An Overview of

**“The Institute of Biblical Israel“**

SHALOM! Are you a student of the Bible who desires to go deeper into God’s Word? Do you long to understand the many stories of the Bible in the context of the land of Israel? Perhaps you have been blessed to have visited Israel yourself. If you have, then you know what we mean about having the Bible come alive in spectacular ways! However, most Christians have not been to Israel and lack a first-hand encounter with the land. This is why The Institute of Biblical Israel can help you understand the Bible at a life-changing level.

We have two eye-opening courses:

Physical Settings of the Bible (14 sessions and 7.5 hours of teaching)
Dig It! Biblical Archaeology (20 sessions and 14 hours of teaching)

This is why we here at BIMT are excited to partner with The Institute of Biblical Israel. In fact, our very own director, Dr. John DeLancey, has launched this on-line opportunity for you to take Bible courses that are carefully designed help you learn God’s Word in the context of the land. The ultimate purpose of The Institute of Biblical Israel is to help equip you with a deeper knowledge of the Bible, the land, and ultimately what it means to live out your faith in Christ!

Click the button below to go directly to The Institute and start any of these Bible courses! If you want to watch the 5 minute Previews of both courses, links are also provided below. We really believe that taking these courses would be a wonderful learning experience if you have not been to Israel yourself. It would be the next-best-thing of being there! Additionally, these courses would also be are a great way to both prepare for a trip to Israel or help you expand your knowledge deeper if you already have been to Israel.

The Institute of Biblical Israel

Our First Course – “Physical Settings of the Bible“

Our first course is called “Physical Settings of the Bible.” The intent and design of the course taught by Dr. John Delancey is to introduce you to the geography, topography, and the regions of the land of Israel. The country is unique in many ways. It is complete with high mountains, low valleys, hills, and deserts. Israel has the lowest place on earth (the Dead Sea at 1,400 below sea level), yet about 120 miles north of the Dead Sea Israel has a 7,200+ foot mountain that is snow-capped half of the year!

So the 14 teaching sessions created for this course will help you learn the land. After all, the land served as the playing board for most of the Bible. And getting to know the playing board of the Bible is an important part of learning the Bible! It’s no different than learning to play the game of Monopoly or Chess. Before you can play the game, you first need to know how the board is set up. It’s the same for learning the Bible in context.

The course is designed to have you take the classes at your leisure. There are no deadlines or time-schedules to complete any of the classes. You simply purchase the course and proceed through it as your own pace! As you walk through each class, I will be always available for any questions or comments you may want to share. I will also be setting up occasional Zoom “Q & A” sessions along the way.

The Physical Settings of the Bible course consists of 14 total sessions and 7.5 hours of teaching:

7 individual lecture sessions totaling about 3.8 hours of teaching. The sessions are as follows:
- Introduction (22 minutes)
- Regions of the Land 1 (43 minutes)
- Regions of the Land 2 (25 minutes)
- Regions of the Land 3 (27 minutes)
- Routes & Ancient Cities 1 (45 minutes)
- Routes & Ancient Cities 2 (29 minutes)
- Routes, Ancient Cities & Water (42 minutes)

7 Map-Marking sessions totaling 3.7 hours of teaching. We will be using the Regions on the Run & Map Set from Biblical Backgrounds. You will need to purchase your own set of 7 maps if you want to mark your own maps. Other than being in the land on an Israel study tour with Dr. John, this is the very best way to learn the land. Go HERE to purchase your set of maps. The maps can be purchased alone HERE for $21.00 (plus $8.05 shipping). If you want, you can purchase the Regions on the Run and the map set is $48.00.
Please know that you can also simply follow Dr. John’s own map-marking if you decide not to purchase the map set. The sessions are as follows:
- Map Marking 1 (38 minutes)
- Map Marking 2 (31 minutes)
- Map Marking 3 (33 minutes)
- Map Marking 4 (25 minutes)
- Map Marking 5 (38 minutes)
- Map Marking 6 (39 minutes)
- Map Marking 7 (28 minutes)

Most of the biblical stories we read about took place somewhere on the land, whether we talking about Abraham, Joshua, David, or Jesus! We will also study the topography in such a way that you’ll become familiar with the natural routes and passes within the land. We will also introduce some of the Biblical cities that were positioned on these routes for strategic purposes. You are going to have fun as we help you connect the dots between the land and the Bible!

Begin the Physical Settings Course

Our Second Course – “Dig It! Biblical Archaeology”

Our second course is called “Dig It! Biblical Archaeology.” The intent and design of the course taught by Dr. John Delancey is to introduce you to the archaeological world of Israel as it relates to the Bible. Dr. John brings a wealth of information to this course. He studied archaeology in Jerusalem for one year (1981-82), has excavated at 6 sites to date, and has led 72 Israel trips to date. This archaeology course is designed to connect you with the Bible as much as possible. The course includes traveling to 25 different sites. Additionally, four entire sessions are dedicated to Jerusalem. We also visit the Israel Museum for 2 sessions. The material covered in this class is college-seminary level.

