Proverbial poetry: its settings and syntax
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Concluding Remarks It has been the purpose of this writer not merely to enumerate, ad nauseam, lists of sources, but, rather, to demonstrate the vitality of these comparative studies and to locate where the appropriate bibliographic materials may be found. One must agree with Nel's comment: "No adequate understanding of the biblical wisdom literature is possible without a thorough knowledge ____________________ 1Mitchell Dahood, "The Phoenician Contribution to Biblical Wisdom Literature," in The Role of the Phoenicians in the Interaction of the Mediterranean Civilizations, ed. W. A. Ward (Beirut: American University of Beirut, 1967), p. 143. Cf. W. F. Albright, "The Role of the Canaanites in the History of Civilization," in The Bible and the Ancient Near East, ed. George E. Wright (Garden City: Doubleday and Company Inc., 1961), p. 351. John P. Brown, "Proverb-Book, Gold-Economy, Alphabet," JBL 100 (June 1981):171, 178. 2John P. Brown, "Proverb-Book, Gold-Economy, Alphabet," pp. 169-91. of non-biblical wisdom literature."1 It is important to see the book of Proverbs in its Sitz im Literatur and to follow, if only briefly, the perdurant history of the proverbial form for over two millennia. One should also appreciate the international character of the wisdom which has been found in Sumer, Mesopotamia, Boghazkoy, Ugarit, Palestine and Egypt. Thus, when the biblical sage picks up his pen to encapsulate a proverbial truth, he knowingly participates in international and well-structured artistic genres which were over a thousand years old in the time of Solomon. A final function of this chapter was not only to locate where previous wisdom work has been done but also to suggest the need for advanced work in the analysis of the text of Proverbs itself, which is still an open field. It appears to this writer that the works of Marzal, Gordon, Alster,2 et al. show a level of analysis which could yield rich results if applied to the biblical proverbial corpus. ____________________
1982), p. 5. 2Robert S. Falkowitz, "The Sumerian Rhetoric Collection," (Ph. D. dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, 1980). While Falkowitz's translation and analysis of the Sumerian is excellent, his sensitivities in pareomiological studies are not nearly as refined as Alster. His main thesis, that the Sumerian "proverbial collections should better be understood as rhetorical collections, has not proven itself satisfying to this writer. CHAPTER II THE CONCEPTUAL SETTING OF WISDOM
wisdom studies has been the recent fascination of Old Testament theology with wisdom motifs. The interest seems to be generated from an inability to handle wisdom--the last horizon in biblical theology. This chapter will survey the movement of theological studies, from a tacit neglect of wisdom, to the "incorporation" of wisdom into Old Testament theology, via links with creation theology and order (ma'at) principles. It will be demonstrated that, although much work has been done on the Weltan- schauung of wisdom, the need for an examination of the text of Proverbs itself, as a heuristic check on these more motif-oriented approaches, has only just begun. After briefly surveying the state of wisdom within the purview of Old Testament theology, two directions will be pursued. First, three realms of wisdom's "uniqueness" will be scrutinized: (1) the relationship of wisdom to salvation history; (2) its humanistic/secular/ individualistic character; and (3) the relationship between religious and empirical/rational bases. Second, the next chapter will examine wisdom's relationship to the rest of the canon. A survey of recent literature will reveal that wisdom, once the orphan of the Old Testament, has been "discovered" throughout the Old Testament, to the point that "the entire Hebrew canon is in danger of being swallowed."1 The first series of studies will concentrate on the "splitters," who emphasize wisdom's uniqueness, while the second focuses on the "lumpers," who find wisdom in almost every genre of the canon. Ancient Near Eastern parallels will help balance the first group and a scrutiny of methodology will help rectify the second. Neglect of Wisdom in Past Old Testament Theologies Though wisdom has been bemoaned as the "orphan" of the Old Testament and spurned by most Old Testament theologians, this neglect is being reversed. G. E. Wright's oft-quoted observation highlights the anomalous character of wisdom. "In any outline of biblical theology, the proper place to treat the Wisdom Literature is something of a problem."2 Murphy also cogently comments, that over twenty years later, the "marriage ____________________
Murphy also notes the same problem ("The Interpretation of Old Testament Wisdom Literature," Int 23 [1969]:290).
