Interpretation Guidelines IV In this article we will examine interpretation. This brings us to the versions of the Bible that are available today – or, the translations. Are the modern translations dependable? My first statement may very well, regrettably, be a generalization. A French proverb states all generalizations are untrue. However, the fact of the matter is I do not recommend the modern translations. I recognize there are some good things that can be found in some of the modern translations of the Bible. In most of them the statement can be made that they contain some very enlightening phrasing which helps with the illumination we seek. Even one or two of the liberal Bibles published today have some excellent Greek translation, the likes of which are heretofore unseen in human literature. But I find that Christians are so divided doctrinally today that each group attempting to make a translation of the Bible naturally injects into their translation their own particular viewpoint. Therefore, if the liberal does the translating you can expect at least a taste of liberalism. If the fundamentalist makes the translation, you’ll pick up on that bias in certain places, too. However, I believe that the men who made the original translation believed it was the Word of God and I believe they handled it accordingly. These men did not translate certain words; they just transliterated some words. “Abba”, for instance, “Abba – Father”; they didn’t dare translate that word. The same is true for the word that is “baptize”. These were transliterated – and yet so many people today want to be overly dogmatic about certain things. And that is the danger in the modern translation. Finally, some of them are just not too good in their translating. Translation I take the position that I am not translating anything but interpreting the Bible. Most of the modern day translations are not translations but are also interpretations. I try to keep a copy of all translations – good, bad and ugly. Just to see what these men have to say is most interesting to me. But, believe me, most of these are only interpretations and are not translations. I call them that. I wrote of one the other day, which I will not specify here, when someone asked me if it was a good translation. I told them exactly what I just wrote. Marvelous interpretations can be lousy translations. In order to translate something we have to take it out of one language and re-speak or re-write it in another language in comparable terms; identical terms, if possible. The problem is that most of these modern “translations” are not really that at all. What they are trying to do is get it into modern speech and in their attempt to do that they miss what the text really says. That can be found in more published versions of the Bible than you can possibly imagine. I stick by the Authorized Version; I don’t find it too difficult with all of its “thou” “shalt” and “hath” and “thee” words; they don’t bother me and actually they have a note of reverence. I personally recommend the American Standard Version of the Holy Bible from 1901. I feel that it is more accurate than any other available currently. The New Scofield Reference Bible The New Scofield Reference Bible has made tremendous steps forward in the connection we speak of and in making certain distinctions as you read it through, as well as corrections that needed to be made; I personally use this Bible. The old scout follows the same old trail that he has known for a long time. I recommend it above all others. George Bernard Shaw One of the most interesting comments regarding translation came from a rank unbeliever. Mr. Shaw had many nasty things to say about present day churches and Christianity in general. “The [Authorized Version] was extraordinarily well done. To the men that were doing the translating, this was not some collection of ancient books by random authors in various stages of culture; but the Word of God finally revealed to His chosen and expressly inscribed scribes. In that conviction, they carried out their work with boundless reverence and care to achieve a beautiful artistic result”. In any interpretation of the Bible there are certain rules that must be adhered to. The big difference among many conservative scholars today is the differing of opinion regarding interpretations. We believe the entire Bible is the inspired Word of God. And you may be relieved to hear a quote from one of the leading Pentecostal ministers in this country just a few short years ago. “One of these days I will see this book as the Fundamental sees it and they shall see it as I do currently. At that time, we shall both see it correctly”. I The first overall rule to keep when making any interpretation of the Bible is the purpose of it. The reason I am going through it as I am is because I need to know the entire scripture before I can make any judgement about it – especially any dogmatic statements regarding verses and passages of scriptures – and this is something that may seem selfish, but it is all-important. When speaking of a verse it is important to take all verses connected with it into consideration. Further, we should always consider to whom scripture is addressed. God said to Joshua, “Arise and go over the River Jordan”; well, today you may get shot at if you try to cross the Jordan River, so I wouldn’t, personally, particularly if you are an American. If you do, though, don’t think that you have fulfilled scripture because God wasn’t talking to you - He was talking to Joshua. Although there is a tremendous spiritual lesson for us in that passage, God was not talking to you or me about fulfilling scripture literally. But all scripture is for us and that is what we need to keep in mind. II The second rule to adhere to is the immediate context – either before or after scripture - giving consideration to all relevant passages regarding that context. III Third, there should always be an attempt to discover what the original text says. We must recognize that in our differing versions we have certain translations. Some of those are very good and when you read the Authorized Version I feel you are about as close as you are going to get to what the Lord said. But the important thing to remember when attempting a translation, or even an interpretation, is that we need to try to understand what the original text said and, as a result, I don’t recommend any other versions of the Bible to anybody; that is, other than the Authorized Version. IV The late Dr David Cooper from Southern California provides me with this fourth rule to follow when translating the scriptures. “When the plain sense of scripture makes common sense – seek no other sense. Therefore, take each word at its ordinary, primary, usual, literal meaning unless the facts of the immediate context, studied in the light of related passages and axiomatic, fundamental truths, indicate otherwise clearly.” That is somewhat complicated but it is just about as fine a statement regarding our topic that one can find written by man. Remember that Heaven and earth shall pass away but the Word of God shall not pass away. The Psalmist said, “Forever, oh, Lord, thy words are settled in the heavens”. The Bible was born in the east and clothed in oriental form and imagery. The Bible walks the way of the entire world with familiar feet. It enters land after land to find its own everywhere. It speaks to the heart of man in hundreds of languages. It enters into the palace to tell the Monarch that he is a servant of the Most High and into the cottage to re-assure the peasant that he is a child of God. Children listen to the stories from the Bible with wonder and delight just as wise men ponder them as parables of light. It has a word of peace for the time of peril; a word of comfort for the time of calamity; a word of light for the hour of darkness. Its oracles are repeated in the assemblies of the people; its council is whispered in the ear of the lonely; the wicked and the proud tremble at its warnings - but to the wounded and repentant it has the voice of a mother. The wilderness and the solitary place have been made glad by it and the fire of the earth has lit the reading of its well-worn pages. It has woven itself into our dearest dreams so that love, friendship, sympathy and devotion, memory and hope put on the beautiful garment of its treasured speech, breathing frankincense and myrrh - the Bible is - the Word of God! The interpretation that you and I make of the Bible is the human side of the Word of God and that is why there are Methodist and Baptist, Presbyterian and Fundamentals and others like me. That comes from our interpretation and some of us are, evidently, woefully wrong. The Bible does not teach two things – it teaches just one thing. And that thing has to do with true interpretation. There are certain rules that must be followed and we have called attention to them as we approached each one individually; such as, no scripture should be interpreted by itself. That is important because none of us have any right to lift out one little verse and build a doctrine around it on that basis. Further, no doctrine should ever be built on a passage that is uncertain or an uncertain verse. But, unfortunately, many denominations today have done exactly that! Dr Wescott Dr Wescott observed that only one word in 100 come into question as far as the text is concerned. You and I can be absolutely sure that the text we have today is a reliable text. But there are many versions and that can be most confusing. Definition I would like to look at the definition of the Bible as I feel it should also be contained in the interpretation section. It would stand to reason that it would need to be in a language that we understand if we are to define it. So, now that we have a reliable translation we can make an attempt at definition. This book contains the mind of God; the state of man; the way of salvation. It also contains the doom of sinners; the happiness of believers; its doctrines are holy and its precepts are binding. Its histories are true and verifiable; its decisions are immutable. Read it for wisdom -–believe it for salvation - practice it and be holy! It also contains light to direct you; food to sustain you and comfort to cheer you. It is the pilgrims’ staff and the travelers’ map; the pilots’ compass and a soldier’s sword. It is the Christians Charter. In the Bible, paradise is restored, heaven is opened and the gates of hell are revealed. Christ is the grand object and our good is its design – it is the dynamic for all of our ethics. The Glory of God is its end. It should fill your memory; rule your heart; guide your feet. Read it slowly, frequently and prayerfully. It is a mine of gold and wealth and the paradise of glory and a river of pleasures. It is only given to you in this life and it will be open at your judgement and you will remember it forever. It involves the highest responsibility; will reward the most arduous labor and will condemn all people who trifle with its sacred content and context. Dr McGifford We are dealing with a book that is under attack as no other book has experienced in the history of the world. Dr McGifford made the following statement many, many years ago, (Dr McGifford was a great professor of history – but this is his viewpoint): “…and there are probably few Protestant theologians who treat the early chapters as sober history”. Unfortunate statements such as that are made and multiplied ad infinitum. Dr C H Dodd “Long, long ago it became clear that, in claiming for the Bible accuracy and matters of science and history, its apologists have chosen a hopeless position to defend. The harm has already been perpetrated on society by allowing the outdated and worn out morality contained in parts of the Old Testament to stand as authoritative declarations”. There are serious attacks being made upon the Word of God - even as I sit here typing this out – even in some of our so-called conservative seminaries. Some very strange things are, indeed, being said today. For instance, in Vassar College, Mary McCarthy, writing on the Vassar Girl in Holiday Magazine some time ago, said that the colleges’ curriculum has always been the same with one exception; and she lists the curriculum as