1 0 0 5 INTR O D U CT I O N TO WI S D OM I NTRODUC TION TO THE BO OK O F W ISDOM Th e b oo k en titled 'The Book o f W isdo m' b yt he Vul ga t e i s k n owrr in t he G reek m an u scrip ts a s 'T he W i s do m of S o lo m o n' . It s fir st s e c t i o n de fi nes th e functio n o f wisdom i n m a n' s d e stiny a nd c o m p a res th e f at e o f th e go od a nd t h e b ad d u rin l ife an d a ft e r, ch . 1- 5 . T h e s ec o n d s ect i on , 6 -9, t r e at s of th e o r ig in an d n at ur e o f w i sd om a nd o f h ow i t i s t o be wo n. T he l as t sec tion, c h. 1 0-1 9 , c e lebr ates th e pa rt pl a y ed b y W is do m a n d b y G o d in t he h isto ry of t he ch osen p eople a nd , i f we e x cept a br i ef in tr od u cti on , i n o ne s in g le bu t cr itical eve nt i n th a t h i s to r y, th e d e li veranc e f ro m E gy p t. T h is t h i rd se ct ion co ntains als o a long a nd ex haust ive d igressio n on i dolatr y , c h . 13-1 5. T h e au thors hip i s at t ribu ted t o So lomo n w ho , t h ough no t n am ed, is clearly i nd ic a te d in 9 :7-8 ,12 . Th e s peake r i s re pr e s e nt ed a s a k in g , 7 :5: 8 :9 -1 5 , a d d ressing h is f ell ow k ings , 1 :1 ; 6 : 1 -11,2 1. It is ev i dent , ho wever , t ha t thi s i s a l iter ar y d evice ; as wit h Ec clesia s tes an d the So ng of Song s, t hi s w i sd om book i s p ub lish ed u nd e r th e p atro nage of t h e na me bo rne by I s ra e l ' s g re ates t sage . A nd i ndeed t he w ho le book is w ritt en in G r ee k (includin g th e fi rst s ection, ch . I-5 , wro ngly s u pposed by so me s c h o la r s to h a ve be en o rigin a ll y w rit ten in Hebrew ) . T h e un ity of a u thor ship i s apparent in t he c losely k nit co m position o f th e bo ok a n d lso in t he co n s i stency o f a li te rary s t y l e whic h is s u p pl e an d e xpress i ve a nd , w he n n eed a rises, or at orical. T here is no doubt th a t th e a ut ho r i s a Je w : h e is d e vot e to ' t he Go d o f the f a t h er s ', 9 : 1 , a nd proud t o b e l on g t o 't h e h o ly people', a 'b l am eless ra ce', 10 : 15 . B ut h e is a h ellen ised Je w . T h at h e d we lls on t he e vents o f th e Ex od u s, co nt ras ts E gypt i a ns w it h I sra e lite s a nd a ttack s a nima l w o r ship s ho ws th at h e liv ed i n A l ex a n d r ia, c hief cit y o f th e h e lleni sti c w o rld u nd er th e P to l e rn i es a nd ho me of s o m an y J ew s o f t he D ispers io n . W he n t he a u t ho r qu ot es S cripture it is fro m th e Se pt ua g in t , t he G reek v ersio n t hat c am e f r om t hese c ir cles . He l ived, there fore, a fter thi s versio n w a s m ad e bu t b ef o re Phi lo of A lexand ria ( 20 B .C. - 54 A .D.) of w hose work h e kn ow noth ing : i t s eems that he wro te to wa r ds the m iddle o f th e I s t c entu ry B .C. T h e a ut h o r i s writ in gf r h i s fe ll ow J ew s w ho se f it hi s sh ak en b y th e attract i on o f t h e cu ltura l life o f A lexandria , i ts i mposing p hilo sophic al sys tems, i ts ad v ance i n t he p hys ic a l sc ience s , i ts f a scinating mystery r eligion s , a s trolog y, H ermeti c do c trin e s, it s sed uc tive pop u lar c ults . Neverth eless , he h as th e paga n s in mind too, h op i ng to le a d them t o G od the l over o f a ll men ; cer tain re marks an d t urns of p h rase be tray th i s int en t ion . But th e i ntent ion r em ai n s a s ec o nd a r y o ne ; t he b o ok i s very m uc h mo re conc erned wit h safe gu ardin g Je ws th an wit h co n c ili a ti n g paga n s. G i v e n th e author 's ci r c um sta nces , h i s c ulture an d hi s p urpose , it i s no t su r p r is i ng t ha t h is w o rk h a s mu ltiple co n t ac ts wi th G r ee k th o ug h t. T h e si g nifi cance o f thes e, h o we v er , m us t no t be exa ggerated . His h ellen i s tic ed uc ation provid ed hi m wit h a ra n ge of abstra ct te r ms a nd an ea s y f a mi li ar it y wit h pr oc ess e s o f a rgument bey on d th e ca p ac ity o f t he Hebr ew voca bu lary a nd synt a x . T o t hi s s a me educati on h o wes s evera l philosoph i cal te r m s , ca t egor ie s o f cl a ss ific a ti on an d a c ad emi c to p ic s. B ut thi s re stricted a n s u perfi ci a l d ep enden ce does no t m e an in t ell ctua l co mmitment : th e a ut ho r borrow s o nly t o g ive e xpressio n to i d e a s de r i v i n g f r om th e O l d Te s tament i t s e l f. O f t h e v a r io u s s ch o o ls o f p hil ph y of a s log ic a l s p ec u l a t io ns h e p ro b a bl y k new n o m or e t ha n th e a ver a ge cultured ma n o f hi s ow n p l ac e an d t im e . T he a ut h o r is neith er a p hi l o s op h er n o r a t h e o lo gi a n: h e i s a t yp i ca I s age of Isra el. Lik e th e wi sdom wr it e r s b e for e h im h e comme nd s w is do m , or n o f G od , obta in ed by p ra ye r, m ai n s prin g o f a ll th e v i r tu e s, so ur ce o f e ve ry go o d . B ut h e o ut s trip s h i s predeces s or s, a dding t o t h e s um o f thi s w i sdom th e m ost r ecent ac hi e v em e nt s of h u m a n kn o w l edge, : 1 7-21 ; 8 : 8 . Th e probl em o f r etri buti on , f or so l o n g t he s t u d y of th e s ages , e f. Intr oduction t Wi sd om Boo k s, find s it s so lut i o n i n t hi s book . T he a u t ho r m a ke s u s e o f t h eP l at o ni c dis tin ct io n of b od y f ro m s o ul , c f. 9: 1 5 , a nd o f th e d o ct r in e of th e im morta lit y of th e s o ul t o proc la i m t ha t G od h a s made m a n i mp er i s h a bl e, 2 :23, a nd t ha t i ncor rupti on i s th e rewa rd o f w i sd om a n d t he wa y t o Go d , 6 : 1 8- 1 9 . T his l if e i s on l y a pr ep ar ation f or a n ot h er in w h ic h th e v ir t u o us l i v e w ith G o d an d t h e wi c k ed ar e puni s he d , 3 :9- 10 . l l r s d octr in e o f G od 's attrib ut , W i s do m , i s t radi t ional. W i sd om w as act i ve in t he w ho le w or k o f c re a t io n a n d W i sd om c a r ri es h i s t o r y t o i t s g oa l. T he qu a liti e s a ss i g ned t o Wi sd om a re f ro m c h . II onwa rd s attribu ted t o Go d him s elf, b ut t hi s i s bec a u s e W isdom a nd G o d i n h i s fu nction or wo r l d r u l e r ar e th e s a me t h i ng . Wi sd om , h o w e ve r , i s ' an e manat i o n or th e g l o r y o r t h e A lmigh ty . . . a re fle ct ion of t h e et ernal li gh t. . . a n imag e o f hi s go o d n ess' 7 : 25 - 26 , a n d i s t h er e fore di stin g ui sh ed fr om Go d . T h e a ut h o r , it s ee ms , go es n o fu rt h er t h an t he o t he r w i s do m writ er s h er e ,c f. I n tr o du c ti o n t o W i s do m Bo ok s : i t d oc s n ot a p pe ar t h at h e g ive s Wi sd o m a n e xi st e n ce o f it s o w n: b ut t h e w ho le p a s s age o n t he na ture or W i sdo m , 7 :22 -8:8 , i s a s te p f orward in h e e xpressio n or the t rad it io n a l id ea s a nd a deepe r pe rception o r t h e m. I t i s no t s u r p r i si ng th at th e New Te s ta m e nt d raw s u po n t hi s p a s s a ge lo r i t s t he o l o gy o ft he Wo rd' C o l. 1:1 5-1 6 : H cb 1 : 3 , a nd e spe cia l ly S t Jo h n ,.I nI pas sim: 3: 16 - 1 7: 5 :2 0 . T he au t h o r wa s n o tt h e fir s t t o ma k e a s u rvey of Israe l' s hi s t o r y . Be nS ir a h a b e en b ef or e him , Si 44-50 , c f. a l so Ps 78, 1 05 , 10 6, 135 , 1 3 6; b ut h i s o r igina l ity em erge s in t wo way s. In t he first p lac e h e l o ok s f or e x p l anat io n s o f t h e fa ct s a nd o utline s a re l i giou s p h ilo s o ph y o f h i s to r y beh ind w hic h li e s a f r e sh in t e rpr eta tion of t he t e xts : so , f or ex a m p le , hi s d i s qu i siti on on th e m o d er a t i o n th a t G o d exe rc i s e d toward s E gy pt an d C a n a a n, 1 1 :1 5 - 1 2: 2 7 . Seco n d l y, an d more s ig ni fi c a nt l y , h e m anipul a te s t h e bib li c al na r r ati v e i n t h e int er e st s o f hi s t he si s. I n c h . I (1- 19 . a s u sta i ned con tra s t b etwe en th e f ortun es or Egy p t i a n an d Isr ae lit e, th e au t ho r fi ll s o ut t h n a rr at ive w it h im a gin at ive e le me n ts , d ra w s t o g et h er ep i sodes w hich in e lTe ct wer e d i s co n n ec ted, make s t he fa c t s more th an l ifc si z c . A l l t h i s i s an ex ce lle nt e xa mple of r nid rash , t he ex ege t ical m e t h od pr a ctised la ter b y th e ra b bi s. T astes h a ve c ha nged an d t he Boo ko f W i sdom has l o t i t s o rig in a l imp act , b ut t s fir st se ct i o n , c h . 