ZA MAGAZINE // seek truth.

All our academic pursuits, whether centred in the humanities or the sciences, are sacred. History is replete with the lives of men and women who have devoted their lives to the pursuit of truth in every academic discipline, motivated by the desire to glorify the truth-giving God. And Jesus is glorified when His followers excel, lead and innovate in fields of study from astronomy to zoology, from art history to urban studies. But in a very real sense, the science and the art of hermeneutics is particularly sacred, if for no other reason than it deals with the correct application of the Bible to the lives of those who claim obedience to Jesus Christ.

Our modern English word, hermeneutics, is simply a transliteration of the Koine Greek word hermeneuo (her may new oh) which means “I translate, interpret, explain”. Unfortunately, the simplicity ends here. How does something written between 2000 to 3500 years ago, in a multiple of widely different cultural, linguistic, and geographical contexts translate practically to our lives today? The short answer is: through the hard work of resourcing and training ourselves in the laws of hermeneutics, the experience that comes from practice, and the humility that comes from a desperate and transformed life in Jesus.

Now for the sake of clarity let me say this: the Bible’s message is clear and accessible. However, bridging the distance of time, culture, language and geography is complex. Grant Osborne¹ says this, “Hermeneutics as a discipline demands a complex interpretative process in order to uncover the original clarity of scripture…the result is clear but the process is not”.

Hermeneutics takes work. It is a science with principles that are orderly and logically classified and which need to be correctly understood. For instance, working with the text, we need to have an understanding of concepts like grammar, semantics and syntax in the original language. Working with the time the text was written we need to understand the geography, politics, economics, and the military, cultural and religious practices of the day.

Hermeneutics also takes time. According to Osborne it is an art that takes experience and practice as well as imagination to be able to correctly apply the principles of hermeneutics to various parts of Scripture. Finally, hermeneutics takes humility. It is a sacred exercise which requires the empowering of the Holy Spirit to illuminate the Bible to us. Without the ministry of the Holy Spirit the process of hermeneutics becomes academic and dry.

It’s might seem like too much effort to learn about the different genres of the Bible (history, wisdom literature, epistle, gospel, apocalyptic etc.) and their differing hermeneutical principles. It might seem too inconvenient to borrow or purchase a Bible dictionary regarding the Jewish custom of baptism in 1st century Palestine or the attitudes to homosexuality in the Roman Empire. But we need to consider what is at stake.

Not many people today would condone the practice of modern slavery based on what Paul and Peter wrote concerning the attitude of slaves to their masters. After all, our culture rejects this practice as unjust even though there are more slaves today than there has ever been. The question is this: Do we read these passages and reject slavery in light of hypocritical cultural values or in light of hermeneutical principles?

What about homosexuality? Our culture accepts homosexuality as a valid expression of human sexuality. One could make the biblical argument that the homosexuality condemned in the Bible has more to do with idolatrous religious practices than the homosexual act itself. The argument continues that homosexuality today removed from the pagan connotations of the past is acceptable in the eyes of Jesus. We have harmonised our cultural values with the biblical text, but have we been faithful to what the Bible teaches? The only way to answer this question is to equip and train ourselves in the art and science of hermeneutics.

Homosexuality might seem like a black and white issue for many people, but what about women in leadership roles in churches or women invested with church eldership? What about church discipline and governance in general? Divorce and remarriage? Alcohol consumption? There are lots of differing opinions and treatments of biblical passages to support a variety of positions but without an appreciation of hermeneutics it becomes very difficult to humbly appraise the differing views.

So should our Bible reading be work? In a sense, yes. The more work we do the greater the reward will be for us and those we influence. Hermeneutics is for everyone. Someone who does not have an up front preaching ministry or teaches a bible study will benefit from knowing the difference in approach from reading the Proverbs and the Gospels. There are differing levels of depth that we are called to go into corresponding with the responsibilities we have received from God. And those who do have the privileged of teaching others have a further responsibility of teaching others how to read their Bibles with increasing fruitfulness.

The resources available to us are immense and for us privileged Westerners, with disposable incomes and time, and library and internet (not to mention clean water) access there are few excuses not to further equip and train ourselves to read, study and teach the Bible. I would recommend the best selling book by Fee and Stuart, “How to Read the Bible for all its Worth” as a primer and Osborne’s, “The Hermeneutical Spiral” for those wanting to go further in their study.

Ken

1   Grant R. Osborne, The Hermeneutical Spiral: A Comprehensive Introduction to Biblical Interpretation (Downer Grove: IVP Academic, 2006) 27.