Who determines a Bible verse's meaning?

Any seasoned attendee of Bible studies knows the scene all too well. The group reads a Scripture passage. Then the leader asks, "What does this passage mean to you?" only to receive a collection of answers that are varied, whacky, and even contradictory. Finally, the leader brings discussion to a polite conclusion by saying something like, "The Bible is so rich that it can mean something different to each one of us." But is that true?

Well, it depends. If the leader means simply that a biblical principle (like "love your neighbor as yourself") has different applications to each person, then yes, it is true. One person in the group might need to love his boss, another his son, and another her husband. The ways we can apply Scripture to our lives are myriad. Yet that's not what many well-intentioned Bible study leaders mean when they say the Bible means different things to different people. They mean that different readers of the same passage are justified in drawing vastly different theological principles from the text. And that's a problem. Read more