The
Emmaus
Project


Week
3
–
Meaning



I. Introduction



A. The
Biblical
Writers
expected
to
be
understood:
Perspicuity.

B. The
Biblical
Writers
are
pointing
to
Christ:
the
Bible
is
Christo­centric

C. The
Bible
is
its
own
best
interpreter1

D. Interpretation
in
the
context
of
the
Metanarrative

E. Unpack
the
Original
Meaning
of
the
text




 
 How
do
we
discover
the
meaning?





 



II. Meaning




 John
3:10‐15


 
10
“You
are
Israel’s
teacher,”
said
Jesus,
“and
do

you


 not
understand
these
things?
11
Very
truly
I
tell
you,


 we
speak
of
what
we
know,
and
we
testify
to
what
we


 have
seen,
but
still
you
people
do
not
accept
our


 testimony.
12
I
have
spoken
to
you
of
earthly
things


 and
you
do
not
believe;
how
then
will
you
believe
if
I


 speak
of
heavenly
things?
13
No
one
has
ever
gone


 into
heaven
except
the
one
who
came
from
heaven—

 the
Son
of
Man.
14
Just
as
Moses
lifted
up
the
snake
in


 the
wilderness,
so
the
Son
of
Man
must
be
lifted
up,
15
that
everyone
who


 believes
may
have
eternal
life
in
him.”



How
do
we
discover
the
meaning?



­ what
do
I
like
about
this
passage?
(subjective)

­ what
other
passages
are
similar
to
this
one?
(collective)

­ what
do
others
say
about
the
passage?
(commentary)




 “The
Reformers
rejected
the
authority
of
traditional
(Catholic

 
 


 Church)
interpretation
and
strove
to
recover
the
meaning
intended
by



 the
original
authors
of
Scripture…the
Reformers
recognized
that
God

 


 was
the
ultimate
author
of
Scripture,
and
that
he,
as
the
author,
was

 


 the
source
of
its
meaning.
But
they
looked
to
the
original
author’s

 


 situation
and
intent
as
the
basis
for
discovering
meaning.” 

2




























































1
McCartney
and
Clayton,
Let
the
Reader
Understand,
169‐171.

2
McCartney
and
Clayton,
Let
the
Reader
Understand,
23.


The
Emmaus
Project
 1

Spring
2011

 





Who
is
the
writer?

What
is
he
writing?
 
 
 
 
 Situation
and
Intent

Who
is
he
writing
to?





How
do
we
discover
the
meaning?




 Discover
the
Writer…the
Writing…
and
the
Audience





III. The
Audience
and
the
Writing



A. Audience




 To
whom
is
the
author
writing?
Is
it
an
individual
or
a


 group
of
people?




 Ex.
Acts…Philippians



B. Writing




 What
are
the
different
literary
genres
in
the
Bible?
 




 Are
there
certain
characteristics
in
these
genres
that
can

 help
us
understand
them?




‐ Narrative

‐ Law

‐ Poetry

‐ Prophecy

‐ Epistle

‐ Apocalyptic



C. Writer




 Who
wrote
the
book?
Why
did
he
write
it?
What
was
his
situation?













The
Emmaus
Project
 2

Spring
2011

 IV. Three
Interpretive
Methods3



A. Window
–

 (historical
analysis)




 What
do
windows
allow
you
to
do?








 “In
historical
analysis,
we
see
texts
as
windows
to
historical
events”




 What
might
the
title
be
for
a
Bible
Study
on
Gen
1­2
that
is


 taught
using

the
window
method?
What
might
be
the
focus
of


 the
Bible
Study?




 What
is
the
danger
of
this
method
by
itself?



B. Mirror
–

 

 (thematic
analysis)




 What
do
mirrors
allow
you
to
do?









 “In
thematic
analysis,
we
see
texts
as
mirrors
that
reflect
our


 interests
and
concerns”




 What
might
the
title
be
for
a
Bible
Study
on
Gen
1­2
that
is
taught
using


 the
mirror
method?
What
might
be
the
focus
of
the
Bible
Study?




 What
is
the
danger
of
this
method
by
itself?
 




C. Painting
–

 (literary
analysis)




 What
is
the
purpose
of
a
painting?






 “In
literary
analysis,
we
see
texts
as
paintings
and
appreciate
the


 form
and
content
together”




 What
might
the
title
be
for
a
Bible
Study
on
Gen
1­2
that
is


 taught
using

the
picture
method?
What
might
be
the
focus
of


 the
Bible
Study?




