Interpretation: What Does It Mean? - Hermeneutics: Week 8 - 7/9/25

My notes for Wednesday night, July 9^th. Remember, these are my personal study notes and not a manuscript of the sermon. They are provided as an outline each week for our Tabernacle Church family. Our study over the next few months will be a study on Hermeneutics: Becoming Students and Teachers of the Word. Our goal is to develop tools to help us read, study, apply, and share the Bible more effectively. You can find Sermon Notes, Family Devotional Guides, Prayer List, and other resources at our Church Website.

Hermeneutics – HERMENEUEIN from Luke 24:27 to explain or interpret.  The term simply describes the practice and discipline of interpreting the Bible.

Sources for these notes include:

Danny Akin, Hermeneutics Class notes. Southeastern Theological Seminary

INTERPRETATION: What Does it Mean?

Hermeneutics is the science and art of interpretation. It is a science because it follows certain rules. It is an art because it is a skill one develops with practice.

Hermeneutics is the study of methodological principles of interpretation which allows us to take what we see and determine what it means.

Three Truths to remember:

1. It takes time to expose oneself to the brilliance of revealed truth.

2. There is more truth in the Bible than we can grasp in one or many readings. Infinite, eternal truth has this nature.

3. It takes practice and experience to develop the skills necessary for accurately understanding text.

Guiding Principles

1. The context rules when interpreting the text.

2. The text must be interpreted in light of all Scripture.

3. Scripture will never contradict itself.

4. Scripture should be interpreted literally.

5. Do not develop doctrine from obscure or difficult passages.

6. Discover the author’s original intended meaning.

7. Check your conclusions using reliable resources

Ten Interpretive Rules

1. Work from the assumption that the Bible is authoritative.

2. Interpret difficult passages in the light of clear passages. Let the Bible interpret itself.

3. Interpret personal experience in the light of Scripture and not Scripture in the light of personal experience.

4. Remember that Scripture has only ONE MEANING but many applications.

   • One Meaning (Sense)

   • Many Applications (Significance)

5. Interpret words and passages in harmony with their meaning in the time of the author.

6. Interpret Scripture in light of its PROGRESSIVE REVELATION.

7. Remember you must understand the Bible grammatically before you can understand it theologically.

8. A doctrine cannot be considered biblical unless it includes all that the Scriptures say about it. DO not practice “selective citation” or “proof-texting.”

9. Distinguish between the PROVERBS and the PROMISES of God.

10. When two doctrines taught in the Bible appear to be contradictory, accept both as Scriptural in the confident belief that they resolve themselves in a higher unity.