Hort was educated at Cambridge, where he joined a group of biblical scholars including Westcott and Joseph Barber Lightfoot, and he maintained the connection throughout his life. From 1852 to 1857, he was a fellow of the university, returning in 1872 as professor, which position he retained until his death. In 1856 he was ordained in the Anglican Church and for 15 years served as a minister near Cambridge. During most of this period, he worked with Westcott on their critical edition of the New Testament, published in 1881. This work served as the basis for the New Testament portion of the English Revised Version of the Bible (1881). Hort also produced a major essay on philosophical theology, The Way, The Truth, and The Life (1893), dealing with the coexistence of an open, critical mind with acceptance of biblical truths.