7 unusual ways to understand the bible better
November 30, 2019
We all know that everybody has their own opinion about what the bible says and means.
Consequently, according to one objective source, there are about 4,300 different religions of the world, and that does not include the countless sub-groups within these religions.
All these religions stem from a wrong dividing of the word of God!
Although there are many different factors involved in rightly dividing his word, since God commands us to do that, then it has to be possible to do so.
II Timothy 2:15
Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
Okay, since over 4,000 different religions have not figured out how to do this right, then how do you expect me to?
Because the bible tells us how.
II Peter 1:20
Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.
If you look online, a free bible dictionary says the word “private” comes from the Greek word idios, which means one’s own. So, a more accurate translation of this verse would be: “Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of one’s own interpretation.
But how can this be?!
If nobody can interpret it, then what’s the point of even having the bible written?
You’re on the right track, but you just need to take your sound logic one more step.
Since the reader of the bible is not supposed to interpret it, then the only other logical option is that it must interpret itself.
There are only 3 basic ways the bible interprets itself:
- in the verse
- in the context
- where it was used before
So II Peter 1:20 interprets itself in the verse, but the the words in the verse must be understood according to their biblical usage.
The King James Version was written over 400 years ago in Europe, so the meanings of words have changed over the years, distance and cultural differences.
#1. Changes in words from OT to NT
Jude 1:11
Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core.
Who’s Core?! I’ve never even heard of this guy!
That’s because this is the only place in the entire bible his name is spelled this way.
It is Strong’s # 2879, which is the Greek word Kore, which comes from the Old Testament Hebrew word Qorach: an Edomite name, also an Israelite name and is translated Korah 37 times in the KJV Old Testament.
So this verse interprets itself in the verse according to biblical usage, but also where it was used before in the Old Testament.
Here’s another one:
Luke 3:36
Which was the son of Cainan, which was the son of Arphaxad, which was the son of Sem, which was the son of Noe, which was the son of Lamech,
Once again, who’s Noe?! I’ve never even heard of this guy!
This time, his name is translated “Noe” 5 times in the New Testament.
But you’ll immediately know who “this guy” is just by reading these 2 verses.
Matthew 24
37 But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,
If you think that “Noe” is Noah, you’re right, but lest we be guilty of our
own interpretation, let’s verify this from a bible dictionary.
As you can see, Noe is actually the Greek word that means Noah.
However, there is a bit of confusion stemming from the arbitrary and inconsistent translation of Noe!
Its used 8 times in the New Testament, but in 5 out of the 8 usages [62.5% for the data rats like me (I got the phrase from a Netflix show)], its translated “Noe”, and in the other 3 usages, [37.5%], its translated to the familiar name of “Noah”.
Compounding the problem, in one of my KJV bibles, Noah’s name is spelled “Noe”, but in another KJV bible, its spelled “No’e”!
We are in a spiritual competition, so all these inconsistent and confusing translations of words is the work of the God of this world, the devil who is always attacking the truth.
#2. BIBLICAL MEANING OF NUMBERS
Interestingly, the biblical meaning of the number 8 is resurrection and a new beginning.
It certainly was a new beginning for mankind when Noah obeyed God’s instructions and prevented the entire human race from total annihilation by the global flood.
We will see another example of this later on in this article.
However, be aware that numerology is the branch of knowledge that deals with the occult significance of numbers, which is the world’s counterfeit of the original and Godly biblical significance of numbers, so don’t be deceived.
#3. FORGERIES
Believe it or not, there are numerous forgeries in the bible!
They are one of the many forms of attacks against God and his word, and with some very simple tools and logic, we can easily defeat them.
With the resources that we have available and knowing the principles of how the bible interprets itself, we can still get back to the original God-breathed word.
Revelation 1:8
I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.
In Revelation 1:8 of the red letter editions of the bible, we have private [one’s own] interpretation in the form of red letters that are supposed to be the words of Jesus.
However, as we’ll soon see, this private interpretation is entirely wrong!
How do I know?
#4. THE USE OF MULTIPLE OBJECTIVE AUTHORITIES
#4 is a subset of #3 forgeries because using multiple objective authorities enables us to detect and defeat the forgery.
When it comes to truth, opinions don’t count.
