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Introducing Biblical Hermeneutics: A Comprehensive Framework for Hearing God in Scripture
Renowned scholar Craig Bartholomew, coauthor of the bestselling textbook The Drama of Scripture (75,000 copies sold), writes in his main area of expertise—hermeneutics—to help seminarians pursue a lifetime of biblical interpretation. Integrating the latest research in theology, philosophy, and biblical studies, this substantive hermeneutics textbook is robustly theological in its approach, takes philosophical hermeneutics seriously, keeps the focus throughout on the actual process of interpreting Scripture, and argues that biblical interpretation should be centered in the context and service of the church—an approach that helps us hear God’s address today.
640 pages, Hardcover
First published October 13, 2015
18 people are currently reading
114 people want to read
About the author
Craig G. Bartholomew
77 books53 followersCraig G. Bartholomew (PhD, University of Bristol) is the H. Evan Runner Professor of Philosophy at Redeemer University College in Ancaster, Ontario, and the principal of the Paideia Centre for Public Theology. He founded the internationally recognized Scripture and Hermeneutics seminar and is coauthor of Living at the Crossroads and Christian Philosophy.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
December 7, 2024
"Introducing Biblical Hermeneutics" by Craig Bartholomew is a dense, ambitious survey of hermeneutical approaches, spanning scholars, philosophers, and theologians. While it expertly maps the landscape, the book assumes prior familiarity with technical terminology and key works, potentially overwhelming newcomers.
To fully appreciate Bartholomew's synthesis, readers should ideally have a background in academic hermeneutics, philosophy, and theology. Familiarity with influential scholars like NT Wright (particularly "The New Testament and the People of God") will enhance understanding.
The final three chapters shine, offering insightful analyses of Christian scholarship, Hebrews, and Preaching. Even if the academic discussions seem daunting, persevering through to these concluding sections will prove rewarding.
Bartholomew's work serves as a valuable resource for those already versed in hermeneutics, philosophy, and theology. With dedication and proper context, this comprehensive guide will enrich understanding of biblical interpretation.
To fully appreciate Bartholomew's synthesis, readers should ideally have a background in academic hermeneutics, philosophy, and theology. Familiarity with influential scholars like NT Wright (particularly "The New Testament and the People of God") will enhance understanding.
The final three chapters shine, offering insightful analyses of Christian scholarship, Hebrews, and Preaching. Even if the academic discussions seem daunting, persevering through to these concluding sections will prove rewarding.
Bartholomew's work serves as a valuable resource for those already versed in hermeneutics, philosophy, and theology. With dedication and proper context, this comprehensive guide will enrich understanding of biblical interpretation.
May 16, 2016
What should healthy biblical interpretation look like? Craig Bartholomew’s Introducing Biblical Hermeneutics addresses this question head on, giving a sweeping introduction to the subject that both explains the history and importance of various academic approaches while also developing for readers a vision of biblical hermeneutics that is trinitarian in shape and aimed ultimately at enabling “obedient attention to God’s address through his Word” (p.10). Bartholomew was born in South Africa in 1961 and now teaches at Redeemer University College in Ontario, Canada.
Hermeneutics deals with the study of interpretation, especially in regards to works of literature. Therefore, it’s a particularly relevant area of study for Christians given the uniquely authoritative role Scripture plays in shaping the beliefs and practices of the Church. Bartholomew invokes the words of Karl Barth to make clear the kinds of demands made by the Bible on its readers, “If Scripture is the Word of God, then, as Karl Barth rightly observes, no one can stand before it as a spectator” (p.45). Hermeneutics might seem intimidating and irrelevant, but Bartholomew argues that it actually is “the theory of a practice,” adding that when it’s done well, “hermeneutics deepens and enriches our practice of engagement with the Bible as Scripture” (p.12).
The book’s subtitle, “A Comprehensive Framework for Hearing God in Scripture,” gives a fitting description of what Bartholomew is trying to establish for his readers. In this review, we’re also going to use it to help organize a few necessarily incomplete reflections on the nature of Bartholomew’s work. There sadly isn’t enough time to work through each of his discussions in anywhere near the level of detail needed to properly do them justice. So, we will have to satisfy ourselves with looking first at some of the broad-brush ways in which he builds his hermeneutical framework and then briefly exploring how this framework can help deepen the way Christians read the Bible as Scripture.
A Comprehensive Framework
Bartholomew begins by considering biblical interpretation itself, which he understands to be an inherently communal endeavor (p.13). Given humanity’s fallen condition, which hinders individuals from completely understanding texts, “the conversation of readers in the body of Christ exercises an important control on interpretation” (p.393). To read Scripture well, Bartholomew insists that we need to remember that nobody comes to the text with a blank slate:
“The importance of tradition for biblical interpretation is closely connected with the hermeneutical insight that we never read or interpret Scripture with a tabula rasa… We bring our own prejudices—prejudgments—to the text, and we are heirs to a variety of traditions of biblical interpretation” (p.114)
He then spends the next few chapters familiarizing readers with the story of biblical interpretation’s history, starting with the Patristic era, devoting a chapter to the history of Jewish biblical interpretation, and tracing the story on up to the present. Within this narrative, Bartholomew’s command of the literature is evident, and his overview accomplishes its goal of situating readers so that they are able to better understand the ensuing discussion of how biblical interpretation intersects with other academic disciplines. He dwells on the ways in which philosophy, history, literature, theology have shaped and can also help inform a healthy model of biblical hermeneutics—again, Bartholomew is comprehensive so we must content ourselves with broad-brush strokes.
