Introduction
Biblical hermeneutics is the science of interpreting the Bible with a view to preaching or teaching. Having said that, the principles involved in hermeneutics should be known by all Christians so that they can test sermons and teachings. It is also useful for personal and group studies.
There are well established principles in biblical hermeneutics which I will set out below. The principles used for biblical interpretation are necessary in order to counter the dangers of subjective thinking, bias and schools of theology. As we read the Bible, we can all too easily interpret it in the light of our personal experiences, our values or theological ideas that have influenced us. As part of an interview, I was once asked to explain the Prodigal Son story told by Jesus. In doing so, I made no mention of the Father in the story. When this was pointed out to me, I realised that I had an issue with my human father that was affecting the way I interpreted certain scriptures. Through life experiences and influences we can all develop biases towards certain things and this can lead to us having difficulties with scriptures that don’t align with our bias. But the biggest problem comes from schools of theology which can affect everything we read in the Bible. So, for instance, if you believe in the theology of Cessationism you will interpret the gifts of the Holy Spirit accordingly, regardless of whether or not the scripture supports the interpretation. The two biggest schools of theology are Calvinism and Arminianism and those in each camp will sometimes interpret the same text differently. I once preached on a passage of scripture in such a way that it supported the theology of Eternal Security not realising that the Pastor of the church didn’t believe in Eternal Security. Afterwards he was very gracious to me by saying that he did not agree with what I had said but that he accepted it as valid because I had applied the principles of Hermeneutics to the passage.
Tools To Help With Biblical Interpretation
Before going through the hermeneutical principles, I want to look at some of the tools we need to have in place before we engage in biblical interpretation.
A Proper Translation Of The Bible
Always use a proper translation of the bible, not a paraphrase bible. With a paraphrase bible you will not get a true translation of the original languages used to write the Bible. A modern example of a paraphrase bible is the New Living Translation which is not a true translation. Another type of bible to avoid is one that has been altered to meet certain theological positions. A modern example of this is The Message bible. And don’t use a bible aimed at certain groups such as a youth bible. The bible you use for biblical interpretation must be a quality translation of the original languages. I recommend the following bibles: New American Standard Bible, English Standard Version, New International Version, Youngs Literal Translation and the Amplified bible.
Translation Comparisons
Comparing different translations is a useful way to gain a correct understanding of what the original writer said in the original language.
Concordance
A concordance is a useful tool because it helps you to find the location of every word that is used in the bible and to understand the meanings of the original words. The best known of these is the Strong’s Concordance.
Bible Dictionary
A good bible dictionary will enable you to gain a greater understand of a word or subject found in the text you are interpreting. It will also provide you with cross references to other relevant scriptures.
Blue Letter Bible
The Blue Letter Bible is an online tool that has everything you could ever want to correctly interpret the scriptures. I use it all of the time.
The Principles
I have set out below the key hermeneutical principles that should be followed when interpreting the Bible. Not everyone will agree with all of them but these are the ones I have settled on over many years of study. They are in no particular order.
Expose not Impose
Never impose your own ideas onto the scriptures. Let them speak for themselves. Never ignore the context. What does it really say, not what does it say to me?
No Adding or Taking Away
Do that add words or ideas that are not in the text being interpreted. A common error, for instance, is to invent a motive for a character who appears in the text when the text does not tell you what the motive is. The opposite to adding something is to take something away. This occurs when the text tells you something that you don’t like or agree with so you ignore it and pretend it isn’t there.
Do Not Argue from Silence
This is similar to the previous principle but is more general and wider sweeping. If the scriptures are silent on an issue do not try to base a doctrine on teaching on the silence. For instance, the scriptures do not provide us with a date for when the Church will be raptured so you should not talk about dates when considering the doctrine of the rapture.
The Context
Never take the text out of its context. A text taken out of its context becomes a pretext for something else. You need to take into account the circumstances in which the text occurs. Is it part of a wider message? What precedes it and what follows it? Is it teaching, history, poetry, prophetic, picture language or something else? Don’t treat history as doctrine for instance. When and where was it written? Who was it written to and why was it written? If it is in the Old Testament, does it apply to us today or has Jesus superseded it?
Literal or Not
Always treat the scriptures as literal unless it is obvious that it is not to be taken literally. Examples of scriptures that are not meant to be taken literally are parables and picture language because they are meant to represent something else. An example of a passage that should be treated as literal is the parting of the Red Sea in the Book of Exodus.
Interpretation Before Application
Correct interpretation of the passage of scripture must precede the application. Passages must not be forced to make a point. Whilst there can only be one interpretation, there can be a number of applications.
Interpret Scripture With Scripture
The Bible as a whole provides us with a complete revelation of the truth. This means that one part of the bible can often help us to better understand another part of the Bible. For instance, some of Daniel’s prophecies help us to better understand the Book of Revelation. This also works with individual words or phrases. For instance, if we want to understand who The Messiah is it helps to look at all of the scriptures about The Messiah in order to gain a full understanding. It’s the same with most of the parables. We can only really understand them by knowing the rest of the Bible.
Interpret Scripture According To The Purpose Of Scripture
The scriptures are all about Jesus and God’s plan of salvation. They are not about social justice, politics or science for instance. Stick to the purpose of scripture when interpreting it.
Use The Clear To Interpret The Obscure
Some passages of scripture use words or describe things that are not easy to understand. When this happens, we should not try to guess what they mean. Instead, we need to look for other scriptures that give greater clarity on the matter to interpret them. An example of this is the parable of the sower. To understand it we need to look at the explanation given by Jesus about it.
Be Exegetical
Examine the text carefully and thoroughly. Do not be superficial. Analyse individual words and the structure of the sentences. Break the text down to understand exactly what it is saying. Look at key words, the grammar and the tenses, etc. Look at who the writer is talking to. For instance, if the writer is giving instructions to men then it only applies to men. Don’t try to apply it to women.
Understand The Original Language
Go back to the original language wherever possible in order to understand what it originally meant. Use tools like the Blue Letter Bible.
Distinguish Between Israel and the Church
Take account of the distinctions between Israel and the Church. Some scriptures only apply to Israel. For instance, the land promises to Israel do not apply to the Church. Remember God has not abandoned Israel. Do not substitute the Church for Israel.
Distiguish Between the Old Testament and the New Testament
Remember that the Church, which began in Acts 2, is under the Covenant of Grace and is not under the Mosaic Law which is part of the Old Testament. Don’t get them mixed up. Bear in mind also that some Old Testament commands don’t apply to Christians whilst some do. If the Old Testament command applies to Christians it is repeated in the New Testament.