Investigators Guide to the Bible Podcast

About Investigators Guide to the Bible Podcast

After 30 years, as a counterintelligence agent, investigator, and director of a large analytic center, Tony Devlin is turning his investigative and analytic experience toward making sense of the Bible. We will pick apart the stories you know and love, always seeking to understand what is in the Bible and what it means. Join us for the Investigators Guide to the Bible! investigatorsguidetothebible.substack.com (https://investigatorsguidetothebible.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast)

Publisher

Tony Devlin

Category

religion & spirituality · true crime

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

14 Jan 2025

Latest episode

9 Oct 2025

Latest episodes

35 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   9 Oct 2025

   35 Ladies and Gentlemen of the Jury

   Hey there. Welcome to the Investigators Guide to the Bible for the final episode on the case of Joseph’s Ordeal. Take a deep breath, grab a cookie to go with your coffee, and settle in for the Summation to the Jury. If you have not figured it out yet, I’m Tony. I did the writing and the reading. If something is wrong, I’m the guy who gets the blame. Share, stack, restack and all that stuff. Let’s get started. Investigative Summary: Ladies and Gentlemen of the Jury EXSUM: Nazareth was a culturally conservative town that was neither tiny, nor insignificant. The people of Nazareth were either Essene laity or very closely related to the Essene sect. Inhabitants of the town followed stringent rules for purity, piety, poverty, and abstinence. The people of the town were very pious Jews who shared what they earned or made with the rest of the clan, which made up the town’s roughly fifteen hundred citizens. With their own lesser Sanhedrin council, Nazareth could enforce a stricter moral code than was accepted throughout the rest of ancient Israel. Divorce was almost completely unheard of, except in cases of criminal acts, like adultery. Mary of Nazareth was suspected of adultery and her betrothed husband, Joseph, planned to divorce her. At least, this has been the narrative for many centuries. Today, we put the rumors, innuendo, allegations, and accusations to rest. Resources and References so I can pretend I’m really smart: * Most Bible quotes I used come from the New American Bible, Revised Edition. Washington, DC: Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, 2010. Though I frequently mention other Bible translations, this is my working Bible for most of these episodes. Any Bible you use will be fine for all of the Biblical references. * Almost every discussion on the translation of a particular word means a trip to BibleHub.com for their amazing Interlinear Bible. Bible Hub, Glassport, PA. Just assume I’m using their site and check it out for yourself. (https://biblehub.com/interlinear/ (https://biblehub.com/interlinear/), accessed more times than I can count, 2021-2025) If you read something that is not a direct quote and think the brilliant thought might be mine, it is safer to assume I messed up the citation. Give credit to the super smart people below. A small mea culpa is in order. There are references but I ran into a production deadline before taking a short vacation. As soon as we get back, I’ll edit the refs in. Thanks for understanding. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit investigatorsguidetothebible.substack.com (https://investigatorsguidetothebible.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1)

2. 

