The Context of Scripture 

“The proper context for interpreting the Bible is the context of the biblical writers—the context that produced the Bible. Every other context is alien or at least secondary.”

― Michael S. Heiser, The Bible Unfiltered: Approaching Scripture on Its Own Terms

How are we supposed to read Scripture? This is often hotly debated because the implication of praxis (how we live it out) are profound. Church history, systematic theology, creeds and theologians are certainly helpful means for us to understand what Scripture is saying... but they are not the be all end all.

Ultimately, if we are not looking at and understanding the historical context of the Biblical writers (for both Old and New Testaments), we are doing a disservice when we attempt to exegete what the author intended. It can at times lead to eisegesis, where we read out own meaning or cultural understanding onto what Scripture says. 

I love Church history and the writings of the patristics, reformers and others who have shaped the Christian faith through the generation. But they are not the context in which Scripture was produced. Yes, they are helpful and important to the development of understanding Scripture, but they are not the context of Scripture itself. 

Why is this hard...because it is not easy. It is much easier to take the "plain reading" of the version we are reading in our native tongue. IT is much harder to look into not just the language being used (Hebrew & Greek), but also the meanings, understandings and nuances that were prevalent in that day. 

Don't misunderstand me. There are many parts of Scripture that are clear. There are also other parts that may seem unclear or muddy in how it is understood across the tent of orthodox Christianity, where then the context becomes essential in understanding what was intended by what was written. 

Thankfully we live in an amazing age of information and technology that can give anyone access to scholarly information that we can use to not just enrich but also to at times realign our interpretation to reflect the context in which it was written.