1 -9 ha s mu c h t o o ffer t he C h r ist ia n mind , a nd th e litu rg y h a s m ad e genero u s u s e of i t. rn &l
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Th e book en titled 'The Book o f Wisdom' by the Vul ga te is k nowrr in the
G reek man u scrip ts a s 'T he W isdom of So lo mon' . It s first sec tio n de fines th e
function o f wisdom in ma n' s d estiny and comp a res th e fat e o f th e go od a nd
t he bad d u ring life an d a ft e r, ch . 1-5. T he sec ond sect ion , 6-9 , treat s of the
o r igin an d nat ur e o f wisd om a nd o f how it is to be wo n. T he las t sec t ion,
ch. 10-1 9 , ce lebrates th e pa rt pla yed by W isdom a nd by G od in the h isto ry
of t he ch osen pe o pl e a nd , if we except a br ief in trod ucti on , in o ne s ing le bu t
cr itica l eve nt in th a t histo ry, th e deliverance from Egypt. T h is th ird sect ion
co ntains als o a long and ex haus tive d igressio n on idolatr y, ch . 13-15.
T he au thorsh ip is at t ribu ted to So lomo n who , t hough no t nam ed , is clearly
ind ica ted in 9 :7-8 ,12 . Th e speake r is re pr esent ed a s a king, 7:5: 8:9-15, add ressing
h is fell ow kings, 1:1 ; 6: 1-11,2 1. It is ev iden t , however, tha t thi s is a literar y
d evice ; as wit h Ecclesias tes an d the So ng of Songs, t his wisd om book isp ub lished unde r the patro nage of the name bo rne by Isra e l' s g reates t sage.
A nd indeed t he who le book is written in G ree k (including th e first sect ion,
ch . I-5 , wro ngly supposed by so me scho la r s to ha ve been o rigina lly w rit ten
in Hebrew ). T he un ity of a u thorship is apparent in the c losely knit co m position
o f th e bo ok a nd a lso in t he co nsistency o f a lite rary style which is supple an d
express ive a nd , whe n need a rises, or at orical.
T here is no doubt th a t the a ut ho r is a Jew : he is d e vot ed to ' t he Go d o f the
fa t h er s ', 9:1, and proud to belon g to 't he ho ly people', a 'b lam eless race', 10: 15.
But he is a hellen ised Je w. T hat he dwe lls on t he events o f the Exod us,
co nt ras ts Egypt ia ns wit h Isra elites a nd a ttacks a nima l wo rship shows th at he
lived in A lex and r ia, chief cit y o f th e he llenisti c wo rld und er th e Pto le rnies a nd
home of so many Jew s o f the D ispers io n . W he n the a utho r qu ot es Scripture
it is fro m th e Se pt uag in t, t he G reek versio n tha t cam e from these circles . Helived, therefore, a fter thi s versio n was mad e bu t befo re Phi lo of A lexand ria
(20 B.C.- 54 A .D.) of whose work he kn ow s noth ing : it seems that he wro te
to wa rds the m iddle o f th e Ist centu ry B.C.
T he a ut ho r is writ ing fo r h is fe llow Jews who se fait h is shak en by the attract ion
o f th e cu l tura l life o f A lexandria, its impo si ng philosophical systems, its ad vance
in the phys ica l sc iences, its fa scinating mystery religions, a strology, Hermet ic
do c t rines, it s sed uc tive pop u lar cults . Nevertheless, he ha s th e paga n s in mind
too, hop ing to lead them to G od the lover o f a ll men ; cer tain remarks and
tu rns of ph rase be tray th is int en t ion . But th e intent ion rem ai ns a sec o nd a ry
o ne ; t he book is very muc h mo re concerned wit h safegu arding Jews th an wit h
co nc ilia ti ng pagans.
G ive n th e author 's ci rcum sta nces, his cul ture an d his purpose, it is no t
su rp r is i ng tha t h is wo rk ha s mu ltiple co n t ac ts wi th G r ee k th oug h t. T he signi
fic a nc e of these, however , m us t no t be exa ggerated . His hellen istic ed ucation
provided him wit h a ran ge of abstract te rms a nd an ea sy fami liar ity wit h
pr ocesses o f a rgument bey on d the ca pac ity of the Hebrew vocabu lary a nd
syntax. To thi s same education he owes severa l philosoph ical te rms, ca tegor ies
o f cl a ss ifica tion an d acad emi c to p ics. But thi s re stricted a nd superficia l
dep enden ce does no t mean in tell ectua l co mmi tmen t: th e a ut ho r borrows only
to give expressio n to id ea s de r iving from th e O ld Te st ame n t itse lf. O f the va rio us
sch oo ls o f philosoph y an d of a str o log ica l spec ula t io ns he p ro ba bly knew no
mor e than the aver age cultured ma n of his own place and t ime .
T he a ut ho r is neither a phi losopher no r a theo logia n: he is a typ ica I sage of
Israel. Lik e the wisdom wr ite rs befor e him he commend s wisdo m, born o f G od ,
obta ined by pra ye r, mai n spring of a ll th e virtu es, so urce of eve ry good . But
he o ut strips h is predeces sor s, adding to the sum o f thi s wisdom th e most recen t
ac hieveme nt s of huma n knowledge, 7: 17-21 ; 8:8. Th e problem o f retri buti on ,
for so lo ng the st udy of the sages, ef. Introduction to Wi sd om Books, find s its
so lut io n in this book . T he a utho r ma kes use o f the Plat o nic dis tin ct io n of bod y
from so ul , c f. 9: 15, a nd o f th e doct r ine of th e immorta lit y of th e so ul to proc la im
tha t G od has made ma n imp er ishable, 2:23, and t ha t incor rupti on is th e rewa rd
o f wisd om a nd the wa y to Go d , 6: 18- 19 . T h is life is on ly a pr ep ar ation for
a not her in wh ic h th e vir tuo us live with G od an d the wicked ar e punished ,
3:9- 10.
l l rs d octr ine o f G od 's attrib ute, W isdom , is t radi t ional. Wisd om was act ive
in t he who le work o f c rea t io n a nd W isd om ca r ries h isto ry to its goa l. T hequ a liti es a ss igned to Wi sd om a re fro m ch . II onwa rd s attribu ted to Go d
him self, b ut thi s is bec a use W isdom a nd G od in h is fu nction or wo rld ruler ar e
th e same th ing . Wi sdom , howeve r, is 'an emana tio n or th e g lo ry o r the
A lmigh ty . . . a re flect ion of t he et ernal ligh t. . . a n image of hi s go od ness'
7:25 -26, a nd is ther efore di stinguish ed from Go d . T he a ut ho r, it see ms , go es
no fu rt her than t he o ther wisdo m writer s her e , cf. Intr odu ctio n to W isdom
Book s : it d oc s not a p pe ar that he g ives Wi sd om an existence o f its own: but
t he who le pa ssa ge o n the na ture or Wisdo m, 7:22-8:8 , is a ste p forward in th e
expression or the t rad it io n a l id ea s a nd a deepe r pe rce pt ion o r them. It is no t
su rp r i sing th at th e New Te sta ment d raw s upo n this passage lo r its theo lo gy
oft he Wo rd' Co l. 1:15-16 : Hcb 1:3, a nd espe cia lly St Jo hn,.I n I passim: 3:16-17:
5:20 .
