“Oh, that my words were written! Oh, that they were inscribed in a book! That they were engraved on a rock with an iron pen and lead, forever!” (Job 19:23-24, NKJ)
Now that we have a better understanding of WHO the Word of God is, it is also important to realise that everything, EVERYTHING, all of history, the past and the future, is contained therein. Because we read the Bible syntagmatically, in other words as one would normally read a book, word for word, sentence for sentence, paragraph for paragraph, etc, it may seem strange to some people that the Word should also be read paradigmatically. In this way, more and more of what is hidden in Him and what comes from Him is revealed.
A simple definition of the concept ‘paradigmatic’ is that sounds, syllables, words, phrases, etc, should be read independently of the immediate context. For example: Ps 42:5 is as follows: “Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him for the help of His countenance.” Verse 11, a few verses later, is clearly a parallel: “Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God; For I shall yet praise Him, the help of my countenance and my God.” If you notice that the verses are almost identical, then you will realise that verse 5 and verse 11 are emphasising something very important, and therefore a large emphasis is also being placed on that which differs between the verses: “the help of His countenance” versus “the help of my countenance”. To notice something like this is one way of reading paradigmatically.
Similarly you can begin to see patterns, even loose from the context in which they occur. These patterns are called codes in contemporary literary theory. Thus you see in Isa 53 and Ps 22, for example, clear Messiah codes that correspond to what happened to Jesus the Messiah.
Another example: throughout Scripture you can recognise the two types of women that oppose each other: Their nature is clearly contrasted in Paul’s ‘presentation’ of their symbolic meaning in Gal 4:21-31, where Hagar and Sarah are used to contrast the “freewoman” and the “bondwoman” and, in so doing, illustrate the old and new covenants. But this pattern is also clearly seen in Rachel and Leah, Abigail and Michal, Esther and Vasti, along with the “seductress” of Prov 7 as opposed to the Prov 31 woman. And later in Revelation one sees the whore of Babylon versus the Bride of the New Jerusalem. When you begin to read the Bible in this manner, then a number of paradigmatic meanings come to the fore that you would not have discovered if you read the Bible in the traditional manner!
And Job already knew J: clearly all the words of the Book are engraved in the Rock!
- Sela: Find your own example of reading the Scripture paradigmatically.
- Read: 1 Sam 9; Ps 127 & 128 ; Luke 6
- Memorise: Ps 127:1-2
- Going deeper: You will now begin to realise why you had to study literature at school – to read better, my child! A study of Ottone M Riccio’s The intimate art of poetry will open your eyes regarding Scripture, even if it is a book about reading poetry.
