Muscle Up for Fall Bible Study, with Kristie Anyabwile

Bible genres . . . What are they, and why do they matter? Find out from guest Kristie Anyabwile in this episode of Grounded. Kristie will help you become more familiar with the various literary genres of the Bible so that the next time you open up God’s Word, you’ll approach it with greater accuracy and understanding.

Original Episode: 

A Crash Course in Bible Genres, with Kristie Anyabwile

YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C3Bk6rGm4-A

Website: https://www.reviveourhearts.com/podcast/grounded/a-crash-course-in-bible-genres/

Connect with Kristie

Instagram: @kristieanyabwile
Twitter: @kanyabwile 

Episode Notes

• Literarily: How Understanding Bible Genres Transforms Bible Study by Kristie Anyabwile.
• Shop Revive Our Hearts’ Summer Bible Study Sale.

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Kristie Anyabwile: People always ask the question, "Is the Bible literal? Like, are you supposed to really read it literally?" The thought behind that question is people kind of innately understand that in some places it doesn't make sense for me to read the Bible literally.

Erin Davis: Music, Bible genres. What are they, and why do they matter? I'm Erin Davis, and this is Grounded. We're here to give out two things: hope and perspective. As summer heats up with one last flair before fall, lots of us are thinking about our fall Bible study. I'll be starting a new one. I hope you are too.

So all month long we're going to help you muscle up for fall Bible study. We'll feature some of our most recommended Bible studies, and we'll give tips on how to better approach your efforts to understand God's Word. And right now we're having a sale on our favorite studies at Revive Our Hearts in our online bookstore. More on that in just a minute.

Now, about today, Bible genres. If you want to understand the Bible better, one of the most important concepts is Bible genres. What are they? And as I said, "Why do they even matter?" The Bible is rich with a variety of literary genres. Being familiar with each of them helps us read the text more accurately.

So, Portia and I sat down with Kristie Anyabwile. We lay muscle your mind. If you stay tuned, the next time you open your Bible, you'll understand the genre you're reading, and that'll help you approach understanding it with greater accuracy.

But first, go ahead and open your Bible to the book of Habakkuk. My friend Dannah Gresh will get us grounded in God's Word today with a peek at some poetry. That's one of the Bible genres we're often tempted to skip past, but don't. Dannah is going to tell you why God may have chosen some of the most important parts of Scripture to be poetry.

Now, you know by now that we're not live in the studio this summer. We're resting and refueling. In the original open Dannah said, "I'm no seminarian." But she still sat down to wrestle with God's Word, and you can too. You don't have to be a seminarian to be a theologian. How's that for some good news. So, let's listen to this teaching from Dannah, first recorded for Grounded in 2022

Grounded in the Word: Habakkuk 3:17–19 (16:54)

Dannah Gresh: Oh, all right, we're gonna open our Bibles to a book of poetry—Habakkuk. I want to read some poetry over your heart. I wrote a Bible study on this often-overlooked book of the Bible. Halfway through I wondered, Why on earth is this written as poetry? It was so much harder to study in that format. 

So I called a college Bible professor, and I just asked him for some encouragement. Do you know what he told me? God often communicates His best truths poetically. Then he began to tell me all the things in the Bible that come to us as poetry, the story of creation in Genesis 1 and 2, some of the most important parts—poetry. The Exodus celebration—poetry. Job, Psalms, that takes up a lot of pages in the Bible, Proverbs—poetry. Many of the prophetic books including Habakkuk—poetry.

In fact, over 25% of the Bible page by page is written in poetic form. And let's just say it like it is, when we get to those parts of the Bible, sometimes we're tempted to skip over it, because it can be really intimidating. 

So why poetry? Do you know what else that college professor told me? The poetry bound in Scripture is usually an invitation for us to seek that is to pursue and find God and its truth. Maybe God uses it to obscure the meaning because He wants us to slow down and to really think about what He's trying to communicate to us. 

But why would He do that? Because when we find what God wants us to discover, through the careful ponder of poetry, it packs a punch that prose lacks. That was a lot of p’s wasn’t it. Let me show you how it works. 

