WETTE, DE, WILHELM MARTIN LEBERECHT°

WETTE, DE, WILHELM MARTIN LEBERECHT°
WETTE, DE, WILHELM MARTIN LEBERECHT° (1780–1849), German biblical scholar and theologian; born at Ulla, near Weimar, and died in Basle. De Wette came from a family of Protestant clerics of Dutch origin. He was appointed privatdocent in theology at the University of Jena in 1805. From 1807 to 1810 he was professor of biblical exegesis at Heidelberg. At schleiermacher 's suggestion he was invited to join the newly established faculty of theology in Berlin, but his liberal views caused his dismissal in 1819. He returned to Weimar and stayed there until he was offered the post of professor of ethics and theology at Basle in 1822. This marked the beginning of the second phase of his scholarly activity, during which he became more and more conservative in his views, thereby arousing the antagonism of the rationalists, to whom he had himself previously belonged. In his lifetime, de Wette was one of the most renowned theologians and religious scholars. In Bible criticism, his main contributions are to be found in his early writings – his dissertation on Deuteronomy, written in Latin (Dissertatio criticoexegetica, qua Deuteronomium a prioribus Pentateuchi libris diversum …, 1805) and his book Beitraege zur Einleitung in das Alte Testament (2 vols., 1806–07). As against the "fragments" hypothesis prevailing at the time, he maintained the unity of the Book of Deuteronomy and pointed out its unique qualities, both in form and contents. It was he who linked Deuteronomy to the reform introduced by josiah II Kings 22–23), concluding that the book had been composed in that period. He also asserted that the Former Prophets were edited by the Deuteronomistic school, and deprecated the historical reliability of the books of Chronicles. These conclusions eventually became cornerstones of modern biblical scholarship and established de Wette as one of the great biblical scholars of the 19th century. Another noteworthy work of de Wette in the field of biblical criticism was his Commentar ueber die Psalmen (1811, 18364) which betrays J.G. Herder's influence, stressing as it does the aesthetic aspect of the text. This was also the first attempt to classify the Psalms on the basis of literary genres, a method subsequently developed by hermann gunkel . De Wette's German translation of the Bible (1809–11), including the Apocrypha, is distinguished by its strict adherence to the original, sometimes to the extent of sacrificing the fluency of the translations. -BIBLIOGRAPHY: E. Staehelin, Dewettiana, Forschungen und Texte zu W.M.L. de Wettes Leben und Werk (1956); H.J. Kraus, Geschichte der historisch-kritischen Erforschung des Alten Testaments (1956), 160–79; R. Smend, W.M.L. de Wettes Arbeit am Alten und am Neuen Testament (1958). (Menahem Haran)

Encyclopedia Judaica. 1971.

Игры ⚽ Нужно решить контрольную?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Wilhelm Martin Leberecht de Wette — (* 12. Januar 1780 in Ulla bei Weimar; † 16. Juni 1849 in Basel) war ein deutscher Theologe. Inhaltsverzeichnis 1 Leben …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Wilhelm Martin Leberecht de Wette — (12 January 1780 16 June 1849), was a German theologian and biblical scholar. Contents 1 Life and Education 2 Studies 3 Selected works 4 …   Wikipedia

  • Martin Leberecht de Wette — Wilhelm Martin Leberecht de Wette (* 12. Januar 1780 in Ulla bei Weimar; † 16. Juni 1849 in Basel) war ein deutscher Theologe. Inhaltsverzeichnis 1 …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • DE WETTE, WILHELM MARTIN LEBERECHT —    a German theologian, born near Weimar; studied at Jena, professor of Theology ultimately at Basel; was held in high repute as a biblical critic and exegete; contributed largely to theological literature; counted a rationalist by the orthodox,… …   The Nuttall Encyclopaedia

  • Wilhelm de Wette — Wilhelm Martin Leberecht de Wette (* 12. Januar 1780 in Ulla bei Weimar; † 16. Juni 1849 in Basel) war ein deutscher Theologe. Inhaltsverzeichnis 1 …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Leberecht — ist der Vorname folgender Personen: Lebrecht (Anhalt Köthen) (1622–1669) aus dem Geschlecht der Askanier, Fürst von Anhalt Plötzkau und seit 1665 Fürst von Anhalt Köthen Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher, Fürst von Wahlstatt (1742–1819), preußischer… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Wette (Begriffsklärung) — Wette bezeichnet: eine spekulative Behauptung, siehe Wette einen regionalen Ausdruck für Löschwasserteich einen Begriff der alten Rechtssprache, siehe Wette (Recht) Wette ist der Familienname folgender Personen: Hermann Wette (1857–1919),… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • WETTE, DE —    See DE WETTE, WILHELM MARTIN LEBERECHT …   The Nuttall Encyclopaedia

  • De Wette — Wilhelm Martin Leberecht de Wette (* 12. Januar 1780 in Ulla bei Weimar; † 16. Juni 1849 in Basel) war ein deutscher Theologe. Inhaltsverzeichnis 1 …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • De Wette — De Wette, Wilhelm Martin Leberecht, hervorragender protest. Theolog, geb. 14. Jan. 1780 in Ulla bei Weimar, gest. 16. Juni 1849 in Basel, ward 1805 in Jena akademischer Dozent, 1807 außerordentlicher Professor der Philosophie, 1809 ordentlicher… …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”