   2 Oct 2025

   34 Why We Say What We Say

   Hey there. Welcome to the Investigators Guide to the Bible. It is just about put up or shut up time. We’ve talked about sources and analysis. We’ve talked about evidence and how to view it. It is time to start putting all the facts together. Believe it or not, though, there are still a couple topics we have to round out, first. I have not talked about analytic integrity, yet, or the analytic standards I use. Again, believe it or not, this is very relevant. If I am asking you to trust me, you should know why this work should be trustworthy. I’m Tony. All the stuff I said last time is still true so let’s get started! Resources and References so I can pretend I’m really smart: * Most Bible quotes I used come from the New American Bible, Revised Edition. Washington, DC: Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, 2010. Though I frequently mention other Bible translations, this is my working Bible for most of these episodes. Any Bible you use will be fine for all of the Biblical references. * Almost every discussion on the translation of a particular word means a trip to BibleHub.com for their amazing Interlinear Bible. Bible Hub, Glassport, PA. Just assume I’m using their site and check it out for yourself. (https://biblehub.com/interlinear/ (https://biblehub.com/interlinear/), accessed more times than I can count, 2021-2025) If you read something that is not a direct quote and think the brilliant thought might be mine, it is safer to assume I messed up the citation. Give credit to the super smart people below. 1. Intelligence Community Directive 203, Technical Directive, Office of the Director of National Intelligence, 12 Jun 2023 (https://www.dni.gov/files/documents/ICD/ICD-203.pdf (https://www.dni.gov/files/documents/ICD/ICD-203.pdf), accessed 30 Sep 2025) 2. “The Protoevangelium of James the Lesser.” Translated by Alexander Walker. From Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 8. Edited by Alexander Roberts, James Donaldson, and A. Cleveland Coxe. (Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1886.) Revised and edited for New Advent by Kevin Knight. 3. Brown, Raymond E. The Birth of the Messiah, Updated Edition. New York: Doubleday, 1993 4. Hesemann, Michael, translated by Michael J. Miller. Mary of Nazareth: History, Archeology, Legends. San Francisco: Ignatius Press, CA 2016 (Original German edition, 2011, Sankt Ulrich Verlag, Augsburg, Germany.) This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit investigatorsguidetothebible.substack.com (https://investigatorsguidetothebible.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1)

3. 

   25 Sept 2025

   33 Getting My Clocks in a Row

   Investigative Timeline: Getting My Clocks in a Row Hey, there. Welcome to the Investigators Guide to the Bible. This is it! Get your pens and notepads ready because this is where you get to check my notes to see if I got the timeline right. We know timelines are important, so it’s put up or shut up time. As always, no question or comment is off limits. Tell me where I’m wrong. Like and subscribe for new episodes. Share the episode, restack it, and send it to your friends. Feel free to ask some questions at the end, if you want. Resources and References so I can pretend I’m really smart: * Most Bible quotes I used come from the New American Bible, Revised Edition. Washington, DC: Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, 2010 Though I frequently mention other Bible translations, this is my working Bible for most of these episodes. Any Bible you use will be fine for all of the Biblical references. * Almost every discussion on the translation of a particular word means a trip to BibleHub.com for their amazing Interlinear Bible. Bible Hub, Glassport, PA. Just assume I’m using their site and check it out for yourself. (https://biblehub.com/interlinear/ (https://biblehub.com/interlinear/), accessed more times than I can count, 2021-2025) If you read something that is not a direct quote and think the brilliant thought might be mine, it is safer to assume I messed up the citation. Give credit to the super smart people below. 1. Eddings, David. The Belgariad: Castle of Wizardry. New York: Del Ray/Ballentine Books. 1984 2. Nunnaly, Dr. Wave. “Modern Midrash: The Myth of Migdal Eder.” The Bible Unplugged website, 2025. (https://wavenunnally.com/modern-midrash-the-myth-of-migdal-eder/ (https://wavenunnally.com/modern-midrash-the-myth-of-migdal-eder/), accessed 12 Sep 2025) 3. Lanser, Rick, MDiv. “Pinpointing the Date of Christ’s Birth,” Associates for Biblical Research, 2019. (https://biblearchaeology.org/about/abr-projects/the-daniel-9-24-27-project/4368-pinpointing-the-date-of-christ-s-birth (https://biblearchaeology.org/about/abr-projects/the-daniel-9-24-27-project/4368-pinpointing-the-date-of-christ-s-birth), accessed 2 Mar 2022) 4. Finegan, Jack. Handbook of Biblical Chronology, Revised Edition. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers Marketing, 1998 5. Pixner, Bargil, O.S.B. With Jesus in Jerusalem: His First and Last Days in Judea. Rosh Pina, Israel: Corazin Publishing, 1996 6. Jensen, Morten Horning. “Climate, Droughts, Wars, and Famines in Galilee as a Background for Understanding the Historical Jesus.” Journal of Biblical Literature, vol. 131, no. 2, 2012, pp. 307–24. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/23488227. Accessed 14 Oct. 2022. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit investigatorsguidetothebible.substack.com (https://investigatorsguidetothebible.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1)

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Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

2 ratings

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Guest appearances

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