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4. Apologetics was used by the apostles; evidence was provided by God.
5. Jesus said to “love the Lord your God with all your mind.”
6. Christianity is different from myth since it has stood the test of time due to its
evidence and eyewitness testimony.
7. The object of one’s faith is what makes faith great, not how sincerely one believes
something.
8. Christianity is unique when compared to other religions and philosophies.
9. The New Testament is made up of historical documents that are authentic.
10. Authenticity means the document is genuine and reliable.
11. There are critics who say the New Testament is a fraud and not a first century
document.
12. Manuscripts from the first, second and third centuries prove the New Testament
was already being preserved before the critics say it was being written.
13. The vast amount of manuscripts help prove New Testament authenticity.
14. The short time period between the first writing and the oldest manuscript help
support our belief that the New Testament we have today is nearly an exact
match to what was originally written.
15. Accepted history of the Romans (and even the world) is based on documents with
as few as 5-10 existing manuscripts. The New Testament alone has 5,686 Greek
manuscripts.
16. The time interval for the original writings and mss of many accepted historical
documents is 900+ years. This allows plenty of time for corruptions to enter the
text. The New Testament manuscripts were written within 30–200 years of the
original.
17. Internal evidence in the New Testament books also proves they are authentic first
century documents.
QUESTIONS
1. Do you think the New Testament is authentic?
2. How can the number of manuscripts help support New Testament authenticity?
3. Does the time between the writing of the document and the closest copy make a
difference?
4. Do you think a document that has been copied for 900 years or one that has
been copied for 150 years will have more errors in the text?
5. List four important manuscripts and about the time they were written.
6. List two reasons we can say Paul’s New Testament letters are authentic based
2. If proteins were not 1,836 times heavier than electrons, molecules would not be able
to form and there would be no chemistry, no life and no one to wonder why.
3. The position and angle of the earth is set. A few degrees closer to the sun, we
disintegrate. A few degrees away and the earth becomes a frozen rock.
4. The 23-degree axis of the earth provides equal distribution of sun and makes the
food chain possible.
5. The atomic clocks are the most accurate time instruments we have invented. They
are accurate up to within 3 seconds of a millennium. We use the rotation of the
stars to set and check these clocks.
6. After 150 years of study, fossil records are beginning to agree with Scripture’s
account that life forms appeared abruptly with no transitional forms.
Scientists today who reject the concept of God scramble to craft alternative
explanations for the obvious existence of God. They have come up with a variety
of ways to explain how life and the universe came into existence without a
creator. Each of their reasons agrees with Romans 1:21,22: “For although they
knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their
thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they
claimed to be wise, they became fools.” Here is what the fools in science are
saying:
1. There are “many worlds” and infinite universes. The odds are good that one would
produce life eventually. We were the lucky universe. (Now, if that is good science
then the lottery is a logical thing to invest in.)
2. The zillions of universes are like bubbles in foam. Each one contains more and more
little bubbles. (To believe this takes more blind faith than any religious explanation.
Thus, we see that this phase of science has entered the realm of religion.)
3. All possible states of a quantum interaction have to be actualized, so slightly
different versions of our universe are constantly splitting off, creating a nearinfinitude
of new universes every moment. (One scientist points out that this
statement is not science when he says, “Invoking an infinitude of unobservable
universes to explain the one observable universe is a grotesque violation.”
Remember science is based in observation.)
4. Life must have been sent here in a spaceship from a dying civilization and perhaps
just the astronauts’ bacteria survived the journey. Two physicists conclude that
just the genetic material was sent here in the first place. Both of these last
two ideas come from scientists who have earned Nobel prizes and discovered
natural laws. (With this kind of science we are clearly headed back into the dark
ages. Bring your flashlights!)
KEY POINTS
1. Apologia means to give a defense by providing evidence.
2. Evidence comes before faith.
3. Part of our responsibility is to know the evidence and provide the evidence.
SCIENTIFIC PROOF FOR THE EXISTENCE OF GOD A.6
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APOLOGETICS
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FRAMEWORK FOR CHRISTIAN FAITH
Section Two
Hermeneutics
Chapter Seven
Hermeneutics - The Science of Interpretation
HERMES WAS THE Greek god who served as the messenger for the gods.
Hermes was also responsible for interpreting the will of the gods.
