Method | Knowable Word

How Would They Have Applied It?

June 23, 2023 By Peter Krol

In recent posts, I’ve been trying to help you get the most out of the interpretation phase of your study. We’ve considered different uses for different types of questions, the power of implicational questions, and the best place to find answers to your questions.

Another Angle

Another way to think of the value of implicational questions is that they help us to grasp how the original audience would have applied the text. When we ask our questions with the original audience in mind, we’re more likely to land on the true message and proper application of the text.

Our understanding of a text will be strongest—and therefore our application will hit home with greatest force—when it is very closely connected to the author’s primary intent for his audience.

So we do as much as we can to put ourselves in the shoes of those who first read this text, and to consider what this passage calls them to believe, love, or do.

To do this, we must pull together all of our work in observation and interpretation so far. All our questions and answers, along with our work on the context: historical, biblical, and literary.

An Example

In Proverbs 31:1-9, King Lemuel’s mother offers him wise counsel for kings and rulers. She tells him what not to do with his strength (Prov 31:3) and mouth (Prov 31:4-5), and she promotes what he ought to do with his mouth (Prov 31:8-9a) and strength (Prov 31:9b). There is a time an place for forgetting (Prov 31:6-7), but during one’s exercise of kingly rule is not it (Prov 31:4-5).

Thus far my observation, with some progress on definitive, rational, and implicational questions. But how would the original audience have applied this poem?

It may be tempting to go directly to contemporary application, considering how we make use of our own strength and mouth, and whether we employ them to wise, selfless, and just ends. Such time would certainly be profitable, but perhaps a less direct route will lay an even stronger foundation for application.

The book of Proverbs is something of a manual for training up nobles and rulers in Israel. When Solomon speaks to “my son” in chapters 1-9, he is speaking not only to his direct heir but also to all the youth among the nobility (see where Prov 4:1, 24:21, etc., where the “sons” are either plural or are not in direct line to the throne). So if we apply every passage directly to the Christian “everyman,” we lose something of the book’s focus on training leaders.

The people of Israel hearing Proverbs 31:1-9 may not have immediately considered how they used their own strength or mouth. After all, many of them would be in the category of those for whom it would be appropriate to forget their poverty (Prov 31:6-7)!

Instead, upon hearing this text, they would be far more inclined to consider what sort of king they need to rule them in wisdom. They might expect their king to take this poem more personally than they themselves do. And if he wouldn’t, they would keep waiting and watching for another such king to arise.

Such consideration of the original audience helps us to see Christ more clearly in the text. And since we have been united to him through faith, it remains appropriate to apply the text to us today. But having gone through Christ to get to application, we’ve ratcheted up the urgency and persuasiveness.

One Caution

In order to determine a text’s implications on the original audience, we must be able to identify who that original audience is. Such identification is quite tricky for narratives, for at least two reasons.

The first reason is that we often don’t know who the precise audience was. It would be difficult to nail down exactly which generation was the first audience for Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1-2 Samuel, or Esther. We can’t be too precise about the audience for some of the gospels, as we’re not told. In all such cases, we must remain fuzzy, though it still helps to know “these people needed a king,” or “these people must have been Jewish Christians.”

The second reason the identification is tricky is that we often confuse the text’s audience with the text’s characters. So when studying the sermon on the Mount, we might find ourselves putting ourselves in the shoes of those who were present, listening to the sermon as Jesus preached it. But instead, we ought to put ourselves in the shoes of those reading the book that Matthew wrote.

So the implications of the text on the characters within the text might help you to understand the text. But what’s even more significant is to grasp the implications of the text on those who first read the text.

Conclusion

When you can clearly answer the question of “how would they have applied it?” you’ll be far more likely to get a strong answer to “how should we apply it?”

How to Find Answers to Your Questions

May 26, 2023 By Peter Krol

When we study the Bible, most of interpretation consists of asking and answering questions. The questions themselves arise from our curiosity over our observations. But the answers? Do you know where to find those?

The Most Important Place to Look for Answers

At this point, conventional wisdom lists a number of resources and reference works that ought to be in a Christian’s library. I’ll get to such a list soon, but don’t let it distract you from the better portion.

The most important place to seek answers to your questions is in the text itself. Some of you reading this find this conviction self-evident and obvious, and you have already made a habit of seeking answers in the text. But for many others, it will take more practice. Seeking answers in the text itself is a habit that must be formed, and sometimes bad habits are very slow to die.

