Reading scripture may seem obvious and rudimentary. Some might think, if an individual is literate, what else is required? Well not everyone is literate. Besides, there seem to be plenty of Bibles available. By the year 2007, over 7.5 billion had been distributed throughout the world. There are approximately seven billion people living. Allowing for the loss of a .5 billion Bibles, that’s at least one Bible for every person on the planet! Just pick up one and go for it. Only about eighteen percent of the world’s population is illiterate. But wait, half of the world’s languages do not yet have a Bible translation at all. If you speak one of those languages, that may be a problem. There does seem to be a clear imbalance in access.
In addition, Americans own more than half of the world’s Bibles. In fact, those Americans, who have Bibles, have an average of three or four per person, including atheists, there is a large portion of the world that does not have even a small section of a Bible. Perhaps to my own shame, to slake my own “need” and desire, I have over sixty Bibles. I have English, Spanish, Greek, Hebrew, various translations, and many study versions. Does anyone really need that many Bibles? Well, before I feel compelled to defend myself, let’s leave that discussion for another time.
I am not defending the rather recent (c. 19th century) doctrine of inerrancy. Any argument of "originals" is suspect, but that is another article. However, as is the case, that the whole person is affected by stirring one part, reaching through to persons by the imagination and emotions generated by fiction, story, allegory, and parable, affects the whole person. That is, story, allegory, and parable are some of the means to break through the conscious resistance that often blocks hearing. Such devices are inherent to scripture, inerrancy set aside.
Biblical mission is more of a poem and less of its common use as treatise, more art than science, using feelings and sensibilities to reach the mind to share sympathy, love, and life—it is about God’s beauty (Bushnell, 1976:344). Among the various genres, scripture uses such devices as story, allegory, and parable, in seeking to break through the intransigent ways of thinking that enslave individuals and communities to processing thought as comfortably expected. While scripture must be understood in ethical, logical, and historical ways, it must also be understood in its “aesthetic” (Milbank, 1998:123). It is beauty expressed in story, allegory, and parable.
The Bible can be said to be, in some parts, less of an ethical, logical, and historical focus and more of a teleological pointer even escort. Story, allegory, and parable are common devices found in scripture by which God speaks of deeper and higher truths than are readily seen by simple propositions and historical accounts. This is dressed in the beauty and pleasure of story pointing and reaching for the teleological goals of the creator of the universe particularly the spiritual maturation of humans beginning now. Story, allegory, and parable are used to tell truth and break through staid, stagnant, formalistic-views and beliefs whether they are present in biblical myth or history.
So then, what do we do with all of these Bibles? Well, forty-five percent of Americans adults (mainly Evangelicals) claim to read the Bible at least once a week. And yet only one third of Americans believe the Bible is the word of God. Okay, put aside the statistics. What do all these massive numbers mean to the subject of reading scripture? Well my point is not statistical, that is for sure. In fact you may be able to find better statistics than the ones I have cited. My point is that there is a glut of Bibles available to an extremely large portion of the world, and I am asking how much is being gained with such rich resources?
Any supposed gain is clearly questionable measured by world conditions. Where is the spiritual transformation that should accompany “right” reading and "consumption" of scripture? And of those who read the Bible, even fewer, I suspect by the lack of evidence (my own anecdotal conversations and observations) are actually fed by the words and enjoy their sweetness.
“Your words were found, and I ate them, and your words became to me a joy and the delight of my heart, for I am called by your name, O Lord, God of hosts. . . . How sweet are your words to my taste,
sweeter than honey to my mouth!” (Jeremiah 15:16; Psalm 119: 103).
We must not read Scripture in the same way we might read the comic strips, our newspapers, or even the best literature. Yes, the Bible is literature, and it can be read as such; however, what we are discussing here is something much deeper and more profound. We are considering the intended purposes of God’s speaking through scripture for his human creatures. Knowledge, history, poetry, ethics, and even wisdom can all be found in scripture. However, God’s desire is for encounter, communion, and intimacy with us. And by this relationship, he hopes to see us reflect his image. And so, although we may query the Bible for knowledge, history, and such, we primarily must look to encounter God through its pages. This encounter brings about transformation: “And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit” (2 Corinthians 3:18).
The techniques of hermeneutics (scriptural interpretation) and exegesis (to analyze and explain) will not be discussed here. That is, I am not here after teaching about the ingredients of the meal, about fat and fiber, or how many calories are included. I am exceedingly more interested, here, that we “taste and see that the Lord is good” (Psalm 34:8; 1 Peter 2:3).
There are various methods to accomplish this. One well-known technique is lectio divina (divine reading). This and other such techniques are often accompanied by controversy, warning, and fear. Nevertheless, biblical reading does include meditation (Joshua 1:8; Psalm 1:2; 19:14; 104:34; 119:15), memory (Joshua 1:13; Psalm 119:11; Matthew 21:16, 42; John 15:20), response (Exodus 19:8; 24:3; Matthew 7:24; Romans 2:13; James 1:22, 25; 2:14), obedience (Exodus 24:7; Deuteronomy 17:19), and praise (Psalm 56:4, 10; 106:12). Whatever the hesitation, we do not have to bring along the baggage of Eastern mysteries from some of the practices used for scripture reading.
I am not suggesting that we disengage our minds from reading scripture in an esoteric, Gnostic abandonment to whatever decides to enter our souls. I am simply suggesting that we open to the eternal God, creator of the universe and maker of heaven and earth. Listening to God speak through Scripture is not alien. Rather to miss this, renders the reader dull and unresponsive to God. “You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life” (John 5:39-40). We will be nourished as we feed on the living word of God. For this, deep intention, meditation, and prayer over the words of the Bible are critical. We are mining the very depths of life (John 1:1-4; 6:68).
We are reading scripture for life, and that life is found in God (John 1:4; 5:39-40; 11:25; 14:6; 1 John 5:20). “In him was life, and the life was the light of men” (John 1:4). So then, however we read scripture, whatever disciplines or technique we use, if we are not gaining life, then we are approaching scripture only partially at best. To use lectio divina, meditation, memorization, imagery, prayer, or any other technique is not as important as touching the author of scripture, the one spoken of in scripture, the one being offered. This is the assurance of safety in our disciplined life.
Emptying or opening to anything or anyone else other than the God of the Bible is safeguarded when we read his scripture and hold him in our hearts and minds as we read or do anything else for that matter. If we do not dishonour God in our approach, he will be pleased to receive us into fellowship and communion. In fact, like a loving father who is happy to see his child bring him a painting that is nothing more than a mess of paint on butcher paper, God is delighted with our messy approaches of love toward him. No matter how mature we may become, we will always be as children in the presence of our Father.
I hope I didn’t disappoint you by not pontificating erudite techniques and profound seminary “secrets” of reading Scripture. If I can encourage some few to enjoy God in scripture, to be fed and nourished by his word through scripture, and to be further conformed to his image by that enjoyment (Romans 8:29; 12:2; 1 Peter 1:14), then I am extremely pleased. And so is our Father. We’ll later talk about the techniques of reading.
