What was Origen’s threefold approach to interpreting Scripture?

Origen’s approach to interpreting Scripture was based on a threefold sense, which he likened to the composition of a human being: the body, the soul, and the spirit. He viewed the literal statements of the Bible as "earthen vessels" that preserved a divine treasure, and he categorized the levels of meaning as follows:1

• Literal sense (the body): The plain, grammatical, and historical meaning of the text.1
• Moral sense (the soul): The level that provides ethical guidance and lessons for the individual Christian.12
• Spiritual/Allegorical sense (the spirit): The highest level of interpretation, which seeks to uncover the deeper, hidden truths of divine revelation concealed beneath the surface narrative.12

While Origen did not entirely rule out the literal sense—as evidenced by his painstaking work on the Hexapla—he maintained that the most meaningful aspects of the Bible were found through allegorization. He believed that the true exegete must penetrate the literal "body" of the text to perceive its "soul" and "spirit," thereby discovering its existential relevance.13