For example, I recently listened to podcast discussing the creation account of Genesis 1. The teacher based most of his instruction on the proposition that Genesis 1 is in the form of poetry. His evidence for this assertion arose from the assessments of scholars, comparisons with other ancient texts, and his philosophical framework regarding eastern vs. western worldviews.

The problem was that he never supported his primary assertion with evidence from the text itself. Now I’m open to discussing the question of the genre of Genesis 1. And all of the external evidence certainly matters. But that which trumps all of the external evidence is internal evidence from the text itself.

Genesis 1 does not present clauses in parallel lines like other Hebrew poetry does.
Genesis 1 does not use similes, metaphors, or emotive language the way other poetry does.
The Hebrew syntax of Genesis 1 uses verb forms and verb sequences standard to the narratives of Scripture. The same sort of syntax employed in most of the rest of the book of Genesis, which is clearly (and commonly agreed to be) made up of narratives.

Such evidence from the text supports a conclusion that Genesis 1 presents itself as narrative (even historical narrative), just as the rest of the book does. Now this evidence in itself does not guarantee that the events of Genesis 1 must be in a strict chronological sequence, since biblical narratives often rearrange chronology in order to communicate a particular message. But the evidence does strongly suggest that we ought to read the chapter as narrative and not as poetry.

Answers Addressed in the Text

So when your noble curiosity generates questions regarding your observation of the text (questions such as, what genre or text type is this?), your best instinct to cultivate is an instinct that searches the text itself for the answers. Search and search and search.

Let your questions drive you deeper into observation. Let observation and interpretation swirl round and round like a cyclone, in ever tighter loops.

You may be surprised to find how many of your questions can be answered within the text, if you only learn how and where to look. When such examination of the text becomes habitual, you will improve dramatically at being able to defend your conclusions and persuade others.

Answers Assumed in the Text

One obstacle for us today is when the biblical author assumes the answers to your questions. He wasn’t writing to you or me. He had his own audience. So he wasn’t trying to anticipate your questions, but those of his own audience.

This means that there is quite a bit of background information that’s not stated explicitly but nonetheless affects interpretation. For example, the author of Genesis 1 presumes prior knowledge of which “God” is the one engaging in the work of creation. Is it Yahweh, Astarte, Baal, Zeus, or last season’s winner of American Idol? Learning from external reference works about the author and audience of Genesis would help to clarify the answer to this question somewhat quickly.

For another example, comparisons to other ancient creation stories will yield great benefit. What makes this God in this story different from the Gods of Gilgamesh’s epic, or Enuma Elish? Some of these contrasts would have been obvious to those living in ancient times, but we can miss them on account of centuries of distance.

How to Determine When an Answer is Assumed

In the name of “the answer is assumed,” we run the risk of justifying just about any conclusion we can find in a reference work. How do we determine whether the answer is truly assumed, or we are simply importing it where it doesn’t belong?

This process isn’t a perfect science, but the key issue is: Do you have good reason to believe the original audience would have made this assumption? The more reason you have to believe that, the stronger will be the answers you find in reference works.

So ask: Would the original audience already have the necessary background knowledge? Would they have truly been familiar with this parallel text, cultural artifact, body of knowledge, etc.?

If so, then it makes sense to look up your answer in a commentary, study guide, or Bible atlas. We have a wealth of tools available to us today to help us get into the mindset of the original readers. Let’s make good use of them.

When to Let it Go

But if you can’t find the answer addressed in the text, and you don’t have good reason to believe it was assumed, you probably need to make like Elsa and let it go.

Resist the urge to close the knowledge gap simply with systematic theology, denominational tradition, or prior experience. Theology and tradition are important, but they fit best not while interpreting (answering interpretive questions) but while correlating (after determining the author’s main point). We must understand the present passage on its own terms, in light of its original audience, first, before we attempt to connect it to teaching found elsewhere in the Bible.

One exception to the principle in the previous sentence lies with certain implicational questions. Because implicational questions bridge the gap from interpretation into application, they often work best after we’ve determined the main point. So it may make sense to make use of reference works to help draw out those implications and stimulate our own reflection concerning them.

So how do we find answers to our interpretive questions? By shoving our noses back into the text for deeper observation. When further observation suggests that the answer would have been assumed and self-evident to the original audience, we’re then justified in pursuing external resources to help us better understand the mindset or culture of that audience. However, if we don’t have good reason to believe the answer is either addressed or assumed in the text, we’re best off letting the question go until another passage takes it up. There’s no shame in setting aside a particular question for a brighter day.