T he au tho r was no t the first to make a su rvey of Israe l' s hi sto ry . Ben Sira
had been befor e him , Si 44-50 , c f. a lso Ps 78, 105 , 106, 135, 136; but h is o r igin
a lity em erge s in two way s. In the first place he look s for exp lan a t io ns o f the
fa ct s a nd o utline s a re ligiou s philo so ph y o f h isto ry beh ind whic h lies a fresh
in te rpr eta tion of the texts : so , for examp le, hi s d isqu isiti on on th e moder a t io n
tha t G od exe rc ised toward s Egy pt an d Ca naa n, 11:15- 12:27. Second ly, and
more signi fica nt ly, he manipula te s the bib lical nar rati ve in the int er est s o f hi s
the sis. In ch. I (1- 19. a susta ined con tra s t between th e fortun es or Egy pt ia n and
Isr ae lite , th e au t ho r fills o ut the na rrat ive wit h ima gin at ive e leme nts , d ra ws
toget her ep isodes which in e lTect were d iscon nec ted, makes the fac ts more th an
lifcsizc. A ll th is is an ex ce lle nt example of rnid rash, the exege t ical method
pr actised la ter by th e ra bbi s.
T astes have cha nged an d t he Boo k o f W isdom has lost its o rig ina l impact ,
but its first sect io n, ch . 1-9 , ha s much to o ffer the C hr ist ia n mind , a nd th e
p, Th e 'god less ' here a re primari ly re negade and
nrc tltantc Jews who persecut e t heir fello ws and defy
God : t he naa ans. however , a re not excluded.II. Lit. ' to be long to his portion ', T he wicked are
t he 'por t io n' o f Dea th , as Israel is th e port ion o f God,Dt 32:9 : Zc 2:16-:2 M 1:26. a nd as G od is the 'p ort ion'
of th e fait hful SOUl. Ps 16:5 : 73:26 : 142:5.2 a , Pess imi stic verdi ct : the author ha s jus t comr a
d ieted i t, ~ b, O r poss ib ly 'who has re tu rned ' , in which case
Ha de s (Sheol ) wo uld mean . as in Rv 1:18, t he dwe lling
place of thc dea d , Nb 16:33-, fro m which there is no
re turn , J b 7:9 I ,a nd no lon ger t he powe r of per sonifiedDea th as in 1: 14 and Rv 6:8.
c. A llus ion to ancient t heo ries on the origin of
t hought. •
His view of the crea tion is basically onrimis tic. T he
uni verse as created by God was harm onio us. cf. G n l ,
ami co ntai ned ne ithe r dea th nor harmfu l anima ls. Thec rea tion enjoyed peace such as Isa iah saw renewed in
the mess ianic fu tu re , Is 11:6 + , Go d is t herefore no t
the ca use of ev il o r of dea th. whic h do no t howeverp roceed fro m any independent p rincip le. Ma n by his
s in has sp oi led the orde r of t he wor ld and int rod uced
the sup r em ed iso rder, death. as the nega tio n of Go d'screa tive ne t. cf'. G n But the only rea l and ir reparable
dea th is that o f t he wicked , that is to say, of tho se inwhom sin is nur sed and ca ll cont inue its fata l work . Thev irt u ou s man rema ining fai t h fu l to G od ' the lover of
life' , 11:26. suffers o nly an app arent dea th : immorta lityis in s tor e for him . S t Paul, Rm 5: 12-2 1.t-., cf. I Co 15:
35-37, will elabora te thi s doct rin c . intr odu cing theant ithes i s of t he o ld sinful Ad am an d the new sa ving
Adam : St Jo hn wil l speak of dee th' s de s tru ct ion on theda y of jud gemen t, si n' s agents being condemned to the
' seco nd deat h' , Rv 1 21:4,8,m. God , ' He-who-is' , Ex 3: 14 +, ca use d a l l thi ngs
10 "be ' ,n. ' il ad es' , the lI ebr. Sheol , N b 16:33 + , here
repre sen ts not t he dwe lling place of the dead but the
powe r o f nersonifled Death , cr. Rv 6:8: 20:14.0, T he man who pract ises ' virtue ', cr I: I+. is
ass u red o f immo rt a lity. Vet. La t. add s ' but injustice
(vice ) is t he obta ining of death ' ,
'Our life is shor t and drea ry, "
nor is there any relief when ma n' s end comes,
no r is anyone known who can give release" from Hades.
By chance wecame to birth,and after thi s life we shall be as if we had never been.
The breath in our nostrils is a puff of smoke,
reason a spark from the beating of our hea rts :«
put thi s out and our body turns to as hes,
and the spir it melts away like idle a ir.
In time, our nam e wi ll be forgotten,
nobody will remember what we have done;
our life will pass away like wisps of cloud ,
dissolve like the mist
that the sun 's rays dri ve away
and the hea t of it overw helms.
Yes, our days are the pass ing of a shadow,
from ou r death the re is no turning back,
the seal is set : no one returns .
I JI . By ·..Irt ue' (G reek dikuiosune, Hcbr. svdea .
'rigbrc u usuess". ' justi ce") is to be: u nd er stoo d perfec taccord o f minJ anJ act wit h t he divi ne will as mani fes ted in the p recep ts o f the Law and the injunct io ns of
conscience.
b . To ' jwJ ge' is t he pr imar y fun criou of eovernmcnt.By a li tera ry fiction the author poses as So lomon ,
9:7-S,12, ad dr essinu hi s fel low kings ; in fac t he isadmonishing his Jewish cor nnat r to ts thre ..n cncd by their
puaa n surroundtuus.c , 'Sec k G od ' is a recur rent prescript ion in pro
phctic an d wisdo m literature, d . Am 5:4 + ,d , T he body is not evil i n i tself bu t may become
the ins t rum e nt of si n and t hu s dominate the so ul.Sr Pa ul. Rill 7:14-24, and St John, >- :34, give au t hor i
ruu ve express ion \0 thi s idea.e, Var. ' the ho ly spirit of Wisdom '. Reference to
the d ivine power d irecting man 's life : t he tex t finds its
hig hest a pp lica t ion , however , in the Hol v Spirit,
J n 14:26.r. Tex t o bscure , Lit. ' is co nfut ed ". ' th wart ed ' .
g. 'Wisdom is a spirit' ; va r. ' T he spi rit o f wisdo m'
h. Lit. ' kid neys'; co nside red the cent re of the emo-t ion s a nd of ins tinct ive impu lse , Pr 23:16 ; Ps 16:7 :
73:2 1; J b 19:27: in the ' hea rt' is locali sed co nsciousact ivity o f intel lect ami o f will. ' Hea r t" and ' kidneys'
arc frequent ly asso cia ted. Ps 7:9: 26:2 : Jr 11:20 ; 17:10 :20: 12; Rv 2:23, to ~ ' a ll man ' s inn er fo rces,
i , A phra se from the Stoic voca bu lary, emphas ising
the func tion o f the sp i ri t o f the Lor d which maintain st he cosmos in un ity (cr . the pa n as cr ibed to C hrist,
Co l I :17 : Heb I:3). The notion is new: t h e 0 ,'1' knewGo d as sole creator . G n I r ; Is 4-2:H r- . bu t h a d con s ide red his activit y i n t he universe onl y from the po int of
view of omniscience and ubiqui ty, Am 4:13: 9:2-3 :
Jr 23:24 : I K 8:27: Jb 34:21-23: Ps 139:7- 12 : Si 42 :18-20.i. Li t. ' ha s knowle dg e o f sounds ' , T he li tu rg y of
Pentecost applies th is text to the "gift of to ngues' ,
Ac 2:2-4.k . Wit h God a nd his providen ce .I. The au thor is th inkin g simulta neou sly of phys ical
and o f sp iri tu al dea th which ar e inte rco nnected ; s in isthe ca us e of dea th , and physi ca l d eat h fo r t he s inne r is
a lso spiri t ua l and ete rn al deat h. Th e thou ght of theauthor moves imperc epti bly from o ne to the o ther,
Life as the godless see it
But the god less" call with deed and word for Death ,
co unti ng him friend, they wear themselves out for him,
with him they ma ke a pact,
and arc fit to be his partners. q
Fo r they say to themselves, with their misguided reasoning:
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THE BOO K OF
W ISDOMI. W IS DOM AND MAN'S DE STI NY
seek ing God and rejecti ng evil
Love virt ue," yo u who are j udges on earth , "
let honesty prompt yo ur thinking about the Lor-d,
seck himr in simp licity of hea rt ;
since he is to be found by those who do not put him to the test,
he shows himself to those who do not distrust him.
