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Why Context Matters

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At Stand to Reason, Alan Shlemon explains why it matters so much to consider the context of a Bible verse. After giving an example, where a Christian uses Matthew 18:20 to encourage their small group that Jesus is with them, Shlemon draws the following conclusion:

This might seem benign, but it’s dangerous. In this case, the Christian has concluded that the verse tells him Jesus is with them. You might think, What’s the harm in believing that? In this case, the belief is not incorrect—Jesus is with them—but that verse doesn’t support that belief. The believer has ignored the Holy Spirit’s inspired context and then created his own context, thus changing the meaning of Jesus’ teaching. Now Matthew 18:20 isn’t about church discipline but rather about believing Jesus is with you. That’s not Bible reading. That’s not allowing the Holy Spirit to transform you. That’s not listening to God but listening to yourself and baptizing your faulty interpretation with the authority of God’s Word. If a Christian wants a verse that supports the fact that Jesus is present with him, he can always turn to Matthew 28:20.

So we can arrive at true teaching in the wrong way. But that’s not far from using the same methods of Bible reading to reach entirely false teaching. Let’s not ignore the wishes of Holy Spirit, who inspired these sacred writings.

Shlemon is right. Context matters. Let’s continue retraining ourselves and our people to read the Bible for what it is: not a collection of memory verses, but a collection of books.

Check it out!

What Should We Make of the Massive Repetition of Tabernacle Details in Exodus?

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I used to lead a small group Bible study in my home. And when I proposed we study Exodus, people agreed to participate only if we stopped once we hit the Ten Commandments (chapter 20).

Some time later, I proposed preaching through Exodus at our church. Some of the other elders expressed concern that a chapter-by-chapter exposition would be too taxing for the people. They wanted assurance that we wouldn’t belabor the tabernacle details.

Over the years, I have heard from many friends, who attempted to read the Bible cover-to-cover, that they gave up in the closing chapters of Exodus (though I can think of some who made it as far as Leviticus or Numbers before abandoning ship).

These three anecdotes highlight a major barrier for modern readers: There’s no avoiding the fact that Exodus dedicates exorbitant space to the architectural details of the tabernacle. And those details occur not only once but twice. Every preacher must solve the conundrum of how to preach Exodus without preaching the same sermon(s) multiple times. Every Bible reader must cope with both the pile of cubits, fillets, calyxes, and ephods (Ex 25-31), and the pile of cubits, fillets, calyxes, and ephods (Ex 35-39). As my son loves to ask me: Pete and Repeat were in a boat. Pete fell out, and who was left?

If we believe that all Scripture is useful and profitable (2 Tim 3:16-17), and we are to take heed of what God has revealed about himself, how might we approach chapters 35-39 of Exodus? Will we simply skip them, trusting the lessons from Exodus 26-31 to be sufficient? Or does the Lord have more for us than that?

I have 6 suggestions.

1. Ask why the tabernacle has so many details.

I’ve tried to cover this in my sample Bible studies on each chapter, as I’ve landed on the big picture from the beginning: Yahweh wants to dwell with his people. Here in the tabernacle, we have one of the clearest pictures of Immanuel, God with us. This is worth much time, attention, and detail to ensure we comprehend the glory of it.

2. Ask why Exodus repeats nearly every one of those details.

God chose to give us this particular picture of Immanuel two times. Let’s not let it go to waste. After all, it’s not an exact repetition. First, Yahweh says “you shall build” so and so. Second, the narrator says “Bezalel built” so and so. That shift from instruction to construction must not go unnoticed. (For an example, just do a verse-by-verse comparison of the ark in Ex 25:10-16 and Ex 37:1-5.) Yahweh told them to do something, and they did it. Or more accurately: Yahweh told them to do a thousand somethings, and they did them all. Exactly as they had been told. Down to the jot and tittle. Even if Moses had written his scroll with fluorescent gel pens, he could not have made this obvious point any more vibrant.

3. Observe which parts of Ex 25-31 are not repeated in Ex 35-39.

Though there may be more, I’ve noticed three major things: the intent to dwell, the priests’ ordination ceremony (Ex 29) and the census tax (Ex 30:11-16). All three take on greater significance outside the book of Exodus.