Emphasizing What the Bible Emphasizes

May 22, 2023 By Ryan Higginbottom

About a decade ago, I knew a couple that had a very strong, specific view on creation. They read piles of books and articles, and almost every conversation with them circled back to this topic. For them, the trustworthiness of other authors and Bible teachers was always passed through the grid of agreement on this one doctrine.

This issue was a single, steel track that ran through their relationships. Regrettably, I began to avoid conversations with them because every interaction ended the same way.

Though it may be with a different issue, you may know people like this. It’s possible that you may be a person like this!

The Issue of the Moment

When one doctrine or application or book of the Bible dominates someone’s thoughts and conversations, it is not necessarily a bad thing. From my experience, these are often legitimate spiritual matters, and it may be that God is at work changing a person’s mind and heart.

As humans, we are often creatures of the moment, and what we are learning or struggling with or rejoicing over can become our center of spiritual gravity. All other issues fall into orbit.

A few years ago I began studying Lamentations and thinking deeply about lament. This affected me profoundly, and God taught me much through it. This was a reorienting lesson, and I brought it into many conversations. Looking back, I’m guessing my friends and family were eager for me to get past the just-learning-about-it phase.

When our issue of the moment begins to dominate our thoughts and conversations—to the exclusion of other healthy, worthy topics—what is missing is balance and proportion.

The Bible’s Emphases

As we mature as Christians, we should learn to distinguish between an emphasis and an exclusive emphasis. God wants us to learn about lament, and he also wants us to practice lament—but this is not a good summary of the Bible or our lives as Christians. This is not what we should focus on to the exclusion of all else.

There are at least three commitments that will keep us from losing sight of the big picture of the Bible.

Connect every passage to the Bible’s big story. Regardless of how powerful and affecting a portion of the Bible is, we should work hard to put it in the context of the whole Bible. Rehearsing the main story of the Bible regularly is a safeguard to a single-issue obsession.

Talk about the Bible with your friends. Good friends will offer encouragement and correction as needed. Dialog with our friends about what God is teaching us will give opportunities for pushback—both in terms of content and emphasis.

Regularly exposure yourself to lots of the Bible. If our Bible intake is limited to what we are studying deeply, we may end up imbalanced in our emphases. If you are a part of a good church, this can include the weekly preaching and other Bible-focused classes. Reading and listening to the Bible (in addition to studying it) will remind us of what God emphasizes in his word.

The Power of Implicational Questions

May 19, 2023 By Peter Krol

Last week, I introduced three types of interpretive questions and their various uses. Of those three types, I find that implicational (or “so what”) questions tend to be the neglected second cousins of the bunch. Because people often don’t know what to do with them, they fail to give them a try.

Perhaps you’d like to see what power longs to be unharnessed by them.

Easy to Ask, Difficult to Answer

When I teach Bible study skills, people sometimes have difficulty coming up with implicational questions, but that’s usually because they’re thinking too hard about it. They believe their questions ought to be awe-inspiring and profound.

When it comes down to it, implicational questions ought to be the easiest to ask, because they all sound almost exactly the same.

So what are the implications of [state the observation]?
So what are we to understand from [observation]?
So what should we conclude about [observation]?

But though they’re easy to ask, implicational questions can be some of the most difficult to answer. They require us to learn how to think and draw inferences. They require us to reason from one proposition to another. They expect us to get into the shoes of the original audience and hear the text the way those people would have heard it.

Because of the ease of asking but difficulty of answering, we often forget to even bother asking them. Most of our interpretive questions fall into the rational category, and we camp out in exploring the passage’s “why.” And please don’t get me wrong: The “why” is the heart of interpretation, so we ought to camp out there.

But the implicational questions provide that crucial bridge from interpretation into the beginnings of application. So if you find yourself having interpreted the text, but you’re still confused about how to apply it, perhaps you ought to try some implicational questions. Utilize their power to advance your study.

An Example from Proverbs

I was recently studying the theme of truth or guidance in the body of the book of Proverbs (Proverbs 10-31), and I came across the following gem:

Whoever speaks the truth gives honest evidence,
but a false witness utters deceit.
Proverbs 12:17

If I want a thorough picture of Proverbs’ teaching on the topic of truth, I must grapple with this verse. But doesn’t it sound elementary? As though it’s not doing anything but defining terms?

To speak the truth means you give honest evidence.
To be a false witness means you utter deceit.

Does the Bible really need to tell us this? Isn’t it like saying good people do good things? Or lazy people do lazy things? Isn’t that self-evident? Why did God even need to say it?

The more I thought about the verse, the more I realized my rational questions were getting me nowhere.

