Sample Chapter

About

“Well, that’s just your interpretation.”

For many people, interpreting the Bible is the art of making it say what they want. Even scholars often treat interpretation as a subjective exercise, not the search for true, objective meaning of texts. But hasn’t God spoken definitively in Scripture? Shouldn’t we be able to arrive at a good and true interpretation?

Convinced that God wants us to understand his Word in all its literary genres, Dan McCartney and Charles Clayton have provided a thorough, readable introduction to biblical interpretation, now updated in this second edition to address postmodern approaches.

Endorsements

Here is what reviewers said of the first edition:

“A fresh and insightful study of hermeneutics, scintillating in its scholarship.”

—R. C. Sproul

“Comprehensive yet understandable. . . A helpful emphasis in the book is that interpretation is more than a cognitive exercise; it is also spiritual.”

—Bibliotheca Sacra

“The best introduction to biblical hermeneutics. . . . Each section presents profound concepts simply and clearly.”

—Bruce Waltke

“Skillfully combines the ingredients of reliable scholarship and practical wisdom. . . . a work which students at all levels will want to turn to again and again.”

—Sinclair B. Ferguson

“An intelligible and comprehensive textbook on hermeneutics. But it goes beyond that and shows how the Bible ought to be used in worship, in witness, and for personal guidance.”

—Librarian’s World

The Authors

Dan McCartney

Dan McCartney (PhD, Westminster Theological Seminary) is professor of New Testament interpretation at Redeemer Seminary in Dallas. He is the author of Why Does it Have to Hurt? and is a contributor to several reference works. 

More by Dan McCartney

Charles Clayton

Charles Clayton (MAR, Westminster Theological Seminary) is a leadership consultant in the UK and has been executive director of organizations in the UK and Middle East.

More by Charles Clayton