How Do You Rightly Divide The Word Of Truth

[AVBibleBeliever]

Many of you already know how I and some others rightly divide.  we divide by time/ages/dispensations and by group Jews, Gentiles and the Church of God.

 

Throughout our conversations I have asked repeatedly for those who oppose my and others way of rightly dividing to show us how they are rightly dividing.

 

Well here is the thread for you to do so.

 

Knowing how you rightly divide helps us to know how you are studying and helps us to understand some of the statements you have made concerning certain issues that have arose.

 

Please tells us 'How you rightly divide the word of truth"?

[swathdiver]

I chop the bible up into little pieces and move them around to fit what I want it to say.  

[heartstrings]

First, I study

2 Timothy 2

15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

 

Here's a passage that just came to mind

Isaiah 28

9 Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts.

10 For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little:

 

Hebrews 5

12 For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.

13 For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe.

14 But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.

 

Hah! Never seen this one before, but I remembered the phrase "line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little" so I looked up the verse, and low and behold that reminded me of the"babes and milk" passage in Hebrews 5. So I went there too. That's the way I do it: I compare scripture with scripture. And if I come across a word I don't understand, I go first to an English dictionary which includes the "word origin" information on that word, because, I want to know what that word meant, in 1611 English, if at all possible. 

 

...AND, what I just learned from reading that, is that we cannot understand deeper doctrine, until we first get the basics right: We have to get the "milk" right before our God will illuminate some "meat". It says it right there, plain as day, in Isaiah 28. and it also says, in Hebrews 5, that as a 'milk babe' I'm "unskilful" in the word. I don't trust any other source for doctrine than the word of God and I'm not satisfied until the Word of God shows it to me in one of it's "here a little, there a little" places.

[TheSword]

I begin by figuring out what a passage meant in its original context and move outward from there.

- First I consider what type of writing it is (history, prophecy, law, letter, gospel, wisdom, poetry, etc.).

- Then I investigate what the passage means in, and of, itself (the plain meaning of the sentence or sentences);

- then how that fits into the immediate context (i.e. same chapter or chapters);

- then how that fits into the context of the whole book (e.g. Romans, Matthew, Isaiah, Genesis, etc.);

- then books by the same author;

- then books of the same type (epistle, gospel, prophecy,etc);

- then books in the same testament (Ot or NT);

- then Scripture as a whole. I compare parallel passages and passages that deal with the same or related issues in order to determine the overall teaching because the Bible cannot contradict itself so all interpretations must be in agreement.

- I then take that interpretation and apply it back to the original passage and see how that frames the message it is communicating to the reader and draw out the intended principle.

- Only once I've done all of that will I make an application of that principle.

 

That is my method of rightly dividing (interpretation/hermenuetic).

[wretched]

I chop the bible up into little pieces and move them around to fit what I want it to say.  

 

Not be the best way to go about it but at least you are honest.

[Covenanter]

Thanks for the thread, AVBB

 

The Bible is divided for us into OT & NT, with testament & covenant having the same meaning. The blood of the everlasting covenant indicates that we should read God's dealings with man in a unified way, by covenant, with OT prefiguring the NT.

 

Jesus divides the books of the OT into the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms.

Luke 24:⁴⁴ And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.

 

Thus the OT should be read as relating to Jesus, with examples & shadows, and direct & indirect prophecy. The Apostles show the way to understand the OT Scriptures in their letters. All the promises to the Fathers, & to Israel as the people of God, are fulfilled in Jesus, and are appropriated by faith in Jesus. There is no "stand alone" fulfilment for Israel as an ethnic people of God distinct from the present body of Christ.

 

Time divisions show:

man in innocence;

under condemnation, law & grace, running parallel;

OT & NT;

Gospel age beginning with the last days from Pentecost to the destruction & continuing until Jesus returns;

finally the new heaven & new earth.

 

[Bro K]

The Bible (2 Tim 2:15) tells us to study to rightly divide the Word of truth: NOT to rightly interpret the Word of truth.

