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The Presence of Chiasmus in the Old TestamentAuthor(s): N. W. LundSource: The American Journal of Semitic Languages and Literatures, Vol. 46, No. 2 (Jan., 1930),pp. 104-126Published by: The University of Chicago PressStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/528980Accessed: 30-08-2015 03:51 UTC

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THE PRESENCE OF CHIASMUS IN THE

OLD

TESTAMENT

BY

N.

W. LUND

North

Park

College,

Chicago

The

purpose

of

this

paper

is to exhibit

some

passages

in

the Old

Testament

which

seem to have

been

constructed

according

to

a lit-

erary principle

called chiasmus

and

to

discuss

briefly

the

meaning

of these

constructions

for textual

criticism and

interpretation.

The

chiasmus is

a

placing

crosswise

of

words

or

ideas

in

a

sentence,

as

the

following

example

will show:

If

e'er

to

bless

thy

sons

My

voiceor hands

deny,

These hands et

useful

skill

forsake,

This

voice

in silence die

[DR.

T.

DWIGHT].

In

Gnomon

Novi

Testamenti,

published

at

Tilbingen

in

1742,

J. A.

Bengel

calls attention

to

the

presence

of

chiasmus

in

a few

passages

of the New Testament and makes use of the principle for purposes of

interpretation.

This

is

the first

instance,

as

far as

I

know,

where

a

writer has used the chiasmus as

a means of

interpreting

the

Scriptures.

There are

at

least

three

English

writers

that continue the

scholarly

succession. John

Jebb, Bishop

of

Limerick,

wrote

a book

called

Sa-

cred

Literature

n

1820

in

which

he

continues the work

of

Bishop

Lowth

in

the

study

of Hebrew

parallelsim.

Jebb

criticizes

Lowth's

term

synonymous parallelism

and wishes

to

replace

it

by

the term

gra-

dational parallelism, since the second member of a couplet not merely

repeats,

but

often diversifies

or

enhances,

the first member. Jebb's

most

important

contribution, however,

is

his

study

of

chiasmus

in

the

Scriptures,

which

he

designates

by

the

general

term

introverted

parallelism.

His

correspondence

with Alexander

Knox,

published

by

C.

Forster

in

two volumes

in

1834,

covers a

period

of

thirty

years.

In these volumes there

are a few references to the

progress

of his re-

searches,

from which

one

gathers

that the

introverted

parallelism

is Jebb's own discovery and that the term is also his own invention.

Jebb considers Lowth's

failure to discuss this

particular literary

form

a serious defect

in

his otherwise brilliant

work,

De

sacra

poesi

He-

104






CHIASMUS

IN

THE

OLD

TESTAMENT

105

braeorumPraelectiones

Academicae

(Oxford,

1753).

Jebb's work

was

continued

by

Rev. Thomas

Boys,

M.A.,

of

Trinity College,

Cam-

bridge,

and curate

of

St.

Dunstan's

in the

West,

in a

small,

but well

written book

entitled

Key

to the Book

of

Psalms,

printed

by

L.

B.

Seely

&

Sons,

Fleet Street

(London,

1825).

This

splendid

book con-

tains a wealth

of

well-chosen

illustrations,

but

is

very

rare. I

have

found

a

copy

in this

country

only

in the

Andover-Harvard

Theologi-

cal

Library.

There

is a later edition of this work which

is

edited

from

the notes

left

in the Hebrew

Bible of

Boys.

The

editor,

Dr. E.

W.

Bullinger,

informs

us that to his belief this is the

first time that

such

a

work

has been

laid before

the

public.

The first edition in

1825

by

Boys

himself contained

only

sixteen

psalms,

but his discussion of

the

general principles

of this

literary

form

and his

illustrations

render

that

edition

valuable.

Most

of

this

material

is eliminated

from

the

edition

by

Bullinger

which was

printed

in

1890.

In the memoir

writ-

ten

by

Rev.

Sidney

Thelwall

and

prefixed

to

Bullinger's

edition

these

words

occur: What

led to

his

[Boys'] discovery [or

rediscovery]

of

the

great principle

of

Parallelism,

or

[as

he

preferred

to call

it]

Cor-

respondence,

I know

not

(p.

ix).

I

am

not in

possession

of

any

infor-

mation

that

enables

me to connect

Boys'

work with

the researches

of

Jebb

or

the still earlier

observations

of

Bengel

on

chiasmus.

Boys

shows that

these

forms are

found,

not

only

in

the

Old

Testament,

but also

in the

New,

and that we

have

to deal with

parallel

sections

as well as

with

parallel

lines.

Boys

has

also

published

an

earlier work

called

Tactica

sacra

of which

I

have found no

trace

in

this

country.

References

to

it

in

Key

to the Book

of

Psalms show that

it

contained

literary

studies

of

this

particular

form in the

New

Testament.

In

1854 there

appeared

a

book entitled The

Symmetrical

Structure

of

Scripture,

or the

Principles of Scripture

Parallelism

Exemplified

in

an

Analysis

of

the

Decalogue,

the

Sermon

on the

Mount,

and Other

Passages

of

the

Sacred

Writings, by

Rev. John

Forbes, LL.D.,

Donald-

son's

Hospital,

Edinburgh, published

by

T.

& T.

Clark.

The

author

frankly

avows

his indebtedness to Jebb and

Boys,

and

even

seems

aware

of the fact

that he

in

some

respects

has been

anticipated by

Bengel

(p.

214

n.).

The

general

facts

concerning

this

form of

parallel-

ism

have

never been

forgotten.

There

are

brief

remarks

in

Smith's

Dictionary of

the

Bible and

in the

Jewish

Encyclopedia,

but

with

scanty






106

THE

AMERICAN

JOURNAL

OF

SEMITIC

LANGUAGES

illustrative material.

Professor

Richard

G. Moulton has

collected

some

interesting

material

to

illustrate the

principle

in

his book

The

Literary Study of the Bible. The most recent and also most extensive

attempt

to

employ

Jebb's

introverted

parallelism

in

biblical

studies

is

found in The

Companion Bible,

issued

by

the

Oxford

University

Press and edited

by

the

above-mentioned

Dr.

E.

W.

Bullinger.

This

work is

printed

on a

generous

scale and

contains

many

aids

to

the

study

of the

Scriptures,

the most

important

of

which

is the

arrange-

ment

of the text

according

to

the

principle

of

chiasmus. The

work,

however,

suffers

from

serious

defects. The

analysis

of

many

passages

is not carried out with sufficient thoroughness, but the text is thrown

into convenient blocks

in

a

rather

arbitrary

fashion. The

principle

is

worked to

death,

for even the order

of the

books in

the

Hebrew

canon

is

determined

according

to

it.

