Verlyn D. Verbrugge, longtime Zondervan editor, author, teaching pastor and New Testament scholar, died Sunday, June 21 following a six-month battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 72.

His death is felt as a deep loss to family, friends, publishing colleagues, the academic community and numerous pastors and leaders around the world whose lives he shaped.

Verbrugge served as one of Zondervan’s principle production editors for 29 years, specializing in areas of New Testament studies and biblical Greek. Throughout his tenure, his primary focus was Bibles and academic resources in biblical and theological studies, though he also worked on church and ministry resources as well as popular trade books. Verbrugge edited more than 700 books and resources for Zondervan, working with a diverse group of authors, including Henry Cloud, Bill Hybels, Charles Swindoll, Carolyn Custis James, as well as scholars such as F.F. Bruce, Thomas Schreiner, Karen Jobes, Moisés Silva and Kevin Vanhoozer.

“We thank Verlyn, for who he was and all that he shared with us," said Stan Gundry, Zondervan senior vice president. "We will miss him.”

Verbrugge’s work in biblical languages has played a central role in establishing one of the most widely used line of resources for learning Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek. He acquired numerous biblical language textbooks as well as innovative learning tools, reference books and video/audio resources for the company. He helped craft perennial best-sellers such as Basics of Biblical Greek by William D. Mounce and Basics of Biblical Hebrew by Gary D. Pratico and Miles V. Van Pelt.

Verbrugge penned several noteworthy Zondervan academic resources, including the New International Dictionary of the New Testament Theology: Abridged Edition (2000) and Devotions on the Greek New Testament (2012), which he co-edited with J. Scott Duvall. His most recent book, Paul & Money: A Biblical and Theological Analysis of the Apostle’s Teachings and Practices, was co-authored with his former Ph.D. student Keith Krell. Released just two days after his death, Paul & Money aims to become the definitive resource for understanding how the apostle interacted with the Jewish and Greco-Roman world of finance.

Verbrugge earned his Ph.D. from the University of Notre Dame, writing his dissertation on Paul’s leadership in Corinth. For many years, he served on the steering committee of the Pauline Studies Section of the Evangelical Theological Society, and taught New Testament courses at several colleges and seminaries in the U.S. and Trinidad.

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