[No Nicolaitans]

If the Bible is to be strictly divided up into times, ages, dispensations, and groups (Jew, Gentile, and Church)...you will miss out on a lot that can be applied.  While I agree loosely with the aforementioned, just because God spoke a certain thing to a certain group at a certain time, that doesn't necessarily exempt it from having application in our lives today (unless otherwise specific).

 

Romans 15:4

For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.

 

If the things written aforetime (Old Testament) were written but not applicable, then Paul lied when he said that we could have hope through patience and comfort of those scriptures.  There's plenty that we can gain through studying things that happened "under the law", yet apply them for the Church today.

 

For example...

 

After Solomon's death, the kingdom was divided.  RehOBoam reigned over all of Israel for a short time; however, 10 tribes were shortly led by JerOBoam when the kingdom divided.

 

JerOBoam received some incredible promises from God dependent upon his OBedience; however, JerOBoam chose to do things his own way. When he realized that the people would have to go to Jerusalem to sacrifice, he feared they would turn their allegiance to RehOBoam, and he would lose his kingdom and his life.  Therefore, in order to keep the people from leaving (and OBeying God), he gave the people a substitute for their worship.  He gave them...

1. False gods (1 Kings 12:28)
2. False priests (1 Kings 12:31)
3. A false sacrifice (1 Kings 12:32-33)

We can apply that to our churches today.  Many churches are worshiping a false god of their own devices...one they've made up in their minds of what they think God should be.  We have a lot of false "priests" today...preachers/pastors who are wolves in sheep's clothing, and we have a lot of churches with a false sacrifice...churches that teach a false way of salvation and a false Jesus.

 

There...there's somebody a good sermon for Sunday.    

[swathdiver]

Not be the best way to go about it but at least you are honest.

 

I was joking and projecting Wretched!

[Guest]

I let the Holy Spirit lead me...

 

John 16:13 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

 

...if it's still fuzzy...I consult other sources I trust.

[TheSword]

The Bible (2 Tim 2:15) tells us to study to rightly divide the Word of truth: NOT to rightly interpret the Word of truth.

 

Except the word it's translated from means literally to "cut in a straight path" and is normally used in reference to cutting roads through the terrain so the traveler can go straight to the destination. It's an idiom when applied in it's non-usual sense; kind of like "a piece of cake" or "add fuel to the fire". It doesn't take much studying to divide the Bible into sections, but it takes careful study to correctly interpret it.

[No Nicolaitans]

Interpreting is part of studying and rightly dividing...

 

Proverbs 1:5-6

5   A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels:

6   To understand a proverb, and the interpretation; the words of the wise, and their dark sayings.

 

2 Peter 1:20

Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.

 

[AVBibleBeliever]

So far no one has laid out any processes on how they study.

 

If the only division is OT and NT then why command us to rightly divide.

 

OBservation, Interpretation/Exegesis and Application is a Study formula and a good place to start

 

One who divides by ages or by Jew, Gentile or Church of God does not necessarily miss out on any applications that seems to be an assumption. 

 

Ok let's outline the above OIEA study formula and see what we can come up with.  Whenever studying out using this method you will need a piece of paper or your favorite word processing program and chart out your results.

 

1) OBservation of the Text is first thing Read your text and re-read your text.  Then get out your divine tool box god has built into your heart.  those tools are in the form of Questions the six W's and an H.  Who, What , When, Where, Why and Which and then How these are your tools.  Always ask who the text is speaking too historically, then Doctrinally and lastly Spiritually do this with each tool.  An important question to ask also in what type of literature am I studying.  You will find these following literature types in the bible and they will be mixed at times. 1) Narratives (historical narratives if you like), 2) Poetry, 3) Proverbs, 4) Prophecy, 5) Parables and 6) Epistles.  these are divisions of the word of truth in and of themselves or which I also use.