Finally,

there are

frequent

references

to

certain

pronounced

dispensational

views

of

the

editor. This

re-

grettable

conjunction

of

circumstances

in

a work

which

otherwise

embodies

a

sound

principle

is not

likely

to

commend,

but to

discredit,

the

study

of chiasmus

in

the

Scriptures.

A

study

of

the

examples

sub-

mitted in this article will, I hope, convince the reader that chiasmus

as a

principle

of

literary

construction in

the

Old

Testament

is a

fact

and not a

fancy,

though

there

are

very good

reasons

why

there

may

be difference of

opinion

in

the

detailed

application

of

the

principle

to

specific

passages.

With these

preliminary

remarks

on

the

literature on

the

subject

we

may

now

present

some of

the

passages

from

the

Old

Testament.

Bishop

Jebb describes the

form of

literary

construction

with

which

we are here concerned in the following words:

There are stanzas

so

constructed

hat,

whatever

be

the

numberof

lines,

the

first

shall be

parallel

with

the

last;

the

secondwith

the

penultimate;

and

so

throughout,

n

an

order

hat

looks

inward,

or

to borrow

a

military

phrase,

from flanks

to

centre.

This

may

be

called

introverted

arallelism.

The

following

example

is

given by

Jebb:

The

idols

of the

heathen are

silver and

gold:

The

work of

men's

hands;

They

have

mouths,

but

they

speak

not;

They have eyes, but they see not;

They

have

ears,

but

they

hear

not;

Neither

is

there

any

breath

n

their

mouth;

They

who

make

them

are

like

unto

them:

So

are

all

they

who

put

their

trust

in

them

[Ps.

135:15-18].1

1

Sacred

Literature,

p.

57.






CHIASMUS IN

THE

OLD

TESTAMENT

107

In his

preliminary

dissertation

Boys

has

pointed

out

that

these

forms

are

found

not

only

in

doctrine and

discussion,

but

in

narra-

tion and

dialogue;

not

only

where

we

might

expect

to

meet

with

some-

thing

like

stanzas,

but

where

poetry,

according

to our

ideas of

it,

is

out

of

question.

From the

many interesting

passages

given by Boys

the

following

two are sufficient

to

illustrate instances

where

poetry,

according

to our ideas of

it,

is out of

question :

Ashkelon

shall

see

it

and

fear,

Gaza also and be

very

sorrowful;

And

Ekron:

For her [Ekron's] xpectationshallbe ashamed,

The

king

shall

perish

from

Gaza;

And

Ashkelonshall

not be

inhabited

[Zech.

9:5].

In the

following passage

which described

the

wealth of Abraham we

discover

the same

principle

of construction:

And

he had

sheep

and

oxen,

And he

asses,

And men

servants,

And maid

servants,

And she asses,

And

camels

[Gen.

12:16].

The

following

passage,

which is

from a

narrative

portion,

is inter-

esting.

I had

found

and

arranged

this

passage

when

I came

upon

Bullinger's

edition

of

Key

to

the

Book

of

Psalms

in

which

I

find

Boys'

arrangement.

With

the

exception

of

the

words

and

they

brought

him,

which

Boys

moves down to

the

following

line,

we have reached

the

same

conclusion

in

regard

to

the

passage.

I can

explain

Boys'

arrangement on the ground that he feels himself to be under obliga-

tion to

have

a

central

couplet,

while I am

led

to believe

that

a

line

in the

center

of

some

systems

satisfies

the

requirements.

And

Jehovah

said unto Moses:

He

shall

surely

be

put

to

death,

the

man,

Shall stone

him

with

stones

All

the

congregation

without

the

camp.

And

they

brought

him

All

the

congregation

without

the

camp.

And stoned

him

with stones

To death,

As

Jehovah commanded

Moses

[Num.

15:35-36].






108

THE

AMERICAN JOURNAL

OF

SEMITIC

LANGUAGES

That

the

center

need

not

necessarily

have

a

couplet

but

only

a

single

line

may

be seen

also

from

the

following

passage:

Seek

ye

me,

and

ye

shall

live;

but seek not

after

Bethel,

nor

enter

into

Gilgal,

and

pass

not

to

Beer-sheba:

for

Gilgal

shall

surely

go

into

captivity,

and Bethel shall come

to

naught.

Seek

Jehovah,

and

ye

shall

live

[Amos5:4b-6a].

Harper

finds

it

advisable

to unite the first line

of this

system

with

the

preceding

words

in

order

not to

compel

the

prophet

to

give

two

exhortations in practically the same language. He also advises the

removal

of

the central line to a

place

before the

line,

but

seek

not

after

Bethel,

in

order not

to

destroy

the

chiasmus

with

Bethel and

Gilgal.

Neither

is

this

necessary,

nor

do we need

to

assume a

central

line

parallel

to Beer-sheba

in order to have

a

couplet.

In

the Greek

of

the New

Testament'

I

have

observed

again

and

again

instances of

single

central

lines. This

passage

is a

good

illustration of

how

the

observance

of

the

more

extensive

use

of chiastic forms will

prove

an

aid to interpretation.

Another

example

from

Amos is

in

a

passage

in

which

Harper

suggests

corruptions

of

the

Hebrew

text and

several

possible

emenda-

tions.

If

we

turn

to the

Septuagint

we obtain the

following

chiastic

arrangement

with

a

rhythmic

movement

of

great

beauty

and

force:

And

flight

shall

perish

rom the

runner,

and the

strong

shall

not hold

fast his

strength,

and the

warrior

hall not save

his

life,

and the

archer

hall

not

withstand,

and he that is swift of foot shall in*nowiseescape,

and the

horseman hall

not save

his

life,

and

the

strong

shall not find confidence

n

his2

power,

(and)

the

naked

shall flee

in that

day,

saith

the Lord

[Amos

2:

14-16

(LXX)].

Because

of the

perfect

symmetry

offered

by

the Greek of this

passage

I am

satisfied

that

this

early

translation

preserves substantially

the

order

of

the

original

Hebrew,

and

that future emendations

of

the

Masoretic

text

of

this

passage

should follow

the

guidance

provided

by

the

Septuagint.

Scholars

who after

the fashion

of Duhm

have

been

given

to

generous pruning

of the Hebrew text of the prophets

may

at

times

find

in

the

employment

of the

principle

of

chiasmus

a

1

The

writer

has under

preparation

a

book

on

Chiasmus

in

the

New

Testament.

2

abTro-

hould

probably

end

the

line

here

as in

the

second

line






CHIASMUS

N

THE

OLD

TESTAMENT

109

needed check

to

their

activities.

There

is a

fascinating

euphony

in

the

endings

of

the

lines

in

the

Greek which indicates

artistic

trans-

lators.

From these

comparatively

brief

and

simple

constructions

we

may

now

pass

on to

the

more

intricate

arrangements

in

which

we find a

combination of

parallelisms

of words and of ideas

in

a

given

order

which

taken

together

enhance

the

artistry

of

the

writing.

