George Eldon Ladd (1911–1982) was a Baptist minister and professor of New Testament exegesis and theology at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California.
Ladd was ordained in 1933 and pastored in New England from 1936 to 1945. He served as an instructor at Gordon College of Theology and Missions (now Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary), Wenham, Massachusetts from 1942–45. He was an associate professor of New Testament and Greek from 1946–50, and head of the department of New Testament from 1946–49. In 1950–52 he was an associate professor at Fuller Theological Seminary, Pasadena, Calif, becoming professor of biblical theology in 1952.
Ladd's best-known work, A Theology of the New Testament, has been used by thousands of seminary students since its publication in 1974. This work was enhanced and updated by Donald A. Hagner in 1993.
Ladd was a notable, modern proponent of Historic Premillennialism, and often criticized dispensationalist views. His writings regarding the Kingdom of God (especially his view of inaugurated eschatology) have become a cornerstone of Kingdom theology. His perspective is expressed in The Meaning of the Millennium: Four Views, R. G. Clouse, editor (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1977) and the shorter and more accessible The Gospel of the Kingdom (Paternoster, 1959).
George E. Ladd nos brinda la una definición completa y precisa de lo que es la Biblia afirmando que: "La Biblia es la Palabra de Dios dada a los hombres en la historia". A partir de esta definición Ladd explica porqué al metodología histórico-crítica es la más adecuada para interpretar las Escrituras, en contraposición de la interpretación alegórica que usaron muchos Padres de la Iglesia.
Se agradece que Ladd sea muy pedagógico a la hora de explicar los conceptos. No da por sentado que uno tenga un conocimiento profundo acerca de lo que está exponiendo, por lo que lo convierte en un libro que todo lector inteligente debería de considerar como obligatorio en su formación bíblica. A pesar de que el libro fue escrito hace 50 años sigue siendo muy relevante para nuestros tiempos.
Una descripción moderada y conservadora de lo que es el estudio crítico del Nuevo Testamento. El autor demuestra conocer la metodología crítica sin quitarle la autoridad a las Escrituras que típicamente viene acompañada de los que siguen esta metodología.
A balanced description of New Testament criticism. The author shows strong knowledge about NT criticism recognizing, however, the authority of the Scripture which is commonly denied by followers of this discipline.