In his chapter on philosophy and biblical hermeneutics, Bartholomew unsurprisingly devotes a significant time to the works of Hans-Georg Gadamer, Paul Ricoeur, and Jürgen Habermas. He explains that, “The central insight of [textual] hermeneutics” is that both texts and readers are embedded within history” (p.284). Ignoring hermeneutical issues simply results in a “naive practice of exegesis” that uncritically (and unconsciously) assumes answers to important hermeneutical questions (p.325).
One of Bartholomew’s larger overarching points is that philosophical questions are involved in biblical studies from the very beginning. This holds true in his discussion of history and hermeneutics. One’s view of history inevitably impacts how one interprets Scripture (p.337). Bartholomew proposes that narrative biblical theology holds the most promise for aiding in the development of a biblical view of time and history:
[I]t is precisely a narrative biblical theology of the Bible that helps develop a biblical view of time and history. The genres apart from narrative in the Old Testament are canonically all connected into the grand story it tells, so that narrative holds the key to a biblical perspective of history. (p.342)
In a similar vein, Bartholomew suggests that readers should utilize a theology of history that understands the Bible as a drama in six acts: creation, fall, Israel, Jesus, mission, and new creation, explaining that, “As a drama, Scripture reveals to us the drama we are involved in and invites us to actively participate in it” (pp.360-361). This proposal, by the way, is fleshed out considerably in Bartholomew’s older book, The Drama of Scripture, which he wrote with Michael Goheen.
While historical-critical work dominated much of biblical studies for a large portion of the 19th and 20th centuries, Bartholomew notes that the literary turn has been rising in prominence since the 1970s. For him, this is welcome news. There are, of course, multiple types of literary approaches; he advocates using a communicative hermeneutic, which is “a literary approach [that] focuses primarily on the text and its literary dimension in order to listen to the message being communicated.” (p.379). Bartholomew suggests that the final literary form should be seen as “more than the sum of its parts” and that interpretation must focus on this “final-form” while still taking historical issues seriously (pp.380-411).
One of the criticisms of the literary turn in biblical interpretation is that it imposes anachronistic theories of literature on biblical texts. Bartholomew is sensitive to these concerns. First, he points out that, “Because the Bible is literature, its literary dimension resists being ignored” (p.378). Secondly, he brings up the concept of the hermeneutical circle, contending that “we need a view of literature in order to attend to the literary aspect of the Bible, but this must be continually refined by the Bible itself” (p.391).
This is a good moment to bring up Bartholomew’s notion of reading texts “along the grain.” If we are going to incorporate literary approaches to interpretation that don’t overly-exalt the reader, then we must insist that the first step is to, “read the text along the grain, as it were, in order to discern the message of the text” (p.415). Bartholomew elaborates:
Texts are an expression of interpersonal communication: just as we cannot do as we like with people, so there are ethics of reading. A communicative model reminds us of the need to respect the otherness of the text and to allow its voice to be heard. (p.415)
I don’t think that he is advocating a return to problematic versions of modernist objectivity, though. Instead, “A thicker notion of biblical texts is required, which takes into account their historical, literary, and ideological/theological aspects” (p.415). A few pages later, Bartholomew explains that “before one can disagree with a text, one must read it, and to do so along the grain,” which I found to be one of the more memorable lines in the book (p.420). We must remember that only after first reading a text charitably can strong critiques be subsequently made of it.
The chapter dwelling on the intersection between biblical hermeneutics and theology focused in large part (at least on my reading of it) on two overarching relationships: exegesis and theology, and Scripture and doctrine (p.432). He laments the fact that the move from Scripture to theology is frequently a one-way street in modern scholarship, with no subsequent return to the text:
Scripture is the primary norm and resource for theology, and we need a truly biblical theology. Thus, we need theology that openly emerges from deep and wide ranging exegesis. At the same time biblical exegesis needs to be theologically informed so that theology deepens our exegesis. (p.432)
Bartholomew suggests that one helpful way of thinking about the relationship between Scripture and doctrine/theology is “the relationship between lived experience and theory” (p.436). Everyday life is the primary reality out of which theories are developed. “[T]he test of theory is whether it deepens lived experience” (p.436). Bartholomew connects this analogy with Scripture and doctrine/theology by saying that, “Doctrine abstracts landmarks of belief from the story of Scripture and seeks to articulate the nature of that belief systematically for today” (p.437).
In a comment that seems to be directed towards the work of people like Kevin Vanhoozer (who wrote The Drama of Doctrine), Bartholomew notes that “it is a mistake to translate the drama of Scripture into the drama of doctrine without carefully attending to the important differences in the two uses of ‘drama’ in these phrases” (p.436). He appears to be mainly nervous that recent efforts to highlight the narrative/dramatic aspects of doctrine will lead to potentially neglecting doctrine’s necessary cognitive dimensions. Nevertheless, he also insists that “‘propositional’ and ‘logical’ need not imply dry and boring!” (p.436). I would be very interested to see how people like Vanhoozer would respond to the cautionary tone taken by Bartholomew on this subject. Regardless of these rather technical concerns, he offers some good words of wisdom regarding the overarching goal of biblical hermeneutics when he states that “exegetical and commentary work… is incomplete if it is not directed towards listening for God’s Word. Biblical interpretation should move from listening and toward listening” (p.441).