Isa. 60:1-3

is a

splendid example

of

such

a

combination.

Arise,

shine,

for thy light is come,

and the

glory

of

Jehovah

upon

thee

is

risen.

For,

behold,

darkness

hall

cover the

earth,

and

gross

darkness

he

peoples,

but

upon

thee

will

arise

Jehovah,

and his

glory

shall be

seen

upon

thee,

and nations shall come to thy light,

and

kings

to

the

brightness

of

thy

rising

[Isa.

60:1-3].

In this

passage

which

permits

of

an

arrangement

in

fourteen

lines

there

is

a

remarkable

symmetry

which is

brought

about

in

two

dif-

ferent

ways.

Throughout

the

passage

there

is

a

play upon

the ideas

of

light

and

glory,

on

the one

hand,

and

of

darkness,

on

the

other.

A

glance

at

the

arrangement

will show that

the

passage opens

with a

description of the coming light and glory, but when the center

is

reached,

a

sudden shift

occurs from

light

and

glory

to

darkness

and

gross darkness,

after which

the

passage

resumes the

description

with

which it

opens,

though

in

a

somewhat

amplified

form.

Another

in-

teresting

feature

is

noticed

in

the

manner

in

which

these ideas

are

expressed.

In

the

first

two and

last

two lines of

the

system

as well as

in

the

two

central

lines we

have a

parallelism

of

ideas,

but not of

words,

which fact is

disguised

in

our

version. In all

the

other lines

of the system we have, not only parallelism of ideas, but also of words.

The

sudden shift from

one

idea

to

another when

the

center

is

reached,

and

the

resumption

of

the idea

when

the

center

is

passed,

may

also

be

accepted

as a

regular

feature in

the

application

of

the

principle

of






110

THE AMERICAN

JOURNAL OF

SEMITIC

LANGUAGES

chiasmus.

There are

many

examples

of

it

in

both the Old and

New

Testament.

The reader

may

observe

that

in

Gen.

12:16

the

first

two

and the last two lines

enumerate

beasts while the two central

lines

enumerate

human

beings.

Several

other

instances will

easily

be de-

tected

by

the reader

in

the

passages

that

follow. There

is, however,

no notice taken

by

either

Boys

or

Jebb

of

this

rather

striking

feature

of

the

style. Boys

has

worked

on

Isa.

60:1-3 and

arranged

it in a

system

of

eight

lines,

but he has

evidently

missed some of the

details

of its

symmetry.

There

are also

many

instances of a mixture of

chiastic

patterns

in

combination

with

the

ordinary parallelisms

of

two lines.

The

follow-

ing

example,

though

brief,

illustrates the

combination

of the

two

forms.

Let the wickedforsake

his

way,

and the

unrighteous

man his

thoughts;

and let

him

returnto

Jehovah,

and he will have

mercy

upon him;

and to our

God,

for he will

abundantly

pardon.

For

my

thoughts

are

not

your

thoughts,

neither are

your ways

my

ways,

saith

Jehovah

[Isa.

55:7-8].

How

spontaneous

the chiastic order

seems to

be

may

be observed

in

the last

two

lines.

The

order

of the

words

my, your - your,

my

is a

minor

piece

of

ornamentation,

a

final

flourish

as

it

were.

The

early

English

writers

used

the term

alternating

for

lines like

those

in the

central

section of

the

passage

above,

which

correspond

in the order of ABC A' B' C', etc. In the passage just given the chias-

tic

lines inclose

the

alternating,

but

there

are

examples

of the

alter-

nating

lines

inclosing

the

chiastic

patterns.

Of such constructions

there

are several

examples

in

the

passages

from the Levitical

laws,

which will be

discussed later

in

this

article.

In

the

article

on Hebrew

Poetry

in

Smith's

Dictionary

of

the

Bible,

Wright

has

taken

exception

to

Jebb's

term introverted

paral-

lelism

on the

ground

that

it

is

really

no

new

type

of

parallelism,

but

only a group of ordinary parallelisms forming a strophe. Jebb him-

self has

not been unmindful

of

this

fact,

for

his

definition

opens

with

these

words,

There

are

stanzas

so

constructed,

etc.

My

own

ob-

servations,

however,

have

gradually

led

me

to the

position

that I am






CHIASMUS

IN

THE

OLD

TESTAMENT

111

more and more inclined to abandon

the

ordinary

poetical

terminology

such as

strophes,

stanzas,

and

even

lines. It

is,

of

course,

convenient

to use these

terms,

and at times

one

slips

into the custom-

ary

use of

them,

but

they

are

quite

misleading.

The

reader

is led to

assume

by

the use of such terms that

he is

dealing

with

poetry,

and

he

will

consciously

or

unconsciously

impose upon

the

material the

formal

limitations

which

in his

own mind are associated with

poetry.

This

will

hamper

his

investigations

and

prevent

him from

tracing

these

symmetries

to

their

fullest extent in

any

passage.

I rather

sus-

pect

that

it was the

self-imposed obligation

of

maintaining

a sem-

blance of

lines which made

Boys arrange

the

passage

from

Isa. 60:1-3

into

eight,

when

the

facts

plainly

warrant a

group

of fourteen

lines.

There

are,

of

course, many systems

that

may

be

designated

as stan-

zas,

for

they

are

formally begun

and

concluded

by

appropriate

state-

ments.' On the

other

hand,

there

are

passages

in

which the

symmetry

may

be

traced

only by

means of words

in

a certain

order,

and

yet

other instances

where not even

the

words,

but

only

the

ideas,

ex-

pressed

in

related

words,

enable us to trace the

parallelism (cf.

Isa.

60:1-3,

shine

in

the second

and

brightness

in

the

next to

the

last

line,

and

in

Gen.

12:16

sheep-and-oxen

and

camels ).

There

is

no reason

why

one

should

impose

stricter

requirements

for

the

expression

of

the

ideas

in

this

form of

parallelism

than is

imposed upon

the

ordinary

parallelism

of

only

two

members. Once

the mind has

become

accustomed

to

these

far-flung

symmetries they

take on all

the effect

of

the

ordinary

parallelism

with

the addition

of a sense

of

expectancy

which

urges

the reader

on

to the

end of the

system.

If I

should venture

upon

anything

like a

definition,

I should state it

as

follows:

The

ideas

contained

in

any

given

passage

occur

in

a

certain

order of succession

up

to a certain

point

when

they

apparently

reach

a

climax,

after which

they

are

repeated,

with or

without

variation,

in

the

reverse

order,

until

the

last idea

of

the

system

is

reached.

For

all

practical

purposes

this definition

is

sufficient. Because

of the im-

plications

of the

ordinary poetical

terminology

and

the criticism

to

which it may give rise, it seems better to abandon it and to adopt the

term

chiasmus.

This

term

is

noncommittal,

it describes the

facts,

and it

is

already

used

in

general

literature.

