Reading Scripture with the Reformers

In Reading Scripture with the Reformers, Timothy George takes readers through the exciting events of the sixteenth century, showing how this.
Table of contents

As one wades through all the names and dates mentioned in the book and there are a lot it becomes clear that there was a true spiritual renewal of the primacy of the voice of Scripture in the life, worship and interpretation of the Church. Though each chapter is dedicated to seeing the development of scriptural renewal in the Reformation, there are several common threads that emerge.

First, there is the two-sided coin analogy when it comes to the people of the Reformation. One the one hand there were many laypeople some who were largely uneducated who had a notable impact on the Reformation. They realized the dire need to educate Christians on Scripture and sought to help make the Bible and various support materials available in their language. And men were not the only ones behind this lay-led arm of the Reformation.

Women like Argula von Grumbach were vocal supporters of Luther and other reformers p. Second, on the other hand, the Reformation might not have happened if it were not for the highly trained and educated men of the time. Theological education was needed to challenge the tangled Catholic theology the Reformation sought to refute.

Reading Scripture with the Reformers (Reformation Commentary on Scripture)

Linguistic education was needed to exegete the Scriptures in the original languages and to translate them into the vernacular languages of the various uneducated Christians. Third, there was the always present struggle between the role of Scripture and tradition. This was one of the defining features that birthed the Reformation. The reformers were not looking to toss tradition but rather give Scripture its proper voice over tradition.

It was amazing to see how geographical location played a role in certain events and how a river can be used to tell the history of one of the greatest movements in Christianity. Finally, any discussion of the Reformation would not be complete without mentioning Martin Luther. Though there are two chapters dedicated to Luther, his influence is mentioned and felt throughout the entire book. Clear, helpful, and easy to read. May 14, Justin Lonas rated it really liked it.

In the American individualist mindset, it is easy for us to approach the Scriptures as a tabula rasa, thinking that an open Bible and an open heart is all we need to understand God fully. While this idea flows from the Reformation principle of the priesthood of the believer, it is incomplete and can be dangerous because it downplays the impact of culture on our interpretation of biblical truths. Even the reformers themselves knew that the Church, while not authoritative, was vital as a guide to In the American individualist mindset, it is easy for us to approach the Scriptures as a tabula rasa, thinking that an open Bible and an open heart is all we need to understand God fully.

George devotes the first chapter of the book to a concise overview of the influence of biblical criticism and modernism and the resulting need for a historical and cultural perspective in studying Scripture. Chapter two follows with a summary of the development of printing and the revival of ancient literary scholarship that helped make the Reformation as a mass cultural event possible.


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Chapter 4 examines the tension between Scripture and tradition that marked the 16th Century and shows how the reformers stated their case of Scripture as the ultimate authority. Over the rest of the book, he discusses the contributions and influence of Erasmus chapter 3 , Luther chapters 5 and 6 , Zwingli and the Swiss Reformers chapter 7 , and Calvin chapter 8. He weaves the stories of the reformers and the story of the Scripture itself as it was copied and disseminated over the centuries into a steady narrative that keeps readers turning the pages.

History can be quite intriguing, and George makes the most of his opportunity to inspire others to learn about themselves by looking into the past. Mar 20, Matt Moran rated it really liked it Shelves: This is a small Reformation history with biographical sketches of some of the main players - Luther, Calvin, Zwingli. Specifically, it focuses on the Scripture itself as the force behind the Reformation.

Reading Scripture with the Reformers (Reformation Commentary on Scripture)

The opening chapter on the Reformers relationship with the Bible and the closing chapter on the Reformed emphasis on preaching are particularly good. Oct 03, John rated it really liked it Shelves: Such a wonderful book. A fascinating look at the Reformers and their Bible. This is monumental task that George has accomplished. Full of historical insights from the emergence of the printing press, the affect of Erasmus and the rise of the humanities, how the early church fathers and tradition influenced the reformers, and fire-blazing life of Luther.

Full of juicy quotes and antidotes. I highly recommend the book, even if it's an era and topic that you're familiar with. George helps us put to Such a wonderful book. George helps us put together pieces that haven't been put together, at least at this level. Jun 18, Craig Hurst rated it really liked it Shelves: If there is one thing that could be said to be true across many divides is a timeless desire for renewal to something foundational within a people, group or ideology.

