. of passages which have been selected for their literary charm. Especial attention is directed to the story of the good Samaritan, which is printed in the chapter on "Short Stories in the Bible." CHAPTER XXIII FIGURES OF SPEECH IN THE BIBLE BELONGING to Oriental literature, the Bible would naturally contain many figures of speech. A remarkably complete collection has been made by Dr. E. W. Bullinger (London, Eyre and Spottiswoode, 1898). A few representative illustrations are given here: 1. Aposiopesis. Exod. 32. 32: Yet now, if thou wilt forgive their sin—; and, if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book which thou hast written (compare Saint Paul). [Virgil, Book I, line 135: Quos ego-! sed motos praestat componere fluctus. Dante, Canto IX, 8: Pure, a noi converra vincer la punga, comincio ei, se non-Tal ne s'offerse. However, it will be proper for us to win the battle, began he. If not-such a one has offered herself to us.] Other illustrations will be found in 1 Chron. 4. 10; Dan. 3. 15; Judg. 5. 29-31; Luke 19. 42; John 6. 61-62. 2. Ellipsis. 1 Cor. 10. 24. Let no man seek his own, but every man another's (wealth). 3. The use of "and." a. "And" omitted: Judg. 5. 27: At her feet he bowed, he fell, he lay down at her feet he bowed, he fell: where he bowed, there he fell down dead. b. "And" repeated: 1 Sam. 17. 34, 35: Thy servant kept his father's sheep, and there came a lion, and a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock: and I went out after him, and smote him, and delivered it out of his mouth; and when he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and smote him, and slew him. 4. Belittling. 1 Sam. 24. 14: After whom is the king of Israel come out? After whom dost thou pursue? After a dead dog, after a flea? See also Gen. 18. 27; Num. 13. 33; Psa. 22. 6; Isa. 40. 15. 5. Sentence Similarity. a. Beginning Psa. 115. 12-13: He will bless the house of Israel; He will bless them that fear the Lord. Other illustrations may be found in Jer. 8. 1 and Hos. 3. 4. b. Ending: The best illustration of this figure is in Psa. 136, where each verse ends with "His mercy endureth forever." c. Both beginning and ending: Judg. 11. 1: Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valor, and he was the son of an harlot, and Gilead begat Jephthah. P'sa. 27. 14: Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart, wait (I say) on the Lord. 2 Sam. 9. 12; Neh. 11. 21; Luke 12. 3. d. Ending of one sentence and beginning of the next: Gen. 1. 1-2: In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form and void. Exod. 12. 4, 5; Num. 33, 3, 4 ; 2 Sam. 9. 12, 13; Psa. 121. 1, 2; Psa. 122. 2, 3. 6. Climax. John 1. 12: In the beginning was the Word: and the Word was with God: and the Word was God. Rom. 8. 29-30; Rom. 10. 14-15; 2 Pet. 1. 5-7; Isa. 40. 31 (Is this climax or anti-climax?). Many other peculiarities of sentence construction may be found by the student. 7. Variety of Inflections. 2 Kings 21. 13: And I will wipe Jerusalem as a man wipeth a dish, wiping it and turning it upside down. John 17. 25; 2 Cor. 1. 10. 8. Inversion. Exod. 9. 31: And the flax and the barley was smitten, for the barley was in the ear, and the flax was bolled. Isa. 6. 10; 3 John 11. 9. Synonyms. Zeph. 1. 15: That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness. Matt. 12. 30; Eph. 1. 20, 21. 10. Parallelism. a. Synonyms (expressing the same thought): Psa. 46. 11: The Lord of Hosts is with us; The God of Jacob is our refuge. b. Antithetic (expressing a contrast): Prov. 11. 1: A false balance is abomination to the Lord: but a just weight is his delight. e. Synthetic (completing the thought): Prov. 18. 22: Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing, and obtaineth favor of the Lord. 11. Exaggeration. John 21. 25: And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Exod. 8. 17; Deut. 1. 28; Judg. 20. 16; 1 Kings 1. 40; Job 29. 6; John 12. 19. 12. Change in Sentence Strength. a. Gradual ascent: Zech. 7. 11-12: But they refused to hearken, and pulled away the shoulder, and stopped their ears that they should not hear. Yea, they made their hearts as an adamant stone. 1 Cor. 4. 8; John 1. 1. b. Gradual descent: Isa. 40. 31: They shall mount up with wings as eagles, they shall run, and not be weary, they shall walk, and not faint. (See comment on this passage under "Climax.") Ezek. 22. 18; Phil. 2. 6-8. 13. Metonymy. Lord. They have Moses and the prophets. 1 Pet. 2. 24: Who his own self bore our sins in his own body on the tree. |