The Public Reading of God’s Word

A very important part of our church assemblies is allowing God to speak to us collectively through the public reading of his word. How do we make the most of this incredible opportunity?

We Must Appreciate What the Bible Is

The Bible claims to have come from God and to be all-sufficient to meet our spiritual needs (2 Tim. 3:14-17). Accepting this exalted claim demands our utmost respect and careful attention. Let us reverently acknowledge this collection of sacred writings, “even as it truly is, the word of God” (1 Thess. 2:13).¹

Since the heavenly Father desires all to be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth, he has providentially ensured this knowledge is available to all who are seeking.² In 21st-century western societies, there is no legitimate excuse for biblical ignorance. God’s word is readily accessible. We can read, study, and learn from the Bible anytime we want. Are we taking full advantage of this wonderful privilege, or do we take it for granted?

We Must Consider What the Bible Says

Paul advises Timothy, as a good minister of Christ Jesus, to inform and edify the brethren through faithful instruction and example (1 Tim. 4:6-12), particularly “the reading [anágnōsis], the exhortation, the teaching” (v. 13). Paul’s directive includes the Greek noun anágnōsis, a combination of aná (“again”) + gnōsis (“knowledge”), essentially conveying the idea of knowing again through reading. An author transmits in writing what he knows, while readers “know again,” relive or experience what the author has recorded.³

The historical-cultural context of this passage involves the public reading of scripture (ESV, NASB, NIV; cf. Acts 13:15; 2 Cor. 3:14). From earliest times the Jews gave attention to the oral reading of God’s word (Ex. 24:1-7; Josh. 8:30-35; Neh. 8:1-9, 18; 9:3; 13:1), which became a regular part of the synagogue gatherings (Acts 13:15, 27; 15:21). Jesus customarily attended the synagogue and participated in the communal reading and exposition of the scriptures (Luke 4:16-22).

James, in the earliest NT epistle, encourages his audience to be doers of the implanted word and not just “hearers” (Jas. 1:21-25). The earliest of the Pauline documents says: “I solemnly charge you in the Lord, that this letter be read to all the brethren” (1 Thess. 5:27; cf. Col. 4:16). In the final apostolic manuscript, the apostle John pronounces a blessing on “the one reading and those hearing the words of the prophecy, and keeping the things having been written in it ...” (Rev. 1:3, emp. added).

Importance of Public Reading

With an extremely high illiteracy rate in the ancient Mediterranean world,⁴ the only way most people had access to God’s revealed will (miraculous gifts notwithstanding) was through the public reading of scripture. Moreover, even among the educated minority, in these early centuries no one had his or her own personal copy of the Bible. It was in the assemblies of the church, where scripture was read aloud, that the word of God was encountered. 

The Bible was produced in a predominantly oral and aural culture. The OT writings were to a large extent composed with structural features designed for hearers rather than readers.⁵ The documents comprising the NT were also designed to be read aloud, functioning as substitutes for oral discourse and the author’s actual presence (cf. 1 Cor. 5:3; Col. 2:5; 1 Thess. 2:17).

Most NT writings were transmitted in letter-form, and since letters are more closely related to speech than narrative literature, they are essentially nonliterary in character. An epistolary author would verbally dictate his message while a secretary put it into writing (cf. Rom. 16:22; 1 Pet. 5:12), then the document would be audibly read to congregated listeners (cf. 1 Thess. 5:27; Col. 4:16; Rev. 1:3).⁶

The Public Reading of God’s Word Today

Reading God’s word publicly is both an honor and a solemn responsibility. The admonition in 2 Timothy 2:15 not only applies to Bible study and teaching, but “handling accurately the word of truth” surely includes vocal reading. Even the best readers, if unprepared, can stumble over words, miss punctuation and emphases, distort the text by inadvertently omitting or mis-pronouncing key terms, or distract from the message because of poor presentation. Communicating the sacred words of God is something to take seriously and demands thoughtful preparation.⁷

All others in the assembly need to be prepared to listen, reverently and attentively.⁸ This is not the time to move around, whisper, or be preoccupied with other things. When the church prays, we customarily bow our heads, close our eyes, and mentally engage. Why? As we approach the heavenly throne, we want to do so reverently and not be distracted by our earthly surroundings. When God speaks through the reading of his word, shouldn’t the same solemnity be displayed? 

Investment of Time and Effort

Genuine worship is deliberate and proactive, requiring focus and intent.⁹ The public reading of God’s word has always been a key element of Christian worship, and if it has been neglected in our assemblies, it needs to be restored. If the Bible were not as readily accessible, like the environment of our first-century brethren, how would this affect the way we view church attendance and the eagerness with which we listen to the scriptures being read? 