Yahweh clearly states his intent to dwell with his people in Ex 25:8, 29:45-46. While no such intent is stated during construction, this intent to dwell motivates Yahweh through the ages (Deut 31:23, Josh 1:5, Is 7:14, Is 8:5-10, Is 43:2, Matt 1:22-23, Matt 28:20, etc.).

The ordination instruction does finally find its twin in Leviticus 8, and the delay heightens the drama and anticipation for the event. Perhaps this ordination ceremony has more to teach us (about how to approach God) than first meets the eye.

The census tax (“ransom”) is never mentioned again, as far as I can tell. Numbers 1 and 26 narrate two censuses for the two generations of wilderness wanderers, and there is no mention of the tax there. But since Yahweh initiates both censuses, I assume they followed his instructions from Ex 30:11-16. But do you remember David’s fateful census that brought disaster on Israel (2 Sam 24, 1 Chr 21)? Have you ever wondered why it was such a terrible idea? If we didn’t skip over the boring parts of Exodus, we might have eyes to see both David’s failure to collect the ransom and God’s solution to replace the tabernacle with a permanent temple.

4. Observe which parts of Ex 35-39 are new material (not found in Ex 25-31).

Next week, I will focus my sample Bible study on these texts: Ex 35:1-29, Ex 36:2-7, and narrative additions in Ex 39:1-31. They do not have counterparts in Ex 25-31, so they highlight the new angle on Immanuel that the Lord intends with Ex 35-39.

5. Compare and contrast the structure of the two sections.

Some things are similar. For example, the ark, table, and lampstand come in the same order (Ex 25:10-40, 37:1-24), indicating those three items should be taken as a unit. Same with all the priestly garments in Ex 28 and Ex 39.

But most of the structure is completely different. I’ve created an outline showing the differences to help me visualize it. Some key takeaways:

  • The construction begins exactly where the instructions left off: The Sabbath.
  • The instructions take the shape of seven speeches; the construction has no clear corresponding framework.
  • The instructions basically start on the the inside (ark, table, lampstand) and move out (furniture, structure, priests’ garments) before coming back in (more furniture, oil & incense); the construction follows a more logical course (build the tent, fill it with furniture, create the courtyard furniture, build the courtyard fence, end with priestly garments).
  • In light of the content and structural differences, it appears the instructions put more emphasis on the tabernacle as “new creation,” while the construction puts more emphasis on the people involved as “new creators”.

6. Follow the train of thought.

One danger of treating Ex 25-31 and Ex 35-39 as one long passage about the tabernacle is that we miss the crucial train of thought! The covenant is made in Ex 19-24. Then we have tabernacle instructions in Ex 25-31. Then the covenant is broken and repaired in Ex 32-34. Finally, the tabernacle is constructed.

The flow of thought highlights the crucial nature of the breaking and repair of the covenant in between the tabernacle sections. In other words, the only reason the construction can be so detailed, so faithful, and so obedient in every point, is because Yahweh has offered these people more of himself than they’ve ever had. He’s given them a greater, albeit fading, glory in the approval of his face. And he is closer to them than ever. This fact alone makes the tabernacle construction more earth-shattering and supernatural than the instructions were.

If Yahweh is not vulnerable and willing to give himself to his people, his instructions will always fall on deaf ears. But when he shows them his glory, full of grace and truth, they become Spirit-filled to do all that he commands them do. Exactly as he commands them to do it.

Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. (Heb 13:20-21)

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Why Paragraphs Matter

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Some older editions of the Bible used to put every verse on a new line, communicating that each verse was an independent unit of thought. Thankfully, the practice is rare in modern Bibles, and Mark Ward demonstrates why it matters.

Often editors need to guess where the best paragraph divisions should go. And different translation committees will disagree. But that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t try.

In his article “How Paragraph Breaks Can Help You Understand the Bible,” Ward gives two examples of how paragraph breaks in Matthew led him to ask interpretive questions he might not otherwise have thought of. In particular, the paragraphs caused him to ask, “Why does this sentence follow what came before? How does it fit with the flow of thought in this section?”

When we move away from reading Bible verses as isolated aphorisms, and we read them as building blocks in a larger argument, we are well on our way toward proper understanding.

