The Difference Between Text And Interpretation

Anyone who has read the Bible—or any other text, for that matter—would recognize that there is a difference between a text and its interpretation; i.e., what a text says versus what it means.

Interpreting a Bible passage means to discern the true meaning of what it says. Many Christians like to say, “I am not interpreting this verse; I am simply reading it plainly, and it clearly says such-and-such.” However, the truth is that whenever we read any text, we are interpreting that text.

Consider the following verse:

John 17:3 NKJV And this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.

A person might say: “I am simply reading this verse plainly, and it clearly says that Jesus is not God!” Is he correct? Of course not. This verse only says that the Father is “the only true God.” However, whether or not this verse implies that Jesus himself is not God is a matter of interpretation.

This example involves a essential matter of faith, because how one understand its—in terms of whether or not Jesus is God—makes all the difference as to whether one is actually worshipping the one true God of the Bible, or a false god of one’s own imagination.

Thankfully, not all matters of the faith are of such a high level of cruciality. There are many other non-crucial matters which two Christians could believe differently about, and yet both still be considered true believers, even though they cannot both be correct. As Christians, we are not to reject or think any less of a fellow Christian who disagrees with us regarding a non-crucial matter (Rom. 14:1).