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Basics: Significance of the Pattern
- What is a Parallelism?
- What is a Chiasmus?
- What limitations are there with respect to traditional classifications of parallelism?
- What is a Davidic Chiasmus?
- What is the significance of Davidic Chiasmus?
- Why is this structure named “Davidic Chiasmus”?
- How was Davidic Chiasmus discovered?
- How do you identify Davidic Chiasmus?
- What is the significance of Inter-Micro Analysis?
- Please demonstrate the inner workings of Inter-Micro analysis?
- What is a bifid Davidic Chiasmus and its significance?
- Why are macro’s “C” and “D” seemingly out of order one-half of the time?
- What is a Davidic Parallelism?
What is a Parallelism?
A parallel, in literary form, is one statement followed by a related statement. . These statements constitute a symmetry of ideas and concepts, expressed in verbal, grammatical and syntactical forms, within a given unit of literary structure. A simple parallelism, i.e., a-a-b-b, is shown in Isaiah 28:13:
a. … precept upon precept,
a. precept upon precept;
b. line upon line,
b. line upon line…
What is a Chiasmus?
A chiasmus is an inverted parallelism. A simple chiasmus, i.e., a-b-b-a, may consist of four lines. An example is shown in Mark 10:31:
a. But many that are first
b. shall be last;
b. and that the last
a. shall be first in all things.
A complex chiasmus, i.e., a-b-c-c-b-a, comprises more than four lines. An example of a complex chiasmus is shown in John 17:6.
a. I have manifested thy name unto the men
b. Which thou gavest me
c. out of the world:
c. Thine they were,
b. And thou gavest them me;
a. And they have kept thy word.
Here the introversion shows that the Father’s name is synonymous with His Word. Further, when “thine they were” is spoken of, “out of this world” is either synonymous or complimentary as it completes the passage. These verses may be viewed with greater levels of understanding when thus contrasted in parallel or chiastic form.
An example of another benefit to be gained by chiastic analysis is found in Matthew 7:6. Here, two simple parallelisms are inverted.
a1. Give not that which is holy
b1. unto dogs,
a2. neither cast ye your pearls
b2. before swine,
b2. Lest they [the swine]
a2. trample them under their feet,
b1. And [the dogs] turn again
a1. and rend you [or tear you, and that which is holy, to pieces].
As Robert Breck points out, “Translators of the RSV/NRSV clearly missed the inversion … They render the last line “and turn to attack you” (NRSV: “and turn and maul you”). This implies that the action is accomplished by the swine. The Greek, however, uses a verb that can only refer to an attack by dogs, …” (Breck, The Shape of Biblical Language, p. 29). As shown, the intent of the writer is clarified when read chiastically: “if you give that which is holy to dogs, they will turn on you and tear you [being God’s holy one] to pieces; if you cast you pearls before swine, they will trample the pearls under their feet.
This “structural symmetry” helps to “identify peaks or points of prominence . . . found both on the level of individual poems and in larger units such as the book of a prophet” (Discourse Perspectives on Hebrew Poetry in the Scriptures, Ernst R. Wendland, p. 67) and makes all the references that much more clear. Any adequate study of the scriptures should deal with the composition in its entirety and not limited to individual passages or random couplets. It should be “progressive, systematic, and comprehensive” in all facets. Careful and deliberate attention must be paid to all the exegetical tools available, e.g., typological and rhetorical analysis, the understanding of metaphoric pseudonyms, parallelisms, allegorical and covenantal language, figures of speech, a thorough understanding of its historical setting as well as the prophetical implications, all of which are superimposed on a larger poetic framework. These operational procedures must be employed in order to produce a thorough analysis, which would explain both the substance as well as the tenor of the text.
What limitations are there with respect to traditional classifications of parallelism?
First and foremost, educated people can come up with various ways of finding and organizing parallelisms. Yet, some modern day scholars create rigid criteria for identifying and evaluating the presence of all chiasmus – rules so implacable, confining or arbitrary as to exclude the possibility of other viable layouts, approaches, and/or purposes.
Ernst Wendland wrote, “Once the organizational structure of a poetic piece has been fairly well-established and its individual points of prominence identified, it is often useful to summarize the results by constructing a thematic and/or semantic outline of the whole. … The traditional classification according to three types of parallelism – synonymous, antithetic, and synthetic – has tended to obscure the fact that a more diverse set of syntagmatic relations link the elements of colon couplets and clusters in the text, and hence much more precise designations are possible, even necessary, for analysis” (Discourse Perspectives on Hebrew Poetry in the Scriptures, Ernst R. Wendland, p. 16-17).