pages of scholarly writings."1 Recently, however, von Rad, as a premier Old Testament theologian, has made significant contributions to the integration of wisdom and Old Testament theology.2 While some have tried to blur the distinctive character of wisdom,3 others have tried to reshape the renitent nose of wisdom to fit the face of ____________________ (London: SCM Press LTD, 1952), p. 115; cf. J. F. Priest, "Where is Wisdom to be Placed?" JBR 31 (October 1963):275. 1Roland E. Murphy, "Wisdom and Yahwism," in No Famine in the Land: Studies in Honor of John L. McKenzie, ed. J. W. Flanagan (Claremont: The Institute of Antiquity and Christianity, 1975), p. 117. Worrell is correct in exposing the former absence of wisdom from Old Testament theologies. Worrell notes that, in 1909, Girdlestone totally ignored it. More recently, Eichrodt and Wright have done little with it (George E. Worrell, "The Theological Ideas of the Old Testament Wisdom Literature" [Th.D. dissertation, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, 1962], pp. 2-3). Gerhard Hasel critiques G. Fohrer as late as 1972 for treating wisdom "too briefly" (Old Testament Theology: Basic Issues in the Current Debate [Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1972], p. 95). Vid. Walther Eichrodt, Theology of the Old Testament, vol. 2, OTL, trans. J. A. Baker, (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1967), pp. 95-96, for a rather weak theologized treatment of wisdom from late non-canonical sources and his non-existent treatment of the sage in Israel, in his first volume.
Abingdon, 1972) and also von Rad, Old Testament Theology, vol. 1 (New York: Harper and Row Publishers, 1962), pp. 418-59. Murphy is right when he critiques von Rad's suggestion that wisdom be viewed as "Israel's response" (von Rad, Wisdom in Israel, p. 307; vid. also Murphy, "Wisdom and Yahwism," p. 117).
their alleged Mitte of Scripture. Such Procrustean methods treat wisdom motifs in a superficial manner.1
to examine the text and let the Mitte present itself. Waltke, following the lead of Zimmerli and others, develops the ideas of God's rule and creation theology as the nexus between Proverbs and the rest of Scripture.2 Because creation theology has provided a needed interface between biblical theology and the text of Proverbs, a number of scholars have embraced this position.3 This ____________________
Doctrine," Trinity Journal 3 (Spring 1974):13. Burdett opts for wisdom literature as describing "the kingdom man," the weaknesses of which are apparent. W. Kaiser deals with the fear of God concept. He then leaps to the concept of promise referred to via the term "life," with the history of redemption being referred to by the title "the way." Much better is Walter Kaiser's, "Wisdom Theology and the Centre of Old Testament Theology," EvQ 50 (July-September 1978):146 (also cf. Kaiser, Toward an Old Testament Theology [Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1978], pp. 175-77). Such simplistic "solutions" are unsatisfying and fail to come to grips with the essential character of wisdom's uniqueness. 2Bruce K. Waltke, "The Book of Proverbs and Old Testament Theology," BSac 136:544 (October-December 1979):316. Walther Zimmerli, "Ort und Grenze der Weisheit im Rahmen der alttestamentlichen Theologie," Gottes Offenbarung. Gesammelte Aufsatze zum Alten Testament, TBu 19 (Munich: Kaiser, 1963), p. 302. 3Priest, "Where is Wisdom to be Placed?" p. 282; O. S. Rankin, Israel's Wisdom Literature (Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1954), p. 9; Robert W. E. Forrest, "The Creation Motif in the Book of Job" (Ph.D. dissertation, McMaster University, 1975), p. 17; Donald E. Gowan, "Habakkuk and shift in the thinking of Old Testament theologians reflects actual wisdom texts (Prov 3:19-21; 8:22-31; Job 28:23-37 cf. Sir 4:6; 18:1-7; 39:21-35) and evinces a significant broadening from an approach which stressed salvation history, institutions, cult, covenant or the election of Israel to the portrayal of God as the sovereign Creator.1 Creation theology views God as the creator, concentrating on His acts of creation rather than on His mighty acts in redemptive history. Creation theology views man as an individual who must harmonize his life with the structure of the creation, rather than as one who participates in a covenant community and is bound by its stipulations. Thus, the individual is responsible to analyze situations experientially, empirically and rationally and then to act in accord with his perception of the creation (Prov 6:6-8; 30:24-31).2 Hence, wisdom has been envisioned as cosmodynamic whereas myth/cult is ____________________ Wisdom," Perspective 9 (1968):165; and von Rad, Wisdom
correct when he states that as long as the focus of the Mitte was on these it would exclude wisdom by definition (Lawrence E. Toombs, "O. T. Theology and the Wisdom Literature," JBR 23 [1955]:195); cf. also Donn F. Morgan,