But selfish inten tions d ivorce fro m God;
and Omnipotence, put to the test, con fou nds the fool ish.
No, Wisdom wi ll never make its way into a craft y sou l
no r stay in a body tha t is in deb t to sin ;,1the holy spir it of inst ruction " shu ns deceit,
it stands aloof from reck less pu rposes,
is ta ken aback/ when iniquity appears.
Wisdo m is a spirit, " a frie nd to man ,
though she will not par d on the wo rds of a blasphemer,
since God sees into the innermost parts of him,"
tru ly observes his heart ,
and listens to his ton gue .
The spirit o f the Lo rd , indeed , fills the who le wo rld.
and that which hold s all things toget her ! knows every word that is said )
The man who gives vo ice to injust ice wil l never go unnoticed,
nor sha ll avenging Just ice pass him by.For the god less man's de liberat ions will be examined,
and a repo rt o f his words will reac h the Lordto convict him of his crimes.
There is a jea lous ca r that overhea rs everyt hing,
no t so much as a murmur of complaint esca pes it.
Beware, then , of comp laining about no thing,
and keep your tongue from find ing fault ;"
since the mos t secret word will have repercussions,
and a lying mou th dea ls death to the soul.
Do not court deat h by the er rors of your ways ,
nor invite dest ruction through yo ur own actions.
Death' was not God 's doing,
he tak es no pleasu re in the extinction of the living.
To be-for this he created a ll ;m
the world's crea ted things have hea lth in them,
in them no fata l poiso n can be found,a nd Had es" holds no power on ea rth;
T his is th e way th ey reason, bu t they a rc misled ,
their mali ce makes them blind .
T hey do no t know t he hidde n thi ngs o f God ,
th ey have no hop e that holiness will be rewarded,
they ca n see no reward fo r blame less so uls.
Yet G od did mak e man imperish abl e,
he made him in the image of his ow n nature ; «
it was the dcv il' s envy tha t br ought de a th into the wo rld, "
as those who ar e his partner s will discover .
Better be barren than have godless children
Blessed the barren woma n ' if she be blameless,
she who ha s known no guil ty bed ;
her fruitfu lness will be see n at the scr uti ny of souls. '
Blesse d, too , the eunuch" whose ha nd has com mitted no crime ,
who has con templated no wrong agai nst the Lord;
fo r his loy alt y spec ial favour will be granted him ,
a most des i rab le portion in the temple of th e Lo rd .'
F o r t he fruit of hones t labou rs is glo rious ,
a nd th e roo t of understandi ng does not decay.
If they experienced punishment as men see it ,
the ir hope was r ich with imm or ta lity;"
sligh t was their affliction, great will thei r blessings be.
Go d ha s pu t th em to the testr
an d proved them wor thy to be wit h him ;
he has tested them like gold in a fu rnace,
an d accepted th em as a holoc aus t.
When the time comes for his visitat ion" t hey will shine out ;
as sp arks run th rough th e stubble, so wi ll they. '
They sha ll judge nati on s, rul e over peop les,
and the Lo rd will be thei r king for ever.T hey who t rust in him will und erstan d th e tr uth,
those who a re fa ithful will live with him in love;"
for grace an d mercy await those he has chosen."
But the godless wi ll be dul y puni shed for thei r reas oning,
for neglecting the virtuous man and deserting the Lo rd .
Yes, wretched are th ey who scorn wisdom a nd dis cipline:"
their hope is vo id,
their toil unavailing,
t heir ach ievements unprofitabl e ;
the ir wives a re reck less,
th eir ch ildren depraved,
th eir descendants accursed.
ow
1:15 :2 :23 + ;6:18
Rm 8:182 Co 4:17
Jb 23:10Ps 17:3 : 26:2Pr 17:3
6:20Dn 12:3M II 3:43
Ps 149:7fDn 7:27I Co 6:2
Rv ; :10: 20:4-6Pr 28:5I Co 13:121 I n 3:2
4: 1Is 54:1
Heb 13:4
Is56:3-7
Ps 16:5-6
1:15 : 2:23
12:1 IPs 109:9-10Si 4 1:5-6
b. This wor d , appearing here in th e O.T . for the
first time. gives p hi losophica l exp ression to the hope
of th e Psa lmis t who co uld no t res ig n h imse lf to the loss
of in t imacy with Go d th rough death. Ps 16: 10 + . Theresur recti on o f the body , 2 M 7:9 l- is not env isaged
here.c. So rrow tests and purifies the vir t uous . Ps 66:10:
119:75 : Pr 3 :1 1-IZ: Tb 12: 13; Z M 6:12- 17: 7:32-33:
I Co 11:32 : Heb 12:11.d. Lit . ' in the day of their visita tion' . cf. Ex 3:16 ';".e. Svmbol lslng t he rrturnnh of Israe l over all ene
mies . who perish like s tub ble in t he fire. Is 1:3 1 (LXX );
J r 5:14: z, 12:6 : MI 3: I9.C K nowledge and love together co ns t it u te the
happ iness of t he faithful . cr In 15:9f: 17:3,26 .g , ' thos e he has chosen' va r. 'sai nts ' . Add 'and for
his sa ints a reward' .h. T he wisdo m in Quest ion is prac tical : life dir ected
by wisdom. hence vir tuous. It is achieved by di scipline.
1:5: 2: 12: 6:17: 7:14.i. Steril ity was considered a dtser ace or a punish
men t. fe rtilit y was a s tgn of God's blcsslng : to the
barr en but virtuous woman is he re ascribed a spiritual
fr ui tfu lness.I . Lit. 'she will have fruit in the visltauon of so uls '.
' Yi sttut ion ' here. cf . 3:7-i-, mea ns the da y of Judgement,
ch 5.k . Eunuchs were excluded from the com munity of
Israel. D t 23:2.I. r.e. in heaven .
d vu lg. adds ' le i no meadow be f r ee of our excesses' .
e. Sa rcasm: the 'vi r tuous man' ( the faithful Jew) is
'poo r' despite the prom ises o f scr ipture. Ps 37:25:i 12:3 : Tb 4:21: Pr 3:9- 10 : 12:21. etc.
r. The very persons whom sc ripture bids us res pect
and defen d .g . Literary influence of Is 3:10(LXX) .
h. Boa st of t he fait hfu l Je w. cr. Rm 2:17-20.l . Echo of the opinio n of the ancient wor ld on the
Jewish peo ple as separ a ted fro m th e rest of mankind
by thei r be liefs and behaviour .J. Pos sibly alluding to the story o f Jo b. 42:12-15.
cr. Jm 5: II . On the ea rt hly reward o f the virtuous, see
Introduction to Wisdom Books .k . VUhL ' Let us observe wha t happens to him. and
we shall knowwh at sort of end he himse lf will have' .I. l .e . the loya l Alexandr ian Jew s derided and per
sec u ted by renegades and the ir pagan a l lie s. I n thispa ssage Chr istian trad it ion sees a foresh ad owing of the
Pass ion of Chris t, the esse ntially Virtuous. an d the
ta rget for the hat r ed o f s inners. Heb 12:3. cf . Mt 27:43 .m . ' na ture' : va r . 'etern ity'. ' likeness ' .
n. 'dev il" in t he LX)( rend ers the Hebr. Sa ta n.cf. J b 1:6+ . Here the aut hor is inter-pret ing G n J.d . Rv 12:9 : 20:2 : I n 8:44 : I I n 3:8 . Th e deat h in trodu ced by the devi l is sp irit ual. wi th physical deat h as
Its co nsequence. cf. 1:13+ : Rm 5:12f.
3 a, No t. as in Is 57:2 : Jb 3:I7-HI. freedom fro msu ffering but possession of all good in intimacy wit h
God, VV . 7-9.
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'C ome then, let us enjo y what good things there ar e,
use this crea tion wit h th e zest o f yo uth:
tak e our f ill of the dear es t w ines and per fum es,
let not one flower of spr ing t ime pas s us by,
before they wither crow n ourse lves with roses."
Let non e of us forgo his par t in o ur o rgy ,
let us leave th e signs o f our revelry everywhere,
this is our por t io n , th is thc lo t assigned us.
