Figures of Speech

      As we study our Bibles, we should make a big deal about the proper use of language and rules of grammar. We are not allowed to dispense with the laws of language simply because what is said does not fit our preconceived ideas. However, we must also be aware that authors and speakers sometimes break the laws of language on purpose. We call this using figures of speech.

      There are numerous kinds of figures of speech. E.W. Bullinger produced an 1100 page book defining and describing the Figures of Speech Used in the Bible. Don’t worry, I don’t plan a series of articles covering all the figures he outlines (however, I do recommend the book for your further study).

      Whether we know it or not, we use them all the time. When the sports announcer said, “He fired that pitch like a bullet,” or, “He threw a hail Mary,” he used figurative language. When we say, “My yard drank the rain up,” we use figurative language. When Muhammad Ali said, “I float like a butterfly, sting like a bee. Your hands can’t hit what your eyes can’t see,” he was using figurative language.

      Some, misunderstanding the nature of figurative language, wonder why God allowed such language in His Bible. Wouldn’t it have been better to simply write everything out in a straightforward way that no one could misunderstand? Even straightforward writing is subject to interpretation. We must not think that the lack of figures would make understand the Word fool-proof. Wouldn’t it be better if the authors always just said what they meant? We must not believe figurative language means the author said something other than what he meant. Figurative language simply means we have to think outside the box to understand what was meant.

      There is a great reason for using figures of speech. Figures are like speed bumps. Lest we skim over something important, a figure of speech causes us to stop and wonder, “What on earth does that mean?” It makes us dig and compare passages to get to the bottom of the seeming problem. A figure of speech has been well described as truth standing on its head to get attention.

      Finally, figures make our reading enjoyable. Which of the following would you rather read in Psalm 51:7-8? “Please, forgive me and help me be happy again.” Or “Purify me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Make me to hear joy and gladness, Let the bones which You have broken rejoice.” One leaves us with a homework feeling to Bible reading. The other evokes mental images and deep emotions and causes us to want to keep reading.

      Figures are a necessary and important part of scripture. We need to learn some of the most basic figures that we may rightly divide the Word when we stumble over them. We will cover some of the most important figures in our next article.

Edwin L. Crozier