The Deuterocanon
Wisdom of Solomon
Lady Wisdom against the tyrants, immortality, idolatry unmasked, and the righteous vindicated.
Written in polished Greek, probably in Alexandria within a century or so of the New Testament, and unmistakably the work of someone at home in both Jewish scripture and Greek philosophy. It personifies Wisdom as a figure present at creation and pouring through all things, in language that early Christian writers reached for constantly when trying to describe Christ, and its opening chapters contain a passage about the righteous man being condemned to a shameful death that reads uncannily like the passion narrative. Its account of the immortality of the soul is the clearest in the Jewish scriptures and shaped a great deal of later theology. Scripture for Catholics and Orthodox, Apocrypha for Protestants.
If you remember one thing
Its portrait of wisdom as a radiance streaming from God shaped later Christian language about Christ, and its chapters on the righteous sufferer are echoed in the passion narratives.
Who, when, and why
- Written
- Greek-speaking Judaism, likely Alexandria, in the last century or two BC.
- First readers
- Jews under pressure to adopt Greek philosophy and religion.
- Why it was written
- To argue that true wisdom is God's, and that the righteous are vindicated beyond death.
How it is shaped
- 1 to 5Wisdom and immortality
- 6 to 9Solomon's praise of Wisdom
- 10 to 19Wisdom in the history of Israel
What it keeps coming back to
A verse to carry
“The souls of the righteous are in the hand of God, and no torment will ever touch them.”
Wisdom 3:1
Passages that trouble readers
Wisdom 2:12-20
The righteous man condemned to a shameful death, which reads so closely to the passion that Christians have long noticed it and Jewish readers understandably do not.
Wisdom 8:19-20
A statement about souls entering bodies that sounds like pre-existence, and which sits awkwardly with most later Christian and Jewish teaching.
Named here rather than skipped. Where Christians read a passage differently, we say so instead of choosing for you.
Who receives this book
Scripture for Catholic and Orthodox churches; among the Apocrypha in Protestant traditions.
No one from this book has a write-up yet. The hall is still filling.
A quiz for Wisdom of Solomon is on the workbench. In the meantime, the games for the judges, the kings, and the prophets are open.