Rate My Professor Paul K.-K. Cho

Paul K.-K. Cho is Professor of Hebrew Bible and Director of the Master of Theological Studies (MTS) program at Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington, D.C. He began teaching there in 2013, offering courses such as Introduction to the Hebrew Bible, OT Exegesis: Exodus, OT Exegesis: Isaiah, OT Exegesis: Job, OT Exegesis: Exploration in Trauma and Bible, OT Exegesis: Willingness to Die in the Hebrew Bible, and PMM: Practice in Ministry and Mission Colloquy. His pedagogical approach emphasizes close reading of biblical texts in their historical and literary contexts. Cho holds a BA from Yale University, an MDiv from Yale Divinity School, and a PhD from Harvard University. As a Presbyterian, he has served local congregations in New Haven and Toronto and maintains an active role in the church as a preacher, speaker, and commentator.

Cho's research centers on the literary and theological interpretation of the Hebrew Bible, with current focus on trauma and resilience, particularly the book of Job situated within broader biblical and ancient Near Eastern traditions. He is the author of two scholarly monographs: Myth, History, and Metaphor in the Hebrew Bible (Cambridge University Press, 2019) and Willingness to Die and the Gift of Life: Suicide and Martyrdom in the Hebrew Bible (Eerdmans, 2022). His peer-reviewed publications include 'Death and Feasting in the “Isaiah Apocalypse” (Isaiah 25:6–8)' with Janling Fu in Intertextuality and Formation of Isaiah 24–27 (SBL, 2013); 'The Integrity of Job 1 and 42:11–17' in Catholic Biblical Quarterly 76 (2014): 230–51; 'Job 2 and 42:7–10 as Narrative Bridge and Theological Pivot' in Journal of Biblical Literature 136 (2017): 857–77; “I Have Become a Brother of Jackals”: Evolutionary Psychology and Suicide in the Book of Job' in Biblical Interpretation 27 (2019): 208–34; 'Job the Penitent: Whether and Why Job Repents (Job 42:6)' in Landscapes of Korean/Korean-American Biblical Interpretation (SBL, 2019); 'The Sea as Everyday Space (Psalms 104:25–26 and 107:23–32)' in Lexington Theological Quarterly 49 (2021): 79–106; 'The Work of Translation' (review essay) in Harvard Theological Review 114 (2021): 288–303; 'A House of Her Own: The Tactical Deployment of Strategy in Esther' in Journal of Biblical Literature 140 (2021): 663–82; and 'Biblical Samson, Milton’s Samson Agonistes, and Modern Terrorism' in Studies in the History of Exegesis (Mohr Siebeck, 2022).