Interpretation Principle: Grammatical Historical

Grammatical Historical Interpretation

Grammatical Historical interpretation seeks to understand the Scriptures according to the common rules of grammar, and to see the Scriptures' meaning in their original Historical context.

"It's fundamental principle is to gather from the Scriptures themselves the precise meaning which the writers intended to convey. It applies to the Sacred books the same principles, the same grammatical process and exercise of common sense and reason, which we apply to other books." 

Milton Terry, Biblical Hermeneutics, 101.

Terry says this about the grammatical historical method's objective:

"The great object to be ascertained is the usus loquendi, embracing the laws of principles of universal grammar which form the basis of every language. These are nothing but the logic of the mind, comprising the modes in which ideas are formed, combined, and associated, agreeably to the original susceptibilities of intellectual constitution. They are the human mind as exemplified practically by every individual."

Milton Terry, Biblical Hermeneutics, 102.

Robert L Thomas says this about the Grammitico-Historical method:

The Grammatico-historical method of exegesis is a study designed to discover the meaning of a text that is dictated by the principles of grammar and the facts of history. This is the method by which other books are interpreted. It seeks to find the meaning which the authors of Scripture intended to convey and the meaning comprehended by the recipients. 

Of course, special allowances must be made for the inspiration of the Bible. It must be remembered that divine and human authors worked together to produce the inspired text. This raises the possibility that at times the Scripture may have a meaning that exceeds the comprehension of the human author("a fuller sense," i.e. sensus plenior; cf. 1 Peter 1:10-12). Provision must be made for such a situation.

Special provision must also be made for the prerogative of the Holy Spirit as the ultimate interpreter of Scripture. Just as the Bible is a divine-human book with the divine element overshadowing the human, both perspectives are required for an adequate interpretation of it, with the stipulation that only the Holy Spirit can in the last analysis lead to a correct understanding.

A further stipulation that grows out of the first two is that of the inerrancy of the Bible. It is not the task of exegesis to prove inerrancy. It accepts inerrancy as the most probably alternative and builds upon this assumption.

Hence, a more specific definition of the Grammatico-historical method of Exegesis as applied to the Bible is "a study of the inspired Scripture designed to discover under the guidance of the Holy Spirit the meaning of a text dictated by the principles of grammar and the facts of history."

Robert L. Thomas, Introduction to Exegesis (1987), 23-24.

Grammatical 

When approaching the Bible, the building blocks that make up thoughts and sentences are words. How those words interact is of vital importance to understand correctly. Reading comprehension and a good understanding of grammar helps immensely. Understanding the meaning of words is foundational, so having good tools to work through lexical and grammatical interpretation is important. In grammatical interpretation, you are looking for the Grammatical Syntactical structure. Context is always important as well, and with each word, sentence, or passage, it is important to ask ‘how does this relate?’

For more information:

Zuck, Roy. Basic Bible Interpretation. “Bridging the Grammatical Gap.”

The principle of Grammatical Historical Interpretation primarily emphasized the process of Exegesis, though it can apply more broadly.

Grammar and Lexical studies

Understanding grammar (the relationships of words to each other) gives us the structure of meaning that the author is conveying. The lexical understanding of words ties the words to the time, culture, and language that they were used in. Together, these constitute the vehicle of communication. Identifying the structure and the words of the author's communication is necessary.

Historical / Cultural Customs

Customs of today are often different than customs from a century ago, let alone two/three millennia ago. Customs differ from geographically separated  cultures as well. We do well to study and understand the cultures that the Scriptures were received in, and also to understand our own cultural biases and practices.

Also understanding our culture and how we view and understand things is important.

 Geographical Studies

Understanding geography can make a big difference on how one understands the Scriptures. For example, knowing the geography for songs of Ascent help to give context to understanding those songs; going up to Jerusalem, or down to Jericho.

Video explaining the Literal Grammatical Historical method of interpretation

(29:11)