Bruce Manning Metzger
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Bruce Manning Metzger (February 9, 1914 – February 13, 2007) was an American
biblical scholar Biblical studies is the academic application of a set of diverse disciplines to the study of the Bible, with ''Bible'' referring to the books of the canonical Hebrew Bible in mainstream Jewish usage and the Christian Bible including the can ...
, Bible translator and
textual critic Textual criticism is a branch of textual scholarship, philology, and literary criticism that is concerned with the identification of textual variants, or different versions, of either manuscripts (mss) or of printed books. Such texts may range i ...
who was a longtime professor at
Princeton Theological Seminary Princeton Theological Seminary (PTSem), officially The Theological Seminary of the Presbyterian Church, is a Private university, private seminary, school of theology in Princeton, New Jersey, Princeton, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Establish ...
and Bible editor who served on the board of the
American Bible Society American Bible Society is a U.S.-based Christian nonprofit headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As the American member organization of United Bible Societies, it supports global Bible translation, production, distribution, literacy, engag ...
and
United Bible Societies The United Bible Societies (UBS) is a global fellowship of around 150 Bible societies operating in more than 240 countries and territories. It has working hubs in England, Singapore and Nairobi. The headquarters are located in Swindon, England. ...
. He was a scholar of Greek,
New Testament The New Testament (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, as well as events relating to Christianity in the 1st century, first-century Christianit ...
, and New Testament textual criticism, and wrote prolifically on these subjects. Metzger was an influential New Testament scholar of the 20th century. He was elected to the
American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS) is an American scholarly organization and learned society founded in 1743 in Philadelphia that promotes knowledge in the humanities and natural sciences through research, professional meetings, publicat ...
in 1986.


