Helmut Koester has passed away

One of the greatest expositor of New Testament and Early Christianity,  Helmut Koester has died.

This is a small obituary:

One of the nation’s foremost scholars of the New Testament and early Christianity, Helmut Koester began teaching at Harvard Divinity School in 1958, and continued to teach at both HDS and the Harvard Extension School through the fall of 2014. He received the Petra T. Shattuck Excellence in Teaching Award in 2005. From 1975 to 1999 he was editor of the journalHarvard Theological Review, and he served for many years as co-editor and chair of the New Testament editorial board of the Hermeneia series, a critical and historical commentary on the Bible published by Fortress Press. His books include the two-volume Introduction to the New Testament (New York: De Gruyter, 1982, second edition, 1995 and 2000), Ancient Christian Gospels: Their History and Development (London: SCM Press and Philadelphia: Trinity Press International, 1990), Paul and His World: Interpreting the New Testament in Its Context(Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2007); and From Jesus to the Gospels: Interpreting the New Testament in Its Context (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2007).

His contribution to New Testament studies will be felt for sure, in generations to come.

May the Lord give rest to his servant.

You can see him in action in the following video, from 2008.