Consideration

Reading the Bible without recognizing genre is like hearing someone say a man “kicked the bucket” and searching for a literal bucket. The words were accurate, but the expectations were wrong.

We instinctively know that different kinds of writing communicate in different ways. We do not read a weather forecast the same way we read a poem, or a legal contract the same way we read song lyrics. Tone, purpose, and form guide how words are meant to be understood. But many people forget to make that adjustment when they open the Bible.

As a result, poetry is treated like science, a narrative like a command, and prophecy like a news schedule. The Bible is then labeled confusing or contradictory, when the real issue is not the message but the expectations brought to it. Genre is not a barrier to understanding Scripture; it is a guide.

Make me understand the way of your precepts, and I will meditate on your wondrous works. 

– Psalm 119:27

Information

What Genre Is

• Genre is the literary form a passage uses to communicate meaning
• Scripture uses different kinds of writing for different purposes
• Genre answers the question, “What kind of text am I reading?”

Why Genre Matters

• The same truth sounds different depending on the form used
• Genre shapes tone, emphasis, and expectation
• Ignoring genre leads to misreading intention, not uncovering insight

Major Biblical Genres

• Narrative – Tells what happened, not always what should happen
• Law – Establishes covenant expectations and obligations
• Wisdom – Uses imagery, metaphor, and general principles to shape worship and skillful living
• Prophecy – Calls God’s people back to covenant faithfulness through warning and promise
• Gospels – Proclaim the life, teachings, death, and resurrection of Jesus
• Epistles – Address specific situations with theological instruction and pastoral guidance
• Apocalyptic – Communicates hope through symbolic imagery during times of crisis

When Genre Is Ignored

• Description becomes prescription
• Imagery becomes literalized
• Confidence increases while accuracy decreases

Demonstration

Primary Passages: Exodus 14 and Exodus 15

Key Insights

• Exodus 14 is a historical narrative describing what God did
• Exodus 15 is a poetic worship song celebrating what God did
• The same event is communicated in two different genres
• Narrative records the details of the rescue
• Poetry magnifies the depth of the rescue

Observation

• Neither passage contradicts the other
• Genre explains why one reads like a report and the other like a song
• Meaning is deepened, not diluted, when genre is respected

Application

• Ask what kind of writing you are reading before asking what it means
• Let genre shape expectations before drawing conclusions
• Read Scripture as it was intended to be heard

Summation

God chose to communicate His truth through many literary forms, not because He wanted to confuse His people, but because different kinds of truth are best carried in different ways. Law instructs, poetry stirs, wisdom trains, prophecy warns, and stories show truth lived out over time. When genre is ignored, Scripture feels inconsistent. When genre is honored, Scripture reveals intentionality and depth. Genre does not change what God has said; it clarifies how He has said it.

Recognizing genre is the first step in learning to read each part of Scripture on its own terms. Once we understand that not all biblical writing works the same way, we are prepared to slow down and read stories as stories. The next session will focus on narrative, exploring how biblical stories communicate truth without always issuing direct commands and how to read them faithfully without forcing them to say more or less than they were meant to say.