July 2021 Reflections
WitW: Do you interpret the Bible literally? I’m often asked as if no self-respecting adult would do such a thing. Of course, I do! Interpreting the Bible literally means interpreting it according to the way it was written.
23 Matthew 5:10-16 The Persecuted
People marked by the being poor in spirit, mourning over sin, hungering for righteousness, pursuing peace and mercy, etc. will draw the hostility of the world, but they will be rewarded with eternal life in the kingdom of God. We, his disciples, are not to shrink from following Jesus for fear that the world might hate us. We are to follow him, even though that invites mocking, scoffing and persecution.
Bible Study Convictions
How do you know if you’ve successfully understood a passage of Scripture? Start by understanding and embracing these basic interpretative convictions.
22 Matthew 5:9 The peacemakers
Like the merciful, those commit the costly act of refusing to answer injury for injury and seeking a peaceful reconciliation instead will find their inheritance as children of God in the kingdom of heaven. When we realize how deeply we ourselves are indebted to God’s grace and dependent on His mercy, we also realize we’re in no position to condemn the sins of others.
immorality, porneia, G4202
Tools and resources you need to do a word study on the Greek word for immorality, porneia.
Bible Study 101: Interpretation
After you’ve done your observation, word studies, outlining and answered the questions you generated, it’s time to start putting it all together. In this step, you want to collect, refine and organize all those details you observed into a coherent meaning.
21 Matthew 5:8 The pure in heart
The pure in heart are not those who are morally perfect. Rather their hearts have been cleansed of rebellion and rejection of God. The pure in heart live like the gospel is true, though not perfectly. One day they will stand before God and be accepted.
stumble, skandalizō, G4624
Tools and resources you need to do a word study on the Greek word for stumble or fall away: skandalizō
comfort, parakaleō, G3870
Tools and resources you need to do a word study on the Biblical Greek verb for comfort, parakaleō G3870.
Bible Study 101: Observation
The first step in Bible study is observation. The goal is to slow down your reading and generate a list of questions that must be answered to understand the passage. I tend to break observation into the following 4 steps which generally correspond to my first few readings through the passage.
mercy, eleeó, G1653
Tools and resources you need to do a word study on the Greek word for mercy, ἐλεέω
5 C’s of Bible Study
You may have heard the “rule” in Bible Study that a text always means what the author intended it to mean. But how do you evaluate whether a particular interpretation hits the mark of authorial intent? You can test any interpretation with the five C’s.
About the Author
Krisan Marotta is a Bible teacher and host of Wednesday in the Word, the podcast about what the Bible means and how we know.