Reading Bible Verses in Context, part 3

I sometimes have issues with the way that certain verses are translated in certain translations in the Bible.  Now I am not suggesting that I know more than translators know. I have a rudimentary knowledge of ancient Greek and even less of Hebrew. But if I opened a mathematics textbook and I see that they have added 2 plus 2 and gotten 5, I can say that it is wrong even though the authors know a thousand times more math than I do. So, I feel free to criticize the translation of a certain verse if I can show that it was not well done.


Before we get to an example that will involve reading in context, I want to explain that there are different theories of translation. I will oversimply it for you here. The two basic theories are called “formal equivalence” and “dynamic equivalence”, at least the last time I checked. (The names and theories may have been altered, but that will not change what I am arguing here.)


The idea behind formal equivalence is something like we might be tempted to call word-for-word translation. Of course, there is no such thing as word-for-word translation since different languages have different words, grammar, syntax, etc. Nevertheless, the translator tries to keep to the words of the biblical text as close to the original as he or she can.


The idea behind dynamic equivalence is that the translation gives us the meaning of the original since the attempt at word-for-word translation can often lead English readers with the wrong impression regarding the meaning of a particular passage. For example, after Jesus healed the woman with the blood flow, he told her, “Your faith has saved you.” (KJV) That is a literal translation. But that might lead us to the conclusion that this woman was just “saved”. A dynamic translation would say, “Your faith has made you whole” or “Your faith has healed you”. That is clearer to us than the word “saved” though in the Greek, it is the same word, “sozo”, which refers most often to eternal salvation. In this case, the dynamic equivalent method seems to be superior to the formal equivalent method, but I don’t think that that is generally the case. Dynamic equivalence is actually more likely to mislead the reader than formal equivalence.


With that said, we are ready to look at an example of poor translation by the method of dynamic equivalence. I will use two translations – the New American Standard, which uses formal equivalence, and the New Living Translation which uses dynamic equivalence. The verse in question is 1 Corinthians 12:8a. The subject is spiritual gifts, or supernatural manifestations of the Spirit of God.


New American Standard:


“For to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit.”

New Living Translation:


“To one person the Spirit gives the ability to give wise advice.”


Notice that the NASB simply says “the word of wisdom” and the NLT says that this gift is the “ability to give wise advice”. The NLT is clearly an interpretation. The Greek says, “logos sophias”. Logos is the word for word or utterance, and Sophia is a word for wisdom. We can see that “word of wisdom” is roughly the same as “logos sophias”. It is quite literal.


So, what is a “logos sophias” in this context? It could mean the giving of wise advice. That is one good option. It is the one that the NLT translators chose. But what if it means something else?

Let’s focus on the word, “sophias” or “wisdom”. The NLT translators have interpreted it as “wise advice”. Now I think that giving wise advice is a wonderful thing, but I do not think it is a spiritual gift. I think it is something else. How can we know whether or not “sophias” should be translated as “wise advice”?


Context.


If we look at the context of the whole Bible, we will immediately notice that wisdom can mean “practical advice”. Just read the book of Proverbs. It is full of advice and wise sayings. It’s a very practical book.


Then again, we also know that wisdom is the proper way of looking at the world according to the revelation that God has given us.


So, the context of the whole Bible might not help us here. Instead, we must look at how Paul used the word “sophias” in the rest of 1 Corinthians. After all, it is highly unlikely that he would use such an important word in different ways, especially in the same letter. The context that is critical here is the context is how this author he uses words in this letter he has written to the Corinthians.

Earlier in this letter, Paul spoke of two very different sources of wisdom. One was the wisdom of the world, which is wrong. The other is the wisdom of God, which we need to learn and follow. But in neither case does Paul use the word to indicate “practical advice”. Rather he was talking about two very different ways to view the world.


The wisdom of the world caused the Corinthians to see the world the way the ancient Greeks and Romans did. There world was full of factions, divided between those who followed different philosophical teachers. Hence, the Corinthians were arguing over who they should follow – Paul, Apollos or Peter. They also denied the resurrection of the dead. The reason they did this was because in their philosophy (wisdom), the body was the prison of the soul and the soul needed to be released from its prison never to return.


But that is not the wisdom of God. God’s wisdom is based on Jesus Christ and him crucified – and resurrected. Paul urges the Corinthians to turn away from the wisdom of the world and accept God’s wisdom who is Christ.


1 Corinthians 2:6-8 NLT


When I am among mature believers, I do speak with words of wisdom, but not the kind of wisdom that belongs to this world or to the rulers of this world, who are soon forgotten.  No, the wisdom we speak of is the mystery of God]—his plan that was previously hidden, even though he made it for our ultimate glory before the world began. But the rulers of this world have not understood it; if they had, they would not have crucified our glorious Lord.


