Definition of Pattern Analysis
Pattern Analysis is a fresh approach to the Bible—an analytical toolbox of literary devices for pericopes, otherwise known as literary units.1 One consistent method is presented that brings a rich understanding of the text from Genesis to Revelation.
There are different ways repetitions appear—Pattern Analysis teaches how these repetitions and other literary devices are organized. A chiasm is one of the more common literary devices, but even that is just beginning to be known today. The fun is in identifying these literary devices, seeing how they interplay with one another, and then discovering their emphatic portions.
The Evidence
I am a mathematician who has researched and developed this approach for nearly ten years. The name Pattern Analysis is mine, a collection of forty (40) literary devices. Many of the techniques in pattern analysis have been established by scholars—some are new. Pattern Analysis bundles them into a consistent computer-based approach where every verse analyzed conforms to this methodology.
Of the 31,000 verses in the Bible, 26,000 have been analyzed by this Pattern Analysis methodology. Certainly not all, but eighty-four percent (84%) is a big sample. The Torah, Minor Prophets, and New Testament have been completed with some larger Old Testament books remaining.
This Frequency Chart from Pattern Analysis gives strong evidence that the Torah, New Testament, and remainder of the Scripture seem to have the same underlying thought process. On that chart, the 40 literary devices show compelling similarities for each of the nine (9) genres. For more information, see Pattern Analysis of Scripture.
1. A pericope (pronounced pur-ic’-o-pee, not to be confused with the word periscope) is a literature unit such as a story, poetic piece, or prophesy. Pattern Analysis is the study of pericopes: how they are organized and how they persuade.