Interpretation of the Bible

[invisible chzbrgr]

Hello all

I tried to find a thread on this subject but I was a little overwhelmed by the forum; so many posts! A good thing, I suppose.

My concern is proper interpretation of the bible, and how one arrives at it.

I have run into people who claim that the only way to read the bible as it was meant to be read is to put yourself in the shoes, culture, and language of ancient middle eastern people. That is, the more we learn about Jesus' time, or his predecessors, through archaeology or other fields, the closer we come to the real meaning.

This argument holds up when one considers the bible as a purely historical document.

But, it gets a little messy when we consider the bible as a divinely inspired guide to life and love and morality and faith.

It's all very well for us in the 21st century to head to the library, or wiki, or youtube, or fly to Israel on a plane and learn what we can about these people in that time. But does this mean that the thousands and thousands of illiterate folks, today and throughout history, who are/were unable or unwilling, to research for themselves, have been understanding religion in the wrong way, that they never got it right?

Does this not also imply that the book(s) was not divinely inspired, since it is not a universal document, due to the fact that so many people would not have access to the "right" meaning?

Do we trust the clergy of 35,000 different denominations of Abrahamic religions to interpret for their flocks?

If you use the bible as your guide, how do you read it, and how do you use it, and why?

Thanks for reading!

 

[J Bryson]

I read it, but from the historical perspective that you mentioned. Certain aspects seem timeless (or nearly so), others were definitely a product of their place and time. Indeed, the majority seems to be the latter rather than the former.

 

[zenzero]

Friend invisible,

Welcome to RF, once again.

Though look at Jesus as an elder brother and am not a Christian but still as an outsider would respond to it by stating that the hidden meaning of the stories have not been interpreted in depth, so far to my understanding.
e.g. Satan to my understanding is only our own MIND which THINKS and brings about DUALITIES. etc.
Best Wishes.
Love & rgds

 

[ukMethodist]

If you use the bible as your guide, how do you read it, and how do you use it, and why?

I just read it?

For me, the basis is the Gospel, not the book, Jesus, not the book of Matthew, etc...

You can become a Christian without the Bible (saying that, I became one through it, hehe)

Anyways, I would keep the basics close, love God & love your neighbour (AS YOURSELF, many forget that, but I digress...

I read it, pray, ask brothers and sisters, and obviously Jesus about that verse or that book (@ the mo, my favourite one is James, by the way

Peace and Love,

ukM

 

[NoahideHiker]

Hello all

I tried to find a thread on this subject but I was a little overwhelmed by the forum; so many posts! A good thing, I suppose.

My concern is proper interpretation of the bible, and how one arrives at it.

I have run into people who claim that the only way to read the bible as it was meant to be read is to put yourself in the shoes, culture, and language of ancient middle eastern people. That is, the more we learn about Jesus' time, or his predecessors, through archaeology or other fields, the closer we come to the real meaning.

This argument holds up when one considers the bible as a purely historical document.

But, it gets a little messy when we consider the bible as a divinely inspired guide to life and love and morality and faith.

It's all very well for us in the 21st century to head to the library, or wiki, or youtube, or fly to Israel on a plane and learn what we can about these people in that time. But does this mean that the thousands and thousands of illiterate folks, today and throughout history, who are/were unable or unwilling, to research for themselves, have been understanding religion in the wrong way, that they never got it right?

Does this not also imply that the book(s) was not divinely inspired, since it is not a universal document, due to the fact that so many people would not have access to the "right" meaning?

Do we trust the clergy of 35,000 different denominations of Abrahamic religions to interpret for their flocks?

If you use the bible as your guide, how do you read it, and how do you use it, and why?

Thanks for reading!

Well this all depends on what religious text you're reading. If you read the Quran be sure to go ask the Muslims what is the best interpretation. If you're going to read the new testament go ask the christians what the best version is. If you're going to read the Tanach then ask the Jews which is most accurate.

 

[Kathryn]

Have you tried just picking it up and reading it in a straightforward manner? If you do this, you will probably find the majority of the bible a pretty easy read. Of course, it helps tremendously to have a decent understanding of the historical context, but that's also pretty easy. If you're really serious about studying the bible, get a good concordance (Greek and Hebrew), a good bible dictionary, and a parallel bible. The concordance will really open up your eyes. Greek and Hebrew have such a different sentence structure from English - when you start looking up key words in a verse or passage, you'll be amazed at the richness of the text.

For instance, once I did a study on slavery in the bible, because so many people throw out the accusation that slavery is supported by the bible. In the New Testament in the King James version, the ONE English word "slave" represents, in different passages, SEVEN different Hebrew words. Each of these Hebrew words has different connotations, ranging from (literally) "beloved house boy" to "slave in the field." Interestingly enough, in the New Testament, the only "slavery" that was supported was obviously "servanthood," which is vastly different from enforced slavery - indentured servanthood was very common in that day.

But I wouldn't have known this if I hadn't done an in-depth word study on the original language. With the right tools, this only took me about an hour, and wasn't difficult.

I also had to keep in mind the era in which the KING JAMES VERSION was written.

This may seem to bring into question the infallibility of the bible. However, this was a very limited scope on a very specific topic. My experience has shown me that probably 90 percent of the bible is easy to grasp and understand. That's pretty good odds, especially for such an ancient text. It's a lot easier read to me than, for example, "The Illiad!"

 

[S-word]

Hello all

I tried to find a thread on this subject but I was a little overwhelmed by the forum; so many posts! A good thing, I suppose.

