There are three basic types of literature in the Bible: narrative, poetry, and discourse, and each type communicates in a different way. In April we talked about reading Bible stories, and last month we talked about poetry.; this week we’re talking about the last genre: discourse. What is “discourse?” Basically, discourse is any passage of scripture that lays out logical reasoning for why we should behave a certain way. Think of the Law of Moses, the Wisdom books, the Sermon on the Mount, or the New Testament Letters. Discourse is what we are used to reading, because it’s often simple and easy to break down into short statements. “Do not murder.” “Blessed are the peacemakers.” “You shall love the Lord your God will all your heart, soul and mind.” These are short, simple, and easy to apply. This is how we want the whole Bible to be. The truth is, however, that even in discourse things are not quite so simple. There are several factors we have to keep in mind while we are reading, in o
(or, A Fragment of Theology)