Basics of Biblical Interpretation Recommended reading: Fee, Gordon D. and Douglas Stuart. How to Read the Bible for all its Worth. Third edition. Grand Rapids, MI.: Zondervan, 2003. Fee, Gordon. New Testament Exegesis. Revised Edition. Louisville, KY: Westminster/John Knox, 1993. Klein, William W., Craig L. Blomberg and Robert L. Hubbard, Jr. Introduction to Biblical Interpretation. Revised ed. Dallas: Nelson, 2004. Osborne, Grant R. The Hermeneutical Spiral. A Comprehensive Introduction to Biblical Interpretation. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1991. I. The goals of interpretation. A. Determine what the author meant by the words which he used. The correct interpretation of a passage is always consistent with what the original author was communicating to the original readers. B. Determine the timeless principles taught by the passage. These principles are valid in any period of history and any culture. Principles bridge the gap between interpretation and application. II. The grammatical-historical method of interpretation. A. Definition: A method of interpretation which seeks the single meaning intended by the author by considering the normal way that words were used in the author's day, the customary rules of grammar and the facts of history and culture in which the text was written. B. Other names: 1. "Normal" method: The normal way that people read any literature. Interpret the Bible like any other book. 2. "Literal" interpretation a. "Literal" does not mean that there are no figures of speech or that the Bible is interpreted literalistically or woodenly. b. Webster's dictionary definition of "literal": "the natural or usual construction or implication of a writing...following the ordinary and apparent sense of words" C. Implications 1. Each word and statement has a single meaning that is determined by what the author intends it to mean in a given context. The meaning does not change for different interpreters. 2. The correct meaning is one that the original readers could have understood.. The "plain meaning" of the text is from the perspective of the original audience, culture and language, not necessarily for the modern culture and language. 3. Do not allegorize to find a deeper, spiritual meaning behind the historical statements. 4. An author may use figures of speech and symbols as part of the normal method of writing. 5. Interpret consistently with the literary type (genre) used by the author. Each genre has conventions that determine how meaning is communicated in that genre. III. Some important terms. A. Exegesis: Careful study of the text to determine the original, intended meaning. Comes from the Greek word meaning to "lead out", i.e. the goal is to draw the meaning out of the text. 1. Opposite is eisegesis, reading an idea into a passage (Greek, meaning "lead into"). 2. Exegesis is best done with the text in the original language, but it can be done with careful methods using literal translations, provided that good secondary tools are consulted at critical junctures. Copyright 2010 Dr. Harry A. Hahne
Biblical Interpretation Page 2 3. Good exegesis is both a science and an art: a. Science: it requires careful methodologies, which must be rigorously applied b. Art: it requires sensitivity to the nuances of language and good judgment, which comes from experience. B. Hermeneutics 1. Classical Usage: The science of interpretation. The goal was to determine rules of interpretation to arrive at the correct meaning of a text. There is only one correct meaning, the author's intended meaning. a. General Hermeneutics: rules of interpretation applicable to all kinds of texts b. Special Hermeneutics: rules of interpretation of figurative language and non-literal genres such as poetry, prophecy and proverbs 2. The New Hermeneutic: A philosophical description of the process by which a person comes to understand a text. a. It developed out of Heidegger s philosophy of language and was developed further by Gadamer, Bultmann and others from 1930-1960. It has become widely accepted in literary criticism. b. There is no such thing as true objectivity in understanding a text, because all readers come with assumptions, or preunderstandings, which affect their interpretation of the text. c. There is no correct interpretation of a text, only many different and equally valid interpretations by different readers. d. Although the New Hermeneutic has generally given us a better understanding of the process of understanding a text, its relativistic assumptions are