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A logical deduction from the fact that the Bible is the Word of God is that Scripture should be held above all other ideas or opinions about anything. It would make no sense to acknowledge that the Bible is God's Word on one hand and yet look to something else as a rule or guide.

The three major slogans of the Reformation were "sola fide" ("faith alone"), "sola gratia" ("grace alone"), and "sola scriptura" (Scripture alone). Sola fide and sola gratia stressed that salvation was by grace through faith as opposed to the Roman Catholic system of works, sacraments, and ritual. Sola scriptura stood for the refutation of the Roman Catholic exaltation of the authority of tradition and the Church to equality with Scripture. R.C. Sproul writes:

"'The only source and norm of all Christian knowledge is the Holy Scripture.'" This thematic statement...of Heinrich Heppe...provides a succinct expression of the Reformation slogan: Sola Scriptura....Though the chief theological issue of the Reformation was the question of the matter of justification, the controversy touched heavily on the underlying question of authority....The question of the source of Luther's doctrine and the normative authority by which it was to be judged was vital to his cause....Paul Althaus summarizes the train of Luther's thought by saying:

Thus Althaus sees Luther's principle of Sola Scriptura arising as a corollary of the inerrancy of Scripture....The Reformation principle of Sola Scriptura involved inerrancy. Sola Scriptura, ascribing to the Scriptures a unique authority, must be understood in a normative sense. Not descriptive, but rather normative authority is meant by the formula. The normative character of the Sola Scriptura principle may be seen by a brief survey of sixteenth-century Reformed confessions. The Theses of Berne (1528):

The Geneva Confession (1536):

Uniformly the sixteenth-century confessions elevate the authority of Scripture over any other conceivable authority. Thus, even the testimony of angels is to be judged by the Scriptures. Why? Because, as Luther believed, the Scriptures alone are inerrant. Sola Scriptura as the supreme norm of ecclesiastical authority rests ultimately on the premise of the infallibility of the Word of God....

The context of the Sola Scriptura schema with respect to source was the issue (raised over against Rome) regarding the relationship of Scripture and Tradition. Central to the debate was the Council of Trent's declaration regarding Scripture and Tradition....In the Fourth Session of the Council of Trent the following decree was formulated:

In this decree the Roman Catholic church apparently affirmed two sources of special revelation-Scripture and the Tradition of the church-although in recent years this "dual source" theory has come into question within the Roman church....Some scholars argue that Tradition adds no new content to Scripture but merely serves either as a depository in the life of the church or as a formal interpretive tool of the church....One thing is certain. The Roman church has interpreted Trent as affirming two sources of special revelation since the sixteenth century. Vatican I spoke of two sources. The papal encyclical Humani Generis spoke of "sources of revelation." Even Pope John XXIII spoke of Scripture and Tradition in Ad Petri Cathedram. Not only has the dual-source theory been confirmed both by ecumenical councils and papal encyclicals, but tradition has been appealed to on countless occasions to validate doctrinal formulations that divide Rome and Protestantism. This is particularly true regarding decisions in the area of Mariology. Over against this dual-source theory stands the sola of Sola Scriptura. Again, the Reformers did not despise the treasury of church tradition. The great councils of Nicea, Ephesus, Chalcedon, and Constantinople receive much honor in Protestant tradition. The Reformers themselves gave tribute to the insights of the church fathers....But the difference is this: For the Reformers no church council, synod, classical theologian, or early church father is regarded as infallible. All are open to correction and critique....Protestant churches have tended to be confessional in character....Confessions have been used as test of orthodoxy and conformity to the faith and practice of the church. But the confessions are all regarded as reformable. They are considered reformable because they are considered fallible. But the Sola Scriptura principles in its classic application regards the Scripture as irreformable because of its infallibility. Thus the two primary thrusts of Sola Scriptura point to: 1) Scripture's uniqueness as normative authority and 2) its uniqueness as the source of special revelation. Norm and source are the twin implicates of the Sola Scriptura principle." (R.C. Sproul, "Sola Scriptura: Crucial to Evangelicalism," in The Foundation of Biblical Authority, James Montgomery Boice, ed.; Zondervan:Grand Rapids,MI; 1978, pp.103-109)

Sola Scriptura-Scripture alone-does not mean the Bible is the only book we use, but it does mean that Scripture is the measure, standard, or rule by which every other book or idea is judged regarding whether it is true or not. Other writings and ideas are valid only inasmuch as they agree with Scripture. Of course, there are some subjects upon which the Scriptures are silent. In that case, we compare what Scripture says about a similar subject with the one under consideration. Or, we weigh the significance of the Bible's silence on that particular subject.

Since the Bible is the very Word of God and is therefore the rule or standard by which everything else is judged, and since, as the Word of God, it contains God's prescription for life now and after and His counsel and commandments for living, it is critically important that men

grasp and apply its message to their lives. In fact, it would be logically inconsistent to hold that the Bible is the Word of God on the one hand and yet ignore its message as so many do. Many are guilty of these logical inconsistencies:

To hold it is the Word of God-

but not seek to find out what it says;

To hold it is the Word of God-

but not believe it;

To hold that the Bible is the Word of God-

but not do what it says;

To hold it is the Word of God-

but say one cannot be sure what it means; or

that it means whatever one thinks it means;

To hold (especially if one is a Christian) that it is the Word of God-but not love it enough to read or hear it.

To search, understand, and apply the message of the Word of God to our lives must be the highest lifelong pursuit of the Christian.

There are a number of things Scripture is said to be or to which it is likened in the Bible which would suggest some of its purposes and uses: 1) a lamp or light (Ps.119:105; Prov.6:23); 2) a counselor or guide (Ps.119:24; Prov.6:22); 3) an instructor (Job 50:17; Ps.50:17); 4) a covenant (contract) (Ps.25:10; 50:16; 103:17,18); 5) a testament or will; 6) seed (Lk.8:11; 1 Cor.3:6); 7) food-bread, milk, meat (Dt.8:3; Mt.4:4; 1 Cor.3:2; Heb.5:12,13; 1 Pet.2:2); 8) a sword (Eph.6:17; Heb.4:12); 9) a mirror (James 1:23,24); and 10) treasure (Ps.119:72,127,162). The Bible has also been likened to a ruler or measuring rod and to a road map.

The 119th Psalm is well known, not only for the fact that it is the longest chapter in the Bible (176 verses), but also because each verse (with few exceptions) extols the Word of God, which is called "law(s)," "statutes," "precepts," "decrees," "commands," "promises," "word(s)." It speaks of many ways in which the Bible is to be used: "consider, seek out, learn, meditate on, delight in, love, look for, long for, remember,walk in, live according to, keep, obey, follow, run in the path of, not stray, depart, or turn from," all of which suggest at least studying and doing the Word of God.

The "bottom line" of the use of Scripture is to apply it to our lives, to live according to it. This is the ultimate intention of God in giving us His Word-to change our lives. Unless it does this, everything else we may do with it is in vain. However, in order to do what the Word of God (or anything else) teaches, we must first know what it teaches. We cannot practice an unknown message. In order to know the Word, we must first receive it somehow, and since it is written language, this involves either reading it or hearing it (or both). Second, in order to practice the Word, we would have to somehow retain what we read or heard; if we received it but forgot it, we would not practice it. Retaining it would involve memorizing it and meditating on it. Third, we would also need to understand it. It is true, we must practice or do or obey the Word of God whether we understand it or not, and theoretically, it would be possible to do it without understanding it. But in reality, if we don't understand what we read or hear of the Word of God, we won't practice it. If we don't understand it, in a sense, it remains unknown to us, like someone speaking to us in a foreign tongue. As 1 Corinthians 12:14 puts it, "If the war bugle gives an uncertain (indistinct) call, who will prepare for battle?" (Amplified Bible) By the same token, if we misunderstand the Scriptures, we will fail to practice it. We may be doing something, but if we misunderstand the Scriptures, we will not be doing what God said to do but only what we have misunderstood to be what we should do. If we practice what we misunderstand the Scriptures to say, we may be doing something God never said to do, or, worse, we may actually be doing harm. In order to understand the Word, we need to study it and interpret it correctly. It is crucial that we study and interpret the Word of God rightly. Even if we believe it to be the inspired Word of God, we cannot practice it if we don't know or understand it. And if we misinterpret it, we will wind up not doing what God said either. These are common faults among those who rightly insist upon the inspiration of the Scriptures. Fourth, and as we have said, this is the ultimate purpose and use of Scripture, we must apply it to our lives, that is, do it, obey it, practice it. And of what does this consist? The answer is found in considering what the Word of God contains-as Psalm 119 says, "law," "statutes," "precepts" (or principles), "decrees," "commands," and "promises." Or, the Word of God contains commands, warnings, principles, promises, and statements of fact. The proper response to these, then, since they come from God, is to obey its commands, take heed to its warnings, observe and apply its principles, put our trust in its promises, and believe its statements of fact as fact. We will take these up in this form: believing the Word, obeying it, speaking or talking it (teaching and evangelizing), and seeing how its principles apply to today. In short, the right use of Scripture involves these four things: 1. receiving it, 2. retaining it, 3. understanding it, 4. applying it. Here is a brief outline of our proposed study of the uses of the Bible:

I. Receiving the Word

A. Reading it (or listening to tapes of it read)

B. Hearing it preached

II. Retaining the Word

A. Memorizing it

B. Meditating on it

III. Understanding the Word

A. Studying it

B. Interpreting it

IV. Applying the Word

A. Believing it

B. Obeying it

C. Speaking, talking (teaching, evangelizing)

D. Seeing how its principles apply to today

And, we can shorten this outline into the following six areas of study in the order in which we plan to take them up in our lectures: 1. reading, 2. hearing, 3. studying, 4. memorizing and meditating, 5. interpreting, 6. applying.

There is a public and a private side to the Christian life-public and private prayer, and public and private receiving of the Word. We need both in order to grow and be fruitful as Christians. The public side of receiving the Word is hearing it preached or read; the private side is reading it ourselves. In Bible times, books were quite expensive because each one had to be hand copied. Writing materials were also scarce and expensive. Most Jewish people had some portions of the Scriptures in their homes, but few would have the whole OT. They depended greatly upon hearing the Scriptures read in public worship. There are many references to hearing the Scriptures read in public worship in the Bible, both in the Old and New Testaments: Ex.24:6-8; Dt.31:11,12; Josh.8:34,35; 2 K.23:1-3; Neh.8:1-9,18; 9:1-3; 13:1-3; Jer.36:5-8,10-16,21-24; 51:60-64; Lk.4:16; Acts 13:14,15,27; 15:21; Col.4:16; 1 Thess.5:27; 1 Tim.4:13. There are also a number of references to what appears to be private reading of Scripture. Moses gave these instructions to future kings:

In the times of the kings of Judah, after the exile of Israel for idolatry, the people of Judah turned also to idols because they neglected the reading of God's Word. In 2 Kings 22, a copy of the law was found in the temple and read to king Josiah. On hearing of the judgments of God against idolatry, Josiah tore his clothes and wept. He brought about many reforms, tearing down idols and shrines and removed the mediums and spiritists. In Acts chapter 8 we read of the Ethiopian prince reading from the book of Isaiah in his chariot in the desert after worshiping in Jerusalem. The Spirit told Philip the evangelist to explain the Scripture to him and tell him about Christ. Jesus chided his enemies a number of times for their ignorance of what the Scriptures said with the question, "Haven't you read...?" (Mt.12:3,5; 19:4; 21:16,42; 22:31; Mk..2:25; 12:10,26; Lk.6:3). He expected these people to at least have read the whole Bible. When the Saducees hypocritically tested Him with the question about which of seven brothers who married the same woman then died in succession would have her as his wife in the resurrection, Jesus replied:

The Saducees did not believe in the resurrection. Their error, Jesus said, was due to their being ignorant of the Word of God, which stemmed from their not reading it. It is the same with many people today. They are in error about many of their beliefs and practices because they do not know what the Bible says, and they don't know what it says for the simple reason that they neglect to read it.

