Tools to Unearth the Bible’s Treasure by Beynon & Sach

Buy the book, it’s terrific. I’ve reviewed it briefly on the church web site and I’ve not changed my views since then. See the review here http://richardperkins.blogsome.com/2006/12/22/dig-deeper/

They list 16 tools that we need to have in our biblical interpretation tool box to select as appropriate.

1. The Author’s Purpose Tool

We need to get beyond what is said, important though that is, to asking the question why it’s been said. Often the author will explicitly state his purpose for writing but on other occasions we need to be able to spot the clues. We need to answer this question if we’re to understand what God intends to say through the Biblical authors.

2. The Context Tool

We need to understand how what we’re studying fits in with what precedes it and what follows it. There are different levels of context. A sentence comes in the context of a paragraph. A paragraph comes in the context of a chapter or section. A chapter comes in the context of a whole Bible book. A book come in the context of a Testament, a Testament comes in the context of the whole Bible.

3. The Structure Tool

In paying attention to the structure of a passage we need to ask first, ‘how has the author broken down his material into sections?’ and secondly, ‘how do those sections fit together?’ Within each identified section summarise the content and then begin to work out how the sections fit together. By paying attention to the structure of the author’s material we’re often able to interpret the meaning.

4. The Linking Words Tool

Linking words help us see the logical flow of an argument because they reveal the cause and effect relationships between different statements. Words like ‘for, ‘because’ and ‘since’ explain the reason for something. Words like ‘therefore, ‘consequently’, ‘for this reason’, ‘thus’ and ‘so’ explain the result or consequence of something. ‘If’ usually implies that something will happen if certain conditions are fulfilled [though the Bible writers occasionally use ‘if’ to mean ‘because’]. ‘So that’ reveals either the purpose behind something or the result of something.

5. The Parallels Tool

Biblical poetry makes great use of parallelism. Antithetical parallelism provides contrast and occurs when the second half of a verse gives the opposite perspective to the first half. Chiastic parallelism occurs when the second half of a verse says the same as the first but flips it around. The great thing about parallelism is that it gives us two bites at the cherry when we’re trying to understand something.

6. The Narrator’s Comment Tool

Particularly in narrative sections the author may interrupt the narrative flow to provide a much needed commentary on what’s going on. This is the author’s explanation of events.

7. The Vocabulary Tool

The Bible like every other field of expertise has its own distinctive vocabulary. Whilst these technical terms can often be intimidating at first they’re meaning can be found in a Bible dictionary. Words take their meaning from their immediate context but a Bible dictionary provides the various ways in which the word is used throughout scripture. We need to be wary of assuming too much about a word and accept that the Bible writers may use a word differently to us.

8. The Translations Tool

Comparing one translation against another can prevent us from drawing conclusions from parts of the text where the translators have taken certain liberties! Of course, in an ideal world we’d be operating from the original Biblical languages but few of us have the opportunity or aptitude for that. Comparing a dynamic equivalent [DE] translation like the NIV or NLT with an essentially literal [EL] translation like the ESV or the NASB can be a useful exercise. The DE translations are easier to read, the EL translations are better for close study.

9. The Tone and Feel Tool

When we come to the Bible we need not only pay attention to the point being made but also how it is being made. We want to be alert to the author’s tone so that our imagination is awakened and our emotions engaged.

10. The Repetition Tool

When an author repeats something it’s usually because he wants to get our attention. The repeated word, phrase or idea may not exhaust the author’s meaning but it’s probably a major part of what he’s saying. Highlighter pens are a great way of keeping a track of repetition.

11. The Quotation/Allusion Tool

Bible writers often quote from other writers and it can be helpful to look up the original context of a quotation. Most Bibles provide the cross reference in a footnote. Allusions to other parts of the Bible are harder to spot but as our familiarity with the Bible increases we’ll begin to spot intentional echoes of the past.

12. The Genre Tool

Genre is a way of classifying media according to their type or style rather than specific content or storyline. There are many different types of literary genre in the Bible. There’s poetry, narrative, prophecy, gospel, wisdom, lament, apocalyptic, parable and so on. Once we’ve decided on the genre there are two general principles to follow. First, when something is presented as historical fact, pause to consider that it really happened. Secondly, when something is presented as imagery or metaphor, don’t draw literal and physical conclusions from it.

13. The Copycat Tool

Sometimes we’re supposed to follow the example of people we read about in the Bible, though not always! We need to be wary of making narrative normative! We need to work out whether the events are descriptive, that is they happened, or prescriptive, that is we’re to imitate them.

14. The Bible Timeline Tool

We need to locate the events in salvation history. We need to ask three questions. First, ‘where is this passage on the Bible timeline?’ Secondly, ‘where am I on the Bible timeline?’ Thirdly, ‘How do I read this in the light of the things that have happened in between?’ The events narrated in Exodus to Joshua anticipate in Israel’s history what will occur in the gospel. The close correspondence between the situation of the Israelites during that time and New Testament believers means that we can learn things from their experience.

15. The ‘Who am I?’ Tool

This helps us work out whether we’re supposed to identify with any character within a passage. Often Old Testament characters are anticipatory illustrations depicting Jesus and we should learn from them about him rather than about ourselves. However, there are times when they function as negative and positive role models. We just need to avoid being hasty in making ourselves the centre of attention or the hero of the Bible.

16. The ‘So What?’ Tool

We need to read the Bible and ask, ‘what does this mean for me and my life?’ In working this out we might want to ask, ‘do I need to stop doing something?’, ‘is there an aspect of my behaviour I must change? or ‘is there something new that I should start doing?’ But we need to repent not only in patterns of behaviour but also patterns of thinking. In applying the Bible we need to remember that not every passage of the Bible will be equally relevant at every point of our lives.