Chapter 19 Reading Scripture in the Circle of Christ
How to Interpret the Bible Without Confusion, Fragmentation, or Western Lenses
Every Christian tradition claims Scripture as its foundation, yet no book has been interpreted in more contradictory ways. For two thousand years, the Bible has been used to justify both peace and violence, both unity and schism, both charity and cruelty, both liberation and oppression. Protestants accuse Catholics. Evangelicals accuse Orthodox. Orthodox accuse the West. The West accuses the East. And in the midst of this storm, ordinary believers stand confused.
The problem is not Scripture.
The problem is how we read it.
This chapter provides a clear, cosmic, Christ-centered guide to interpreting the Bible within the theological structure of this book—the Circle of Christ, the only interpretive framework that resolves contradictions, heals fear, and unifies the story of Scripture.
This chapter explains:
Why Scripture must be read inside Christ’s mediating circle
Why Yahweh, El Shaddai, and the powers appear contradictory in the Old Testament
How to apply orthotomio—the principle of rightly dividing Scripture
How Christ reinterprets, corrects, and fulfills all previous revelations
How to avoid Western literalism and fundamentalism
How to read violent passages with spiritual clarity
How Scripture becomes sacramental revelation rather than a flat book
How the new humanity reads the Bible in the Spirit
This chapter is essential because without it, readers will misunderstand the rest of the book.
1. Scripture Must Be Read Inside Christ’s Mediating Circle
The first principle of correct interpretation is this:
The Bible is not the revelation itself—Christ is the revelation.
The Bible bears witness to Him.
Scripture is not self-interpreting, self-contained, or flat.
Its meaning becomes clear only inside the mediating circle of Christ.
1.1. Christ Is the Lens, Not One of the Chapters
All Scripture must be read through:
His teaching
His life
His voice
His cross
His resurrection
His revelation of the Father
Outside Christ, Scripture becomes:
fragmented
fearful
contradictory
violent
tribal
Inside Christ, Scripture becomes:
unified
luminous
coherent
life-giving
cosmic
1.2. The Holy Trinity Is the Horizon of Interpretation
Scripture begins and ends in the mystery of God—not in law, not in tribal religion, not in human imagination.
The Trinity is:
the Author
the Interpreter
the Fulfillment
the Destination
Only the Trinity can harmonize the Bible.
2. Why the Old Testament Contains Multiple Voices
Modern Christians often panic when they see contradictory portrayals of God:
violent vs merciful
tribal vs universal
jealous vs compassionate
commanding genocide vs preaching justice
appearing as fire vs whispering as breath
The confusion evaporates once we understand:
The Old Testament is not a monolithic voice; it is a record of humanity’s gradual perception of God across centuries, cultures, and competing spiritual powers.
2.1. The Presence of Multiple “Lords”
The ancient world was spiritually fragmented:
Yahweh
Baal
Molech
Chemosh
El
various regional gods
Humanity was not theologically mature.
Thus, Scripture records:
perceptions
visions
interventions
contested revelations
human projections
spiritual manipulations
The Bible is honest—it includes both the true revelations and the distorted ones.
2.2. El Shaddai and the Father
El Shaddai is:
the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
the one later recognized in Christian theology as the Father (in shadow form)
the God of promise, covenant, and blessing
But the people of Israel sometimes confused:
El Shaddai (the true God revealed partially)
Yahweh (a territorial lord who later impersonates the true God)
other powers working through tribal religion
This explains conflicting passages.
2.3. Christ Corrects the Revelation
Christ explicitly says:
“No one has seen the Father except the One who is from God.”
(John 6:46)
Meaning:
Many visions were partial.
Many appearances were not the Father.
Christ alone reveals the Father truly.
This is why Christ reinterprets the Old Testament constantly:
“You have heard it said… but I say to you.”
“Moses allowed this because of the hardness of your hearts.”
“Before Abraham was, I AM.”
Christ is the correction, completion, and fulfillment.
3. Orthotomio — The Art of Rightly Dividing Scripture
Br. Shibu Peediyekkal frequently uses the principle of orthotomio, the Syriac-Christian method of interpretation.
Orthotomio means:
Rightly dividing the text, pretext, context, and audience.
It asks:
Who is speaking?
To whom?
In what cultural context?
Under which spiritual influence?
Before or after Christ’s Incarnation?
Is this revelation or accommodation?
Is this truth or perception?
Is this eternal or provisional?
Without orthotomio, Christians fall into:
literalism
confusion
fear
contradiction
Western fundamentalism
4. Christ Reinterprets All Previous Scripture
Jesus does not treat the Old Testament as a flat book. He interprets it.
He:
removes violent interpretations
reveals the Father behind the shadows
rejects tribal revenge
corrects misunderstandings
elevates the Torah
exposes the limitations of past prophets
reframes judgment
fulfills the law with love
4.1. Christ’s Key Interpretive Moves
He shifts:
from external law → to internal transformation
from tribal identity → to universal humanity
from retribution → to mercy
from sacrifice → to compassion
from fear → to love
from partial → to complete revelation
4.2. Christ Reveals the True God
When His disciples wanted to call fire from heaven (Elijah-style), Christ said:
“You do not know what spirit you are of.”
(Luke 9:55)
This is Scripture correcting Scripture.
4.3. Christ as the Final Word
Hebrews 1:1–2:
“God spoke in many ways in the past… but now speaks through His Son.”
Meaning:
Christ is the filter
Christ is the correction
Christ is the truth that judges all previous voices
5. Avoiding Western Literalism and Fundamentalism
Literalism traps believers in:
contradictions
moral confusion
fear of God
impossible ethics
shallow faith
violence-justifying theology
Examples:
God “repents” → metaphor
God “kills infants” → tribal narrative
God “commands genocide” → cultural projection, not divine will
God “hates Esau” → idiom, not emotion
God “tests Abraham” → spiritual drama, not cruelty
5.1. The Two Dangers
Western literalism:
Treats all Scripture as equal, flat, final.
Western skepticism:
Treats all Scripture as myth, irrelevant, inconsistent.
Orthodox interpretation avoids both extremes.
6. Reading Violent Passages with Spiritual Clarity
Violence in Scripture must always be read as:
the human side of revelation
the limited consciousness of the Old Covenant
the influence of rival powers
the projection of tribal fear
Jesus never endorses these violent images.
He replaces them with:
“Forgive.”
“Love your enemies.”
“Put away your sword.”
“Be merciful as your Father is merciful.”
Christ is the standard.
Everything else is commentary.
7. Scripture as Sacrament, Not Information
In Orthodoxy, Scripture is:
prayed
sung
chanted
venerated
interpreted communally
approached with fear and wonder
The Bible is not meant to be:
dissected like a textbook
used for debate
wielded as a weapon
read as a legal code
It is a sacrament of revelation,
a meeting place between God and humanity.
8. The New Humanity Reads Scripture Through the Spirit
In Christ’s mediating circle:
the Spirit illuminates
the mind is healed
the heart becomes receptive
illusions fall away
unity becomes possible
Scripture becomes alive
The believer learns to read:
non-dualistically
sacramentally
mystically
Christologically
communally
Scripture becomes the story of the world inside Christ,
not a manual of tribal religion.
Conclusion: The Bible as the Path to Christ, Not a Replacement for Him
The purpose of Scripture is not to create experts or legalists.
It is to lead humanity to Christ—
the only true image of the Father,
the center of all reality,
the meaning of every verse.
When Scripture is read in Christ’s light:
violence is revealed as human limitation
mercy becomes the interpretive center
unity becomes natural
fear evaporates
the Father becomes visible
the Spirit breathes life
the new humanity awakens
creation’s story becomes coherent
Scripture is not the end.
It is the road.
Christ is the destination.