Wisdom for Faithful Reading

Wisdom for Faithful Reading, Principles and Practices for Old Testament Interpretation
By John H. Walton

IVP Academic, Downers Grove, IL 2023
April 25, 2023, 226 pps

I’ve enjoyed John H. Walton's books over the years. The Lost World of Genesis 1 (IVP, 2009), was the first in his popular “Lost World” series, and is among the most influential books I have ever enjoyed.
Over the years in his “Lost World” Series he has shared many tips on how to properly interpret the Old Testament.

The key to the understanding of OT Scripture, Walton frequent says, is understanding that ‘the Bible was written for us, but not to us.’

…when we read a text written in another language and addressed to another culture, we must translate the culture as well as the language if we hope to understand the text fully.
As complicated as translating a foreign language can be, translating a foreign culture is infinitely more difficult. The problem lies in the act of translating. Translation involves lifting the ideas from their native context and relocating them in our own context.
John H. Walton, The Lost World of Genesis One: Ancient Cosmology and the Origins Debate (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2009), 7–8.​

In the “Lost World” Series Walton progresses through a series of propositions, developing a thesis that leads to a well supported conclusion.
“Wisdom for Faithful Reading” uses a similar practice, providing principles to pursue a proper perspective of interpretation.

As in his previous books, each section is well supported with examples drawn from the OT Scriptures.

CONTENTS:
General Principles
1 One Quest
2 Two Caveats
3 Three Essential Commitments
4 Four Fundamental Concepts for Interpretation
5 Five Principles for Faithful Interpretation
6 A Text Cannot Mean What It Never Meant
7 The Bible Is Written for Us but Not to Us
8 Reading the Bible Instinctively Is Not Reliable and Risks Imposing a Foreign Perspective on the Text
9 Literal Reading Means Being Accountable to the Ancient Author’s Literary Intentions
10 We Are Accountable to the Author’s Literary Intentions, Which Constitute the Affirmations of Scripture
11 A Genre Discussion Must Precede an Authority Conversation
12 All Translation Is Interpretation
13 Words That Are Roughly Comparable in Two Languages Often Carry Different Nuances
14 In a Hearing-Dominant Culture, There Are No Books or Authors as We Know Them, and “Book” Is the Last Step, Not the First
15 The Old Testament Is Not About Jesus, but It Drives Us to Jesus
16 The Holy Spirit Cannot Be Used as an Appeal to Authority
17 Not Everything Has a “Biblical View”​

PART TWO: GENRE GUIDELINES
Section A—Pentateuch
18 Creation Is More About Order Than Material
19 The Seventh Day Is the Most Important of the Creation Days
20 Covenant Is More About Yahweh’s Presence and Kingship Than About Law, Promise, or Salvation
21 Torah Is More About Instruction That Cultivates Wisdom Than Legislation That Results in Law
22 Torah Is Not Establishing an Ideal Social System but Is Speaking Wisdom into Israel’s Social System
Section B—Narrative
23 Reality Is Bigger Than History
24 We Have to Understand a Text Literarily Before We Can Understand It Historically
25 We Cannot Get Behind the Literary Veil
26 More Important Than What the Characters Do Is What the Narrator Does with the Characters and What God Is Doing Through the Characters
Section C—Wisdom and Psalms
27 Wisdom Is the Pathway to Order
28 Proverbial Sayings Are Generalizations, Not Promises
29 Psalms Commends Prayer but Does Not Command Prayer
Section D—Prophecy and Apocalyptic
30 Prophecy Is More About Revealing God’s Plans and Purposes Than Revealing the Future
31 Prophecy Is Not Prediction
32 Apocalyptic Is Not Prophecy
33 In Apocalyptic Literature, the Visions Are Not the Message but the Occasion for the Message
34 Fulfillment Is Distinct from Message

PART THREE: A WAY FORWARD
Section A—Characteristics of Faithful Reading
35 Reading Scripture Well
36 Five Tendencies to Avoid
Section B—Living Life
37 Living Life in Light of Scripture​

This book has already influenced how I interpret and understand Scripture and will be among those I value most highly. Even more than his previous books, it is written in a way that is easy to understand. His many Scriptural examples have thrown light upon passages that have been difficult for me to understand.
Using the principles illustrated in this book would quell the many poorly thought out biblical interpretations that pollute the internet.

I’ve have also purchased the Audible version of the book to listen to as I travel to and from work each day. I imagine that I will be listening to it over and over as I incorporate its lessons into my practice.

Rob