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1. Investigating Structure 45
The same might be said of Holladay's work. His first book only
tackles Jeremiah 1-20, so there is more detailed argument. There is
also much that seems to me more speculative. He is clearly aware of
the difficulty of proving that particular instances of a word are
significant for structure. He speaks of
two kinds of uncertainties that we shall have to face: the first, that often
we shall not be able to determine with utter certainty that two or more
occurrences of a word (or phrase or whatever) is a significant rhetorical
tag; the second, that while we may be able in certain instances to
determine with certainty that a given repetition is rhetorically significant,
we may still be unable with complete certainty to determine what that
significance is.
He illustrates the first difficulty by the verb "PDK, which occurs four
times in 5.17. Holladay believes that these occurrences balance the
single occurrence in 2.3, despite the fact that 'PDK 'is no rare verb, and
it appears in.. .2.7, 30; 3.24'. He believes that the way to a convincing
argument is by means of 'many bits of interlocking data'. 1 That is
a possible way forward, provided that they really are interlocking
data, that is, pieces of evidence that independently point to the same
conclusions. We must not rely on hypotheses that only stand up when,
like a card house, they lean against each other. Holladay points to
some interesting correspondences, and they seem to be worth
following up in a more rigorous way.
The second difficulty is illustrated by the phrases itfK "oan^htfi TDK
in 11.3, 20.15 and 17.5. 2 He suggests three possible ways in which an
inclusio might be formed by two of these occurrences, but he does not
consider the possibility that Jeremiah did not intend an inclusio at all.
If we assume that there must be an inclusio, then we shall certainly be
able to find reasons to explain its significance. This will not
necessarily be 'interlocking evidence'.
Holladay makes use of other types of similarity and contrast. For
example, in discussing Jeremiah 2 he points out the changes of person
that occur: v. 2 f.s.; 5-10 m.pl.; 16-25 f.s.; 28 m.s.; 29-30 (31?)
m.pl.; 33-37 f.s. 3 This pattern does not seem to be very regular;
1. Holladay, Architecture, p. 25.
2. Holladay, Architecture, p. 26.
3. Architecture, p. 36.