Untitled
close
Podcast Episode

Applying the Paradigm

How do we apply the biblical paradigm to our own Bible reading? It starts with reading the Bible in movements—the thematic patterns in which the biblical authors organized their ideas long before chapters and verse numbers were printed. In this episode, Tim, Jon, and Carissa introduce us to biblical movements and walk through how to identify and trace biblical themes on our own.

Episode 14
58m
Dec 20, 2021
Play Episode
Show Notes
Episodes

QUOTE

In our paradigm recovery effort, we’re asking: what’s the original design organization of these scrolls the authors want to highlight for us? It turns out that it’s different from our modern chapter and verse structure. For example, the author of Genesis has designed the scroll through large-scale patterning and broken the book into four sections that we’re calling movements. We’ve adopted the term from how symphonies are organized.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

  • The structure of the Bible is part of its meaning. The biblical authors wrote in such a way that the organization of the texts communicates as much as the words themselves.
  • The scrolls of the Hebrew Bible weren’t organized by chapters and verses. The biblical authors organized scrolls by large-scale patterning, which we’re calling movements (like the movements of a symphony).
  • Patterns of words are one of the primary ways the biblical authors connect ideas within the story of Scripture. We call these repeated ideas hyperlinks.

Applying the Paradigm

In part one (0:00-14:00), Tim, Jon, and Carissa kick off a brand new undertaking: reading the Bible in movements. It’s a follow-up to our Paradigm series. In short, if we accept the paradigm we’ve been discussing for the last several months, then how do we read the Bible accordingly? How did Jesus, the earliest Christians, and the biblical authors themselves read the Bible? How can we read the Bible in the same way?

We discussed the seven pillars of the paradigm at length in our podcast series.

Learning How to Read the Bible

In part two (14:00-19:45), the team discusses the upcoming BibleProject app and a method for learning how to read the Bible while reading the Bible.

All our previously released content will not only be housed in the new app, but we’ll also reveal how all our materials and biblical content are connected and interrelated. For instance, when we release our theme videos, discovering and tracing those themes isn’t some kind of magic trick. It’s something anyone can do with the proper tools. As you use the app, you’ll be able to learn and practice the same skills we use to interpret the Bible by recognizing style, structure, and pattern.

Recognizing Style and Structure

In part three (19:45-29:30), Tim, John, and Carissa discuss style and structure.

Style refers to the variety of literary styles within the collection of scrolls that make up our modern Bibles. (For more on this, check out our How to Read the Bible series.)

Recognizing the literary styles within the Bible is like walking into a grocery store. When you walk into a grocery store, you don’t need someone to re-explain to you what you’ll find there every time you go. You, more or less, know what to expect. If we learn about the styles of literature in the Bible, we’ll know what to expect when we open to a new section of Scripture. For instance, we might know that in Paul’s letters, we’re going to find didactic speeches on human nature. But if we open the book of Psalms, we can expect to find something far less linear and concrete.

The structure of the Bible informs its meaning. The biblical authors wrote in such a way that the organization of the texts communicates as much as the words themselves. The Bible is a compilation of two main collections of scrolls, the Old Testament/Hebrew Bible and the New Testament. The Hebrew Bible is organized into three sections: The Torah, the Prophets, and the Writings. The New Testament contains two main categories of scrolls: The Gospel accounts and Acts and the letters of the apostles.

A Different Way to Organize Ideas

In part four (29:30-37:45), the team discusses biblical patterns.

The scrolls of the Hebrew Bible weren’t organized by chapters and verses. Rather, each “paragraph” had a one-word title that Jewish students would memorize. Our modern chapters and verses are helpful for finding information, but they can also cause confusion when they interrupt storylines. It’s important to remember that the end of a chapter doesn’t necessarily mean the end of a train of thought.

The biblical authors organized scrolls by large-scale patterning. We’re calling those thematic patterns movements, like the movements of a symphony.

The Movements of the Bible

In part five (37:45-48:00), Tim, Jon, and Carissa unpack the idea of movements. In discussing movements, our goal is to give you the tools to trace themes through the story of the Bible for yourself.

It can be helpful to think of the Bible like a mosaic. When you take a step back, you can see a massive and beautiful picture. When you take a step closer, you’ll notice that the larger picture is composed of many smaller pictures and elements. Within the mosaic, words are like colors, and similar splashes of color may pop up throughout the mosaic. Patterns of words are one of the primary ways the biblical authors connect ideas within the story of Scripture. We call these repeated ideas hyperlinks.

Narrative Patterning

In part six (48:00-57:21), Tim, Jon, and Carissa talk about another kind of pattern in the Bible, narrative patterning. Narrative patterning is exactly what it sounds like: the entire structure of a story and the sequencing of words within a story is repeated in a later story, but with key differences. The act of comparing and contrasting the two connected stories is one of the major ways the biblical authors communicate the significance of a narrative to us.

When you have a whole sequence of narrative patterns (e.g a seven-day creation narrative, a failure narrative, a division story that leads to decreation and a rescued remnant), we call that a melody. That’s the sequence we see first in Genesis 1-9, but it pops up again and again throughout the Bible.

Referenced Resources
Interested in more? Check out Tim’s library here.

Show Music

  • “Defender (Instrumental)” by TENTS
  • “Into the Past” by CYGN
  • “Me.So” by Mind Your Time
  • “Invisible” by Philanthrope & mommy
  • “Alive” by Ouska

Show produced by Cooper Peltz. Edited by Dan Gummel and Zach McKinley. Show notes by Lindsey Ponder.

