GENERAL INTRODUCTION
Wisdom literature is hard to grasp. Unlike the historical or prophetic books which deal
with the Covenant relationship, threats and punishments for idolatry, the wisdom literature deals
with men and the whole realm of his behavior.
To understand, appreciate and learn from Wisdom literature, one must have a working
knowledge of its: background, nature and growth, characteristics, sages – their purpose and
their methodology
WISDOM LITERATURE
Wisdom literature exalts the virtue of kindness, industry, truthfulness, chastity, honesty,
faithfulness, and exalts deeper aspects like the contrast between the good and evil and the
meaning of man’s activities.
BACKGROUND OF WISDOM LITERATURE
Essentially, human wisdom is universal, but each person has his own way of expressing
his insights and attitudes to life, that is typical of his culture and life experiences.
In nations like EGYPT and BABYLON, Wisdom Literature is didactic or instructive in
nature. These come in the form of maxims on how to behave and speak so as to win approval
and admiration.
In ISRAEL, the Wisdom literature was influenced by the unique religious faith and
experiences of these people. It started and flourished during the reign of King Solomon (a
biblical king and wisest man in Bible times). Solomon prayed and asked the Lord for an
understanding heart and the ability to distinguish what is right and what is wrong (1 Kings
3:5-15; 1 Kings 4:29-34). Later, Solomon recruited Sages from Egypt and Mesopotamia to serve
as scribes in the administration of his kingdom. That is how Wisdom Literature entered Israel.
But it was nourished by the faith and experiences of the Israelites. They gave emphasis to the
divine. Wisdom begins with “the fear of the Lord.” (Proverbs 1:7; Proverbs 9:10) The Wisdom
writers affirmed with no uncertainty that there is no wisdom without the fear of the Lord.
SAGES
Sages were wise and experienced men, engaged in the study of the Sacred Scriptures
and of man, his relationship with God and his behavior toward other men. They conveyed their
teaching mostly through mashals. Mashals are comparisons loaded with practical wisdom in
the form o parables, allegories, and riddles with moral instruction.
This is how the Sages do it – They study and internalize the Sacred Scriptures by praying and
meditating on them, contextualizing them in man’s reality, with his own desires, hopes and
aspirations. In this process, the Sages gain more knowledge about God and the manifestation
of His will to man.
THE AIMS OF SAGES
1. That all men may acquire knowledge for the sake of godliness
2. That all men may acquire knowledge that they develop the art of excellence in all things,
because all comes from God and all must be returned to Him
THE PRINCIPLES TAUGHT BY THE SAGES
1. No one can be wise who is not also good. A man who does not avoid sin and evil is not
wise.
2. Wisdom will lead others to see God in all things
3. Wisdom is not only knowledge but practice in daily life
CHARACTERISTICS OF WISDOM LITERATURE
1. The use of Maxims – short sayings emphasizing particular truths, often in the form of a simile
2. The use of Parallelism
● Synonymous – the idea is expressed through a synonym
● Antithetic – a statement is followed by its opposite
● Climactic – the second part completes the idea contained in the first
3. It presents universal truths
4. It presents God in daily life experiences
DIFFERENT SOURCES OF WISDOM
● Divine revelation
● Traditions
● Experiences
● Reason
THE FRUITS OF WISDOM
● Art of living well
● Skills in art
● Practical solutions to life’s problems
● Prudence
● Good manners and trainings
How can these be acquired?
They can be acquired through:
● Discipline
● Study and instruction
● Counsel
● Reflection
● and above all, through prayer and meditation
JOB
1. OVERVIEW
This book is an artistic set of dialogues skillfully handling the problem of suffering only
from the point of view of earthly life.
The name of the book of Job in the Bible comes from its central character. The English
name is derived from the Latin Iob, from the Greek Iōb, which was the transliteration of the
Hebrew Īyōb. The meaning of the name is uncertain.
Job - a righteous man and a good servant of the Lord; he experienced sufferings in life despite
being good and righteous to test his faith.
