10.5.2012 LUTHER VI - THE BIBLE IS IT'S OWN BEST INTERPRETER

83.last...'L's conviction of the understandability of the bible by the laity lays the foundation for his doctrine of the priesthood of all believers. the word is the only mediator between God and man. in the scriptures we find everything we need to live as God's children. L, of course, does not mean to say that the bible has no difficult portions or that it would announce its truth as self-evident to every human mind. there are indeed many difficult passages, but that which is essential for the seeking soul to know,is as clear as the sun. from this luminous center, the man who has recognized the voice of god and has in his own heart experienced the judgment of God's law and the liberating word of His gospel will constantly see beans of light fall upon dark passages. thus the darkness will vanish, more and more. this center is Christ, to whom the whole bible testifies.
'when i know what i believe, i know what is in the bible, because the scriptures contain nothing else than Christ and the christian faith,
he says.
'be assured beyond every doubt that there is nothing more clear than the sun, that is the scriptures. even if a cloud passes in front of it, there is still nothing behind the cloud but this same bright sun. if there is somewhere a dark statement in the bible, you can nevertheless be assured, beyond doubt, that the same truth hides behind it as shines out clearly in other places. so if you cannot understand the dark passage, hold the more firmly to the one that is clear.

undergirding this is the strong conviction that the bible is its own best interpreter, (scriptura sacra sui ipsius interpres), because it is a unity, conveying but one message. for L this unity was centered in the word of God's grace, as he had heard it in the epistle to the romans. now his ear was attuned for this message everywhere. he could never hear it often enough. so he opened the entire bible with the key of the epistle to the romans. in the prophets and the psalms, the history of the patriarchs and in the gospels-everywhere he heard the message of justification through faith alone. sometimes it almost seemed as though the whole bible were written by paul! his endeavor to understand the scriptures in their unity was so strong that he overlooked all the differences between the biblical writers. he was unaware that in this way he sometimes did violence to a specific text. but he did not realize either what a great step forward he took on the path toward effective interpretation. for as darl holl says,
this is the first time that we find someone who attempts to understand an original document in its own terms, apart from all external authority.
for this reason L again and again calls the attention of his opponents to the fact that
a text may not be considered in isolation from its context
and that this context includes not merely its immediate setting but the entire bible.
'the meaning of a word of scripture must be sought in the totality of scripture,
in the sum of all with which it  stands associated.
a theologian must, if he is not to err, keep the whole of scripture before his eyes constantly.
even an author like augustine cannot be known by merely reading a selection of individual sentences, but through the reading of entire works.
so in the bible, also, we are not concerned with a mere collection of individual texts,
but with the author who stands behind them and wishes to reveal Himself through them.
this was also the reason L advised his friends to read the bible through regularly.
in this way its unity becomes clear.
he did this himself twice a year.