Hermeneuein is the Greek verb that means “to express, to explain, to translate, to
interpret.”
Purpose of Hermeneutics
The purpose of hermeneutics is to establish guidelines and rules for the interpretation of
written documents.
The goal of Hermeneutics is to discover the thoughts and meanings of the writers when
they communicated through the medium of the written document.
Any written document is subject to misinterpretation. The Bible is no exception.
The written documents we base our faith on present a special problem for us because
they were written between 2,000-3,500 years ago and communicated to people in
societies, cultures and languages very different from ours.
The Considerations of Hermaneutics
a. Word definitions
b. Contextual analysis – analysis of the context of the writing
c. Literary types and forms – poetry, parable, historical narrative, dialogue,
prophecy, etc.
d. Historical analogy – comparison of points in recorded history
e. Syntactical distinctives – considering the meaning and arrangement of the words
in a sentence
Hermeneutics in the area of scriptural interpretation must also consider:
f. The doctrine of inspiration
g. The theological significance of Scripture that comes by revelation of God and is
found in no other written document
The books of the Bible are recorded in human speech and so they must be interpreted
as any other book.
In 1860 Benjamin Jowett wrote in his “Essays and Reviews” that we should interpret
the Bible like any other book. His point was in regard to word meanings, correct text
readings, etc. He did not mean there was nothing special about the Holy Scriptures.
on internal evidence from the text.
7. List three reasons we can say the book of Acts was written before the fall of
Jerusalem in 70 AD.
8. What is the Greek word for apologetics?
9. What is one of the main apologetic verses?
10. Name four areas in which apologetics can help prove the Christian faith.
11. Name two uses for apologetics.
12. What are three cautions to apologists?
13. Can you explain why “blind faith” should not be part of the Christian experience?
14. What is the difference between subjective faith and objective faith?
15. Give examples of reason and faith in your life.
16. Describe some presuppositions you might have.
QUOTES
“There are too many onlookers for one person to create a false quote, let alone a false book.”
“The benefit of the doubt is to be given to the document itself, not arrogated by the critic
to himself.” –Aristotle
“It is reassuring at the end to find that the general result of all these discoveries and
all this study is to strengthen the proof of the authenticity of the Scriptures, and our
conviction that we have in our hands, in substantial integrity, the veritable Word of God.”
–Sir Frederic G. Kenyon, Director of British Museum
“To be skeptical of the resultant text of the New Testament books is to allow all of
classical antiquity to slip into obscurity, for no documents of the ancient period are as
well attested bibliographically as the New Testament.” – John Warwick Montgomery
(Distinguished Professor of Law and Vice-President for Academic Affairs, UK and
Europe, Trinity College and Seminary)
BOOKS from Galyn’s Shelf:
Early Manuscripts and Modern Translations of the New Testament by Philip Wesley
Comfort, ISBN 0801020980
How We Got the Bible by Neil R. Lightfoot, ISBN 080101252X
Books and Their Makers in the Middle Ages by George Haven Putnam, ISBN 1410213412
Light from the Ancient East by Adolf Deissmann, ISBN 0766174069
Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics by Norman L. Geisler, ISBN 0-8010-2151-0
Many Infallible Proofs by Henry M. Morris, ISBN 0-89051-005-9
Evidence That Demands a Verdict Josh McDowell, ISBN0-8407-4378-5
Christian Apologetics by Norman L. Geisler, ISBN 1-56563-800-X
Apologetics: An Introduction by William Lane Craig, ISBN 0-8024-0405-7
Vital Apologetic Issues by Roy B. Zuck, ISBN 0-8254-4070-X
The Case For Faith by Lee Strobel, ISBN 0-310-24188-X
101 Reasons You Can Believe Ralph O. Muncaster, ISBN 0-7369-1198-7
SCIENTIFIC PROOF FOR THE EXISTENCE OF GOD B.7
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HERMENEUTICS
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FRAMEWORK FOR CHRISTIAN FAITH
Chapter Eight
History of Biblical Interpretation
EZRA (450 BC) MADE an early attempt to establish a systematic interpretation of the
law. Ezra emphasized observance of the law which ultimately led away from the true
meaning of the law. Ezra founded a Jewish class called the scribes who were devoted to
the exposition of the Scriptures.
