If you will refer to your syllabus, you will see that Module 1 was introductions and getting acquainted with the website. So, here we go. I think everyone is on board now. Read the Lecture and do your assigned reading. Answer the questions and post. Respond to two others' Lecture Question Post. Now, for clarity, this is how you should title your posts.

Lecture Question Mod. #? (Use this format for your 250-300 word main lecture question response.)

Student Response #1/#2 (Use this format to title your response to another student. Two are required. No minimum words, but it should be more than, "That was good Angie!" State why you agree or don't agree. Share examples and thoughts.

Personal Reflection Question (Use this for your weekly PRQ that you can do any time, but once weekly. Refer to your syllabus for the 3 questions that you can choose from to answer from week to week.

Again, try not to get behind with reading. You will use the reading as well as the lecture for your responses. If you have any questions, email me.

Here we go!!!


Module 2: Feb. 20th - 26th
Introduction to Hermeneutics
Reading: Ramm, pg. 1-22

Introduction:

A. Why is there a need for Hermeneutics?

i) Science and art of biblical interpretation:

(a) Science – guided by rules in a system (we need to stick to these rules not woodenly, but as quidelines that help us to stay on track). This system is created by language and logic - rules governing communication.

The Bible itself has its own system built in. Talk about later.

(b) Art – Application of these rules are by skill and not by mechanical imitation. This will be a life-long journey. You will get better at applying these rules as you become confident in the process of interpretation. Using this analogy, the beginning painter is overwhelmed at the task when staring at an empty canvas, but the experienced artist gets excited about the opportunity to create and to see what what will come forth. The word has endless applicable truths. Hermeneutics will guide you in such a way as to unlock these truths without fear of "messing up".

ii) A primary need:

(a) To ascertain what God has said in sacred scripture, to determine the meaning of the word of God

1. To Develop a system by approaching the Bible with fear and trembling b/c on it rests our doctrine of salvation.

i. A system can only be produced when we have done so carefully, methodically, and systematically

2. To Develop a method so that we do not confuse the voice of God with the voice of man. It will help us avoid the errors and faulty principles that can lead us astray from God’s Word.

3. A few examples of faulty interpretation:

i. 1 Cor 12 & 13: - vs. 8 – a cessationist would interpret the “perfect” as the Bible, and would say that since we now have it, we don’t need to have tongues or healing today. (Wrong view!)

ii. Where Paul is talking about the baptism for the dead. I Cor. 15:29 Mormans use this.

iii. Hating for Jesus - A book that was a classic case of an interpreter taking one verse and building a doctrine from it that violates other portions of Scripture.

iii) A Secondary need: To bridge the gap between our minds and the minds of the biblical writers. There are 4 divergences that we must overcome in order to help understand the Bible.

1. The first Divergence: Language – Bible was written in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek (Jesus told the parables in Aramaic which was interpreted by the writers in Greek)

a. English language is analytic in structure. It flows because of word order.
b. Greek is a agglutinative – a language not dependant on word order, but on word endings. The words can come in any order, but the ending and its case is what determines the meaning.

2. The second Divergence: The culture gap.

i. The cultures of our times have changed so much that we have to study the ancient to get the true meanings. Understanding the culture will help us bridge the gap, and expanding our understanding of the customs of the bible characters.

3. The third Divergence: Geography.

i. Understanding of the towns, rivers, mountains, lakes, etc….. What is the distance between the villages within Palestine? How large was the Jordan? How big is/was Mt. Sinai? It takes an experienced mountain climber one full day to climb up or down Mt. Sinai. Moses did it at least four times.

4. The fourth Divergence: History

i. If geography is the scenery, the history is the plot of the of the bible stories. (i.e. how did the Babylonian captivity affect the Jews, Roman history, the Pax Romana, and Greek culture, etc….)


A General Introduction:

1) Assumptions

a. The canon – The accepted collection of scripture. The OT, NT and that’s it. No apocryphal books.

i. It is the study of the sacred cannon which determines the boundary of scripture.

ii. We must find it’s truest text: the original manuscripts:

1. The most reliable we have is the “textus receptus” written in Greek and Hebrew.

iii. We must work out a basic theory concerning how the true text is to be determined.

