Kaz Hayashi (林 和行)
@kazhayashi.bsky.social
PhD Hebrew Bible / Old Testament || Associate Professor of Old Testament at Bethel University/Seminary || Biblical Archaeologist || Bible and Christianity in Japan, Anime, and Manga
Pinned
I appeared on the third episode of the History Channel's Holy Marvels, titled "An Eye for an Eye." You can see me commenting on Japan's samurai and Bushido culture.
My professor Jim Nogalski at Baylor University wrote this murder mystery novel with Wipf and Stock publishers! So stoked to read it!
November 23, 2025 at 11:22 PM
My professor Jim Nogalski at Baylor University wrote this murder mystery novel with Wipf and Stock publishers! So stoked to read it!
For those attending SBL, I look forward to seeing you tonight!
November 23, 2025 at 8:54 PM
For those attending SBL, I look forward to seeing you tonight!
A full but exciting day 1 of SBL is done! I attended really insightful papers, and shown is the photo is the Chronicles-Ezra-Nehemiah session I presented at (I’m in the crowd). My paper was very well received with a great discussion which followed!
November 23, 2025 at 4:34 AM
A full but exciting day 1 of SBL is done! I attended really insightful papers, and shown is the photo is the Chronicles-Ezra-Nehemiah session I presented at (I’m in the crowd). My paper was very well received with a great discussion which followed!
And my computer decides to die on me in the day I give my paper for SBL….
a cartoon of a raccoon looking at a computer screen with cn hd written in the corner
ALT: a cartoon of a raccoon looking at a computer screen with cn hd written in the corner
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November 22, 2025 at 2:22 PM
And my computer decides to die on me in the day I give my paper for SBL….
My first day at IBR is done! My IBR paper on the sabbath in Chronicles was well received and I look forward to the first day at SBL!
November 22, 2025 at 10:56 AM
My first day at IBR is done! My IBR paper on the sabbath in Chronicles was well received and I look forward to the first day at SBL!
Tomorrow I’ll be presenting my paper at the Chronicles-Ezra-Nehemiah session at SBL!
All the papers in the session are previews of chapters from a forthcoming book!
All the papers in the session are previews of chapters from a forthcoming book!
November 21, 2025 at 11:27 AM
Tomorrow I’ll be presenting my paper at the Chronicles-Ezra-Nehemiah session at SBL!
All the papers in the session are previews of chapters from a forthcoming book!
All the papers in the session are previews of chapters from a forthcoming book!
Boston here I come!
November 20, 2025 at 11:00 PM
Boston here I come!
Note to self. It’s not a good idea to be teaching a full time load, plus an overload class, and to write two conferences papers. But the papers are written and forgive me if a snooze off during a session at SBL.
a close up of a cat 's face with a blurry background
ALT: a close up of a cat 's face with a blurry background
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November 20, 2025 at 4:19 PM
Note to self. It’s not a good idea to be teaching a full time load, plus an overload class, and to write two conferences papers. But the papers are written and forgive me if a snooze off during a session at SBL.
Bethel Seminary is hiring! We are looking for a Program Director for Competency-Based Theological Education Program! Please share this post with anyone who might be interested! staffcareers-bethel.icims.com/jobs/2186/pr...
I’d be happy to meet at IBR/SBL to talk about this opportunity!
I’d be happy to meet at IBR/SBL to talk about this opportunity!
Program Director for Competency-Based Theological Education Program in St. Paul, Minnesota | Careers at Bethel Seminary
The Program Director for the Competency-Based Theological Education (CBTE) Program will provide strategic and operational leadership for a new, mission-advancing initiative within Bethel Seminary.
...
staffcareers-bethel.icims.com
November 18, 2025 at 3:12 PM
Bethel Seminary is hiring! We are looking for a Program Director for Competency-Based Theological Education Program! Please share this post with anyone who might be interested! staffcareers-bethel.icims.com/jobs/2186/pr...
I’d be happy to meet at IBR/SBL to talk about this opportunity!
I’d be happy to meet at IBR/SBL to talk about this opportunity!
This Friday at IBR/SBL I'll be presenting a paper on the notion of sabbath in Chronicles!
