work brutally consolidating his power.