Perhaps you can relate to Ward’s experience. Check it out!

Another Way to Think About Application

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Matthew Harmon has a helpful article with help for Bible interpretation and application. Beginning with Jesus’ explanation of the two greatest commandments to love God and love neighbor (Matt 22:37-39), Harmon then uses these two commands to shape his advice for both interpretation and application.

Harmon gives four interpretation questions to ask of any Bible passage:

  1. What do I learn about God?
  2. What do I learn about people?
  3. What do I learn about relating to God?
  4. What do I learn about relating to others?

Then he gives four application questions:

  1. What does God want me to understand/think?
  2. What does God want me to believe?
  3. What does God want me to desire?
  4. What does God want me to do?

Unfortunately, in the realm of interpretation, I find Harmon’s list a bit reductionist. Though they are great questions that certainly come from the two great commandments, they may in fact lead you to read such questions back into the text and thus miss the author’s main point. You might end up with a list of glorious theological truths that are sub-points alongside the main thing the author intends to communicate. So as you interpret, don’t neglect the structure and train of thought so you can arrive at the author’s true main point (which may or may not be easily categorized into one of the two great commandments).

But in the realm of application, this categorization works marvelously. Since the two great commandments summarize all the obedience God wants from his people, these categories fit more naturally here. And Harmon does a great job showing that “application” has to do with much more than simply “doing” (though, of course, it includes “doing” as the fourth question).

Harmon’s four questions put in different words the model we propose here of head, heart, and hands. Those questions could gain a dimension by considering the two great commands (which we call the two “directions” for application). Thus, we can ask not only “What does God want me to understand/think?” but also “How can I help others to understand/think this truth as well?” And so on, into the application matrix.

So if you’d like a more visual approach, check out our application matrix. If you’d benefit more from a list of questions, Harmon’s article does a nice job explaining them.

Check it out!

The Golden Rule of Bible Reading

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This short video from John Piper explains what he calls “The Golden Rule of Bible Reading”: Figure out what the original, divinely inspired author intended to communicate. Piper readily concedes that this rule is an attempt to define what “meaning” is, as in, “How do we decide the meaning of a passage of Scripture?” So he gives four reasons for this definition of “meaning.”

  1. The Bible assumes this definition of “meaning.”
  2. We should treat the biblical authors the way we wish they would treat us (Matt 7:12).
  3. Humility requires it of us.
  4. God’s authority over us requires it of us.

https://vimeo.com/223505453

Piper’s challenge is one we would do well to heed. The video is well worth your time.

Check it out!

How to Read the Tabernacle Narratives in Exodus

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Exodus 37:1-9, the crafting of the ark of the covenant, was the text for one of the most unusual Bible studies I’ve ever participated in. This Bible study was unusual for two reasons. First, it was attended only by pastors. And second, we had no idea what to do with the text.

While this group discussed the ark of the covenant at length, we almost completely avoided discussing the text of Exodus. We went to 2 Samuel and discussed Uzzah touching the ark. We went to the Talmud and discussed rabbinic traditions for the high priest (tying a rope to his ankle, etc.). We went to the gospels and discussed the torn veil when Jesus died. I’m sure Indiana Jones even came up.

But when it came to having a Bible study on chapter 37 of Exodus, all the standard skills went out the window. We didn’t observe the grammar or structure. We didn’t consider repeated words, connector words, or the flow of thought. We never assaulted the text with our questions, nor did we wring it for answers. Instead of studying the passage, we theologized on the theme of “ark of the covenant” and what we thought that theme meant for Christians. And our theologizing had little to do with what Exodus actually said.

If Bible-believing pastors, committed to expositional preaching, are prone to read the Exodus tabernacle narratives this way, how much more the average Christian? So before I dive into the tabernacle instructions in my study of Exodus, let me begin with a few principles to guide our reading.

1. Don’t neglect your OIA skills

You’ve learned to observe, interpret, and apply the Scripture. Though the tabernacle narratives feel alien and overwhelming, don’t let those feelings drive you to neglect what you know how to do. Your skills are even more important when the text feels unfamiliar. Don’t jump too quickly to theological rationalization, or to sloppy cross-references. Work first to understand the passage in context for its original audience; then move forward to connect it with the rest of God’s revelation.