Is finding a “more precise designation” a science or an art? Or is there a dividing line between the two approaches? Over time, this debate will take on deeper significance. As Nobel laureate Kenneth Arrow observed, “Our knowledge of the way things work, in society or in nature, comes trailing clouds of vagueness. Vast ills have followed a belief in certainty.” And British writer G.K. Chesterton wrote, “Life is not an illogicality, yet it is a trap for logicians. It looks just a little more mathematical and regular than it is; . . . its inexactitude is hidden; its wildness lies in wait.”
Strict adherence to these traditional classifications may lead, borrowing the words of Yehuda T. Radday in an arguably similar context, to a “myopic scholarly fixation on detailed and minute analysis” which “can combine to preclude even the most dedicated scholar from perceiving the overall structure of many compositions which reveals the presence of chiasm in longer passages and entire books.” (Welch, Chiasmus in Antiquity, p. 50)
It seems, to this author, that most scholars and biblicists have failed to take their traditional rules and analysis to its next logical and necessary conclusion, i.e., “what exactly is the express purpose of chiasmus?” If in the end, all that can be expressed is that “the central passage” is the “pivotal” or “focal” or even the “turning” point of the pericope, then it would seem that there has been little if any advancement in the field of chiastic studies from the time E.W. Bullinger published “Figures of Speech used in the Bible” more than 100 years ago. More important, traditional classifications lack a specific inner logic that would otherwise enable such scholars to “enumerate” and “divine” instead of just record the results of their analyses. While great strides have been made as to the pervasiveness of chiasmus and parallelism in general, no one has addressed the issue of specific “repeated patterns” and their express purpose.
One overriding thematic outline, frequently employed in the scriptures and other prophetic works, is identified in this treatise as “Davidic Chiasmus” or “Davidic Parallelism.” If the poetic or scriptural composition is prophetico-Messianic, it may be examined, analyzed and then re-analyzed from top to bottom in terms of its sequential interpropositional “Davidic” connections. This methodology may give the reader a better comprehension of the structure, content, function and application of the text in its fullest semantic and pragmatic sense.
What is a Davidic Chiasmus?
A Davidic Chiasmus is an intricate, specific complex chiasmus, comprised of five pairs of parallel elements, i.e., macro structures, symmetrically arranged around a central “F” element, i.e., A-B-C-D-E-F-E-D-C-B-A, that has a repeated thematic pattern attached to each element. The chiasmus may be as short as a few verses, it may comprise a whole chapter, a short book, e.g., Book of Joel, or even an entire lengthy book, e.g., Book of Isaiah. This chiasmus is found extensively throughout the four standard works and other divinely inspired writings.
Davidic construction has a holistic set of operational procedures and is marked by a set of formal structural markers which divide the text into six distinct elements. Each element, i.e., A-B-C-D-E-F-E-D-C-B-A, within Davidic Chiasmus takes up its own subject exhibiting a point of beginning and ending. The function of each element is to introduce an overriding theme or topic. When a Davidic Chiasmus comprises more than a few verses, each substructure, within an element, may contain additional chiasmus or parallelisms. Nevertheless, it is the larger themes that impart unity to the text as a whole. The substructures within each element provides cogency to its counterpart verses as a way of amplifying the theme and unlocking hidden messages.
Each prophet/writer’s utilization of complementary and contrasting literary devices provides a wonderful tapestry of God’s word with synergy beyond the mere written text. If a structure “A”, for example, contains a chiasmus a-b-c-b-a, the complementary backside structure “A” will usually contain the same (or nearly the same) chiastic pattern a-b-c-b-a. If structure “D” contains an extended alternate parallelistic pattern, i.e., a-b-c-a-b-c, the backside “D” will follow with the same (or nearly the same) pattern. Finally, each corresponding subpattern (or substructure) is an extension, enhancement and fulfillment of its counterpart, i.e., “a” matches “a”, “b” matches “b”, etc. The entire fabric of literary discourse, in the words of Ernst Wendland, “encompasses a hierarchy that will correspond in broad outline with its previously determined structural-thematic framework” such that “every distinct formal unit of the text – from the line/colon to the composition as a whole – may be viewed as manifesting a particular function, or functional complex, in relation to its audience then and now.” (Discourse Perspectives on Hebrew Poetry in the Scriptures, Ernst R. Wendland, p. 19). The hermeneutical value of the entire scriptural text thus becomes greater than the sum of its individual parts.
Davidic themes attach themselves to each element as follows (these titles are adopted as symbols or mental shortcuts to explain an otherwise complex semantic outline of the whole):
A. Word of the Lord.
B. New Things (or the Lord’s Covenant).
C. The World.
D. The Lord’s Servant.
E. Preservation.
F. The Suffering Servant.
E. Salvation.
D. The Lord’s Davidic Servant.
C. Overcoming the World.
B. Fulfillment.
A. Salvation Song.
What is the significance of Davidic Chiasmus?
