Bible Study Isn’t to Win God’s Approval

Today, years later, I can still remember the reference, in fact I can still hear the cadence of my Sunday School repeating it slowly in unison:

“Second Timothy Two Fifteen”

The verse, as we learned it, was “Study to show yourself approved unto God, rightly dividing the Word of Truth.”  Actually it was “shew thyself.”

But while Bible study is important, the verse wasn’t translated as accurately as it might have been. Being “approved unto God” isn’t about study, in the more academic sense we think of it. Other versions have:

• Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved by him (NRSV, NIV)
• Work hard so God can say to you, “Well done.” (Living Bible)
• For yourself, concentrate on winning God’s approval (Phillips)
• Do your best to present yourself to God as a tried-and-true worker  (God’s Word, also CEB)
• Do your best to be the kind of person God will accept  (ERV)
• Concentrate on doing your best for God, work you won’t be ashamed of (Message)
• …do everything you can to present yourself to God as a man who is fully genuine (The Voice)

The Voice Bible sets up the broader context:

¹¹ Here’s a statement you can trust:

If we died with Him,
    we will live with Him.
¹² If we remain with Him,
    we will reign alongside Him.
If we deny Him,
    we will be denied by Him.
¹³ If we are unfaithful,
    He remains faithful,
For He is not able to deny Himself.

¹⁴ Remind others about these things that I’m telling you. Warn them before God to stop their useless bickering over words. After all, splitting hairs does no good; it only ruins those forced to listen to their meritless arguments. ¹⁵ Timothy, do everything you can to present yourself to God as a man who is fully genuine, a worker unashamed of your mission, a guide capable of leading others along the correct path defined by the word of truth. ¹⁶ Stay away from ungodly babbling because it will only lead deeper into a godless lifestyle. ¹⁷ Once these empty voices start to speak, Timothy, they infect and spread; and soon the body is consumed with its cancer…

In context, winning God’s approval is this passage is about character, and behavior; not about Bible knowledge.

There’s nothing wrong with Bible study. Every Christian should own several Bibles, a Bible Dictionary, a Concordance; or access to similar resources online. I only have to say, “Search the scriptures,” and immediately many of you think of the Bereans, who are commended in Acts 17:11 for their diligence in Bible study.

^{NIV Acts 17:11} Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.

If you were raised with the two or three translations that use “Study to show yourself approved;” that’s not exactly bad advice. And it won’t throw you off track spiritually. But today we have the benefit of translations that will help us see passages in ways that more accurately reflect their context. In other words, you’ll discover that the section in II Timothy isn’t about studying the Bible if you… well… study the Bible.

We often do translation passage comparisons here, and facilitate that using BibleGateway.com; although I do own a multitude of translations and commentaries in print. Today at Thinking Out Loud we’re doing a feature on the variety of Bible versions available, so I want to invite you to continue reading at Bible Translation Families. I’m hoping it will shed some new light on how the various translations fit into the broader picture.