For Hearing God in Scripture
In an important way, biblical interpretation is an endeavor undertaken for the Church. For Bartholomew, this is because “Scripture is primarily God’s Word to God’s people, and thus communal, ecclesial reception [of Scripture] is primary” (p.9). This potentially controversial assertion on Bartholomew’s part has some important consequences:
[I]f ecclesial reception of the Word is primary, then the Christian biblical scholar works out of that primary reception, which ought to lead back into that reception, deepening that reception as it does so. Like the preacher, the biblical scholar’s work ought to emerge out of sustained ecclesial reception and lectio divina and always be oriented toward attending to God’s address. (pp.45-46)
Throughout Bartholomew’s exposition what it means to recover a “philosophy of listening,” he avoids implying that following such a strategy will automatically get rid of or smooth over the many important questions and points of tension raised by modern historical criticism, literary analysis, and other approaches to Scripture (pp.11,31). Nevertheless, he does contend that biblical hermeneutics must recover “the primacy of creative receptivity, of listening” (p.24). Why does he find this to be so important? He explains, “Theologically listening is an extension of our being creaturely; it is a manifestation of our creaturely humility” (p.22). He states his proposal well when he suggest that, “It is as biblical hermeneutics inhabits the trajectory from listening to listening that it finds its place and is enabled to flourish” (p.15).
Introducing Biblical Hermeneutics makes for an immensely stimulating read, and it leaves readers with much to mull over. It’s not hard to find scholars willing to decry the division between biblical studies and theology, or the Academy and Church, but it’s more rare to find someone who has invested so much time and energy into helping bridge those gaps with constructive proposals. For this, readers should applaud Bartholomew’s work. I’m still getting my bearings in the world of biblical hermeneutics, and wrestling with Introducing Biblical Hermeneutics has both increased my to-read list and better oriented me to the contours of the field. In my humble opinion, Bartholomew has given a true gift to the Church. I’m both curious to see how this book is received by those more familiar with the subject than myself and grateful to be spurred further on into the field of biblical hermeneutics as a result of it.
*Disclosure: I received this book free from Baker Academic Publishing for review purposes. The opinions I have expressed are my own, and I was not required to write a positive review.
Hermeneutics deals with the study of interpretation, especially in regards to works of literature. Therefore, it’s a particularly relevant area of study for Christians given the uniquely authoritative role Scripture plays in shaping the beliefs and practices of the Church. Bartholomew invokes the words of Karl Barth to make clear the kinds of demands made by the Bible on its readers, “If Scripture is the Word of God, then, as Karl Barth rightly observes, no one can stand before it as a spectator” (p.45). Hermeneutics might seem intimidating and irrelevant, but Bartholomew argues that it actually is “the theory of a practice,” adding that when it’s done well, “hermeneutics deepens and enriches our practice of engagement with the Bible as Scripture” (p.12).
The book’s subtitle, “A Comprehensive Framework for Hearing God in Scripture,” gives a fitting description of what Bartholomew is trying to establish for his readers. In this review, we’re also going to use it to help organize a few necessarily incomplete reflections on the nature of Bartholomew’s work. There sadly isn’t enough time to work through each of his discussions in anywhere near the level of detail needed to properly do them justice. So, we will have to satisfy ourselves with looking first at some of the broad-brush ways in which he builds his hermeneutical framework and then briefly exploring how this framework can help deepen the way Christians read the Bible as Scripture.
A Comprehensive Framework
Bartholomew begins by considering biblical interpretation itself, which he understands to be an inherently communal endeavor (p.13). Given humanity’s fallen condition, which hinders individuals from completely understanding texts, “the conversation of readers in the body of Christ exercises an important control on interpretation” (p.393). To read Scripture well, Bartholomew insists that we need to remember that nobody comes to the text with a blank slate:
“The importance of tradition for biblical interpretation is closely connected with the hermeneutical insight that we never read or interpret Scripture with a tabula rasa… We bring our own prejudices—prejudgments—to the text, and we are heirs to a variety of traditions of biblical interpretation” (p.114)
He then spends the next few chapters familiarizing readers with the story of biblical interpretation’s history, starting with the Patristic era, devoting a chapter to the history of Jewish biblical interpretation, and tracing the story on up to the present. Within this narrative, Bartholomew’s command of the literature is evident, and his overview accomplishes its goal of situating readers so that they are able to better understand the ensuing discussion of how biblical interpretation intersects with other academic disciplines. He dwells on the ways in which philosophy, history, literature, theology have shaped and can also help inform a healthy model of biblical hermeneutics—again, Bartholomew is comprehensive so we must content ourselves with broad-brush strokes.
In his chapter on philosophy and biblical hermeneutics, Bartholomew unsurprisingly devotes a significant time to the works of Hans-Georg Gadamer, Paul Ricoeur, and Jürgen Habermas. He explains that, “The central insight of [textual] hermeneutics” is that both texts and readers are embedded within history” (p.284). Ignoring hermeneutical issues simply results in a “naive practice of exegesis” that uncritically (and unconsciously) assumes answers to important hermeneutical questions (p.325).
One of Bartholomew’s larger overarching points is that philosophical questions are involved in biblical studies from the very beginning. This holds true in his discussion of history and hermeneutics. One’s view of history inevitably impacts how one interprets Scripture (p.337). Bartholomew proposes that narrative biblical theology holds the most promise for aiding in the development of a biblical view of time and history:
[I]t is precisely a narrative biblical theology of the Bible that helps develop a biblical view of time and history. The genres apart from narrative in the Old Testament are canonically all connected into the grand story it tells, so that narrative holds the key to a biblical perspective of history. (p.342)
In a similar vein, Bartholomew suggests that readers should utilize a theology of history that understands the Bible as a drama in six acts: creation, fall, Israel, Jesus, mission, and new creation, explaining that, “As a drama, Scripture reveals to us the drama we are involved in and invites us to actively participate in it” (pp.360-361). This proposal, by the way, is fleshed out considerably in Bartholomew’s older book, The Drama of Scripture, which he wrote with Michael Goheen.