In one Gallup poll, 82% of Americans said they believed the Bible was the inspired Word of God (in some sense). Many people say they read the Bible once a week or more (40% in 1990), but this is no doubt a high figure. Many of them admitted they had not read the Bible during the week before the 1991 survey. More than half of the people surveyed said they read the Bible once a month at least, but half of these could not name even one of the four gospels, and fewer than half knew who delivered the Sermon on the Mount. No doubt they answered that they read the Bible because they knew they ought to or they intended to but didn't.

George Meuller, founder of the Bristol Orphanages in Bristol, England in the 1800's, and over the years trusted God for millions of dollars to supply the work without advertising or fund raising, said, "I believe that the one chief reason that I have been kept in happy useful service is that I have been a lover of Holy Scripture. It has been my habit to read the Bible through four times a year; in a prayerful spirit, to apply it to my heart, and practice what I find there. I have been for sixty-nine years a happy man; happy, happy, happy." (Quoted in Halley's Bible Handbook, p.715)

One of the greatest keys to reading the Bible regularly is choosing a plan for a year or more and staying with it. After one plan is used, another one may be followed for variety, but each one should be finished before going to another. Whatever plan you choose, you should always read each book through before going to another. Henry Halley in his Bible Handbook offers plans for reading through the whole Bible once a year using a monthly schedule, a weekly one, and a daily one. Reading according to a weekly or monthly schedule is more flexible than a daily one, as most people will find they have more time on some days than others to read. Halley's monthly plan is:

January and February: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy

March and April: The Entire New Testament

May and June: Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 & 2 Samuel,

I & 2 Kings, 1 & 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther

July and August: Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes,

Song of Solomon

September and October: The entire New Testament

November and December: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations,

Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi

As you can see, this monthly plan as well as the weekly one below, calls for reading the NT twice and the OT once, which is a good practice in itself. Halley's weekly plan is:week 1. Genesis 1-26, 2. Genesis 27-50, 3. Matthew, 4. Mark, 5. Exodus 1-2, 6. Exodus 22-40, 7. Luke, 8. John, 9. Leviticus, 10. Acts, 11. Numbers 1-18, 12. Numbers 19-36, 13. Romans, Galatians, 14. 1 & 2 Corinthians, 15. Deuteronomy 1-17, 16. Deuteronomy 18-34, 17. Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1& 2 Thessalonians, 1 & 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon, 18. Hebrews, James, 1 & 2 Peter, 19. Joshua, 20. 1,2, & 3 John, Jude, Revelation, 21. Judges, Ruth, 22. Job 1-31, 23. Job 32-42, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon, 24. 1 Samuel, 25. 2 Samuel, 26. Psalms 1-50, 27. Psalms 51-100, 28. Psalms 101-150, 29. 1 Kings, 30. 2 Kings, 31. 1 Chronicles, 32. 2 Chronicles, 33. Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, 34. Proverbs, 35. Matthew, 36. Isaiah 1-35, 37. Isaiah 36-66, 38. Mark, 39. Luke, 40. Jeremiah 1-29, 41. Jeremiah 30-52, 42. John, 43. Acts, 44. Ezekiel 1-24, 45. Ezekiel 25-48, 46. Romans, Galatians, 47. 1 & 2 Corinthians, 48. Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, 49. Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 & 2 Thessalonians, 1 & 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon, 50. Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi

51. Hebrews, James, 1 & 2 Peter, 52. 1,2,3 John, Jude, Revelation.

You can make your own daily Bible reading plan in either of these two ways: 1) by reading a certain number of pages each day. First determine how many pages there are in your Bible (often you will need to add the number of pages in the Old and in the New Testaments). If you plan to read the NT twice for each time you read the Old, you will need to determine the number of pages in the NT and add this to the number of pages in your Bible. Divide the number of pages by 365 if you plan to read 7 days a week, 312 (52 x 6) if you plan to read 6 days a week, and 260 (52 x 5) for 5 days a week. This will give you the number of pages you will need to read in a day to finish in one year. 2) You could also make a plan based upon how much time you can spend reading each day and how many days each week you plan to read. First, time yourself how long it takes you to read one page of your Bible (taking your time, reading at a normal or relaxed pace). Then determine how many pages there are in your Bible. Usually you need to add the number of pages in the OT and the NT. If you want to read the NT twice for each time you read the Old, you need to add the number of pages in your NT to the number of pages in your whole Bible. Then multiply the number of minutes it takes you to read one page by the number of pages in your Bible (or the number of pages in your Bible plus the number in the NT). This gives you the total number of minutes it will take you to read the Bible through (or the Bible and the NT a second time). Next divide the total minutes by 365 if you plan to read 7 days a week, 312 if you plan to read 6 days a week, or 260 if you plan to read 5 days a week. This will give you the number of minutes a day you must read in order to read through the Bible (or the Bible and the NT a second time) in one year. For example, if I can read a page of my Bible in 3 minutes and my Bible has 1341 pages, it would take me 1341 x 3 or 4,023 minutes to read it through. If I want to read the NT twice and it has 306 pages, I would need to read 1647 pages in the year, which would take me 1647 x 3 or 4,941 minutes. Next I must determine how many days a week I will read. If every day, then of course I would divide the total minutes, 4,023 (or 4,941) by 365. I would need to read 11 minutes a day (or 131/2 minutes if I want to read the NT twice) in order to read the Bible through in a year. If I will read 6 days a week, I would need to divide the number of minutes by 312 (52 x 6); if 5 days a week, I would divide the minutes by 260 (52 x 5). I would need to read 13 minutes a day (16 for the NT twice) 6 days a week and 151/2 minutes a day (19 for the NT twice) 5 days a week to finish in one year.

The advantage to using either of these two methods for determining how much to read in a day is that you can read the Bible through in any order you choose-straight through from Genesis to Revelation or skip around in the OT and the New. You could read Psalms first, then John, then Ephesians, then 1 Samuel, etc. Once you finish a book, put a check mark before or after its name in the table of contents of your Bible so you won't read it again until you have read each book at least once.

Halley adds these recommendations for Bible reading: 1. Read the Bible by books (finishing each book before going on to another). The Bible was written this way, by books, and should therefore be read this way. 2 Read the most important books the most (when you are not following a through the Bible in one year plan). 3. Don't bother too much about difficult passages (your purpose is to "cover the ground" or remind ourselves of what it says; study can come at another time). 4. Don't do much study (not during your reading time at least). 5. Reading aloud when you are alone is a good habit. 6. Read a book at one sitting (if possible, and when not following a yearly plan). Most of the Bible books can be read this way. Now and then, read even one of the larger books this way. 7. Don't hurry. To read a minute or five minutes just to ease your conscience is better than not doing it at all, but taking your time is better. (Pocket Bible Handbook, Henry H. Halley; Chicago; 1946, pp. 714-718)

Mortimer J. Adler and Charles Van Doren co-authored the classic book, How To Read A Book. In it are all kinds of tips on the art of reading. They make a distinction between "active" and "passive" reading, although only "active" reading is really reading because in "passive" reading one's mind is not fully engaged in what he is reading, which, unfortunately, is true of much Bible reading. An illustration of active reading is catching a ball thrown to you. It is something you must learn to do, and something at which you get better and better with more practice. In catching a ball, you must concentrate on the ball as it is being thrown to you, from before the time it leaves the thrower's hand to catching it in your glove. So it is with reading. In this case, the author is "throwing" you his thoughts in his words, and you must concentrate upon them so as to "catch" his meaning. Only this is truly reading.

The authors relate that there are three goals of reading: 1. for entertainment, 2. for information, 3. for understanding. It is not wrong to read for entertainment. Everyone will do some of it, but it should be kept minimal in comparison to the other goals of reading. Most of what we read is for information, to gain information on something, whether it be practical day to day material or school studies. But a third goal of reading should become our pursuit as well-reading to actually increase our understanding, our wisdom, our ability to think. This is the kind of reading done in philosophy for instance. We read the Bible for information, but especially we should read it to actually increase our understanding. The authors aim primarily at reading for understanding in their book.

There are four levels of reading:

1. Elementary-what does the sentence say (in the simplest sense). Illustration: adults reading in a foreign language. We must first recognize the words before we can understand what is being said. It is also of course the kind of reading done by children. There are four stages of learning to read: 1. reading readiness (to 6 or 7 years old), 2. simple materials (7 years old), 3. rapid progress in vocabulary and skill in unlocking the meaning of unfamiliar words through contextual clues, and 4. refinement and enhancement of former skills (early teens up).

2. Inspectional reading. The key idea of this kind of reading is limited time. It is the kind of reading we do when our time is limited. It is skimming, but not browsing. It is skimming systematically . There are two kinds of inspectional reading: skimming or prereading and superficial reading.

Skimming is a valuable way to determine whether you want to invest the time necessary to read a certain book before you get started. It helps you determine what books you want to read. You don't want to spend all the time it takes reading a book only to find out it is not what you wanted or needed. Tips on skimming or prereading include: 1. look at the title page and preface; 2. study the table of contents; it gives the structure of the book, like a road map; older books have more comprehensive table of contents; 3. check the index; 4. read the blurb on the dust jacket if there is one; 5. look at the chapters that seem pivotal to the author's argument; 6. turn the pages, dipping in here and there, a paragraph or two, sometimes several pages in sequence, but no more; do not fail to read the last 2 or 3 pages of the book, or if it has an epilogue, the last few pages of the main part of the book.

The main rule for superficial reading is that in tackling a difficult book for the first time, it is good to read it through without ever stopping to look up or ponder the things you do not understand right away. Pay attention to what you can understand and do not be stopped by what you cannot immediately grasp. What you understand by reading the book through to the end-even if it is only 50% or less-will help you make the additional effort later to go back to the places you passed by on your first reading. Do not consult helps. When consulting dictionaries, references, commentaries, etc., is done prematurely, it only impedes our reading instead of helping it. Much of Bible reading, although we would not want to think of it as "superficial reading," nevertheless comes into this category. We are reading primarily to "cover the ground" and remind ourselves of what the Bible says, not doing deep reading as we would in studying.

3. Analytical reading. This is more complex and systematic, used primarily for reading for understanding.

4. Synoptical reading or comparative reading. This is the highest type of reading. In it one reads more than one book and places them in relation to one another and to the subject about which they all revolve.