2. Guard the main idea

Yahweh says to Moses, right near the beginning of the instructions, “Let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst” (Ex 25:8). Here is the driving motive behind the commission to build: Yahweh wants to dwell in the midst of his people. He rescued them and brought them to himself (Ex 19:4). He’s given them himself in the Book of the Covenant (Ex 23:20-22). Now he wants to live with them forever.

They are desert nomads, living in tents; so he will be a desert nomad, living in a tent. They will be moving around, so he will be moving around. Wherever he leads, they will follow. But he won’t lead them from afar. He wants to be right in the middle of their camp.

These tabernacle narratives give us one of the clearest pictures of Immanuel, God with us, in all the Scripture. As you read, don’t lose your wonder at the fact that a holy God would make it possible for himself to live among sinful people.

3. Visualize the details

The tabernacle was meant to be built and interacted with. It was the first “Please Touch Museum,” after a fashion—at least the outside parts of it. The original audience would have been intimately familiar with the tabernacle’s floor plan, fire escape route, and standard operating procedures. We are not, so we’re at a disadvantage.

But we have computers and study Bibles and graphic designers, which puts us at an advantage.

Don’t be afraid to look at pictures of the furniture, architecture, and garments while you read. The more you can visualize the detail while you read, the more sense it will make to you. And there’s no shame in having to look up terms like calyx, carbuncle, galbanum, or ephod.

Ruk7, Creative Commons

4. Notice the order of things

Here’s where your observation skills really come in handy. Most of the details in Exodus 25-31 (instruction) will be repeated in Exodus 35-39 (construction), but in a different order. That’s on purpose, and much of the fun is figuring out why. Why do the priest’s garments come at the center of the instruction, but the end of the construction? Why does the instruction begin with the ark, but the construction begins with the tent curtains? Why, in the instruction, is the golden altar of incense separate from the other inside furniture pieces, but in the construction they’re all together? All these observations give us clues to what the narrator wants to communicate.

5. Observe the narrative frame

I’ve seen readers and students so numbed by the voluminous detail of chapters 25-29 that they miss an obvious observation when they hit chapter 30. Right in Exodus 30:11: “Yahweh said to Moses.” And again in Exodus 30:17. And also Exodus 30:22, 30:34, 31:1, and 31:12. Combine that with Exodus 25:1, and you get seven speeches. This is a narrative about seven speeches from Yahweh to Moses.

And not only that, but the seventh speech is all about the sabbath. And the sixth speech is all about men filled with Spirit of God for the service of God. These things, in this order, should remind us of the creation of the world in Genesis 1. I’m not going to push this parallel (between specific speeches and their corresponding “days” in Genesis 1) any further now, but it’s at least a clue. And we’ll see many more clues in these chapters that connect the tabernacle with the creation of the world—suggesting that this tabernacle is a new creation. Here is God remaking the world in his image so he can live with his people in paradise.

6. Behold Immanuel

In point #1, I said that the main idea is for God to live with his people. Our reading will be incomplete if we don’t eventually get to the fulfillment of “God with us” in the person of Jesus Christ (Matt 1:22-23, 28:20, Rev 21:3, etc.).

So as we read, we want to see Jesus in the tabernacle. We won’t necessarily look for him in every socket, board, gemstone, or tent peg. But we should see him all throughout as God dwelling among his people.

The Gospel of John will be our best guide, as it begins with Jesus dwelling among us (John 1:14), it commandeers the tabernacle’s imagery to explain Jesus’ identity (light, bread, water, Lamb of God, door), it shows Jesus interceding for his people like a high priest (John 17), and it climaxes with a veritable mercy seat, the place where Jesus’ body had lain, with one angel at the head and another at the foot (John 20:12).

Armed with these guidelines, we’re ready to begin studying the tabernacle narratives.

The Twist in the Sermon on the Mount You Probably Missed

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In “The Twist in the Sermon on the Mount You Probably Missed,” Mark Ward shows how to observe connector words, how to ask interpretive questions, and how to follow the author’s train of thought. His study leads into rich application dealing with anger and reconciliation. This is great Bible study.

