Monthly Archive: September 2022

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Exegetical Inquiry: The Question is more important than the Answer

This entry is part 3 of 5 in the series Exegesis without the Languages

We think exegesis is at its best when we arrive at “the answer,” when we reach “understanding,” but actually exegesis is at its best when the text seems strange and alien to us. We need to make the text strange again.

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Should I be more “literal” or more “readable” when translating the Bible?

This entry is part 2 of 6 in the series Real Questions

The question is really a matter of “how many exegetical decisions am I going to answer in my translation.” The more you leave ambiguous, the more burden you put on the reader. The more exegetical questions you answer, the less burden you put on the reader.

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Everything I need to Know about Revelation I Learned in the First Eight Verses

Revelation seems so difficult and confusing, but John has actually given us firm footholds in the opening of his letter. He’s guiding his readers in how Revelation is to be read.

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The Gated Community: A Biblical Theology of Gates

I recently had the privilege of writing about “Gates” over at TableTalk. Here’s an excerpt: The high walls of the new Jerusalem are punctuated by a dozen gates (that’s a lot), and these gates...

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When to use the original languages. Part 3: The Point you are Making Must Be Sufficiently Important

This entry is part 3 of 3 in the series When to use the Original Languages

Your audience might be under the assumption that the “original languages” are possessed with a kind of magic, a deep meaning that they cannot get from their plebian translations. In appealing to the original you may be reinforcing that conclusion, sowing the seeds of distrust of translation, or worse, cultivating mistaken conclusions about biblical interpretation.

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Save Time: Stop Doing Word Studies

Word studies are a favorite tool of Biblical exegetes, but usually aren’t worth the time. Why not? Because either (1) the work has already been done for you, or (2) what you are trying...