In order to be engaged in active reading, not just eying the words in a passive state of mind, the great secret is to simply stay "awake." All of us have caught our minds "wandering" while reading, "waking up" after covering several paragraphs without the slightest idea of what we have been reading. Whether you manage to stay awake or not depends in large part on your goal in reading. If your aim is to profit from it, to grow somehow in mind or spirit, you have to keep awake. When someone really reads a book through avidly with little halting it is simply because they are for some reason motivated to. It make a difference to them, a great difference, whether or not they read the book in hand. The great key to staying awake is motivation, and motivation takes effort. We should be motivated to read the Word of God, for it is our life, our nourishment, and our guide to knowing God and pleasing Him.

The essence of active reading is found in asking yourself these four basic questions as you read: 1. What is the book about as whole? 2. What is being said in detail, and how? 3. Is the book true, in whole or in part? 4. What of it? (What significance is this for us?)

The authors make these suggestions on "making a book your own," by which they mean not owning the book physically, but possessing its message to the degree that you have truly come to grips with its meaning and message. 1. Underlining: major points and important or forceful statements. 2. Using vertical lines in the margin (passages too long to underline). 3. Using a star, asterisk, or other doodad in the margin-sparingly, for the 10 or 12 most important passages in the book. 4. Using numbers in the margin (lists of points, etc.) 5. Referring to the numbers of other pages in the margin (on same subject, etc.) 6. Circling key words or phrases. 7. Writing questions, notes, etc., in margins, top/bottom, or the endpapers.

The book concerns itself primarily with what it calls "analytical reading." The four major aspects of this kind of reading and the rules associated with them are 1) classifying books ("pigeonholing")-what kind of book are you reading: novel, play, epic, lyric, exposition; practical or theoretical?; if theoretical, is it history, science, philosophy? Rule 2: State the unity of the whole book in a single sentence, or at most a few sentences (a short paragraph). Rule 3: Set forth the major parts of the book and show how these are organized into a whole by being ordered to one another and to the unity of the whole. Rule 4: Find out what problems the author was trying to solve. Involved in "coming to terms with an author" are finding the key words he uses, the key sentences (major affirmations, denials, and reasons he gives for so doing), the key propositions, arguments, and solutions offered.

Chapter 12 of the book is devoted to "aids to reading." There are four categories of extrinsic (outside) aids: first, relevant experiences; second, other books (that is, that are in some way related to it; other books by the same author or books that influenced him, especially when dealing with books on history or philosophy); third, commentaries and abstracts; fourth, reference books. Many readers depend on extrinsic aids too slavishly....On the whole, it is best to do all that you can by yourself before seeking outside help; ....Outside help should be sought whenever a book remains unintelligible to you, either in whole or part, after you have done your best to read it according to the rules of intrinsic reading....There is one piece of advice that we want to give you about using commentaries-you should not read a commentary by someone else until after you have read the book.

Reference books are of two main kinds-dictionaries and encyclopedias. You need to have a fair overall knowledge of all of the major types of reference books before you can use any one type effectively, which kinds of reference books answer which kinds of questions....Get the author's advice on how to use it. You must know what you want to know; you must know in what reference work to find it; you must know how to find it in the reference work; and you must know that it is considered knowable by authors or compilers of the book. Use a dictionary according to its primary intention-as a help in reading books that might otherwise be too difficult because their vocabulary includes technical words (used in a specific sense peculiar to that field of study), archaic words, literary allusions, or even familiar words used in obsolete senses. Don't use too much time with dictionaries, especially on the first reading-you will lose track of the book's unity and order.

Reading skillfully is like skiing. At first it is very awkward because you are trying to keep in mind every-thing the instructor tells you while at the same time trying to physically navigate the slope. But as you practice more and more, the instructions on how to stand, hold this and and move that become second nature to you, and you can effortlessly go down the slope and actually enjoy it. (How To Read A Book, Mortimer J. Adler and Charles Van Doren; Simon and Schuster:NY; 1972, pp.5-7,16,32,36,45,46,48,54,83,92,168,174,176,178,180,183)

Most of the books on how to read or study the Bible depend heavily upon Adler and Van Doren's classic work. A good one is Living By the Book by Howard G. and William D. Hendricks (father and son). The main part of the book offers 10 strategies for reading the Bible: 1) read thoughtfully, 2) read repeatedly, 3) read patiently, 4) read selectively, 5) read prayerfully, 6) read imaginatively, 7) read meditatively, 8) read purposefully, 9) read acquisitively, and 10) read telescopically.

1) Thoughtfully. Thoughtful reading involves study.... When you come to the Bible, put your thinking cap on. Don't throw your mind into neutral.

2) Repeatedly. Read entire books at one sitting. Each book of the Bible (with few exceptions) was written as a unit that only hangs together when read in its entirety. Start at the beginning of each book. Read the book in different translations. Listen to tapes of Scripture. Read the Bible out loud. Set up a schedule for Bible reading.

3) Patiently. Don't expect results instantly and effortlessly.

4) Selectively. Here are six questions to ask of any passage of Scripture: (1) Who? Who are the people in the text? What is said about them? What does the person say? (2) What? What is happening in the text? What are the events, in what order? What happens to the characters? Or, if the passage argues a point, what is the argument? Another What? question-what's wrong with this picture? (3) Where? Where is the narrative taking place? Where are the people? Where are they coming from? Where are they going? Where is the writer? Where were the original readers of the text? This is one reason to have a set of maps or an atlas. Locate everything on a map. (4) When? When did the events take place? in relation to other events in Scripture? When was the author writing? (5) Why? Why is this included? Why was it placed here? Why does it follow what is before? Why does it precede something else? Why does this person say that? or nothing? (6) Wherefore? What's the significance? What difference would it make if I were to apply this truth?

5) Prayerfully. Learn to pray before, during, and after your reading. Use adoration, confession of sin, and reminding God of His promises. Examples: Neh.1:5-7,11; cf. Ex.3 with Isa.6; Ps.119:12,18,27,33-36,126,132,133, 169,170,176.

6) Imaginatively. One of the things I'd love to see more people do when they study the Bible is to pray this simple prayer: "Lord, clothe the facts with fascination. Help me crawl into the skin of these people-to see things through their eyes, to feel with their fingers, to understand with their hearts, and to know with their minds." Then the Word of God would come alive.

7) Meditatively. In other words, learn to reflect on it (during and after reading it).

8) Purposefully. Purposeful reading looks for the aim of the author....One of the keys is to look for structure (grammatical and literary). Grammatical structure includes verbs used, subject and object, modifiers, prepositional phrases, and connectives. Pay attention to these in each verse as you read, and note the meaning and relation of these to each other. There are five kinds of literary structure: biographical (found in narrative books, giving the story of key persons), geographical (the places are the key, e.g., in Exodus and Numbers as the Israelites travel from place to place), historical (key events are the basis, e.g., Joshua, John), chronological (material is organized around key times, similar to historical structure), ideological (structured around ideas and concepts, e.g., Romans).

9) Acquisitively. That is, read not only to receive it but to retain it; not merely to perceive it but to possess it....Make it your own property.

10) Telescopically. Telescopic reading means viewing the parts in the light of the whole. Every time you read and analyze Scripture, every time you take it apart, realize that you've only done half the job. Your next task is to put it back together again. How? Pay attention to the context. Evaluate the passage in the light of the book as a whole. Look at the historical context of the book. Ask, where does this book fit historically? When was it written? When did the events take place? What was happening elsewhere in the world at that time? Also ask, where does this book fit in the flow of the Bible? How much of the Bible was complete when this material was written?" (Living By the Book, Howard G. and William Hendricks; Moody: Chicago; 1991, pp.77-129)

The following tips on reading the Bible are taken from Lesson II of How To Read...Understand...and Remember the Bible by Ashley S. Johnson:

"Read it often....slowly....regularly....earnestly.... persistently.

Read the words by finding out their meaning.

Read the thought by grasping each author's meaning.

Read it consecutively, that is, read it book by book in the regular order.

Read it naturally, that is, read it as you would any other book, ancient or modern.

Read but little at a time, fixing each thought in your mind until it becomes to you a thing of life.

Read it with a prayerful heart, a teachable mind and a broken and contrite spirit.

Read it remembering that dangerous errors grow out of imperfect and one-sided views of things.

Read each passage as if it was the only one, and then read it again in relation to the stupendous whole of which it is only a part. Read it remembering that all truth is harmonious and that God being its author will at last make it plain to you.

Read it asking yourself the questions, who wrote this word, this passage, this chapter, this book, when did he write it, why did he write it and for whom did he write it?

Read it remembering that the great volume is divided into two Testaments, that both converge in the Cross of Christ.

Read the Old Testament as the New Testament concealed; read the New Testament as the Old Testament revealed.

Read it in order to "keep in memory" the things that are written, and bear in mind that you must fix the thought in your mind and then memorize the words in which it is clothed.

Read it, not to store your mind with argumentative weapons, not in order to teach others, but to feed yourself, to enlighten yourself in the ways of God, and then perchance you shall be able to teach others.

Read it feeling that the promises of God are not for some other age or people, but for you now; bring yourself as one man face to face with one God and His truth; do not let your mind wander, hold yourself strictly to your lesson.

Read it comparing Scripture with Scripture.

Read it remembering that God has a place for everything, and therefore you should leave everything in its place.

Read it resisting the devil, remembering that he is always ready to catch the word out of your heart.

Read it forcing your faith out on the promises of God; if you cannot force your faith beyond your works, force your works beyond your faith.

Read it remembering that the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are revealed to us therein.

Read it endeavoring to see with the eyes of those who took part in or witnessed the scenes portrayed. Wander through Eden with Adam and Eve. Stand with Abel by his altar. Help Noah build the ark, and stand on some high mountain near by and witness the rising flood. With Abraham listen to the call of Jehovah, and journey with him into the land of the promise; become a sojourner and study with them the faithfulness of the Lord, and go with him and witness the offering of Isaac, and with him behold the day of the Son of God on earth and then identify yourself with the chosen family. Farm with Isaac, and with Jacob wrestle with God until the dawning of a better day. Go with Joseph into Egypt, flee with him from temptation, and sleep with him in the dungeon. With him stand before Pharaoh and take part in storing supplies for the famine; live with him through all the thrilling scenes that follow until his death, and continue with his people through the long period of bondage. Begin life over again with Moses and follow his fortunes from the bank of the Nile to the prospect of a throne in Egypt, then flee to the mountains and for forty long years lead the quiet and unpretentious life of a shepherd; behold the burning bush, hear God's commission to him to deliver Israel, return to the land of Egypt, announce the tiding of great joy, demand emancipation, witness the ten plagues and see the simple shepherd's crook in the hands of a believer in God become more powerful than the scepter of the mightiest nation on earth; follow Israel through the sea and through the wilderness to Sinai, ascend the mountain and with Moses spend forty days and nights with the Lord, come down and see the tabernacle erected, take part in the consecration of the Levites and then for forty long years share the joys and sorrows and labor of Moses as he bears a nation in his bosom, and at last, when the end comes, go with him to Pisgah's height and with one sweep of vision view the land to which he was forbidden to go, attend his solemn, wondrous funeral, then return to the sorrowing host and, if you have not already done so, become acquainted with Joshua the son of Nun; take up the line of march, cross the swelling Jordan, with triumphant Israel invade the land, and identify yourself with the fortunes of the tribes when they settle in Canaan. Become, in order, a friend to Barak, Gideon, Jephthah, and Samson. Begin life over again with Samuel and be a part of the grand reformation of which he was the center. Join the army of Saul and follow him to his inglorious end. Identify yourself with David the shepherd king and share in the triumphs that extended Israel's borders from the river of Egypt to the Euphrates. Attend the coronation of Solomon, help him build the temple and arise to world-wide fame and see his sun at last set in darkness. Do not join the revolt under Jeroboam, but be true to the God of David. Study the history of the revolting tribes as a friendly brother of the people of Judea. Live through the changes of rulers down to the captivity and the seventy years' sojourn in Babylon. Despise not the down-trodden people of God but go with them on their long journey, hang your harp on the willow trees with theirs and with them sit down by the rivers of Babylon and weep. At the end of the seventy years return with them to their own land and help them repair the walls of Jerusalem and rebuild their temple. Study their national life and especially the Messianic expectation, witness the star of Bethlehem as it rises in the eastern sky and with the shepherds listen to the announcement that the new king has at last been born. Go out with the multitude to the Jordan and be baptized of John. Witness the baptism of Jesus and become His disciple. Follow Him into the wilderness and with Him be tempted of the devil. Keep close to Him, witness His wondrous works, follow Him to the Cross and see Him die, help lay Him in Joseph's new tomb, see the empty tomb and the shining angels, handle Him and eat with Him after His resurrection, go with the people to the Mount of Olives and hear Him announce to them that by virtue of all power in heaven and earth having been given to Him, they shall preach the gospel to the whole creation. See Him as He ascends to heaven and then go with the chosen ambassadors to Jerusalem to await the descent of the Holy Spirit; identify yourself with the Church of Jesus Christ and follow the destiny of the apostles down until John, the last survivor, is banished to the Isle of Patmos; with him enter the open door and from the throne of God see the destiny of the church and the world down the ages to the millennium, through it, and on to the time when the New Jerusalem shall come down to the new earth, after which God and men shall dwell together.

