40 Questions About Interpreting the Bible

Have you as a Christian ever leafed through a multitude of books and chapters trying to distinguish symbolic language or figures of speech? Have you ever asked does Jesus use hyperbole? Have you ever wondered about the differing theories concerning the inspiration of the biblical texts? Well all of this and more is covered in this well researched book "40 Questions about Interpreting the Bible".As a Christian for the past 9 years, I have found this particular book to be extremely insightful to better understand the Bible. If you are a Christian, reading this review of mine right now, please buy and read this whole book, pray over it, and ask God that you would remember it's contents. This particular book is NOT the Word of God, it may have the potential for error since a man wrote it.... but God's Word says that Jesus gave some in His Church to be "pastors and teachers":He, the very one who descended, is also the one who ascended above all the heavens, in order to fill all things.11 And he himself gave some as apostles, some as prophets, some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers,12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, that is, to build up the body of Christ,13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God—a mature person, attaining to the measure of Christ’s full stature. (Ephesians 4:10-13)In other words if you are a Christian, you can trust that God gave some to be pastors & teachers as already noted, and Robert L. Plummer did an excellent job in showing me methods and types of biblical interpretation. I trust that Jesus gave us this man as one of His teachers to explain the Bible (not infallibly).Some of the highlights in this book I want to share are as follows:1.) I got a lot out of Chapter 26, where Robert explains that Jesus uses hyperbole in His teachings. Robert says: "Thus, we should not understand Jesus literally when he says, "I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you" (Matt 17:20). Jesus is not preparing his followers to work for coal-mining companies--moving the tops of physical mountains. Rather, through faith in God, Jesus' followers will overcome seemingly impossible obstacles." (Page 225, Question 26, How Do We Interpret Exaggerated or Hyperbolic Language?)Robert also in the same Chapter/Question, Q.26, mentions that Jesus used hyperbole in Matt. 5:29-30 in describing mortifying sin, so we are NOT to actually pluck our eyes out. Robert in mentioning that, also indicates that lust is ultimately a matter of the heart. Compare (Matthew 5:28-30 with Mark 7:20-23).2.) I would wholly agree with Robert's statements on Question 4, "Does the Bible Contain Error?"Robert says: "1. Inerrancy applies only to the autographs (original copies of scripture). No one denies that there are some copying errors in every Hebrew and Greek manuscript of the Bible (particularly with numbers, for example). Yet, with the vast number of Greek and Hebrew manuscripts and their careful transmission, we are able to reconstruct the original wording of the Old and New Testament with extreme accuracy. For more detail on manuscript accuracy, see question 5 ("Were the ancient manuscripts of the Bible transmitted accurately?")" I would agree with Robert because I have already studied the subject of Textual Criticism (the term “textual criticism” is also called “Textual Analysis” in this field of study), any Christian who reads their bible should also study on Textual Criticism, it is a very helpful faith strengthener.3.) A third highlight from Robert's book would be Question 24: How Do We Interpret Prophecy? (Typology):Before delving right into this chapter I will say that Robert notes that Typology is a "subset of prophecy" (pg 205, first paragraph). Robert puts a helpful statement with respect to interpreting Typology: "When an ordinary modern American reads a passage from Matthew that says that Jesus fulfilled an Old Testament prophecy, that person assumes that Matthew is referring to the fulfillment of a unique, unrepeatable propositional prediction. In actuality, Matthew could mean that, or he could be using the word in another way--possibly referring more broadly to the fulfillment of typological patterns in Israel's history (the last meaning in Virkler's list above). If we struggle to understand this concept, the problem is not with the Bible but with our narrow understanding of prophecy, which needs to be properly informed by the actual biblical usage." (Page 209, Question 24, How Do We Interpret Prophecy? (Typology).Robert also mentions the example of a typological use in Scripture of Matthew 2:13-15 compared to Hosea 11:1, which many believers may struggle to understand today.4.) A forth and final aspect to this book that Robert helps me to understand in biblical interpretation is Question 14 which asks: "Who Determines the Meaning of a Text?He says a few different approaches to determining meaning as listed:1st: The reader as determiner of meaning2nd: The text as determiner of meaning3rd & last: The author as determiner of meaningRobert says that he advocates the 3rd position and shows how the biblical authors are the determiner of meaning BUT THAT he also responds to certain objections including that fact that if human authors were divinely inspired, then how can we say the human authors had the true meaning? In responding to this objection:He says: "To delimit meaning to the conscious intent of the human author is to deny the divine authorship of Scripture.” Two responses can be offered to this criticism. First, for the vast majority of Scripture, the conscious human author's meaning and the divinely intended meaning are indistinguishable. When Paul said, "Do everything without complaining or arguing" (Phil 2:14), one cannot imagine a difference between divine and human authorial intent.Second, the problem of distinguishing human and divine intent arises only in prophecy texts, especially those few texts that seem to be used in ways that vary from the human author's explicitly distinguishable original intent." (pages 131-132, Question 14).For those reading this review, you can simply read the Question 3 in this same book: "Who wrote the Bible--Humans or God?" This will resolve the confusion hopefully.I could go on, but my review would be too long. I will say this recommendation for the Christian reader though:1.) I would recommend this book for your own aid in Bible studies and personal study.2.) I would recommend this book for Pastors and Teachers to aid their congregations in hearing enhanced preaching.3.) I would recommend this book for evangelists (like myself) to have a greater base for apologetics with those whom you encounter when preaching the gospel of Christ.4.) I would recommend this book for the purpose of personal sanctification against the unbelieving world, against the flesh, and against the Devil.5.) I would recommend this book to be used to correct faulty hermeneutics so that you may be able to rightly divide the word of truth. (2 Tim 2:15)Peace and blessings! -A.P.