I’m about to make the greatest understatement of all time: Jesus is brilliant. By focusing my attention on my own sins, he not only helps me defuse others’ anger against me, he also defuses my anger against others. It is in remembering that I am a sinner, and a sometimes mean one, that I can have pity on others. It is in remembering that I am a forgiven sinner that I can find the strength to forgive other sinners—just like the parable of the unforgiving servant.

Check it out!

Understanding the Story of Joseph in Genesis

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Samuel Emadi wrote a piece on the story of Joseph in Genesis 37-50. Sometimes we read that story and zero in on a few ideas about innocent suffering or the sovereignty of God. But Emadi does a great job examining the full narrative and following its train of thought.

Moses gives Joseph more time in Genesis than he does any other character—a striking fact given the significance of Genesis’s other main characters: Adam, Noah, and the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. This prominence is even more striking considering the apparent insignificance of Joseph in the rest of Scripture.

What then do we make of the Joseph story? Why is it so prominent in Genesis?

Many Christians fail to notice how Joseph’s story contributes to the Genesis narrative and to redemptive history in general. Within Reformed circles, preachers often use Joseph merely to illustrate how divine sovereignty and human responsibility intersect, focusing almost exclusively on Genesis 50:20: “What you meant for evil God meant for good.” Certainly, we are meant to read Joseph’s life in light of this verse. God’s sovereignty is a major theme in Genesis 37–50, and Joseph himself intends for us to interpret his life in light of God’s providence (cf. Gen. 45:1–9).

But reducing the story to an illustration for the doctrine of compatibilism misses the rich contribution Joseph’s life makes to the storyline of Scripture. God’s sovereignty figures largely in the Joseph story because God wants us to see how he puts himself in impossible situations and yet finds a way to keep his covenant promises. Joseph highlights how God’s providence secures God’s promises.

In this light, we can see how Joseph uniquely contributes to Scripture’s opening book.

Check it out!

6 Principles for Understanding the Case Laws of Exodus

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When Yahweh thundered from heaven, without Moses’ mediation, he immortalized the Ten Commandments. So we teach them to our children, we picture them in stained glass, and we bring them to bear on public life. Christian interpreters legitimately differ on the best way to apply the Sabbath commandment (Rom 14:5), but it is widely acknowledged that the Ten Commandments contain the moral will of God in summary form.

Yet we find greater divergence of opinion when we come to the case laws, the “Book of the Covenant” (Ex 24:7), immediately after the Ten Commandments. How are we to understand ancient slavery, the death penalty, goring oxen, five-fold restitution, road kill, wandering donkeys, and the festival in the month of Abib? As I scan the Exodus commentaries on my shelf, Exodus 21-23 is the section most often skipped or summarized in a mere page or two. Even the extensive tabernacle narratives get substantive attention, as interpreters love discussing how Jesus is the light, the bread, the living water, and the embodied presence of God. But the case laws?

Jan Buchholtz (2013), Creative Commons

Granted, Paul fills his letters with strong statements about the law: No one is justified before God by the law (Gal 3:11). Christ redeemed us from the law’s curse (Gal 3:13). You have died to the law through the body of Christ (Rom 7:4). God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do (Rom 8:3). You are not under law, but under grace (Rom 6:14). The power of sin is the law (1 Cor 15:56).

And sometimes Jesus is accused of breaking the law because of his love: touching a leper (Matt 8:3), eating sacred bread (Mark 2:26), breaking the Sabbath (Luke 13:10-17), and overturning fundamental principles of Old Testament justice (Matt 5:38-39).

So how should Christians of the 21st century understand the case laws in Exodus?

Guiding Principles

1. The law cannot save.

The laws given by God in covenant with his people had much glory. Yet the glory was temporary and fading; Moses veiled his face to conceal this fact (Ex 34:33-35, 2 Cor 3:7, 13). The law can give direction (Ps 119:105), but it cannot produce obedience or righteousness (Gal 3:11). Any attempt to turn bad people into good people through the coercion of law will fail. I’d prefer not to begin with what the law can’t do, but we need constant reminders of this fundamental impossibility.

