Rightly Dividing the Word

Although it is true that the divine life of Christ
resides within us, it also is true that we must make ourselves
available to His working by filling our minds with the Word of God. If
you’re seeking fresh revelation from God, you’re ready for some very
practical guidelines and methods for mining this precious silver (see
Prov. 2:1-8).

Some will undoubtedly prefer to gaze at the beauty of the
treasure others have rather than picking up the tools and digging for
themselves. But the revelation of another will not have the same power
to redeem our souls that a personal encounter with God’s Word has.

At first, these study tools may seem useless. But without
these practical instruments to help us, we will not be successful in
extracting the precious silver ore of wisdom and revelation.

Digging Tools

My daddy had quite an elaborate workshop in our home. His
many expensive and sophisticated tools qualified him to do difficult
carpentry, plumbing and electrical home-improvement tasks. But he also
had a small toolbox that he carried with him everywhere.

As a little girl, tagging behind my daddy, I learned to
identify the tools in that little box. I even learned to use some of
them. In a similar way, we do not need an elaborate theologian’s
library to study God’s Word effectively, but we do need to have a
toolbox filled with basic items that will help us in our task.

The Scriptures describe the practical work involved in
digging for silver when they admonish us to “Study to show thyself
approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly
dividing the word of truth” (2 Tim. 2:15, KJV). If we aren’t willing to
apply ourselves to the work of study, we don’t want wisdom badly
enough. We need to get alone with God and ask Him for a greater hunger
for Himself.

A Place of Study

In this world of electronic noise and distractions, we
must prepare a place for study that will afford us the quiet we need to
“Be still, and know that [He] is God” (Ps. 46:10). We need a place
where we can effectively limit the interruptions of clients, family,
pets and phone calls.

Our place of study should include a desk (or table),
writing utensils and shelves for storing study books. The necessary
tools for mining silver should be conveniently placed so we don’t have
to run to the basement or upstairs to locate something we need. We
should take care to prepare a comfortable place to seek God and furnish
it with all the necessary instruments.

The Bible

A prerequisite for Bible study is a good study Bible. It
should be one with print that can be easily read and with paper that is
suitable for marking.

I find the King James Version unsurpassed for its beauty
of expression in the English language. However, in view of language
changes, a reading of various modern translations will help to throw
light on many Bible passages.

Some translators have allowed their theological bias to
enter into their translating work. Therefore, it is wise to anchor our
reading in the King James Version and to use other versions as
supplements, referring to the original languages, if possible, when
questions are raised regarding translation.

Here is a partial listing of other useful translations, each with its own study helps.

The Scofield Reference Bible is a popular resource. The
text is prominent in bold type, with comments at the foot and numerous
synopses on various subjects. Some of the notes are excellent; to many,
others are unacceptable.

In places the comments are strongly Calvinistic. Unlike a
number of other Bibles, it is not self-pronouncing. A loose-leaf,
wide-margin edition is available for notes.

The Thompson Chain-Reference Bible has a host of notes in
the margin and the “Condensed Encyclopedia,” which is an excellent
section divided into more than 4,000 topics. It also contains
information on the canon and the principal English versions, an
outlined analysis of each book, a number of maps, a concordance and an
index. This Bible also has a good harmony of the four gospels and
several excellent charts.

The New King James Bible is believed by many to be the translation nearest to the original transcripts of the Bible.

The New Jerusalem Bible is esteemed by many, along with
several other reference Bibles that are worthy of mention such as The
New Oxford Reference Bible, The Holman Study Bible and The New American
Standard Bible.

The Worrell New Testament includes notes by the
translator, A.S. Worrell. It is footnoted with many helpful alternative
renderings and explanatory notes.

The Emphasized Bible by Joseph Bryant Rotherham is useful
as a study and reference book, particularly in sections containing Old
Testament notes.

The Moffatt Bible translation has many brilliant insights. However, the liberal theology of the author shows on occasion.

The New Testament in Modern Speech by Richard F. Weymouth
is a clear, simple, dignified translation. It is sound from a doctrinal
viewpoint.

The New Testament: In the Language of the People by
Charles B. Williams is valuable, particularly in the translation of the
Greek tenses.

The New Testament in Modern English by J.B. Phillips is a
paraphrase. Its low-key prose is almost casual. For example, the
familiar King James “holy kiss” (see 1 Cor. 16:20) becomes “shake hands
all around.”

Reading the same verse from different translations can
shed light on the passage’s true meaning as we ask the Holy Spirit to
unveil the divine message it contains. Although it is good to follow a
daily reading schedule, it is not necessary to devour large portions of
the Scripture at a time.

Many times the Holy Spirit will illuminate one word in a
passage, and it becomes beneficial to search out that word in other
passages. He will always lead us to unearth the richest veins of silver.

