When people write in allegory and/or read into a text, I’ve seen it called taking things out of context. What the writers did would more than likely in some circles today be called taking things out of context. I’ve seen people ridicule revelations of Scripture from people that are based on allegory. And reading into a text. To the Jews, the learned theologians of their day, the writers were taking things out of context. Jews today still use that argument.
I’m not reversing, I am saying if we are inflexible because of past traditions to what the Spirit is speaking we could see things out of context. He knows how to use His Book. He is OUR Teacher.
And I am not saying learned men are not lead by the Spirit. That would be silly, but I am saying being lead by Him is most important. It is by His Spirit we are transformed. As you said spiritual things are spiritually discerned. And spiritual things are foolishness to the natural mind. We must be open to being taught to be taught. Paul says let those who think they are wise realize they are fools, he says he didn’t use words of wisdom, he says God loves to use the foolish things to confound the wise.
Allegory is not taking things out of context. Allegory exists in the Bible. Just read the Prodigal Son in Luke 15, or another really strong allegory is where Paul writes about Abraham, Sarah and Hagar in Galatians 4. He compares Hagar to the law and Mt Sinai, and Sarah is free and is Jerusalem. That is pure allegory.
Perhaps you are talking about allergorical interpretation? That was very popular in the early history of the church. It really doesn’t have a lot of ground to stand on.
Context means, “what is around it.” So, what do the verses surrounding it mean, the paragraphs, the chapter and the book. How does it compare to other similar passages, either in the OT or NT. And what is the background? Things written before Moses need a bit of a different look than the late NT. Although of course, the message of Jesus is there from Genesis to Revelation .
Allegory is not common these days. What is common, is taking a verse portion, like Isa. 53:5d, and making a whole doctrine out of it. Without reading the surrounding verses, what Isaiah itself is all about. Which is deliverance from sin! Not sickness. And then look at the NT verses, and see the only 2 references have to do with Jesus ministry, and “sin sickness.” Or facts like - how did the LXX translate Isa. 53:5d. Well, the passage is about sin, and how sinful Israel and how the Messiah would deliver them from sin. Because those translators in the 3rd century BC sure knew Greek and Hebrew a lot better than certain false teachers who have set themselves up as “interpreters” of the Bible, by pulling things out of their proper historical, grammatical context, which means the surrounding verses and chapters.
That is what context means. Now, I do not agree with “allegorical interpretation” either, as practiced in the early church. BUT, that is not pulling things out of context. That is simply a method of interpretation that doesn’t work well.