Do you believe it is entirely possible that one Bible verse could have 2 or more equally valid meanings?

Question

Personally I believe that much of the Bible is written in an an indepth manner. Much of it I think has more than one meaning behind it without devaluing or adversely affecting the other meanings.
Peace Be With You,
Debra

What I mean by this is that one story/parable could have two equally true teachings/lessons.

Answer 1

yes i have gotten different meanings from the same scriptures, several time.
I believe that the bible is written in such a way, they as you deeper into your spiritual life, it brings new meaning to you.

Answer 2

I'm sure that when God inspired the Bible, it was for the purpose of giving what people need, that is, all people throughout time. Some things can hold a certain "meaning" to one person, and another to someone else. That is a slippery slope though, because then people interpret it any way they choose, and that is wrong. It may give you something different, but the MEANING of the Words never change.

Answer 3

The verses in the Bible are the most misinterpreted and used for selfish individual and institutional ends for gain. Those who wrote the Bible had only one meaning and message; but human intelligence twisted and distorted it out of shape. Only in Indian films music there are double meanings to a line that is quite indecent. Bible is a Holy Text and none dare write it the filmic way.

Answer 4

Yes, just as it is possible for anything else to be interpreted differently by others, it is highly likely that two or more equally valid meanings could come from one Bible verse. It's all in the literal or figurative translation.

Answer 5

I believe the Word of God is meant to mean one thing, not for people to chose what they want it to mean.

If someone don't understand a verse, that;s OK, but don't just go around saying you think this is what it means because it seems right to you.
That's why we have to study the Bible.

The Holy Spirit reveals Truth.

How can one stand firm on the Word of God when people have different meanings to it?

This is what's wrong with Christianity today, even Christians don't agree.

This is really a troubling question and some of the answers are even more troubling.
There's no telling what people are preaching and teaching.

When the Disciples didn't understand when Jesus was preaching Jesus would explain to them what He meant, He didn't just let them go out guessing what He meant.

Matthew 13

18"Listen then to what the parable of the sower means:

36Then he left the crowd and went into the house. His disciples came to him and said, "Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field."

51"Have you understood all these things?" Jesus asked.
"Yes," they replied.

Mark 4

33With many similar parables Jesus spoke the word to them, as much as they could understand. 34He did not say anything to them without using a parable. But when he was alone with his own disciples, he explained everything.

This is what caused the fall of man.

The Fall of Man
1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?"

2 The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3 but God did say, 'You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.' "

4 "You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman. 5 "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."

See how easily Eve was deceived by being told God didn't mean what He said.

When Jesus was tempted by satan for 40 days He fought satan with the Word of God.

The Temptation of Jesus
1Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. 2After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3The tempter came to him and said, "If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread."

4Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'[a]"

5Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. 6"If you are the Son of God," he said, "throw yourself down. For it is written:
" 'He will command his angels concerning you,
and they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.'[b]"

7Jesus answered him, "It is also written: 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'[c]"

8Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 9"All this I will give you," he said, "if you will bow down and worship me."

10Jesus said to him, "Away from me, Satan! For it is written: 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.'[d]"

11Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.

Answer 6

When reading the Bible we must be careful not to take
the verse or entire passsges out of context

To get the true meaning of a verse we have to read the whole
contend.
.

Answer 7

absolutely! in fact, i think that is one of the more fascinating and beautiful things about the bible...it has something to say, on so many different levels to everyone. i mean, just take (as an example) the 'simplest' verse in the bible...'Jesus wept'...in those two words there are very important lessons about Christ's humanity...his dear friend Lazarus dies and he is faced with His own all-too human grief and the grief of Mary and Martha, Lazarus's sisters and His friends-and we see Christ's divine nature in His compassion for the suffering of mankind manifest in the situation.


{{{{{{{{{{Debra m}}}}}}}}}}

(edit) you don't suppose, do you, that it was INTENDED to be that way?

Answer 8

Yes, the Rabbi I was listening to was just speaking about this. She said that the religious texts were inspired by God, not written by him. Because it was written down by fallible humans, the Word was corrupted by the writer's mind. In order to get to God's word, you have to first interpret it to find out what could have inspired the writers. I agree, I think that the whole book is open to interpretation...

Answer 9

of course Debra
no two people are alike ... why should words mean the same to both of them ?
the bible ( or any religious book ) in my opinion was written as guidance or inspiration
and people need different guidance/inspiration at different times of their life

read a passage today , then read the same passage next year
it will mean something different to you

as a non Christian , I can read the bible and take inspiration from it

Answer 10

I think we oftentimes get different meanings depending on what we need that day and how God chooses to bless us. There is the milk of the word and the meat. As babes in Christ we need the milk. As we grow we begin to eat the meat and gain a deeper understanding. I have had times when I read a verse I have read many times before and suddenly I see it in a different light. I have heard it referred to as Gold nuggets hidden in the Bible.