Marc Turnage: Land, Faith, and Legacy

If parts of the Bible feel distant or confusing, the problem is often the missing world behind the text. The writers assumed their first readers knew the land, the history, and the customs, so they never explained them. Read the Bible in its world first, then ask what it means for yours. You'll start hearing passages the way they were meant to be heard.

Why does the land matter when you read the Bible?

The land matters because it shapes what happens in the story. Bible scholar Dr. Marc Turnage of Biblical Expeditions put it this way on Beyond Sunday: the land of the Bible is "as much a character as Abraham and David."

Hills, valleys, water, plants, climate, and geology influence how events unfold, why a battle turns, and why a prophet uses a certain image. The biblical writers assumed you knew all of it. Dr. Turnage compared them to Tolkien, who gave his readers appendices explaining Middle Earth. Moses and the prophets gave no appendices. For example, a phrase like "going up to Jerusalem" can slip right past you unless you know Jerusalem sits high in the hill country.

That is why a good habit for any reader is to keep a Bible map close. When a passage names a place, find it. Ask what the ground looks like there and what it would take to travel to it.

Why do you need to know when, not just where?

You need to know when because the same place changes over time. Historical geography is the study of how people lived on a piece of land at a specific moment in history. It keeps you from flattening the Bible into one time period.

Israel's borders shift across the Old Testament. Under David and Solomon the twelve tribes formed one kingdom. After Solomon's son Rehoboam took the throne, ten northern tribes broke away. The land split into Israel in the north and Judah in the south. The Jerusalem of David also looks nothing like the Jerusalem of Jesus. In David's day, worship happened at a tabernacle, a tent. By Jesus' day, the temple in Jerusalem was the most mentioned place in the New Testament, and the city lived under Roman rule.

Dr. Turnage offered a simple comparison: Philadelphia in 1776 looked very different from Philadelphia today. You understand that without thinking about it. Bring the same instinct to Scripture. Before you ask what a prophet means, ask who he was speaking to and where they were living at the time.

How did faith work in the ancient world?

In the ancient world, faith touched every part of life. Many people today treat faith as private and inward, something separate from work, law, or family. Dr. Turnage noted that this way of thinking is only about 200 years old in the Western world.

In the Bible's world, religion took in worship, liturgy, custom, law, and family, and it was tied to a place. That helps explain God's covenant with Israel. A covenant is a binding relationship God establishes with His people. With Israel, it always comes back to God Himself and His exclusive claim on His people. It also comes back to the land He promised to their fathers and the laws and worship He gave them. When the prophets confront the people, they confront them around that pattern.

It also explains first century hopes. For a Jew in Jesus' day, Roman rule meant being governed by idol worshipers. That raised hard questions about God's promises and how He would redeem His people.

What does it mean to be a disciple?

A disciple is a student. Dr. Turnage pointed out that both the Greek word translated "disciple" and its Hebrew equivalent mean a student. There is no being a disciple without study. He sees a clear picture of discipleship in Ezra.

For Ezra had devoted himself to the study and observance of the Law of the LORD, and to teaching its decrees and laws in Israel.

Ezra 7:10

Study, do, teach. That gives you three honest questions to measure your own growth. Are you becoming a better student of Scripture? Are you living what you learn? And are you growing to the point where you could help someone else do the same? Jesus sent His followers to make disciples, and disciples are the ones who make disciples.

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.

Matthew 28:19-20

Dr. Turnage said much of what he learned while studying in Israel came outside the classroom, around his professors' tables. There they showed him how to think through a text. Discipleship works best that way: someone takes you by the hand and shows you how.

Is discipleship something you ever finish?

No. Discipleship is a lifelong practice, not a class you graduate from. Dr. Turnage used a running illustration: if you ran one marathon, got the bumper sticker, and never ran again, you wouldn't stay fit.

He described rereading the Gospel of Luke, a book he has spent countless hours in, and noticing something he had never seen before. As your study habits improve, you return to familiar passages and catch details you missed. On the episode, Pastor Sean Sloan called it a way of life.

Why are "I don't know" and "I was wrong" signs of maturity?

Saying "I don't know" and "I was wrong" shows you're still learning. Many Christians assume maturity means having every answer. Dr. Turnage suggested the opposite. He told of a teacher in Israel who wrote thousands of articles and hundreds of books. When students noticed his class notes disagreed with something he had written earlier, he had two answers. Either he wrote that "when I was stupid," or he hoped he was still permitted to learn at his age.

That humility makes you easier to teach and easier to talk to. Instead of defending every opinion, you can say, "I don't know, but let's find out together."

The same humility helps with hard topics in the news. The episode looked at how biblical Israel relates to the modern state of Israel. Dr. Turnage argued that two opposite claims both miss: that there is no connection at all, and that the two are simply the same. He traced a real continuity in the Jewish people and their prayers. He also noted that modern borders have never matched biblical Israel one to one at any point. His wider point applies to any subject: learn the history before you settle on an opinion.

Common questions

Why does geography matter for reading the Bible?

The biblical writers assumed their readers knew the land. Hills, roads, water, and climate shape many stories and prophecies. Knowing the setting and the period helps you hear a passage the way its first audience did.

What does the word disciple mean?

In both Greek and Hebrew, the word translated disciple means a student. Ezra 7:10 gives a pattern: study God's Word, do it, and teach it to others. Discipleship is a lifelong practice, not a course you finish.

Is modern Israel the same as biblical Israel?

Dr. Marc Turnage argues it is neither completely separate nor exactly the same. He sees real continuity in the Jewish people and their worship, while the modern state's borders have never matched biblical Israel at any single period.

How should Christians form opinions on hard topics?

With humility. Study the history first, read beyond the sources you already agree with, and be willing to say "I don't know" or "I was wrong."