' As for the virt uo us man who is poo r,' Ict us op press him ;
let us no t spa re th e widow ,
nor respect o ld age, white-ha ired wit h man y yca rsJLet our strengt h bc th e yar dstick of virtue,
since weak ness a rgues its own futility.
Let us lie in wa it for th e virtuous man , since he a nnoys US "
a nd o ppo ses our way of life,
reproaches us fo r our breaches of th e law
and acc uses us of playin g fa lse to our upbringing.
He cla ims to have kn owledge of G od,"
and ca lls himself a son of th e Lo rd .
Befo re us he sta nds, a rep roo f to ou r way of thinking,
th e very sight o f him weigh s our spirits down ;
his way o f life is not like other men 's,
th e pat hs he tr e ad s a rc un familiar .'
In his op inion we a re co unterfeit;
he holds a loo f fro m our doings as tho ugh from filth ;he proclaim s the fina l end of the virt uou s as ha ppy/
a nd boa st s of having Go d for his father.
Let us see if what he says is t rue,
let us o bserve wha t kind o f end he himse lf will ha ve"
If the v irt uo us ma n is G od's so n, God wi ll tak e his pa n
and rescue him from th e cl utches o f his enemies.
Let us test him with cruelty a nd with torture,
and thus ex plore this gent leness of his
and put his endurance to the proof.
Let us co n demn h im to a shamefu l deat h
si nce he wi ll be loo ked a rter-w e ha ve his word fo r it ."
But the so u ls o f the virt uous a re in the han ds of God,
no torme nt shall ever touch them .
In the eye s of the unwise, they d id a ppea r to di e,
th ei r going looked like a d isaster ,
th eir leaving us, like a nnihila tion;but they a re in peace."
m. 'Ad ultere rs' mea ns either renegade J ew s, o r
Jews married to pagans, or else ad u lterers in the litera lsense of the wor d, whether Jew or pa gan.4 a. Lit. ' they imit a t e' ; var. ' t h ey hon our ' .
b. The metap hor of the games an d the victo r's
crown is elabora t ed in the N.T ., I Co 9:24+.c. Lit . 'a t t heir exa mination ': e ither at t he j ud ge
ment or whe n they are pun ished on earth; whe therthe pro nou n refers to par ents, ch ild ren, o r bot h, is
uncert ai n.d . Happ iness a nd lon g life on ear th were considered
the reward of the virtuous, D t 5: 16; 30:20; Ps 21:4;23:6 : 91:16: Pr 3:2; Si 1: 12, etc . His ear ly dea th se t a
p robl em to wh ic h the aut ho r of Ws gives the fi na lanswer. Cf. Introduction to Wisdom Books.
e . Lit. ' the peo p les': var. ' others' .
12: IISi 16:4
3, 13Si 16:3
Pr 1 0,7
5, 16
Si 23:25:40,15
Ps 5M,9
3,3 ·Is 57:1-2Jh s:»Dn U :50
Si25:4-6
Pr 16:31
Gn 5:24Si 44: 1 (1Heb J 1 5
Is 57: I
is 57:1
3:2S i 4:12
Ps 37:1.\:5tJ xPr 1:26
4
The
But children of ad ulterers , m these shall have no future,
the o ffspring of an unlawful bed must vanish.
Even if they live lon g, they will count for nothing,
thei r o ld age will go unhonoured at the last ;
whil e if they die ea rly, they have neither hope
no r comfort on the day of doom .
Yes, harsh is the fa te of a race of evil-doers .
Bet te r to have no children yet to have vi rt ue,
since immorta lity perpetuates its memory
and God and men both think highly of it.
Present, we imitate i t,"abs ent , we long for it;
crowned, it hold s triumph thr ough eternity,
having st riven for blameless prizes and emerged the victor . «
But the swarming brood of the god less sha ll bring no advantage ;
offsp ring of basta rd stock, it will never strike deep roots,
never put dow n firm foundations.
Bran ch out for a t ime they may;
but , fra illy rooted , they will sway in the wind,
be torn up by the vio lence of the storm;
hard ly grown, their branches will be snapped off,
their fruit be useless,
too un ripe to ca t,
fit for nothing.
Fo r child ren begotten of un lawful intercou rsewit ness, when God ju dges them ,' t o the wrong the ir parents did .
premature death of the vi rtuous man"
The virtuous man, though he die before his time, will find rest.
Length of day s is not what makes age honourable,
nor number of years the true measure of life ;
underst and ing, this is man 's grey hairs,
untarnished li fe , th is is ripe old age.
He ha s sought to please God. so God has lo ved him ;
as he was living among sinners, he has been taken up.
He has been ca rried off so that evi l may not warp his understandi ngor t reachery seduce his sou l;
for the fasc inati on of evil throws good things into the shade,
and the whir lwind of desire corrupts a simple hea rt.
Coming to per fection in so short a whil e, he achieved long life ;
his so ul being pleas ing to the Lord ,
he has takcn him quick ly from the wickedness aro und him.
Yet peop le- lo ok on, uncomprehending ;
it docs not ent er their head s
that grace and merc y awa it the chosen of the Lord,
and protect ion , his holy ones.
T he virtuo us man who dies co ndemns the godless who survive,
and youth's untimely end the protracted age of the wicked.
T hese peopl e sec the wise man's ending
with out und erstanding what thc Lord ha s in sto re for him
or why he has taken him to sa fety;
they loo k on and sneer,
but the Lord will laugh at them .
Soon they wi ll be corpses without honour,!
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objects of scorn among the dead for ever.
The Lord will dash them down headlong, dumb.
He wil l tea r them from their foundations ,
t hey will be utterly laid waste,
anguish will be the irs,
and their memory shall perish.
men and godless at the judgements
They will come trembling to the reckoning of their sins,
and their crimes, confronting them, will accuse them .
Then the virtuous man stands up boldly
to face those who have oppressed him ,
those who thought so little of his sufferings.
And they, at the sight of him, will shake with cowards' fear,
amazed he should be s av ed so unexpectedly.
Stricken with remorse, each wi ll say to the other,
sa y wi th a groan and in distress of spi rit:
'T his is the man we used to laugh at o nce,
a butt for ou r sarcasm, fools tha t we were!
Hi s l ife we regarded as madness,
his ending as withou t honour.
How ha s he come to be counted as one of the sons of God?
How does he come to be a ss ig ned a p la ce among the saints?"
Clearly we have strayed from the way of truth ;
the l ight of justice has not shone for us,the sun b never rose on us.
We have left no path of lawlessness o r r ui n une xplored,
we have crossed deserts where there was no tra ck,
bu t the way of the Lo rd is on e we have never known.
Arrogance, what advantage has thi s brough t us?
Wealth and boasting, what have these conferred on us?
All those th ings have passed like a shadow,
pas sed l ike a fleet ing rumour.
Like a sh ip tha t cuts through heavi ng waves -
leav ing no trace to show wher e it has passed,
no wake from i ts kee l in the waves .
Or li ke a bird flying through the air
leaving no proo f o f its passing;
it wh ips the light air with the stroke of its pinions,
tears it ap ar t in its whirring rush ,drives its way onward with sweeping wing,
and afterwards no sign is seen of its passage.
Or like an arrow shot at a mark,
C T his verse , wh ich for th e mo st part d raws on
Is 14:4-21, describes the lo t of the wicke d after death,eit h e r i n t his wor ld or the next.
g. Description of t he un iversal Iudgement : un like
MI 2 5:31-46 , t he aut ho r is les s i n terested in the pro
nou nc lng o f the s en tence than in the sta te of sou l of
the sinners. T heir confessio n. Ws 5 :4-14, i s i n mar ked
co ntras t to wha t they used to say , 2:1·20. Their punishment is des cribed in ap oca lypt ic terms, 5:17-23 . In
5:15-16 the fa te of the virtuous. a lready described in3:1-9, is brie fty ment ioned.5 a . 'S onso f God' and 'sa ints' may mean t he angels,
Jb 1:6 t-: 2:1, but he re mo re probably the elect .ef. Ws 2,13.16.18.
d . These Inillatlves on the part of Wisdom foreshadow 'prevenient grace, cr, In 6:44-46: 10:3.26-27;Ph 2:13; I In 4:19.
e . Love Impltes obe d ience. Ex 20:6 : Dt 5:10: 7:9 :
SI 2:15 : In 14:tS .21. etc,f . v v, 17- 20 a re a syllogism of linked propositions
(8 'sQltes') thou ghsomewha t freely sta ced.g. Vula:.ad ds 'Lo ve the l ight of Wisdom. a ll you
who govern neuone', v, 23.h. Who restricts the secrets o f mystery re ligions.
