Studying the Bible in its Historical, Cultural, and Literary Context by Monte Martin

What is "Biblical Context" and why it is so vital.

Introduction

I heard the following statement several years ago: "There are two answers to every question about the Bible, Jesus and context." What is meant by that statement?

First of all, the Bible points us to Jesus as the ultimate answer to our questions. Jesus said to the Jews:

"You study the Scripture diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life." (Jn 5:39-40).

Jesus' words here are not a criticism of Bible study but of not seeing how the Scriptures are meant to lead us to Him.  

Secondly, the best way to understand many things in the Bible is to know the context in which it was written.

This brief article is meant to help Christians get started in studying the Bible with its historical, cultural and literary context in mind.  If that sounds intimidating, it won't be, once explained. But, first, consider the following:  

It is not necessary to go to seminary, be a scholar or academic in order to study the Bible in its historical, cultural and literary context.  We are blessed to live in a time when there are plenty of resources that provide information about context, including online resources, study aids, commentaries and Study Bibles.  Sometimes, just taking the time to read the book introductions and study notes in a well-chosen Study Bible is all we need to greatly increase our understanding of Scripture. I recommend using the "ESV Study Bible" or the "Archaeological Study Bible NIV" for help in understanding the historical-cultural-literary context of the Bible.  I know Brian loves the New American Standard Bible which I also recommend.

Mark Twain famously said, "It ain't those parts of the Bible that I can't understand that bother me. It is the parts that I do understand." This reminds us it is more important to walk in faith and obedience to the clear commands in Scripture. Yet, we should also have a desire to understand what we don't yet understand. 

Let's get started. 

Context Defined

Context is the setting, environment or conditions in which something exists or occurs. There are three basic types of context to consider in Bible study.

The Historical Context 

The historical context of the Bible is the setting, geography, environment, and conditions that existed in parts of the ancient Near East, known today as the Middle East.  Most of the Bible centers around the people known alternately in stages as Hebrews, Israelites, and Jews.  It centers on the land of Canaan, later renamed the land of Israel, a small nation at the crossroads of three continents, i.e. Asia, Africa, and Europe.  The historical context includes a wide variety of nations, Kingdoms, or Empires that interacted with the Israelites and were part of the Biblical story. Most notably, this includes the ancient Canaanite peoples, the Philistines, Egyptians, Babylonians, Persians, Assyrians, Greeks, and Romans.  Maps in the back of most Bibles can help you locate all these people groups and places.

The Bible covers a time period from roughly 2100 BC to 90 AD, from the time of Abraham until the last book in our New Testament was written.  There were also events recorded in the early history of mankind, from Creation to the Tower of Babel, but there are complex issues in fixing dates and time frames for those events.

The Cultural Context

Culture is a broad term that has many components. A modern understanding of culture is beauty, art, literature, as well as the technological and intellectual achievements of a people. However, culture, as used here, includes the entire way of life of a society.  It includes their laws, religious beliefs, superstitions, rituals, traditions, family structure, social customs, governmental structure, political and religious factions, diet, dress, etc.

The culture of Biblical times was so vastly different from 21st-century American culture that it is difficult to interpret and apply parts of the Bible without some understanding of the cultural context.  Think about how radically our culture in America has changed in the 250 years since its founding.  Think about how radically Israel's culture changed in the 2,000-year time frame from Abraham until the time of Jesus.  And again, in the 2,000 years from the time of Jesus until now.  You must take those differences into serious consideration when interpreting Scripture. 

I had a missionary professor in college who use to say that much of what we read in the Bible is culture and we have to know what is merely cultural and what isn't.  For instance, women wearing head coverings for worship in the New Testament was a cultural practice in the culture but also in the church.  It is not practiced in most Christian churches today except in places where the broader culture promotes it, like in Muslim countries or Orthodox Christian cultures.

