David Sperling has been a renowned authority on the Bible for five decades. He retired in 2019 from a 40+ year career as a professor of Bible at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion (HUC-JIR) in New York City. He has also been a visiting professor at New York University, Syracuse University, the College of William and Mary and The Jewish Theological Seminary. Professor Sperling served as Consulting Editor to The Haftarah Commentary by W. Gunther Plaut, translated by Chaim Stern (URJ Press, 1996), and to The Torah: A Modern Commentary by W. Gunther Plaut and David E.S. Stein (URJ Press, 2005). Additionally, he has contributed to some 145 articles published in the Encyclopaedia Judaica (2007), as well as serving as Editor of the Bible section. His current project is a book on the Hallel Psalms (Psalms 113-118). Professor Sperling was ordained as a rabbi by the Jewish Theological Seminary in 1967, following which he earned his Ph.D. in Ancient Semitic Languages from Columbia University. He is a member of the Central Conference of American Rabbis.