1

Cf.

Amos

9:1-4;

Lev.

14:49-53.






112

THE

AMERICAN

JOURNAL OF

SEMITIC

LANGUAGES

In

the

following

structure

we have

an

illustration of

another

quite

frequent combination. In this passage from Isaiah we have a mix-

ture

of a chiastic

arrangement

of

sections with an

alternating

order

of lines within the section.

A

Because

ye

have

said,

We made a

covenantwith

death,

and with Sheol are we at

agreement;

when

the

overflowing

courge

shall

pass through,

it

shall not

come unto us.

for we made lies our

refuge,

B

and

under

falsehoodhave we hid

ourselves;

a

stone,

a

stone

tried,

a

corner

C

Behold,

I

lay

in

Zion

precious,

a foundation ell

founded.

Therefore,

hus

saith

the Lord Jehovah: D. He that believeth shall not be in haste.

C' And

I

will make

justice

the

line,

and

righteousness

he

plummet.

B'

And the

hail shall

sweep

away

the

refuge

of

lies,

and

the waters

shall

overflow he

hiding-place.

A'

And

your

covenantwith

death shall be

annulled,

and

your agreement

with Sheol shall

not

stand,

when the

overflowing courge

shall

pass through,

then

shall

ye

be trodden

down

by

it

[Isa.

28:15-18].

This

beautiful

passage

is

quoted

in

the

New

Testament. It

is

easy

to see

how the

symmetry

of

the

structure would aid

in

the mem-

orizing

of the words. It

is

the central

part

which is

found

in

the

New

Testament,

for it states

the

provisions

made

by

the Lord

for

his

people

in

contrast

with the futile

protective

measures

inaugurated

by

the rulers and

diplomats

in

Jerusalem.

This

passage

is

constructed

in

seven parts,

whose

symmetry may

be

exhibited

by

the

following

scheme:

A. What the rulers

say

about their covenants

and

agreements.

A'.

What the

Lord

says

about their covenants

and

agreements.B. The arrangementsmadeby the rulersappear o them as safe.

B'.

The

arrangements

made

by

the

rulers

are

declared

nsecure

by

the Lord.






CHIASMUS

N THE

OLD

TESTAMENT

113

CDC'. The

arrangement

made

by

the Lord himselffor his

people

and

its

security.

C. Buildingoperations: ayingof the cornerstone.

C'.

Building operations:

the

line and

the

plummet:

Notice

how

justice

and

righteousness

s

substituted

for

the lies

and

falsehoods used

by

the

rulers.

D.

The absolute

security

of the

arrangement

made

by

the Lord

in

contrast

with

the

insecurity

of

that

provided

by

the rulers.

In

this

Journal

for

October, 1920,

there

appeared

a

scholarly

arti-

cle

written

by

Professor

Kemper

Fullerton,

of

Oberlin,

which

contains

a

very

interesting study

of Isa.

28:15-18. Dr. Fullerton

regards

the

present

form of the

passage

as

the

result

of

interpolation

and

transposi-

tion.

The

section which

is

designated

C

in

our

arrangement

above

he

treats as the

deposit

of

a

lithic

theology

which

prevailed

during

a

period

of

Israel's

history

and has

left traces

in

the

Book

of

Isaiah.

He

also

suggests

that

the third

and fourth

lines

of the

section marked

A

should

be

moved to a

place

before

the

first and second line.

When

this

operation

is

completed,

we

would have a

perfect

chiastic

scheme

of

the

following

ideas:

scourge-Sheol-lies

and

lies-Sheol-scourge.

The

protasis

of the sentence

which begins

in

verse 15 would be fol-

lowed

immediately

by

the

apodosis

without

the

present interruption

caused

by

the material

which

is

found

in

the

lines

marked

CDC'

in

our

arrangement.

Now all this

is made to

appear

rather

plausible

until one

has

observed two features

which recur

in

other

passages

in

which we

have

an

extensive use of

chiasmus

in

the

Old Testament.

We first call

attention

to

the

nature

of

such structures to make a shift

from

one

idea,

or trend of

thought,

to a contrasted one when the cen-

ter is reached, and then to revert to the original idea after the center

is

passed

(cf.

Isa.

60:1-3).

All the

material

designated

CDC'

is

clear-

ly

an

extensive

application

of this

principle,

for it sets

forth

by way

of

contrast

what the Lord

does for

his

people,

while the

doings

of

the

rulers

are

described and

condemned

in

ABB'A'.

In

the second

place

we call

attention to

the fact that

in

such

chiastic

arrangements

the

order

of

the

sections

may

be

chiastic while

the

lines

within

the sec-

tions

may

be

alternating.

When these two

principles

of

construction,

of which some examples are given in this article, are kept in mind,

the

passage

from

Isaiah

is

found to be

perfectly

regular

and

no

hy-

pothesis

of

later

changes,

whether

interpolation

of

material

or

trans-

position

of

lines,

need be

pressed

into

service to

explain

it.






114

THE

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF

SEMITIC

LANGUAGES

Of

the first

of

these

principles

we have

already

had some

examples,

but

of the second we shall have some fine

illustrations

in

the Levitical

laws.

A And

by

these

ye

shall

be unclean:

Whosoever oucheth he

carcass

of them shall

be uncleanuntil

even;

B and

whosoeverbeareth

aught

of the

carcass

of them shall

wash

his

clothes,

and

be

unclean

until

even.

Every

beast

which

parteth

the

hoof,

and is not

clovenfooted,

nor

cheweth

the

cud,

C is uncleanuntoyou.

D

Everyone

that

toucheth

them shall be

unclean.

And

whatsoever

goeth upon

its

paws, among

all the beasts

that

go

on all

four,

C'

they

are

unclean

unto

you.

Whosoever oucheth their

carcass

shall be unclean

until even.

B' and he that

beareth

he

carcass

of

them

shall

wash his

clothes,

and be uncleanuntil

even:

A'

They

areuncleanunto

you

[Lev. 11:24-28].

In AA'

we have the introduction and conclusion to the

system,

both

containing general

statements as

to uncleanness. Between these

two

general

statements are found seven

declarations about unclean-

ness.

B

and

B'

set forth the various

degrees

of

uncleanness

resulting

from

touching

and

bearing.

In

both cases the offender shall

be

unclean

until

even,

but

he

that beareth a carcass

is

the

greater

of-

fender, for he is also in addition required to wash his clothes. In

CC'

the

animals that render the offender unclean are

designated.

One

may

well observe

in

this

passage

how

impossible

it

is

to read

it

intelligently

without the

observance

of the

chiastic

order.

We

read

of

these and

them,

but not until C

is

reached have we

any inkling

of

what it

is

all about.

D

contains the most

emphatic

affirmation of

uncleanness

in

this

passage,

and this

is

another

proof

of the

conten-

tion that

the

climax is

in

the center.

