Reading primer

There are some who would hand you so many rules for reading the Old Testament that you are too intimidated to bother. They posit filters and steps and cautions and principles and qualifications regarding the pitfalls of ancient language and culture and literary styles. You would think they didn't want you to read! You would think we have regressed to the pre-Reformation era when priests were the jealous proprietors of the Scriptures. I am reminded of Paul's strong feelings on that score: "They want to shut you out, that you may make much of them" (Galatians 4:17).

But every elementary school graduate has assimilated the basics of reading a letter. And everyone who tears open a love letter is quite adept, intuitively, at rules of context and literary forms. Let us not be overly impressed by theological jargon.

Besides, the New Testament itself is much less stuffy about how to read the Old Testament. Romans 15:4 makes it easy and comfortable: "For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope." And to help you relax even more, Paul accompanies his invitation with an example, in verse 3, in which he quotes Psalm 69:9 with no particular interest in its original context and audience. It is enough that the words of that Psalm remind him of what Christ has done; it is enough to be armed with the general rule that all of the Old Testament is fulfilled in Christ.

Likewise, 2 Timothy 3:16 invites us to plunder the Old Testament for all kinds of teaching and correcting and rebuking and training, and the author does not feel the necessity to fine-tune what he means by that, or to saddle us with a lot of rules.

It's fine for seminary students to study rules of language and interpretation---as long as they take care not to lose their souls in the process. But I would ask them, when they later bring the Word to us in the pulpit, to leave their scaffolding behind in their studies. No one needs to hear the word "eschatological" 20 times in a sermon.

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