| John N. Oswalt | |
| Birth Name: | John Newell Oswalt |
| Birth Date: | June 21, 1940 |
| Birth Place: | Mansfield, Ohio |
| Nationality: | American |
| Occupation: | Visiting Distinguished Professor of Old Testament at Asbury Theological Seminary Asbury Theological Seminary |
| Spouse: | Karen (nee Kennedy) |
| Children: | Elizabeth, Andrew, Peter |
| Discipline: | Biblical studies |
| Sub Discipline: | Old Testament studies |
| Education: | Taylor University, Asbury Theological Seminary |
| Alma Mater: | Brandeis University (Ph.D.) |
| Main Interests: | Old Testament studies Hebrew language Hebrew religion |
| Workplaces: | Barrington College Wesley Biblical Seminary Asbury University Trinity Evangelical Divinity School |
| Notable Works: | The Book of Isaiah (NICOT) |
| Website: | http://asburyseminary.edu/person/dr-john-oswalt/ |
John N. Oswalt is an American scholar and distinguished professor of Old Testament at Asbury Theological Seminary. He teaches in theology, Old Testament and ancient semitic languages including Hebrew. He is the author of 11 scholarly books; foremost is the 2-volume commentary on the Book of Isaiah in the New International Commentary on the Old Testament series. Exodus: The Way Out (2013) is a recent work. Oswalt adheres to single, unitary authorship of the Book of Isaiah. Numerous scholarly journals, biblical encyclopedias and academic religious periodicals have included articles by him.
Oswalt earned his B.A. at Taylor University. He further earned a B.D. and Th.M. from Asbury Theological Seminary and a M.A. and Ph.D. from Brandeis University.
Oswalt is an ordained minister in the United Methodist Church.
Most scholars believe that Isaiah had multiple authors, which Oswalt disputes. He argued that the source of all the chapters in the book of Isaiah are from Isaiah, though the book could have been assembled over the years from his collected works. He wrote that in the Dead Sea Scrolls, Isaiah is a single scroll with no signs of change between chapters 39 and 40. Also as far as we know the book has always existed in one collection called "Isaiah".[1]
I'm not at all sure that Isaiah himself wrote the book as we have it. However, I do believe that all that is in the book originated with Isaiah and probably that his disciples then were the ones who collected what he said and commented on and put it in its present form.” —Dr. John Oswalt[2]
Oswalt's books and articles include:[3]