First, Davidic Chiasmus answers the question, “what is the function of chiasmus?” Unless chiasmus reveals something more than what is already apparent, what is the point of determining its very existence in the first place? The proposition is that prophetico-messianic literature constitutes not a compilation of random couplets and parallelisms, however magnificent or spiritually penetrating the fragments may be, but a purposeful and sustained composition. Moreover, the arrangement and ordering of parallelisms indicate the presence of purpose, style and logic; all of which conforms to rules governed by Davidic construction. Any endeavor to explain Chiasmus without the aid of Davidic logic, is analogous to staging the Shakespearian play Hamlet without the prince, or account for the Civil War without Lincoln, or describe Christianity without Joseph Smith.
Second, Davidic Chiasmus deciphers the established literary structure employed by ancient prophet/writers. The interpretation of scripture, using Davidic Chiasmus as a template or interpretive key, particularizes and expands upon three major themes within scriptural text; (1) the Lord’s (Davidic) servant, (2) eschatological (last days) imagery, and (3) temple (endowment) imagery. These concurrent themes are intimately entwined with one another and constitute a tri-fold exegesis (see Table 1).
Third, the rhetorical impact as well as its aesthetic dimensions are considerable when using this template. Davidic literature is expressed literally, allegorically, metonymically, elliptically, and symbolically, as attested to by these interpretive keys. Davidic language and style speaks to the listener by giving every word and every sentence an interpretive purpose. The scriptures thereby derive height, depth and width (or latitude and longitude) and thereby gain their full purpose and meaning. The overall timbre is compelling, propelled by an inherent understanding of the constitution of prophetico-messianic passages, from each unique and distinctive theme to the next, till full symmetry is achieved.
Fourth, Davidic Chiasmus affords each individual prophet/writer the method of providing a built-in table of contents, lexicon, concordance and commentary to his own text. When these literary techniques are used to communicate a message, the resulting poetic passages direct one’s attention towards a larger matrix of definitions that go well beyond the mere rhetorical framework. Accordingly, there is a whole realm of truth and meaning within the text’s deepest structure, i.e., through the employment of macro, micro, inter-micro, and inter-chiastic-analysis. Note how the author of 1st Nephi used these literary techniques for something as brief as the first chapter heading:
A. An account of Lehi and his wife Sariah, and his four sons,
being called,
(beginning at the eldest) Laman, Lemuel, Sam, and Nephi.
B. The Lord warns Lehi to depart out of the land of Jerusalem,
C. because he prophesieth unto the people concerning their iniquity
and they seek to destroy his life.
D. He taketh three days’ journey unto the wilderness with his family.
E. Nephi taketh his brethren
and returneth to the land of Jerusalem after the record of the Jews.
F. The account of their sufferings [in the land of Jerusalem].
E. They take the daughters of Ishmael to wife.
They take their families and depart into the wilderness.
F. Their sufferings and afflictions in the wilderness.
D. The course of their travels. They come to the large waters.
C. Nephi’s brethren rebel against him.
He confounded them, and buildeth a ship.
B. They call the place Bountiful.
They cross the large waters into the promised land, etc.
A. This is according to the account of Nephi;
or in other words,
I, Nephi, wrote this record.
Fifth, this manner of writing both hides and reveals; it conceals precious truths from the casual reader, and reveals and enriches the Lord’s message that ostensibly does not appear on the surface of the text. Whatever is established in Davidic literature is not just an historical account of linear and/or one-time events; rather, the document becomes an eschatological record (e.g., references to a new covenant, gathering of the righteous, destruction of Babylon, Moses, David, and Arch-Tyrant). With unveiled eyes, the reader may therefore apply God’s word individually and collectively for our time.
Sixth, the organization of prophetico-messianic material is not contrived by mere mechanical construction, banal structural arrangements or through the use of repetitive technical and rhetorical devices. A prophet’s particular emphasis on contrasts and opposites, using Davidic construction, is in itself stylistic and a work of beauty. The manner of presenting themes, with all their complexity and attendant implications, thereby constitutes a “Davidic signature” unique to each prophetic writer. Nicole Fielding’s comments concerning chiasmus and various literary structures in general apply equally as well to Davidic Chiasmus and Parallelisms when she wrote “When Alma takes the time to structure his conversation in such a detailed manner, he is using another tool to convey to the reader his feelings of God’s glory. The rhyming and contrasting of ideas sharpens, highlights, gives adoration and glory to God. To dismiss an intentional structure with a ‘so what’ is the equivalent of saying the Mona Lisa is a nice snapshot, the Sistine Chapel a sexual mural, and Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony a pleasant tune . . . God is not only intelligent but also a being of glory and beauty. In short, ‘There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy’” (Hamlet, I,5,166).
Seventh, Davidic Contraction is emblematic of the special intimacy as an ancient oral medium that was conceived for the purpose of committing thoughts, impressions and pathos to memory. Qualities of rhythm, tempo, cadence inherent in its symmetry produces audible dynamics that give it its visceral, as well as cerebral, appeal and expressive resonance.