Knox Press, 1981), p. 22. 2Leo G. Perdue, Wisdom and Cult (Missoula, MT: Scholars Press, 1977), pp. 135, 137. cosmostatic.1 Creation theology looks at God's creation paradigmatically whereas a Heilsgeschichte approach is more syntagmatic. In wisdom, Yahweh is presented not only in terms of the original cosmic creation (Prov 3:19-20), but also as the One actively working in the social and ethical spheres of creation. For example, the rich and--especially emphasized--the poor (Prov 14:31; 17:5; 22:2; 29:13) are the products of His creative acts. Thus, one is to be merciful to the poor, recognizing that the Creator has made both rich and poor.2 The Creation concept affects not only the cosmic and social spheres but also has ethical overtones, particularly in terms of moral order (justice; Prov 16:11), which is inherent in the creation itself (Job 4:17; 36:3). Sirach repeatedly juxtaposes creation hymns and theodicy (Sir 16:24-17:14; 39:15-35; 42:15-43:33). Creation theology incorporates the creation of the cosmos, the development of the social order and a just moral order, by which the creation reflects the character of the Creator. ____________________ 1Julien Harvey, "Wisdom Literature and Biblical Theology," BTB 1 (1971):311. Contrast with Buccellati, "Wisdom and Not: The Case of Mesopotamia," pp. 35-41
in Wisdom," pp. 45-46. For material on the poor in wisdom vid. T. Donald, "The Semantic field of Rich and Poor in the Wisdom Literature of Hebrew and Accadian," OrAnt 3 (1964):27-41. Man is not autonomous with certain innate abilities to know and understand, but is dependent on the Creator, who has endowed man with senses by which he is able to perceive the created world (Prov 20:12). Murphy comments that "the proper sphere of wisdom is man as man, as creature made by a supreme Being."1 Murphy also sees that the creation is used not as a basis for discovery of the order of the universe, but that there is a "coordination" of the created world and life's experience, with each illustrating the other (Prov 16:27; 26:14).2 Thus, he and others see the strong connection of wisdom and the dominion passages in Genesis 1-3 and Psalm 8. Man as creature, who is responsible to live in harmony with the created order, is a theme also developed by Brueggemann.3 Crenshaw most aptly sums up, when he writes:
universe is comprehensible, and thus encourages a search for its secrets. Furthermore, creation supplies the principle of order that holds together the cosmic, political, and social fabric of the universe.4 ____________________
Knox Press, 1972), p. 24; Ronald D. Cole, "Foundations of Wisdom Theology in Genesis One to Three" (Th.M. thesis, Western Conservative Baptist Seminary, 1978), pp. 133-34. 4Crenshaw, "Prolegomenon," in SAIW, p. 34. This is not a return to natural theology, as Murphy well notes, in that wisdom's significance is truly felt only within the community of faith by those who fear Yahweh. It also provides a point of contact to those outside of that community as well.1 Hermisson has been a perceptive guard against an overemphasis on creation theology and his statements are generated from an extended exposure to the proverbial material. He critiques Zimmerli's approach that wisdom is unable to speak particularly and of the covenant. Instead, Hermisson suggests that it is within the covenant community that "God's relationship to the world and to humanity could become concrete and be immediately experienced." He further expounds this notion, in Christological and salvific terms: The other answer--if in conclusion, with a great leap, the comprehensive theological context should at least be indicated--was the foolishness of the cross, as God's wisdom (I Cor 1:17-18), whereby God came to man. Not that the ancient creation theology of wisdom became invalid and obsolete; rather it was only in this way that it could be maintained.2
____________________ 1Roland E. Murphy, "What and Where is Wisdom?" CurTM (October 1977):287. 2Hans-Jurgen Hermisson, "Observations on the Creation Theology in Wisdom," in Israelite Wisdom: Theological and Literary Essays in Honor of Samuel Terrien, ed. J. G. Gammie et al. (Missoula, MT: Scholars Press, 1978), p. 55. one cannot speak of creation faith in Prov."1 Verses cited to support a creation theology approach often deal with present empirical observations about the ordered world as it stands, often with little explicit mention of the act of creation (Prov 6:6). The righteous/wicked contrast, which is so pervasive in Proverbs, reflects not on the vacillations between chaos and creation, but on the moral/social order--which is observed in the world as it functions presently--and the violation of that order. One may, indeed, correctly argue that the order concept is built on the foundation of God's acts as creator, but the explicit emphasis of the text is more on the inherent order than on the creative act itself.