2. NATURE/FEATURE
a. Author
The author is uncertain. The name of the author is not indicated in the book. Some have
suggested that Moses wrote the account. This hypothesis would explain its inclusion in the
canon, but it is mere speculation.
b. Date
The Book of Job is the first document in history to take seriously the question of why
really bad things happen to really good people. Scholars generally agree that it was written
between the 7th and 4th centuries BCE, with the 6th century BCE as the most likely period for
various reasons.
c. Language and Text
Job exists in a number of forms:
(1) the Hebrew Masoretic Text, which underlies many modern Bible translations
(2) the Greek Septuagint made in Egypt in the last centuries BCE
(3) the Aramaic and Hebrew manuscripts found among the Dead Sea Scrolls.
d. Number of Chapters
The Book of Job is forty-two chapters long, with a small introductory section of two
chapters, and an even smaller conclusion that is only one chapter.
e. Setting and Perspective
The story is set in the land of Uz (the homeland of Job), which, it should be noted, is not
part of Israel.
Job’s experience invites us to ponder difficult questions about the causes of suffering,
the frailty of human existence, and the reasons to trust in God, even when life seems unfair.
3. THEOLOGICAL THEME AND MESSAGE
This book has often left open three possibilities:
(1) God is not almighty after all
(2) God is not just
(3) humans may be innocent.
The book’s theme is the eternal problem of unmerited suffering, and it is named after its
central character, Job, who attempts to understand the sufferings that engulf him.
4. JOB AS A WISDOM BOOK
The book of Job is trying to communicate with us that among suffering we must submit
to God for wisdom is found in God. Job belongs to the genre of wisdom literature, sharing a
perspective that they themselves call the "way of wisdom".
Wisdom means both a way of thinking and a body of knowledge gained through such
thinking, as well as the ability to apply it to life. In its Biblical application in wisdom literature, it is
seen as attainable in part through human effort and in part as a gift from God, but never in its
entirety – except by God.
PSALMS
1. OVERVIEW
A collection of religious songs for personal and community prayer.
2. NATURE AND FEATURE
a. Author
The book of Psalms consists of 150 sacred poems, songs and prayers and it is a
composite work. This means multiple authors contributed to it.
Some of them are familiar to us like David who wrote 73 (majority of the book), Solomon
and Moses who wrote 3. Some were written by worship leaders in the temple like Heman and
Ethan who wrote 2. While more than ⅓ — 49 to be exact — of the psalms’ authors were
anonymous.
b. Date
These books were gradually collected in a span of one thousand years from the time of
Moses to the time of the Ezrahites (including Ethan). Gradually collected means they were not
written in a certain timeframe.
c. Language and Text
It was written in Hebrew.
d. Number of Chapters
● 150 Psalms
● Were used in choirs even back in the day in Jerusalem temples but it is NOT a hymn
book. This is just a collection of ancient poems that were gathered and intentionally
arranged.
What do you mean intentionally arranged?
● Psalms 1 and 2 states the main themes of Psalms’ story which are the Torah and the
Messianic King.
● Psalms 3 - 145 were divided into five collections according to flow of story.
- First and Second collections narrates the story of David and his complicated
royal family. [ David - God personally chose him to rule as King of Israel and it
was said that the Messianic King will come from his line ]
- Third collection recounts the tragedy of Israel’s exile to Babylon. This also
contains the downfall of David’s line. Songs of Lament or sorrowful psalms can
be found in this part.
- Fourth and Fifth collections unfold the newborn hope of Israelites and celebrates
the hope brought by the Messianic King.
● The last poem in each of the five collections all end in the same conclusion: “MAY THE
LORD GOD OF ISRAEL BE BLESSED FOREVER AMEN AND AMEN”. — Even at the
end of the third collection, which is a tragedy, the book still praises God.
● Psalms 146 - 150 (the last 5 Psalms) all start and end with the word “Hallelu-yah”.
“Hallelu” means praise and “Yah” which is short for Yahweh.
3. THEOLOGICAL THEME AND MESSAGE
The books general theme celebrates God’s sovereign rule as the great King over all
things.
4. PSALMS AS A WISDOM BOOK
Psalms revolved around the story of King David. In his poems, he expressed his fears,
shared his failures but at the end of each and every Psalm he wrote, he always thanked and
praised the Lord.
PROVERBS
1. OVERVIEW
This book is a collection of practical norms for moral conduct.
2. NATURE AND FEATURE
a. Author
The superscription of the book reads, "The proverbs of Solomon… "is not to imply that it
as a whole or even specific proverbs should be attributed to King Solomon, for scholarly
research reveals that it contains seven collections of wisdom materials (mainly short sayings)
from a wide variety of periods, all after Solomon's time.
b. Date
Around 700 BC saw the creation of the earliest collection (25:1-29:27), known as
"proverbs of Solomon which the men of Hezekiah king of Judah copied," and the latest
(1:1-9:18) dates from the 4th BC.
c. Language and Text
The language of the book of Proverbs deviates clearly from Judahite Hebrew (Standard
Biblical Hebrew [SBH]), as prior scholars have shown.
d. Number of Chapters
Proverbs consists of 31 chapters, each with twenty to thirty-five proverbs, each with two
lines of poetry.
e. Setting and Perspective
Tradition holds that Proverbs was written between 1015 and 975 B.C., in Jerusalem,
during the reign of King Solomon.