While historical-critical work dominated much of biblical studies for a large portion of the 19th and 20th centuries, Bartholomew notes that the literary turn has been rising in prominence since the 1970s. For him, this is welcome news. There are, of course, multiple types of literary approaches; he advocates using a communicative hermeneutic, which is “a literary approach [that] focuses primarily on the text and its literary dimension in order to listen to the message being communicated.” (p.379). Bartholomew suggests that the final literary form should be seen as “more than the sum of its parts” and that interpretation must focus on this “final-form” while still taking historical issues seriously (pp.380-411).
One of the criticisms of the literary turn in biblical interpretation is that it imposes anachronistic theories of literature on biblical texts. Bartholomew is sensitive to these concerns. First, he points out that, “Because the Bible is literature, its literary dimension resists being ignored” (p.378). Secondly, he brings up the concept of the hermeneutical circle, contending that “we need a view of literature in order to attend to the literary aspect of the Bible, but this must be continually refined by the Bible itself” (p.391).
This is a good moment to bring up Bartholomew’s notion of reading texts “along the grain.” If we are going to incorporate literary approaches to interpretation that don’t overly-exalt the reader, then we must insist that the first step is to, “read the text along the grain, as it were, in order to discern the message of the text” (p.415). Bartholomew elaborates:
Texts are an expression of interpersonal communication: just as we cannot do as we like with people, so there are ethics of reading. A communicative model reminds us of the need to respect the otherness of the text and to allow its voice to be heard. (p.415)
I don’t think that he is advocating a return to problematic versions of modernist objectivity, though. Instead, “A thicker notion of biblical texts is required, which takes into account their historical, literary, and ideological/theological aspects” (p.415). A few pages later, Bartholomew explains that “before one can disagree with a text, one must read it, and to do so along the grain,” which I found to be one of the more memorable lines in the book (p.420). We must remember that only after first reading a text charitably can strong critiques be subsequently made of it.
The chapter dwelling on the intersection between biblical hermeneutics and theology focused in large part (at least on my reading of it) on two overarching relationships: exegesis and theology, and Scripture and doctrine (p.432). He laments the fact that the move from Scripture to theology is frequently a one-way street in modern scholarship, with no subsequent return to the text:
Scripture is the primary norm and resource for theology, and we need a truly biblical theology. Thus, we need theology that openly emerges from deep and wide ranging exegesis. At the same time biblical exegesis needs to be theologically informed so that theology deepens our exegesis. (p.432)
Bartholomew suggests that one helpful way of thinking about the relationship between Scripture and doctrine/theology is “the relationship between lived experience and theory” (p.436). Everyday life is the primary reality out of which theories are developed. “[T]he test of theory is whether it deepens lived experience” (p.436). Bartholomew connects this analogy with Scripture and doctrine/theology by saying that, “Doctrine abstracts landmarks of belief from the story of Scripture and seeks to articulate the nature of that belief systematically for today” (p.437).
In a comment that seems to be directed towards the work of people like Kevin Vanhoozer (who wrote The Drama of Doctrine), Bartholomew notes that “it is a mistake to translate the drama of Scripture into the drama of doctrine without carefully attending to the important differences in the two uses of ‘drama’ in these phrases” (p.436). He appears to be mainly nervous that recent efforts to highlight the narrative/dramatic aspects of doctrine will lead to potentially neglecting doctrine’s necessary cognitive dimensions. Nevertheless, he also insists that “‘propositional’ and ‘logical’ need not imply dry and boring!” (p.436). I would be very interested to see how people like Vanhoozer would respond to the cautionary tone taken by Bartholomew on this subject. Regardless of these rather technical concerns, he offers some good words of wisdom regarding the overarching goal of biblical hermeneutics when he states that “exegetical and commentary work… is incomplete if it is not directed towards listening for God’s Word. Biblical interpretation should move from listening and toward listening” (p.441).
For Hearing God in Scripture
In an important way, biblical interpretation is an endeavor undertaken for the Church. For Bartholomew, this is because “Scripture is primarily God’s Word to God’s people, and thus communal, ecclesial reception [of Scripture] is primary” (p.9). This potentially controversial assertion on Bartholomew’s part has some important consequences:
[I]f ecclesial reception of the Word is primary, then the Christian biblical scholar works out of that primary reception, which ought to lead back into that reception, deepening that reception as it does so. Like the preacher, the biblical scholar’s work ought to emerge out of sustained ecclesial reception and lectio divina and always be oriented toward attending to God’s address. (pp.45-46)
Throughout Bartholomew’s exposition what it means to recover a “philosophy of listening,” he avoids implying that following such a strategy will automatically get rid of or smooth over the many important questions and points of tension raised by modern historical criticism, literary analysis, and other approaches to Scripture (pp.11,31). Nevertheless, he does contend that biblical hermeneutics must recover “the primacy of creative receptivity, of listening” (p.24). Why does he find this to be so important? He explains, “Theologically listening is an extension of our being creaturely; it is a manifestation of our creaturely humility” (p.22). He states his proposal well when he suggest that, “It is as biblical hermeneutics inhabits the trajectory from listening to listening that it finds its place and is enabled to flourish” (p.15).
