The Law of First Mention

One of the principles of interpretation of the Bible (Bible hermeneutics) is the law of first mention. Dr. F.E. Marsh (a Baptist pastor) in his excellent work The Structural Principles of the Bible, defines it this way: "The first time a word occurs in the Scriptures gives the key to understand its meaning in every other place." He quotes B.W. Newton (Brethren): "I find in Scripture a principle of interpretation, which I believe if conscientiously adopted will serve as an unfailing guide as to the mind of God as contained therein. The first mention of a thing, the very first words of any subject of which the Holy Spirit is going to treat, are the keystone of the whole matter."

This is fresh in my mind, having just finished the updating of my 1975 book Giving and Receiving, where I emphasize the sowing of seed, cultivating the crop, and reaping the harvest. There are at least three examples I can give from that book, all of which come from Genesis, and I refer to the principle on one occasion. The first example concerns the word "seed". "And God said, Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth. And it was so" (Genesis 1:11 ESV). The principle is set that plants and fruit trees in order to reproduce themselves produce seed, and many more plants and fruit trees are the result. God's specific intervention is not required, though He does supply the moisture and warmth required for growth.

We next see the promise of God to Noah, that "While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease" (Genesis 8:22). This is the first mention of agriculture, that is of humans putting seed into the ground with the aim of reaping a harvest. So God sets the principle of continuity. If there is daylight, then it will be followed by night, and just as surely, if seed is sown into the ground, it will grow and develop into food, and humans can reap the harvest.

After these two tremendous principles we are finally given a specific example of a man following God's program. "And Isaac sowed in that land and reaped in the same year a hundredfold. The Lord blessed him, and the man became rich, and gained more and more until he became very wealthy" (Genesis 26:12-13). Isaac sowed and reaped, God blessed him and so he became rich. The principle has been around a long time, and it still works in whenever it is applied.

(You can get my Kindle book on Amazon.com and hopefully in paperback by the end of May. You can get F.E. Marsh's book from Book Depository, UK.)