What Do We Do About the Foreigner?

Despite popular sentiment, the Bible really does have a lot to say to modern life, but it's rarely as simple as finding the one verse that speaks to an issue. Thus when someone pulls out a verse and claims it's all you need to know on a political or social issue, it's reasonable to be skeptical. Let's look together at a topic that's generating a lot of heat right now.

Is "do not oppress the foreigner" really all scripture has to say about our immigration debates? I'd like to invite you to look over my shoulder as I wrestle with the issue biblically.

The Great Awakening That Didn't

Do you ever read the Bible and wonder "why is this here?" There are lots of passages that are head scratchers. In reading in the OT this year, I've gotten to a portion that made me ask "what's the point here?", and the more I think about it, the more I think the key is in the differences.

How Not to Apply the Bible

One of the hardest things about Bible study is figuring out what to apply. Some things are so specific to a particular person, culture, or situation they aren't universally applicable, but people will still try to do it.

This is sort of going to be a book review, but I want to focus on one glaring, and unfortunately common, problem in a book that is otherwise ... unimpressive but fine.

TL;DR

I was about twenty when I decided I really needed to sit down and read through the Bible. I can't tell you how many times I've read through it since then, and yet I am continually coming across passages I don't remember ever having read before. I know I've read them, but the Bible is just so big it's hard to contain it all in your head.

It's easy to forget how massive the Bible is; after all, you can get a version that will fit in your pocket. But when it's printed like a normal book, meaning proper paper and readable font ... well, Crossway used to publish it as a six-volume set. That's a lot to remember. Fortunately the church has produced a way to help us keep the most important things at the forefront.

Building the Habit

Christians are taught to revere the word of God. After all it's "living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart" (Heb 4:12). It's "God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work" (2Tim 3:16-17). The scriptures are "more precious than gold, than much pure gold; they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the comb" (Psalm 19:10).

We love the Bible. But we still struggle to read it.

Who may live on your holy hill?

The old saying goes "familiarity breeds contempt." In my experience, though, it's more likely to breed complacency: We tend to take the people we know best for granted. We don't even notice street signs on roads we regularly drive.

And we rarely notice anything new in our favorite Bible passages. So it's nice, if a little jarring, when one of them jumps up and grabs us with something we've never seen before.

Of Sons and Promises

Sometimes the smallest things in the Bible can pack a lot of punch.

“This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham.”

The first verse of Matthew is easy to rush by. It seems like it’s a title or just introducing the genealogy that follows (that we also rush by). But it’s actually packed with meaning. The author is telling us quite a bit about the subject of the genealogy and the rest of the book.

What Do We Do About False Teachers?

The problem of false teachers comes up in several New Testament books. Christ predicted them, and they quickly became a plague on the early church. One book gives very practical guidance on how to respond to this situation, but it can be easy to get lost in the weeds and not really see what we’re getting.

When we talk about Bible study, I think we usually picture digging deep into the text, looking at the minutia like verb tenses or repeated terms or doing a word study. Taking a microscope to scripture is important. But so is getting a macro view. I recently shared several resources that talked about outlining. Outlining is not cool, and you don’t need high powered tools to do it. But I want to share an example of how it can open up a passage to us.

When the Bible Challenges Your Cherished Beliefs

You ever have one of those dreams where your friend turns into a monster and attacks you? Um, yeah ... me neither.

We go to the scriptures for comfort and guidance and to know our Lord better. When we study the Bible, our problem is usually things we don’t understand. But sometimes the scriptures seem to turn on you. What do we do with passages we think we understand but seem to call our cherished beliefs into question?

Bible Study Ideas

Today I’d like to share some things I’ve come across that help you dig into the scriptures while getting a bird’s eye view of the scriptures.

Pulling Weeds

As we read the scriptures, we will come across boring parts. In the Old Testament, we find long lists of numbers. In both Old and New we find genealogies. In the epistles we find sections that seem like filler, where the author is basically saying hi from everyone here to everyone there. It’s natural to want to skim or even skip over those parts.

Don’t. A little effort can sometimes find some powerful truths hidden in those passages.

Begging Jesus

Familiarity breeds boredom. When you’ve read a passage in the Bible countless times, it’s easy to assume you know it and breeze through, just trying to make it to the end. Slowing down and reading closer can make the familiar new.

