prof. dr. Arie Zwiep

Personal information

I am professor of hermeneutics, specialized in New Testament studies (Luke-Acts, Synoptics, Historical Jesus) and the interface of biblical and philosophical hermeneutics. I am Vice-Dean and Dean of Education at the Faculty of Religion and Theology, a member of the Studiorum Novi Testamenti Societas (SNTS), the Society of Biblical Literature (SBL), the Studiosorum Novi Testamenti Conventus (SNTC), and other professional societies and editorial boards.

In the area of New Testament studies, I work on the historical Jesus, esp. the eschatology of Jesus, Luke-Acts (everything!), and early exaltation Christologies. My other New Testament research interests include synoptic studies, method, orality studies and performance criticism, D.F. Strauss' Leben Jesu, 1 Peter, and apocalyptic literature.

In the field of hermeneutics, I work on the interface of biblical, historical, theological, and philosophical hermeneutics (esp. the hermeneutical trinity Gadamer, Ricoeur and Derrida), and esp. on the constructive and distorting (if not destructive) role of presuppositions in biblical interpretation and academia, esp. with regard to the notions of inspiration, authority, hermeneutica sacra, and so on. I am currently working (if time permits) on the English translation of my books on biblical hermeneutics: Between Text and Reader and Beyond (revised, updated and expanded edition).

Research

I. My major books/monographs

• Auf dem Weg zu einer Biographie Gerhard Kittels (1888–1948). History of the Bible and Exegesis. Edited by Lukas Bormann and Arie W. Zwiep. Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2022. ix + 574pp. (more info)

• Jairus’s Daughter and the Haemorrhaging Woman: Tradition and Interpretation of an Early Christian Miracle Story. WUNT 421. Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2019. xxvi + 454pp. (more info)

• Tussen tekst en lezer: Een historische inleiding in de bijbelse hermeneutiek, deel 1: de vroege kerk - Schleiermacher. Amsterdam: VU University Press, 2009, vijfde druk 2021. xxv + 453pp. (more info); deel 2: Van moderniteit naar postmoderniteit. Amsterdam: VU University Press, 2013, vijfde druk 2023. xvii + 573pp. (more info)

• Christ, the Spirit and the Community of God: Essays on the Acts of the Apostles. WUNT 2/293. Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2010. xviii + 237pp. (more info)

• Judas and the Choice of Matthias: A Study on Context and Concern of Acts 1:15–26. WUNT 2/187. Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2004. xxi + 270pp. (more info)

• The Ascension of the Messiah in Lukan Christology. NovTSup 87. Leiden: Brill, 1997. xiii + 291pp. (more info)

II. My recent publications (selected)

• “De historische Jezus op z’n retour of terug van (nooit) weggeweest? Methodologische reflecties op de zoektocht naar Jezus van Nazaret.” Kerk en Theologie 74/4 (2023): 337–356 (more info); 75/1 (2024): 1–19 (more info).

• “Toen Johannes in de gevangenis niet over het optreden van de Messias hoorde’ (Matt. 11:2): De wederwaardigheden van een opmerkelijke conjectuur (cj16154) en zijn bedenker.” Kerk en Theologie 72/3 (2023): 264–283 (more info).

• Bijbel: met bijdragen over geloof, cultuur en wetenschap. NBV21. Onder redactie van Gijsbert van den Brink, Koert van Bekkum, Anne-Mareike Schol-Wetter en Arie Zwiep. Haarlem/Antwerpen: Nederlands-Vlaams Bijbelgenootschap, 2022. 1667pp. ("Wetenschapsbijbel"). (more info)

• “A Question of Misunderstanding or a Misunderstood Question? Exegetical Comments on Acts 1:6.” Pages 247–262 in Asking Questions in Biblical Texts. Edited by Bart J. Koet and Archibald L.H.M. van Wieringen. CBET 114. Louvain: Peeters, 2022.

• “Identity Matters in the Book of Revelation: The Rhetorical Device of Σύγκρισις as a Key to Its Structure and Message.” Pages 427–448 in Troubling Texts in the New Testament: Essays in Honour of Rob van Houwelingen. Edited by Myriam Klinker-De Klerck, Arco den Heijer, and Jermo van Nes. CBET 113. Louvain: Peeters, 2022.

• “Een kwestie van hermeneutiek? (Un)zeitgemäße bespiegelingen over heilige teksten en hun lezers in het spoor van Gadamer, Betti en Thiselton." Rede uitgesproken bij de aanvaarding van het ambt van hoogleraar hermeneutiek bij de Faculteit Religie en Theologie van de Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam op 10 maart 2022. (more info)

• "Haggadic Motifs in the Acts of the Apostles: A Search for Traces of the Tradition of the Elders in Acts 1–3." Pages 307–333 In Haggadah in Early Judaism and the New Testament. Edited by Roger Aus. WUNT 461. Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2021.

III. My forthcoming publications

• "The Miraculous in Luke-Acts: An Essay on Lukan Christology, Eschatology and the Imminent Expectation of the βασιλεία τοῦ θεοῦ." Pages [1-55] in The Miraculous in the Biblical Traditions. Edited by Graham H. Twelftree. Leiden: Brill, accepted.

• "The Study of New Testament Hermeneutics in the Low Countries (1980-Present)" (in preparation).

Education

I studied theology and religious studies at the Evangelical Theological Faculty in Louvain, Belgium (lic. theol., 1987, doctoral studies, 1987-1990). I wrote my lic. thesis on the hermeneutic theory of the Italian philosopher of law Emilio Betti (1987) and a second thesis during my doctoral studies on the history of New Testament interpretation (1990). I received my PhD from the University of Durham, UK (now Durham University) in 1996. My Doctoral Dissertation on The Ascension of the Messiah in Lukan Christology was supervised by Prof James D.G. Dunn and published in 1997 by Brill in the NovTSup series. Since then, I have worked and taught on Luke-Acts, the Synoptic Gospels and in the field of Biblical and philosophical hermeneutics.

Teaching

My recent teaching includes courses on all academic levels: PhD Seminar on New Testament Studies (PhD); Hermeneutics, Community Formation and the Ethics of Interpretation (MA); Exegese Nieuwe Testament: Synoptische Evangeliën (BA); Jezus en de evangelisten (JB); Bijbelexegese: Handelingen van de apostelen (BA); Rudolf Bultmann’s New Testament Theology: Context, Content, Consequences and Concern (MA); Bijbelse Theologie: Nieuwe Testament (BA); Exegesis New Testament: First Peter (ReMa), Exegesis New Testament: Acts of the Apostles (ReMa), and many more.

Ancillary activities

Kerk en Theologie | Utrecht | voorzitter redactie | 2017-09-01 - present

Ancillary activities are updated daily

Full Professor, Faculty of Religion and Theology, Texts and Traditions

Full Professor, CLUE+

Quick links

Study

Featured

About VU