Dr. Barbara M. Leung Lai
Title & Contact Info
Research Professor of Old Testament
Email: blai [at] tyndale.ca
Phone: 416.226.6620 ext. 6714
Personal Website
Academic Credentials
BTh, Alliance Bible Seminary, 1972
MDiv, Fuller Theological Seminary, 1976
ThM, Wycliffe College, University of Toronto, 1979
PhD, University of Sheffield, England, 1997
Areas of Specialization
Wisdom Literature, Apocalyptic Literature, Psychological Approaches to Biblical Themes and Texts, Social Sciences and the Interpretation of the Hebrew Bible, Text and Reading, Gender-Culture Studies, Contextual Biblical Interpretation, Appropriation/Relevance Theories, Memoir as a Biblical Genre (Nehemiah and Deuteronomy)
Biography
Methodologically located in the inter-disciplinary terrain of Social Sciences and Biblical Studies, she distinguishes herself in the advancement of psychological approaches to Biblical texts and themes.
Dr. Leung Lai came to Tyndale in 1997 after 20 years of teaching and equipping ministries in the East and West. She previously taught at Evangel Theological Seminary of Hong Kong (as a missionary with the Evangelical Free Church of North America) and McMaster Divinity College. During her last two sabbatical leaves, she served as Visiting Scholar at Fuller (2003), Princeton (2004), and was a Reader at Tyndale House (Cambridge, England, 2012).
Upon her retirement in July, 2017, she has been reappointed as Research Professor of Old Testament. While continuing her service as Scholar Associate of Wycliffe College, University of Toronto, she is on adjunct faculty at Carey Theological College in Vancouver. Dr. Leung Lai serves the broader academic community through adjunct teaching internationally.
Dr. Leung Lai has been a frequent presenter at scholarly and professional gatherings (SBL, ISBL, IBR, CETF, and global consultations). She is the author of three academic monographs, and is currently working on a new book in the area of "memoir as a biblical genre." Dr. Leung Lai has published articles in peer-reviewed journals, chapters in academic books and festschrifts, articles in study Bibles, invited book reviews, and dictionary entries. She is a member of the editorial team for the International Journal of Literature and Arts. Other than teaching and scholarship, Dr. Leung Lai serves the church community as a sought-after consultant in the area of appropriating the Old Testament to the contemporary human and ecclesiastical contexts.
Popular Courses
- OT Theology and History
- Biblical Interpretation
- Wisdom Literature
- Proverbs
- Ecclesiastes
Favourite Place on Campus
ChapelFavourite Place in Toronto
Edwards Botanical GardenFaculty Publications
- Ecclesiastes: A New Biblical Commentary (2024) (Book)
- Hosea in Asia-Centric Interpretation (2024) (Chapter)
- Race and Ethnicity in all the Old Testament (2024) (Article)
- Toward an Internal Profiling of God in the Hebrew Bible: Self Representation and Aspects of the Inner Life… (2024) (Chapter)
- Delighting in the Law in the Book of Psalms (2023) (Article)
- Invited Book Review of Unsettling the Word: Biblical Experiments in Decolonization (2021) (Review)
- Making Some Sense of the Paradox: Polyphony, Conflicting Ideologies, Dialogism, and the Dialectic Dynamics of Ecclesiastes (2021) (Article)
- Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs (2019) (Book)
- Handbook to Asian North American Biblical Hermeneutics (2017) (Chapter)
- Toward a Version of "Narratival Hermeneutics" (2017) (Chapter)
- Glimpsing the Mystery: The Book of Daniel (2016) (Book)
- Father, Eternal and Unchanging (2015) (Article)
- I-Voice, Emotion, and Selfhood in Nehemiah (2015) (Article)
- Isaiah 21:11-12 The Silent Question and Answer (2015) (Article)
- The Costly Loss of Lament and Protest: Toward a Biblical Theology of Lament and Protest (Psalm 44) (2014) (Chapter)
- "The Preacher and One’s Own 'Text-of-Life'" (2013) (Chapter)
- Voice and Ideology in Ecclesiastes: Reading 'Cross the Grains' (2013) (Chapter)
- Word Becoming Flesh [On Appropriation]: Engaging Daniel as a Survival Manual (2012) (Chapter)
- Through the 'I'-Window: The Inner Life of Characters in the Hebrew Bible (2011) (Book)
- Total Otherness, Awe-Driven Self-Condemnation, and Atonement for Guilt: The Psychology of Religious Experience and Guilt in Isaiah 6 (2010) (Chapter)
- What Would Bakhtin Say about Isaiah 21:1-12? A Re-reading (2010) (Article)
- OBED (2009) (Article)
- Aspirant Sage or Dysfunctional Seer? Cognitive Dissonance and Pastoral Vulnerability in the Profile of Daniel (2008) (Article)
- Introduction to Daniel (2008) (Article)
- Psalm 44 and the Function of Lament and Protest (2007) (Article)
- Surely, All Are in Vain! Psalm 73 and Humanity Reaching out to God (2007) (Chapter)
- Uncovering the Isaian Personality: Wishful Thinking or Viable Task? (2007) (Chapter)
- Commentary on the Book of Proverbs (2005) (Book)
- Hearing God's Bitter Cries (Hosea 11:1-9): Reading, Emotive-Experiencing, Appropriation (2004) (Article)
- Invited book review of Chairman Mao Meets the Apostle Paul: Christianity, Communism, and the Hope for China (2003) (Review)
- Making Sense of the Biblical Portrait: Toward an Interpretive Strategy of Proverbs 31:10-31 (2002) (Chapter)
- Student Diversity and Theological Education (2002) (Article)