The passages we have discussed up to this point have all been

comparatively

simple

in

nature and brief

in

extent.

Those

that

we

are now to exhibit have

far-flung symmetries

and

extend

over

much

longer

sections

in

the text. Yet

in

their

general arrangement

they






CHIASMUSIN THE OLD TESTAMENT 115

offer

nothing

extraordinary except

for

the

splitting-up

of some

lines

into

triplets. They

are selected

from

a

single

chapter

in

Leviticus,

partly

because

they

deal

with the

same

subject,

namely,

cleansing

from

leprosy,

and

partly

because

they give

us

an idea

of

how much

of

this

form there is.

And on

the

eighth

day

he shall take

two he-lambs

without

blemish,

and one ewe-lamb

a

year

old without

blemish,

and

three

tenth

parts

of

an

ephaph

of

fine flour

for a

meal-offering mingled

with

oil

and one

log

of

oil.

And

the

priest

that

cleanseth

him

shall set

the

man that is

to be

cleansed,

and those

things,

before

Jehovah,

at the

door of

the

tent

of

meeting.

A And the

priest

shall take one

of the he-lambs and offer him for a

trespass-

offering

and the

log

of

oil,

and wave

them for a

wave-offering

BEFORE

JEHOVAH:

B

and

he

shall

kill

the

he-lamb

in

the

place

where

they

kill

the

sin-

offering,

and

the

burnt-offering,in the

place

of the

sanctuary

[omit

13b as a

gloss].

And

the

priest

shall take

the

blood of

the

trespass-offering,

upon

the

tip

of

the

right

ear of

him

that is to

be

cleansed,

and

and

the

priest

shall

put

it

upon

the thumb of his

right

hand,

nd

upon

the

great

toe

of his

right

foot,

and the priest shall take of the log of oil and pour it into

the

palm

of

his

own

left

hand,

<C

And

the

priest

shall

dip

his

right finger

in

the

oil that

is

in

his left

hand,

and

shall

sprinkle

of

the

oil with

his

finger

SEVEN

TIMES

BEFORE JEHOVAH.

And

the rest

of

the

oil

that

is

in

his hand

upon

the

tip

of

the

right

ear of

him

shall the priest put that is to be cleansed and

upon

the thumb of his

right

hand,

and

upon

the

great

toe of

his

right

foot,

upon

the blood

of

the

trespass-offering,






116 THE

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF

SEMITIC LANGUAGES

and the

rest

of the oil that is in the

priest's

hand

he

shall

put upon

the

head

of

him

that

is to

be

cleansed,

B' and the priest shall make an atonement for him BEFORE

JEHOVAH.

And

the

priest

shall offerthe

sin-offering,

and

shall make an atonement for him that is to

be

cleansed,

because

of

his

uncleanness.

And

afterwardhe shall

kill

the

burnt-offering,

and

the

priest

shall

offer

he

burnt-offering

nd

the meal-offer-

ing

upon

the

altar

A'

And

the

priest

shall make

an

atonement or

him,

and

he shall be clean

[Lev. 14:10-20].

The

first

five

lines

indicate the material needed

and the

next two

lines

the

position

of the man that

is

to be

cleansed.

A

contains

the

act

that

opens

the

sacrifice

and A' the

concluding

statement that

the

man

is

cleansed.

BB'

have

an

alternating

order of

ideas,

except

that

B'

contains

much more material than

B, making

it

necessary

to have

double

lines. C

is

a chiastic

arrangement

of

seven

parts,

the cor-

responding

terms

being

in

italics. The climax is

found

in

the

center,

when the blood is sprinkled seven times before Jehovah. Notice

that

the

phrase

before Jehovah occurs also

in

BB',

that

is,

in

the

extremes

and

in

the center

(cf.

toucheth

in

Lev.

11:24-28

in

similar

position).

The words and the

meal-offering

in B'

are to be

retained

(cf.

vs.

10,

but 13b

is

a

gloss).

The

following

passage

is

a twin section to

the one

just

given,

yet

with

distinct

variations. It contains the

poor-law

for

cleansing

from

leprosy

and sets

forth some

special

provisions.

And if

he be

poor,

and

cannot

get

so

much,

then shall

he take

A

one

he-lamb

or a

trespass-offering

o

be

waved,

to

make

an

atonement

for

him,

and one tenth

part

of an

ephah

of

fine flour

mingled

with oil for

a

meal-

offering,

and a

log

of

oil;

And

two

turtle

doves,

or

two

young pigeons,

such

as he is able

to

get;

B

and one shall

be

for

sin-offering,

and the other for burnt-offering.

And

on the

eighth day

he shall

bring

them for his

cleansing

unto

the

priest.

unto

the

door of

the

tent of

meeting,

BEFORE

JEHOVAH.






CHIASMUS

IN THE

OLD

TESTAMENT

117

And the

priest shall take the lamb of the

trespass-offering,

and

the

log

of

oil,

and the priest shall wave them for a wave-offering BEFORE

JEHOVAH.

And he shall

kill

the

lamb of the

trespass-offering,

and

the

priest

shall

take

the blood

of

the

trespass-offering

r

upon

the

tip

of the

right

ear of him

that

is to

and

put

it

be cleansed, and

upon

the

thumb of his

right hand,

and

upon

the

great

toe of his

right foot,

and

the

priest

shall

pour

the

oil

into

the

palm

of his own

left hand,

and

the

priest

shall

sprinkle

with

his

right

finger

S C

some of the

oil

that is

in

his left hand

SEVEN

TIMES

BEFORE

JEHOVAH.

And

the

priest

shall

put

the

oil that

is

in

his hand

upon

the

tip

of

the

right

ear

of

him

that is to be

[put

it]j

cleansed,

and

upon

the

thumb of his

right

hand,

and

upon the great toe of his right foot,

upon

the

place

of the blood

of

the

trespass-offering.

And the rest

of

the

oil

that is in

the

priest's

hand

he

shall

put

upon

the head

of him

that is to

be

cleansed

to make

an

atonement for

him

BEFORE

JEHOVAH.

And

he shall offer one

of

the

turtle-doves,

or

of

the

young pigeons,

such

as he is

able to

get,

B'

the

one

for a

sin-offering,

the other for a burnt-offeringwith the meal-offering.

And the

priest

shall

make

an

atonement

for him

that

is

to

be

cleansed,

BEFORE JEHOVAH.

A'

This is the law

of him

in

whom

is

the

plague

of

leprosy,

who

is not able

to

get

that

which

pertaineth

to

his

cleansing

[Lev.

14:21-32].

Section

A

states and

A'

reiterates that this is

the

law

of

the

poor

man.

In

BB' the materials

necessary

for

the

cleansing

are

enumer-

ated.

They

indicate also

the

priest's

share in the

act before

Jehovah.