Finally, this literary structure, through its specific arrangement of the text, makes known the “plain and precious things” and “many covenants” of the Lord (1 Nephi 13:26,40) and thereby testifies of Jesus Christ, the restoration and the great and marvelous work in the latter days. The parable of the Prodigal Son from Luke 15:11-32 is such an example that incorporates all these ideas.
A. Word of the Lord.
Father divides his inheritance between two sons (11-12).
B. New Things (or the Lord’s Covenant).
Youngest Son goes out and wastes his inheritance/birthright (13).
C. The World.
Mighty famine ensues, youngest Son joins himself
with a citizen of foreign country, swine food (14-16).
D. The Lord’s Servant.
Youngest Son awakes and makes declaration of
“I perish with hunger” (17).
E. Preservation.
Son’s resolution to confess before Father (18).
F. The Suffering Servant.
Father’s perfect compassion manifested (20).
E. Salvation.
Son’s actual confession before Father (21).
F. The Suffering Servant.
Father’s perfect grace manifested (22-23a).
D. The Lord’s Davidic Servant.
Father’s declaration to make a feast for his once dead Son
who is now alive (23b-24).
C. Overcoming the World.
Eldest Son refusal to go into royal banquet. Father entreats him (25-28).
B. Fulfillment.
Eldest Son declares his enduring service and obedience to Father while
youngest Son devoured his inheritance with Harlots (29-30).
A. Salvation Song.
Father bestows all of his inheritance to the Eldest Son (31-32).
The Lord’s Prayer from Matthew 6:9-13 is an example showing the expansive scope or comprehensiveness of Davidic Chiasmus with an economy of words (see Table 2 for an extended tri-fold exegesis).
A. 9. Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
B. 10. Thy kingdom come.
C. Thy will be done in earth,
D. as it is in heaven.
E. 11. Give us this day our daily bread.
F. 12. And forgive us our debts,
E. [as we giveth our bread to the poor and hungry*]
F. as we forgive our debtors.
D. 13. And lead us [into thy righteousness]not into temptation,
C. but deliver us from evil:
B. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and glory,
A. forever, Amen.
* Psalm 105:40; 132:15; Proverbs 22:9; Eccl. 11:1; Isa. 58:7
Why is this structure named “Davidic Chiasmus”?
The divine message of this literary structure is summarized with the name “Davidic.”
- In every dispensation, the Lord has given keys of knowledge, power and revelations to prophets, i.e., messianic servants. All of these prophets serve as a type of Jesus Christ, who was called the Son of David (Matt 1:1; 9:27; 12:23; 15:22; 20:30-31; 21:9,15; 22:42).
- The word David means “beloved” and the name gives reverence to Jesus Christ (Matt 12:18; 17:5; Luke 9:35; 20:13), who is the exemplar Davidic servant.
- There are many biblical prophecies that address the Lord’s Servant, who would exemplify righteousness, and be the Branch and King to Judah in the latter-days (2 Samuel 7:8-19; Psalm 89:1-4; Psalm 132:1-18; Isaiah 9:7, 11:1-11, 49:7, 55:3-4; Jer. 23:3-8, 30:8-9, 33:15-22; Ezek. 34:23-24, 37:21-28; Daniel 7:14; Hosea 3:4-5; Micah 2:13, 5:2; Amos 9:11; Zech. 3:8-9, 12:8). Joseph Smith prophesied that “The throne and kingdom of David is to be taken from him and given to another by the name of David in the last days, raised up out of his lineage.” (Joseph Smith History of the Church 6:253). In view of these prophecies and of the fifteenth Beracha of the Shemone-Esre (the daily Jewish prayer consisting of eighteen benedictions): “make the branch (zemach) of David thy servant to shoot forth speedily, and let his horn rise high by virtue of Thy salvation,” it is hardly to be doubted that this future Davidic Servant will play a most prominent role associated with the Lord’s Second Coming.
- Finally, the name itself implies that all of God’s children have it within themselves the regenerative powers to become like Christ. Joseph Campbell wrote, “The cosmogonic cycle is presented with astonishing consistency in the sacred writings of all the continents, and it gives to the adventure of the hero a new and interesting turn; for now it appears that the perilous journey was a labor not of attainment but of reattainment, not discovery but rediscovery. The godly powers sought and dangerously won are revealed to have been within the heart of the hero all the time. He is “the king’s son” who has come to know who he is and therewith has entered into the exercise of his proper power – “God’s son,” who has learned to know how much that title means. From this point of view the hero is symbolical of that divine creative and redemptive image which is hidden within us all, only waiting to be known and rendered into life.” (The Hero with a Thousand Faces, p. 39).
How was Davidic Chiasmus discovered?
