The Living Word (Lesson 11)

Understanding Historical Narratives

Today we begin the third and final segment of our study together. The first five weeks we spent examining foundational principles that come from our understanding the word of God as divine. In the next five lessons we looked at necessary hermeneutical elements that arise from our understanding of the human aspect of God’s word. In the five weeks which remain, we will apply these principles to the different genres that the bible contains. How are the historical narratives of the bible different from the psalms? How are the prophecies different from the epistles? How does every genre point to the centrality and all-sufficiency of Christ? How can we employ a historical, grammatical, contextual hermeneutic that is appropriate for each particular genre that we study? These are some of the questions that will occupy our attention for the remaining five weeks of class. The first genre that we will examine together is that of the historical narrative.

Historical narratives are in one sense one of the easiest genres in scripture to understand. It may be difficult to follow the logical progression in some of the epistles, or to make sense of all the symbols and understand the time frames throughout the prophets, or to discern who is speaking and who is being spoken to in many of the psalms. But anyone can follow a story. And history is simply the story of a person or a nation or an epoch. The historical narratives typically flow smoothly from one event to another, often in chronological order. The dialogue is usually straightforward, and clearly attributed to one speaker. Many of the interpretive questions we labor to answer in the other genres seem simple and obvious in history. But in another sense, historical narratives can be one of the most difficult genres to understand. It is easy to determine what is being communicated; it is far more difficult to determine why. It is easy to see why the epistles were written, and how they point to Christ. It is easy to see the reason for the psalms and the prophets, and the vital role they play in pointing to the coming Messiah. But why did God have the histories of individuals and nations recorded for us in his word? And why did he choose the particular persons and events that he chose, and not others which he might have chosen? What was God’s overriding purpose that determined which historical events he would record for us? These are some of the difficult questions with which we must grapple as we turn to the historical portions of our bible. In this light, our interpretive task in the historical narratives is more difficult than it first appears. However, this task will be greatly facilitated if we keep two basic principles in mind that deal with God’s purpose in setting down an inspired historical account for his people to study.

  1. The history contained in the bible is redemptive history.

    Another way of saying this is that bible history is the history of the advance of the kingdom of God. Bible history is not a history of the great nations of the world. It is not a recounting of the lives of influential world figures. It is not even the history of one small nation to which God chose to give his oracles and commandments. Instead, it is the history of God’s kingdom, the history of God’s great purpose of redeeming and purifying for himself a people that would be his inheritance, as he would be their God. And if the bible is the history of a kingdom, the central figure of that history is the King. If the bible is a history of God’s redemptive purpose, the central figure of that history is the Redeemer. If the bible is a history of God’s covenant dealings with man, the central figure of that history is the Mediator and Fulfillment of the covenant. If the bible is a history of God’s promise to fallen mankind that he would restore fellowship with them and would be their God and would dwell among them, the central figure of that history is Immanuel, God with us. As we look to the historical portions of the bible, we must be looking for the advance of a kingdom built upon the covenant promises of God, a kingdom whose citizens would be purified and redeemed from the curse, a people whose God would be Jehovah forevermore. Furthermore, we must recognize that every advance and growth and unfolding and blossoming of that kingdom is the glorious work of one individual, Son of God and Son of Man, the Redeemer, the Messiah, the promised Seed, the Conqueror of all evil, the Destroyer of the serpent, the King of all ages, reigning on the throne of David forever. From Genesis to Revelation, every historical account in the bible is an account of this great kingdom. And it is a glorious history indeed.

  2. The history contained in the bible is typical history.

    If a great artist were passionately in love with a woman, he would not be content merely to describe her beauty and worth as he conversed with a few friends. Everything he did, at some level or another, would be about her. When he painted, his paintings would be filled with images of her in every conceivable setting, and engaged in all of her customary activities. When he sculpted, she would be his theme and subject. When he wrote, his poems would be suffused with glimpses of her attributes and qualities. In short, he would not be content simply to describe her – he would also picture her and illustrate her in everything that he did. When God designed his glorious kingdom of redeemed worshipers, and entrusted to his beloved Son that work of accomplishing this mighty redemption and subsequently enjoying the effects of his victorious labor as he reigned triumphantly over all the world, he did not stop with simply telling us this glorious truth. That alone should have been enough to fill our hearts with worship and delight for all the ages. That alone should have been a grand enough truth to shape our thoughts as we looked at every circumstance in life. But we are a weak and near-sighted people, and how easy it would have been for us to lose the sight of our all-encompassing Savior as we looked at the mundane things of the world, and the age-old histories of mankind. But God, the Planner and Shaper of history, wisely and graciously purposed that, beyond just telling the world of the glories of his Son, he would picture and illustrate those truths in every conceivable manner. As we examine the histories of the bible, it becomes apparent that so many people and so many events reflect in such a startling manner who Christ is and what he accomplished on the cross, that it is impossible to call them coincidence. Rather, the God who planned the redemptive work of Christ also planned all of history to foreshadow in a thousand diverse ways that one grand accomplishment. All of history moves toward the fulfillment of one great Messiah accomplishing one great work. But on the way to that final, universal fulfillment, we have that person and work pictured over and over again.

