FORT WORTH, Texas (BP)–D. David Garland, distinguished professor emeritus of Old Testament and Hebrew at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, died July 21 in Fort Worth, Texas, after a brief illness.
Garland, 83, served the seminary from 1958-91. He was also interim pastor of Oak Grove Baptist Church in Burleson, Texas, from 1982-91. Upon his retirement from the seminary, he assumed the title of pastor and served the church until 1998.
He was the author of the commentary on Habakkuk in the Broadman Bible Commentary series, as well as Bible study guides on Amos, Isaiah, Job and Hosea for Zondervan Press.
Born in Memphis, Tenn., in 1921, Garland attended the University of Arkansas at Monticello where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1945. He enrolled at Southwestern before illness forced him to discontinue his studies but later received a bachelor of divinity degree and Ph.D. degree from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky., in 1949 and 1956, respectively.
Before being elected to the faculty at Southwestern, Garland was pastor of Baring Cross Baptist Church in North Little Rock, Ark., from 1951-59 and served as a member of the executive board and executive committee of the Arkansas Baptist Convention. He earlier had served as pastor of First Baptist Church in West Baden Springs, Ind., from 1946-51. He was also a participant in the U.S. Navy’s V-12 pre-chaplain program from 1943-1945.
Garland is survived by his wife, Ellenor; daughter Jane Crumby of Benton, Ark.; and son David M. Garland of Memphis, Tenn. Garland will be interred in Memphis.
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