Intro to Exegesis Week 4: Meaning Amos S. Yang, MD All material amosyang.net and may not be reproduced or redistributed without permission from the author. 1! Word studies (The aim of a word study) is to try to understand as precisely as possible what the author was trying to convey by his use of this word in this context (Gordon Fee). A word in Hebrew or Greek is often translated into by a number of different words (J. Scott Duvall and J. Daniel Hays). Greek Spanish Chinese παράκλησις! (paraklesis) comfort encourage raro, -a, -os, -as rare strange, weird! smell, scent flavor, taste Different words in Hebrew or Greek can be translated into using the same word (J. Scott Duvall and J. Daniel Hays). Greek ἀγάπη! (agape) Spanish caliente Chinese!! φιλέω! (phileo) love calor hot! uncle!! 2!
Word studies Understand the concept of semantic ranges: A biblical word in Greek or Hebrew has a certain range of meanings depending on context To assume that the text means this part of the semantic range would be a misinterpretation Overlap between the two semantic ranges makes translation possible The word used to translate that Greek of Hebrew word also has a certain range of meanings depending on context One purpose of doing a word study is to avoid the mistake of assuming that the biblical text means whatever instinctively comes to mind when you see a certain word in the Bible. 3! Word studies Steps to doing a word study: 1) Choose your word. Look for words that are crucial to the passage. Look for repeated words. Look for figures of speech. Look for words that are unclear, puzzling, or difficult 2) Determine what the word could mean (determine the semantic range of the Greek or Hebrew word). Determine what the Greek or Hebrew word behind the word is. Look up the range of meanings of the Greek or Hebrew word. If possible, look up and look at each occurrence in Scripture of the Greek or Hebrew word in question. Duvall, J. Scott and J. Daniel Hays. Grasping God s Word. 139-149. 4!
Word studies Steps to doing a word study (cont d): 3) Determine what the word does mean in this particular context. Examine the context of the word in the particular passage you are studying. Duvall, J. Scott and J. Daniel Hays. Grasping God s Word. 139-149. 5! Word studies Steps to doing a word study (cont d): 3) Determine what the word does mean in this particular context. If necessary, ask the helpful questions on pp. 146-148 of Grasping God s Word: a) Is there a contrast or a comparison that seems to define the word? b) Does the subject matter or topic of the passage dictate a word meaning? c) Does the author s usage of the same word elsewhere in a similar context help you decide which meaning best fits the word? d) Does the author s argument in the book suggest a meaning? e) Does the historical situation tilt the evidence in a certain direction? Duvall, J. Scott and J. Daniel Hays. Grasping God s Word. 139-149. 6!
Word studies www.blueletterbible.org: BLB icon Resource Description K Treasury of Scripture Knowledge Cross references C Lexicon, concordance To see original language words behind translation and begin word study L Commentaries Audio, video, and textual resources I Maps, images Visual resources V Translations and versions To compare various translations D Dictionary aids Various resources organized by topic 7! Word studies Do a word study on want in Psalm 23:1: What is the Hebrew word here? What is the Strong s reference number? How many times and in how many verses does this Hebrew word occur in the OT? What is the range of possible meanings? What is the biblical usage of this Hebrew word? With what words is this Hebrew word translated throughout the OT? What does a lexicon say about this word? What does the word mean in this particular context? 8!
Word studies Do a word study on desire in Genesis 3:16: 9! Word studies Do a word study on sacrifice in Romans 12:1: 10!
Word studies Do a word study on love in John 21:15-17: 11! Bible translations Two general approaches to Bible translation:! Formal equivalence More literal or word-for-word More translation, less interpretation on the part of the translator. Hence, more of the task of interpretation is left to reader. The more formal approach ties to stay as close as possible to the structure and words of the source language (J. Scott Duvall and J. Daniel Hays).! Functional / dynamic equivalence: More idiomatic or thought-for-thought Less translation, more interpretation on the part of the translator. Hence, some of the task of interpretation has already been done by the translator. The more functional approach tries to express the meaning of the original text in today s language (J. Scott Duvall and J. Daniel Hays). 12!
Bible translations Some very simple examples: Spanish Tengo hambre. Formal equivalence: Functional equivalence: I have hunger. I am hungry. Chinese! Formal equivalence: My stomach is hungry. Functional equivalence: I am hungry. Chinese! Formal equivalence: Functional equivalence: My head hurts. I have a headache. Some common Bible translations: Formal NASB KJV ESV NIV NLT The Message Functional equivalence Better for serious study Better for specific purposes equivalence 13! Bible translations Be familiar with how your Bible translation handles various issues:! Old Testament quotations in the New Testament e.g.: In the KJV and NASB, these appear in all caps. e.g.: In the ESV and NIV, these appear in normal print.! Words supplied by the translator but not in the original language text e.g.: In the KJV and NASB, these appear in italics. e.g.: In the ESV, these are not noted at all. e.g.: In the NIV, these appear in brackets.! Paragraph markings (supplied by the translator) e.g.: In the KJV, there are no paragraph markings. Each verse is independent. e.g.: In the NASB, these are noted with a bold verse number or letter. e.g.: In the NIV and ESV, the text is arranged in actual paragraphs 14!
