One of the difficulties in studying passages in the epistles is that the sentences can be so long and contain complicated ideas with big words. This makes it very difficult...
Look for repetition of words, phrases and ideas and ask yourself “what does the author/God seem to emphasize?” Just as we emphasize and use repetition in our speech and writing...
As you study the scriptures, noting the conjunctions (linking words like “and, for, therefore, so”) within the text can be useful in seeing the flow and themes of the passages....
God has intended his scripture to be clearly understood. There are no secret codes or hidden meanings for us to find and we don’t need to be a Jewish historian...
The Bible explains the Bible. If scripture has coherent themes and structures (which it does!) then the meaning of a particular phrase or sentence can be interpreted in the light...
Scripture is not a collection of random thoughts and ideas but has principal themes and structures, which ultimately come from the author’s intent. Effective Bible study interprets the whole in...