BEGINNING
BIBLE
WORKSHOP
Your word is a lamp
for my feet,
a light for my path.
Psalms 119:105
PART III
Reading, Interpreting, Understanding the Bible
Hermeneutics: Understanding the Bible
In all human communication, the receiver must create meaning from the
symbols (the message) used by the communicator.
Meaning
1
SENDER
affected by gender,
language, context,
age, experience,
culture, etc.
RECEIVER
MESSAGE
spoken/written
words to reflect
meaning
meaning
2
affected by gender,
language, context,
age, experience,
culture, etc.
hears/reads
words reflecting
meaning
All Christians must discover the meaning intended by the author(s) of the
books of the Bible to understand what God is revealing.
The process of discovering meaning from the Bible is called hermeneutics.
All Christians recognize that how we approach the Bible determines often
what we take from it. How do we approach the Bible?
Hermeneutics (from the Greek word hermeneia which means speech or
interpretation) is used to cover a broad scope in the process of
understanding. It refers to
interpretation by speech itself, as language interprets
the mind;
the process of translation from an unintelligible language
to an intelligible one (cf. 1 Corinthians 12:10);
interpretation by commentary and explanation.
One begins understanding the Bible by first reading the Bible. Catholic
Christians have often been accused of not being allowed to read the Bible
on their own. This could not be further from the truth. When, in history,
Catholics were forbidden to read the Bible it was a particular translation
which usually was unauthorized and highly illiterate in its fidelity to original
sources. In other words, unauthorized versions were often just simply bad
translations.
ISSUES IN HERMENEUTICS
Contradictions in the Bible
Define terms:
A contradiction is a statement or proposition that contradicts
or denies another or itself and is logically incongruous.
1. the act of contradicting; gainsaying or opposition.
2. assertion of the contrary or opposite; denial.
3. a statement or proposition that contradicts or denies
another or itself and is logically incongruous.
4. direct opposition between things compared; inconsistency.
5. a contradictory act, fact, etc.
Biblical authorship:
The Bible has many different human authors.
Some books of the Bible do not indicate in any way who wrote them.
Other books bear the names of persons to whom authorship is
ascribed.
In some cases it is perfectly clear that the indicated author is in
fact the person who actually wrote the book with his own
hands.
In other cases it is as clear that the author of the book had another
person do the actual writing of his work in the manner of a secretary.
In still other cases it is the Church, and not seldom the opinion of biblical
scholars, that the indicated author of a given book of the Bible is
not the person (or persons) who wrote it, but the person who
originally inspired its writing, whose name is then attached to it as
its author.
In a number of instances the Church is not clear about the authorship
of certain books of the Bible.
Because the entire Bible is inspired by God Who is its one original author,
the Church considers the identity of the human authors as incidental to
the correct interpretation and proper significance of the books of the Bible
for the believing community.
In no case would the Church admit that the identity of the author determines
the authenticity or validity of a book which is viewed as part of the Bible,
and under no circumstances would it be admitted that the value or the
proper understanding and use of any book of the Bible in the Church
depends on the human writer alone.
Handling Apparent Contradictions
There is a list of 143 purported Bible contradictions:
http://www.bringyou.to/apologetics/bible.htm
Out of Context Error:
Context 1 - The whole book, the letter, the Gospel
Context 2 - The Bible as a whole
The One Genre Error
Taking everything literally; words mean
Wrong genre; e.g., literal for poetry, etc.
The Function of Interpretation
The context of belief of one’s own, e.g., denominational
teachings
Intricacies of Biblical Translation
Ancient languages to modern languages;
Dead language to a living language
Words Meaning vs People Meaning
Literalist vs literal sense
Twenty-first Century Mentality/Expectation of Authorship/Writing
God Revealing
Not all at once, e.g., resurrection of the dead, monogamous
marriage, divorce, etc.
Before the Ten Commandments vs. after the Ten Commandments
Old Testament vs. New Testament
not to destroy but to fulfill
Some Examples of Apparent Contradictions in the Bible
Freedom of divorce permitted
Deuteronomy 24:1
When a man, after marrying a woman and having relations with
her, is later displeased with her because he finds in her something
indecent, and therefore he writes out a bill of divorce and hands
it to her, thus dismissing her from his house:
Deuteronomy 21: 10,11
When you go out to war against your enemies and the LORD,
your God, delivers them into your hand, so that you take captives,
if you see a comely woman among the captives and become so
enamored of her that you wish to have her as wife, you may take
her home to your house.
Divorce restricted
Yes, Jesus issues a new commandment and even explains the permission
1500 years earlier. He now issues a higher calling.
Matthew 5:32
But I say to you, whoever divorces his wife (unless the marriage
is unlawful) causes her to commit adultery, and whoever marries
a divorced woman commits adultery.
God's attributes are revealed in his works
Romans 1:20
Ever since the creation of the world, his invisible attributes of
eternal power and divinity have been able to be understood and
perceived in what he has made.
God's attributes cannot be discovered
Job 11:7
Can you penetrate the designs of God? Dare you vie with the
perfection of the Almighty?
Isaiah 40:28
Do you not know or have you not heard? The LORD is the eternal
God, creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint nor grow
weary, and his knowledge is beyond scrutiny
Romans 1:20 simply notes that Creation points to the Creator - a divine
being of great power. Job 11:7 points out that we can never fully grasp
the divine, it does NOT say that God cannot be inferred from nature.
