Looking for a book on the literary devices used in the Bible
I am looking for suggestions on a resource that teaches all the literary devices/techniques used in the Bible.
For example:
1) inclusio: also known as bracketing or parenthetical inclusion
"This is my beloved Son" Matthew 3:17 with Matthew 17:5
2) parallelism: used extensively in the Psalms : my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you (Ps 63:1)
3) allusions: "have you not read..." (Matt 19:4 to Gen 1:27)
Does such a book exist in Logos? I would prefer a Catholic resource, but a resource like this should be non-denominational (teaching Biblical grammar not commentary).
Peace be with you,
Comments
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Not aware of anything good from Logos, but Robert Alter's books are pretty good. Of course, they are Hebrew Bible only...
The Gospel is not ... a "new law," on the contrary, ... a "new life." - William Julius Mann
L8 Anglican, Lutheran and Orthodox Silver, Reformed Starter, Academic Essentials
L7 Lutheran Gold, Anglican Bronze
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You may want to take a look at this resource
"Words of Delight: A Literary Introduction to the Bible" by Leland Ryken
https://www.logos.com/product/5332/words-of-delight-a-literary-introduction-to-the-bible-2nd-ed
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Sorry, but I just had to chuckle over the insistance that literary devices are grammatical.
Literary devices are the absolute essense of theological debate. Without the devices, the humans would be hardpressed to describe the divine.
"If myth is ideology in narrative form, then scholarship is myth with footnotes." B. Lincolm 1999.
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For a starter only I would look at the Literary ESV. It does not serve as a literary commentary on the Bible, but only points to several literary devices. Still it is a fine place to begin.
Sarcasm is my love language. Obviously I love you. 0 -
Antonius said:
I am looking for suggestions on a resource that teaches all the literary devices/techniques used in the Bible.
For starters, I would take a look at Discourse Grammar of the Greek New Testament: A Practical Introduction for Teaching and Exegesis by Steven Runge
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Bruce Waltke's "An Old Testament Theology" (http://www.logos.com/product/17275/an-old-testament-theology) has an excellent introductory chapter on literary devices used in the Bible (Chapter 5: The Method of Biblical Theology, Part 3: Poetics and Intertextuality").
Other suggestions:
The Dynamics of Biblical Parallelism
A Manual of Hebrew Poetics
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The best are all individual topics rather than general:
- The Shape of Biblical Language: Chiasmus in the Scriptures and Beyond Edition 2 by John Breck is an excellent Orthodox book of chiasmus
- Style and Structure in Biblical Hebrew Narrative by Jerome T. Walsh covers a variety of symmetry and disjunction forms - from a Catholic press
- The Dynamics of Biblical Parallelism (Biblical Resource) by Adele Berlin and David Noel Freedman is Jewish scholarship - the best I know on parallelism
- The Language of Symbolism: Biblical Theology, Semantics, and Exegesis by Pierre Grelot and Christopher R. Smith for symbolism
- Handbook on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament: Exegesis and Interpretation by G. K. Beale covers allusions, quotations etc.
As for the broader rhetoric/figures of speech, I'm still waiting to find something really useful ... in the meantime I limp along with Bullinger
Orthodox Bishop Alfeyev: "To be a theologian means to have experience of a personal encounter with God through prayer and worship."; Orthodox proverb: "We know where the Church is, we do not know where it is not."
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For Logos resources we can add in these targeted resources on imagery:
The Dictionary of Biblical Imagery (https://www.logos.com/product/30241/dictionary-of-biblical-imagery)
Zondervan Dictionary of Biblical Imagery (https://www.logos.com/product/26726/zondervan-dictionary-of-biblical-imagery)
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