Should Christians be able to drink alcohol since it was common in Biblical times? Is drinking alcohol a cultural issue, a matter of private conviction, or is it a sin?  Jewish culture sees alcohol, especially wine, as good, when done in moderation but wine then was diluted and not as potent as the alcoholic beverages many drink today. Christians in Europe see no problem with drinking alcohol but Christians in America and other parts of the world are divided on the issue because of a whole host of issues unique to each culture, its history, differences in what they believe the Bible teaches about it along with the impact alcohol is having on society. Alcohol has destroyed many lives. So, drinking alcohol becomes a spiritual and moral issue for many and not just a cultural one? 

The Literary Context

The literary context of the Bible has at least three different aspects to it. First of all, it can refer to the languages of the Bible and the meanings of words in those original languages.  What we call the Old Testament was originally recorded in Hebrew with parts in Aramaic.  Greek was used in writing the New Testament.  There are excellent resources available online that help with the meanings of words in the original languages of the Bible. My favorite is www.biblehub.com.  This resource covers every text in the Bible and does not require the student to be able to read Biblical languages. 

The literary context also includes the various genres of Biblical literature, whether it be historical narrative, law, prophetic books, poetry, wisdom literature, Gospels, parables, letters, and apocalyptic literature.  There are differences in how each genre is best understood and interpreted.  

The Bible is presented as a series of 66 books. It is meant to be studied one book at a time.  Each book is broken down into smaller units of thought, whether it be stories, oracles, teachings, parables, sayings, etc.  We must also consider the entire context of the Bible, which means we interpret each part of it in light of all its overall teachings.

Literary context, in another sense, is the parts of a discourse that surround a word or verse that can throw light on its meaning.  Most Christians, myself included, have been known to quote the Bible out of context, meaning we pull a phrase or verse from the Bible and interpret it independently of the immediate passage from which it came. 

By way of example, the practice of quoting out of context is done all the time in the news media.  A reporter will quote only a small part of what someone has said, called a sound byte. By not placing it in the context of the person's entire statement, they mislead the public. The same kind of thing can be done with Scripture.

Exegesis vs Eisegesis

The aim in interpreting Scripture is something Bible scholars call "exegesis".  It is a Greek word meaning "to lead out of."  It simply means to do the work necessary to bring out the original meaning of the text by taking into consideration the historical, cultural, and literary context.  Once we have done that, then we can more properly apply it to our own situation.  Unfortunately, many readers do the opposite of "exegesis", which is known as "eisegesis", another Greek word meaning "to bring into".  It means to bring into the text all of your own preconceived, subjective ideas, making the passage mean something it never meant to the author and his original audience.

We must never use the Bible to support our own assumptions or biases but rather let it inform us how we should think and live. 

The best way to illustrate the matter of context is to give some specific examples of how a Bible passage can be best understood when taking the historical, cultural, and literary context into consideration.  These two examples also show how ignoring the context can lead to a wrong understanding of Scripture.    

Example #1:  Deuteronomy 28:1-68  Blessings and Curses

One of the things Christians often do is claim blessings from God that were never spoken to them or about them.  Those same blessings also contain conditions and warnings that are ignored.  A classic example of this is Deuteronomy 28, which I will not print in its entirety because of its length.  

The historical context of Deut. 28 is God speaking to the nation of Israel through Moses a short time before they entered the promised Land.  Moses had been reviewing with them the instructions God gave them at Mt. Sinai, known as the Mosaic Covenant.  The people of Israel had accepted the terms of the covenant nearly 40 years earlier when it was ratified by the blood of a sacrifice sprinkled on the people.  Israel as a nation was once again being reminded of that covenant. 

God pronounces a series of blessings that the nation of Israel will experience if and only "if you faithfully obey the voice of the LORD your God, being careful to do all all of his commandments." (v. 1)  It is a series of blessings with a set of conditions. 

The blessings God promised are wonderful but too numerous to mention.  Then from about verse 15 onward, God warns of a series of awful curses that will come upon them "if you don't obey the voicie of the LORD your God or be careful to do all his commandments that I command you."

