Still others had little or no personal contact with the people and events about which they wrote (Luke, in the case of the third Gospel). Others incorporated additional sources into their eyewitness accounts (such as the author of Acts). In this process the writers were mindful of their readers and the effects they hoped to produce in them.Ĭertainly, some of the biblical authors were eyewitnesses and wrote out of their own experiences (such as Isaiah and Paul). Yet the believing communities (Israel and the church), as well as the final authors’ unique perspectives and their goals for writing, influenced what they felt was important, what deserved emphasis, and what might be omitted. This means that our interpretations must reckon with both the situation at the time Amos or Jesus originally spoke and the circumstances in which later people preserved, passed on, compiled, and, finally, wrote down their words.Ĭertainly, both Jews and Christians cared deeply about preserving and transmitting their traditions accurately. Jesus’ words were preserved (mostly) orally and then translated into Greek before being committed to the writings we call the Gospels. Though Jesus’ ministry probably spanned the years AD 27–30, our Gospels were not written until several decades later. The same is true for many of the other prophets. We may locate the ministry of the prophet Amos in the mid-eighth century BC, but it is very likely that his oral messages were preserved and then eventually collected into the biblical book bearing his name by someone else at a later date. 1000 BC, obviously someone composed the creation account after that date. Since the chronology in Genesis goes all the way to the death of the patriarch Joseph, earlier sections like Genesis 12–25 probably were composed, passed down orally, and eventually written into a text after their main character, Abraham, died.Īt the creation of universe (Genesis 1), God was the only sentient being, and since Hebrew as a distinct language probably emerged ca. Distance between when the events happened and when they were written downĬonsider also the time between the time between when the Bible events occurred and the time when those events were written down. The distance of time between us and them makes it difficult to determine what Hosea 10 refers to. What was a calf-idol or high places? Where were Beth Aven, Assyria, or Ephraim located? Are they within or outside Israel? What’s this about Gibeah or a trained heifer? “Shalman devastated Beth Arbel on the day of battle” (v.“Israel will be ashamed of its foreign alliances” (v.Take a look at a few examples from Hosea 10. We may be at a loss to understand what a text means because it involves subjects far removed in the past. Not only has the world changed in substantial ways, but most of us lack essential information about the world “back then” or the process involved in producing the Bible’s various and diverse “books” within oral cultures. The writings and events in the Bible span many centuries, but more than 1,900 years have passed since its last words were written. There is a distance in time between when the events happened and when we read themĬonsider first the distance of time between the ancient texts and our modern world. If you have any questions, please review our Privacy Policy or email us at 1.
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