Is 40:28 notes that we can never hope to fully scrutinize the understanding
of God. None of this is contradictory.
REVELATION
GOD
ORAL TRADITION
WRITTEN TRADITION
BELIEVERS
MAGISTERIUM
Teaching Authority
MT 16/18
Florence 1414; Trent 1545-1563
It is often said Catholics cannot interpret the Bible on their own.
The Papal Encyclical, Divino Afflante Spiritus, of Pope Pius XII in 1943
attempted to counteract this error by stating that there are but few texts
whose understanding has been determined by the teaching authority of the
Church; and Catholics do indeed have freedom to interpret the Scriptures.
The Catholic Church has been solicitous over the way in which the Bible is
interpreted. Experience teaches us that it is easy to find even contradictory
meanings from the same Scripture with an unbridled approach to reading
and interpreting the Bible.
The Catholic Church teaches that the first principle of hermeneutics is
the literal meaning of the text.
Spiritus Paraclitus (Benedict XV, September 15,
1920)
“As Jerome insisted, all biblical interpretation rests
upon the literal sense ... “
Divino Afflante Spiritus (Pius XII, September 30,
1943)
“... discern and define that sense of the biblical words
which is called literal ... so that the mind of the author
may be made clear.... the exegete must be principally
concerned with the literal sense of the Scriptures.”
100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 1100 1200 1300 1400 1500 1600 1700 1800 1900 2000
SENSES USED FOR INTERPRETING SCRIPTURE
Literal Sense
CCC 116 The literal sense is the meaning conveyed
by the words of Scripture and discovered by exegesis,
following the rules of sound interpretation: "All other
senses of Sacred Scripture are based on the literal.”
St. Thomas 1, q1, a10. Therefore that first signification
whereby words signify things belongs to the first sense,
the historical or literal.
The first sense then for understanding the Bible is the literal sense. The
literal sense of Scripture is the meaning which the human author
directly intended and the author's words convey.
Criteria to understand the literal sense:
The literary form/genre that the author used is the first aid in
determining what the author meant. If the author wrote poetry instead of
history, then the literary form of poetry assists in determining the meaning
intended by the author. Some other literary forms of the Bible include
history, law, songs, love stories, stories (parables), etc.
The literary history of the biblical book or of the section of the Bible
that contains the book also aids in determining the meaning intended
by the author.
Literary history of a book includes what is known about the author,
his background, his historical period of Israel's history, etc.
In brief:
who is the author,
what is his background,
what was the date of writing,
what was the historical period of Israel’s history,
what was the cultural and social environment of the period,
what language was it written and its limitations,
what was the author’s intent,
who was the audience to whom the author wrote, etc.
An example of the Church using the literal sense of a scripture passage
in order to understand what meaning we should get from it is the 6th
chapter of the Gospel according to John.
Literary Form/Genre of John 6:25-69:
Most scripture scholars today affirm that John's gospel, written at the end
of the first century, is historical narrative in nature. Hence we believe
that John strove to preserve both the words and actions of Jesus. Unlike
the Synoptics, John wrote through the eyes of the faith of the late
Apostolic Church in light of the way that faith translated into practice and
worship.
Where John is clearly biographical, the literal meaning is emphasized by
linguistic psychology--multiple repetition of the message in different
words. Where literalness is intended, intended meaning is reinforced by
recording the reaction to literal meaning by the hearers without the
speaker's correction.
Literary History of John 6:25-69:
The evangelist John was an eyewitness to the life and teachings of
Jesus. He was an apostle, one of the Twelve. He was also the last of the
Apostles to write and to die. He refers to himself as the "disciple whom
Jesus loved.“
Passage background:
Following the details of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes-biographical, Jesus walking on the sea--biographical, Jesus reacts to the
crowds' need for signs. Jesus takes them from manna, bread from
heaven, to "true bread from heaven (v. 32)" ... "I am the bread (v. 35)." "I
am the bread that came down from heaven (v. 41)."
This is God saying this: "I am the bread that came down from heaven." If
He was not really the bread that came down from heaven, His omnipotent
and creative Word would then have made it so.
Five times in different verbal expressions, Jesus confirmed the reality of
the meaning he intended. What more could Jesus say?
John 6:51
I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats
this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my
flesh for the life of the world.
John 6:53
Jesus said to them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat
the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have
life within you.“
John 6:54
Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and
I will raise him on the last day.
John 6:55
For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink.
John 6:56
Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I
in him.
The best way a person can make a clear literal point is repetition of the
same message in different ways. Jesus did this. Those around him clearly
understood what he was saying--cannibalism and the drinking of blood-both forbidden by Mosaic Law.
John 6:60,66
Then many of his disciples who were listening said, "This
saying is hard; who can accept it?" ... As a result of this, many
(of) his disciples returned to their former way of life and no
longer accompanied him.
Had these disciples mistaken the meaning of Jesus' words, Jesus,
knowing their thoughts and their error, would surely have known and
corrected them. He didn't. They had clearly understood his meaning-Jesus' flesh was to be really eaten; his blood to be really drunk.
The Jerusalem Catecheses (Cat. 22, Mystagogica, 4,1) written by St.
Cyril of Jerusalem (Bishop of Jerusalem and Doctor of the Church,
born about 315; died c. 18 March, 386)
“Once, when speaking to the Jews, Christ said: ‘Unless you eat my flesh
and drink my blood you shall have no life in you.’ This horrified them and
they left him. Not understanding his words in a spiritual way, they thought
the Savior wished them to practice cannibalism.”
