What Role Did Allegory Play in Medieval Biblical Interpretation?
In the medieval church, allegory was one of the primary ways the Bible was interpreted. While modern readers often think of allegory as a creative or symbolic reading disconnected from the original meaning, medieval interpreters saw it as a valid and even necessary way to uncover the spiritual depths of Scripture. This method did not stand alone but formed part of a broader hermeneutical framework that included multiple “senses” of the text.
The medieval commitment to allegory shaped how Christians understood the unity of Scripture, how they connected the Old and New Testaments, and how they saw themselves in God’s unfolding plan of redemption. This approach had both strengths and weaknesses, and its legacy still influences how the church reads the Bible today.
1. Place of Allegory in the Fourfold Sense of Scripture
Medieval biblical interpretation often operated with a fourfold sense of Scripture:
Literal Sense – The plain, historical meaning of the text.
Allegorical Sense – The spiritual meaning, often showing how Old Testament events prefigured Christ and the church.
Tropological (Moral) Sense – Ethical instruction for the believer’s life.
Anagogical Sense – The eternal or eschatological meaning, pointing toward the ultimate fulfillment in God’s kingdom.
In this framework, allegory had a central role in linking the literal sense to the deeper theological meaning, especially in showing how the Old Testament was fulfilled in Christ.
2. Roots of Allegorical Interpretation
Allegorical interpretation in the medieval period did not arise in a vacuum. It was inherited from the early church fathers, who themselves drew from both Jewish interpretive traditions and Greco-Roman literary methods.
Alexandrian Influence – Early Christian interpreters like Origen used allegory to uncover spiritual truths beneath the literal wording of the text.
Augustinian Legacy – Augustine’s emphasis on love as the goal of interpretation encouraged readings that found Christ and the church throughout Scripture.
Jewish Precedents – Rabbinic midrash sometimes used symbolic readings to draw connections between different parts of Scripture.
By the Middle Ages, these influences were synthesized into a well-established method.
3. Function of Allegory in Connecting the Testaments
One of allegory’s most significant functions was to demonstrate the unity between the Old and New Testaments. Medieval theologians saw Old Testament narratives, institutions, and laws as foreshadowing New Testament realities.
Examples include:
The crossing of the Red Sea as a figure of baptism.
The tabernacle and temple as symbols of Christ’s body and the church.
The manna in the wilderness as a type of the Lord’s Supper.
This use of allegory supported a Christ-centered reading of the whole Bible, keeping the larger redemptive story in view.
4. Role in Theological and Doctrinal Formation
Allegory was not merely a literary device; it was a theological tool. Medieval sermons, theological treatises, and devotional writings often relied on allegorical readings to:
Explain the mysteries of salvation.
Illuminate the sacraments.
Strengthen moral exhortations with symbolic depth.
By connecting biblical images to doctrinal truths, allegory helped shape the church’s understanding of God’s covenant promises and their fulfillment in Christ.
5. Benefits of the Allegorical Method
Despite criticisms from later interpreters, the medieval use of allegory had several strengths:
Integration of the Whole Bible – Allegory linked disparate parts of Scripture into a unified narrative centered on Christ.
Rich Symbolism – It captured the beauty and depth of biblical imagery.
Spiritual Application – It encouraged believers to see their own lives as part of God’s ongoing work of redemption.
These strengths align with the bigger Gospel, which sees all of Scripture pointing toward the reign of Christ and the renewal of creation.
6. Weaknesses and Potential for Abuse
The allegorical method was not without its dangers. When detached from the literal sense, it could lead to speculative interpretations unsupported by the text. Critics noted:
Subjectivity – Different interpreters could draw wildly different allegories from the same passage.
Neglect of Historical Context – Overemphasis on spiritual meaning could obscure the original setting and intent of the text.
Doctrinal Overreach – Allegories sometimes became the basis for doctrines not firmly grounded in Scripture.
The Reformation would later challenge many of these excesses, calling for a return to the primacy of the literal sense without abandoning the theological richness of Scripture.
Conclusion
In medieval biblical interpretation, allegory played a vital role in linking the Old and New Testaments, shaping doctrine, and inspiring the church’s devotional life. It was part of a larger interpretive framework that sought to uncover multiple layers of meaning in Scripture.
While the method sometimes drifted into speculation, its central impulse—to read the whole Bible in light of Christ—remains essential for faithful biblical theology. When grounded in the text and informed by the unity of God’s redemptive plan, allegory can still serve the proclamation of the bigger Gospel: the story of God’s covenant faithfulness, the reign of Christ, and the hope of His coming kingdom.