Notice that I have used the NLT for this passage. Wisdom, from God, is a revealing of His purpose and plan. In this passage, it specifically refers to God’s plan to reconcile humanity to Himself by sending Jesus to die on the cross for us.


This leads me to conclude that when Paul speaks the wisdom of God, he is talking about a revelation of the purpose and plan of God. The word of wisdom, then, is not the giving of practical advice, but God revealing what He is planning to do in the life of an individual, a church or even a nation.

When King Hezekiah was sick, Isaiah had a word of God’s wisdom for him. Hezekiah was told to put his house in order because he was going to die. Hezekiah then prayed and plead his case to God. God then extended his life for 15 more years.


Hezekiah knew that this was not practical advice that Isaiah was giving him, but God was telling him that under the circumstances he was going to die. Hezekiah did not set his house in order; he changed the situation through prayer.


I think that I have shown definitively that the NASB translation is much better than the NLT. And I have also demonstrated that a dynamic translation, being interpretive, can lead us in the wrong direction due to the opinion of the translators. They obviously believed that the verse in question means “giving wise advice”.


The NASB translation could lead to any of several interpretations. With the NASB, you could come to the conclusion, as many have, that “logos sophias” means “giving wise advice”. But any good translation should allow for interpretations other than the one that the translators determine must be correct. The job of a translator is to translate the text freely and faithfully, not to determine the complete meaning for us and translate it accordingly.


But I must return to our main theme of interpreting by context. In my first post on the subject, I showed how the immediate context is the most important. In the second, I showed that the context of the whole Bible is important as well, especially when it comes to application.


Now we can see that how the human author uses certain words also helps us determine what a word means, particularly in the same book. Get into the habit of reading context, the surrounding context and the context of the book of the Bible you are reading as well.

God bless.

Reading Bible Verses in Context, part 2

In the last post, we looked at a passage of Scripture that many have taken too broadly; namely, that Paul in calling himself "the worst of sinners" was not referring to his present state but to his past - before Christ. In this case, Christians have made too much out of what Paul said. We cannot make a doctrine out of it. 

In this post, we will look at a verse that has sometimes been taken too narrowly often by scholars. We will look at Philippians 4:12-13

I (Paul) know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.  I can do all things through him who gives me strength.

I have put in bold letters the part of this which is often quoted. Christians have applied this principle to just about any situation. They declare that God empowers us to go through all kinds of circumstances particularly when we are answering his call. 

Biblical scholars cry foul on this. They say that the context of the latter part of this only applies to the situation of Paul having much or little in terms of material things and does not relate to anything else. In other words, it is said that the time that God gives us strength and ability is in regards to our material circumstances only. Now they would have an excellent point if that was the only biblical passage that spoke of this. It is not. 

We not only need to know the immediate context of a verse, we need to understand it in the context of the whole Bible. To say it a little differently, we have to ask ourselves if this principle is only applicable to this situation, or is it a larger principle that Paul has applied right here and we can apply it to other situations as well. I think it is the latter. 

Isaiah 41:10

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God.

I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

This is a promise from the Old Testament that God will strengthen us and uphold us by his right hand. Who is God's right hand? It is Christ. Now the context of this verse is referring to the return of the exiles from the Babylonian Captivity. But notice how similar it is to what Paul said. We can see exactly the same principle applied to very different circumstances. 

And there are many such examples of God strengthening His people to accomplish His will. It is a principle that applies to many more situations that what we find in Philippians. So, it is proper to interpret Philippians 4:13 more broadly than some scholars would allow. 

I hope that you have noticed that we have done something similar in last week's and this week's post. We have looked at the immediate context and we have looked at the larger context of the whole Bible. In last week's post, we showed that the immediate context was of great importance. Paul clearly said that he had been an awful sinner. Things he said elsewhere showed that he considered a born-again Christian to be righteous before God. 

This week we saw that the context of the whole Bible was actually the more important one. So, you might ask the question, "How do we know which one is more important?". Well, that's where we have to keep studying the Scriptures. The more we know, the better we can interpret any verse. 

One thing you can do is word studies. You can take prominent words and study how they are used in the Bible. Better yet, you can study certain subjects in the Bible. That means the whole Bible and not just the New Testament though the New Testament does interpret the Old. 

So, I encourage everyone to keep reading, studying and meditating on the Word of God.

