Man I love starting a new series and this is a good one! I really hope you have been enjoying the posts this week- “How to Study the Scriptures and Gain Bible Literacy” by Courtney and “Why Knowing Hebrew is Essential to Your Bible Study” by Abby. I encourage you to take a look if you haven’t already.
Let me start this post by reiterating earlier posts, I have no theological training. Like I said, I am not a bible expert but I’m learning things and I think that is exactly why I NEED to share with you. I’ve tried studying scripture countless times and honestly I have always found it daunting. Where do you start? How do you study well? Am I even doing this right? Let me give you two words that will change how you study your bible: historical context.
You might ask, what is historical context and how does it play an important role in the way you study the bible? Well it may be the history teacher in me but if you aren’t researching historical context while studying scripture you are really missing out! No, seriously you are missing things. One of the best tools you can put in your toolbox is the historical context of the book or scripture you are reading. It can help you when you are trying to understand scripture because let’s face it, sometimes it’s hard to understand. Terminology is different from what we use today, places are hard to pronounce and often we don’t even know where a place is located. Along with understanding terms, knowing what is going on at the time the scripture was written can open your eyes to better understanding the message being conveyed. You wouldn’t try to build a chair with the legs missing would you? Probably not! So why would you study scripture without knowing anything about it? Researching context isn’t as hard or complex as you think it is. It doesn’t have to be lengthy or take hours. It’s not writing out paragraphs or pages of notes, it can be simple- use bullet points! I use many different resources when researching the context of what I’m reading (I will also put a list of what I use at the bottom of the post) such as: bible, study bible, bible apps, bible dictionary, commentary, encyclopedias, and maps. {Use caution that the commentary you are reading is not the Word of God, but instead just a helpful tool.} My best advice is to pick a couple of good resources and make them your “go to”.
So let me lay out what historical context is to me and what I try to find out about what I am reading. You are looking for what I call the 5 W’s and background: who, what, when, where, and why.
Let me give you an example of what a historical context might look like- I have recently finished studying 1 Peter with a wonderful group of women.
1 Peter:
Who- Peter wrote it, but it was penned by Silas (Silvanus). It was written for the believers scattered in Asia Minor.
What- Encouragement, hope, purpose
When- Roughly between 60 and 64 A.D.
Where- Written in Rome to people that lived in Asia Minor (present day Turkey)
Why- It was written to encourage believers who had been persecuted
Background- The Roman government during the reign of Emperor Nero was persecuting Christians due to their living against the standard culture at the time. Christians refused to worship the Roman gods and were considered a threat to the Roman way of life.
I hope the next time you dive into the Word of God you are able to use this as a tool to better understand what you are studying!
Links to online resources I use-
Hard copy resources I use-
Quest Study bible
Zondervan’s Compact Bible Dictionary
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