ACR School Of Missions State College PA June

ACR School Of Missions State College, PA June 3 -5, 2012 1

Purpose of the Academy “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. ” 2 nd Timothy 2: 15 “to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. ” Ephesians 4: 12 -14 2

Biblical Exegesis 3

What Is Exegesis? This is an ancient Greek word (UGH!!) • “EX” means “Out Of” • “EGESIS” means “To Lead” EX-EGESIS means “to lead out from” the Biblical Text • Exegesis’ goal: “What did the author intend for his original readers to understand? ” • • What did he say? (Content) • Why did he say it then and there? (Context) The opposite approach is “EISEGESIS”, where “EIS” means “Into”… thus Eisegesis is leading our own preconceptions into the Text • Be Aware, however, that none of us is a blank slate! • 4

Exegesis • The Goal of Exegesis: “What did the author intend for his original readers to understand? ” • The CONTENT of his message • The CONTEXT of his message 5

Exegesis: Content • • Word meanings and Semantics Grammar Syntax Case Study: John 3: 5 • I tell you the truth, no one can enter the Kingdom of God unless he is born of water and Spirit. • Word study: “hudor” • Grammar: Coordinating conjunction “and” • Syntax: one preposition governs two copulated nouns 6

Exegesis: Context • “A proof text taken out of context is a pretext. ” • Read section by section, not verse by verse • Literary Context • • • Who is writing to whom What is the flow of thought and argument Can this harmonize (1 Sam 31/2 Sam 1; Jn 7: 42) • Historical Context • • • Circumstances for the writing Nature of previous relationship Manners and customs (Needle’s Eye fallacy: Mk 10: 23) 7

What Is Hermeneutics ? • Derived from the GK ‘to interpret’ • Is Investigative; The broader term that encompasses exegesis and contextualization • Somewhat of a ‘science’ and provides a logical, orderly classification of the rules of basic interpretation • Does have an artful aspect; requiring both spiritual and imaginative powers 8

Hermeneutics “The big problem with Bible study today is that we think it should be easier than other things we do. We study recipes for quality meals, how-to books for all kinds of things—carpentry, plumbing, automobile maintenance and so on—and read vociferously for our hobbies. Why do we think the Bible is the only subject we should not have to study? ! Let me challenge you—make the Bible your hobby. At one level I do not like the analogy; the Bible must be so much more than a hobby! But at another level, what if we spent as much time and money on Bible study as we do our hobbies? ” -Grant Osborne; The Hermeneutical Spiral 9

We All Interpret • “We don’t interpret the Bible, we just do what it says” • “We simply let the bible interpret itself” • We read the bible in translation (a form of interpretation!) • We all bring preconceptions to the text • Exegesis and Hermeneutics recognizes and controls our preconceptions, biases and worldviews • These disciplines protect & illuminate Gods word! 10

Exegesis, not just for eggheads… • What you need for effective Exegesis • • Prayerful Spirit Reverent Awe Good Translations Bible Dictionary Inquisitive Mind Common Sense A little imagination 11

Let’s Get Technical • • Exegesis Hermeneutics Genre Textual Criticism Higher Criticism Lower Criticism Rhetoric Dynamic Equivalence 12

Bible Translations Dynamic Equivalence Literal KJV NASB RSV NRSV ESV NIV GNB NAB JB NET 13 Free NLT LB Message

The Exegetical “Method” 2. Investigate the Context 3. Fine Tune the Genre 1. Survey the Text 6. Apply It 4. Detail the Content 5. Synthesize the Findings 14

Deductive Reasoning 15

Survey the Text • • • Read Re-Read Repeat Take notes Craft a Preliminary Thesis (Big Idea) Trace the Flow of thought or argument 16

Inductive Reasoning 17 ACR 2011

Biblical Tools • • A good translation A second, more literal translation A logical mind A pocket concordance A sound Bible Dictionary A good Bible Handbook Solid commentaries 18

How To Read A Text “Think of yourself as a detective looking for clues to a text’s general theme or idea, alert for anything that will make it clearer” - How to Read a Book. Page 36 19

Investigate the Context Historical Context Notes: "In what historical, social, and cultural situation was the passage written? " Literary Context Notes: "How does the passage relate to what precedes and follows it, and to the document as a whole? " “Why THIS and why HERE? ” “What is this text trying to DO to its original readers? ” 20

