A speaker or writer can use exactly the same words to say something he means as completely true, as generally true, or as a hyperbole. This is why it can be hard to decide how to understand a statement. For example, the sentence below could mean three different things.
1. The speaker means this as a generalization if he means that it rains here most nights.
1. The speaker means this as a hyperbole if he wants to say it rains more than it actually does, usually in order to express a strong attitude toward the amount of rain, such as being annoyed or being happy.
**Hyperbole**: This is a figure of speech that uses **exaggeration**. A speaker deliberately describes something by an extreme or even unreal statement, usually to show his strong feeling or opinion about it. He expects people to understand that he is exaggerating.
* These generalizations tell about what normally happens to people who ignore instruction and what normally happens to people who learn from correction.
> And when you pray, do not make useless repetitions as <u>the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard because of their many words.</u> (Matthew 6:7)
Even though a generalization may have a strong-sounding word like “all,” “always,” “none,” or “never,” it does not necessarliy mean **exactly** “all,” “always,” “none,” or “never.” It simply means “most, “most of the time,” “hardly any” or “rarely.”
1. If readers realize that a statement is not completely true, they need to be able to understand whether it is a hyperbole, a generalization, or a lie. (Though the Bible is completely true, it tells about people who did not always tell the truth.)
When Jesus said to cut off your hand, he meant that we should <u>do whatever extreme things</u> we need to do in order not to sin. He used this hyperbole to show how extremely important it is to try to stop sinning.
> The Philistines gathered together to fight against Israel: thirty thousand chariots, six thousand men to drive the chariots, and troops <u>as numerous as the sand on the seashore</u>. (1 Samuel 13:5 ULT)
The disciples told Jesus that everyone was looking for him. They probably did not mean that everyone in the city was looking for him, but that <u>many people</u> were looking for him, or that all of Jesus’ closest friends there were looking for him.
> But as his anointing teaches you about <u>all things</u> and is true and is not a lie, and even as it has taught you, remain in him. (1 John 2:27 ULT)
If the exaggeration or generalization would be natural and people would understand it and not think that it is a lie, consider using it. If not, here are other options.
> **The Philistines gathered together to fight against Israel: thirty thousand chariots, six thousand men to drive the chariots, and troops <u>as numerous as the sand on the seashore</u>.** (1 Samuel 13:5 ULT)
>> The Philistines gathered together to fight against Israel: thirty thousand chariots, six thousand men to drive the chariots, and <u>a great number of troops</u>.
> **And when you pray, do not make useless repetitions as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard because of their many words.** (Matthew 6:7)
>> “And when you pray, do not make useless repetitions as the Gentiles <u>generally</u> do, for they think that they will be heard because of their many words.”
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