In the last lesson, you learned about searching theological questions. In this lesson, the focus is searching exegetical questions. So what’s the difference?
ex·e·ge·sis
The process of interpretation based on the substance of a text.
What else would an interpretation be based upon?! Well…the pronouncements of a preacher, the conclusions of a commentary, other texts on the same subject, and my own preconceived notions to name a few! It is so easy to let these sorts of things inadvertently rule our understanding. That is why it is so important to consciously dedicate ourselves to exegesis.
So exegetical questions are those questions aimed at helping us understand what the passage in front of us is, in fact, saying.
Example
3 I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, 4 always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.
Philippians 1:3-5
Does Paul talk about praying for recipients at the beginning of all his letters?
What all does the Bible say about the emotions we ought to have as we pray?
What are the different ways that people can partner together in the gospel?
Those are all interesting and worthy questions, but they are not exegetical questions. That is, none of them aims to help us understand what these three verses in Philippians are saying better. Rather, the second question is topical (note the “What does the Bible say about _?” formula) while the first and third are theological questions.
Exegetical questions, on the other hand, aim to help us rightly understand the text before us. In fact, that is what cross-references are meant to do as well. We have already noted that cross-references are “searches gone before us.” Now we see that, more specifically, cross-references are exegetical searches gone before us. This is made clear when you consider what exactly cross-references are doing. Consider the following video about cross-references from the Discovery! course.
Making Your Own Cross-References
So what is the process of asking an exegetical question and then seeking to answer it via searching? Answer: It is the process of creating your own cross-references.
But why would we want to do that? Why not just use the cross-references provided in my ESV? Here are two reasons:
Cross-references are not exhaustive.
This is true both in terms of which phrases are searched and which search results are presented.
Self-discovery far outstrips simply being told.
Looking up cross-references already requires your thoughtful consideration of connections. Personally confirming the connections through a search brings it even further, solidifying things in your mind and heart to an even greater degree. (Just like studying a map and memorizing my route far outstrips following Google Map’s directions in learning the streets of a city.)
How It Is Done
Oftentimes, the process is as simple as searching a word or phrase that you find in your passage of study. For example, looking back at Philippians 1:3-5, it would be sensible to search partnership in an effort to understand what Paul is referring to when speaking of his partnership with the Philippians. And sure enough, the search results quickly answer our exegetical question: the Philippians were financially supporting Paul’s missionary efforts (Philippians 4:14-16). Other times, you will need to put in a bit more effort to form your search. The process, in this case, is not unlike searching a theological question. Write your questions down, reshape them for clarity and searchability, and consider synonyms.
Another exegetical question from Philippians 1:3-5 is, “What does Paul mean by saying this partnership began on day one?” This is an exegetical question that stems from confusion, since it seems really odd to imagine Paul asking for financial missionary support the same day the Philippian church was born. Perhaps “the first day” simply means that, when Paul left Philippi, the church began to give financial missionary support. After all, this is something the verses discovered from our last question have already made clear.
But could it mean more? Reshaping this question, let’s ask, “What did the first days of the Philippian church look like?” To answer this, we simply search philippi* in order to find verses talking about both the city and its residents. The discovery is wonderfully insightful. 15 And after [Lydia, the first Philippian convert] was baptized, and her household as well, she urged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay.” And she prevailed upon us [i.e. Paul and his companions].
Acts 16:15
Wow! The Philippian church’s support of Paul literally was from day one. And it was not a result of Paul asking for support. Rather, it began from the fervent desire of Lydia on the day of her baptism and involved providing housing (and likely food) for Paul and his companions.
In light of these things, read Philippians 1:3-5 once more.
3 I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, 4 always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.
Can you feel Paul’s affection for this dear church?