Dotcom 1: What is the Bible?

What does it mean to say "I believe in the Bible" or that the Bible is the "Word of God"? Here are a few notes to stimulate your thinking ...

"I believe in the Bible" for me is a statement more about God than the books of the Bible. I am, in effect, saying God has authority and I sit under than authority. God has chosen to reveal himself to me through the Biblical story, therefore I better take note of it!

"The Bible is the inspired word of God." This is another cliche. In 2 tim 3:14-17 Paul uses a word sometimes translated as "inspired"

"All scripture is inspired by God ..." (NRSV translation)

In other translations it uses the term (closer to the Greek) of "God breathed" which reminded Timothy and us of God breathing life into Adam. So the Bible get's its life - it's very meaning - from God. This helps me because it reminds me that if I try and interpret any particular passage from the Bible I must remember that it's God who gave and gives it life. Any meaning I try and give it must be submitted to God for checking ... it must be consistant with the whole Bible (let the Bible interpret the Bible), with the Biblical Story (ie it must fit in with how God is trying to restore all people to himself) and with the character of God.

In the 2Tm passage mentioned Paul talks of "All Scripture" being profitable for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness. Interestingly he is speaking of what we now call the Old Testament. Amongst some people there is the temptation to read the New Testament only and a few selected parts (eg Psalms) of the OT. I think this warns us to take the scripture as a whole and not to neglect parts of it. It also tells us that it's purpose is to help make and keep me right with God so that I can do good work.

The Biblical story, therefore, is still being carried out in our lives as we are still part of God's story as we become more righteous, build the church, and await the completion of the story.

Literal v Liberal interpretations
I've noticed that there tends to be a polarisation in the mind of some that there are only two possible positions to take with respect to the Bible, namely: "Liberal" where what is interpreted from the Bible depends much on what is socially acceptable amongst the wider community of the day and "Literal" where every word of the Bible must have a concrete meaning relating directly to today. I believe both views are fundamentally flawed. The flaw being the same for both ... they tend to fail to take into account what the original writers and hearers/readers first understood with what was written. This way of interpreting the Bible is known as eisegesis. Simply put eisegesis is giving a meaning from outside with minimal regard to the original meaning. Some very liberal interpreters do that over moral issues - such as homosexuality, saying that because we know more now and we "should" accept homosexuals and that God is love that the passages in the Bible that condemn homosexual acts no longer apply. Similarly some literal interpreters will find in the Bible allegories to almost every modern situation (such as Barry Smith did with Revelations when he said the world would end in 1985).

The opposite of eisegesis is exegesis. Exegesis requires us to first understand what was written, by whom and for whom. We must see how that fits into the whole Biblical story and with the character of God. From that (Ex being "out of") we may draw conclusions as to what it may mean to us today. For me, exegesis is always the starting point.

I do, though, believe we should take a literal interpretation of the Bible in the sense that we should take a liberal interpretation of ALL we read. Namely, when I read a novel I take it literally as a made up story, when I read a set of instructions for a microwave I take them as instructions that must be followed, not re-interpreted as a myth, when I read a scientific text book I take it as science, or a poem as poetry. The same goes for the Bible - I read poetry as poetry, historical narrative as historical narrative, parable as parable, allegory as allegory etc.

So, when I approach a Bible passage I ask the questions:
"What genre?"
"What is the author's purpose?"
"Who were the audience?"
"How did they react?"
"Why is it in the Bible?"
"How does it fit with the Biblical story?"
"What does it tell be about God?"
and, only then
"What can it suggest to me about the world about me, about the church, about who God wants me to be?"