Definition: Exposition – a setting forth of facts, ideas, etc; detailed explanation; writing or
speaking that sets forth or explains. Exposition is not the same and is distinguished from
these: description, narration, and argumentation.
Ezra’s scribes developed a systematic way of reducing the law to a formula that was
both legalistic and fanciful (imaginative). The scribe’s system of interpretation made it
impossible to correctly interpret the Old Testament. By the time Jesus came, the Jewish
understanding of the Scriptures had been clouded by the faulty system of hermeneutics
practiced by the scribes.
Jewish Literalism
In Jewish literalism, the Old Testament was dissected into separate words and phrases,
which were given meanings completely divorced from the history, spirit and context of the
material. Three very influential rabbis from the first century BC each developed rules or
guidelines for their own systems of interpretation:
1. Hillel
a. Born in Babylon and went to Jerusalem for training
b. Hillel founded the Talmudic system to organize the mass of regulations that
made up the oral law.
c. He had seven laws of interpretation:
i. The rule of light and heavy or from the lesser to the greater, taken
from Numbers 12:14
ii. An inferred relation between two subjects from identical
expressions. Example: the daily sacrifice must be offered on a
Sabbath, thus the Passover sacrifice may also be offered on a
Sabbath without violating the Sabbath
iii. The extension from the specific to the general. Example:
Necessary work on a Sabbath was also accepted on holy days.
iv. The explanation of two passages by a third
v. Drawing guidance from a general situation and applying it to a
special situation
vi. The explanation of a passage from the analogy of other passages
(as seen in Matt. 12:5)
The Grammatico-Historical Method
In the United States there is a supreme board of hermeneutics called the Supreme Court.
Their job is to interpret the Constitution following the grammatico-historical method. The
grammatico-historical method involves interpreting the words in the document in light of
what those words meant when the document was created.
THE SCIENCE OF INTERPRETATION B.8
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HERMENEUTICS
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FRAMEWORK FOR CHRISTIAN FAITH
Just like the soul is more important than the body, the allegorical meaning was more
important than the actual literal meaning.
An example of this: The four rivers of Genesis 2:10-14 (Pishon, Gihon, Tigris, Euphrates)
were symbols for the four virtues: prudence, temperance, courage, and justice.
Jesus as an Interpreter
1. Jesus never had any criticism of the Old Testament as the divine record.
2. Jesus was not a rabbi, nor was he trained in their schools, but he was familiar
with their methods.
3. Jesus often described the scribes and interpreters of the law as, “ever hearing
but never understanding, . . . ever seeing but never perceiving” (Matthew
13:14).
4. Jesus credited David’s words to the Holy Spirit (Mark 12:36).
5. Jesus accepted the historical reliability of the Scriptures, citing stories about
Adam, Noah, Abraham, David, Solomon, Jonah, Isaiah, etc. as true and
accurate.
6. Jesus’ interest was in the spiritual values of the Old Testament. He could see
God’s purpose in the Scriptures for the human race.
7. There are 36 direct quotes by Jesus of the Old Testament. He often used Old
Testament terminology in his own teaching.
8. When Jesus did use the Old Testament it was to reinforce his own teaching.
9. Jesus appealed to no higher authority when he taught. He was the source of his
own teaching.
10. “He taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law”
(Mark 1:22).
11. Jesus’ method of interpretation was completely new as he explained the
meaning of the Old Testament.
12. Jesus did not give a new intellectual approach to interpretation (such as literal
or allegorical), but instead was God himself come into the world to explain his
written word.
13. A change occurred with the coming of Christ because the question was no
longer what the true meaning of the text was, but the relationship of the text
with Jesus and his purpose.
14. “He interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself”
(Luke 24:27).
Apostles as Interpreters
1. Even though Jesus stood independent of the rabbis’ approach to Scripture and
vii. An application of inferences based on passages that were selfevident
d. These rules allowed the scribes that came after Hillel to make a multitude of
false interpretations.
2. Shammai
a. Shammai was a rival of Hillel and a formalist in the extreme school of Jewish
legalism.
b. Shammai and the school of Jewish legalism disregarded the purpose of the
law and led people
into a blind slavery of pointless obedience.
c. Shammai made his infant grandson fast nearly to death on the Day of
Atonement.
d. Shammai had a booth (for the Feast of Tabernacles) built over the bed inside
the house where
his daughter was in labor during the feast.