Why is this here?
Why does it contrast truth with a false witness?
Why does a truth-speaker give honest evidence?
Why does a false witness utter deceit?

These questions all had the same basic, elementary answer, which is that a person’s actions derive from that person’s habits or nature. But this point is rather obvious and could have been made in any number of ways. Why make that point in this way on this particular topic of truth-speaking in court?

When I finally tried out some implicational questions, however, I started getting somewhere.

So what are we to conclude from a truth-speaker’s giving honest evidence?
So what is implied by the fact that a false witness utters deceit?
So how should these self-evident truisms shape my perception of the world or people around me?

Such questions are easy to ask but difficult to answer. I had to slow down and consider them extensively. And as I did, the more I realized that saying “a false witness utters deceit” was somewhat like saying “boys will be boys.” Or better yet: “haters gonna hate.”

Yes, we understand intuitively that a persons actions derive from that person’s nature. And our world is filled with people who say that their word is their bond, but who keep acting in deceitful and underhanded ways. Actions truly speak louder than words.

So when a person utters deceit, it is appropriate to grow wary of them and begin to perceive them as “a false witness.” And when a person consistently gives honest evidence, it is only natural for them to acquire a reputation as a “truth-speaker.”

So considering the implications of the verse helped me to understand that it may be here, at least in part, to teach us that our words will always catch up with us. I may be able to deceive some people some of the time, but I’ll never be able to deceive all the people all the time. My deceit will catch up with me, and people will take notice. Or alternatively, my integrity will catch up with me, and people will take notice.

When I’m faced with a situation where I might be tempted to lie sinfully, I ought to consider not only the present consequences but also future ones. What I say right now will affect my reputation going forward. It will affect whether or not people can trust me. Can I live with that, in light of the choice presently facing me?

Bridge to Application

I’m sure you can see I’ve now transitioned into application. I still have only principles and general ideas. But it shouldn’t be too hard to take those principles, remember Jesus, and get specific.

Different Uses for Different Questions

May 12, 2023 By Peter Krol

When we observe a text, we collect all the raw materials for interpretation. And that which drives interpretation forward is the asking of questions. To interpret well, we must be intensely curious and investigate our observations as fully as possible.

But the asking of questions ought not be a complete free-for-all. Different kinds of questions have different uses. Let’s take advantage of those differences.

Spinning Cyclones

The OIA method of Bible study is not intended to be strictly linear. It’s not as though you follow a list of 12 steps from number 1 through to number 12, such that you end up with a clear and relevant set of answers from your text.

No, the method is much more like a funnel or cyclone. The sort of funnel or cyclone you get when you drain a sink filled with water. It spins round and round until the substance all makes it through the access point.

In a similar way, observation and interpretation ought to cycle round and round, back and forth, until you’ve mastered the text to the point of grasping the author’s main point. So good observation will naturally raise questions you’ll want to explore. And those questions generally ought to be answered by further observation. Such observation raises more questions, which require deeper observation. And on and on, back and forth—or more precisely: round and round, in tighter and tighter circles—until you have zeroed in on the big idea. The chief message. The main point.

Crossing Bridges

With that said, I find it helpful to recognize the role our interpretive questions can play to help us cross bridges between observation and interpretation, and between interpretation and application. Keep in mind that this is not a straight-line process, but more of a cyclone. Yet your questions still help you to constantly cross those bridges from one aspect of your study to the next, in ever tighter spirals as you get close to the main point.

How do different types of questions help you to cross those O-to-I and I-to-A bridges?

In his seminal work Methodical Bible Study, Robert Traina puts interpretative questions into three categories: definitive, rational, and implicational. In my book Knowable Word, I sought to simplify his schema into the three categories of “what,” “why,” and “so what” questions.

Definitive or “what” questions build a bridge from observation to interpretation.
Rational or “why” questions make up the primary work of interpretation proper.
Implicational or “so what” questions build a bridge from interpretation to application.

How the Bridges Work

The most important thing to remember about all interpretive questions is that the questions should be about your observations. They are not random questions, nor are they merely intuitive insights. You don’t come up with your questions by staring at the ceiling, nor by going off on a mountaintop and thinking really hard.

You don’t have to be particularly insightful to ask great questions. You only have to be intensely curious about what you observe.

Here’s a simple example from the brief episode in Luke 18:15-17. I observe a clear contrast between the disciples’ rebuke of the children or parents, and Jesus’ call to invite them (“…they rebuked them. But Jesus called them to him…”). Now with that simple observation, I can utilize different kinds of questions to different ends.

