Joe Carter | Knowable Word

God’s Word Fulfilled in the Book of Kings

April 15, 2022 By Peter Krol

Once I complete my New Year’s speed read of the entire Bible each year, I have made a practice of pursuing Joe Carter’s brilliant Bible reading plan: Choose a book of the Bible, read it 20 times in a row, choose another book of the Bible, read it 20 times in a row, repeat. For the last few months, I’ve been simmering in the book of Kings (treating 1 Kings and 2 Kings as a single book).

On my first few trips through the book, I began to notice that the fulfillment of God’s words appeared to be an important theme. So during my 7th time through it, I created a list of every time the text draws attention to God’s words coming to fulfillment. I included a few other counter-cases (such as counterfeit prophecies that are not fulfilled, and conditional promises of God that go unfulfilled when the conditions are not met), but mostly stuck to tracking verse references for the prediction and for the prediction’s occurrence.

Here is what I found:

83 specific examples of God’s words being fulfilled. (This averages to nearly 1.8 fulfillments per chapter!)
11 of those examples are fulfilling words spoken earlier in history, recorded in other books of the Bible.
72 of those examples have both the prediction and the fulfillment narrated with the book of Kings.
8 counterfeit examples, where someone makes a prediction, in the name of either themself or Yahweh, that does not come to pass.
2 examples of Yahweh’s predictive word being recorded, but the fulfillment itself is not narrated.

When I read a book of the Bible 20 times, my end goal is to draft a concise statement of what I perceive to be the book’s main point. I am not yet ready to do that for the book of Kings, but I imagine this overwhelming theme of God’s word being fulfilled will play a major role. Since the first few and last few examples have to do with God’s promise to be with the king and people if they walk faithfully with him, the thrust of the book does appear to be an explanation of how the exile should not have been a surprise to anyone. The ejection of the kingdom from the land could have been prevented and was in full accord with the word of God to his people over centuries.

If you are interested, you can find my complete list in this document.

5 Conduits for Bible Application

February 2, 2022 By Peter Krol

Joe Carter highlights “5 Ways to Read the Bible for Personal Application.” He explores the idea that the Bible wasn’t written to us but for us. So it ought to shape our lives, but not always by means of direct commands. Those 5 ways are:

Direct commands
General truth
Direct analogy
Indirect analogy
Indirect extension

These are helpful categories for us to consider the manifold means by which we may connect the truth of the Bible to our lives today. The main caveat I would want to add is that, before we attempt to apply a Bible passage, we should first grasp the author’s main point for his audience. Many of the errors Carter enumerates would be solved if we were to apply the authors’ main points instead of isolated sentences that simply strike our fancy.

Check it out!

Basic Observation Skills for Children

July 31, 2019 By Peter Krol

I commend Joe Carter for taking up the topic of OIA Bible study in his call to Christian parents to teach their children not only to read but to study the Bible.

Two key differences between reading and study are pacing and focus. When we read the Bible, we generally do so at the quickest pace our comprehension will allow. We may consume large chunks at one time, such as reading an entire book. We also look for the broad outlines of the text to know what it’s about or to determine how it fits into the larger scope of God’s Word. Bible reading precedes Bible study because it provides the broad perspective we need before we narrow in on specific passages.

He then goes to explain the basic of observation, offering a few tools:

Ask basic questions
Words, phrases, and relationships between propositions
Make lists
Contrasts and comparisons
Metaphors
Expressions of time and terms of conclusion
Connection to other parts of the Bible
Teach them to improve

This is an outstanding toolbox to draw on. My only beef would be that “connections to other parts of the Bible” almost always should wait until much later in the process. Get the main point of the passage at hand before flipping around to check out cross-references.

But that is an extremely minor variation in practice. Carter’s summary of the process is well done, motivating, and helpful for parents to take to their children.

Check it out!

Preparing Children to Read the Bible

February 20, 2019 By Peter Krol

Though I haven’t yet read Joe Carter’s new book, The Life and Faith Field Guide for Parents, I’m intrigued by this excerpt published at the Gospel Coalition. Here is a taste:

Some missionaries spend years or even decades learning how to teach literacy to unreached people. Why? Primarily, to give those people the tools they need to read the Word of God for themselves. As Christian parents—missionaries to our own children—we want our kids to know how to read so they too can one day read the Bible for themselves. This mindset about teaching can lead to long-lasting benefits for your children. Instead of viewing the literacy process as the means to reach the goal of reading, think of it instead as the means by which your child reaches the goal of reading the Bible.
This may appear to be a trivial distinction. After all, children who learn to read will likely be able to read the Bible. While that is true, a profound shift occurs when we teach reading for the primary goal of reading Scripture. Whatever stage your child is at in literacy education—whether they’re an infant learning words for the first time or a high-school student learning vocabulary terms for the SAT—consider this to be your objective: to shape their reading so they can better read the [Bible].

