a prime example of eisegesis (and why proper theological education is important for preaching)

dr claude mariottini has this on his webblog about a baptist preacher preaching on the kjv text of 1 kings 14:10 which reads:

Therefore, behold, I will bring evil upon the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel, and will take away the remnant of the house of Jeroboam, as a man taketh away dung, till it be all gone.

the kjv uses the phrase 'him that pisseth against the wall' while every other newer modern version just translates it as 'male'. i can understand the preacher's use of the example of people in germany sitting on the toilet bowls to piss. i experienced that in uk too when i go to people's houses. but the reason behind the practice is simple: there are 2 reasons. firstly, it is not nice to be making all the noise inside the toilet when one shoots into the toilet bowl. secondly, too many cross-eyed guests miss the toilet bowl and shoot all over the place! to avoid such embarassment, one is expected to sit on the toilet bowl. there are urinals in toilet places where one can shoot standing up so this particular practice of sitting down is confined to the homes. but this baptist preacher begs to differ!

see the youtube video below and have a good laugh:



man, this piece of exegesis has got to be a strong contender for a prime example of eisegesis (reading into the text) and also the 'what not to do in preaching' award!

Comments

Anthony,

I agree with you. The sermon the preacher preached is a prime example of eisegesis. Believe me, there are many more like him. We have to do better than this.

Claude Mariottini
i wonder what they study in seminary then? aren't such people taught the proper way to do exegesis? over here in some very conservative circles, we still find some older preachers employing the allegorical approach. hence, you can get some fanciful stuff too.