Seeing the Bible for What It Is and Who It Is About
One of the most important shifts we can make as Bible readers is to reorient our minds around who the Bible is actually about. Scripture was never meant to place us at the center. God is the hero of the Bible. Always has been. Always will be.
This is where many well meaning readers drift. We open the Scriptures looking for ourselves in every story. We insert ourselves into the narrative and then pull out lessons that make us feel inspired or instructed. That approach feels natural, but it quietly reverses the point of the text. Instead of drawing meaning from Scripture, we project meaning onto it. That is eisegesis, not faithful reading.
Even the most noble characters in the Bible were never meant to be the heroes. Abraham wavered when fear took hold. Moses struck the rock in frustration. Elijah collapsed into despair after victory. Peter denied the Lord he claimed he would never abandon. Paul carried the weight of his past even as he preached grace. Scripture is remarkably honest about human weakness because it is relentlessly clear about divine faithfulness.
God is the author of the story, and He is also the finisher. From beginning to end, He acts, initiates, rescues, corrects, judges, forgives, and restores. The Bible does not present a collection of people who succeeded for God. It presents a God who remained faithful despite the repeated failures of His people.
This is why Jesus, the Son of God, stands alone in the story. He did what no other character could do. He obeyed perfectly. He trusted completely. He fulfilled the law fully. He accomplished redemption decisively. Every other figure points forward or backward to Him. Jesus is not one hero among many. He is the hero the story has been moving toward all along.
The Dangerous Divisions
Part of our confusion comes from how we interact with the Bible today. Originally, Scripture did not contain chapters and verses. The Old Testament books were written on scrolls, read publicly, and understood in large sections. The New Testament letters were written as complete communications, meant to be read aloud in one sitting to gathered churches.
Chapters were added much later, primarily in the early thirteenth century, to help scholars reference and navigate the text. Verse numbers followed in the sixteenth century, largely to assist with printing and cross referencing. These tools are helpful. They allow us to locate passages quickly and study Scripture with precision. But they also introduced a subtle temptation. They made it easy to read Scripture in fragments instead of following its flow.
Later still, English translations began adding section headings to help readers understand what a passage was about. Those headings were never inspired. They were editorial decisions made to assist navigation. And while they can be helpful, they have also shaped how we think about the Bible in unhelpful ways.
Consider how familiar stories are often labeled.
- Adam and Eve.
- Noah and the Ark.
- David and Goliath.
- Jonah and the Whale.
What is missing from every one of those titles? God.
Those stories are not primarily about human characters. They are about God acting through human history. Adam and Eve is really the story of the God who created humanity, gave boundaries for their good, judged their sin, and then covered their shame with grace. Noah and the Ark is the story of the God who warned of coming judgment, preserved a family, and kept His promise to sustain the world. David and Goliath is the story of the God whom David trusted, the God who fought for His name, and the God who delivered His people. Jonah and the Whale is the story of the God who issued a command, pursued a runaway prophet, saved him from drowning, redirected him toward a mission, and gave him a second chance.
The Proper Conclusions
When we remove God from the center of those stories, we are left with moral lessons at best and confusion at worst. When we put God back where He belongs, the stories come alive with purpose and clarity.
This does not mean we never learn from biblical characters. It means we learn from them properly. We see ourselves in their weakness, not their glory. We recognize our dependence, not our potential. We identify with their need for grace, not their momentary obedience.
Reading the Bible this way changes everything. It frees us from pressure to perform. It grounds our faith in what God has done rather than what we hope to do. It leads us to worship instead of comparison. And it keeps Jesus at the center where He belongs.
God is the hero of every narrative, every book, and every verse. When we learn to read Scripture with that lens, we stop asking how we can be the main character and start rejoicing that we never had to be.
