Behind the NIV Bible stands a world-class team of biblical scholars: the Committee on Bible Translation (CBT). CBT members bring decades of Bible translation experience to their work, along with an unshakeable commitment to God’s Word. Their efforts, which began in 1965, continue to this day, ensuring an accurate, faithful Bible translation for generations to come.
Rev. Dr. Mark J. Boda
Professor of Old Testament at McMaster Divinity College, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
Ph.D. University of Cambridge
Affiliation: Christian and Missionary Alliance (Canada)
Dr. Mark Boda is Professor of Old Testament at McMaster Divinity College in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Key areas of research include Old Testament Prophecy, Persian Period Old Testament books, Judges, Prayer and Psalms, and Old Testament Theology. Mark joined CBT in 2017.
Dr. Jeannine K. Brown
Professor of New Testament, Bethel Seminary
Ph.D. Luther Seminary
Affiliation: Converge Worldwide (formerly Baptist General Conference)
Jeannine Brown began teaching New Testament at Bethel Seminary in 1995, specializing in biblical hermeneutics, the gospel of Matthew, and 1 Peter. Her publications include Scripture as Communication, Becoming Whole and Holy, Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels, and Matthew (Teach the Text Commentary series). Dr. Brown joined the CBT in 2009.
Dr. Simon Gathercole, Chair
Professor of New Testament and Early Christianity, University of Cambridge
Ph.D. University of Durham
Affiliation: Eden Baptist Church, Cambridge
Simon Gathercole specializes in New Testament interpretation, as well as exploring the connections between the New Testament and other literature from the same historical period. In addition to his contribution to the Committee on Bible Translation, he serves as editor for New Testament Studies. Simon joined the CBT in 2012.
Dr. Richard S. Hess
Distinguished Professor of Old Testament and Semitic Languages, Denver Seminary
Ph.D. Hebrew Union College
Affiliation: Cumberland Presbyterian Church
Before beginning as professor at Denver Seminary in 1997, Rick was Reader at Roehampton University London and Lecturer at International Christian College in Glasgow. Serving as editor for the Bulletin for Biblical Research Supplement and Dissertation Series, for Denver Journal, and as co-editor for the Septuagint Commentary Series, Rick has authored studies and commentaries on Genesis, Leviticus, Joshua, and the Song of Songs, as well as The Old Testament: A Historical, Theological, and Critical Introduction (2016) and Israelite Religions: An Archaeological and Biblical Survey (2009). With his wife, Jean, he co-pastors 316, a Celtic Christian Church, and is writing a commentary on 2 Kings. Hess joined the CBT in 2012.
Rev. Dr. David Instone-Brewer, Secretary
Honorary Research Fellow in Rabbinics and New Testament, Tyndale House Ph.D. University of Cambridge
Affiliation: Baptist Union of Great Britain
David Instone-Brewer is a Baptist minister and researcher at Tyndale House in Cambridge (UK). His specialties include rabbinic literature and the Jewish backgrounds of the New Testament. In addition to his academic research, Dr. Instone-Brewer has been featured in Christianity Today, Time, and the Wall Street Journal. David joined the CBT in 2005.
Dr. Elizabeth Mburu
Langham Literature Regional Coordinator Anglophone Africa / Associate Professor
Ph.D. Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary
Affiliation: Ridgeways Baptist Church, Southern Baptist
Elizabeth Mburu also teaches at Africa International University in Kenya. Her research interests include contextual hermeneutics, New Testament, worldview studies, and Bible translation. Elizabeth is the author of Qumran and the Origins of Johannine Language and Symbolism (2010) and most recently African Hermeneutics (2019). She has published several articles and chapters in books on African contextual hermeneutics and its application to New Testament texts. Her motto, “Empowering the church in its African expression,” reflects her conviction that culture influences how one understands and applies the Word of God. Elizabeth joined the CBT in 2022.
Dr. Douglas Moo
Wessner Chair of Biblical Studies, Wheaton College Ph.D. University of St. Andrews
Affiliation: College Church, Wheaton, IL
Doug Moo taught at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School for over 20 years before moving to Wheaton College. In addition to his work on the NIV, he’s the author of several New Testament commentaries and co-wrote An Introduction to the New Testament with D.A. Carson. Dr. Moo’s personal motto, captured in a plaque mounted in his office, is, “Apply yourself wholly to the text; apply the text wholly to yourself.” He joined the Committee on Bible Translation in 1996.
Dr. William Mounce
CEO, BiblicalTraining.org
Ph.D. University of Aberdeen
Affiliation: Baptist
Bill is the founder and President of BiblicalTraining.org and has written the best-selling biblical Greek textbook, Basics of Biblical Greek, and many other Greek resources. He was the New Testament chair for the English Standard Version, and was also a preaching pastor and a professor of New Testament and director of the Greek Language Program at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. Bill joined the CBT in 2009.
