Gustav Friedrich Oehler

Gustav Friedrich Oehler (10 June 1812 - 19 February 1872) was a German theologian.

He was born at Ebingen, Württemberg, and was educated privately and at Tübingen where he was much influenced by J. C. F. Steudel, professor of Old Testament theology. In 1837, after a term of Oriental study at Berlin, he went to Tübingen as Repelent, becoming in 1840 professor at the seminary and pastor in Schonthal.

In 1845 he published his "Prolegomena zur Theologie des Alten Testaments", accepted an invitation to Breslau and received the degree of doctor from Bonn. In 1852 he returned to Tübingen as director of the seminary and professor of Old Testament Theology at the university. He declined a call to Erlangen as successor to Franz Delitzsch, and died at Tubingen in 1872.

Oehler admitted the composite authorship of the Pentateuch and the Book of Isaiah, and did much to counteract the antipathy against the Old Testament that had been fostered by Schleiermacher. In church polity he was Lutheran rather than Reformed. Besides his "Old Testament Theology" (Eng. trans., 2 vols., Edinburgh, 1874-1875), his works were "Gesammelte Seminarreden" (1872) and "Lehrbuch Symbolik" (1876), both published posthumously, and about forty articles for the first edition of Herzog's "Realencyklopädie" which were largely retained by Delitzsch and von Orelli in the second.

More information

* "Biographisch-Bibilographische Kirchenlexikon", " [http://www.bbkl.de/o/oehler_g_f.shtml OEHLER, Gustav Friedrich] " ger

His works on-line

* " [http://www.ccel.org/ccel/oehler/ot_theol.html Theology of the Old Testament] " at Christian Classics Ethereal Library.