Pattern Analysis for Psalm 62:1-12

Within Pattern Analysis, rhetoric is the persuasive portion of a literary unit based on its structure. Certain locations within each literary unit are potentially persuasive–they are presented below for the sake of analysis. Normally, many of the potential locations can be persuasive, but often not all. The student is encouraged to listen to what the Holy Spirit seems to be emphasizing.

Like the imperfect chiastic structures, imperfect parallel symmetries can also have a high impact upon a reader. When an element has been inserted, omitted, transposed to another location, or substantially varied, that then is an imperfect parallel symmetry. This makes the structure look less than totally symmetric. An additional emphasis should be found in an imperfect parallel symmetry at the place of asymmetry.

In a parallel symmetry, these are the two A elements, A-B-C-A'-B'-C'. Sometimes these are a place of emphasis.

Also known as conjugate pairs. It is any two elements that are paired with each other. In some cases, the pair may be emphatic even though they are not in a position of emphasis such as first/first or first/last. For example, in a chiastic A-B-C-X-C'-B'-A' structure, the two B elements might add considerable conviction to the reader or listener.

Some questions seem designed to ask the reader to pause and reflect on his or her own answer. In those cases, the text is intended to slow the reader down and cause them to read the context, listen to what the Spirit is nudging them, gain a fresh understanding, and then respond. Questions are many times emphatic, but it is a mistake to say that most questions are emphatic. Whether any one question is emphatic or not can be subjective.

In a parallel symmetry, this is oftentimes a place of emphasis. For example, in an A-B-C-D-A'-B'-C'-D' structure, the two D elements are in the last/last position.

An element was intentionally removed from one of the two parts: e.g. A-B-C-D-D'-B'-A' where the C' is not provided. The absence only applies to imperfect chiastic and imperfect parallel symmetry structures. The absence emphasizes something is intentionally missing.

A summarization that concludes a basic structure which is designated with the letters SUM. For example, A-B-C-A'-B'-C'-SUM. A closing summary is also known as a concluding epitome, final unit, and an epilogue. It serves two functions: to summarize and to motivate. It is always emphatic and should be easily detected.