006. How To Make Use Of A Paraphrase

HOW TO MAKE USE OF A PARAPHRASE The following pages contain an analysis and paraphrase of the prophetic writings in the order of their original appearance. A paraphrase is a restatement of a passage in literature which gives the exact sense of the original in other words, for the sake of making it clearly understood. To one who desires to grasp with clearness the thought of these books of the Bible, and lacks the time or training or tools for making a painstaking study of each, a paraphrase may be invaluable. The prophetic books are obscure for a variety of reasons. The reader who takes up the Bible and turns to the Book of Isaiah cannot easily put himself into the situation which occasioned the message he may begin to read. In the absence of this historical context, however, the passage will probably fail to awaken his interest, or to suggest a distinctive and helpful idea. It is more than possible that the thought suggested to the reader’s mind will be one entirely foreign to the mind of the prophet when he spoke. The terse and technical language of the prophet is another cause for obscurity. The Old Testament makes free use of a vocabulary which requires explanation to one not accustomed to it. “I raised up of your sons for prophets, and of your young men for Nazirites; . . . but ye gave the Nazirites wine to drink, and commanded the prophets, saying, ‘Prophesy not;’” “The virgin daughter of Zion hath despised thee and laughed thee to scorn; the daughter of Jerusalem hath shaken her head at thee;” “The remnant that is escaped of the house of Judah shall again take root downward and bear fruit upward.” Such passages as these convey but a faint impression to the average reader. A third source of obscurity is the necessity for the rearrangement of prophetic passages before a student can perceive the true connection and sequence of ideas. Without this perception no comprehension of the constructive thought of the prophet is attainable. For all these reasons a paraphrase may be of supreme service as an introduction to the study of prophecy. It prepares the way by placing each prophetic utterance in its proper setting, and by indicating its exact meaning. It does not become a substitute for the Bible, but may be used to make the Bible more intelligible. The following suggestions may promote its use. The rapid reading of a paraphrase of a prophecy will afford a correct and forcible impression of the prophet’s thought. It emphasizes his theme, and outlines his treatment of it, and thus ensures an intelligent reading of the passage in the Bible. The paraphrase can then be carefully compared with the original prophecy, paragraph by paragraph, until the student has obtained a fairly clear idea of what the prophet said, and his manner of saying it. The paraphrase will facilitate this by explaining in advance many puzzling phrases. A paraphrase is necessarily an interpretation. It often chooses one out of several possible renderings, a choice which the independent student may not ratify. The decision is not made carelessly in the first place, but should not be considered as final. The great value of the paraphrase is the short cut which it affords to independence in the reading and interpretation of Scripture. A paraphrase opens the way to the busy man or woman to enter upon the most interesting phase of Bible study, the comparison of prophet with prophet in surroundings, method, distinctive ideas, and outlook, and their arrangement in a developing series. The prophets were independent thinkers, each putting in his own way the divine message with which he had been entrusted; yet their teachings possess fundamental unity, and a continuity which can be traced through every chapter. They struggled with problems which confront the human mind in every age, and possess perennial attraction. When the student becomes able to state to himself the ideas which they held in common, and the questions which they aimed to answer; to determine each prophet’s contribution to the discussion, and to realize how God led them step by step to the discovery of the broadest and most fundamental truth regarding God and man and the universe,—he has discovered the secret of making his reading of the whole Old Testament a never-ending delight.