“What exactly is being contrasted here?”
- This definitive or “what” question helps me to define the contrast. Is Luke contrasting only the words or also the attitudes? Is the rebuke/call directed at the infants, the parents, or both? Is the rebuke/call directed to the bringing of the infants, or to the desire for Jesus to touch them (Luke 18:15)?
- By defining precisely what Luke is contrasting, I’m able to move from observation into interpretation proper.
“Why does Luke contrast these things?”
- This rational or “why” question helps me to interpret the observation. Having seen and defined what it says (the contrast), I can now explore what it means. Why it’s here. What role it plays in Luke’s message.
“So what should we conclude from this contrast?”
- This implicational or “so what” question helps me to move toward application. It doesn’t do all the work of application for me, but it yields some initial ideas or principles that will help me get more concrete and specific later.
- By recognizing the observation’s implications, I’m well suited to discern how the text would have landed with the original audience—getting me one step closer to the author’s main point.

Different Uses

Let your questions work for you. If you are observing lots of great stuff and you’re not sure what to do with it, try some definitive questions to make sure you’ve got the right information. If you’re struggling with what it all means, you can’t go wrong with more rational questions; just keep asking “why?” And if you can perceive the message but you struggle with application, ask some implicational questions to ensure you’ve figured out how the message of the text should have impacted the original audience.

The right question at the right time might be just what you need to get you unstuck and moving forward.

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Studying the Bible is not Code Breaking

May 8, 2023 By Ryan Higginbottom

The Bible is not a secret code.

Written Plainly

Some Christians act like the Bible is written in a mysterious language, accessible only to a select few. Bible study is left to the brilliant, the professionals who can teach the rest of us.

I remember a time when some people were convinced that the key to understanding the Bible was in the numbers. Biblical numerology would unlock the real meaning of the text and make everything clear. Now, I’m rather fond of mathematics, but this never added up.

You may have run across similar approaches to the Bible. If you look at just the right map, do just the right word study, count the letters in Greek and Hebrew, then you’ll know the truth. Then you’ll be on the inside.

Friends, the Bible is knowable. It is understandable. We need no advanced degrees or initiation rites to grasp the message of God’s word.

God Wants to be Known

The point of a code is to pass a message in such a way that if the wrong people see the message, it will look like gibberish. Only the tiny few intended targets will be able to transform the text into something understandable.

When we treat the Bible as code we make God out to be someone who is hiding, who does not want to be known, who is shielding his real identity from the world.

But this is NOT what God is like!

God wants to be known; he wants to be worshipped and understood. If in no other way, this is clear through the incarnation of Jesus.

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.’”) For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known. (John 1:14–18)

Jesus came to make the Father known. God does not hide who he is from the people he wants to know him.

The Bible is Deep

This does not mean that the Bible is trivial or obvious. While we can grasp the most important truths of the Scriptures with simple reading, the Bible repays diligent, faithful study. The more we spend time with God’s word, the more we understand and delight in God himself.

The Bible is a pool shallow enough to provide refreshment and keep us from drowning. But it is also so deep that we will never reach the bottom.

The Easy Way Out

Paradoxically, treating the Bible as a code might, for some people, be the search for an easy path. After all, for people that can break a code, everything is made plain. For those without the key, there is no way of understanding. We might as well throw up our arms.

God calls us to the slow, gradual, longterm renewing of our minds and hearts by his word. This is not the task of a computer and an algorithm, it is the joyful work of a life.

How to Approach the Bible

We read and study the Bible to know God and walk with him. We are not looking for secret knowledge or a golden ticket. Rather we labor to learn and remember what is clear, work to understand what is less clear, and apply all of it through the help of the Spirit. And, because we forget so easily, we read and reread.

How do we understand the Bible? We approach it the way we take in any other communication: we observe what it says, interpret its meaning, and apply it in our lives.

Understanding and transformation are available to all in God’s word. Won’t you give yourself to it?

Against Springboard Studies

April 24, 2023 By Ryan Higginbottom

How can a Bible study go wrong when the entire focus is on the Bible? How can a Sunday school class or sermon be steeped in God’s word and leave us feeling empty?

Springboard Studies

Some Bible studies are springboard studies. The Bible study leader reads the passage and identifies connected biblical themes. Then the group time becomes an opportunity to teach on or discuss those themes.

I call these “springboard studies” because the leader takes the given passage as a jumping-off point—a springboard—to a different discussion. Springboard studies have the appearance of being faithful to the text of Scripture because the group is reading numerous Bible passages and talking about theology and doctrine. However, at the end of the hour, participants rarely have a good idea about the meaning of the discussion’s “text of origin.”

