Introduction
The book How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth by Fee and Stuart is an outstanding work of the 20th century; it is an accessible, deep study of the Holy Bible. The authors involved in the field of theology carried out significant activities to analyze and interpret the main Christian text, and each contributed to the book’s development (Fee and Stuart).
Professor Fee is a world-famous theologian and honorary representative of the Christian church. According to the introduction to the book, he wrote most of the chapters in How to Read the Bible, and in general, his contribution is more extensive (Fee and Stuart 13). Professor Stuart also took an active part in writing, and due to him, the sections of the book the Psalms and the Prophets with a focus on the Israeli background were developed comprehensively (Fee and Stuart 13). Thus, both authors are competent and sufficiently qualified to present their book to the general public.
The Bible is the subject of research in the book, and as approaches to analysis, the interpretation of its provisions and doctrines through a contextual approach is applied. Along with a critical analysis, Fee and Stuart emphasize a contextual assessment of the ideas described in God’s Word, for instance, historical assessment (53). This research principle makes it possible to conduct a comprehensive analysis of the aspects that influenced the creation of the Bible and explains its individual events and provisions on the basis of specific premises.
The most significant elements of God’s Word are considered – the gospels, the parables, and other structural parts of a single theme. The practice of hermeneutic analysis based on raising specific questions and finding answers to them is an objective approach that eliminates bias and helps in the research process. As Fee and Stuart note, this work contributes to a standard and, at the same time, credible assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of the hypotheses under consideration (66). Thus, the subject and purpose of the book are defined in detail and cover a wide range of research.
Regarding the unique comments suggested in How to Read the Bible, one can note individual chapters on the study of the Israeli biblical background. Fee and Stuart, in particular, the second researcher, gives an individual analysis of the Old Testament and its influence on Israel, that country that has a large role for the entire Christian community (164).
In addition, the authors compare the concepts and ideas of two different eras and analyze the wisdom of God’s Word from the perspective of the modern principles of interpretation (Fee and Stuart 226). All these aspects, including numerous references to the primary source, make How to Read the Bible a book that deserves attention as an example of one of the most important works of the world’s religious heritage.
Premise for Writing
The premise for writing How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth is detailed and understandable, which makes the work of Fee and Stuart reasonable from the standpoint of relevance. In particular, the authors explain that initially, they pursued two key objectives: to evaluate the Bible from an exegesis perspective, which means interpreting its doctrines and individual topics, and analyze the contextuality of the issues raised through modern approaches and research principles, which corresponds to hermeneutics as a scholarly methodology (Fee and Stuart 12).
Moreover, the roles of both researchers are distributed in accordance with their professional competencies, and despite the fact that both professors work in the field of theology, their academic background is distinctive, which, in turn, allows them to demonstrate their individual capabilities to the full. Therefore, the premise for writing the book is defined in detail and clearly, and this aspect gives an additional practical value to the work.
One of the most important prerequisites, according to the authors of the book, is the desire to provide readers with understandable and accessible ways of interpreting the Bible (Fee and Stuart 16). The need for this is justified by the fact that in God’s Word, numerous terms and definitions are given, which may not be understood by people due to ignorance of individual concepts and their origin.
In this regard, Fee and Stuart draw attention to the importance of interpreting the Bible not from the perspective of a believer who takes the text of the Scripture for granted but from the standpoint of a reader who wants to understand the essence and basis (18). The nature and symbolism of God’s Word are aspects that are deeper than it might seem, and perception through analysis is one of the few ways to grasp the meaning of biblical messages. Thus, the reason for interpreting the Bible is not only of academic but also of practical importance for ordinary readers.
Finally, the explanation of widespread religious dogmas given in the Bible is one of the objectives of the book. Fee and Stuart state that the numerous quotes used in different sources often reflect incomplete or incorrect meanings, which, in turn, is fraught with semantic errors (24). Understanding the essence of the messages left in the Gospels and other sacred texts helps provide a more holistic picture and, thus, increases the value of analysis. As a result, the authors’ premise has clearly defined goals and includes a number of essential objectives associated with the concepts of exegesis and hermeneutics.
Authors’ Thoroughness of the Research
The research presented in this book is thorough and deep, and in addition to explaining numerous hypotheses and theories, comparisons and examples from religious literature are presented. In particular, Fee and Stuart turn to individual chapters and sections of the Scripture and analyze the context that might be interpreted in a new way by evaluating specific passages and using the literary context (59). The authors draw attention to the Epistle to the Corinthians and offer readers to pay attention to Paul’s answers not only from the perspective of their meaning but also based on the context of the narrative (Fee and Stuart 60).
