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How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth: Fourth Edition?
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The context and language is very important, as well as the type of literature. For instance, it is clear that when Jesus tells a parable, it is not literal. But a large proportion of the Bible is intended as historical narrative. A book I will recommend is How to Read the Bible for All It's Worth
The Bible is the inspired Word of God, given through people at specific times and places in their specific cultures and in their languages. We live in very different cultures, a very different time and speak different languages - some confusion is expected.
Try reading some old English stories, from many hundreds of years ago, like beowulf.They are hard to comprehend and were written in a culture and language more similar to ours than the Bible.
https://www.amazon.com/How-Read-Bible-All-Worth/dp/0310517826 is a great beginner's guide.
I am so sorry to see you in such distress. You might want to learn about exegesis. A great book for those who don't have a degree in theology is how to read the bible for all its worth
https://www.amazon.com/How-Read-Bible-All-Worth/dp/0310517826
One basic concept is prescriptive vs. descriptive scripture. The Bible is the inspired word of God, but delivered through human hands in specific times and places. Verses describing a male dominant culture are descriptive of a fallen world, not prescriptive of the way God made us to be. God did not make women to be inferior to men, He made them different from one another, but I think those specific differences are not clear, they are overshadowed by the false differences put on by human cultures, ancient AND modern.
King David is often referred to as "a man after God's own heart". He was full of sin, selfishness, sexual sin, he was a horrible husband and father. Does that mean God wants us all to live lives like David did? Of course not.
David's virtue lay in his repentance, he was open to God's correction. When the prophet Nathan accused David of adultery, David didn't have Nathan killed and ignore the warning, but he repented and begged for forgiveness.
God loves you, in a way that no human can. He is willing and able to help you live a fulfilling life on earth, and welcome you into heaven where he will heal you from all the damage of sin from our earthly lives.
Please don't put the blame on God for the sins of people.
I agree with Paul, in context. Do a bit of research on how to interpret the Bible. A great book is how to read the bible for all it's worth.
How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth: Fourth Edition https://www.amazon.com/dp/0310517826/ref=cm_sw_r_awdo_navT_g_5KXJDX55TD83XSR0WJQ0
You will see that some things were written to specific people in a specific time and/or place, and other things are written as guidance for us, while others are written as historical texts, and some as directives for us (go into all the world... great commandment and great commission)
IMHO, those directives of Paul were to address orderly worship in a particular society, not a directive for all people. At that time, there was much disorder, gossip, and strife coming from many women in some of the new churches. Some have speculated it was due to the newfound gender equality and learning how to handle it.
How to Read the Bible for All its Worth by Gordon Fee and Douglas Stuart is an excellent introduction, right about the length you're looking for. I don't think there are any formal study materials (like a teacher's guide or workbook) to go along with it, but the content is simple and straightforward enough to easily outline a guide for it. I think there may be some unofficial resources out there as well.
Get alone with God and talk with Him about what you've read. Talk out loud as if you're talking to a real person who is in the room with you. Talk to Him about your understanding of what He was doing in the text that you read, and worship Him as you do. Ask Him questions or tell Him things you don't understand, and then make some time to sit quietly and meditate so the Spirit can minister understanding to your heart and mind.
Additionally, check out this book by Gordon Fee and Douglas Stuart: https://smile.amazon.com/How-Read-Bible-All-Worth/dp/0310517826/ref=dp_ob_title_bk . No commentary or book can substitute for actually reading and meditating on the Word of God, but this book really helped me understand the types of literature in Bible, so I was better able to grasp what I was reading and how I should attempt to interpret it.
Lastly, I'd caution that passion is a feeling that can come and go. I would definitely pray and ask God to give you a heart that is passionate for the reading of His word, but understand that some days you'll feel it and probably most days you won't. Understand that the daily discipline of obedience is an act of worship in itself. Don't take pride in your great obedience, of course, but trust that as you are drawing near to God, He will also draw near to you.
I would recommend the book How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth, by Gordon Fee. It's an excellent summary of the different kinds of books and genres contained within the bible and how best to read them (since the Bible is a collection of 66 different kinds of books, not one).
I'd always recommend that you read the Bible with others as well. If you don't have a very strong background in Christianity (and sometimes even if you do) then a lot of it may be confusing. Therefore its good to read it and discuss it with other Christians in a study group so you can ask questions and explore what it means.
Hermeneutics is about how we interpret the Bible and get meaning out of it. It's a big book full of different genre's of writing and it was written thousands of years ago in different cultural settings by many authors. Because of that it takes some learning. Good thing that most of the Bible is written in stories =) I like the Bible Project guys on how to read the bible (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLH0Szn1yYNedn4FbBMMtOlGN-BPLQ54IH) or if you want to read a book, this one is a good start! (https://www.amazon.com/How-Read-Bible-All-Worth/dp/0310517826/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=how+to+read+the+bible+for+all+it%27s+worth&qid=1606358335&sr=8-1)
>I don't really have any questions regarding the explanations but I do want to ask if you have any advice on better understanding the bible. Sometimes it can include an immense amount of metaphors and can be quite poetic, how do we know what to take literally and what to look at as a metaphorical message.
That's a really good question. There are two resources I would point you to. The first is The Bible Project. They have very helpful and easy to understand videos. The other is a book called How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth.
