Becoming A Worthy Reader: How to Read and Study the Bible

By Kevin D Zuber

To read the Bible as it’s meant to be read, one must become a worthy reader. This introduction to hermeneutics, the process of correctly reading and interpreting Scripture, provides a guide for navigating the genres and contexts of the Bible. Zuber enriches Christians’ understanding of Wisdom, Apocalyptic, and Prophetic literature.

• Language: English
• Publisher: CLC Publications
• Release date: Apr 29, 2024
• ISBN: 9781619583832

Book preview

Series Foreword

The Institute for the Christian Life Series

From the time the Lord called me to Grace Community Church, I have had two primary goals: to preach the Word of God faithfully (2 Tim. 4:2) and to entrust the truth to faithful men (2:2). In keeping with those priorities, The Master’s Seminary has played a key role in training future pastors to handle the Word accurately and to defend its truth boldly. These Master’s men have gone out to serve and shepherd churches across the nation and around the world.

Several years ago, to assist these faithful pastors in their shepherding work, the seminary created a lay-training program, comprised of online video courses. The Institute for the Christian Life (originally called the Institute for Church Leadership) is designed to train lay people in four fundamental categories: Bible Knowledge, Sound Doctrine, Christian Living, and Shepherding Care.

The ICL is designed to bring biblical training, theological instruction, and practical ministry into the pew and the living room—making these indispensable tools accessible to believers at all levels of spiritual maturity and church leadership. This book series complements those online courses, as an aid for small group discussion and individual study.

My prayer for you as you read this book and engage with the corresponding video content through the ICL, is that you would grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. As the apostle Paul expressed in Ephesians 1:18–19, I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe.

John MacArthur

Pastor, Grace Community Church, Sun Valley, California

Chancellor, The Master’s University and Seminary

Editorial Preface

DR. KEVIN D. ZUBER (PhD, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School) serves as the Chair of the Theology Department at The Master’s Seminary. Dr. Zuber’s experience in pastoral ministry and Christian education has uniquely gifted him to be able to explain complex concepts in an accessible manner.

One very difficult task that most educators have failed to do well is passing along the tools for the average churchgoer to handle the Bible in a worthy manner. In fact, nothing is more important than how a believer handles the Bible. Becoming a Worthy Reader: How to Read and Study the Bible is not just another book with a few tips for reading God’s Word. In three parts, this book teaches a person to become a worthy reader of the Bible. At the end of each chapter, the reader will find study questions and practical exercises that will help the worthy reader apply what he or she has learned.

Thomas Cranmer, the Anglican Reformation theologian, wrote in The Book of Common Prayer that the Holy Scriptures were written for our learning . . . that we may in such wise hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them.

Becoming a Worthy Reader is a unique aid for Christians to accomplish this process of reading, marking, learning, and inwardly digesting the Word of God.

Peter Sammons, PhD

Faculty Associate in Systematic Theology

The Master’s Seminary

PART ONE:

Becoming a Worthy

Reader of the Bible

1

What Is a Worthy Reader of the Bible?

The reader may wonder about the title of this book and ask the question that is the title of this chapter. I will answer that question in due course in this chapter, but before getting to that, the reader should know how I have structured this book.

The book is divided into three parts. Part One focuses on the reader and describes the kind of reader a person must be (i.e., a worthy reader) in order to read the Bible as it was intended to be read and in order to read it for what it is: the Word of the Living God—the God who is really there.

This emphasis makes this book unique among the many, many books about reading and studying the Bible. Part Two turns to the usual topics a person might expect in a how to read the Bible book, and Part Three offers guidelines for reading and understanding the various genres of the Bible. Even in Parts Two and Three, I believe the reader will find a unique presentation of these topics and some helpful insights in the guidelines.

Who is this book for? This book is not written for academics or scholars, nor even for seekers who have no serious Christian commitment and are merely interested in how the Bible might enlighten them. It is not meant for those who are perusing the Bible to foster a vague sense of spirituality.

This book is (because the Bible is) for Christians who sincerely want to read and study the Bible intentionally, from faith to faith, to deepen an already genuine love for and submission to the God of the Bible. It is written with the double conviction that 1) the God of the Bible wants those who believe in Him to understand His Word, and toward that end, 2) He wants them to be the kind of readers who study the Bible in a worthy way.

The goal of this book is to provide more than just a semi-technical guide for reading and studying the Bible (although the reader will find some of that kind of guidance, especially in Parts Two and Three). The goal of this book is that readers will not only join me in those two convictions but will also themselves begin to become worthy readers of the Bible.