This is common for teachers, speakers, and preachers, too. People serving those in those roles should read on with their domain in mind.

What Drives Discussion?

Springboard studies can be lively and engaging. This is often because the leader jumps from the passage to a topic about which they are passionate or interested. As such, the leader puts a lot of energy into defending a doctrine or explaining some theological development close to their heart.

The problem with this approach is that it almost by definition misses the main point of the passage. People attending the Bible study may leave with a better sense of the leader’s allegiances and theological preferences but without an understanding of why the original text was written.

Bible interpretation is hard work, and we often need to fight to understand what the author was trying to communicate. But if a Bible study group claims to be studying a certain book of Scripture, the goal should be to observe, interpret, and apply that text.

Building a Theological Framework

Please don’t misunderstand me. Theology and doctrine are of great importance, and we sometimes build portions of our theological frameworks on the smaller points or assumptions of the Biblical authors. (Although, it is worth asking how devoted we should be to doctrines which are not the main points of any Bible passage.)

My issue is with Bible studies (or sermons) that claim to be expositional, verse-by-verse examinations of Scripture passages which may better be described as “inspired by the text.”

How to Avoid Leading a Springboard Study

Springboard studies come about, in part, because we don’t think the Bible is interesting or important enough to hold our attention for 45 minutes. So we map a word, phrase, character, or scene from the Bible onto something “more relevant” that will sustain a longer conversation. As though merely having a conversation—any conversation at all—were the goal of Bible study!

The main way to avoid leading a springboard study is to let the text of Scripture drive the discussion. After observing the passage, we fire every related question we can think of at the text. The Scripture in front of us may not have answers to all (or many) of these questions, but the work of interpretation is to keep asking and answering questions until we identify the author’s main point.

There is an important place in the church for classes, lectures, and conversations about Biblical topics which are not rooted in a single passage. But let’s not confuse this with Bible study.

What to Do When One Passage Refers to Another

February 24, 2023 By Peter Krol

Though the Bible was written by dozens of human authors across centuries, it also claims to have been written by a single divine author (2 Tim 3:16) who was and is and is come. For that reason, these 66 books are all parts of that one great book, the Good Book, that the Lord caused to be written and preserved for his people through the ages.

You may have heard about New Testament quotes of the Old Testament. But that is not the only sort of intertextuality present in the Bible. Because the Bible is one unfolding revelation of God’s rule through his chosen Messiah, later portions of the Bible make constant reference to earlier portions.

Examples

In Ephesians 4:8, Paul quotes Psalm 68:18. And Psalm 68 itself (in Ps 68:1) quotes Numbers 10:35.

Hebrews 3:7-11 quotes Psalm 95. And Psalm 95:8 refers to the events of Exodus 17 and Numbers 20.

Mark 4:12 quotes Isaiah 6, but Isaiah 6 is difficult to understand apart from its allusions to texts such as Psalms 115 and 135.

Many places in the Old Testament reference “steadfast love and faithfulness” (2 Sam 2:6, Ps 25:10, Ps 40:11, Prov 3:3, Is 16:5, etc.), a pair of treats heavy with allusion to the character of the God in covenant with Israel (Ex 34:6).

What to Do

So quotations and allusions are not only what happens from the New Testament to the Old Testament. They also occur from later OT texts back to earlier ones. Identfying an OT quote in a NT passage may be only the first step in a linear chain of references that go farther and farther back.

That means that, in order to understand the passage with the quote, we must go back and understand the passage being quoted. Ancient authors didn’t quote older texts the way we today turn things into soundbites.

I’ve written before about what to do with such quotes. I’ll restate the principles here, but I encourage you to check out that blog post for further explanation.

NT quotes of the OT are referencing passages, not verses.
Don’t read past the OT quotes.
Look up the OT quotes and study them in context.
Consider how the NT author employs the OT context and repurposes it for his audience.
What seems obvious may not be all that obvious.

These principles apply just as much to quotations or allusions from an OT text to a prior OT text, as to quotations or allusions from a NT text to an OT text. Such connections are like divine road maps showing us how the Good Book fits together. Let’s take advantage of these opportunities to deepen our understanding of the entire body of God’s revelation.

Why it Matters that the Bible was Written to Specific People at a Specific Time

February 17, 2023 By Peter Krol

While the Bible was written for us (1 Cor 10:11), it was not written to us. When we read the Bible, we are reading someone else’s mail.

