EP 42: 4 Helpful Tools to Enrich Your Time in God's Word
Looking to make more out of your time in God's Word? This episode is for you! Today, I'm sharing four helpful tools to enrich your time in the Word. Enjoy!
Welcome
Hey, Sister! Welcome to the Daughter of Delight podcast! I am so glad you are here and hope that you are able to benefit from this super fun and informative episode on some really great tools to utilize in order to enrich your time in God’s Word. In today’s episode, we are going to be talking about four of my favorite tools to utilize while studying the scripture!
Review of the Month Giveaway
Before we get started, I want to remind you of our super fun review of the month giveaway! If you haven’t heard about it yet, here’s how it works. As a thank you for taking the time to leave an iTunes rating and review, I will be selecting one winner each month to send some of my favorite things to. The current giveaway is for a Starbucks gift card and a copy of one of my all-time favorite books, Women of the Word by Jen Wilkin. I could spend an entire podcast episode telling you all the things I love about this book and Jen Wilkin in general. In fact, it is an absolute dream of mine to have her on the podcast one day- I seriously love this woman and the things the Lord has written through her!Anyway! All you have to do to enter is leave an iTunes rating and review. If you have left a review in the past and would like to enter, all you need to do is leave an updated rating and review. Super easy, right?I will announce the winner of this month’s giveaway on Wednesday, February 3. If you want to enter, make sure you leave a review by January 30! I’m so excited for these monthly giveaways and to read your encouraging reviews. Not only do they help the podcast grow, but they encourage me so, so much. So, to those of you who leave a review, thank you. Thank you so very much!
Tools to Enrich Your Time in God’s Word
Okay, let’s go ahead and transition into today’s topic of discussion: tools to enrich your time in God’s Word. Up until six or seven years ago now, I had no idea there were tools out there that could help me not only understand God's Word within context but actually get me excited about learning what the Bible has to say instead of being so intimidated by the weight of it all.
Can You Relate?
Maybe this is you right now. Mauve you have been putting off getting in the Word because you feel completely inadequate and you don’t even know where to start.If that's the case, let me be the first to say God invites you to come as you are. You don’t have to be some high-esteemed and well-known theologian to read and understand His Word. The Bible is for everyone, sister. God longs for all of His children to treat it as the true sustenance it is for our very souls. That feeling of intimidation you may be experiencing is something the enemy likes to use against God's own. You see, Satan absolutely hates it when we spend time reading what God's Word has to say and learning how it applies to us because he knows we are more equipped to win the daily fight against our flesh--against him--when we do so. God beckons us to know and be changed by the life-giving truths found in His Word. And it’s my prayer that these resources I’m sharing with you today will enrich your Bible study experience in ways that diminish every ounce of intimidation within and cultivate a special longing and excitement to dwell in His Word.
A Quick Preface
Anything I share in this episode will be available to you in the show notes! Once you click on the link, it will take you to my Amazon shop where you can find everything I mention in this episode ready and waiting for ya! And last but not least, whereas everything I am sharing in this episode will absolutely enrich your time in the Word if used properly. I also want to remind you not to neglect praying before, during and after your time in scripture. And I’ll touch on this here in just a few minutes, but do not use these resources until after you have allowed God to speak to you through His Word first and foremost. Alright, here we go!
Tool #1: Study Bibles
First up, let’s talk Study Bibles. Not Bible studies. Study Bibles!And let me just preface this one with the fact that I own a LOT of Bibles- several of which are study Bibles. So yeah, I’m a Bible nerd- it’s true. But that’s definitely not the worst thing in the world, can I get an amen? I love infusing my heart with the holy, infallible Word of God. Luke 11:28 says, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it!” (ESV)This is my prayer for us, sister. That each of us would hunger and thirst to hear, know and live in obedience to the Word of God.
My First Time Buying a Study Bible
I remember the first time I walked into a Christian bookstore as an adult to buy a new study Bible. It was overwhelming! I know a lot of that had to do with my personality, because I am terrible at making decisions and I definitely did not do any research beforehand. I just walked in hoping for the best and walked out probably three hours later. Now, don’t get me wrong- I love losing myself in the aisles of a bookstore. But most of my time on this particular day was spent in a chair going through study Bible after study Bible instead of wandering through the store. And I didn’t really know what it was I was looking for. Fast forward to today, and here’s what I know: Study Bibles provide scholarly information that help us better understand what exactly it is we are reading and how to understand it in the light it was written in.
Invest in a Literal Translation Study Bible
When looking for a study Bible, I highly recommend investing in one that is a literal translation rather than a thought for thought or paraphrase translation. If you don’t know what I mean by this, I’ll explain.Literal translations are word-by-word translations of Scripture. These translations are achieved by translating each word separately, without looking at how the words are used together in a phrase or sentence. Examples of literal translations are New King James Version and the English Standard Version. A thought-for-thought translation, on the other hand, exists to express the meaning of each sentence or paragraph from the original language in simple up-to-date English without being tied to translating every word. In addition, a paraphrase translation is exactly what it sounds like. It takes the meaning of a verse or passage of Scripture and attempts to express the meaning in “plain language” – essentially the words the author of the paraphrase would use to say the same thing. Please never use a translation like The Message as your primary Bible. Here’s why I say this: A paraphrase of the Bible should not be viewed as the Bible, but rather as an author’s idea of what the Bible says and what it means by what it says. If you use it, make sure it’s a secondary resource.