Open your Bibles to Habakkuk 3. I'm going to read 3:17–19. To you now this is what the prophet wrote about trusting God to hold him together. When the world seemed to be falling apart . . . does that seem like it could be fitting today? You see, Habakkuk had just heard from God that the nation of Israel was going to be exiled by Babylon. It was one of the most devastating times in ancient history of God's chosen people. As Habakkuk looked forward to that devastation, he couldn't imagine it. 

Let me just sidebar here and say, if you're feeling some devastation in your life right now, Habakkuk is probably a book you need to soak in. 

Now, at the beginning of the book of Habakkuk, the prophet has so many questions about what God has just told him, and he hurls them at God. But by the book’s end, Habakkuk is making a bold declaration of faith. Again, let me read to you Habakkuk 3:17–19. It reads, 

Though the fig tree should not blossom,
nor fruit be on the vines,
the produce of the olive fail
and the fields yield no food,
the flock be cut off from the fold
and there be no herd in the stalls,
yet I will rejoice in the Lord;
I will take joy in the God of my salvation.
God, the Lord, is my strength;
he makes my feet like the deer's;
he makes me tread on my high places.

Aren’t those beautiful words? That's one of the things about poetry. It's beautiful. And that's one reason it's so powerful. It awakens our senses with beauty, not just the facts. And another reason, poetry is memorable. You've probably heard those words before, at least you've probably heard hinds’ feet on high places. That's how it's commonly phrased. That's another reason poetry packs power because the syncopation makes our recall of it and memorization of it easier and more likely. 

As short and as complex as the poetic book of Habakkuk is, we have several poetic phrases that we often repeat and many of us have memorized. This is one of them. And that helps us recall God's word, it makes it accessible for us when we need it. 

Now, here's the key. Just be sure you know what the beauty and the syncopation is all about. Make sure you understand it. Make sure you seek and find the truth that God is trying to communicate to you. 

So, what is the prophet declaring with these empty stalls and fields and no olives on the trees? Well, Habakkuk was declaring that if the entire economy shuts down and there's no food to be had, even then I'm going to choose to rejoice in the Lord. I will take joy in God then and there in that hard place. What a lesson for us as the grocery stores are low on supplies and the prices are so very high. I mean, our cupboards aren't completely empty. But the challenge to stretch the budget right now is very real. 

Sister, we can take joy in even this hardship. I can confidently say in this hard place, “The Lord is my strength. He makes my feet like the deer’s. He makes me tread on high places.” 

Now, let's think about that for a second. What is that saying? It’s saying that just like a deer whose hooves were made to grip the side of a mountain and almost miraculously come straight up (look it up google it online, it's amazing). Even as the deer was created for that, I have been created and equipped by God's strength to walk tall and confident in difficult times. 

Now, when you think He makes my feet like the deer’s to tread on high places or the hind feet on high places. Maybe when you think of that, you'll be bolstered in your faith to know that God made us for this. He made us for hard times. 

Why poetry? It's memorable. Many of us need some help remembering because hard times tend to give us spiritual amnesia. But God's Word, including and maybe especially the poetry, restores our faith. Remember that special quality and power of poetry the next time you get to a passage filled with it and you're tempted to skim? It just might be God's special invitation for you to seek Him.

Portia Collins: Amen, amen loved it. Dannah, you said you're not a seminarian, but you kind of sound like one to me.

Dannah: Just a girl who loves the Word, Portia.

Grounded in the Genres of Scripture, with Kristie Anyabwile (24:57)

Portia: Absolutely. Well, today, I'm excited because we're gonna dig a little bit more into Bible genres. We have my friend Kristie Anyabwile. She is a Bible teacher, a pastor's wife. She's a mama to three, and so much more. I'm super excited to have her today. Welcome, Kristie. And guess what? I'm gonna throw a curveball to my girl, Erin, because I know that she has a knack for Bible literacy. We could talk about this so much. So I want to bring you in on this interview as well so that we can all have a great tech conversation. Let's do it.

Erin: Count me in. If we're talking about the Bible, I'm in. 

Portia: But, you know, I've learned so much from you. I’m going to throw in a little bit of a curve ball today. I want my girl Erin to come and join me for this interview with Kristie.

Erin: Okay Portia, I’m in my batting stance. I can hit that curveball, I hope. I’m ready. 

