Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg, a German theologian, born at Frondenberg, Westphalia, Oct. 20, 1802, died in Berlin, May 28, 18G9. He studied philology, especially the oriental languages, at Bonn. In 1823 he went as a private tutor to Basel, in 1824 became Privat-docent of theology at the university of Berlin, in 1826 extraordinary professor, and in 1828 ordinary professor of Old Testament exegesis. He soon acquired a commanding influence in the church by the publication of the Evange-lische Kirchenzeitung (1827), which was started as the organ of the evangelical party in the church and the conservative aristocratic party in the state. Hengstenberg soon fell out with the theologians who were attached more to evangelical Biblical than to orthodox Lutheran principles, and his journal became more and more the organ of a high-church Lutheran party. The order of freemasons, although the prince of Prussia was known to be one of its chief patrons, was denounced by him as infidel. His principal works are devoted to the interpretation of the Bible, and to the defence of its genuineness, integrity, inspiration, and divine authority, against the attacks of modern critical and skeptical schools.

The most celebrated among them is his Christologie des Alten Testaments (3 vols., Berlin, 1829-'35; 2d ed., 1854-'7; translated by Dr. Reuben Keith, 3 vols., Alexandria, 1836-'9). His Com-mentar uber die Psalmen (4 vols., 1842-'5; 2d ed., 1849-'52; translated into English) is regarded as a masterpiece of orthodox exegetical theology. His other works are : Beitrage zur hen hawk Einleitung ins Alte Testament (3 vols., 1831-'9); Die Bucher Mosis und Aegypten (1841; English translation by R. D. C. Bobbins, An-dover, 1843); Die wichtigsten und schwierig-sten Abschnitte des Pentateuchs (1842); Com-mentar uber die Offenbarung des heiligen Johannes (2 vols., 1850-'51;. 2d ed., 1861-'3); Das Evangelium des heiligen Johannes erlautert (1862-'3; 2d ed., 1867); Das Hohelied Salo-monis ausgelegt (1853); Die Weissagungen des Propheten Ezechiel (2 vols., 1867-'8); Ge-schichte des Seiches Gottes unter dem alien Bunde (2 vols., 1869-70); and Das Buck Hiob erlautert (1870).