The Bible is a real book and its characters are real men and women.

God intends for you to learn and remember it. It will be easy for you to do it after you have learned how to do it. The only way to do it is to fix it in your mind until it is vivid to you in the same sense that it was vivid to those who took part in it or saw the transactions with their own eyes." (Ten Lessons In How to Read, How To Understand, and How To Remember the Bible, Ashley S. Johnson; Kimberlin Heights,TN; 1903, pp.8-13)

Some people benefit more from hearing the Scriptures read on tape than they do reading it themselves. Others are not able to concentrate on an audio tape like they can a book. Each person should experiment with cassettes of the Bible to see if this is an alternative to reading it himself.

The other major way we receive the Word of God is hearing it preached. This is the public side of receiving the Word while reading it is the private side. Some people neglect the private receiving of the Word, rarely reading it themselves, and for this they suffer spiritually, because there is much God has to say to us personally through the reading of His Word that we will miss by only hearing preaching. And, if we only hear it preached and do not read it ourselves, even our receiving of the Word through preaching will suffer because much of the time we will not be familiar with the passages or verses being preached from. On the other hand, some sincere Christians hold reading the Bible themselves in very high regard but the hearing of it preached lightly, and they suffer because of this. We need both because God prescribes both in His Word. For this aspect of our study, I will turn to some notes on a sermon of mine on benefitting from the Word preached.

In order to benefit from the Word preached as we should, we must:

1) Hold the hearing of the preached Word in high regard. Some fail to do this and thus slight this "means of grace." The reasons for this are:

a) They think it is enough to read it themselves.

b) They want to get their understanding from reading the Word themselves because they want to be able to say they got it on their own without anyone else's help. But God has sent us preachers and teachers and they are not just for people who will not read the Word themselves.

c) They fail to realize the dynamics of the preaching of the Word and the priority God puts on this throughout the Bible. God's Word was designed to be proclaimed. The effects of hearing the Word of God proclaimed, accompanied by the illuminating work of the Spirit, both in the preacher and the hearer, are powerful and dramatic. Rarely is it true that such effects attend our private reading of the Word of God. The main benefits we receive from reading it are simply "covering the ground" or familiarizing ourselves with its contents so we can benefit more from either studying it or hearing it preached; also, we remind ourselves of the things we have heard and read so that we will not let them slip, and we will do them. But most of what the average person really learns of God's Word, and most of the dramatic impact it has upon us to change our lives comes through the preaching and teaching of the Word of God. Those who would disagree with this probably either have not had the opportunity of being under a competent ministry or have neglected it.

The priority God places upon hearing the Word proclaimed (both to the unbeliever and the believer) can be clearly seen in the Scriptures. Most of the great familiar texts on receiving the Word of God refer to hearing it preached, not reading it:

Matthew 13, Mark 4, Luke 8-the parable of the sower. The sower is Christ (or any preacher) who proclaims the Word like a man broadcasting seed in the field. The various types of soil are the hearers (Mt.13:19,20,22,23). This is how men are saved and grow to maturity-by receiving and keeping the Word preached.

Mark 16:20. The Lord worked with the apostles and confirmed the Word they preached with signs and wonders. The gospel was designed to be proclaimed and heard. (Mark 16:15,16; Matthew 28:20)

Acts 2:41. Those who received the Word preached were baptized. Acts 4:4. Those who received the Word preached believed. Acts 8:4,14. The Samaritans accepted the Word preached and were saved. Acts 10:44. The Holy Ghost came upon all those who heard Peter's message. Acts 14:3. The Lord confirmed Paul's and Barnabas' message of God's grace with signs and wonders.

Romans 10:17. "Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ." This is the gospel preached. Verses 14-16: "How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent?"

1 Corinthians 1:17-23. God sent Paul primarily to preach gospel, and it (the gospel preached) is the power of God to salvation to everyone who believes it. "God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe."

1 Thessalonians 2:13. "When you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is at work in you who believe."

Titus 1:3. "And at his appointed season he brought his word to light through the preaching entrusted to me by the command of God our Savior."

Hebrews 4:2-6. "For we also have had the gospel preached to us, just as they (the Israelites in the wilderness) did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because those who heard did not combine it with faith....Those who formerly had the gospel preached to them did not go in because of their disobedience."

Hebrews 4:12. It is the word preached, then, given the context, that is "sharper than any double-edged sword [and] penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow [and] judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart."

Hebrews 13:7. "Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith."

James 1:18-23. God gave birth to us through the word of truth. It is the word humbly accepted and planted in us that saves our souls. But this is the word preached-verses 22,23-"Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror....But the man who looks intently...not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it-he will be blessed in what he does." It is by hearing the Word that we are born again, it is by hearing the Word that we are progressively saved and sanctified, it is by hearing and doing the word we hear preached that we are set free and are blessed in what we do.

1 Peter 1:23-25. We have been born again of imperishable seed, the living and enduring word of God; but what word is this? "This is the word that was preached to you."

Many examples of the same thing can be cited from the Old Testament. Moses wrote down the Pentateuch, it is true, but few people would have possessed copies of it to take home and read, especially at the first. Moses was commanded to read the law to the people and they were to hear it, remember it, teach it to their children repeatedly, and do it:

Deuteronomy 5:1. "Moses summoned all Israel and said: Hear, O Israel, the decrees and laws I declare in your hearing today. Learn them and be sure to follow them." Deuteronomy 31:11,12. "When all Israel comes to appear before the Lord your God at the place he will choose, you shall read this law before them in their hearing. Assemble the people-men, women and children, and the aliens living in your towns-so they can listen and learn to fear the Lord your God and follow carefully all the words of this law."

It is so often repeated that it is a formula found throughout the law of Moses introducing whole chapters and sections of ordinances and commands, "Say to the Israelites" (Ex.30:31; 31:13; Lev.4:2; 7:23,29; 9:3; 11:2; 12:2; 17:12; 20:2; 23:24,34; 24:15; Num.5:6; 27:8) or, similarly, "Speak to the Israelites and say to them" (Ex.19:6; Lev.1:2; 15:2; 18:2; 23:2,10; 25:2; 27:2; Num.5:12; 6:2; 15:2,18,38; 17:2; 33:51; 35:10). It is the same with the prophets as with Moses-they prophesied or proclaimed their messages to the people as well as writing them down. In fact, no doubt their messages in the Bible are often times written versions of their speeches and sermons. They were preachers first and writers second. The word was to be proclaimed in the people's hearing.

One might object that this precedence of the preaching of the word was due only to the fact that writing materials and books were so expensive and scarce that it was the only practical way of spreading the word. But it seems, rather, that God still places a premium on the hearing of His Word proclaimed even today. Certainly we need to translate, publish, and distribute Bibles, but the way people are going to be saved and grow and bear fruit in God is through the preaching of the Word more than people reading it for themselves. This is God's prescribed method, no doubt because of the dynamics of the case. When people are quiet and reverent and gather together for the purpose of hearing the word and the preacher who is sent and anointed by God proclaims, not just any word, but the word God directs him to preach for the people for that time and place, much more happens than when people read it on their own. It is the dynamics of "where two or three are gathered together in His name" as opposed to singly that His presence is especially manifested; so it is with the preaching of the Word. Too, man is so constituted physically and psychologically that this is the best way for him to receive God's message-have it proclaimed by a designated representative in their hearing. Illumination is greater also, even, most of the time, for the one who proclaims the Word. He also is able to see more clearly what God is saying through His Word when he preaches it than when he himself reads or studies it.

d) Some people do not hold the preached Word in as high a regard as they should because they loathe being accused of "following man." But we are not following man when we highly regard the Word preached-we are regarding God Himself, because He is the One who has chosen this method to save and instruct His people.

e) Some, not realizing that this is God's means, do not come to hear with a proper prayerful, humble, reverent, receptive attitude, but only a "scorecard" to "grade" the sermon as though it were a performance. Therefore they do not benefit from it as they could.

2) We must respect the preacher if we would benefit from the message as we should (Heb.13:7). It is hard to fully receive a message from one for whom one has little regard. Sometimes this is the fault of the preacher, but for the most part it is in the attitude of the people. They think, "I've got just as good (or better) sense than the preacher does." They are more judges of the preacher and of even the word preached than of themselves through the Word preached.

3) We must be humble and teachable (James 1:21). We must not be so full of our own opinions and ideas that we cannot make room for God's.

4) We must take care how we hear so as to understand it (Matt.13:19). If they fail to understand, many find fault with the preacher, not themselves. It is possible that he may be partly to blame, but more often, the fault lies with the hearers. They do not exercise their minds carefully. They rarely contemplate the greater issues and questions of life. They make no real effort to search the Word they have heard preached so they will come to understand it (Acts 17:11). They judge that the particular message they heard was not worthy of their understanding it anyhow. There is often a lack of thorough repentance, a lack of humility, and a consequent lack of hunger or desire to know, a lack of thirst for wisdom or understanding.

5) They are shallow in mind and consecration (Matt.13:5, "the soil was shallow," 13:19, "they had no root in themselves"). They hold everything in too light esteem that has eternal value and too high esteem that has only superficial or temporal value, including social custom and preference. They never deepen their minds by careful reflective thought on the great issues of life, death, eternity, and serving God. They do not deepen their minds by reading good books but waste their time, when they do read, on shallow ones. We must possess what may be called a "deep, steady seriousness" about the things of God.

