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How Old Testament Writers Built Suspense

  |  Thu, July 19, 2012   |  Products   0

Think about the last suspenseful movie you watched. Remember the music that played just before something (typically bad) was about to happen? Imagine what the movie Jaws would have been like if there wasn’t that deep two-note dah-dum, dah-dum. Half the fun of those movies is knowing something is just about to happen. It’s the anticipation that often puts us on the edge of your seat.

We do something similar when we tell or write stories. Here’s what I mean. What if I were to say something like: “I heard a sound in the attic, so I walked upstairs. And as I was walking up the stairs . . .” What would you expect to come next? Instinctively you’d expect something surprising to happen right after this repeated sentence. The suspense is created by a linguistic device called Tail-Head Linkage. Tail-Head Linkage involves the restatement of an action from one sentence (the tail) at the beginning of the next one (the head). Repeating the information slows down the story and builds suspense because something surprising or important is about to happen.

The biblical writers use Tail-Head Linkage in the same way. In the Lexham Hebrew Discourse Bible and the Lexham High Definition Old Testament the  symbol is used to mark each place  in the Old Testament Tail-Head Linkage appears. Let’s look at an example.

Genesis 39 recounts the story of Joseph’s refusal of Potiphar’s wife’s advances. After resisting her day after day, the scene comes to a climax in v.12. Potiphar’s wife grabs Joseph’s garment, attempting to entice him again, but Joseph drops his garment and runs away.

Although we expect to immediately read of her reaction to Joseph’s blatant rejection, Tail-Head Linkage slows down the action. Notice that all the content of the second half of v.12 is repeated in the first half of v.13. This slowing down of the story builds suspense and tells us something important is about to happen. In this case, we find out that, rather than letting the incident go as she had done before, she concocts a story blaming Joseph for attempting to force himself on her. This false accusation leads to Joseph’s imprisonment, setting the scene for his eventual rise to second-most-powerful ruler in Egypt.

The Lexham High Definition Old Testament and Lexham Hebrew Discourse Bible locates each instance of Tail-Head Linkage in the Hebrew Bible It allows you to get the benefit of seeing how these devices work without knowing the original language. Locating these devices and understanding how they work help you more vividly and accurately communicate Scripture to others in your preaching and teaching.

For those who have studied Hebrew or are comfortable working with an interlinear, the Lexham Discourse Hebrew Bible includes the Lexham High Definition Old Testament. Having both resources enables you to see the detail of the Hebrew and then what that looks like overlaid on the ESV translation. These two resources come bundled together with an introduction and glossary written to help you understand the function of each device.

For more information about the Lexham Hebrew Discourse Bible and the Lexham High Definition Old Testament, check out these posts:

What’s in a Name?

  |  Fri, July 13, 2012   |  Products   0

Have you ever noticed that some Old Testament figures are given one name when they’re introduced and then referred to by a different name or expression as the story unfolds? Think of the various names and expressions used for God throughout the Old Testament. We know they’re used to highlight a particular aspect of God’s character, but did you know that the same thing happens with other biblical figures too?

Believe it or not, the biblical writers did this for the same kinds of reasons we do it! Here’s what I mean. As I returned home from work a few weeks ago, Bri greeted me with the following statement: “your daughter put the TV remote into the dishwasher and it got washed.” Notice she didn’t say, “Estelle put the TV remote . . .” or even “Our daughter put the TV remote . . .” She purposely phrased it this way. Why? Calling Estelle “your daughter” in this context conveyed a specific meaning: my wife’s innocence in Estelle’s action and my (genetic) culpability. The subtle but deliberate mode of reference was very meaningful. We see the same sort of thing happening in the Old Testament.

In 1 Samuel 9, we meet Saul, Israel’s first king. In all but a few places, he is referred to by his given name. Several times, however, the writer changes from Saul to king. Why? Changed reference devices most often highlight a particular quality of the person referred to. The highlighted feature forces us to change how we view that character in the particular context. This change results in a unique and specific meaning.

The Lexham Discourse Hebrew Bible and the Lexham High Definition Old Testament each use the  symbol to mark each changed reference. Let’s take a closer look at how it’s used in 1 Samuel.

In 1 Samuel 20, David and Jonathan hatch a plan to find out just how intent Saul is on killing David. The plan involves Jonathan lying to Saul, informing him that David has chosen to go to Bethlehem rather than attend the feast of the new moon, where Saul expected David to be. If Saul becomes angry at the news of David’s absence, then David and Jonathan will know for sure that David’s life is in danger.

In the climactic scene recounted in 1 Sam 20:24, we read: “When the new moon came, the king was seated at the feast” (LEB). As Saul learns of the reason for David’s absence, he flies into a murderous rage vowing to put an end to David’s life. He’s so out of control that he even throws a spear at Jonathan, attempting to murder his own son!

Is this how a king is expected to act? No! Each time that Saul is referred to as king, we find him acting very, well, unkingly.

The use of king rather than Saul highlights Saul’s role as king just as the climactic scene begins. This forces us to view him in light of the character traits one expects God’s anointed king to have. But Saul’s behavior in this scene is anything but that of a righteous king. Referring to Saul as king in the context of unkingly behavior conveys a specific meaning: Saul’s unworthiness to serve as God’s anointed king.

When we look at each place in 1 Samuel that king is substituted for Saul, we find that this occurs only in parts of the story where Saul’s actions appear less than kingly! As you can see, these changed references are exegetically significant, but they’re easily overlooked or misunderstood.

The Lexham Discourse Hebrew Bible and Lexham High Definition Old Testament help you to get the most out of your Bible study by annotating each changed reference, as well as 29 other exegetically significant discourse devices. We’ve included an introduction and glossary to help you understand the function of each device. The Lexham High Definition Old Testament is a terrific resource for those who haven’t studied Hebrew. It includes nearly  all of the devices marked in the LDHB.

The Lexham Hebrew Discourse Bible comes bundled with the Lexham High Definition Old Testament, along with an introduction and glossary for each database. These resources will be shipping soon. The initial release will provide an analysis of Genesis–Isaiah, with the entire Hebrew Bible/Old Testament scheduled for completion by the end of 2013.