How many times have you heard someone take this passage and make a declaration like this? "I am the head and not the tail. I am only to go up and not down. I am before and not behind. I am the lender and not the borrower. I am blessed in my coming and in my going. ", etc, etc.

All these declarations are words ripped out of context from Deuteronomy 28 and used to build a prosperity theology.  The word "you", a reference only meant for the nation of Israel, is replaced with "I". The parts about the conditions and the curses are simply ignored.  It has been said that Christians want all the blessings of Israel without the curses and without the obligations.  This is not just "eisegesis" but "narcigesis", the practice of making it all about me.  It is done with hundreds of Biblical texts. 

As a side note, there is an entire theological system called "Covenant Theology" that does the same thing by taking many specific references to Israel, Judah, Jerusalem, Zion, etc and allegorizes them to be about "the Church." That is not to say that Covenant Theology does not contain Biblical truth, but it is guilty of spiritualizing and allegorizing Biblical texts.  By doing so, it steals all the prophetic promises made to Israel. This is called "Replacement Theology", the church replacing Israel in God's plan rather than seeing that God has a unique purpose for both the Church and for Israel.

The Biblical text should be taken literally except in places where it clearly uses symbolic or figurative language. This is most common in parables and in apocalyptic literature. 

A proper way of seeing Deuteronomy 28, as any other passage about Israel, is to understand it represents principles in the way God deals with his people.  We, in a New Covenant relationship with God, have received many spiritual blessings in Christ.  Those blessings come with conditions, namely faith and repentance. It also brings with it obligations.  We must walk in obedience to Christ's commands.  God does bless us in many ways but he has not promised us an easy life.  We are called to sometimes suffer with him as his witnesses in this world and there are great rewards for doing so now but especially in the age to come. 

It is important to realize that every promise in the book is not mine.  God has made many wonderful promises to those "in Christ", more than we can contain.  Focus on those promises. Don't ever be jealous of the promises God makes to specific individuals or other groups. God gave promises to Israel but their long history of tragedy was the result of breaking the covenant and receiving the curses listed in Deuteronomy 28. 

Example #2: Colossians 2:16-23 The Sufficiency of Christ

"Let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ. Let no one disqualify you, insisting on asceticism and worship of angels, going on in detail about visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind, and not holding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, nourished and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God.  If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations— “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” (referring to things that all perish as they are used)—according to human precepts and teachings? These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh. (Co 2:16-23

This is a complex passage packed with a number of issues Christians may struggle to understand.  What is the cultural context of this passage and why is it so important?  Paul is writing to the Church in Colossae, a city in Asia minor, near Laodicea. It apparently had many Jewish believers, because Paul mentions not letting people judge them in regards to food and drink, festivals, a new moon and a Sabbath...all things that were of great importance to Jews.

Jews have a set of religious traditions that God had commanded them to observe annually for all generations as part of the Mosaic covenant.  This includes many festivals or feasts like Passover, Unleavened Bread, Firstfruits, Shavuot (Pentecost), Feast of Trumpets, Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement) and Succot (Tabernacles). The Jewish calendar is lunar and each new month starts with a New Moon festival.  Each annual Feast and New Moon is a Sabbath, a ceasing of normal activities. Every 7th day of the week (Friday evening to Saturday evening on our calendar) was also a Sabbath.  They also had dietary laws that were different from Gentiles.  All of these things, including circumcision for all Jewish males, were commanded by God in the Mosaic covenant. It was all part of Jewish culture, and is to this day, among religious Jews.

The Jewish believers seem to be in tension with the Gentile believers, who came from a pagan background.  Some Jews may have been trying to impose Jewish culture on the Gentile believers and some Gentiles may have been trying to impose their own culture on Jews.

As a side note, in the book of Galatians, we find that some Jewish believers were trying to require Gentile men to be circumcised.  In the minds of Jews, being circumcised made one Jewish and obligated them to live a completely Jewish lifestyle.  Paul issued strong warnings to Jews forcing this act on Gentiles because it would require them to become Jewish and confuse them about the means of salvation, which was faith in Jesus alone.  God is more interested in the "circumcision of the heart", a concept mentioned first in the Old Testament but reinforced in the New Testament.  Circumcision of the heart means to have an inner heart change that leads to repentance and obedience.   

