Brevard Childs on Canon

Brevard Childs argues that the shape of the Old Testament canon ought to be taken seriously. That is, both the historical progression of the canon as progressive revelation and the canon as final form ought to be approached with a theocentric understanding of Scripture. Study of the canon ought not to ignore the historical groundings, …

What Is Theological Interpretation of Scripture (TIS)?

In recent years, attention has been given to the theological interpretation of the Bible (referenced as TIS) as a hermeneutical movement. This movement does not present itself as altogether new, but rather as a recovery of a deeply theological reading of the Bible finding precedent in Church history. This movement is spurred on by the …

Canon & Canonical Interpretation: Köstenberger & Patterson

Köstenberger and Patterson distinguish their Invitation to Biblical Hermeneutics by dealing with special hermeneutics first, and then moving into general hermeneutics. This approach is grounded in the conception of Scripture as “theodrama,” and results in starting with the canon, rather than with the individual words in a particular book.[1] They point out that those who …

Does Paratext Matter?

Paratext can be defined as “everything in a text other than the words.”[1] In other words, anything surrounding or related to a published text other than the words of the text itself. Paratext adds significance, if not meaning, to a written text, bringing about a final form for public reading. The theory of paratext is …

The Church Bereft of Doctrine…

Bereft of the authority of doctrine, the church becomes as weak and arbitrary as any other human institution. . . Cut off from the root that nourished it, there seem to be only three ways for Protestantism to resolve theological conflicts: 1) to translate faith into the universal truths of reason (rationalism); 2) to appeal …

Literary Context: Psalter as Analogous to Canon

A canonical approach to the Bible includes the presupposition that the Bible has at least a theological unity, if not a literary unity. The theological unity is presupposed in the very idea of canon—the collection of God’s self-revelation. A literary unity is also presupposed in the very idea of canon, because the recognition of books …

Musings on Canonical Order

There are two streams of thought that combine to bring the order of the Old Testament canon into view. First, there appears to be widespread recognition that paratext influences biblical interpretation. Paratext includes everything related to the text apart from the actual words of the text.[1] This recognition shows up in the widespread popularity of …