Chapter 11—Interpreting the Prophetic Writings

As Seventh-day Adventists, we believe that the Seventh-day Adventist Church is the remnant church of Revelation 12:17 and that God has graciously given this church a special gift, the gift of prophecy as manifested in the life and work of Ellen White. Since we don’t believe in degrees of inspiration, we have to recognize that Mrs. White’s inspiration is equal to that of the Old and New Testament prophets (though she didn’t have equal authority). Therefore, when using and interpreting what she has written, we must apply the same principles of interpretation to her writings as we do to Scripture. Both are inspired literature; therefore, both must be interpreted by the same principles.GP 96.1

Biblical texts can be understood and used in different ways. People may want to know what the author intended to say when he or she wrote the text. Thus they will investigate the historical circumstances that led to the writing of the text, to whom it was addressed, and what the words in the original language really meant. This investigation is called exegesis.GP 96.2

Or a preacher may just want to use the language of a text in a worship setting, applying the text to a present-day problem or situation, even though when the text was written—in other words, in its historical context—it may have referred to a different situation and may have meant something quite different. This application is called the homiletical use of Scripture.GP 96.3

Here’s an example of the homiletical use of Scripture: Mark 1:15 says that Jesus came to Galilee preaching the gospel, and saying, ” ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.’ ” The kingdom that Jesus was proclaiming at that time was the kingdom of grace, which He established at His first advent. ^{*“The kingdom of grace was instituted immediately after the fall of man. . . . Yet it was not actually established until the death of Christ.” Ellen G. White, God’s Amazing Grace (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald®, 1973), 19.} However, we can also apply the text to our situation today. All the time prophecies have been fulfilled, the kingdom of God is at hand, and we need to repent and believe the gospel. The kingdom in this application, however, is the kingdom of glory that Christ will inaugurate at His second coming, not the kingdom of grace. The first interpretation of Mark 1:15 is called exegetical; the second, homiletical. Both uses are legitimate, but we must distinguish between them. And any teaching or doctrine of Scripture must be based on a careful exegesis of the text, not on a homiletical application of it.GP 96.4