Context is King! 1. A Proof Text Without Its Context Is A Pretext! 2. A Lack Of Context Is The Chief Cause Of Most Heresy 3. A Text Cannot Mean What It Never Meant! 21

It’s Easy To Cite Scripture For Your Own Purpose "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, 'He will command his angels concerning you, ' and 'On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone. ’” Matt 4: 3 “The devil can cite Scripture for his purpose. ” -William Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice 22

Fine Tune the Genre • What is the literary Genre of this text? What are the general principles for exegesis of this genre? • What kind of structure does this genre employ – repetition, contrast, parallelism, inclusion, chiasm, classic rhetorical argument, comedic or tragic narrative? Why would the author choose this form for his intended affect? • How does the text “move” from beginning to end? 23

Biblical Genres • • Epistles OT Narratives Parables Laws Prophecy Gospel Poetry/Wisdom Apocalyptic 24

Investigate Details of Content “It is not in the interest of extravagant ambition that we trouble ourselves with this detailed exposition, but we hope through such painstaking interpretation to train you in the importance of not passing over even one slight word or syllable in the Sacred Scriptures. For they are not ordinary utterances, but the very expression of the Holy Spirit, and for this reason it is possible to find great treasure even in a single syllable. ” 25 - John Chrysostom 4 th Century AD

Investigate Details of Content • What does the text communicate and how? • What are the key terms and images? Are these terms or images consistent in the major exegetical translations? What do they mean? • Are there any key terms or ideas whose meaning may be explained by looking elsewhere in the book? • Are there any literary or rhetorical devices (simile, metaphor, hyperbole, personification, repetition, irony, particularization etc. ) and if so, what it their effect? 26

Investigate Details of Content • What kinds of sentences are used? What are the major components of each sentence? What verbal actions or states appear in these sentences, and what subjects are associated with them? • Does the text include appeals to tradition or Scripture, such as stories, beliefs, laws, and well-known historical figures? If so, how do these appeals function? • Does the text appear to use any other earlier sources, whether written or oral? If so, how do these appeals to tradition function? • If the text is a narrative, what elements of setting, plot (conflict, suspense, resolution), and character development does each part of the text convey? 27

Investigate the Content • • • Which elements of the text work, individually or together, to instruct, delight, convict, or move the reader? What is the tone, or mood, of the passage, and what elements convey that tone? How do the various parts of the passage reflect and/or address the situation of the readers? How does each part of the passage relate to the other parts? How does each Part contribute to the whole? How does my emerging understanding of the whole affect the meaning of the parts? Does the author use any technical terms? If I enter the narrative world of this text, what do I see and hear and feel? If I join the community that is receiving this letter, what am I being urged to do? If I join the psalmist in prayer/song, what are we imagining about God? If I am among this crowd encountering Jesus, how do I view Him? 28

Synthesize Your Findings “We shall not cease from exploration, And the end of all our exploring Will be to arrive where we started And know the place for the first time. - T. S. Elliot, Four Quartets 29

…And more Exegesis “And now the end has come. So listen to my piece of advice: exegesis, and yet more exegesis!” - Karl Barth, in his farewell to his students before his 1935 expulsion from Germany 30

Not Don(ne) Until You Apply It “Search the Scriptures, not as though thou wouldst make a concordance but an application. ” - John Donne 31

OT Narrative -Salvation History- 32

Narrative Basics • • • “Stories with a theological point of view” 40% of the OT is Narrative Has Literary features; Plot, characters, tension and conflict, antagonist, agonist This is Gods Story, and we are players in it God is the hero of all biblical narratives 33

Three Levels Of Narrative • • • Meta-narrative, the big picture of redemption the fall, reclaiming of land, apostasy, repentance, Jesus and the act of saving man, our eternal home in heaven… 2 nd Level: Gods redeeming his people back to himself and forming a covenant with them, Abraham and the promised land, Conquest of Canaan, etc 3 rd level: all the small stories that make up the big picture; “snapshots” that all contain elements of the bigger truths The Question: How Do The Levels Work Together To Create The Picture Of What God Is Doing/Teaching? 34

Features of Narrative • • The narrator is ‘omniscient’ but may not tell all he knows Narrator may be a ‘re-teller’ Designed to be read aloud in public setting* They use stereotyped patterns Employ devices; foreshadowing, irony etc Assume knowledge of LAW and Previous History of Israel Assume we will draw implications of outcomes for ourselves (not morality tales) Ultimately incomplete, we must connect ideas to principles 35

