Woman in the Kingdom of God

Lecture 1: Approaching the Biblical Text

E4N School of Ministry Instructor: Kimberly Witkowski, MRE Spring 2020 [email protected] ​ Why start with this subject when our course subject is women and the Kingdom?

Because this is the map to a ______shift.

Remember this: The key to growth is to adapt yourself to the text and not the text to yourself.

The Basics of Study:

1. Start with the ______. Adapt study habits to personal needs and preferences ​ ​ for the most successful study time. ​ ​

2. Know ______! ​ ​

3. Do I study ______in the morning or in the evening? (Or perhaps at lunchtime?) ​ ​

4. Do I gain more when I study for one ______period of uninterrupted time or ​ ​ several shorter periods of time?

5. Do I ______more information visually or orally (books/ebooks vs. ​ ​ audio books and lectures.)

6. Studies show that “doodling” while taking notes helps one retain and recall ​ ​ information. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090226210039.htm https://www.kqed.org/mindshift/39941/making-learning-visible-doodling-helps-memories -stick

7. ______are important for the enjoyment of study. Be in a ​ comfortable place; with snacks, drinks or music that you enjoy.

8. A useful way to aid in the internalization of concepts and information is to teach another what you’ve ______. ​ ​

APPROACHING THE BIBLICAL TEXT 1

Approach the Text as an Act of Worship:

9. On a spiritual level, Study is an act of ______. In ancient times it was ​ ​ ​ considered to be the highest form of worship. The Jewish mindset sees it as an all-encompassing act.

We ______ourselves in the act of study.

“True spiritual learning is an incredibly meaningful experience. It draws one close to God in ​ openness and praise. It builds character and obedience; it strengthens us to stand firm against sin and worldly influence as our minds dwell upon his ways with clarity. Furthermore, the one who is deeply rooted in the Word, the Scriptures, and the Son who is the Word become flesh, will be a blessing to all those surrounding him; he will be a wellspring of love, peace, and truth. He will be strengthened to spread the kingdom and its justice in the world, preparing the way for what is to come” (Boaz Michael 2017). https://ffoz.org/discover/the-bram-center/learning-is-worship.html

10. In Hebrews 4:12 the ______tells us “For the Word of God is living and ​ ​ powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing of the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” Judaism regards the scripture as a ______, and not ​ ​ just words on a page, or a set of laws.

“Law must express the structure and the preconception of a ______community and ​ cannot, nay, must not, be permanent or stagnant. It must preserve a flexibility which renders it adaptable to new conditions and thus enables it to assure the vitality of a continually developing society” (Talmon 1979).

11. With that in mind, we approach the text as living organism, and ______with ​ ​ it.

“… it is the interactive, dynamic spirit of Torah and commentary, of exchange and response that accounts for the richness of the classic texts.” (Holtz 1984).

Approach the Text With Curiosity and Wonder: ​ 12.Treat study like a ______; you are searching for treasure that ​ ​ reveals the character and nature of the Creator of the Universe.

13.Approach the text as a ______might approach an investigation. Scrutinize ​ ​ what is written. And what is missing.

APPROACHING THE BIBLICAL TEXT 2

“How is one to know when words are purposefully omitted, left out by chance, or not left out at all? My perspective does not allow for the possibility of chance or accident in this brilliant author’s work; what wordsmith uses, or fails to use, a word by mistake?... Is meaning added by positing something missing? Does the rest of the story support that interpretation?...” - Pamela Tamarkin Reis “Reading the Lines"

14. Tamarkin also suggests that one be attentive to “gaps, redundancies, and seemingly ______.” ​ ​

15. Ask “______.” Every word in the text matters. We are given the words of life ​ ​ in the fewest words possible! So examine the words, actions, even the smallest details given. They are telling you a story.

Why is this information in the Scripture? Why is a detail given, or why might it be omitted? The missing details can often tell us as much as those that are present in the text.

16.Pay attention to the ______. ​ ​

17. Approach the text having laid aside preconceived ______and ​ ​ confirmation bias. Confirmation bias is defined as the tendency to search for or interpret information in a way that confirms one's preconceptions. This leads to ______. ​

Note of warning: Often times the most difficult Bible stories or portions of text to ______are the ones we think we already ______. ​ ​ ​

18. Approach the text as a partnership with ______to gain knowledge ​ ​ and wisdom, and a deeper love for God. When a portion of text evades your understanding, or doesn’t “sit well,” then ask for ______.

Approach the Text With Delight: ​ ​ More to be desired are they [God’s commandments] than gold, Yea, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. Psalm 19:9,10

“How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!” Psalm 119:103

In Judaism the study of Torah is associated with ______. It was a ​ ​ common practice in ancient times to smear honey on a wax board and have the student lick the honey after he/she had finished a lesson in the Torah.

