A OLD TESTAMENT POETRY Purposes The underlying purpose of the poetic books is common to all Scripture, whether the book be didactic or inspirational Apply Timothy 3:16-17 here Because the poetic books are charged with feeling, they appeal especially to the human emotions and will, and so are very persuasive in exhorting and reproving The poetic writings deal with problems and experiences common to all mankind, which make them timeless and universally attractive J Sidlow Baxter writes of this These books portray real human experience, and grapple with profound problems, and express big realities Especially they concern themselves with the experiences of the godly, in the varying vicissitudes of this changeful life which is ours under the, sun Moreover, experiences which are here dealt with were permitted to come to men in order that they might be as guides for the godly ever afterward These experiences are here recorded and interpreted for us by the Spirit of inspiration through “holy men of old” who spoke and wrote “as they were moved” by Him Thus, in these poetical books we have a most precious treasury of spiritual truth.3 Main Types There are three main types of Hebrew poetry: lyric, didactic, and dramatic a) lyric This type is called lyric because the poetry was originally accompanied by music on the lyre Religious lyric poetry expresses the poet’s emotions as they are stirred by and directed toward God Most of the Psalms are lyric W T Purkiser observes that “while there had been lyric poetry even before Moses, the form grew in beauty and sensitivity until it reached its highest point of perfection in David, the ‘sweet singer of Israel.’”4 b) didactic This is sometimes referred to as a gnomic type, because the unit of thought is a gnome, or maxim The main purpose is to share observations and evaluations of life, not to communicate feeling as such Proverbs and Ecclesiastes are examples of this type c) dramatic In Hebrew drama, the action is mainly that of dialogue, to get across thoughts and ideas Job and the Song of Solomon are of this type Characteristics Some of the distinguishing characteristics of Hebrew poetry are the following: a) Hebrew poetry does not depend on rhyme or meter as such, but is built around a thought pattern.5 This allows the author much liberty in terms of the structure of a single line, and accounts for the large variety in line lengths, from very short to very long b) The unit of Hebrew poetry is the line A pair of two lines (called distich) usually constitutes a verse But tristichs (three lines) are common, and some stanzas include tetrastichs (four lines) and pentastichs ( ve lines) (Read Psalm 37 and note the variety of combinations of lines.) c) Hebrew poetry brings out the color and vitality of the Hebrew language The language’s makeup invites this For example, the most prominent part of speech in Hebrew is the verb, the action word The language’s grammatical structure is simple and direct (There is no indirect speech in the Hebrew Old Testament.) Metaphors and antitheses6 appear often in the text, and ... is the verb, the action word The language’s grammatical structure is simple and direct (There is no indirect speech in the Hebrew Old Testament. ) Metaphors and antitheses6 appear often in the. .. note the variety of combinations of lines.) c) Hebrew poetry brings out the color and vitality of the Hebrew language The language’s makeup invites this For example, the most prominent part of. .. drama, the action is mainly that of dialogue, to get across thoughts and ideas Job and the Song of Solomon are of this type Characteristics Some of the distinguishing characteristics of Hebrew