Epigraphical Commentary on the New Testament (ECNT)

ECNT is an interdisciplinary project that aims to make the language of ancient inscriptions useful for interpreting the New Testament. It examines individual texts in monographs. In a first step, inscriptions containing the relevant lexemes are searched for, compiled, and explained. In a second step, the language used in the inscriptions is used to explore the intended meaning of the text on the one hand and to reveal ancient horizons of reception on the other. In addition, the inscriptions are also made accessible in an overview of the relevant words.

The editors

This project was developed by Markus Öhler (University of Vienna), Joseph Verheyden (KU Leuven), and Thomas Corsten (University of Vienna). Other partners are Riet van Bremen (University College London) and Andrzej Chankowski (University of Poitiers).

The history

The project began with two conferences and corresponding anthologies: first, a more general one on the connection between epigraphy and New Testament exegesis, and then one with individual studies on the Epistle to the Colossians. A first milestone has been reached with Julien Ogereau's commentary on 1 Thessalonians, which will be published in December 2025.

Next steps

Starting in February and March 2026, respectively, two new phases of the ECNT will begin: a commentary on Rev 1:1–8:1 and a commentary on Paul's Letter to Philemon.

All three projects were and are being financed by the Austrian Science Fund FWF (grant doi numbers 10.55776/P31343, 10.55776/PAT1530125, 10.55776/PAT4839925).

Publications

Several books and articles describe the ECNT project or are individual studies presenting findings.