Poetic Devices for God's Glory
by Jonathan Molengraf
I am sure some people read the title and had flashbacks of their high school English teacher belittling them because they could not identify a metaphor. While I am an English teacher, my hope is to not make you feel silly, but show you how these literary features glorify God. Let’s take a look at Isaiah 44:21-22 and see how God’s glory is being shown through a chiasmus and simile.
Chiasmus
Verse 21 employs a chiasmus structure, repeating words in reverse order like a mirror. This device appears throughout scripture, most famously in Matthew 19:30, “ But many who are first will be last, and the last first”. The word “first” we would label A and “last” we would label B. Thus, the structure is ABBA, which creates a reflective effect. Verse 21 does something similar:
A: Remember these things,
B: O Jacob, and Israel,
C: for you are my servant;
D: I formed you;
C: you are my servant;
B: O Israel,
A: you will not be forgotten by me.
The structure is ABCDCBA which emphasizes God’s love for his people. He first instructs us to remember what was previously stated: that idols are worthless. Then concludes by assuring us that He will not forget us—He will remember us. Notice, in the middle of this chiastic structure is the phrase, “I formed you”. This identification highlights how we have always belonged to God. Then the repetition reaffirms that God’s children will always belong to Him. Even if we revert to the folly of idolatry, we will still be His.
Simile
Similes are more familiar to us. I learned them from listening to rap music as a teenager. A simile figuratively compares two unlike things by using “like” or “as”. Verse 22 has two of them, “I have blotted out your transgressions like a cloud / and your sins like mist”. God removes our sins in the same way a cloud or mist vanishes. Just as a cloud dissipates from the sky, so too does God remove our sins through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, who paid the price for our transgressions.
Isaiah ends the verse with, “return to me, for I have redeemed you”. God has made our sins disappear, but that does not mean we should disappear from God. This is a false teaching known as antinomianism, which suggests we have license to live in sin since it has already been paid for. Instead, it is God’s kindness that leads us to repentance (Romans 2:4). God has a hold on us and all of the world's strongest men could not break His grip. We should not abuse this gift. For we are dead to our sins and should now glorify God as His new creation (Rom. 6:1-2, 1 Cor. 6:20, 2 Cor. 5:17).
Chiasmus
Verse 21 employs a chiasmus structure, repeating words in reverse order like a mirror. This device appears throughout scripture, most famously in Matthew 19:30, “ But many who are first will be last, and the last first”. The word “first” we would label A and “last” we would label B. Thus, the structure is ABBA, which creates a reflective effect. Verse 21 does something similar:
A: Remember these things,
B: O Jacob, and Israel,
C: for you are my servant;
D: I formed you;
C: you are my servant;
B: O Israel,
A: you will not be forgotten by me.
The structure is ABCDCBA which emphasizes God’s love for his people. He first instructs us to remember what was previously stated: that idols are worthless. Then concludes by assuring us that He will not forget us—He will remember us. Notice, in the middle of this chiastic structure is the phrase, “I formed you”. This identification highlights how we have always belonged to God. Then the repetition reaffirms that God’s children will always belong to Him. Even if we revert to the folly of idolatry, we will still be His.
Simile
Similes are more familiar to us. I learned them from listening to rap music as a teenager. A simile figuratively compares two unlike things by using “like” or “as”. Verse 22 has two of them, “I have blotted out your transgressions like a cloud / and your sins like mist”. God removes our sins in the same way a cloud or mist vanishes. Just as a cloud dissipates from the sky, so too does God remove our sins through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, who paid the price for our transgressions.
Isaiah ends the verse with, “return to me, for I have redeemed you”. God has made our sins disappear, but that does not mean we should disappear from God. This is a false teaching known as antinomianism, which suggests we have license to live in sin since it has already been paid for. Instead, it is God’s kindness that leads us to repentance (Romans 2:4). God has a hold on us and all of the world's strongest men could not break His grip. We should not abuse this gift. For we are dead to our sins and should now glorify God as His new creation (Rom. 6:1-2, 1 Cor. 6:20, 2 Cor. 5:17).
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