Introducing Biblical Hermeneutics makes for an immensely stimulating read, and it leaves readers with much to mull over. It’s not hard to find scholars willing to decry the division between biblical studies and theology, or the Academy and Church, but it’s more rare to find someone who has invested so much time and energy into helping bridge those gaps with constructive proposals. For this, readers should applaud Bartholomew’s work. I’m still getting my bearings in the world of biblical hermeneutics, and wrestling with Introducing Biblical Hermeneutics has both increased my to-read list and better oriented me to the contours of the field. In my humble opinion, Bartholomew has given a true gift to the Church. I’m both curious to see how this book is received by those more familiar with the subject than myself and grateful to be spurred further on into the field of biblical hermeneutics as a result of it.
*Disclosure: I received this book free from Baker Academic Publishing for review purposes. The opinions I have expressed are my own, and I was not required to write a positive review.
February 5, 2020
This is a magisterial work. As the subtitle indicates, it is unbelievably comprehensive. Bartholomew reads widely beyond the scope of biblical and theological scholarship, and draws insights from those traditions to offer Christians a structure to read the Bible in a way which interacts with the world, rather than with our heads in the sand. At the same time, it is a pastorally-sensitive and emphatically confessional treatment of biblical hermeneutics.
The book is structured into five parts:
1) Approaching Biblical Interpretation
2) Biblical Interpretation and Biblical Theology
3) The Story of Biblical Interpretation
4) Biblical Interpretation and the Academic Disciplines
5) The Goal of Biblical Interpretation
Part 1 lays a foundation for a trinitarian hermeneutic, with an emphasis on listening to God’s word. For the author, this listening is necessarily self-involving – a theme that resonates throughout the book.
Part 2 deals primarily with the importance of Biblical Theology to understanding the Bible with a sensitivity towards its story, or narrative. For him, the eschatological nature of the Christ event “pushes us in the direction of the narrative shape of Scripture, and in my view a narrative biblical theology should therefore be seen as primary….”
Part 3 traces the history of biblical interpretation from the Patristics to modernity. These chapters are fascinating for their breadth, but also for his ability to identify the teachings of key thinkers throughout the ages, and then draw intra- and inter-epochal connections. He tells a compelling story about how hermeneutics has progressed over the centuries and highlights its relevance for the modern Christian.
In Part 4, Bartholomew argues that Christian biblical scholars should engage with philosophy (chp. 9), history (chp. 10), literature (chp. 11) and theology (chp. 12) as they do exegesis. He affirms the traditional Christian doctrines of God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit and Scripture, and argues that since the Enlightenment, Christians have allowed a philosophy hostile to God to dictate terms in the pursuit of a better understanding of the Bible. He wants Christians to hold a high view of Scripture to do so bravely, rather than concede to the prevailing scholarly zeitgeist that faith has no part in academic biblical scholarship.
If in Part 4, the author engages in the sphere of the academy, Part 5 draws a clear line from the ivory tower to the congregant in the pews of a church. Chapter 14 explores the epistle to the Hebrews using the insights he previously discussed. In his exegesis, he shows that central to the letter is the exhortation to listen to Jesus, and that listening spurs “his addresses on to faith, hope, and endurance” (p. 518).
Evangelicals (at least the circles in which I find myself) may be wary of his reference to many scholars or theologians who don’t fit neatly into the ‘confessional’ category, but his own beliefs seemed orthodox. It was also a breath of fresh air to read something that didn’t have ‘gospel-centred’ every few sentences.
Reading this was a rigorous exercise for me, both intellectually, spiritually and this-worldly. I came away from the book not filled with theoretical ideas or new-fangled ways to interpret the Bible. Rather, the author modeled the humble listening he urged throughout the book. "The clear goal of all this work, however, has been to enable us to hear God’s address today" (p. 520).
Bartholomew sincerely and humbly embodies what Paul says in 2 Corinthians 10:5 (CSB) “we take every thought captive to obey Christ” (emphasis mine). This is a must-read for anyone interested in biblical hermeneutics.
The book is structured into five parts:
1) Approaching Biblical Interpretation
2) Biblical Interpretation and Biblical Theology
3) The Story of Biblical Interpretation
4) Biblical Interpretation and the Academic Disciplines
5) The Goal of Biblical Interpretation
Part 1 lays a foundation for a trinitarian hermeneutic, with an emphasis on listening to God’s word. For the author, this listening is necessarily self-involving – a theme that resonates throughout the book.
Part 2 deals primarily with the importance of Biblical Theology to understanding the Bible with a sensitivity towards its story, or narrative. For him, the eschatological nature of the Christ event “pushes us in the direction of the narrative shape of Scripture, and in my view a narrative biblical theology should therefore be seen as primary….”
Part 3 traces the history of biblical interpretation from the Patristics to modernity. These chapters are fascinating for their breadth, but also for his ability to identify the teachings of key thinkers throughout the ages, and then draw intra- and inter-epochal connections. He tells a compelling story about how hermeneutics has progressed over the centuries and highlights its relevance for the modern Christian.
In Part 4, Bartholomew argues that Christian biblical scholars should engage with philosophy (chp. 9), history (chp. 10), literature (chp. 11) and theology (chp. 12) as they do exegesis. He affirms the traditional Christian doctrines of God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit and Scripture, and argues that since the Enlightenment, Christians have allowed a philosophy hostile to God to dictate terms in the pursuit of a better understanding of the Bible. He wants Christians to hold a high view of Scripture to do so bravely, rather than concede to the prevailing scholarly zeitgeist that faith has no part in academic biblical scholarship.
If in Part 4, the author engages in the sphere of the academy, Part 5 draws a clear line from the ivory tower to the congregant in the pews of a church. Chapter 14 explores the epistle to the Hebrews using the insights he previously discussed. In his exegesis, he shows that central to the letter is the exhortation to listen to Jesus, and that listening spurs “his addresses on to faith, hope, and endurance” (p. 518).