 Before
you
begin,
what
three
questions
do
you
need
to
ask
yourself?





























































3
Richard
Pratt,
He
Gave
Us
Stories,
pgs
87‐104


The
Emmaus
Project
 3

Spring
2011

 V. Art
and
the
Bible



A. Rembrandt






 





































If
you
are
like
me,
when
I
look
at
art
it
is
hard
to
find
any
real
purpose...it
all

looks
the
same.
However,
when
I
have
an
art
expert
explain
it
to
me,
then
I

can
begin
to
see
the
painting
for
what
it
is
and
appreciate
it
all
the
more.




The
same
is
true
with
Scripture.
Each
book
has
an
overall
purpose...yet
most

people
get
so
"lost
in
the
painting,
they
fail
to
see
it's
unified

message/theme/etc.



B. 
 Art
and
Purpose




 “Instead
of
looking
at
minor
themes
or
historical
events,
we
[should]
approach
these


 texts
through
literary
analysis.
Literary
analysis
treats
narratives
as
skillful
works
of


 art,
maintaining
the[totality]
of
form
and
content.
Literary
analysis
studies
literary


 features
of
a
text
the
way
we
appreciate
the
colors,
textures,
contrasts,
lines,
and


 balance
of
a
fine
portrait.
By
this
means
we
are
able
to
distinguish
major
and
minor


 aspects
of
the
text.
As
we
have
seen,
thematic
and
historical
analyses
often
focus
on


 relatively
minor
dimensions
of
stories.
Literary
analysis
helps
us
discern
the
central


 motifs
of
a
passage.”
4



























































4
Richard
Pratt,
He
Gave
Us
Stories,
pg
97.


The
Emmaus
Project
 4

Spring
2011

 


 How
do
we
discover
meaning
in
art?




 Painting
=
Painter,
Art
Period,
and
Audience.





 How
do
we
discover
meaning
from
the
Bible?




 Book
of
the
Bible
=
Writer,
Writing,
and
Audience.



VI. Writer




 The
Chicago
Statement
of
Biblical
Inerrancy




 Article
VIII.



 


 WE
AFFIRM
that
God
in
His
work
of
inspiration
utilized
the
distinctive


 personalities
and
literary
styles
of
the
writers
whom
He
had
chosen
and


 prepared.




 WE
DENY
that
God,
in
causing
these
writers
to
use
the


 very
words
that
He
chose,
overrode
their


 personalities.




 2
Peter
1:20‐21


 20Above
all,
you
must
understand
that
no
prophecy


 of
Scripture
came
about
by
the
prophet's
own


 interpretation.
21For
prophecy
never
had
its
origin
in


 the
will
of
man,
but
men
spoke
from
God
as
they
were


 carried
along
by
the
Holy
Spirit.


 
 





 
 Writer

 
 Personality

 

 Purpose

 

 God




 So
how
can
we
become
better
teachers/interpreters
of
God's
Word?



It
is
when
we
begin
to
see
the
books
of
Scripture
as
a
Rembrandt
or
Monet

painting...it's
when
we
begin
to
see
the
personality
and
purpose
of
the
writer

emerge
from
the
text…it’s
when
we
are
able
to
step
back
and
see
the
entire

painting
the
writer
is
creating.




 
 

VII. Audience




 Just
as
knowing
the
audience
to
whom
a
painting
is
for
is
important,
we
also


 need
to
understand
the
audience
to
whom
a
letter
or
book
of
the
Bible
was


 written.



The
Emmaus
Project
 5

Spring
2011


 Questions
that
need
to
be
asked:




 What
is
going
on
in
the
life
of
this
person
or
group
of
people
that
prompted


 the
author
to
write
to
them?





 What
sin
issues
exist
in
the
lives
of
these
people
who
are
being
addressed
in


 the
writing?

 




 What
is
going
on
in
the
culture
around
them
that
can
help
us
understand
the


 text
better?




VIII. Writing




 More
on
this
next
week!



IX. Opportunities
for
Growth



‐ Read
introduction
and
chapters
1­2
from
“Let
the
Reader
Understand”

‐ Read
the
entire
Chicago
Statement
on
Biblical
Inerrancy









The
Emmaus
Project
 6

Spring
2011