Is it Prescriptive, Proscriptive or Descriptive?

“It was because your hearts were hard that Moses wrote you this law,” Jesus replied. “But at the beginning of creation God ‘made them male and female.’ ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two, but one flesh.

Mark 10:5–8

Mankind has a long history of distorting the Bible to make it say whatever we want. So, when we read Scripture we need to make sure we're understanding it rightly. How do we do that? Here's a helpful question to ask yourself when you read a passage of Scripture. Is this passage prescriptive, proscriptive, or descriptive?

Some passages of Scripture are prescriptive. They tell us what we should do. “Honor your father and mother” (Ex. 20:12). That’s prescriptive. It tells us what God’s ideal or God’s best for us is.

Other passages are proscriptive. They tell us what NOT to do. They forbid or ban certain actions. “Thou shalt not murder” (Ex. 20:13). That’s proscriptive. These kinds of passages help us avoid worse sin but don’t necessarily reveal what God’s best for us is.

Lastly, some passages are nether prescriptive nor proscriptive but are merely descriptive. They simply tell what happened without offering any moral judgment on it. Genesis 4:19 for example says, “Lamech married two women.” That’s descriptive. It tells us what Lamech did without revealing how God felt about it.

Jesus suggests that Deuteronomy 24 is proscriptive not prescriptive or descriptive. It was written because of the hardness of our hearts to prevent us from committing even worse sins. It's job is to prevent the worst type of outcomes, not tell us what God's best for marriage is. Jesus essentially says, "If you want to see God’s best, His ideal for marriage, you don’t look at Deuteronomy 24, you look at Genesis 1 and 2." 

I‌‌'d love to talk to you more about God's ideal for marriage in Genesis 1 and 2, but that's beside our point today. Today's point is that to interpret and apply Scripture rightly to our lives, it's very important that we understand what kind of Scripture we are dealing with. Is the author prescribing something for us to follow? Is he proscribing something for us to avoid? Or is he merely describing something for us to know? Paying attention to this will go a long way towards helping us understand God's word better.

God Takes This Personally

If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them if a large millstone were hung around their neck and they were thrown into the sea.

Mark 9:42

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We have to remember that Jesus likely still has the child from verse 36 in His arms as He says this. So, He’s talking primarily about God’s passion for protecting Christian children. Those are the little ones who believe in Him. But, I do think it can be extended to believers who are young in the faith as well.

And God promises that those who harm His children will be punished. In fact, Jesus says, the punishment will be so severe that it would be better for you if you had died before you committed this sin. He mentions having a large millstone tied around your neck and being cast into the sea (which the Romans actually did to people). Even suffering a terrible death like that would be better for you than causing one of His little ones to sin.

This should affect your relationships. You should never be the cause of someone else’ sin. Don’t be a stumbling block. Don’t be a temptation. Don’t lead others astray. ‌But this especially applies to the impact you have on children who believe. 

There are many ways that adults lead children to sin. How many innocent children have been lead into sin by a stack of magazines they found in the back of dad or granddad’s closet?! How many have been tempted by a website mom or dad left pulled up on their computer or phone? How many children have been led astray by a movie that you showed them? How many children have learned to cuss from listening to you? How many children have learned to ignore the clear teaching of Scripture and live in sin by watching how you live?! How many have you led down the wrong path by your example?

‌‌God takes it personally when you draw one of His children away from Him, when you lead them into sin. And He promises to punish you for it. So, be very careful how you impact God’s children.

What to Think

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

Philippians 4:8

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This verse tells us to be careful what we think about. There are good things you can think about that are as nourishing and refreshing as a drink of cool, clean water. Then there are dark, sinful things you can think about that are as toxic and venomous as a swig of poison. Be careful what you allow into your mind.

When you are watching TV or cruising social media, choose what are you going to allow into your mind. Ask yourself, "Is the media I'm consuming making my mind a better or worse place? Is the entertainment I'm taking in making me more or less Christ-like?"

This applies also to the thoughts you choose to entertain. If you allow yourself to think wicked, judgmental, arrogant, or sinful thoughts about other people, then that is sinful. Thinking such thoughts pollutes your mind. 2 Corinthians 10:5 tells us to, “take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” You must literally capture sinful thoughts and kick them out of your mind. 

God commands you to keep your mind clean, to fill it with good things. So, what kinds of things should you think about? Philippians 4:8 tells us. It says you should think about what’s true. Think about what you know is true. Think about what the Bible teaches you is true. It says you should think about what’s noble and right and pure and lovely and admirable and excellent and praiseworthy. Don’t think about sinful or shameful things. Don’t think about wicked things. Think good and righteous thoughts! And if your mind has become polluted, ask for forgiveness, and ask God to renew your mind, to give you the mind of Christ (Romans 12:2 & 1 Corinthians 2:16).