So, my friends, while we wait for the day of the Lord, work hard to live in peace, without flaw or blemish; 15 and look at the patience of the Lord as your salvation. Our dearly loved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given him, has written about this. 16 He says essentially the same in all of his letters, although uneducated and unstable readers misinterpret the difficult passages, just as they always misread Scripture, to their spiritual ruin.17 So hear my final words, my friends. Now that I have warned you about what’s ahead, keep up your guard and don’t let unprincipled people pull you away from the sure ground of the truth with their lies and misunderstandings. 18 Instead, grow in grace and in the true knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus, the Anointed, to whom be glory, now and until the coming of the new age. Amen.
Peter makes a big deal about true and false teachers, about learning what has been passed on by the prophets and apostles, about the importance of this to avoid spiritual ruin. Because of the importance of these final words from Peter, I want to walk us through some principles of Bible study today so that we do not misinterpret and fall into spiritual ruin.
Christians may still have points of tension on certain issues even if all parties are following these principles. God seems content to let mystery remain in the midst of things that are certain. That’s not a bad thing. I think it’s supposed to force us into community – but that’s my final point ☺
KNOW THE GENRE
History - a purposeful presentation of facts. Real people and places and events. This includes biography, war texts, etc.
Law Texts – Moral (don’t kill), ceremonial (wash your hands), hygienic (quarantine lepers), civil (forgive debts every 7 years).
Wisdom Lit - Wise or insightful saying about general principles in life. Proverbs and Ecclesiastes (and possibly even a good way to understand some of the law texts).
Poetry – Psalms; scattered throughout the Old Testament A lot of symbolism (“He will cover you with His feathers and wings”) and emotion. Poetry is often a journal rather than a manual.
Prophetic writing - prediction of the future or an analysis of how people are doing from God’s perspective.
War texts - a particular way of recording conquests
Apocalyptic – Revelation, parts of Daniel. Meant to be hopeful for people in distress. It is full of strange imagery and codes.
Romance - Song of Solomon; Ruth
Epistles (letters)- Personal communication on theology, church life, Jesus, the work of the Holy Spirit, living in the city, etc.
Parables – stories to illustrate a point
KNOW THE PURPOSE
A. Prescriptive (“Do/believe this not that!”)
The Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7)
7 churches in Revelation (Revelation 1-3)
B. Descriptive (“This is what happened.”
Jephthah sacrifices his daughter in Judges 11.
John the Baptist confronts Herod Antipas (Matthew 14)
Passages can be both – but they might not be. Read carefully.
KNOW THE CONTEXT [1]
What was the original author trying to say, and what did the original audience hear?
“Language assumes a culture, operates in a culture, serves a culture, and is designed to communicate into the framework of a culture…. We must translate the culture as well as the language if we hope to understand the text fully.” – John Walton
“We can easily forget that Scripture is a foreign land and that reading the Bible is a crosscultural experience.” – Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes
The Bible is situated in a culture. Cosmology; covenants; images (the sea is “chaos”), honor/shame; worship rituals; kings and kingdoms; sacrifice; societal structures, loaded language…
A book is situated in the Bible.
A chapter…in a book
A paragraph…in a chapter
A verse….in a paragraph.
A phrase…in a verse.
A word…in a verse.
Meaning always flows from the top (the Bible) down (to the verse), not the other way around.
Practice: what do these phrases mean in the broader context of the passage of Scripture in which they are situated?
Philippians 4:13 - “I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me.” (What things can we do, specifically?)
John 12:32 – “When I am lifted up, I will draw all men…” (How is Jesus lifted up?)
Ruth 3:9 and Ruth 2:12; Numbers 15:37-40 – what is Boaz ‘spreading’ over Ruth in 3:9?
John 10:10 – “The thief comes to steal, kill and destroy…” (who is the thief?)
Romans 4:17 – “Call things that are not as though they are…” (Who does this, and what is the thing that ‘is not’?)
Matthew 18:18-20 – “Whatever you bind…loose…in heaven…“whenever two or more are gathered in my name, there I am...” (Hint: what is this section about? Where does the Old Testament talk about the importance of two or three witnesses, and why?)
John 8:32 – “The truth will set you free…” (What kind of truth? What kind of freedom?)
2 Timothy 1:7 – “God has not given us a spirit of fear…” (what is meant by “spirit” here? Hint: however you interpret ‘spirit’, does it fit if you use the same meaning in the rest of the section when the word ‘spirit’ is used?”
1 Corinthians 10:13 “God will not give you more than you can handle…” (Is this trials or temptations?)
2 Corinthians 10:4 – “divine power to demolish strongholds…” (What are the strongholds?)
Isaiah 55:8 - “my ways are not your ways” (Hint: why does God remind his people of this? What does he want them to do?)
Practice: Choose one of the following sections of Scripture for contextual analysis:
Mark 11:12-21 A visit to the temple occurs between two incidents with a fig tree. What do they have in common? (Note: the fruit should appear before the leaves on a fig tree. A leafed tree should have fruit.)