Renewal to basic foundations and principles often times creates revival among the participants and results in the spread of the message. This is true for Christianity. Often times the thread of renewal that runs throughout Christian revival not just evangelistic revival is a return to sacred Scripture.

This renewed focus on Script If there is one thing that could be said to be true across many divides is a timeless desire for renewal to something foundational within a people, group or ideology. In conjunction with IVP Timothy George has edited the Reformation Commentary on Scripture series which seeks provide the reader with a vast wealth of rich commentary on Scripture from the Reformation era. Reading Scripture with the Reformers provides the historical context in which these commentary selections are taken from as the Reformers exposited Scripture anew for their time and the future life of the church.

Spurring of Renewal Like with any revival, there are always ingredients to a renewed focus on Scripture of which the Reformation is no exception. While the invention of the printing press and the return to the original languages of Scripture and the classics provided a fertile ground for Scriptural renewal, George highlights three areas of recurring tension that, in coming to head, became the tipping point for the Reformation. First, there was the relationship between Scripture and tradition. This is one of the most well know issues when discussing the Reformers contentions with the ruling Catholic Church of the time.

Second, there was the desire on the part of many reformation church leaders to make the Scriptures available in the language of the common person. It was the desire of these men that even the most unlearned of people could read the Bible on their own. Finally, there was the issue of how the Bible was used in the life and worship of the church. That we have nothing to learn from the past and that historical and theological ignorance is bliss. This mindset stems from a narrow view of sola scriptura. For it is one thing to say Scripture is our only final authority but it is another thing to say it is the only authority the church has in regards to Scripture.

With this in mind, George lays out five principles that guide our reading and understanding of Scripture which were also guides for the Reformers: What the reader will see throughout the book is how these five guidelines for reading and interpreting Scripture worked themselves throughout the Reformation understanding of Scripture. While in many cases they broke with the received interpretations of the fathers and the scholastics who came before them, theirs was nonetheless a churchly hermeneutic.

Amidst all of the names and dates mentioned in the book and there are a lot one sees that there was a true spiritual renewal of the primacy of the voice of Scripture in the life, worship and interpretation of the church. Though each chapter is dedicated to seeing the development of scriptural renewal in the Reformation, there are several common threads that emerge. First, there is the two-sided coin analogy when it comes to the people of the reformation.

One the one hand there were many laypeople some who were largely uneducated who had a notable impact on the reformation. Many laypeople realized the need to educate Christians on Scripture and sought to help get the Bible and various support material in their language.

Also, men were not the only ones behind this lay-led arm of the reformation. Women like Argula von Grumbach were vocal supporters of Luther and others p. Second, on the other hand, the reformation might not have happened if it were not for the highly trained and educated men of the time. Theological education was needed to challenge the tangled Catholic theology the reformation sought to refute. Linguistic education was needed to exegete the Scriptures in the original languages and to translate them into the vernacular languages of the various uneducated Christians.

Third, there was the always present struggle between the role of Scripture and tradition. This was one of the defining features that birthed the reformation.

Reading the Bible with the Reformers by Timothy George | Articles | First Things

The reformers were not looking to toss tradition but rather give Scripture its proper voice over tradition. In chapter four, Whose Bible? It was amazing to see how geographical location played a role in certain events and how a river can be used to tell the history of one of the greatest movements in Christianity. Finally, any discussion of the reformation would not be complete without mentioning Martin Luther.


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Though there are two chapters dedicated to Luther, he his influence is mentioned and felt throughout the entire book. It might not be a stretch to say that a history of the reformation and Luther are one in the same in many respects. For example, in his famous Bampton Lectures, Frederic W. Farrar described the long history of Christian interpretation of the Bible as something to be overcome: It has been imprisoned in the cells of alien dogma; it has been bound hand and foot in the grave clothes of human tradition; it has been entombed as a sepulcher by systems of theology, and the stone of human power has been rolled up to close its door.

