Dr. John Oswalt

joswalt@wbs.edu
601-366-8880 ext. 124

John Oswalt, a native of Mansfield, Ohio, is Research Professor of Old Testament at Wesley Biblical Seminary in Jackson, Mississippi.  He began his term of service at Wesley in July, 1999.  Prior to that he was Professor of Old Testament and Semitic Languages at Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Kentucky from 1989-1999.  This was his second term on that faculty, having first served from 1970 through 1982.  In the interim he was President of Asbury College (1983-1986) and a member of the faculty of Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, Deerfield, Illinois (1986-1989).  He is married to the former Karen Kennedy, and they have three children and two grandchildren.

 Dr. Oswalt holds degrees from Taylor University, Upland, Indiana; Asbury Theological Seminary; and Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts.  From Brandeis he received the PhD in Mediterranean Studies.  His particular interest is in Old Testament studies with special attention to the Hebrew language and to the formation of Hebrew religion against the background of the ancient Near East.

Dr. Oswalt’s writings have appeared in Bible encyclopedias, scholarly journals, and popular religious periodicals.  Many of these articles have dealt with the application of Biblical teachings to modern ethical questions.  He has written eight books, among which is a two-volume commentary on Isaiah in the New International Commentary on the Old Testament series.  His most recent book is a study of 1 John entitled On Being a Christian (Francis Asbury Press, 2008).  He was the Old Testament editor of the Wesley Bible, a study Bible from the Wesleyan perspective published by Thomas Nelson Publishers in 1990, and also served as consulting editor for the New International Dictionary of Old Testament Theology and Exegesis (Zondervan, 1997).  He was a member of the New International Version translation team, and is currently one of a six-member editorial team which has revised the Living Bible (New Living Translation, 1996) and is continuing the revision process with Tyndale House Publishers.

Dr. Oswalt is an ordained minister in the United Methodist Church, with membership in the Kentucky Annual Conference of that denomination.  He has served as part-time pastor to congregations in New England and Kentucky, and is a frequent speaker in conferences, camps and local churches.