Chapter 11

Examples of Reorganizing Biblical Interpretation
Using Different Perspectives

What does it look like when we reorganize the entire system of biblical interpretation in terms of a new perspective? What happens when we deliberately set about to use a new analogy? It is difficult to work out an example thoroughly within a short space. Such a reorganization might easily involve writing one or more whole books of systematic theology or biblical theology.

38. Thematic reorganization

Among nonevangelical theologies one can find examples of work that has nearly attempted reorganizing biblical interpretation in terms of a new theme. We can find almost any number of theologies that are organized in terms of a single theme chosen as the dominant one: theology of liberation, theology of hope (Moltmann), theology of the future, theology of human existence (e.g., Bultmann). The fact that most of these theologies are gross distortions might seem to argue strongly against the wisdom or legitimacy of doing "thematic" theology. In fact, I would agree that there is grave danger in thematic theology. But the danger lies not in the mere fact of organizing theology around a theme. It lies in the fact that, if one understands the theme itself in an unbiblical way, this unbiblical understanding can then easily penetrate the whole texture of the theology rather than being confined to one part.

But one might also see an advantage here. For all their distortions, don't nonevangelical thematic theologies sometimes include bits of insight and truth? Don't they sometimes uncover logical and thematic linkages in the Bible that are really there? And isn't that why they are close enough to the truth to seem plausible and to capture followers?

Naturally, part of the answer to distorted thematic theologies lies in critical observations to the effect that the central theme of the theology is itself understood in a distorted and unbiblical way. Such critical observations are useful and necessary. But there is room also for reworking the whole theology the right way, by starting with the same theme understood now in a genuinely biblical way.

39. Liberation as a theme

Thus, for example, in imitation of liberation theology one can indeed argue that the whole of the biblical record can be understood as a record of God's liberating deeds. But in the Bible the deepest liberation is liberation from sin and the kingdom of Satan. Changes in political and social structures, though significant, are secondary to this most basic liberation. In this light, the present-day theologies of liberation, insofar as they reduce liberation to a purely horizontal and human level,¹ not only truncate the richness of biblical liberation but are in danger of reversing it. However much it may appeal to religious language, the "liberation" set in motion by political education and action will be tainted with autosoterism. The folly that thinks that people (conceived now as social human beings rather than individual beings) must save himself is itself the beginning of bondage, not true liberation.

By doing this reorganization under the theme of liberation, we might for one thing show that the Marxist-oriented theologies of liberation are not the only way in which one might plausibly appeal to an important biblical theme. But we might also learn something that our earlier interpretation of the Bible had neglected, namely that God's liberation of his people does include a corporate social and political dimension, not merely the salvation of individual souls. We would have enriched and reformed not only the theology of liberation but also our own previous practice of interpretation.

40. Money as a theme

Second, let us take the theme of money as a dominant theme around which to organize the whole of biblical interpretation. At first glance such a reorganization would seem to be difficult or impossible. Money is a prominent theme in the Gospels, but most of the remarks about it seem to be negative! How could one make these negative comments the starting point of a positive theology?

Theologians have sometimes written books on the implications of biblical teaching for economics. That is well and good. But that is not what we have in mind here. We intend to use money as a perspective on the whole of biblical interpretation, not simply pick out from the whole of theology whatever tidbits have implications in the area of economics. What we are looking for is a kind of "monetary theology" corresponding to theology of liberation or theology of hope.

When we start with what seems to be an unpromising theme, one of the first helpful things to do is to expand or enrich the starting theme. That is, we redefine it or enlarge it so that the enlargement suggests an increasing number of connections with many passages and themes of the Bible. So let us do this with money.

What is money? It is not easy to say. In modern society it takes many forms: not only cash, but checks, charge accounts, bank accounts, money market funds, and so on. We do not need to worry about the complexities of modern society just yet, but we do need to see what is at stake. We are dealing with some means of exchange for wealth and for valuable things. Typically this means of exchange has been socially and politically agreed upon.

In short, money is not just a thing, a piece of paper or a round piece of metal. Its meaning is closely connected with its use in facilitating the exchange of valuable materials. It is a symbolic means for designating and exchanging wealth and valuables.

