Grace Gate

It is utterly necessary that the Holy Scriptures are understood to be inerrant and sufficient.  We must have a supreme authority outside of ourselves in order to anchor us to Truth.  If you believe the Scriptures have ANY error in them, the logical outworking would eventually be, “Who is to say that the Gospel narrative itself is not wrong?”  One hole in the boat would sink the whole ship.  It is also necessary that we understand the Scripture to be sufficient.  We are not in need of any additional revelation from God.  There are no authoritative commentaries.   

The Westminster Confession says the following about the Scriptures:

The whole counsel of God concerning all things necessary for His own glory, man’s salvation, faith and life, is either expressly set down in Scripture, or by good and necessary consequence may be deduced from Scripture: unto which nothing at any time is to be added, whether by new revelations of the Spirit, or traditions of men.

The 2000 Baptist Faith and Message says the following about the Scriptures:

The Holy Bible was written by men divinely inspired and is God’s revelation of Himself to man. It is a perfect treasure of divine instruction. It has God for its author, salvation for its end, and truth, without any mixture of error, for its matter. Therefore, all Scripture is totally true and trustworthy. It reveals the principles by which God judges us, and therefore is, and will remain to the end of the world, the true center of Christian union, and the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds, and religious opinions should be tried. All Scripture is a testimony to Christ, who is Himself the focus of divine revelation.

Exodus 24:4; Deuteronomy 4:1-2; 17:19; Joshua 8:34; Psalms 19:7-10; 119:11,89,105,140; Isaiah 34:16; 40:8; Jeremiah 15:16; 36:1-32; Matthew 5:17-18; 22:29; Luke 21:33; 24:44-46; John 5:39; 16:13-15; 17:17; Acts 2:16ff.; 17:11; Romans 15:4; 16:25-26; 2 Timothy 3:15-17; Hebrews 1:1-2; 4:12; 1 Peter 1:25; 2 Peter 1:19-21.

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When people read and study the Bible, there are two different textual methods that can be used to capture the meaning; exegesis [ek-si-jee-sis] and eisegesis [ahy-si-jee-sis].  Although these may be strange sounding words, they are in fact the lynchpin of Bible study.  One leads to the Truth, and the other leads to finding what “itching ears want to hear.”

Question: “What is the difference between exegesis and eisegesis?”

Answer: Exegesis and eisegesis are two conflicting approaches in Bible study. Exegesis is the exposition or explanation of a text based on a careful, objective analysis. The word exegesis literally means “to lead out of.” That means that the interpreter is led to his conclusions by following the text.

The opposite approach to Scripture is eisegesis, which is the interpretation of a passage based on a subjective, non-analytical reading. The word eisegesis literally means “to lead into,” which means the interpreter injects his own ideas into the text, making it mean whatever he wants.

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Although following the exegesis approach may sound like a “no-brainer”, many people in fact drop the use of exegesis when the Scriptures become difficult or reveal something that the reader finds uncomfortable.  However, once exegesis is left behind, the reader begins creating their doctrines and world-view, not based on the teaching of Scripture, but on what they wish the Scriptures taught.  As you read the Bible, remember that if you are searching for the Truth, you must be open to believing what the Scriptures say.  The genuine Truth-seeker should be willing to lay their presuppositions and traditions aside, and embrace the Scriptures at face-value as the inerrant, sufficient and true revelation of God.

The teaching derived from Grace Gate comes from sources that seek to use exegesis to determine the actual meaning of Scripture and therefore testify to a doctrine of God and Salvation that is not founded on the desires of man, but on the very Word of God.