C. Interpretation Phases
The Bible is not merely a collection of various literary genres but that it represents God's revelation of Himself (and of His actions in history) to humanity.
1. Biography/History
The primary distinction of the Biblical material is presented in the context of God's activity
throughout history (preceding time, during time and after time) to work out His plan of
salvation for mankind.
There are deeper meanings and greater significance to the Biblical historical narratives than would be given to their modern counterparts.
a. Historical Narratives.
These describe actual historical events from God’s perspective. They tell us what God is like (His character and nature), what God likes/dislikes, how He deals with people who obey and honour Him, and how he deals with those who disobey and hate Him.
1). Narratives give us principles and lessons, not commands, patterns or laws.
2). Historical Narratives are found in Genesis, Exodus, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges,
Ruth, 1-2 Samuel, 1-2 Kings, 1-2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther. In the New
Testament, they can be found in parts of the Gospels, and the book of Acts.
Many have said that the Bible is a historical document and to some extent it is in that it records events and describes individuals in a historical context. In this regard it can be read as history and much useful information can be received.
NOTE: The Bible is more than a mere historical document. Just as we read a newspaper seeking to understand the bias/viewpoint of its contributors, so we should read the historical portions the Bible within the greater context of God's interaction with humanity to afford its redemption.
2. Poetry and Songs
These are expressions of emotion to God. They allow us to express to God our feelings of happiness, joy, trust, hope, security, as well as feelings of discouragement, guilt, suffering, fear, anger, despair and repentance. They also assist us in expressing our love and appreciation for God or our need for forgiveness. Poetry and Songs allow us to relate to God on our own level. They show us how to communicate with God and how to honour and worship Him.
a. Parallelism
In the Old Testament, these writings are found primarily in the Psalms and Song of Songs. The chief characteristic of Hebrew poetry is that it is written not to rhyme as is our western poetry but rather as a progression of thought or ideas. This form of poetry is called parallelism and refers to a style of writing that makes use of couplets, two lines usually but sometimes three or four that vary in their relationship to each other.
This style of poetry is translatable into a form that retains the splendor of the original since it is not a system of rhyme and rhythm so much as a sequence of thought that is being translated.
In western culture we consider poetry (or song) as nothing more than entertainment but poetry is no less important a means of communication than, say, a historical narrative.
Words are used sparingly in poetry and frequently convey ideas larger than they would if used in prose. Each word in a poem is therefore of utmost value and has far greater significance than it would normally have if found in any other form of writing. Poetry is a largely symbolic form of expression; each line of a poem may have greater impact and depth than paragraphs of prose.
Some of the various types of Hebrew poetic parallelism are:
1). Antithetic - each line expresses opposing, or contradictory thoughts.
“The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD: but the prayer of the upright is his delight.” (Prov 15:8)
2). Synonymous - each line expresses a similar thought, the second repeating the first for purposes of emphasis or clarity. The second line thus often sheds additional light on the first.
“Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.” (Psalm 1:5)
3). Climactic – the second line echoes a portion of the first and adds to it.
“My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up.” (Psalm 5:3)
4). Emblematic - one line is literal and the other is figurative or symbolic.
“I am weary with my groaning; All the night make I my bed to swim; I water my couch with my tears.” (Psalm 6:6)
5). Synthetic - the first line is added to by the second which expresses a complimentary thought and often gives the reason for the first.
“Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.” (Psalm 1:1)
3. Prophecy*
Prophecy is God’s message to a particular person, a particular group of people and sometimes to all humanity.
It is not necessarily foretelling the future – the vast majority of prophecy in the Bible speaks of the present. Prophecy is found primarily in the Old Testament, from Isaiah to Malachi.
*Discussed in detail under Literary Formats in Section #5E
4. Legal Writings
These writings indicate God’s high moral standard, His idea of justice, principles of common sense government, principles of common sense health and safety, and His pattern and order for acceptable worship.
These laws are NOT directly applicable to Christians today i.e. they are not meant to be legalistic instructions and commands to Christians. Such legal writings can be found in Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy.
1. Law
a. Basic law - a declaration of principle
b. Case law - illustration of the basic law
c. NT Interpretation of the law
"You shall not steal" (Exodus 20:15) is basic
"Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain" (Deut 25:4) is case law
This principle is applied in 1 Corinthians 9:3-14 and 1 Timothy 5:17-18 to teach that a minister has a right to be paid for their work.
Basic law is a reflection of God's attributes and cannot be abolished. We are to obey the commands of Jesus (1 John 2:3-5; 5:2-3). Case law only reflects how "constitutional law" has been applied. Applications for Old Testament Israel are not necessarily valid today. Ceremonial law was fulfilled in Jesus and no longer binding, yet the principles they taught are still valid.
5. Wisdom/Wise Sayings
These writings indicate God’s view of wisdom as opposed to man’s view of wisdom. They contain wise sayings, and practical advice on how to live life and avoid trouble and hardship. Wisdom literature can be found primarily in Proverbs, Ecclesiastes and Job.
6. Teachings of Jesus
These are direct statements of truth from Jesus concerning the nature and character of God the kingdom of God/Heaven, what God expects of us, principles of righteous living, and the ways in which Jesus fulfils the Old Testament prophecies.
They are not exhaustive ‘DOs and DON’Ts,’ but rather, serve as examples and paradigms (patterns) from which we can derive underlying principles to apply in other situations. These teachings are found in parts of the Gospels i.e. Matthew – John.
7. Letters
These are generally occasional documents i.e. they were written with a clear purpose to a well identified audience. However, some letters (called epistles) were written to a larger people group.
The letter/epistle writer presents arguments to correct, rebuke, defend, instruct, praise and encourage their readers. Letters/epistles form the vast majority of the New Testament from Romans to Jude.
8. Apocalypse.
This includes the book of Revelation, and also large parts of Ezekiel and Daniel.
Revelation is a vision of warning and encouragement to the early church as it was going through immense persecution.