What if you mistook the literary form or genre in trying to understand
and interpret a passage of scripture?
Obviously, you have violated the first criterion on understanding
scripture . . . Secondly, you will know it.
In your Bibles find the Song of Songs. It is a Wisdom book, placed
between the book of Ecclesiastes and the book of Wisdom. Look at
chapters 4: 1-5, 11 and 7: 3, 5b
It is a love song;
It falls in the category of Hebrew poetry;
It is very passionate, erotic even;
It’s authorship is ascribed to King Solomon;
The dates of King Solomon are c. 970 to 931
BC or for 39 years; he writes of
his love for Israel;
It might be a Hallmark greeting card today;
The Song of Solomon Illustrated
Chapters 4 and 7
How beautiful you are, my darling. How beautiful
you are!
Your eyes are like doves behind your veil;
Your hair is like a flock of goats;
Your teeth are like a flock of newly shorn ewes;
Your lips are like scarlet thread;
Your temples are like a slice of pomegranate;
Your neck is like the Tower of David…built with
rows of stones on which are hung a thousand
shields. . .
Your two breasts are like two fawns, twins of a
gazelle which feeds among the lilies;
Your lips, my bride, drip honey and mild under
your tongue;
And the fragrance of your garments is like the
fragrance of Lebanon . . .
Your navel is a round goblet …
Your belly is like a heap of wheat …
Your nose is like the Tower of Lebanon
faces toward Damascus . . .
Fuller Sense
But the Bible has God, a divine author, besides the human author. The
Church teaches that there exists a more-than-literal meaning for
understanding the Bible: a fuller sense. The fuller sense is the deeper
meaning intended by God as divine author. The fuller sense of Scripture,
since it is the meaning intended by God, may not have
been clearly known and intended by the human author.
Criteria to establish the fuller sense:
Because the Catholic Church holds that there are two revealing authorities
of Divine Revelation, the Bible and the Holy Spirit, the fuller sense of the
Bible can be found in the authoritative interpretation of those revealing
authorities. Some of these authorities are the New Testament itself,
the Fathers of the Church, the Church in Council (cf. Acts 15 model),
the "faithful people" faithful to what was handed down to them, etc.
The Spirit of Truth is entrusted to faithful people as an authority in
the Church.
The fuller sense of any Scripture text has to be in agreement with the literal
sense of the words. This fuller sense must be a consequential development
of what the human author of the text intended to say.
An example of the fuller sense in the interpretation of
Scripture is found by looking at the New Testament. In the
Gospel according to Matthew, Chapter 1, verse 23, Matthew
says that the conception of Jesus by Mary was a virginal
conception and took place so that the words of the prophet
Isaiah (7:14) might be fulfilled.
Isaiah gives no evidence that the prophet had Jesus'
conception in the womb of Mary in mind. Isaiah does
not speak of a virgin in the strict sense--merely an
unmarried woman. Isaiah is not clear that he is even
speaking to a distant future conception. The whole
meaning of Isaiah's chapter appears to imply that the
birth he prophesies will take place about 735 B.C.
during the reign of King Ahaz the father of the future
King Hezekiah.
The words of Isaiah may have literally meant the conception of the future
King Hezekiah. At the time of Isaiah's words in chapter 7, the mother of the
future King Hezekiah would have been unmarried.
Matthew, on the other hand, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit,
creates an interpretation of Isaiah which is definitely not literal. Matthew
clearly interprets Isaiah in a fuller sense: the unmarried woman is the
virgin Mary, and God-with-us is Jesus.
Typical Sense
Following the lead of Paul himself (Romans 5:14) there is another way for
creating meaning in the Bible: the typical sense. The typical sense of
Bible texts is the deeper meaning that some elements (persons, places,
things and events) of the Bible have because God, the divine author of
the Bible, intended that these elements foreshadow/shadow further
things.
Criteria to understanding the typical sense:
The typical sense of the Bible is created by continuing revelation or
growth in the understanding the Word of God. Extra-biblical growth in
understanding the Word of God is evidenced in the growth and
development of the understanding of the Trinity, the Incarnation, etc.
Types--the typical sense--are discovered in the New Testament, or in the
agreement among "faithful people“ faithful to what was handed down to
them--the Fathers of the Church, in worship-- the liturgy--and its
development through the ages, in the documents of the Church, etc.
The Catholic Church believes that the Holy Spirit is a revealing authority
in the Church and reveals Himself to "faithful people“ in all ages.
The other criterion for discovering the typical meaning of Scripture is
understanding that any type found in the text of the Bible has to be
related to the anti-type (e.g., Christ to Adam). This confirms that God
planned the relationship of the type to the anti-type.
An example of the typical meaning in the Bible is in Paul's writings. Paul
appears to delight in establishing types between the New Testament and
the Old Testament. In 1 Corinthians 10:6 Paul typifies those events which
occurred to the Israelites in the desert of Sinai throughout the Exodus to
those things that happen to Christians.
Another example of a type--the typical meaning in the Bible--is the bronze
serpent raised by Moses in the desert. The evangelist John presents raising
the bronze serpent as a type of Christ crucified (3:14).
Interpreting Genesis
Literary Form/Genre of Genesis
Pope Pius XII in his encyclical letter Humani Generis addressed the first
11 chapters of Genesis:
“The . . . simple and metaphorical language adapted to the mentality of
a people, but little cultured, both state the principal truths which are
fundamental for our salvation, and also give a popular description
of the origin of the human race and the chosen people.