My concern is proper interpretation of the bible, and how one arrives at it.

I have run into people who claim that the only way to read the bible as it was meant to be read is to put yourself in the shoes, culture, and language of ancient middle eastern people. That is, the more we learn about Jesus' time, or his predecessors, through archaeology or other fields, the closer we come to the real meaning.

This argument holds up when one considers the bible as a purely historical document.

But, it gets a little messy when we consider the bible as a divinely inspired guide to life and love and morality and faith.

It's all very well for us in the 21st century to head to the library, or wiki, or youtube, or fly to Israel on a plane and learn what we can about these people in that time. But does this mean that the thousands and thousands of illiterate folks, today and throughout history, who are/were unable or unwilling, to research for themselves, have been understanding religion in the wrong way, that they never got it right?

Does this not also imply that the book(s) was not divinely inspired, since it is not a universal document, due to the fact that so many people would not have access to the "right" meaning?

Do we trust the clergy of 35,000 different denominations of Abrahamic religions to interpret for their flocks?

If you use the bible as your guide, how do you read it, and how do you use it, and why?

Thanks for reading!

To begin with, it is the spirit of the book which reveals itself, forget about all the rubbish such as virgin birth etc, which was not introduced into the bible untill it was translated into Latin.
Empty yourself completely and go to the word of God as a little child, free of all preconceived ideas of what you will be taught by the spirit who will reveal all things to you as you feed on the entire body of the Lamb of God, rejecting none of it, but eating even those parts such as the head, hoofs, intestines etc, which may seem offensive to you.

Do not be like those who break off from the main body, only those dainty peices that titilate the taste buds of their minds, while rejecting the rest as unpalatable filth.

 

[invisible chzbrgr]

Thanks for all the responses!

J Bryson and ukMethodist, how did you decide which version to choose? Do you read it as literature or as theology, or a combination? If as literature, does that mean that some bits are included for educational or entertainment purposes, and how do you choose which bits those are? Is there not one "right" interpretation?

(NoahideHiker, the original convo I had was with a Christian, but you are absolutely correct, I ought to have properly included the Koran and specified the Old Testament as well!)

I appreciate the comment, Kathryn. I have read parts of the bible, for a literature class years ago (Job, the 4 gospels, and some other parts) and you are right, it was fairly easy to understand the language as it is written on the page.

My concern is that it is very easy for us today in our literate and connected society to get multiple versions and seek out translations on the web. This was not always the case (nor was it the case when I read it for class). How do we view Christians (or others) who read their holy book with no context, only one version, or don't read it at all? I suspect many people who sit in church pews every Sunday do not read the bible in a holistic-type fashion as you do. Are they not getting the whole picture?

If I were a peasant woman living in the middle ages, I certainly would not have had the access I have today. I'd be relying on others to do my interpretation for me.

S-word, what you wrote is in a way what I was getting at. The word of god is supposed to be eternal, and yet everyone reads it differently, or picks and chooses. Do you think by reading it as a child, every person will come to the same knowledge of god? Is that possible, or even the desired outcome?

Thanks again everyone.

 

[NoahideHiker]

Another important thing to look at when reading religious text is what the text means to the overarching message. Does it change it at all? Say, does the the message in the American Standard or New King James really that different than, say, the original King James written in old english? Not really too much. There are some more modern theological concepts, such as the trinity, that do seem to get more emphasis than in the older works but the overall message is the same.

 

[S-word]

Thanks for all the responses!

J Bryson and ukMethodist, how did you decide which version to choose? Do you read it as literature or as theology, or a combination? If as literature, does that mean that some bits are included for educational or entertainment purposes, and how do you choose which bits those are? Is there not one "right" interpretation?

(NoahideHiker, the original convo I had was with a Christian, but you are absolutely correct, I ought to have properly included the Koran and specified the Old Testament as well!)

I appreciate the comment, Kathryn. I have read parts of the bible, for a literature class years ago (Job, the 4 gospels, and some other parts) and you are right, it was fairly easy to understand the language as it is written on the page.

My concern is that it is very easy for us today in our literate and connected society to get multiple versions and seek out translations on the web. This was not always the case (nor was it the case when I read it for class). How do we view Christians (or others) who read their holy book with no context, only one version, or don't read it at all? I suspect many people who sit in church pews every Sunday do not read the bible in a holistic-type fashion as you do. Are they not getting the whole picture?

If I were a peasant woman living in the middle ages, I certainly would not have had the access I have today. I'd be relying on others to do my interpretation for me.

S-word, what you wrote is in a way what I was getting at. The word of god is supposed to be eternal, and yet everyone reads it differently, or picks and chooses. Do you think by reading it as a child, every person will come to the same knowledge of god? Is that possible, or even the desired outcome?

Thanks again everyone.

When one goes to the word of God whether it be from the body of the Jew, the Christian, the Hindu, the Buddhist etc, they must read the books in the light of their own individual life. Don't strive for some great revelation, simply read, and what is needed by that person in their particular level of awareness will be given to them.

Later as their needs become deeper then more will be given. Live life as you are today, don't strive for some future perfection; that will come in time. Until you come to Know who you are, and learn to be obedient to 'Who You Are,' you will not be known. God cannot use those who deem his commands as satanic, here is where the patience of saint comes in, "He who lives by the sword, must die by the Sword." There are those out there who will obey God and destroy the agressors who threaten your life.