The Book of Isaiah was the “Rosetta stone” of Davidic Chiasmus. The 48th and 49th chapters of Isaiah are juxtaposed strategically in 1 Nephi 20-21. Nephi’s commentary on these two chapters, i.e., 1 Nephi 14, 19 and 22, are themselves in Davidic form — which closely mirrors the bifid Davidic structure of Isaiah 48-49. The Title Page and the closing chapter to the Book of Mormon are both Davidic (while the opening chapter of 1 Nephi is bifid Davidic). Finally, the overlay of the 48th and 49th chapters of Isaiah in its bifid literary structure forms the table of contents for the entire Book of Isaiah (see Table 3). All of these chiasmus provided the foundation for understanding Davidic Chiasmus.
The Book of Isaiah, as well as all Davidic literature, is not a random collection of parallelisms used simply as a memory aid or merely for poeticality, i.e., the sense of elevated style and rhetoric associated with poetry; rather, there is an overarching Davidic literary message and structure that testifies of the unity of God’s sacred text. This message and structure is the deliberate governing pattern found in prophetic (Messianic) literature, songs of salvation, parables, prayers, psalms, covenant blessing and covenant curses.
How do you identify Davidic Chiasmus?
What Ernst R. Wendland wrote about textual criticism and translation can equally apply to identifying the existence of Davidic literature. He wrote, “Once a particular poetic composition has been demarcated, at least provisionally subject to a thorough discourse analysis, it is necessary to examine the quality or physical state of the text itself . . . A helpful way of preparing oneself for this task is to read the poem through several times, aloud and in the original, both to get a feel for the whole and also to note any significant phonological features that occur along the way . . . To some, this sort of translational exercise might seem like a waste of time, since there are so many versions and commentaries available to which one could refer in order to derive an exegetical understanding of a poem’s microstructure. That may be true, but the discipline of putting everything together in the process of coming to one’s own decisions about what the poet was trying to say – and how – is the best way of getting ready for a comprehensive discourse study. In fact, this is the only means of really familiarizing oneself with the text as an act of communication within a specific literary, theological and sociocultural setting. One needs to experience the poetry firsthand and close-up – sensorially as well as cognitively and emotively – before one attempts to analyze it in terms of its broader structures, themes, and purposes.” (Discourse Perspectives on Hebrew Poetry in the Scriptures, Ernst R. Wendland, p. 8 – 10).
There are three major keys or tests to determine the efficacy of a Davidic Chiasmus (see Table 4). These keys have the following discipline:
1. Macro Analysis.
Determine that the ideas of the entire text follow Davidic imagery on a “macro” structural level. Davidic Chiasmus is most formulaic and the progression is obvious by means of thematic breakpoints. The reader learns to anticipate and predict each major theme and parallelism within the text. Using “eschatological imagery” as an interpretive key:
The beginning macro “A” (Word of the Lord) opens with the Lord calling forth all creation to hearken and hear the word of the Lord whereas ending macro “A” (Salvation Song) closes with all creation singing a song of salvation praising the word of the Lord.
Macro “B” (New Things) states the new or hidden promises and covenants that await the Lord’s chosen people. These promises embody the power “to become independent according to [one’s] capacity.” (JD 6:333) The ending macro “B” (Fulfillment) shows the literal fulfillment of these promises and covenants.
Macro “C” (The World) shows all the wickedness associated with Babylon and its Arch-Tyrant while ending macro “C” (Overcoming the World) details the eventual destruction of Babylon and all who dwell therein.
Macro “D” (The Lord’s Servant) identifies and introduces the Lord’s Servant in a world of sin. The Servant is “capacitated to shun every evil,” to listen “to the still small voice and to those holy principals that flow from the Fountain of all intelligence.” (JD 6:333) The ending macro “D” conveys the establishment of the Servant (or Righteousness), the gathering of the righteous and their overthrow of the wicked Arch Tyrant.
Macro “E” (Preservation) takes up the theme of temporal preservation to the Lord’s anointed with a promise of spiritual salvation while ending macro “E” (Salvation) completes the message by showing spiritual preservation to the Lord’s anointed in the Day of Salvation. Brigham Young stated it this way: “The greatest gift that God can bestow upon the children of men is the gift of eternal life; that is, to give mankind power to preserve their identity – to preserve themselves before the Lord . . . Cleave to light and intelligence with all your hearts, my brethren, that you may be prepared to preserve your identity, which is the greatest gift of God.” (JD 6:333)
Macro “F” (The Suffering Servant) is the culmination of the Davidic theme. The Lord’s Servant “descends below all things, as Jesus did . . . in order to ascend above all things.” (JD 6:333) He is despised and rejected by his own, he endures to the end and then (according to the law of eternal life as set forth in all the revelations God has given) receives his Father’s image and subsequent sanctification/union. He in essence becomes the Lord’s Word.
