Dillard, the Literary Structure of the Chroniclers Solomon Narrative

\JSOT 30 (1984) 85-93]

THE LITERARY STRUCTURE OF THE CHRONICLER'S SOLOMON NARRATIVE

Raymond B. Dillard

Westminster Theological Seminary, Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia PA 19118, USA

Although the subject has been investigated over a much longer period and was formally recognized also in antiquity, there is a sense in which the last ten years of biblical scholarship could be called 'the decade of the chiasm'. Palistrophic or chiastic structures have been identified in the narrative, poetic, and prophetic literatures of the Old Testament.1 The debate around the identification and validity of chiastic structuring as a literary device in the ancient Near East is embroiled in much larger issues; after taking a brief look at the broader vista, we will explore the Chronicler's presentation of Solomon2 as a chiastic narrative, and will look at some possible implications for interpretation.

A. Broader questions

The confluence of several competing streams, each representing differing tools for biblical interpretation, has produced some turbulence in biblical studies. The traditional diachronic3 orientation of most higher criticism is in tension with other emergent tools that demand attention; linguistic structuralism, discourse grammar, and literary appreciation have in common a synchronic approach to biblical materials: texts are explained 'as they are' and as their parts interrelate, irrespective of their presumed development.4 Naturally these two approaches have yielded and will continue to yield competing analyses of the same data.

The discussion of chiasm as a narrative level structure is at the center of this larger debate. Other eddies swirl about the proper methodologies for identifying such structures and how to assess the inevitable role subjectivity plays in literary critical judgments.

86 Journal for the Study of the Old Testament 30 (1984)

Occasionally after reading an article suggesting a chiastic structure for a given passage, one is left with the feeling that it was all done with mirrors, that the labels had been sufficiently doctored as to yield the desired results. Given episodes A and B, the simple act of asking 'what do they have in common' is almost certain to yield a label from some common aspect of human experience; done with sufficient frequency and plausibility, the result is a chiasm, far removed from anything the original author may have dreamt or intended. Some means of control is essential; a set of agreed upon axioms as to what constitutes a valid pairs is indispensable.

The key to identifying chiastic structures is repetition. Verbal repetition takes pride of place as the most easily substantiated evidence. However, repetition can itself be considerably more diverse than verbatim correspondence; it can include catchwords, phrases, literary forms (e.g., speech vs. narration, poetry, fable, etc.), themes, theological vantage, geographical location, main characters, and yet other categories.5 Of course, not all repetition in Hebrew narrative is chiastic. Where repetition is frequent, however, the analyst must at least ask if the narrative has been constructed with a chiastic architecture; if the narrative shows repetition, does it also show the necessary inversion, balance, and climactic centrality?6 At some point the frequency and nature of the parallelism may constrain the conclusion that 'statistical probabilities against accident are overwhelming'7 and that the author has definitely and deliberately used palistrophe as a structuring device.

B. The Solomon Narrative in Chronicles

The Chronicler's presentation of Solomon is a good place to test some of these questions.8 Unlike many Old Testament narratives, 2 Chronicles 1-9 is not a 'dramatic' narrative, i.e. there is no overarching issue which must be resolved to release the suspense or tension built up in the account. Dramatic narratives ordinarily have a 'bell curve' contour: they proceed from the aperture and staging through several episodes which build up the tension in the narrative to that moment of'peak' tension at which denouement is begun; the denouement winds down ordinarily through several episodes which unravel the tension generated by the pre-peak build-up, and finally concludes with an epilogue or postscript. Narratives having such a bell curve must have a certain degree of parallelism: the issues which

DILLARD The Chronicler's Solomon Narrative 87

caused the tension must be resolved in the second half of the story, i.e. a certain amount of repetition is inevitable.9 Due to the inherent repetition such dramatic narratives could easily be metanalyzed incorrectly as chiastic. For such narratives to be judged as chiastic, the analyst must show more than simply the presence of repeated items, but also a deliberate sequential inversion and balance maintained in both sides of the narrative. Since the Chronicler's presentation of Solomon is not in the form of a dramatic narrative, the repetition which does occur is not immediately suspect as the inherent result of the bell curve of drama.

