Task 4. Summarize units of thought
Essence of the Task
Starting from the structural diagram we made in the previous task, in this task, we want to summarize by units, what we have understood so far of the biblical author’s argument. By summarizing the units of thought in this way our intention is to highlight each of the author’s important ideas or statements so that later we can then interpret and apply them.
Detailed Description
In itself, this task is not too complicated to describe or understand. It simply consists of putting into our own words our understanding of the affirmations to be derived from each of the logical groupings of sentences that we have structurally identified in the previous task.
If I speak of «units of thoughts» it is to highlight the segments that you have identified in the structural analysis. It is not yet time to formulate an overall exegetical summary of the passage. You will do that after you interact with your commentaries. Rather, for example, if you identified four sections in your analysis, try to develop four one or two-sentence summaries for each section. It may also be helpful to ask yourself: What does each of these sections contribute or affirm? What does the author want to make clear?
Typically, these summaries can be very useful because they help you flesh out your conclusions before digging into the commentaries. At the same time, they prepare you for the next steps, since these summaries help you know what words or concepts might be important to study further and they are the seeds of the main points of your sermon. If we end up «saying something,» these are that «something» we will say.
To Do
Go back over your exegetical analysis. Reflect. Write a draft. Review.
- Can you discern units of thought? How many?
- For each of these units, try to summarize what they say in your own words, taking into account what you have identified in the structural diagram.
- Briefly evaluate what you have written. Does it capture the idea of the portion adequately? (You can revise this later…)
In some cases, the structure of the passage may have some curious elements that you will have to take into account in some way. For example, in 1 John 2:12-14, there are six sentences in the original, presented in a 3+3 structure. However, for my summaries, and then my preaching, I will put these six sentences together in three groups because John addresses three groups twice: children, parents, youth. I will summarize what John says to the «children», what he says to the «parents» and what he says to the «youth». Each of these three summaries will form the basis of a sub-point in my sermon outline. Why so? Because since John «says» something regarding each of these groups, my sermon will need to pick that up.
If it helps, you can also think of these summaries as elements from which you will construct your «exegetical idea» in Wednesday: Task 4 (from which, you will later derive the «big idea» that you will use for a lesson or sermon). The exegetical idea will reflect all the important aspects of the passage. These unit summaries give you the opportunity to elaborate on each of these elements. Therefore, if you do this task well, later modifying any of your opinions once you have delved further into the details and interacted with your reference commentators, you will have the basis for formulating the exegetical idea and you will know exactly which ideas you will need to include to be faithful to the full message of the passage.
To Keep in Mind
There is still room for nuance depending on the study that you still will do. You may even change your understanding of some elements quite a bit. However, having some summaries written will allow you to enter into dialogue with the commentators as a participant who has also reflected on the passage. Consequently, your interaction with that material will be much more fruitful, on the one hand, and it will also protect you from an insufficiently critical reading of what is written there.