3. THEOLOGICAL THEME AND MESSAGE
The main themes of Proverbs are the necessity of God's justice and the value of caution
and moderation. According to Solomon's proverbs, evil deeds always result in divine vengeance
and punishment during a person's earthly life.
4. PROVERBS AS A WISDOM BOOK
Anyone can gain wisdom, even though Proverbs is primarily written with young people in
mind. God's premise is both very straightforward and profound: If people fear God, they can all
become wise.
ECCLESIASTES
1. OVERVIEW
Examines a wide range of human experiences only to conclude that all is vanity, except
the fear of the Lord and the observance of His commandments.
2. NATURE/ FEATURE
a. Author
Only Solomon can be considered the author of Ecclesiastes. The Book of Ecclesiastes'
author is unknown, however, the superscription attributes the book to Qohelet, who is translated
as “preacher” who is identified as the son of David, King of Jerusalem, that only refers to
Solomon.
b. Date
From roughly 970 B.C. on, Solomon ruled as King of Israel until approximately 930 B.C.
Probably around 935 B.C. athe the end of his reign, the Book of Ecclesiastes was written.
c. Language and Text
It is one of the Hebrew Bible's books of wisdom. The Hebrew title of the book is Qohelet,
a noun most likely designating the function "gathering" or “collection of books”, but the real
translation of its title Qohelet means “preacher”.
d. Number of Chapters
It is composed of 12 chapters.
e. Setting and Perspective
During the reigning of King Solomon around 970 B.C. to 930 B.C. as the king of Israel,
He appeared to have a wonderfully fulfilling life, but as he looked back on it, he understood that
without a close relationship with the Creator, the deeds, pleasures, and accomplishments were
meaningless. He acknowledged that while close to his heart, God was not his first love. He
loved other things more than God.
3. THEOLOGICAL THEME AND MESSAGE
The main theme of the book of Ecclesiastes is the “meaninglessness” of life that even if
we work hard for our goals and aim for our dreams, without God, everything is meaningless and
we also will feel the dissatisfaction in life. Lastly, there's a time for everything.
4. ECCLESIASTES AS A WISDOM BOOK
This book is full of wisdom which everyone can apply in a real-life situation especially in
times that one is having a hard time achieving their goals. The Book of Ecclesiastes doesn't
only tackle the topic of achieving one's goal together with God, but it also gives wisdom to
improve the way of living one's life. For example, "For everything there is a season, and a time
for every matter under heaven" (Eccl 3:1); "Dead flies make the perfumer’s ointment give off a
stench; so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor" (Eccl 10:4); and based on Eccl 10:8, "He
who digs a pit will fall into it." This correlates to "do not do unto others what you don’t want done
unto you."
SONG OF SOLOMON
1. OVERVIEW
A collection of love songs that may symbolize the love of God for his chosen people.
2. NATURE AND FEATURE
a. Author
The title of the book eventually took on King Solomon’s name because of the mention of
his name throughout the book (1:5; 3:7, 9, 11; 8:11–12). This title change also supports the
traditional view of Solomon as the author of the book.
b. Date
The book in its present form postdates the Babylonian Exile (5th century bc onward), but
the poems that it preserves date from about the 10th century BC, the period of the Davidic
monarchy.
c. Language and Text
The original Hebrew version of the book took its title from the book’s first two words,
shiyr hashiyrim, usually translated as “the song of songs.”
d. Number of Chapters
The book of Song of Solomon has 8 chapters only; each chapters contain not exceeding
to 17 verses
e. Setting and Perspective
It takes place in ancient Israel, in the woman's garden and the king's palace.
3. THEOLOGICAL THEME AND MESSAGE
The relationship of God and man; in order to find such a meaning it was necessary to
resort to allegory, treating the love that the Song celebrates as an analogy for the love. Some
suggest the book also pictures in a more general way Christ’s love for His bride, the church.
