Plenary Session
Dean of Asian Studies & Professor of Old Testament & Hebrew, Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
Dr. Sung Jin Park serves as the Dean of Asian Studies at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, SBC, where he oversees Asian Studies programs, including Korean and Mandarin Studies, serving a community of more than 1,000 Asian students. His work is shaped by a mission-oriented vision of theological education that seeks to form leaders for the church in Asia and the diaspora.
As an Old Testament scholar, Dr. Park brings a deep commitment to biblical exegesis, believing that careful and responsible interpretation of Scripture is essential for the long-term health of the church and the vitality of mission. His approach to theological education emphasizes grounding pastors and church leaders in the biblical text while helping them discern its meaning and implications within their own cultural and missional contexts.
Dr. Park is actively engaged in ministry across Southeast Asia, with extensive visits and partnerships in Indonesia, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, and the Philippines. He is convinced that theological education in the mission field is not merely academic training, but a vital means of nurturing leaders who can faithfully teach Scripture, shepherd communities, and participate in God’s mission amid rapidly changing societies.
At the heart of his ministry is a vision to integrate rigorous biblical interpretation with missional formation, serving the church in Asia through theological education that is both textually faithful and contextually engaged.
Academic Background
PhD. Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion (Hebrew Bible and Ancient Near Eastern Studies)
M.Phil. Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion
Th.M. Dallas Theological Seminary
M.S. POSTECH
B.S. Hanyang University
Publications & Research (selected works)
Books:
The Fundamentals of Hebrew Accents: Divisions and Exegetical Roles beyond Syntax (New York, NY: Cambridge University Press, 2020).
Typology in Biblical Hebrew Meter: A Generative Metrical Approach (Lewiston, NY: Edwin Mellen, 2017).
Articles:
“On the Disparity of Penalties in Deuteronomy 22:13-21,” Vetus Testamentum 75/4-5 (2025): 666-873.
“You Shall Purge Evil among You: The Legal Omissions and Reconstructions of Illicit Sex Laws in Deuteronomy 22:22-29,” Catholic Biblical Quarterly 87/1 (2025): 20-38.
“Temporal Disjunction Unveiled in Narratology: The Hidden until Revealed (HUR) Technique in Exodus 2,” Biblica 105/2 (2024): 155-170.
“The Validity of the Phonetic Value Changes of Shewa in Various Tiberian Accentual Contexts,” Hebrew Studies 60 (2019): 333-355.
“Biblical Hebrew Poetry”, in “Where Shall Wisdom Be Found?” A Grammatical Tribute to Professor Stephen A. Kaufman (eds. Hélène Dallaire, Benjamin Noonan, and Jennifer E. Noonan; Winona Lake, IN:Eisenbrauns, 2017), 289-316.
“Pointing to the Accents in the Scroll: The Functional Development of the Masoretic Accents in the Hebrew Bible,” Hebrew Studies 55 (2014): 73-88.
“The Text and Translations of Job: A Comparative Study on 11QtgJob with Other Versions According to Translation Techniques,” Journal for the Evangelical Study of the Old Testament 2/2 (2013): 165-190.
“Application of the Tiberian Accentuation System for Colometry of Biblical Hebrew Poetry,” Journal of Northwest Semitic Languages 39/2 (2013): 113-128.
“A New Historical Reconstruction of the Fall of Samaria,” Biblica 93/1 (2012): 98-106.
“The Cultic Identity of Asherah in Deuteronomistic Ideology of Israel,” Zeitschrift für die alttestamentlich Wissenschaft 123/4 (2011): 553-564.
“Short Notes on the Etymology of Asherah,” Ugarit Forschungen 42 (2010): 527-534.