6) We must not let other things such as the cares of this life, the lust for other things, and the deceitfulness of riches (the parable of the sower) come in and choke our desire for and obedience to the Word.

7) We must search the Word for ourselves concerning what we hear preached like the Bereans in Acts 17:11. Too many dismiss what they hear out of hand if it does not fit their preconceived notions and personal experiences or if they consider it unimportant or unworthy of further study and attention or they choose to set aside what they hear preached and study other things instead. They are always wanting to graze somewhere other than where God is leading them through their pastors and teachers.

8) We must give ourselves wholly to and meditate upon what we hear for it to have its full effect (2 Timothy 2:7).

9) We must mix faith with what we hear (Hebrews 4:3). We must eagerly grasp any promise in what we hear and consider it our own rather than ask ourselves why it isn't true.

10) We must not let what we hear and even receive slip away from us through neglecting to refresh ourselves in it (Hebrews 2:1).

11) We must be doers of what we hear (James 1:18-23).

12) We must receive it, not as the word of man, but as it is in truth, the Word of God (1 Thessalonians 2:13). So many times people dismiss what they hear preached, thinking, "That's just his opinion; that's what he thinks about it," instead of realizing that if the man is telling you what the Bible says, it isn't his opinion but God's Word.

May God help us to truly benefit fully from the Word we hear preached.

The "bottom line" when it comes to the use of the Word of God is doing it, practicing it, applying it. This is the main object of the Word, the main reason God gave His Word to us-not to entertain us (although it does, in a sense, accomplish that), not simply to inform us (although surely it also does that), but to change our lives. But in order to change our lives or for us to apply it, we must first know it. How can we do what we do not know? How can we believe and obey what we have not heard? We can't. As Romans 10:14 has it, "How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard?..."

Take this illustration: suppose your mother leaves the house for a time, say, most of the day or afternoon. When she returns she asks you, "Did you clean your room while I was away?" And you reply, "No-I didn't know I was supposed to." And she says, "I told Mary to tell you." And you reply, "She never told me." Your mother says, "Mary must have forgotten to tell you." You cannot be held responsible for not doing what your mother told you to do if you didn't know what it was. We must somehow receive the Word-by hearing it or reading it-before we can apply it. We cannot obey unknown orders or commands. We cannot have faith in a message we have not heard. We cannot apply the Word of God if we have not first received it. No one in countries like ours has any excuse for not knowing what God's Word says. Plenty of resources including printed Bibles and preachers are available. If the people do not know what the Word of God says, it is because they have not cared enough to find out. They cannot plead ignorance, for their ignorance is willful and intentional. They have no intention of discovering what the Word of God says (if they even believe the Bible is the Word of God).

And, in order to apply the Word of God, we must understand it, which involves studying it and interpreting it properly. Study is primarily for the purpose of understanding the Word in all its richness, and interpretation is designed to keep us from misunderstanding it. A faulty interpretation of the Word of God is a misunderstanding of the meaning of its message and is very common. If we fail to understand a message or if we misunderstand it, this too will hinder or keep us from applying it. It is true that it is possible for us to do something we do not understand; we simply follow instructions even though at the time we do not understand why. Have you ever had the unhappy experience of not following directions on putting something together because you couldn't see why you should take the particular steps in the way prescribed, only to discover later that you had to go back and redo it because there was a reason for doing that particular way? Just so, we should obey God even if we don't understand fully why we should. We should consider that His ways are best. But this mainly applies to why we should or should not do a certain thing, and not to understanding the instructions in themselves. It remains that if we do not understand what is said, we will not do it. Paul wrote in his discussion of spiritual gifts: "Even in the case of lifeless things that make sounds, such as the flute or harp, how will anyone know what tune is being played unless there is a distinction in the notes? Again, if the trumpet does not sound a clear call, who will get ready to battle?" (1 Corinthians 14:7,8). In the latter case, the soldiers would look at each other, not understanding the call made because they didn't recognize the tune, and ask each other, "What was that?" They would not take their positions in line as they would if they heard and understood a clear signal. Action follows the understanding of a message.

Take our illustration again: suppose your mother goes away and when she returns she asks, "Did you clean your room like I told you to do?" And you reply, "No; I cleaned the garage. That's what I thought you said." You would have failed to do what she told you to do. You did something, but not what she said. So it is with the Word of God. Many people fail to do or believe what God actually said, not because they didn't hear or receive it but because they do not understand or misunderstand its message. In other words, they don't study it even though they may have read or heard it, or they misinterpret it. A failure to study the Word is neglect of it. Misinterpreting it may be through ignorance or through an intentional twisting of its meaning to suit one's own ends and tastes, whether it is the individual doing it or the one who preaches it to him. In some cases, your mother might justly punish you for not doing what she said because you misunderstood her if she can determine that you misunderstood her because you simply did not paying attention to what she told you. You may be guilty of neglect, treating your mother's instructions as though they did not deserve your full and undivided attention. So it is with God and His Word. It deserves our full and undivided attention when we read or hear it and when we study it.

But there is another way that one might fail to do what he has heard besides not understanding or misunderstanding it. Returning to our illustration: suppose your mother comes home and asks, "Did you clean your room like I told you to do?" and you reply, "Oh, no! I forgot!" You failed do what she told you to do, not because you didn't hear what she said or because you didn't understand what she said or because you misunderstood what she said. You failed to do what she said because you forgot what she said. In this case, your mother may punish you justly for not doing what she said, because you didn't consider her command or instructions worthy of remembering. You make it a point to remember other things that you really want to do or that you consider important.

When we make an appointment to see the doctor or to take care of other important matters, we take care not to forget it. Often here, as in the case of your mother, people misunderstand the appointment when it is made, thinking it is for some other Thursday than the one intended, and, consequently, they miss their appointment. And often people forget their appointments. In order to prevent this, most people make it a point to remember. They write the appointment down and put it in a conspicuous place-over the sink, on the bedroom mirror, on the refrigerator-so they will be reminded of it every day until the date comes. It is the individual's responsibility to remember the appointment, not the doctor. Just so, it is our responsibility before God, once we have received the Word of God and understood it to retain it or keep it in mind so we may do it.

Forgetting the Word of God we read or hear preached and study and interpret is a neglect of it. It is to slight God, as though what He said was not important enough to remember. We remember other things, and go to great lengths to remember them because "they are important." Retaining or holding and keeping God's Word is as vital and essential to our applying it as receiving it and understanding it.

There are two ways prescribed in the Bible for retaining God's Word-memorization and meditation. And these two are related, for you must meditate on a Scripture to memorize it, and if you meditate on it enough you will have memorized it.

As we have said, Psalm 119 speaks of many uses of Scripture, among them memorization.

Meditation on the Word is mentioned 8 times:

The Psalmist also says, "I will ponder your statutes" (v.95); "I consider all your commands" (v.6); and "With my lips I recount all the laws that come from your mouth" (v.13).

"Memorize" is not a term actually used, but the writer of Psalm 119 says 8 times in some form that he will not forget God's Word:

He also says, "I will remember your ancient laws, O Lord..." (v.52).

Actually, there is no specific command in God's Word to memorize Scripture per se, but memorization or something near it is implied in not forgetting it or remembering it, as above, as well as in these instructions:

"Keeping them in your heart," "fixing them in your heart and mind," "laying them up in your heart," "storing them up within you," "writing them on the tablet of your heart," that "they shall be in your heart," keeping them "as frontlets between your eyes," and "hiding his word in your heart" all imply memorization. We even use the term "knowing by heart" as a synonym for memorization. Possibly the reason the term "memorize" is not used is because it implies a deliberate and formal process. We memorize things both deliberately and by frequency of use. Some things we remember or can quote verbatim, not because we set out to "memorize" them at some time but because we have used or heard them so often. A small child may be taught to memorize his address and telephone number so that if he gets lost he can tell the authorities how to reach his home. On the other hand, you probably know many of your friends' telephone numbers without having sat down sometime and deliberately memorizing them. You remember them because you have used them so often. So it is ideally with God's Word. He wants us to use them in speaking them to our children and reading them and thinking upon them so often that we know them by heart and can quote them without looking at them simply because we have used them so often. But we could also deliberately set out to memorize Scripture. We know the Jewish people certainly did. Actually, the ancients, by reason of use, were far more prolific in memory than modern folks are. This was due primarily to the scarcity of books because of the expense and time involved in copying them by hand. The people made a point of memorizing much more than we do today because that was the only way of retaining what they heard, not having the convenience of owning and thus referring to the books whenever they wished. This was true of the Scriptures as well as other writings. They could remember much more of what they heard the first time because they listened with greater intensity, knowing they were dependent upon this in order to retain what they were hearing.

In her book Memorize and Meditate, LaVonne Masters gives these pointers on memorizing Scripture:

The five D's of Memorize and Meditate are:

-Decide the method

-Determine the location

-Discover the content

-Draw the application

-Do it

Step One: Decide the Method.

Here are 5 tried and proven methods of memorization:

Method #1. Repeat the verse. (1) Read the verse at least three times, then after a space of time in the day, three times again, another space of time, then three times again, etc., through the day until it is memorized. (2) Visualize the verse....Close your eyes and try to see the words in your mind's eye. (3) Vocalize the verse. Saying and hearing it out loud makes a double impression on the mind. (4) Write the verse three times. (5) Stretch your mind. Make yourself recall as much as possible of the verse before you check yourself in your Bible.

Method #2. Form acronyms. Use the initial letters of major words to form a word or an acrostic. For example, Ephesians 4:31, "Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice." The key words are bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, evil, and malice. The first letter of each word forms BWACEM, pronounced "bewassem." Or, form a sentence with these letters by first listing a dozen or so words that begin with each letter, then selecting one word from each list to make a sentence: By Watching After Children Enjoy Mania.

Method #3. Associate. Use either mental pictures or categories. Children may draw a picture that depicts what the verse is saying.

Method #4. Record on cassette. Record the verses or passage you are memorizing on cassette and listen to it.

Method #5. Sing Scripture. Set the words to some familiar melody or create one of your own.

Step Two: Determine the location. Select whole chapters, large passages, (or particular verses) to memorize.

Step Three: Discover the Content. Use a 3x5 index card for each verse you memorize and keep your cards in a file box. First write the verse and reference, then add definitions of the key words from dictionaries and commentaries. For younger children, explain the words using illustrations rather than dictionary definitions, and draw a picture of the verse on the back. Older children and adults can paraphrase the verse and make notes of ways to apply it or of things it means to you personally on the back of the card.

Step Four: Draw the application. Meditate on and use the Scriptures every day. Quote them out loud when tempted.

Step Five: Do it. Set goals and decide on a daily schedule. (Memorize and Meditate, LaVonne Masters; Thomas Nelson: Nashville; 1991)

The author includes an appendix with lists of chapters and passages she recommends for memorization for various age groups in her book The Verse Book. Certainly children of all ages should memorize the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:1-17); Psalms 1,23, and 121;

the Beatitudes (Matthew 5:1-12); the Lord's prayer (Matthew 6:9-13). Some years ago I made a list of "great chapters of the Bible," any of which would make good ones for memorization: Genesis 1-3; Exodus 20; Psalms 91; Isaiah 53; Matthew 5-7; John 3, 14-16; Acts 2; Romans 5,6,8; 1 Corinthians 13,15; Ephesians 1,2; Hebrews 1,11; James 1,2; 1 John 1,3,5; Revelation 20-22.