Dr. Sandra Richter
Robert H. Gundry Chair of Biblical Studies at Westmont College
Ph.D. Harvard University
Affiliation: Santa Barbara Community Church
Sandra Richter has taught at Asbury Theological Seminary, Wesley Biblical Seminary, and Wheaton College. Richter has authored The Deuteronomistic History and the Name Theology: lešakken šemo šam in the Bible and the ANE(BZAW 318, 2002), The Epic of Eden: A Christian Entry into the Old Testament (IVP 2008), and most recently Stewards of Eden: What the Scripture Has to Say About Environmentalism and Why it Matters (IVP 2020). She regularly publishes on the intersection between Syro-Palestinian archaeology and the biblical text. Due to her passion for the “real space and time” of the Bible, she has spent many years directing Israel Studies programs focused on historical geography and field archaeology. She joined the CBT in 2019.
Rev. Dr. Andrew G. Shead
Head of Old Testament Studies, Moore Theological College, Sydney
Ph.D. University of Cambridge
Affiliation: Anglican Church of Australia, Diocese of Syndey
In over 20 years at Moore College, Andrew Shead has taught all three biblical languages and most books of the Old Testament. His research interests include the book of Jeremiah, textual criticism, Hebrew poetry, and biblical theology. It’s not the research that keeps him going, however: it’s the joy of seeing men and women shaped by God’s word as we study, pray and eat together daily during some of their most formative years. Dr. Shead joined the CBT in 2016.
Dr. Mark L. Strauss, Vice-Chair
University Professor of New Testament, Bethel Seminary
Ph.D. University of Aberdeen
Affiliation: Converge Worldwide (formerly Baptist General Conference)
Mark Strauss has taught at Bethel Seminary since 1993. He is the author of a textbook on the Gospels (Four Portraits, One Jesus), commentaries on Luke and Mark and various other books on hermeneutics and Bible translation. He joined the CBT in 2005.
Rt. Rev. Dr. Paul Swarup
Bishop, Diocese of Delhi, Church of North India (CNI)
Ph.D. University of Cambridge
Affiliation: Church of North India
Paul Swarup is the Bishop of the Diocese of Delhi in the Church of North India, the leading Protestant denomination in that part of the country. He specializes in Old Testament theology and study of the Dead Sea Scrolls. The Rt. Rev. Dr. Swarup is a visiting faculty member at a number of Christian seminaries in India. Paul joined the CBT in 2008.
Dr. Daniel B. Wallace
Senior Research Professor Emeritus of New Testament Studies, Dallas Theological Seminary,
Executive Director, Center for the Study of New Testament Manuscripts
Ph.D. Dallas Theological Seminary
Affiliation: Presbyterian Church in America
Dan Wallace has taught at Dallas Seminary since 1987. He is the author of Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics, an intermediate syntax of New Testament Greek used worldwide and translated into several languages. He has published on Greek syntax, early Christian papyri, Apostolic Fathers, textual criticism, exegesis, historical Jesus, and the canon. He was the Senior New Testament editor of the NET Bible, and he served as the President of the Evangelical Theological Society in 2016. He joined the CBT in 2019.
Dr. Bruce Waltke
Professor Emeritus of Biblical Studies at Regent College
Distinguished Professor Emeritus at Knox Theological Seminary
Th.D Dallas Theological Seminary
Ph.D. Harvard University
Doctor of Letters Houghton College
Affiliation: Anglican Church in North America
Bruce Waltke is one of the world’s leading Old Testament scholars, having taught at Dallas Theological Seminary, Regent College, Reformed Theological Seminary, and Westminster Theological Seminary. His Commentary on Genesis and his An Old Testament Theology were awarded the gold medallion as the outstanding book of the year in evangelical literature. His commentary on Proverbs is lauded universally. Professor Waltke joined the CBT in 1977 and began as a translator of NIV in 1974.
Dr. Michael J. Williams
Emeritus Senior Professor in Old Testament Studies at Calvin Theological Seminary
Ph.D. University of Pennsylvania
Affiliation: Christian Reformed Church
Until his retirement in 2018, Michael Williams taught Hebrew, Old Testament, and ancient Near Eastern languages and history at Calvin Theological Seminary in Michigan. He is an ordained minister in the Christian Reformed Church and has also spent time teaching in Kenya, Russia, and Poland. Dr. Williams is proficient in seven ancient languages, including biblical Hebrew, Aramaic, Akkadian, Ugaritic, and Sumerian — so he brings unparalleled linguistic expertise to the CBT, where he’s served since 2005.