Borrowing the words of Ernst R. Wendland, “the reiteration of form and content is often significant, for it serves a crucial structural function by helping to demarcate the individual segments that make up a larger poetic arrangement, hence also to format the composition as a whole. (Discourse Perspectives on Hebrew Poetry in the Scriptures, Ernst R. Wendland, p. 12).
2. Micro Analysis.
Each parallelism is then cast to fit within each macro structure. The effect of each parallelism must be evaluated individually. The specific identification of synonymous, synthetic, climactic, composite, emblematic, antithetical or inverted parallelism is brought into greater focus during this phase of the analysis. The reader will also begin to recognize repeated key words and ideas within each dominant theme, which serve as a systemically distinctive symbolic vocabulary, within Davidic Chiasmus. (see Table 5)
What Ernst Wendland wrote concerning text segmentation is equally true of micro analysis – “The key feature to observe here is the discourse position of the parallel utterances in relation to one another . . . In short, patterns of significant repetition normally criss-cross a typical poetic text in the Hebrew Scriptures, not in random fashion, but in a way which manifests – both to the eye and ear – how the composition is organized formally as well as thematically. Due to its functional importance in the discourse, such architectonic recursion is usually supplemented by other literary devices that are used to reinforce this essential oral-aural “typesetting” process.” (Discourse Perspectives on Hebrew Poetry in the Scriptures, Ernst R. Wendland, p. 12).
3. Inter-Micro Analysis.
Complete the analysis by matching the themes taken up within each specific parallelism of the beginning macro structures with the parallelisms found in the corresponding ending macro structures. The main point in each beginning substructure should be illuminated by its image on the ending substructure. This discipline fine tunes with perfection the structure of parallelisms found in micro analysis.
The omission of a word or words that would complete the construction of a parallelism, i.e., ellipsis, is conveyed repeatedly in this analysis. The matching of parallelisms, in this final exegetical exercise, proves deeply congruent and takes on the demonstrable appearance of a careful, if not painstakingly brilliant, composition for the purposes they serve the prophetic writer of the text. Joseph Campbell’s convictions concerning the monomyth is equally true concerning this repeated pattern when he wrote, “If one or another of the basic elements of the archetypal pattern is omitted . . . , it is bound to be somehow or other implied – and the omission itself can speak volumes for the history and pathology of the example . . .” (The Hero with a Thousand Faces, p. 38).
What Ernst Wendland wrote concerning location of points of prominence equally applies to inter-micro analysis in the following statement, “Such areas of poetic intensity in biblical discourse serve to attract the reader/listener’s attention – not simply for their own sake (i.e., a purely artistic function), but in order to stress some important aspect of a text’s wider meaning. The latter refers to its essential theological message and/or functional purpose as related both to the original situational or sociological setting and also to the poet’s communicative aim(s). These diverse features normally coexist in dynamic tension and reflect off of one another to reinforce the associative semantic aspects of any verbal art form, that is, its significance with regard to relevance, import, novelty, forcefulness, evocative-emotive power, and aesthetic appeal (beauty). (Discourse Perspectives on Hebrew Poetry in the Scriptures, Ernst R. Wendland, p. 16).
What is the significance of Inter-Micro Analysis?
The selection and arrangement of material within Davidic literature, down to the smallest unit of thought, adheres to the architectural and stylistic demands of coherence and integration on a micro level; at the same time, this literary organization adheres to an inner logic congruent with the major Davidic themes. What follows is either the systematic exposition of an idea or the elucidation of a familiar theme within corresponding substructures. As a result, every sustained passage of thought in Davidic literature is equally relevant elsewhere in the Davidic text. This additional interplay between substructures invariably requires the reader to look underneath or beyond the surface of the text in order to find the clear and definitive message of the verse and the document as a whole. This reason alone dictates why all prophetico messianic literature requires rereading in this manner.
Please demonstrate the inner workings of Inter-Micro analysis?
Using Inter-Micro analysis, each micro unit of thought in a frontside macro element forms a harmonious, interlocking text with a complementary unit of thought in a matching backside macro element much like the fingers of both hands interlocking one another. Consider the added profundity of the message of the Articles of Faith employing this analysis:
Pearl of Great Price – Articles of Faith
Example of Inter-Micro Analysis and Explanation
A. Word of the Lord/Salvation Song
a1. 1. We believe in God, the Eternal Father, <–Modifies–> If there is anything virtuous, lovely,
a2. and in His Son, Jesus Christ, <–Modifies–> or of good report or praiseworthy,
a3. and in the Holy Ghost. <–Modifies–> we seek after these things.
Explanation: The words “virtuous” and “lovely” are metaphors for God and Eternal Father, while the “good report” and “praiseworthy” are metaphors for Jesus Christ. The things of God are sought for through the instrumentality of the Holy Ghost.