Remember that the verses your child memorizes will stay with him throughout his life, so keep "children's verses" to a minimum and get him to memorize "adult verses," ones that teach the great truths of Christianity such as salvation, the atonement, sanctification, the Christian life, great doctrinal truths, etc. Verses like these will be of benefit not only personally but also in witnessing to and teaching others.

Have your children start with verses they can already quote. Put these on cards in a file box. They may be surprised and encouraged by how many they already know. Each one should have his own "memorized Scripture collection." People collect all kinds of things, why not verses memorized? Get a bigger box when yours is filled, then add more boxes. Go over the verses periodically and meditate on and quote them to yourself. Be careful of pride when your box gets large. Hide it from others instead of bringing it out and boasting of how many verses you know. We are memorizing them only for the purpose of applying them to our lives, not show.

LaVonne Masters says that if a child should memorize only one verse of Scripture a week for thirteen years, from kindergarten to grade 12, he will learn 676 verses by the time he graduates. For comparison, there are 111 verses in the entire Sermon on the Mount, 155 in Ephesians, 104 in Philippians, 113 in 1 Timothy, 108 in James, and 105 in 1 John, all of which totals 696 verses, just 20 more than 676! Also, the entire gospel of Mark contains 678 verses. He will have memorized the equivalent of the whole gospel of Mark! (The Verse Book, LaVonne Masters; Thomas Nelson: Nashville; 1991, pp.15,16)

Meditation on the Word is mentioned 8 times in Psalm 119:

Besides these, there are others:

LaVonne Masters tells us:

There are two Hebrew words for "meditate"-hagah ("haw-gaw") and siyach ("see-akh"). The first is found in Joshua 1:8 above, and it means "to mutter and murmur, to speak in a low inaudible voice with oneself." The second is found in Psalm 119:15: "I will meditate on Your precepts," and means "to ponder or muse and pray." The Random House College Dictionary defines "meditate" as "to reflect, contemplate, a thinking over." When we look up the word "contemplate," we find that it means to consider thoroughly, to think fully or deeply about. (Masters, op.cit., pp.16,17)

As we said, memorization and meditation go hand in hand. Meditate from time to time on the verses you have memorized as well as new passages of Scripture.

As we have said, applying the Word so that it changes our lives is the ultimate reason God gave us His Word. Whatever else we may do with it, if we do not apply it we fail and come short of its ultimate purpose. But we cannot do what we do not know, so receiving it by either reading it or hearing it preached is crucial to applying it. And if we don't retain it we will also fail to apply it even if we have received it at some time. And so it is with understanding it. It is crucial that we understand the Word and that we not misunderstand it. The way we come to a true understanding of the Word is through study and interpretation. In this particular section we will cover only the study of the Word. Interpretation (also called exegesis) requires a section of its own.

We can easily see that if someone misinterprets the Word of God, he may as well not have heard it. He may boldly insist the Bible is the inspired Word of God. He may read it and hear it preached. He may memorize it and meditate on it. He may even study it. But if he misinterprets it, the meaning he sees in it is not the one God intended, and all is lost. Misinterpretation may be due to ignorance, a purely mental error of judgment; but more often than not, misinterpretation, whether on the part of the individual or a preacher, is intentional. The Scripture is twisted to conform to a preconceived set of ideas or even other doctrines of the Word of God or some revelation that did not come from the Bible but from the world outside. Often misinterpretation is a deliberate attempt to so construe the Scripture that it doesn't mean what it is supposed to so that people can then feel justified in doing what it says not to do or not doing what it says to do.

We study the Word of God for the purpose of coming to terms with its meaning so that we will apply it accurately to our lives. To be limited in our understanding of it is to be limited in our enjoyment and application of it. Study is a slower, more concentrated, deliberate, precise, and deeper form of reading.

Six times the author of Psalm 119 says, "Teach me your decrees" (vv.12,26,64,68,124,171). In verse 108 it is, "Teach me your laws." He speaks also of "learning" and "understanding" the Word:

Through the study of the Word, God opens our eyes to behold wonderful things in it, the Word is "unfolded" to us, giving us understanding.

Study is a "searching" of the Scriptures as opposed to simply reading them:

There are a number of ways to approach the study of God's Word, a number of kinds of study. Robert D. Culver in his book, How To Search the Scriptures, offers perhaps the most complete account of the methods of Bible study. Our discussion comes from his book. We will look at these ways to study the Bible: 1. By Books, 2. By chapters, 3. By words, 4. By doctrines or subjects, 5. By biographies.

Since the Bible was written by books, it is best not only to read it by books but also study it this way as well. But studying it by Books is often the least known way of study among ordinary Christians. When understood and used, however, it yields the richest results of any of the methods of study.

"Satisfying Bible study ultimately must bring one to an understanding of the particular argument or theme of each individual book. To accomplish this, two processes are necessary, one analytic and the other synthetic.... [M]ake an initial synthesis by determining the central theme and purpose of the book, then a more or less detailed analysis of the book, developing or correcting this original estimate...and finally arriving at a mature and thorough synthesis which fixes the book's main argument in your mind.

I. Background study.

1. Discover the main theme of the book. This should be done in the form of a title or phrase.

2. Learn what you can about the writer-reflections of the author's personality and biography found in the book. List these, giving chapter and verse reference for each.

3. Where was the book written? If possible, this should be determined through a reading of the book itself (give reference). Otherwise, check outside sources for this as well as the following information.

4. When was the book written? (Give reference.) ...Locate the time of the writing of the book within the lifespan of the author.

5. To whom was this book written? (Give reference.)

6. What problems in their lives made the book necessary-what emergency was the book designed to meet? (This is often called the "occasion" of the book.) Give evidences of this within the text and outside sources.

7. List by chapter and verse any peculiar or repeated terms. When terms appear to be outstanding due to the number of times they are repeated, count them and give the number.

8. List any references which may indicate major divisions in the structure of the book. These may be in the form of repeated phrases, abrupt changes of subject, person, or rhetorical form.

II. Content Study.

1. Read the book through to find:

a. The main theme of the book

b. The key verses of the book

2. Trace the development of the main theme in the light of:

a. The problems presented

b. The general tone of the book (argumentation,

exhortation, instruction)

c. Types of reasoning employed

d. Unique expressions employed

e. Outstanding affirmations set forth

f. Grammatical peculiarities

3. Establish an outline. In doing this, take special note of possible hints given by the author, repeated phrases, abrupt changes of subject, persons, and rhetorical form.

4. Compare three outlines of the book to determine the thematic segments. Check three good books of Bible introduction [for these].

5. Compose a list of the most common thematic segments to cover the content of the book.

6. Apply one or both of these two sets of study guide questions to thematic segments:

(1) Suggest a theme for each thematic segment

(2) Outline the contents of the passage

(3) List the words and phrases which need definition

(4) Show the differences between the King James Version and one other version

(1) Who-Personal. List and summarize the material in the passage pertaining to each character listed

(2) Where-Locational. Locate geographically each place referred to; list important incidents that have taken place at this location

(3) When-Temporal. Locate this passage as to time in light of the immediate context, and also in respect to the writer's life span

(4) What-Definitive. Explain words needing definition. Establish a thematic analytical outline of the passage

(5) Why-Rational. What was the purpose behind the presentation of this passage in the Bible?

(6) Wherefore-Implicational. List the conclusions gathered from the passage as they pertain to:

(a) Theology

(b) Daily experience

Each study guide is adapted to a specific type of content....If the passage is basically narrative in form it would be wise to select study guide II, because greater stress is placed on such factors as time, places, persons, and activities. If the passage is basically non narrative form, it would be wise to select study guide I, because its greatest emphases are on outline and version comparison." (How To Search the Scriptures, Lloyd M. Perry and Robert D. Culver; Baker Book House: Grand Rapids,MI; 1967, pp.111,112,115,116,121)

Determining the main theme of a book and expressing it in a single phrase is not only good mental discipline, it forces us to come to grips with the author's message. The questions asked-"Who is the author, where was it written, when, and to whom? What is the 'occasion' of the writing, what peculiar or repeated terms are used? What are the key verses? What is the general tone? What outstanding affirmations are there?"-not only help us to come to grips with each part of the message but are clues that point us to the main theme of the book. Following the questions and suggestions outlined will also help us in rightly interpreting the book.

Commentaries can be especially helpful for the study of the Bible by books as well as word studies. Some of the best and most popular are A Commentary, Critical, Experimental, and Practical by Robert Jamieson, A.R. Fausset, and David Brown (3 vols.), Adam Clarke's commentary (6 vols.), and Matthew Henry's (6 vol. or 1 vol. editions). I especially like The Expositor's Bible Commentary, Frank E. Gaebelein, Gen.Ed. (12 vols.) and the New International Commentary series (30 volumes). They are conservative and scholarly. C.F. Keil and F. Delitzsch's commentary on the Old Testament is a classic. The Tyndale commentaries are more elementary, the Word Biblical Commentary (51 vols. to date) very scholarly.

Another way we can study the Bible is by chapters.

"The Bible, as it was originally written, had no chapter and verse divisions, but in A.D. 1250 Cardinal Hugo introduced chapter divisions....There are 1189 chapters in the Bible, many of them, like the Twenty-third Psalm or I Corinthians 13 have been favorites of Christians for generations. Since these divisions exist, they form suitable units for study, and one of the goals of a Bible student should be to be able to think his way, chapter by chapter, through the various books and identify the contents of each chapter. The following suggestions will indicate some suitable beginning chapters and provocative questions which will help you to analyze and master the contents of any particular chapter.

Suggestions for Young Christians-Begin by studying

Psalms 1,23,73,90; Isaiah 53,55; Mark 10; Luke 15; John 11,15; Romans 1; 1 Corinthians 12; Ephesians 2; 1 Thessalonians 1; 2 Timothy 2; Titus 2; 2 Peter 1; 1 John 1; Ecclesiastes 12; Jonah 3.

Suggestions for Mature Christians-Begin by studying Genesis 3,22; Exodus 12,20,32; Leviticus 16,23; Deuteronomy 32; Joshua 1; 1 Samuel 7,15; 2 Kings 5; Psalms 32,51; Matthew 5; John 17; Romans 6; Philippians 2; 1 Corinthians 2; Colossians 3."

Ask yourself these questions:

"An understanding of the Bible's meaning often turns on the understanding of a single word or phrase. For that reason the student of the Bible must learn how to determine such meaning with precision and care. Three areas will concern us here: 1) the meaning of "non-routine" words, 2) the recognition and interpretation of figures of speech, and 3) the meanings of the names of significant people and places."