Portia: So super excited. Kristie, where are you, girl? Welcome to Grounded.

Kristie: I am so happy to be here.

Portia: We are happy to have you. Let me just tell you, I have loved this book. The title, since the moment I saw it, I was like, cool. I love the concept of understanding Bible genres. So, tell me what gave you the push to write on this topic?

Kristie: Yeah, that is a great question. I think the big push was that I was walking through the book of Esther and the book of Ruth. You and I talked about Ruth some before, about walking through the book of Esther and Ruth with some ladies in my church—one-on-one Bible study. We were just having a great time thinking about Esther's story, thinking about the full arc of the book of Esther. 

But also, because a lot of times people have heard about Esther and we know the general story. But honestly, I haven't heard many sermons that walk chapter by chapter, verse by verse line by line, through the book of Esther. My husband did it, by the way, y’all can get his sermon series. But I was going through that and one of the girls that I was working with, she has a theater drama background. And so, the idea of story arc and the plot and characters and setting and that climactic moment that you always look for in a good story or a good book movie . . .

We were just enjoying going through that process. One day, she said, “I've never heard anybody study the Bible this way. Have you ever thought about writing a book to teach other people how to study the Bible this way?” You know, that's actually a great idea. That's kind of the end. I mean, there's a lot of other pieces that the Lord has put together over years in the time prior to that, but that was kind of the big push. So I thought, Man, that's a great idea. And then I kind of shared it with a friend. And she was like, “Yeah, you should definitely do this.” 

Portia: I love that this was born from a place of studying the Bible together. It's not like you just said, “Hey, I'm gonna write a book about this.” It was born from just sitting with other women, digging into the Scripture, and seeing a need for the little “c” church, a local church, but also . . .

Erin: We lost Portia. She’s having technical difficulties today, but I'm here, I'm ready to pinch in Well, I am been fascinated by this. Just recently, somebody explained the book of Job to me as maybe a play. Act one: God and Satan. Act two: Job and friends. Act three: Job and God. And I had to pick up the pieces of my brain off the ceiling, because it really did give me an excitement for Scripture that I didn't have before. I think we can sometimes take the “open your Bible and read what you come to” approach. Or we could just read straight through and approach all of it as the same kind of text. How come that's not a great strategy for knowing and loving God's Word?

Kristie: That is a great question too. And yeah, like Job is really interesting. We could have a whole segment on that. But when you read, people always ask the question, Is the Bible literal? Like, are you supposed to really read it literally? And that is an excellent question. I actually think the thought behind that question is, people kind of innately understand that in some places, it doesn't make sense for me to read the Bible literally, right? 

And so, for example, we can talk about plenty of examples, but the one I'll always use because everybody's familiar with it is, “Train up a child in the way he should go when he's old, he won't depart from it.” Well, that sounds great. If that's a promise from God, I am holding on to that. What parent wouldn’t hold on to that? But if we understand that the book of Proverbs is a wisdom literature, and this is proverbial. It's kind of a generally true statement. But it's not a command. It's not a promise from God. It's not like if you plug in A you get out B. We know that just from experience. But the problem is, not only does it not help us to put it in its right place of okay, this is wisdom, it's not a promise. But if we do read it literally, for example, it really puts us in a crisis of faith. 

Because if you're a faithful parent, and you've raised your child in the fear and instruction of the Lord were instructed, and you read this statement, and you see that your child is wayward, and maybe not following the Lord, then there's a problem. Is there something wrong with me? Is there something wrong? Like, who messed up? Was it me or God? Right? 

Erin: Right.

Kristie: I've experienced that with friends who have said, “I raised my child this way. I did this, and I did all of these things. And the Bible says, train him up in the way that he should go and when he's old, he would not depart from it.” And so, it puts us in a real dilemma and and can even lead us into this crisis of faith when we don't read portions of Scripture in the way they were intended.

I think it's also helpful when we read, say the law. You read those first five books of the Bible, Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, it has story in it. And there is even poetry in it. There's even bits of prophecy, all kinds of things in it. But the function literally of the law is to lay down God's instructions for His people.