The Concordance

One of the foremost tools for Bible study, the
concordance, provides immediate access to any verse of Scripture, even
if one remembers only one word or a few words contained in it.

Three concordances are recognized as leaders in the
field: Cruden’s Unabridged Concordance, Young’s Analytical Concordance
to the Bible and Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance. The latter two are
more comprehensive.

Englishman’s Greek Concordance of the New Testament and
Englishman’s Hebrew Concordance of the Old Testament, along with a
Greek lexicon and Hebrew lexicon, can be of great value for more
advanced Bible students.

Bible Dictionaries and Encyclopedias

Another very important aid to Bible study is a dictionary
of the Bible. It is an alphabetically arranged compilation of words and
their definitions, all with biblical significance. Included are proper
nouns—the names of persons and places—as well as common nouns with
scriptural meanings.

Through the use of a dictionary and an encyclopedia, the
student can obtain a clearer understanding of difficult words and
unfamiliar names of persons, places and things. For example, the
“cubit,” a biblical unit of measure, is found to be nearly 18 inches.
The word “penny” is discovered to be the translation of the Greek word
“denarius,” which was the chief Roman silver coin, worth about 15 to 17
cents, or the equivalent of a day’s wages in Jesus’ time.

A Bible dictionary defines the word “publican” as the
collector of Roman revenue. It gives detailed information regarding
this class of Romans, hated among the Jews for their fraudulent
extraction under the vicious system of government.

A Bible dictionary and encyclopedia will bring a flood of
light to the student when he is looking for the meaning of unfamiliar
terms. Among the better-known works are The Concise Bible Dictionary by
Merrill F. Unger, The New International Bible Dictionary and
Zondervan’s Pictorial Bible Dictionary, both by J.D. Douglas and
Merrill C. Tenney.

For those who desire a more exhaustive treatment of
subject matter, there is The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
by Geoffrey W. Bromiley in four volumes and A Dictionary of the Bible
by William Smith in one volume. The Westminster Concise Bible
Dictionary by Barbara Smith and George Ernest Wright is one of my
favorites to use.

Bible Atlas and Bible History

Though of secondary importance to the basic aids already
listed, a Bible atlas, along with books on biblical history and
customs, can make substantial contributions to the study of the Bible.

One example, the Holman Bible Atlas by Thomas V. Brisco,
is a source book of general information on Bible geography, geology and
archeology. Baker’s Bible Atlas by Charles F. Pfeiffer is a good tool
for study purposes.

For example, the missionary journeys of Paul as recorded
in the book of Acts, along with his epistles to the churches, take on
enriched meaning to the student who has a knowledge of the geography of
the lands involved. The same could be said for the journeys of Jesus,
Abraham and other significant Bible personalities.

A knowledge of Bible manners and traditions can broaden
your understanding of the Scriptures. Books such as The Land and the
Book by Charles R. Page and Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Manners and
Customs by Howard F. Vos are helpful in this regard.

Commentary

A Bible commentary, as the name suggests, interprets the
meaning of each Bible passage—verse by verse. For hundreds of years
Bible scholars and spiritual leaders have recorded the results of their
studies, and much of this has been gathered in various commentaries.

Some commentaries are the work of a single author, while
others are a compilation of the efforts of several scholars and range
in size from one volume to well over 50 volumes. Three of the
better-known versions are Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole
Bible; Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s New Commentary on the Whole Bible;
and The Wycliffe Bible Commentary by Everett F. Harrison and Charles F.
Pfeiffer.

Additional Resources

The Complete WordStudy Dictionary: New Testament (1992)
and The Complete WordStudy New Testament, both by Spiros Zodhiates, are
wonderful tools for studying the words in the original languages. They
give invaluable help in the digging of silver.

Nave’s Topical Bible is a kind of concordance with full
texts, a digest of 20,000 topics and subtopics and 100,000 references
to the Scriptures. Also, another valuable tool for study, and a mine of
general Bible information, is Halley’s Bible Handbook.

My purpose here is to introduce the believer to a variety
of effective tools for serious study of the Word. This list is limited,
but perhaps it will serve as a help to those who are beginning to
develop a Bible study library.

It is important to note that the serious study of the
hidden treasure in the Scriptures will not always be convenient. With
all of our timesaving devices, we are still the busiest generation that
ever lived. It will require sacrifice just to come to a place of study.

Once there, we need to be willing to exert effort in
study and prayer in order to uncover the rich veins of silver awaiting
us in the revelation of the Word of God. Whatever sacrifices and
efforts are required, it will be worth it all to savor the presence of
God in your soul, which is the only source of true satisfaction we can
know.

The late Fuchsia Pickett was a noted Bible teacher and author of numerous books, including Receiving Divine Revelation and How to Search the Scriptures, from which this article is adapted.