They largely succeeded, but the effect has not been to reorient the churches around a revitalized biblical center. The historical-critical approach breaks the Bible down into discrete units to be further dissected in terms of competing hypotheses about authorship, literary form, original context, source of origin, and so forth.

This makes for good academic debate, but without a narrative or doctrinal unity the Bible cannot compete with the imperial present.

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This inattention sadly includes neglect of the history of biblical interpretation, the practice of reading Scripture in the company of the whole people of God. It is ironic that the Reformation principle of sola scriptura , much misunderstood, has led to the neglect among Protestants of older biblical commentaries, even those of the reformers themselves. Darby, the founder of the Plymouth Brethren, tried to eliminate all vestiges of the Catholic tradition, including ministerial orders and the use of biblical commentaries, which he considered unhelpful intermediaries between the Scriptures and the individual soul.

Although often thought of as an archconservative, his approach actually ministered to the triumph of the imperial present. Bruce, the great evangelical New Testament scholar, recalled what a wag once said about Darby: T imes are changing. Within the past generation the dominance of the historical-critical paradigm has been challenged from two different yet converging sources. On the one hand, there is a growing appreciation for the history of exegesis and the theological interpretation of the Bible understood as the book of the Church.

On the other hand, postmodern interpretations of the human self, language, and textuality, while often couched in nonreligious terms, call into question many assumptions of critical exegesis and suggest sympathy with the themes and sensibilities of the premodern Christian tradition. Together these developments have created a new openness for a fresh engagement with the exegetical writings of the church fathers, Scholastics, and reformers. In , David C. Returning to Augustine and the early Church, Steinmetz shows how the famous theory of the fourfold sense of Scripture, an approach widely used in the Middle Ages, was a way of taking seriously the words and sayings of Scripture, including implicit meanings that extend beyond the original intentions of the human authors.

According to Steinmetz, this kind of exegesis did not mean the abandonment of the literal sense of the text. Indeed, beginning with Thomas Aquinas and Nicholas of Lyra in the Middle Ages and continuing into the Reformation the literal sense became more prominent, even if more complex, as it absorbed more and more of the content of the spiritual meanings. The Bible opened up a field of possible meanings that allowed for considerable exegetical creativity but that also imposed limits on the interpreter.

One of the best recent introductions to the theological interpretation of Scripture, J. One finds a similar sympathy for precritical exegesis in a volume of essays on sixteenth-century exegesis and interpretation: Muller and John L. Amid all the enthusiasm for sources of biblical wisdom from the early Church, the Middle Ages, and the Reformation era, it must be admitted that the knowledge base for the study of the Bible is quantitatively much greater today.

A Bible Study Reformation

For example, the field of archaeology and such related disciplines as epigraphy, numismatics, and comparative philology was just emerging in the age of the Renaissance. Textual criticism of the Bible was also in its infant stages. The study of New Testament Greek remained uninformed by the discovery of additional manuscripts and Hellenistic papyri.

It would be foolish to neglect these and many other advances that have been made in the study of the Bible over the past two centuries, and no responsible practitioner of theological exegesis advocates anything like that. Surely this protest is fitting. In order to benefit from great voices of the Christian tradition, we need to recover the full tradition of Christian interpretation of the Bible. This tradition, which was reaffirmed and reinforced by the reformers, is characterized by five principles that should guide our reading and understanding of Scripture.

They are principles that often stand in contrast to the assumptions underpinning modern critical approaches. The Bible is the inspired and authoritative Word of God. Recent debates about biblical inspiration and inerrancy have obscured for some what has been the received wisdom for all orthodox Christians: Holy Scripture is a divinely bestowed, Spirit-generated gift of the triune God and should thus be received with gratitude, humility, and a sense of reverence. Christians do not worship the Bible but the God they do worship—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—has revealed himself and his plans for them and for the world through the words and message of the Bible.

As the great Methodist leader John Wesley put it: Every part is worthy of God and altogether are one entire body, wherein is no defect, no excess.

It is the fountain of heavenly wisdom, which they who are able to taste, prefer to all writings of men, however wise or learned or holy. Its contents must be received in faith, the kind of faith that is formed by love and leads to holiness.