Examples of types in the Old Testament

  1. Example of persons who clearly typify the Messiah

    • Abel

    • Noah

    • Abraham

    • Melchisedek

    • Isaac

    • Joseph

    • Moses

    • Joshua

    • Gideon

    • Sampson

    • David

    • Solomon

    • Jonah

    • Hosea

  2. Examples of things and events which clearly typify the advent and work of the Messiah

    • Abraham’s slaughter of the kings

    • Abraham’s praying for the life of the Pharoah

    • Sarah’s being given a miraculous conception of a promised seed

    • Joseph’s being betrayed by his brothers, persecuted on false pretexts, cast down into the pit, being raised up to a glorious position at the right hand of the king, supporting the whole world with lifegiving bread, amassing great riches, graciously reconciling himself to his wicked brothers, seeing his brothers bow down before him, etc.

    • The Passover

    • God’s redeeming Israel from Egypt

    • The crossing of the sea

    • God’s provision of bread in the wilderness

    • The Rock which flowed with water

    • The pillar of cloud and fire

    • The Tabernacle

    • The sacrificial system

    • The defeat of the tribes of Canaan

    • The wealth of the nations flowing in to Solomon

    • The queen of Sheba coming to hear Solomon’s wisdom, etc.

A Study of Genesis 4:1-17

  1. How does this passage tell the story of the unfolding of the kingdom of God?

    • We find the first glimpse of the coming of God’s promised seed, when God gives Eve the first “seed” ever born into the world. This sets the stage for the avenue of the coming king, and for the multiplication both of his enemies that he must destroy and his people that he must redeem, in accordance with the prophecy in Genesis 3:15.

    • We find the first account of personal faith as requisite for entering the kingdom: first, from Eve, whose response to the Lord’s giving her a seed indicates faith; and second, from Abel, whose sacrifice demonstrates true faith.

    • We find the first division of all mankind into two radically separate classes: believers, who are counted righteous with God, and whose true country is not of this world; and unbelievers, who make this world their home, and are under the curse of sin and the wrath of God.

    • We find the first hint that God sovereignly chooses citizens of his kingdom contrary to man’s expectations, when, as with Jacob and Esau, the younger brother is chosen, while the older is rejected.

    • We find the first account of the people of the world persecuting the people of God.

    • We see the beginnings of the widespread effects of sin and the curse, as the whole world begins to be peopled with those who are wicked.

    • We see for the first time God’s design in giving political authority to the nations of the world that did not know him, and actively promoting and supporting that authority.

    • We see that, despite all the intentions of an unbelieving world at enmity with God, God’s church can never be destroyed by the serpent.

  2. How does this passage foreshadow the coming Messiah?

    • We glimpse the bloody sacrifice of Christ on Calvary in Abel’s bloody sacrifice on the altar.

    • We foresee Christ’s being rejected for speaking the truth as Abel was despised and rejected of his brother for displaying the truth.

    • We foresee Christ’s being slain by wicked men because he is just, as Abel was killed for his righteousness.

    • We see Christ’s blood crying out in condemnation of all who reject his sacrifice, as Abel’s blood cried out from the ground.

    • We see God rising up to judge the enemies of his holy Son, as he rose up to judge Cain for his wickedness against his brother.

    • We see Christ’s role as the great Shepherd of the sheep, as Abel, the first man born twice, is a shepherd of sheep.

    • We see how those of future ages would falsely speak well of Christ, while despising him in their hearts (in his day and ours), as Cain pretended to speak peacably to his brother, but when they were alone, rose up and slew him.

    • We see that all attempts of the ungodly to support and sustain life after they have rejected the life Christ offers must finally fail; as Cain found no nourishment from the fruit of the ground after he had been counted displeasing to God.

Study Questions:

  1. Study Genesis 1:1-21. Look for how this passage relates to the progression of redemptive history and the kingdom of God, and how it typifies Christ. Express how we can understand Christ more clearly because of this passage. Find principles that the author intended to communicate, and apply those principles to specific situations in your own life.

3 Responses to “The Living Word (Lesson 11)”

  1. Pierso says:
    November 12, 2006 at 7:04 am

    We are currently studying Acts in my church and as it is an historical narratives, i want to post a question on this article.

    How are we to interpret and apply what we find in a New Testament post-ressurection historical narrative ? Does it change anything from what you wrote below ? And can interpretative principle settle the issue of to what extent apostles’ signs are available for the Church today ?

    Thank you,

  2. pitchford says:
    November 13, 2006 at 5:27 pm

    Pierso,

    I would say that the New Testament histories are like the Old Testament histories in that they continue the same redemptive story, and are therefore organically connected. I would say that they are unlike in that they have lost virtually all of their typology in favor of daylight-clear actual reality. Christ’s coming was as the dawning of the sun — it is difficult to see your way, as you walk in the moonlight, but when the day comes, you can see where you’re coming from, and where you are headed. So, as the story of redemption progressed throughout the OT, it was only dimly seen — but in Acts, it is much more clear, and the Christ-centeredness of it all is blatantly undeniable even to outsiders.

    The question of application is very involved and difficult. I would definitely say that the apostolic office is foundational and unrepeatable — and yet the basic picture of a spirit-filled Church seems to be held forth as the normative model for this era of redemptive history.

    One point to consider is that, the epistles give commands which, unless explicitly stated otherwise, should be seen as binding on the church until the second coming of Christ. So, when you both see a reality evidenced in NT history and see it commanded in the epistles, I would say it ought to be a reality in the modern church as well. I don’t know if that’s any help or not, but that’s what’s coming to me off-the-cuff.

  3. Pierso says:
    November 14, 2006 at 10:41 am

    It is helpful, as usual…

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