Luke 4:14-28 Why are the people angry with Jesus? You will need to reference Isaiah 61:1-2. (Note: it was not uncommon for rabbis to quote only portions of a passage or bring in parts of other passages in order to make a particular point.)
NUMBERS AS AN EXAMPLE OF THE NEED FOR CONTEXT [2]
We have to be careful. Sometimes numbers are just numbers. But in the ancient Near East, numbers were often used symbolically rather than literally. If we try to make those writers’ symbolic use match our literal use, we can miss the point - sometimes badly.
NOT FIRST; SECOND
God often gives the most value to the second person – which is in direct opposition to the idea that the firstborn was the most important. We see this in events as well. The second is often more important than the first in God’s plan and purpose. It’s part of the “upside down” kingdom, where the wisdom, priorities and values of the world are turned upside down and shown to be foolish and unimportant.
Not the animals who were created first on day 6; the humans
Not the first creation (Eden), but the second (New Heaven and New Earth
Not Esau; Jacob
Not Saul; David
Not Ruth’s first husband; the second
Not Joseph’s first court appearance (he was jailed); the second
Not Moses’ first try freeing the people (killing the Egyptian); the second
Not the first leader out of Egypt (Moses); the second took them to the Promised Land (Aaron).
Not the first Adam/Abraham/David/Moses/Noah; the second (Jesus)
Not the first sacri@icial system; the second (the cross)
Not the first lamb (Passover); the second Lamb (Jesus)
Not the first birth (physical); the second (spiritual)
Not the first Jerusalem; the New Jerusalem
Not the first tree (in the garden), but the second tree (after the garden, on a hill)
THE NUMBER 6, the numbers of humanity (and beasts)
On the 6th day, men and beasts were created. You will actually see “man and beasts” paired together a LOT through the Old Testament.
666 is familiar, yes? It’s the ultimate humanist mockery of the Trinity.
THE NUMBER 7, the number of completion (and perhaps perfection).
On the 7th day, God rested.
7 days of creation/days of the week
7 covenants with humanity (Adamic, Noahic, Abrahamic, Mosaic, Levitic, Davidic, and Messianic)
7 days (and seven times) around Jericho
“Wash in the Jordan seven times.” (2 Kings 5:10)
7 pairs of each clean animal on the ark (Genesis 7:2)
7 stems on the tabernacle’s lampstand (Exodus 25:37)
7 qualities of the Messiah in Isaiah 11:2
Matthew’s genealogy of Jesus has 6 sets of 7 generation - putting Jesus as the 1st in the 7th seven.
Luke’s has 77 generations from Abraham.
7 signs in John’s Gospel
7 things the Lord hates in Proverbs 6:16
7 parables in Matthew 13
7 woes in Matthew 23.
“70 weeks” prophecy in Daniel 9:24 (7 times 7 times 10).
Jeremiah 29:10 predicted the Babylonian Captivity would last for seventy years (7 times 10).
Jesus is the seven-fold “I AM” in the Gospel of John.
forgive a wrongdoer “seventy times seven” (Matthew 18:22)
7 letters to 7 churches; 7 spirits before God’s throne (Revelation 1:4)
7 golden lampstands (1:12); 7 stars in Christ’s right hand (1:16); 7 seals of God’s judgment (5:1); 7 groups of people judged in Revelation 6
THE NUMBER 10 is fullness or entirety.
Ten generations from Adam to Noah, and Noah to Abraham.
The Ten Plagues fully expressed God’s judgment
The Ten Commandments
Jesus used the number ten often in parables to represent the full number of something.
Beasts from Daniel and Revelation often have ten horns - a full representation of earthly or evil power.
“Do not be afraid of the things you are about to suffer….that you may have tribulation ten days.” (Revelation 2:10:)
THE NUMBER 40 is the number of testing
The rain in the flood was 40 days and nights
Moses was 40 years in Egypt, in the desert, and on Mt. Sinai.
Jonah warned Ninevah for 40 days.
Jesus’ testing in the wilderness was 40 days.
It’s the number of days between Jesus’ resurrection and ascension. [3]
RECAPITULATION is the retelling of the same events with a different perspective and different purpose. There is an Old Jewish saying: “repetition is the mother of all wisdom.” No wonder that the Jewish writers used repetition.
A. Genesis 1 & 2 recapitulate: all of creation (Chapter 1) and then a focus on the 6th day (Chapter 2)
B. “The reason the dream was given to Pharaoh in two forms is that the matter has been firmly decided by God, and God will do it soon.” (Genesis 41:32 NIV).
C. Daniel 2 looks at empires from a human perspective; they’re worthy and valuable (described with precious metals). Daniel 7 looks at empires from God’s perspective; they are grotesque beasts.
D. The four gospels are recapitulations:
Matthew: Jesus is the complete fulfillment of the Old Testament
Mark: Jesus was a servant, so no genealogy because slaves and servants had no genealogies.
