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“Exegetically Speaking” is a weekly podcast of the friends and faculty of Wheaton College, IL and The Lanier Theological Library. Hosted by Dr. David Capes, it features language experts who discuss the importance of learning the biblical languages—Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek—and show how reading the Bible in the original languages “pays off.” Each podcast lasts between seven and eleven minutes and covers a different topic for those who want to read the Bible for all it is worth.

If you're interested in going deeper, learn more about Wheaton's undergraduate degree in Classical Languages (Greek, Hebrew, and Latin) and our MA in Biblical Exegesis

You can hear Exegetically Speaking on Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube. If you have questions or comments, please contact us at exegetically.speaking@wheaton.edu. And keep listening. 

Sep 22, 2025

Modern students of biblical Hebrew learn that the “pointing” (symbols for vowels) of the commonly used Masoretic text of the OT was added to the Hebrew consonants in the medieval period, and that the meaning of a passage can depend on the pointing used. Depending on the pointing chosen, Jeremiah 7:7 can be translated as, “I will let you dwell in this place,” or as, “I will dwell with you in this place.” Was the ambiguity of the unpointed text intentional?  James Hoffmeier is Professor Emeritus of Old Testament and Near Eastern History and Archaeology at (former) Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. His publications include The Archaeology of the Bible and Akhenaten and the Origins of Monotheism

Check out related programs at Wheaton College:

B.A. in Classical Languages (Greek, Latin, Hebrew): https://bit.ly/4nmygUL

M.A. in Biblical Exegesis: https://bit.ly/4pvq85V