Some portions of Scripture are biographies in themselves.  A favorite passage of all Bible students is Genesis 37 through 50 where we find the fascinating story of the life of Joseph.  Even very brief biographies are found such as the two verse story of Jabez in 1 Chronicles 4:9-10.  Regardless of length, biographies show us God’s truth illustrated in the life of an actual person.  Most often these stories are woven into the national history that includes many other characters.  By simply using a concordance to find the name, the references to that individual are quickly located.

There are several fine books on Bible characters that provide guidelines for biographical study.  It is easy just to read these books or to accept the authors’ conclusions without actually studying the Bible passages from which the biography is drawn.  For example, no single volume on “The Life of Christ” can give the reader what he can only gain from the words of Scripture.  Such a volume can, however, provide a wonderful guide to understanding the chronology and significance of His actions and lessons.  In character studies, as in any other kind of study, we must be careful not to allow the study help to take the place of the Bible. 

Often biographical studies will lead us to better understanding of non-biographical Scripture.  Knowing the life of David in general and the circumstances that influenced a particular psalm is almost essential to its proper interpretation.  Knowing the historical context of a prophecy must include knowing as much as possible about the prophet himself.  Many of the books of the Bible bear the name of an individual; clearly, that individual’s life is central to the truth of the book.  Since the things that happened to the Hebrews happened as examples to us, the entire Old Testament reveals the value of studying biographies in the Bible.