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The Real Origins of the Ten Commandments

Gary Dincher
/
Flickr

Louisiana just passed a law that puts the Ten Commandments in public classrooms. That got us thinking: Where do the Ten Commandments really come from?

Our guest is the scholar Dan McClellan. He told us all about the biblical origins of the Ten Commandments, as well their historical beginnings. The short version is: It’s complicated. There were publicly displayed laws in the ancient world, and many of those found their way into the Bible. There’s also a lot more than just Ten commandments, depending where you look, and some of them say some pretty wild things — like you should sacrifice your firstborn. Oh, and the actual movie “The Ten Commandments” plays a big part in this story, too.

GUEST

Dan McClellan | Public scholar of the Bible and religion, co-host of the podcast “Data Over Dogma,” and an honorary fellow at the University of Birmingham’s Cadbury Centre for the Public Understanding of Religion.

Airdate: Thursday, July 18, 2024 at 9 a.m. and Saturday, July 20, 2024 at 11 a.m.

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