1. General Principles Relating To A Study Of Hermeneutics:
There are several principles which need to be understood before one begins to study the Bible. They have to do with properly appreciating and receiving what God has to say to us in His divine word. Some are positive, some are negative, but they all play a major role in our understanding of the Scriptures.
Positive
1. Trust and Confidence in Scripture.
It amazes me just how many people I talk to that use the Bible as some part of their system of guidance in life while not really believing in its accuracy. Statements are made that the Bible has been tampered with, it has been mistranslated, some parts are missing, it has contradictions, etc., none of which is really and ultimately true. We will discuss this more in a little while. What is important right now is that we understand that unless we believe that the word is inspired and protected by God and is complete as God would have it presented to us, we will never really rely on it totally for our guidance and we will never really accept the parts of it which go against our own personal wishes. In order to really have an accurate understanding of Scripture, we must believe that it all comes from God and that it is complete (II Tim. 3:16-17).
2. Desire to Know the Truth.
We must have a burning desire to know God’s will, not just a casual curiosity as to what it says. It must be a part of us (Heb. 10:16); Something we are addicted to (I Cor. 16:15); Something we live for (Phil. 1:21). Unless we are totally consumed by God’s word we will never truly understand and accept what it teaches.
Desire is a motivator. The Bereans were motivated with a true desire to know God’s will. This caused them to search the Scriptures daily so that they could know God’s truths and live by them. We must all have such a driving desire if we are to properly understand God’s message for us today.
3. Total Honesty.
How often have people asked me about themselves and insisted on total honesty, only to be offended when they got it. The truth is, most of us hate to be criticized, corrected, or rebuked in any way. But that is what the Bible is all about. It is the book of criticism and one cannot go there successfully unless he can be totally honest with himself (II Tim. 4:1-2).
It is the Bible that teaches us to give up sexual immorality, lying, stealing, and all sorts of things we may not be willing to part with. Unless we can and will be totally honest with ourselves, we will never be able to deal with the contradictions between our lives and the law of Christ. We will, as many have already, seek to use the Scripture to justify our lives rather than mold them. We must learn to be open to whatever change God demands in our lives.
4. Proper Perspectives and Priorities.
Our perspectives, how we perceive the things around us, must be properly grounded in Christ. We look to Him, the author and finisher of our faith (Heb. 12). We look to Him for guidance, support, encouragement, and correction. Unless our life’s perspective is focused on the concept of Christ first, we will never really make the diligent effort to understand His teachings necessary to please Him. Christ and His will must be our top priority in all that we do in life.
There is a popular statement in religious circles today which says, “What would Jesus do” and it is symbolized by jewelry, T-shirts, stickers, etc., to remind us that we must act as Christ would have us to act in all matters. While the concept is totally accurate, tragically it appears far more often in the form of jewelry than in the form of a contrite heart. If we are to have a proper appreciation for the word of God, we must always keep Christ and His will as our top priority.
5. Proper Choice of Translations.
No matter how committed we are to the truth, if we have an improper or faulty or corrupted book to study from, we will never find the truth. Time and space do not allow for a manuscript study in this volume. That will have to be pursued by the student at another time. But let me just state here a couple of things concerning translations. The King James Version of the Bible is still the most accurate on the market. I base this conclusion of the fact it is taken from the best manuscripts and that whenever I research an issue in the original languages, it seems to almost always be true to the original texts. I am not suggesting that it is a perfect translation, it does have its problems (as do all translations). But overall it is the best thing we have available to us today.
On the other hand, there are many translations which are based on faulty manuscripts and have in them hidden agendas which corrupt the teachings of God. One of the most popular and perverted of the available translations on the market today is the New International Version (NIV). In spite of this, many Christians insist on using it to study from because it is “easy to understand”. Believe me, there is no value in studying something which is easy to understand if it is wrong!
6. Common Sense.
A good dose of common sense would help in the understanding of the Scriptures. Whenever one approaches a study of the Revelation, for example, common sense would tell us that every statement in that book is not to be taken literally. Just a little reflection on an issue can quite often remove the difficulties we sometimes think exist in a particular passage. God has always challenged us to use our intellect to reason out right from wrong (think – Phil. 4:8, prove – I Thess. 5:21, try – Lam. 3:40).
7. Let the Bible interpret the Bible.
It is amazing sometimes the method people use to try and understand the Bible. Usually study consists of going to the Scriptures to justify what we have already decided is the truth. Often this means we must set aside the more clear and simple teachings so that our “eisegesis” of some doctrine found in some obscure passage can be promoted as God’s divine plan or will for us to follow.
Some very simple rules to follow in this area are (1) let the simple explain the complex, (2) let the literal explain the figurative, and (3) never set one passage against another but rather use the philosophy of charitable interpretation to find out how they might be harmonized with each other.