19.“Study of Torah is compared to ______and ______: just as these are ​ ​ ​ ​ sweet throughout, so are the words of the Torah. - Midrash Rabbah APPROACHING THE BIBLICAL TEXT 3

20.As we ______through study, we ______God. According to the Westminster Catechesm, this is a part of our purpose.

Westminster Shorter Catechesm:

21.Question 1: What is the chief end of man?

Answer: Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to Him forever. ​ ​ (1 Corinthians 10:31, KJV) (Psalms 73:25-26, KJV).

22.Question 2: What rule hath God given to direct us how we may ______and enjoy him?

Answer : The Word of God, which is ______in the Scriptures of the Old and ​ ​ New Testament, is the only rule to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy him.

23. And are built upon the ______of the apostles and prophets, Jesus ​ ​ Christ himself being the chief corner [stone]; (Ephesians 2:20, KJV).

24. All scripture [is] given by inspiration of God, and [is] profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: (2Timothy 3:16, KJV).

25. That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship [is] with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. (1John 1:3, KJV).

26. Question 3: What do the Scriptures principally teach? ​

Answer: The Scriptures principally teach what man is to concerning ​ ​ God, and what ______God requires of man. (2Timothy 1:13, KJV). ​ ​ ​ ​

http://www.freepres.org/wcfshort.htm

27. Approach the text with ______. God will reveal Himself; He wants to be found.

“It is the glory of God to conceal a matter and the glory of kings to search it out.” Proverbs 25:2

28. Finding the ______treasure God has stored up for us in His word causes wonder, and allows us to join the chorus of Heaven and cry “Holy, holy, holy!”

Approach the Text With Hebraic Thinking: APPROACHING THE BIBLICAL TEXT 4

29.“The Bible…is a ______book. It cannot be read and understood and expounded unless we are prepared to become Jews with the Jews.” - Karl Barth

30.______thought has developed on the basis of the ______​ mindset. We need to adopt an Hebraic mindset to identify with and best interpret the Biblical text. The Jewish people were entrusted with the Words of God to be transmitted to all of mankind.

“Then what advantage has the Jew? Or what is the value of circumcision? Much in every way. To begin with, the Jews were entrusted with the oracles of God.” - Romans 3:1,2 ​ “This is the one who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and with our fathers. He received living oracles to give to us.” - Acts 7:38

A comparison of Hebrew thought vs. Greek thought: ​

31. Hebrew thought is ______; while Greek thought is ______. Greek ​ ​ ​ thought has been influenced by Stoicism and much emphasis is placed on the idea of being and essence. Hebrew thought is passionate and vigorous. As a ​ ​ point of reference, in the Hebrew language the verb often precedes the noun in a sentence. Marvin Wilson, in Our Father Abraham(1989), points out that the ​ ​ reader is confronted with action even before the subject is designated. Conversely, Thorleif Boman notes that only being which stands in inner relations ​ ​ ​ with something active and moving is reality to a Hebrew; only ______​ (motion) has reality (Boman 1960).

32. Hebrew logic utilizes ______logic. Greek logic involves ______logic. In Greek ​ thought one moves from premises to conclusion via a closely knit, rational and logical path. Block logic concepts exist in self-contained units (or blocks of thought), that essentially stand alone, but yet are often connected. “These blocks did not necessarily fit together in any obviously rational or harmonious pattern…” (M. Wilson).

Greek thought insists on an ______to theology; while Hebrew thinking accepts theological paradox.

33. Hebrew thought is ______; Greek thought is ______. Much of Greek thought is focused on abstract concepts, or ideas that are experienced through the mind. This is observed in the various structures and systems of thought. Hebrew thought is focused on concrete concepts, which can be experienced through the senses.

APPROACHING THE BIBLICAL TEXT 5

34. Hebrew thought is based upon the knowledge that all things are interdependent and make up the whole; ______logic sees things as independent and separate.

35. Hebrew faith is that of ______; Greek faith is that of ______.

36. The Hebrew approach to the paradox of God is to adopt ______and ______; the Greek approach is to ______for better understanding (Systematic Theology). The Hebrew mindset accepts mysteries and opposing characteristics of God. Rather than develop systems to explain, these are reasons for awe and wonder. The Hebrew mindset does not relegate God to a system or put Him in a box.

“He is good; but He isn’t tame.” C.S. Lewis “The Lion the Witch and the ​ Wardrobe” ​

37. The Greeks sought to know and understand in order to grasp ______. Greek logic is orderly, moving from precept to precept with great systems of thought. Greeks contemplated abstract ideas to make sense of what they saw.

38.The Hebrews approached life ______. There were no vast systems of thought. Everyday life was theology. The Hebrew writers used the seemingly ______to demonstrate God’s action in human history.

