SYMMETRY AND REPETITION IN THE BIBLE

Tremper Longman III has stated, “Repetition is a function of most literature, but it is particularly emphasized in biblical literature, where it occurs on a number of different levels.” The simplest of these levels is illustrated best by considering Hebrew poetry, which is based on the repetition of similar ideas rather than similar sounds or meter. Only one basic idea is being expressed through the two (or three) lines of poetry in each verse, but the second line may clarify or expand the thought expressed in the first one. This idea of simple repetition can actually take on several forms, many of which are symmetrical in structure and even have their biblical counterparts in larger portions of Scripture.

First is the situation where elements of a passage are stated in one line and then similarly restated in the identical order in subsequent lines. For such parallel (also called synonymous, identical or cyclic) structures, the emphasis is usually on the last members of each series: a b c -- a' b' c'

Identical Parallelism: Psalm 82:3

A. Give

    B. justice to

        C. the weak

            D. and the orphan

A'. Maintain

    B'. the right of

        C'. the lowly

            D'. and the destitute

Another variation on this theme is introverted (also called chiastic, concentric or palistrophic) parallelism), as seen in the following series: a b c c' b' a'

In this mirror-image arrangement, similarly lettered pairs such as a and a', for example, will possess similar thematic and/or verbal characteristics. When a chiastic structure has an even number of elements, such as above, I have found that the usual emphasis is on the first and last units (although many scholars feel it is on the two middle two instead). But definitely, for odd-numbered chiasms such as below, the middle element is meant to be highlighted.

a b c d c' b' a'

Psalm 1:2

But their delight is in         the law of the LORD

                                    X

and on his law                  they meditate day and night

Here the two lines express the same basic idea but the clauses are transposed in the second line so that delighting and meditating are parallel and law appears at the end of the first line and the start of the second line. If you draw lines connecting the similar elements, you make an X. That is the Greek letter chi, so that type of arrangement is also called a chiasm or chiasmus. This arrangement is extremely pervasive in the larger literary structures seen in the Bible.

The Structure of Colossians

I. Opening Greetings (1:1-2)

II. Fruit of the Gospel and Prayer (1:3-14)

III. God the Reconciler (1:15-20)

IV. Our Holiness (1:21-23)

                                                                V. Christ in You (1:24-2:7)

                    VI. False Teachings (2:8-23)

    V'. Raised with Christ (3:1-4)

                                                IV'. The Old and New Natures (3:5-17)

                                     III'. Transformed Relationships (3:18-4:1)

                        II'. Living the Christian Life in Prayer (4:2-6)

            I'. Final Greetings (4:7-18)

Incomplete Parallelism: I Samuel 15:22b

To obey   is better   than sacrifice, and

To listen (is better) than the fat of rams.

The adjective “better” is understood in the second line. See how the first line helps eliminate any possible misunderstanding of second line. In simple cases such as these, the missing member is easily supplied by the reader. However, when scholars propose parallel or chiastic structures that are less than complete for larger passages, those claims should be treated with a great deal of skepticism. That is especially true, when in many cases, a completely symmetrical structure can be found for the same passages. The same criticism can be levied against proposed arrangements where certain elements are present out of symmetrical order.

One such example is that of Boling, who analyzed the Book of Judges as taking the following overall form:

   A

        B

                C

                        D

        B

                        D

        B

                        D

                                E

  A

Note the marked absence of matching elements for C and E, resulting in a very asymmetric arrangement.

John Welch's farfetched attempts (in Chiasmus in Antiquity) to prove that the Book of Mormon has all the hallmarks of ancient Near Eastern chiasm found in the Bible suffer from the above flaws as well as several others. This will be the subject of a future post.

Antithetic Parallelism: Psalm 1:6

    For the LORD watches over the way of the righteous,

    but the way of the wicked will perish.

Note the key word “but.” This type of poetry is especially common in Proverbs – the same idea is expressed using its opposite. Even this variation has its counterpart in more extensive passages. Note how sections A and A' express the same idea in contrasting ways.

