Before we continue, here are the ground rules for doing inductive Bible studies:

1. Evidence + -
   Your interpretations must be supported by evidence. Or to put it a different way, before you interpret, you first need to gather evidence by making observation of the facts. That's the whole point of inductive Bible study.
2. X Pad answers + -
   No pad answers and pre-conceived interpretations.
3. X Pastor says + -
   As learned and gifted and insightful your pastor is, no quoting from him or some sermon you have heard i.e. you don't want hearsay information.
4. X Pre-chewed + -

   Ever heard of ABC gum? ABC stands for after-been-chewed. Here you won't want pre-chewed material. In other words, no referring to books like commentaries, notes in study Bibles, etc., because information from such is 'digested' information that does not help you do the digesting yourself.

   The benefit of inductive Bible study is gained from digesting God's Word yourself. There will be a time and place for commentaries, but not until later.

This step of observation requires patience. If you are patient, it will be rewarding. In fact as a seminary professor puts it, the more time you put into observation, the less time required in interpretation. The less time you put into observation, the more mistakes you'll make in interpretation.

Invest your time in this and you'll see things you've never seen before. God's Word is worth our time.

Watch the following video clip of a speed painter at work.

Sometimes when we look at things from the wrong viewpoint, we can be missing the whole point! The goal of this step of making observations is to get under the skin of the author and the original audience, to think like they thought, and feel like they felt. In other words you want to be able to assume their outlook so that you can interpret from their viewpoint in the next step.