that of any liberal college today – the English language and its literature; other modern languages; Ancient classics and so on. And then she says: “Lastly, and most importantly, the daily, systematic reading and study of the Holy Scriptures as the only and all-sufficient rule of Christian faith and practice [has been eliminated]…with the exception of the last proviso, this remains the basis for the Vassar education”. Of course, Vassar College in New York is not the only school the Bible has been expelled from lock, stock and barrel. But I have some interesting contrast to blend in on Ms. McCarthys’ perfunctory prose. We are living in a day when the divisions between (and I use the term loosely here) Christians - is so great a gulf - but is not drawn on the denominational line. In 1902 a cabinet minister in Great Britain made this statement: “The old denominational barriers are growing shadowy and unreal. The real division that is coming soon is between those who believe that the Bible is the Word of God and those who do not”! That’s where we are today. I personally resent the statement made by many that no intelligent person believes the Bible anymore. Our Supreme Court Justices are saying that right now! They say that no intelligent person could ever believe the Bible. Well, our court system is in such a catastrophic condition that most people simply dismiss and disregard the entity known as the law anyway – and all because of statements like that! But not to worry, the mouths of these heretics will soon be sewn shut. Gladstone (1902) “Talk about the questions of the day and there is but one of any importance. That question is of the gospel that can and will right all wrongs. I am glad to say that just about all the men at the top of the legal realm are Christians today”. “I have been in public position for fifty-eight years. All but eleven of those have been spent in the cabinet of the British government. During the balance of forty-seven years, I have been associated with no less than sixty of the masterminds of the century. And all but five of those sixty were genuine Christians”. Now, do you suppose that the change from that time to now could have anything at all to do with the sorry state that country is in? These are some tremendous statements that I never even heard mentioned in my schooling. Unfortunately, nobody hears them in their schooling anymore, either! My position is that there are too few Christians leading our country and, therefore, too few with true knowledge of the book of all life. That book still remains – the Word of God! Gladstone is not the only great man that has taken the position that he does, of course. Michael Faraday One of the greatest English chemists and physicists, Michael Faraday discovered the principle of electromagnetic induction in 1831. He found that moving a magnet through a coil of copper wire caused an electrical current to flow in the wire. The electric generator and the electric motor are still based on this principle. There are very few men that enter a laboratory and pour acid in test tubes or look at microscopic matter and try to figure out what it is that don’t have to pay tribute to this man, Michael Faraday – he was far more of a genius than Einstein, debatably. I will be the first to admit that I do not completely comprehend the theories set forth by Einstein, but what I do understand is that he merely overstated the obvious. “…but why will people go astray when they have the blessed book from God to guide them?” ~ Michael Faraday Sir Isaac Newton “If the Bible is true the time will come when men shall travel at fifty miles per hour! Voltaire “Poor Isaac [Newton] was in his dotage when he made that prophecy about the future speed of travel. It only proves further what the infectious Bible will do to an otherwise healthy and scientific mind”. Well, I see what that infection did do! And let me overstate the obvious myself once for Mr. Einstein’s sake: “Voltaire was very much mistaken and Isaac Newton was absolutely correct”! ~ Andrew Curtis Hunt Do you think that Isaac Newton knew something that many men do not know? I challenge the modern scholar to rebut and answer these reports. I could multiply these and bring in another volume of equal or greater content than what is ahead of you now in your reading. So, please do write… Remember, “Thus sayeth the Lord” occurs more than 2,500 times in scripture. And revelation means “God has spoken”. The scripture does make the claim that it is plenary verbal inspiration from God. And that inspiration guarantees the revelation that we have from Him. A Russian Communist leader said, “Religion is the opium of the people”. Well, - they sure knew something about drug dealing, now didn’t they? This individual also said that dope is worthless – but they sure did fund their government heavily with dope proceeds. Sir George Kenyan Sir Kenyan is the late director and principal librarian of the British Museum, and he stated the following: “Thanks to these manuscripts, the ordinary reader of the Bible can feel comfortable regarding the soundness of the text, apart from a few verbal alterations that are unimportant and natural in books transcribed by hand. The New Testament, we now feel assured, has come down intact”. This is one of the most important discoveries that have ever been made. We can be sure that we have as close of a translation as possible – and, not only that – but inspiration still guarantees the revelation from God on High! The Structure of Study Now, as we close the last study about the Bible itself, we are going to continue the guidelines in the next paper with a structure for the study of the Bible in light of all that has already been said. I quote Dryden when he says: ~ Whence but from heaven could men unskilled in arts in several ages born, and in several parts ~ ~ Weave such agreeing truths - or how or why Should all conspire to cheat us with a lie ~ ~ Unasked about their pains, ungrateful of their advice Starving their gain and martyrdom ~ ~ Is how they paid a price…
Posted on: Tue, 27 Aug 2013 20:59:00 +0000
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