14:23. or the findingsof philosophy, to a few init iates.
of Sisera's soldiers.J 8 5:21. The unteashinKof noocs IS
a symbol of great disasters, P, 18:4+ .6 • • Y uh): begins this chapter with an addition:'Wisdom is bet ter chan strength, the prudent man bettertha n the mlllhty·. This add l lion Is v. 1 In VUIK.
b. Th li s Moees, Nb 20:12. Da vid . 2 S 24:1l).17.
Hezeklab.2 K 20: 16-19. etc,c. Or 'examined' .
he does not stand in awe of greatness,
since he himself has made small and great
and provides for all alike;
bu t strict scrutiny awaits those in power .
Yes, despots, my words are for you ,.
that you may learn wha t wisdom is and not transgress;for they who observe holy things holily will be adjudged holy,
and, accepting instruction from them, will find their defence in them.
Look forward, therefore, to my words;
yearn for them, and they willinstruct you.
sought is WiSdom found
Wisdom is bright, and does not grow dim.
By those who love her she is readily seen,
and found by those who look for her.Quick to ant icipate those who desire her, she makes herself
known to them."
Watch for her early and you will have no trouble ;
you willfind her sitting at your gates .Even to th ink about her is understanding fully grown;be on the alert fo r her and anxiety will quickly leave you.
She herself walks abou t looking for tho se who are worthy of her
and graciously shows herself to them as they go,
in every thought of theirs coming to meet them.
Of her the most sure beginning is the desire for discipline,
care for discipl ine means loving her,loving her means keeping her laws,'
obeying her laws guarantees incorruptibility,
incorruptibility brings near to God ;thus desire for Wisdom leads to sovereignty."If then, despots of nations , you delight in throne and sceptre,honour Wisdom, thus to reign for ever. g
c . Vulg . adds 't his is what the si nners say in hel l"
and counts this addition as v, 14.d. 'SDray' ; var. ' hoarfrost" or 'spider's web' ,e . Or 't he ir recompense is in the Lord' . who Is
the ir 'portion', Ps 6 S 73:26; cr.Ws 3: 14r. The fate of sinnersseems to be described interm s
of the great apoc a lyp t ic battle at the en d of lime,Ez k 38-39: Is 24-26 ; Rv 20:7-10. with its concomilantuniversal upheaval. cr, Am 8:9+ .
e . On the 'sword' of God . er, I s49:2: Ezk21:8-9:He b 4:12: Rv i:16: 19:15.
h. Storm Is the traditionali mage of divine Interventio n . c f. Ps 18:7-15 ; Ex19: 16 + .
I. As i n t he days of t he Exodus period. Ex 9:23-25,and Joshua. Jos 10:11 . and in the v arious judaemerttaor God foretol d b y the prophets. Is 28:17; Ezk 13 13;38:22 . cr Rv 8: .7 1 1:19: 16:21.
J. As at the crossing of the Reed sea. Ex 14:26-30,and in the theophany of Ps 18.
k , As the torrent Kishon carriedaway the corpses
Solomon sets out to describe Wisdom
What Wisdom is and how she came to be, I will now declare,
I will hide none of the secrets from you ;
I will trace her right from the beginningand set out know ledge of her, plainly,
no t swerving from the t ru th .Neither will I take blighting Envy as my travelling companion,"
WiSdom
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the pierced air closing so quickly on itself,
there is no knowing which way the arrow has passed.
So with us: scarcely born, we have ceased to be;
of virtue not a trace have weto show,
we have spent ou rselves on wickedness instead.>
Yes, the hope of the godless is like chaff carried on the wind,
like fine spray" driven by the gale;
it d isperses like smoke before the wind,
goes like the memory of a one-day guest.
But the virtuous live for ever,their recompense lies with the Lord, '
the Most High takes care of them.
So they shall receive the royal crown of splendour,the diadem of beauty from the hand of the Lord ;
for he will shelter them with his right handand shield them with his arm.
/For armour he will tak e his jealous love,
he will a rm creation to punish his enemies;
he will put on ju stice as a breastplate,and for helmet wear his und issembling judgement ;
he will take up invincible holiness for shield,he will forge a biting sword- of his stern wrat h,
and the universe will march wit h him to fight the reckless.
Bol ts truly aimed, the shafts of lightning will leap,"and from the clouds, as f rom a full-drawn bow, fly to their mar k ;
and the catapult will hurl hailstones' charged with fury.The waters of the sea wi ll rage against them, 'the rivers engulf them without pity.«
The breath of Omnipotence will blow against themand winnow them like a hurricane .
So lawlessness will br ing the whole earth to ruin
and evil-doing bring the thrones of the mighty down.
duty of kings to cultivate wisdom
"Listen then, kings, and understand;
rulers of remotest lands, take warning;hear this , you who have thousands under you r rule,
who boast of you r hordes of subjects..
Fo r power is a gift to you from the Lord,
sovereignty is from the Most High;
he himself wil l probe you r acts and scrutinise your intentions.
If, as administrators of his kingdom , you have not governed justlynor observed the law,
nor behaved as God would have you behave,he wil l fall on you swiftly and terribly.
Ruthless judgement is reserved for the high and mighty; b
the lowly will becompassionately pardoned,
the mightywill be mightily puni shed."For the Lord of All does not cower befo re a personage,
for t he theology o f t he T rin ity : they a re resum ed by
St Pau l and St Joh n a nd a pp lied 10 Christ. the Inca rnate
Wo rd and Wi sdom o f Go d; see the texts Quot ed
Pr 8:22 1 . It shou ld a lso be noted th at thi s doc trineof Wisd om Ri ve s r ise not on ly to a theology of t heWor d b ut to a theo logy of the Spi rit. cf . Is 11:2 -1.
of the sa nct ifying Spir i t . the inspira t i on o f the prop hets.
t he so urce of knowledge and unde rstand ing in the
world . The author ill time s seems even to identifyWis dom wit h the Sp irit. d. 1: 6: 9: 17 a nd the variant
in 7:22. He Rves them common a ttr ibutes: ubi nultv.d . 1:7: 12:1 wit h 7:24: 8: I : ho r ro r o f sin. cf. 1:4 with 1:5.
Mo re par ticular lv. he cr ed i ts Wisd om wit h fu nctions
th at many O.' !' . te xt s a tt ribute to the Sp iri t: (hegu idance of men. Jb 32 :H; Ps 51:10; 143:10. a nd of
kings . Is II :2. ar t ist ic, Ex 31:3. and p roph etic inspira
tion , I S 10:6 , etc . Even so. Wisdom. a nd not theSn irt t, holds the foreground of the a uthor's specula tions,
and from Ju sti n onwards Christ ia n tr adition in itsdevelopment of trtnltarian doctrine has a lmost a lways
iden tified the Wisdom of this passage w it h the Word .I . Var . ' she is with in herself'. The aut hor now
Ilsts twenty-one att ributes of Wisdom : the mo s t p erfect
of perfect num bers (3 X7).k . In the O.T. God is never called ' light',
d . 1 Jn 1:5 : Jm 1:17: but light accompa nies h im,
Ex 24:17. cf. Ex 24: 16 1- ; Ezk 1;27; Hab 3:4; Ps 50:3:
104:1-2: Is 60:19-20. S c J n 1 - I. Like Abraham, Is 4 1:8 : 2 Ch 20:7 : Jm 2:23.
c f. I n 15:14-15.
87 a. Te n lunar months.
b. LiL ' th a t suffers the sa me fa te' (from a ll) .
c. 'ure": var. ' th e wor ld'.d . Fam ilia r dictum of wisdom literature: Pr 3:
0 , P latonic expression (Timaeus Sla) . bu t the idea
differs pro foundly . T he au t hor is no t tea c hi ng t hat
ma tt e r i s e ternal. bu t nresumablv think ing o f how the
world was organised Font chaos. (I n I .
P. O r ' lhat docs nor eve n li p t h e scales' ,
Q. T he thought IIf vv , 23f is no t new to Israel but
it had never before been expressed SII powc rfutlv . norso serenely or so !o j ically araucd as in vv . 25-26.
r . Lit. ' Inver of the soul".
12 a . The breat h o f life infused int o t he creat ures by
God. (i n 2:7+, not t he sp i ri t . t hc sou l o f the wor ldin Stoic philosophy, 'v ulg , trun slut cs inaccururcly'H ow gou d a nd kind , Lord . is you r sp i r i t in a ll bci nes':
b. There is no evidence M ca nnibal ism in Cu nnunthough it W;lS prucuscd by o ther ancient ncontcs.
c. T he au thor burrows churucterisucs or lhchcllents tic nwstcry rcli uions to describe the nructiccs
of the Cunaanu cs .
d . The au tho r c luborrucs the an ncn r exnfuunuon s(Jj : 2:6+ : . :20-2, ) (I f the dcl av uucnd tng tbc cxterrnin
uu on uf the Cu naani rca: God's cure for hisown people yields tt, his pa t i en t concern for the si nful
Ca naanites .
how be conserved if no t ca lled fo rt h by you?
