Handbook for Bible Students

The Poetic Books

The Old Testament was popularly divided into the Law, Prophets, and Psalms. Luke 24:44. The Psalms include five poetical books, from Job to Solomon’s Song inclusive. HBS 38.3

The genius of Hebrew poetry is peculiar. It does not depend on rhyme or rhythm, meter or melody, but on parallelism, or the arrangement of thought in corresponding or parallel sentences and stanzas. The poetry lies rather in the relation of the thoughts than the words; there is a rhyme and rhythm of ideas. [p. 37] HBS 38.4