HERMENEUTICS (BIBLICAL INTERPRETATION) NOTES I. THE DEFINITION AND JUSTIFICATION FOR BIBLICAL INTERPRETATION 1. What is Hermeneutics? a.

The English word Hermeneutics comes from the Greek verb hermneu and the noun hermneia. These words are related to the wing-footed messenger-god Hermes in Grecian Mythology, who is responsible for transmuting what is beyond human understanding into a form that human intelligence can grasp. He is therefore believed to have discovered language and writing and so was designated the god of literature and eloquence. He therefore was the messenger or interpreter of the gods, especially his father Zeus. Consequently, the verb hermneu came to be associated with the process of bringing someone to an understanding of something in his language (thus explanation) or in another language (thus translation). Hermneu and hermneia occur 19 times in the New Testament in the sense of translation. The English word Interpret is used at times to mean explain and at other times translate. Translation in a sense is an explanation, explaining in one language what is conveyed in another language. Interpretation on the other hand is making clear and intelligible something that was unclear or unknown. b. Hermeneutics therefore is the Science and Art of interpreting the Bible. c. It is the science (principles) and art (task) by which the meaning of the biblical text is determined. It is therefore both a science and an art. As a science, it enunciates principles, investigates the laws of thought and language and classifies its facts and results. As an art, it teaches what application these principles should have and establishes their soundness by showing practical value in the elucidation of the more difficult scriptures. The hermeneutical art thus cultivates and establishes a valid exegetical procedure. Roy Zuck 2. What are Exegesis, Exposition, Homiletics and Pedagogy? Exegesis is defined as the determination of the meaning of the biblical text in its historical and literary contexts. It is the actual interpretation of the Bible; whiles hermeneutics consists of the principles by which the meaning is determined. The primary concern in exegesis is an understanding of the biblical text. b. Exposition is the communication of the text along with its relevance to the present-day hearers. The primary concern in exposition is the communication of the meaning of the text. a.

c. d. e. f.

g. h.

Homiletics is the science (principle) and art (task) by which the meaning and relevance of the biblical text are communicated in a preaching situation. Pedagogy is the science (principles) and (task) by which the meaning and relevance text are communicated in a teaching situation. Whereas exegesis is the study done in the private or in the study, exposition is the presentation done in the public from either the pulpit or the teachers desk. The exegetical process takes place in the workshop; a perspiring task in which the Bible student examines the background, meanings, and forms of words; studies the structure and parts of the sentence; seeks to ascertain the original textual reading. But not all those details are shred when he preaches or teaches the Bible. Exegesis is thus a means to an end, a step towards exposition; the foundation of exposition. Without exegesis, exposition is invalid, weak and collapsible. In conclusion, Hermeneutics is the principles for comprehending the content of the biblical text, Exegesis is the process of comprehending the content of the biblical text and Exposition is communicating the content of the biblical text thus comprehended. 3. THE HERMENEUTICS EXPOSITION PYRAMID

EDIFICATION

EXPOSITION

HOMILETICS OR PEDAGOGY THEOLOGICAL CORRELATION PERSONAL APPLICATION

EXEGESIS

OBSERVATION

HERMENEUTICS

a.

b. c.

d. e.

f. g.

