Bruce D. Chilton (born September 27, 1949 in Roslyn, NY) is an American scholar of early Christianity and Judaism, and an Episcopalian priest. He is Bernard Iddings Bell Professor of Religion at Bard College, formerly Lillian Claus Professor of New Testament at Yale University, and Rector of the Church of St John the Evangelist He holds a PhD in New Testament from Cambridge University (St. John's College). He has previously held academic positions at the Universities of Cambridge, Sheffield, and Münster.

He wrote the first critical commentary on the Aramaic version of Isaiah (The Isaiah Targum, 1987), as well as academic studies that analyze Jesus in his Judaic context (A Galilean Rabbi and His Bible, 1984; The Temple of Jesus, 1992; Pure Kingdom, 1996), and explain the Bible critically (Redeeming Time: The Wisdom of Ancient Jewish and Christian Festal Calendars, 2002; The Cambridge Companion to the Bible, 2007).

He founded two academic periodicals, Journal for the Study of the New Testament and The Bulletin for Biblical Research. Chilton was awarded the Doctor of Divinity degree honoris causa by General Theological Seminary in 2011. He has also been active in the ministry of the Episcopal Church, and is Rector of the Church of St. John the Evangelist in Barrytown, New York.

His popular books have been widely reviewed. Rabbi Jesus: An Intimate Biography showed Jesus' development through the environments that proved formative influences on him. Those environments, illuminated by archaeology and by historical sources, include: (1) rural Jewish Galilee, (2) the movement of John the Baptist, (3) the towns Jesus encountered as a rabbi, (4) the political strategy of Herod Antipas, and (5) deep controversy concerning the Temple in Jerusalem.

Bruce and his wife, Odile, live in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York. They are the parents of two sons.

Works

Popular books

  • Chilton, Bruce D. (2000). . New York: Doubleday. ISBN 978-0-385-49793-0. OCLC .
  • ——— (2004). Rabbi Paul: An Intellectual Biography. New York: Doubleday. ISBN 978-0-385-50862-9. OCLC .
  • ——— (2005). . New York: Doubleday. ISBN 978-0-385-51318-0. OCLC .
  • ——— (2008). . New York: Doubleday. ISBN 978-0-385-52027-0. OCLC .

Academic books

  • ——— (1982). The Glory of Israel: the theology and provenience of the Isaiah Targum. Journal for the study of the Old Testament - Supplement series. Vol. 23. Sheffield: JSOT Press. ISBN 978-0-567-46092-9. OCLC .
  • ——— (1984). A Galilean Rabbi and his Bible: Jesus' own interpretation of Isaiah. London: SPCK & Michael Glazer. ISBN 978-0-281-04108-4. OCLC .
  • ——— (1987). The Isaiah Targum: Introduction, Translation, Apparatus and Notes. The Aramaic Bible: the Targums. Vol. 11. Edinburgh: T&T Clark. ISBN 978-0-89453-480-5. OCLC .
  • ——— (1986). Beginning of the New Testament Study. London: SPCK. ISBN 978-0-281-04210-4. OCLC .
  • ——— (1992). The Temple of Jesus: His Sacrificial Program within a Cultural History of Sacrifice. University Park, PA: Pennsylvania State University Press. ISBN 978-0-271-00824-0. OCLC .
  • ———; Neusner, Jacob (1995). Judaism in the New Testament: Practices and Beliefs. London & New York: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-11844-6. OCLC .
  • ——— (1997). Pure Kingdom: Jesus Vision of God. Studying the historical Jesus. London & Grand Rapids, MI: SPCK Publishing & Eerdmans. ISBN 978-0-281-05060-4. OCLC .
  • ——— (2002). . Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers. ISBN 978-1-56563-380-3. OCLC .
  • ———; Flesher, Paul V. M. (2011). The Targums: a critical introduction. Waco, TX: Baylor University Press. ISBN 978-90-04-21817-8. OCLC .
  • ——— (2014). A Galilean Rabbi and His Bible: Jesus' Use of the Interpreted Scripture of His Time. Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock. ISBN 978-1-62564-270-7. OCLC . - republication of the 1984 title
  • ——— (2021). The Herods: Murder, Politics, and the Art of Succession. Minneapolis: Fortress Press. ISBN 978-1-5064-7428-1. OCLC .
  • ——— (2026). Berenice: Queen in Roman Judea. New Haven & London: Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-3002-7425-7.

Edited by

  • ———; Neusner, Jacob, eds. (2001). The Brother of Jesus: James the Just and His Mission. Louisville KY & London: Westminster John Knox Press. ISBN 978-0-664-22299-4. OCLC .
  • ———; Neusner, Jacob, eds. (2005). Altruism in World Religions. Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University Press. ISBN 978-1-58901-065-9. OCLC .
  • ———, ed. (2007). The Cambridge Companion to the Bible. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-86997-3. OCLC .
  • ———; Neusner, Jacob, eds. (2008). Religious Tolerance in World Religions. Templeton Foundation Press. ISBN 978-1-59947-136-5.

Chapters

  • ——— (2005). "Altruism in Christianity". In ———; Neusner, Jacob (eds.). Altruism in World Religions. Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University Press. pp. 53–66. ISBN 978-1-58901-065-9. OCLC .