The Story Around the Text

What do preachers, politicians and movie promoters have in common? All too often, they all have a tendency to use quotations out of context. Candidates at election time sometimes distort their opponent’s position by carefully choosing a single phrase from a 20-minute speech. Taken by itself, the phrase could mean the opposite of what the opponent intended. How often have you seen a movie advertisement quoting a movie critic as saying the film was “hysterically … entertaining,” and wondered just what came between the words “hysterically” and “entertaining?” In one case, the actual review read, “The action in this fast-paced, hysterically overproduced and surprisingly entertaining film is as realistic as a Road Runner cartoon.”

Politicians and marketers may deliberately ignore context to serve their own purposes, but could preachers do the same thing? We should give one another the benefit of a doubt. We need not assume the same deliberately malicious intent. But we should acknowledge that we sometimes pluck words, phrases, and verses out of their context to make a point that we want to make, regardless of their actual meaning.

Take for example the ever popular quote in Philippians 4:13: “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” All of us have heard this verse, in one context or another, applied to personal goals and accomplishments. In the minds of many people, who display these words on their walls in needle-point plaques, the verse means, “I can accomplish anything I set my mind to do, because it is Christ who gives me strength.” We don’t have to look far in the context to learn that this isn’t even close to the meaning of the passage.

What is Philippians 4:13 really saying? Immediately before verse 13 are verses 11-12, where Paul says, “I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need.” Paul says all of this as he is thanking the Philippians for a gift they have sent to meet his very great need. Not only this, it appears in a letter that abounds with expressions of joy in the midst of the most difficult trial.

Philippians 2:13, then, does not mean that you can expect Christ to give you strength for any goal, but that in his strength you can endure any trial. This knowledge might ruin a few favourite sermons, but it can also open the way for a much richer understanding of the passage.

Here’s the good news: Ignoring the literary context of a passage may be the most frequently-committed exegetical error among preachers, but it is also the easiest to correct. Here are some steps you can take to get the context right:

Identify the genre and form of the text.

Is this text from an epistle, with a carefully- and explicitly- reasoned deductive argument? Or is it from a Hebrew poem, with rich imagery and parallelism? Is it gospel, prophetic material, or apocalyptic? Within each of these larger genre categories are many sub-categories or “forms.” A psalm could be a lament, a hymn of praise, or a psalm of ascent. In a gospel you will find parables, miracle stories, and discourses. Prophets contain visions and oracles. Epistles might include aphorisms and household codes. And these lists barely scratch the surface! You may need years of practice to become confident in recognizing and interpreting various genres and forms. But the first step is to always ask these questions of every text: What is the genre? What is the form? And how does this influence my interpretation of the text?

Become familiar with the themes of the book.

Every book in the Bible has its own unique mix of discernible theological themes. All of the gospel writers may have the purpose of describing who Jesus is and what it means to follow him. But each of them has his own distinct angle, with themes that correspond to his particular concerns. Each of Paul’s epistles has its own set of emphases, determined usually by the occasion of the letter. The history of the kings of Israel as told in I & II Samuel reflect concerns that are different from those in I & II Chronicles. Being aware of these will help you to pick up intuitively on nuances of meaning in your passage. The best place to find a good discussion of a book’s themes is in the introduction sections of good commentaries.

Outline the Book.

Get a sense of where your text fits within the overall flow of your book by making an interpretive outline the book itself. This might seem like a daunting task, but it doesn’t have to be. Begin by reading the book two or three times. If it is a long book, you can skim it at this point. You just want to become familiar with the overall flow of the book.

As you read, begin to jot down your impressions of major division in the book. Next, compare several outlines done by others. You can find these in Bible dictionaries, handbooks, study Bibles, and in the introductions to your favourite commentaries. You will find a variety of outlines that reflect the interpretive decisions made by each commentator. Based on your best understanding, make your own broad chapter-level outline. Give special attention to the place of your particular passage.

Study the surrounding passages.

Now give special attention to the verses and paragraphs immediately before and after your passage. This is the immediate context, and is crucial to your best understanding of the text. You may want to do a more detailed outline of the chapter in which your text appears. You might even do the same for or the preceding and following chapters. Assume that this text occupies its precise place in the flow of this chapter and this book for a specific reason. The ideas or stories leading up to it are likely to be foundational for its meaning. The steps leading from it may be implications of its meaning, with hints towards application. Every text is different, but when you give adequate attention to its surroundings, discerning its meaning is much easier.

Summarize the context.

Once you have examined both the macro-context (the genre, book, themes, etc.) and the micro-context (the passages immediately surrounding your text), write a sentence or two expressing your best understanding of the meaning of your passage in light of the context. There may be more yet to learn from studying the details of the text itself. But you will usually find that your contextual study has already you in the right “ballpark” for faithful exposition.

Does this all seem like a lot of preliminary work before you get into the “real” study of your text? Perhaps, but it is worth it. Take the time at the beginning of your study to get the big picture. Become familiar with the story behind the text and the story around the text. You will find that your study of the text itself is streamlined and enhanced. And when the time comes to preach you will be able to expound the text with greater confidence and spontaneity.