William L. Lane (1931– March 8, 1999) was an American

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Chri ...

theologian and professor of biblical studies.

Background and education

Lane earned his

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

from

Wesleyan University Wesleyan University ( ) is a private liberal arts university in Middletown, Connecticut. Founded in 1831 as a men's college under the auspices of the Methodist Episcopal Church and with the support of prominent residents of Middletown, the col ...

, his M.Div. from Gordon Divinity School (1955), his Th.M. from

Westminster Theological Seminary Westminster Theological Seminary is a Protestant theological seminary in the Reformed theological tradition in Glenside, Pennsylvania. It was founded by members of the faculty of Princeton Theological Seminary in 1929 after Princeton chose to ...

(1956), and his Th.D. from

Harvard Divinity School Harvard Divinity School (HDS) is one of the constituent schools of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school's mission is to educate its students either in the academic study of religion or for leadership roles in religion, gov ...

Academic career

Lane began his academic career as professor of New Testament and Judaic studies at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. He went on to serve as professor of religious studies at

Western Kentucky University Western Kentucky University is a public university in Bowling Green, Kentucky. It was founded by the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1906, though its roots reach back a quarter-century earlier. It operates regional campuses in Glasgow, Elizabethtow ...

for fifteen years. During this time, he became a mentor to Christian singer and songwriter Michael Card. He was also recognized with the faculty award for "Distinguished Contributions in Research or Creativity" for the 1983–1984 academic year. Lane joined the faculty of

Seattle Pacific University Seattle Pacific University (SPU) is a private Christian university in Seattle, Washington. It was founded in 1891 in conjunction with the Oregon and Washington Conference of the Free Methodist Church as the Seattle Seminary. It became the Seat ...

as dean of the School of Religion in 1989. He was named "Professor of the Year" by the student body in 1992, and served as the Paul T. Walls Chair in Wesleyan and Biblical Studies from 1993 until his retirement in 1997. In addition to these roles, Lane also served as one of the translators of the

New American Standard Bible The New American Standard Bible (NASB) is an English translation of the Bible. Published by the Lockman Foundation, the complete NASB was released in 1971. The NASB relies on recently published critical editions of the original Hebrew and Gre ...

, and the New International Version.

Death and legacy

In retirement, Lane moved with his wife to

Franklin, Tennessee Franklin is a city in and county seat of Williamson County, Tennessee, United States. About south of Nashville, it is one of the principal cities of the Nashville metropolitan area and Middle Tennessee. As of 2020, its population was 83,454 ...

, where they established a residential biblical research library and discipleship center. Lane died of cancer in a hospital near

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and ...

, on March 8, 1999.

Publications

Lane was the author or editor of several notable works, including ''The Encyclopedia of Modern Christian Missions'' (1967), ''The New Testament Speaks'' (1969), ''The Gospel According to Mark'' in The

New International Commentary on the New Testament The New International Commentary on the New Testament (or NICNT) is a series of commentaries in English on the text of the New Testament in Greek. It is published by the William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. The current series editor is Joel B. ...

(1974), and the two-volume commentary on the

Epistle to the Hebrews The Epistle to the Hebrews ( grc, Πρὸς Ἑβραίους, Pros Hebraious, to the Hebrews) is one of the books of the New Testament. The text does not mention the name of its author, but was traditionally attributed to Paul the Apostle. Most ...

in the '' Word Biblical Commentary'' (1991), which was awarded the 1993 '' Christianity Today'' Critic's Choice for "Book of the Year".

Works

Books

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Editorial

Articles

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lane, William L. 1931 births 1999 deaths American theologians New Testament scholars Translators of the Bible into English Seattle Pacific University faculty Western Kentucky University faculty Gordon–Conwell Theological Seminary faculty Westminster Theological Seminary alumni Harvard Divinity School alumni Wesleyan University alumni 20th-century American translators Bible commentators