Biography

Metzger was born on February 9, 1914, in Middletown, Pennsylvania, and earned his BA (1935) at
Lebanon Valley College Lebanon Valley College (LVC, Lebanon Valley, or The Valley) is a private university in Annville, Pennsylvania. History Lebanon Valley College was founded on February 23, 1866, with classes beginning May 7 of that year and its first class grad ...
. Metzger had strong academic training in Greek before enrolling in Princeton Seminary, and in the summer prior to entering the Seminary, he completed reading through the entire Bible consecutively for the twelfth time. He received his ThB in 1938 at
Princeton Theological Seminary Princeton Theological Seminary (PTSem), officially The Theological Seminary of the Presbyterian Church, is a Private university, private seminary, school of theology in Princeton, New Jersey, Princeton, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Establish ...
, and in the autumn of 1938 began teaching at Princeton as a
Teaching Fellow A teaching fellow (sometimes referred to as a TF) is an individual at a higher education institution, including universities, whose work involves teaching and potentially pedagogic research. The work done by teaching fellows can vary significantl ...
in
New Testament Greek The New Testament was written in a form of Koine Greek, which was the common language of the Eastern Mediterranean from the conquests of Alexander the Great (335–323 BC) until the evolution of Byzantine Greek (c. 600). Hellenistic Judaism The ...
. On April 11, 1939, he was
ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...
in the
United Presbyterian Church of North America The United Presbyterian Church of North America (UPCNA) was an American Presbyterian denomination that existed for one hundred years. It was formed on May 26, 1858, by the union of the Northern branch of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church ...
, which has since merged with the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America (PCUSA) and is now known as the
Presbyterian Church (USA) The Presbyterian Church (USA), abbreviated PCUSA, is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination, denomination in the Religion in the United States, United States. It is the largest Presbyterian denomination in the United States too. Its th ...
. In 1940, he earned his MA from
Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...
and became an instructor in
New Testament The New Testament (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, as well as events relating to Christianity in the 1st century, first-century Christianit ...
. Two years later, he earned his PhD ("Studies in a Greek Gospel Lectionary ( Greg. 303)"), also from Princeton University. In 1944, Metzger married Isobel Elizabeth Mackay, daughter of the third president of the Seminary, the Scot, John A. Mackay. That year, he was promoted to Assistant Professor. In 1948, he became Associate Professor, and full Professor in 1954. In 1964, Metzger was named the George L. Collord Professor of New Testament Language and Literature. In 1969, he was elected to membership in the
Catholic Biblical Association The Catholic Biblical Association of America (CBA) is an American learned society dedicated to the academic study of the Bible. The suggestion to form a permanent association of biblical scholars was made at the beginning of 1936 at a meeting in ...
. In 1971, he was elected president of both the
Studiorum Novi Testamenti Societas The Studiorum Novi Testamenti Societas (SNTS) is an international society of New Testament scholars. The current president is John Kloppenborg (Canada). The SNTS publishes the academic journal ''New Testament Studies Biblical studies is ...
and the
Society of Biblical Literature The Society of Biblical Literature (SBL), founded in 1880 as the Society of Biblical Literature and Exegesis, is an American-based learned society dedicated to the academic study of the Bible and related ancient literature. Its current stated mis ...
. The following year, he became president of the North American Patristic Society. Metzger was visiting fellow at
Clare Hall, Cambridge Clare Hall is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1966 by Clare College, Clare Hall is a college for advanced study, admitting only postgraduate students alongside postdoctoral researchers and fellows. It was est ...
in 1974 and
Wolfson College, Oxford Wolfson College () is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Wolfson is an all-graduate college, it prides itself on being one of the most international colleges at Oxford, with part ...
in 1979. In 1978, he was elected corresponding fellow of the
British Academy The British Academy for the Promotion of Historical, Philosophical and Philological Studies is the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences. It was established in 1902 and received its royal charter in the sa ...
, the Academy's highest distinction for persons who are not residents in the United Kingdom. In 1986, Metzger became a member of the
American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS) is an American scholarly organization and learned society founded in 1743 in Philadelphia that promotes knowledge in the humanities and natural sciences through research, professional meetings, publicat ...
. At the age of seventy, after teaching at Princeton Theological Seminary for a period of forty-six years, he retired as Professor
Emeritus ''Emeritus/Emerita'' () is an honorary title granted to someone who retires from a position of distinction, most commonly an academic faculty position, but is allowed to continue using the previous title, as in "professor emeritus". In some c ...
. In 1994, Bruce Metzger was honoured with the Burkitt Medal for Biblical Studies by the
British Academy The British Academy for the Promotion of Historical, Philosophical and Philological Studies is the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences. It was established in 1902 and received its royal charter in the sa ...
. He was awarded
honorary doctorate An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad hon ...
s from
Lebanon Valley College Lebanon Valley College (LVC, Lebanon Valley, or The Valley) is a private university in Annville, Pennsylvania. History Lebanon Valley College was founded on February 23, 1866, with classes beginning May 7 of that year and its first class grad ...
,
Findlay College The University of Findlay (UF) is a private Christian university in Findlay, Ohio, United States. It was established in 1882 through a joint partnership between the Churches of God General Conference and the city of Findlay. UF has nearly 80 ...
, the
University of St Andrews The University of St Andrews (, ; abbreviated as St And in post-nominals) is a public university in St Andrews, Scotland. It is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, oldest of the four ancient universities of Scotland and, f ...
, the
University of Münster The University of Münster (, until 2023 , WWU) is a public research university located in the city of Münster, North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany. With more than 43,000 students and over 120 fields of study in 15 departments, it is Germany's ...
and
Potchefstroom University The Potchefstroom University for Christian Higher Education (abbreviated as PU for CHE) was a South African university located in Potchefstroom. Instruction was mainly in Afrikaans language, Afrikaans. In 2004, the university was merged with othe ...
. "Metzger's unrivaled knowledge of the relevant languages, ancient and modern; his balanced judgment; and his painstaking attention to detail won him respect across the theological and academic spectrum." Conservative evangelical scholar Daniel B. Wallace described Metzger as "a fine, godly, conservative scholar, although his view of biblical authority is not quite the same as many other evangelicals." Shortly after his 93rd birthday, Metzger died in
Princeton, New Jersey The Municipality of Princeton is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. It was established on January 1, 2013, through the consolidation of the Borough of Princeton, New Jersey, Borough of Princeton and Pri ...
, on February 13, 2007. He was survived by his wife Isobel, who would die at the age of 98 on July 27, 2016, in Princeton, New Jersey, as well as their two sons, John Mackay Metzger (b. 1948) and Dr. James Bruce Metzger (1952–2020).


