A comprehensive guide to the practices of hermeneutics by david r. So inductive bible study often gets billed as the way to allow the details of. The focus of the method is in observation technique as detailed below. The basic process of bible study with a computer is the same. Meditation meditation is a thoroughly jewish christian practice rooted all the way back 3,500 years in our tradition. Deductive study is a topdown approach which begins with a stated truth or proposition and then moves down to examine the proofs. It is probably the most wellknown and used technique in pastoral ministry. Christian wallpapers in contemporary design for pc, mac, and ipad desktop and screensavers. Share it with friends and remind them of gods goodness and majesty. Think about this, have you been suckered into believing that a deductive method of reasoning bible study should take the primary position over the inductive method. Abide method, bible study, bible study group, inductive bible study method, free, printable, worksheets. It offers a great in depth method of using inductive bible study method.
I read the bible through each year inductive but i want to get better at teaching specific topics through deductive study to help others understand bible truth. Inductive and deductive bible studies trivium pursuit. Its time to take your study of gods word to a higher level, and now you can, with the inductive bible study app. You then put them together with the other verses to form a greater meaning and construct. We do this through learning the tools and skills to help us observe the text, dig out the meaning, and then apply it to our lives. Inductive bible studies will, in a sense, lay it all on the table, leave it all on the table and evaluate it. Inductive vs deductive bible study perennial student.
This is related to the topical approach to bible study. The lessons do not cover every section of matthew, but rather focus on the key sections and the different kinds of passages for learning the method. This gives you a bigpicture or birdseye view that will help you better understand smaller units such as verses, paragraphs, and chapters in the context of the book as a whole. Ive been using the inductive bible study mentors for over 20 years. Inductive bible study is a method for learning how to exegete the bible for all its worth by our best efforts. In the deductive method or the scientific method the student first develops a hypothesis and then tests that hypothesis with the evidence. Click to download, print or view the inductive study approach formatted for adobe acrobat reader.
You are in the process of learning the inductive bible study method and the observation worksheet gives you the freedom to make some mistakes without permanently marking your bible. Another form of bible study, in contrast to the deductive method, is the inductive method. That may have prompted the question, if thats what inductive study is, then whats deductive study. Independent bible study using the inductive method of bible study and an analytical chart to map out the richness of the bible, author irving jensen shows how reading gods word can be the highlight of your day. First time read through 1x in one sitting to gain a broad feel of the letter. Of course, inductive bible study is only one system of studying the bible, yet it operates utilizing a helpful focus on understanding the original meaning of the text before making modern applications in a way that takes gods word seriously 2 timothy 2. Study the new testament at your own pace in workable units of material that follow the inductive method of study. Learn to know what god says, what he means, and how to put his truths into practice. Ebook independent bible study method, written by irving l.
Intervarsitys style is just one of many unique expressions of inductive bible study. Inductive bible study is learning how to exegete draw out, as inextracting the information what a text is actually saying in an objective and in a systematic way. As you can see, we arent actually talking about a method of. A 19year old sunday school student could do some real damage using the inductive bible study method on a book like ecclesiastes, for example. Use images, highlights, bolding, italics and more for easy visual reference. In a sense, a deductive study will place a number of things on the table and then remove what is extraneous until a conclusion can be made. Nov, 2010 inductive bible study, listening to the text under the influence of the holy spirit lends itself to conclusions that are more solidly exegetical, read out of the biblical material itself, and less toward conclusions imposed upon the texts eisgetically, read into the biblical material by the hypothetical presuppositions the deductive method, by. We can do this with the bible for all its worth with our best efforts. An intervarsity staff named paul byer pioneered doing inductive study using a manuscript in the 1950s. I have personally found it very helpful to have some. Below are some tips to follow when using the ibsm as a group. Do a background study observe passage interpret meaning apply truth 25.
