Participant Reference: Tracking the Levite in Judges

In most biblical narratives and even in our English language stories, we first introduce a character/participant using their proper name and then afterwards "track" that character by using pronouns where possible and natural. These pronouns then serve to refer back to that person. This is a well-understood practice.

Example of participant introduced and then subsequently tracked:

• Abram is introduced in Genesis 11:27 and re-introduced by name as the chief human participant in 12:1; the pronouns "you" or "your" in the subsequent verses refer back to him.

Last night, Albert Bickford observed that the participant reference order is reversed in Judges 17-18. This seems to be a rare (perhaps the only) time that the participant is tracked and then "introduced" by name at the end. 

• In Judges 17:7, a Levite is introduced, and he subsequently serves as Micah's "priest" (Judges 17:12) at a time when "everyone did what was right in his own eyes" (Judges 17:6).
• Finally, only at the end of the story do we learn the proper name of this Levite: Jonathan (Judges 18:30).

In some languages, this sort of participant tracking is standard. In others, like in English, French and many others, the participant is introduced first.