An Overview of How We Interpret the Bible

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This handout summarizes the things we look for when we read the Bible

I. Do I get a new “meaning” every time I read a passage in the Bible?

This deals with the questions:

“What does it mean?” ← versus → “What does it means to me?”

When we re-read a passage in the Bible…

• We might observe some details…
• We might perceive…
• We might realize…
• But the basic sense of the text…

II. What is the Role of the Holy Spirit as Regards Interpretation?

• The Holy Spirit opens our eyes
• It opens our hearts
• But the Holy Spirit does not…
• The words mean what they mean, or else we have nothing.
• We cannot say, “This is what the Scriptures teach…”, if someone can answer, “Oh, but that’s not what it means to me.”
• The Holy Spirit does not magically interpret the text for us. We need to read it, to think about it, even to study it, in its context.

III. Where Our Interpretive Method Gets Its Name:

The label, “historical-grammatical method,” gets its name from the fact that it means that, when we read the Bible, we pay attention to three main categories of features / information:

• The “history” = and,
• The “grammar” =

These are the two categories from which our method gets its name. The third major category of information we pay attention to is:

• The “context” =

Because we pay attention to these three main categories of information, some people have suggested that we call our interpretive method the “historical—grammatical—contextual” method.

This would be accurate, but it becomes a very long title. So that’s why our interpretive method it is usually simply called, “the historical-grammatical method” = HGM. It is not a “magic method” for interpreting the Bible; it is based on the way language works.

IV. The Six Basic Categories of Things We Pay Attention To:

When we the identify the specific features and details we are looking for within these three main categories, they break down into six basic categories, which come in three natural pairs of two:

Of these six basic categories, the first three (semantics, grammar, and genre) fall under the general label “grammatical” in the name “historical-grammatical method.”

The fourth and fifth (context, and the rest of the Bible), fall under the general category of “context.”

The sixth one (the historical & cultural setting), obviously falls under the general category of “historical.”

V. A Brief Description of these Six Basic Categories = Six Basic Features that We Look for When Reading & Interpreting the Bible

We will have handouts which elaborate on these six factors; here we are listing them briefly.

A. The Normal Function of Grammar & Language (“grammatical”)

1. Semantics = the meanings of the words.

   This is often self-evident (“donkey” means “donkey,” “tree” means “tree”). But when the NT uses a term such as sanctify, what does it mean? When the OT says that God will sometimes come against people for evil, and not for good (Amos 9:4), precisely what does that word “evil” mean?

2. The Grammar.

3. The Genre = the type of literature = type of writing style of the biblical passage.

   Recognizing the type of writing style of a Bible passage is vital to interpreting it correctly .

   In the Bible, there are main three types of literature, three main genre:

   1. Narrative & Prose

   2. Hebrew Poetry (Psalms, Proverbs, Job, & many/much of the prophets)

      Hebrew poetry communicates truth just as well as does narrative or epistle, but does it in a different style, in a different way. It is much more figurative and more emotive.

   3. Apocalyptic Prophecy. These are prophetic passages which contain striking visual images which are not merely figures of speech. Found mainly in Ezekiel, Daniel & Zechariah, & Revelation.

• Question: Do Christians interpret all of the Bible “literally” = “flatly literally”?
• Answer: No.

Rather, this is a better approach:

We interpret the Scriptures according to the normal use of language.

B. The Context

(from the local context to the larger biblical context)

1. The Local Context The immediate context of the passage (i.e., the paragraph and/or chapter it falls into)

   The overall structure of the book, especially, where the passage falls into that structure.

   This is very important in NT letters.

2. Information from the Rest of the Bible:

   From other related passages —

   • Passages which came earlier…
   • Or, other passages which add to or fill out the thought of text at hand.

   From paying attention to: where are we in the overall flow of the Bible.

C. Historical & Cultural Setting of a Book (“historical”)

1. The general historical & cultural setting of the book:

   1. The general historical setting: where are we in the larger flow of world history?

   2. What is the cultural setting? (Ancient near-east, paganism, Greco-Roman, etc.).

   3. The specific situation & occasion into which a book was written (esp.: OT Minor Prophets, and NT epistles).