In terms of advice, I have a few pieces. The first is to be patient with yourself. The Bible is a big collection of books that span through many different cultures and a couple of languages, and not our culture or our language. There is a lot that's difficult to work through and some passages legitimately have a couple of different ways to read them that are valid - so its hard to know which one is right. My theology doesn't look the same as it did when I was your age, but I am no more or less saved now than I was then. There are very few issues that, if you get wrong you would no longer be considered a Christian. So recognizing and remembering that many issues that we try to figure out aren't issues of a first order (things we must believe if we are to consider ourselves Christians) is gonna go a long way to helping you feel a little more at ease.
Another thing is to think about how a certain passage would have been understood by the original audience. This means kind of looking into the surrounding time and culture. Thinking about "what would this mean to the original audience?" "What is the purpose for this Biblical author to write to the audience he is writing to?" There is a well-respected scholar named Dr. John Walton who likes to say "The Bible was written for us, but not to us." Its also important to keep the genre of the literature in mind. So, the Psalms are poetry, so we shouldn't take much their literally. Proverbs and Song of Solomon are Wisdom lit which contain poetic aspects.
There are some things that are poetic/metaphorical, but I don't always think that that is a useful dichotomy. Sometimes something is metaphorical and it is historical. In other words, there are times where the Bible is discussing something that happened, but the way that they do describe it is done in a more "poetic" way to make certain theological points.
>I also want to ask if you believe hell is a real place or if it's just death and complete separation from God.
I believe in Conditional Immortality (AKA Annihilationism). So, I believe that hell is a real thing, but that when people go there they will die, and be destroyed in both body and soul. This is a minority position, but its what I believe the Bible says after studying the topic out for a while.
>I don't really have any questions regarding the explanations but I do want to ask if you have any advice on better understanding the bible. Sometimes it can include an immense amount of metaphors and can be quite poetic, how do we know what to take literally and what to look at as a metaphorical message.
That's a really good question. There are two resources I would point you to. The first is The Bible Project. They have very helpful and easy to understand videos. The other is a book called How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth.
In terms of advice, I have a few pieces. The first is to be patient with yourself. The Bible is a big collection of books that span through many different cultures and a couple of languages, and not our culture or our language. There is a lot that's difficult to work through and some passages legitimately have a couple of different ways to read them that are valid - so its hard to know which one is right. My theology doesn't look the same as it did when I was your age, but I am no more or less saved now than I was then. There are very few issues that, if you get wrong you would no longer be considered a Christian. So recognizing and remembering that many issues that we try to figure out aren't issues of a first order (things we must believe if we are to consider ourselves Christians) is gonna go a long way to helping you feel a little more at ease.
Another thing is to think about how a certain passage would have been understood by the original audience. This means kind of looking into the surrounding time and culture. Thinking about "what would this mean to the original audience?" "What is the purpose for this Biblical author to write to the audience he is writing to?" There is a well-respected scholar named Dr. John Walton who likes to say "The Bible was written for us, but not to us." Its also important to keep the genre of the literature in mind. So, the Psalms are poetry, so we shouldn't take much their literally. Proverbs and Song of Solomon are Wisdom lit which contain poetic aspects.
There are some things that are poetic/metaphorical, but I don't always think that that is a useful dichotomy. Sometimes something is metaphorical and it is historical. In other words, there are times where the Bible is discussing something that happened, but the way that they do describe it is done in a more "poetic" way to make certain theological points.
>I also want to ask if you believe hell is a real place or if it's just death and complete separation from God.
I believe in Conditional Immortality (AKA Annihilationism). So, I believe that hell is a real thing, but that when people go there they will die, and be destroyed in both body and soul. This is a minority position, but its what I believe the Bible says after studying the topic out for a while.
I'm not going to delve into your argument/thesis but will suggest you read something like
https://www.amazon.com/How-Read-Bible-All-Worth/dp/0310517826
Taking something like that from the Psalms and applying it the way you have is a red flag for me.
Understanding a little more of the context of verse and book is helpful. The Bible is not a long list of 'Commands from God' or trueisms that are universally applicable.
In particular the 1 Corinthians passages are about meat sacrificed to idols. And the passage in Romans is about honoring your brother believer who is still 'weak' in his faith. And at heart it is about honoring the law when it is no longer required.
Understanding how the New and Old covenants work and work together is important in understanding the 'jot and tittle' statement. We Gentiles are not Jews.
This is a good read on the subject
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4826020-what-the-bible-says-about-covenant
Non-mobile: How To Read The Bible For All Its Worth
^That's ^why ^I'm ^here, ^I ^don't ^judge ^you. ^PM ^/u/xl0 ^if ^I'm ^causing ^any ^trouble. ^WUT?
Exegesis is looking at Scripture and trying to figure out what it originally meant to its audience. This means studying the historical context surrounding the verse. Someone mentioned Isaiah 53 not being about the Messiah. Why do they believe this? Well if you look at the historical context it makes sense that it's about Israel and/or Isaiah himself. Isaiah was traditionally believed to be martyred by the king of Israel. But later in the New Testament Paul applies a new meaning to the verse and attributes it to Christ. Which is right? Well as a Christian I would say both are important. Hermeneutics is merely taking what you learned through exegesis and applying it to a modern context or what it means to us.
As for learning more about it I could name many different books, but here are the ones I read first:
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