Powered and distributed by Simplecast.

Scripture References
Genesis 1
Psalms 1

14 Episodes

Episode 14
Applying the Paradigm
How do we apply the biblical paradigm to our own Bible reading? It starts with reading the Bible in movements—the thematic patterns in which the biblical authors organized their ideas long before chapters and verse numbers were printed. In this episode, Tim, Jon, and Carissa introduce us to biblical movements and walk through how to identify and trace biblical themes on our own.
58m • Dec 20, 2021
Untitled
close
Episode 13
Is the Bible Trustworthy?
How do we teach the Bible to our children? How can a book written by humans be divinely authoritative? Is the Bible historically accurate? In this episode, Tim, Jon, and Carissa wrap up the Paradigm series by responding to your questions!
1hr 9m • Dec 13, 2021
Untitled
close
Episode 12
How (Not) To Read the Bible
What do we do with the passages in the Bible that are really difficult? Violence, slavery, the treatment of women—what the Bible has to say about these topics has, at times, been misinterpreted and misused. Join Tim, Jon, Carissa, and special guest Dan Kimball as they discuss his book, *How (Not) to Read the Bible*, and explore how any topic in the Bible looks different when we see it as part of a unified story.
57m • Dec 6, 2021
Untitled
close
Episode 11
The Last Pillar: Communal Literature
Are there ways to read the Bible other than a private quiet time? For most of Church history, followers of Jesus read the Bible out loud in groups and passed along its message verbally. In this episode, Tim, Jon, and Carissa talk about what it means for the Bible to be communal literature and how knowing that might just change the way we experience it today.
1hr 3m • Nov 29, 2021
Untitled
close
Episode 10
What the Bible’s Authors Took for Granted
Have you ever figured out halfway through a conversation that you and another person were on totally different pages? Reading the Bible can feel like this at times. We’re all products of our cultures, families, and environments, and it affects how we understand others. In this episode, Tim, Jon, and Carissa prepare us for a cross-cultural conversation with the Bible by discussing the cultural values of the biblical authors.
1hr 11m • Nov 22, 2021
Untitled
close
Episode 9
The Bible Wasn’t Written in English
What makes the biblical languages so important? Because the Bible was written in another time and culture, we need to honor its ancient historical context and original languages as we read and study it. In this week’s podcast episode, Tim, Jon, and Carissa explore why an awareness of the Bible’s culture—and our own—can help us be better interpreters of the Bible.
59m • Nov 15, 2021
Untitled
close
Episode 8
Wisdom for Life’s Complexity
How can we know we are making the “right” choice in situations the Bible doesn’t address? In this episode, Tim, Jon, and Carissa talk about the Bible as wisdom literature designed to reveal God’s wisdom to humanity—even for complex circumstances it doesn’t explicitly address.
1hr 2m • Nov 8, 2021
Untitled
close
Episode 7
Inspiration, Quiet Time, and Slaying Your Giants
How were the books of the Bible selected? What should we do if we have a hard time reading the Bible? How does the Bible apply to daily life? In this episode, Tim, Jon, and Carissa respond to your questions from the Paradigm series so far. Thanks to our audience for all your incredible questions!
1hr 19m • Nov 1, 2021
Untitled
close
Episode 6
Literature for a Lifetime
What’s the ideal way to study the Bible? Is it 20 minutes of reading every morning or larger blocks of time throughout the week? In this episode, join Tim, Jon, and Carissa as they discuss what it means for the Bible to be ancient Jewish meditation literature. The biblical authors intended for it to be understood over the course of a lifetime of rereading, not in one sitting.
56m • Oct 18, 2021
Untitled
close
Episode 5
Who Is the Bible About?
Is the story of the Bible about humans or God? Because the Bible is about the Messiah—the God who became human—it’s about both God and humans. In this episode, Tim, Jon, and Carissa discuss how the story of the Bible and all of its main themes come to their fulfiillment in Jesus, making it a redemption story for all of us.
56m • Oct 11, 2021
Untitled
close
Episode 4
How the New Testament Came To Be
At first glance, the New Testament can seem wildly different from the Old Testament—but is it? Jesus saw himself as the fulfillment of the Hebrew Scriptures and the climax of the story that began thousands of years before his birth. In this episode, join Tim, Jon, and Carissa as they explore the unity of the New Testament and the intricate yet consistent storyline of the Bible.
53m • Oct 4, 2021
Untitled
close
Episode 3
The Bible Had Editors?
How can a collection of ancient manuscripts written by numerous people over thousands of years tell one unified story? In this episode, Tim, Jon, and Carissa dive into how the Bible was written and how such a diverse collection of authors, literary styles, and themes can form one divinely inspired, unified story.
59m • Sep 27, 2021
Untitled
close
Episode 2
Who Wrote the Bible?
How does God work in the world and communicate with humanity? In this episode, Tim and Jon explore God’s relationship with his creation and the relationship between the Bible’s divine and human origins. They also discuss how God uses human words to communicate his divine word.
53m • Sep 20, 2021
Untitled
close
Episode 1
How Do You Read the Bible?
Have you ever read the Bible and felt like you're not "getting it"? In this episode, Tim and Jon take a look at the (often unhelpful) paradigms through which we interact with Scripture. They explore how seeing the Bible as a unified story that leads to Jesus not only gives the Bible space to do what it was created to do, but frees us to be transformed by the story it’s telling.
1hr 5m • Sep 13, 2021
Untitled
close
For advanced bible reading tools:
Login  or  Join
Which language would you like?