[All these points may be applied to the study of Greek and Hebrew words as well.] (Perry and Culver, op.cit., pp.163,164)

One author writes:

"By its very nature language communication employs words. People transmit ideas by combining words together into larger units of thought. Without words people would be limited in their ability to express their thoughts precisely. They would be restricted to nonverbal sounds, symbols, and pictures....On the surface words seem so simple. They make up such a routine part of our lives that we seldom stop to think about their complexity. To fully appreciate what is involved in the 'normal' meaning of words, we must first understand several characteristics of words: nature, range of meaning, semantic fields, change of meaning, and nuances of meaning....First, words are usually arbitrary signs. Simply stated, a word is the smallest combination of letters that is meaningful by itself in language. A more precise definition is that a word is a semantic sign-a combination of symbols or sounds that represent an idea....The idea designated by any given word can be communicated either orally or visually. But why a word means what it does is mostly a matter of convention....What makes 'maple' different from 'kebof'?...Throughout the development of a language, users of that language arbitrarily assign meanings to the words they use. When English speakers hear the word 'maple,' their minds automatically identify one member of the kind of plants commonly known as trees. But since English speakers have not assigned a meaning to 'kebof,' it represents nothing and thus calls nothing to mind. This illustrates the most foundational fact about words: each word comes to represent a given idea (or ideas) only by its repeated use within a common language group. Thus, if two people wish to communicate, they both must use words in a similar way....[A]ccurate interpretation requires that we understand a word in the same way the writer used it....Understanding and using words the way other speakers of the language use them is critical for effective communication. Needless to say, this complicates the task for Bible students. Since the original writers wrote in ancient languages that are foreign to us, we do not know intrinsically the meanings of the terms they used. We need translators to render the meaning of the biblical texts into English....Interpreters must deliberately pursue what the original words of a passage meant at the time they were written in the context in which they occur. The meaning of the original words, not what ideas may occur to us when we read the passage, is the objective for word studies. We must always remember that the biblical writer selected certain words to express specific thoughts. Our aim is to recover the ideas that the writer sought to communicate by means of those words.

"To further complicate matters, a word may have more than one meaning. In fact, most words have a range of meanings. The very same word, spelled identically, may have several totally different meanings....Normally such multiple meanings of a word do not cause any confusion or misunderstanding. Aided by the context, native speakers usually pick the right meaning without any trouble. The ideas expressed in the larger message of the literary context almost always clarify the intended meaning. These facts also hold true for the ancient biblical languages.

"The third factor to know about the nature of words is that each meaning of a word forms part of a distinct semantic field or domain. One meaning of 'hand,' we will call it 'hand1' resides in the domain of 'parts of the human body.' Another meaning, 'hand2,' fits the domain of 'ways to show appreciation in a public setting' (along with 'applause,' 'cheers,' 'clapping,' and 'ovation'). Put simply, a number of words in the same language include meanings similar to or closely related to other words. Often we call these words synonyms....Words are synonyms when, out of their total range of meaning, at least one of their meanings overlaps with each other....Note, only one meaning of 'hand' overlaps with 'ovation.' They are synonyms in only a portion of their ranges of meaning....By seeing which part of a semantic field a specific word occupies, one is able to define the meaning of each term used within that field more precisely. This helps the interpreter to recognize the specific nuances of a word that distinguish it from other terms....

"Word meanings do not remain fixed: they change over time. New meanings develop through usage, and old ones become obsolete....The same principle holds true for the biblical languages....The original meaning of a word or the meaning derived from a word's etymology or root may be of no more than historical interest to the interpreter. Past meanings may be interesting and even colorful, but we must always resist the temptation to believe that past meanings exert some residual influence on current usage. One may not simply discover a meaning for a word that existed in classical Greek, for example, and assume that meaning could occur at the time of the NT....

"A fifth characteristic of words is that they may convey a significance in addition to their explicit denotative reference. This may include a connotative or a figurative meaning. ['Linguists distinguish between denotation, or the meaning a word has for all who hear it, and connotation, or the meaning the same word may have for a limited group of speakers,' D.A.Black.] While the word 'dog' denotes a four-legged, hairy animal, when used of a person in the statement, 'You dog!' it communicates an emotive response of disapproval. In this specific use, 'dog' figuratively stands for a person and it has a connotation it does not have in the use, 'Harley is our family dog.'...Interpreters, therefore, must study words carefully to discern not only their denotative meaning but also any connotative subtlety that the original recipients would have sensed.

"Determining the meaning of any given biblical word is a multifaceted task....The steps outlined below are a useful guide to follow in this process.

"1. Select Words that Require Detailed Analysis.... [N]ot all of the words in a passage are going to require intricate study....2. Determine the Range of Meaning for the Word. The first part of this step involves research in lexicons [dictionaries] to determine the range of meaning the word had at the time when it was used by the author. Weighing these possible meanings of the word in light of the train of thought in the immediate context and the historical background enables the interpreter to make a preliminary selection of the best English translation....But where do lexicons get their information?...Typically, they investigate various ancient literary sources-documents, published works, and letters, for example. Beyond that, some lexicons include nonliterary materials like epitaphs on tombs, receipts, or inscriptions on papyri and other places. Often parallel or cognate languages are compared....Of course, previous Scripture provides a prime source for discovering meanings of words, so lexicons may survey the Septuagint....At this juncture we must allow for two kinds of students: those who do not or cannot have facility in the biblical languages and those who do-at least to some degree. For the first group of interpreters several works provide access to the meanings of words:...Zondervan Pictoral Encyclopedia of the Bible...International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (ISBE)...Holman Bible Dictionary....Students who know the biblical languages to some degree have the distinct advantage of access to further important resources. At the same time, even students with limited knowledge of Hebrew or Greek might want to make use of these more 'advanced' resources from time to time. Particularly with the use of interlinear Bibles and other 'helps,' many fine insights are accessible to those willing to do some hunting....For OT studies The New Brown-Driver-Briggs-Gesenius Hebrew and English Lexicon...[abbreviated BDB] provides help for studying the range of meaning for words, though one must find the appropriate Hebrew term [it is coded to the numbers in Strong's Concordance]. Another source, certainly more convenient to use, provides a compact discussion of key Hebrew words: R.L. Harris, et al., eds., Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament [TWOT]. ....Students who know Greek will find two lexicons most valuable for studying NT words: A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, by W. Bauer, W.F. Arndt, F.W. Gingrich, and F.Danker, [abbr. BADG] and A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament Based on Semantic Domains, by J.P.Louw and E.A. Nida....The best help for evaluating Septuagintal usage and potential influence on the NT [and other information as well] comes primarily from two sources: C. Brown, ed., New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology [NIDNTT], and G. Kittel and G. Fredrich, Theological Dictionary of the New Testament [TDNT]. [There is now an Old Testament counterpart to Colin Brown's New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology-the New International Dictionary of Old Testament Theology and Exegesis edited by Willem A. VanGemeren]....

"In addition to lexicons the student should consult concordances. These alter the focus from word meanings and definitions in a range of sources to actual usage in the Bible, and from the range of possibilities to specific biblical contexts....[S]tudents may decide to consult concordances even prior to their investigations of the dictionaries and lexicons....Since we can determine the intended meaning only from assessing the related ideas within the text, we need to check an author's use of a given word in other places in the same writing and in other works. We can obtain further meaning by reviewing how other authors use a word in the Bible....(Biblical Interpretation, Dr. William W. Klein, Dr. Craig L. Blomberg, and Dr. Robert L. Hubbard, Jr.; Word:Dallas,TX; 1993, pp.183-191)

For this, you need, in addition to Strong's Exhaustive Concordance, which lists each occurrence of a given English word in the Bible (available for several versions), The New Englishman's Greek Concordance and Lexicon. It is coded to Strong's numbers so that you can find a certain Greek word by looking up the right number. It gives you all the occurrences of a given Greek word in the NT, so you can see all the ways it was used and translated. There is also a New Englishman's Concordance for the Hebrew OT. There are two concordances to the Septuagint, one by Edwin Hatch and Henry Redpath (2 vols.) and the other by George Morrish. These give all the occurrences of each Greek word used in the Septuagint, which is helpful not only for NT Greek word studies but for Hebrew as well, because you can see what Greek word was chosen by the translators for each Hebrew word in the OT.

Doing Greek and Hebrew words studies is not as easy as many would have us believe. Many errors are made by people who know little if anything of these languages who, nevertheless, look up a word in the lexicons in the back of Strong's Concordance and then confidently make all kinds of grand assertions about the meaning of the Hebrew and Greek. False interpretations and understandings abound through this kind of "study." Although the ordinary person who knows little of these languages can derive benefit from word study, some caution is in order. In his book, Exegetical Fallacies (errors of interpretation), D.A. Carson includes a chapter, "Word-Study Fallacies," on the various kinds of errors commonly made concerning word studies:

Nathan Soderblom was right when he said, "Philology [word study] is the eye of the needle through which every theological camel must enter the heaven of theology."

1. The root fallacy. One of the most enduring of errors, the root fallacy presupposes that every word actually has a meaning bound up with its shape or its components. In this view, meaning is determined by etymology; that is, by the root or roots of a word." But this is easily seen to be folly if we consider the etymology of English words. Our word nice, comes from the Latin nesicius, meaning "ignorant." Our "good-by" is a contraction for Anglo-Saxon "God be with you." But who today in saying a person is "nice" is saying he or she is ignorant or that everyone who uses "good-by" is giving a spiritual blessing?

"...[T]he meaning of a word may reflect the meanings of its component parts....[but] we cannot responsibly assume that etymology is related to meaning....[E]tymology [however] is important...especially in attempts to understand the meanings of words that appear only once....[T]he lack of comparative material means we sometimes have no other choice....

"2. Semantic anachronism. This fallacy occurs when a late use of a word is read back into earlier literature. At the simplest level, it occurs within the same language....But the problem has a second face when we also add a change of language." For example, our words dynamite and hilarious are derived from the Greek dunamis and hilaron, respectively. But it is foolish to read back into the occurrence of these words explosives or hilarious laughter, as is commonly done.

"3. Semantic obsolescence. In some ways, this fallacy is the mirror image of semantic anachronism. Here the interpreter assigns to a word in his text a meaning that the word in question used to have in earlier times, but that is no longer found within the live, semantic range of the word....In short, words change their meaning over time....It follows, then, that we should be a trifle suspicious when any[one] tries to establish the meaning of a word by appealing first of all to its usage in classical Greek [pre-Alexander] rather than its usage in Hellenistic Greek [Alexander the Great (350 B.C.) to the Roman Empire (31 B.C.)].

"4. Appeal to unknown or unlikely meanings." Examples include the attempt by some recent feminist writers to say that "head" in 1 Corinthians 11:2-16, speaking of husbands in relation to wives, really means "source" or "origin," not authority.

"8. False assumptions about technical meaning. In this fallacy, an interpreter falsely assumes that a word always or nearly always has a certain technical meaning-a meaning usually derived either from a subset of the evidence or from the interpreter's personal systematic theology." An easy example is the word sanctification.

"6. Problems surrounding synonyms and componen-tial analysis....[First,] the terms synonymy and equivalence are so little understood by many of us that adequate distinctions are not always preserved....The fallacy is that 'synonyms' are identical in more ways than the evidence allows....In a sense, of course, two terms are virtually never strictly synonymous if by 'synonymous' we are saying that wherever they are used the two terms mean exactly the same thing denotatively and connotatively....But a pair of words can be strictly synonymous in certain contexts...." Agapao and phileo, for example (John 21:15-17).

"7. Selective and prejudicial use of evidence....I am referring to the kind of appeal to selective evidence that enables the interpreter to say what he or she wants to say, without really listening to what the Word of God says." It also includes using only part of what some source that is appealed to for authority has said about a word in order to slant the conclusion in the direction the interpreter wants it to go.