Evangelicals (at least the circles in which I find myself) may be wary of his reference to many scholars or theologians who don’t fit neatly into the ‘confessional’ category, but his own beliefs seemed orthodox. It was also a breath of fresh air to read something that didn’t have ‘gospel-centred’ every few sentences.
Reading this was a rigorous exercise for me, both intellectually, spiritually and this-worldly. I came away from the book not filled with theoretical ideas or new-fangled ways to interpret the Bible. Rather, the author modeled the humble listening he urged throughout the book. "The clear goal of all this work, however, has been to enable us to hear God’s address today" (p. 520).
Bartholomew sincerely and humbly embodies what Paul says in 2 Corinthians 10:5 (CSB) “we take every thought captive to obey Christ” (emphasis mine). This is a must-read for anyone interested in biblical hermeneutics.
January 23, 2016
Craig G. Bartholomew (Ph.D, Bristol University) is an engaging and articulate scholarly mind whose work has visibly reached across interdisciplinary lines. Bartholomew is the H. Evan Runner Professor of Philosophy and Religion & Theology at Redeemer University College in Ancaster, Ontario. He is the founder of the internationally recognized Scripture and Hermeneutics Seminar and is the author or co-author of several books, The Drama of Scripture: Finding our Place in the Biblical Story, Old Testament Wisdom Literature: A Theological Introduction, Ecclesiastes in the acclaimed Baker Commentary on the Old Testament Wisdom and Psalms, and many more. Most recently, Bartholomew has released what can only be described as the culmination of his longstanding efforts within the Scripture and Hermeneutics Seminar, a massive introduction to biblical interpretation centered firmly within the context and service of the church.
Introducing Biblical Hermeneutics: A Comprehensive Framework for Hearing God in Scripture is divided into five major sections: (1) approaching biblical interpretation, (2) biblical interpretation and biblical theology, (3) the story of biblical interpretation, (4) biblical interpretation and the academic disciplines, and (5) the goal of biblical interpretation. As the subtitle states quite clearly, Bartholomew has provided a comprehensive framework, and each of these major sections are judiciously presented. The book opens by positioning the conversation amid the Trinitarian frame that will ultimately function as the confines for the pages ahead. Bartholomew explains, “. . . our understanding of the world must take as its starting point the God revealed in Scripture and articulated tradition. This means that any biblical hermeneutic worth its salt must be Christocentric . . . [thus] precisely because such a hermeneutic is Christocentric, it will be Trinitarian” (p. 5-6).
According to Bartholomew, a Trinitarian hermeneutic as such approaches the Bible as (1) authoritative Scripture, (2) a whole, (3) for the ecclesiastical body, (4) exalts and humbles academic interpretation, (5) a discrete witness of the testaments, (6) discerns the goal of reading the Bible, (7) does not close down but opens up interpretation of the Bible, and (8) takes God’s address for all life seriously (p. 8-15). It is here that Bartholomew is able to conclude we hear from God in our efforts of seeking to understand and interpret the biblical text, and it is here that the book unfolds in its discussion on biblical theology and hermeneutics, the history of hermeneutics from biblical antiquity to modernity, the intersection between the academic disciplines of philosophy, history, literature, and theology with hermeneutics, and lastly the overarching goal of biblical hermeneutics—hearing God’s address in the Scriptures.
Introducing Biblical Hermeneutics provides a plethora of important insights. Bartholomew is well-read (to run the risk of an understatement) and the reader will quickly identify the familiarity that he brings with almost any subject under the hermeneutical sun and beyond. Moreover, as one firmly planted in the Theological Interpretation of Scripture movement, Bartholomew has provided the reader with a unique perspective and contribution that will complement other hermeneutics texts well—especially given the detail and length of this volume. The first two chapters are among the best for those seeking to grasp the aim of Bartholomew’s hermeneutical vision. I found that as Bartholomew positioned the task of hermeneutics into the expectancy of listening and hearing God in the Scriptures, the trenches that follow became much easier to digest. Thus, by spending intentional time in the initial section of the book, the reader is able to better recognize the framework that was being built, and thus, interact with the content thereafter.
Still, the most helpful chapters of the book are discovered under the fourth major section. It is here that Bartholomew presents for the reader the disciplinary intersection between biblical interpretation and various academic disciplines. Not only does this section display Bartholomew’s ability to interact with other fields of academic study, but it shows the level of competency that he exhibits for the task of biblical hermeneutics, as well as the scope of this discipline’s reach beyond the confines of its own intentions. Another section that was helpful was the second section. Here Bartholomew developed a place for biblical theology within the task of hermeneutics. This is an important peripheral observation for the reader to grasp if he or she is to function within the Trinitarian approach presented in the preceding chapters. In other words, it is here that Bartholomew rightly places the whole of Scripture into the conversation and helpfully articulates with such as important if we are going to seek to hear from God therein.
Introducing Biblical Hermeneutics: A Comprehensive Framework for Hearing God in Scripture is an excellent introduction to the task of biblical interpretation. Craig G. Bartholomew has brought a host of interesting insights and observations from decades of experience. Bartholomew has produced a volume that is both comprehensive and readable, and his hermeneutical vision captures the essence of biblical revelation well. Bartholomew has bypassed the traditional approach of the task of biblical hermeneutics by intentionally developing a place for the interpreter to encounter God, rather than merely cultivating an understanding of a book. Bartholomew is comprehensive, judicious, and generous in his interaction. His vision is centered firmly within the context and service of the church, and the payoff for the reader is immediate. This is a monumental achievement in the field of biblical interpretation and the pastor, teacher or student would do well in referring to it often.