And so sometimes you'll get to a book like Leviticus, and it'll say, “Oh yeah, by the way, don't cut your beard.” Right? But I mean, men all over the world cut their beards. And then maybe the next verse, it says something like, kind of protecting your daughter, and don't allow her to be kind of caught in prostitution. And so, if we say, well, definitely, we don't want to do that. Like, we want to protect our daughters. But then the verse right before it said don't cut off your beard. So, if we say that every verse, every line, we take it exactly, literally, we miss the intention. 

And if the intention is instruction, then what is the general instruction that God is giving to His people in the law? We find in a law that there's lots of things about just obedience to the Lord, being set apart, being holy. Those are big themes that come through the law genre that we want to pay attention to. And the function of a passage or verse may not necessarily be do this or it's against a rule for us today. It could be for us today, protect your daughters. Make sure that you're distinct and set apart from the people around you. Don't do anything with your body that may indicate that you're falling away from the Lord, those kinds of things. 

Erin: That’s so helpful. And we need to be equipped in that way. Because non-Christians will say to us, and I think this is valid, “Well, you guys wear fabric of two kinds of threads on which Leviticus tells you not to do, so you're picking and choosing.” And we could say, when we come back with this literarily versus literally, which I love that play on words that you did. That is a valid answer. 

You mentioned parenting. For me, God is a parent. There are some times when I just want straight repetition with my kids: make your bed, make your bed, make your bed, make your bed, make your bed every day of their lives. And the Pentatuech has a lot of that kind of repetition. And there are other times where I sing songs with my kids, because the heart is my goal. There's a little song we sing about obedience in my house every day. And God does the same thing in Scripture. He is going for our heads, our hearts, our lives. He takes lots of different approaches in doing that.

How would somebody maybe they've been studying the Bible? 50 years? Or maybe they've been studying it five minutes, but they don't know what the genres are? How do they get started in thinking about it through that grid?

Kristie: Thinking about it through the grid or knowing what they are, genre is just a category. It's how we write. Yeah, so it's just it's how we categorize things like genres of music, genres of books, fiction, nonfiction, those kinds of things. And so, if you're just being introduced to genre, I would say, take so and so in the Bible. Those categories, I think, are laid out fairly straightforward in our Bibles. 

So, the first five books are the law. And then you have Joshua through Esther, those are narratives, Old Testament narratives. They're stories, but they're historical. These are historical accounts. Then you move forward in the Bible, and you get Psalms, that's poetry. Then you get books like the Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, that's more wisdom literature, and then you move forward in the prophets, and then the gospels, epistles, and apocalyptic literature. 

So, those are the main literary genres in Scripture. And each one of them has a unique function in terms of how we enter into that piece of literature, and what God's intentions are for us in that piece. So, I think if someone's just getting starting, I really would start with the law, because that's the beginning. That's where we find out what God expects of us. And so, I would start there. 

We think about law, we think about rules. The law is really rules, its guidance, instruction, the Torah. And so, I think in the law, that's what we want to be looking for—not rigid rules, per se, but what are these initial covenants, the sustaining instructions that God is giving to His people and what He expects, and how He expects us to live those things out. 

And then the rest of the Bible is showing how people respond to God's instructions. I think each of the other genres are responses in different ways to God's instructions. So, the narratives we get how people lived out God’s structures, and the Wisdom literature is how to live wisely under God's instructions. The prophets are reminding God's people of His instructions and giving them warnings if they disobey and hope for the future. They are also giving them reward or blessing for their obedience or reminding them of that. 

And then of course, we get to the gospels, and that's the embodiment of God's law in the person of Jesus Christ, who perfectly obeyed all of the law of God, and through whom we have redemption. And so, the full suite of the genres is to show us God's redemptive plan from beginning to end. That helps us to see who Christ is, what He has done for us, and how we are to live in light of His person and His work. 

Erin: Hey, welcome back. Portia. I'm glad you made it back. I know you want to be a part of this conversation, so take it away. 

Portia: Look, I'm jumping in because I'm hearing a running theme. The Scriptures are pointing to God. And when we actually study the Bible literarily, we can see God as the main thing. And so, I don't want our Grounded sisters to check out on us this morning because I know that this can be a little bit meaty. Some people are probably saying, “Well, I'm not a seminarian, I just want to read my Bible.”

Kristie: Join the club.