This book is a title in the 40 Questions Series edited by Benjamin L. Merkle. The first title published was 40 Questions About Elders and Deacons written by the series editor. Due to be released in October 2010 is 40 Questions about Christians and Biblical Law. Forthcoming titles include 40 Questions About Creation and Evolution, 40 Questions About Election and Atonement, 40 Questions About End Times and 40 Questions About Worship. As is Plummer and Merkle, all but of one the series authors teach at Southern Baptist seminaries.This book is a response to the difficulty Plummer had in finding the right resource to use in his course on hermeneutics. He hopes it will serve as a textbook, while also being beneficial to any interested Christians. I believe it will be more suited as a reference manual. It covers everything from the very basics ("What is the Bible?", "How is the Bible Organized?" and "What are Some General Principles for Interpreting the Bible?") to the academic ("What is Speech Act Theory?" and "What Are Some Other Recent Trends in Biblical Interpretation?").The questions are categorized into four parts. Part One covers the text, the Canon and translation. Part Two covers questions of a more general nature concerning interpretation and meaning. Part Three covers questions concerning interpreting specific genres. Part Four deals with "Issues in Recent Discussion." The writing is clear, concise and interesting. Footnotes are at the bottom of each page and each chapter (each of the 40 questions is a chapter) has questions for reflection and a listing of books for further study. I found the further study sections very helpful.Plummer holds to the verbal plenary theory of inspiration. "While the authors of the Bible wrote as thinking, feeling human beings, God so mysteriously superintended the process that every word written was also the exact word he wanted to be written - free from all error" (p.32).While answering question four ("Does the Bible Contain Error?") he defends inerrancy, which he calls the historic view of the Christian church. He defines the doctrine of inerrancy to mean, "that the Bible is completely truthful in all things that the biblical authors assert - whether in geographic, chronological, or theological detail" (p.38). He also gives some very helpful qualifications to prevent misunderstanding about what is meant by inerrancy (p. 41-44).In partial answer to question five ("Were the Ancient Manuscripts of the Bible Transmitted Accurately?") he give an excellent explanation of textual variants. He skillfully navigates the choppy waters between "Unintentional Errors" and "Intentional Errors."Question six deals with the canon, which he defines as "not an authorized collection of writings (in that the church conferred its authority or approval upon a list of books). Rather, the canon is a collection of authoritative writings...Canonization is the process of recognizing that inherent authority, not bestowing it from an outside source" (p.57).The heart of the book (and the section I enjoyed the most) is Part Two. The general principles of interpretation are divided into two questions (10 & 11). The first are more devotional in nature, the second more technical. These principles center on context, including allowing Scripture to interpret Scripture and the historical context of the words. Plummer advocates the author as determiner of meaning (p.130).In discussing the illumination of the Holy Spirit (question 16) he states, "the Spirit does not whisper some secret meaning inaccessible to others, but the Spirit does enable us to perceive facts and judge the plausibility of arguments with greater clarity" (p. 146).In Part Three Plummer answers why genre matters and first covers historical narrative, prophecy, apocalyptic, hyperbole and figures of speech before covering specifics like proverbs, poetry, psalms, parables and epistles.Part four deals with different areas of Biblical Criticism.One minor caveat. Plummer is no fan of traditional dispensationalists who "sometimes insist on literal interpretation of figurative language, though they have no defensible basis for doing so" (p.82). He also notes that "dispensationalists have an admitted bias toward reading the Bible, especially prophecies, as literal whenever possible. Figurative or symbolic approaches to Old Testament prophecy, especially those that concern Israel, are viewed with great suspicion" (p.158).I recommend this book to those who want to be better interpreters of God's Word.

