Wayne Grudem

Wayne A. Grudem (born 1948) is a New Testament scholar turned theologian, seminary professor, and author.

Professor of Theology and Biblical Studies at Phoenix Seminary, Phoenix, Arizona.

Grudem was born on February 11, 1948, in Jim Falls, Wisconsin.

As a child, he attended First Baptist Church in Eau Claire, Wisconsin.

He holds a BA in economics from Harvard University, an MDiv and D.D. from Westminster Theological Seminary, and a PhD in New Testament studies from the University of Cambridge.

In 1985, Grudem authored a study of over 2000 ancient Greek references to κεφαλή (head), arguing that none of the metaphoric uses carry the meaning of 'source', as recent authors had argued.

He also edited Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, Christianity Today's "Book of the Year" in 1992, with John Piper.

In 1999 he was the president of the Evangelical Theological Society.

In 2001, Grudem became Research Professor of Theology and Biblical Studies at Phoenix Seminary.

Prior to that, he had taught for 20 years at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, where he was chairman of the department of biblical and systematic theology.

Grudem served on the committee overseeing the English Standard Version translation of the Bible, and from 2005 to 2008 he served as general editor for the 2.1-million-word ESV Study Bible (which was named "2009 Christian Book of the Year" by the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association).

All of Grudem's research on gender-related issues is now contained in his major 2012 reference work, Evangelical Feminism and Biblical Truth: An Analysis of More Than One Hundred Disputed Questions.

Grudem's understanding is that Bible advocates for gender roles, where men and women are equal in nature and dignity but operate within a hierarchy in which the husband is the head of the wife.

In recent years, Grudem's publications have focused on the application of the ethical teachings of the Bible to broader areas of the culture including government and economics.

Grudem announced having been diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease on December 22, 2015.

On July 28, 2016, Grudem published an opinion piece on Townhall called "Why Voting for Donald Trump Is a Morally Good Choice".

On October 9, the piece was retracted and replaced with one entitled "Trump's Moral Character and the Election".

On October 19, the original piece was reinstated and another piece was published, entitled "If You Don't Like Either Candidate, Then Vote for Trump's Policies".

Grudem and Bruce A. Ware were at the center of Trinitarian debate in 2016 that began online and culminated in print publications.

Both Grudem and Ware subscribe to a view of the Trinity called "eternal relations of submission and authority" or "eternal functional subordination" which claims that the Son is eternally submissive to the Father.

Their view was challenged by some scholars that the Son only submits to the Father in the incarnation according to his human nature.

Grudem is also a co-founder and past president of the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood.

In 2018, a Festschrift was published in his honor.

Scripture and the People of God: Essays in Honor of Wayne Grudem included contributions from John M. Frame, R. Kent Hughes, Ray Ortlund, John Piper, Vern Poythress, Leland Ryken, Thomas R. Schreiner, and Bruce A. Ware.

He is the author of multiple books, including Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine, which advocates a Calvinistic soteriology, the verbal plenary inspiration and inerrancy of the Bible, believer’s baptism, a plural-elder form of church government, Old Earth creationism, and the complementarian view of gender relationships.

Systematic Theology is a highly influential theology textbook that has sold hundreds of thousands of copies.

Grudem holds to noncessationist beliefs and was at one time a qualified supporter of the Vineyard Movement.

Grudem endorsed Trump for re-election in 2020.