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Correcting Misunderstood Biblical Stories and Their Interpretations

The story of the Tower of Babel, found in Genesis 11:1-9, is often understood as God punishing humanity for its hubris by confusing their languages and scattering them across the earth. The text describes people attempting to build a city with a tower "whose top may reach unto heaven" to "make us a name" and prevent their dispersion [9]. God observes their unified language and purpose, stating, "Indeed the people are one and they all have one language, and this is what they begin to do; now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them" (Genesis 11:6). Consequently, God "confound[s] their language" so they cannot understand one another, leading to their scattering [9].

This event is presented as the origin of the world's diverse languages and nations, a direct intervention by God to thwart human efforts to centralize power and defy a divine command to "fill the earth" (Genesis 9:1) [7, 9]. The phrase "confound their language" literally refers to a "failure in utterance," resulting in distinct dialects intelligible only to specific groups [9]. This divine act compelled the dispersion that humanity had sought to avoid [9].

Another biblical narrative that can be misunderstood is the concept of "perseverance of the saints," often simplified to "once saved, always saved." While the Bible emphasizes the importance of enduring in faith, it also warns against apostasy. Revelation 2:3 speaks of those who "hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name's sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted" [1]. Similarly, numerous passages encourage steadfastness and endurance in the face of trials, such as Romans 2:7, which speaks of "patient continuance in well doing" [1]. The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge cross-references for Revelation 2:3 include passages like Luke 8:15, which describes those who "keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience," and Hebrews 12:22, which refers to the "heavenly Jerusalem" [1, 3].

However, the New Testament also contains strong warnings against falling away from faith. For example, Titus 1:14 mentions "Jewish myths" and those who "have turned away from the truth," which is described as apostasy rather than mere unbelief [10]. The Apostle Paul, in 1 Timothy 1:6-7, also addresses those who have "swerved" from faith [10]. These passages suggest that while God is faithful to preserve His people, individuals also bear responsibility for continuing in faith and can, through their own choices, depart from it.

The interpretation of parables is another area where misunderstandings can arise. Jesus' parables, such as the Sower in Matthew 13:3-9, are stories that use analogies from everyday life to convey spiritual truths [5]. To properly understand a parable, it is crucial to identify its central analogy and interpret it within its historical and textual context [5]. Speculative allegorical meanings for every detail of a parable should be avoided if they were not intended by the speaker [5]. For instance, the parable of the Sower addresses the varied responses to Jesus' message, particularly the largely negative reception from the Jewish nation [5].

The book of Revelation, with its rich symbolic language, is frequently subject to misinterpretation. For example, Revelation 13:2 describes a beast with characteristics of a leopard, bear, and lion, to which the dragon gives power [2]. This imagery draws on Old Testament prophetic literature, such as Daniel 7:4, which depicts similar beasts [2]. John Chrysostom, an early Church Father, emphasized the importance of understanding the spiritual meaning behind biblical texts, particularly in the context of the New Testament [4, 6, 8]. He cautioned against literalistic interpretations where a deeper, spiritual truth was intended.

Similarly, the concept of "stealing God's words" in Jeremiah 23:30 refers to a "twofold plagiarism": prophets stealing from each other and misapplying God's words [11]. This highlights the importance of accurate and faithful transmission and interpretation of divine revelation, a concern echoed by commentators like John Calvin, who dedicated significant effort to verbal criticism and careful exegesis [12].

