The Dimensions of

Biblical Language

2

¡Be Careful How You Approach the Runway!

3

Figurative Language

The true sense is not in the literal

meaning of the words or phrases but

in some similarity these words and

phrases have with the reality being

symbolized.

4

The Experience of the Tadpole

The Hidden World

The Visible World

5

The Literal Interpretation seeks the

original meaning according to the intention

of the author.

literalor figurative.

That Meaning May be Either

physicalor spiritual.

That Meaning May be Either

LANGUAGE

figu

rative

lite

ral

The first dimension is the language dimension. This

has to do with what the authors intended when they

wrote the words. Did they intend the language to be

understood literally or were they using the language

metaphorically to point to another reality?

DIM

EN

SIO

N

spiritual

physical

The second dimension

is the ontological

dimension. To which

reality does the

language point? Is it

referring to Spiritual

reality or Physical

reality?

figu

rative

lite

ralspiritual

physical

When we intersect

these two dimensions,

we get four

possibilities.

2

43

1

figu

rative

lite

ralspiritual

physical

• Angels

• Souls

• Demons

figu

rative

lite

ralspiritual

physical

In some cases, the biblical

writer intended his language

to be taken literally in

reference to spiritual realities.

• Thrones

• Dragon

• Trumpets

figu

rative

lite

ralspiritual

physical

Sometimes, the writer

intended the language to be

taken figuratively in reference

to spiritual realities. This is

necessary because, limited to

our physical world, we don’t

have direct personal

experience of these realities.

So, the authors must use

comparison to speak of these

spiritual realities.

figu

rative

lite

ralspiritual

physical

• New Earth

• Every eye shall see

• Resurrection

Other times, the writer

uses literal language to

speak of physical

realities. In these

instances, interpreters do

an injustice to the text

when they make the

words say something

spiritual or metaphorical.

figu

rative

lite

ralspiritual

physical

• Babylon

• The Beast

• Abomination of Desolation

• The big apple

In the fourth quadrant, we

have figurative language

that is intended to refer to

physical realities.

• Thrones

• Dragons

• Trumpets

• Angels

• Souls

• Demons

figu

rative

lite

ralspiritual

physical

• Babylon

• The Beast

• Abomination of Desolation

• New Earth

• Every eye shall see

• Resurrection

Literalism

Literalism occurs when the reader imposes a literal

(or physical) interpretation on language that was

originally intended to be taken figuratively.

“How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter

the second time into his mother's womb and be

born?(Juan 3:4).

Literalism

Principles of Interpretation

• The Analogy of Faith

• Contextual Limitation

• Prophetic Perspective

Analogy of Faith

“Each book proceeded from the same divine mind, so the

teaching of the Bible’s sixty-six books will be complementary

and self-consistent. If we cannot yet see this, the fault is in

us, not in Scripture. It is certain that Scripture nowhere

contradicts Scripture; rather, one passage explains another.

This sound principle of interpreting Scripture by Scripture is

sometimes called the analogy of Scripture or the analogy of

faith.”

J. I. Packer, Concise Theology: A Guide to Historic Christian Beliefs (Wheaton, Ill.:

Tyndale House, 1995).

Analogy of Faith

“If the Scriptures be what they claim to be, the word of God,

they are the work of one mind, and that mind divine. From

this it follows that Scripture cannot contradict Scripture. God

cannot teach in one place anything which is inconsistent with

what He teaches in another. Hence Scripture must explain

Scripture. If a passage admits of different interpretations,

that only can be the true one which agrees with what the

Bible teaches elsewhere on the same subject.”

Charles Hodge, vol. 1, Systematic Theology (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research

Systems, Inc., 1997), 187.

1. Textual

2. Inter-Textual

3. Intra-Textual

4. Historical

5. Literary

6. Geographical

7. Cultural

8. Socio-Political

9. Covenantal

10. Spiritual

Contextual Limitation

Text

Textual

Text

• Words

• Syntax

• Author’s Argument

Textual

Text

Inter-Textual• Parallel Passages

• Direct Usage of

another biblical

passage

• Quotations

• Conceptual

Dependencies

Textual

Text

Inter-Textual

Intra-Textual

The relationship

between a biblical

passage and other

non-canonical

historical

documents.

Contextual Limitation

Application should be made at paragraph level, not word

level. Words have meaning only in context; clauses have

meaning only in context; sentences have meaning only in

context. The only inspired person involved in the interpretive

process is the original author. . . . We must abide by the

original author’s intent. Application must relate specifically to

the general intent of the whole writing, the specific literary

unit and paragraph level thought development.

Robert James Dr. Utley, You Can Understand the Bible! (Marshall, Texas: Bible Lessons

International, 1996), 5.