Principle 11
must HERMENEUTICS
PRINCIPLE 11
Always Proceed from “Then” to “Now”
In principle 10, we saw that we always start with the interpretation if we are going to find the best applications for any Scripture. Understanding what a particular Scripture meant in its original setting guides us to proper applications for today. Principle 11 is a logical follow-up to the previous principle. Always Proceed from “Then” to “Now” applies to more than just the practical application of Scripture.
The diagram below shows a man, we’ll call him “Hermen Eutic,” walking across the bridge from Then to Now. In biblical hermeneutics we always start with “what it meant then” to the original audience. After determining what it meant then, in its historical setting, we may safely proceed to “what it means now” to Christians in present times.
Most Scripture that we interpret could be divided into the following categories:
Presentation
Precept
Principle
Practice
Pattern
Prophecy
Picture
Promise
Personal.
With each of these categories we will use the Proceed from “Then” to “Now” approach. Let’s look at some examples.
Presentation
A good definition of a presentation is presenting or “setting forth the facts.” Some Scriptures we interpret are just that. This is the category of historical books that are simply recording historical facts.
Numbers 1:20-46
In Numbers 1, we have the record of a census that was taken for military purposes during Israel’s wilderness journey. Number 1:46 says at that point (then) a total of 603,550 men were able to go to war. What does this Scripture mean at this point (now)? Should we look for some promise, prophecy, or hidden meaning in the numbers? No. This passage is just a presentation of historical facts.
Precept
A precept is a particular directive of Scripture. This means that we’re to follow the directive in the same way today as it was followed when it was given. Let’s take two examples — one from the Old Testament and one from the New Testament.
Exodus 20:14
One of the Ten Commandments is, “You shall not commit adultery.” What did this directive mean when it was given to Israel? Obviously, it means: don’t commit adultery!
How do we follow this directive today? It means the same to us today, because it’s a precept. Be faithful to your marriage vows. Don’t commit adultery!
Matthew 28:18-20
This is the Great Commission given by Jesus after His resurrection. What did this directive mean to Jesus’ disciples, the original audience? They were to move out and preach the gospel to everyone, not just the Jews. They were to make disciples in all nations, not only in Israel.
How do we follow this directive today? We follow it the same way now as the disciples did then, because it’s a precept. We’re to preach the gospel to everyone, and we’re to make disciples in all nations.
Principle
Sometimes we follow a directive of Scripture in principle, as opposed to practicing it as a precept. Sometimes we can’t follow directives in the same way as they were followed when they were given to the original audience.
Acts 1:8
In Acts 1;8, the resurrected Jesus commanded His disciples to be His witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the most remote parts of the earth. What did this directive mean to the disciples then? For them, it was a precept. They were literally to begin their witness in Jerusalem, then move out to Judea, then Samaria, etc.
But how do we follow this directive today — as a precept or as a principle? If we followed this directive as a precept, Christians interested in foreign missions would have to literally begin their ministry in Jerusalem, then move to Judea, then Samaria, before going to begin a witness in (for example) Papua New Guinea.
Clearly that’s not how the Lord meant this directive about witnesing to be applied today, so we follow it in principle, not as a precept. What principles for witnessing can we draw from this passage? How about, “Begin where you are!” Share the gospel in your home town before you make plans to go as a witness in South America. The disciples were in Jerusalem, so they began witnessing right where they were before moving out. We should begin sharing the gospel right where we are, as well.
Numbers 15:37-40 and Deuteronomy 6:4-9
What did this command about tassels on the corners of garments mean then to the original audience - the people of Israel? Godly Jews followed this directive as a precept. They wore garments with a fringe or tassels to remind themselves of God’s laws. We read in Mark 5 of a woman who reached out and touched the fringe of Jesus’ garment, so we know that Jesus, as a Jew, followed this command as a precept.
Orthodox Jews today follow the directives of Deuteronomy 6 as a precept by wearing vests or prayer shawls with fringes or tassels. They enclose passages of Scripture in phylacteries, small leather boxes that they strap to their foreheads and arms when they pray. Following this directive as a precept, many Jewish homes have a mezuzah, a small box containing a portion of Scripture, mounted on their doorpost.
Although Christians today don’t follow these directives literally as precepts, we should follow them in principle. One principle would be: The Word of God should be before us at all times. How can we make this happen in our daily lives? Here are a few ideas:
Memorize Scripture so we can recall and think about it during our day.
Leave our Bible in a visible and accessible place.
Hang artwork with portions of Scripture on the walls of our homes.
Read Bible stories to our young children every day.
These are ways in which we can follow these biblical directives in principle as we move from “then” to “now.”
It’s not always as easy to distinguish which biblical directives we follow as precepts and which we follow as principles. Sometimes we have to use several additional hermeneutical principles to help guide us.