Hence we can make the step of expanding or enriching the theme of money by redefining it as the theme of means for exchange of wealth and value. From there it is only a short step to seeing the potential for a God-centered approach to money. In the beginning God has all wealth and all value. When he creates the world, he produces wealth and value from his own fullness and bounty. The world belongs to him. He owns it. All wealth, all value, is therefore in a fundamental sense God's. God's creation and providence is thus the point of origin for all of our understanding of money.

Let us pursue this point more closely. God has created the world for his own glory. That purpose involves also the multiplication of wealth within the world, including wealth given to his creatures and in particular to human beings made in God's image.

The money of human beings is a product of their abilities given by God to subdue the world and fill it with God's wealth. Certain created substances, such as silver and gold, are suited from the beginning for such use. The abilities of human beings to produce fresh meanings and significances lead to their agreeing in the establishment of a precise economic significance of particular manufactured objects like coins.

These abilities and actions on the part of human beings are reflections on a creaturely level of abilities of God. God is the original creator of wealth, value, silver, gold, and symbolic significances of each thing. Human beings are derivatively creative, as imitators of God. The original wealth is the fullness of God's own all-sufficiency and bounty. The original of human money is the symbolic significance that God gives to his wealth: it signifies God himself.

Moreover, we have observed that human money is a symbolic means for facilitating exchange of value. God himself is the originator of all means. In fact, the whole creation is a means for producing the exchange of his glory (read: wealth!) with human beings. The history of the world is nothing less than the history of "money" in this tremendously expanded sense of the word.

Starting from these observations, it becomes easier to see how a whole approach to biblical interpretation and theology could be built up around the theme of money. Namely, we start from our newly expanded concept of money instead of the rather impoverished everyday use of the term. God himself is the source of both wealth and money in the extended sense. God's law is the money (= means of facilitating exchange of wealth) for regulating the conduct of human beings. God's redemption is his payment of the price of the life of his own Son in exchange (a monetary transaction) for the life of sinful people. The purpose of the lives of human beings is to accumulate wealth (namely, the inheritance of God himself and God's kingdom: Matt. 6:33). They store up "treasure in heaven" (Luke 12:33-34). At the same time they are to do all for the glory of God, that is, for the increase of his praise (a form of wealth or value). All their service is means (money) towards these goals. Money in the narrow sense is simply one means among many. Within this framework we may then proceed to translate various passages of the Bible into the terminology of our monetary theology.

What use is it to interpret the Bible in this way? For one thing, it may help us to see that the use of money in the narrow sense is not an isolated issue. Nor are the commandments that God gives concerning the use of money arbitrary. The use of money is related to the totality of God's purposes for the world and for human beings in the world.

A second possible use would be in connection with people whose ideas about money are not fully biblical. In the United States in certain quarters a theology of wealth has taken hold, a popularized theology that tells people that God wants them to be rich. This pseudotheology does not speak of the atonement or of the necessity of criticism of worldly standards, but only of a Jesus who wants them to be happy, and how they can promote their happiness and wealth by believing in him.

We might choose to attack this perverse theology in many ways. But one way that most orthodox evangelicals would not immediately think of would be to "steal the thunder" of theology of wealth by emphasizing their own theme of wealth. Does this capitulate to their perversion? Not if we enrich our idea of wealth in the way that I have sketched out above. Then we say, "Indeed Jesus wants us to be wealthy. But what is wealth? Are the most valuable things always those that are manufactured in American society? Who is the most wealthy person of all? God himself. What does he say about wealth? His wealth is first of all in his character. He undertakes to spread his wealth abroad by reproducing his character in us. The law of God is a recipe for imitating God, and in so doing being transformed into a wealthy person. But we have too much poverty to begin with to keep God's law. It takes money to make money. So God sent his own Son, who became poor for our sake, in order that we might become rich. Riches now mean investing in character conforming to Christ, including sharing in his suffering, so that we may enjoy our full inheritance in the future." And so on. It is possible that by the working of God's Spirit some people addicted to the theology of wealth might be jarred loose and have their values transformed into conformity with biblical values.