I received a review copy of these books in exchange for and honest review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.
Introducing Biblical Hermeneutics: A Comprehensive Framework for Hearing God in Scripture is divided into five major sections: (1) approaching biblical interpretation, (2) biblical interpretation and biblical theology, (3) the story of biblical interpretation, (4) biblical interpretation and the academic disciplines, and (5) the goal of biblical interpretation. As the subtitle states quite clearly, Bartholomew has provided a comprehensive framework, and each of these major sections are judiciously presented. The book opens by positioning the conversation amid the Trinitarian frame that will ultimately function as the confines for the pages ahead. Bartholomew explains, “. . . our understanding of the world must take as its starting point the God revealed in Scripture and articulated tradition. This means that any biblical hermeneutic worth its salt must be Christocentric . . . [thus] precisely because such a hermeneutic is Christocentric, it will be Trinitarian” (p. 5-6).
According to Bartholomew, a Trinitarian hermeneutic as such approaches the Bible as (1) authoritative Scripture, (2) a whole, (3) for the ecclesiastical body, (4) exalts and humbles academic interpretation, (5) a discrete witness of the testaments, (6) discerns the goal of reading the Bible, (7) does not close down but opens up interpretation of the Bible, and (8) takes God’s address for all life seriously (p. 8-15). It is here that Bartholomew is able to conclude we hear from God in our efforts of seeking to understand and interpret the biblical text, and it is here that the book unfolds in its discussion on biblical theology and hermeneutics, the history of hermeneutics from biblical antiquity to modernity, the intersection between the academic disciplines of philosophy, history, literature, and theology with hermeneutics, and lastly the overarching goal of biblical hermeneutics—hearing God’s address in the Scriptures.
Introducing Biblical Hermeneutics provides a plethora of important insights. Bartholomew is well-read (to run the risk of an understatement) and the reader will quickly identify the familiarity that he brings with almost any subject under the hermeneutical sun and beyond. Moreover, as one firmly planted in the Theological Interpretation of Scripture movement, Bartholomew has provided the reader with a unique perspective and contribution that will complement other hermeneutics texts well—especially given the detail and length of this volume. The first two chapters are among the best for those seeking to grasp the aim of Bartholomew’s hermeneutical vision. I found that as Bartholomew positioned the task of hermeneutics into the expectancy of listening and hearing God in the Scriptures, the trenches that follow became much easier to digest. Thus, by spending intentional time in the initial section of the book, the reader is able to better recognize the framework that was being built, and thus, interact with the content thereafter.
Still, the most helpful chapters of the book are discovered under the fourth major section. It is here that Bartholomew presents for the reader the disciplinary intersection between biblical interpretation and various academic disciplines. Not only does this section display Bartholomew’s ability to interact with other fields of academic study, but it shows the level of competency that he exhibits for the task of biblical hermeneutics, as well as the scope of this discipline’s reach beyond the confines of its own intentions. Another section that was helpful was the second section. Here Bartholomew developed a place for biblical theology within the task of hermeneutics. This is an important peripheral observation for the reader to grasp if he or she is to function within the Trinitarian approach presented in the preceding chapters. In other words, it is here that Bartholomew rightly places the whole of Scripture into the conversation and helpfully articulates with such as important if we are going to seek to hear from God therein.
Introducing Biblical Hermeneutics: A Comprehensive Framework for Hearing God in Scripture is an excellent introduction to the task of biblical interpretation. Craig G. Bartholomew has brought a host of interesting insights and observations from decades of experience. Bartholomew has produced a volume that is both comprehensive and readable, and his hermeneutical vision captures the essence of biblical revelation well. Bartholomew has bypassed the traditional approach of the task of biblical hermeneutics by intentionally developing a place for the interpreter to encounter God, rather than merely cultivating an understanding of a book. Bartholomew is comprehensive, judicious, and generous in his interaction. His vision is centered firmly within the context and service of the church, and the payoff for the reader is immediate. This is a monumental achievement in the field of biblical interpretation and the pastor, teacher or student would do well in referring to it often.
I received a review copy of these books in exchange for and honest review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.
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June 25, 2025I’m sure this is a great book, but it was a little much for an introduction to hermeneutics (for me). It definitely illustrated how difficult it is to approach the interpretation of scripture without the current cultural moment and theological debates impacting us.
November 16, 2024
Good guide to proper biblical hermeneutics though it takes more the philosophical than practical side.
January 8, 2025
I think this is my favorite philosophically engaged primer for hermeneutics. A must-read for anyone interested in the field: spiritually rich, intellectually engaging, and sweeping. I'm a fan.
June 20, 2016
When it comes to the field of hermeneutics there are those who rehash ideas and those who shape and create. Craig G. Bartholomew is a shaper and creator. For decades Bartholomew has been reading, writing, and speaking on hermeneutics. Some of his most notable books along these lines have been The Drama of Scripture (2nd Ed.) and the now nine volume Scripture and Hermeneutics Series, with another on the way.
Bartholomew has recently written two new books on hermeneutics one of which is Introducing Biblical Hermeneutics: A Comprehensive Framework for Hearing God in Scripture (Baker Academic, 2016). Those familiar with the Scripture and Hermeneutics Series will recognize some echoes of those works (albeit much more condensed) as well as those of his other works.