So, what is a worthy reader? I begin to answer that question next.

Introducing the Concept of the Worthy Reader

No doubt the reader of this book is aware that many books address the effort (or struggle) to read and study the Bible. A number of books in this genre present basic information and helpful guidelines for understanding the Bible. Some books are pragmatically oriented, in that they are comparable to instructional steps a person is to follow (like a sheet of instructions for assembling a piece of furniture purchased from IKEA). Others are similarly pragmatic by providing the reader with examples or exercises to engage in Bible study. They are of the how to variety and are practically oriented (like a YouTube video showing the non-plumber how he or she can fix his or her own plumbing problem).

Still other books in this category seek to introduce the reader to some of the more or less procedural aspects of interpretation but without delving too deeply into the more esoteric academic aspects of hermeneutics (a term I will define below). In that sense, those types of books are mostly focused on the practical skill of reading the Bible and are semi-technically oriented. Each one of these types of books is helpful, and this book will contain some of each of these orientations.

However, before considering the practical guidelines or technical aspects of how to read the Bible, I want to consider the reader of the Bible.

Many books about how to read and study the Bible either bypass any consideration of the reader or briefly mention the proper attitude or motivations of the reader (and I will do a little of that in this book as well). I want to begin by considering the reader more precisely, because who the reader is matters. So, to put the point more sharply, I want to indicate to the reader of this book how to be a certain kind of reader of the Bible, namely, a worthy reader.²

I believe there is a worthy way to read the Bible. In Part One, I want to consider what it means to be a worthy reader, and in Parts Two and Three we will consider how to be a worthy reader.

The notion of what it is to be a worthy reader of the Bible needs some explanation. First, I offer several assertions of what it is to be a worthy reader, and then I will elaborate on them in the rest of the chapter. The rest of the book will fill in the details that identify the how to of what it takes to become a worthy reader of the Bible.

Let’s look at what I mean by a worthy reader. The Greek word worthy is axiōs. This adverb³ is found six times in the Greek New Testament (Rom. 16:2; Eph. 4:1; Phil. 1:27; Col. 1:10; 1 Thess. 2:12; 3 John 1:6). In each case in the New American Standard Bible (1995 edition), it is translated in a manner worthy of.

In Romans 16:2 the Roman believers were to welcome Phoebe, a sister saint from Cenchrea, in a manner worthy of the saints—that is, they were to show themselves hospitable, courteous, and helpful to her. They were to minister to her needs as is appropriate for fellow members of the body of Christ.

In Ephesians 4:1 Paul implored the Ephesians to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, that is they were to walk (a synonym for to live, or to conduct their lives) in accord with their eternal calling (election) and present status as Christians.

Paul then gave them a list of the qualities he had in mind—with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace (4:2–3).

Living out those qualities was what it took to walk in a manner worthy. In Philippians 1:27 Paul instructed the Philippians to conduct themselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. That is, they were to live in such a way as to commend the grace and power of the gospel in the face of opposition (1:27–28).

In Colossians 1:9–10, Paul told the Colossians that he had prayed for them, so that they may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that they will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord. In the next verse he described what that worthy walk entailed, namely, "to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience; joyously giving thanks to the Father" (Col. 1:10–12).

In First Thessalonians 2:12 Paul simply admonished the Thessalonians to walk in a manner worthy of the God who calls you into His own kingdom and glory, that is, they were to walk (again, to live) in a way that would befit their relationship with the God of glory and their position as citizens of His kingdom.

Finally, writing to Gaius, a beloved friend and possibly a fellow elder, (3 John 1:1) the apostle John encouraged Gaius to show hospitality to fellow gospel workers and to send them on their way in a manner worthy of God (1:6), that is, to treat them as God would—with kindness and respect.

With these texts in mind, I think of a worthy reader of the Bible as someone who approaches the Bible with the respect and attention it deserves as the Word of God. A worthy reader will read it in accord with his or her calling as a Christian; that is, in the light of his or her calling to faith and life in Christ.

A worthy reader will, in reading the Bible, seek to please God in all respects as he or she reads, and by that reading will bear fruit in every good work and increase in the knowledge of God. He or she will, from that reading, be strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, to attain all steadfastness and patience, and that person will joyously give thanks to the Father for what he or she learns from the Bible and how the person grows spiritually by that reading.

In summary, the worthy readers will read and study the Bible in a manner worthy of the God who called them, saved them, and keeps them. As Christians are to walk worthy of their Lord, they are to read worthy of their Lord. In other words, a worthy reader will Be diligent to present [himself or herself ] approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth (2 Tim. 2:15).