The order

of

ideas is

regular

in

every

detail of the

list. The

inter-

vening

section has nine

parts

which

together

follow

the

chiastic

order.






118

THE

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF

SEMITIC

LANGUAGES

The

words

printed

in

italics will make

clear

the

correspondences,

line

for line.

Again

the

climax of the

act when

the

sprinkling

before Je-

hovah takes

place

is described

in

the

center.

The

phrase

before

Jehovah

again

occurs

not

only

in

BB',

but

once

more

on either side

of the

center, altogether

five

times.

The

order of

distribution

is

the

same as

in

the

previous

passage

containing

the

regular

law for

leprosy.

In

the

preceding

passages

from

Leviticus

I

am not

aware

of

any

previous

work

along

similar

lines,

but in the

following

passage

I

have

been

anticipated by Boys,

with whose

arrangement

mine

agrees

in

every detail, except

that

Boys' arrangement

does

not

include

the

first two

and last

two

lines of

my

own

which

I

regard

as

the

formal

introduction and conclusion

of the

law

for

cleansing

houses.

And he

shall

take to cleanse he

house wo

birdsand cedar

wood,

and

scarlet,

and

hyssop:

A

And he shall

kill the one

of

the birds

n

an

earthen

vessel

over

running

water,

and

he

shall take

the cedar

wood,

and the

hyssop,

and the

scarlet,

and the

living

bird,

anddipthem into the blood of the slain bird,and in the running

water,

and

sprinkle

he

house

SEVEN

TIMES;

B

And he

shall

cleanse

the

house

with

the blood of

the

bird

and

with the

running

water,

and with the

living

bird,

and

with the

cedar

wood,

and

the

hyssop,

and

the

scarlet,

A'

and he shall

let

the

living

birdout of

the

city

into the

open

ield,

and make an atonement or the

house,

and

it

shall

be clean

Lev.

14:

49-53].

The symmetry of this passage is, if possible, more intricate than

that

of

the two

already

examined

from the same

chapter.

The

law

pertains

to the house contaminated

by leprosy.

For

its

cleansing

the

law

prescribes

two kinds

of

materials,

birds and

other

things.

One

of

the birds is

to

be

slain,

the

other

is

to

be set free. The

first of these

acts

is

described

in

A,

the second

act

is set forth

in

A'.

I

venture

to

suggest

that a

parallelism

is to

be found

in

the

words

running

water

in

A

and the

open

field

in

A'.

In

section

B

the

correspondences

are

not only single but triple, as in cedar wood, hyssop, and scar-

let,

and also

in

blood,

bird,

and water.

Again

we find the






CHIASMUSIN

THE OLD

TESTAMENT

119

same distribution of

the ideas within

the

system

that we found in

the

other

passages.

The

climax

expressed by

the

sprinkling

seven times

is

in

the center. The idea of

cleansing again

occurs

in

the

central

lines

and

in

the

two

extreme

sections

A

and A'. The same order of

distribution holds

good

for the

word house.

Recalling

the fact

that the

phrase

before

Jehovah

occurs

only

three times in

the

first

law for

leprosy,

but

not

less

than five times

in

the second

law,

thus

showing

an increased elaboration of the

design

as

the

writer

proceeds,

one is

inclined to raise the

point

whether

the

last of

the

three laws is not an

improvement upon

the second.

Though

this

law

is the briefest

of the

three,

it

shows a

greater

display

of

parallel

ideas within a small

compass.

Though

I

have not

yet gone

into

many

other laws

in

the

Penta-

teuch,

most of

my

time

having

been

spent

on the New

Testament,

it

seems safe to

predict

that

any

Hebraist

who will

devote

his

time

to a

detailed

research

along

these lines

will

be

rewarded with

many

interesting

discoveries of most

striking

arrangements

in

the various

laws.

Before

dismissing

the

subject

of the

Levitical

laws

one more

of

these structures should be

discussed,

because it offers a

new

feature

of

style

not

hitherto discussed

in

any

of the

preceding

passages,

a

peculiar

arrangement

at the

center

of

which

the

early English

writers

have

taken no

cognizance. Judging

from

its

frequent

recurrence

in

other

passages,

it

seems to

have

been a

well-defined

principle

of

style

and

as

such deserves

our

attention.

And JEHOVAHspakeunto Moses,saying,

bring

forth

him

that

hath

cursed

without

the

camp;

and

let

all that heard

him

lay

their

hands

upon

his

head,

and let all the

congregation

tonehim:

A And thou shalt

speak

unto

the children

f

Israel,

saying,

B

Whosoevercursethhis GOD shall bear his sin.

C

And he

that

blasphemeth

he

name

of

JEHOVAH,

he shall

surely

be

put

to

death;

all

the

congregation

hall

certainly

stone

him,

as

well the

sojourner,

s

the

home-born,

when he blasphemeth he name [of JEHOVAH] hall be put

to

death.






120

THE

AMERICAN JOURNAL

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And

he

that smiteth

any

man

mortally

shall

surely

be

put

to

death;

D Andhethat smitetha beastmortally hallmake t good,

life for

life,

And

if

a man cause a blemish n his

neighbor,

s

he

hath

done so

shall

it

be done unto him.

breachfor

breach,

E

eye

for

eye,

tooth for

tooth,

as he hath causeda blemish n

a

man,

so

shall

it be

rendered

unto

him.

D'

And he

that killeth

a

beast

hall

make

it

good:

And he that killetha manshall be put to death

C' Ye shall

have one mannerof

law,

as well

for the

sojourner,

s

for

the home-born.

B'

For

I

am

JEHOVAH

your

GOD.

And Moses

spake

to the

children

of

Israel:

and

they

brought

orth him

that

had

cursed

ut

of the

camp,

and

they

stonedhim with

stones

A'

And the children

of

Israel

did

as JEHOVAH

commandedMoses

[Lev.24:13-23].

In

the verses

immediately

preceding

this

passage

(vss.

10-12)

we

are

told

of the occasion

that

led

to

the

giving

of

this

law. The son

of

an

Israelitish woman

and an

Egyptian

father

blasphemed

the

Name

and

cursed,

and

was taken into

custody

pending

a

divine

deliverance

concerning him,

since the

case to all

appearances

was a

new one

and

there

was no

precedent

for

the

guidance

of

the

officers. The

new

law

is

then

given,

and a closer

study

of

it reveals

the same

peculiar

struc-

ture found in the laws governing leprosy. In section A we are told of

the

command

given

and

in

A'

how

it was carried

out.

With the ex-

ception

of

the

line

describing

the

laying-on

of hands in

A

the lines of

A'

correspond

line

for line. The

distribution

of

the

divine

names

in

these

two sections

and in

BB'

is

the

regular

one,

though

it

would ren-

der

the

passage

a

little more

striking

if

the name

in

the

first and in

the

last lines were

arranged

on

separate

lines,

inclosing

the

whole

passage.

