Form and Word-Play in David's Lament Over Saul and Jonathan

Abstract

FORM AND WORD-PLAY IN DAVID'S LAMENT OVER SAUL AND JONATHAN BY WILLIAM L. HOLLADAY Beirut It is not the fashion in our day to pay heed to an individual, identifiable voice speaking through a given passage of Old Testament material. The historical and literary criticism of the past century has (rightly) nourished our skepticism regarding most of the tradi- tional, conventional attributions of authorship. Form criticism (again rightly) has recalled us to the function which literary units play in the life of the community, and hence the way in which the community has adopted (and adapted) the creations of an