What happened in this episode?
Joe Rogan interviews biblical scholar and social-media educator Dan McClellan about how academic methods assess biblical origins, transmission and interpretation. McClellan brings up archaeological and textual examples he says complicate later monotheistic readings, including the Kuntillet Ajrud inscription that references “Adonai of Samaria and his Asherah”, which he says many scholars interpret as reflecting a divine pairing. He also discusses how ancient Near Eastern motifs travelled across cultures, citing Ugaritic parallels to Isaiah’s “Leviathan” language and the broader chaos-dragon theme in creation and kingship narratives.
McClellan lays out mainstream critical positions on New Testament composition, saying several epistles traditionally attributed to Paul—especially 1–2 Timothy and Titus—are widely regarded by scholars as later writings. He argues modern Bible translations change because of manuscript discoveries and textual criticism, claiming contemporary New Testaments commonly omit around 16 verses present in the King James Version because they appear to be later additions.
On doctrine, he says the popular teaching that non-believers will “burn in hell forever” is an interpretative synthesis rather than a line stated in scripture, and he describes multiple, competing models of post-mortem punishment in early Christian texts. In one of the most concrete claims, he says residue testing from an Israelite temple at Tel Arad indicates cannabis was used in ritual incense. The conversation also ranges into cognitive science of religion, group identity, and how beliefs harden under social incentives.
