Reading the Poetry of First Isaiah

Reading the Poetry of First Isaiah provides a literary and historical study of the prophetic poetry of First Isaiah, an underappreciated but highly sophisticated collection of poems in the Hebrew Bible. Informed by recent developments in biblical studies and broader trends in the study of poetry, Dr J. Blake Couey articulates a fresh account of Biblical Hebrew poetry and argues that careful attention to poetic style is crucial for the interpretation ofthese texts. Discussing lineation, he explains that lines serve important rhetorical functions in First Isaiah, but the absence of lineated manuscripts from antiquity makes it necessary to defend proposed linedivisions using criteria such as parallelism, rhythm, and syntax. He examines poetic structure, and highlights that parallelism and enjambment create a sense of progression between individual lines, which are tightly joined to form couplets, triplets, quatrains, and occasionally even longer groups. Later, Dr Couey treats imagery and metaphor in First Isaiah. A striking variety of images-most notably agricultural and animal imagery-appear in diverse contexts in these poems, often with richfigurative significance.

“"Couey draws out the best in current arguments on biblical poetry, lucidly updates them, and takes pains to show how an awareness of form bears fruitfully on the poem s meaning. This is a wonderful volume that manages to be both sophisticated and accessible. It is necessary reading for scholars of biblical Hebrew poetry and Isaiah alike."--Biblical Interpretation "Couey approaches his subject with a clear conviction Couey's close readings of selected poems will almost certainly increase the interpreter's appreciation for the literary artistry of saiah Specialists will be grateful for his contribution and share his conviction."--Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society”

Couey has made a splendid contribution not just to the study of Isaiah but to the discussion of Hebrew poetry in general. Peter Hatton, Holiness

Dr J. Blake Couey is Associate Professor of Religion at Gustavus Adolphus College.

Reading the Poetry of First Isaiah provides a literary and historical study of the prophetic poetry of First Isaiah, an underappreciated but highly sophisticated collection of poems in the Hebrew Bible. Informed by recent developments in biblical studies and broader trends in the study of poetry, Dr J. Blake Couey articulates a fresh account of Biblical Hebrew poetry and argues that careful attention to poetic style is crucial for the interpretation of these texts. Discussing lineation, he explains that lines serve important rhetorical functions in First Isaiah, but the absence of lineated manuscripts from antiquity makes it necessary to defend proposed line divisions using criteria such as parallelism, rhythm, and syntax. He examines poetic structure, and highlights that parallelism and enjambment create a sense of progression between individual lines, which are tightly joined to form couplets, triplets, quatrains, and occasionally even longer groups. Later, Dr Couey treats imagery and metaphor in First Isaiah. A striking variety of images-most notably agricultural and animal imagery-appear in diverse contexts in these poems, often with rich figurative significance.

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