Matthew Bates on “What Makes a Good Biblical Scholar or Theologian?”

We’ve had him on theLAB before, but here is Matthew Bates again, this time as part of our series asking, “What makes a good biblical scholar or theologian?”


I think some of our best biblical scholars—Hays, Barclay, Wright, and others–act like crime-scene investigators. The truth is paramount! So they pore over Scripture and previous investigation reports again and again. They read broadly to crack open new horizons. Eventually, a set of questions and observable patterns are discovered that have eluded previous investigators. It is easy to be creative without being faithful to the Scripture, or faithful without being creative. The best manage both.

~Matthew W. Bates, Associate Professor of Theology, Quincy University

Share
Written by
Tavis Bohlinger

Dr. Tavis Bohlinger is Editor-in-Chief of the Logos Academic Blog and Creative Director at Reformation Heritage Books. He holds a PhD from Durham University and writes across multiple genres, including academia, poetry, and screenwriting. He lives in Grand Rapids with his wife and three children.

View all articles
4 comments
Written by Tavis Bohlinger
theLAB