Practice
In the New Testament we find many practices of the early Church. Should churches today follow the same practices that were followed in the early churches? In general, yes. It’s never wrong or unbiblical to follow the practices of New Testament churches. However, when it can be shown conclusively that a certain practice existed for cultural reasons only, churches today shouldn’t feel obliged to treat it as a command of Scripture. Let’s look at some examples where the church today should consider following early church practice.
1 Corinthians 11:26
“For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are announcing the Lord’s death until he comes again.”
How often should we celebrate the Lord’s Supper in modern times? Once a day? Once a week? Once a month? There’s no command in Scripture telling us how often we should celebrate communion. The Scripture indicates, however, that the practice of the early churches was to celebrate it weekly, on the Lord’s Day (Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 16:2).
Should we follow this practice today, as we come across the bridge from then to now? Here’s a good rule to follow: Assume that the practices followed in the early Church are normative for today unless there is a very good reason to indicate that the practices were only for that day.
Another practice of the early Church is seen in Acts 14:26-27 where missionaries Paul and Barnabas reported back to their home church at the end of a lengthy missions trip. This is not a command in Scripture, but it’s a good practice to follow today, as we cross the bridge from then to now.
What’s an example of an early Church custom that we don’t feel obliged to follow today? The early Christians met in homes, but most of us meet in church buildings today. Obviously, it’s fine for a church to meet in a home, and, in fact, it’s sometimes quite necessary, as in a communist or Muslim country. On the other hand, it’s not wrong or unbiblical for Christians to meet in a large building. The size and location of the church meeting place is not an issue in the New Testament.
Pattern
1 Corinthians 14:26
“Well, my brothers and sisters, let’s summarize. When you meet together, one will sing, another will teach, another will tell some special revelation God has given, one will speak in tongues, and another will interpret what is said. But everything that is done must strengthen all of you.”
How do we cross the bridge from then to now with this Scripture? This verse appears to be a pattern for worship services in 1st century churches. Pattern in the early Church is very similar to practice of the early Church. This pattern is as suitable for churches today as it was then. There’s no scriptural reason why it can’t be followed today.
Prophecy
We’ll look at prophecy a little later in this course. When crossing the bridge from then to now, the basic question we ask about prophetic passages is, “Has the prophecy been completely fulfilled, or does it await to be completely fulfilled in the future?”
Picture
This category deals with “spiritualizing” Scripture, and that will be covered in Principle 12 of Hermeneutics.
Promise
When we cross the bridge with a promise of Scripture, we need to be careful not to claim a promise now that was only meant for then. We should ask, “To whom was this promise given?” and “What were the conditions of the promise when it was given?”
In Hebrews 13:5 we read that the Lord promised, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” We believe this is a promise we can claim now, because it was addressed to believers in the church age. But what about a promise like Genesis 12:2 where God promised to make Abram a great nation? Clearly, we can’t claim that biblical promise for ourselves! We must look carefully at the surrounding context of any promise of Scripture before crossing the bridge and claiming it for today.
Matthew 6:33
“Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.”
What is the “everything” that will be given to someone who puts the kingdom of God first? In context, it’s our basic needs: food, clothing, shelter. Can we claim this promise today? Yes! The rest of the New Testament supports the idea that a believer today can depend on the Lord to provide his basic needs - if he is putting God’s kingdom first!
Deuteronomy 28:12
“The Lord will send rain at the proper time from his rich treasury in the heavens and will bless all the work you do.”
Can a Christian farmer today claim this promise during a drought? No. It was a promise to the Jewish people as they were about to enter the land of Canaan. If they followed the Lord, they could literally claim the promise that God would send rain on their land.
But this promise isn’t for Christian farmers today. God may answer the prayers of Christian farmers today and send rain, but Deuteronomy 28:12 was specifically made to Jewish people then. It is not a divine guarantee for Christians now.
Personal
Sometimes we want to apply the promises of Scripture in a personal matter. For instance, we might turn to Scripture for specific guidance for a decision, or for a promise from God for our lives. God can certainly use His Word in this way, but we need to be careful.
For example, we can’t take a messianic prophecy like Zechariah 9:9 and apply it to ourselves. “Look, your king is coming to you. He is righteous and victorious” is not a personal promise to a single person who is looking for a spouse! However, the Lord can use certain passages, like the promises of God in Exodus chapters 3-12, to guide us to leave a certain job, location, or situation if that current job is holding us back from living for the Lord.
How are these two examples different? The difference is the common ground. There’s no common ground between a messianic prophecy and a single person seeking marriage. However, there’s a lot of common ground in the second example. Israel needed to leave their slave status in Egypt so they could be free to obey and serve the Lord. In the same way, we may need to leave the bondage of a worldly and ungodly job (or other situation) in order to obey and serve the Lord.
In each of these examples, we have used a common approach. We always start with the then - what did it mean to the original audience? Then we proceed to the now - what does it mean now, to current-day Christians? As we apply the “asking what it meant then” approach in our personal Bible study, we’ll grow in our understanding and ability to properly cross the bridge from then to now.