Do you think people take what the Bible reads out of context?

Question

People often take things out of context, but when it's supposed to be as important as the Bible, it shouldn't be argued over parts of it being fact or fiction, it should be understood completely, but should it be taken completely literally, or used metaphorically? Put your input in here.

Answer 1

It consists of a lot of morality tales designed to help scare the people of those primitive times to lead better lives. Anyone who takes it literally is missing the whole point - notably that it was for people who lived several thousand years ago. Many of the things that are mentioned in it have never been proven to happen although some have and some are just retelling of older stories - the Noah story for example having been copied from the Sumerian tale of Gilgamesh. Many people today seem to take certain portions out of context to justify things they do. All it is people is a collection of stories and a guide for living several thousand years ago!!

Answer 2

I can't remember exactly when it happened but I know the Catholic church used to teach that it should be understood metaphorically. I don't know when that all changed - a theologian would most likely recall more.
People used to believe them as 'literally' as they did any of Aesop's fables. They knew the stories were to teach a deeper truth.

I take it as I do fairy tales. Fairy tales ARE true. They aren't literal truths, but psychological truths.
Try reading The Interpretation of Fairy Tales by Marie-Louise von Franz and then tell me they're not true! lol

This doesn't mean that the bible stories aren't based on any facts(Noah's Ark) or that God doesn't really exist. That is a common misunderstanding and maybe that's why they now teach it as a literal truth. Maybe people in the 'modern' world can't handle metaphorical truths. They just want the facts, huh?

Another problem people have with the Bible is that it contradicts itself. Well, isn't it called "the Living Bible"? Maybe that's for a reason. Life is a paradox, truth is a paradox, full of contradictions.

Answer 3

It's certainly important to remember the context that a passage of Scripture appears in. For example, when you read in the OT about the stoning of people for committing adultery, you have to remember that this was under the Mosaic law and does not apply to us (although God still does not approve of adultery).

Concerning taking the Bible literally vs metaphorically, there are parts of the Bible that have a lot of symbolism in them. Examples are found in Daniel, Ezekiel, and Revelation. We should look for the meaning behind the symbolism. I think it is obvious when symbolic language is being used in the Bible.

But, should we take the story of Adam and Eve in the garden literally? This is a simple story. If we don't take it literally, how should we take it? What is the symbolic meaning behind a story of a man and a woman in a garden? If we evolved over millions of years, I believe God would have told us this in the Bible.

The short answer to your question is, some parts of the Bible are to be taken literally, and some parts are to be taken figuratively. There are different kinds of writing in the Bible: poetry, history, prophecy. In a sense, reading the Bible is not that different than reading any other book.

Answer 4

well since the bible was written 2000-5000 years ago the entire thing is out of context. anyone who reads it without realizing that (in my thoroughly biased opinion) is omitting/ignoring certain facts of history, science, and society.
i've always viewed the bible as a series of metaphors. not to be taken literally but to be interpreted by all who read it in a personal manner. the bible is full of paradoxes and contradictions because even the people writing it had different views of the world around them. and so do the people of today. i think the bible should be a personal thing and not some 'universal truth' because foricing one's beliefs on others never works out well.

Answer 5

I believe people take what the Bible reads out of context every minute of every day. I've heard that you can back up ANY statement in the Bible. I don't believe it should be taken completely literally because then it seems to contradict itself. I take what lessons I can learn from the Bible and leave the rest for another day.

Answer 6

I think that people will take anything including the bible how they want to and read into what they want to. For instance those who hate homosexuals will concentrate on those passages while ignoring the passages on judgment which might relate to them.

I do think the bible can be taken in a literal sense. Not really as a metaphor but rather like a history lesson. We learn from history but we attempt not to repeat it.

Answer 7

Its user-friendly for Muslims to declare that don't pull verses out to tutor a factor. One has to study it in context. however the comparable Muslims, in the event that they decide for to tension a factor, they only purely pull out a verse or 2. Very ironic isn't it? They pontificate human beings some thing yet then they do no longer carry on with it. If in basic terms, each and every thing in the quran exchange into study in context, it could have long been thrown out, isn't it?. enable me additionally inform you which you're making a large hypocrite. Congratulations!!!

Answer 8

Reading the bible is "out of context"

Answer 9

Whenever you're dealing with something written thousands of years ago, it's difficult to interpret. What were common stories and/or recognizable metaphors back then? Impossible to say.

Answer 10

A thousand people can read the Bible, and you will get a thousand interpretations.