Ten Principles: OT Narratives 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. They usually don’t directly teach a doctrine They usually illustrate a doctrine taught directly elsewhere They record what happened – not necessarily what should have happened What people do is not necessarily a good example for us Most OT characters are far from perfect 36

Ten Principles: OT Narratives 6. We are not always told the end of the story – whether what happened is good or bad – but we are expected to understand it from other scripture 7. All narratives are selective and incomplete 8. They are not written to answer all our theological questions 9. They may teach either explicitly or implicitly 10. In the final analysis, God is the hero of all biblical narratives 37

Narratives Are Not • • • Allegories full of hidden meanings Intended to teach concrete moral lessons Intended to teach an explicit doctrine To be directly imitated as a guarantee of similar ‘results’ (Joseph/Gideon) Examples to imitate, but actual events, of good and bad people To Teach Propositionally 38

Case Study: Numbers 15 -18 NUMBERS 15 -18 NARRATIVE/LAW COMBINATION 15: 1 -21: LAWS 15: 22 ‘OFFERINGS FOR UNINTENTIONAL SIN’ (LAW) 15: 32 AN ISREALITE INTENTIONALLY SINS! (NARRATIVE) 15: 37 A REMINDER TO HAVE A TASSLE TO REMEMBER THE LAW! (LAW) 16: 1 -35…. v 36 -39! (NARRATIVE) 17: Aarons Staff Produces Almonds (NARRATIVE) 18: LAW (Priests and Levites) 39

Case Study: Ruth Narrative RUTH 1: “IN THE TIME…. ” What do we already know about that time? Who is Ruth? Her situation? What do we know about how God feels about people like her? The Moabites? RUTH 2: BOAZ: What kind of man is he? What is household like? How does he treat this widow? What does this suggest about him? His relationship with Torah? RUTH 4: 13 -22: Why include a genealogy? Message? 40

Some Interpretive Cautions • • Implicit does not mean secret Desperation, impatience, and false expectations Allegorizing Selectivity False Combinations …Syllogisms Redefinition Moralizing Personalizing/Individualizing 41

The Prophetic Voice -Gods Eternal Covenant- 42

The Prophets: General Ideas • • The Call: Human and/or Divine (Is 6, Jer 1, I Ki 19 Not ‘inheritance’ like priesthood; Divine Call Prophet no longer controls own destiny, but is ‘owned’ by God Message is “Thus saith the Lord” and prophet may not even like it! (Jer 20: 17 -18) 43

The Prophets Forth-telling vs Fore-telling • Leviticus 26 • Deuteronomy 4 • Significant Dates: 722 BC & 587 BC • These dates ‘govern’ the narrative of the prophets • Function as Temporal Markers • 44

The Prophets: Content • • Look for “Blessings”; life health, prosperity, agricultural abundance, respect and safety Look for “Curses” ; death, disease, drought, dearth, danger, destruction, defeat, deportation, destitution and disgrace Engage with Historical Situation (Kings, Chronicles) Be Aware of ‘loaded’ ideas (Jezebel, Abraham, Jeroboam, and references to historical failures, Baal of Peor etc) 45

The Prophets: Literary Forms Major Oracle Sub-Types • • THE LAWSUIT: Isaiah 3: 13 -26 WOE ORACLE: Habakkuk 2: 6 -8 ENACTMENT PROPHECY: Isaiah 20, Ezekiel 4: 1 -4 MESSENGER SPEECH: “thus saith the Lord” 46

Role of Covenant Mediator • • • The prophets’ purpose was to enforce the covenant (law) The prophets’ message was not their own, but God’s The prophets’ message is unoriginal Exegetical Task Hermeneutical Task 47

The Prophets: Contextual • • • Interpretive Challenge: We are looking backward toward events that for them, were future/present (forward) Modern definition of ‘prophecy’ is too narrow Poor understanding of forms and ORACLES Lack of Context for political, military, geographical nuances Historical Distance… 48

The LAW -Gods Holy Standard- 49

The Law • • • The Old Testament Law is a Covenant Prologue: Exodus 20: 1 & DT 5: 1 -5 Stipulations: Ex 20: 2 -17 & DT 5: 6 -21 Witnesses: DT 4: 3, 4: 26, DT 27: 14 -26! Sanctions: Lev 26 & DT 28 -33 Document clause: DT 17 50

