Reading the Bible Wisely
Richard S. Briggs, Reading the Bible Wisely: An Introduction to Taking Scripture Seriously, revised edition (Eugene, OR: Cascade Books, 2011), 153 pages, ISBN 9781610972888.
Richard Briggs offers a brief and accessible introduction to the Christian hermeneutical task of reading the Bible theologically. His experience as a teacher is evident throughout the work (he serves as Lecturer in Old Testament at Cranmer Hall, St. John’s College, Durham University, and he formerly taught New Testament). His concern is to demonstrate how Christians can “read the Bible wisely” and how they can “take scripture seriously” (p. 1). These concerns, according to Briggs, are deeper and broader than looking for the “right” interpretation of the Bible.
Briggs addresses his concern in three parts. Part One attends to the hermeneutical importance of context (historical, literary, and theological). Chapter 1 is a study of Luke 24 that serves to introduce the basic idea of biblical interpretation. Chapter 2 uses Luke 18 to show the importance of historical context. Luke 9:51 is the focus of Chapter 3, in which Briggs describes Scripture as a literary work. Utilizing a balanced and nuanced argument, Chapter 4 suggests eight reasons for reading the Old Testament as Christian Scripture. Then, as a way of demonstrating how to read the Old Testament, Chapter 5 provides an interpretation of the book of Isaiah.
These five chapters are short on theory and long on practice. The greatest strength of Part One lies in its use of Biblical examples to illustrate the hermeneutical task. However, many important hermeneutical concerns are omitted from the discussion because the bulk of the chapters consists of the interpretation of only a few biblical texts. Briggs is an engaging writer who expresses himself clearly, but he does not attempt to be comprehensive in his description of the hermeneutical process.
Part Two consists of three chapters that present Briggs’s view of Scripture. Chapter 6 examines 2 Tim. 3:16 and 2 Pet. 1:20-21 as a means of expounding on the inspiration of Scripture. For Briggs, the Bible is “filled with the spirit, or breath, of God” (p. 77), but it is also a book that comes to us through the human process of writing, transmission, and translation.
In the very succinct and helpful Chapter 7, Briggs discusses the nature and shape of the biblical canon, as well as the process of canonization. He addresses the controversies surrounding the Apocrypha and other non-canonical books (e.g., The Shepherd of Hermas). Briggs argues that the canon provides a “theological framework” that points to the “central story of Jesus” (p. 89).
In dealing with the authority of Scripture (Chapter 8), Briggs insists that Christians must move beyond a simplistic search for “applications” of the text. He states, “In the end, the Bible is not fundamentally about principles to be applied, or about authoritative rules to be obeyed” (p. 91). The Bible is mostly story, and if it is reduced to a list of principles, then it becomes something else entirely. The Bible is the story of God and his people, and in reading the Bible, people meet God and are transformed.
Part Three of the book (“Hermeneutical Perspectives”) includes four chapters that seem to have been tacked on at the end, though they do address hermeneutical issues. The least valuable is Chapter 9, which is a short interpretation of the book of Revelation. Although the interpretation is well done, it would have been more effective if Briggs had shown clearly its implications for hermeneutics. Chapter 10 introduces the reader to the field of speech-act theory and applies it to biblical interpretation. Although the chapter is written clearly and concisely, the space that it occupies could have been used more profitably as a chapter devoted to one or more of the important hermeneutical concepts that are omitted in this short volume (e.g. genre, semantics, biblical languages, poetry, narratology, ideological concerns, the world in front of the text, etc.).
Chapter 11 (“Transformation”) and Chapter 12 (“The Word of Life and the Pursuit of Wisdom”) do not address hermeneutics; rather, they address the goals of biblical study. For Briggs, the reading of Scripture should lead to a transformation of the reader (Ch. 11) and the acquisition of wisdom (Ch. 12). The reader of Scripture “is being changed by persistent encounter” with God (p. 136). Through the reading of Scripture, the reader gains the “wisdom to see the world as God wants us to see it” (p. 141).
This book does not purport to be a comprehensive guide to biblical hermeneutics, and it is not. However, despite its limitations, I heartily recommend it for pastors and college students as a supplement to other, more detailed texts on biblical interpretation. The approach of Briggs is thoughtful and respectful. He is not a fundamentalist, but he affirms the authority, inspiration, and power of Scripture.
Reviewed by Lee Roy Martin
