Bible Basics

Foundational Scriptures:

"Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." (II Timothy 2:15) (KJ)

"Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth." (NASV)

5 Things about Scriptures

  1. Writers of the scriptures are Jewish.
  2. History of the scriptures are Jewish.
  3. Culture of the scriptures are Jewish.
  4. Customs of the scriptures are Jewish.
  5. Yeshua was an observant Jew.

5 Ways the Scriptures are misused:

  1. When you are ignorant about what it says on a given subject.
  2. When you take a verse out of context.
  3. When you read into a passage and have it say what it does not say.
  4. When you give undue emphasis to less important things.
  5. When you use it to try to get G-d to do what you want, rather than what G-d wants done.

8 Common Errors of Misinterpreting:

  1. Allegorizing – This method is characterized by the search for a deeper meaning in the literal statements of a text that is not apparent in the test itself. The method often indicates more of the thought patterns of the interpreter than that of the original author.
  2. Context Removal – Removing from the Context and Ignoring the full Historical and Literary contents.
  3. Selectivity – Picking and choosing specific words and phrases to concentrate on, ignoring the others and the overall passage,
  4. False Combination – Combines elements from here and there in a passage and makes a point out of their connections, even when the elements themselves are not directly connected in the passage itself.
  5. Redefinition – redefining a verse or paragraph to mean something else than the original meaning.
  6. Extracanonical Authority – An external source [Doctrines or Book] that claims to reveal spiritual truths not otherwise knowable, which claim to unlock the mysteries of the Bible. Cults usually operate in the basis of extracanonical authority.
  7. Moralizing – The assumption the Principles for Living can be derived from all passages. It ignores the fact that the narratives were written to show the progress of God's History of Redemption, not to illustrate principles.
  8. Personalizing – Reading Scriptures in a way that supposes that any or all parts apply to you or your group in a way that they do not apply to anyone else. For that area of life, we must go elsewhere in scripture to the various places where personal ethics are actually thought categorically and explicitly.

Historical/Cultural Route:

  • Author
    • Culture Filter
      • Message
        • Culture Filter & Time
          • Modern Reader

Origen's Interpretation Problem

The Message of the Bible in its different Parts

  1. Revelation [The Material].
  2. Inspiration [The Source of the Material].
  3. Illumination of the Material.
  4. Inerrancy of the Material.
  5. Infallibility of the Material.
  6. Authority of the Material.

7 Levels of Certain Prophecy

  1. The Messiah's Humanity [Genesis 3:15].
  2. The Messiah's Jewishness [Genesis 12:1-3; 28:10-15].
  3. The Messiah's Tribe [Genesis 49:10].
  4. The Messiah's Family [II Samuel 7:16; Jeremiah 23:5-6].
  5. The Messiah's Birthplace [Micah 5:2].
  6. The Messiah's Life, Reception, and Death [Isaiah 53:13; Chapter 53].
  7. The Time of the Messiah's Appearing [Daniel 9:24-26].

"He says, 'it is too small a thing that you should be My Servant to raise up the tribes of Judah and to restore the preserved ones of Israel, I will make you a light of the Nations so that My salvation may reach to the end of the earth" [Isaiah 49:6].

Sin Offering = Atonement for a Manby the means of a Sacrifice.

Pesach [Passover] = Atonement of a Family by means of a Sacrifice.

Yom Kippur = Atonement of a Nationby means of a Sacrifice.

The Messiah = Atonement of ALL by means of a Sacrifice.

Definitions:

Doctrine:

A Teaching that affects your core belief system, sets your convictions, and changes/guides the way you live your life.

Context:

The analyzing of a text in part or whole within historical, cultural, geographical, ecclesiastical [Last Time Events], ideological, and literary structures, This is also called "Textual Meaning."

5 Functions of the Bible

What Bible should you used? To answer this question, another question must be answered.

The question you must ask is "What is your purpose / function?" Why?

There are basically five types of Bibles. You CANNOT use one bible and expect it to fulfill the purpose / function of another.

The five types are:

Word for Word [literal, complete equivalent]:

This type attempts to translate by keeping as close as possible to the exact words and phrasing in the original language, yet still making sense in the translated language. A literal translation will keep the historical portion intact at all points.

  • King James Bible [KJ]
  • New King James [NKJ]
  • New American Standard Bible [NASB]
  • New Revised Standard Version [NRSV]
  • Revised Standard Version [RSV]

Thought for Thought [Dynamic Equivalent]:

This type attempts to translate words, idioms, and grammatical constructions of the original language into equivalents in the translated language. This type of translation keeps the historical distance on all historical and MOST factual matters, but "UPDATES" matters of language, grammar, and style [This should NOT be used to determine the meanings of Words].

  • NIV
  • Today's English Version [TEV]
  • Contemporary English Version [CEV]
  • New Living Translation [NLT]
  • Good News Bible [GNB]
  • Jerusalem Bible [JB]
  • New English Bible [NEB]

Paraphrase – Free:

This type attempts to translate the ideas from one language to another with less concern about using the exact words of the original. This translation tries to eliminate as much of the historical distance as possible.

  • The Living Bible [LB]
  • The Message
  • Phillips Bible

Theologically biased:

This type is designed to "Line Up" with the teaching of a particular group or belief.

  • Jehovah Witness's New World Translation
  • Sacred Name Bibles
    • The Book of Yahweh
    • Sacred Scriptures
    • Holy Name Bible
    • Restoration of the Original Sacred Name Bible
    • Exegeses Ready Research Bible
  • The Amplified Bible [AMP]

Culturally biased:

This type is designed to "Line Up" with a particular Race / culture.

  • Complete Jewish Bible [CJB]
  • The Spanish Bible
  • The African-American Bible

"You cannot use one Bible to fulfill the function of another"

By knowing the functions of the Bibles, it helps settle some disputes between people who study scripture.

Exegesis:

The process of examining a text to determine what its first readers would have understood it to mean.

Interpretation:

The task of explaining / drawing out the implications of that understanding for the hearers or readers.

Hermeneutics:

The combining of Exegesis and Interpretation with the supposed author's meaning and background. This consists of three parts: Author-centered, Text-centered, and Reader-centered.