THE GOLDEN RULE OF INTERPRETATION

 

When the plain sense of scripture makes common sense, seek no other sense; therefore, take every word at its primary, ordinary, usual, literal meaning

unless the facts of the immediate context, studied in the light of related passages and axiomatic and fundamental truths, indicate clearly otherwise.

COURTESY OF D. L. COOPER

 

1. DEFINITION: THE LITERAL METHOD OF INTERPRETATION

The literal method of interpretation is that method that gives to each word the same exact basic meaning it would have in normal, ordinary, customary usage, whether employed in writing, speaking or thinking.

 

2. If the words are employed in their natural and primitive signification, the sense which they express is the proper literal sense; whereas, if they are used with a figurative and derived meaning, the sense, though still literal, is usually called the metaphorical or figurative sense. Examples through comparing John 1:6 and 1:29.

 

3. Application of isagogics: This considers the historical and cultural

context of the passage of scripture. Recognizing that customs differ from culture to culture and from time to time, a word or concept may not mean today, what it meant in the time and place recorded in the bible.

 

A secondary application in this area is to realize that the King James Version of the bible uses the English language of AD 1611. Many words and phrases have no meaning to us today or have entirely different meanings than what they had 380 years ago. This has led to serious misunderstandings of the bible and many erroneous practices and false doctrines.

 

4. Application of categories: This considers the individual topics of the bible by properly evaluating every reference where that particular topic is mentioned.

 

5. Application of exegesis: This considers the grammatical structure of the bible through a detailed analysis of that structure as it occurs in the original languages of the bible; Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek.