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Sopherim Interpreted Scriptures Correctly

We read in the Scripture that Ezra "read in the book in the law of God DISTINCTLY, and
GAVE THE SENSE, and caused them [the lay people] to understand the reading" (Neh. 8:8). When
Ezra taught the people, he would read from the Law of God and then GIVE THE SENSE OF IT, that
is, he would give the true explanation of it so the common people could understand what God meant
from the Law.

This is what any true minister of God will do. All that is necessary to understand God's Word is
to have it properly explained by dedicated teachers who know the Scriptures thoroughly. A true minis-
ter of God will allow the Scripture to interpret Scripture. This is the only way of arriving at the truth of
God's Word. This is exactly what Ezra and his successors, the Sopherim, did! They simply expounded
the Law of God, the Scriptures. They did not make up their own ideas about Scripture teaching. They
taught the Word of God, AND IT ONLY!

This manner of teaching the Scriptures, and which is the only proper way, is known among the
Jews as the MIDRASH-FORM! The word Midrash means "to comment." And the term "Midrash-
form" designates that manner of teaching which depends ONLY on the written Word of God for doc-
trines -- letting the Bible explain itself.

The reason this type of teaching has a special designation among the Jews is because they later
had DIFFERENT METHODS OF TEACHING which did not rely upon the Word of God. And, it
became a later custom to refer to the true type of teaching, which expounded or commented on the
Scriptures, AND THE SCRIPTURES ONLY, as teaching in the MIDRASH-FORM.

This Midrash-form is the type of teaching that the Sopherim used, for they were following Ezra's
example of reading in the Scriptures and then giving the sense or the meaning so the common people
could understand. This is the method of teaching that began with Moses and was exclusively used from
his day and throughout the period of the Sopherim. For it was, and still is, the only proper way to teach
the Word of God (Herford, Talmud and Apocrypha, p. 47).

"The Midrash-form was supposed to be that in which Moses had originally taught the Torah,
and to use that form was called 'TEACHING AFTER THE MANNER OF MOSES'" (Ibid., p. 47).

The later Jews, as previously mentioned, came to the place of teaching religion in an entirely dif-
ferent method than "after the manner of Moses" and the Sopherim. We will see that they did not utilize
the Midrash-form as the ONLY METHOD OF TEACHING. However, Ezra and the Sopherim, fol-
lowing the example of Moses, taught exclusively in this correct form. They never departed from teach-
ing directly from the Word of God. No other form of interpretation was used or allowed!

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