B. New Things – The Lords Covenant/Fulfillment.
a1. 2. We believe that men will be punished for their own sins, <–Modifies–> 13. We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men;
a2. and not for Adam’s transgression. <–Modifies–> indeed, we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul
b1(i). 3. We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, <–Modifies–> We believe all things,
b1(ii). all mankind may be saved, <–Modifies–> we hope all things,
b2(i). by obedience to the laws <–Modifies–> we have endured many things,
b2(ii). and ordinances of the Gospel. <–Modifies–> and hope to be able to endure all things.
Explanation: Men will be judged according to their own works, i.e., honesty, true, chaste, benevolence, virtue, charity. Adam’s transgression is juxtaposed with the admonition of Paul as they relate to the demands of the Atonement of Christ (see “What relevance does “temple/endowment imagery” have to apostolic literature?“). The Atonement applies to all things. We therefore have an everlasting hope in the eternal plan of salvation. We endure to the end by obedience to the laws, and will ultimately be required to endure all things through the ordinances of the Gospel.
C. The World/Overcoming the World.
a1. 4. We believe that the first principles and ordinances of the Gospel are: first, Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; <–Modifies–> 11. We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience,
a2. second, Repentance; <–Modifies–> and allow all men the same privilege,
a3. third, Baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; <–Modifies–> let them worship how, where, or what they may.
a4. fourth, Laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost. <–Modifies–> 12. We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law.
Explanation: The privilege of worshiping God is the very essence of “faith”. We believe that all men should have the same privilege to exercise repentance in their worship. We recognize that the forms of baptism, i.e., how, where or what, differs from religion to religion. The Holy Ghost is the ultimate law which we are subject to and surpasses the temporal laws administered by kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates.
D. The Lord’s Servant.
a1(i). 5. We believe that a man must be called of God, by prophecy, <–Modifies–> 10. We believe in the literal gathering of Israel
a1(ii). and by the laying on of hands <–Modifies–> and in the restoration of the Ten Tribes;
a2(i). by those who are in authority, to preach the Gospel and administer in the ordinances thereof. <–Modifies–> that Zion (the New Jerusalem) will be built upon the American continent;
a2(ii). 6. We believe in the same organization that existed in the Primitive Church, <–Modifies–> that Christ will reign personally upon the earth;
a3(i). namely, apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, evangelists, <–Modifies–> and, that the earth will be renewed
a3(ii). and so forth. <–Modifies–> and receive its paradisiacal glory.
Explanation: The literal gathering of Israel will be accomplished by a man of God chosen by prophecy. The final restoration of the Ten Tribes to their rightful place will be accomplished by the laying on of hands. Zion will be built upon the American continent by those who have proper Priesthood authority who administer in the ordinances thereof. When Christ personally reigns upon the earth, the church will be restored to that same organization that existed in the primitive church. The earth will be renewed through the power of God administered by apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, evangelists. The saints of God on the earth, as well as the earth itself, will receive a paradisiacal glory, when Christ comes again to the earth to rule and reign.
E. Preservation/Salvation.
a1. 7. We believe in the gift of tongues, prophecy, <–Modifies–> 9. We believe all that God has revealed,
a2. revelation, visions, <–Modifies–> all that He does now reveal,
a1. healing, interpretation of tongues, <–Modifies–> and we believe that He will yet reveal
b. and so forth. <–Modifies–> many great and important things pertaining to the Kingdom of God.
Explanation: God has revealed in the past, reveals in the present and will yet reveal in the future using the gifts of tongues, prophecy, revelations, visions, healings and the interpretation of tongues. All such gifts of the spirit will be enjoyed fully as they pertain to the Kingdom of God.
F. The Suffering Servant (becomes the Word of the Lord).
a. 8. We believe the Bible to be the word of God <–Modifies–> we also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God.
b. as far as it is translated correctly;
Explanation: The Book of Mormon is the covenant that “edifies” and “perfects” the Bible. This applies on various levels: (1) the joining of Ezekiel’s two sticks of Joseph and Judah literally, allegorically, ritually and symbolically which constitutes an everlasting covenant in the hand of the Lord (Ezekiel 37:15-28); and (2) the Lord’s Covenant people who are to be Saviors on Mt. Zion to all the Gentile nations. The governing principal of “translation” is implied implicitly and explicitly throughout these levels of understanding and interpretation.
What is a bifid Davidic Chiasmus and its significance?
A bifid structure contains a specific Davidic structure, i.e., a-b-c-d-c-e-f-e-d-c-d-b-a, within its beginning macro “A” structure (as illustrated on Table 3). Each “lower case” theme conforms to the Davidic tri-fold exegesis. The message of the bifid chiasmus is (1) an expansion of the word of God text; (2) the creation of all things spiritually before they are created temporally; (3) the preceding of the Lord’s Servant (Righteousness) before the coming of the Lord (Salvation); (4) the Aaronic and Melchizedek Priesthoods manifested within temple ritual; (5) the eternal progression or path of man that culminates with divinity, even Jesus Christ who is the ultimate pattern.