Types of Law • Apodictic : Direct commands generally applicable as part of fulfilling the covenant with God (Lev 19: 9 -14) • They set a standard by way of example and are not exhaustive (gleaning laws, food laws, laws of slavery) • They identify us with our Lord 51

Types of Law • Casuistic Law: Case-by-case law • Situation in life or specifics of living daily life. • What to do specific situation, injury of slave, unintentional sin, accidental contact with the dead • Functions indirectly if you are recipient, directly if you are the one of whom it makes a requirement • They differentiate us from "others" • DT 21: 18 -21, DT 24: 1 -9 52

Collections Of Law(s) 1. Decalogue; (Exodus 20 -23) It follows the suzerainty form in which a vassal (Israel) has certain obligations established before the superior power (Yahweh) 2. “Tabernacle Laws” (Exodus 25 -40) 3. Priestly or Ritual Laws: regarding worship and the altar, purity and holiness. “Holiness Code” (Exodus 25 -Lev 16) • A wide variety of issues are addressed (food laws, sexual behavior, neighbor relations, criminal activity, eating sacrifices, sabbatical and Jubilee years, blasphemy) but all relate to Israel living before the Lord as a holy people. 4. The Four Speeches: (Deut 1: 6– 4: 40; 5: 1– 26: 19; 27: 1– 28: 68; 29: 1– 30: 20) a retelling for new generation 53

How Should I View the Law? Galatians 3: 24 It functioned in the history of salvation to bring us to Christ • The Law stands as a paradigm (a model) of what it means to be loyal to God • The Law should increase our appreciation of our unworthiness for grace, thus our gratitude is greater • • 54

Do’s and Don'ts of the Law • • • Do see the law as God’s fully inspired Word for you • Do see the law as the basis for the OT and Israel’s • history Do see God’s justice, love, high standards, and gift • Do see the law as directing a full range of behavior • Do remember the essence of the Law is repeated and renewed 55 Don’t see the law as God’s direct command to you Don’t see the law as binding on Christians Don’t see the law as a grouping of of arbitrary, limiting, annoying regulations Don’t see the law as technically complete Don’t expect the law to be cited frequently by the prophets or NT writers

The Gospels -The Word Made Flesh- 56

The Gospels • • • They already function as hermeneutical models for us, insisting by their very nature that we, too, retell the story Steeped in 1 st C Judaism Second-hand Documents Filled with “Kingdom Rhetoric” Eschatological Fervor and Expectations 57

Gospel: Two Dimensions • Horizontal; How the gospel fits together with other gospel accounts of same events and pericopes • • • Vocabulary, Temporal Placement, Arrangement, Plot Gives appreciation for differences in gospels Adds clarity and details other gospels may have excluded, including additional context 58

Gospel: Two Dimensions • • Vertical; examines historical context of both Jesus and gospel writer together Jesus may be illustrating a general principle for his own (universal) mission, while the gospel writer is organizing the teaching into his account in a way that illuminates additional/secondary truth • • “Poor” and “Poor in spirit” Mat 5 vs Lk 6 “First and Last” Mat 19: 30 (Workers in Vineyard) vs Mark 10: 31 (Rich Ruler) Jesus says it more than once/change in meaning 59

The Gospels: Horizontal Adaptation; Same stories re-used and reshaped • Critical to understand AUDIENCE, as it may vary by evangelist/pericope • Fig tree in Mark 11: 12 -14; 20 -25 vs Matthew 21: 18 -22 • Authors are also “compilers” (Fee) • 60

The Gospels: Horizontal • Selectivity: Rejection at Nazareth; • • • (Matt 13: 51/Mark 6: 4/Luke 4: 24) John 4: 44 puts the rejection text in Jerusalem! No “I AM” statements in three gospels Missing Beatitudes etc Johns Structure vs. Synoptic Structure 61

The Gospels: Horizontal Sensitivity will assist in understanding possible meanings or range of meanings (Semantics) • Horizontal Sensitivity shapes our view of how the early church ‘interpreted’ these texts • Horizontal reading prevents overly narrow interpretations • Horizontal Reading my also assist in filing in gaps in context by providing additional details • 62