An Overview of the Worthy Reader

At this point, I want to give the reader an overview of the basic description of what I have in mind when I refer to the worthy reader. While reading this book it might be helpful to refer to these points occasionally to be reminded of the overall objective and intention, which is to be a worthy reader.

A worthy reader of the Bible is a Christian. He or she has trusted Christ as Savior and Lord and has a vital personal relationship with God, through the atoning death of Jesus Christ on the cross. The reader has received a new heart by the Holy Spirit and a new life, which is enabled by the Spirit.⁴

This means the worthy reader is a believer (or at the very least must become a believer early in the process of reading and studying the Bible).⁵ To be a believer means one believes in God (Heb. 11:6).

Specifically, a worthy reader believes the God of the Bible is the Creator of everything (Isa. 44:24; 45:18; Jer. 19:12–13) and that He is his or her creator (Ps. 139). A worthy reader believes in the Trinitarian God of the Bible,⁶ and believes in Jesus Christ, the Son of God (incarnate in true humanity; truly God and truly man),⁷ who died an atoning death and rose again, and will return again.

The worthy reader of the Bible holds that the Bible is the inspired (2 Tim. 3:16), inerrant, authoritative, sufficient, and efficient (Heb. 4:12) Word of God.

The worthy reader of the Bible is not content with a passive reading of the Bible, nor with a superficial knowledge of the truth in the Bible, but he or she actively engages with the text, to seek its meaning and message, to know its Author, and to harness its truth for life.

The worthy reader is the kind of reader Thomas Cranmer had in mind when he wrote that the Holy Scriptures were written for our learning . . . that we may in such wise hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them.⁸

The worthy reader actively reads the Bible, depending on the Spirit’s illumination (1 Cor. 2:5, 12).

The worthy reader reads the Bible in communion with other believers, that is, he or she knows there have been worthy readers of the Bible throughout the history of the church and that there are worthy readers of the Bible today; he or she will learn from them and along with them in order to accurately [handle] the word of truth (2 Tim. 2:15).

The worthy reader of the Bible seeks to apply what he or she reads, learns, and understands to the worship of God, to the service of the church, to the spread of the gospel message revealed in the Bible, and to his or her life—to grow in grace and godliness.

Who Is, and Who Is Not, a Worthy Reader? The Key Distinction

This book is not intended for just anyone who wants to get an overall idea of the contents of the Bible (although such a reader might find it somewhat helpful for that purpose). The reader for whom this book is written (and the sort of Bible reader in view in this book) is not a generic Christian. That is, this book is not for those who are merely identified (in a broadly cultural way) as Christian, nor is it for those who are vaguely religious, nor is it even for those who are merely open to spiritual things.

The individual who reads the Bible as if it were like any other religious text (such as the Koran or the Hindu Vedas) may find some personal inspiration, but that is not the sort of reader I have in mind for this book; nor is it that the intention of the Bible itself.⁹ Indeed, that sort of reader will not be able to read the Bible with the understanding, spiritual profit, or personal benefit the divine Author intended. As surprising as it may sound, the Bible will not be an open book to many people, and reading it may actually result in greater spiritual confusion and blindness. The Bible itself illustrates this phenomenon.

After the Lord had called the prophet Isaiah to preach His Word (Isa. 6:1–8) the prophet was probably surprised when he learned what the outcome of his preaching would be. His hearers would not gain greater spiritual insight and enlightenment, but they would become increasingly dull, and their spiritual perception would become progressively dim. They would not have greater spiritual receptivity but grow more insensitive to the things of the Lord. The Lord told the prophet, Go, and tell this people: / ‘Keep on listening, but do not perceive; / Keep on looking, but do not understand. / Render the hearts of this people insensitive, / Their ears dull, / And their eyes dim,’ (Isa. 6:9–10). Rather than seeking the people’s conversion, the message was intended to confirm them in their own self-serving religiosity, Otherwise they might see with their eyes, Hear with their ears, Understand with their hearts, And return and be healed. (6:10).

Isaiah was called to preach to very religious people; they brought multiple sacrifices (Isa. 1:11), frequently visited the temple courts (1:12), ordered their lives by the religious calendar (1:13–14), and they even prayed regularly (1:15). But the Lord knew they were just going through the motions; they were living in unrepentant sin and iniquity and had acted corruptly! They [had] abandoned the Lord, / They [had] despised the Holy One of Israel, / They [had] turned away from Him (1:4). The Lord called upon them to repent (1:16–19) but they refused (1:20). For all their religiosity they were not inwardly sincere; it was all just so much self-serving spirituality.