I'll be joined by papers by stellar scholars and look forward to the responses by @AubreyBuster and Paul Evans!
I hope to see you there!
I'll be joined by papers by stellar scholars and look forward to the responses by @AubreyBuster and Paul Evans!
I hope to see you there!
November 17, 2025 at 3:14 PM
This Friday at IBR/SBL I'll be presenting a paper on the notion of sabbath in Chronicles!
I'll be joined by papers by stellar scholars and look forward to the responses by @AubreyBuster and Paul Evans!
I hope to see you there!
I'll be joined by papers by stellar scholars and look forward to the responses by @AubreyBuster and Paul Evans!
I hope to see you there!
Me watching Physical Asia
a group of baseball players wearing face masks with japan on their jerseys
ALT: a group of baseball players wearing face masks with japan on their jerseys
media.tenor.com
November 14, 2025 at 1:07 PM
Me watching Physical Asia
Happy to finally see my chapter in print! In“YHWH the Tyrant!?” I analyze the depiction and role the God of the Hebrew Bible play in anime/manga! I argue how the memory of Christian colonialism is reflected in the negative portrayal of YHWH as a foreign deity who opposes Japanese beliefs/traditions
October 29, 2025 at 8:35 PM
Happy to finally see my chapter in print! In“YHWH the Tyrant!?” I analyze the depiction and role the God of the Hebrew Bible play in anime/manga! I argue how the memory of Christian colonialism is reflected in the negative portrayal of YHWH as a foreign deity who opposes Japanese beliefs/traditions
It’s a month out from SBL! I need to finish that paper…
Scared Spongebob GIF
ALT: Scared Spongebob GIF
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October 28, 2025 at 1:53 PM
It’s a month out from SBL! I need to finish that paper…
Another major find connecting Israel and Assyria! www.haaretz.com/archaeology/...
Archaeologists stunned by lavish Assyrian-period tomb in northern Israel
Hundreds of Luxury Artifacts Accompanied the 2,700-year-old Burial. Could These Be the Remains of an Assyrian Governor Who Ruled Over the Vanquished Kingdom of Israel?
www.haaretz.com
October 26, 2025 at 5:53 PM
Another major find connecting Israel and Assyria! www.haaretz.com/archaeology/...
I had a wonderful time teaching a doctoral intensive on the Book of Ezra! As it is a book often quoted as a paradigm of leadership, my doctorate in ministry students studied how to exegete the text and to apply it to their own ministry context!
October 25, 2025 at 11:37 AM
I had a wonderful time teaching a doctoral intensive on the Book of Ezra! As it is a book often quoted as a paradigm of leadership, my doctorate in ministry students studied how to exegete the text and to apply it to their own ministry context!
This is an exciting find that accords with the biblical events happening around the time of Hezekiah!
www.timesofisrael.com/biblical-tax...
www.timesofisrael.com/biblical-tax...
Biblical tax notice: 1st-ever Assyrian inscription found near Jerusalem’s Temple Mount
2,700-year-old fragment of pottery suggests Judeans delayed paying their tributes to the empire, echoing the events described in the book of II Kings
www.timesofisrael.com
October 23, 2025 at 12:49 PM
This is an exciting find that accords with the biblical events happening around the time of Hezekiah!
www.timesofisrael.com/biblical-tax...
www.timesofisrael.com/biblical-tax...
In our digital age when we just look up passages in the Bible,I am increasingly realizing how many pastors no longer can list the books of the Bible in order. While this may not concern many, this means that they are not able to summarize the overarching story of the Bible.
October 14, 2025 at 12:13 PM
In our digital age when we just look up passages in the Bible,I am increasingly realizing how many pastors no longer can list the books of the Bible in order. While this may not concern many, this means that they are not able to summarize the overarching story of the Bible.
Starting the academic year with communion. The right way to acknowledge how our teaching is rooted in Christ’s work!
August 18, 2025 at 5:14 PM
Starting the academic year with communion. The right way to acknowledge how our teaching is rooted in Christ’s work!
Just so people know, Junia in the Bible is not only a woman, but she was an apostle, and Paul regarded her as an outstanding apostle. (I spoke with multiple Christian women this summer who thought Junia was a man and they had no clue there were female apostles).