4. SONG OF SOLOMON AS A WISDOM BOOK
As a testament to the beauty of the marriage relationship in its fullness, Song of
Solomon stands out with its uniquely detailed vision of this beautiful reality.
WISDOM BOOK
1. OVERVIEW
This book sets out to show that real success is found in the wisdom which comes from
God. The book revolves around "wisdom" itself, appearing under two principal aspects: (1)
wisdom in relation to humankind and (2) wisdom in direct relation to God.
2. NATURE/FEATURE
a. Author
A lot of people think that the book was written by Solomon BUT modern researchers
rejected this idea. The book openly states that Solomon is not the author, the second section
was just written in his perspective through literary fiction.
Although unknown and unnamed, the author is believed to be an Alexandrian Jew.
b. Date
Was written about 50-100 years before the coming of Christ
c. Language and Text
Was written in Greek, in a style patterned on that of Hebrew verse
d. Number of Chapters
The book contains 19 chapters, divided into three major parts:
1. The Reward of Righteousness
2. Praise of Wisdom by Solomon - this part was written fictionally in Solomon’s point of
view which led to the misconceptions that he is the author when he is not.
3. Special Providence of God During Exodus
● The second section was written through Solomon’s perspective because he is looked up
to when it comes to wisdom.
● This wisdom was portrayed in various stories but a popular one is the story where two
mothers both claimed to be the mother of a baby. There was no evidence of the truth so
it was their word against each other. But because Solomon was such an intelligent man,
he proposed that the baby should be cut into two and they can each get half of the baby.
One of the women agreed and the other woman cried, saying that the first woman can
have the baby all to herself just don’t hurt the baby. And through their reactions to this
ridiculous proposal, Solomon discovered that the selfish one was not the mother.
Instead, it was the one who cared so deeply for the baby that she did not mind losing the
baby, just that the baby doesn’t get hurt.
e. Setting and Perspective
Most of them were set in Alexandria, Egypt in the mid-first century before the coming of
Christ. But not all since, as previously stated, some were just works of fiction and never really
occured.
3. THEOLOGICAL THEME AND MESSAGE
The book is addressed to the rulers of the earth, urging them to love righteousness and
seek wisdom, no matter how hard it is to stay that way.
4. THE WISDOM AS A WISDOM BOOK
The book of Wisdom, as the name suggests, focuses on the concept of wisdom under
different lights.
SIRACH
1. OVERVIEW
The book contains numerous maxims dealing with the religious and social customs of
the time.
2. NATURE/FEATURE
a. Author
Jesus Ben Sira
b. Date
Considering the average length of two generations, Sirach's date must fall in the first
third of the 2nd century BCE. The book was originally written between 200-175BC.
c. Language and Text
The "Book of ben Sirach" (ספר בן סירא, Sefer ben Siraʼ) was originally written in Hebrew,
and was also known in Hebrew as the "Proverbs of ben Sirach" (משלי בן סירא, Mišley ben Siraʼ)
or the "Wisdom of ben Sirach" (חכמת בן סירא, Ḥokhmat ben Siraʼ).
d. Number of Chapters
The book has 51 chapters that are most often divided in the following way: Part 1
(Chapters 1-43) – praise of wisdom and general moral teachings; Part 2 (Chapters 4450) –
praise of Israel’s ancestors; Part 3 (Chapter 51) – concluding poem.
e. Setting and Perspective
Jesus Ben Sira lived at a time of great change in his homeland. He witnessed many of
his people deserting traditional Jewish beliefs for Greek ideas and practices. Ben Sira believed
a book underlining the superiority of Jewish wisdom was needed. So he collected his class
notes into a single volume and offered it to those, especially the young, who wanted to learn.
3. THEOLOGICAL THEME AND MESSAGE
This long book deals with many theological issues (e.g., creation, divine election and
providence, prayer, theodicy, death), as well as many topics of social ethics (e.g., poverty and
wealth, women, family and friends, honor and shame).
4. SIRACH AS A WISDOM BOOK
The book itself is the largest wisdom book from antiquity to have survived. The book is
written in the poetic style of the wisdom books of the Old Testament (e.g., Proverbs, Job) and
deals with the themes of practical and theoretical morality.
PPT Link : L_4_Wisdom Books [Link]
GROUP 4:
Makinika, Kim Czyrill E.
Malvar, Ullyza Nichole
Manongsong, Nicole M.
Mañibo, Marc Christian B.
Mercado, Kesha Mae U.
Monterozo, Marielle L.
Napa, Ivan Carl T.