The Gospels: Think Vertically • Theological Point of View • • • How Jesus uses the teaching COMBINED with the setting given to it by the gospel writer Jesus by historical context may be making one point and Mark, by his organization makes another ‘point’ Meaning my be localized by Jesus telling, and at the same time ‘globalized’ by the manner in which the pericope is placed within the gospel itself 63

The Gospels: Think Vertically Matthew 4: 17 17 From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. ” Mark 1: 14– 15 14 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, 15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel. ” Luke 4: 14– 15 14 And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and a report about him went out through all the surrounding country. 15 And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all. 64

The Gospels: Horizon /Vertical Luke 4: 18 -19 “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor. ” • • Luke is only gospel to reference the Isaiah 61 text (horizontal) • Luke recounts Jesus reference to Elijah/Elisha (v 25 -27) (horizontal) • Jesus is rebuking exclusivism (vertical) Luke is encouraging Gentiles that Jesus has come for them (vertical) 65

Gospel: Literary Context Think Horizontally • Harmonize Four Accounts • Appreciate Distinctiveness of each Gospel • Think Vertically • Awareness of historical contexts of both Jesus and the Evangelist • Examine selection of Jesus and organization of Evangelist as unified whole • 66

Gospel: Literary Context Horizontal Considerations: • Adaptation & Selectivity • • • Parallel Accounts (beware harmonization) Overlapping Source Material DEPENDENT upon one-another Redaction, Re-use and Borrowing Early Church Understanding* 67

Content Case: Luke 11: 1 -13 • Luke 11: 1 -13 “teach us to pray” is the context • Luke 18: 1 -8 “what is this context”? How does our understanding of Luke 11 assist us with this? • Matthew 6: 51 -14 how does this add to our understanding? • Can we “interpret” Luke 11 without these parallel accounts? How does our understanding shift as we consider additional source material from other gospel content? 68

Synthesis of Luke 18 -19 • • • What is the main point of each part of the text? What is Luke telling us by packaging the narratives this way an in this order? What is the main idea that the author talking about? (Subject) What claims did the text make upon its original hearers or readers? What response might the author have desired from the readers? What is he saying about what he is talking about? (Complements) What is the big idea of this passage – stated in a single sentence? 69

Gospel: Literary Context Feeding of Five Thousand Narrative (Fee/Stuart) • Words in John that are common to the other three: 8 • % of agreement among them: • Matt w Mark 59% • Matt w Luke 44% • Luke w Mark 40% • John w Matt 8. 5% • John w Mark 8. 5% • John w Luke 6. 5% • 70

Gospel: Historical Context • Immerse yourself in first century Judaism and its preaching style Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus Jeremias; The NT Environment” Lohse; Jesus’ Audience Derret • The Method and Message of Jesus’ Teaching Stein (proverbs, similes, metaphors, poetry, questions, irony, etc. ) • 71

Gospel: Historical Context • • • Difficulty is many of Jesus’ sayings come without the original context (1 Cor 9: 14, Acts 20: 24) Different gospels seem ‘out of order’ What was Jesus’ audience for a given teaching? Close Disciples… crowds… enemies? This helps with the ‘point’ 72

Gospel: Hermeneutics • Note Setting Carefully; audience, surrounding • • • material Note Audience; who is being addressed, tone of voice, repetition of ideas Study Structure; literary devices, rhetoric, inclusio, chiasm… Look for change in focus/attention (change of pronoun) Locate the climax of story (moment of truth) Shift in action before/after climax 73

Gospel: Hermeneutics • • • Do not ‘modernize’ teachings Miracle narratives are not precedent setting “Now” and “Not Yet” – Eschatology • Jewish culture saw end of all things as imminent, especially the Galilean sect of Zealots • Jewish culture hoped Jesus would destroy Rome and inaugurate the ultimate age of blessing • JTB fueled this fervor with his message of repentance…. 74

Gospel: Hermeneutics • • Very Important Final Consideration “Now” and “Not Yet” – Eschatology • • Jewish culture saw end of all things as imminent, especially the Galilean sect of Zealots Jewish culture hoped Jesus would destroy Rome and inaugurate the ultimate age of blessing JTB fueled this fervor with his message of repentance…. “Realized Eschatology” 75

The Parables -Seeing God in Everyday Life 76

The Parables • Most Mis-Understood of all Scripture • Very often over Allegorized • Find the Audience: crowd, ‘disciples’, Pharisees, an individual? • Jesus is not trying to be obtuse • Understand Palestinian Judaism • Understand the ‘types’ of sayings 77