 

2) Interpretation/Exegesis of the text.  This is rather redundant because the AV Bible is already interpreted for you from the TR.  which included Hebrew texts, Greek text and from some Latin text.  Also available was Byzantine text such as Syrian and Ethiopian Bibles.  However many like to interpret for themselves and this is where restating the text or interpreting the text into your own understandable language for those who don't understand the thee's, thous' and the eth's and est's.  Exegesis is nothing more than and interpretation of the AV Text so say or repeat the verse in your own words.

 

 

 

3) Application once you have answered all the questions and determined who the text is for then you can develop and application from what you have learned from the text.  Now not all applications of text will be for today such as animal sacrifice, building an Ark, flaying animals in two and then you and your agreeing party walking between them to close a deal.  things like that.

 

A word of advice here let the text bring out the meaning and don't force an idea into the text.  Start out with a blank slate and allow the scripture to reveal the truth don't force an preconceived idea into the text.

 

Once you studied the text and determined an application you can stop there.  But that is not all the truth you will find in the Bible

 

You can take it a bit further and chart out times elements of the Bible text, that is divided the ages of the Bible like creation, fall, pre-flood, post-flood, pre-law, law, church age, tribulation (law reinstated), Millennial Kingdom then you can list which things apply in those time periods.  I assume many of you are familiar with this Division of the word of Truth.  In these times historically you can place the

 

So far we can see divisions of the word of truth in the types of literature, In time periods, and divisions of people groups Jew Gentile and the Church of God (which is the body of Christ).

 

Within literature types you will also find figures of speech similes, idioms, allegories, hyperboles, comparisons, personifications, aporisms, metaphores etc. . , also you need to keep you eye open for alliterations and others as well.

 

If you go through Psalm 119 you will find some words in the text that refer to God's word it is here you will find the first uses of the term "word of truth" a direct cross reference to 2 Tim 2:15.  Every verse has at least one of these words in them and you can divide also by these too.  1) Testimonies/testimony, 2) Ordinances, 3) Precepts, 4) Statutes, 5) Laws, 6) Commandments, 7) Judgements, 8) words/word, 9) ways/way and 10) works/work.  Here we have word's of the word of truth of which we can also divide with. this is a little more narrow that the others but they are good to study out how these words apply to the God's word.

 

Ok so far we have four ways we can divide the word of God and there are other ways too.  For example when you get to the book of Revelation (no newbe should even start with this book until they have mastered the OIEA study method first on a number of other books) when you get to it, you can divide it into some things too.  Like pre-letters to the churches, the letters, and the prophecy.  Once into the prophecy area you can divide it even more into Heavenly and Earthly.  Remember this when studying this book, Prophecies should never be spiritualized to do so will cause errors innumerable. 

 

Please add to these as these are basic rightly dividing the word of truth formulas and can be expanded on.

[Bro K]

Except the word it's translated from means literally to "cut in a straight path" and is normally used in reference to cutting roads through the terrain so the traveler can go straight to the destination. It's an idiom when applied in it's non-usual sense; kind of like "a piece of cake" or "add fuel to the fire". It doesn't take much studying to divide the Bible into sections, but it takes careful study to correctly interpret it.

Translated it simply means "straightly cutting". Cutting is dividing and not interpreting.

[AVBibleBeliever]

Except the word it's translated from means literally to "cut in a straight path" and is normally used in reference to cutting roads through the terrain so the traveler can go straight to the destination. It's an idiom when applied in it's non-usual sense; kind of like "a piece of cake" or "add fuel to the fire". It doesn't take much studying to divide the Bible into sections, but it takes careful study to correctly interpret it.

Sword, "cut a straight path" and did you get that from a Greek or Hebrew dictionary, another man, or from your own study comparing God's word to God's word?

 

The word Divide is found 46 times in the Bible.  I encourage you to use just your Bible and determine what divide means from these 46.  God's word has a built in dictionary and you may find a better meaning than to "cut a straight path".  You could also further your study by looking up the verse on division/divisions and the English word Cleft as well.  Use the system I quickly outlined above and when you determine a better meaning by comparing God's word then post your conclusions.  It will be most encouraging for us all.