Rules of Interpreting Parables
Kris Minefee to IUB Independent Unaffiliated Baptists
Rules of Interpreting Parables
First let’s define what a parable is.
The word parable is transliterated from the Greek word parabole and means to place alongside for measurement or comparison, like a yardstick. A parable then is an objective illustration for spiritual or moral truth. A more easily remembered definition: A parable is an earthly story that tells heavenly truth.
Rules for Interpreting Parables
Never make a parable walk on all fours.
Paul Lee Tan writes, “In every parable, many circumstances and details are introduced which are intended merely to complete the similitude’s in the parable. The interpreter should not attempt to interpret all such details.
“A parable, like regular figures of speech, has but one central truth. Therefore, discover the central truth or theme which the parable is setting forth, and then explain the main circumstance of the parable in light of this truth, leaving out details incidental to its central idea.
Interpret according to context.
Tan- Most frequently, the context of a parable contains ready-made interpretations and applications which make the explanation of a Bible parable easier. The interpreter should not therefore neglect the context….
Interpret according to proper time periods.
Tan -There are three main time periods in parabolic prophecies; 1) the interadvent age, 2) the second coming of Christ, and 3) the millennial age. The interpreter should not try to fit all parables arbitrarily into one general period, such as the present church age.
Never use a parable to interpret doctrine.
Tan – Parables may be used to illustrate doctrines, but never to prove them.
Many of the heresies of modern Christianity can be traced to using parables to interpret direct teaching rather than the other way around.
The Main Point
Parables are windows to the truth but not the truth themselves. They are illustrations designed to make the truth memorable and understandable. They have one main point, and to press the parable further is to make it more than the window that lets in the light and force it to be the light itself.
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