Honesty In Bible Interpretation

"True interpretation is a sacred duty, carried out under God's eye and judgment." 

(Shakespeare, Milton...By Marcus Walsh - see here)

Oh that so many do not understand this! Would to God our Hardshell brothers would heed this warning and not handle the word of God as they do!

Wrote Professor Daniel Wallace (see here - emphasis mine):

"This is the first in a series of occasional short essays on "Scripture Twisting." The purpose of these very brief essays is to challenge certain popular interpretations of the Bible that really have little or no basis."

Wallace gives several reasons for misinterpretation of scripture.

Reason One: Lack of Respect

"Hence, one reason for the abuse of Scripture is due to a lack of respect for the Bible as a divine and human work. In this approach it becomes a magical incantation book--almost a book of unconnected fortune cookie sayings!

Reason Two: Laziness

"Part and parcel of this abuse of Scripture is laziness. That is, most people simply don't take the trouble to read the context or to do their homework on the meaning of the Bible. And even when they are confronted with overwhelming evidence that is contrary to their view, they often glibly reply, "That's just your interpretation." This kind of response sounds as if all interpretations are up for grabs, as though all interpretations are equally plausible. Such a view is patently false." 

I found this problem among the Hardshells when I was one of them.

Wallace continued:

"Take the following sentence as an example: "My mother likes climbing vines." One interpretation of these words is not just as valid as another. This sentence cannot mean "My father is an auto mechanic." "Mother" does not mean "Father"; "likes" does not mean "is"; "climbing vines" is not a synonym for "auto mechanic." Language cannot be twisted in this manner. Now, without a context, there are, however, two distinct options for the sentence in question. Either "My mother likes vines that climb" or "My mother likes to climb vines." Which is the right view? The only way to tell is to look at the context of the utterance--or to ask the author of the sentence! Both things are done in biblical interpretation. Sometimes the context solves the problem; other times, the more we know about an author, the better able we are to determine his meaning. But one recipe for missing the meaning of the text is to be too casual about it."

Brother Fralick has written much on how the Hardshells, in their interpretations of scripture, ignore context.

Reason Three: Dishonesty

"Another reason for Scripture twisting is simple dishonesty. Peter reminds his audience that Paul wrote things that are hard to understand, which the unstable and wicked twist to their own destruction (2 Peter 3:15-16). I'm afraid that this approach to Scripture represents the attitude of far too many folks. Not just heretics, either."

I believe that this is the chief reason for denominations and false interpretation. Most people do not approach the scriptures honestly. When we twist scripture, we are being dishonest. If you want to be kept from error in interpretation, begin with being honest with the text of scripture.