If this text seems at all familiar, it might be because some of it appears in Handel’s Messiah. That familiarity aside, there are lots of words and phrases that are straight-up confusing if you’re not a Bible history nerd. Honestly, I don’t think you have to get too deep in the weeds in order to get what the author is trying to convey.
One of the best things about many of the prophets, as well as a lot of the psalms, is that they’re written in lyrical or poetic form. This means that we’re not just supposed to focus on what the words help us know; we should also take time to reflect on what they help us see.
A more contemporary approach in postmodern theological thought calls this nonliteral, nondidactic approach to the Bible theopoetics. When we engage things theopoetically, we’re supposed to get out of our “right-brained” thinking and allow the images and other senses the text evokes wash over us.
One benefit of this sort of engagement is that it is more inductive rather than deductive. By this I mean that we’re not taking big ideas and distilling them down to one or two straightforward points. On the contrary, it’s an opening up of the text, allowing each person to connect with it on their own terms.
Some contemporary preachers and teachers hedge at this approach because it requires them to let go of a lot of control of what people walk away with.
But if the authors are comfortable with conveying their messages in this nonliteral, nonlinear way, it stands to reason that we should consider teaching this way too. Even in the Gospel, when John’s messengers ask him if he’s the Messiah, he doesn’t answer directly, but rather in this more inductive way. If it’s good enough for Jesus . . .
Usually I spend time in this section teasing out what the texts means for us, but this week, I suggest that we put more emphasis on how we read and experience them. And if you preach or lead a class, see if you can resist the urge to tell people what to think. You might be amazed by what you all find together.
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