If, however, the ancient sacred writers have taken anything from popular
narrations (and this may be conceded), it must never be forgotten that
they did so with the help of divine inspiration, through which they were
rendered immune from any error in selecting and evaluating those
documents."
Genesis (especially chs. 1 - 11) utilizes a special literary form.
The term popular narrations suggests that we are dealing with
a tradition among the Hebraic people or with a primitive history.
A preferred a term is primitive history. These chapters record history
as the nature of historical recording was understood by early Hebraic
authors.
Actually, it contains pre-history, pre-history as it was understood
by early Hebraic authors. Pope Pius’ use of the expression "simple and
metaphorical language adapted to the mentality of a people but little
cultured" tells us that we should not demand from this primitive pre-history
the results that can only be achieved through the employment of modern
scientific methods and should not fault our writer for failing to provide us
with a text worthy of publication in contemporary journals of archaeology
and paleontology.
In short, we must not bring foreign assumptions to the text, and the most
foreign assumption we could bring would be that in these chapters
God was writing a laboratory or scientific report.
God is not telling us HOW He created, but revealing the fact THAT
He created.
What was God doing? He was stating the "principal truths fundamental
for our salvation". In short, although there is simple and metaphorical
language employed in these chapters, these chapters still contain
truths.
Consequently, it is absolutely contrary to the Catholic faith to hold
that these chapters propose nothing but myth, where the term myth is
taken to be synonymous with "false", "imaginary tale", or any other
expression which implies that these Hebraic narrations have no foundation
in reality.
These chapters contain a popular narration, a primitive pre-history,
stories about the origin of man and the world, but the stories are adequate
to those historical facts fundamental to our salvation.
Literary History of Genesis
Who is the author?
Both the Old and New Testaments call Moses the author of the Pentateuch
(Joshua 8:31; 1 Kings 2:3; Daniel 9:11; Mark 12:26; Luke 20:28; John 5:
46-47; 7:19; Acts 3:22; Romans 10:5). Even the Pentateuch itself declares
Moses to be its author (Exodus 17:14; 24:4; 34:27; Numbers 33:1-2;
Deuteronomy 31:9).
Moses c. 1355 - 1235 BC
Ramses II 1303-1237 BC
On the Mosaic Authorship of the Pentateuch
June 27, 1906 (ASS 39 [1906-07] 377f; EB 174ff; Dz 1997ff)
Pontifical Biblical Commission
Denied that these books are not of Mosaic authorship but were put together
from sources mostly of post-Mosaic date;
Denied that each and every word was written by Moses' own hand or
was by him dictated to secretaries;
Affirmed that Moses conceived the work himself under the guidance
of divine inspiration and then entrusted the writing of it to one or
more persons, with the understanding that they reproduced his thoughts
with fidelity and neither wrote nor omitted anything contrary to his will,
and
that finally the work composed after this fashion was approved by Moses,
its principal and inspired author, and was published under his name.
The Creation of Adam and Eve
The story of Adam and Eve and the fall (Genesis 2–3) may not be dismissed
as fiction.
The question: whether the human race descended from an original pair
of two human beings (a teaching known as monogenism) or a pool of early
human couples (a teaching known as polygenism).
Pope Pius XII, Humani Generis 37
"For the faithful cannot embrace that opinion which maintains
either that after Adam there existed on this earth true men who did not
take their origin through natural generation from him as from the first
parents of all, or that Adam represents a certain number of first parents.”
The Catholic Catechism
"The account of the fall in Genesis 3 uses figurative language, but affirms
a primeval event, a deed that took place at the beginning of the history
of man. Revelation gives us the certainty of faith that the whole of human
history is marked by the original fault freely committed by our first parents"
(CCC 390).
Ludwig Ott, Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma (TAN Books, 1952, 1974)
affirms these points (all are infallible dogmas of Catholic faith).
God was moved by His Goodness to create the world.
The world was created for the Glorification of God. (De Fide)
The Three Divine Persons are one single, common Principle of the Creation.
God created the world free from exterior compulsion and inner necessity.
God has created a good world.
The world had a beginning in time.
God alone created the world.
God keeps all created things in existence.
God, through His Providence, protects and guides all that He has created.
The first man was created by God.
Man consists of two essential parts -- a material body and a spiritual soul.
Every human being possesses an individual soul.
Our first parents, before the Fall, were endowed with sanctifying grace.
The divine gift of bodily immortality of our first parents.
Our first parents in paradise sinned grievously through transgression of the Divine
probationary commandment.
Through the original sin our first parents lost sanctifying grace and provoked the
anger and the indignation of God.
Our first parents became subject to death and to the dominion of the Devil.
Interpreting Revelation
Literary Form/Genre of the Book of Revelation
Threefold:
Epistolary
Apocryphal
Prophetic
Epistolary genre:
is a letter writing form of the ancient world.
Prescribed form
Name of the writer
Name of the recipient
Greeting
Prayer wish or thanksgiving
Body of the epistle
Final greeting and farewell
For example: Letters to the Seven Churches (1:4-3:22)
Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira,
Sargis, Philadelphia, Laodicea
Apocryphal Genre
A genre of revelatory literature with a narrative framework, in which a
revelation is mediated by an otherworldly being to a human recipient,
disclosing a transcendent reality which is both temporal, insofar as it
envisages eschatological salvation, and spatial insofar as it involves another,
supernatural world.