Check it out!

Disclaimer: The Amazon link above is an affiliate link. If you click it and buy stuff, we’ll receive a small commission. Thank you for helping us better prepare our children to read the Bible.

A Simple 3-Step Bible Reading Plan for Children

January 30, 2019 By Peter Krol

My children have really enjoyed making use of audio Bibles to develop a habit of daily Bible reading—even long past their preschool years. A few of them enjoy writing down some reflections, but most prefer to simply draw while listening. We have found that their listening comprehension is excellent.

But since every child and family is different, I believe there are many options for teaching children to love God through his word. Joe Carter has another idea that may work better for you or your kids. He proposes 3 simple steps:

Make a chart listing every chapter of the Bible.
Assign them to read a chapter each day, with each day of the week focusing on a different part of the Bible.
Have them cross off the chapter they read that day to see their progress.

Perhaps this could work for your family. Carter helpfully reminds us that flexibility is the most important principle: It’s okay if they miss a day. The most important thing is that we foster an environment where Bible reading is a habitual part of everyday life.

To develop a biblical worldview, we need to saturate our minds in Scripture. This requires repeatedly reading and engaging with the Bible throughout our lifetime. The earlier we begin reading the Bible the more time we have for God’s Word to seep into the marrow of our souls. That’s why helping a child to develop the habit of Bible reading is one of the greatest gifts we can give them.

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Basic Facts About the Bible

December 2, 2015 By Peter Krol

At the Gospel Coalition, Joe Carter writes of some basic Bible facts we all should know. This background information helps us to understand better as we read and study. Carter briefly covers issues such as:

it’s a library of books
the Bible is self-referencing
why it’s called a “Bible”
the meaning of Testament
where chapters and verses came from
how we discovered the canon

Check it out!

The Best Way to Develop Biblical Thinking

January 22, 2014 By Peter Krol

For a few weeks, I’ve linked to articles that seek to persuade you to read the Bible voluminously, like you would read a book. This week I offer more of the same.

Joe Carter writes this brilliant article proposing voluminous and repetitive reading as not only a great idea but the best way to change your thinking and develop a biblical worldview. I find it funny that we’d think there could be any other way.

How many times do we claim to be “biblical” and yet read the Bible more like a collection of inspiring sound bytes than a great work of literature? So we read a few verses and go happily on our way. Carter:

I want to recommend a simple four step process that could transform your life by, quite literally, changing your mind.

After reading the entire post the vast majority of readers will snicker at such a hyperbolic claim and never implement the method I outline. A smaller number will consider the advice intriguing, my assertion only a slight exaggeration, but will also never implement the method. A tiny minority, however, will recognize the genius behind the process and apply it to their own life. This group will later say that my claim was an understatement.

This post is written for those people.

Mr. Carter’s claim is an understatement. Following his process will change far more than your mind.

What’s the process? Choose a book of the Bible and read it 20 times. Move on to another book and repeat. Continue until you’ve read the entire Bible in this way.

Years ago, I took a seminary class where the professor required us to read 1 John five times in a week. He expected us to read in five sittings, one complete read in each siting.

At first I found the assignment onerous. I had read 1 John before, and I knew all the important stuff about confession, love, and not sinning. I wasn’t sure what I’d accomplish by such repetitive reading.

But I’ve always been a good Pharisee (I love rules), so I completed the assignment. The second read-through was the hardest one, as I feared boredom. The third read energized me with a few insights I had never considered before. The fourth read got me really excited, and the fifth read began to alter my thinking about faith and assurance.

The discussion of 1 John in the next class was some of the best I’ve seen. Now, in most Bible studies I lead, I give a similar assignment. Unless we’re studying a long book, I ask people to read the whole thing five times before the first meeting.

There is no better way to understand a book of the Bible.

I have never met someone who tried it and wasn’t convinced. I’ve met plenty who thought it was a dumb idea and refused to try it. What do you think?

Check it out!

HT: Ryan