Understanding the Cultural Divide in Biblical Interpretation

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John Walton was recently at the Lanier Theological Library in Houston.  He addressed a packed house on a topic related to the book of Daniel. 

Recently, he and Dr. Aubrey Buster, a colleague from Wheaton College, have been working on a commentary on the visionary prophet.

John talked with David Capes on The Stone Chapel Podcasts about another book he published, The Lost World of the Prophets.

Dr. John Walton is a well known Old Testament scholar.  He retired recently from Wheaton College and was named Professor of Old Testament Emeritus at Wheaton College. 

John spent the better part of nineteen years teaching there.  He also taught at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago for nearly twenty years. 

Dr. Walton has spent a career helping us understand that to interpret the Bible well you must interpret it against the background of the times, language and culture of the people to whom it was originally addressed.  

He has a series of �€œLost World�€ books demonstrating the value of knowing the culture.

John�€™s most recent book is The Lost World of the Prophets. It does for the writing prophets what The Lost World of Genesis did for the first book of the Bible.  And there have been others.

Walton believes many pigeon-hole the prophets into people who merely predicted future events.  Often at a distance. 

But when prophecy is understood against the times and history of when they were speaking or writing, prophecy takes on a different character. 

As with his other �€œLost World�€ books, he divides the chapters into a number of propositions about the prophets and the seemingly odd character of Israel�€™s prophets. 

If you want to interpret Scripture well, this is a podcast to which you must listen.

For some of John Walton�€™s �€œLost World�€ books, see below.  These are available as audiobooks and paperback books:

The Lost World of the Prophets: Old Testament Prophecy and Apocalyptic Literature in

Ancient Context

The Lost World of Genesis One: Ancient Cosmology and the Origins Debate

The Lost World of the Torah: Law as Covenant and Wisdom in Ancient Context

More Resources

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