Introduction Perhaps the most salient insight in recent wisdom studies has been the development of creation theology in the direction of the cosmic order or ma'at, as the Egyptians called it. This model places biblical wisdom into the conceptual environment of the international phenomenon of ancient Near Eastern wisdom. The present ____________________
3:11)," in Essays in Old Testament Ethics, p. 32. He then goes on to list the few times it does occur: Prov 14:31; 16:4, 11; 17:5; 20:12; and 22:2. point of discussion is not to rehearse all of the detailed analyses that have led to this synthesis, but merely to summarize them and cite appropriate sources where these fructuous ideas have been generated and refined. H. Schmid has suggested that man's purpose in wisdom literature was to live consistently with the world order.1 This divine order is cosmological in that it was established by the Creator at the inception of the creation and is, with no dichotomy, also ethical in that man is obligated to live in harmony with that order, both in cosmic and in societal relationships. Since this order was inherent in the creation, it is binding for all time.2 Hermisson corrects a modern misunderstanding of such ____________________ 1Hans H. Schmid, Wesen und Geschichte der Weisheit: eine Untersuchung zur Altorientalischen und Israelitischen Weisheitsliteratur, BZAW 101 (Berlin: Verlag Alfred Topelmann, 1966); and his classic work on the subject: Gerechtigkeit als Weltordnung: Hintergrund und Geschichte des alttestamentlichen Gerechtigkeitsbegriffes, in Beitrage zur Historischen Theologie, ed. Gerhard Ebeling (Tubingen: J. C. B. Mohr, 1968). James L. Crenshaw, "Popular Questioning of the Justice of God in Ancient Israel," ZAW 82 (1970):383. This ma'at approach has been made popular by the efforts of Gese and von Rad: Hartmut Gese, Lehre und Wirklichkeit in der alten Weisheit (Tubingen: J. C. B. Mohr, 1958), pp. 11-21; von Rad, Wisdom in Israel, pp. 153, 167, 174; and Roland E. Murphy, who makes this observation in a review of Studien zu Proverbien 1-9, by Christa Kayatz, in JBL 86 (1967):122.
Testament Wisdom Research," CBQ 29.3 (1967):414; Murphy, "What and Where is Wisdom?" p. 283; Murphy, Introduction to
A. Wilson, The Culture of Ancient Egypt (Chicago: The phenomena, when he writes: This world, however, is unitary, although for us it may customarily divide into nature, regulated by (seemingly firm) natural laws, and history, which is more or less contingent, ancient wisdom starts from the conviction that the regularities within the human and historical social realm are not in principle different from ones within the realm of nonhuman phenomena.1 The belief in the world order was not unique to sapiential materials; but, what was characteristic of wisdom was that man could, by responsible choices, bring his life into harmony with this order--resulting in life and security-- or, by violating this order, could incur poverty, destruction, and insecurity. This principle, then, calls man to responsible action in his Creator's world.2
Egyptian wisdom.3 Portrayed as a goddess, her order was ____________________
in Wisdom," p. 44. 2Crenshaw, Old Testament Wisdom, p. 24; W. Brueggemann, In Man We Trust p. 52; and Ernest Wurthwein, "Egyptian Wisdom and the Old Testament," in SAIW, p. 119.
12, 16, 31, analyzes the relationship of ma'at to Re in creation as he banishes chaos and also demonstrates through numerous citations that the king was the one who upheld ma'at.
guarantor that the principles of ma'at were maintained, rewarding those who observed it and punishing those who violated it.1 Thus, naturally, the retribution principle is a supporting sub-theme in wisdom.2 von Rad compares Yüklə 6,58 Mb. Dostları ilə paylaş:
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