Okuzeka
Religious Studies & Theology vocabulary · Scripture and Interpretation

Exegesis

Meaning in religious studies & theology, with examples

/ˌeksɪˈdʒiːsɪs/nounCommon term

In religious studies & theology, exegesis means: Careful, detailed explanation of a text, especially of scripture, that tries to bring out its meaning through its language, historical context and tradition of reading.

In Turkish: tefsir, yorum, şerh

How it is used

Common in biblical studies (biblical exegesis) and Islamic studies, where Qur'anic exegesis translates tafsir. A person who does it is an exegete; the adjective is exegetical. Scholars contrast it with eisegesis, reading one's own ideas into a text.

Example sentences

  1. Al-Tabari's commentary is one of the most important early works of Qur'anic exegesis.

  2. Her exegesis of the passage pays close attention to the Greek grammar.

Common collocations

  • biblical exegesis
  • Qur'anic exegesis
  • classical exegesis
  • exegetical tradition
  • historical-critical exegesis
  • hermeneuticsThe theory and method of interpretation, especially of sacred texts; it asks how readers can understand a text written in another time, language and culture.
  • scriptureThe sacred writings of a religion, regarded by its followers as authoritative and often as revealed or inspired, such as the Qur'an, the Bible or the Vedas.
  • Qur'anThe central sacred text of Islam, which Muslims believe God revealed to the Prophet Muhammad in Arabic over about 23 years; it has 114 chapters called suras.
  • BibleThe sacred scriptures of Christianity, made up of the Old Testament and the New Testament; the Jewish Bible, or Tanakh, largely corresponds to the Old Testament.

More terms: Scripture and Interpretation

Practise with graded reading

Reading at the right level is the fastest way to make new words stick. Pick free English books by level: