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My God and My Neighbor is a “Bible talk show” that looks at religious issues, Christian living and world events in light of the Word of God to give hope. This podcast is a ministry of Tennessee Bible College. TBC offers a bachelor's in Bible studies, a master of theology, and a doctorate of theology in apologetics and Christian evidences. TBC also provides Christian books, audio recordings on the Bible, and free Bible courses in English and Spanish. Tune in to My God and My Neighbor to experience the educational content that TBC has been delivering for nearly five decades!
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Kerry Duke: Hi, I’m Kerry Duke, host of My God and My Neighbor podcast from Tennessee Bible College, where we see the Bible as not just another book, but the Book. Join us in a study of the inspired Word to strengthen your faith and to share what you've learned with others.
We're talking about finding the truth in a world of confusion. And to do this topic justice, we have to look at two questions. Can we find the truth? And then if we can, how do we find the truth? We've looked at the question, who is Jesus? We've talked about God. Does He exist? And if so, which God is real? And what is God like?
In this episode today, we come to the third pillar of Christianity. If there is one thing people point to as a case of different interpretations, it's the Bible. How many times have you heard people say, "There are so many interpretations of the Bible, who knows which one is true?" You may feel like this. You might think it's impossible to understand. You may have been taught that every reader has his own interpretation of scripture, and no one knows which one is correct.
You may be a Catholic. You've been told by the Catholic Church that you cannot say you have the right interpretation of Scripture. They've taught you that only the Catholic officials, the Pope, and the College of the Bishops, called the Magisterium, have the authority to declare what the Bible means.
Or you may be skeptical. You've tried to read the Bible, but you heard one preacher explain it one way and another preacher a different way. So you've become discouraged. You haven't given up, but you're doubtful that you can ever be sure what it means.
Is there hope? Let's get started. Number one, the Bible shows us that God wants us to understand. God loves us. He doesn't want to confuse us. God wants us to know the truth. In First Timothy chapter two, verse four, the Bible says that God “will have all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”
That verse says that God desires, God wants all men to be saved. God desires, He wants all men to come to the knowledge of the truth. God didn't give us the Bible to confuse us. God gave us the Bible so that we can know His will and be saved. So the love of God guarantees to us that we can understand the Bible.
Number two, the power of God makes it sure that we can understand the Bible. God has the power or the ability to write a book we can understand. God is all-powerful. He can communicate in words that we can comprehend. It is a strange thing that men speak and write and expect us to understand them. Some of them are Bible critics.
Some of them are enemies of the Bible. They write books attacking the Bible, and they expect you to understand what they are saying in those books. But those same people say that God cannot write a book that we can really comprehend. Now, suppose we apply their objection to what they say. They tell us that every person has his own interpretation of the Bible, so who knows which interpretation is right. Suppose we apply that reasoning to what they say. Suppose we say, "I don't understand what you're saying because everybody has his own interpretation of what you're saying." One person would say, "Well, he means this." Another person would say, "He means that." So who knows what the correct interpretation of your words really is?
The truth is, God gave us a mind to understand. In Genesis chapter 1, verses 26 and 27, the Bible says that God created us in His own image. Part of that image is the ability to reason, and we can use that mind to interpret other things. We don't deny that. People who question the Bible and say that the Bible is capable of many different interpretations use their mind to interpret other matters of life that they deem important, and they think that they can come up with the right interpretation.
If that's true, then why can we not use that same reasoning to understand the Bible? And there are many verses and many examples of this in the Bible. One of them is in Nehemiah chapter 8. The Jews had been in Babylonian captivity for seventy years. They have returned home, and there's a great revival and a great restoration of the nation of Israel in Nehemiah.
In Nehemiah chapter 8, verse 2, the Bible says, “And Ezra the priest brought the law before the congregation, both of men and women, and all that could hear with understanding, upon the first day of the seventh month. And he read therein before the street that was before the water gate from the morning until midday, before the men and the women, and those that could understand; and all the ears of the people were attentive to the book of the law.'
In verse 5, the Bible says, “And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was above all the people. And when he opened it, all the people stood up. And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God. And all the people answered, 'Amen, amen,' with the lifting up of their hands, and they bowed their heads and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground.”