The Parables • Hebrew māšāl = proverb, riddle, comparison • Proverbs: “Physician heal yourself” -Lk 4: 23 • Metaphors: “Every plant not planted by my heavenly Father will be uprooted” -Mt 15: 13 • Similes: “I send you out like sheep among wolves”- Mt 10: 16 • Figurative Sayings: Lk 5: 36– 38, new wine in old wineskins • Similitude or more developed similes: Mk 4: 30– 32, comparing the kingdom to a grain of mustard seed • Story Parables in the form of fictional narrative: Mt 25: 1– 13, the ten virgins • Haggadah and Halaka -jewish fables and folk wisdom 78

Parables: Functional • Mark 4: 10– 12 and Matthew 13: 13– 15 clearly indicate that Jesus chose the parable form to symbolize God’s judgment on his opponents and on an unbelieving people. “The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you. But to those on the outside everything is said in parables so that, ‘they may be ever seeing but never perceiving, and ever hearing but never understanding; otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!’” • Jesus often used parables not from a desire to communicate truth but to hide the truth from unresponsive hearers. Parables confirmed unbelievers in their rejection • “Encounter Mechanism” -Osborne 79

The Parabolic Sayings Types of Parabolic sayings in the canon: • • • Similitude; a likeness or similarity Epigram; is a brief, clever, and usually memorable statement (sometimes in verse, rather than prose) Metaphor; uses an image, story or tangible thing to represent some intangible quality or idea or else some less tangible thing Simile: similes indirectly compare the two ideas and allow them to remain distinct in spite of their similarities True Parable; Lost Son a STORY likely ‘true’ or “possible” 80

Parables: Reversal Of Fortune • Some Notable “Plot Twists” • • Lk 10: 30– 37; Samaritan Lk 15: 11– 32; Wandering son Lk 14: 15– 24; Crippled at Great Banquet Lk 16: 1– 13; “shrewd manager” • Luke is a big fan of the Reversal of Fortune 81

Parables Of The Kingdom Parables of the Kingdom: • • New patch/wine and the old cloth/wineskins (Mk 2: 21– 22) Kingdom ‘ripping away from the past’ “The kingdom of God has come to you” (Lk 11: 20). Exorcism Mustard Seed (Mk 4: 30– 32) The Leaven (Mt 13: 33). Kingdom is living, spreading, growing exponentially! Kingdom calls for a Radical Response: Sower, Tares, Dragnet Kingdom Ethics: Mt 5: 13– 16, Mt 6: 19 -24, Mt 7: 1 -5 Viewed together they form a ‘hermeneutic of the Kingdom’ 82

Eschatology In Parables • Parables of the End Time • • • Matthew 25 Collection: Virgins, Talent, Sheep & Goats Luke 16: Rich Man and Lazarus Matthew 22: Wedding Banquet • Illustrate element of surprise, reversal, the unexpected choice of common people and the urgency of the hour • “Inaugurated Eschatology” Final destination determined ‘later’ but action required in the present to avoid catastrophe • Viewed together they form a ‘hermeneutic of the Eschaton’ 83

SALVATION In Parables • Parables of Repentance and Salvation • • Lk 15: 11– 31 Lost Son/Older Brother • Mt 20: 1– 6 Grateful/Ungrateful Workers • Mt 21: 28– 31 Obedient/Disobedient Son • Lk 14: 16– 24 Great Banquet • Grouped together a ‘hermeneutic of Salvation’ emerges 84

Parables: Hermeneutics • • • Call for a RESPONSE from the Audience Are meant to illustrate PRINCIPLES of Kingdom Life, not teach morals per se Who is ‘caught’ or surprised by outcome? Reversals/changes in fortune, tone, mood. . . ( I tell you than not one of those will get a taste of MY banquet!) Luke 7: 47, Luke 15: 28, Luke 19: 9 -10, Mat 25: 44 -45, Mat 13: 14 “them”. . Ultimately CONTEXT must be final arbiter of Meaning 85

The Epistles -Just for this Occasion- 86

The Epistles • • Good place to start (easy? ) We all write and read letters (email is distorting this experience) Nature of Epistles: similar in form and mostly in function Letters, Epistles, Prison Epistles, Catholic Epistles, Pastoral Epistles Crucial Issue: All are Occasional documents With the Epistles, we have answers, but we don’t always know the questions It’s like listening to one end of a phone conversation 87