Books and commentaries

Metzger edited and provided commentary for many Bible translations and wrote dozens of books. He was an editor of the
United Bible Societies The United Bible Societies (UBS) is a global fellowship of around 150 Bible societies operating in more than 240 countries and territories. It has working hubs in England, Singapore and Nairobi. The headquarters are located in Swindon, England. ...
' standard Greek New Testament, the starting point for nearly all recent New Testament translations. In 1952, he became a contributor to the
Revised Standard Version The Revised Standard Version (RSV) is an English translation of the Bible published in 1952 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. This translation is a revision of the American St ...
(RSV) of the Bible, and was general editor of the ''Reader's Digest Bible'' (a condensed version of the RSV) in 1982. From 1977 to 1990, he chaired the Committee on Translators for the
New Revised Standard Version The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) is a translation of the Bible in American English. It was first published in 1989 by the National Council of Churches, the NRSV was created by an ecumenical committee of scholars "comprising about thirt ...
(NRSV) of the Bible and was "largely responsible for ... seeing he NRSVthrough the press." He considered it a privilege to present the NRSV—which includes the books referred to as
Apocrypha Apocrypha () are biblical or related writings not forming part of the accepted canon of scripture, some of which might be of doubtful authorship or authenticity. In Christianity, the word ''apocryphal'' (ἀπόκρυφος) was first applied to ...
by Protestants, though
Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
s and
Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, otherwise known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity or Byzantine Christianity, is one of the three main Branches of Christianity, branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholic Church, Catholicism and Protestantism ...
consider them
deuterocanonical The deuterocanonical books, meaning 'of, pertaining to, or constituting a second Biblical canon, canon', collectively known as the Deuterocanon (DC), are certain books and passages considered to be Biblical canon, canonical books of the Old ...
—to
Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...
and Patriarch Demetrius I of Constantinople. Central to his scholarly contribution to New Testament studies is his trilogy: ''The Text of the New Testament: Its Transmission, Corruption, and Restoration'' (1964; 2nd ed., 1968; 3d enlarged ed., 1992); ''The Early Versions of the New Testament: Their Origin, Transmission, and Limitations'' (1977); ''The Canon of the New Testament: Its Origin, Development, and Significance'' (1987). The first volume of a series that he founded and edited, ''New Testament Tools and Studies,'' appeared in 1960. Metzger's commentaries often utilize
historical criticism Historical criticism (also known as the historical-critical method (HCM) or higher criticism, in contrast to lower criticism or textual criticism) is a branch of criticism that investigates the origins of ancient texts to understand "the world b ...
and
higher criticism Historical criticism (also known as the historical-critical method (HCM) or higher criticism, in contrast to lower criticism or textual criticism) is a branch of criticism that investigates the origins of ancient texts to understand "the world b ...
, which attempt to explain the literary and historical origins of the Bible and the
biblical canon A biblical canon is a set of texts (also called "books") which a particular Jewish or Christian religious community regards as part of the Bible. The English word ''canon'' comes from the Ancient Greek, Greek , meaning 'ruler, rule' or 'measu ...
. Metzger says that the early church saw it as very important that a work describing Jesus' life be written by a follower of or an eyewitness to Jesus, and considered other works such as ''The Shepherd of Hermas'' and the ''
Epistles of Clement An epistle (; ) is a writing directed or sent to a person or group of people, usually an elegant and formal didactic letter. The epistle genre of letter-writing was common in ancient Egypt as part of the scribal-school writing curriculum. The ...
'' to be inspired but not canonical. In discussing the canon, Metzger identifies three criteria “for acceptance of particular writings as sacred, authoritative, and worthy of being read in services of worship...”, criteria which were “generally adopted during the course of the second century, and were never modified thereafter”, namely, orthodoxy (conformity to the rule of faith), apostolicity, and consensus among the churches. He concludes that, “In the most basic sense neither individuals nor councils created the canon; instead they came to recognize and acknowledge the self-authenticating quality of these writings, which imposed themselves as canonical upon the church.”Bruce M. Metzger, ''The New Testament: Its Background, Growth, and Content'', 3rd ed., rev. and enlarged (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2003), 318. Also see Metzger, ''The Canon of the New Testament'' (Oxford: Clarendon, 1997), 287–8. He served on the advisory board for ''
Peake's Commentary on the Bible ''Peake's Commentary on the Bible'' is a one-volume commentary on the Bible, first published in 1919. It gives special attention to biblical archaeology and the then-recent discoveries of biblical manuscripts. Editions First edition ''Peake's ...
'' (1962), and contributed an article on "The Early Versions of the New Testament." He was co-editor for ''The Oxford Companion to the Bible'' (1993).


Works


List of books

* * * * – note: "" is misspelled in the published title * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


List of translations

* * * * *


Selected articles and chapters

* * * - Presidential Address, Studiorum Novi Testamenti Societas, delivered August 24, 1971, at Noordwijkerhout, The Netherlands. * - Presidential address, Society of Biblical Literature, delivered October 29, 1971, in Atlanta, Georgia. *


Selected interviews and writings about Bruce M. Metzger

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Festschriften

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References


External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Metzger, Bruce 1914 births 2007 deaths 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American non-fiction writers 20th-century American Presbyterian ministers 20th-century Christian biblical scholars 20th-century American translators American biblical scholars American male non-fiction writers American religious writers Christian scholars Corresponding fellows of the British Academy Lebanon Valley College alumni Members of the American Philosophical Society New Testament scholars People from Middletown, Pennsylvania Presbyterian Church (USA) teaching elders Presbyterians from Pennsylvania Presbyterian writers Presidents of the Society of Biblical Literature Princeton Theological Seminary alumni Princeton Theological Seminary faculty Textual scholarship Translators of the Bible into English United Presbyterian Church in the United States of America ministers