Then in verse 8, the Bible says, 'So they read in the book in the law of God distinctly and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading.' Now, that's Nehemiah chapter 8, verses one through eight. I ask you, does it sound like these people walked away and said, "I don't know what Ezra meant by any of that. I don't understand what he was saying. One person interprets it one way, and another person interprets it a different way. The Bible emphasizes time and again that these people had understanding.” These people could comprehend the reading of the law. The law here is the law of Moses. These are the Scriptures that Ezra is reading. And the Bible says these people had the capability of understanding.
Here's another example. It's in the days of Joshua. In Joshua 8:32, the Bible says, "And he wrote there upon the stones a copy of the law of Moses, which he wrote in the presence of the children of Israel. And all Israel and their elders and officers and their judges stood on this side the ark, and on that side, before the priests the Levites, which bare the ark of the covenant of the Lord, as well the stranger, as he that was born among them; half of them over against mount Gerizim, and half of them over against mount Ebal; as Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded before, that they should bless the people of Israel. And afterward he read all the words of the law, the blessings and cursings, according to all that is written in the book of the law. There was not a word of all that Moses commanded, which Joshua read not before all the congregation of Israel, with the women, and the little ones, and the strangers that were conversant among them." That's Joshua 8:32-35.
Now, was Joshua wasting his time reading all of the law of Moses to these people? Remember that the Bible says the strangers were there, all the Israelites were there, the women and the little ones were there, and Joshua read all the law of Moses to these people. Was he wasting his time and their time? Did these people walk away saying, "I don't know why he read all that to us, because we all know that everybody has his own interpretation of the Bible, and it's certain that everybody has his own interpretation of the law of Moses"? That's not what happened. That's not what they said. The truth is God gave the law to Moses. Moses wrote the law, and Joshua read that law in the hearing of all these people because God wanted them to hear, to understand, and to do what that law said.
Here's another example, and this is interesting because it involves Daniel, who was a prophet himself. Daniel said in Daniel 9:2, "In the first year of his reign, I Daniel understood by books the number of the years, whereof the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet, that he would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem."
How did you come to understand that, Daniel? He said that he understood by books what Jeremiah said. So he read the Scriptures, he thought them through, and as a prophet of God, he came to an understanding. Now, sometimes the prophets came to an instant, immediate understanding of what God said, but not always.
Sometimes they had to think it through, and that was the case with Daniel. So in Daniel chapter nine, verse two, Daniel, by his own natural ability to reason, came to interpret the Word of God correctly. And if he could do that, then we can do that today, even if we're not prophets of God, obviously, like Daniel was.
Here's another verse in the Old Testament. It's Psalm 119, verse 130. "The entrance of your words gives light; it gives understanding unto the simple." So the words of God, he said, give understanding to us. He doesn't say that the Word of God causes confusion. He doesn't say that the Word of God leaves us in the dark. He says, "The entrance of your words gives light." The words of God give understanding. They don't cause misunderstandings.
Now let's turn to the New Testament. In Matthew chapter nine, Jesus was eating with tax collectors and sinners, and as usual, the Pharisees criticized him. They said to his disciples, "Why does your master eat with publicans and sinners?" That's Matthew 9 verse 11. When Jesus heard that, the Bible says, He said to them in verse 12, "They that be whole do not need a physician, but they that are sick." And then in verse 13, He said, "But go and learn what this means. I will have mercy and not sacrifice." Think about those words. He says, "Go and learn what the meaning of that verse of scripture is."
Now, suppose that there was a Jew standing there who said, "Wait a minute. Everybody has his own interpretation of the Bible. One rabbi says this, and another rabbi says that, and the rabbis don't agree on the verse that you're talking about. One rabbi says that Hosea chapter 6 verse 6 says this, and another rabbi says that Hosea chapter 6 verse 6 should be interpreted in a different kind of way. So who are we to say what that verse of Scripture means?" Do you think that Jesus would have accepted that kind of excuse? Obviously not.
Here's another example. In Matthew chapter 12, Jesus' disciples began to pluck the heads of grain and to eat them on the Sabbath day. And the Bible says the Pharisees told Jesus that they were breaking the Sabbath law.
Notice what Jesus says in response. In verse three, He said, "Have you not read what David did?" Now, why would Jesus ask that question if they can't understand the Bible? Why would He be asking them, "Have you never read?" if there were so many different interpretations of the Bible that a person wouldn't know which one was correct?
