The Encyclopedia Americana (1920)/Oehler, Gustav Friedrich

OEHLER, ė'lĕr, Gustav Friedrich, German theologian: b. Ebingen, Würtemberg, 10 June 1812; d. Tübingen, 19 Feb. 1872. He studied at Berlin and Tübingen and subsequently taught at Basel and Tübingen. In 1840 he became professor in the theological seminary in Schönthal, was appointed professor of theology at Breslau in 1845 and in 1852 he became head of the theological seminary at Tübingen. He opposed the union of the Lutheran and Reformed churches, and he held aloof from the old Lutheran party, while subscribing to confessional Lutheranism. He was one of the most prominent Old Testament scholars on the conservative side. Among his works are ‘Introduction to Old Testament Theology’ (1845); ‘Outlines of Old Testament Knowledge’ (1854); ‘Relation Between Old Testament Prophecy and Heathen Soothsaying’ (1861); ‘Old Testament Theology’ (1873-74), English translation (1874-75), and ‘Manual of Symbolism’ (1876). Consult Knapp, ‘Ein Lebensbild von Oehler’ (1876).