39.“The Greeks learned in order to ______. The Hebrews learned in order to revere. The modern man learns in order to use.” - Abraham Joshua Heschel

Jewish Hermeneutics – Four Basic Principles of Biblical Interpretation

APPROACHING THE BIBLICAL TEXT 6

www.hebrew4christians.com/Articles/Seventy_Faces/seventy_faces.html

40.PARDES is an acronym used for Jewish method of biblical ______. Pardes is also the Hebrew word for orchard or ______. It consists of four categories.

a) Peshat - refers to the simple or ______meaning of the text.

b) Remez - Goes beyond the literal meaning. Considers allegorical or symbolic meanings.

c) Derash - involves an interpretation that may not be explicitly in the text; as in the Midrash. This method is concerned with the moral message of the text.

d) Sod/Secret refers to the esoteric or ______meaning. This is the method used in Kabbalistic teachings by Rabbinic scholars/mystics.

APPROACHING THE BIBLICAL TEXT 7

Approach the Text Utilizing Critical Thinking: ​ Heiser’s Laws for Bible Study https://drmsh.com/heisers-laws-for-bible-study/

I. There is no substitute for close attention to the biblical text. ​ ​

II. You should be observing the biblical text in the original languages. If you cannot, ​ ​ never trust one translation in a passage. Use several and then learn skills for understanding why they disagree.1 ​ ​ ​

III. Patterns in the text are more important than word studies. ​

IV. The New Testament’s use of the Old Testament is the key to understanding how ​ ​ prophecy works.2 ​

V. The Bible must be interpreted in context, and that context isn’t your own or that of ​ ​ your theological tradition; it is the context that produced it (ancient Near East / Mediterranean).

Put another way, if you’re letting your theological tradition filter the Bible to you, ​ ​ you aren’t doing Bible study or exegesis.

VI. The Bible is a divine human book; treat it as such. ​ ​

Put another way, God chose people to write the biblical text, and people write using ​ ​ grammar, in styles understood by their peers, and with deliberate intent — and so the Bible did not just drop from heaven. Study it as though some person actually wrote it, not like the result of a paranormal event.

VII. If it’s weird, it’s important (i.e., it’s there for a reason; it is not random). ​ ​

VIII. Don’t hire someone to stock the grocery shelves who can’t read the labels. Or: don’t put your meds in the daily pill tray unless you can read the instructions. ​ ​

Put another way: Systematic theology isn’t helpful (and can be misleading) if its parts are not derived from exegesis of the original text. Biblical theology is done from ​ ​ the ground up, not the top down (and so, see # 2 in this list).

IX. If, after you’ve done the grunt work of context-driven exegesis, what the biblical text says disturbs you, let it. ​ ​

X. Build a network of exegetical insights you can keep drawing upon; the connections are the result of a supernatural Mind guiding the very human writers. ​ ​

APPROACHING THE BIBLICAL TEXT 8

The only way to think that Mind’s thoughts are to find the network, one node at a time. —————– 1. These skills would be things like learning grammatical terms and concepts, along with translation philosophy and the basics of textual criticism. 2. Here’s where Greek and Hebrew matter, but there are tools (like Carson and Beale’s OT in the NT commentary) that help. If you aren’t paying attention to this – and how the NT sees OT prophecy fulfilled in various ways – not just “literally” – you should politely excuse yourself from teaching anything about Bible prophecy and start studying this.

APPROACHING THE BIBLICAL TEXT 9

Terminology: ​ Catechism – Summary of doctrine or statement of beliefs. Generally utilized for ​ teaching. Usually consists of questions and answers that may be memorized.

Exegesis – Exposition or explanation; Examination in order to properly interpret. ​ Hermeneutics – The science of interpretation. Involves the methods or principles by ​ which a text is interpreted. (Exegesis is a part of the process of hermeneutics)

Midrash – Body of Jewish oral traditions/stories encompassing the Biblical text. Its ​ purpose is to enhance the meaning, and nuanced meanings of the text.

Mishnah – Jewish oral law. It is taught that Moses received the written law that was ​ transmitted to all of Israel.

But he also received an oral law on Sinai. It was transmitted to Joshua who transmitted it to the elders, who transmitted it to the Prophets. The Prophets transmitted it to the Great Assembly (headed by Ezra).

Talmud - the body of Jewish civil and ceremonial law and legend comprising the ​ ​ Mishnah and the Gemara. There are two versions of the Talmud: the Babylonian Talmud (which dates from the 5th century ad but includes earlier material) and the earlier Palestinian or Jerusalem Talmud. – Oxford Dictionary

Tanakh: Old Testament or Hebrew Bible; acronym for three divisions. ​ ● Torah (Instruction ● Nevi’im (Prophets) ● Ketuvi’im (Writings)

a word used in ,(ירה) derived from yareh ,(תורה) Torah - The Hebrew word, torah ​ ​ archery that means “to shoot an arrow in order to hit a mark.” Torah literally refers to five books of Moses (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy), but its reference often includes the entirety of the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament), and can also include the Mishnah and Talmud.

APPROACHING THE BIBLICAL TEXT 10