Talbot School of Theology
Small Group - A Virtual Walk through the Land of the Bible
Discover how your knowledge of Biblical geography can cultivate an appreciation for the land of the Bible.
Enroll NowSample Course
$24.996 LessonsWorkshop
Overview

Have you ever wanted to go to Israel to see the lands of the Bible? If so, then this course is just what you're looking for because it allows you to “journey” throughout Israel without leaving your home. This small group version is a slightly shortened selection of videos that fits well with a six week Bible study model. The discussion questions also provide a constructive way for small groups to engage the material as a community as they seek to learn the significance of the material for studying the Bible and for life today.

In each of the six lessons in this course, Dr. Charlie Trimm will take you through many of the major sites related to the Bible to see what they look like and how the geographical features (like roads and hills) affect the biblical stories.These lessons will help solidify your understanding of the geography, especially in how the various sites fit together. In addition, the featured drone footage provides a birds-eye view of the sites that are inaccessible while walking around the site in person.

At the end of this course, you will:

  • Learn the names and locations of the most important cities and regions in Israel.
  • Learn how geography affects events in the Bible (primarily roads and hills), helping you to better explain why events unfold as they do.
  • Develop a greater confidence in reading the Bible as the named locations (generally skipped over) are made real to you.

Each lesson contains:

  • 4-5 video lectures
  • A reading activity
  • 4-5 reflection questions

Are you interested in the longer version of this course? Follow this link to access the 8-week A Virtual Walk through the Land of the Bible course.

What You Earn
Topics
Instructor
EDIT
Dr. Charlie Trimm
Talbot School of Theology

About the Course Authors

Dr. Charlie Trimm loves to inspire students to recognize the beauty of the Old Testament and its relevance for the life of the church today. Having served for several years in pastoral ministry, he strives to encourage the spiritual growth of his students in all his classes. He received his Ph.D. from Wheaton College in 2012, writing his dissertation on God acting as a divine warrior in the exodus. His research interests include warfare in the ancient Near East, the family in the Old Testament, and difficult topics relating to the ethics of God in the Old Testament. He studied for a year at Hebrew University in Jerusalem in 2004, lived six months in Jerusalem with his family for a sabbatical in 2019, and has been involved with several student trips to Israel. He is married to Mariah, has four children, Eily, Kellen, Brynne and Deklan. When he is not teaching, he can often be found watching soccer.

Dr. Ken Way's passion is teaching the Old Testament in its ancient Near Eastern environment. His research interests include the Pentateuch, the books of Judges and Ruth, Israelite religion/archaeology, Northwest Semitic inscriptions, and the fauna of the ancient Near East. He also leads occasional tours to Israel, and has been published in Ugarit-Forschungen, Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, Journal of Biblical Literature, Levant, Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society, and in various dictionaries and edited volumes. Ever since his college days, Dr. Way has sensed God's calling to teach the Bible (especially Old Testament) in an academic setting and to mentor students who desire more of God in their lives.Dr. Way holds a Ph.D. and M.Phil. from Hebrew Union College, an M.A. from Trinity International University, and a B.A. from the Moody Bible Institute. Before coming to Biola in 2007, he taught at Indiana Wesleyan University, Xavier University, and Trinity International University.

The Talbot School of Theology
is a theologically conservative, evangelical seminary in Southern California near Los Angeles. With over a 60-year heritage of biblical fidelity, the seminary couples solid evangelical scholarship with spiritual formation to prepare students for a lifetime of relevant, effective ministry. The seminary's master's degree programs and doctoral degree programs are led by a faculty of nationally renowned, widely-published and actively engaged ministry leaders.

Learn more about Biola University's Talbot School of Theology!

Syllabus

In this first lesson, we will begin our journey...
Overview
Download a Sample Course Pack and a Map of Israel
Resource
Introduction to the Land of Israel
Video
Historical Geography
Video
Megiddo Overview
Video
Megiddo: The Site
Video
Megiddo: Josiah
Video
Having learned about Megiddo in the western...
Overview
Introduction to the Jezreel Valley
Video
Gideon
Video
Beth Shean: Saul
Video
The Land Division
Video
Project
Resource
Reflecting on the Jezreel Valley
Discussion
The north is a beautiful well-watered part of...
Overview
The North and Dan
Video
Dan: Division of the Kingdom
Video
Hazor
Video
Project
Resource
Reflecting on the Northern Part of Israel
Discussion
Leaving the green and verdant north, we will...
Overview
The South
Video
Arad
Video
Beersheba
Video
Dead Sea
Video
En Gedi Overview
Video
Project
Resource
Reflecting on the South and the Dead Sea
Discussion
This lesson will examine why some of the most...
Overview
Beth Shemesh
Video
Elah Valley
Video
Lachish
Video
Project
Resource
Reflecting on the Judean Hills
Discussion
The central hill country was the heartland of...
Overview
Hill Country
Video
Shechem
Video
Jerusalem
Video
Project
Resource
Reflecting on the Hill Country
Discussion
Recommended Resources
Resource
Course Evaluation
Resource

Course FAQ

Each lesson is designed to take approximately 1-2 hours, depending on how deeply you engage the reflection and discussion questions. Since this is a self-paced course, the time it will take you to complete it will depend on the speed with which you want to progress through the course.

No. The course contains everything you need to successfully complete the course.