Luke: genealogy to Adam - Jesus is the Son of Man
John: all the way back to before creation – Jesus is God
E. The book of Revelation is full of recapitulation [4]
Revelation 6 - stars fell to the earth, which would completely destroy the earth. It’s the great day of the wrath of God’s judgment.
Revelation 11 - the 7th trumpet ushers in the end of the world
Revelation 16 - 7th angel’s bowl of judgment ends the world
Revelation 19 - the divine warrior’s sword wipes out all of the evil in the world and ends the world again.
Revelation 20 - Satan is kept from deceiving the nations, but didn’t he just get thrown into the lake of fire the previous chapter? At the end of the chapter, evil is wiped out again.
Revelation 21 - evil is thrown into the lake of fire. Again.
Linearly, this makes no sense. As a cycle of recapitulation, this is beautiful and all works together. Recapitulation allows for multiple perspectives and points on the same story. They all hammer home the same message – if you are a follower of Jesus Christ, stand firm in the midst of persecution. God wins in the end.
WAYS TO APPROACH BIBLE STUDY [5]
THE BOOK SURVEY METHOD [6]
Read through a book without stopping to consider the details (Titus, Philemon, James, Jude, Haggai, and Malachi are good ones to start with).
Draw a chart or outline (you can also find good ones online).
Find out all the background information you can. [7]
Read it again, perhaps in a different version (or in a side-by-side format ), taking notes of things that stand out while you read. [8]
What is the purpose of the writer? What “feel” do you get from reading it? Is the writer angry? Sad? Happy? Worried? Excited?
What are some of the significant words or phrases? What ideas are repeated or emphasized the most?
What seems to be the key verse or thought?
Use commentaries to see how you are doing ☺
THE CHAPTER ANALYSIS METHOD
Check the context. Who is speaking and being spoken to? When and where is it being spoken? What is the occasion or circumstance?
What is the main subject of the message? What other background material clarifies this statement? Are there cross-references somewhere else in the Bible that would be helpful?
Ask interpretive questions. Why did the writer say this? What is the meaning of ____________? What is the significance of ____________? What is the implication of ____________?
Write out a paraphrase it. The simplest way is just to rephrase the chapter in your own words. Read multiple translations, commentaries concordances to help you with particular words.
THE VERSE BY VERSE ANALYSIS METHOD
Same as above, just with a verse ☺
READ IN COMMUNITY
The Bible is intended to be read in the company of others in whom the Holy Spirit is at work. This includes voices from the past and the present, and from around the world.
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[1] Some resources that have been influential for me in this area:
Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes, by Kenneth Bailey.
Sexual Morality In A Christless World, Matthew Rueger
Insights into Bible Times and Customs, by G Christian Weiss, published by Moody Press.
Misreading Scripture With Western Eyes, E. Randolph Richards
Understanding the Difficult Words of Jesus, by David Bivin and Roy Blizzard.
40 Questions About Interpreting The Bible, by Robert Plummer
The Untold Story Of The Church, Frank Viola
Hard Sayings of the Bible, by Walter Kaiser, F.F. Bruce, and others.
Paul Among The People, by Sarah Rudan. Excellent insight into the culture in which Paul wrote.
followtherabbi.com (Ray Vander Laan’s site)
Some of John Walton’s books (try “The Lost World Of The Old Testament”)
The Bible Jesus Read and The Jesus I Never Knew, Phillip Yancey
Dennis Prager’s Rational Bible series offers some insightful perspectives on the Old Testament through the lenses of Jewish history and tradition (Prager is Jewish, not Christian).
Is God a Moral Monster? Making Sense of the Old Testament God, by Paul Copan.
Reading The Bible With Rabbi Jesus, Lois Tverberg
Hard Saying of the Old Testament, by Walter C. Kaiser, Jr.
Hard Sayings of Paul, by Manfred T. Brauch.
Series on Biblical books by Timothy Keller (such as Galatians For You) or N.T. Wright (his New Testament for Everyoneset)
[2] See “Design Patterns In Biblical Narrative” (a video from The Bible Project) and Nicole Clark, “Literary Design Pattern: See, Take, Do.” as good introductions to this.
[3] Also, the number 1,000 is rarely used literally. Check out all the verses with 1,000. God owns the cattle on 1,000 hills, for example, or God’s promise to Abraham is for 1,000 generations. We are not to assume the next hill or generation is exempt.
[4] From a series by Shane Woods on Revelation, with help from notes by a dude named Mike (https:// www.catlinchurch.com/content.cfm?id=213&download_id=736)
[5] I’m building/paraphrasing from info I found in a book Rick Warren wrote on methods of studying the Bible. He has a lot more ways he recommends; I am focusing on these three to stay with the theme of ‘context.’
[6] The Bible Project does a fantastic job giving overviews of each book.
[7] A website called Precept Austin has a lot of information. If you become a member of Bible Gateway (membership is cheap), they have excellent resources for this. Adam Clarke’s commentaries are helpful, as are the commentaries at biblehub.com.
[8]Bible Gateway is fantastic for this.