1. Are there any mistakes?
2. Is the language different/same?
3. New findings compared with the older texts - ex. the Dead Sea Scrolls

iv. Determine how that basic theory determines the text of any given verse.

b. Textural Criticism – misunderstood phrase (liberals abuse it); the laborious study of finding the original manuscripts and scripture; a careful laborer of the word will find the original and compare different examples of the scripture. It’s proven that most texts that we use are very near in text and purity than the original manuscripts. NO OTHER DOCUMENTS IN HISTORY CAN CLAIM THIS.

c. Historical Criticism –

i. Deals with the authorship of the book, the date, historical background, authenticity, and literary unity (flow). Ligitimizes that which is real, and exposes the fake.

Summary: We study the cannon to determine the inspired books, the text to determine the accurate wording or meaning of those books, and the history to give us the framework for the books.


2) Definitions

a. Interpretation – The concept occurs in both testaments

i. The Old Testament – interpretation of dreams and prophesy

ii. The New Testament –

1. “Hermeneia” Greek God Hermes – who was the messenger from the Gods to the mortals. The god of the liberal arts. In reference the Bible, it’s the science and art of interpretation.

2. “Exegesis” – to take out. Let the scripture speak to me or what the scripture meant to the original hearers. What the HS is saying to us through it today.

3. “Eisegesis” – to put in. To read into a text preset ideas/presuppositions.

3) General & Special Hermeutics

a. General Hermenutics – General rules that apply to the whole bible
b. Special Hermenutices – Special rules that apply to specific parts of the bible (parables, prophecy, poetry, symbols, figures of speech, apocalyptic language)

4) There are limitations to a mere knowledge of scripture.

Just knowing the Word of God and applying these rules is not enough. We have to study the history of hermeneutics to avoid the mistakes of the past. The developement of these rules came with great painstaking trial and error. We gain from others work.

5) The qualifications of an interpreter:

a. Must be born again. Can’t understand spiritual things without the Holy Spirit (THE interpreter living inside you.
b. Need to have a passion to know God’s Word. (The wisdom of the Lord is like buried treasure)
c. Must always have a deep reverence for God. We approach him with deep humility and patience.
d. Dependence on the Holy Spirit to guide and direct. There’s a difference between Inspiration and Illumination. Inspiration is infallible, but Illumination is not. Illumination is the Holy Spirit making these truths understandable. But, my mind is involved and it can be warped by my sinful and/or biased thinking. (eisegesis)

i. Education is important. Having background in history, philosophy, etc, is good.

6) The equipment of the interpreter

a. Language Studies –

1. A parallel bible with the original language text, with a literal translation.
2. Commentaries of the past and present.

a. Martin Luther, John Calvin
b. Caution: they are biblical interpretations of scholars, their illuminations if you will.

3. Supplemental Materials:

a. Bible Dictionaries
b. Bible Encyclopedias – Zondervon's Pictorial Encyclopedia is excellent.
c. Bible Atlas, Customs and Manners of the Bible – Zondervon


7.) What about the Holy Spirit?

This is the concept of just me, the Holy Spirit, and the Bible being all that's necessary to understand the Bible. That’s all based on egotism. We should use others wisdom and study. It’s pride to think that don't need the wisdom and study of others to help us understand what we are reading.

8) Confusion of Inspiration vs. Illumination. It’s the function of the Holy Spirit to Illumin what has already been revealed. There are many other learned people who have pressed in to God to get what they have, we should take advantage of their blood, sweat, and tears.


Below is a stack. This is the track to understanding the Bible and making it applicable to our lives. We begin with the assumptions:

1. The Bible and no other. (No "Book of Mormon" in case you were wondering.)

2. The study of Hermeneutics, the rules of interpreting the Bible.

3. Exegesis, "taking out" or letting the scripture speak to us, discernment based on an initial literal reading of the scripture.

4. Systematic Theology, we compare the truths that we receive and build a systematic understanding of who God is and His relationship to man.


Systematic Theology (System created through studying entire bible.)
Exegesis (Discerning the meaning of scripture through study of original languages)
Hermeneutics (Interpretation Rules based on logic, language, and historical use)
Assumptions (Canon, Truest Text, Historical Criticism )


They build one upon the other other. So, hermeneutics is a major part of our journey to understanding Biblical interpretation and the Bible's application to our lives.


Lecture Question: (Sorry, I put the wrong title in earlier.)

How does the need for Hermeneutics affect your current understanding of how you study the Bible?