Good Bible study should affect the way we think and feel. Naturally, the process of discovery in Bible study will appeal to the intellect because we learned something. But there’s more to the life of the mind than the accumulation of facts. There are other things going on inside our heads besides information storage. Our emotions, attitudes, and imaginings are just as much part of our internal life as processing power.
All the aspects of our thought life need to be informed by good data, that is, things that are true and correct. Without real facts, our feelings, beliefs, and actions can be prompted by flawed catalysts. In the case of the Bible, truths that mold us in all these ways must derive from the biblical text. They cannot be the result of impressions or suspicions about something that might be biblical.
Bible studies can easily be derailed by putting impressions on equal (or superior) footing with data drawn from the biblical text. Attempts to calculate the return of Jesus are a good example of this. The biblical text clearly tells us that no one knows the “day and hour” of the Lord’s return (Matt. 24:36), but that hasn’t stopped a lot of Bible teachers and students from thinking otherwise.
I’ve had a lot of strange ideas come across my desk that can be filed under “interpretation by impression.” I’m convinced that cable television is the root cause for most of them. Asteroids have hit the earth in the past—I wonder if that’s what caused the flood? Parts of the desert have been irrigated in Israel—I’ll bet that has something to do with prophecy about Israel.
Speculating, especially about antiquity, is fun. I enjoy it as much as the next person. But the serious Bible student must clearly distinguish between speculation and exegesis. The latter is the domain of the biblical text. The former is not. What you believe can be either coherently traced to the text or not. Building aptitude in Bible study will keep you oriented to that standard.