Lois Tverberg

Lois Tverberg has been speaking and writing about the Jewish background of Christianity for the past twenty-five years. Her passion is to translate the Bible’s ancient setting into fresh insights that deepen and strengthen Christian faith. Lois grew up with plenty of Sunday school knowledge, but it wasn’t until after she had earned a PhD in biology and was teaching as a college professor that her fascination for biblical study was ignited. She has since studied several times in Israel, taking courses in biblical Hebrew, Koine Greek, and in the physical and cultural context of the Bible. In 2009 Lois partnered with Ann Spangler to write the bestselling Sitting at the Feet of Rabbi Jesus (Zondervan). Together they explored his first-century world of rabbis and disciples, festivals, prayers and the Torah, and discovered how restoring Jesus to his Jewish reality sheds light on his life and ministry. Later Lois followed up with Walking in the Dust of Rabbi Jesus (Zondervan, 2012), where she challenged her audience to follow their Rabbi more closely by hearing his teachings in light of Jewish thought. Her most recent book was released in 2018: Reading the Bible with Rabbi Jesus (Baker). The book explores cultural ideas that separate modern readers from their Bibles, like Western vs Eastern thinking and individualism vs. group identity. She explains the Jewish habit of hinting to biblical texts and how Jesus used it to proclaim himself the Son of God. Lois brings to her writing a surprising set of tools from her training as a scientist. She received her BA in physics at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa, and her PhD in Molecular Physiology from the University of Iowa. She has published several scientific papers and holds a patent from her PhD research. For several years she taught biology at Hope College in Holland, Michigan. In 2001 she founded the En-Gedi Resource Center (EnGediResourceCenter.com), an educational ministry with a goal of deepening Christian understanding of the Bible in its context. There she published her first book, Listening to the Language of the Bible (En-Gedi Resource Center, 2004), a devotional guide to Hebrew words and ideas. Lois currently writes from her home in Holland, Michigan. Along with writing, she speaks at churches, conferences, and retreats. Her current news and articles are available on her website, Our Rabbi Jesus: His Jewish Life and Teaching, at OurRabbiJesus.com.