Sources

  1. Treasury of Scripture Knowledge “Revelation 2:3 cross-references: Psalms 37:7, Psalms 69:7, Micah 7:9, Mark 15:21, Luke 8:15, Luke 14:27, Luke 18:1, Luke 21:19, John 15:21, Romans 2:7, Romans 5:3, Romans 8:25, Romans 12:12, Romans 15:4, Romans 16:12, 1 Corinthians 13:7, 1 Corinthians 16:16, 2 Corinthians 4:1, 2 Corinthians 4:16, 2 Corinthians 5:9, 2 Corinthians 6:5, 2 Corinthians 10:15, 2 Corinthians 11:23, Galatians 6:2, Galatians 6:9, Philippians 2:16, Philippians 4:3, Colossians 1:11, 1 Thessalonians 1:3, 1 Thessalonians 2:9, 1 Thessalonians 5:12, 2 Thessalonians 3:5, 2 Thessalonians 3:8, 2 Thessalonians 3:13, 1 Timothy 4:”
  2. Treasury of Scripture Knowledge “Revelation 13:2 cross-references: 1 Samuel 17:34, 2 Kings 2:24, Psalms 22:21, Proverbs 17:12, Proverbs 28:15, Isaiah 5:29, Jeremiah 5:6, Jeremiah 13:23, Daniel 7:4, Hosea 11:10, Hosea 13:7, Amos 3:12, Amos 5:19, Habakkuk 1:8, 2 Timothy 4:17, 1 Peter 5:8, Revelation 12:3, Revelation 12:9, Revelation 12:13, Revelation 12:15, Revelation 13:4, Revelation 16:10, Revelation 17:12, Revelation 19:20, Revelation 20:2”
  3. Treasury of Scripture Knowledge “Revelation 14:1 cross-references: Psalms 2:6, Psalms 132:13, Isaiah 49:14, Jeremiah 1:11, Ezekiel 1:4, Ezekiel 2:9, Ezekiel 8:7, Ezekiel 10:1, Ezekiel 10:9, Ezekiel 44:4, Daniel 12:5, Joel 2:32, Amos 8:2, Micah 4:7, Zechariah 4:2, Luke 12:8, Romans 9:33, Hebrews 12:22, Revelation 3:12, Revelation 4:1, Revelation 5:5, Revelation 5:12, Revelation 6:8, Revelation 7:3, Revelation 13:16, Revelation 14:14, Revelation 15:5”
  4. CCEL/NPNF (Eastern Orthodox) “John Chrysostom, Homilies on Acts & Romans: iii Preface to the American Edition. ———————————— In the preparation of this volume of Chrysostom’s Homilies on Acts and Romans, the effort has been to improve the Oxford edition by some changes and corrections, and by the addition of critical and explanatory notes. The translation remains substantially unchanged. Frequent minor changes have, however, been made in phraseology, where it has seemed to me that the sense could thereby be made plainer. Archaic and obsolescent words or expressions have often been replaced by more idiomatic modern language.”
  5. Matthew (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Matthew 13:3: 13:3-9 This parable (interpreted in 13:18-23) addresses the mostly negative responses of the Jewish nation to Jesus and his message. • Parables (Greek parabolē) are stories that usually express an analogy between a common aspect of life and a spiritual truth. To understand a parable, it is necessary to locate the central analogy and understand it in its historical context and in the context of the Gospel text; then the central message can be understood. Speculative allegorical meanings that were not intended should not be found in every element of a parable.”
  6. CCEL/NPNF (Eastern Orthodox) “John Chrysostom, Homilies on John & Hebrews: 7:26 7:27 7:27 7:27 7:28 8:1-2 8:3 8:3 8:6 8:7 8:7 8:7 8:7 8:8-9 8:10 8:10 8:11-12 8:13 8:13 8:13 9:1-5 9:6 9:7 9:8 9:9 9:9 9:10 9:10 9:11 9:11 9:12 9:12 9:12 9:12 9:12-13 9:13-14 9:15-18 9:19-20 9:21-22 9:23 9:23 9:24 9:24-26 9:26 9:27 9:28 9:28 10:1 10:2-9 10:5 10:8-13 10:10 10:10 10:12 10:14 10:14 10:14-15 10:16-18 10:19-23 10:20 10:20 10:20 10:20 10:20 10:22 10:24-25 10:25 10:25 10:25 10:25 10:26-27 10:28 10:28-29 10:29 10:30 10:30 10:31 10:31 10:32 10:32 10:32 10:32 10:32 10:32-34 10:32-36 10:34 10:34 10:34 10:35 10:36 10:37 10:37 10:37 10:38 1”
