https://craigkeener.org Research and commentary by Dr. Craig Keener Sat, 22 Aug 2020 01:00:56 +0000 en-US hourly 1 26434395 https://craigkeener.org/good-cultural-backgrounds-helps-us-trust-scripture/ https://craigkeener.org/good-cultural-backgrounds-helps-us-trust-scripture/#comments Fri, 15 Apr 2016 04:09:00 +0000 Craig Keener http://www.craigkeener.com/?p=2746 Lots of skeptics today criticize the Bible, oblivious to the cultural setting that it was addressing. Instead of seeing how biblical texts improved values of their surrounding culture, skeptics condemn the Bible for not promoting twenty-first century values that (whether we agree with those values or not) no one had heard of in biblical times. When Christians read the Bible in an ahistorical way, ignoring the cultural settings that it originally addressed, we play into skeptics’ hands. Just as God communicated the divine message to people in their specific languages, God also communicated to them in concrete cultural settings. Recognizing those settings helps us reapply the Bible’s message more concretely and appropriately in our often different situations today. If you want to apply the Bible rightly, knowing the first situation helps you recognize what kinds of situations are and are not analogous today.

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