It is noted for its semi-prose form, visions, symbolism and figurative
language. It is also a literature commonly found during times of persecution.
It is a genre found in other Old Testament works, notably, Joel, Isaiah,
Ezekiel, Daniel, and Zechariah.
The Church teaches that apocryphal writing is not to be interpreted literally.
Intermediary
GOD
ANGEL
“messenger”
DIRECT JUDGMENT/
APOCALYPTIST
VISION
“one who reveals”
LUXURIANT
SYMBOLS
ALWAYS CAPTIVITY/OPPRESSION
NUMBERS
PRESENT AS EMBODIMENT OF EVIL
PRESENT
INTERVENTION
ENDTIME
•JESUS WILL COME
•GOOD WILL BE REWARDED
•EVIL WILL BE PUNISHED
•GOD IS VICTORIOUS
FUTURE
RESTORATION
Prophetic Genre
This is the most misunderstood part of Scripture. Prophecy literally
means "speaking forth", that is, declaring God's word; a prophet is simply
a spokesperson for God. It is not at all necessarily predicting the future;
It is a future-telling.
Prophetic declaration consists of proclaiming God's judgment,
encouragement, love, call to repentance, etc., whatever the listeners
needed to hear from God. And when they did prophesy about the future,
it was not to arouse or satisfy people's curiosity, but was given with the
purpose of calling them to repentance or giving encouragement in times
of persecution.
The Church teaches that we will know
prophjetic genre in its fulfillment.
GOD
Speaks
PROPHET
“one who speaks for another”
Fulfills
Speaks/Writes
Either PROSPEROUS CONDEMNS
Or
DESTITUTE
GIVES HOPE
PRESENT
As SPIRITUALLY/MORALLY BARREN
For RETURN and RESTORATION
FUTURE
NUMBERS / NUMEROLOGY
The number SEVEN is used 54 times in the Book of Revelation, and
signifies fullness and perfection;
The number TWELVE is used 23 times and signifies the twelve tribes of
Israel; indicates that the people of God has reached its
eschatological perfection;
The number FOUR appears 16 times and indicates the universality of the
visible world;
The number THREE is used 11 times,
TEN is used 10 times, and a
THOUSAND is used 6 times in Chapter 20 alone and
often in multiples.
The very nature of symbolic numbers defies a literalist interpretation.
There are three intriguing cases of the use of symbolic numbers in
Revelation.
(I) The duration of the persecution is given either as 1260 days;
Revelation 11:3
I will commission my two witnesses to prophesy for those twelve
hundred and sixty days, dressed in sackcloth.
Revelation 12:6
The woman herself fled into the desert where a special place had
been prepared for her by God; there she was taken care of for
twelve hundred and sixty days.
... or 42 months;
Revelation 11:2
Exclude the outer court of the temple, however; do not measure it,
for it has been handed over to the Gentiles, who will crush the
holy city for forty-two months.
Revelation 13:5
The beast was given a mouth for uttering proud boasts and
blasphemies, but the authority it received was to last only fortytwo months.
... or three years and a half.
Revelation 12:14
But the woman was given the wings of a gigantic eagle so that
she could fly off to her place in the desert, where, far from the
serpent, she could be taken care of for a year and for two and a
half years more.
(II) 144,000 are said to follow the Lamb wherever he goes.
Revelation 7:4-8
I heard the number of those who were so marked - one hundred
and forty-four thousand from every tribe of Israel; twelve
thousand from the tribe of Judah, twelve thousand from the tribe
of Reuben, ... tribe of Benjamin.
Revelation 14:1-5
Then the Lamb appeared in my vision. He was standing on
Mount Zion, and with him were the hundred and forty-four
thousand who had his name written on their foreheads. ...
(III) The Beast is referred to by the number 666. (Some texts have 616
as the number of the Beast.)
Revelation 13:18
The man's number is six hundred sixty-six.
Gematria
The number of a person. The "number of a person" was the number
equivalent to the sum of the letters in a person's name.
Neron Caesar was NRWN QSR in Hebrew: N = 50, R = 200, W = 6, Q =
100, S = 60. Hence
N
R W N
50 + 200 + 6 + 50
+
Q
S
R
100 + 60 + 200 = 666
Neron Caesar was NRW QSR in Latin:
N
R W
50 + 200 + 6
+
Q
S
R
100 + 60 + 200 = 616
Greek Letter Number Equivalent
Name
Symbol
Name
Symbol
Name
Symbol
Alpha
Beta
Gamma
αΑ
βΒ
γΓ
1
2
3
Iota
Kappa
Lambda
ιΙ
λΛ
10
20
30
Rho
Sigma
Tau
ρΡ
σΣ
τΤ
100
200
300
κΚ
Delta
δΔ
4
Mu
μΜ
40
Upsilon
υΥ
400
Epsilon
εΕ
5
Nu
νΝ
50
Phi
φΦ
500
Stigma
ς
6
Xi
ξΞ
60
Chi
χΧ
600
Zeta
ζΖ
7
Omicron
οΟ
70
Psi
ψΨ
700*
Eta
ηΗ
8
Pi
πΠ
80
Omega
ωΩ
800*
Theta
θΘ
9
Qoppa
ϟϞ
90
Sampsi
ϡϠ
900*
Value
Value
Value
SYMBOLS
Symbols abound in the Book of Revelation.
A WOMAN represents a people:
Revelation 12:1f
A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun,
with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve
stars. ...
a WOMAN also represents a city.