Introducing Biblical Hermeneutics is a condensed version of Bartholomew’s lifetime work on hermeneutics. While Bartholomew is a shaper of the field, this book is more of an overview of the field itself as Bartholomew has studied it. He is giving the reader a look at various aspects of the field and how they have been developed over the life of the church. This is not a ground level introduction on the basics of hermeneutics but an academic introduction to the more broad issues at hand.
There are several features of this work which rise above and tie the book together. First, Bartholomew believes that hermeneutics must be christocentric (as the writers of Scripture were) and trinitrian (since the Bible is about God). Christ is the central person to which Scripture points and Christ operates and exists within the trinity. We must get Jesus and the trinity at the center of the Bible and our understanding of it in order to rightly interpret Scripture (8).
Second, Bartholomew places a high priority on reading and interpreting Scripture in the context of the church. It is through a historical theological lens that issues like biblical theology and the relationship between philosophy and Scripture are discussed. The church has a primary role in the interpretation of Scripture and places like the academy/scholarship are to submit themselves to it (468-74).
Third, as the subtitle states, this is a book about hearing God in Scripture. Bartholomew builds his theology of hearing Scripture on the Shema of Deuteronomy 6:4-5, “Hear Oh Israel!” This is a call to listen to the words of God. God is addressing his people and his people must hear! To Bartholomew, this is a necessary spiritual discipline that all interpreters of the Bible must practice.
Finally, this is a book that reflects a deep, well-informed, critical, and engaging mind. Bartholomew has drank deep at the well on the issues he tackles and has contributed to the well himself. He offers carefully nuanced reflection on the current state of hermeneutics and challenges those in the field in ares they can improve on.
Introducing Biblical Hermeneutics is the reflection of a lifetime’s work in the area of hermeneutics. There are few who could have written a book of this magnitude with the same depth of analysis, knowledge and understanding of the field. Bartholomew has simultaneously summarized the field of hermeneutics (as he sees it) and given charitable critique as a way forward for the church.
I received this book for free from Baker Academic for this review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
Bartholomew has recently written two new books on hermeneutics one of which is Introducing Biblical Hermeneutics: A Comprehensive Framework for Hearing God in Scripture (Baker Academic, 2016). Those familiar with the Scripture and Hermeneutics Series will recognize some echoes of those works (albeit much more condensed) as well as those of his other works.
Introducing Biblical Hermeneutics is a condensed version of Bartholomew’s lifetime work on hermeneutics. While Bartholomew is a shaper of the field, this book is more of an overview of the field itself as Bartholomew has studied it. He is giving the reader a look at various aspects of the field and how they have been developed over the life of the church. This is not a ground level introduction on the basics of hermeneutics but an academic introduction to the more broad issues at hand.
There are several features of this work which rise above and tie the book together. First, Bartholomew believes that hermeneutics must be christocentric (as the writers of Scripture were) and trinitrian (since the Bible is about God). Christ is the central person to which Scripture points and Christ operates and exists within the trinity. We must get Jesus and the trinity at the center of the Bible and our understanding of it in order to rightly interpret Scripture (8).
Second, Bartholomew places a high priority on reading and interpreting Scripture in the context of the church. It is through a historical theological lens that issues like biblical theology and the relationship between philosophy and Scripture are discussed. The church has a primary role in the interpretation of Scripture and places like the academy/scholarship are to submit themselves to it (468-74).
Third, as the subtitle states, this is a book about hearing God in Scripture. Bartholomew builds his theology of hearing Scripture on the Shema of Deuteronomy 6:4-5, “Hear Oh Israel!” This is a call to listen to the words of God. God is addressing his people and his people must hear! To Bartholomew, this is a necessary spiritual discipline that all interpreters of the Bible must practice.
Finally, this is a book that reflects a deep, well-informed, critical, and engaging mind. Bartholomew has drank deep at the well on the issues he tackles and has contributed to the well himself. He offers carefully nuanced reflection on the current state of hermeneutics and challenges those in the field in ares they can improve on.
Introducing Biblical Hermeneutics is the reflection of a lifetime’s work in the area of hermeneutics. There are few who could have written a book of this magnitude with the same depth of analysis, knowledge and understanding of the field. Bartholomew has simultaneously summarized the field of hermeneutics (as he sees it) and given charitable critique as a way forward for the church.
I received this book for free from Baker Academic for this review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
August 25, 2016
This book is not aptly named. Far from an introduction to biblical hermeneutics, it is really a defense of theological interpretation. to that end, it offers little that would be helpful to the beginning Bible interpreter. I used the text in an Advanced Hermeneutics course. The movement puzzles me a bit. Its main conversation partner appears to be the academic left. There is really very little interaction with conservative interpreters. I did not recognize much of what they were warning against. No doubt there are helpful exhortations (listen to God, do theology and interp for the church, remember church history, do not be trapped by modern interpretive strategies like text critical approaches, etc.). No doubt I am unaware of my own blindspots and not self-critical enough of my own interpretive strategies. But three questions kept reverberating in my mind as I read: 1) Why don't you tell me how to do what you want me to do? (It sounds great to "listen to God," but how do you do it? Or is it some sort of mystical, ineffable thing that defies elementary instruction?) 2) To whom are you writing? 3) What is the big deal?
June 16, 2016
I didn't find that this somewhat lengthy book really helps in Biblical interpretation. Like Thiselton he mega quotes, but I didn't reap the same fruits that I do when reading his books on hermeneutics, though he has a few duds as well. Worth skipping, imho.
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April 24, 2016Голяма, добре написана книга, зад която очевидно се крие забележителна ерудиция. Въпреки това книгата не ме грабна и не взех много практични неща от нея. Вероятно причината е в мен.
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