Module 5 · Mistakes to Avoid · Week 17

Escaping the Eisegesis Trap — A Guide to Faithful Interpretation

Everyone brings assumptions to the Bible. But there is a difference between reading with your assumptions (which is honest) and reading for your assumptions (which is eisegesis).

~20 min watch + read Video + podcast companion PDF handout included Taught by Andrew Ramirez Completed

Watch

Bible Made Simple

Clear, visual teaching at your own pace

Listen

Go Deeper

Accessible insight you can take anywhere

Section 01

Key Terms

Eisegesis (review) — Reading your own ideas, theology, or preferences INTO the Bible — the opposite of exegesis.

Presuppositions — The assumptions and beliefs you bring to the text before you even start reading — everyone has them.

Confirmation Bias — The tendency to notice evidence that supports what you already believe and ignore evidence that challenges it.

Section 02

Key Concepts

01Awareness

Everyone has presuppositions.

The question is whether you're aware of them. Unaware, they run the show. Aware, you can test them against the text.

02Mirror vs. Window

Eisegesis makes the Bible a mirror. Exegesis lets it be a window.

A mirror shows you yourself. A window shows you something beyond. Pick the window.

03Surprise

Let the text surprise you.

If the Bible never challenges your thinking, you're probably not listening. Expect the text to push back.

Section 03

Scripture Focus

Anchor passages for this lesson.

2 Timothy 2:152 Peter 1:20Proverbs 14:12Acts 17:11

Section 04

By the End, You Will…

Identify your own presuppositions and explain how they can either help or hinder your interpretation.

Describe the difference between reading with your theology (awareness) and reading for your theology (eisegesis).

Develop the practice of asking what a passage actually says before asking what it means for your existing beliefs.

Section 05

Take It With You

Lesson Handout (PDF)

Key terms, concepts, and review prompts for offline study

Download

You're at the finish line

Ready to lock it in? Mark this lesson complete.

You've watched, you've listened, you've read. Click complete to move forward.

Up Next · Week 18 · The Final Lesson

Your Step-by-Step Bible Study Method — And Why This Work Matters

All eighteen weeks come together. One method. One posture. A lifetime of study.

Start Week 18