Revelation 17: 1f
Then one of the seven angels who were holding the seven bowls
came to me and said: "Come, I will show you the judgment in
store for the great harlot who sits by the waters of the deep. ...
CROWNS represent dominion and kingship.
Revelation 2:10
Remain faithful until death and I will give you the crown of life.
Revelation 3:11
I am coming soon. Hold fast to what you have lest someone rob
you of your crown.
The SEA is an evil element, source of insecurity and death.
Revelation 13:1
Then I saw a wild beast come out of the sea with ten horns and
seven heads;
Revelation 21:1
Then I saw new heavens and a new earth. The former heavens
and the former earth had passed away, and the sea was no
longer.
A HORN speaks of power;
Revelation 5:6
... I saw a Lamb that had been slain. He had seven horns and
seven eyes; ...
Revelation 12:3
Then another sign appeared in the sky; it was a huge dragon,
flaming red, with seven heads and ten horns; ...
a HORN represents dynastic power.
Revelation 13:1
The I saw a wild beast come out of the sea with ten horns and
seven heads; on its horns were ten diadems and on its heads
blasphemous names.
EYES represent knowledge.
Revelation 1:14
The hair of his head was as white as snow-white wool and his
eyes blazed like fire.
Revelation 2:18
To the presiding spirit of the church in Thyatira, write this: "The
Son of God, whose eyes blaze like fire ...
WINGS represent mobility.
Revelation 4:8
Each of the four living creatures had six wings and eyes all over,
inside and out.
Revelation 12:14
But the woman was given the wings of a gigantic eagle so that
she could fly off to her place in the desert ...
In TRUMPETS is heard a superhuman, divine voice.
Revelation 1:10
On the Lord's day I was caught up in ecstasy, and I heard behind
me a piercing voice like the sound of a trumpet.
Revelation 8:2f
Then, as I watched, the seven angels who minister in God's
presence were given seven trumpets.
PALMS are a sign of triumph.
Revelation 7:9
(The huge crowd) stood before the throne and the Lamb, dressed
in long white robes and holding palm branches in their hands.
A SHARP SWORD indicates the word of God which judges and
punishes.
Revelation 1:16
In his right hand he held seven stars. A sharp, two-edged sword
came out of his mouth, and his face shone like the sun at its
brightest.
Revelation 2:12,16
To the presiding spirit of the church of Pergamum, write this: "The
One with the sharp, two-edged sword has this to say: I know you
live in the very place where Satan's throne is erected; ...
Therefore, repent! If you do not, I will come to you soon and fight
against them with the sword of my mouth.”
WHITE indicates the joy of victory.
Revelation 2:17
To the victor I will give the hidden manna; I will also give him
a white stone upon which is inscribed a new name ...
Revelation 4:4
Surrounding this throne were twenty-four other thrones upon
which were seated twenty-four elders; they were clothed in white
garments ...
PURPLE signifies luxury and kingship.
Revelation 17:4
The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet and adorned with
gold and pearls and other jewels.
Revelation 18:12
- their cargoes of gold and silver, precious stones and pearls; fine
linen and purple garments, silk and scarlet cloth;
BLACK indicates death.
Revelation 6:5,12
This time I saw a black horse, the rider of which held a pair of
scales in his hand.
In some instances, the meaning is explained.
Revelation 1:20
This is the secret meaning of the seven stars you saw in my right
hand ...
Revelation 13:18
A certain wisdom is needed here: with a little ingenuity anyone
can calculate the number of the beast, for it is a number that
stands for a certain man. The man's number is six hundred
sixty-six.
The Visions (4:1-22:5)
A. The Heavenly Court: The Glory of God and the Lamb, 4:1-5:14
B. The Seven Seals: Judgment on Sin, 6:1-8:1
C. The Seven Trumpets: God Calls to Repentance, 8:2-11:14
D. The Seven Visions of Conflict: The Establishment of God’s Kingdom, 11:15-13:8
1. The woman with child: the birth of Jesus, 12:1-2
2. The great red dragon: the enemy of Peace, 12:3-6
3. The war in heaven: the Cross, 12:7-12
4. The dragon, the woman, and her children: the struggle of God’s people,
12:13-17
5. The seven-headed beast from the sea: the power of Rome, 13:1-4
6. The war against the saints: persecutions, 13:5-10
7. The beast and his mark: corruption of the emperor and the dragon’s agents,
13:11-18
E. The Seven Visions of Mt. Zion: Assurance to God’s people, 14:1-20
F. The Seven Bowls of the Wrath of God: Security Amid Turmoil, 15:1-16:21
G. The Seven Visions of the Fall of Babylon: End of the Evil Empire, 17:1-19:10
H. The Seven Visions of Recompense: Celebration of Victory, 19:11-21:5a
I. The Holy City: Kingdom of God in a New Heaven and New Earth, 21:5b-22:5
Isaiah 20:2-4
The Lord gave a warning through Isaiah, the son of Amoz: Go and
take off the sackcloth from your waist, and remove the sandals
from your feet. This he did, walking naked and barefoot. Then the
Lord said: Just as my servant Isaiah has gone naked and barefoot
for three years as a sign and portent against Egypt and Ethiopia,
so shall the king of Assyria lead away captives from Egypt, and
exiles from Ethiopia, young old, naked and barefoot, with buttocks
uncovered [the shame of Egypt].