A 2sided bookmark that provides the basic steps of observation, interpretation, and application crucial for using the inductive approach to hear god speaking through his word. Inductive bible study is a way of working with the bible that is intentional in trying to hear the message of the bible on its own terms. The inductive method of bible study the basics learn to know what god says, what he means, and how to put his truths into practice. The inductive method provides you with the skills and familiarity with the tools which make it possible for even beginning students as well as children to confidently study the scriptures without being forced to depend on secondary sources. The bible study charts on this page are also available as a pdf download the bible study charts pdf and have been reproduced, with grateful appreciation, from warren, richard, with william a. The inductive bible study method is a timetested way for the layperson to approach studying scripture. It involves a movement from looking at the evidence in and around the biblical text evidential premises to conclusions regarding the meaning of passages and books inferences. Our free resource download will provide you with an introduction to inductive bible study and includes. Deductive bible study simply put, deductive study is taking the bible and pulling from it to study one topic or concept. Research methods studying the bible with bible software deductive. Inductive and deductive bible study reformed theology. Why i dont like inductive bible study knowable word. Bible study can be approached in much the same manner. Another method used a lot today are the historicalcritical method, which may be what you had in mind, which is a more academic approach to studying the language and history of the text to try and.
How to do an inductive bible study logos bible software. The deductive bible study 2 ynineybih yd may 15, 20 think about this, have you been suckered into believing that a deductive method of reasoningbible study should take the primary position over the inductive method. The concept of the state of the dead is something that comes up a lot among my friends. To work through the series in order to see the principles for bible study as they have been introduced, start with the introduction that covers the method in general, and then proceed through the lessons in sequence. How is it different from the deductive bible study technique. Free inductive bible study guide bible journal love. Ive heard people refer to inductive bible study but never really had a firm understanding of what was meant or how it differed from a deductive bible study. In bible study, you can study someones elses study or you can study the scripture for yourself. She starts with a view of the whole puzzle and then examines the parts. For the truth in the trenches compaion card, we recommend printing on a heavy weight cardstock. A deductive method is useful in providing general principles regarding a specific point. It will walk you through each step of inductive bible studies in details. Inductive bible study, listening to the text under the influence of the holy spirit lends itself to conclusions that are more solidly exegetical, read out of the biblical material itself, and less toward conclusions imposed upon the texts eisgetically, read into the biblical material by the hypothetical presuppositions the deductive method, by.
It is the foundation which must be laid if you want to accurately interpret and properly apply. Inductive bible study consists of three component parts, which we will look at separately, but which frequently overlap in practice. See some of my marked pages at the bottom of this post. Research methods studying the bible with bible software. The book is freely available as ebook in pdf format. Inductive bible study is an investigative approach to bible study and can be a power tool to help your understand the bible.
Inductive bible study method is one of the most effective bible study methods for personal bible study, quiet time or small group bible studies. A deductive method of studying the bible involves picking a certain topic and then going through the bible and finding passages that. Some people view the bible as an unclimbable mountain, a dark cave into which we fear to trespass. I am looking forward to expanding the use of both inductive and deductive methods of study.
Methods of bible study part 1 study guide chapel library. Inductive bible study is that bible study which occurs when the passage being studied is allowed to speak to us, our conclusions being drawn from the passage. Inductive bible study method worksheet surveying a book of the bible. Jul 19, 2019 some more academic treatments of inductive bible study deal with these topics, but what you begin to figure out as you study those is that what they are pushing you toward is biblical theology. Shell, 12 dynamic bible study methods, victor books, wheaton, illinois, 1987. The distinction between inductive and deductive arguments lies in the strength of an arguments inferential claim. One way would be to go to the library and check out all the books that had information about frogs. Inductive bible study manual for leaders equipping for ministry phase iii. Leading an inductive bible study as a group using this method of study not only will bring your personal daily bible reading to life, but your group will be learning to read their bibles on their own.
The contrast between the two can easily be seen in this chart. In a deductive bible study one begins from a preassigned point and then uses the scripture to support the conclusion. The inductive bible study process inductive bible study seeks to discover the authors intended meaning in a passage by examining the details of a passage within the context. Read through 2nd time and begin recording the following in a journal. Resources project impact summer discipleship training. Therefore, a system of studying the bible that looks for contextual clues to the authors intentions is very important. Inductive versus deductive study to study the bible inductively means to use information in the passage to reach a conclusion about what the passage is saying.
