Biblical Hermeneutics

How does Historical, Cultural, and Contextual analysis differ from the history of interpretation? We must ask what did the text mean when it was written before we ask what it means today. There are two horizons to the text- when the text was written and today. The preacher and teacher of God's word must take seriously both horizons. We don't just learn about the culture but we must learn about the context of the biblical passage. There are a variety of different contexts - immediate context, medium context, entire book, entire New Testament, and the entire Bible. Contextual analysis is very important. Learn the six steps to contextual analysis. It is important to find principles to identify misinterpretations of biblical texts.

How do we engage in theological analysis? Some hold to a complete break between the Old and New Testaments. Examine the difference between Complete Continuity and Complete Discontinuity. Scripture is best understood in a series of Covenants God makes with men. The Church in the New Testament is equal to the true Israel in the Old Testament. How does the passage fit into the whole of God's revelation? How does the passage fit into the total pattern of God's revelation as it has been revealed at any time? Your theological position will affect your reading of Scripture.

How do we interpret special literary forms? It is important to understand the genre of the text. In the parable we look for the main characters and the points that are being made. If there are two main characters, then there should be two main points. Never forget to look back and understand the cultural context. We can't understand how the parable applies to us today without first understanding its context. Consider that parables are truth told slant. Consider what about the story made the people want to kill Jesus to find out what the parable means.

The genre of apocalyptic literature does not exist in our culture. How would a first century Jew have understood Jesus' apocalyptic language? When looking at prophecy, we need to look at the two authors of Scripture. We need to look at the person writing the text and the Holy Spirit. What did the person and the Holy Spirit mean? Typology is found in places in Scripture where people's lives point forward to Christ. For example, Joseph is a type of Christ.

Applying the text is moving the text from the 1st horizon or time in which it was written to the 2nd horizon or today. A number of question come up when apply the text. Which of the commands of Scripture are normative and which are cultural? Learn to answer the questions, "What?", "So what?", and "Now what?" when considering a text of Scripture to better understand and interpret the Word of God.

What is hermeneutics and why do we need it? Learn how to understand what the biblical text says, how it applies to us and what it calls us to do.

The lack of good hermeneutics has caused the critical aspect of absence of meaning and the moral aspect of lack of conviction in our society. The societal aspect is radical pluralism while the religious aspect is radical universalism and secularism. The secular aspect is pragmatism. Realize there are different ideas as to what constitutes the biblical hermeneutic process.

Why is it important to do a history of biblical interpretation? Historical framework keeps us from a variety of heresies. Many before us have made a great effort to exegete the Bible carefully. Periods in history include the ancient Jewish exegesis, the New Testament use of the Old Testament, Medieval exegesis, and Reformation exegesis. Realize that Luther's 95 Thesis was a watershed moment in Church history. There is a Post-Reformation period of exegesis and a post-modern hermeneutical theory which says there is no meaning residing in the text itself. Consider then the importance of a proper hermeneutic.

Lexical analysis has to do with words and word studies. Syntactical analysis deals with phrases, sentences, clauses, and paragraphs. Words have a range of meaning. Often we cannot tell what words mean by themselves. We need to see words in phrases, sentences, clauses, and paragraphs.