unacceptable. (1) It is rooted in the view that there are no absolute truths. (2) It results in a subjectivity in which anyone's interpretation is acceptable. (3) There are no controls over interpretation. e. The New Hermeneutic moves too quickly to application, seeking personal and contemporary meaning which is not based on the meaning the original author intended. It is rooted in existentialism, so it validly seeks the significance of the biblical text for one's own life. But this significance is rooted in one's own experience and perspectives more than in the text itself. f. The classic literary critical defense of the centrality of the author's meaning is E. D. Hirsch, Validity in Interpretation. He argues that the author's intent is the primary goal of interpretation and we then can move on to examine the significance of the meaning for ourselves. g. For an evangelical response, see Klein, Blomberg & Hubbard, Biblical Interpretation, ch. 1, 4 and Osborne, The Hermenutical Spiral, appendices 1 and 2. Osborne shows us what we can learn from this approach and suggests revisions from an evangelical perspective. IV. Inductive Bible study A. Inductive Bible Study seeks to discover the author's intended meaning in a passage by examining the details of a passage within the context B. Deductive study begins with an idea and tries to find support for it in Scripture. It runs the risk of twisting Scripture to fit your ideas ( proof texting ), rather than letting your ideas be shaped by the Bible. C. Three basic steps in Bible study: Observation, Interpretation, Application 1. Observation: "what does it say?" a. Simply list the facts without trying to understand what they mean. b. Record as many details as you can. You never know what will be an important clue to the meaning.
Biblical Interpretation Page 3 c. Write it down. This forces you to focus more. You also can reexamine the details later when you interpret the passage. d. The more careful you are in observation the more likely your interpretation will be correct. e. Too many people leap to interpretation or application before they have gathered all the facts. This can lead to interpretive errors. 2. Interpretation: "what does it mean?" a. What is the author trying to communicate with the words he chose? The only correct interpretation is the author's intended meaning b. Interpretation finds what the passage meant for the original readers as well as timeless principles implied by the passage. c. We determine the correct interpretation from the details we observe in the text. 3. Application: "How does this relate to our contemporary culture and to my life?" a. How should our culture, society, church, racial group, etc. implement the teachings of this passage? b. How should my attitudes, behavior and beliefs be changed as a result of the truths this passage teaches? c. There is only one correct interpretation of a statement, but there are many applications. (1) E.g. Eph 5:20: Interpretation: Christians should always thank God for what happens in their lives. Applications: Thank God for losing a job or receiving an unexpected source of money for school. 4. This process is how the mind naturally works, although we normally move from step to step without being conscious of the process. By taking the discipline to slow up these natural steps and methodically take one step at a time, it is easier to avoid jumping to unwarranted conclusions. It also helps you understand why you believe a certain interpretation. D. Illustrations of the inductive method: 1. Medical doctor diagnosing a stomach ache. 2. Luke 18:1 (NASB): "Now he was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart" a. Observations: (1) Jesus desires people always to pray. (2) He used a parable to teach this. (3) Jesus wants people to not "lose heart" in prayer. b. Interpretations: (1) To not lose heart means not to get discouraged. (2) One might be tempted to get discouraged and give up in prayer when answers to prayer do not come as quickly as we would like. (3) This seems to imply perseverance. Keep asking God, even when answers do not come. c. Application: (1) My brother is not a Christian. I need to keep praying with perseverance for his salvation and not be discouraged because he seems to reject the gospel V. Basic methodological steps of biblical interpretation. A. Follow these basic steps to arrive at the meaning: 1. Ask interpretive questions. 2. Answer your interpretive questions and justify your answers. 3. Find the timeless principles implied by the passage.
