Living by the Book: Lesson 18

Living by the Book
Lesson 18

Things That Are Like

I. Similes
Simile – a word picture that draws a comparison between two things.

“The two most common words to look for are as and like.” – Howard Hendricks, Living by the Book

Examples:

Psalm 42:1 – “As the deer pants for the water brooks, so my soul pants for Thee, O God.”

1 Peter 2:2 – “As newborn babes, long for the pure milk of the word, that by it you may grow in respect to salvation.”

Isaiah 44:6-7 – “This is what the Lord says – Israel’s King and Redeemer, the Lord Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God. Who then is like me?”

II. Metaphors

Metaphor – comparison is made without using as or like.

Example:

John 15:1 – “I am the vine, and my Father is the vinedresser.”

“Get in the habit of looking for [comparisons like these]. You’ll find them especially in the wisdom literature, particularly in the psalms.”

I. Use of but
“The word but is a clue that a change of direction is coming.”

Examples:

1 Corinthians 6:9-11 and Ephesians 2:1-7

“But is one of the most important words you’ll ever come across in your study of Scripture. Whenever you see it, always stop and ask, what is the contrast being made?”

II. Metaphors
Metaphors can be used to show how two things are unlike just as well as they can be used to show what they are like.

Example:

The Parable of the Unrighteous Judge in Luke 18.

“Jesus is setting up an effective contrast. He is saying, in effect, ‘If a corrupt and indifferent human judge finally gives in to the persistent pleas of a widow, how much more will the heavenly Father respond to the petitions of His children?”

III. Irony

John’s Gospel makes frequent use of irony.

Examples:

John 4:12 – (The Samaritan woman addressing Christ) “Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and his livestock?”

John 8:40 – “…now you seek to kill Me, a Man who has told you the truth which I heard from God. Abraham did not do this.”

John 9:40-41 – “Then some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these words, and said to Him, ‘Are we blind also?’ Jesus said to them ‘If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, ‘We see.’ Therefore your sin remains.”

“Things that are alike and unlike make use of the strong human tendency to compare and contrast. As you study the Scriptures, listen to that voice inside your head saying, ‘Hey, this is like that passage I looked at yesterday,’ or, ‘This section is different from anything else in this book.’ Those are clear signals that the author is using things alike and unlike to communicate his message.”

Note: Lesson 19 was read entirely from the book so I won’t be posting any notes for it.