Musings from a beginning Bible student

Exegesis and Hermeneutics: when I first heard the two words I had no clue what they meant. I imagined exegesis as the perfect term for the expulsion of demonic possession from a body, for hermeneutics, some foreign concept in the medical arena. However, having now been in Trinity’s College of Ministry, with a focus on thorough study of the Word of God, I now understand that contrary to imagination, they are methods for interpreting the scriptures. What are they? Exegesis is the careful, systematic study of the Scripture to discover the original, intended meaning. It’s the task of digging up the history of that time, culture and people group. You want to be able to accomplish hearing the word as the first hearers had, in order to discover the original intent of the words of the Bible. Then there’s hermeneutics, which covers the entire field of interpretation. It includes exegesis, but is also used in a narrower sense, to seek the contemporary relevance of ancient texts. Thus, in a simple sense, you’re asking yourself: “What does this text mean for me today, in the here and the now?” These are the simple definitions, I am not studied enough to give you thorough explanation, or deeper description of these two concepts. But I look forward to someday learning to dive even further into the Word with deeper knowledge and revelation.
You may ask why I would desire to share such information. I will explain:
2 Timothy 4:2—“Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.”
How important is it for us to FULLY know what we preach! It’s our responsibility for the sake of others to search out the deep truths of scripture and have accurate interpretation in our teaching.
Romans 12:33a—“Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God!”…
Wow! The sheer elation that comes with knowing that the depths of God can be searched out! What man could turn down the opportunity to obtain the unsearchable truths of God!
Jeremiah 33:3—“Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.”
It is work, it is time, and it is effort training yourself to frequently apply these concepts. But it’s worth it! Your process looks something like this:
1. Read the passage as a whole
2. Look for key words, and find the literal translation [The Old Testament was written mainly in Hebrew, and the New Testament in Greek]. This is the process of searching for any language barrier. It enables you to read from the original hearer’s perspective.
3. Take the time to research the culture of that time, and the location. This will enlighten you to the mindset of both the author and the people. Our immediate inclination is to apply the scripture to our day an age with no concern to the original recipients. This can cause misinterpretation. We can see these misinterpretations and cultural applications in Biblical art! We naturally apply what we read in situations we understand. The joys of interpretation are getting to dive into the world of Christ, or of Abraham, Paul, and the great men in the Bible. We can explore the minds of the authors, and be in the crowd of hearers. Let’s explore the journey through the desert, and learn of the great character of God with the Israelites! This is an application to be used for both exegesis and hermeneutics.
4. Break down your passage grammatically. First, what kind of passage is this? Is it poetic, prose, doctrine, history, narrative, etc… Second, break it down, search for the nouns, the verbs, the prepositional phrases, adverbs, and the list goes on! The more detailed you are in this process you begin to find the passage coming alive in new ways. Your understanding of the scripture and the effect of it is exponentially increased in this process. A standard read of scripture doesn’t allow the true meaning and effect of the words to sink in.
5. Break your results in half. From the author’s perspective to the hearers perspective. Contemplate what you’ve learned, compare the culture to today, and properly apply! Now you’ve gained a deeper knowledge and revelation of the Word of God and you’ve gained a new perspective and historical knowledge of the time of Christ.

As I have said before, these are the beginner steps to proper interpretation. My information is limited as my knowledge is. But I pray you see the joy and the blessing even the smallest growth in the Word is. May you enjoy and be as blessed by it as I!