The morphology of a word speaks of the form of a word that delivers specific word-level information in context. Word-level information illustrates connections between words that relate to one another. Professional Theologists should never interpret a word singularly; care must be taken to examine the words that surround it in order to establish relationship. Professional Theologists must also take great care in observing changes to the end of words with misguided belief that it remains the same meaning with only a change in tense.
When word forms and word relationships are focused upon, interpreters are able to establish the semantic range, which is identifying the meaning of the word within an area of possible meanings.[1] For example the word “chaste” (purity) contrasts with “chasten” (rebuke) to show how word forms can change one letter and create an entirely different meaning with it.[2] Hebrew and Greek are just like English; words that are nouns and adjectives can become verbs that make them mean entirely different things.
Searching for the syntax of the word by observing the words that surround it requires dedicated, scholarly, efforts. Remember the important rule of interpretation that requires an examination of context before meaning can be understood? Another step must be added to interpretive efforts if the meaning is to be fully determined. This step requires an examination of the word-level information with attention paid to word forms and relationships to determine the semantic possibilities. According to Bible Scholar Dr. Heiser, the lack of consideration of full context with focus upon word-level semantics will prevent ambiguities within Scripture texts from being resolved.[3]
Some exegetical interpreters begin their task at understanding Scripture by working from the outside of a passage and moving inward. Others, reverse that process and begin at the word-level as they expand farther and farther out into the passages. The Holman Bible commentators [4] teach specific steps that begin interpretation from the inside of Scripture at the word-level to examine the meaning of the words in context, with definitions and the various shades of meaning considered. Words must be defined with careful analysis of how they are used in sentence and then moving to a deeper place of understanding by placing them in groups of larger ideas helps determine the literary meaning of Scripture. Only after the contextual meaning is discovered with this Holman technique should Professional Theologists move outward toward the life and circumstances of the author. The examination of the larger historical and cultural setting and the prevailing meanings in that time must then occur. Then biblical theology comes into the interpretive effort as human spiritual traditions, doctrines, and church history of living faith are considered through the themes and motifs of Scripture. Finally, the interpretation moves toward personal reflection upon the bigger world, culture, and society with modern-day relevance to apply interpretation of the truth of Scripture.[5]
This specific inward to outward approach to interpretive effort should be carried out precisely, every time Scripture is examined for meaning in context. As Professional Theologists study and apply original Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek to their interpretative efforts, both the meaning of the word and its form must be known; either evaluation unknown or incorrectly identified makes understanding of the text impossible. [6]
Care must be taken each time word-level studies begins. Professional Theologists need to carefully study the word-level to understand what it is that they are looking at, what scholars are saying about what they are looking at, and then finally, be able to analyze and draw conclusions about that specific word usage.[7]
The next lesson will breakdown some of the important techniques of word-level investigation that help accomplish these important steps in Scripture interpretation.
Bibliography
Corley, Bruce, Steve Lemke, and Grant Lovejoy. Biblical Hermeneutics: A Comprehensive Introduction to Interpreting Scripture. Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman, 2002.
Dockery, David S., Trent C. Butler, Christopher L. Church et al. Holman Bible Handbook. Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 1992.
Heiser, Michael S. Bi101 Lecture Introducing Biblical Interpretation: Contexts and Resources: LOGOS Bible Software.
Footnotes
[1] The first textbook, The Semantics of Biblical Language, for literary and historical context analyzed relevant semantics in biblical interpretation was written by James Barr in 1961. Other attempts to establish principles of semantics include different approaches by Erhardt Gűttgemanns, René Kieffer, John Sawyer and K. L. Burres. The field of semantics is so important to Professional Theologists that there will be advanced classes to prepare our students for advanced interpretative skills.
[2] Michael S. Heiser, Bi101 Lecture Introducing Biblical Interpretation: Contexts and Resources (LOGOS Bible Software).
[3] Ibid., Segment 90.
[4] David S. Dockery, Trent C. Butler, Christopher L. Church et al., Holman Bible Handbook (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 1992), 90-91.
[5] Ibid.
[6] Bruce Corley, Steve Lemke, and Grant Lovejoy, Biblical Hermeneutics: A Comprehensive Introduction to Interpreting Scripture (Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman, 2002), 22.
[7] Heiser, Segment 91.
Links
About the Author
Kathy L. McFarland is President and Founder of Becker Bible Ministries, Inc. and the Becker Professional Theology Academy. She is also a Becker Bible Studies Teacher and author of Guided Bible Studies for Hungry Christians. She has received her Bachelor of Science degree in Religious Studies from Liberty University, is on track for the Master of Divinity (Professional Ministries Track) degree from Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary & Graduate School in 2016 and will be seeking a Doctor of Philosophy Degree in Theology and Apologetics beginning in the fall of 2016. She is the originator of the newest theological movement to encourage Christian leaders to minister within the modern-day marketplace as Professional Theologists. She is also the Curriculum Developer for Becker Professional Theology Academy and a teaching faculty member. Kathy's favorite studies to teach include the connections between Old Testament exegesis, Christian Apologetics, and Bible typology and mysteries.
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