Are you looking for a book to help you understand the Bible better, but don't know where to start? Here is the book about The Book for You! Dr. Plummer has not only written an excellent book, but has helped to fill a resource gap for pastors. This book fulfills several resource gaps for me as a Pastor. Here are some of the resource gaps filled:1. Personal Study (I always need to refresh)2. Learning to phrase complex teaching in understandable terms.3. An affordable understandable book to put into parishioners' hands.4. A resource that non-specialists will read and finish with understanding.Dr. Plummer has provided a valuable resource that although readable, goes beyond the ABC 123 of other many other books on introductory Bible Study. Many of the books I have read on hermeneutics are either too technical for most laity (and many clergy apparently) to read or to long finish. These 40 Questions are short enough to read and study one question a week - and retain. One can read a chapter quickly (one question) and review it for about a week. The knowledge gained will be more than worth the effort.Who would benefit from reading this book?1. Pastors who need to a quick refresher in basic Hermeneutics.2. New Christians who are wanting to understand the Bible better.3. Sunday School Teachers wanting to engage the Biblical text rather than the notes of a quarterly.4. A gift for someone who recently made a profession of faith.5. Church lending Library.

I bought this because it was on the recommended list for a course I'm taking. So glad I did as it is reallly, really helpful. It isn't at all what I expected . . thank goodness! It's much, much better. It explains some of the terminology and theory used in theology studies, but is also written in language simple enough for almost anyone to understand. It starts with the broadest overview (ie "What is the Bible") and then explains how to study it, the different approaches to interpreting the various genres, and concludes with a useful bibliography, scripture index, and sources index. Each chapter has a "Reflection Questions" and "For Further Study" section, too. This book would be useful to everyone who wants to go deeper in their understanding of the Bible.

I purchased this book as I am a student at Bible College and this book was one that was recommended. Find this book helpful and a real asset in studying the Bible. Would recommend this book to students of all ages!

Every question raised in this book was like a gem to my eye, wooing my attention to want to know the answers, and every chapter dedicated to answering the questions was like feasting on a delicious home-cooked meal--simple in presentation but very rich in nutrition. I am grateful to Dr. Plummer for the availability of this book and I would highly recommend for every believer and student of the Scriptures. This well written book will equip as well as stir your soul to desire to read the greatest book ever written, the Word of God.

Robert Plummer wrote this book with a college or seminary Bible course in mind. "Ideally," he writes, "it would serve as a textbook..." but would also "be beneficial to any curious Christian." His goal "was to be accessible without being simplistic and scholarly without being pedantic, while always keeping an eye to practical questions and real-life application by the Christian reader." He succeeds, I'd say. I don't know of any other introductory book on interpreting scripture that would be as useful for any Christian who desires to better understand the Bible as 40 Questions About Interpreting the Bible.40 Questions has 326 pages, which might sound long, but it's made up of 40 short stand-alone chapters. It'd be perfectly fine for you to look at the list of questions and jump right in to those that interest you most and skip (but hopefully not forever) those you're less interested in. And there are plenty of charts and lists to keep things uncomplicated and enough humour and stories to keep things unstuffy. (I started reading it while traveling and its format is perfect for that.)The book is divided into four sections. The questions in Part 1 concern the text, the canon, and the translation of scripture; in Part 2 they're on the general interpretation of the Bible; Part 3 includes questions on interpreting the various literary genres in scripture; and Part 4 has questions about some contemporary issues in hermeneutics.That last section, by the way, is the one I found least helpful. I ignore discussions of contemporary issues in almost everything because so many things turn out to be nothing much in the end. Seminary students probably need to know this stuff, but I don't, at least not yet. And this is the section of the book that's going to feel outdated too soon as "contemporary issues" change.One heads-up about Plummer's book: He takes a few jabs that are likely to annoy dispensationalists, who would, if you ask me, be wise to simply overlook those remarks on account of the value of the book as a whole.I've already said that I'd recommend 40 Questions for any believer, but more specifically:+If you want to learn how to study the Bible for yourself, this would be an excellent tool.+If you have a few serious questions about the Bible, this may give you the answers you seek.+If you teach a Bible study, this will make you better at it.+If you've come across interpretations of the Bible that confuse you...or give you the heebie-jeebies, this may clear thing up for you or help you find just where an interpretation went wrong.+If you work with (or have your own) teens or young people, this would be an excellent resource to help you answer some of their questions about the Bible. Or you could just give them this book and let them find the answers for themselves.Here's the bottom line: Your home library should have a copy of 40 Questions About Interpreting the Bible and so should your church library. No if, and, or buts.

This made a useful aid to my studies. Like all reference books you take from it what you want but it will remain on my shelf for "dipping into".