41. Reorganizing the study of a biblical passage

The same principles can be applied in the study of particular passages. We try to make new sense of the passage by looking at it from the viewpoint of a new theme or analogy. Taking a new view does not mean that we ignore or deny the internal themes of the passage. It means simply that we try to see whether we can notice something else about the passage by looking at it in a noncustomary way.

As an example, let us return one final time to our sample passage, Rom. 7:14-25. Like any other passage, Rom. 7 has an internal thematic organization. It has its own prominent themes. Because of the difficulty in interpreting Rom. 7, and the disputes over it, there is also some measure of disagreement over its internal themes. But it is not hard to see that the conflict over willing and doing good and evil is a major theme of Rom. 7:14-25. Moreover, the conflict is expressed in dramatic, almost psychologistic fashion. It is understandable that many people have adopted an interpretation along primarily psychological lines.

But suppose that we take another approach. Rather than using dramatic or psychologistic analogies as our main way of understanding the passage, let us try using another analogy. What analogy shall we choose? Any prominent theme within Paul's writings might serve: justification, union with Christ, the hope for Christ's return, etc. None of these starting points is guaranteed to turn up anything interesting. But in using one of them we might turn up some connections that we would otherwise overlook. For instance, in looking at the passage in terms of union with Christ, we would naturally ask whether Paul is describing what he is in himself (apart from his union with Christ) in Rom. 7:14-25 and what he is in Christ in Rom. 8. Such a contrast still needs greater definition. But one can see that it does not necessarily have quite the same texture as the contrast between regenerate and unregenerate, and so might open the way to a new view.

In fact, not only Pauline themes, but any prominent theme of the Bible can potentially be used as a perspective or window to look at Rom. 7:14-25 in a new way. For the sake of illustration, let us use a rather unpromising theme: money. Once again, the theme must be expanded in order to be useful. If we expand it to include the whole complex concerning ownership, wealth, and exchange, we may begin to see at least some potential relevance to Rom. 7:14-25. At one point Paul specifically uses monetary language: he is "sold as a slave to sin" (7:14). This is admittedly slim evidence. But we are not really searching for evidence. Rather, we are playing with a perspective or analogy to see whether it might throw light on the passage.

Let us go a step further. In Rom. 7:23 Paul mentions "the members of my body." Paul is clearly the owner of his members. And yet, perversely and paradoxically, those members are apparently not under his control. We can construe this as a case of disputed ownership and disputed control. If Paul is "sold as a slave to sin," he is clearly owned by sin as master. He tries to assert his own ownership, by his desire for good, but finds that control is being exerted from other directions. It is still true that from creation he is owned by God.

Now we can already suggest one reason why Rom. 7:14-25 is so hard a passage. In the case of both regenerate and unregenerate people, there is some kind of contested ownership. Unregenerate people are owned by sin and Satan. And yet they can never escape the fact that they are creatures, that they owe everything to God, and that God has power to dispose of them as he will. On a psychological level God's ownership is acknowledged in the cries of guilty consciences. But the dispute between God and Satan is broader and deeper than just their consciences.

By contrast, regenerate people are owned by God and by righteousness. And yet so long as they are in this life sin and Satan still try to capture them and bring them under their ownership. The "flesh" still belongs to this realm (see, for instance, Gal. 5:16-18). This situation is manifested in psychological conflicts, but not only there.

Hence the presence of conflict does not by itself tell us who is being talked about in Rom. 7:14-25. Moreover, it is clear that a dispute about ownership can play itself out on more than one level. On the one hand there are legal facts to be established about who has the right of ownership. This is analogous to justification. On the other hand there are facts about possession, that is, facts about current control over what one legally owns or does not own. The thief controls his stolen goods but does not own them. The question of control (in particular, control over one's own actions) is analogous to sanctification.

On still another level, we can have a contrast between the situation of slavery under the OT law and the situation of freedom since Christ has come (Gal. 4:1-7). In this sense even regenerate people in the OT were owned by "the basic principles of the world" in the OT (Gal. 4:3). They were "bought" (redeemed) by Christ (Gal. 4:5). Hence conceivably the apparent contrast between Rom. 7:14-25 and Rom. 8 may be a contrast between pre-Pentecost slavery and post-Pentecost freedom (ownership of oneself).