Bible translations Be familiar with how your Bible translation handles various issues:! Is the translation formal equivalence or functional equivalence? The NASB has been produced with the conviction that the words of Scripture as originally penned in the Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek were inspired by God The purpose of the Editorial Board was to adhere as closely as possible to the original languages of the Holy Scriptures The ESV is an essentially literal translation that seeks to capture the precise wording of the original text and the personal style of each Bible writer. (Re: NIV): The first concern of the translators has been the accuracy of the translation and its fidelity to the thought of the biblical writers At the same time, they have striven for more than a word-for-word translation Because thought patterns and syntax differ from language to language, faithful communication of the meaning of the writers of the Bible demands frequent modifications in sentence structure and constant regard for the contextual meanings of words. A sensitive feeling for style does not always accompany scholarship. Accordingly the Committee on Bible Translation submitted the developing version to a number of stylistic consultants. 15! Bible translations Be familiar with how your Bible translation handles various issues:! Is the translation formal equivalence or functional equivalence?! The Tetragrammaton (hwhy) in the Old Testament God s personal name is hwhy (YHWH): Usually translated in Bibles as the LORD (e.g. Ex 6:3) God is also often called yînodsa (adonai): Usually translated in Bibles as the Lord (e.g. Is 6:8, 6:11) Because God s personal name was considered by Jews to be too holy to say, yînodsa (adonai) routinely was verbally substituted for hwhy (YHWH).! Be sure to read the preface and translation notes for any Bible you routinely use. 16!
Bible translations Look at 1 Cor 7:1 in the KJV, NASB, ESV, and NIV:! Are there any significant differences among these four translations?! Using your ability to do a word study, discern which translation(s) is/are the most literal in this particular verse.! Which of these translations, if any, are not to be preferred in how they have rendered this verse? Why have these various translations worded this verse the way they have? 17! Who controls the meaning of the text? Authorial intent Reader response Inscripturation Holy Bible Exegesis The Author and author Reader Definitions:! Good exegesis: Reader response = Authorial intent! Bad exegesis: Reader response Authorial intent Meaning vs. application "Meaning is what the author intended to communicate when he wrote the text. What the reader does with the meaning is application It would be incorrect for us to ask in a Bible study, What does this passage mean to you? The correct question sequence is, What does this passage mean? How should you apply this meaning to your life? " (J. Scott Duvall, J. Daniel Hays). 18!
Who controls the meaning of the text? An example of the ridiculous reader response Bible interpretation method for 1 Kings 17:1-6: Elijah is a Christ figure in this passage. Verse 2 refers to the word of the Lord coming to Elijah, referring to the Word mentioned in John 1, which is Jesus. This could be interpreted as an Old Testament christophany, or it could simply be a literary technique notifying the reader that Elijah is representative of Christ in this passage. Some support for the second of these theories: Verse 1 states that Elijah is from Gilead, and There is a balm in Gilead. Elijah is sent eastward. The sun rises in the east. Therefore, Elijah's journey correlates with God s Son rising from the dead. This analogy is helped along by the fact that he crosses the Jordan River to do so. Water baptism is symbolic of being buried with Christ, and Elijah must have gotten wet as he crossed, so we can say that Elijah was buried with Christ, and rose with the Son as outlined above. As a secondary point: God sent ravens to feed Elijah. Ravens are ugly black scavengers. One would think that God would send pretty white birds to feed Elijah (who is representing His Son in this passage). This is a reminder to us that God sometimes uses bad, even evil things to help us in our lives. Many thanks to Ms. Emily Mattson for the above ridiculous interpretation. 19! Who controls the meaning of the text? "The position that stresses the author in the determination of the meaning is called authorial intention. The opposing view, which focuses on the reader as the main character in the determination of meaning, is called reader response We believe strongly that the Bible is revelation from God to us. God s purpose is to communicate with us about Himself and His will for us.so it is essential that we follow the authorial intent approach to interpreting the Bible. In biblical interpretation, the reader does not control the meaning; the author controls the meaning We do not create meaning. Rather, we seek to discover the meaning that has been placed there by the author" (J. Scott Duvall, J. Daniel Hays). "How casually contemporary evangelicalism approaches Bible interpretation! Perhaps you have been in one of those Bible studies where everyone goes around the room and shares an opinion about the verse in question: Well, to me this verse means such and such In the end what you have is usually a pooling of everyone s ignorance, along with several potential interpretations of the verse, all of which may be wrong The truth is, it doesn t matter what a verse means to me, to you, or to anyone else. All that matters is what the verse means! You see, every verse has intrinsic meaning apart from any of us. It has that true meaning whether or not any of us has ever considered it. The task of Bible study is to discern that true meaning of Scripture; to understand what God is saying in the text" (John MacArthur). 20!