When you’re listening to audio of podcasts or sermons or whatever, do you usually sit there taking notes? I don’t. I’m usually up to my elbows in mud at my pottery wheel, actually. Which gets gnarly when I want to do something on my phone… I tried a waterproof case for a while. It kept my phone clean but it also kept me from being able to use my phone.
Occasionally a term will come up that piques my imagination and I have to wipe my hands off and get a note into my phone to help me remember. A few years back, Dr. Bob Stein was speaking and he taught about the term merism.
This is a succinct term that describes an expression which refers to something by its polar extremes. Examples to illustrate:
- Tree of knowledge of good and evil
- Refers to all knowledge
- As far as the east is to the west
- That is all the distance
- Solomon talks about going out and coming in
- All of his activity
- Jesus came to preach peace to those who are far off and near
- All the people get to hear peace
Isn’t that a cool way to describe all of something? It’s so poetic!
Tiny Bible Study Bite. Really more of a nibble.
Bible Study Nibble:
Ooh that is super cool! that’s going to change how I read those phrases. Considering how often they come up in scripture, I shouldn’t be surprised they’re basically idioms!
I’m glad you find it helpful!