Feeling and Interpretation

Quite often in the past I have read a verse in the Bible and had a feeling about what it said. Upon this feeling I would journal and possibly go down the erroneous road of taking my feeling as the meaning for the text. When in small groups or Bible studies the question of “what do these verses mean to you?” may come up. This is a natural question that promotes discussion and keeps momentum going as others are asked the same question. It is a question that seeks a feeling rather than the understanding of the verses in their historical setting and context. What a verse means to you may be different to other people as all types of feelings can be gathered up when applying it to scripture. This of course can have the implication of creating your own meaning from scripture to make it work for you. Hermeneutics (the branch of knowledge that deals with interpretation, especially the Bible

or literary texts) toward the text are ignored or not even realized as we assume meaning and fail to acknowledge its setting.

There is merit in finding applicable meaning from scripture for our lives, however instead of looking to the objective truth of the written scripture, many Christians will identify a subjective truth. There is a difference in these two truths. A subjective truth is like an opinion, an opinion that is true to you. I like butter chicken and would say that it’s the best kind of curry, this a true statement for me who is the subject and not a universal truth that everyone else needs to apply to their lives. It is personal preference and no one can say it is not true, because I like butter chicken and leave me alone! Objective truth however is something that cannot be denied. For example, the meat that is used in butter chicken is chicken. If a chicken found this out the chicken may be offended but we cannot change it out for the chicken’s sake because chicken belongs in that curry. I am not offended by this as I like the taste of chicken and it has great protein. Sometimes the truth hurts but that does not mean we should disregard it, there are things to be gained from the truth that will help us grow just like protein. We all come under objective truth and must accept things the fact of the matter on things, there is no such thing as “your truth and my truth” on such matters. The movie quote from some unknown movie “you can’t handle the truth” could not be truer. In relation to this matter regarding the Bible, certain verses may not be accepted by people if they claim it offensive to their way of life and choose to ignore the verse in order to be happy about God.

Each book of the Bible delivers a specific truth that is objective and true whether or not we

recognize its application to our lives. God wants us to discover the meaning of his truth and then personally experience that truth. We withdraw from the view on reading from what we can get out of the Bible to the objective standard of truth in God’s character. God is the creator of truth; the object of all meaning that spoke the world into existence and who also inspired the Bible. The same Bible which we dare to, or accidently gather our interpretations about things to fit our current society and culture.

There is encouragement for people from certain texts and it can be comforting when directed at us in tough situations. Certain texts are often thrown around with the understanding that they think it is under God’s direction. Such instances can arise from verses such as Jeremiah 29:11. For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” In reading this do we really think the “you” in Jeremiah 29:11 is directed to “you” specifically? The Jewish exiles of Babylon may have something to say about that. By reading the whole passage and not just one particular verse the “you” is identified. These people are being disciplined by God for their disobedience in the land of promise and are being sent away for some time, a mere 70 years. There are promises of prosperity and justice attached to this passage designated to those in exile. I like how Jeremiah 29:14 (I will be found by you,” declares the LORD, “and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you,” declares the LORD, “and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile.”) has nothing to do with us but everything to do with 29:11 and the passage it belongs in, yet it is surely never quoted out of context to the extent of the former. There is a blessing from the passage on the whole in knowing that God fulfilled his promise to those in exile. Greg Koukl from Stand to Reason often says, “Never read a Bible verse.” We should read a paragraph, passage, chapter, or book so that we can understand the whole picture. A verse should not be isolated for personal use. If God personally does have “plans to prosper us and not harm us, plans for hope and a future,” then they need to be found somewhere else and not in this passage. The passage and letter being for a specific time and place for specific people. There are plenty of passages that we can properly place ourselves into the midst of as they are written not to us but for us. One in is Philippians 4:6-7 “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, through prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God which surpasses all comprehension shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” From all this there is one promise we must always remember from scripture and always apply, Hebrews 13:8, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”

Find your truth here.