4. QUALIFICATIONS FOR INTERPRETING THE BIBLE: Regeneration: - To interpret scripture one must be born again; no one can fully comprehend the meaning of the Bible unless he has been regenerated. 1Cor. 2:14; 2Cor. 4:4 and Eph. 2:2, point out the facts that the unsaved person cannot discern and comprehend spiritual things because he/she has not got the spiritual capacity to handle spiritual things; he/she is spiritually blind and dead. They do not have the indwelling Holy Spirit. Reverence for and interest in God and His Word: - Anyone who wants to interpret the Bible must have reverence for a deep respect for God, believing that He exists and that the Bible is His Word or contains His Word. A prayerful and humble attitude: - He who seeks to interpret the Word of God must recognize that it is only the writer who has the original meaning to what he has writer or said and so the need to talk to Him. He also need to recognize that in spite of talking to the author of the passage for understanding the possibility still exist for misinterpreting or misunderstanding the biblical text because we are fallible human beings. A willingness to obey the Word of God: - The approach should be one of a willingness to obey whatever will be learnt from the scriptures. Dependence on The Holy Spirit: - The Holy Spirit is both the author and the supreme and true expositor of the Word of God. This means that: i. He does not guarantee infallibility in the interpretation of scripture; the interpreter is human and for that matter fallible ii. He gives all interpreters the same meaning in conformity with the normal, literal meaning of the passage, not a secret or hidden meaning to one interpreter and a different one to another. iii. An interpreter who is wallowing in sin cannot make an accurate interpretation of the scriptures because his heart and mind are not in harmony with the Holy Spirit. iv. He only leads and guides the interpreter into all truth but does not impose the truth on the interpreter v. He does not normally give sudden intuitive flashes of insight into the meaning of scripture; some passages are readily understood, others take time to be understood even after a careful study. vi. The Holy Spirit makes the understanding of the Bible available to everyone not only to a few Pastors or elite scholars. A willingness to study and know the background, history and theology of the Bible. An approach of sound judgement, reason, objectivity, not prejudice and preconceived notions.

5. Why is Hermeneutics (Bible Interpretation) Important? a. It is essential for Understanding and Teaching the Bible properly. It is an important and focal step in Bible Study during which we observe by

b.

c. d.

e.

asking What does it say? We interpret by asking What does it mean? And we apply the lessons learnt to our lives by asking How does it apply to me? Without interpretation our Bible Study is incomplete and could lead to serious doctrinal errors like many the Mormons, The Jehovah Witnesses, The Roman Catholics and almost all denominations have done. It is essential as a Step beyond Observation. To jump from observation to application is wrong because interpretation logically follows observation. Whereas observation enables us to probe the Bible, interpretation enables us to mull it. Whereas observation is discovery, interpretation is digesting; whereas observation is depicting what is there, interpretation is deciding what it means; whereas observation is exploration, interpretation is explanation. What we observe in the biblical text needs correct handling: from the Greek word orthotomounta (ortho, meaning straight and tome, cut). Not rightly dividing as in the KJV. It is essential for applying the Bible properly. It is the link between observation and application. It is foundational to application Because of the Challenge of Bible Interpretation: - All those who read and study the Bible wants to know the truth but not all those who preach and teach the Bible are telling them the truth hence peoples faiths are being destroyed and many are being led astray. There is therefore a challenge to properly interpret the Bible that those who se to know God will find Him as they understand His Word. Because of the Problems in Bible Interpretation relating to the several gaps between the writers and we the students of the Bible today: i. The Time (Chronological) Gap: - There is a huge time gap between us on one side and the Writers and the initial recipients of the Bible, on the other side; a gap of about 1900 to 3400 years (The first five books of Moses were written about 1400 year B.C and the last book of the Bible, Revelation was written about 90 A.D.) None of those authors and initial recipients is alive today to tell us at first hand their understanding of what they said, wrote and heard. ii. The Space (Geographical) Gap: - Most of us who read and study the Bible today, live thousands of kilometers away from the countries in which the events occurred The Middle-East, Egypt, and the areas around The Mediterranean Sea and the Persian Gulf. iii. The Custom (Cultural) Gap: - Culturally, there is a great deal of difference between the writers and initial recipients of the Bible and we the later recipients. The way we, also of different and varied cultures thing and do things is different from theirs hence the need to know their culture and customs to have a better understanding of the Bible. iv. The Language (Linguistic) Gap: - With the Cultural gap come the language or Linguistic gap. The initial languages in which the Bible was written Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek have peculiarities that

are not found or have no equivalents in English or our dialects. Hence appropriate word cannot be found to replace those words during translation. Consequently, the equivalents used tend to change the meaning of the text. v. The Writing Gap: - The style and forms of writing in the Bible times defer from the styles and forms of writing today. They used proverbs and parables a lot, but it is not so today. They used a lot of figurative language that is difficult to comprehend today. vi. The Spiritual Gap: -The fact that God is finite and we are infinite already creates a gap between God and man; His ways of doing things are different from our ways of doing things hence our difficulty in comprehending some concepts in His Word like the Trinity, the two natures of Christ, Gods Sovereignty, and mans will.