What do we conclude from this analysis? We should retain our original judgement about prominent themes. Dramatic and psychological pictures, not ownership, are the primary vehicles of expression in Rom. 7:14-25. But we may still have learned something. These dramatic and psychological pictures may be just that: pictures, vehicles of expression for realities which are not purely dramatic of psychological. Paul's primary purpose in using such language may be to impress on the reader the pathos and helplessness of the situation, not to produce an exact psychological theory. The realities to which he points include legal facts, ownership facts, facts about control, facts characteristic of the two kingdoms at war with each other. These facts are not exhausted by their psychic manifestations.

Our little exploration of money and ownership in Rom. 7:14-25 has not solved all our problems. But it alerts us to the fact that there may be more than just two possible interpretations of Rom. 7:14-25. When we are dealing with a difficult passage, anything that can move us away from a deadlock is worth looking at.

42. Studying the thematic relations of biblical passages

One of the values of using a new analogy is that it may help us to relate one passage of the Bible to others. Sometimes the traditional way of interpreting a certain passage may so govern our thoughts that we do not notice potentially relevant parallels.

Let us take as an example the passage in John 3:1-15. Traditionally, this has been thought by nearly everyone to be a classic passage about being "born again," about regeneration, about being saved by God after a previous life of sin and alienation from him. And, of course, the passage is relevant to our understanding of regeneration. But is that all that it is saying? Maybe not. Let us see what happens with an altered disciplinary framework.

The traditional disciplinary framework for understanding John 3 is the framework of the theology of regeneration. But if we look at John 3 using the theme of fulfillment of the OT or the theme of eschatology, we may notice what we did not notice before. In the Gospels a historical period of time is associated with "the kingdom of God" (John 3:3, 5). The kingdom of God is not merely a designation for God's rule over the world from all eternity. Nor does it simply designate God's rule over human hearts. Rather, it is the exercise of God's rule in Christ's earthly life to save his people in a definitive way. It is God's saving activity to which the whole OT looked forward. It is the fulfillment of OT promises of God's salvation, and the inauguration of the last days (eschatology in a broad sense).

Now in John 3 being "born anew" is closely related to being able to "see the kingdom of God." Therefore, in John 3 being "born anew" may be something that is uniquely characteristic of the time of fulfillment. It is something that the OT prophesied would take place later, not something that took place within the bounds of the OT itself. Of course, regeneration as systematic theology understands it took place in the OT. But John is not discussing regeneration as such, but rather the fulfilled form which regeneration is to have now that Christ has come.

Jesus mentions the key role of the Spirit in being born anew (John 3:5-8). This agrees with what he says to the Samaritan woman in John 4. Jesus himself provides the "living water," the water of the Spirit, and does so after his glorification (John 7:37-49; John 16). As Jesus says in John 4:23, "a time is coming and has now come [note: not "has always been"] when the true worshipers will worship the Father in Spirit and truth." In John 4:21 he contrasts this time with the time when people worshipped at fixed locations (correctly at Jerusalem, incorrectly at Gerazim). When we link John 4 with John 16, we see that the Gospel of John must be talking about the depth of communion with God which is possible only after Pentecost.

Thus, looking at John 3 from a new perspective has led us to a deeper and more accurate interpretation of it, primarily because it has enabled us to link up John 3 with other passages in John and elsewhere with the theme of fulfillment and eschatology. John 3 still has some implications for our doctrine of regeneration. But if we think that John 3 is directly discussing regeneration, with no focus on an eschatological coming of the Holy Spirit, we miss some of John's meaning.

As a second example let us look at Ps. 23. All Christians are familiar with the practical use of Ps. 23 with its message of the comfort, care, and protection of God. God undertakes to care for Christians just as he cared for OT saints.

Many Christians have also gone a step further. They have noted that in John 10 Jesus calls himself the good shepherd. They also know the NT teaching concerning Christ's deity. When we put all these passages together, we see that Ps. 23 is not only a passage about the care of God the Father, but about the care of Christ. Christ is our shepherd, and says to us the words of Ps. 23.

Thus we have a twofold use of Ps. 23. It applies to the relation of God the Father to Christians, and to the relation of the Lord Jesus Christ to Christians. This twofold use has become something of a traditional disciplinary framework for the practical and devotional interpretation of Ps. 23.

