OECOLAMPADIUS, JOITANNES, was born at Weinberg, a small town in the north of Wirtem berg, in 1482. IIis proper name was .ilusssrn or Heussgen (a diminutive from Haus, a house); not, as is generally stated, Hausschein, which seems to have been only a retranslation of Oecolampadius (Ullmann, .Sind. rt. Krit. 1845, p. 155, ff.) His early education he received at Heilbron, from which he passed to the University of Bologna to study law ; but his health failing him there, and his inclinations not favouring the pursuit of legal studies, he removed to Heidelberg, where he studied theology and the humanities. At a later period, he went to Thbingen, where he read Hesiod with Melanchthon ; thence he went to Stuttgart, where he prosecuted the study of Greek under Reuchlin ; he then returned to Heidelberg, and there com menced the study of Hebrew under the tuition of a converted Jew named Adriani ; and at length, stored with the treasures of learning he had ac quired, he returned to his native town, and entered on clerical duties there. Not long after, he was invited to Basle, to be preacher in the minster, and there he assisted Erasmus in preparing his edi tion of the Greek N. T. He left Basle in 15IS, having taken his degree as doctor, and became preacher at Augsburg. Whilst there, he surprised his friends by becoming a monk in April 152o ; but as his leanings were strongly towards the Re formation party, it was not long before he found his position in the cloister uncongenial, and re gretted the step he had taken. In February 1522, he made his escape from the bonds under which he had brought himself, and, after residing for some time at Heidelberg and other places, he returned to Basle, October 1522. Here the rest of his life was
spent. Having been appointed a teacher in the University, he set himself to expound the pro phecies of Isaiah, and his efforts in this direc tion were so successful, that not only multitudes of students crowded to his prelections, but many of the clergy and citizens were found amongst his hearers. Having now openly joined the reformers, he, in 1525, became pastor of one of the churches in Basle, and this gave him the opportunity of car rying forward the work of the Reformation, by abolishing the Romish ceremonies in his church, and instructing the people in the doctrines of the gospel. After a protracted conflict with the sup porters of the old system, Oecolampadius remained master of the field ; and the Reformation was es tablished in Basle. He did not long survive his triumph. As the morning of the 24th of November 1531 dawned, he passed away, with the words Lord Jesus help me,' on his lips.
His contributions to Biblical literature are nu merous. Besides editing and translating Theophy lact on the Gospels, and several of the Homilies of Chrysostom and other patristic writings, he issued commentaries, more or less full, on Genesis, Job, Psalms, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, most of the minor prophets, Matthew, John, and the Epistle to the Hebrews. His philological attainments, and his knowledge of the Fathers, contributed to give to his exegetical labours a high value.— W. L. A.