Question: Rovicor wants to know how to answer a person who asks why we interpret the Bible literally. Specifically, the prohibition on the use of carved images in the Ten Commandments.
Answer: The key to understanding the Bible is context. Context simply means background. There are 2 general kinds of contexts: 1.) Historical context which refers to the background of the passage in terms of the author, audience, occasion, purpose, geography and culture and 2.) Literary context which looks at the specific GENRE or the type of writing of a particular Bible passage. One of the literary genres of the Bible is the historical narrative. Both the Exodus and Deuteronomy, where the 10 Commandments can be found are good examples of this. These historical narratives are stories that not only teach lessons but also chronicle the events that happened during this very critical and defining era in the life of the nation of Israel to serve as a testament for the future generations (See Exodus 13:14; Deut. 6:20-25). They are not allegories with details that have hidden symbols or meanings.
Within the Exodus and Deuteronomy accounts, you will find the Ten Commandments which is a covenant and written in a format and standard that is used for covenant writing during those times in the Ancient Near East. Covenants and contracts just like most legal documents are written in a straightforward style avoiding the use of any figurative language to avoid any misinterpretation.
Both Exodus 20:4 and Deuteronomy 5:8 refer to the same stipulation in God’s covenant with the Jewish nation that they should not worship according to the ways of the pagans during that time. This second commandment clearly forbids the use of images to worship God. Other passages in the Bible lends support to this prohibition (Deuteronomy 27:15; Isaiah 45:9-20; Romans 1:23 & 25) – From Divina Gracia Montague as edited.
Live
3 Comments