Provided by ChatGPT on 9/13/2026.
Yale lectures and series
- Yale Bible Study: “Biblical Wisdom” with Dr. John Collins — six-session 2023 course, with both video and podcast versions. The sessions cover biblical wisdom literature, especially Proverbs, Job, and Ecclesiastes.[yalebiblestudy]
- Yale Bible Study lecture archive — the most useful central index for Collins material. It includes collections on Wisdom Literature, Daniel, Isaiah, and Yale Divinity School introductory Old Testament lectures shared with Robert Wilson; several entries provide video and/or podcast formats.[yalebiblestudy]
- “The Bible and the Apocalypse” — Yale Religion / Quadcast — 17-minute downloadable Yale podcast. Collins discusses what biblical texts actually say about the end of the world, the origins of apocalyptic literature, and common Christian misunderstandings of “end times.”[yalepodcasts.blubrry]
- “Is the Bible Relevant for Today?” — Yale Quadcast — Yale podcast interview addressing the contemporary relevance of the Bible, Collins’s work editing the Dead Sea Scrolls, and his broader approach to biblical interpretation.[yalepodcasts.blubrry]
- “A Conversation with John Collins” — Yale Divinity School — a Yale video conversation on biblical values and the course connected with his book What Are Biblical Values?[divinity.yale]
Dead Sea Scrolls and early Judaism
- “Investigating the Dead Sea Scrolls” — Maxwell Institute Podcast — an extended interview with an accompanying transcript. Particularly good as an introduction to what the Scrolls are, the Qumran community, their relevance to ancient Judaism and emerging Christianity, and the diversity of Judaism around the first century.[mi.byu]
- YouTube version: “Investigating the Dead Sea Scrolls, with John J. Collins” — the same Maxwell Institute conversation in video form.[youtube]
- “The Dead Sea Scrolls: A Biography” — Yale Divinity School lecture — Collins’s 2013 Yale lecture on the discovery, scholarly history, contents, and context of the Scrolls. A strong starting point if you want a lecture rather than an interview.[biblicalstudiesonline.wordpress]
- “The Place of Apocalypticism in the Dead Sea Scrolls” — a 2023 lecture released in 2024 by the Center for Near Eastern Archaeology. It focuses specifically on how apocalyptic thought functions in the Scrolls and in the movement associated with them.[youtube]
Apocalypticism, Daniel, and Hebrew Bible
- “An Introduction to Jewish Apocalyptic Literature” — a lecture-length introduction by Collins to Jewish apocalyptic writings, their major features, and their relation to the Dead Sea Scrolls and early Christianity.[youtube]
- Alternate upload: “An Introduction to Jewish Apocalyptic Literature” — another accessible version of the same or closely related presentation.[youtube]
- “Daniel’s Celestial Son of Man” — an interview/conversation focused on Daniel 7, the “one like a son of man,” and the wider Second Temple Jewish background relevant to later Christian readings.[youtube]
- “The Apocalyptic Imagination: A Conversation with Professor John J. Collins” — a substantial discussion of what “apocalyptic” means, why it emerged, and how it relates to Revelation and Jewish history.[youtube]
Hebrew Bible formation and public interviews
- “How the Old Testament Came to Be” — interview on the formation of the Hebrew Bible, textual plurality, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and texts such as the Temple Scroll.[youtube]
- “The Invention of Judaism?” — a longer 2026 public interview with Collins on the development of Judaism, biblical traditions, apocalypticism, and Second Temple history. The title is provocative, but the conversation itself is useful for hearing Collins explain his historical approach in accessible terms.[youtube]
- “The Invention of Judaism? Dr. John J. Collins Breaks It Down!” — another extended 2026 interview in a similar vein, including discussion of resurrection, apocalypticism, hidden knowledge, and the Dead Sea Scrolls.[youtube]
Suggested starting sequence
For your interests in Christian origins and ancient Hebrew faith, I would begin in this order:
- Investigating the Dead Sea Scrolls for a clear overview of the Scrolls and the Judaism from which Christianity emerged.[mi.byu]
- An Introduction to Jewish Apocalyptic Literature for Collins’s framework for understanding apocalyptic texts.[youtube]
- Daniel’s Celestial Son of Man for a focused bridge between Daniel, Second Temple Jewish interpretation, and later Christian thought.[youtube]
- Yale’s Biblical Wisdom series if you would also like Collins on Proverbs, Job, and Ecclesiastes rather than only apocalyptic themes.[yalebiblestudy]
Dr. John J. Collins,Yale biblical scholar of the Dead Sea Scrolls, Jewish apocalypticism, Daniel, and Second Temple Judaism—here is a curated listening/watch list.
