How To Interpret the Bible

Have you ever felt that the Bible is confusing?

It’s translated from Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. Biblical scholars debate over textual variants. There are sixty-six books, each requiring careful study to understand the genre, original cultural context, and meaning.

And we have to ask how the entire message fits together!

If you feel like understanding the Bible is too complicated, you’re not alone. When I read academic commentaries, I often wrestle with how the best Biblical scholars disagree with each other about what a specific passage means!

If even the experts can’t agree on what the Bible means, then what hope do we have?

Surprisingly, Jesus faced the same problem we do!

In Matthew 22:34-40, some Pharisees get together and plan to trick Jesus.

These were prominent religious leaders in the community, and they figured that if they asked Jesus how to interpret the Bible, they could trip him up.

So, an expert in the law approaches Jesus and asks, “Teacher, which command in the law is the greatest?”

Dr. Craig Blomberg explains, “His question seems innocent enough but reflects an intra-Jewish debate on how to rank and/or summarize all of the scriptural commandments and on whether such ranking is in fact possible at all.”

So, if Jesus admits that he doesn’t know the answer, he loses credibility.

But if he gives an answer, it seems he will be forced to take sides in a complex debate.

Out of 613 laws, how can you say that any one of them is more important than another?

Imagine you were in this situation.

A Bible scholar confronts you in front of your friends and asks you to explain the most important part of the entire Bible. Do you feel the pressure?

Thankfully, Jesus provided a simple, straightforward answer:

He said to him, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and most important command. The second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets depend on these two commands” (Matthew 22:37-40).

Imagine a sparkling chandelier attached to the ceiling of a majestic ballroom by a strong, coiled wire.

The coiled wire represents love for God and love for neighbor. With this in place, the rest of God’s word is properly positioned, a beautiful focal point that shines light throughout the room.

But what if we cut the wire? The chandelier falls to the ground, shattering into a million pieces. Whoever it hits will be injured – or killed. Meanwhile, the entire room falls into darkness.

It might be hard to believe that the Bible can be so easily understood. So many authoritative people have said it is complicated!

But on the authority of Jesus, this is the key that unlocks the meaning of every passage in the Bible.

Until we understand how and why a particular story, commandment, or poem helps us love God and our neighbor, we haven’t understood it according to God’s intent.

But once we see how a passage reveals God’s love, we interpret the Bible as Jesus taught us.

The simplest tasks can be confusing when we don’t know where to start.

For instance, until a child learns how to turn a doorknob, it can seem incredibly frustrating, even overwhelming, to know how to get past a closed door. But once they learn this simple motion, they can go wherever they want.

In the same way, if we’ve never understood how Jesus’ teaching helps us focus on the meaning of every word in the Bible, then all the potential interpretations can feel overwhelming.

But once you know what keeps the entire book together, then you can begin to understand every part of the Bible.  

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How do you interpret the Bible?

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