Why are there approximately 41,000 denominations within Christianity alone? Is it because people have not devoted their life to understand how to rightly divide the word? Six basic principles are at the heart of sound method of biblical interpretation. 1.) Prayer: because scripture is a divine book, and because of our limitations as humans, prayer is an absolute necessity as we study the Bible. Paul teaches that non-Christians and spiritually immature Christians are limited in heir ability to know Christian things (1 Corinthians 2:14 - 3:3). Therefore, we must pray that God will bridge the gap that separates us from understanding spiritual things, by having the Holy Spirit teach us (John 14:26; 16:13). Without this insight from Gods Spirit, we cannot learn. Listen to what Paul said to Timothy (Timothy 2:7) 2.) Common sense: the Bible is also a human book and, to a degree, must be interpreted like any other book. This brings us to the Principle of common sense. For example, the grammatical-historical method of studying the Bible instructs us to look at the grammar of a passage carefully to see what it says (Note: finding the Hebrew root of each english word is particularly useful) and to understand a biblical statement in light of its historic background. We understand a historical statement as a straightforward statement and do not change its literal, grammatical sense. This is common sense. Another example of the common sense principle is illustrated when Yeshua says to his disciples If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. Common sense tells us that there must be some limitations on this statement because we realize that Christians in fact do not have whatever they would like. First John 5:14 confirms that the limitation is Gods will. 3.) Asking the right corrections: We interpret the Bible properly when we learn to ask the right questions of the text. The problem here is that many people do not know what the right questions are, or they are too lazy to learn. Biblical interpretation is a science, and the rules it uses take time, energy, and a serious commitment to learn. But when learned, there is much more satisfaction in asking the right questions than merely guessing. 4.) Context: The primary rule of biblical interpretation is context. This cannot be emphasized too strongly. If the Bible student would merely let a passage speak for itself within the context of the paragraph, chapter or book, the majority of all errors in interpretation would be avoided. The problem is our bias, or our subjectivity. Many times we approach a passage thinking we already understand it. In the process we read our own meaning into the passage . This is called eisegesis (Eis is a Greek preposition meaning into. But interpreting the Bible correctly demands that we listen to what the text itself is saying, and then draw the meaning out of the passage. This is called exegesis. (Ex is a Greek preposition meaning out of) If we let a passage be defined by what it and surrounding verses say, then we have taken a large step toward interpreting the Bible properly . Only by watching the context carefully and by letting the passage speak for itself do we give Scriptures the respect it deserves. 5.) These four key words -Observation, Interpretation, Evaluation and Application - are the heart of all approaches to finding out what the Bible means. They provide the structure of what questions you ask of the text and when. Observation: Do I understand the basic facts of the passage such as the meaning of all of the words (from the root language of a given book or passage)? Do I understand the context before and after? Do I understand the flow of the discussion? Do I understand the culture background? It is necessary to clear up all the factual problems before moving into the theological meaning of the passage. For example, in 1 Corinthians 8 the apostle Paul discussed eating meat that had been offered to idols. What is the background? When meat was sacrificed to an idol, that which was not eaten by the (non-christian/false) priests it was sold at the market. Some Corinthian Christians said is was permissible to eat the meat since idols are nothing but wood and stone. Others thought it was not permissible because it might appear they were (still) involved in pagan worship. Only after we understand these facts may we go on to the next stage. (I will come back to this.) Interpretation: the basic question asked in this stage is, What did the author mean in his own historical setting? We must put ourselves in the shoes of Scripturess original audience. To answer this question there are two further questions we may ask. The first is, What does the passage acturally say? Many times we forget to look carefully at what a passage says. Some cite Matthew 5:21-22 as proof tat to think bad is just as wrong as doing it. Is anger as bad as murder? Of course not. Coomon sense tells us that, if nothing else. But the text does not actually say they are the same. It says (or atleast attempts to make clear) that the law agaist murder is not fully obeyed by mere outward obedience, but by maintaining the proper attitude of not being angry, which in turn prohibits the outward act of murder. The second question is, Does the context help define the meaning of the passage? For example, wat does the scripture mean when it says, There is no God (Ps. 53:1)? Context shows this is a statement made by a fool. What does Paul mean when he says Yeshua will return like a thief in the night (1 Thess. 