In his An Introduction the Gospel, Lowell L.
Bennion offered the following guide to biblical interpretation, including urging
LDS to read scholarly biblical commentaries:
SOME GUIDES TO THE INTERPRETATION OF THE BIBLE
As we read the scripture, we should do so
with a few guides in mind, which will help us to understand and appreciate it,
and to interpret it honestly and fairly . . .
1. We
should try to check the accuracy of translation. This is not easy to do
since most of us are not familiar with the original languages of Hebrew and Greek. We can study a great number of translations and scholarly
commentaries, and thereby arrive at the opinion of men of learning. Our only
other check is our own practical wisdom and the inspiration we may seek and
receive from the Lord.
2. We
should read each book within the Bible as a separate work, seeing to learn
what we can about the language, author, people, and circumstances of the day.
This we can do by referring to a good Bible commentary and by studying the best
historical works on the subject. Often the latter are less prejudiced and more
fair than books published by churches. The little book of Amos, for example,
becomes much richer in meaning if we know that Amos lived in the Eighth Century
B.C. in Judea and went north to the Kingdom of Israel at a time when Israel was
enjoying a post-war prosperity and the people were both self-righteous,
shallow, and hypocritical in their “religious life.” It is helpful to know that
when Amos speaks of the “kine of Bashan” (Amos, Chapter 4) he is not speaking
of well-fed cattle gazing on the best pasture land of Israel, but of well-fed women
in Israel, prodding their husbands to oppress the poor while they live in
luxury with no mercy for the poor and afflicted in Israel.
3. We
should interpret single passages in their context. Single verses are
written as part of passages; single passages are part of larger themes. It is
unfair to the meaning of scripture to interpret a single verse without being
sure that the interpretation is in harmony with that which goes before or
after. In practically every religion some writers are guilty of this practice
of singling out verses favorable to a position taken on some point of doctrine.
This we should guard against doing in fairness to the book and to truth. One
can prove almost anything from the Bible if one selects his own verses out of
context.
As an illustration, consider the verse in I
John 4:8, which reads, “He that loveth
not knoweth not God; for God is love.” The last part of this verse has been
quoted sincerely as proof that God is love, nothing more. Taken by itself it
says just that. However, if one reads the entire little book of I John, one
notes that God is more than love. The author stresses this one attribute of Deity because a major purpose of his writing the
book was to inspire men to love one another.
4. We
should interpret single ideas in scripture in the context of religion as a
whole. In a lecture, an architect said that there are three things an
architect keeps in mind as he plans a house: soundness, utility, and delight or
beauty. These are wonderful guides to home planning. Everything one does,
whether in planning the garage or the kitchen, must be sound, functional, and delightful
to be completely satisfying.
This same method of referring single ideas
back to a few big fundamental guides applies equally well in the study,
interpretation, and living of religion. One should not base his faith on single
passages or ideas in the Bible taken separately, one at a time. He should search
for the big fundamentals in scripture which are taught or implied over
consistency to his religious views. For example, read the entire Bible to see
what the big, oft-repeated concepts about
God are. With these in mind, one brings to an interpretation of a single
passage the larger Biblical views of the nature and character of God. When we
proceed in this way, we know that God is more than love, for the scripture
teaches again and again that he is Creator of the universe. Revelator to the
prophets, a Person of justice as well as a Person of mercy and love.
What do the scriptures teach about man when
we study them thoroughly? Is the freedom and responsibility of man reiterated
again and again and implied in practically all scriptural teaching? If so, it
should become a guide to our interpretation of each passage of scripture. A
single verse which appears to deny man’s agency cannot be taken at face value
as a final source of the doctrine of man, as some theologians have taken
isolated verse from Paul.
The great fundamentals of religion pertaining
to God and man should guide us in interpreting all passages and lesser ideas.
We cannot accept as truth interpretations of scripture which deny the Fatherhood,
justice, impartiality, and love of God, or the freedom, worth, and brotherhood
of man. In any field of life we do well to live by fundamental principles; this
applies to religion no less than to business or the practice of medicine.
5. We
should keep in mind the Spirit and emphasis of Jesus Christ. Christians,
who look to Jesus Christ as the great teacher, revelator of the Father, the Son
of God, and their Savior and Redeemer, do well to make his life and teaching
normative for their own interpretations of scripture and religion. He fulfilled
and thereby did away with many things in the Old Testament. Other teachings he
strongly affirmed and strengthened. We believe that we should have his concept
of God and man in mind as we read all scripture. When we find ideas which
contradict his Spirit and teachings in the scriptures, then we cannot accept
them for ourselves and live by them. Either our interpretation is wrong or
there is an error of translation, or there is a teaching adapted to people of
different needs, circumstances, or understanding, or there is some human
limitation in the picture.
Great fundamentals of religion are found in
the Bible, including the Gospel of Christ. The Gospel, although contained in
the Bible, is greater than the Book. So we use the Gospel to interpret all
passages in the Bible.
6. We
should remember the poetic character and the rich imagery of Biblical writers.
Jesus himself chose strong figures of speech to drive a great religious truth
home. He said, for example,
Ye are the salt of the earth. (Mathew 5:13)
Ye are the light of the world. (Matthew 5:16)
Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can
ye escape the damnation of hell? (Matthew 23:33)
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the
prophets. (Matthew 23:37)
The religious teaching implicit in these
sayings is to be taken literally, but not always the figure of speech which
makes the teaching remembered.
7. We
should read the scripture with humility, prayerfully seeking inspiration from
Deity as we read. If they were written by men of God under his inspiration,
surely, the same kind of attitude is needed by the reader and by the student if
he is to gain what went into their writing. When we read poetry, we do so in a
poetic mood, with feeling as well as thought, searching for the mood of the
poem. Much scripture is also poetic and cannot be appreciated except with
feeling, with aspiration and with a desire to worship.
The Bible is not a treatise in philosophy,
nor a scientific textbook, nor a scholarly, thoroughgoing historical chronicle,
nor even a text in theology. It is a deeply religious and moral work, trying to
teach Israel and all men how to worship and serve God and how to deal fairly
and considerately with fellow men.
As Latter-day Saints, we love and cherish the
Bible just for what it is. It is neither perfect nor complete as a revelation
of God to man, but it is the largest, riches, and most revered scripture we
know. Our faith had its origin in a boy’s faith in the Bible. That faith led to
more revelation . . .(Lowell L. Bennion, An
Introduction to the Gospel [Salt Lake City: Deseret Sunday School Union
Board, 1955], 107-10)
Further Reading