Field Notes are quick sketches from the Biblical world – the people, places, rulers, etc. that show up in Scripture and shape the story around them.
Sometimes that still means looking at the armor Paul describes in Ephesians. If that’s what you’re after, you can find each piece of the armor in the sidebar links at right.

  • Field Notes: Nile River

    The Nile River was the lifeline of ancient Egypt, providing water, food, and transportation.

    It is where Moses was placed in a basket and found by Pharoah’s daughter (Exodus 2).

    It is where the first plague occurred, when the water was turned to blood (Exodus 7).

    The Nile played a central role in Egypt’s power and daily life during the time of the Exodus.

    The pyramids were already ancient by the time of Moses, so he likely saw them. Jesus was brought here as a baby, so it is not likely He saw them…though, to be fair, He probably knew they were there.

    Nile River and delta from orbit, via NASA (public domain)

  • Field Notes: Mount of Olives

    The Mount of Olives is the ridge just east of Jerusalem, separated from the city by the Kidron Valley. It appears throughout the Gospels as on of Jesus’ regular places of prayer and teaching. From its slopes, Jesus delivered the Olivet Discourse about the end times (Matthew 24-25). At the foot of the mount is…

  • Field Notes: Mount Sinai/Horeb

    Mount Sinai is the mountain where Moses received the Law and the Ten Commandments from God (Exodus 19-20). The mountain is sometimes called Horeb in Scripture, and the two names generally refer to the same mountain or the surrounding mountain region.

  • Field Notes: Mount Tabor

    Mount Tabor rises prominently out of the Jezreel Valley in northern Israel. In the Old Testament, it served as a gathering point for Israelite forces when Barak assembled troops to face Sisera’s army (Judges 4:5-14). In Christian tradition, Mount Tabor is often identified as the site of the Transfiguration, where Jesus revealed His glory to…

  • Field Notes: Herod Agrippa II

    Herod Agrippa II was the son of Herod Agrippa I and the great-grandson of Herod the Great. Unlike his father, he never ruled the full kingdom of his grandfather, but instead governed smaller territories in the northern regions under Roman authority. He ruled as a King as his father had, though over smaller territories than…

  • Field Notes: Herod Agrippa I

    Herod Agrippa was a grandson of Herod the Great and the son of Aristobulus IV. Unlike the earlier division of his grandfather’s kingdom among several sons, Agrippa eventually ruled over nearly the entire territory that Herod the Great had once controlled. Agrippa first received territory in 37 AD, when the Roman emperor Caligula granted him…

  • Field Notes: Herod Philip (Philip the Tetrarch)

    Herod Philip, often called Philip the Tetrarch, was another son of Herod the Great. When his father’s kingdom was divided in 4 BC, Philip was given control of territories northeast of the Sea of Galilee, including Iturea and Trachonitis. He ruled at the same time as his brothers Archelaus and Antipas, each governing a portion…