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Creative Bible Study
STEP THREE: DETERMINE THE MEANING OF THE WORD
After selecting a key word and studying its context, the next step is to determine the meaning of the word.
Watch for words which are different but have the same meaning, for example, "Kingdom of God" and "Kingdom of Heaven." Watch for words which are the same but have different meanings. For example, in John 21:15-17 Jesus asked Peter three times, "Lovest thou me more than these?" Each time the meaning of the word "love" was different.
Unless you know Greek or Hebrew and have a Bible in these languages you will not be able to determine the original meaning of the word without additional study tools. The two basic study helps you need are a concordance and a Bible word study book. Chapter Five of this manual explains how to use both of these Bible study tools.
If you do not have a concordance or word study book you can still study a Bible word even though you may not be able to trace the original meaning. IF YOU DO NOT have a concordance or Bible word study book, then follow these steps:
1. If your Bible has a center margin which lists additional references for study, look up all the verses listed. They may expand your understanding of the word. Sometimes the center margin actually gives the meaning of the word.
2. Check in the back of your Bible. Some Bibles have a small concordance which lists some of the most important words. Some Bibles also have a dictionary in the back which provides definitions.
3. Look up the word in a modern language dictionary. This will provide knowledge of the current meaning of the word even though the way it was used in Bible days may have been somewhat different.
4. Study other uses of the word in the chapter or book. This will also help determine the meaning of the word.
IF YOU DO have a concordance and/or Bible word study book, then follow these steps:
1. If your Bible has a center margin which gives additional references and word meanings, see if the word you are studying is listed. (Point l in the preceding section explains how to use the center margin of your Bible).