Structure of Romans 4:1-5:6

A. Do not dispute over opinions (14:1)

        B. How to handle controversial subjects within the body (14:2-23)

A'. Live in harmony with one another (15:1-6)

A somewhat different kind of antithesis is expressed elsewhere in the same letter:

Structure of Romans 2:25-3:31

    A. Advantage of the Jews (2:25-3:8)

        B. All are sinners (3:9-20)

        B'. God is righteous (3:21-26)

A'. Jews cannot boast (3:27-31)

Emblematic Parallelism: Psalm 1:3

They are like trees planted by streams of water (figurative)

-----------

In all that they do, they prosper. (literal)

This is a type of simile or metaphor in which the figurative language in one first line is explained literally in the other. This form has its more extensive expression in, for example, Judges 14-15 where the literal description of a battle is given in Chapter 14 and repeated using figurative, or emblematic, language in the following chapter.

Synthetic, or Advancing, Parallelism

Lamentations 3:12

    He bent his bow and set me

                                                as a mark for his arrow.

Lamentations 5:6

    We have made a pact with Egypt

                                                        and Syria to get enough bread.

In these two cases, simple prose sentences are broken up into two lines. It is not truly poetic so it is called synthetic. Since it also is not at all a parallel structure, it resembles a simple narrative or expositional style. David Dorsey (The Literary Structure of the Old Testament) quotes numerous examples of true parallelism in the Bible, but on occasion labels a passage as having what he calls a linear structure, which is really an admission that he cannot discover any form of literary symmetry present.

Stair-Step, or Climatic, Parallelism: Romans 1:4-5

One of the best examples of this aptly named type of parallelism, in which subsequent lines repeat the idea in the previous lines but go beyond them in thought, is actually found in the NT.

In him was life

      and the life was the light of men

                                the light shines in the darkness

                                                      and the darkness has not overcome it.

Larger examples of this type of arrangement only appear in one place in the Bible, the apocalyptic literature such as Zechariah, Daniel, and the Revelation. There it has been labeled Progressive Recapitulation. Recognizing that this form permeates apocalyptic writings is of tremendous importance in how we understand the chronology of the events portrayed symbolically in these books .

Take the Book of Daniel for example. First, consider the various reigns in which each section takes place and note that the second half of the book backs up to an earlier time period as well as moving forward in time:

Nebuchadnezzar (chs. 1-4)

Belshazzar (ch. 5)

Darius (ch. 6)

----------------------------------------------

Belshazzar (chs. 7-8)

Darius (ch. 9)

                                                Cyrus (chs. 10-12)

The same phenomenon appears in the visions and dreams that are described throughout that book. For examples of progressive recapitulation in Zechariah and Revelation, see the respective Introductions to the Literary Structure for those books.

Mixed Types

Finally, it is possible to combine more than one of these literary techniques within the same verse to add variety. Thus, strictly speaking, Psalm 1:4 simultaneously employs incomplete and emblematic parallelism while Psalm 1:6 (shown above) displays both antithetic and introverted parallelism.

Psalm 1:4

      The wicked   are not   so

but (the wicked) are like chaff that the wind drives away.

Again, mixed types of symmetry appear in larger biblical structures also, such as in the following example. Note how the overall chiastic arrangement also contains the parallel series II, III – II', III'.

The Structure of Ephesians

            I. Introduction (1:1-2)      

II. Position with God through Christ (1:3-14)

        III. Power in Christ (1:15-23)

                                                    IV. Gentiles’ Past and Present Position Contrasted (2:1-22) 

                                                            V. The Mystery of Christ: Position and Power (3:1-21) 

                            IV'. Gentiles’ Past and Present Behavior Contrasted (4:1-5:20)

II'. Position with Others through Christ (5:21-6:9)

                                III'. Power in Christ (6:10-20)

I'. Conclusion (6:21-24)