EXEGESIS in the Epistles • What is the “Big Idea” • • What is being said? How is it being stated? Why is it here, now, in this paragraph or portion of the argument? How does this ‘point’ contribute to the overall ‘flow’ of discourse or argument? 88

The Epistles: The Literary Context Now is the time to THINK PARAGRAPHS If it were an assignment: “Trace the argument of 2 Thessalonians, paragraph by paragraph, and in a sentence or two explain the point of each paragraph for the argument as a whole (i. e. : Christ’s return) Ask repeatedly “What’s the point? ” As you trace the arguments of Paul response • • • Content: What does Paul say in this paragraph? State this in a concise sentence Context: Why does Paul say this right at this point? Explain this in another sentence 89

The Epistles: Historical Context Consult your Bible Dictionary Read the Letter for the Big View • • Reconstruct the problem (occasion) Note the recipients Note Paul’s attitude Note specific things mentioned to specify the occasion of the letter Note the letter’s natural divisions Re-re-Read the Letter • • • List every clue to the recipient’s problem List key phrases that indicate Paul’s answers 90

Hermeneutics in the Epistles What does this mean to/for us? • All “do” hermeneutics, even without exegesis as we bring an enlightened common sense to the text • The Big Issue: Cultural Relativity • Cultural 2 Tim 4: 13 Eternal 2 Tim 2: 3 91

Hermeneutics in the Epistles • • • Occasional documents Letters, personal or corporate and have structure and elements of personal correspondence Read through entire text in a single sitting Understand the flow of thought The background and occasion of the writing Issues and concerns/major themes or conflicts 92

Hermeneutics in the Epistles • • • Look for theologically loaded ideas References to OT passages or situations Names of cities, people or other referents that are clues to meaning Any natural or logical divisions of thought Ask ‘who is writing to whom? ’ Develop a working outline 93

Hermeneutics in the Epistles • The Basic Rule • A text can’t now mean what it never could have meant! • The Second Rule • When we share comparable life situations with the 1 st century setting, God’s word is the same for us, too • Our Problems with the Second Rule: • Extended Application • Non Comparable Life Situations • Cultural Relativity • Task Theology 94

Hermeneutics: The Epistles • The Third Rule: Extended Application; If it meant ____ for them, it must mean _____ for us, right? • In extended or extending application Gods word must be limited to teach its original intent. • If you are hot certain that all the particulars are the same, this is the best approach. We will deal with Extended Application in Acts along with issues of Historical Precedent • 95

Exegesis of Problem Passages • Be content with our lack of understanding; therefore, be less dogmatic • Even without certainty of details, we can still know the point of the whole passage (“baptizing for the dead” passage of 1 Cor 15 addresses resurrection issues rather than baptism issues) • Still ask “What can be said for certain” • Consult a good, balanced commentary • Admit when you are only guessing 96

Problem Passages • No One has the ‘answers’ • Not written for us • Be content with lack of understanding • Do not press details • Preach no sermons based on them • Be ye not dogmatic about them 97

Basic Hermeneutics • The Analogy of Scripture • The Progress of Revelation • The Simplicity and Clarity of Scripture • The Unity and Diversity of Scripture • Inspiration and Authority of Scripture 98

Hermeneutical Principles Rule #1: A passage cannot mean what it never could have meant in its original context and to its original audience Rule #2; When we share comparable situations as those in Scripture, Gods word to us is the same as Gods word to them. 99

Considerations • Grammar • Semantics • Syntax • Historical And Cultural Background • Basic Genre Analysis 100

Grammar • Basic laws of language and relationships between terms • Greek tenses and cases can alter meaning • Parts of speech have defined function; Verbs modify nouns; Adverbs modify verbs India 101 2006

Semantics • The Study of “Meaning” • Meaning Derived from Context not Words themselves • “Counter”, (of items, in a kitchen, as an argumentative tactic) • “Apple” (Fruit, Anatomical, Metaphorical , “of his eye…) 102

Semantics Words can have ranges of meaning, ‘semantic range’ Meaning can change over time, and according to culture Meaning can change based on authorship Beware of ‘secular’ meaning in sacred text 103

Common Fallacies • Lexical Fallacy • Assumes word studies solve all issues of meaning • 1 Cor 11: 2, Eph 5: 24 • “correct meaning is that which contributes least to the total context” • Narrowest meaning is usually correct • Surrounding terms define meaning 104

