Joseph Blenkinsopp

Joseph Blenkinsopp, an academic theologian and Old Testament scholar, is the John A. O'Brien Professor Emeritus of Biblical Studies in the Department of Theology at the University of Notre Dame. His research focuses on the Old Testament Prophets and on the Pentateuch.

Blenkinsopp studied history at the University of London (Honours B.A.). He then earned an S.S.L. (Licentiate in Sacred Scripture) from the Pontifical Biblical Institute in 1958 and his doctorate in Hebrew Bible and Semitics from the University of Oxford in 1967. Blenkinsopp taught at Heythrop College, London (1966); Vanderbilt University (1968); Chicago Theological Seminary (1968–69); and Hartford Seminary Foundation (1969-70) before coming to the University of Notre Dame in 1970. He was rector at Tantur Ecumenical Institute for Theological Studies in Bethlehem for the year 1978, and was a guest professor at the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome in 1997-1998. Blenkinsopp has served as president of the Catholic Biblical Association of America (1988-1989) and as president of the Society for the Study of the Old Testament (1999-2000). He has also been the recipient of National Endowment for the Humanities and Mellon grants.

Blenkinsopp has published a number of standard commentaries and introductions on parts of the Old Testament, particularly on the Prophets, the Pentateuch, and Ezra–Nehemiah.

• Isaiah 1-39: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary (Anchor Bible; New York)
• Isaiah 40-55. A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary (Anchor Bible; New York)
• Isaiah 56-66. A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary (Anchor Bible; New York)
• The Pentateuch: An Introduction to the First Five Books of the Bible (Anchor Bible Reference Library; New York)
• Ezra-Nehemiah: A Commentary (Old Testament Library; Louisville, Ky.)
• The History of Prophecy in Israel (Louisville, Ky.)