What is Exegesis?

ex.e.ge.sis noun \ek-sə-ˈjē-səs\ - an explanation or critical interpretation of a text

When I was in college I learned that exegesis is the process of understanding the meaning of a passage of scripture. The first and most basic step in exegesis is to read the passage in a translation you can understand. The next step is to read something that a Bible scholar has written about that passage. Many study Bibles come with great notes with this kind of information. There are also books called commentaries that explain many details about the Biblical languages, the setting of the original writing, and how a certain passage fits with other parts of scripture. I also learned that "exegesis" (getting stuff out of) is the opposite of "eisegesis" (reading stuff into). In other words, exegesis is about letting the Bible explain itself. That's the opposite of using the Bible to prove stuff you already believe. (You may have heard people call that "proof-texting" -- that is, picking and choosing only verses that support your ideas.)

A shelf full of commentaries

When I worked for a Bible translation organization, I heard people talk frequently about "doing exegesis." Of course someone translating the Bible should understand what the passage means. But it was difficult to get the translators to tell me exactly how they "did exegesis." Did they just read the passage and some study notes? Did they have commentaries? Did they write up a report of what they learned? Few people liked to divulge their secrets. It was like asking a chef to share her prized recipes.

Since I have been at Duke Divinity School, I have learned a specific process for "doing exegesis." My Bible professors actually have a form to fill out. We are required to read several commentaries, another book or two on that part of scripture, and some academic articles. We then write up details that we discover: definitions of key words in the passage, discussions about different translation techniques, how it could be applied in a sermon. Most importantly, we have to come up with questions that we would explore further. If you are interested you can click here to read an exegesis paper on Philippians 2:1-18 that I wrote earlier this year. I probably spent about 15 hours of reading and writing for this assignment.

Even though it is time-consuming, writing an exegesis paper is some of the most fun I have had in seminary. All verses in the Bible are rich with meaning, and it is a joy to dig into the various ways of understanding them. But it also makes me a little bit sad. When I sit in the Divinity School library in Durham, North Carolina I have access to anything ever written about the Bible. I have yet to come across a book, dissertation, or article that I cannot find on the shelf here or download from the library's website. This is an embarrassment of riches. It makes me think about all the people translating the Bible into their own languages. Many of those mother-tongue translators work in out-of-the-way places, far away from academic libraries. Even if (big if) their internet connections were solid enough to access academic articles online, they don't have the financial resources to get the passwords to unlock the websites. Even then, many of the best commentaries are written in such an academic style that they go above the heads of folks who don't speak English fluently.

Of course many others have recognized this problem. Some people spend their lives writing and sharing down-to-earth exegetical summaries that mother-tongue translators can read. But it is not just about how expensive it is to buy the necessary books.Understanding the Bible is hard work. It requires a lot of time to research and study just one chapter.  Maybe some of my translator friends didn't like to talk about their process because it exposes inadequacies. All translation projects run on deadlines, so there is only so much time to "do exegesis." God bless those who work with limited time and resources to bring God's Word to people who don't have it.