Introduction to the Bible (Full Series)

Buy the summary chart:

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Torah
00:16:00 - Prophets
00:38:32 - Writings
01:00:43 - Apocrypha
01:27:03 - Gospels
01:48:17 - Epistles
02:02:48 - Revelation

Introduction to the Qur'an:

Introduction to the Book of Mormon:

RECOMMENDED READING:
* Alter, Robert (2011). The Art of Biblical Narrative. Basic Books.
* Baden, Joel (2012). The Composition of the Pentateuch: Renewing the Documentary Hypothesis. Yale University Press.
* Coogan, Michael (2001) The Oxford History of the Biblical World. Oxford University Press
* Finkelstein, Israel & Neil Asher Silberman (2001). The Bible Unearthed. Free Press.
* Kugel, James (2007). How to Read the Bible. Free Press.
* Stein, Robert H. (2001). Studying the Synoptic Gospels: Origin and Interpretation. Baker Academic.

CREDITS:
Charts & Narration by Dr. Matt Baker
Animation by Syawish Rehman

[ThebitFighter]

You should do a video covering all the books that DIDN'T make it into the Bible. It's much harder to find info on those, so that would be even more useful than these (already great) videos.

[chunky]

As a born & raised Christian, it's amazing the amount of knowledge & depth you put into this I can't help but be impressed how candid you were. Thank you for sharing this knowledge & teaching us. Shalom!!!

[Palisade]

As someone from a Muslim family I'd love something similar done for the Qur'an but I doubt any observant Muslim would let any academic discussion that challenges the established narratives be discussed. The fact that a Jewish man can remove themselves from their religious narrative and do objective research of this nature is a testament to their honesty and integrity, and is genuinely admirable.

[xinvulder]

A monumental piece of work.. probably the best presentation I've ever seen on the subject!

[EurekaYoga]

As someone living in the Evangelical Bible Belt, where the Bible is usually interpreted hyperliterally, your presentation was a brilliant breath of fresh air, and EXACTLY what I was looking for. I look forward to watching all your videos. Thank you for sharing your knowledge.

[JuanMPalacio]

I love your “Who Wrote The Bible” series so much. I was so excited because I thought this was a new 2 hour long addition to it.

[ObjectiveEthics]

There is an incredible amount of history, theology and philosophical interpretation combined into a seamless format. The graphics you designed make it very easy to follow the very complex ideas that are being conveyed within this amazing video. Very well done, sir. Thank you for your hard work.

[debraturner]

I can only imagine how many hours went into putting together this spectacular video, the hours of reading and research, then summarizing it and deciding what to leave out. Finally shooting, editing, and narrating it. As a history buff, I love when the Bible and Biblical figures are flushed out with historical and archeological evidence. I realize that religion requires a final leap of faith, but I love when history and artifacts add to and change what we think we know, or confirm it.

[MrInfinity]

YO!!
I’ve been glued to your videos since discovering your page a week ago! My 19yr old son has been following your channel for much longer. Being a “former” Christian-slash-aspiring religious historian, finding this series has been super enriching and beneficial.
I appreciate the way you lay everything out, and how it’s very well-spoken and comprehensive. Not to mention solid in historical research. Definitely gonna check out more & buy these charts 💯

[tiffanybillingsley]

This is Amazing! I grew up in a Christian household, never really feeling comfortable with all the ignorance and judging that I experienced coming out of that faith . I decided to study on my own outside of that religion and I've gotten so much fulfillment on a intellectual as well as a spiritual level. I'm now comfortable studying the Bible knowing it's origin and true purpose, this video is totally aligned with knowledge needed to grow inclusively.

[Nooticus]

Incredible. This is one of the greatest single works ever uploaded to YouTube. You sir will be remembered for centuries.

[carriearmstrongjohnstone]

This is great, Matt! I love to listen to you before I go to sleep, or when I can’t go back to sleep and the music in between the videos wakes me if I have fallen asleep. Over 2 hours of interesting content for this insomniac is much appreciated. I love your non biased, historical approach to religion! (I have a minor in comparative religion and converted to Judaism years ago so this is all fascinating to me!).

[brunobucciaratiswife]

As a born again Christian and nerd for history, videos like this make me super happy! I love doing research on how the Bible was formed, written, changed… anything history is right up my alley.

[Jack-eofn]

Great thanks for all your work, talent and skills. I’ve studied these issues for 30 years and completely concur with your presentation.

[d.esanchez]

Man Ive been a faithfull follower of this channel, and now as a teacher of church history in my church this videos come SO HANDY. I cannot thank you enough. If i had more money I'd buy all your charts.

[otherlands]

Disclaimer: This is not meant as an insult!
I just love to listen to your voice in these videos to fall asleep, it is so soothing to me. Apart from that, when I am still awake, the content is also very interesting of course :)
Greetings from Switzerland and thank you for your videos ✨

[anonnymousperson]

It's good to have this as a refresher for everything I learnt and forgot last year.

[tired]

this series is incredible. with a clear narration and sleek graphs you make a really complicated topic accessible to ppl who don’t have the background to understand all the primary sources and the various theories around them plus their implications. it’s particularly interesting to hear it from someone who is neither christian or a culturally christian atheist. your transparency and your respect for material, factual history, as well as for faith, is as close to neutral as one can get when it comes to religious studies.
I would love to see you dive deeper into the origins of Judaism, the two kingdoms with two origin story theory sounds really interesting and dare I say promising when it comes to the origins of the Israelites and Judaism in general.

[mr.dalesrd-thmath]

Being a visual learner with concept maps and animations, this video is perfect.

[EddieScottable]

the best review of biblical text that I've ever heard from a 'believer' - very refreshing