"8. Unwarranted adoption of an expanded semantic field. The fallacy in this instance lies in the supposition that the meaning of a word in a specific context is much broader than the context itself allows and may bring with it the word's entire semantic range. This step is sometimes called illegitimate totality transfer." In this fallacy, all the possible meanings of a word are declared to be the actual meaning in each single place it appears.

9. Failure to recognize that different authors may use the same word in different ways. The fallacy in this case is the false assumption that one NT writer's predominant usage of any word is roughly that of all other NT writers; very often that is not the case.

"10. Unwarranted linking of sense and reference." The "sense" of a word is not equal to its basic meaning or definition. All that can be said of a word in a definition in a lexicon is that it has the "sense" of this or that. Its actual meaning depends on how it is used in the context of a sentence. (Exegetical Fallacies, D.A.Carson; Baker Book House: Grand Rapids,MI; 1984, pp. 26-66)

In addition to these, we might add one more:

11. Failure to properly distinguish tense, mood, and voice for meaning. The "mood" of a verb is a "distinction of form to express whether the action or state described is conceived of as fact or some other manner, as command, possibility, or wish (indicative, imperative, subjunctive, optative moods)." The "voice" of a verb is the "distinction of form to indicate the relation of the subject of the verb to the action the verb expresses-active (subject performs), middle (subject both performs and is subjected to the action, as in "I wash myself"), and passive (subject acted upon)" (Webster's Third New International Dictionary). The actual meaning of a Greek word in any specific instance depends upon and is influenced by these things, which are generally quite out of the reach of common people.

Original language studies can be very rewarding even for people who are limited in their knowledge of them because of the many Greek and Hebrew helps and reference works available. However, one should always keep in mind his limitations and not make bold statements about Greek and Hebrew. He should always cite his authorities for any conclusions or meanings he comes to.

R.C. Sproul adds this concerning Greek and Hebrew word studies:

"Americans tend to be somewhat intimidated by ancient languages, particularly Hebrew and Greek. One of the major fear-factors rests in the strange script used in these languages....Let us look briefly at Greek as an example of improving our Bible study skills. Keep in mind that it is not necessary to have a complete knowledge of the Greek language to be able to use it for a specific task....[N]umerous tools have been already prepared to make the task even easier. The tools include the following: 1. Interlinear translations....2. Metzger's frequency list....Bruce Metzger's little booklet Lexical Aids to New Testament Greek can be acquired at virtually any seminary bookstore. It catalogues every word that occurs ten times or more in the New Testament, some 1,000 words in all. Thus, if a student works diligently for just a few weeks, he can easily master this list and have an excellent working knowledge of the vocabulary of the Greek New Testament....3. Greek grammars....The most famous is J.G. Machen's Introduction to the Greek New Testament.... 4. Greek lexicons....The best standard lexicon is [BADG, also G. Abbott-Smith's Manual Greek Lexicon]. [T]he most helpful tool of all which is open to anyone who knows the Greek alphabet, is Kittel's Theological Dictionary of the New Testament. 5. Other tools. Other language tools include analytical and topical concordances of the text of the Greek New Testament and of the Septuagint. The same kind of aids and tools for Hebrew are also available. Hebrew helps include: 1. Frequency List. John D.W. Watts has compiled a list of commonly used Hebrew words under the title Lists of Words Occurring Frequently in the Hebrew Bible. 2. Hebrew Grammars. Among the Hebrew Grammar books available is Thomas O. Lambdin's Introduction to Biblical Hebrew. 3. Hebrew Lexicons. Lexicons available to the laymen include Brown, Driver and Briggs, Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament. 4. Hebrew Text. Biblia Hebraica by Rudolf Kittel is an example of Hebrew texts available. The greater proficiency acquired in these tools the more enrichment is possible. It is a monstrous myth that such tools are only suited for the scholar. Scholars may be able to make more sophisticated use of them, but they are also beneficial for the layman. One need not be a professional carpenter to learn how to make good use of a hammer." (Knowing Scripture, R.C. Sproul; InterVarsity Press: Downer's Grove,IL; 1977, pp.123-125)

Many of the standard reference works are now coded to the numbers used for the Hebrew and Greek words in Strong's Concordance. One can find the word needed in these volumes by looking under the number listed beside the occurrence of the corresponding English word in Strong's Concordance. But some reference works are difficult if not impossible to use if one doesn't have at least a knowledge of the Hebrew and Greek alphabets. Knowing these alphabets will also make discussions of these languages and the words used from them in commentaries and dictionaries more intelligible. The Hebrew alphabet may be found in many reference works, including Strong's Concordance before the Hebrew lexicon. Even children can learn the Greek alphabet rather easily and it is well worth it to do so: With the knowledge of the Greek alphabet, one may come to recognize specific Greek words when they are being discussed and also transliterate them from Greek letters to English one.

A fourth way of studying the Bible is by doctrines or subjects.

"The ultimate aim of Bible study is to understand its 'doctrines' so that we may apply them to our lives. By doctrine we mean 'that which is taught,' the orderly statement of particular truths. ['Doctrine' is simply 'teaching.' Those who say they are not interested in 'doctrine' or that they are not going to give you their 'doctrine' when they speak are thinking of the word only in the sense of a formal statement of beliefs such as denominations publish. This is the specialized use of the term, but whenever a person teaches or tells you what he believes, he is telling you his doctrine. We find the doctrines of the Bible in three different areas of its contents:] [1.] Whole sections of the Bible are pre-eminently doctrinal. In them we find the direct setting forth of various doctrinal themes. [2.] In other sections (such as the narrative portions) doctrines are taught by illustration and implication, and must be deduced by the appropriate methods of study. [3.] In still other sections (such as the practical portions) doctrines are seen in their applications to everyday situations and problems." (Perry and Culver, op.cit., pp.174,175)

Some Bible doctrines are salvation, regeneration, atonement, justification, sanctification, Christ's second coming, the virgin birth, repentance, Trinity, etc. This is using the word "doctrine" in the more formal sense. Other topics may be thought of as "subjects" rather than "doctrines," although, strictly speaking, they also are doctrines: grace, faith, baptism, the Lord's Supper, love, death, joy, miracles, temptation, heaven and hell, obedience, Satan, prayer, law, works, humility, Anti-Christ, etc. (Ibid.)

"The study of doctrine as it appears in the entire Bible is beyond the ability of most beginning students. It is preferable for the new Christian to study a doctrine in one particular book, and after reaching his conclusions from that book, to expand the study by going on to other books...."

1. Collect all references to the doctrine. Use an analytical concordance or topical Bible. [Articles in a good religious encyclopedia like The New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge and The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia are good sources of references as well as discussions of the various views on that subject or doctrine both now and down through history. Also books on the subject which have an appendix of Bible references on the subject are a good source. This is a most important point-all references to that subject or doctrine must be included to have a thorough understanding of the Bible's teaching on that subject. Too many base their doctrine on an incomplete collection of passages that deal with it. For a doctrine to be truly Biblical, it must include in its formulation all that the Scriptures say on that subject. Collecting all the references means looking up a number of related words in all their grammatical forms in a concordance and related terms as well (such as "prayer"-"pray," "praying," "prayed," "intercession," "supplication," etc.). Sometimes the subject is so exhaustive that only a special skimming of the Bible will turn up all the references. Collecting the references is work and takes time.]

2. Define the doctrine, by comparing all Bible references, and by using such extra-biblical helps as necessary, and by formulating a concise, clear statement of its meaning.

3. Relate the references to their immediate context and the total pattern of biblical truth....[E]valuate the presence of this doctrine within the total pattern of the biblical revelation.

4. Apply the doctrine to personal experience.

5. Summarize the doctrine. (Ibid., pp.176,177)

From my own experience, the process of doctrinal study consists of first, collecting the Scriptures on a subject; second, sorting the Scriptures you have collected into categories; third, making a single unifying phrase or statement that summarizes each category; and fourth, making a more comprehensive statement that incorporates all the category summaries.

A fifth way to study the Bible is by biographies. This is a natural way to study the Bible, as so much of it is the account of people's lives and God's dealings with them.

"Great fascination and profit will result from the study of the lives of various personalities in the Bible. There are 2,930 such separate individuals, many of whom mirror in their experiences great spiritual lessons. Such study leads to effective teaching and preaching, since the lessons, far from being abstract, are concretized in a human life, and can be vividly portrayed and dramatized. In studying a Bible character, be careful not to confuse different people who share the same name. (There are thirty Zachariahs, twenty Nathans, fifteen Jonathans, eight Judases, seven Marys, five Jameses, and five Johns.) Be careful, also, to identify the various names which may apply to one individual (such as Peter, Simon, and Simeon)." (Ibid., p.180)

A biography is, as the components of the word suggests, the story of a person's life-bios is Greek for "life," and graphe is Greek for "writing." Add the prefix auto, Greek for "self," and we have autobiography or the story of a person's life written by himself.

For a biography to be complete, it must include a person's birth, growth, accomplishments, and death. There are some persons in the Bible for which there is given a nearly complete biography-Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Samuel, David, Solomon, Daniel, and Jesus. For others we have quite a bit of information: Joshua, Elijah, Elisha, Samson, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Mary the mother of Jesus, Sarah, and Paul.

After collecting all the Scriptures pertaining to your character (taking care to be complete), one should ask and answer the following questions in his study:

"1. What is the meaning of the individual's name? [From a good Bible dictionary or Bible encyclopedia.]

2. What is the ancestral background? [From helps and a Bible encyclopedia.]

3. What significant religious and secular crises occurred in this life? List these including chapter and verse reference for each.

4. What advantages for personal development were enjoyed by this individual? Was he privileged to attend school? Did he have an opportunity to be exposed to wide cultural backgrounds?

5. What traits of character were manifested? List these and give chapter and verse reference for each.

6. What important friends did this person have?

7. What important influences did this individual exert?

8. What failures and faults occurred in this life?

9. What important contributions were made by this individual?

10. What one main lesson can be found within this life which is of special value to you?

11. What was the influence of the locality from the standpoint of geography, history, and culture upon this individual?

12. If this individual were in our present society, what would be his occupational status?" (Ibid., pp.181-183)

Some good sources for biographical studies are books on the individual's life. There are many biographies of Jesus and Paul, and some on David and other characters. Take note of the sources the author used and try to obtain these through the library as well. Second, books that give you the background of different periods of Bible times are helpful. They can tell you what life was like in the times your character lived. Some of these are: The New Manners and Customs of Bible Times by Ralph Gower and books like it, Alfred Edersheim's Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah and his books The Temple, Its Ministry and Services in the Times of Christ and Sketches of Jewish Social Life. Another is The IVP Bible Background Commentary by Craig S. Keener. These kinds of books are good for "filling in" the parts of your biography where the Scriptural information is either lacking or thin. You can find out a lot about how your character must have lived and this will give you insight into the special obstacles and difficulties he faced in what he did so you will appreciate his trials or accomplishments even more. Sometimes films or other dramatizations like "Jesus of Nazareth" are helpful because they use a lot of background research into how people lived, ate, worked, and dressed in their day.

The study of the Bible by biographies can be especially rewarding for children. Whatever character you find yourself interested in, do a biographical study of him and you will benefit greatly from your study as your character "comes alive."

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