Can there be multiple meanings in a biblical text?

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Can the Bible have multiple interpretations?

The Bible has been translated into several languages over the years. Some books in the Bible have never been completed or parts of it were never found. These discrepancies and translation nuances have paved the way for the different interpretations of the Bible.

Can the Bible be interpreted in different ways?

In the history of biblical interpretation, four major types of hermeneutics have emerged: the literal, moral, allegorical, and anagogical. Literal interpretation asserts that a biblical text is to be interpreted according to the “plain meaning” conveyed by its grammatical construction and historical context.

What is a biblical parallel?

In Christian theology, a parallel passage is a passage in another portion of the Bible which describes the same event. Comparison of parallel passages within the Bible is a major area of Biblical scholarship.

What does the Bible say about multiple?

John Gill comments on 1 Corinthians 7 and states that polygamy is unlawful; and that one man is to have but one wife, and to keep to her; and that one woman is to have but one husband, and to keep to him and the wife only has a power over the husband’s body, a right to it, and may claim the use of it: this power over …

What does the Bible say about different interpretations of the Bible?

The only sound approach to Bible study is to let the Bible interpret itself. (1 Peter 4:11). Two things are evident: Either God gave us a book that we cannot understand and therefore left it up to us to decide what he had in mind, or God gave us a book that we can study and come to a knowledge of the truth.

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What are the three levels of interpretation?

The three basic interpretation modes are simultaneous interpretation (SI), consecutive interpretation, and whispered interpretation.

Do all Christians interpret the Bible the same way?

Christians consider the Bible to be sacred because it contains messages from God. As with many different things in life, the Bible can be interpreted differently by different people. Each and every section of the Bible can be open to interpretation by the person reading it.

What is a exegesis example?

An exposition or explanation of a text, especially a religious one. Exegesis is defined as a critical analysis, interpretation or explanation of a written work. A critical academic approach to biblical scripture is an example of exegesis.

What books of Bible are parallel to each other?

15:6, 15:21, 15:26, 15:31, 15:36, 16:19 are all parallel with 2 Kings 21:17 and 1 Kings 15:11, 2 Chronicles 26:4, 29:2, 33:22, 2 Kings 14:3, 2 Kings 15:3, 15:34, 18:3, and Jeremiah 52:2 are all parallel with 2 Kings 23:32.

Did God have a wife?

God had a wife, Asherah, whom the Book of Kings suggests was worshiped alongside Yahweh in his temple in Israel, according to an Oxford scholar. God had a wife, Asherah, whom the Book of Kings suggests was worshipped alongside Yahweh in his temple in Israel, according to an Oxford scholar.

What does the Bible say about tattoos?

But in the ancient Middle East, the writers of the Hebrew Bible forbade tattooing. Per Leviticus 19:28, “You shall not make gashes in your flesh for the dead, or incise any marks on yourselves.” Historically, scholars have often understood this as a warning against pagan practices of mourning.

What is the allegorical method of biblical interpretation?

Allegorical interpretation of the Bible is an interpretive method (exegesis) that assumes that the Bible has various levels of meaning and tends to focus on the spiritual sense, which includes the allegorical sense, the moral (or tropological) sense, and the anagogical sense, as opposed to the literal sense.

What does it mean to quote scripture out of context?

Quoting out of context (sometimes referred to as contextomy or quote mining) is an informal fallacy in which a passage is removed from its surrounding matter in such a way as to distort its intended meaning.

What are the three ways of interpreting Scripture in accordance with the Holy Spirit?

What are the 3 ways for interpreting Scripture?



Terms in this set (34)

  • note the content and unity of the whole scripture.
  • to interpret the bible properly, we should read it within the living Tradition of the Church.
  • The anology of faith- that truths revealed in Sacred Scripture cannot contradict eachother.

What are the four modes of interpretation?

Modes of interpreting

  • Simultaneous Interpreting.
  • Consecutive Interpreting.
  • Whispered Interpreting (Chuchotage)
  • Interpreting with an Infoport System (Bidule)
  • Liaison Interpreting.
  • Other Language Services.

What are the 7 principles of the Bible?

Adherence to these Seven Principles of Liberty leads to personal and civic liberty.

  • Divine Identity & Purpose.
  • Christian Self-Government.
  • Christlike Character.
  • Conscience, the Most Sacred of All Property.
  • Accountability & the Christian Form of Government.
  • Cultivating Christian Self-Government in Others.
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When reading the Bible where do you start?

For first time readers, a popular option is to start with the Gospels and more specifically the Gospel of Mark. The shortest of the four Gospels, it’s also thought to be the earliest account to be written. As such there’s a helpful urgency to the way it tells the story of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection.

How many interpretations of Christianity are there?

There are more than 45,000 denominations globally.

