Good article. I read it twice. I don’t always read articles twice. :-). I agree with your main point that context (or “context, context, context” :-) ) matters. If we hunt for answers apart from that context — the context of the Bible’s overall story — we will end up confused, disappointed, or perhaps worse.

I would add, however, that there ARE some answers in the Bible.

Some are readily apparent.

It’s like mining for gold. Some answers take longer to get to, whereas some are available right away. For example, the main answer being the Lord Himself. We learn that answer by reading the Bible.

Some parts of Paul’s letters require careful study into the Greek language and the context of his day (and audience) in order to better understand them. But other parts of his letter are plainly (and beautifully) stated as well as timeless.

Ephesians 4 is a great example of this. The part about Jesus “descending” and “giving gifts” — yeah, that requires some study. But the parts about putting away lying, not stealing, being kind, forgiving one another, etc…. Those are simple enough that children can understand them.

Anyway, good article.