The Word of God from Isaiah exposed them; they were unrepentant, unfaithful, unconverted. Therefore, the preaching of the prophet only served to confirm them in their rebellion and spiritual blindness.¹⁰

Such a passage may raise several questions that we cannot address here, but from this passage, we can apply this principle: For those who would be worthy readers of the Word of God the message and truth of the Bible begins with a call to repent from sin and to put one’s faith in the God of the Word. As noted, God had appealed to the people: Come now, and let us reason together, / Says the Lord, / Though your sins are as scarlet, / They will be as white as snow; / Though they are red like crimson, / They will be like wool (1:18), but they had refused and so were prevented from understanding the rest of Isaiah’s message.

The first message of the Bible that sinners need to hear, understand, and respond to is that they are indeed sinners (Rom. 3:23) and that they must repent and turn to God (1 Thess. 1:9) and believe in Him.

If a person desires to read and understand the Bible, no vague religiousness nor self-defined spirituality will do. A person without genuine faith in God through Jesus Christ might gain some historical information (such as the flow of the history of ancient kingdoms in the Old Testament historical books) or glean a few rules for moral living (such as in the Ten Commandments), but without repentance from sin and self and faith in God, a person will not understand the Bible as it was intended to be understood; nor will it be lived as it must be lived.

Faith must be informed, heartfelt, and committed. Those are the elements (intellect, emotion, will; in Latin: notitia, assensus, fiducia) that are the marks of a true and vital faith in the true and living God.

Study Questions:

What is the meaning of the Greek word axiōs; where is it found in the New Testament; what is the basic connotation of the term in these texts?

What are the qualities that make a person a worthy reader of the Bible?

What does the worthy reader believe about the Bible itself?

What does Isaiah 6:9–10 tell us about what it takes to be a worthy reader?

What are the marks of a true and vital faith in the true and living God.

Exercise:

What are some practical ways the worthy reader can apply the words of Thomas Cranmer (the Holy Scriptures were written for our learning . . . that we may in such wise hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them)? What do you think he meant by these terms: hear, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest? Be concrete and specific in your response.

2

The Worthy Reader Holds Certain Theological Presuppositions

AS NOTED AT THE END OF Chapter 1, the faith necessary to be a worthy reader will be based in knowledge, will be deeply heartfelt, and will be expressed in a sincere (and active) commitment. That knowledge and heartfelt commitment will be based on certain foundational, even axiomatic (self-evident), presuppositions.

Some people may object to the notion that the reader should have any presuppositions when he or she reads the Bible. They say things like, We should let the Bible speak for itself and not impose ourselves and our ideas on the text as we read it.¹

In some cases, this is a reaction against modern literary theories of reader-response criticism (and in a way the point is well-taken; see footnote 2 in Chapter 1, page 16); in other cases it is simply naïve parochialism. The fact is, None of us is a clean slate and each of us has a belief system that influences our way of thinking about the Bible and its interpretation.² Everyone has presuppositions; the idea that we can acknowledge our presuppositions and set them aside and be neutral is a myth. In fact, in most instances the most basic presuppositions people have do not seem to be presuppositions at all; they appear to them to be the real-world (i.e., That’s the way it is; that’s how the real-world works.) The worldviews (and presuppositions) that readers bring to the reading of the Bible makes, well, a world of difference.

The presuppositions I have noted below are, I believe, the presuppositions that anyone who wants to be a worthy reader of the Bible must acknowledge. Furthermore, I acknowledge these presuppositions because they are, in fact, mine as a Christian believer. I believe they are drawn from (and even made necessary by) the truth about God (the real-reality) revealed in the Bible, and I believe they are what the Bible reveals about itself.

If it is true (and it is common sense to acknowledge) that inevitably each reader already has a belief system (worldview) that influences his or her way of thinking about the Bible, then the worthy reader needs think very carefully about his or her belief (worldview) system. A worthy reader will make sure his or her presuppositions are consistent with a reality that is what it is because God is as He is,³ and because of who He is, and how He is with us (Heb. 11:6), and how He has revealed Himself to us. These presuppositions should be acknowledged not as impediments to set be aside but as the necessary guides to good interpretation of the Word of God.

Faith Seeking Understanding

To acknowledge one’s presuppositions as a Christian believer is to recall a long-standing principle for engaging in the