Additional key features to look for
When looking for a study Bible, some features to have in mind that are extremely helpful to have are: book introductions, a concordance, references, maps, timelines, and commentary notes. We will go over some of these things in just a minute, but I would certainly recommend being on the lookout for them during your Study Bible search.To wrap up my thoughts on Study Bibles, I personally recommend checking out the ESV Gospel Transformation Bible. It is amazing and has over 80,000 cross-references and over 375,000 words of study notes. In addition, I have the ESV Archaeological Study Bible and really enjoy it, too. It has hundreds of photos, maps, and diagrams, which helps bring to life God's Word all the more. If you are reformed, like myself, my all-time favorite and go-to Bible is the ESV Reformation Study Bible by Ligonier Ministries. All of these study Bibles are a true delight, and I will be sure to link them in today’s show notes so that you can give them a lookover!
Tool #2: Commentaries
Commentaries provide us with in-depth breakdowns of Scripture and help us understand all the different things to keep in mind as we read God's Word (historical context, cultural context, who it was written by and to, how we can apply it to our lives right now, etc.).
Always Make Room For God to Speak First. Always.
That being said, let me take a minute to acknowledge the importance of letting God’s Word speak for itself. Sis, please hear me when I say, “Do NOT read the Bible indirectly.”We are to approach the direct Word of God first and foremost, always. To let a third-party resource like a commentary do the talking for us instead of God’s Word is dangerous! So dangerous! Here’s why that is: Because biblical resources are not infallible like the Word of God. There are no replacements for Scripture, but there are great supplements to go alongside it. Let God speak first, then utilize your resources as needed.
Why Commentaries Are Helpful
All of that being said, commentaries are great for many reasons. In addition to helping us understand important contextual need-to-knows, they also help answer our questions regarding the content of the text and they offer insight into the tough parts of Scripture that we have a hard time wrapping our minds around by offering suggestions, possibilities and supporting arguments.
Helpful Commentary Tips
When looking for a commentary, make sure the commentator refers to the original Greek or Hebrew text and refers to them as the true source of his or her comments. Also, if the text has more than one possible meaning, make sure the commentator provides ALL possible meanings, not just the meaning he or she believes to be most accurate.And finally, make sure your commentary is exegetically based, not based on homiletics. Exegesis is just a fancy word for the interpretation of Scripture and homiletics is the art of writing and preaching sermons. When it comes to commentaries, we are not looking for someone to preach the text and their thoughts on it to us. We are looking for a clear interpretation of Scripture so that we can better understand and properly apply it!
Free Online Commentaries
All of these things being said, to wrap up my thoughts on this tool, let me share some of my favorite commentaries with ya. The New Interpreter's Bible Commentary is a personal favorite, but you can also access free ones online- like Matthew Henry, Blue Letter Bible, and John Gill. If you would prefer to have a commentary in hand but cannot afford one, check out your local library! I use mine all the time!
Tool #3: Bible Dictionaries
Okay, this may sound like common sense, but I actually didn't purchase a Bible dictionary until I was in college. I wish I would have known about them sooner because they are SO helpful! Bible dictionaries are one of the most practical and useful theological reference books available. They contain encyclopedic entries related to the Bible- like people, places, customs, doctrine, and Biblical criticism. I personally enjoy Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible, but do your research because there are a ton of great options out there! You can find several free dictionaries online, too!
Tool #4: Concordances
A concordance is great for helping you do a Biblical word study. Or, if you remember a specific word from a verse you like but cannot recall what the verse is, a concordance can help you figure this out too. Concordances are available for any translation. My go-to translation is the English Standard Version, so I personally enjoy ESV.org's online concordance.
The Exegesis Recipe
Put all of the resources I just shared with you together--a study Bible, commentary, Bible dictionary, and concordance--and you've yourself a fine recipe for some exegesis. Don't let this word freak you out! Exegesis is the careful and correct approach to studying Scripture in order to obtain its original, intended meaning. When we read a specific passage of Scripture and want to understand what it means, exegesis consists of the systems we use to do just that. If you have any questions about any of the tools I recommended in today’s episode, please email me at hello@daughterofdelight.com and I’ll be glad to assist you! In addition, if you would like to check out any of the things I recommended in this episode, all you have to do is click the link to my Amazon storefront and then click the “Tools to Enrich Your Time in God’s Word” board.“We need thee every hour, and the Bible and prayer are the very places we go to acknowledge this truth before our Maker! Take your time making your way through Scripture. In doing so, I pray that would you take delight and cultivate a love for His Word like you never have before.
Thank You!
Sister, I hope you enjoyed our time together today! I pray it blessed you and ignited your hunger and thirst for the Word of God all the more.I want to wrap up our time together by leaving you with the beautiful charge of Colossians 3:16, which says, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God” (ESV). Be blessed, my dear Sister in Christ. I will talk with you next Wednesday. Bye for now!
Resources
Check out my Amazon shop to shop today's suggested tools!Matthew Henry Online CommentaryBlue Letter Bible Online CommentaryJohn Gill Online CommentaryESV Online Concordance