THE RATIONALITY OF BIBLICAL INTERPRETATION IN KEVIN J. VANHOOZER: LANGUAGE, CANON, AND KNOWLEDGE OF GOD

Abstract

This paper examines the rationality of the biblical interpretation proposed by Kevin J. Vanhoozer, addressing the question: How can Scripture be interpreted in a way that yields true knowledge of God, without reducing biblical meaning to the author’s intention, the reader’s subjectivity, or the conventions of the interpretive community? Through conceptual analysis and critical comparison, Vanhoozer’s hermeneutical model—grounded in a theory of speech acts and canonical hermeneutics—is reconstructed and contrasted with the models of Thiselton (fusion of horizons), Ricoeur (textual autonomy), and Webster (theological reason). It is argued that Vanhoozer offers the most consistent response, as he anchors meaning in the author’s communicative act without relinquishing the theological regulation of the canon, thereby overcoming both authorial authoritarianism and reader relativism—although tensions remain that Webster’s reading helps to resolve.