Foretaste: A Case for Scripture, Part 3

In my last post, I reviewed how having a bit more knowledge about Scripture and Israel's history can shed light on Jeremiah 17:4-5 and perhaps allow an application of Scripture to be made in the present from something that was written for and to a people living thousands of years ago.  Now I'd like to walk through interpreter 2's point of view.  This person takes Scripture very seriously, especially looking for a fresh word of the Lord for their life.  However, personal wounds and deep soul-level sufferings and scars are causing them to interpret the passage too quickly.  This can even happen in the midst of prayer, even when we "feel" the LORD speaking to us.  A further study of Scripture can help interpreter number 2 have a more accurate view of God and especially their relationship to God.

Moving too quickly to personal application might cause devastating impacts, like the following ideas pulled from interpreter number 2's response: "God is angry because I am sinful; God doesn't want me to trust other people or rely on them, only Him; I was deeply hurt because I trusted other people, which this passage condemns - therefore I deserve my suffering."

Looking at this passage through our historical context, we would quickly see that God is angry at Israel/Judah, not the interpreter; God is specifically speaking about Israel (the nation He is King over) and Israel's rulers trusting in their armies and political alliances instead of in their King; God is not speaking about a person's ability to trust another human being.  Judah/Israel received God's judgment after hundreds of years of being called to repent and so God judged them; God did not cause the interpreter's suffering because of trusting another human - an evil person caused that suffering. 

In fact, taking our passage in its literary context, we would see several other things that could speak into our situation that would seem counter to the interpreter's reactions: a plea and cry for healing by the prophet (Jeremiah 17:14-18); God's love for Israel and promises for restoration despite their sin and punishment (Jeremiah 16:14-21).  Both of these might speak into our interpreter's context in a different way: God is our healer who wants to heal Israel, a very undesirable nation.  If God would heal Israel, then He might just be willing to heal us too!  In fact, the Lord begs Israel to come to him the fountain of living water, but Israel forsook Him (Jer. 17:13d). 

Better than this is to reflect on the differences between the interpreter and Judah in the days of Jeremiah: Judah was called to repentance for about 300 years before their judgment; our interpreter (if a Christian) has already accepted repentance and the Holy Spirit, who is transforming the person into Christ-likeness.  Judah was not asking for help from God; our interpreter is asking for help from God by reading and praying over Scripture diligently.  Judah caused God's judgment to be brought upon themselves; our interpreter was not judged by God, but afflicted and caused to suffer because of another's sinfulness. 

Distinguishing ourselves as different from the original audience of the text, yet still looking to hear what they hear and how they heard it, is important, especially in cases like the above.  Meditating on Jesus' work and the work and responsibilities of the church doing life together would be an important element for this interpreter to reflect upon on their own journey towards Jesus.   

Once again I must suggest that studying Scripture seriously is important in our journey's with God. It will help us to better understand what we are reading, who God is, how God works in history, and then we can reflect on what it means in our own lives and contexts. Without it, we can quickly become mislead by false feelings, misconceived interpretations, our own wounds, and demonic forces looking to lead us astray.  Tune in tomorrow for part 4, where we will look at interpreter 3's response and see how a more in-depth study of Scripture might change what he pulled from the text.