Overview of Hebrew Poetry (Notes for Class 1)

(Podcast available here ).

To begin our class on an overview of the Hebrew poetry books, it is necessary first to review some methods of interpreting Hebrew poetry.

The Old Testament is divided into three parts (Luke 24:44).

The Hebrew poetry books include Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon, and Lamentations; yet poetry is scattered throughout the Bible, and it is important to be able to recognize it. Examples include Exodus 15, Deuteronomy 32, Judges 5, 2 Samuel 22, and much of the Prophets, where the structure of the oracles takes the form of poetry.

When we speak of Hebrew poetry, we are referring to a specific genre. Tremper Longman explains:

“Genre refers to a group of texts similar in their mood, content, structure or phraseology.” (Tremper Longman, How to Read the Psalms, p. 20)

Obviously, we read the poetic books differently than we read history.

Types of Poetry

“There are different ways of categorizing Hebrew Poetry, but the following five types are the main kinds. (1) Lyric Poems are so named because they were originally designed to be accompanied by music. (2) Didactic poetry intended to teach people to observe and evaluate life. The mind rather than the emotions, was appealed to. Proverbs and Ecclesiastes would be considered didactic. (3) Prophetic poems are not found in these six books of poetry, but rather in Isaiah and some other places. (4) Elegiac poetry records human grief and sorrow. (5) Dramatic poems, such as Job and the Song of Solomon, convey ideas and truth through dialogue and monlogue, much like modern plays.”¹⁾ Paul N. Benware, Survey of the Old Testament, Moody Publishers (Chicago, IL: 2003), p. 163

Parallelism

One of the major methods used in Hebrew poetry is parallelism. Scholars have classified different types:

• Synonymous Parallelism – the second line repeats the thought of the first with different words (Ps. 24:1; 19:2). Synonymous: The second line repeats the thought of the first line with different words. Benware references Psalms 24:1; 19:2 as examples.²⁾ Paul N. Benware, Survey of the Old Testamnet, Moody Publishers (Chicago, IL: 2003), p. 164 Robert Alter, however, warns against equating parallelism with mere repetition:

“Now, the greatest stumbling block in approaching biblical poetry has been the misconception that parallelism implies synonymity, saying the same thing twice in different words. I would argue that good poetry at all times is an intellectually robust activity to which such laziness is alien, that poets understand more subtly than linguists that there are no true synonyms, and that the ancient Hebrew poets are constantly advancing their meanings where the casual ear catches mere repetition…. By my count, however, such instances of nearly synonymous restatement occur in less than a quarter of the lines of verse in the biblical corpus.”³⁾(Robert Alter, The World of Biblical Literature, Basic Books (1991), p. 178

• Antithetic Parallelism – The second line presents a contrast of the first line. Benware references Psalms 1:6; 37:9 as examples.⁴⁾Paul N. Benware, Survey of the Old Testament, Moody Publishers (Chicago, IL: 2003), p. 164
• Synthetic Parallelism – the second line expands the thought of the first. Benware uses Ps. 2:6; 19:7 as examples.⁵⁾Paul N. Benware, Survey of the Old Testament, Moody Publishers (Chicago, IL: 2003), p. 164 Yet Tremper Longman critiques the label:

“Synthetic parallelism labels those lines in which the second phrase completes of supplements the first. There is little positive to be said in favor of retaining this category. As a matter of fact, it is likely that synthetic lines are not parallel at all. The label has been used by some scholars as a ‘catchall’ for those lines which are neither synonymous nor antithetic.”⁶⁾Tremper Longman III, How to Read the Psalms, Intervarsity Press (Downer Grove, IL: 1988). p. 100

• Climactic Parallelism – the first line is heightened or intensified in the second (Ps. 29:1; 103:1). Alter describes it as:

“The dominant pattern is a focusing, heightening, or specification of ideas, images, actions, and themes from one verset to the next. If something is broken in the first verset, it is smashed or shattered in the second verset; if a city is destroyed in the first verset, it is turned into a heap of rubble in the second. A general term in the first half of the line is typically followed by a specific instance of the general category in the second half; or, again, a literal statement in the first verse becomes a metaphor or hyperbole in the second.”⁷⁾Robert Alter, The World of Biblical Literature, Basic Books (1991), p. 178