What an enormous blessing that God has revealed his perfect will and has preserved it in writing through the centuries. May we take advantage of every opportunity to ingest the biblical message and be transformed by it, with a lifetime commitment of reading, studying, learning, applying, and of course, hearing. 

--Kevin L. Moore

* Prepared for and adapted from an adult Bible class at Estes church of Christ 12-05-2020.

Endnotes:

     ¹ Unless otherwise noted, scripture quotations are the author’s own translation. “The Word of God is a fire that burns away dross (Jer. 23:29), a hammer that breaks stony hearts (Jer. 23:9), rain that waters crops (Isa. 55:10-11), milk that nourishes babies (1 Pet. 2:2), food that fills the hungry (Heb. 5:12-13), a sword that pierces the heart and battles the devil (Heb. 4:12; Eph. 6:17), gold that enriches us (Ps 19:10), a mirror that shows us our true selves (James 1:23-25), and a lamp that illumines our path (Ps. 119:105; Prov. 6:23; 2 Pet. 1:19)” (Jeffrey D. Arthurs, Devote Yourself to the Public Reading of Scripture 17-18).

     ² 1 Tim. 2:4; cf. Matt. 5:6; 6:33; 7:7; John 8:31-32; Acts 17:11; Heb. 4:12.

     ³ Having alluded to the “holy scriptures” familiar to Timothy, Paul affirms that “all scripture” is breathed out of God (2 Tim. 3:14-16). In his previous letter to Timothy, the apostle quotes “scripture” (1 Tim. 5:18), including OT and NT writings (viz. Deut. 25:4; Luke 10:7). He further reminds the saints at Ephesus how they can understand his revealed knowledge by simply reading what he has put into writing (Eph. 3:1-5). See What the Scriptures Say About the Scriptures.

     ⁴ Illiteracy in the first-century Roman Empire has been estimated as high as 90-95% (see W. V. Harris, Ancient Literacy 130-45). 

     ⁵ See G. D. Fee and D. Stuart, How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth 93-103; cf. S. L. Harris and R. L. Platzner, The Old Testament: An Introduction to the Hebrew Bible (2nd ed.) 21. 

     ⁶ See K. L. Moore, A Critical Introduction to the NT 100-114. Also Oral Transmission of the Biblical Records, and Study of Ancient Rhetoric.

     ⁷ For helpful suggestions about preparing to read the Bible in the public assembly, see Tim Challies, “The Public Reading of Scripture,” Challies.com (30 Nov. 2011), <Link>.

     ⁸ Psa. 19:7-11; 119:10-16; Rom. 7:22; 1 Thess. 2:13; 1 Pet. 2:1-3. 

     ⁹ See Is Everything We Do in Life "Worship"?, and Restoring True Worship.

Related Posts: Sociocultural Context (Part 6): Public Reading

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The Sociocultural Context of the New Testament (Part 8): Public Reading

From earliest times the Jews gave attention to the public reading of God’s word (Exod. 24:1-7; Josh. 8:30-35; 2 Kings 22:8-13; 23:1-3; Neh. 8:1-9, 18; 9:3; 13:1). In fact, Hebrew narrative, which comprises more than 40% of the Hebrew Bible, was “designed primarily for hearers, not readers.... these texts were composed altogether with the hearer in view and thus contain structural features designed to make the narrative more memorable.”¹  In the 1st century AD public reading was a regular part of the synagogue gatherings, where both the Law and the Prophets were read aloud (Acts 13:15, 27; 15:21). Jesus customarily attended synagogue meetings and participated in the communal reading and exposition of the sacred writings (Luke 4:16-22).²

The prevalence of illiteracy in the 1st-century Mediterranean world made public reading indispensable.³ Speaking to the educated elite, Jesus could ask, “Have you not read?” (Matt. 12:3, 5; 19:4; 21:16, 42; 22:31; Luke 10:26), while in addressing the common masses it was more appropriate to say, “You have heard that it was said” (Matt. 5:21, 27, 33, 38, 43; cf. 7:24, 26; 13:19-23), albeit with reference to oral instruction. James charges his audience to be doers of the implanted word and not just “hearers” [akroataí] (Jas. 1:21-25; cf. Rom. 2:13). The apostle John pronounces a blessing on “the one reading and those hearing the words of the prophecy ...” (Rev. 1:3a).⁴