2. Jesus and Paul validated the case laws.

I could point to the big law-statements Jesus makes, such as “not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished” (Matt 5:18), but the impact of those statements is still disputed. So instead, I’ll remind you that Jesus and Paul assume the ongoing validity of the case laws, when they quote them to support their teaching or choices. We tend to skip over the fact, but Jesus affirms—in two Gospels—the death penalty for those who “revile father or mother” (Ex 21:17, Matt 15:4, Mark 7:10). And Paul quotes the case law from Ex 22:28 as normative Christian behavior in Acts 23:5. (Though I think he’s being cheeky and not a little mocking, showing he knows the law better than the high priest who ordered him to be struck. How could Paul not know which member of the council was the high priest?)

3. The case laws apply the Ten Commandments.

As you read the case laws, don’t get lost in their seemingly random nature, as though the case laws are time-bound, culture-bound, generational minutiae. Yes, they apply the principles of God’s moral will to certain people at a certain time in a certain cultural context. All the details will not be the same for all people everywhere. But don’t disregard them on that account. Instead, figure out which of the Ten Commandments is being applied, and figure out how it is being applied. This will give you wisdom to learn how to apply them in our context. For example, without the case laws, how would you know what counts as murder (manslaughter, etc.), and what doesn’t (just warfare, civil sentence, etc.)? How would you know what to do with an apprehended thief? What does it really mean to take God’s name in vain?

4. The case laws are particular applications, not universal principles.

This follows from point #3. Since the case laws are applications of universal principles, they are not themselves universal principles. This means they may have limited application in their canonized form. God has since revealed more about himself, so we may apply the principles of sabbath or tithing or restitution a little differently. But we should still learn from the case laws what it looks like to apply the Ten Commandments at all. Armed with such a template, and with the Spirit of God illuminating the rest of the word of God, we can figure out how to apply those commandments to our situation.

5. The case laws reveal God’s character.

All Scripture is God-breathed and useful for teaching, reproof, correction, and training in righteousness (2 Tim 3:16). God’s word will carry out his purpose of creating worshipers (Is 55:10-12). We know God, in all his glory, through the things he has revealed (Ps 19:1-14). We miss part of what God wants us to know about himself if we skip the case laws or disregard them. In studying them, we’ll behold God’s great mercy and justice in action. Believe it or not, I’ve heard stories of people from non-Western cultures coming to faith in Christ by reading the case laws, as they had never seen such mercy and justice working in perfect harmony except through the cross.

6. The case laws reveal Jesus.

All the Law and the Prophets are about Jesus (Luke 24:27). When considering double restitution of what was stolen, we’re amazed at Jesus who gave everything for those who stole from him. When contemplating the freeing of slaves in their 7th year, we’re humbled by Jesus, who took on the form of a bondservant to become a priest forever. When we’re told not to exact interest from the disadvantaged, we can’t help but see Jesus, who became poor so we, through his poverty, could become rich. When we read about the Feasts of Unleavened Bread, Harvest, and Ingathering, we’re reminded that in Jesus we have a continual feast.

But we’ll either miss these things, or not understand how marvelous they truly are, if we don’t take the time to study the case laws.

Click here to see what I’m doing with this sample Bible study and why I’m doing it.

When Being “Christ-Centered” Goes Too Far

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Writing for Logos Bible software, Mark Ward summarizes an article from a recent theological journal, explaining the unhelpful extreme side of “Christ-centeredness.”

I think the swing [away from Christ-less moralizing] has done great good: American Christianity has indeed suffered under man-centered readings of the Bible which offer all law and no gospel, all duty and no delight, all rules and no relationship. And yet the ease with which I just tossed off those three slogans points to the pendulum problem: any time a movement reaches the slogan-generating stage, people will go trampling over necessary nuances to grab their party’s banners and wave them at their enemies. Pretty soon the pendulum picks up so much speed that it whooshes way past plumb.

Ward then summarizes a theological journal article which analyzes Psalm 15 and shows us how to read it in its original context. There ought to be a category in our thinking for “meaningful if imperfect obedience,” as we see on the part of Noah, Simeon, and others. Being Christ-centered does not mean we speak only of our sins and failures.

Check it out!