Jeremiah 13:1-11
The Lord said to me: Go buy yourself a linen loincloth; wear it on
your loins, but do not put it in water. ... For so close as the
loincloth clings to a man's loins, so had I made the house of Israel
and the whole house of Judah cling to me, says the Lord. ...
Greek Letter Number Equivalent
Name
Symbol
Value
Name
Symbol
Value
Name
Symbol
Value
Alpha
Beta
Gamma
αΑ
βΒ
γΓ
1
2
3
Iota
Kappa
Lambda
ιΙ
κΚ
λΛ
10
20
30
Rho
Sigma
Tau
ρΡ
σΣ
τΤ
100
200
300
Delta
δΔ
4
Mu
μΜ
40
Upsilon
υΥ
400
Epsilon
εΕ
5
Nu
νΝ
50
Phi
φΦ
500
Stigma
ς
6
Xi
ξΞ
60
Chi
χΧ
600
Zeta
ζΖ
7
Omicron
οΟ
70
Psi
ψΨ
700*
Eta
ηΗ
8
Pi
πΠ
80
Omega
ωΩ
800*
Theta
θΘ
9
Qoppa
ϟϞ
90
Sampsi
ϡϠ
900*
Major Church Pronouncements on the Bible
Pentecost (30/33AD)
The beginning of the Church; the Church exists before a determination of
a canon or a definitive list of books of what was later called the Bible. The
New Testament was not even written yet. The Bible is the book of the
Church, the church is not a church of the Bible.
Melito, Bishop of Sardis (c. 170)
Produced the first known Christian attempt at an Old Testament canon.
His list maintains the Septuagint order of books but contains only the Old
Testament protocanonicals minus the Book of Esther.
100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 1100 1200 1300 1400 1500 1600 1700 1800 1900 2000
Council of Laodicea (c. 360)
A local council of the church in union with Rome produced a list of books
of the Bible similar to the Council of Trent's canon. This was one of the
Church's earliest decisions on a canon.
Council of Rome (382)
Local church council under the authority of Pope Damasus, (366-384) gave
a complete list of canonical books of the Old Testament and New
Testament which is identical with the list later approved by the
Council of Trent.
Council of Hippo (393)
Local North African Church council in union with and under the authority of
the Bishop of Rome approved a list of Old Testament and New
Testament canon same as later approved by the Council of Trent.
100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 1100 1200 1300 1400 1500 1600 1700 1800 1900 2000
Council of Carthage (397)
Local North African Church council in union with and under the authority of
the Bishop of Rome approved a list of Old Testament and New
Testament canon (same as later approved by the Council of Trent)
Pope Innocent I, Bishop of Rome (401- 417)
Responded to a request by Exuperius, Bishop of Toulouse,
with a list of canonical books of Scripture; this list was
the same as later approved by the Council of Trent.
Council of Carthage (419)
Local North African Church council in union with and under the authority of
the Bishop of Rome approved a list of Old Testament and New
Testament canon (same as later approved by the Council of Trent)
100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 1100 1200 1300 1400 1500 1600 1700 1800 1900 2000
Council of Florence (1441), an ecumenical council.
Complete list of Old Testament and New Testament canon was drawn
up; this list later adopted by the Fathers of the Council of Trent.
100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 1100 1200 1300 1400 1500 1600 1700 1800 1900 2000
Council of Trent (1545-1563)
Trent was an ecumenical council called to respond to the heresy of the
Reformers. The canon of Old T and New Testament received final
definitions: 45 books in the Old Testament; 27 in the New Testament;
"Henceforth the books of the Old Testament and the New Testament,
protocanonical and deuterocanonical alike, in their entirety and with all
their parts, comprise the canon and are held to be of equal authority."
The ancient Vulgate edition of the Bible was called the authoritative
edition of the Bible.
100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 1100 1200 1300 1400 1500 1600 1700 1800 1900 2000
Vatican I Council (1869-1870)
Reaffirmed the decree of Trent. The Church holds the books of Holy
Scripture as sacred and canonical, not because she subsequently
approved them, nor because they contain revelation without error, but
precisely because "having been written by the inspiration of the Holy
Spirit, they have God as their author and, as such, they have been
handed down to the Church itself."
100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 1100 1200 1300 1400 1500 1600 1700 1800 1900 2000
Providentissimus Deus (1893), Pope Leo XIII, Bishop of Rome, 18781903
Inaugurated a new era in Roman Catholic biblical studies. Presented
a plan for biblical study; Defined inspiration: "By supernatural power
God so moved and impelled the human authors to write - he so assisted
them in writing - that the things he ordered and those only they first rightly
understood, then willed faithfully to write and finally expressed in apt
words and with infallible truth.“
100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 1100 1200 1300 1400 1500 1600 1700 1800 1900 2000
Pascendi Dominica Gregis (1907), Pope Pius X, Bishop of Rome,
1903-1914
Refuted the errors of the Modernists; Scored erroneous teaching on the
origin and nature of the Sacred Books, on inspiration; on the distinction
between the purely human Christ of history and the divine Christ of faith;
on the origin and growth of the Scriptures.
100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 1100 1200 1300 1400 1500 1600 1700 1800 1900 2000
Spiritus Paraclitus (1920), Pope Benedict XV, Bishop of Rome, 19141922
Commends modern critical methods in biblical studies. All biblical
interpretation rests upon the literal sense. Goal of biblical studies is to
learn spiritual perfection, to arm oneself to defend the faith, to preach the
word of God fruitfully.