This is why context matters. It is not appropriate to isolate sentences and sentiments and use them to our own ends. We must grasp the author’s main point to his original audience. We must consider how that main point either looks forward to Christ or reflects back upon him. And only when we have done those things are we in a position to consider how the text ought to produce change in anyone’s life today.

Photo by Mr Cup / Fabien Barral on Unsplash

Historical Context Defined

We’ve spent much space on this blog giving examples of how the literary context matters. But that is not the only kind of context.

One other such context is the historical context. How does the historical situation of this text affect the way we read it? And by “historical situation,” I’m not referring to cultural practices or artifacts within the text. I’m talking about the real-life situation of the author and audience of the text. What was going on in the lives of the author and audience that caused this person to write this text to these people at this time?

We cannot answer that question with certainty—or even high probability—for every book of the Bible. But whenever we can answer it, we ought to make sure that answer guides us whenever we seek to understand a text.

An Example

Have you ever noticed the difference between how the books of Kings and Chronicles describe the moral character of King Abijah (Abijam) of Judah?

In the eighteenth year of King Jeroboam… Abijam began to reign over Judah… He walked in all the sins that his father did before him, and his heart was not wholly true to Yahweh his God, as the heart of David his father. Nevertheless, for David’s sake Yahweh his God gave him a lamp in Jerusalem. (1 Kings 15:1-4)

Then Abijah stood up…and said… “But as for us, Yahweh is our God, and we have not forsaken him… Behold, God is with us at our head, and his priests with their battle trumpets to sound the call to battle against you. O sons of Israel, do not fight against Yahweh, the God of your fathers, for you cannot succeed.” (2 Chron 13:4-12)

Both Kings and Chronicles go out of their way to label each king of Judah as doing either what is right or what is evil in God’s eyes. There are clear good guys and bad guys, good kings and bad kings. But when it comes to Solomon’s grandson Abijah, the authors of these two books just couldn’t get their assessments aligned.

The author of Kings definitely knew about the warfare between Abijah and the northern kingdom (1 Kings 15:6; see 2 Chron 13:2). But he chose to leave Abijah’s faith in God, as demonstrated in that warfare, out of his narrative. Why would he do that?

The historical context of these two books can help.

Different Audiences, Different Times

The book of Kings (1 Kings and 2 Kings make up one long book that happened to be divided into two scrolls) was written for the people of God languishing in Babylonian exile. The book tells the story of the kingdom, ending with Nebuchadnezzar’s conquest of Jerusalem and the deportation of the population to a foreign land. The book is not without hope, as the final paragraph describes the reversal of fortune for one of their last kings (2 Kings 25:27-30).

But when all is taken into account, the book of Kings answers the chief question of those stuck in Babylon without temple, priest, or sacrifice: How did we get here?

The book of Chronicles (again, 1 Chronicles and 2 Chronicles are one book kept on two scrolls) was written for the people of God who had returned to Jerusalem to rebuild the city and repair their lives. This book also tells the story of the kingdom, but it ends with a very different hope: Cyrus’s decree to return and rebuild (2 Chr 36:22-23). From the detailed genealogies of 1 Chr 1-9 to the lengthy liturgical sections (1 Chr 15-16, 22-29; 2 Chr 15, 19-20, 24, 29-31, 35), the book of Chronicles provides pertinent instruction and thrilling hope for those reconnecting to their past and reinstating the proper and authoritative worship of their God.

So when all is taken into account, the book of Chronicles answers the chief question of those who have returned from exile: How do we start things back up in the right way, without repeating the mistakes of our ancestors?

Employing Historical Context for Interpretation

How does this historical context help us to answer the thorny interpretive question of King Abijah? Was he good or evil? Faithful or disobedient?

The audience of Kings needed to hear of Abijam’s faults. The thrust of his life and rule was more like his father Rehoboam than his great-grandfather David. He was not undivided in his allegiance to Yahweh, and he carried the pride and insecurity of Rehoboam into a new generation. This was not pleasing to Yahweh, and it was one step along a lengthy slide into Judah’s abandonment of the covenant, leading to her demise and deportation.

But the audience of Chronicles needed a different message. They needed to know that Abijah was not as bad as he could have been. In fact, he had his shining moments. One such moment was when he publicly professed his faith in Yahweh and gave the priesthood its proper place: not as a magical totem but as an opportunity to lead the people toward covenant fidelity. Now that you are back in the land, you need to know that you, like Abijah, have a history of great sin against God. But if you bear fruit in keeping with repentance—demonstrating your faith through establishing a legitimate priesthood that leads the people to serve Yahweh above all gods—you, too, will find great success and security in the land you rebuild.