What is conservative Christianity?

The Christian right in politics, Christian political groups that are characterized by their strong support of socially conservative policies.

Which comes first exegesis and hermeneutics?

Hermeneutics was initially applied to the interpretation, or exegesis, of scripture, and has been later broadened to questions of general interpretation.

What is the opposite of exegesis?

In biblical exegesis, the opposite of exegesis (to draw out) is eisegesis (to draw in), in the sense of an eisegetic commentator “importing” or “drawing in” their own subjective interpretations into the text, unsupported by the text itself. Eisegesis is often used as a derogatory term.

Did King James change the Bible?

In 1604, England’s King James I authorized a new translation of the Bible aimed at settling some thorny religious differences in his kingdom—and solidifying his own power. But in seeking to prove his own supremacy, King James ended up democratizing the Bible instead.

What Old Testament did Jesus quote?

Matthew 27:46. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” This question comes straight from Psalm 22:1.

What is a good study Bible to have?

CSB Ancient Faith Study Bible



The Christian Standard Bible version provides a highly literal and reliable translation for serious study without sacrificing readability. The Ancient Faith Study Bible allows today’s readers to glean wisdom for their modern lives from some of yesterday’s brightest saints.

Who was the oldest person in the Bible?

In the Bible



According to the Bible, Methuselah died the year of the flood but the Bible does not record whether he died during or prior to the flood. He was also the oldest of all the figures mentioned in the Bible.

What Bible version do Catholics use?

The New Revised Standard Version, Catholic Edition (NRSV-CE) is a Bible translation approved for use by the Catholic Church, receiving the imprimatur of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops in 1991.

Who was the son of Jesus?

Jacobovici and Pellegrino argue that Aramaic inscriptions reading “Judah, son of Jesus”, “Jesus, son of Joseph”, and “Mariamne”, a name they associate with Mary Magdalene, together preserve the record of a family group consisting of Jesus, his wife Mary Magdalene and son Judah.

Is Sarah the daughter of Jesus?

Some authors, taking up themes from the pseudohistorical book Holy Blood, Holy Grail, suggest that Sarah was the daughter of Jesus Christ and Mary Magdalene.

Does God have a gender?

Though Church teaching, in line with its Doctors, holds that God has no literal sex because they possess no body (a prerequisite of sex), classical and scriptural understanding states that God should be referred to (in most contexts) as masculine by analogy.

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Who is God’s sister in the Bible?

In the biblical narrative of The Exodus, Miriam is described as a “prophetess” when she leads the Israelites in the Song of the Sea after Pharaoh’s army is destroyed at the Sea of Reeds.

What does the Bible say about dinosaurs?

God told Noah, “And of every living thing of all flesh, two of every sort shalt thou bring into the ark, to keep them alive with thee; they shall be male and female” (Genesis 6:19). A few small dinosaurs would have been on the ark. The larger species of dinosaurs were probably young and smaller on the ark.

Is getting a piercing a sin?

There is a Christian belief that partaking in activities or a lifestyle that one believes to be a sin indeed makes the act a sin, even if it’s not objectively clear or “fact” than the act is a sin. Believing body piercing is a sin and doing it anyway, makes it a sin – essentially, a self-fulfilling prophecy.

What are the three criteria for interpreting Scripture?

Terms in this set (3)

  • Be attentive to the analogy of Faith. The coherence of the truths of faith among themselves and within the whole plan of revelation.
  • Read the scripture within “the living tradition of the whole church.”
  • Be especially attentive “to the content and unity of the whole scripture”

Why are there so many interpretations of the Bible?

The Bible has been translated into several languages over the years. Some books in the Bible have never been completed or parts of it were never found. These discrepancies and translation nuances have paved the way for the different interpretations of the Bible.

What is the difference between allegorical and anagogical?

The literal represents the most obvious reading. The allegorical tends to understand the literal set of actions as being symbolic of certain other principles. The moral draws ethical principles from the literal action. The anagogical applies the principle to the final state of the believer.

Is the book of Genesis an allegory?

Other Jews and Christians have long regarded the creation account of Genesis as an allegory – even prior to the development of modern science and the scientific accounts (based on the scientific method) of cosmological, biological and human origins.

Does context matter in the Bible?

It is important to place scripture in proper context.



The primary purpose of considering context, then, is to derive the correct meaning and intent of the author. By relying on isolated passages without giving due consideration to their context, misunderstandings and misinterpretations may result.

What are the 3 types of interpretation?

Unlike translation which focuses on written communication, interpretation is all about verbal communication. The three basic interpretation modes are simultaneous interpretation (SI), consecutive interpretation, and whispered interpretation.

What are the 4 senses of Scripture?

In Christianity, the four senses are literal, allegorical, tropological and anagogical.

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