August 16, 2025 at 4:03 PM
Just so people know, Junia in the Bible is not only a woman, but she was an apostle, and Paul regarded her as an outstanding apostle. (I spoke with multiple Christian women this summer who thought Junia was a man and they had no clue there were female apostles).
Good bye summer break and productive writing. Welcome back hours and hours and hours and hours of emails, meetings, and committee work.
a cartoon llama from the emperor 's new groove is sad because it 's the end of summer .
ALT: a cartoon llama from the emperor 's new groove is sad because it 's the end of summer .
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August 15, 2025 at 10:20 PM
Good bye summer break and productive writing. Welcome back hours and hours and hours and hours of emails, meetings, and committee work.
The popular contemporary worship song by Chris Tomlin “I will follow” is using a verse a bit out of context. “where you go I’ll go, where you stay I’ll stay,” is from the book of Ruth and it’s about following Naomi and not God. The point is, how we love other/neighbors is also an act of worship.
a man singing into a microphone with a guitar in front of him
ALT: a man singing into a microphone with a guitar in front of him
media.tenor.com
August 12, 2025 at 1:29 PM
The popular contemporary worship song by Chris Tomlin “I will follow” is using a verse a bit out of context. “where you go I’ll go, where you stay I’ll stay,” is from the book of Ruth and it’s about following Naomi and not God. The point is, how we love other/neighbors is also an act of worship.
After three grueling and busy first three years as a professor (constantly writing new lectures, dealing with institutional restructuring, researching etc.) I’m back practicing martial arts.
two people are fighting in a dark room with a sign above them that says ' samurai '
ALT: two people are fighting in a dark room with a sign above them that says ' samurai '
media.tenor.com
August 3, 2025 at 9:32 AM
After three grueling and busy first three years as a professor (constantly writing new lectures, dealing with institutional restructuring, researching etc.) I’m back practicing martial arts.
I was able to complete and submit an article I’ve been working on this summer!
a cartoon hand is pressing a send button on a screen .
ALT: a cartoon hand is pressing a send button on a screen .
media.tenor.com
August 1, 2025 at 12:29 AM
I was able to complete and submit an article I’ve been working on this summer!
I've been doing research on idols & idolatry for a conference and have been playing Kpop Demon Hunter's song "Your Idol" on repeat!
It surprisingly has some points right: Idolatry is prayers offered to other gods, but it is also the desire to replace God with something/one.
It surprisingly has some points right: Idolatry is prayers offered to other gods, but it is also the desire to replace God with something/one.
a man wearing a hat and a necklace with a purple face
ALT: a man wearing a hat and a necklace with a purple face
media.tenor.com
July 30, 2025 at 3:31 PM
I've been doing research on idols & idolatry for a conference and have been playing Kpop Demon Hunter's song "Your Idol" on repeat!
It surprisingly has some points right: Idolatry is prayers offered to other gods, but it is also the desire to replace God with something/one.
It surprisingly has some points right: Idolatry is prayers offered to other gods, but it is also the desire to replace God with something/one.
I've been researching the Persians for years and lived in Waco TX, while studying at Baylor.
I just learned that Waco's infamous Branch Davidian leader changed his name to David Koresh based on the Hebrew name of King Cyrus/Koresh! (I read about this in Edwin Yamauchi's commentary on Ezra).
I just learned that Waco's infamous Branch Davidian leader changed his name to David Koresh based on the Hebrew name of King Cyrus/Koresh! (I read about this in Edwin Yamauchi's commentary on Ezra).
a man wearing a black shirt with the word reebok on the collar
ALT: a man wearing a black shirt with the word reebok on the collar
media.tenor.com
July 3, 2025 at 2:36 PM
I've been researching the Persians for years and lived in Waco TX, while studying at Baylor.
I just learned that Waco's infamous Branch Davidian leader changed his name to David Koresh based on the Hebrew name of King Cyrus/Koresh! (I read about this in Edwin Yamauchi's commentary on Ezra).
I just learned that Waco's infamous Branch Davidian leader changed his name to David Koresh based on the Hebrew name of King Cyrus/Koresh! (I read about this in Edwin Yamauchi's commentary on Ezra).