Biblical Exegesis explanation and discussion

[Always in His Presence]

Pulled from notes taken long ago - -

Often terms get used without full understanding of their meaning and use. The purpose is to explore what the term exegesis means.

Biblical exegesis (from the Greek ἐξήγησις, exēgēsis, meaning "leading out" or "explanation") is the critical interpretation and explanation of the text of the Bible using a systematic, disciplined methodology to determine the original intended meaning of the author as understood by the original audience.

• Text-centered: It starts with the biblical text itself (usually in its original languages: Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek) rather than imposing external ideas onto it.
• Historical-grammatical method: The most common approach seeks to understand:
  • What the human author intended to communicate
  • The historical, cultural, and literary context
  • The grammatical and syntactic structure of the original languages
  • The genre of the literature (narrative, poetry, prophecy, epistle, allegorical, etc.)
• Objective as possible: Aims to let the text speak for itself rather than reading assumptions or theological systems into it (contrast with eisegesis, which means "reading into" the text).

This is important because proper exegesis is centered and focused on the TEXT of the Scripture verses. Many times people get the two terms exegesis confused with eisegesis.

NOTE: The main reason why I do not use eisegesis is because it calls for "reading into", or reading in one own ideas or Religious agenda.

Proper exegesis includes:

• Textual criticism – Establish the most accurate original wording.
• Translation / linguistic analysis – Study the original languages (syntax, semantics, idioms).
• Literary context – Examine the passage in its immediate context and the broader book.
• Historical-cultural context – Research the time period, customs, geography, politics, etc.
• Genre analysis – Identify the literary form and its conventions.
• Theological analysis – Trace themes across Scripture (canonical context).
• Application – Only after determining original meaning do responsible interpreters move to contemporary significance.