Daniel McClellan (biblical scholar)

Daniel O. McClellan^[2] is an American biblical scholar and social media personality.^[3][4][5] He is a public scholar of the Bible and religion and a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. McClellan was the winner of the Society of Biblical Literature's 2023 Richards Award for Public Scholarship.^[6]

Daniel McClellan is originally from West Virginia.^[7] He was born in 1980.^[8] In 2006, he was married and, as of 2024, has three daughters.^[2]

Between 2013–2023, McClellan worked as scripture translation supervisor for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.^[2][9] McClellan completed a bachelor's degree in ancient Near Eastern studies from Brigham Young University with a minor in Classical Greek,^[10] a master's degree in Jewish studies at the University of Oxford, and a master of arts in biblical studies at Trinity Western University.^[2][11]

In 2020, he received a PhD from the University of Exeter, where he wrote a dissertation under the supervision of Francesca Stavrakopoulou.^[12][11] In 2022, he published a revised version of his dissertation, titled YHWH's Divine Images: A Cognitive Approach.^[6][11] His formal academic areas of expertise include Second Temple Judaism, the early Israelite religion, the cognitive science of religion, and textual criticism of the Hebrew Bible.^[13][7]

Since 2021, McClellan has been active on social media, confronting misinformation being shared on social media about the academic study of the Bible and religion.^[11] He leads online classes, cohosts the Data Over Dogma Podcast,^[14] and is also active on TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and Twitter.^[6] On TikTok, he has become popular by "stitching" videos containing misinterpretations of the Bible.^[15]

Daniel McClellan has run for office in Utah twice, though he lost both elections to incumbents. His first bid was for Utah State House of Representatives (District 52) in 2018; he received 33.5% of the vote.^[16] In 2020, he ran for Utah's State Senate (District 10) and received 34.8% of the vote.^[17][18]

• McClellan, Daniel O (December 2013). "You Will be Like the Gods": The Conceptualization of Deity in the Hebrew Bible in Cognitive Perspective (PDF) (Master of Arts in Biblical Studies thesis). British Columbia, Canada: Trinity Western University, Library and Archives Canada = Bibliothèque et Archives Canada. ISBN 9780499255105. OCLC 1019486334.
• McClellan, Daniel O (18 May 2020). Deity and Divine Agency in the Hebrew Bible: Cognitive Perspectives (PhD in Theology and Religion thesis). UK: University of Exeter.

• McClellan, Daniel O. (7 May 2015). Psalm 82 in Contemporary Latter-day Saint Tradition (1st ed.). The Interpreter Foundation.
• McClellan, Daniel O (2022). YHWH's Divine Images: A Cognitive Approach.Ancient Near East Monographs (PDF). Atlanta, GA, USA: Society of Biblical Literature. ISBN 978-1628374384. OCLC 1345581122.

• McClellan, Daniel (September 2018), "Religion and Description", Method Today: Redescribing Approaches to the Study of Religion: 106–113, doi:10.17613/vybm-9p24
• McClellan, Daniel (2019), Blumell, Lincoln (ed.), "The Use of the Old Testament in the New Testament." (PDF), New Testament History, Culture, and Society: A Background to the Texts of the New Testament., BYU Religious Studies Center: 497–513
• McClellan, Daniel (2021), Shannon, Avram R. (ed.), "'Go Ye and Learn What That Meaneth': Mercy and the Law in the Old Testament's Prophetic Literature and in the Gospels", Covenant of Compassion: Caring for the. Marginalized and Disadvantaged in the Old Testament, BYU Religious Studies Center, doi:10.17613/aw8k-9d82
• McClellan, Daniel (25 February 2021), "Forming Divine Bodies in the Hebrew Bible", Life and Death: Social Perspectives on Biblical Bodies: 171–194, doi:10.17613/atkd-xr22, retrieved 14 January 2024

• "Forming divine bodies in the Hebrew Bible." Pages 171–94 in Life and Death: Social Perspectives on Biblical Bodies. Edited by Francesca Stavrakopoulou (T&T Clark, 2021).
• McClellan, Daniel O. (2020). "2 Nephi 25:23 in Literary and Rhetorical Context". Journal of Book of Mormon Studies. 29. Utha, USA: Journal of Book of Mormon Studies, 29, 20200401, 1: 1–19. doi:10.5406/jbookmormstud2.29.2020.0001. OCLC 9700686633.
• "Religion and Description." Pages 106–13 in Method Today: Redescribing Approaches to the Study of Religion. Edited by Brad Stoddard (Equinox, 2018)
• The Gods-Complaint: Psalm 82 as a Psalm of Complaint Journal of Biblical Literature 137.4 (2018): 833–51. The Gods-Complaint: Psalm 82 as a Psalm of Complaint
• McClellan, Daniel (2017), "Cognitive Perspectives on Early Christology", Bible Interpretation (PDF), vol. 25, pp. 647–662
• McClellan, Daniel. "The Angel of YHWH - TheTorah.com". www.thetorah.com. The Torah .com. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
• "Names of God". Bible Odyssey. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
• McClellan, Daniel (2019), ""As Far as It Is Translated Correctly": Bible Translation and the Church", Religious Educator, vol. 20, Religious Studies Center, pp. 52–83, retrieved 14 January 2024
• Outreach: A Conversation with James E. Faulconer in Religious Educator Vol. 10 No. 3 · 2009. Outreach: A Conversation with James E. Faulconer | Religious Studies Center
• Ancient Studies: Research Update in Review Magazine Fall 2009 Ancient Studies | Religious Studies Center
• The Use of the Old Testament in the New Testament in New Testament History, Culture, and Society. The Use of the Old Testament in the New Testament | Religious Studies Center
• ""Go Ye and Learn What That Meaneth", Covenant of Compassion". rsc.byu.edu. Religious Studies Center. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
• The Church of Jesus Christ in Kosrae in Battlefields to Temple Grounds.

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