15 Because you have said,
A 1 “We have made a covenant with death,
2 And with Sheol we have made a pact.
3 The overwhelming scourge
4 will not reach us when it passes by,
B 1 For we have made falsehood our refuge
2 and we have concealed ourselves with deception.”
C 16 Therefore thus says the Lord GOD, “Behold, (a) I am laying in Zion (b) a stone, (c) a tested stone, (c’) a costly cornerstone (b’) for the foundation, (a’) firmly placed.
D He who believes in it will not be disturbed.
C’ 17 “And I will make justice the measuring line, And righteousness the level;
B’ 1 Then hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies,
2 And the waters shall overflow the secret place.
A’ 1 18 “And your covenant with death shall be canceled,
2 And your pact with Sheol shall not stand;
3 When the overwhelming scourge passes through,
4 Then you become its trampling place.
I can’t believe you used anything other than the KJV for this passage, one of my favorite in Scripture and one that clearly demonstrates the ample superiority of the KJV over any other “living” translation.
Check it out for yourself, read it aloud, the poetry of the KJV is unrivalled.
Otherwise, decent site! Thanks for the chiasmuses–I finally appreciate this unique insight, esp as it lends to the power and poetry of some of my favorite Bible passages…! 🙂
Hmmm. Interesting thought. You may be right. Perhaps I’ll have to check out the KJV. I happen to use the NASB because, from what I’ve heard, it’s the best word for word translation out there. I’m thinking it may thus bring out the chiastic connections a bit better.
Take care 🙂
15 Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves:
16 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner [stone], a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.
17 Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place.
18 And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it.
I think your chiasmus remains rather intact! 🙂
In fact, it may actually be clearer. Note “hid ourselves” in v. 15, and “the hiding place” in v. 17. Nice.
Nevertheless, to be honest with you, I think I’ll probably stick with my long time favourite translation, the NASB. I’ve used it ‘forever’. A good, thoughtful suggestion, though. I really do appreciate it. 🙂
I wonder if the KJV would work as well in every case? It would be interesting to know. Something to check out at some point …