You spa re all things because all things are yours, Lord, love r of life, r
you whose imperishable spiri t is in all."
Little by little, therefore, you co rrect those who offend,
you adm onish and remind them of how they have sinned,
so that they may abs tain from evil and tr ust in you, Lord.
forbearance with Canaan
The ancient h a i t a ~ t s of your holy landyou hated for their loathsome practices,
their deeds of sorcery and unholy rites,
ha ted as ruthless murderers of children,
as eaters of entrails at feasts of human flesh,"
initiated while the bloody orgy goes on:
as murderous parents of defenceless beings.
You determined to destroy them at our fathers' hands,
so tha t this land, dea rer to you than any other,
might receive a colony of God's childre n worthy of i t.
Even so, since these were men, you treated them leniently,
send ing hornets as fore runners of your army ,
to destroy them bit by bit."
Not that you cou ld not hand the god less over to the virtuous in
, pitched batt leo r destroy them at once by savage beasts or one stern wordfrom you;
but , by condemning them piece by piece, you gave them the chance
to repent ,
although you knew very well they were inherently evil,
innately wicked
and fixed in their cast of mind ;
for they were a race accursed from the beginning.
eit her Moses Of Aaro n who ca lls on Yahweh.
d. First of the seve n a ntit heses in the parallelbe twe en Eevmia ns a nd Israelites. T he remainina six
wi ll be elabora ted in ch 16 o; 'war ds.
c. Acco rdi ng to Ex 7:14 -2 5 Yahweh turned the
waters of the Nile into b lood t o c onstrain Pharaoh ( 0
let the Israelites so . The aut hor , however. represent s the
mi racle as a pun ishme nt for the decree of Ex 1: I Sr.
I. Vulu . adds ' how you exalted your own'.J:. Thirst, and possib ly including other ha rdsh ips
su ffered by Israel in the desert : these were intended tomake them unde rstand (he punishmen t o f the Egvm lan s.
h. 'Ncar' the ls rnclhcs. whi le the Euyptla ns were
end uring Ihe nlu uucs: 'far away' afle r t hc Israe lites had
lefl the m, whil e ( he Eavruians remembered the nlaaucsin co ntrast ttl the hapPY Int o f Israel. The a uthorsupposes. v . D , that t he Euynu ans kn e w ab o ut the
wonders perfo rmed i n t he de sert.I, Wate r. withheld from the Eevmluns. was miracu
lously sup plied 10Ihe Is raelite s . 11:4.I . v ute. adds ' marvclli ne at the ou tcome of these
events'.k . Moses . cxnoscd on the waters . Ex 1:22: 2:.\ :
rebuffed by Phuruoh. Ex 5:2-5 : 7: 1. ,22. etc.I. T he cult of animals: 'reptiles' (c rocodile. se rpent,
lizard. fro g), 'contcmruiblc beast s ' ( the sca rab) en joyedJ,:reat este em in Ptolemaic EI!Y Pt.
m. Fro es. Ex-&.1-2. mosqu i t oes . X IJ - I.1 audtlics,
This forbearance explained
Nor was it fro m awe of anyone that you left them
12 for their sins.
Who wou ld venture to say, 'What have you do ne?'
Who would da re to defy your sentence?
God 's
II
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111212J]
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1415
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1920
2 122
2J24
2425
2526
from hard stone their thirst was quenched.
forbearance explained
For your great strength is always at your call;
who can withstand the might of your arm ?
Inyour sight the whole wor ld is lik e a grain of dust that tips thescales,> ~ like a dro p of mo rning dew falling on the ground.
Yet you are merc iful to all, q because you can do all things
and overlook men's sins so that they can repent.
Yes, you love all that exists , you hold not hing of what you havemade in abhorrence,
for had you hated anything, you wou ld not have formed it.And how, had you not willed it, could a thing persist,
How water proved the ruin of Egypt and the saving of Israel"
Thus, what served to puni sh their enemies
became a benefit for them in their distress.
You gave them not that ever-flowing source of r iver waterturbid with defiling floods,
stern answer for their decree of infanticide:
but, against all hope, water in abundance,
showing by the thirst that then was raging!
how.severely you punished their enemies.From their ordeals," which were no more than the reproofs of Mercy, ~ they learned wha t tor tures a sentence of wrath inflicts on the godless;you tested them indeed, correcting them like a father,
but the others you strictly examined, like a severe kingwho condemns.Near or far away, ' they were equal ly worn down,
double indeed was the grief that seized on them,
double the groan ing at the memory of the past;
hear ing that what pun ished them' had set the others rejoic ing,they saw the Lord in it,!
and for him whom long ago they had cast ou t, exposed, andlater mockingly rebuffed.v
they felt only amazementwhen all was don e ;
the thirs t of the virtuous and theirs had worked so differently.
God's forbearance with EgyptAs their foo lish and wicked notions led them astray
into worshipping mindless reptiles and contempt ible beasts;'
you sent hordes of mindless creatures» to puni sh them
and teach them that the instruments of sin are instrumentsof pu nishment."
And indeed your all-powerful hand did not lack means
- the hand that from form less matter create d the world o
to unleash a horde of bear s or savage lions on them
or unknown beas ts, newly created, full of rage,exhaling fiery breath ,
ejecting swirls of stinking smoke
or flashing fearful sparks from the ir eyes,
beasts not only able to crush them with a blow,
but also to des troy them by their terrifying app earance.But even without these, they could have dropped dead ata single breath, ~ pursued by your just ice,
whirled away by the breat h of your power.
But no, you ordered all things by measure, number, weight.
r. T he destr uction of the fi rst-born of Egyp t, theceleb ra tion o f the Passover , the Exodu s itself, iden tified
Israe l once and for a ll as the people of Go d. cf . D t 7 :6+.g . The Passover is ca lled a sa crifice. Ex 12:27 ;
Nb 9:7 : Dt 16:5. This sac r ifice is ca lled 'sec ret ' sinceit was celebrat ed inside the ho uses . Ex 12:46.
h. 'd ivine' : var. ' ho ly .i. T he au thor rep resent s the firs t Passover in te rms
of la ter Passovers at which the Hallel was chanted.
Ps 113-118.I. O r ' for a lo ng tim e' , cf. Ex7 :11- 13.22: 8:3, 11.k . T he Word of God is personifie d as the executant
of di vine judgement, cf. a lso Ho 6:5: Is 55: II : J r 23:29;Ps 33:6: 147:15,IK: 148:8. And see Heb 2:2. TheC hri s tmas litur-gy applies th is text to the inca rna tio n
of the Word.I. What fo llows has no re la ti on to the narrative
oft he
Exodus .m. The firs t-born.
d . To establish a co nnec tion betwe en Pharaoh'sinfan ticidal decree . Ex 1:16,22, a nd the des t ruction of
the firs t-born. the a uthor has poss ibly d rawn on
Ex 4:22-23.e. Either t he Israelite s a t the lime of the Ex odus .
Ex I I 4 7. or mo re p rob ably the patr iarchs to whom
Go d had promised tha t he would free their descendant sfrom slavery in Egypt . G n 15:13-14 ; 46:3-4.
r. T he imaginar y causes of fe ar a re dispelled by
reflection wh ich. however . is imped ed an d fru strated
by a guilty conscience.g . Th e darkness of Sheo!.
18 a . Li t. ' th ey' ,b. ' beca use they had not suffered' ; var , 'despite
their past sufferin gs'.c. Or ' asked themas a f avo ur to leave' , cf. Ex 11:8 :
12:33.
Egypt and Israel: the Destroyer
As they had resolved to kil l the infant s of the holy ones,
and as of those exposed only one child had been saved,"to punish them, you made away with thousands of their children,
and destroyed them all together in the wild waves.
That night had been foretold to our ancestors,'
so that, once they saw what kind of oat hs they had put theirtrust in, they would joyfully take courage.
This was t he expectation of you r people,the saving of the virtuous and the ruin of their enemies;
for by the same act with which you took vengeance on our foes
you made us glorious by calling us to you.!The devout children of wor thy men offered sacrifice" in secret
and this divine- pact they struck with one accord:that the saint s would share the same blessings and dangers alike;
and forthwith they had begun to chant the hymns of the fathers.'
In echo camethe discordant cries of their enemiesand the pitiful sound rang out of those lamenting their children.
The same punishment struck slave and master alike,
commoner and king suffered the selfsame loss.