Why are macro’s “C” and “D” seemingly out of order one-half of the time, i.e., the standard C-D D-C variates approximately one-half the time equally between the structures C-D C-D, D-C D-C and D-C C-D?
| A. B. C. D. E. F. E. D. C. B. A. | A. B. C. D. E. F. E. C. D. B. A. | A. B. D. C. E. F. E. D. C. B. A. | A. B. D. C. E. F. E. C. D. B. A. |
First, the patterned fabric of alternating “C” and “D” elements within prophetico-Messianic literature has effectively hid this six-part thematic outline to the outside world. Because prior analyses have focused on strict symmetrical guidelines for identifying chiasmus and parallelism, this repeated pattern has long been overlooked.
Second, the simplicity of this effective narrative construct discloses that the Lord’s Servant comes on the scene at the same time that Babylon and the Arch-Tyrant are firmly established. By the same token, the Lord’s deliverance of his people through this Davidic Servant takes place when latter-day Babylon and the Arch-Tyrant are destroyed. This time sequence is accomplished in literary form by alternating macro’s “C” and “D” within the text.
Third, the world is instinctively drawn to the Arch-Tyrant in the form of hero worship. He is very popular and viewed as being some kind of Messiah figure. At the same time, the Lord’s Servant is erroneously identified by the world as the Arch-Tyrant. This mismatch can equally be said of the Heavenly Messengers and corrupt agents of Satan sent to the Lord’s Servant in “D” elements. It is one of those intractable facts of human nature, that the Lord’s Servants are always “despised” and “rejected of men.” In the eyes of the world, they are seen as Satan’s ministers whom when confronted are summarily asked to perform some type of miracle to prove their heavenly credentials. The world has always had zero tolerance for a man of God calling them to repentance.
Finally, the alternating contrasting themes build expectation to the reader/listener, and this interplay produces audible dynamics to the mind that are simultaneously resonating and memorable. When all is said and done, it is always the “variation of a theme” that produces the grandest and most awe-inspiring milieu.
What is a Davidic Parallelism?
A Davidic Parallelism is a specific complex parallelism, comprised of six pairs of parallel elements, i.e., A-B-C-D-E-F, A-B-C-D-E-F, that has a repeated Davidic thematic pattern attached to each element. The 132nd Chapter of Psalms is an elegant example of such a parallelism. Notice the symmetry as each Davidic element is wonderfully complemented by its corresponding backside element:
| Frontside A-B-C-D-E-F The Davidic Servant Swears unto the Lord A. Word of the Lord a1. 1. LORD, remember David, a1. and all his afflictions. a2. 2. How he sware unto the LORD, a2. and vowed unto the mighty God of Jacob; B. New Things (The Lord’s Covenant) a1. 3. Surely I will not come into the tabernacle of my house, nor go up into my bed; a2. 4. I will not give sleep to mine eyes, or slumber to mine eyelids, a1. 5. Until I find out a place for the LORD, an habitation for the mighty God of Jacob. C. The World a1. 6. Lo, we heard of it at Ephratah: we found it in the fields of the wood. a2. 7. We will go into his tabernacles: we will worship at his footstool. D. The Lord’s Servant a1. 8. Arise, O LORD, into thy rest; a2. thou, a1. and the ark of thy strength. E. Preservation a1. 9. Let thy priests be clothed with righteousness; a2. and let thy saints shout for joy. F. The Suffering Servant a1. 10. For thy servant David’s sake a2. turn not away the face of thine anointed. | Backside A-B-C-D-E-F The Lord Swears unto His Davidic Servant A. Salvation Song a1. 11. The LORD hath sworn in truth unto David; a2. he will not turn from it; B. Fulfillment a1. Of the fruit of thy body will I set upon thy throne. a2. 12. If thy children will keep my covenant and my testimony that I shall teach them, a1. their children shall also sit upon thy throne for evermore. C. Overcoming the World a1. 13. For the LORD hath chosen ZION; a2. he hath desired it for his habitation. D. The Lord’s Davidic Servant a1. 14. This is my rest for ever: a2. here will I dwell; a1. for I have desired it. E. Salvation a1. 15. I will abundantly bless her provision: a2. I will satisfy her poor with bread. a1. 16. I will also clothe her priests with salvation: a2. and her saints shall shout aloud for joy. F. The Suffering Servant a1. 17. There will I make the horn of David to bud: a2. I have ordained a lamp for mine anointed. a1. 18. His enemies will I clothe with shame: a2. but upon himself shall his crown flourish. Note: Of the entire Davidic structure (vs. 1 – 18), verses 11 through 18 form a direct parallelism, not an inverse parallelism (i.e., chiasmus) with verses 1 through 10. |