Abstract
“Reading biblical poetry” considers the elements of Hebrew biblical poetry and how they differ from biblical narrative: lineation and a collapsed syntax that often drops particles and pronouns to achieve compression of the line. Biblical poetry, unlike biblical narrative, is brimming with a wide range of figurative language. It alludes more freely to mythological contexts and to God’s concrete intervention in history. Biblical poetry is often presented as direct discourse, the first-person voice, and shows willingness to give access to the inner lives of its speakers. Verse was also reserved for more specialized, highly rhetorical uses and was the preferred form for the aphorism.
