Insights for Interpreting NT Parables

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I. Review: Some Guidelines Already Mentioned:

1. A passage which directly addresses an issue takes precedence over one which does not.

   Therefore, it is vital to determine, “What is the topic of this passage?”

   Why Paul is not visiting them

2. A passage which is clear on a subject takes precedence over one which is unclear.

3. A more specific statement takes precedence over, or else qualifies, a general statement.

   Example: Mutual Christian submission, vs. parent ↔ child.

4. Recognize the normal limited use of language.

   In the normal use of language, we do not say everything with precision, or a normal conversation would sound like a legal contract. Things we say or that we write are often summary in nature, and do not spell out every detail.

   Scripture often uses language in that way. To get a complete or more balanced picture, we need to read a lot of Scripture.

II. Guidelines of Particular Value for Interpreting Epistles:

A. The Questions to Ask / the Issues to Identify:

1. The Two Basic Questions We Ask Are:

   1. What is… topic / context
   2. What is… saying?

2. Other Items It Is Helpful to Identify / to Determine:

   1. What are the main topics addressed by this epistle? = Why was it written?

      Some of the epistles are fairly general in nature, that is…

      But most of the epistles were written… answer specific question

   2. We know the general cultural & historical setting into which the NT epistles were written: The Roman empire, the Greco-Roman culture, and Judaism, around 50-70 AD.

      But sometimes, it is helpful to know something about the specific cultural or religious or philosophical background which an epistle is addressing. This is especially true for two letters: Colossians & 1 John

      Q: What did you learn about Gnosticism when you looked it up?

   3. How does the paragraph I am reading relate to the paragraphs next to it?

      Is there a train of thought that connects them? Two examples of sections that hang together:

      • 1 Cor 8-10 Meat offered to idols, Paul gives up his rights for the gospel

      • 1 Cor 12-14

   4. What is the overall structure of the epistle?

      What are its main sections? What are the topics of those sections?

      Is there one extended train of thought through the epistle, or, is it divided into main sections that are largely independent?

      • Three epistles have a connected train of thought that runs most of the way through them:

        Romans, Galatians, Hebrews

      • There is one large epistle that naturally divides into five or six main sections:

        1 Corinthians

B. As We Read an Epistle, What Do We Actually Do? What is the Process?

In practice, the process of reading and studying an epistle has six natural stages:

1. Read it through over time more than once, to become familiar with it.

2. Start to identify what seem to be its natural sections and paragraphs.

   We do this mainly by identifying the topic of each section / each paragraph

   The standard chapter divisions are usually very useful.

3. The see what each paragraph, each section, says about the topic you identified. That is, what is the content of the paragraph / section?

4. Then try to determine how the paragraphs relate to each other.

5. From there, we try to identify the larger sections of the letter, and then the overall flow, or overall structure, of the letter.

6. Finally, we seek to understand the overall message of the letter, and the message of each section / paragraph, in light of each other.

There is something of a back-and-forth process: Our improved understanding of each paragraph improves our understanding of the letter, or at least of each of its main sections. But then our improved understanding of the overall letter will help us to fine-tune our understanding of each section / paragraph within it.

We will be finished when… we get to heaven