Notice that He says again in verse five, "Or have you not read in the law how that on the Sabbath day, the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath and are blameless?" Haven't you read that? Haven't you studied that? Why, again, would Jesus encourage these people to read the Bible if they really can't know it and understand it?
Then the Bible says in verse seven that He told them the same thing that He told the Pharisees back in chapter nine. In Matthew chapter 12 verse seven, he said, "But if you had known what this means, I will have mercy and not sacrifice, you would not have condemned the guiltless." So he took them back to the same verse that He quoted in chapter nine.
Hosea chapter six verse six. God said, "I desire mercy and not sacrifice." And Jesus said if you had known the meaning of just that one verse, you would not have condemned my disciples. So Jesus is telling them they could have known and should have known the meaning of that verse. Now again, why would He do that? If people have their own interpretations of the Bible and you can't know which interpretation is correct, then why would He tell them that they should have known the meaning of that verse?
Here's another example. It's in Matthew chapter 13. Here we find the famous parable of the sower of the seed. Now, the seed is the Word of God. The sower is the one who is teaching or preaching the Word of God, and that seed or word falls into different kinds of hearts. I want you to notice the good ground that that seed or word falls into in Matthew chapter 13, verse 23. Jesus said, "But he that received seed into the good ground is he that hears the word, and understands it; which also bears fruit, and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty." So Jesus said that people hear the word and they understand that word.
Now let's turn to Matthew chapter 22. Beginning in verse 23, we find the Sadducees coming to Jesus. They are going to try to trap him in his words. They hope to ask him a question that exposes Him as a false teacher, but obviously it didn't work.
I want you to notice the first thing that Jesus said to them when they put forth this scenario to Him. In Matthew chapter 22, verse 29, Jesus said, "You do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God." So Jesus is showing that they should have known the truth on this. They should have learned what the Bible in the Old Testament said about the resurrection of the dead.
The Sadducees were wrong, and on this point, the Pharisees were right. The Bible says in Acts chapter 23, verse 8, "For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, neither angel, nor spirit: but the Pharisees confess both." So the Jews were divided over the question of the resurrection of the dead. Some said there will be a resurrection, and others said there will not be a resurrection.
The Pharisees said, "We believe in the resurrection of the dead." The Sadducees said, "There will be no resurrection of the dead." So imagine somebody back in those days saying, "Well, you know, there are different interpretations about that, and people have different opinions, and so I'm not going to say. Who knows what the correct interpretation is?"
If someone had said that, he would be wrong. He would just be using those different interpretations as an excuse not to make a stand and not to make the right decision. There was a true answer to that question, and there was a wrong answer to that question. And so the fact that people have different opinions about what the Bible says doesn't mean we cannot know the truth about it.
Sometimes people use this reasoning as an excuse. They don't want to make a decision. They don't want to get involved. They don't want to make a stand. They don't want to learn the truth because they know if they do know the truth, they will have to change their life. So people today oftentimes say, "Well, everybody has his own interpretation of the Bible, so who am I to say?" And they use that reasoning as an excuse. Can you imagine a lost sinner on the day of judgment saying to God Almighty, "Lord, I didn't do your will because I didn't study. And the reason I didn't read the Bible more is because there were so many different interpretations. I was just confused."
Now let's turn to Matthew chapter twenty-four for another example. Here, Jesus is discussing the destruction of Jerusalem. That happened in AD seventy. And here in this chapter, Jesus is warning the disciples. He does that by telling them the signs that will come before that calamity in AD seventy. Now, notice what he says in Matthew chapter twenty-four, beginning in verse fifteen.
He says, "When you therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, whoso reads, let him understand. Then let them which be in Judea flee to the mountains." Now, Jesus is not talking about the end of time here. We know that because he says when you see this abomination of desolation, then you get out of Judea and you flee, you run to the mountains.
It's not going to do anybody any good at all to run to the mountains when Jesus comes again. This is not the second coming of Christ. This is the destruction of Jerusalem that has already happened in AD 70. But I want you to notice what He says in verse 15 again. He says, "When you therefore shall see the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel the prophet stand in the holy place, whoso reads, let him understand."
He's referring to Daniel chapter nine. Now, Daniel chapter nine contains what many Bible readers regard as one of the most difficult passages in the Bible to interpret, and that's the teaching of the 70 weeks that are to come upon the city of Jerusalem in Daniel nine, verses 24 through 27. Now, it's true that you can read all kinds of interpretations about that passage, but there is something simple and there is something clear that Jesus tells us about the final meaning of that passage because he says in Matthew chapter 24, verse 15 that when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel stand in the holy place, he says, "Whoever reads, let him understand."