As Sergeant Friday said in the old crime series Dragnet, “Just the facts ma’am”.
This is simply a variation of 1 of the 3 basic ways the bible interprets itself: in the verse.
Proverbs 11:14
Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counsellors there is safety.
So the multiple objective authorities are serving as the multitude of counselors.
Just follow this link to my article on the felony forgery of Revelation 1:8 to the link that goes to the “What truths do the ancient biblical manuscripts of Revelation 1:8 reveal?” section in order to understand the principle of multiple objective authorities in action.
#5. REMOTE CONTEXT
There are 2 types of context: immediate and remote.
Immediate context contains the handful of verses before and after the verse in question.
Remote context can be the entire chapter, the entire book of the bible that you’re reading, or as broad as the entire old or new testament.
Jude 4 is only 1 chapter [29 verses] before Revelation 1:8!
In many chapters of the bible, if you moved up or down 29 verses, you would still be in the same chapter, but because this remote context is in a different book of the bible, most people miss it entirely.
Jude 4
For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.
What does “denying” mean?
Although we don’t have a face, place or name on the jerk perp who whacked the word, God found the forger’s flaw.
The forger of Revelation 1:8 deliberately removed the word “God” out of the verse, “denying [and contradicting] the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ”.
- Forgery is a felony crime
- All forgeries include fraud, the deliberate intent to deceive for one’s personal gain, which is the second felony crime
- Theft often accompanies forgeries, so by removing only 3 letters from the bible [the word “God”], the forger also committed identity theft – the trinitarian Jesus is now impersonating God, his father, without his consent.
Would the real Jesus impersonate God?!
There is a devastating difference of motive between impersonating God out of envy and revealing him out of love.
Hard to see, the dark side is…
Maybe that’s why I John 1:5 that tells us “…God is light, and in him is no darkness at all” is also the exact same book that says “No man hath seen God at anytime”.
The trinitarian Jesus reflects the same motive that the devil had towards God in the war in heaven: “I will be like the most High.” – Isaiah 14:14 and what he told Eve in the garden of Eden “…ye shall be as gods…” Genesis 3:5.
Note the parallels between this trinitarian forgery and our adversary, the devil:
- Committing at least 3 crimes reflects the lawlessness of the lawless one, the devil
- Theft comes from the thief, whose sole purpose is to steal, kill and destroy
- Fraud is the deliberate attempt to deceive and the devil is called the deceiver
- Forging the truth turns it into a lie and the devil is a liar and the originator of it
Jesus Christ is called the son of God no less than 68 times in the bible!
2 John 3
Grace be with you, mercy, and peace, from God the Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love.
So this information in Jude 4 is an exact description of the nature of the forger of Revelation 1:8.
#6. NUMBER AND DISTRIBUTION PATTERNS OF WORDS
The phrase “Kingdom of heaven” is used 32 times in the bible, but only in the gospel of Matthew!
I wonder why that is?
From a numerical perspective, 32 = 8 x 4.
8: the number of resurrection and a new beginning – Jesus Christ was resurrected from the dead.
4: the number of material completeness and the # of the world.
Jesus Christ is called the bread from heaven and Israel is a very important country in the world and is used many times throughout the bible.
Definition of kingdom = rulership of a king
So the number and distribution pattern of the phrase “Kingdom of heaven” perfectly fits into what we know about the bible, but there’s even more in-depth understanding in the next and final section.
#7. JESUS CHRIST, THE RED THREAD OF THE BIBLE
Jesus Christ has a unique identity in all 56 books of the bible.
I know, I know, you’re telling me that there are 66 books, and not 56, but it depends on how you count them.
With the current counting system, there are 66 different books in the bible, but 6 is the number of man as he is influenced by the devil. 2 is the number of division, so 66 would represent influence from the devil doubled that causes division! Not good.
However, if you count I & II Kings as one book, I & II Corinthians as one book, etc and realize that originally, the books of Ezra and Nehemiah were one book, you arrive at 56 books.
56 is 7 [the # of spiritual perfection] times 8 [the number of resurrection and a new beginning].
Studying and applying the bible in your life is a new beginning with God’s spiritual perfection.
The real reason that the phrase “Kingdom of heaven” is only used in the book of Matthew is because Jesus Christ’s unique identity is the king of Israel.
How perfect is that!
