Matthew Umbarger

I have spent nine years in Israel studying the Old Testament. While there, I worked towards acquiring the language skills I needed for a deeper level of understanding. Today I delight in sharing what I have received in those studies with anyone that I can.

I am a professor of theology at Newman University, where I teach some of the best students on earth. My wife, Robin, and our six children enrich my life and bring me joy. Most importantly, they are helping me as I make my way down the hard path to holiness.

I’m really still a Kansas farm-boy at heart. I grew up outside of a tiny little town known as Thayer. I miss operating tractors and working cattle, and I especially miss the spectacular views of the most gorgeous sunsets on earth, but God had other plans for me, and I can’t imagine doing anything else. Helping students discover the wonders of the Old Testament is immensely gratifying. I still scratch around in the dirt a bit, though. I have a dozen grapevines that I am struggling to encourage to produce enough fruit for a bottle or two of homegrown wine.