Conclusion

The historical context is an important piece of the puzzle we call Bible study. By placing yourself in the shoes of the original audience, you are more likely to grasp the intended message for them in their day. And when you have done so, you will unsurprisingly find the Bible becoming even more — not less — relevant to our lives today.

10 Truths About God’s Word From Nehemiah 8

February 13, 2023 By Ryan Higginbottom

Both nature and the Bible give compelling arguments that God wants to be known. He reveals himself.

It should therefore not surprise us that God reveals to us something about those very means of revelation. How else would we understand?

So, while it may seem circular to some, the Bible is a valid and rich source of information about how we should treat special revelation coming from God. The eighth chapter of Nehemiah is crammed with this sort of instruction.

In the Midst of Rebuilding

The books of Ezra and Nehemiah are largely about new beginnings. A remnant of Israel has returned to Jerusalem from exile in Babylon. They have rebuilt the altar, the temple, and the city walls, and they are rebuilding the city itself. In the midst of so much building, they are learning how to be God’s people again.

The occasion in Nehemiah 8 is a special month in the Jewish calendar. The first day of the seventh month is the Feast of Trumpets, and later we have the Feast of Booths. On the first of the month, the people call for Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law into the public square (Neh 8:1).

Learning about God’s Word

From the way the people handle, approach, and react to the Law, we can learn much about God’s word.

God’s word has divine authority

The scrolls that Ezra carried into the square before the Water Gate were not merely historical. The people were not just feeling nostalgic. This was “the Book of the Law of Moses that the Lord had commanded Israel” (Neh 8:1).

God’s word is preserved

The people called for the Law, and—rather remarkably—Ezra had it (Neh 8:2)! Between the devastation that Jerusalem experienced and the decades spent in Babylon, the existence of these scrolls is surprising. Because God wants to be known, he protects and preserves his word.

God’s word is meant to be understood

There is staggering emphasis on understanding the Law in this chapter. Those who gathered were those “who could understand” (Neh 8:3, 4). Levites “helped the people to understand the Law” after Ezra read it (Neh 8:7). “They read from the book, from the Law of God, clearly, and they gave the sense, so that the people understood the reading” (Neh 8:8). The people rejoiced greatly “because they had understood the words that were declared to them” (Neh 8:12).

The reading of the Law was no empty religious activity. The people wanted to understand the words from their great God.

God’s word demands sustained attention

Ezra read from the Law “from early morning until midday” and “the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law” (Neh 8:3). This is a long time to stand and listen, but this reading is worthy of such focus.

God’s word is honored

The Israelites constructed a platform for Ezra to stand on for this reading, so they were literally elevating God’s word in front of the people (Neh 8:4). When “Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people,” “all the people stood” (Neh 8:5).

God’s word leads to worship of God

Note what happened after Ezra brought out the scroll.

And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God, and all the people answered, “Amen, Amen,” lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground. (Neh 8:6)

God speaks and as the people learn from and about their Sovereign Lord, they are humbled and driven to worship him.

God’s word is understood in community

Trained ministers of the temple—the Levites—moved among the people to give instruction after the reading of the Law was over (Neh 8:7–8). The Israelites “remained in their places” while this happened, so this may have looked like teachers walking through a large crowd and stopping to help small groups.

In the West we sometimes overemphasize the individual nature of religious life. We’d do well to remember the blessings of being among God’s called people.

God’s word brings conviction

As the people heard the words of the Law, they wept (Neh 8:9). They were likely overcome by their sin and moved to confess their violations to God (see Neh 9:3). The Scriptures are not cold or dry. This living and active word sinks a hot poker into our hearts and points us to the deep mercy of God in our conviction.

God’s word is worthy of study

After a long day of hearing the Law and working to understand it, some of the Jewish leaders wanted more. They went back to Ezra the next day “in order to study the words of the Law” (Neh 8:13).

God’s word informs behavior

As a result of this study, the leaders realized they had not been keeping the Feast of Booths properly (Neh 8:17). There was immediate and fruitful application from this study of God’s word as the whole city was brought into obedience.

A Rich Word

There is more to say about the Bible than what is captured in Nehemiah 8, but this is quite a list. I was quieted and convicted as I read this chapter of God’s word, because I don’t always treat the Bible as it deserves. Perhaps you might benefit from a slower meditation on these truths about the Scriptures. Do you believe them? Do they shape the way you and your church approach the Lord?

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