  7. CCEL (Reformed) “Calvin, Commentary on Genesis, Vol. 1 (Gen 1-23), section 28.1: Index of Scripture References Genesis 1:1-6 1:1-31 1:2 1:28 1:29-30 2:1 2:1-25 2:15 2:19 3:1 3:1-24 3:7 3:16 4:1 4:1-26 4:7 5:1 5:1-32 6:1 6:1-22 6:11-16 7:1-24 7:11 8:1-22 9:1 9:1 9:1-29 9:2 9:24 10 10:1 10:1 10:1-32 10:21 11:1 11:1 11:1-32 11:28 12:1 12:1 12:1 12:1-20 12:4 12:4 12:6 13:1 13:1-20 14:1-24 15:1-21 15:7 16:1-16 16:2 16:8 17:1 17:1 17:1 17:1 17:1-27 18:1 18:1 18:1-33 18:19 19:1-38 20:1 20:1 20:1-18 21:1-34 21:15 22:1-24 22:18 23:1-20 24:31 25:1 25:13-16 35:7 48:1 Exodus 6:3 12:40 Leviticus 7:18 17:4 18:25 Numbers 6:2”
  8. CCEL/NPNF (Eastern Orthodox) “John Chrysostom, Homilies on Galatians–Colossians–Thessalonians: 13:17 13:23 James 1:6 2:13 2:19 2:26 3:11 4:3 1 Peter 1:3 1:12 2:13 2:21 2:21 2:22 2:22 2:22 5:5 5:8 5:8 5:8 2 Peter 2:4 3:13 1 John 2:9 3:2 3:8 4:8 Revelation 1 1:4 1:9 1:11 1:16 1:20 2 3 3:12 14:1 14:4 14:13 15:6 20:9 22:16 Tobit 12:9 Wisdom of Solomon 1:4 1:14 11:23 11:24 14:16 Sirach 2:2 2:2 2:4 2:10 2:11 2:27 3:10-12 3:11 5:6 6:14 6:16 6:34 7:6 7:31 9:13 9:15 10:9 10:12-13 11:1 11:2 11:3 11:3 11:4 11:15 11:28 12:13 13:15 14:9 15:9 16:3 18:13 18:13 19:14-15 20:20 21:2 22:21-22 23:17 23:17 25:1 25:1 25:11 26:27 28:6 31:1 32:10”
  9. Genesis (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Genesis 11:7: confound their language--literally, "their lip"; it was a failure in utterance, occasioning a difference in dialect which was intelligible only to those of the same tribe. Thus easily by God their purpose was defeated, and they were compelled to the dispersion they had combined to prevent. It is only from the Scriptures we learn the true origin of the different nations and languages of the world. By one miracle of tongues men were dispersed and gradually fell from true religion. By another, national barriers were broken down--that all men might be bro”
  10. Titus (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Titus 1:14: 1:14 Jewish myths: See 3:9; 1 Tim 1:4; 4:7; 2 Tim 4:4. • have turned away from the truth: This was apostasy, not mere unbelief. See 1 Tim 1:6-7.”
  11. Jeremiah (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Jeremiah 23:30: steal my words--a twofold plagiarism; one steals from the other, and all steal words from Jehovah's true prophets, but misapply them (see Jer 28:2; Joh 10:1; Rev 22:19).”
  12. CCEL (Reformed) “Calvin, Commentary on Genesis, Vol. 1 (Gen 1-23), section 1.5: more recently been subjected. Still his verbal criticisms are neither few nor unimportant, though he lays comparatively little stress upon them himself. 5 5 The reader is referred, for full information on this subject, to a small volume entitled, “The Merits of Calvin as an Interpreter of the Holy Scriptures,” by Professor Tholuck of Halle. To which are added, “Opinions and Testimonies of Foreign and British Divines and Scholars as to the Importance of the Writings of John Calvin.” With a Preface by the Revelation William Pringle. ”
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