Negative
1. Doctrinal Preconceptions and Prejudices.
It is very difficult to change one’s thinking once it is accepted as truth. One has to first admit that he made a mistake in judgment or reasoning and that he is in need of change. Then he must actually change which can often effect his life drastically, depending on how great the error in judgment was and how far reaching the consequences are. The changing of a doctrinal position might demand the admission that someone we love or respect is not in an acceptable relationship with God.
It is also a fact that when we study, even with an open mind, our previous beliefs and experiences tend to exert themselves and unconsciously our understanding can be altered so that our conception of what the word says and the reality of what the word says are not the same. Read the sentence in the following triangle.
If you read it as “A walk in the quiet woods” then you need to read it again because you misread it. If you again read it as “A walk in the quiet woods” you again misread it. Read it once more, slowly and carefully. If you read “A walk in the the quiet woods” then you read it correctly. You see, your mind is trained to believe that second ‘the’ does not belong and usually it will simply eliminate it without your even being aware that such has happened. One must overcome preconceptions and prejudices to get at the meaning of the word of God.
2. Belief That Scripture is not For Common Man.
Many in the world today believe that they need someone to translate or explain God’s message to them because they have been taught that the clergy are the only ones meant to truly understand the Scripture and that their job it to explain it to the common man. This philosophy is utter hog wash. It is absolutely false! In fact, in Scripture there is no line of demarcation between ‘clergy’ and ‘laity’. We are all on equal footing before God.
This being true, and understanding that the Scripture was given by God as our guide, we must understand that it is understandable and profitable to the guidance of our lives.
3. Desire To Fit In.
We all want to be liked and appreciated. I would love it if every time I went somewhere everyone there was glad to see me. I would love to be met with warm greetings, hugs, and kisses. But I learned a long time ago that if you are going to stand for and defend the truth, your supply of enemies will never run low while your supply of friends surely will. You see, people basically do not love or appreciate the truth and they certainly do not like being corrected when they are in the wrong. Having a desire to fit in can interfere with one’s understanding of the Scriptures. Compromise can arise so that one can stay popular. Popular preachers stay, accurate ones usually go. Unless you can control the desire to be popular, that desire will interfere with your rightly dividing the word of truth.
4. Putting Other Things on Level With Bible.
The Bible is God’s authoritative book for all of mankind. There is nothing on its level. Philosophy is not on its level. Man’s reasoning is not on its level. Science (falsely so called) is not on its level. Man’s will is not on its level. Psychology is not on its level. Nothing is on its level. Therefore, nothing should be so elevated in our minds that it achieves the level of the Bible. Any time something disagrees with the Bible, the something is wrong. If I consider the Bible as just one of many sources available for my guidance, I will never learn to appreciate it for what it is or what it can give to me and my life. There is no man, philosophy, concept, science, or fact of any kind which can compare to the wisdom, truth, and validity of the Bible. It is truly the book of books.
5. Searching to Justify Rather Than Learn.
It is very difficult to search the Scriptures without trying to hold to what we already believe. It is not wrong to go to the Bible to defend what we believe. We should do this. But we must be ready to change our beliefs if in that study we find out that the Bible does not support the belief we are trying to defend. We must always be willing to learn from the Scriptures and be willing to change to mold ourselves to their pattern of direction. If we study only to justify ourselves and not educate ourselves, then our study will be in vain.
6. Desire For Preeminence.
There will always be those who desire preeminence. Diotrephes is a good example in III John where he wanted authority even over the apostle John. Anyone with this desire to be on top is sure to make some very bad conclusions when it comes to the word of God. We must stay humble and contrite in order to understand and prosper from God’s divine word.
7. Doubting the Accuracy of the Bible.
One will never come to a proper understanding or appreciation of God’s word if he doubts its accuracy or authenticity. Whenever one concedes to the false premise that the Bible is fallible, he can then decide which parts are legitimate and which ones are not. When this happens, one need not have a Bible because in reality he actually doesn’t.
I want to take only a moment to deal with so-called contradictions. Let us look at two very similar passages of Scripture and draw some conclusions. They are Prov. 26:4-5 and read,
“Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest thou also be like unto him.”
“Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own conceit.”
These passages being located beside each other show that the writer did not contradict himself. We can easily see that he is saying sometimes you answer a fool, sometimes you do not, according to the situation. But, your know what, if these Scriptures had been chapters apart someone would have used them to show how the Bible is full of contradictions. I have never personally seen a contradiction which could stand the test of scrutiny. The Bible simply is not the storehouse of error some would like to suggest that it is.
Finally, an observation about the Scriptures. The Bible was written over a period of about 1500 years, on three continents, in three languages, by kings and shepherds, doctors and fishermen, bond men and free. It is a book that deals with controversial issues through its pages and yet there is no disagreement, no contradiction, no compromise on any issue. The Bible is truly a marvelous book and must be received as such if we ever hope to draw from it the divine will of God.