Uploaded July 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
This episode we wade into one of the ugliest lines in the Covenant Code: Exodus 22:29, which tells the Israelites to hand over their firstborn sons the same way they hand over their oxen and sheep. Dan M walks through why "give" here really does mean sacrifice, how Ezekiel tried to explain it away, and what the burned infant remains at Carthage reveal about Moloch — who may never have been a god at all. It's a grim topic handled carefully, and a useful reminder that everyone, always, has negotiated with the text.
(This is a portion of an episode that originally aired on August 28, 2023)
_______________________________________________
Get your "Tribe of Dan" merch at our new online store:
data-over-dogma-shop.fourthwall.com
Shop from our classic collection before the old store closes:
datadoverdogma.printful.me
_______________________________________________
Support Data Over Dogma and get every episode early and ad-free, plus exclusive bonus content — become a patron:
patreon.com/DataOverDogma
_______________________________________________
Listen to the podcast on every app:
pod.link/1681418502
_______________________________________________
Follow us:
Instagram — instagram.com/dataoverdogmapod
TikTok — tiktok.com/@data.over.dogma.pod
Threads — threads.com/@dataoverdogmapod
X — https://x.com/data_over_dogma
Facebook — facebook.com/DataOverDogmaPod
_______________________________________________
Get Dan McClellan's New York Times bestselling book, The Bible Says So:
static.macmillan.com/static/smp/bible-says-so-9781250347466
_______________________________________________
Chapters:
0:00 — Welcome and the Covenant Code
0:33 — How many commandments?
2:27 — Exodus 22:29
4:23 — "Give" or sacrifice?
6:00 — Ezekiel explains it
9:30 — Redeeming the firstborn
11:05 — Baked into the tradition
13:00 — A blanket commandment
14:30 — Evidence from Carthage
17:20 — Moloch: god or offering?
20:14 — Infant mortality and grief
21:36 — When does life begin?
26:37 — Ritual and causal opacity
28:15 — The law nobody keeps
_______________________________________________
#DataOverDogma #BibleScholarship #Moloch #Exodus #HebrewBible
This episode we wade into one of the ugliest lines in the Covenant Code: Exodus 22:29, which tells the Israelites to hand over their firstborn sons the same way they hand over their oxen and sheep. Dan M walks through why "give" here really does mean sacrifice, how Ezekiel tried to explain it away, and what the burned infant remains at Carthage reveal about Moloch — who may never have been a god at all. It's a grim topic handled carefully, and a useful reminder that everyone, always, has negotiated with the text.
(This is a portion of an episode that originally aired on August 28, 2023)
_______________________________________________
Get your "Tribe of Dan" merch at our new online store:
data-over-dogma-shop.fourthwall.com
Shop from our classic collection before the old store closes:
datadoverdogma.printful.me
_______________________________________________
Support Data Over Dogma and get every episode early and ad-free, plus exclusive bonus content — become a patron:
patreon.com/DataOverDogma
_______________________________________________
Listen to the podcast on every app:
pod.link/1681418502
_______________________________________________
Follow us:
Instagram — instagram.com/dataoverdogmapod
TikTok — tiktok.com/@data.over.dogma.pod
Threads — threads.com/@dataoverdogmapod
X — https://x.com/data_over_dogma
Facebook — facebook.com/DataOverDogmaPod
_______________________________________________
Get Dan McClellan's New York Times bestselling book, The Bible Says So:
static.macmillan.com/static/smp/bible-says-so-9781250347466
_______________________________________________
Chapters:
0:00 — Welcome and the Covenant Code
0:33 — How many commandments?
2:27 — Exodus 22:29
4:23 — "Give" or sacrifice?
6:00 — Ezekiel explains it
9:30 — Redeeming the firstborn
11:05 — Baked into the tradition
13:00 — A blanket commandment
14:30 — Evidence from Carthage
17:20 — Moloch: god or offering?
20:14 — Infant mortality and grief
21:36 — When does life begin?
26:37 — Ritual and causal opacity
28:15 — The law nobody keeps
_______________________________________________
#DataOverDogma #BibleScholarship #Moloch #Exodus #HebrewBible
