Bible Study Techniques

Bible Study Techniques Interpretation

Overview • Overview of Interpretation • Principals of Interpretation

Overview • This lesson relies very heavily on the book Studying, Interpreting, and Applying the Bible by Walter Henrichsenand Gayle Jackson https://www.amazon.com/Studying-Interpreting-Applying-Walter-Henrichsen/dp/0310377811/

Overview of Interpretation • What is Interpretation? • Interpretation is answering the question “what did the author mean when writing this verse/passage/book/subject/character?” • Once we have observed the circumstances of a passage, we can inductively reason about what the passage means • More specifically, interpretation answers these 3 questions • Why did the author bring up the topic? • What was the key thought of the verse/passage/book/subject/character? • How did the author get to the key thought?

Principals of Interpretation • Not every interpretation is equally valid • In order to arrive at an accurate interpretation, rules need to be followed consistently • The rules can be broken down into 4 categories • General Principals • Grammatical Principles • Historical Principals • Theological Principles

General Principals • Rule 1: Work from the assumption that the Bible is authoritative • For Christians, the Bible is the final source of truth • This is tied to the idea that scripture is inspired and inerrant • Jesus dealt with this question during his own ministry • John 7:14-17 14 About the middle of the feast Jesus went up into the temple and began teaching.15 The Jews therefore marveled, saying, “How is it that this man has learning,[d] when he has never studied?” 16 So Jesus answered them, “My teaching is not mine, but his who sent me. 17 If anyone's will is to do God's[e] will, he will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own authority.

General Principals • Rule 1: Work from the assumption that the Bible is authoritative • This Bible expresses its authority in 3 different ways • A person acts in an authoritative manner, and the passage explains whether the act is approved or disapproved (Gen 3:4) • A person acts in an authoritative manner, and the passage does not indicate approval or disapproval (Gen 12:10-20) • God or one of His representatives states the mind and will of God (John 13:34-35)

General Principals • Rule 2: The Bible interprets itself; Scripture best explains Scripture • The Bible must be allowed to speak for itself • This rule also implies the need for the correlation step of Bible study

General Principals • Rule 3: Saving faith and the Holy Spirit are necessary for us to understand and properly interpret the Scriptures • Jesus dealt with this in Matt. 13:9, 15 • Paul dealt with this in 1 Cor. 2:14 • In John 11:45-47, people did not believe Jesus after he raised Lazarus

General Principals • Rule 4: Interpret personal experience in the light of Scripture and not Scripture in the light of personal experience • Jesus raising from the dead was an experience that proved he was the son of God • Jesus was not the son of God because he rose from the dead

General Principals • Rule 5: Biblical examples are authoritative only when supported by a command • The Bible has many examples that are bad or cannot be followed • Christians cannot even fully emulate Jesus’s life • There are parts of Jesus life we are commanded to emulate (John 13:34-35) • Examples that are not supported by a command can still be useful • They can verify God’s leading in your live • Provide examples of the application of a commandment • As a corollary, believers are free to do anything the Bible does no prohibit

General Principals • Rule 6: The primary purpose of the Bible is to change our lives, not increase or knowledge • People learn from personal experience and from the experiences of others • Some lessons are too expensive to learn firsthand • The lessons in the Bible must be applied • Not all passages are to be applied they same way they were when they were written • Application must follow a correct interpretation

General Principals • Rule 7: Each Christian has the right and responsibility to investigate and interpret the Word of God him/herself • Christians are responsible for seeking answers to their questions • Christians are responsible for what they accept as truth from their leaders

General Principals • Rule 8: Church history is important but not decisive in the interpretation of Scripture • For Christians, scripture is the highest authority • Tradition does have its place • The church does not determine what the Bible teaches; the Bible determines what the church teaches

General Principals • Rule 9: The promises of God throughout the Bible are available to the Holy Spirit for the believers of every generation • There are many promises in the Bible • Not all promises belong to everyone • If you claim a promise and it does not happen • God let you down (Num. 23:19) • You misclaimed the promise • The promise will be fulfilled at a latter time or in a way you do not expect • There are 2 kinds of promises • General • Specific

General Principals • Rule 9: The promises of God throughout the Bible are available to the Holy Spirit for the believers of every generation • Guidelines for specific promises • The Holy Spirit gives them to the individual Christians at particular times in their lives as He chooses. • Promises are often conditional and the condition is obedience. • The Holy Spirit of God is sovereign. He can speak from any passage at any time to any person. • Do not prejudge the Lord as to when and how the promise will be fulfilled in your life. • God gives His promises to make you more dependent on Him. • God’s intent is to glorify Himself by giving you promises. Always give him glory when the promise is fulfilled. • Claiming a promise cut you off from further counsel

Grammatical Principals • Rule 10: Scripture has only one meaning and should be taken literally • In everyday life, no one says something that has many meanings • If you find a passage that appears to be literal but you wish to interpret it otherwise, ask the following questions • Are you questioning the passage being literal because you do not want to obey it? • Are you questioning the passage being literal because it does not agree with your preconceived theological bias? • No statement can have more then one meaning • No word can have more than one meaning at a time

Grammatical Principals • Rule 11: Interpret words in harmony with their meaning in the times of the author • Most words can be taken at face value • Bible dictionaries can help with difficult words • Word studies can be done to learn more • How is the word used by the author? • How does the word relate to the immediate context? • What was the words meaning at the time of writing? • What was the words root meaning?

