Context, Context, Context

Never read a Bible Verse. I thought I’d write a few blog posts about one of my favorite topics, the importance of context when it comes to understanding the Bible correctly. To get us started, I offer the following exercise in context. From the following lists please choose all that apply.

What do I mean by the word “trunk”?
a) The base of a tree
b) The nose of an elephant
c) The storage compartment of a car
d) A large box with a hinged lid
e) An enclosed shaft or conduit for cables
f) A person’s or animal’s body apart from the limbs and head
g) The main part of an artery from which smaller branches arise
h) Swimming shorts for a one-legged man

What if I use it in this sentence? “That’s the biggest trunk I have ever seen”
a) The base of a tree
b) The nose of an elephant
c) The storage compartment of a car
d) A large box with a hinged lid
e) An enclosed shaft or conduit for cables
f) A person’s or animal’s body apart from the limbs and head
g) The main part of an artery from which smaller branches arise
h) Swimming shorts for a one-legged man

What if I add this sentence? “I can get a lot of junk in that trunk”
a) The base of a tree
b) The nose of an elephant
c) The storage compartment of a car
d) A large box with a hinged lid
e) An enclosed shaft or conduit for cables
f) A person’s or animal’s body apart from the limbs and head
g) The main part of an artery from which smaller branches arise
h) Swimming shorts for a one-legged man

What if it is in this paragraph? “That’s the biggest trunk I have ever seen. I can get a lot of junk in that trunk. Then I will store it in the basement.”
a) The base of a tree
b) The nose of an elephant
c) The storage compartment of a car
d) A large box with a hinged lid
e) An enclosed shaft or conduit for cables
f) A person’s or animal’s body apart from the limbs and head
g) The main part of an artery from which smaller branches arise
h) Swimming shorts for a one-legged man

Hopefully, by the end of this exercise, you figured out the trunk I had in mind was a large box with a hinged lid. You had no way of knowing that without some context. Even one or two sentences were not sufficient to reveal what the word meant. The same is true with reading the Bible. You cannot assume you know what a word means by itself. You can’t understand what a verse means by itself. You need at least the surrounding paragraph. Never read a Bible verse (by itself). Context, Context, Context.