Biblical Interpretation Page 4 B. Ask interpretive questions. 1. The right questions identify the important issues to understand. 2. Interpretive questions flow from your observations. As you observe details, you should naturally want to know their meaning. 3. Example: 1 Thess. 1:4-5 a. What is the significance of the connective "for"? b. What does it mean "he has chosen you"? Are others chosen or only the original readers? c. What is the "gospel"? d. How did the gospel come to them? e. Why does he say "our" gospel? Are there other gospels? Did Paul's gospel differ from the other apostles? f. What is the significance of the connective "because"? g. What did he mean by "power" and how was it shown? h. How would a person bring the gospel "simply with words"? Why did Paul not do this? i. How does the Holy Spirit relate to the "power" and "deep conviction" and the spread of the gospel? j. How did they live among the Thessalonians? k. What does he mean by "for your sake"? C. Answer your interpretive questions and justify your answers. 1. Justify your interpretations. Your goal is not simply to know what the passage means but also why that is the correct interpretation. 2. Follow this procedure: a. Propose possible interpretations. (1) For complex questions, brainstorm several different interpretations. (2) Brainstorming possible interpretations helps you get outside your normal ways of thinking to look at things in new ways. b. List the strengths and weaknesses of each proposed interpretation. c. Choose the interpretation which has the strongest support from the passage. d. Justify your interpretation. Justification will come from: (1) The details you observe in the passage. (2) Word definitions, in the original languages. (3) Grammar, syntax and structure of the passage. (4) Historical and cultural background. (5) Context: immediate context of the passage and the whole book. (6) Related passages in the Bible. This is the lowest priority, since you do not want to read the meaning of another passage into this one. e. Only look at commentaries after you have wrestled carefully with the issues yourself. If you use commentaries too early, they may stifle your thinking and narrow your insight into the passage. (1) Always compare several commentaries to get different perspectives. (2) Look for the justifications that the commentators use.
Biblical Interpretation Page 5 D. Find the timeless principles implied by the passage. 1. Principles are doctrinal ideas or ethical requirements which are true in any culture and time in history. 2. Example: Acts 1:8: a. Interpretation: Jesus commanded the apostles to witness about Him in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the remote parts of the earth. This involves taking the gospel to every part of the world. b. Principle: Christians have a responsibility to take the gospel not only to people in their own locality, but also other parts of the world. 3. In order to draw the timeless principles correctly from the passage you must first correctly understand the meaning of the passage for the original readers. a. E.g. In Acts 1:8, we must understand the racial conflict between Jews and Samaritans to appreciate the significance of Jesus command to take the good news about Him to Samaria. Then it can be generalized to become a principle about the responsibility of the church for crosscultural and cross-racial missions. 4. Not all points of interpretation can be reduced to timeless principles. a. Some things only applied to the original readers. b. Some are simply descriptive of what originally happened. c. Timeless principles are drawn from an understanding of the place of the passage in the history of revelation and a correct understanding of the historical occasion of the text. d. E.g. Acts 1:8 is not a command for every Christian to go to Jerusalem as a missionary, although Jesus commanded the first disciples to do this. Historically the church consisted almost entirely of Jewish believers and the Messiah was sent to Israel first. Later the gospel went out to the Gentiles. Acts 1:8 points to this historical process of the spread of the gospel and the universalization of Christianity. Once you understand these points it is valid to draw principles such as that we should take the gospel to our own locality first and that the Church as a whole should take the Gospel to the entire world. 5. Principles bridge the gap between the original meaning and the modern application. a. If you go too quickly to application you may try to apply things that were not intended for you. b. The principle helps us understand what applies in all ages so we can ask how to apply it in a culturally relevant manner to today's problems and needs. VI. Examples: A. Phil 4:6-7 1. Interpretive question: What is the relationship between verses 6 and 7? 2. Answer: v. 7 indicates the result of v. 6. It promises that when a person prays in every situation with thanksgiving, the result is that God will give His supernatural peace which transforms the person s thoughts and emotions. 3. Justification: a. The connective "and" implies a continuation of thought between the statement about making a request and the statement about the coming of peace. b. The future tense ("shall guard") suggest the peace comes after the praying or perhaps sometime after the praying has begun. c. There are 2 contrasts: (1) Anxiety/peace--shown by "but"
