Curious Christian

This evening, I thought I’d stir up the age-old debate between fundamentalists and liberals on how to interpret. Here are four verses where a literal reading actually points us toward a figurative understanding:

• John 16:25: “Though I have been speaking figuratively, a time is coming when I will no longer use this kind of language but will tell you plainly about my Father.”
• Galatians 4:24-25: “These things may be taken figuratively, for the women represent two covenants. One covenant is from Mount Sinai and bears children who are to be slaves: This is Hagar. Now Hagar stands for Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present city of Jerusalem, because she is in slavery with her children.”
• Hebrews 11:19: “Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death.”
• Revelation 11:8: “Their bodies will lie in the street of the great city, which is figuratively called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified.”

So next time someone insists everything in the Bible must be taken literally, feel free to remind them—even scripture suggests otherwise.