When studying a book of the bible, it is always wise to do a quick read of the whole book. The sbs uses the inductive bible study method which is an amalgamation of several different study styles employing both sides of the brain and encouraging various learning styles. Kay authors precept ministries establishes people in gods word using inductive bible study. The inductive study method is an investigative approach to the bible using three basic components. If i looked up every verse in the bible that includes the word love, i would be starting with the general concept in this case, love and moving to specific statements about love. There are lots of different hermeneutical methods that have been used throughout history, inductive bible study being one such method popular today. The deductive bible study 2 ynineybih yd pdf on your home computer or at a copy center. We do this through giving people tools and skills to help observe the text, dig out the meaning, and then apply it to their lives. The difference between inductive bible study and deductive is the lack of premises. It is the opposite of deductive bible study, that which forms conclusions prior to the bible study and searches the bible for support for these conclusions, often taking passages out of. After evaluation, the information is categorized and ordered into detailed understanding.
Dec 05, 2017 one method that i have found particularly helpful is inductive bible study, which the ministry of intervarsity introduced to me in college. This guide presents three basic steps of inductive bible studies, observation, interpretation and application. It is the opposite of deductive study, in which you begin with an idea and look for support in scripture. In contrast, the deductive approach begins with the general and moves into the specifics. The deductive bible study 2 ynineybih yd methods there are quite a few of different methods.
In short, it is a topical approach to studying the scriptures. Jun 27, 2014 simply put, deductive study is taking the bible and pulling from it to study one topic or concept. Apr 24, 2017 print out the pdf on your home computer or at a copy center. An inductive guide to studying the gospel of matthew the lessons do not cover every section of matthew, but rather focus on the key sections and the different kinds of passages for learning the method. The ultimate goal of a faithful bible teacher is to bring his students up to his level of skill in understanding so that they may eventually instruct and correct him.
Welcome to this course on biblical interpretation and bible study methods. Deductive studies tend to look verse by verse, and pick them apart in the search for meaning. In contrast the inductive method starts by gathering everything thats said about a subject in its context, then exegesis is performed on all the evidence. In the last post, we discussed how to get started studying the bible with the inductive study method. Journal your personal study of the scriptures and reflect on your growth. Inductive and deductive bible study reformed theology institute. Print out the pdf on your home computer or at a copy center. This guide provokes you to read the bible honestlyto let it surprise, challenge, and correct you as you apply. Understanding the inductive approach bible study mentor. Inductive simply means to use logic induction and reasoning by examining the particulars, facts, and essence of a text, such as context and word meanings first before making any conclusions. The deductive approach on the other hand, begins by making an assumption. Inductive bible study uses the bible as the main source of information about the bible. The inductive study method that can be influenced by feelings, impressions i only. I get so much more out of a study when i mark the key words.
This is how pastors usually prepare for a sermon, and how some scholars write bible studies. The labels inductive and deductive may be applied to several things, including methods of reasoning and methods of studying. A simple outline of the process of inductive study a 9step guide to observing scripture text. A deductive student starts with a proposition truth, and examines all evidence to see if it really proves true. A deductive method of studying the bible involves picking a certain topic and then going through the bible and finding passages that support the topic. The inductive approach was first applied formally to bible study in the 1800s. Deductive bible study by james stuart bell and tracy sumner the deductive method of studying the bible means picking a certain subject as your starting point, then going through the bible and finding scriptures that address it. Religious cults use a deductive method of bible study in order to keep followers at a more childish level of understanding and thereby dependent upon them for instruction. Inductive bible study method inductive bible study method is a method of studying the bible through a system of steps that help us grasp what a books author intends for us to learn and apply. The following books are a great place to learn more about this simple methodology. These three parts are observation, interpretation, and application.