You Come to the Bible With Assumptions
Busting the Myth of Neutrality
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There was a time, especially during my 20s, when I thought people could and should approach the Bible with a (supposed) neutral posture. My concern was about the effect bias has on us, and this concern was prompted and fed by some academic resources I’d been reading. My thought was, “If I come to this text with predispositions, that bias is going to affect how I interpret it.”
The best approach, then, was to pursue objectivity. Just take the text that is right before you, don’t assume information outside that text (especially information that was theological or confessional), and let an objective study of the passage lead you to the right understanding and interpretation. And by “objective study,” I mean one that doesn’t assume a standpoint of faith. Just interpret the passage without assuming Christian teachings and doctrinal parameters. The more objective you can be, the more accurate your interpretation will be. It’ll be an interpretation that even an unbelieving reader could discern!
Along the way, something busted that mindset into a million pieces, and I’m so glad. I don’t recall a specific book or a specific writer who corrected my thinking, but at some point I realized I wasn’t worried about an “objective reading” anymore.
In fact, I embraced the notion that nobody reads the Bible with total objectivity. If someone says they’re interpreting Scripture while simultaneously laying aside their presuppositions, the problem becomes one of unexamined and undisclosed presuppositions.
Biblical interpretation isn’t exactly like a scientific study. In science, objectivity is desirable. You want to be outside your experiment, implement controls, test your hypothesis, etc. You want to be careful not to guide your experiment toward an already-desired result. If scientists are honest, however, they will admit that there are still presuppositions that are part of their worldview, and these presuppositions cannot be entirely set aside.
Back to the Bible. Every interpreter has presuppositions. Every reader of Scripture has thoughts about the Bible that cannot be put into a “neutral” category. And your presuppositions affect how you read. If you don’t grant the divine inspiration of the biblical writings, you will be reading the Bible as if it is not inspired. If you don’t grant the unity and coherence of the two Testaments, you will be reading as if the biblical authors could possibly contradict one another. If you don’t read in light of a messianic hope pervading the canonical revelation, you will focus on the trees and miss the forest—the Big Picture. If you don’t read with a conviction about the existence of a creator whose power works in and sustains his creation, you will think differently about the Bible’s claims and miracles.
A better question for interpreters to ask is, “What are my assumptions about the Bible?” Because everybody has some. And sometimes people read the Bible with non-Christian assumptions. Ask yourself what role you believe doctrine should play in interpretation. Ask yourself what kind of book you understand the Bible to be.
So, what assumptions should Christians have as they approach and interpret Holy Scripture?
They should approach the Bible believing that it is the divinely-inspired Word of God, that the biblical authors do not contradict one another, that later biblical authors rightly interpret earlier biblical texts, that the two Testaments are united and coherent, that divine revelation unfolds across a redemptive-historical trajectory, that the purpose of Holy Scripture is the revelation of God’s salvation through Christ, that the sovereignty and providence of God ensures the accuracy and preservation of Holy Scripture, and that the advent and teachings of Christ brought greater light and clarity to what the Old Testament promised and prophesied.
Don’t pretend to read the Bible with neutrality. Instead, read with theological conviction. Let the creeds serve as wise doctrinal parameters for your interpretations. Read the Bible while assuming the death and resurrection of Jesus. Read the Bible while rejoicing in the fulfillment of God’s promises. Read the Bible while believing that God has spoken truthfully about whatever the biblical authors teach. Read the Bible as a Christian!
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