Yale lectures and series
- Yale Bible Study: “Biblical Wisdom” with Dr. John Collins — six-session 2023 course, with both video and podcast versions. The sessions cover biblical wisdom literature, especially Proverbs, Job, and Ecclesiastes.[yalebiblestudy]
- Yale Bible Study lecture archive — the most useful central index for Collins material. It includes collections on Wisdom Literature, Daniel, Isaiah, and Yale Divinity School introductory Old Testament lectures shared with Robert Wilson; several entries provide video and/or podcast formats.[yalebiblestudy]
- “The Bible and the Apocalypse” — Yale Religion / Quadcast — 17-minute downloadable Yale podcast. Collins discusses what biblical texts actually say about the end of the world, the origins of apocalyptic literature, and common Christian misunderstandings of “end times.”[yalepodcasts.blubrry]
- “Is the Bible Relevant for Today?” — Yale Quadcast — Yale podcast interview addressing the contemporary relevance of the Bible, Collins’s work editing the Dead Sea Scrolls, and his broader approach to biblical interpretation.[yalepodcasts.blubrry]
- “A Conversation with John Collins” — Yale Divinity School — a Yale video conversation on biblical values and the course connected with his book What Are Biblical Values?[divinity.yale]
Dead Sea Scrolls and early Judaism
- “Investigating the Dead Sea Scrolls” — Maxwell Institute Podcast — an extended interview with an accompanying transcript. Particularly good as an introduction to what the Scrolls are, the Qumran community, their relevance to ancient Judaism and emerging Christianity, and the diversity of Judaism around the first century.[mi.byu]
- YouTube version: “Investigating the Dead Sea Scrolls, with John J. Collins” — the same Maxwell Institute conversation in video form.[youtube]
- “The Dead Sea Scrolls: A Biography” — Yale Divinity School lecture — Collins’s 2013 Yale lecture on the discovery, scholarly history, contents, and context of the Scrolls. A strong starting point if you want a lecture rather than an interview.[biblicalstudiesonline.wordpress]
- “The Place of Apocalypticism in the Dead Sea Scrolls” — a 2023 lecture released in 2024 by the Center for Near Eastern Archaeology. It focuses specifically on how apocalyptic thought functions in the Scrolls and in the movement associated with them.[youtube]
Apocalypticism, Daniel, and Hebrew Bible
- “An Introduction to Jewish Apocalyptic Literature” — a lecture-length introduction by Collins to Jewish apocalyptic writings, their major features, and their relation to the Dead Sea Scrolls and early Christianity.[youtube]
- Alternate upload: “An Introduction to Jewish Apocalyptic Literature” — another accessible version of the same or closely related presentation.[youtube]
- “Daniel’s Celestial Son of Man” — an interview/conversation focused on Daniel 7, the “one like a son of man,” and the wider Second Temple Jewish background relevant to later Christian readings.[youtube]
- “The Apocalyptic Imagination: A Conversation with Professor John J. Collins” — a substantial discussion of what “apocalyptic” means, why it emerged, and how it relates to Revelation and Jewish history.[youtube]
Hebrew Bible formation and public interviews
- “How the Old Testament Came to Be” — interview on the formation of the Hebrew Bible, textual plurality, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and texts such as the Temple Scroll.[youtube]
- “The Invention of Judaism?” — a longer 2026 public interview with Collins on the development of Judaism, biblical traditions, apocalypticism, and Second Temple history. The title is provocative, but the conversation itself is useful for hearing Collins explain his historical approach in accessible terms.[youtube]
- “The Invention of Judaism? Dr. John J. Collins Breaks It Down!” — another extended 2026 interview in a similar vein, including discussion of resurrection, apocalypticism, hidden knowledge, and the Dead Sea Scrolls.[youtube]
Suggested starting sequence
For your interests in Christian origins and ancient Hebrew faith, I would begin in this order:
- Investigating the Dead Sea Scrolls for a clear overview of the Scrolls and the Judaism from which Christianity emerged.[mi.byu]
- An Introduction to Jewish Apocalyptic Literature for Collins’s framework for understanding apocalyptic texts.[youtube]
- Daniel’s Celestial Son of Man for a focused bridge between Daniel, Second Temple Jewish interpretation, and later Christian thought.[youtube]
- Yale’s Biblical Wisdom series if you would also like Collins on Proverbs, Job, and Ecclesiastes rather than only apocalyptic themes.[yalebiblestudy]
