Brandon Hurlbert
Visiting Assistant Professor
Howard College of Arts and Sciences
Biblical and Religious Studies
bhurlber@samford.edu

Originally from Southern California, Brandon Hurlbert completed his PhD at Durham University in England, where his research examined how the violent and ethically challenging portions of the Old Testament continue to function as Christian Scripture today. He has taught at Bethel University, Cranmer Hall, London School of Theology, and most recently at Durham University. His additional research interests include biblical ethics, violence and the reception history of Scripture.

Hurlbert’s publications and research revolve around violence and the Bible, exploring how best to make sense of the violence we encounter in Scripture as well as Scripture’s role in perpetuating or alleviating violence. For the past six years, he has been a research associate at the Centre for the Study of Bible and Violence (CSBV) located in Bristol, UK. Additionally, he is an editor for the Routledge series The Bible and Violence and is the book review editor for the open-access Journal for the Study of Bible and Violence.

Hurlbert is also a host on the Two Cities Podcast, a weekly podcast discussing theology, culture, and discipleship with authors and experts.

Classes Taught

Biblical Foundations — Old Testament

Degrees

  • PhD, Theology & Religion, Durham University
  • MA, Biblical & Theological Studies, Talbot School of Theology
  • BA, Biblical & Theological Studies, Biola University

Other Affiliations

  • Durham University — Honorary Research Fellow
  • Trinity College with Bristol Baptist College — Honorary Research Fellow
  • Centre for the Study of Bible and Violence — Research Associate
  • London School of Theology — Visiting Lecturer

Publications

Monographs & Edited Volumes

  • Sanctioned Saviors: Rereading Judges as Christian Scripture, Siphrut, Eisenbrauns (Forthcoming)
  • Christian Nationalism and Right-wing extremism in Britain: Theological Reflections, Edited with Helen Paynter, IVP. (Forthcoming)

Peer-Reviewed Articles

  • “Soldiers, Psalms, Bibles & Bombs: Praying and Publishing the Psalms during the War on Terror.” Studies in Church History 62 (2026), 533-558 [Link to Article]
  • Drunk in Shechem: Confused Language in Judges 9:28-29 as a Literary Depiction of Inebriated Speech.” Co-written with Alexander T. Kirk. Catholic Biblical Quarterly 87:1 (2025) 39-51. [Link to Article]
  • “Deconstructing the Downward Spiral: Anthology as Coherence in the Book of Judges.” Journal of Biblical Literature 143 (3), September 2024: 417–441. [Link to Article]
  • “Drowning Jonah in a Thousand Genres” Journal for the Study of Bible and Violence 2 (2023): 84-103. [Link to Article]
  • “Ehud and Eglon”, in The Visual Commentary Of Scripture by Ben Quash. (London: The Visual Commentary on Scripture Foundation). November 2023. [Link to Article]
  • “The Slave Bible: For Slavery or for Salvation?”Thetorah.com. January 2023. [Link to Article]
  • “Beyond Texts of Terror: Emerging Feminist Scholarship on Judges 19.” Didaktikos: Journal of Theological Education. October, 2022. [Link to Article]
  • “Cut & Splice: Reading Judges 19 Cinematically.” Biblical Interpretation 30.2 (2020). Pgs. 1-25 [Link to Article]

Chapters in Edited Volumes

  • "Violence in 1–2 Chronicles: Retribution, Residue, and Redaction." The Bible and Violence: Volume I: Violence in Biblical Texts. Ed. Chris Greenough , Johanna Stiebert , Johnathan Jodamus and Mmapula Diana Kebaneilwe London New York: T&T Clark, 2026. Theology and Religion Online. Web. 18 Jun. 2026. [Link to Article]
  • “Alternate Eyes: Perspective Shifting in the Samson Narrative and Black Mirror,” in Black Mirror and Theology. Edited by Amber Bowen and John Anthony Dunne. Theology and Popular Culture Series; Minneapolis: Lexington Books/Fortress Academic (2022).
  • “Once Upon a Time in Persia: The Ethics of Violence in the Book of Esther and Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” in Map or Compass? The Bible on Violence. Edited by Helen Paynter and Michael Spalione. Sheffield Phoenix Press (2022).
  • “Taking the Absurdity Seriously: Questioning the Complicity of YHWH in Judges 20-21,” in Violent Biblical Texts: New Approaches. Edited by Helen Paynter and Trevor Laurence. Sheffield Phoenix Press (2022).

Edited Series

  • The Bible and Violence, Helen Paynter, Brandon Hurlbert, Trevor Lawrence, Michael Spalione, (eds.), Routledge Press.

Select Conference Presentations & Invited Talks

  • “Renegotiating Armageddon: The Failure of Evangelical Apocalypticism During the Iraq War (2003-2011) and its Impact on the Iran War (2026–)”, Centre for Muslim-Christian Studies, Oxford (2026). [Link]
  • “YHWH as a Gentle Warrior in Psalm 18”, Society of Old Testament Studies Summer Meeting (2025).
  • “Babylon has Fallen!: Iraq and the War on Terror in Evangelical Apocalypticism,” Society of Biblical Literature Annual Meeting (Use, Influence, and Impact of the Bible section) (2024)
  • “The Soldier’s Prayer: Psalm 91 as Christian Scripture during the War on Terror.” Invited to the University of Aberdeen’s Biblical Studies Research Seminar (2023).
  • “Dust and Dystopia: Rereading Psalm 90 through Children of Men.” Invited to the University of Gloucestershire’s Online Graduate Seminar (2023).

Public Facing Scholarship and Media Appearances

  • “Soldiers, Psalms, Bibles and Bombs with Brandon Hurlbert” It Means What It Means, podcast (September 2026) [Link]
  • “The Judges of Ancient Israel” Biblical Time Machine (June 2026) [Link]
  • “No "Downward Spiral" in the Book of Judges!? ft. Brandon Hurlbert” What Your Pastor Didn’t Tell You (July 2025) [Link]
  • “Submitted for your approval: Judges as Anthology with Brandon Hurlbert” It Means What it means, podcast (January 2025) [Link]
  • “Esther and Tarantino” TheologyU, podcast. (November 2024)