The Wheatland Mission

Interpreting The Bible: Practical Stuff

After last week I thought it might be useful to talk a little bit more about interpreting the Bible. Below are some questions that I find very useful guides as I seek to both interpret and apply Scripture. These are not the be all and end all in the realm of Biblical Interpretation but they are good starting points in the process.

Question #1: What is the context?

When you ask yourself this question you are essentially getting into the realm of background, history, and culture. While it is possible to understand parts of the Bible without some grasp of the context it is impossible to understand all of Scripture without it. Getting a sense of what was happening culturally and historically allows the reader to see the "big story" more clearly. In other words, understanding the context of a passage helps one catch the redemptive spirit of the passage.

Let me give you one example of context. We often read Jesus' statements throughout the Gospels as if he had spoken them to us directly. That is, we sometimes hear Jesus' words forgetting the fact that they were originally spoken to 1st Century Jewish men (the disciples) by a 1st Century Jewish man (Jesus) living under the near-tyrannical rule of the Roman Empire. If we know nothing of the 1st Century Jewish culture then there is much in Jesus' words that will be lost on us.

For example, in Matthew 11:28-30 we read Jesus words when he says, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in hear, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

It is easy to miss the point of this passage without some understanding of the context from which Jesus was speaking. The first thought that comes to mind when reading this passage (at least the first thought that comes to my mind) is that Jesus is referring to a "yoke" as that farm implement that was used to hook to oxen together in order that they can plow and haul with their combined force working together. Therefore, Jesus is saying that when you get in the yoke with him that the work won't be that hard but instead you will find comfort and peace. Now, this may be true but it is not the first thing that would come to the mind of the people who were listening to him.

The 1st Century Jewish listener would hear Jesus' words and immediately see his use of the metaphor of "yoke" as a reference to the type of teaching that a Jewish Rabbi would promote. For example, at the time of Christ there were different schools of thought among the leading Rabbis of the day. All of the Rabbis would expound upon the Torah and the Prophets and they had their own interpretations and emphases. Their unique spin on the Torah would be known as their "yoke". Furthermore, a rabbi of the first century would gather around him pupils or students. Another word for these people would be disciples. Jesus' disciples looked to him in much the same way that they would look to a rabbi. They were in training under him and that rabbi's perspective on Torah was known as his "yoke".

For Jesus to say that "my yoke is easy" was not a reference to working with him in some type of co-ministry. (This is a view that I once held.) Instead it is a reference to his teaching and his type of teaching. Jesus' "yoke" is his take on the Torah, his theology. (I am indebted to Rob Bell for this fresh understanding of the yoke. Also, thanks to Joe Wilson for pointing out the chapter in Bell's book Velvet Elvis simply called "Yoke".)

Without some knowledge of the context one could not really understand the depth of Jesus' comments. Although it is sometimes possible to get a general drift of the passage much of the deeper value in Scripture can get lost.

Here are some more questions, related to context, which are useful to ask when reading Scripture.

1) Who is speaking and to whom are they speaking? This is fairly easy to determine when reading one of Paul's letters but not quite so easy when reading other portions of the New Testament.

2) What is the occasion of the writing? For example, when Paul wrote Philemon the occasion was to ask for Onesimus's freedom. When Luke wrote his Gospel it was to chart out an account of the things that Jesus said during his ministry. Try to discover why the book was written and what motivated the human author. What were his circumstances?

3) What is the cultural setting? In the case of Paul's letter to Philemon we see these two living in Asia Minor, under Roman rule and occupation, connected to the church in Colossae. Understanding a little bit about the 1st Century Roman household and the plight of slaves at that time would be equally useful.

There are more quality study aids on Scripture today than ever. It is not difficult to obtain some useful study guides, commentaries and other reference materials to enrich your study. It is good to have a study bible. I recommend the NIV Study Bible although there are many great ones out there. The notes are very useful and help with some of the background material. Another excellent resource is The Bible Background Commentary by Craig Keener. (I still have Brad Niessen's copy...thanks Brad!) It is written for laypeople and provides great information on the cultural context on virtually every passage in the New Testament.

What are some things that you do, or resources you rely upon, to help you study Scripture?

posted by The Wheatland Mission @ 9:07 PM