According to the tradition of men, The Bible, figuratively or literally?

How do you read the Bible? Figuratively, or literally. Some are bound by the law, and deceptions of man. Grace is the gift of God through the work at the cross. The Old Testament should be read as a surgical knife removing a cancerous growth from your soul. At the very least it is a road map of rules and regulations showing you, you can never obtain perfection. But Jesus is that perfection.