3 Warnings on Bible Interpretation and how to Heed them
I am certain that I have heard the question ‘What does the passage (verse) mean to you?’ along the walk. At some point, I must have heard it, it is too familiar. Maybe it has passed out of fashion, and I’d be thankful for that!
But I think the idea remains. We read a passage of Scripture and ‘observe’ it and then we are asked to apply it to our lives. I’m afraid there is too much going on in between those steps of ‘observation’ and ‘application’ that has not yet been said.
Warning 1: Let’s not pay closer attention to another text or person than the Bible
We, or at least I, have a tendency to recall when I have heard sermons or read something about various verses. I might better recall what someone said than what the Bible said. Our mind tells us the meaning, rather than searching for it.
I admit that I pull out a commentary or two sometimes when studying. However, when I am studying, I do things on my own first. I check the Bible verses and others around the same theme and then once I have an idea of what the Spirit is saying to me, I might check to see that I am not way off base. The commentary check is just that, a little check to be sure I’m in line with God’s intentions, but it is not the primary source – only the Bible is.
Warning 2: Let the Bible convict us rather than finding verses to match our conviction
One type of Bible study is a search to understand a topic as addressed in the Bible. Here too it is easy to have an idea in mind about what the Bible says. And sometimes we even give up once we find what we expect. It is important to approach understanding the Bible with the Holy Spirit, for only with the Inspirer of the text will we come to understand the purpose of a theme.
Some topics have hundreds of verse references, so choose both Old and New Testament passages, passages written by different authors and so on. This variety will give an overview of what God has to say about a topic.
Warning 3: Don’t think the inclusion of something in the Bible means God wanted it
Liars are found in abundance in the Bible: David lied about his mental health and Rahab lied about where the spies were. This does mean that God thinks it is acceptable, or not sin, to lie. Not even in ‘certain circumstances.’ The Bible tells how man and God interacted and accounts of historical events do not stop and add an aside to say, ‘And God disapproved of XX.’ This is part of the different types of literature found in the Bible, some instructive and some narrative and some poetry and so on.
There are many accounts in the Bible that tell of man and our mistakes, but the story is not intended to focus on man except as he relates to God. There are also confusing bits on slavery and rape and other painful things, but it is how God replies to these things that we need to seek.
Heed the warning A: Context
The Bible should always be considered against the Bible. Teachings from the New Testament can be compared to the Old Testament. Verses can be set in context of the larger passage and passages in context of the book and themes of the Bible. Context of the passage is the general rule of understanding the Bible. I recently researched ‘restore’ in the Bible and found something very interesting that illustrates the issue quite well.
This may mean that we need assistance in understanding the historical context. The Bible is not a complete text of history, but rather a book about God. Other resources may help understand the context.
The context will include the time in history, the type of literature the passage is a part of, and the audience of the passage. We can understand a text better by knowing who the author is and who he is writing to and about. The author often determines the purpose of the text and main point for readers in a universal or eternal age.
We need to seek understanding in a systematic way, rather than just randomly choosing a passage for study and use the Bible to interpret the Bible.
Heed the warning B: God first
The Bible is a book about God. It reveals who he is, through his actions and words toward and with humans. The primary purpose of the Bible then is to tell about God and not man. That should define the meaning of the passage. A basic question for understanding passages is ‘what does this say about God?’ rather than ‘what does this say about what I/we should do?’.
Heed the warning C: Ask the Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit inspired the Word and is an active participant of our lives today. When we seek to understand scripture, it only makes sense to invite the Spirit to assist. 2 Peter 1:20-21 and 2 Tim 3:16 both emphasize the role of the Spirit in the writing of scripture, the word of God. Isn’t it amazing that God wrote to you and to me? He wrote that we may know him, that the word would reveal who he is, including the Father, Son, and Spirit. Invite the Spirit that we may know the truth.
Interpretation and misinterpretation
Interpretation of the Bible is not about what I think or what I want. It is about who God is and what he wants for me. He always wants good for me, that is love. So, it is through the lens of love that we need to understand the Bible. These warnings of biblical interpretation issues are general and could perhaps be expanded and each explored. But I think it is more important to spend our time studying and keeping in mind that there are ways that the Bible is misinterpreted than finding all the ways that may happen.
I was recently told in an offhanded comment that not all published Bible studies are theologically sound. And there was another article (I did not save) that encouraged women to do studies written by men because they would get ‘better theology’ from them. I think it is much more valuable to put the tools in our own hands than depend on someone else’s meaning of ‘correct theology’.
We all need to be on our toes when using a guide or reading a book about the Bible. We need to use the Bible to sift any other text or theory we read. Only the Bible will explain if we have misinterpreted it.