Such an example of engaging in reasoning indicates that the Bible is analyzed as thoroughly as possible, and every paragraph has been studied and evaluated carefully. In addition, Fee and Stuart note hidden problems in the content of individual sections, although the authors also remark that researchers themselves do not always have responses to all the questions due to the complexity and depth of the narrative in the Bible (65). This critical assessment confirms the thoroughness of the authors’ analysis and the scrupulousness of their work.
One of the main strengths of How to Read the Bible is the analysis of various branches of Christianity. The assessment of the individual nuances and characteristics of biblical subjects is conducted in detail. For instance, Fee and Stuart consider Protestantism both from the perspectives of hermeneutics and the historical premises of development and argue that this religious trend was associated with the mentality of restoration, which affected the content of individual biblical plots (104).
Numerous references to individual chapters and verses enhance the credibility of the work done and allow evaluating the book as a detailed study rather than a general and superficial assessment. One of the conclusions that Fee and Stuart come to is that Bible doctrines are divided into three main categories: “(1) Christian theology (what Christians believe), (2) Christian ethics (how Christians ought to behave), (3) Christian experience and Christian practice (what Christians do)” (116). This statement largely explains the interpretation concepts proposed in the book and helps delimit individual fields, thereby increasing the depth of the research process.
Nevertheless, despite the thoroughness of the work done, some aspects of the book could be disclosed in more detail to make How to Read the Bible an even more reliable academic source. In particular, aspects concerning Christian shrines are touched upon superficially. Fee and Stuart emphasize the Israeli context of the formation and manifestation of Christianity, but they do not discuss other regions in which the religion also played a big role, for instance,
Palestine that is mentioned only once in the text (173). The potential controversy is that Israel is not the only place on which Christian laws, including psalms, stories of the prophets, and other topics have had a significant impact. Therefore, despite an in-depth analysis, this aspect could be addressed more thoroughly, although, in general, the research is comprehensive and credible.
Impacts of the Authors’ Research
The book opened for me some interesting aspects of the analysis process concerning not only the interpretation of the Bible but also the research work as a whole. Individual sections offer valuable recommendations and guidelines on how to learn God’s Word correctly.
For instance, Fee and Stuart mention three levels of narrative when analyzing the Old Testament, which allows distinguishing between the individual elements of this large part of the Bible and using suitable tools for interpretation (86). Several chapters about Israel have opened up much me, for instance, the principles of the formation of Christianity and the strict rules and laws that existed in the era of the ancient civilizations of Israel and Egypt (Fee and Stuart 173).
From a theoretical perspective, the book has given me an opportunity to clarify the differences between exegesis and hermeneutics and understand which concept is utilized for specific research purposes and objectives. As a result, the acquired knowledge can help me in the future when analyzing other works in the theological sphere since many of the considered interpretation tools are universal and may be applied regardless of the direction of analysis.
At the same time, some minor aspects of the narrative seem controversial and biased since I would not accept them for the truth and regard them as the authors’ personal convictions. For instance, Fee and Stuart note that “unique interpretations are usually wrong,” which may be challenged (16). In case a competent and objective analysis is applied with the use of appropriate tools and approaches, there is no reason to believe that the interpretation process is incorrect or unfounded. This work may be uninteresting, outdated, or superficial, but one cannot argue that the research process involving an objective assessment by using current methods is incorrect a priori.
In addition, I would not agree with the authors’ statement that “modern parents teach their children all sorts of wisdom, virtually every day” (Fee and Stuart 231). Many parents do their best to help their children socialize and acquire valuable skills. However, firstly, the everyday aspects of upbringing can hardly be called wisdom, and secondly, not all adults pay enough attention to children and teach them life values. Therefore, despite the many strengths of the book, I would also note some controversial aspects.
Conclusion
The book How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth by Fee and Stuart is a valuable and significant work in the field of theological research, and the authors’ numerous findings and concepts help interpret a large number of biblical doctrines in ways that modern readers can understand. The premise for writing is presented objectively, and useful practices for analysis are presented, in particular, exegesis and hermeneutics. I would recommend this book since it contains many references to the original Scripture, which allows delving into the interpretation process and confirms the thoroughness of the authors’ research.
Despite a few controversial aspects and statements, the work done is of high practical value due to the coverage of a wide range of topics, and it may help understand the class content better. For me, How to Read the Bible has become the book that made it possible to review contextual approaches to analytical activities and pay attention to the variability of personal assessments.
Works Cited
Fee, Gordon D., and Douglas Stuart. How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth. 2nd ed., Zondervan, 1993.