NICHOLAS SERARIUS. - Jesuit theologian, b. at Rambervillers (Metz) in 1555, d. at Mainz in 1609. After completing his philosophical studies at Cologne, he entered the Society of Jesus in 1573 (German province); he first taught humanities, then philosophy, and finally exegesis.
An indefatigable worker, he possessed all the qualities of a good exegete: mastery of Latin, Greek, Hebrew, and Syriac; a keen sense for the nuances of style in sacred authors; and vast erudition in related profane matters. However, his commentaries are prolix, burdened with erudite discussions extraneous to the subject, and not without inaccuracies. His historical works remain valuable even today, partly incorporated into the *Acta Sanctorum*; they earned him the esteem and friendship of Baronius. Though his fierce polemic against Luther has faded, S. with true charity repeated: *"Pro haereticis non modo orandum, sed etiam studendum est."*
Serarius’ main non-polemical works include:
a) Biblical commentaries: *Jos.* and passages from *Ex.*, *Lev.*, *Num.*, *Deut.*, *Par.* (Mainz 1609–10); *Jud.* and *Ruth* (ibid. 1609); *Sam.*, *Reg.*, and *Par.* (posthumous, ibid. 1612); *Tob.*, *Judith*, *Esth.*, *Mach.* (ibid. 1599).
b) Biblical monographs: *Divus Paulus et Judas Iscariotes* (Würzburg 1586), which sparked prolonged controversies with Calvinists, Drusius, and Scaliger; *Iosuani sacerdotes*; *De Salomonis peccatis...*; *Naaman Syrus...*; *Triaeresium* (Jewish sects; Mainz 1604); *Rabbini et Herodes* (ibid. 1607); *Prolegomena biblica* (introduction to the New Testament epistles—his best work); other biblical writings appear in *Opuscula theologica* (3 vols., ibid. 1611), which also contains a biography of him.
c) Among his historical works: *Kiliani Franciae Orientalis... gesta* (Würzburg 1598); *Moguntiacarum rerum... libri 5* (ibid. 1604); *Comitum par genere... inclytum* (ibid. 1605); *Epistolae s. Bonifacii* (ibid. 1605).