In Colossians 2, Paul says believers, Jew or Gentile, should not allow themselves to be judged or to judge others in regards to outward cultural traditions. Religious Jews, even Messianic Jews, will always observe the feasts and other important traditions in Jewish culture, but they are not to impose them on other believers.  Neither should Gentile Christians do the same to Jews. 

The reason the Jewish feasts were not to be forced on others is because they were "a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ."  The feasts pointed to Christ but now that Christ had come and was the essence of salvation, the feasts were not mandatory.

The believers in Colossae were apparently arguing over food and drink as well.  Jews drank wine but in moderation and ate kosher, which included a prohibition of meat strained of blood and the meat of clean animals, according to Biblical stipulations. We need to remember that Gentile believers had been told by Jewish church leaders at the Jerusalem Council (Acts 15) to abstain from eating meat that had been sacrificed to idols and which had blood in it because Jews would be unable to join in meals with Gentiles under those circumstances. Gentiles were to also abstain from sexual immorality and idolatry because Jews understandably could not have fellowship with Gentiles who engaged in those sinful practices.

In Romans 14, Paul told the believers in Rome to not pass judgment on one another or argue in regards to food and drink.  He said they were to refrain from things that cause people to stumble. An example then and today would be to serve blood or unclean meat (pork, shellfish) to a Jew or to serve alcohol to someone who felt they needed to abstain from it.  I have refrained from things that I normally eat in deference to my Jewish friends and I have been in settings where Jews and Gentile believers took wine, something I don't do, but there was no need to pass judgment on the matter.

In Asia, I  refrained from eating food with blood in it because it was risky. A Thai pastor died from a disease he got from eating undercooked blood sausage, a common problem in Thailand.  As a result, the Thai Christian community became aware that Acts 15 asked Gentiles to refrain from eating blood.  The issue for them became safety.  I never make issue with Christians who eat blood in food, unless the food isn't cooked to a safe level.  Yet, I admit I like my steaks medium rare but I would never eat an undercooked steak in the presence of a Jewish person. 

I give you these examples to show how important a role culture plays in the way we interact with other believers.  Not everything we do as a means of personal conviction should be imposed on others but we should also be sensitive to how others feel about an issue to avoid offense when we are together.

In Acts 10, God gave Peter a vision that revealed that Jews were not to consider Gentiles spiritually defiled because they ate unlcean animals.  Peter learned this lesson before he entered the home of the Gentile Cornelius, leading he and his household to faith (Acts 10).  Jews considered Gentiles unclean due to dietary habits and normally would not enter their homes as a result.  But, after a vision where God told Peter to rise up and eat unclean animals, Peter was mortified and could not understand why God would now declare something unclean as clean.  Later, after being led supernaturally to the home of Cornelius, Peter said, "God has shown me that I should not call any man impure or unclean," (Ac 10:28) the implication being that eating an unclean animal did not make the man unclean before God. That doesn't mean that Peter started eating unclean animals, it just means that he no longer passed judgment on Gentiles who did eat unclean animals.      

Jews and Gentiles in Colossae may also have been arguing over which days were considered sacred.  Jews observed a 7th day Sabbath and most of the feasts were considered times when Jews gathered in homes or synagogues. The morning of first day of the week, Sunday, was a weekly time of worship for Christians because Jesus rose from the dead at that time, but it is commanded nowhere in Scripture.  Christmas and Easter were not yet observed and there may have been holidays observed by Gentiles that were not Christian in origin.  To deal with these complexities, Paul in Romans 14 and in Colossians 2 makes it clear that they were not to judge one another on these matters, but focus on Christ and on what leads to peace and mutual edification.