The Chronicler's account of Solomon is also an interesting testing ground due to the fact that Radday, who probably has done more to investigate the device in biblical Hebrew narrative than any other scholar, has concluded that Chronicles could not be chiastic since at the time of composition chiasm was no longer in vogue.10 Looking at the Chronicler's narrative of Solomon provides the opportunity to test Radday's hypothesis that chiastic structures are found only in earlier biblical materials and that the more formally chiastic a narrative is, the earlier it is.11

The following outline approximates the literary structure the Chronicler used in presenting his Solomon; though it could be broken down into smaller units, each of the headings will be described below:

A. Solomon's wealth and wisdom (1.1-17) (Trade in horses, 1.14-17)

B. Recognition by gentiles / dealings with Hiram (2.1-16) (Yahweh's love for Israel, 2.11)

C. Temple construction / gentile labor (2.17-5.1) (Gentile labor, 2.17-18) (Completion of temple, 5.1)

D. Dedication of temple (5.2-7.10)

1. a. Summons -* b. Sacrifice I c - Λ A

\Λ Γ 5.2-14 e. Music I d. Glory cloud J


2. Solomon speaks to the people (6.1-11) a. Exodus (6.5) b. Choice of Jerusalem (6.6-11)

2'. Solomon speaks to God (6.12-42) a. Promises to David (6.16-17) b. Eyes open; hear and forgive (6.18-42)

Γ. d'. Glory cloud c\ Music b'. Sacrifice a'. Dismissal

y 7.1-10

D\ Divine response (7.11-22)

2". God speaks to Solomon (7.12-18) b. Eyes open; hear and forgive (7.13-16) a. Promises to David (7.17-18)

2'". God speaks to the people (7.19-22) b. Choice of Jerusalem (7.19-21) a. Exodus (7.22)

C. Other construction / gentile labor (8.1-16) (Gentile labor, 8.7-10) (Completion of temple, 8.16)

B\ Recognition by gentiles / dealings with Hiram (8.17-9.12) (Yahweh's love for Israel, 9.8)

A'. Solomon's wealth and wisdom (9.13-28) (Trade in horses, 9.25-28)

A/A': Solomon's wealth and wisdom. Thematically 1.1-14 and 9.13-24 both deal with the broad subject of Solomon's kingdom: his consolidation of rule within (1.1, 13) and the recognition of his rule without (9.13-14,22-24). More narrowly both are concerned with his wealth and wisdom.

The strongest connection between these two sections is the nearly verbatim repetition of the information about Solomon's trade in horses and the repetition of the aphorism comparing cedar with sycamore and silver with stone (1.14-17; 9.25-28). This passage occurs in its full form only once in the deuteronomic history of

DflLLARD The Chronicler's Solomon Narrative 89

Solomon (1 Kgs 10.26-29; cf. 4.20,26 [MT 5.1,6]). The Chronicler's repeating the passage early in his history is a clue to his structural intent. Since the Chronicler omitted the material used in Kings to show the fulfillment of God's promises to Solomon (1 Kgs 3.16-4.34)12, the repetition of this material at this point constitutes that fulfillment.

B/B': Recognition by gentiles / dealings with Hiram. The Chronicler has rather extensively rewritten the correspondence with Hiram of Tyre13. At first glance this material may not appear intrinsically paired with the visit of the queen of Sheba, but the Chronicler has given a clear indication of his intention to parallel the two accounts by inserting a separate small utterance into Hiram's letter to Solomon in which Hiram attributes Solomon's rule to Yahweh's love for Israel (2.11). The identical wording is found in the queen's praise (9.8), though it occurs only once in the parallel history (1 Kgs 10.9). The parallel between the two sections is reinforced by the fact that references to Solomon's maritime ventures with Hiram bracket the account of the queen's visit (also in 1 Kgs 8.17-9.12), so that Hiram, who is a focal character in 2.1-16, is also kept to the fore in 8.17-9.12.

C/C: Temple and other construction / gentile labor. These sections are united around concerns with Solomon's building activities; both emphasize his use of gentile labor (2.17-18; 8.7-10). Though 8.10 is concerned with non-cultic construction, the section is linked to 3.1-5.1 by a description of the ceremonial provisions Solomon had made for the temple (8.12-15). The earlier section ended with a note regarding the treasuries and the statement that the work was finished (5.1), and the counterpart ends with a similar note (8.15-16). Unless the Chronicler intends to associate 8.16 and 5.1, 8.16 appears thoroughly out of place; it re-introduces the subject of actual construction and completion of the temple, well after that narration was already completed.14

D/D'\ Dedication and divine response This section is the most convoluted in its general structure. One immediately notes the doubled report of the appearance of the glory cloud and its effect on the ministering priests (5.2-14; 7.1-10); both sections speak of sacrifices and musical accompaniment. It is tempting to explain these two accounts genetically, i.e., by appeal to redaction criticism: since 7.1-3 is unique to Chronicles, this would be designated the Chronicler's account; since 5.11,14 parallel 1 Kings 8.10-11, this could be judged the insertion of a later redactor influenced by the order in Kings.15 If


one allows that the Chronicler has staged the material in a chiastic fashion, a redaction-critical explanation would not be necessary: the two appearances of the glory cloud are one and the same, repeated for structural necessity.16

The two theophanies frame two speeches by Solomon, one to the assembled people (6.4-11) and one in the dedicatory prayer (6.14-42). Though many years have elapsed in the interval,17 the Chronicler's version of the divine response to Solomon's prayer is also twofold: part to Solomon ('you' is singular, 7.12-18) and part to the people ('you' and other personal referents are plural, 7.19-22). As can be noted from the outline, the themes in each part of the divine response correspond to themes in Solomon's speeches, but in reverse order as would be expected in a chiastic outline: D2 corresponds to D2'" while D2' corresponds to D2".

