What is headline exegesis?

We never can rightly understand the Bible unless we know at least something of what is sometimes called "dispensational truth," that is, the truth concerning God's ways with men in the various dispensations or periods of time. If, for example, we apply to the church of God now, passages in the prophets which unfold God's dealings with Israel in the past or in a future day, we shall get into utter confusion, and misinterpret much of the Old Testament scripture. We may see an illustration of this mistaken application of scripture in some of the printed headings in our Bibles, such as in Isaiah, "God revengeth His church," "Restoration of the church," etc., placed over chapters which apply not to the church, but to Israel in a day still future.

We must not attempt to quote; but we would warn the reader against the danger of being led astray by the uninspired headings attached to those magnificent passages which refer to Israel's future, such, for example, as "The blessings of the gospel" — "The enlargement of the Church." These expressions are calculated to mislead many pious readers who are apt to take for granted that the headings are as much inspired as the text; or, if not inspired, that they, at least, contain a correct statement of what the text sets forth. The fact is, there is not a syllable about the Church from beginning to end of the prophets. That the Church can find most precious instruction, light, comfort, and edification from this grand division of the inspired volume, is blessedly true; but she will do this just in proportion as she is enabled, by the Spirit's teaching, to discern the real scope and object of this portion of the book of God. To suppose, for a moment, that we can only derive comfort and profit from that which exclusively or primarily refers to ourselves, would be to take a very narrow, if not an egotistical, view of things. Can we not learn from the Book of Leviticus? And yet who would assert that that section refers to the Church?

The application to the church of prophetic utterances in Old Testament headings of chapters (which are no part of the original text) is due to the mistaken views of well-meaning men.

Let the reader take up his marginal Bible of the "authorized" version, and turn, almost at random, to any of the chapter headings where prophecies of the future are found, and he may at once verify the point. He will find "the Church" abundantly in the headings, but for the Church in the text, he will search in vain; he will find there only Israel, Zion, Jerusalem, or the like.

A single example to make it clear. The heading of Isaiah 52 begins with "(1) Christ persuadeth the church to believe His free redemption;" but on looking into the chapter, the reader will perceive, that it is Zion who is exhorted to awake and put on strength; Jerusalem, the holy city, that is bidden to put on her beautiful garments, and to shake herself from the dust; the people who went down aforetime into Egypt to sojourn; the people whom the Assyrian oppressed; and so throughout the chapter. The only glimpse of truth, in the heading, is in its last clause, "(13) Christ's kingdom shall be exalted." The kingdom is undoubtedly the thing in view in the place, but then, "the kingdom" in the view of the chapter headings, is but another name for "the Church," with which they in variably confound it.

It is of the greatest importance, both for the right understanding of these scriptures, and for a true appreciation of what Christianity is, to see that the church has no place in the prophets. In the church there is neither Jew nor Gentile, and the prophets recognise both, while carefully maintaining the distinction between them. Prophecy treats of the earth and of the government of God and its issue: the Christian belongs to heaven, and he will reign with Christ in the kingdom. In the A.V. of the O.T. the headings of many of the chapters are misleading: the church often spoken of in them is never found in the text; Christ is there, and the manifestation of God; and the scriptures which develop His ways, and speak of the sufferings and the glories of the One to whom the Christian is united, are of deep interest to him, though he himself may not be immediately spoken of.

Many Christians can hardly appreciate this difficulty, inasmuch as the truth of the church is largely obscured in their minds, or even totally lost. Viewing the church as the aggregate of believers through all time, they have no difficulty in finding what they believe to be the church in the Old Testament. That this has been the thought of godly men is amply proved by the headings that have been given to many Old Testament chapters in the Authorised Version. Accept, however, the truth of the church as unfolded in the Epistle to the Ephesians, and at once we are faced with this difficulty which can only be met by the fact that the truth of the church is an entirely fresh revelation.

Many Christians can hardly appreciate this difficulty inasmuch as the truth of the Church is largely obscured in their minds, or even totally lost. Viewing the Church as the aggregate of all believers through all time, they have no difficulty in finding what they believe to be the Church in the Old Testament. That this has been the thought of godly men is amply proved by the headings they have given to many Old Testament chapters in the Authorized Version. Accept, however, the truth of the Church, as unfolded in the Epistle to the Ephesians, and at once we are faced with this difficulty which can only be met by the fact that the truth of the Church is an entirely fresh revelation.

Some people say that the prophet Isaiah is full of the Church of God, and that most of the Old Testament prophets have written many beautiful descriptions of the Church of God. But in order to give a shadow of a proof of this they interpret "Jerusalem" to be the Church, the "house of David" to be the Church, "Zion" to be the Church, and I don't know what else to be the Church, without, as far as I can see, any authority whatever for so doing. But you will find, with regard to the prophet Isaiah, that the book is headed with these words: "The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem." And therefore, whilst the Holy Ghost, in writing the Scriptures, might underlie and interlace most precious truths which we can now take up and use for our edification, yet it is clear that the plain instruction of these Scriptures has reference to the nation and people of Israel, and not to the Church of God.

Thankful as we ought to be for the Authorised Version of the Bible, it is not part of its excellency that the very names used and the various characters under which Divine glory is presented in Scripture — those of Elohim, El, Jehovah, Jah, Shaddai, Adonai, etc. — at times each found alone, and at times in combinations together — have not been marked: and, perhaps as a natural result of this, headings have been put to chapters which lead to confusion between the Church and Israel, and between the Gospel to us and Mercy to Israel hereafter. See the headings in Isaiah to chapters 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45; and, in the Psalms the word Church forced into the headings in Ps. 20, 44, 45, 46, 48, 50, 51, 68, 76, 80, 83, 87, 89, 97, 114, 122, 124, 126, 129, 147, 149.

I believe there is no exposition of the scripture which satisfies all the conditions of the context and of the rest of the Bible but this. Who would deny that scripture must have as its ultimate force some fixed determinate meaning? There must be a true and full object for the word of God, and this is in no way adverse to the principle of applying particular passages meanwhile. This is all right, and would not be objected to for a moment; but we must distinguish between the application of scripture and its just interpretation. The latter means the full mind of God, the intention and scope whether of prophecy or of anything else. Application is justifiable according to apostolic precedent as a practical use of it before "that day."