NOTES

New Zealand Tablet, Volume LII, Issue 27, 22 July 1925, Page 34

NOTES

The Poetry of the Bible f Beginners who approach the classics with- ’ out a knowledge of the laws of scansion can- ' •'1 -xi ; •. c xr . xt ■ • ; '■• not appreciate the poetry of Virgil or Homer. Similarly, English readers who know nothing >• of Irish metrical laws fail to read Gaelic poetry with pleasure, and even to taste fully ' f;the• sweetness of modern Irish poems which retain, something of the ancient spirit and £ melody. In the same Way 1 people who are *\ignorant of Hebrew poetry and of the laws that govern it can only feel dimly the beauty of the Bible. Hebrew poetry is remarkable for the loftiness of its subjects and the simplicity of its form. It is expressed in lines .that depend on the rhythm of thought rather than on measured feet and rhyming verses. One of its most striking features is parallel::;ism of verses, that is to say a certain sym- ; metry of thought between the members of a J. sentence, on ( the rhythm of the equal movement of thought moving on similarly staged lines and phrases. Verses of two members v are most common in the Bible, but verses of V 'v. ' ' ' # ■ 7 v even as many as six members are not seldom . found. This parallelism is the basis of beautiful and artistical forms and expressions. • ..Let the . corresponding members (thoughts, phrases) I be expressed by the letters a, b, c, etc., and a sentence of four members may be „ arranged in the following modes : aabb, abab, abba, aaab, and so on. There are three chief varieties of parallelism, according as the parallel members of the passage carry on the .•.main idea or subject by simple repetition or by contrast or by amplification: (a) Synonymous parallelism consists in expressing the same idea in different words in .. . ■ . . , • ' the several parts of the verse, e.g. — ■ ■■ ' b ■ '(■- "/, . ■ May he send thee help from the sanctuary And defentjl thee out of Sion. (Ps. xix. 3.)

For I know that my Redeemer liveth. And in the last day I shall rise out of the ■ earth. And I shall bo clothed again with my skin, And in my flesh I shall see my God. Whom I myself shall see, y And my eyes shall behold, • , : : And no other. (Job xix, 25.) ' ' • • . ■ - •■■■ ■■ -. ■■■ ■ : ■ - : : ■ ■ W- ■ : v The Lord ,is my light and my salvation . Whom shall I fear? - > % The Lord is the protector of my life ; ;• i, ; Of whom .shall I be afraid. (Ps! xxvi'l, 2.) ?• ■ ■.. .. s■' . - ( ■ / ■ ' . • ’ . (b) . Antithetic parallelism consists in op1. . - / •■ : . . . ■■■ ■ 1 ; posing contrary thoughts .to one another in 4 parallel ' members of the verse. This form ;A is especially fit to express moral* truth by opposing the vbeauty and reward of virtue, to sin, its deformity and punishment. It is F~ r ' ■■ ’ V‘ , . •, „ , . pr , '' ‘ ‘ ■ frequently found in the Proverbs of Solomon : ■■' C' ... • ' •• ■ ■ •' ••' ■ / Justice exalteth a nation; But sin maketh nations miserable. ■ : (Pro. sin, 34.) i .'.A, deceitful balance is an abomination before -.bo Lord : '

And a just weight is his will. , Where pride is, there shall be reproach; But where humility is, there also is wisdom. The simplicity of the just shall guide them : And the deceitfulness of ' the wicked shall destroy them. v (Prov. xi, i.) (c) Synthetic or progressive parallelism develops, amplifies, completes, illustrates or proves, in the different members, their leading thought:—■ The Assyrian came out of the mountains from the North ’ ' ( ■ In the multitude of his strength: ■ < His multitude stopped up the torrents, • And their horses covered the valleys. He bragged that he would set my mountains on fire,' ~ , - And kill my young men with the sword, ‘ To make my infants a prey, And my virgins captives. 7 But the Almighty Lord hath struck him. And hath delivered him into the hands of a woman, And hath slain him. . , For she put off the garments of her widowhood, I 7 And put on the garments of joy, To give joy to the children of Israel. She anointed her face with ointment, And bound up her locks with 'a crown, She took a new robe to deceive him. Her sandals ravished his eyes, Her . beauty made his soul her captive, With a sword she cut off his head. ' (Judith, xvi, 5.)

(d) Combinations: The three kinds of parallelism are often combined in the same sentence or passage, thus adding to the beauty and variety of poetical expression, e.g.; (Ps. xliii, 3.) : . According as two or more parallel phrases are- joined together . to give expression .. ,to .some thought or sentiment they form a verse or strophe of shorter or longer space, or simple or compound construction, with or without a line of prologue and epilogue. Thus the manifold rhythm of syllable .accentuation and mensuration is supplanted • here by the ever-changing rhythm of thought set forth in symmetric grammatical forms and groups. This kind of poetic expression lends itself to the most diverse forms and modes of musical production by . different choirs, especially in the form” of strophe and antistrophe, anthem, • f ll" . • 7 ’ interlude, and response. ' Of the different kinds of poetry, Lyric and didactic are ; principally • represented in the Bible. The Psalms and the Canticles belong to the first clash. Job is partly epic. The Canticle of,:Canticles’ is a dramatic al- ; legory with many lyric parts. , The .poetry of the Prophets is mostly lyrical. Some of

the visions are epic. The Lamentations of Jeremias are by many classed as elegiac poetry. ’ ■ The oldest bit of poetry in ; the Bible ;is Lamech’s song of the sword. (Gen. iv, 23.) Notable poems are: The triumphal song of Moses .'after' crossing the Red Sea Deborah’s canticle of thanksgiving; the last, song and blessing of Moses; the canticle of Anna the mother of Samuel; David’s lamentations over Saul and Jonathan ;j his hymn of thanksgiving after victory over Ink foes; his- leavetaking;, Judith’s triumphal song. These songs are compositions of surpassing beauty and nobility. . The triumphal song of Moses is one-of the sublimest literary productions the world holds. '• •