The center of a chiasm is ordinarily the peak moment of dramatic tension or the central interest of the writer. Scholars have long recognized the centrality of cult in Chronicles, and that the Chronicler has written his accounts of David and Solomon largely in terms of their involvement with the temple.18 Though the Chronicler is so concerned with the temple, his actual account of its construction is considerably shorter than that found in the parallel account.19 His account does not focus on the building itself, but rather on the dedicatory addresses of Solomon and the divine response. In Chronicles particularly these speech materials constitute the 'charter' for the remainder of the Chronicler's historiography; the author will seek again and again to demonstrate the realization in Israel's history of the principles announced in Solomon's prayer and in God's response. This is especially clear in that most famous passage in Chronicles, 2 Chr 7.14, a passage unique to Chronicles and overtly articulating the 'theology of immediate retribution' which will guide his subsequent assessment of Israel's history after the schism.20

These speech materials in the center of his account of Solomon constitute the 'spectacles' through which the Chronicler would assess the past.

C. Other Chiastic Structures in Chronicles

The argument for viewing the Chronicler's Solomon narrative as a chiasm would be enhanced if it could be shown that the author in all probability also used the same device as the scaffolding for other


narratives. Hugh Williamson has used chiasmus as a powerful heuristic tool in two difficult passages in Chronicles. In addition to the coronation account found at the beginning and end of 1 Chronicles 11-12, Williamson noted that other features were paired in the chapters; the resultant pattern has at its center the earliest period at which David began to attract support (at the stronghold, 1 Sam. 22.1-5; 23.14; 24.1), followed by the Ziklag period (1 Sam. 27.6; 29-30), and assembling military personnel at Hebron to encompass the full extent of Israel at David's coronation:21

A. David's coronation at Hebron, 11.1-9 B. Support for David at Hebron, 11.10-47

C. Support for David at Ziklag, 12.1-8 D. Support at the stronghold, 12.9-16 D \ Support at the stronghold, 12.17-19

C . Support for David at Ziklag, 12.20-23 B'. Support for David at Hebron, 12.24-38

A'. David's coronation at Hebron, 12.39-41

Williamson's use of chiasm as an explanatory model also brings the genealogy of Judah in Chronicles from disjointed disarray to a sample of studied symmetry.22

It appears then that the Chronicler was familiar with chiasm and did make use of it.23 Whatever speculation scholars may indulge in regarding the history of redaction of the individual pieces and sources the Chronicler had at his disposal, in several extended pericopes there remain the traces of a unitary purpose and of contrivance in structure that most naturally comport with a single author of considerable skill and genius.

NOTES

1. The level of interest in chiasmus in recent years is demonstrated by the publication of a collection of essays edited by John Welch, Chiasmus in Antiquity (Hildesheim: Gerstenberg, 1981). Beyond the extensive bibliography provided there, see also the following: S. Berg, The Book of Esther: Motifs, Themes and Structure, SBL Dissertation Series, 44 (Missoula: Scholars Press, 1979) and G. Wenham, 'The Coherence of the Flood Narrative', FT 28 (1978), 336-48.

2. The Chronicler's distinctive presentation of Solomon has itself been


the object of considerable study, especially in the last decade: P.R. Ackroyd, 'History and Theology in the Writings of the Chronicler', CTM 38 (1967), 501-15; R.L. Braun, 'The Message of Chronicles: Rally Round the Temple', CTM 42 (1971), 502-14; id., 'Solomon, the Chosen Temple Builder: the Significance of 1 Chronicles 22,28, and 29 for the Theology of Chronicles', JBL 95 (1976), 581-90; H.G.M. Williamson, 'The Accession of Solomon in the Books of Chronicles', VT 26 (1976), 351-61; R.B. Dillard, 'The Chronicler's Solomon', WTJ 43 (1980), 289-300.

3. The stereotypical diachronic explanation is offered in terms of the past history of individual units. Things are explained in terms of how they came to be. The analogy in general sciences would be to the sort of explanations offered by evolutionary biology.

