Living by the Book/Living by the Book Workbook Set (34 page)

As your skill progressed, you would discover a whole new world opening up to you. In fact, you would find that there are all kinds of music that sound very different, are performed quite differently, and have different effects on people: symphonies, concertos, tone poems, period pieces, occasional pieces, chamber music, marches, anthems, hymns, folk songs, blues, jazz improvisation, country and western, country swing, boogie woogie, reggae, hip-hop— the varieties are endless.

Every one of those classifications of music has its own style, or “rules” if you will, to which it must conform. That’s what a
genre
is—a style that characterizes a group of compositions. The more you understand about a given musical genre, the better you’re able to appreciate the music of that genre. But
notice: no matter what genre the music conforms to, it still relies on basic patterns of notes and scales and key signatures and so on. In fact, it’s difficult to fully appreciate a given genre if you don’t have the benefit of the basics.

A similar situation exists in Bible study. This book gives you some basics with which to get started. By using these basics, you can work with any passage of Scripture. But the more experience you gain, you’ll discover that there are different styles of Scripture—all God-breathed, to be sure, but distinctive in terms of literary form. The more you understand about a given form, the better you’ll be able to interpret Scripture.

Just don’t rush past the basics in a misguided effort to get to the “cream” right away. Beginning Bible students need a method that will work with every genre before they learn the special steps necessary for advanced work. It doesn’t matter whether you’re looking at the beautiful poetry of Psalm 23, the logically framed argument of Romans, the enigmatic wisdom of Ecclesiastes, or the dire warnings of Jude. The basic methodology applies to each. First you observe the passage using basic principles of observation. Then you interpret the passage using basic principles of interpretation. Then you apply the passage using basic principles of application. As in reading music, the advanced skills of reading Scripture accurately rely on a mastery of some core fundamentals.

All of us can become better Bible students if we’ll learn more about literary form. Doing so will sharpen our observations by making us more aware of what to look for. It will refine our interpretations by lending perspective and insight into how the biblical author chose to communicate. And it will strengthen our applications by giving us confidence that we have met the author on his own terms, in his own world, so that we understand him well enough to cull out truths that will transform our world, even though many centuries separate us.

Here, then, are six major literary genres that God used to communicate His message.

An exposition is a straightforward argument or explanation of a body of objective truth. It is a form of writing that appeals primarily to the mind. The
argument usually has a tight structure that moves from point to point in logical fashion.

Paul’s letters are outstanding examples of the expositional form in Scripture. The book of Romans is a tightly reasoned explanation of the gospel. Paul argues like a lawyer presenting a case before a court, which is no surprise because we know that as a young man Paul had extensive rabbinical training, including the oratorical arts.

For instance, he links his paragraphs and chapters together with transitional, connective words such as
for, therefore, and,
and
but
. He makes extensive use of the rhetorical question (for example, 2:17–21, 26; 3:1, 3, 5; 4:1, 3,9). He uses long, elaborate sentences (for example, 1:28–32; 9:3–5). On the other hand, he also employs short, rapid-fire passages that buffet the mind (for example, 7:7–25; 12:9–21).

Expositional books are ideal if you’re just getting started in Bible study. Their meaning lies close to the surface. They appeal to the average person’s preference for logic, structure, and order. And their purposes are easy to grasp; they practically outline themselves. Yet they also make for exciting in-depth analysis because their truths are inexhaustible.

The key to understanding a work of exposition is to pay attention to its structure and the terms it employs. We’ll look at an example from Romans when we get to chapter 37.

Narrative means story. The Bible is full of stories, which is one reason it is so popular.

For example, Genesis relates the story of God’s creation of the world, the story of the Flood, the story of the tower at Babel, and the story of the patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph. Exodus continues the story by recounting Israel’s departure from Egypt, led by Moses. Ruth tells the story of Ruth, the great-grandmother of King David.

In the New Testament, the four gospels tell the story of Jesus from four different points of view. One of them, Luke, continues the narrative in the Acts of the Apostles, as we have seen. Within the accounts of Jesus, we find stories that He told to His followers (more on that in a moment).

So the Bible is heavily composed of stories. That makes for interesting reading, but it also makes for interesting interpretation. What are we to make of the stories in the Bible? How do we determine their meaning and significance?

“There is no method except to be very intelligent,” remarked T. S. Eliot. Perhaps, but let me suggest three things to pay attention to.

First, what is the
plot
? That is, what movement is there in the story? This could be physical, as in the case of the Israelites moving across the Sinai peninsula in Exodus; it could be spiritual, as in the case of Samson in Judges, or Jonah in the book of Jonah; it could also be relational, as in Ruth, or political, as in 1 and 2 Kings. The question is, what development is there in the story? What is different at the end of the book, and why?

