A standalone study on observation, interpretation, and application, using Psalm 1.
The big question
Many believers want to study the Bible for themselves but were never taught how. Yana Conner offers a simple, repeatable method: observation, interpretation, application. See what it says, work out what it means, then ask how to respond. This study walks the method through Psalm 1 so you can use it on any passage for the rest of your life.
Key takeaways
- Hermeneutics is just Bible study in three steps: observation, interpretation, application.
- Observation: read and reread, find repeated words, study key words, watch the conjunctions.
- Interpretation: consider context (literary, historical, redemptive), be curious, study in community.
- Application: paraphrase the passage, then ask what truth to adopt, sin to confess, or behavior to change.
- The goal is not information but bringing your life into alignment with God.
Scripture to sit with
Psalm 1:1-3. The passage Conner studies. Practice the method on it yourself.
2 Timothy 3:16-17. All Scripture is God-breathed and profitable, so that you may be equipped. The purpose clause that shapes application.
John 3:16 with John 17:3. Keep reading, and John defines the eternal life he first mentions. Literary context in action.
Joshua 1:8. Meditate on it day and night. The habit Psalm 1 commends.
Quotes worth discussing
Conner says, “Bible study, reading the Bible, is about bringing our lives into alignment with God’s will.”
On studying together, Conner says, “When Jesus ascended to heaven, he left us with three gifts: his spirit, his word, and his people.”
Discussion questions
- Have you ever been taught how to study the Bible? What method, if any, do you use now?
- Practice observation on Psalm 1: what words or ideas repeat?
- Which kind of context, literary, historical, or redemptive, do you most often skip?
- Why is it tempting to stop at interpretation and never get to application?
- What is one truth to adopt or behavior to change from a passage you are reading now?
Go deeper
This study comes from the Jude 3 Project’s Hermeneutics course with Yana Conner. For a related conversation, see the Jude 3 work on how to read the Bible without twisting it.
A closing reflection
Pick one short passage this week and run it through all three steps: observe what it says, interpret what it means in context, then write down one way to respond. Do it slowly. The aim is not to finish the chapter but to let it change you.