3. Gamaliel
a. Gamaliel was the grandson of Hillel.
b. Gamaliel was the apostle Paul’s teacher when he was a young man training
to be a Pharisee and known as Saul.
c. Gamaliel was broadminded in his interpretation.
d. He studied and taught Greek literature.
e. He advocated the rights and privileges of the Gentiles.
4. There were two other notable scribes in the school of Jewish Literalism
a. Ishmael (150 AD) set forth 13 rules of interpretation.
b. Eliezerben Yose (150 AD) had 32 rules for interpretation.
Jewish Allegorism
Definition: Allegory – A story in which people, things, and happenings have meanings
other than the literal context, as in a fable or a parable.
Alexandria, Egypt was the center of Jewish allegorical interpretation.
Aristobulus, the earliest allegorical teacher, taught that the Greek philosophers and
poets derived their ideas from an early Greek translation of the Old Testament.
Philo made the most significant contribution in harmonizing the institutions and ideas of
Judaism with Greek culture and philosophy. He taught that all Scripture contained twofold
meaning: the literal meaning and the allegorical meaning.
These two were like the body and soul.
Philo used Psalm 62:11 as his proof text to defend this type of interpretation: “One thing
God has spoken, two things have I heard.”
HISTORY OF BIBLICAL INTERPRETATION B.8
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HERMENEUTICS
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FRAMEWORK FOR CHRISTIAN FAITH
3. In this book history is meaningless. For example, according to the author, God’s
covenant had always been with the Christians.
4. The Old Testament only has meaning if understood in terms of the Gospel. Here
we have an extreme method of having to interpret Christ into everything for it
to have any value.
5. Typology was the author’s basic principle of interpretation. For example:
Abraham’s 318 servants represent the numerical value of the Greek letters
TIH. The “T” stood for the cross and the “IH” (the first two Greek letters for
Jesus’ name) stood for Jesus. This was the mystery of Abraham’s servants.
6. The author was the first to base the age of the world on the six days of creation
and Psalm 90:4.
Irenaeus
1. Bishop in Gaul 177-197
2. Irenaeus established the path of Christian thought for the next several centuries.
3. He approached Scripture exclusively by exposition (a setting forth of facts, ideas,
etc; detailed explanation) of the Bible.
4. He did not use philosophy.
5. He was the first to quote almost the entire New Testament and quoted
extensively from the Old Testament.
6. It has been said of Irenaeus concerning hermeneutics that he preserved the best
that came before him and anticipated nearly all that would follow him including
Origen, Augustine, Luther and Calvin.
7. The principle of inspiration governed his method of interpretation.
8. Because Irenaeus believed that God inspired both the Old and New Testaments
he believed in the unity of Scripture and concluded that Scripture must be used
to interpret Scripture.
9. He insisted that obscure passages that were harder to understand must
be clarified by being compared with passages that were clear and well
understood.
10. Christ was the center of Scripture and the Old Testament can only be
understood when Christ and his coming are understood.
11. He believed every part of Scripture had its own place and purpose.
Origen
1. Origen was a teacher in Alexandria, Egypt. He lived 185-254.
2. He was the first systematic theologian because he employed the entire Bible as
did not use the methods of interpretation used in his day, the writers of the
New Testament did follow their Jewish heritage much of the time.
2. The apostles used the methods of their culture, but they used those methods to
reinterpret the Old Testament based on the views they learned from their Lord
and teacher.
3. As always, inspiration did not separate the writers of the New Testament from
their own personal culture, background, vocabulary or education.
4. The extreme liberalism of the rabbis appears in Galatians 3:16 and Hebrews
2:11-13 where the New Testament writers use the rabbis’ technique of
interpretation to prove their own views.
5. Rabbinic disregard of context and historical background appears in Romans
9:25. Although Paul disregards the context and historical background here, he
did not abuse the intent of the passage in order to reveal God’s character. The
coming of the Messiah had shed light on these words and opened a new door
of application.
6. An example of Rabbinic allegorical interpretation is found in Galatians 4:21-32.
Paul does not deny the historical accuracy but does find a parallel in his own
life.
7. The apostles looked for Christ in every passage of the Old Testament. This
practice is seen in Matthew’s use of Hosea 11:1 in Matthew 2:15.
8. We cannot expect to find 21st century methods of interpretation used in the 1st