Getting the Most Out of Bible Study – Part 1
I have not had the opportunity to attend Bible college. How can I study the Bible to get as much as possible without special training?
Mark
Mark
Dear Mark,
There are four basic things that every English speaker can do that will take them a long way down the path of Bible study without knowing the original languages or having formal training in hermeneutics: study context, compare translations, check commentaries, and regularly read all the Bible.
First, study context. Every word has the following biblical contexts: word → sentence → paragraph → section → book → author’s other works → other books of the same genre → OT/NT. If you are working in the NT, the OT forms the largest context. If you are working in the OT, then you must also consider how the NT interprets your passage. Cross references are your friend for identifying OT backgrounds to NT texts or NT uses of OT texts. It is a lot of work to study things in context, but there is no substitute for it.
For example, 1 Corinthians 15:31 says, “I die every day.” To find out what Paul means by this sentence, I check the immediate context before and after this verse. In 1 Corinthians 15:30, Paul says he is “in danger every hour.” In v.32 he talks about fighting with beasts at Ephesus. Checking the paragraph in which this verse occurs (1 Cor 15:28–32), I notice that Paul is arguing that suffering for the gospel is pointless if there is no resurrection. So, both the immediate and sectional contexts clarify that Paul is talking about being in danger of dying physically. He is not talking about some kind of spiritual death to self.
Second, compare translations. While you study the context of your passage, you should check your version for footnotes that offer alternate translations and compare your version with other English translations of the Bible. There are three basic types of translations available in English: word-for-word (KJV, NASB, ESV, LEB), thought-for-thought (HCSB, NIV, TNIV, CEB), and paraphrases (NLT, CEV, LB, TM). Regardless of which text you are studying, you should check at least one other version from each of these categories. When you compare translations, you are looking both for differences and for similarities. Similarities assure you that there is general agreement among a large variety of scholars regarding the text’s meaning. Differences alert you to three possibilities: (1) there are more precise ways to express the original in English, (2) there is disagreement about how to interpret the original Greek/Hebrew text, or (3) there is disagreement regarding the original wording in Greek/Hebrew. Let me give you an example of each of these.
In Romans 13:13 KJV, the KJV reads, “Let us walk honestly.” If I only read the KJV text, I will think that Paul is admonishing the Romans to avoid being deceptive and to conduct themselves transparently. When I check other versions, I notice they say, “Let us behave properly” (NASB), “Let us behave decently” (NIV), “we must live decent lives” (NLT). Checking the etymology of “honestly,” I learn that it comes from the Latin honestus which means “honorable, respected, regarded with honor” and from the Old French honeste which means “virtuous, honorable, decent, respectable.” While the word “honestly” once conveyed the idea of “decently” in the days of the KJV, that is not its current sense. Thus the modern versions have chosen words that express that meaning more clearly.
In Psalm 68:19 KJV, the KJV reads, “Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits.” The fact that so many words are in italics (meaning they were added by the translators) prompts me to compare other translations. Other versions read, “who daily bears us up” (ESV); “who daily bears our burden”(NASB); “day after day He bears our burdens” (HCSB, NET); “you treat us with kindness day after day” (CEV). All the modern word-for-word and thought-for-thought translations agree this verse is about God bearing me or my burdens. That suggests they have a different understanding of the original text.
I’ll continue our discussion in the next article...
Blessings,
Philip
There are four basic things that every English speaker can do that will take them a long way down the path of Bible study without knowing the original languages or having formal training in hermeneutics: study context, compare translations, check commentaries, and regularly read all the Bible.
First, study context. Every word has the following biblical contexts: word → sentence → paragraph → section → book → author’s other works → other books of the same genre → OT/NT. If you are working in the NT, the OT forms the largest context. If you are working in the OT, then you must also consider how the NT interprets your passage. Cross references are your friend for identifying OT backgrounds to NT texts or NT uses of OT texts. It is a lot of work to study things in context, but there is no substitute for it.
For example, 1 Corinthians 15:31 says, “I die every day.” To find out what Paul means by this sentence, I check the immediate context before and after this verse. In 1 Corinthians 15:30, Paul says he is “in danger every hour.” In v.32 he talks about fighting with beasts at Ephesus. Checking the paragraph in which this verse occurs (1 Cor 15:28–32), I notice that Paul is arguing that suffering for the gospel is pointless if there is no resurrection. So, both the immediate and sectional contexts clarify that Paul is talking about being in danger of dying physically. He is not talking about some kind of spiritual death to self.
Second, compare translations. While you study the context of your passage, you should check your version for footnotes that offer alternate translations and compare your version with other English translations of the Bible. There are three basic types of translations available in English: word-for-word (KJV, NASB, ESV, LEB), thought-for-thought (HCSB, NIV, TNIV, CEB), and paraphrases (NLT, CEV, LB, TM). Regardless of which text you are studying, you should check at least one other version from each of these categories. When you compare translations, you are looking both for differences and for similarities. Similarities assure you that there is general agreement among a large variety of scholars regarding the text’s meaning. Differences alert you to three possibilities: (1) there are more precise ways to express the original in English, (2) there is disagreement about how to interpret the original Greek/Hebrew text, or (3) there is disagreement regarding the original wording in Greek/Hebrew. Let me give you an example of each of these.
In Romans 13:13 KJV, the KJV reads, “Let us walk honestly.” If I only read the KJV text, I will think that Paul is admonishing the Romans to avoid being deceptive and to conduct themselves transparently. When I check other versions, I notice they say, “Let us behave properly” (NASB), “Let us behave decently” (NIV), “we must live decent lives” (NLT). Checking the etymology of “honestly,” I learn that it comes from the Latin honestus which means “honorable, respected, regarded with honor” and from the Old French honeste which means “virtuous, honorable, decent, respectable.” While the word “honestly” once conveyed the idea of “decently” in the days of the KJV, that is not its current sense. Thus the modern versions have chosen words that express that meaning more clearly.
In Psalm 68:19 KJV, the KJV reads, “Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits.” The fact that so many words are in italics (meaning they were added by the translators) prompts me to compare other translations. Other versions read, “who daily bears us up” (ESV); “who daily bears our burden”(NASB); “day after day He bears our burdens” (HCSB, NET); “you treat us with kindness day after day” (CEV). All the modern word-for-word and thought-for-thought translations agree this verse is about God bearing me or my burdens. That suggests they have a different understanding of the original text.
I’ll continue our discussion in the next article...
Blessings,
Philip