Biblical Interpretation Page 6 (2) Two responses to an implied distressful situation: anxiety, prayer (shown by "but" and the commands not to do one thing and to do another) 4. Principle: When a believer prays with thanksgiving in his heart, asking God to help him with a distressing situation, God will give supernatural peace that will help him not to be as anxious and to focus his mental thoughts on positive things. B. Rom. 8:19 1. Interpretive question: what is the meaning of "creation"? 2. Major Options: a. Universal view: All created things as a whole b. Cosmic view: The subhuman creation, or nature c. Anthropomorphic view: Humanity c1. Unbelievers c2. Believers 3. Pros and cons of various views: a. All created things: (1) Pro: (a) V. 22 refers to "all creation". (b) A word study of creation shows that in many places in the NT the word is comprehensive. (2) Con: Certain parts of the created order are excluded by the context: (a) V. 23 contrasts believers from "all creation" in previous verse ("also we ourselves"). (b) Demons do not eagerly await the coming of believers with Christ at his second coming. They also will not be redeemed (v. 21). (c) Unbelievers are not awaiting the revealing of the saints. (d) Angels have not been subjected to futility (vv. 20-21). b. Subhuman creation: (1) Pro: (a) When believers, unbelievers, angels and demons are excluded as above, nature is left from among created things. (b) Some OT and Jewish intertestamental passages use the term "all creation" to refer to a more limited class of created beings, depending on the focus on the context. (c) Some OT and Jewish intertestamental passages use the term "creation" for nature. (d) Many OT examples of personification of nature like this. (2) Con: (a) Emotional responses such as groaning and eager expectation are human responses, not animal or nature. (Rebuttal: this is personification, typical of the OT and Jewish intertestamental literature). c. Unbelieving humanity (1) Pro: (a) Mk 16:15 uses creation for humanity. (2) Con: (a) Mk 16:15 is not in the best manuscripts and using Mk. to support Paul is weak methodologically (b) Unbelievers are not awaiting the revealing of the saints. (c) This would suggest all people will be saved (v. 21). d. Believing humanity
(1) Pro: (a) Previous context speaks about suffering and glory of believers. (b) Paul uses "creation" to refer to believers in 2 Cor 5:17; Gal 6:15. Biblical Interpretation Page 7 (2) Con: (a) Rom 8 frequently contrasts believers from "creation" (v. 19, creation awaits them; v. 21. creation will benefit from the glory of believers; v. 23 contrasts the groaning of believers from the groaning of creation) 4. Conclusion: Subhuman creation is best supported by the context and fits usage in other places. VII. Checkpoints for a correct interpretation. A. The correct interpretation is pointed to by the convergence of several factors: 1. Does the interpretation fit the normal meanings of words as used in the author's language and time? 2. Does the interpretation fit the grammar and structure of the passage? 3. Does the interpretation fit the context? 4. Does the interpretation fit the facts of culture, history and geography? 5. Is the interpretation consistent with the rules of interpretation for the type of literature? 6. Is the interpretation consistent with other Scripture? B. Some general suggestions about interpretation: 1. Use these checkpoints when you justify your interpretation. Any interpretation which does not cohere with these checkpoints is wrong. 2. All of these checkpoints together narrow down the possible meanings. Any one or two checkpoints in themselves may be ambiguous and may be inadequate to determine the correct meaning. 3. The checkpoints cannot be applied in isolation from one another. The factors interact with each other. 4. Commentaries are not infallible. a. Their interpretations must be weighed by these same checkpoints. When you read a commentary check their reasoning to see if they have fully weighed all these factors. b. The better ones bring a knowledge of the original languages, culture and history that you may lack. c. You can often trust the raw data such as word meaning to a greater extent than their conclusions. Use this information as additional input for testing the validity of various alternatives. 5. Occam's razor: If 2 interpretations are equally likely, the simpler explanation is to be preferred.
Biblical Interpretation Page 8 6. Sometimes ambiguity on one or more points can lead to several competing interpretations. When several interpretations seem to have good support and godly interpreters disagree, have the humility not to be dogmatic and accept our differences. 7. Always be open to modify your interpretations when you receive new information. You should be growing in your understanding of God's Word throughout your life.