All had innumerable dead alike,
struck by the same death .There were not enough living left to bury them,
for in a moment the f lower of thei r race had perished.They who, thanks to their sorceries, had been wholly! incredulous,
at the destruction of their first-born now acknowledgedthi s people to beson of God .
When peaceful silence lay over all,and night had run the half of her swift course,
down from the heavens, from the royal th rone, leapt your
all-powerful Word ;"into the hea rt of a doomed land the stern warrior leapt.Carrying your unambiguous command like a sharp sword,
he stood, and filled the universe with death ;
he touched the sky, yet t rod the earth.Immediately,' dreams and gruesome visions overwhelmed
thern« wi th terror.
unexpected fears assailed them.Hurled down, some here, some there, half dead,
they proclaimed why it was they were dying;
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18
15
14
13
12
16
I I
10
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18
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19
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13
their boasted cunning was ignominiously confounded ;
for those who professed to drive out fea rs and disorders fromsick souls,
themselves fell sick of a ridiculous terror.
Even when there was not hing frightful to scare them,
the prowling of beast s a nd the hissing of reptiles terr ified them ;they died convulsed wi th fright,
refusing so much as to look at the air, which cannot be eluded anyhow!Wickedness is confessedly very cowardly, and it condemns itself:
under pressure from conscience it a lways assumes the worst.'
Fear, indeed, is nothing other
than the aba ndonment of the supports offered by reason ;the less you rely within yourself on these,
the more alarming i t is not to know the cause of your suffering.
And they, all locked i n the same sleep,while that darkness lasted, which was in fact quite powerless
and had issued from the depths of equally powerless Hades,
were now chased by monstrous spect res,now paralysed by fainting of their souls;
for a sudden, unexpected terror had swept over them.
And thus, whoev,r i t might be that fel l therestayed clamped to the/spot in this prison without bars.
Whet her he was ploughman or shepherd,
or someone working by himself,
he was sti ll overtaken and suffered the inevitable fate,
for all ha d been bound by the one same chain of darkness.The sough ing of the wind,
the tuneful noise of birds in the spreading branches,
the measured beat of water in its powerful course,the harsh din of the rocky ava lanche,
the invisible, swift cou rse of bounding animals,
the roaring of the savagest wild beasts,
the echo rebounding from the clefts in the mountains,all held them paralysed with fear.
The whole world was shining with brilliant light
and, unhindered, went on wit h its work ;
over them alone there spread a heavy dar kness,image of the dark" that would receive them.
But heavier than the darkness, the burden they were to themselves.
But for your hol y ones all was great light.The Egypt ians" who could hear their voices, though not see
their shapes,
called them fortunate because they had not suffered too ;"
they than ked them for doing no inju ry in return for previous 2
wrongs
an d asked forgiveness for thei r pa st ill-will."In contrast to the darkness, you gave your people a pillar of
blazing fire,
to guide them on their unknown journey,
a mild sun for their ambitious migration.
But well they deserved, those ot hers, to be deprived of light 4
and imprisoned in dar kness,for having kept in cap tivity your children,
by whom the imperishable light of the Law was to be givento t he world.
for the dr eams t ha t had t roub led them had warne d themwhy beforehand,
so that they might not perish without knowing why they hadbeen struck down.
But the virtuous, too, felt the touch of dea th ;"a multitude was st ruck down in the wilderness.
But the wrath did not last long,
for a blameless man >hastened to champion their cause.
Wielding the weapons of his sacred office,
prayer and atoning lncense,>
he took his stand against the Anger and put an end to the calamity,showing that he was indeed your servant.
He conquered the bitter plague, not by physical strength,no t by force of arms ;
but by word q he prevailed over the Punisher,
by recalling the oaths made to the Fathers , and the covenants.Already the d r p s e lay piled in heaps,
when he interposed and beat back the wrath
and cut offits approach to the living.
Fo r the whole world wa so n his flowing robe, r
the glorious names of the Fathers- on the four rows of stones,and your Majesty ' on thediadem on his head.
Fr om these the Destroyer recoiled," he was afraid of these;"a mere taste of the wra th had been enough.
Egypt and Israel: the Red Sea
19But the godless were assa i led by merciless anger to the very end,for God knew beforehand what they would do,
how, af ter letting his people leave and hastening their departure,
they would change their minds and set out in pursu it.
They were act ually st ill conducting their mourning ritesand lamenting at the tom bs of their dead,
when ano ther mad scheme entered their heads,
and they set out to pursue as fugitives the very people they hadbegged to go away.
A well-deserved fate urged them to this extreme
and made them forget what had already happened,
so that to all their to rments they might add the one penaltystill out standing
and, while your people accomplished" a miraculous journey,
themselves meet an extraordinary death .
Fo r, to keep your children from all harm,
the whole creation, obedient to your commands,
was once more, and newly, fashioned in its nature.b
Overshadowing the camp there was the cloud ,
where water ha d been, dry land was seen to rise,
the Red Sea became an unimpeded way,the tempestuous flood a green plain ;
sheltered by your hand, the whole nat ion passed across,gazing at these amaz ingm iracles.
They were like horses at pasture,they skipped like lambs,
singing your praises, Lord, their deliverer.
Natur e refashioned for Israel
They still remembered the events of their exile,
Is 45:17.25
19:2 2
c. The aut ho r take s Nb t 1:31 l ite r al ly ; the Quallrcameou t of th e sea (as th emosquit oes came out of theea rth).
d , The inhabitants of Sodcm, Gn 19, commonlyregarded as the worst of criminals: the author, byattenuating theirsin. mean s to s howthat the Egyptiansoutdid them in criminality.
e. The author apparently means to exculpate thepeopl e of Sodc m, But an alterna tive rende ring ispossible "and they will be ca l ed to account fo r this'
t , Oratoricald escription of the plague of da rkness.
e. Lot , 10:6.h. The Israelites an d t heir cattlewh ile crossing th e
Red Sea: or po ssibly the horses of t he Egyptian arm yengulfed in th e waves.
I . T he frogs. Ex 8;2.
what might be called a change of nature .
W I SDOM°33
n. A pen alty fo r t he r ev ol t fol lowing the punish-
ment of Ko rah, Da thanand Abiram .
o. Aaro n.p. Lit. ' the atonement sacrifice of incense' .Q. Le. prayer.
r . On t he long robe of t he h ig h p ri est in the
author's day the en t ir e uni ver se was represented in
sym bolic des igns.
s . The twelve son s of Jacob who gave their nameto th e twelve tri bes.
t . The gold. plat e on the high prie st's head-dressbore the inscription 'Sacred to Yahweh".
u. Possibly an angellike the one in 1 Ch 1 ~ 6 cr, 12:23 and 1 C o 10:10.
Y. Var. '(h eywere afraid of these'.19 a , Vat. 4experfenced'.
b .The author willnow show how, by divineIntervention on beh alf ofIsra e l. t hevery elements underwent
Conclusion
Yes, Lord, in every way you have made yo ur people great and glorious;
you have never disdained them, but stood by them always
and everywhere.
22
19 how the land, not bearing animals, had bred mosquitoes instead, Ex 8:12-15
how, instead of fish, the river had disgorged innumerable frogs. Ex 8:2
II Later they saw a new method of b ir th for b ird s Nb 11:31
when, goaded by hunger, they asked for food they could relish,
20 12 and quails came out of the sea to satisfy them .' Ex 16:13
Egypt more blameworthy than Sodom
21 13 On the sinners, howeve r, punishments rained down
not without violent thunder as earlywarning;
and deservedly they suffered fo r the ir crimes,
since they evinced such bitter hatred towards strangers.14 Others" had refused to welcome unknown men on their arrival,
22 but these had made slaves of guests and benefactors.15 The former, moreover- and this will be to their credit'-
had shown the foreigners hostility from the start ;16 not so the lat ter: these welcomed your people with feasting Gn45:17-20 :
47:1-12
23 and after granting them equal rights with themselves
then afflicted them with forced labour. Ex 1:8-14;5:4-18
17 Thus they were struck with blindness!
24 like the former at the door of the virtuous man,"when, yawning darknes s all aro und them,
each had to g rope his way through his own door. Go 19:11
25Nature refashioned at the Exodus 16:17-22
18 Thus the elements interchanged their qualities, 16:25
as on a ha rp the notes may change their rhythm,though all the while preserving their to ne;
this clearly appears from a scru tiny of the events. ow
19 Creatures that live on land became aquatic,"
and those that swim' emerged on land.20 Fire increased its own virtue in the water,
water forgot its proper ty of extinguishing.21 Flames, on the other hand, would not scorch the flesh 16:18
of animals , however frail, that ventured into them;nor would they melt tha t h eavenly food 16:22