This question is hardly new, but it needs to be answered. If the Bible is hard to understand – why is it hard? Is it impossible? Or is it merely “hard” to understand?
The first thing we must do is to discover if it is capable of being understood. Ponder the following:
1. Did God give us the Bible?
2. Does God love us?
3. Is God fair and just?
4. Is the Bible the standard by which God shall judge us?
The answer to all four questions is “yes”, and we know that. So, if God gave us a law, a covenant by which our eternal destiny is determined, and He wants us to be saved, it follows as the night follows day that we can understand it – if we really want to understand it.
Are some passages harder to understand than others? Of course – the Bible says so, 2 Peter 3:16. We learn early in life that some things are harder than others, but if it is important enough to us we will do what it takes to get it done. It will come down to whether or not we really want to understand.
Paul said that “study” – or great “diligence” – is required for this task, 2 Timothy 2:15. But why isn’t the Bible simple and easy? Is it possible for ordinary folks to understand it? Yes, it is, but you will have to work at it.
Why are some passages difficult?
- Hebrews 5:12-14 speaks of “milk” and “meat.” Understanding comes easy for the spiritually mature, but “babes” in Christ need “milk.” It follows that some of the Bible is milk while other parts are meat. Just as a child needs “milk” and adults can digest solid food, some parts of the Bible are easier to understand than others, depending on an individual’s maturity.
- Sometimes the information we want is not revealed in the Bible. Thus, we cannot know everything we want to know. We are not told why Nicodemus came to see Jesus at night or just where Cain got his wife. Some answers are not given.
- Some prefer to remain “willingly ignorant” rather than exert the energy needed to find the answers, Zechariah 7:11, 2 Peter 3:5. It may take hard work, and not everyone realizes that knowing the answer is worth the effort.
- As with any written material, a knowledge of the context of a passage -- both the immediate and remote context – must be known before its meaning will be clear. Without that information a serious misunderstanding will be almost inevitable. We must know who speaks and in what circumstances the words were written.
- Some quit their study before they finish. The material found in 1 Corinthians 12 must be followed up with chapter 13 if a complete and accurate understanding of the material is to be known.
- Some fail to correctly understand the Bible because they approach it with a biased view. Some set forth to prove something they already believe. In doing so they cannot be objective in their study. If they want the Bible to teach a doctrine they already believe, they may “wrest” the scriptures (2 Peter 3:16) to fit their previously accepted beliefs, convincing themselves those views have merit.
Can a common man understand the Bible?
If the question is, “Has anyone mastered all of the Bible?”, or “Will Iever understand every passage?”, then the answer is “Probably not.” But, if someone asks, “CanwereallyunderstandGod’swillforusintheBible?” the answer is a resounding “YES!” The truth is, we had better understand it, for the precepts and commands therein will constitute the standard by which all of us will be judged on that great day.
Can We Understand the Bible Alike?
In virtually every facet of life there are instructions, details, facts that must be understood for civilized life to continue. Man is capable of writing contracts, laws, and rules of behavior in ways by which man can comprehend and follow them. But sadly, as thought by some, God could not do so. He wrote the Bible, but even if we understand it, we may not understand it alike. It’s sad that the Holy Spirit could not write words that man can comprehend.
Consider this simple illustration. Let us say that I want to sell my truck. I put an ad in the paper and describe the truck, then list the price as $5,000. A man comes to look at the truck, likes what he sees and hands me a fifty-dollar bill and asks for the key and the title. “No,” I say. “I want $5,000 dollars for it.” He says, “Oh, I understood your price was fifty dollars.” We would laugh at the man’s failure to be able to understand what I said and what I published in the newspaper. He did not “understand” the price to be fifty dollars – he misunderstood.
Words precisely stated, if truly understood, will produce unity of thought. If we both understand, we will both understand alike
. Accordingly, though there may be some difficult passages in the Bible, some “meat” that must be studied carefully, we can understand God’s will for us. And if we understand His will for us, we will be in full agreement regarding its meaning.
Let us all study the Bible more!