The course has 20 sessions, totaling 14 hours of teaching. Like our first course (Physical Settings of the Bible), you can watch each video lecture at your own pace. There is no “start” or “ending” time for the course. You simply purchase the course and proceed through it as your own pace. You can watch any session as many times as you want!

The Dig It! Biblical Archaeology consists of 20 session and 14 hours of teaching:

Introduction Session (51 minutes)
History & Principles of Archaeology (45 minutes)
Dates & Terminology of Archaeology (44 minutes)
Methodology of Archaeology & Sample Digs (47 minutes)
Biblical Sites A – Megiddo, Gezer (44 minutes)
Biblical Sites B – Caesarea, Jericho (48 minutes)
Biblical Sites C – Lachish, Capernaum (42 minutes)
Biblical Sites D – Beth Shean, Qumran (45 minutes)
Biblical Sites E – Gath, Gamla, Magdala (35 minutes)
Biblical Sites F – Shiloh, Sepphoris, Caesarea Philippi (43 minutes)
Biblical Sites G – Hazor, Chorazin, Bethsaida (53 minutes)
Biblical Sites H – Arad, Beersheba, Masada (55 minutes)
Bible Sites I – Dan, Beth Shemesh, Ashkelon, Herodium (68 minutes)
Jerusalem Old Testament A (49 minutes)
Jerusalem Old Testament B (49 minutes)
Jerusalem New Testament A (55 minutes)
Jerusalem New Testament B (53 minutes)
Israel Museum A (43 minutes)
Israel Museum B (30 minutes)
Closing Session (10 minutes)

This course is going to be both exciting and insightful. You will be amazing to learn how many archaeological discoveries connect us to the Bible! On a regular basis, the world of archaeology continues to reveal and confirm the historicity of the Bible.

Begin the Dig It! Biblical Archaeology Course

Facts & Details about The Institute

The idea of The Institute of Biblical Israel has been percolating in the heart of Dr. John for a few years now. This on-line school has been created for the serious Bible student who wants to explore deeper about the Bible in context. While The Institute is not a degree program but is taught at a college-level. We hope it will serve as a wonderful opportunity to people around the world to take classes related to the Bible. Many people (perhaps you?) cannot or will never attend a Bible College or seminary of any kind, yet they yearn for a formal academically-oriented experience. We are confident that The Institute will provide such an learning experience! We hope everyone, from lay people who serve God’s church to pastors alike, take advantage of out eye-opening teaching.

This on-line teaching has been created through the Thinkific platform. This platform is leading the way with on-line instruction around the world. We have been impressed with what Thinkific offers the students and instructors alike. Once you sign up for the course, you will have full access to watching these classes at your leisure. A few resources are available for download. Other resources through BIMT (such as topography maps, drone videos, aerial photos, and Dr. John’s book) are also all available for purchase through the BIMT web site store.

**The Cost of the “Physical Settings of the Bible” Course**

Given the time involved to create these courses and the expertise, Dr. John shares with the students, there is a tuition cost for each course. It also helps support this teaching ministry. The fee for each course has been reduced to about half the cost of other courses like this to enable more people to sign up and take our courses. The course can be paid safely and securely by credit card (secure through Stripe) or by PayPal. All funds are in US dollars.

The Cost for the “Physical Settings of the Bible” Course

Reduced from $159.00 to just $89.00. An additional discount of $40.00 applies for anyone who has traveled with Dr. John & BIMT in the past or is presently signed up for a future trip with BIMT. This makes the cost of the course only $49.00.
For anyone who has traveled with or is presently signed up for any tour through imagine Tours & Travel (the travel company BIMT exclusively uses), the same discounted price of $49.00 applies to you as well! If you are pastor and/or are involved in full-time Christian ministry of the church, a price of $25.00 is set aside for you. We want this course to enhance your church ministry and be a blessing to you as well!
To obtain the discount code, simply contact Dr. John DeLancey (Drjohn@biblicalisraeltours.com) and a special code will be emailed back to you. You will use this coupon at checkout as you register for the course!

The Cost for the “Dig It! Biblical Archaeology” Course

Reduced from $229.00 to just $129.00. An additional discount of $50.00 applies for anyone who has traveled with Dr. John & BIMT in the past or is presently signed up for a future trip with BIMT. This makes the cost of the course only $79.00.
For anyone who has traveled with or is presently signed up for any tour through imagine Tours & Travel (the travel company BIMT exclusively uses), the same discounted price of $79.00 applies to you as well! If you are pastor and/or are involved in full-time Christian ministry of the church, a price of $59.00 is set aside for you. We want this course to enhance your church ministry and be a blessing to you as well!
To obtain the discount code, simply contact Dr. John DeLancey (Drjohn@biblicalisraeltours.com) and a special code will be emailed back to you. You will use this coupon at checkout as you register for the course!