Now, I agree with this traditional twofold use. But I would suggest that something else is visible when we move outside the traditional disciplinary framework. We know that Christ is fully God. Hence it is legitimate to apply the words "the Lord is my shepherd" to him. But what happens when (nontraditionally) we look at the same words through the "window" of Christ's humanity?

The psalms are inspired expressions of the experience of the people of Israel in communion with God. Especially they are expressions related to the king of Israel, because the king was the representative of the people. Many of the psalms were in fact written by David or with David in view. David and godly descendants after him experienced the care of God their shepherd.

Now the line of David's descendants led forward to Christ. Christ was the ultimate and climactic son of David. As a human being, a descendant of David, he experienced the care of God during his earthly life. When he was confronted with difficulties and with enemies, he doubtless applied this psalm and other psalms to himself for sustenance. In fact, Ps. 23 says that "even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil" (23:4). It speaks of rescue either from literal death or from a metaphorical analogy of death in the form of great distress, and life with God afterwards (23:6). Christ confronted not merely the "shadow of death," but real death. He was also rescued, not before he died but afterwards, in his resurrection. And he now sits at God's right hand, having life with God forever. Because we are united with Christ in his life, death, resurrection, and rule, the psalm applies to us also.

Thus we see that Ps. 23 applies not only to the Father's relation to us, and to Christ's relation to us, but also to God the Father's relation to Christ. The use of a new perspective, outside of the traditional disciplinary framework, has alerted us to a new relationship between texts of the Bible.

Finally, let us consider David's fight with Goliath narrated in 1 Sam. 17. Traditionally Sunday schools have used the passage as a moral lesson: just as David had faith in God, stood up for God's name, and showed bravery for God's cause, so you should do today. Such a use expresses one valid perspective on the passage, since OT passages are in many cases intended as examples for us (James 5:16-19; 1 Cor. 10:6-13).

Using a second perspective, the historical-critical tradition typically understands the passage as functioning to vindicate David's rise to kingship and to show that he is the man qualified by Yahweh to fill the role. This perspective also is valid. In view of the interest of Samuel-Kings in the history of the kingship and in the contrast between Saul and David, we are invited to reflect on the politico-religious implications of this battle for Israel's understanding of its relation to the king chosen by God. Thus a perspective focusing on the corporate political implications of the passage within its immediate historical context is useful.

We may also use a perspective focusing on God and God's activity. We then note the faithfulness of God to David and God's power to turn events in the direction that he chooses, so that the outcome is contrary to human reckoning.

We may also use a perspective that asks about the role of mediators in the passage. When we ask that question, we realize that David as the one anointed to become king, is a mediatorial representative of all the people in his combat. As the anointed one, is foreshadows Christ and Christ's kingship. Christ as our representative single-handedly triumphs over Satan in a decisive battle at the cross (Col. 2:15). David is thus emblematic of Christ's victory, and we enjoy the fruits of Christ's victory in a manner similar to the Israelite army despoiling the Philistines (1 Sam. 17:51-53). In view of the fact that the OT kings and David in particular point forward to Christ (1 Sam. 7:13-14, Acts 13:22-23, 33-35), the parallel that we have drawn between David and Christ is not farfetched.

In sum, when we are studying a single passage like Ps. 23 or 1 Sam. 17 it is useful to adopt several different perspectives, in order that we may notice several types of point being made and several types of possible connections with the message of the Bible as a whole. In particular, it is useful to ask (1) whether the human beings in a passage are analogous to us (e.g. David is an example for us of faith and bravery); (2) whether the passage reveals something of God's character that remains the same for us (e.g., God who is faithful to vindicate David will be faithful to us); (3) whether a mediatorial figure in a passage functions in a way illumining Christ's final mediatorship (David is a type of Christ); (4) whether themes of a whole book of the Bible illumine the purpose of the passage (theme of God's establishment of the kingly line and its destiny in 1 Samuel). In addition, as already suggested, we view the passage from the perspective of any of various prominent biblical themes: covenant, promise and fulfillment, judgement, temple, theophany, kingdom, eschatology, creation/recreation, and so on.²