No, Biblical Theology is not just theology that is biblical. All theology should be biblical, but that’s not what “Biblical Theology” typically refers to.

Rather, Biblical Theology, simply put, is the theology of the Bible. That is, it is not our own theology but that of the biblical writers themselves. It is their convictions about God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit and God’s work in human history as revealed in the writings of Scripture.

Understanding Biblical Theology as the theology of Scripture itself, in turn, requires a certain method, a particular way of reading Scripture (a hermeneutic). Think of it as a three-legged stool: we best use a method that is historical, inductive, and descriptive.

Our approach is historical: we don’t merely arrange the biblical teachings topically, such as: What does the Bible teach about giving? Rather, we understand each pertinent biblical passage in its original historical setting. For example, we consider Malachi’s exhortation, “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse” (3:10) in its proper context in the history of Israel, rather than taking it out of context as a mere timeless, abstract principle.

Our method is also inductive: as much as possible, we make every effort to approach Scripture with an open mind, employing an “authorial-intent” hermeneutic: What did the biblical author intend to convey in a given passage? Think of it as a conversation. We’re trying to be good listeners to Scripture rather than imposing our own preconceived notions or preferred meanings onto the text.