5:2)? Context shows it means His coming will be sudden (verse. 3). The beauty of using Scripture to interpret Scripture is that when the Bible answers its own questions, then you know the answer is correct.) The TWIN matters of what the text actually says and the passages context help complete the second stage of interpretation. Now how do we interpret 1 Corinthians 8? Once we understand the facts and background of the passage, once we have asked what the passage actually is saying and what is its context, then we see that Paul is teaching the principle of voluntarily refraining from a practice that, although no wrong in and of itself, might be harmful to a fellow Christian. We have completed the first step of interpretation. We have seen what the passage meant in the day and age of the author. Evaluation: The stage of evaluation ask, What does the passage signify in todays culture? It is the issue of whether a passage of Scripture applies to us today, or whether it is limited to the culture in which it was originally written. The question raised by the evaluation process is answered one of two ways. Either the passage is applied directly to our culture, or it must be reapplied because of cultural differences. The vast majority of the renewed covenant (otherwise known as the New Testament) can be applied directly to our 21st-century culture. Yeshua said, Anyone who loves me, he will obey my teaching (John 14:23). This teaching is true in any culture for all times. But sometimes a biblical teaching is directed so specifically to the culture of the ancient world that another culture cannot undersand it. For example, Western culture today generally does not sacrifice meat to idols, and therefore the meaning of 1 Corinthians 8 may be lost. How then do we evaluate its meaning for us? It is helpful at this point to define two terms. A cultural expression is a statement that can be understood only within a certain cultural context. An eternal principal is a principal that God uses to govern the world regardless of culture. I will never again eat meat, lest it make my brother stumble (1 Cor. 8 13), is a cultural expression because it is understandable only within thse cultures that offer meat to idols. God is love (1 John 4:8) is an eternal principle because it is understandable in all cultures. Its important to understand that every cultural expression in the Bible is the result of some eternal principle. And even though a cultural expression connot be carried over directly to another culture, the eternal principle behind it can. Just because it is cultural dosent mean it can be ignored. A good example of this important principle might be the teaching that we should always be polite when we are guest for dinner. In America, this principle could express itself as Eat all the food on the table lest you insult your hosts cooking. But in Uganda it is important that food be left on the serving plates lest it appear your host has not sufficiently provided for you. Therefore, whereas the principle shows itself in America as Eat all the food, the same principle shows itself in Uganda as Leave some of the food on the serving plates. The task of the Biblical intepreter is to look through any cultural expression to the eternal principle that gave rise to it, and to reapply the principle in his own culture. This is the process of evaluation. Is it cultural? If it is, how does the eternal principle that gave rise to the cultural expression reapply in the new culture. TWO IMPLICATIONS can be drawn from this. First, if a statement is cultural, then there must be a principle that gave rise to the cultural statement. But if no principle can be found, then what was thought to be cultural may in fact be an eternal principal. Second, if the interpreter is not sure whether a statement is cultural, would it not be better to be safe and view the statement as eternal, lest a command of God be ignored? Application: Up to this point, the process of interpreting the Bible has been academic (for the most part). It is absolutely essential to recognize that the purpose and goal of Bible study is a godly life. Study is not complete until we put into practice what we have learned. The question to ask at this stage of interpretation is, How can I apply what I have learned to how I live my life? The academic and the practical are thus fused into a meaningful approach to the bibles message. Some people dismiss the acdemic as boring and trivial. Others reject the application as unnecessary. Both extremes are equally wrong. The Bible interpreter must walk the tightrope between these approaches. A three-act play is unsatisfying without the final act. The last act, without the first two, does not make sense. Sometimes in Bible study it is necessary to emphasize the academic when the passage is difficult to understand, or to emphasize the application when the passages practical relevance is confusing. ut one of these approaches should never be used to the exclusion of the other. Peace and blessing! Ali The above I learned and copied from The Bible dictionary (study volume); A book I know longer have but kept certains pages of to help further my families study in Hermeneutics.
Posted on: Thu, 05 Dec 2013 05:14:27 +0000
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