I’ve been reading through Mark, but only a pericope or two at a time, repeatedly. I’m trying to read it like someone who’s never heard of this Jesus guy before and to keep an eye on the broader story Mark is telling. When I came to the account of Gadarene demoniac, a familiar story I’m quite fond of, I saw something on my third pass through I would probably not have seen if I wasn’t reading with a pen in my hand.

Inductive Reading Tools

So you decide you want to try inductive reading. And then you vapor lock because there are just so many options in study tools. How do you decide what to use? Let me offer a little advice on that.

Reading for Depth Over Distance

My wife and I joined a small Bible study group, and because of that I’m doing a deep study of the scriptures for the first time in far too long. I’d forgotten just how much I enjoy it and how much you can get out of it. But it takes a lot of time. I can read Colossians in 15 minutes. I can easily spend an hour studying one paragraph. What if there were a way to split the difference? What if we just spent that 15 minutes applying some of the basic principles of Bible study to that paragraph?

I’ve been trying that. The result is seeing more than I’d ever see on a quick read through the passage. It doesn’t deliver the full benefits of a deep study, but it’s so much better than just a surface read. It’s like sitting down to a hot lunch versus a quick vending machine snack.

After some experimentation, I’ve ironed out a method. Now I’m ready to share it, to show you how you can get more out of the Bible in the amount of time you already spend in it.

A Hidden Wonder of the Incarnation

When studying the Bible, sometimes noticing the smallest detail can open the passage up to you. And sometimes they reveal little gems of truth that are just casually tucked in beside the author’s main point. We hit upon one of those in our small group recently, and I thought it made an excellent meditation for Christmas.

Dig Deeper

“The congregation gets the crumbs of the pastor’s Bible study.” When a professor said that years ago, I didn’t really understand; now I believe it. When I’ve sat through a sermon over a passage I’ve studied, and when I’ve studied in order to teach something, it’s become clear that there is so much bounty, so much juicy goodness that it cannot possibly all fit into any sermon or lesson.

So if you’re not digging into the scriptures for yourself, you’re missing out. Even if you regularly read the Bible, you may be leaving so much treasure unearthed.

Think of the scriptures like a fancy layered dessert — maybe a cake or parfait. There are several layers, and each offers new delights. If you don’t dig down into all the layers, you’re missing out.

Easter Eggs in the Old Testament

The scriptures testify about Jesus. That’s what he said (John 5:39, 46; cf Luke 24:27), and his followers took him at his word. They poured over the Old Testament looking for Jesus, and they found him all over the place. Some of those places puzzle us.

When Isaiah describes a servant who is pierced for our transgressions and crushed for our iniquities (53:5), we’re within our rights to see Jesus. When David describes someone whose hands and feet are pierced, whose clothes are divided by casting lots (Ps 22:16-18), we’d have to be blind not to see Jesus. But when Hosea says, “Out Egypt I called my son” (11:1), aren’t we taking it completely out of context to say it’s about Jesus like Matthew does (2:14)? The problem is we have a fairly limited sense of the word “prophecy” compared to the apostles.

Theologians and Bible teachers speak of types, patterns, and figures in the OT, but literature gives us a simpler concept: foreshadowing — a literary device where an author gives the reader a hint of what is to come. In modern media, we have developed another useful concept: the Easter egg. 

Links - Bible Study

This week I offer you a collection of articles on reading or studying the Bible well. I hope you find them useful.

♦ Why I Stopped Calling Parts of the Bible ‘Boring’

When I announced that we were spending the next six months in Jeremiah, I said something I’d heard many Bible teachers say before me: “I know this book is boring. But we’re going to learn something.” I think I was trying to lower the stakes for them—or maybe for me. I was setting the bar low so that if Jeremiah held their interest even a little, that was a success.

But looking back, I regret saying it. It’s not true. Jeremiah isn’t boring. The Bible isn’t boring. Even the parts that people always say are boring are weird, gripping, and awe-inspiring. If we let them, they will absolutely command our attention.

Going Deep

As the new year approaches, you're probably starting to think about what Bible reading plan you'll use next year. There are lots to choose from, but most come at the subject from one perspective: breadth. Most have you read the Bible in a year; some have you reading the NT twice in a year. If that's what you want to do, more power to you.

We can approach the Bible differently, though. Having a broad familiarity with the Bible is good. So is having a depth of knowledge. It's good to get into the Bible; it's better to get the Bible into you. So if you've read through the Bible more than a couple of times, perhaps it'd be a good year to slow down. Way down.