Paul commends the holy scriptures to Timothy, charging him to “preach the word” (2 Tim. 3:16–4:2) and “to give attention to the public reading [anágnōsis]” (1 Tim. 4:13; cf. Acts 13:15; 2 Cor. 3:14). At the time, in addition to the Old Testament, the writings of Luke were already regarded as “scripture” (1 Tim. 5:18), and within a comparable timeframe so were Paul’s (2 Pet. 3:15-16) [see What the Scriptures Say]. In the earliest extant Pauline document, the directive is given: “I solemnly charge you [in] the Lord, [that] this letter be read to all the brethren” (1 Thess. 5:27). Seeing that the Thessalonian correspondence would naturally have been read publicly when the Thessalonica church assembled together, the exhortation potentially includes the nearby brethren in Berea and Philippi and beyond (cf. 1:7-8; 4:10). Paul intended for his writings to be circulated rather than kept isolated in their respective localities: “and when this letter shall be read in your presence, have it also read among the church of [the] Laodiceans, and that also you may read the [one] from Laodicea” (Col. 4:16) [see Paul's Missing Letters].

By the mid-2nd century Justin Martyr writes from Rome, “And on the day called Sunday, all who live in cities or in the country gather together to one place, and the memoirs of the apostles or the writings of the prophets are read, as long as time permits …”⁵ E. Ferguson remarks,“The Gospels and Prophets may have been a Christian counterpart to the Jewish readings from the Law and the Prophets…. the reading may have been continuous from Sunday to Sunday, taking up where the reading left off the last week, but not of a predetermined length. The indication is that the readings were rather lengthy ...”⁶

P. F. Esler provides helpful insights into examining the New Testament writings as they were originally designed. He reminds us that the author of each inspired document has communicated with the aim of informing and motivating a particular group of Christ-followers, most of whom potentially were illiterate. Since the text would have been read aloud when the church gathered, the message was conveyed orally and received aurally. It is therefore appropriate to consider the 27 New Testament documents as nonliterary in character, “as scripts for oral performance delivered within a setting of face-to-face dialogue …”⁷ 

Conversely, when modern readers in literary cultures interact with the written text, the tendency is to read and examine each word but fail to hear the words collectively as interpersonal discourse. “The omnipresence of printed text in our lives as a result of Gutenberg’s fifteenth-century invention of the printing press represents quite an obstacle to our understanding and benefiting from these communications in a manner that accords with their original and oral and interpersonal nature.”⁸ Esler challenges us to pay attention to the biblical author’s “communicative intentions” and listen to the New Testament “in a way that does justice to its oral and interpersonal origins.”⁹

--Kevin L. Moore

Endnotes:

     ¹ G. D. Fee and D. Stuart, How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth 93-103 (emp. in the text). 
     ² Cf. Matt. 4:23; 9:35; Mark 1:39, 21; Luke 4:44; 13:10; John 6:59; 18:20; etc. Unless noted otherwise, scripture quotations are the author’s own translation.

     ³ It has been estimated that in the world of the Roman Empire, only about 10 and at most 20 percent of the entire population could read, and in the western part of the Empire no higher than 5 to 10 percent (W. V. Harris, Ancient Literacy 130-45). Considering the diversity of the multi-cultural and multi-lingual contexts in which early Christianity developed and spread, it is difficult to determine the educational and literacy levels within these Christian communities (H. Gamble, Books and Readers 3).

     ⁴ At times a note may be inserted in the written text for the public reader (Matt. 24:15; Mark 13:14). C. Bryan says this “is probably to be understood as a stage direction to ‘the one who reads aloud (that is, to the assembly).’ If so, then in performance these words should be omitted, on the principle that one does not recite stage directions, one carries them out” (Preface to Mark 111 n. 9). Others, however, see this as applicable to the reader of Daniel (R. T. France, Gospel According to Matthew TNTC 340; R. H. Gundry, Matthew: A Commentary 481).

     ⁵ A. Roberts and J. Donaldson, eds., Ante-Nicene Fathers, “The First Apology of Justin” 1:186.

     ⁶ E. Ferguson, “Justin Martyr and the Liturgy,” RQ 36 [1994]: 271-72.

     ⁷ P. F. Esler, NT Theology: Communion and Community 8-9. See also K. L. Moore, The Study of Ancient Rhetoric.

     ⁸ P. F. Esler, op cit. It is helpful to note that “the difference between oral and written material was less distinct in antiquity” (E. R. Richards, “Reading, Writing, and Manuscripts,” in The World of the NT [eds. J. B. Green and L. M. McDonald] 349).

     ⁹ P. F. Esler, op cit., 88-118, 148-70.

Related Posts: Sociocultural Context Part 1: Introduction, Part 6: House Churches

Related Articles: Jovan Payes, Public Reading of Scripture

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