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Scripture in Tradition: The Bible and its Interpretation in the Orthodox Church
    by John Breck

Paperback, 245 pgs.
St. Vladimir's Seminary Press, 2001

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This book offers a fresh look at the way Eastern patristic writers used Scripture in elaborating what would become the body of Orthodox doctrine.  It begins with a discussion of the aims and methods of biblical interpretation as they were developed particularly among the Greek Fathers.  The second section introduces the reader to the ancient literary form known as "chiasmus" and shows how important a proper "chiastic" reading of the biblical text can be for revealing its "literal" meaning.

Hardcover, 338 pgs.
Baker Books, 1999

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The Literary Structure of the Old Testament is an outstanding work and is the first comprehensive treatment of chiasmus of the Old Testament books and its significance for understanding their meaning and message.  The Old Testament authors conveyed meaning and emphasis by the way they structured their writings according to ancient Near Eastern methods.  Most modern readers are not aware of this, and thus, this volume will be pivotal to their understanding of the Old Testament Scriptures. more

Paperback, 204 pgs.
Chalice Press, 1999

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Far from the scissor and paste notion of modern biblical criticism of Mark's Gospel, the author argues for Mark's master craftsmanship of rhetorical form by employing literate compositional art.  The book documents the chiastic structure for the entire Gospel of Mark, divided into nineteen narrative complexes. more

Poet & Peasant and Through Peasant Eyes
     by Kenneth E. Bailey

Paperback, 440 pgs.
Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1994

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This volume is a combined edition of Poet and Peasant and Through Peasant Eyes, Kenneth Bailey's intensive studies of the parables in the gospel of Luke. more

The Literary Development of John 13--17: 
            A Chiastic Reading
     by Wayne Brouwer

Hardback, 188 pgs.
Society of Biblical Literature

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The chiastic reading of John 13--17 presented in this study results in an interpretation of the farewell discourse that addresses a number of important issues in Fourth Gospel studies.  more

Hardcover and paperback, 358 pgs.
University Press of America, 1997

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Three survey chapters prepare for discussion of ten biblical books from representative genres spanning Genesis through Revelation.  Divine Symmetries considers the relationship of shape to meaning in the pattern of selected units within each book.  An appendix on the Sermon on the Mount guides the reader through a practical methodology.  Divine symmetries offers a highly visual approach to seeing the shape of Scripture on the Bible's own terms.  Extensive indexes and bibliography are provided.  more

Chiasmus in the Pauline Letters
    by Ian H. Thomson

Hardcover, 258 pgs.
Sheffield Academic Press, 1995

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The main purpose of this study is to show how the identification and analysis of chiasmus in the Pauline letters is a far more valuable and precise tool in the exegete's hands than many have previously realized.  However, some of the earlier work in this whole filed has left an unfortunate legacy that makes it essential to approach it very carefully indeed.  more

Hendrickson Publishers, 1992
(presently out of print)
Paperback, 434 pgs.

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''Man was not made for the Sabbath, but the Sabbath for man.'' That's inverted parallelism or ''chiastic structure,'' and since the 1942 publication of this landmark study, you can hardly read a commentary without finding a reference to it. Lund's work shows how Jewish speech and thought patterns influenced New Testament writers, challenging the assumption that they wrote without literary training or intention.  more

Paperback, 356 pgs.
Research Press Reprint Edition, 1998

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The study of ancient literature has been enriched in the twentieth century by the growing awareness and understanding of the presence of chiasmus.  This form of inverted parallelism has been found in the Bible and in other ancient writings, where it adds beauty and helps to reveal meaning.  The essays in Chiasmus in Antiquity, first published in Germany in 1981, examine the use and effect of chiasmus in both the Old and New Testaments, as well as in Sumero-Akkadian, Ugaritic, Talmudic, Greek, and Latin Literatures.  Readers will also find useful the extensive bibliography and index of what had been written up to 1980 on each identifiable chiastic passage.  more

Paperback, 199 pgs.
Research Press, 1998

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In 1981, an significant bibliography of works on chiasmus was published in Chiasmus in Antiquity.  Chiasmus Bibliography extends that bibliographic effort by including a large number of relevant works published or located in the last two decades.  Students of this literary form will find Chiasmus Bibliography an invaluable guide to the growing body of scholarly writings on this subject.

Hardcover, 128 pgs.
The Penguin Group, 1999

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This is the first popular book ever published on the literary and rhetorical device known as chiasmus (ky-AZ-mus). If you aren't sure what chiasmus means, you have a lot of company. Most people--even the most sophisticated and literate people--don't. Chiasmus occurs when the order of words is reversed in parallel expressions. While you may not be familiar with the word, you're well acquainted with the phenomenon, for it shows up in thousands of famous sayings, like "Failing to plan is planning to fail," "Quitters never win and winners never quit," and "When the going gets tough, the tough get going." Some of the most clever, thought-provoking, and memorable things ever said or written are examples, like JFK's famous "Ask not what your country can do for you" line and these other provocative examples . . . more