Section C is more elaborate than C', but of the same content, for

both

emphasize

the

equality

of

the

sojourner

and

the

home-born be-






CHIASMUS

N THE

OLD

TESTAMENT

121

fore the

law.

In DD' we meet

with

a threefold

application

of

the

law

to

man, beast,

and

man,

and

the law

itself

is

stated

in

the

central

triplet,

E.

There

is

a

certain

charm

in

the

recurrent

phrases

of

this

passage,

and

after

the

significance

of

the

center as a

pivot

of

the

whole

development

is

grasped,

not a

little

clearness and

emphasis

are

brought

into

the

passage,

when otherwise

one

would

easily

bring

the

charge

of

verbosity

and idle

repetition.

These

passages

will

suffice

for the

present

to

show how the

prin-

ciple

of chiasmus enters

into the construction

of

many

passages

in

the

Old Testament.

They

constitute

a

very

small

part

of

all

the

material

that

may

be

found

in

these

writings.

As an attentive

person

reads

through

many

of

the

passages

in

the

historical books

or

some of the

narrative

portions

of

the Pentateuch

he

will

again

and

again

come

upon

chiastic

arrangements

of the

material. When

in

the

narrative

of the fall

in

Genesis, chapter 3,

the

meeting

between

the

sinners

and

God

is described

and

the blame

is

fixed,

the

parties

are

introduced

in

the

following

order: man

(vs.

9),

woman

(vs. 12),

and

the

serpent

(vs. 13b);

but when

the sentence

is

pronounced

this order is

inverted

and we have

the

serpent

(vs.

14),

the wonian

(vs.

16),

and

the

man

(vs.

17).

Another instance

of the same

order is

found

in

the

genealogy

of the

sons

of

Noah.

They

are

enumerated

in

10:

1

in

this

order,

Shem,

Ham, Japhet,

but their

genealogies

are

presented

in

the in-

verted

order,

Japhet

(vs.

2),

Ham

(vs.

6),

and

Shem

(vs.

21).

The

order

of this

genealogy

reminds

us

of

Josephus'

description

of

the

three chief

sects of

the

Jews

(Ant.

xvii.

1. 2

ff.). They

are

enumerated

as Essenes, Sadducees, and Pharisees,

but

described

in

the

inverted

order.

The names

of

Mamre, Eshcol,

and

Aner in

Gen.

14:13

are

re-

peated

again

at the conclusion

of the

story

in

which

they

occur,

but

in

the

inverted

order

(vs.

24).

The remainder

of this article

will

now

present

some

examples

in

which

chiasmus

may

be

employed

in

textual

criticism. The

text of

the tenth

chapter

of the First Book of

Samuel

presents

at

least the

beginning

of what

promises

to

be

an

extended

chiastic

structure,

though the structure is not in our text brought to a conclusion. Like

Robinson's arch

in

Jerusalem,

it

has one

part clearly

visible

and the






122

THE AMERICAN

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LANGUAGES

other

part

missing.

The

suggestion

of

chiasmus

is

clearly

seen

by

the

following arrangement

of the

parts:

Rachel's

sepulchre,

wo men

[vs. 2].

A

The oak of

Tabor,

three men

[vss.

3,

4].

The

Gibeah

of

God,

a

band

of

prophets

vss.

5,

6a].

and shalt be

turned nto

another

man.

B

and

let it be when these

igns

are come unto

thee,

that thou

do

as occasion hall

serve.thee,

or

God

is

with

thee.

C And thou

shalt

go

down

before

me

to

Gilgal.

And, behold,I will comedown untothee

to

offer

urnt-offerings,

D

and

to

sacrifice

acrifices

of

peace-offerings.

Seven

days

shalt thou

tarry,

till

I

come unto

thee,

and show thee what

thou shalt

do.

C'

And it

was so that when he

had turned

his back

to

go

from

Samuel,

God

turned

him

another

heart,

B' and all those

igns

came

to

pass

that

day.

The

Gibeah,

a band

of

prophets

vss.

10-12].

A'

[The

oak of

Tabor]

[cf.

high

place,

vs. 13 with

vss.

3,

4(?)].

[Rachel's

epulchre]

cf.

asses

n

vss. 14-16

and vs.

2].

We

have

in this

passage

another

case of

chiastic order

in

sections

with

alternating

order

in

the lines within

the

sections,

except

in

the

central

section

D

which is a

chiasmus. If

we could

get

at the

conclu-

sion

of the

story,

we should

probably

find

the

sections

in

the

order

suggested. If Saul's uncle is one of the two men mentioned in verse 2

we

may

have

in

verses

14-16 a

fragment

of

the

original

counterpart

to

verse

2. Of

the

counterpart

to

verses

3,

4

there is no

trace

in

the

text,

yet

if

the chiastic

implications

of

the

text,

as

we

have

it,

do not

entirely

mislead

us,

we

may

assume that

the

counterpart

originally

was

there. The

period

of

time

covered

by

the

whole

story

is

only

one

day

(vs.

9).

The

following example

shows how

the

chiasmus

may

enter

into

the construction of a longer passage in which its presence is not so






CHIASMUS IN THE OLD

TESTAMENT

123

easily

detected. The

couplet

marked

C' also

suggests

a

possible

tex-

tual

problem.

And

I

saw the

Lord

standing

beside the altar: And he

said,

A

Smite

the

capitals,

that the thresholds

may

shake;

and

breakthem

in

pieces

on

the

head

of all

of

them;

B And I

will

slay

the last

of

them with

the

sword;

C there shall not one

of

them

flee

away,

and

there

shall not one of them

escape.

D

Though

hey

ig

nto

heol,

thence shall

my

hand take

them;

E andthough heyclimbupto heaven,

thence will

I

bring

them

down,

E'

And

though they

hide

themselves

in

the

top

of

Carmel,

I

will search

and take them out

thence.

D'

and

though

they

hide

from

my

sight

in

the

bottom of

the

sea,

thence will

I

command

he

serpent

and

it

shall bite

them.

C'

and

though they go

into

captivity

beforetheir

enemies,

B'

thence will

I

command

he swordand it

shall

slay

them.

A' And I

will set

mine

eyes upon

them

or

evil,

and not for

good

[Amos

9:1-4].

In

the

two

couplets

AA'

we have

a

general

declaration

of

judgment

over the nation.

These

couplets

constitute the formal introduction

and

conclusion

to

the chiastic

system.

The

couplets

that are found

between

A

and

A'

give

the

particulars

of the

judgment.

The

different

means of

escape

are detailed and their

inadequacy

stated.

