style) when a proposition is delivered, and a second is drawn under it, equivalent to, or contrasted with it, in sense; or, similar to it, in grammatical construction; the lines thus opposed to each other by regular contrasts, or assimilated by properly-adjusted conformities, are called parallel lines; and the words or phrases, answering one to another, are denominated parallelisms.

The Bishop of London established the further facts, that the Hebrew parallelism involved in it much variety, and many gradations: that its characteristics are sometimes more accurate and manifest; and sometimes more vague and obscure: but, that it might be generally, and more loosely distributed, into three specific kinds: PARALLELS SYNONYMOUS-PARALLELS ANTITHETIC-and PARALLELS SYNTHETIC or CONSTRUCTIVE.

The system of Bishop Lowth, met (as might have been anticipated,) with some opponents: but the great body of literati throughout Europe, admired, applauded, and adopted it; and several of our own Hebrew and Biblical scholars, applied the discovery, with the greatest success, to the illustration of various poetical portions of the Old Testament. It was not, however, till the year 1820, that his lordship's theory of Hebrew poetry, was fully developed; philosophically analyzed; impregnably established; ingeniously extended; and delicately corrected, (where its minute defects required correction;) when a work appeared from the pen of the Rev. John Jebb, (the present Lord Bishop of Limerick) entitled "Sacred Literature," a volume displaying more than ordinary sagacity and taste *.

"Sacred Literature; comprising a Review of the Principles of Composition, laid down by the late Robert Lowth, D.D. Lord Bishop

The chief correction, or rather, alteration, in Bishop Lowth's system, suggested by Mr. Jebb, was, the change of the term SYNONYMOUS PARALLELISM, into that of COGNATE PARALLELISM: an alteration, whose propriety is established, by the clearest and most convincing reasoning: and by which, a term is obtained, of a much more comprehensive and philosophical character, than that of synonymous—a term that includes all cases of PARALLELISM, in which there is close relationship, but not absolute identity; and which serves the nicely-discriminating, refined, and useful purpose, of distinguishing between different degrees of truth and good on the one hand; and of falsehood and of evil on the other.

Having thus given a slight sketch of the singular, and highly-artificial nature of HEBREW POETRY in general, and consequently, of the rhythmical structure of the Book of PSALMS in particular; it remains, that an example should be submitted to the reader, from these sacred compositions, of each of the three GENERIC PARALLELISMS above describedthe COGNATE: the ANTITHETIC: and the CONSTRUCTIVE

PARALLELISM.

I. The COGNATE PARALLELISM: this arrangement of the members or words, of what, perhaps, we may venture to call the Hebrew stanza, marks, among other features of composition, moral gradation. This, we have already seen, was substituted by Mr. Jebb, in lieu of Bishop Lowth's SYNONY

of London, in his Prælections and Isaiah: and an application of the principles so reviewed, to the illustration of the New Testament; in a series of Critical Observations on the style and structure of that Sacred Volume. By the Rev. John Jebb, A.M. Rector of Abington, in the Diocese of Cashel." London, Cadell, 1820. Since the publication of this volume, Mr. Jebb has been raised to the Irish Bench.

MOUS PARALLELISM. Its example is taken from Psalm i. 1-5.

"O the happiness of that man

Who hath not walked in the counsel of the ungodly,

And hath not stood in the way of sinners;

And hath not sat in the seat of the scornful:

But, his delight is in the law of Jehovah ;

And in his law will he meditate day and night:
And he shall be like a tree planted by rivers of waters;
That bringeth forth its fruit in its season:

Its leaf, also, shall not wither;

And whatsoever it produceth shall prosper.'

The peculiar beauties of this description of PARALLELISM, as exemplified in the first four lines of the above passage; are thus analytically and philosophically developed by Mr. Jebb.

"The exclamation with which the Psalm opens, belongs equally to each line of the succeeding triplet. In the triplet itself, each line consists of three members: and the lines generally rise one above another, not, merely, in their general sense; but, specially, throughout their correspondent members. To walk, implies no more than casual intercourse: to stand, closer intimacy: to sit, fixed and permanent connection: the counsel, the ordinary place of meeting, or public resort: the way, the select and chosen footpath the seat, the habitual and final resting-place: the ungodly, the negatively wicked: sinners, the positively wicked: the scornful, scoffers at the very name or notion of piety and goodness.'

II. The ANTITHETIC PARALLELISM: this description of

PARALLELISM Occurs in those passages, where two lines correspond with one another, by an opposition of terms and sentiments: when the second is contrasted with the first; sometimes in expressions, sometimes in sense only. The example of this PARALLELISM is taken from Psalm xx. 7, 8. "These in chariots, and those in horses,

But we in the name of Jehovah, our God, will be strong: They are bowed down and fallen;

But we are risen, and maintain ourselves firm."

III. The CONSTRUCTIVE PARALLELISM: this peculiar collocation of words, consists, merely, in the similar form of the construction of the lines; in which, word does not answer to word, and sentence to sentence, as equivalent, or opposite; but, there is a correspondence and equality, between different propositions, in respect to the shape and turn of the whole sentence, and of the constituent parts of it; such as noun answering to noun; verb to verb; interrogative to interrogative. To this description of PARALLELISM may be referred, all such as do not come within the two former classes. The variety of this form is, accordingly, very great. Its example is taken from Psalm cxlviii. 7—13.

"Praise ye Jehovah, ye of the earth;

Ye sea-monsters, and all deeps:
Fire and hail, snow and vapour,
Stormy wind executing his command:
Mountains and all hills:

Fruit trees and all cedars :
Wild beasts and all cattle;

Reptiles and birds of wing:

Kings of the earth, and all peoples;

Princes and all judges of the earth:
Youths and also virgins;

Old men together with the children :
Let them praise the name of Jehovah ;
For his name alone is exalted;

His majesty above earth and heaven *.”

An attention to the above remarks on the CONSTRUCTION of HEBREW POETRY; and an application of its principles, even to the Prayer-book version of the Psalms; will enable

* Adopting, as I entirely do, the ideas of Bishops Lowth and Jebb, on the subject of the Hebrew parallelism, I am compelled to differ, toto cœlo, from the ingenious Dr. Blair, as to the origin "of this form of composition among the Hebrews." "The PARALLELISM," he says, in his "Lectures," (vol. iii. p. 169.) "is clearly to be deduced from the manner in which their sacred hymns were wont to be sung. They were accompanied with music; and performed by choirs, or bands of singers, and musicians, who answered, alternately, to each other. When, for instance, one band began the hymn thus: The Lord reigneth; let the earth rejoice:' the chorus, or semi-chorus, took up the corresponding versicle; 'Let the multitude of the isles be glad thereof :' and, in this manner, their poetry, when set to music, naturally divided itself, into a succession of strophes and antistrophes, correspondent to each other." But this statement, I am of opinion, is alike contrary to nature and to fact; and attempts, in vain, to account, by accident, for the philosophical, and curiously-artificial structure of the HEBREW PARALLELISM. If poetry and music were, indeed, sister arts; the former is the first-born. But their parents are not the same. Poetry is the child of Nature: music, the offspring of Art. With the primitive bard, it was the poetical sentiment, that created the harp, "and gave to rapture all its trembling strings:" and the process has continued to be the same through all succeeding ages. Musical notation, (at least, till comparatively modern times) has been the follower and servant of rhythmical composition; and with the Hebrews of old, (as with all other people) the music was adapted to the parallelism, and not that singular arrangement of words, suited to the music.