4. Scholars committed to operating from a synchronic viewpoint tend too quickly to dismiss diachronic explanations as 'genetic fallacy'. A contemporary scientific analogy would be the approach of ecology or environmental biology—explanations are offered not in terms of how a situation came to be but in terms of the relationships operative at a given moment.

5. See the efforts to classify categories in the following: J. Dewey, 'The Literary Structure of the Controversy Stories in Mark 2.1-3.6', JBL 92 (1973), 394-401; A. Di Marco, 'Der Chiasmus in der Bibel IV, Linguistica Biblica 44 (1979), 21-70; D. Clark, 'Criteria for Identifying Chiasm', Lingustica Biblica 35 (1975), 63-72.

6. These three items are generally accepted as pivotal for identifying chiasm. See, for example, comments of various authors in Chiasmus in Antiquity, ed. Welch, pp. 7, 10, 13, 51, 110.

7. Y. Radday, 'Chiasmus in Hebrew Biblical Narrative', Chiasmus in Antiquity, ed. J. Welch (Hildesheim: Gerstenberg, 1981), 111.

8. I had originally proposed a chiastic structure for the Chronicler's Solomon narrative in the aforementioned article (note 2), pp. 299-300. Since that time I have had the benefit of discussing the Chronicler's Solomon with several doctoral classes in Chronicles. A former teaching assistant, now lecturer in Hebrew at Westminster Theological Seminary, Mr J. Alan Groves, wrote his 1983 Th.M. thesis on 'Chiasm as a Structuring Device in the Old Testament Narrative', in which he examined the device in the Solomon narrative in both Kings and Chronicles; I have profited considerably from his labor, though the structure presented here is my own. For other efforts to explore the Solomon narrative in Kings on chiastic lines, see B. Porten, 'The Structure and Theme of the Solomon Narrative (1 Kgs 3-11)', HUCA 38 (1967), 93-128, and Radday, op. cit., 62-63.

9. Examples where this would apply would include extended narratives like Esther (cf. Radday, op. at., 54-57) or the flood narrative (cf. Wenham, op. cit., 52.

10. Radday, op. cit., 52. 11. Radday, 51, 111.


12. I have discussed these omissions as they are related to the overall handling of Solomon in 'The Chronicler's Solomon', 291-92, 296, and the note on 297.

13. The modifications here are among the most significant departures in the Chronicler's account; see 'The Chronicler's Solomon', 296-98.

14. 2 Chr. 8.13-16a is an insertion into the parallel at 1 Kgs 9.25. Vannuttelli's synopsis should have printed the last clause of 1 Kgs 9.25 so that it was parallel to the last clause of 2 Chr. 8.16, as is done correctly in the synopsis of ben David.

15. This is the approach taken, for example, by W. Rudolph, Chronikbücher, HAT 21 (Tübingen: J.C.B. Mohr, 1955), 211.

16. The flood narrative is commonly recognized to have two competing chronologies separable for purposes of source analysis. Compare Wenham's suggestion (pp. cit.) that the chronology used elapsed-time dating contains double references to the same period, necessitated by the chiastic structure of the passage.

17. In spite of the proximate juxtaposition of the prayer and the response in both Kings and Chronicles, this second appearance came about thirteen years later after the work on the palace had been completed as well (2 Chr. 7.11; 1 Kgs 7.1; 9.10).

18. See in particular the works by Braun and Williamson cited in note 2 above.

19. A variety of factors could account for his surprising abbreviation of the account regarding the temple construction: (1) perhaps he felt the architectural detail was irrelevant to the post-exilic community and its much more modest structure (cf. Hagg. 2.1-9); (2) the Chronicler is widely recognized to rely periodically on the reader's familiarity with the earlier history. We can only swim in the realm of speculation about such a question. 20. See my forthcoming article in the Westminster Theological Journal,

'Reward and Punishment in Chronicles: the Theology of Immediate Retribution'; see also Dillard, 'The Reign of Asa: an Example of the Chronicler's Theological Method', JETS 23 (1980), 207-18.

21. H.G.M. Williamson, '"We Are Yours, O David": the Setting and Purpose of 1 Chronicles 12.1-23', OTS 21 (1981), 164-76; see especially pp. 168-70.

22. H.G.M. Williamson, 'Sources and Redaction in the Chronicler's Genealogy of Judah', JBL 98 (1979), 351-59. 23. This contra Radday; cf. note 10. It is curious that Radday would so

readily close the book on chiasm; its presence extensively in Revelation shows that it is alive and well in the New Testament as well.

^ s

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Dillard, the Literary Structure of the Chroniclers Solomon Narrative