In

the two

single

lines BB' the nature

of

the

judgment

is

described, namely,

slaying by

the sword. The words

in

italics

designate

the extent

of

the

parallel

ideas

in

each line. There

is

only

one

apparent

irregu-

larity

in

this

long passage,

namely,

in

C',

which

is

only

a

single

line,

whereas

there

is

a

couplet

in

C. Of

course,

one need

not insist that a

couplet

in

C'

is

absolutely necessary,

for minor

irregularities

are to

be

looked

for

in

all

composition

of a

practical

nature. The construc-

tion of the

couplets

seems

to

follow

a

general scheme, though -






124

THE

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF

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LANGUAGES

thence

(DEE'D')

in

alternating

order.

It

would therefore

seem

natural

to

combine

the words and

though

in

C'

with thence will

I

in

B', according

to

the

scheme

of the

previous couplets.

Upon

closer

examination, however,

this

arrangement

will have to be aban-

doned,

for

when

B'

is combined with C'

its

parallel

line

B

is

left with-

out

counterpart.

The

lines B

and

B' are so

clearly parallel

that

they

cannot be

made to

serve elsewhere

in

the

system.

It

should also be

observed

that the

general

sequence

of

though

and

thence

is not

found

in

the

couplet

C.

Instead

two lines

dealing

with

flight

and

es-

cape

are

found.

If, therefore,

we shall

assume

at all that

the counter-

part

of

C

originally

had a

couplet,

the

missing

line

ought

not

to be

supplied

according

to

the

couplets

immediately

preceding it,

but

ac-

cording

to

the

pattern

of

C.

In

other

words, any

line

in

C' which

repeats

the

thought

of

the line found

in

the text would

satisfy

the

requirements,

e.g.,

C'

and

though

they go

into

captivity

before

their

enemies,

(and though they

hide

in

distant

lands from their

oppressors)

B' thence

will

I

command

he sword

and it

shall

slay

them.

The

line which

has

been

supplied

is

offered

only

as an

indication of

what

one

is inclined

to look for

in

C', following

the

hint taken from

the

nature

of its

counterpart

C.

It is for the

Hebrew

specialist

to

solve

the

problem

as

far as

that is

possible

under the circumstances.

Numbers

and the

various

items in

long

lists seem

to

be

among

the

difficult

things

to

preserve

intact

in

the

transcription

of

manuscripts.

Numbers

are

easily misread,

and the items

of a list

may

be

either

transposed or dropped by the scribe as the case may be. If the omis-

sion

does

not

seriously

impair

the sense

of the

passage,

it

may

never

be

detected. We

have such

a

passage

in

Gen. 7:21-23.

This

passage

has

every

earmark

of

having

once been

a

perfect

chiastic

structure,

which

has

been

disarranged

accidentally

in

transcription.

The

pas-

sage

is

given

as reconstructed

according

to

suggestions

from the

chias-

tic form.

It

will be noticed

that all

changes

are

found

in

the last

half

of the

system,

the

only

addition

being

the words and

beasts,

which

are found within parentheses.






CHIASMUS

IN

THE-OLD

TESTAMENT 125

A And all flesh diedthat moved

upon

the

earth,

both

birds,

and cattle,

and

beasts,

and

every creeping hing

that

creepeth

upon

the

earth,

and

every

man:

B

all

in

whose

nostrilswasthe breath f

the

spirit

of

life,

of

all

that was on the

dry

land

C

died;

and

was

estroyed

B'

every

living

thing

that was uponthe face of the ground

both

man,

and

creeping

hings,

(and

beasts)

and

cattle,

and

birds

of

the

heavens,

A' and

they

were

destroyed

rom the earth

Gen.

7:21-23].

The reason

for

assuming

that this

reconstruction

represents

the

original

state

of

the Hebrew text is

the

recurrence of

the same ideas

in the extreme sections A and A' and in C.

Though

the word died

in

our version is

represented by

two different

words

in

Hebrew,

the

idea

of

the two words is

parallel.

The word for

destroyed,

however,

is

the same

in

C

and

in

A'.

Another

instance

of

the

same kind

of

regularity

is

provided

by

the word

earth

in

A and A'

which

is

paralleled

by dry

land

in B

and

ground

in

B'.

Creeping things

is also

represented by

different

Hebrew

words. Of

course,

if

this

pas-

sage

is

taken

by

itself without

regard

to

similar

structures found else-

where,

the

argument

here

presented,

which is based on the recurrence

of related

or

identical ideas

in

the

center and

in

the

extremes of

the

system,

will

have

little

or

no

weight,

and

might

even

be

looked

upon

as a

piece

of

misplaced

ingenuity.

But

if

it

once

be

accepted

that

in

the

application

of the

chiastic

principle

to

literary

construction

in

the

Old Testament one of the

regular

features is

the

distribution of

related

or

identical ideas

in

the

extreme

and

central

parts

of

a

system,

there

will

be no

difficulty

in

recognizing

such a

principle

in

the

reconstructed

passage.

The reader will recall how the terms unclean

(Lev.

11:24-






120

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AMERICAN JOURNAL OF

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LANGUAGES

28),

before Jehovah

(Lev.

14:10-20),

and cleanse the

house

(Lev.

14:49-53)

were

found to be distributed

in

the

extreme and

central

parts

of

their

respective

systems.

There are

many

more

such

instances

as

these

in

the New

Testament,

and there can

be

no

doubt

that

we are

to

accept

such

a

distribution of the ideas as a

regular

ap-

plication

of a

law

governing

this kind

of

style.

It is

only

on such

grounds

that it has been

invoked

in

the reconstruction

of

Gen. 7:21-

23.

It

is

well worth

noticing

before

we

dismiss the

passage

that

it

follows the

regular

chiastic construction

until the center is

passed

and

we

reach

the

words

both

man

and once more becomes

regular

in

the

last two

lines,

and

birds,

etc.

Since

regularity

is

encountered

to this

degree

without

any

reconstruction

whatever,

one

naturally

looks for it also

in

the other lines

of

the

system.

It is as

if

one

saw

an

arch

in

perfect

state of

preservation

up

to one

block

beyond

the

key-

stone

and sets

out to find the

other blocks somewhere

in

the

neigh-

borhood

to

fit

them

into the

proper place

in

the

restored

arch.

The restoration

of

texts is

at all events more

or less

conjectural,

and the

textual

critic,

even

when he

has

done

his

best,

must

always

be

aware

of

many

other

possibilities

than the one he

has

decided to

make

use of. The

purpose

of

the

examples

here offered

is

merely

to

show

how

the

principle

of

chiasmus,

when

judiciously

employed, may

under

certain

favorable

conditions be

productive

of results.

Other

poetic

forms

in

Hebrew

literature have

been studied

and

their

prin-

ciples

have

been

put

to

gooa

use

in

the

study

of

the Hebrew text.

The

principle

of chiasmus

might

be

added to this collection

of critical

tools,

for

by

the

application

of

it

to

textual

studies

some former re-

constructions

may

be

tested

and new

problems

may

be raised

in

passages

which

have

not hitherto been

under

any

suspicion

of

cor-

ruption.

chiasmus ot

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