I think that for most people the topic of “Figures of Speech” probably brings to mind horrid thoughts of high school English grammar. Well, rest assured, this is not a grammar lesson. This is just another area in which one may apply a little effort in order to arrive at a better understanding of the Word of God.
A figure of speech is a legitimate departure from the natural laws of English (or any other language for that matter) in order to draw attention to a significant point. It is intended to awaken or attract our attention. Unfortunately, people ignorantly speak of figurative language as though it made less of the meaning. You may have often heard someone say, “Oh, that’s just figurative” implying that its meaning is weakened. However, the very opposite of this is true. Perhaps an example is in order here.
If I were to say to you, “The ground is dry”, we have a plain statement of fact. However, if I say, “The ground is thirsty”, immediately you get a much clearer mind picture of what I am trying to say. You can almost see the cracks ready to drink up water – oops – I just used another figure!
The same is true with the Word of God. God uses figures of speech to draw our attention to what He wants emphasized. Missing such figures of speech can lead to not fully understanding what God intended us to understand in a passage.
A scripture in the Book of Timothy provides an example of a figure of speech. II Timothy 3:16 declares,
“All scripture is given by inspiration of God …”.
The words ‘given by inspiration of God’ in the Greek are one word which literally means, ‘God-Breathed’. The scriptures are God-Breathed. Now we know that God does not breathe – He is spirit (John 4:24). Whenever the Bible attributes human characteristics to God, a figure of speech is being employed. In this particular verse the emphasis is that the author of the scriptures is God. He ‘breathed’ them – the words are right out of His mouth. When the figure is seen, there is no question as to the emphasis.
There is a statement made by Jesus Christ which affords us another wonderful example of the importance of figures of speech. He declares in Matthew 26:26,
“And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body.”
There are fewer passages in the Word of God that have been more distorted than this one. Whole systems of theological error and belief have been built around the failure to understand a very simple figure of speech. Instead of seeing the metaphor here which is to say, “this represents my body”, the phrase has been taken literally. To say that the bread actually becomes the body of Jesus Christ is to teach a doctrine invented by man. The force of the metaphor is to understand that when we break bread, we are to remember what the work of Jesus Christ has accomplished for us.
These are just a couple of examples in a field of study that has much promise of reward insofar as understanding the Word of God is concerned.