Bible Interpretation, Student Workbook, SW05

/ 9 1

B I B L E I N T E R P R E T A T I O N

D. Test your principle (i.e., your proverb or statement) against what the rest of the Bible says (1 Thess. 5.21).

1. Check BACK to the passage itself. ( “Does this passage really teach what I am suggesting it does?” ) Ask yourself honestly, “If someone else were to read through this passage would they be likely to discover this principle?”

2. Check THROUGH other Bible passages. ( “Are there other passages in the Bible that clearly state and support my proposed principle?” )

3. Check OUT Bible examples, stories, and illustrations. ( “Do the lives and experiences of the people in the Bible line up with my proposed principle?” ) If you can find no other statements or stories in the Bible that support your principle then you probably have not found a biblical principle.

2

4. Check INTO Bible commentaries and Church teachings to see if your findings are supported by other scholars. ( “Have others found the same insights I claim to have found here?” )

a. If no one else you read has ever found the principle you discovered, it does not automatically mean you are wrong, but it should make you extremely cautious.

b. Without support from others you must make a very careful biblical case and at least attempt to explain why others may not have seen this principle.

5. Adjust your statement to fit the results of your test.