100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 1100 1200 1300 1400 1500 1600 1700 1800 1900 2000
Divino Afflante Spiritus (1943), Pope Pius XII, Bishop of Rome,
1939-1958
Permitted scholars to use original text of Scriptures. No claim was made
that the Vulgate is always an accurate translation, but that it is free from
any errors in faith or morals.
The scholar must be principally concerned with the literal sense of the
Scriptures; search out and expound the spiritual sense; avoid other
figurative senses. Literary criticism should be employed.
Stated that there are but few texts whose sense was determined by the
authority of the Church (only seven biblical passages have been
definitively interpreted in defending traditional doctrine and morals--John
3:5, Luke 22:19, 1 Corintjoans 11:24, John 20:22, John 20:23, Romans
5:12, James 5: 14); this counteracts the frequent misunderstanding that
Catholics have no freedom interpreting the Scriptures.
100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 1100 1200 1300 1400 1500 1600 1700 1800 1900 2000
Pope Pius XII, Bishop of Rome, 1939 - 1958
Instructs scholars on evolution, polygenism and Old Testament
historical narratives
100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 1100 1200 1300 1400 1500 1600 1700 1800 1900 2000
Vatican II Council (1962-1965) On Divine Revelation
The decree declares that there is one source of Divine Revelation,
Jesus Christ; that there are two modes of handing on revelation: Holy
Scripture and Holy Tradition:
“In a certain way merge into a unity and tend toward the same end," and "it
is not from Scripture alone that the Church draws her certainty about
everything that has been revealed."
100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 1100 1200 1300 1400 1500 1600 1700 1800 1900 2000
Concerning Inerrancy of Scripture:
"The books of Scripture must be acknowledged as teaching firmly,
faithfully, and without error that truth which God wanted put into the
sacred writings for the sake of our salvation.”
Emphasized that "in order to see what God wanted to communicate in
Scripture, we must investigate the intention of the sacred author, and
one way to do this is by paying attention to the literary form employed
by the sacred writer."
Contradictions in the Bible
Define terms:
A contradiction is a statement or proposition that contradicts
or denies another or itself and is logically incongruous.
1. the act of contradicting; gainsaying or opposition.
2. assertion of the contrary or opposite; denial.
3. a statement or proposition that contradicts or denies
another or itself and is logically incongruous.
4. direct opposition between things compared; inconsistency.
5. a contradictory act, fact, etc.
Biblical authorship:
The Bible has many different human authors.
Some books of the Bible do not indicate in any way who wrote them.
Other books bear the names of persons to whom authorship is
ascribed.
In some cases it is perfectly clear that the indicated author is in
fact the person who actually wrote the book with his own
hands.
In other cases it is as clear that the author of the book had another
person do the actual writing of his work in the manner of
a secretary.
In still other cases it is the Church, and not seldom the opinion
of biblical scholars, that the indicated author of a given book
of the Bible is not the person (or persons) who wrote it,
but the person who originally inspired its writing, whose
name is then attached to it as its author.
In a number of instances the Church is not clear about the authorship
of certain books of the Bible.
Because the entire Bible is inspired by God Who is its one original author,
the Church considers the identity of the human authors as incidental to
the correct interpretation and proper significance of the books of the Bible
for the believing community.
In no case would the Church admit that the identity of the author
determines the authenticity or validity of a book which is viewed as part of
the Bible, and under no circumstances would it be admitted that the value
or the proper understanding and use of any book of the Bible in the
Church depends on the human writer alone.
The canon of the Bible was established, not on who an author was, but
by the inspired content of a book.
Handling Apparent Contradictions
Out of Context Error:
Context 1 - The whole book, the letter, the Gospel
Context 2 - The Bible as a whole
The One Genre Error
Taking everything literally; words mean
Wrong genre; e.g., literal for poetry, etc.
The Function of Interpretation
The context of belief of one’s own, e.g., denominational
teachings
Intricacies of Biblical Translation
Ancient languages to modern languages;
Dead language to a living language
Words Meaning vs People Meaning
Literalist vs literal sense
Twenty-first Century Mentality/Expectation of Authorship/Writing
God Revealing
Not all at once, e.g., resurrection of the dead, monogamous
marriage, divorce, etc.
Before the Ten Commandments vs. after the Ten Commandments
Old Testament vs. New Testament
not to destroy but to fulfil
VISIONS
THE VISION
DANIEL
REVELATION
1. Three and a half time period (a time,
2 times and ½ a time)
Chapter 12:7
Chapter 11:9, 11
2. The 10 horns
Chapter 7:8
Chapters 12:3, 13:1; 17:3,
8
3. The Leopard, the Bear, and the Lion
Chapter 7:4-6
Chapter 13:2
4. The Beast mouthing boasting and
blasphemies
Chapter 7:8,11
Chapter 13:5
Chapter 7:21
Chapter 13:7
5. The war against the Saints
6. The worship of the Beast’s statue
7. The Son of Man coming on the GloryCloud
Chapter 3:5-7, 15
Chapter 13:15
Chapter 7:13
Chapter 1:7 & 14:14
Revelation 20: 4-6
Then I saw thrones; those who sat on them were entrusted with
judgment. I also saw the souls of those who had been beheaded
for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God, and who had
not worshiped the beast or its image nor had accepted its mark
on their foreheads or hands. They came to life and they reigned
with Christ for a thousand years. The rest of the dead did not
come to life until the thousand years were over. This is the first
resurrection. Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first
resurrection. The second death has no power over these; they
will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him
for (the) thousand years
End Part III