Now, there are going to be a lot of things about that passage of Scripture that you're going to scratch your head about and say, "I don't know what that means." And if you read commentaries, one will say this, and one will say that. And you may walk away saying, "There are a lot of interpretations about this passage."
But when it comes to the final point, when it comes to the fulfillment of that passage, that point is clear because Jesus gives you that interpretation in Matthew chapter 24, verse 15. It will happen when the Romans come into that city, and that will be an abomination that signals the desolation that's to occur in the city of Jerusalem. That happened as a historical fact in AD 70. And Jesus said you can understand that.
Here's another example. This is one of the clearest verses in the Bible on this subject. It's found in Ephesians chapter three. I'm going to begin reading in Ephesians three, verse one “For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles—If indeed you have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which was given to me for you, how that by revelation He made known to me the mystery, as I have briefly written already, by which, when you read, you may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ.”
So notice what Paul has said. Paul said that God made known to him the mystery. Now, when people see the word mystery in the Bible, they usually think it means something that is so mysterious you really can't understand it. But that's not the idea at all. Usually this word refers to God's plan for the Gentiles.
In the Old Testament, God foretold that plan, but He didn't state it directly. The Old Testament prophets didn't come right out and say that the Gentiles and Jews would be brothers and sisters in the church Jesus was to build. So God gave these prophecies, but the meaning was to an extent veiled or hidden.
Years after Jesus died on the cross and then established his church, the gospel was preached to Gentiles. Many of them obeyed and were saved. They became equal with the Jews in the church. That's what Paul says about this mystery in Ephesians three, verses five and six. He says that this mystery “in other ages was not made known to the sons of men as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to His holy apostles and prophets, that the Gentiles should be fellow heirs of the same body and partakers of His promise in Christ through the gospel.”
So the word mystery here and in other New Testament passages means something that was hidden in the Old Testament but made known in the New Testament. It does not mean something beyond our comprehension. And notice what Paul says about this mystery in Ephesians three, verses three and four. Again, this is one of the clearest and one of the most important passages to remember on the question “Can we understand the Bible?” especially in light of all the interpretations that people give to it.
In Ephesians three, verses three and four, Paul talks about this mystery, and he said that God made known to him the mystery. So Paul knew the mystery. But it didn't stop there, because Paul said, "I have written in few words." Paul wrote by inspiration the epistles that were sent to the churches and individuals. And he says clearly in verse four that by reading the words of the Bible that he wrote, we can understand.
Now, these are just a few thoughts and some verses of Scripture on this subject. The idea that we can never be sure what the Bible means because there are so many interpretations of it is false. That goes against the nature of God Himself. When people criticize the Bible, they criticize the one who wrote it, God. But this leads us to some questions. Now, these are not questions that are only asked by people who are trying to attack or cast aspersion on the Bible. These can be questions that honest readers of the Bible sometimes ask themselves or think about, and sometimes they're being asked these questions by other people and they need help with them.
First of all, doesn't the Bible itself say that it's hard to understand? The passage that people are talking about is in Second Peter chapter three. Second Peter chapter three, verse fifteen is where the Bible talks about Paul writing epistles. And this is where Peter said that Paul, “according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you, as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things in which are some things hard to understand, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest,” that is twist, “as they do also the other scriptures unto their own destruction.”
Now, notice what this passage says and what it does not say. It says that Paul wrote some things that are hard to understand. It does not say that everything Paul wrote was hard to understand. In the second place, it does not say that Paul wrote some things that were impossible to understand. So that goes against the very wording that Peter gave here.
Peter did not say that everything Paul wrote was hard to understand, and he certainly did not say that what Paul wrote was impossible to understand. And here's the funny thing about this. People say that you can't understand the Bible, and they point you to Second Peter chapter three, verse sixteen. Well, that's contradictory, isn't it?
If you can't understand the Bible, then how can I go to Second Peter chapter three, verse sixteen and understand that this verse tells me that I can't understand the Bible? You want me to understand a verse that tells me that I can't understand the Bible.
