Reddit reviews How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth

Here's one book which may assist you: How to read the bible for all its worth.

It's definitely both. Genre is a big clue. Here's a list of genres broken down by book. It also helps to have a few good translations, and be aware of the formatting. For instance, many translations will offset blocks of poetry. (See a portion of Philippians 2 in the HCSB as opposed to the ESV. An example of difference in versions and an example of genre being changed in the middle of a book.) It's helpful to have a few good study tools to help you decide if something is historical, a metaphor, etc. For instance, many people claim that the creation account in Genesis is poetry, and many claim its history. Since the Bible was written by so many different people, in different forms, over a long course of history, its very important to understand genre, the target audience, etc.

Gordon Fee's "How To Read The Bible For All It's Worth" is a decent intro into all this. It's all just scratching the surface of Biblical hermeneutics though.

Would second the For Everyone series. We're just finishing a study on the Book of John in my small group using N.T. Wright's insightful two volume commentary on the text. It's been fantastic.

I'd add Gordon Fee's estimable How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth to the list, too. Great resource to help orient one's exegetical thinking while studying the Scriptures!

I learned it from these dudes.