Another element to study is
characterization
. Who is in the cast of characters? How are they presented? What roles do they play? What decisions do they make? How do they relate to each other, and to God? What progress or regress do they make? Do they fail? If so, why? Why are they in the story? In what ways are they individuals, and in what ways are they representative of others? What do we like or dislike about them? What would we do in their place?

A third issue to consider is, in what ways is this story
true to life
? Remember that was one of the clues to look for under Observation. It’s also a doorway to understanding. The stories of Scripture show us life as God wants us to see it. So we can ask: What questions does this story raise? What problems do the characters have to deal with? What lessons do they learn or not learn? What things do they encounter that we should be sure to avoid? Or how do they deal with things in life that are unavoidable? What do they discover about God?

There is much more to the narratives in Scripture. But if you start by asking yourself these kinds of questions, you’ll go a long way toward understanding what the stories are all about.

Closely related to narrative is the parable and its cousin, the allegory. A parable is a brief tale that illustrates a moral principle. By far, most of the parables
in Scripture come from the teaching of Jesus. In fact, we can infer from Matthew’s account that the parable may have been His preferred method of communication (Matthew 13:34).

It’s easy to see why. Parables are simple, memorable, and entertaining. Most are rather easy to understand. They deal with everyday matters such as farming, fishing, travel, money, and human relationships. And parables are usually intended to have a powerful impact. They jolt the listener into awareness by using basic ethical principles such as right and wrong (the sower and the three kinds of seed), love and compassion (the prodigal son, the good Samaritan), justice and mercy (the Pharisee and the tax collector).

It’s worth noting that parables are a form of fiction. But that by no means implies that they do not convey truth. They communicate truth that cannot be communicated in any other way. A parable kind of sneaks up on people’s blind sides, bypassing their defenses and appealing to their imagination and their hearts. It compels them to see some aspect of life in a completely new way. If you want to see a powerful example of that in action, read Nathan’s parable about the poor man’s sheep in 2 Samuel 12:1–10.

The Bible contains some of the finest lines of verse ever composed. Indeed, some have become icons in our culture: “The Lord is my shepherd,/I shall not want” (Psalm 23:1); “God is our refuge and strength,/A very present help in trouble” (Psalm 46:1); “To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven” (Ecclesiastes 3:1
KJV
); “Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name” (Matthew 6:9
KJV
).

The distinctive feature of poetry is its appeal to the emotions, as well as the imagination. That’s why the psalms are so beloved. They express some of the deepest feelings, longings, rapture, and pain of the human heart.

But when you study biblical verse, make sure you understand the dynamics of Hebrew poetry. In the first place, most of the psalms were meant to be sung, not read. They were composed for worship, and many include prefatory notes on what kinds of instruments were to accompany them. So even though we no longer have the music to which they were sung, you should still listen for how they sound (which is true of all poetry).

One of the main features of Hebrew poetry is its extensive use of “parallelism.” If you look through the psalms, for instance, you’ll notice that the majority of the verses have two lines. The two lines work off of each other to communicate meaning. Sometimes the second line will reinforce what the first line says by repeating its thought. For instance, Psalm 103:15 says,

Sometimes it will extend the thought by adding new information, as in Psalm 32:2:

And sometimes the second line will oppose the first with an alternative thought:

Another key to appreciating Hebrew poetry is to recognize
hyperbole
, extreme or exaggerated language that makes its point through overkill. At the beginning of this chapter I cited a line from Psalm 139. Here’s the larger context:

This is strange language to find in the Bible. What’s going on here? The answer is to notice who David is talking about—“the wicked,” people who have shed blood, spoken against God, taken His name in vain (all violations of the Ten Commandments), and otherwise demonstrated that they hate the Lord. In becoming God’s enemies they have become David’s enemies. In a formal, ritualized way, he denounces them with the strongest language he can find.

Here are some other interpretive questions to consider as you approach the poetry of the Bible: Who composed this material? Can you determine why? What is the central theme of the poem? What emotions does the verse convey, and what response does it produce? What questions does it ask? Which ones does it answer, and which does it leave unanswered? What does the poem say about God? About people? What images does the poet use to spark the imagination? Are there references to people, places, or events that you are unfamiliar with? If so, what can you find out about them elsewhere in Scripture or through secondary sources?

One of the richest quarries to mine in the biblical material is the broad category known as wisdom literature. In this genre, the writer assumes the role of a wizened veteran of life who is sharing his insights with a younger, less experienced, but teachable reader.

The book of Proverbs obviously belongs to this area. A proverb is a short, poignant nugget of truth, typically practical, and often concerned with the consequences of a course of behavior. Like the poetry of the psalms that we saw above, proverbs make strategic use of parallelism, especially the pairing of opposites. For instance, Proverbs 15:27:

And Proverbs 20:3: