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Giants

“There We Saw the Giants”—Premodern Encounters with Giant Bones

Greek, Roman, Christian, and Jewish authors described discovering enormous bones buried just beneath the earth’s surface and interpreted them through their own lenses: Greeks and Romans saw mythic heroes and monsters; Jewish writers identified them as biblical giants, especially Og, king of Bashan. These discoveries reinforced the enduring belief that ancient humans were far larger than those of today.

Elisha Fine

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Prof.

Steven Fine

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Og, King of Bashan: Underworld Ruler or Ancient Giant?

The answer lies in his bed.

Prof.

Laura Quick

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Samson the Demigod?

Samson’s conception story may be read subversively as the result of a union between a divine being and a mortal woman, making Samson a demi-god with superhuman characteristics. At the same time, the text keeps open the more mundane possibility that his father is Manoah and his powers are simply a gift from God.

Dr.

Naphtali Meshel

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Kiryat-Arba: The Father of Giants and the City of Four

How the conflation of Kiryat-arba and Hebron created a new mythic character, Arba, father of the giants.

Dr. Rabbi

Zev Farber

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Kiryat-Arba Is Hebron…. But Is It?

The conflation of two cities over time

Prof.

Jacob L. Wright

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Dr. Rabbi

Zev Farber

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Inventing the Mythic Amorite Kingdom of Sihon

To avoid saying that Israel conquered the territory of their Moabite cousins, and that Reuben and Gad may once have been Moabite tribes, the Torah claims that when the Israelites arrived, the land was occupied by Amorites and ruled by King Sihon.

Dr.

Rachel Havrelock

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