“The two most common structures, then, of biblical poetry are a movement of intensification of images, concepts, and themes through a sequence of lines, and a narrative movement—which most often pertains to the development of metaphorical acts but can also refer to literal events, as in much prophetic poetry.”⁸⁾Robert Alter, The World of Biblical Literature, Basic Books (1991), p. 186

• Emblematic Parallelism – a simile or metaphor illustrates what is stated in the other line (Ps. 42:1; Prov. 25:25).⁹⁾Paul N. Benware, Survey of the Old Testament, Moody Publishers (Chicago, IL: 2003, p. 164

• Other identified forms include:

  • Ellipsis – the parallel thought skips part of the first statement (Ps. 88:6).

  • Inclusio – repetition of the opening line at the end (Ps. 8:1, 9).

  • Symmetry – balance through numerical or structural design, common in Wisdom literature

  “Symmetrical structures, because they tend to imply a confident sense of the possibility of encapsulating perception, are favored in particular by poets in the main line of Hebrew Wisdom literature.”¹⁰⁾Robert Alter, The World of Biblical Literature, Basic Books (1991), p. 187

Acrostic Poetry

Acrostic poems run through the Hebrew alphabet, with each line or stanza beginning with successive letters. This aids memorization, adds aesthetic value, and symbolizes completeness (e.g., Lam. 1–4).

Chiasm

Chiasm is another key poetic device. David Aune observes:

“The recognition of the presence of chiastic structures in texts enables the interpreter to appreciate comparisons and contrasts, to apprehend the emphasis of the textual unit defined by the chiasm, to understand the point being made, and to determine the point or purpose of a composition.”¹¹⁾David Aune, The Westminster Dictionary of New Testament & Early Christian Literature & Rhetoric, Westminster John Know Press (Louisville, KY: 2003), p. 94

Chiasms can be short or extend through an entire book (e.g., Malachi). [See Heath Henning, “Chiasm and Outline of the Book of Malachi,” Truthwatchers.com, July 19, 2021 https://truthwatchers.com/chiasm-and-outline-of-the-book-of-malachi/]

Example:

A. Whoso sheddeth

B. man’s blood,

B’. by man shall his blood

A’. be shed (Gen 9:6)

Other patterns may follow A-B-C-B’-A’, or A-B-A-B, with the pivot point serving as the emphasis and the climax often at the end.

Psalm 28:6–9 Example:

A. Blessed be the Lord, because he hath heard the voice of my supplications.

B. The Lord is my strength and my shield;

C. my heart trusted in him,

X. and I am helped

C’. therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth;
and with my song will I praise him.

B’. The Lord is their strength, and he is the saving strength of his anointed.

A’. Save thy people, and bless thine inheritance: feed them also, and lift them up for ever. (Ps 28:6-9)

Chiasms may be grammatical, conceptual, or antithetic in form.

Metaphorical Language

Metaphors are prominent in poetry (Ps. 17:8; 18:2). Psalm 23:1 (“The LORD is my shepherd”) is often misunderstood. In the Ancient Near East, “shepherd” was commonly used as a metaphor for kings or rulers (Gen. 49:24; Num. 27:16–17; 2 Sam. 5:2; 7:7–8; 24:17; 1 Kgs. 22:17). For example:

• The Akkadian creation myth describes the pagan god Nebiru: “May he shepherd all the gods like sheep.”¹²⁾Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament, Third Edition (ed. James B. Pritchard) Princeton University Press (Princeton, NJ: 1969) p. 72

• An inscription of King Esarhaddon reads: “Property of Esarhaddon, great king, legitimate king, king of the world, king of Assyria, regent of Babylon, king of Sumer and Akkad, king of the four rims (of the earth), the true shepherd…”¹³⁾Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament, Third Edition (ed. James B. Pritchard) Princeton University Press (Princeton, NJ: 1969) p. 289