I have dealt with these complexities, spending six years working in a Messianic Jewish context.  They celebrate all the Jewish feasts from the Bible and many Gentiles join with them as a wonderful show of unity.  It all points to Jesus, showing He is the fulfillment of the feasts.  However, there will be some, especially Gentiles within Messianic Judaism, who attack Christians for having a separate set of traditions and holidays that are not commanded in Scripture.  They equate those holidays with "pagan Rome."  They want to start arguments over these matters when Scripture tells us not to judge one another or argue over these matters. 

By the same token, I have met Christians who attack Messianic Jews because they have a different set of holy days and form of worship, not recognizing that much of what Jews do has Biblical precedent and special meaning for the Jewish people.  In fact, the feasts are a powerful way for Messianic Jews to witness to their own people. In both Christianity and Messianic Judaism, there are traditions that have a Biblical basis and those that don't, but they are acceptable as long as they point us to Jesus. I'm just not sure about Santa Clause and the Easter Bunny. LOL

Further into the Colossians 2 text, it seems there were other beliefs and practices that  were causing spiritual problems for some in the congregation. Paul says, Let no one disqualify you, insisting on asceticism and worship of angels, going on in detail about visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind, and not holding fast to the Head.

These beliefs and practices were not Biblical and were unhealthy. Christians should practice spiritual disciplines such as periodic fasting but we are not to practice asceticism - the extreme denial of things, especially things that God has not forbidden, like food and sexual relations with one's spouse.  Ascetics believed denial of these pleasures elevated them spiritually.  This belief is common in some Eastern religions.  For instance, the historical Buddha went through years of extreme deprivation before his supposed enlightenment.

Many scholars believe a gnostic heresy had been introduced into the congregation.  Gnosticism was a secret knowledge cult that took Greek Platonic thought (ideas from the philosopher Plato) and blended it with Jewish and Christian ideas about God and spirituality.  It taught the material world, including the body, was evil and to abstain from all bodily pleasure would elevate the immortal soul, which was good.  Other gnostics taught sensuality, saying sexual sin with did not corrupt the soul but only the body, which was not eternal.  The problem in Colossae may have involved both extremes.  Paul explains the danger of getting caught up with ascetisim, that can cause people to go from one extreme to the other.

"If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations— “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” (referring to things that all perish as they are used)—according to human precepts and teachings? These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.

Some in Colossae were also caught up in sensational things like angels and visions.  Christians believe in angels but we are not to seek out or worship celestial beings. Christians can have visions and dreams from God but some get fixated on them and it becomes a source of spiritual pride. There are churches in the Pentecostal, charismatic movement that test the limits of unorthodox beliefs and practices. Extremism, emotionalism, sensationalism and spiritual pride are common.

What Colossians 2 teaches us is that some cultural and religous diversity is normal and good, as long as we don't judge one another or impose our personal convictions or traditions on others. However, there are also beliefs and practices that are unhealthy which we must avoid because it can lead to deception and sin. We should always be examining the beliefs and practices that are being promoted by anyone in the church or outside the church.  We should never blend our beliefs and practices with things that are not Biblical.  An example might be practicing yoga, a Hindu practice of yoking oneself or aligning oneself with the universal soul, a worldview at odds with the Christian faith. 

There are new age teachings that have made their way into the church. For instance, there is the popular idea that there are many paths to God, that God does not judge our works, that Jesus is an Ascended Master or Guide to wisdom or that Jesus represents a Divine state of consciousness (Cosmic Christ). The church of Oprah promotes all these ideas while denying Jesus as the one and only sinless Son of God and Savior of mankind.  She has decieved many Christians.  

In summary, Paul is telling the Colossians that for the body of Christ to hold together, it must find its main identity in Christ and remain connected to Him, as the Head.  He is the glue that holds it all together. Don't judge one another in things that may have personal or cultural-religious value but are not necessarily meant for everyone. Allow for people to have personal convictions.  Some things are simply matters of conscience. But, don't get led astray by non-Biblical beliefs, practices and influences, especially those coming from false religious movements. Stand on Christ alone, the Solid Rock.  All other ground is sinking sand.  

Christ is our Sufficiency.