Bible-in-a-year plans abound, but basically if you average three chapters a day you'll get through the Bible in about a year. What if you, instead, read one chapter three times? Don't just read the chapter but ask it questions and spend time reflecting on what you learn. Yes, that means it would take you three years to read through the Bible. But you'd probably know it better.

Other approaches: John MacArthur talks about reading a book every day for thirty days (breaking up longer books into sections that are treated the same way). With this approach, it'll take several years to read through the Bible.

Maybe thirty times through is more than you've got the patience for; how about five times? Reading a short book, for example Ephesians, through in one sitting every day for a week will help you see the whole message of the book and how the parts connect.

Don't be afraid to read commentaries, either. Going slowly through a book with a commentary in hand, written by someone who's spent years studying that book, can be very illuminating.

I think my approach in the coming year — the next few, actually — will be to read a book through a couple of times and then go a chapter at a time (maybe less). I'll read the passage once to get the big picture then go through it again asking questions of the text and meditating and praying on the answers.

What questions? These have been endlessly useful:

• What is the main message of this passage?
• What does this tell me about God?
• What does this tell me about human nature?
• Is there anything here I need to know, stop doing, change, or start doing?

There are other questions you might ask, of course (see below), but these are easily applied to any passage and easy to remember.

But whatever approach you take, I hope you'll make a plan to be in the Bible regularly in the coming year. The world is constantly trying to conform us to itself. Either we will be transformed by the renewing of our minds, or we will be conformed to the world. There are no other options.


Other questions:
The 5 W’s & H in Bible Study
7 Arrows of Bible Reading

Related:
The New Testament Out of Order
7 Tips for Reading the Bible in a Year


Image via Pixabay

A Passionate Mistake

Have you wondered about the Passion Translation?

These days new English translations of the Bible are popping up all the time, and it can be hard to keep up. If you're not trained in the biblical languages, it can be hard to tell whether a new translation is good or not. When I study a passage in the Bible, I like to compare several translations and even the occasional paraphrase to try and get a sense of what the text means before I look at any commentaries. Should I add the Passion to my reference shelf?

The Passion Translation of the full New Testament was released in 2017 (he's still working on the OT). Unlike most Bible translations today, it is the work of one man, Brian Simmons. The project's website says Simmons is a linguist who "co-translated the Paya-Kuna New Testament for the Paya-Kuna people of Panama." He used the usual New Testament source materials (the Novum Testamentum Graece, 28th edition) plus the Syriac Peshitta (written in Aramaic) because, he says, scholars are coming to realize that there was an earlier Aramaic version of most of the NT books before they were translated into Greek.

And it turns out most of the preceding paragraph is false.

YouTuber and pastor Mike Winger employed several respected NT scholars to critique the Passion Translation. He asked them to write papers on their findings, then he interviewed them about their work. He also did some digging into Simmons' background. The papers, the interviews, and Mike's account of his own work on this new version can be found on his website. I encourage you to listen to the interviews and/or read the papers, but you can get a sense of how things are going by listening to any one of the interviews. (The one with Darrell Bock is a good interview and the shortest.)

But as a public service, I wanted to give a brief illustration that will summarize Winger et al's findings.

In Bible translation, there are different approaches. Some strive to deliver a word for word (people usually say "literal" or "formally equivalent") translation of the ancient language and let commentaries explain difficult terms and idioms. Some try to transmit the meaning the author was trying to get across with less concern for the actual words used (sometimes called "functional equivalence"). And some try to deliver the emotional impact that the original would have had to the original audience even if that means adding some material (ie, paraphrases). (Of course, all translations do all of these things, but they all tend more toward one approach or another.)

Now to the illustration. In German, there is a phrase "du bist eine lahme ente." It literally means "you are a lame duck". But it's an idiom for "you are a dull, boring person." We might say such a person is a "wet blanket." Let's apply this to some modern translations:

NASB: You are a lame duck.
NIV: You are a dull, boring person.
Message: You are a wet blanket.
Passion: You are such a wet blanket I would have gouged my eyes out by now if the Lord hadn't activated in me a spirit of patience.

My additions are intentional. Winger's band of scholars largely agree that the Passion "Translation" is better called a paraphrase and that when it adds "explanatory material," it is generally inserting Simmons' particular brand of charismatic theology. When it isn't doing that it is ... adequate. Where it's not altogether too original it's nothing special.

So should you read the Passion Translation? I can't answer that for you, but I can tell you that I won't be adding it to my collection.