A Difference Between Cursory Readings And Close Readings Of Biblical Texts.
As I have been teaching Romans and Galatians on Sunday mornings these last several months, I have also had occasion to throw in some mini-lessons about general Bible study method. Most recently, I have been emphasizing the primacy of close reading of the biblical text over the use of tools like commentaries, handbooks, dictionaries, or atlases. To clarify, I am not against the use of commentaries or any other tool available to the modern Christian. If we really esteem the Bible as God’s special revelation to humanity of his will and character, we should use every resource at our disposal in our pursuit of biblical understanding.
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