Grammatical Principals • Rule 12: Interpret a word in relation to its sentence and context • The most important part of interpretation is context • Examples • Faith (Gal. 1:23, Rom. 14:23, 1 Tim. 5:11-12) • Blood (Acts 17:24-26, Eph. 1:7, Heb. 9:6-7)

Grammatical Principals • Rule 13: Interpret a passage in harmony with its context • Context is the most important rule of interpretation • To ensure you understand the context of a passage, answer these questions: • How does the passage relate to the material surrounding it? • How does it relate to the rest of the book? • How does it relate to the Bible as a whole? • How does it relate to the culture and background in which it was written? (Historical rules)

Grammatical Principals • Rule 14: When an inanimate object is used to describe a living being, the statement may be considered figurative • Jesus refers to himself as bread, light, and a door (John 6:35, 8:12, and 10:7) • A corollary rule: when life and action are attributed to inanimate objects, the statement may be considered figurative (Micah 6:8)

Grammatical Principals • Rule 15: When an expression is out of character with the thing described, the statement may be considered figurative • Paul called the Judaizers dogs (Phil. 3:2) • Jesus called Herod a fox (Luke 13:32) • Context should help you understand the meaning of the passage • Consider the meaning at the time of writing • Interpret the passage literally if at all possible

Grammatical Principals • Rule 16: Consider only the principal parts and figures of a parable when drawing conclusions • Before the protestant reformation, parables were allegorized • A parable could have multiple “levels” of meaning • Each element of the parable was given a special meaning • Jesus always offered a simple interpretation • When you study a parable • Determine the purpose of the parable • Make sure you explain the different parts of the parable in accordance with the main design • Use only the principal parts of the parable in explaining the lesson

Grammatical Principals • Rule 17: Interpret the words of the prophets in their usual, literal and historical sense, unless the context or way they are fulfilled clearly indicate they have a symbolic meaning. Their fulfillment may be in installments, each fulfillment being a pledge of that which is to follow • Prophecy can be a controversial subject • Malachi prophesied that God would send Elijah to herald the coming of Christ (Mal. 4:5-6) • Many were confused by John the Baptist • Hosea makes a statement about Israel’s history (Hos. 11:1) • Matthew interprets this statement as a prophesy (Matt. 2:15) • Joel prophesied about the coming of the holy spirit and the second coming of Christ (Joel 2:28-32) • Peter states that the first part of the prophesy was fulfilled at Pentecost (Acts 2:16)

Historical Principals • Rule 18: Since Scripture originated in a historical context, it can be understood only in the light of biblical history • The book of Galatians is most clearly understood when its historical context is known

Historical Principals • Rule 19: Though God’s revelation in the Scriptures is progressive, both Old and New Testaments are essential parts of this revelation and form a unit • There is no difference between the God of the Old Testament and the God of the New Testament • The Old Testament is an important part of interpreting the New Testament • The New Testament often clarifies doctrine the comes from the Old Testament • There are cases where the New Testament fulfills laws from the Old Testament

Historical Principals • Rule 20: Historical facts or events become symbols of spiritual truths only if the Scriptures so designate them • Sometimes, the Bible uses historical events as symbols of other things • Only biblical authors under the influence of the Holy Spirit could do this • Modern Christians should not attempt to allegorize the Bible

Theological Principals • Rule 21: You must understand the Bible grammatically, before you can understand it theologically • In other words, a reader must understand what the Bible says before they can know what it means

Theological Principals • Rule 22: A doctrine cannot be considered biblical unless it sums up and includes all that the Scriptures say about it • The Bible does not fully explain every subject every time it comes up • This rule explains the importance of the correlation step of Bible study

Theological Principals • Rule 23: When two doctrines taught in the Bible appear to be contradictory, accept both as scriptural in the confident belief they will resolve themselves into a higher unity • A God, complex enough to speak the universe into existence is, certainly, too complex for human minds to understand • We know that the Bible is authoritative and must accept apparent paradoxes in faith, believing that they resolve themselves in the end • Some common examples are the Trinity, the duel nature of Christ, and the origin of evil

Theological Principals • Rule 24: A teaching merely implied in Scripture may be considered biblical when a comparison of related passages supports it • It is okay to draw conclusions about doctrines that are implied by the Bible as long as the Bible truly supports them • Jesus did this in Mark 12:26-27 by quoting Ex. 3:15

Materials and Resources Links to materials and resources mentioned, as well as the handouts, PowerPoint slides, and lecture notes, can be found at http://www.nbsbaptistchurch.org/resources/bible-study-techniques/

Bible Study Techniques