Here's another question. Catholics love to pull out this passage just like they love to pull out the one in Second Peter chapter three. This time it's this: Doesn't the Bible say that we're not to interpret the Bible for ourselves? They're talking about Second Peter chapter one, verses 20 and 21. This is where Peter said, "Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Ghost."
Now, the interpretation given by the Catholic Church is this. The individual does not have the right to interpret the Bible for himself. An individual reader of the Bible, according to the Catholic Church, does not have the authority to say what the Bible means. The Catholic Church says that the only ones on earth who have the authority to give the correct interpretation of the Bible is the leadership of the Catholic Church.
That means the Pope and the College of the Bishops. Together, they make up what is called the Magisterium. They give the official interpretation of the Bible. An individual, they say, does not have that right, and oftentimes Catholics will appeal to Second Peter chapter one, verses 20 and 21 to try to prove that point.
Well, let's look at what it says. The Bible says in verse 20 that, "No prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation." The expression "is of" means comes from. That is, Scripture does not come from private interpretation. This verse is not about interpreting the Bible. This verse is about the inspiration of the Bible.
It's not about what you do with the Bible. It's about where the Bible came from, and that is clear in verse 21 because he explains verse 20 in verse 21. He says, "The prophecy," that is Scripture, "did not come in old time by the will of man." Men didn't create it. So the private interpretation in verse 20 is explained in verse 21.
It means the will of man did not produce the Bible, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. All he's saying here is that the Bible is from the Holy Spirit of God, not from the will of man. So that verse is just completely taken out of context and misapplied.
But here's a more legitimate question: Why did God put hard verses in the Bible to begin with? Why didn't he make everything easy to understand? Because he wants us to work for it. He wants us to give it our full attention. He wants us to learn gradually, not all at once. It wouldn't be good if all we had to do was to glance at the Bible and get the meaning immediately without any effort. God wants us to read it, and then later, during the day or when we wake up at the night, to ponder what we read, to meditate on it.
The Bible says this about a righteous man in Psalm one, verse two: "His delight is in the law of the Lord, and in his law he meditates day and night." Here's something else to think about. Why didn't God make every verse in the Bible easy to understand? Because there are different levels for different Christians.
Beginners need the more simple parts. Christians that are more mature need teaching that challenges them. and takes them to a higher level of understanding. Now, this is why the Bible talks about some of its parts being milk and other parts being meat. In First Corinthians chapter three, verses one and two, Paul shames the Corinthian Christians because he said, "I have fed you with milk and not with meat because you were not able to bear it."
They were worldly-minded. The reason they didn't understand some of the deeper teachings of the gospel was not because they weren't smart enough. It's because they had the wrong attitude. It's because they had too much of the world in their hearts, and Paul said, "You are carnal." That is, you are fleshly.
You are worldly-minded. So in First Corinthians chapter three, verses one and two, Paul talks about the milk of the Word and the meat of the Word. It's not all milk. It's not all meat. Can you imagine what the Bible would be like if every book in the Bible were as difficult to understand as the Book of Revelation?
What if every book in the Bible were written like the Book of Revelation? I could see why people would have a question and maybe even a complaint about the way that the Bible is written, but it's not all written like that. But there's enough in the Bible for everybody. There is nourishment for everyone, depending on their stage of growth in the Christian life, and even depending on where they're at in their understanding of the gospel before they're baptized.
And also, remember this: people have different abilities. They have different gifts. Some people grasp things quicker than others. Some people remember more than others. The Bible has enough to challenge everybody. Remember, the way the Bible is written is not just to improve your intellect. It's not just a mental exercise.
The Bible is written in such a way that it challenges, it stimulates, your will. You have to want to understand it, and the Bible underscores that many times. In First Peter chapter two, verse two, the Bible says, "As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that you may grow thereby." In Matthew chapter five, verse six, the Bible says, "Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled."
Jesus also said, "Seek and you shall find" [Matthew seven, verse seven]. He said, "If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine" [John seven, verse 17]. So the fact that there are different interpretations of the Bible doesn't mean that you can't interpret the Bible correctly. What it means is that people have a free will, and you can use that will to read the Bible, understand it, obey it, and be saved.
Thank you for listening to My God and My Neighbor. Stay connected with our podcast on our website and on Apple, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever fine podcasts are distributed. Tennessee Bible College, providing Christian education since 1975 in Cookeville, Tennessee, offers undergraduate and graduate programs. Study at your level. Aim higher and get in touch with us today.