Common Fallacies • Root Fallacy • Assumes primary root meaning transcends all subordinate usages • Ekklesia; ‘called out’ ? • Parakletos; “advocate”? , “Helper”? • Para, beside; kaleo, to call. Call alongside? • Range of word meaning has changed… 105

Common Fallacies Misuse of Etymology Study of history of a term Assumes meaning is found in origin or history of the word ‘nice’ fr. Lat nescius= ignorant! Heb 2: 1 ‘pararymen’ ; ship that slips off mooring and drifts, also boat drifing downstream into harms way > Heb 6: 1 ‘anchor’ sheds light on possible interpretations 106

Common Fallacies Misuse of Subsequent Meaning ‘martyr’ witness or ‘died for Christ’ Secondary sense is later, 2 nd C… “Analogy of Antecedent Scripture” –Kaiser. Cannot lay later meaning ‘backwards’ onto text No 21 st C meaning without proper care Modern metaphors are for illustration only, never definition Must allow for Semantic Change 107

Where Does That Leave Us? • Use care when making strong positional statements about what a text ‘means’ • Make sure when preaching and teaching that you have done your homework • Avoid being dogmatic unless you are quite certain • Gods Word is still clear in its intentions and application 108

Meaning Is Genre Dependent The presence of genre is an important point in the debate as to whether one can recover the author’s intended meaning. All writers couch their messages in a certain genre in order to give the reader sufficient rules by which to decode that message 109

The Analogy Of Scripture: Simply put the analogy of scripture means “the scripture interprets scripture. ” Must not stop with exegesis, or there and then, but continue forward to understand the entire sweep of scripture 110

Acts -The Primitive Chuch- 111

Acts: Historical Precedent • Normal vs Normative • Patterns vs History • Acts Functions as a Model • What is included? • Why This is Included • The Major breaks and blocks 112

Acts: Historical Precedent • Six “Panels” • Luke's Interest in Gospel Movement • Non “Uniform” even where we wish it was • The church cannot be stopped! • The church should grow, move forward, change lives! 113

Acts: Historical Precedent • Pattern Value • Determining a Principle from a Pattern • Understanding Precedent Setting Ideas • Binding vs “best practice” 114

Hermeneutic in Acts Unless Scripture explicitly tells us we must do something, what is only narrated or described does not function in a normative (i. e. obligatory) way— unless it can be demonstrated on other grounds that the author intended it to function in this way. • Frequency of communion • Day of week for church • “The Bible teaches communion weekly” • Issues of Practical Theology must shape our thinking here 115

Content Case: Jeremiah 25 • After Josiah reforms! v 1 • You had 23 years and you did not change • I've warned you many times v 4 -5 • I will take you into captivity v 9 • But…. after 70 years…. I will restore you • See Jeremiah 29 for more on the promise • See Daniel 9 Daniel “interprets” Jeremiahs prophecy • Clarity of Interpretation requires understanding of images, history, previous Kingships, earlier prophecy, the Decalogue warnings, and later prophetic works. (not to mention NT citations) 116

Background Context: Matthew 5: 2122 • Do not murder; why not? • Do not call anyone “Raca”; Why not? • An earlier parable, a Jewish ‘haggadah’ or story, illuminates this idea significantly • Listen to it: • All he saw was the ugliness, not the man in the image of Yahweh, the ugly man, had a different view of things, the ‘outsider view’ • The one who gets caught is a student of Torah! 117

Content Case: Luke 11: 1 -13 • Luke 11: 1 -13 “teach us to pray” is the context • Luke 18: 1 -8 “what is this context”? How does our understanding of Luke 11 assist us with this? • Matthew 6: 51 -14 how does this add to our understanding? • Can we “interpret” Luke 11 without these parallel accounts? How does our understanding shift as we consider additional source material from other gospel content? 118

Content Case: Luke 11: 1 -13 • Luke 11: 1 -13 “teach us to pray” is the context • Luke 18: 1 -8 “what is this context”? How does our understanding of Luke 11 assist us with this? • Matthew 6: 51 -14 how does this add to our understanding? • Can we “interpret” Luke 11 without these parallel accounts? How does our understanding shift as we consider additional source material from other gospel content? 119

Apocalyptic -Dragon slayers- 120