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NASB | 2 Timothy 2:15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | 2 Timothy 2:15 Study and do your best to present yourself to God approved, a workman [tested by trial] who has no reason to be ashamed, accurately handling and skillfully teaching the word of truth. |
Bible Question: I am struggling with how to make observations of bible text. How to really get in and dig it up. Any hints as to how to read more into the words? I am in a class, and I read it and read it and read it, and I don't know what the observations would be. |
Bible Answer: Mel Dillon, One way to study the Bible and to really get into the text and dig for a fuller meaning of the text is to use what is known as the "inductive" method of Bible study. I first learned of this method (and mastered it) after purchasing a book about it at the Asbury Theological Seminary Bookstore in Wilmore, KY, and using this method (a few years later) as the basis for my college Biblical interpretation classes at Indiana Wesleyan University. In this method, we begin our train of thought towards Biblical study by asking two very important questions about Scripture: 1. What, as a matter of fact, did the authors intend to say to their first readers? 2. What does the specific passage in mind have to do with us and our world? First of all, we must look carefully at what the authors wrote. Simply look at what was said before you leap to interpretation and application! The first good step in good Bible study is observation. Few study disciplines will help you more than to learn to study the Bible in units. When you read the Bible in this way, you begin to see through the eyes of the author. Every unit has significance as a whole, and every section can be understood in light of that whole. For instance, in the book of Jonah, you will begin to ponder the implications of Jonah's fleeing from God when you read Chapter 1. But your insights will be limited at best unless you read the last chapter of the book. There, Jonah gives the reason for his 'escape' from God in the first place- a deep disagreement with God's mercy, even if it included hating the Ninevites. We begin to see that his disobedience were far more than quibbling over a call. He had a basic argument with God. Only one who sees the book as a whole will uncover that, and yet it is a main point of the book. Even though you begin to read and understand in units, also aim at seeing books as 'wholes.' Begin to see chapters as collections of related paragraphs whose main points form an intelligent whole. Give attention to individual verses only as you can see them in light of the paragraph and chapter in which they are set. Start this discipline now!! Studying in units makes use of different "study lenses" in a sequence. First, the wide-angle lens to get the big picture (survey). Second, the close-up lens to look carefully at the parts that compose the larger picture (analysis). And last, the wide-angle again to see the unit as a panorama once more (synthesis), now with greater perception after detailed exposure to the parts. This is how "professionals" study the Bible. See what is there: The Context of a Passage: 1. Survey the unit of Scripture - get an overview 2. Title chapters, paragraphs and other subunits - Give short, descriptive titles to each paragraph and to each chapter. If you see several chapters which seem to go together to form larger units, give titles to these units as well. 3. Note proportion and sense the atmosphere. For example, in Jonah again, one would note the surprising amount of space devoted to the prophet's attitude problem- one entire chapter in four! And one would sense the shift from Jonah's helpless tone in chapter 2 to the sullen, argumentative mood of chapter 4, showing a definite change in atmosphere. 4. Observe the literary type and genre. Is the book or unit written in prose or poetry (or both)? Note whether the passage being studied is a narrative of history or events, a letter, a legal code, a prophecy, a song, a prayer, or an essay. This will make a huge difference in how you interpret its materials. 5. Make a chart and draw a picture. Present your survey findings regarding the content of the book or other unit in chart form, incorporating your unit titles and any other survey information you can in such ways to show their placement, relative size and other interaction. For example: Jonah: Running from God's Mercy (Book as a whole) Jonah runs from God 1:1 16 Jonah prays from the fish 1:17 2:10 Nineveh repents, God relents 3:1 10 Jonah angry at God's mercy 4:1 11 Relevant information about time, place, main persons, etc., can be conveniently place beneath the appropriate section title on a chart like this. (More continued in part 2) - Makarios |