Portia: Right, and that's it. But I really want to encourage our Grounded sisters. What type of word or advice or encouragement would you give to that sister who is maybe feeling intimidated? Or maybe even put off a little bit about studying this way? How does the way that you're proposing, how does that help us to see God clearer in the Scriptures?

Kristie: Yeah, I? That's a great question. I think for sisters who are like I don't really understand. I honestly think that the way God in His sovereignty in His wisdom and His kindness to us. He has given us the Bible in a way that is meant for us to have understanding. And so again, everybody's familiar with instruction, training, expectations. Everyone is familiar with story and what makes a good story and finding tension and relief and stories. 

Everyone is familiar with wisdom, and we desire it, and we give it. We kind of have this base in the Lord's common grace to us. He has given us basic understanding. Every one of us has gone to school to some extent. We're taught in school, and we see in the world how to make sense to people that you're trying to convince of something. 

And so, there's a little bit of innate ability in this. I'm just trying to package it in a way that connects how He has already made us understand things, and connecting that with how God wants us to apply that to His Word. So those innate common grace gifts that God has given to us are meant for us to have an entry point into who He is and what He's done. 

And so, for sisters struggling with that, I would just be like, relax. God’s done the work already and giving you just some basic skills. Then I'm just kind of filling in the blanks. Don't think about it as kind of school or class; that's not really the intent. My intent is to give us tools, skills, training, that will reduce some of the friction we already have when we open the Bible. 

And so, my goal is to reduce some of that friction, to give us an easier transition from what you already said before Erin: head, heart, and then how do I live this out? So, I'm hoping just understanding how to make an argument and how to read an epistle and to see the argument that the author is making, how to find those little layers, that will help you more easily enter God's Word. It’s not so we can have academic, intellectual knowledge, but so that we can help really encounter our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. That's the goal, right? 

And so, it's not just head knowledge. It is not just learning these tools. The tools are just a way for us to relax a little bit, open our Bibles and say, “Okay, God, let me hear what You have to say today.” So it's for us to grow in the grace and knowledge of Christ, to deepen our love for Him and our understanding of His Word. And not to just merely have academic class markers. 

Erin: High five. 

Kristie: Right, that's my encouragement too. You know what, it's all about communion. You don't have to use any of these tools. Honestly, it's just a way for people who are interested to get in that extra layer of entry points into the Word so that it can help us grow in the grace and knowledge of Christ.

Portia: Wonderful, thank you so much

Kristie: God is sovereign, and the Holy Spirit is active. The Holy Spirit is working in us. And so, we have to trust that God is going to give us what we need, regardless of how we get into the Book. But if there are ways for us to grow, why wouldn't we do that? I would just say, depend on the Holy Spirit, even if you use extra tools and resources and guidance to get into the Word of God. 

Portia: Thank you, Kristie, thank you so much for being with us today. 

Kristie: It’s my pleasure always.

Portia: I think everybody can agree that this was extremely helpful, and honestly, not as intimidating to dig into the word. So, thank you for being with us. I hope to see you soon.

Kristie: Yes, thank you. Y'all stay grounded.

Erin: That was Kristie Anyabwile and a conversation Portia and I enjoyed having with her a couple of years ago. We wanted to bring it out of the archives as we muscle you up for fall Bible study. Speaking of which, I promised I'd tell you about our Bible study sale. You can find the link in our comments and episode notes,

If thinking about choosing your fall Bible study sends a shiver down your spine, think again this time. Imagine yourself cool, calm, collected, and completely prepared. Thanks to the Revive Our Hearts summer Bible study sale from July 24 to August 14, we're featuring some of our best loved Bible studies at low prices.

Choose from titles including Dannah's Habakkuk: Remembering God's Faithfulness When He Seems Silent. Some of my studies are in there, like the one I wrote on the 7 Feasts. They were originally for the Jewish people, but understanding them helps us understand Jesus in the New Testament. Then there's the Lies family of books, the Women of the Bible series, Seeking Him, True Woman 101, True Woman 201, lots and lots of good stuff. Visit ReviveOurHearts.com, and click on the Bible study sale link and be ready for your fall Bible study season.

And join us next week, we're going to be issuing a special challenge to put your phone down and get your heart ready for fall Bible study. Let's wake up together next week with hope and perspective. 

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