Lesson 3: Learning Our Hermeneutic from the Bible
We Start from Where We Are
We built this course on the Bible's call to develop a biblical hermeneutic.
But how do we do that?
Developing a biblical hermeneutic may at times seem daunting, but I have good news: We do not start with a blank slate.
Developing a Biblical Hermeneutic
The Gift of Godly Teachers
First off, we have the instruction of godly teachers as a foundation. They allow us to study the Bible without fear, giving us a starting point from which we refine and deepen our hermeneutic through personal study. As Paul exhorted Timothy,
But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. —2 Timothy 3:14–15
Godly teachers provide us with a solid foundation as we interpret the Bible. Their faithful teaching guides and equips us to study the Bible as God intends. In the immediate context, Paul points Timothy to his own life and example (2 Tim 3:10–11). Earlier in the letter, he also points Timothy to the faith of his grandmother, Lois, and his mother, Eunice. These faithful teachers and others provided Timothy with a trustworthy foundation from which he could refine and deepen his own understanding. God gives us godly teachers, whether pastors, parents, or more mature siblings in the faith, to provide us with the solid foundation of a biblical hermeneutic.
Write about one example of a godly teacher in your life whom God used to provide you with a solid foundation.
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The Gift of the Bible Itself
God does not merely give other teachers to provide us with a foundation. He gives us the Bible. The Bible is both our textbook and our teacher. Through the Bible, God himself teaches us how he intends for us to read his Book.
The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple. —Psalm 119:130
What an encouraging truth we find in this verse. Scripture itself imparts understanding! The corollary exhortation, then, is this: pick up your Bible and read! Whatever level of understanding you have at present will grow and mature as you prayerfully read and meditate. Interpreting the Bible rightly refines and develops our biblical hermeneutic. This was, in fact, the exact experience of the disciples.
His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him. —John 12:16
Time and again the disciples did not understand Jesus' words or actions fully until after he was raised and ascended to the right hand of the Father (see also John 13:7; 20:9). The Spirit, whom Jesus had promised, caused them to remember all that Jesus said and did (John 14:25-26). They opened the Scriptures and understanding came as they studied the Scriptures and reflected back on Jesus' life and teaching. Scripture itself sheds light, and so, like the disciples, we must read the Bible, learning from the Bible how God intends for us to interpret his Book. As our primary interpretative principle states: The Bible demands that we follow its own hermeneutic, which it teaches both by principle and by example.
However, in all this, we must remember that such reading only succeeds to refine and deepen our understanding when we read as God intends:
Bible reading that only collects facts, or relieves a guilty conscience, or gathers doctrinal arguments, or titillates aesthetic literary tastes, or feeds historical curiosities—this kind of Bible reading Satan is perfectly happy to leave alone. He has already won the battle. But reading that hopes to see the supreme worth and beauty of God—reading that aims to be satisfied with all that God is for us in Christ, reading that seeks to ‘taste and see that the Lord is good’ (Ps. 34:8)—this reading Satan will oppose with all his might. And his might is supernatural. Therefore, any reading that hopes to overcome his blinding power will be a supernatural reading. —John Piper, Reading the Bible Supernaturally, 185.
The following video from The Bible Project is a great introduction to the manner in which the Bible is designed to impart understanding.
The Gift of God Himself
Finally, we must not forget what we learned in Lesson 2: the Lord himself is with us and goes before us as we interpret. The Author teaches us how to interpret his Book and empowers us to do so. The Bible describes God's ongoing, empowering work in our Bible interpretation in at least five ways:¹
- He opens our minds. (Luke 24:44–45)
- He shines in our hearts and dispels the darkness. (2 Cor 4:4–6)
- He strengthens us with his power. (Eph 3:14–19)
- He blesses us with faith. (Mark 4:11–12; Matt. 13:16)
- He reveals himself to us. (Matt 16:16–17)
Is the Bible the Word of God? Then be sure you never read it without fervent prayer for the help and teaching of the Holy Spirit. Here is the rock on which many make shipwreck. They do not ask for wisdom and instruction, and so they find the Bible dark, and carry nothing away from it. You should pray for the Spirit to guide you into all truth. You should beg the Lord Jesus Christ to "open your understanding," as He did that of His disciples. The Lord God, by whose inspiration the book was written, keeps the keys of the book, and alone can enable you to understand it profitably. —J. C. Ryle, quoted on pages 194–95 by John Piper in Reading the Bible Supernaturally.
A Summary
God calls us to develop a biblical hermeneutic as we interpret his book, but he does not leave us on our own to fulfill this call. He provides godly teachers to give us a foundation. He gives the Bible itself to develop and refine our biblical hermeneutic. And God himself is with us, teaching and empowering us to read the Bible as he intends.