Caps lock, exclamation points, and emojis only tell part of the story, though.

Your word choice matters because you can't use body language or intonation as supplements.

The result...?

You end up painstakingly deciding whether to end your email with "yours truly," "love," or "sincerely."

Reading important conversations over text or email requires the same attention to detail.

Various phrases and punctuation serve as evidence which helps you uncover the writer's message.

You go back and forth between the details of the letter and its entirety, making sure you leave no stone unturned. 

In the same way, properly studying the Bible requires you to observe the details of a passage closely before you interpret it.

As Christians, we presuppose the Bible's importance and design.

If we want to interpret a biblical passage well, we need to learn to see the biblical version of caps lock, exclamation points, and emojis.

We must examine how the parts inform our reading of the whole.

In short, if we want to interpret the Bible well, we must first observe it carefully.

Here are three reasons we should pay attention to the details:

1) Details can dramatically alter the meaning of a passage.

Have you ever misread a sentence and had to do a double-take?

Often your confusion arises from overlooking one word.

Take one of the Ten Commandments, for example. Imagine if you thought you read the following:

"You shall have other gods before me" (Exodus 20:3)

That would seem like a strange command.

Admittedly, we might think it easier to obey, but it would still seem strange.

When we reread the verse, we discover that a two-letter word makes all the difference.

The command should read as:

"You shall have no other gods before me" (Exodus 20:3 ESV).

A simple negative word dramatically changes the meaning of this sentence.

Fortunately, obvious situations like this are easy to catch.

However, they illustrate the point.

We must pay attention to details because specific words and phrases often dramatically affect a passage's meaning.

2) Details reveal patterns that clue us in to the meaning.

The biblical authors were brilliant writers who used forms and patterns to convey their message.

Examples of these patterns are all over the Bible.

Psalms are categorized into a few major types: "hymn, community lament, royal psalm, individual lament, and personal thanksgiving" (Brown, 305).

Certain scenes (i.e., a barren woman who later has a child) repeat themselves throughout the biblical story.

Additionally, the Bible often quotes itself or alludes to previous moments through subtle hints in the text.

Repetition of a form or pattern is seldom interesting on its own.

Instead, the unique details in each text or places where the pattern is broken make the various passages intriguing.

Matthew 1:1-17 offers a great illustration.

Matthew's genealogy contains a clear pattern: "Abraham was the father of Isaac."

The vast majority of the passage follows this pattern.

As a result, many people skip the first seventeen verses of Matthew and start reading where the story supposedly gets interesting.

Sadly, anyone who skips these opening verses has missed one of my favorite portions of scripture.

The places where Matthew breaks the pattern display the literary genius of Matthew 1:1-17.

Time and again, Matthew interrupts the sequence to remind his readers of important details.

Many of the interruptions refer to famous biblical women; others refer to tragic moments in Israel's history.

These details take a boring passage about Jesus's family lineage and transform it into a beautiful Gospel story.

Matthew breaks his pattern to show how Jesus came to save a family lineage that was broken.

In turn, Matthew demonstrates Jesus's ability to redeem all of humanity.

Unfortunately, you most certainly won't hear Matthew's message unless you pay attention to the details.

3) Details combine to convey meaning.

We study the Bible to discover its meaning and apply it to our lives.

For some people, the desire to know how the Bible impacts their lives overrides their sustained efforts at studying the Bible.

They move from observation to application far too quickly.

Disciplined Bible study takes the time necessary for understanding what the Bible says before deciding what the Bible means.

As a result, good Bible readers learn to pay close attention to the details of the text.

The clearer we see the details of a given passage, the more we will be able to interpret its meaning.

If you've ever worked through one of those awkward communication exercises, you may understand this point.

The counselor instructs one person to speak while asking the other to listen actively. Before the other person can respond, they must first repeat what they think their conversation partner just said.

Only after receiving confirmation that he correctly understands what has been said to him, may he respond with his comments.

This pattern of active listening and verification continues throughout the entire conversation.

While these exercises may be awkward at first, they help us develop essential listening skills and vastly improve our quality of conversation.

Studying the Bible requires a similar skill set and time spent in practice.

That's why I created an email course called 21 Days to Better Bible Study.

Over the span of three weeks, I introduce basic Bible study principles and provide simple exercises to start practicing.

If you're interested, you can sign up here.

Conclusion

We must first strive to understand what the Bible says before deciding what it means, especially if we are convinced it contains relevant lessons for our lives.

The best way to build our Bible study skills is to practice.

• Practice making observations.
• Practice taking the time to slow down.
• Practice asking questions for clarity.

That's all for this week!

I hope you enjoy studying God's word.

Thanks for reading,

Tyler Fulcher