Reading Bible Verses in Context, part 1

Since most of us have more alone time at home and may be having church online, I am hoping that my fellow Christians are spending more time reading the Bible for themselves. In view of that, I want to share some ways to read the Bible with better understanding.

I want to start with the subject of reading the Bible in context. Those of you who are educated in these things might be tempted to nod your head and  stop reading this post because you know all about that. But I encourage you to keep reading because my guess is that you are as guilty of this as anyone else. You take scriptures out of context or simply ignore the context in determining the meaning. We have all done it. 

Before we get into this, though, I want to make sure I am not misunderstood. Even when we get into the various ways we can better understand the Scriptures, I am not saying that we can figure it all out in our heads. We cannot. We have the Holy Spirit to teach us and to lead us into all truth. (John 14:26; 16:13) Always look to Him for understanding, first and foremost, then use the other tools that can aid our minds in grasping the truths of the Bible. 

First, I want to admit that certain verses that we often quote and use are well understood even without a lot of context. Take John 3:16. We quote that verse, we understand it correctly, we use it correctly so we do not have to take too much time talking about the context. 

But even in this instance, if someone knows nothing about Christ, nothing about sin, and nothing about eternal judgement, then he would not have any idea what this verse is actually saying. A uniformed pagan might ask "Which god?", or, "Since God has given His Son to give us everlasting life, how can I find Him?" He might understand nothing of the cross much less about sin or redemption or faith. The context of the whole Bible would have to tell him those things.

So, let's look at an example of a verse that is commonly misunderstood and misapplied because the context is not carefully considered. 1 Timothy 1:15 says, "Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst." So Paul calls himself the "worst of sinners" or, as some translations say, "the chief of sinners". I have heard this many times used to "prove" that we should consider ourselves to be sinners of the worst sort if we want to be humble Christians. After all, if the great Apostle Paul whom we consider to be among the best Christians ever thought of himself as the worst sinner, how should we see ourselves? We should see ourselves as awful sinners as well. Right? 

Wrong. The context has been completely ignored. Let's look at the whole passage. 

"I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me trustworthy, appointing me to his service. Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst.  But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his immense patience as an example for those who would believe in him and receive eternal life." 1 Timothy 1:12-16

When you read this in context, Paul is not saying that he was the worst sinner when he wrote this, but before he was saved. Although he uses the present tense to say "worst of sinners", it is clear that he is talking about the time he "was a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man." He used the past tense there because he was no longer that man. That man was saved by the merciful Savior Jesus. Paul is telling Timothy to use him as an example of the mercy that Christ shows to sinners. 

Perhaps you have met, or have been, one of those who think that God will not save them because they have been so bad. Paul uses himself as proof that God will save the worst of sinners. 

So to use this one verse to prove some idea that we are still sinners after salvation is just not tenable. We must consider the context of all that Paul has said along these lines. 

"God exhibits his love towards us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more, then, being justified now by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him." Romans 5:8-9 Notice that "sinners" is referenced in the past tense. The implication is that we were sinners until we received our justification by the blood of Jesus.

"For if, by the offense of one, death reigned through one, much more so shall those who receive the abundance of grace, and the gift of righteousness, reign in life through One - Jesus Christ." Romans 5:17 Righteousness (not just a legal kind of righteousness) is a gift and has nothing to do with works.

"Not having my own righteousness (which is of the Law) but that which is through faith in Christ - the righteousness which is from God by faith." Philippians 3:9 We obtain righteousness from God by faith.

"For He has made him to be sin for us, Who knew no sin; that we should be made the righteousness of God in Him." 2 Corinthians 5:21 The strongest statement in the New Testament regarding our righteousness. The context here reveals that he is talking about us being made new creations in Christ, brand new people with a new nature. 

I could quote more verses, but if you study these things (in context, of course) you will find that Paul consistently says that we were sinners but have received the gift of righteousness and received it by faith. We have been new creations, created in righteousness and true holiness. (2 Cor. 5:17; Ephesians 4:24) Thank God that though we were sinners, we were saved, that is, made righteous, by faith in Christ and His redemptive work on the cross. 

So I encourage everyone to study the context of every passage, both the immediate context of where that verse is, but also the context of what else the Bible says about that subject. Let's not build our theology on verses ripped out of their context to prove our theology. Sometimes our more used verses, taken out of context, have led us into misunderstanding and poor theology.

I hope that this has been enlightening  or, at least, challenging. I encourage comments and questions - even arguments. However, the Comments Section of this blog does not seem to work, so put in the Facebook post or email me at brian.scarborough@aol.com

NEXT TIME (maybe): Using the context to interpret too narrowly.