About this deal
We are also agreed that the preacher or teacher is all too often prone to dig first and look later, and thereby at times to cover up the plain meaning of the text, which often lies on the surface. While interpretation of Revelation may continue to be elusive for the reader, Fee and Stuart remind the interpreter of the overarching approach to difficult pericope in Scripture: "If there are some ambiguities for us as to how all the details are to work out, there is no ambiguity as to the certainty that God will work it all out. The fundamental guiding principles they offer are helpful and should absolutely allow people to think more clearly about how the text can be understood and used. How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth by Gordon Fee and Douglas Stewart examines the exegetical and hermeneutical issues related to the various genres of biblical literature.
This is hands-down the best treatment of hermeneutics (or bible-study or exegesis) that I've ever come across. But somehow, when we see the word “Bible,” the normal rules fly out the window and we seem to feel that different rules should apply, because it’s not the common man’s poetry.However, this rule, particularly in the OT books, violates how the NT interprets the old and what Jesus Himself says to us about Himself in the OT in Luke 24:27: "And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself. While many of the suggestions are applicable to reading different genres in general, the material breaks down when to apply them and where it’s not appropriate to apply them. They are honest about what the Bible CANNOT tell us and give a lot of excellent examples of how exegesis (determining what the author meant) and interpretation (determining what it should mean to me) should work.
I'd long understood that most abuses of biblical quotation and interpretation centered around either proof-texting, or a simple lack of thorough reading (not reading the verse before and after the verse in question, never mind taking the time to read the full paragraph or chapter it's actually found in. This leads us to note further, that in any case the reader of an English Bible is already involved in interpretation.
How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth I consider it to be a cornerstone towards the better understanding of the writings and the teachings contained within the Holy Bible. I might even use it when I teach a class on biblical interpretation because it has a lot of helpful material. It will surpass any other religous works when judged by the same standard with which we judge any other ancient work. We can debate over how to interpret and understand 1 Corinthians, but we can't simply say it wasn't Paul's writing (or a single verse was added by mistake). The reality that various interpretations will dominate the theological landscape is clearly addressed.
The extent the authors elucidate techniques of interpreting misinterpreted passages in the epistles is commendable and one of the highlights of their work. There are some, of course, who believe that the Bible is merely a human book, and that it contains only human words in history.
It sets out how to undertake Exegesis (discover the original, intended meaning of the Bible to those it was originally written for) and Hermeneutics (how to apply that meaning to contemporary situations). The hermeneutical analysis of Acts shares similarities with the analysis of the epistles, especially in the area of modern application of first century issues and concerns. Gordon Fee is Professor Emeritus of New Testament at Regent College, where he taught for sixteen years.
The discussion of vertical and horizontal thinking was interesting, yet was mired in comparative word counting and percentages of agreement. Douglas Stuart (PhD Harvard) is senior professor of Old Testament at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. A few essential insights into the Bible can clear up a lot of misconceptions and help you grasp the meaning of Scripture and its application to your twenty-first-century life.This statement articulates, perhaps even more than the discussion of the intricacies of narrative, the need for interpreters to properly evaluate historical genre.