About Us
Our mission
Named for the Wittenberg University theology professor who changed the landscape of modern biblical education and interpretation, the Martin Luther Institute for Biblical Scholarship is founded upon the principle that study of the Bible is never truly finished. The MLIBS aims to inspire the investigation of biblical manuscripts, support the study of biblical and ecclesiastical languages, promote a deeper understanding of the biblical narrative, and encourage lifelong engagement with the biblical text.
learning
Learning with the institute is meant to inspire and equip students for continued biblical study. While some students would benefit from entry level survey courses focussing on the Old Testament, New Testament, and Christian doctrine, more advanced students might be drawn to courses on biblical manuscripts and church history. Those desiring to read the Bible in its original languages would benefit from our Ancient Hebrew and Greek courses. Scholars seeking to enhance their research would benefit from our courses in Latin and German.
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In-Person and online
Our courses are accessible both in-person and online to better serve biblical scholarship world wide.
Martin Luther (1483 - 1546)
In April 1521, the Diet of Worms resulted in Martin Luther being declared an outlaw. So, he was swiftly taken by night to the Wartburg Castle for hiding. Luther took with him only one book—Erasmus’ 2nd Edition of the Greek New Testament, published in 1519. This edition had both Latin and Greek texts, the latter a composite text which Erasmus based on only a handful of manuscripts from the 12th and 15th centuries. After having lectured on the Bible for years, Luther now sat down with only this edition, the product of the latest printing technology. He translated the New Testament into his own language, making it available to the common person. This, among his many other contributions, transformed the way in which we read and study the Bible today.
In February 1546, when Luther died, a note written in Latin was found lying on his table. It said:
“1) No one can understand Vergil in the Bucolics unless he has been a Shepherd for five years. No one can understand Vergil in the Georgics unless he has been a Farmer for five years. 2) No one perfectly understands Cicero in the Letters (so I teach) unless he has spent twenty years in some notable Republic. 3) Let no one perceive that he has fully tasted the holy Scriptures unless he has steered the Churches with the Prophets, such as Elijah and Elisha, John the Baptist, Christ, and the Apostles for one hundred years.
Don’t you hold this divine Aeneid,
But, bowing down, adore its footprints.
We are beggars [written in German], this is true.
16 February 1546”
Until the day he died, Martin Luther understood that studying the Bible was a lifelong task.