In a day in which it is common to find the bible employed to argue for every conceivable philosophy, ideal, and theology, D. A. Carson’s Exegetical Fallacies is an indispensable resource. Building on the foundation that, because the Bible is the very word of God, it is of utmost importance that we handle it carefully and accurately; and acknowledging that all of us are susceptible to misinterpreting scriptures in our reading, studying, and preaching, Carson lays out in systematic fashion the most common ways in which the bible is misinterpreted, in an eminently useful effort to help us safeguard ourselves against a variety of errors which are as serious in their import as they are easy to stumble into. The ability to detect and avoid exegetical fallacies, which the reader will no doubt come away with, is in greater need today, when Christian writings and resources have proliferated to an unprecedented degree, than at any other point in redemptive history.
Carson’s greatest strengths as a writer are his clarity and brevity of expression, together with his careful organization of content and progression of thought. The stylistic dangers of a work of this sort would be, first, to engage in a highly technical and philosophical discussion of logic that would leave anyone but the well-trained logician in confusion; and second, to compile a tedious catalog of specific errors which lacks the clear progression and organization which would be necessary to allow the reader to assimilate the various warnings. Carson has avoided both dangers to an admirable degree. His treatment of the subject unfolds in a natural progression, as he examines under the general headings of Word-Study Fallacies, Grammatical Fallacies, Logical Fallacies, and Presuppositional and Historical Fallacies, the various errors of interpretation that are most commonly encountered, by means of specific, concrete, and easily-understood examples.
It is commendable, and speaks of true humility and a genuine desire for the spiritual health of his audience, that Carson prefaces the work with a warning against the dangers of a study of this nature: it may lead to an unhealthy and critical negativism; a self-reliance and lack of thankfulness to God; or a prideful, scholastic elitism. On the other hand, it may fall out to despair and uncertainty, or a hesitance to engage in any theological study and discussion for fear of error. Carson is right to acknowledge these dangers; but is further to be commended for pursuing anyway, in an attitude of prayer and Spirit-reliance, a rigorous examination of the fallacious ways in which the Bible has often been interpreted. When attended with a self-conscious reliance on the teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit, the Christian cannot help but be aided in his doctrinal precision and exegetical abilities by a careful reflection on how not to use the infallible word of God. And this consideration is no doubt Carson’s primary motivation for offering Exegetical Fallacies to the public.
This brief and facile little volume will no doubt be convicting and encouraging to its readers. Convicting because, as I suspect, everyone who reads it will be made to realize certain ways in which he has previously used the bible illegitimately. Such, at least, was the case with me. And encouraging because, he will feel much better equipped to reason from the scriptures and to evaluate that which is proposed as scripturally-grounded. This is not a book to read once and file away. It is a book to be referenced again and again as arguments from the bible, which support any number of conclusions, are encountered in books, sermons, and discussions.