LIBRARY OF HEBREW BIBLE/

OLD TESTAMENT STUDIES

701
Formerly Journal for the Study of the Old Testament Supplement Series

Editors
Claudia V. Camp, Texas Christian University, USA
Andrew Mein, Durham University, UK

Founding Editors
David J. A. Clines, Philip R. Davies and David M. Gunn

Editorial Board
Alan Cooper, Susan Gillingham, John Goldingay,
Norman K. Gottwald, James E. Harding, John Jarick, Carol Meyers,
Daniel L. Smith-Christopher, Francesca Stavrakopoulou,
James W. Watts
PROVERBS 1–9 AS AN INTRODUCTION
TO THE BOOK OF PROVERBS

Arthur Jan Keefer

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 C on t en t s

Acknowledgements vii
List of Abbreviations ix

Chapter 1
Introduction 1
1.1. Proverbs 1.1-7 and the Didactic Function of Proverbs 1–9 4
1.2. Prologues in Biblical Wisdom and in Ancient Near Eastern Texts 7
1.3. Early Interpretations of Proverbs 1–9 as an ‘Introduction’ 15
1.4. Current Interpretations of Proverbs 1–9 as an ‘Introduction’ 17
1.4.1. Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction 17
1.4.2. Proverbs 1–9 as an Independent Section 21
1.5. Conclusions on Context 27
1.6. Methodology: A Macro-Redactional Approach 28
1.7. Two Methodological Avenues to Proverbs 35
1.8. Outline of Chapters 38

Chapter 2
Character Types 46
2.1. The Identity of Character Types 51
2.1.1. Character Types in Proverbs 10.1-5 51
2.1.2. Character Types in Proverbs 1–9 55
2.1.3. Character Types Outside of the Book of Proverbs 64
2.1.4. The Function of Proverbs 1–9 for Proverbs 10.1-5 67
2.1.5. Conclusion 72
2.2. The Rhetoric of Character Types 72
2.2.1. Character Types in Proverbs 10.1–22.16 76
2.2.2. Character Types in Proverbs 1–9 79
2.2.3. The Function of Proverbs 1–9 for 15.2 and 18.2 82
2.2.4. The Function of Proverbs 1–9 for 29.11 87
2.2.5. Conclusion 90
vi Contents

Chapter 3
Educational Goals 93
3.1. The Aims and Values of Proverbs 94
3.1.1. Educational Goals in Proverbs 10.1–22.16 94
3.1.2. Educational Goals in Proverbs 1–9 100
3.1.3. The Function of Proverbs 1–9 for Proverbs 22.1 111
3.1.4. Proverbs 30 116
3.1.5. Conclusion 126
3.2. Discerning Moral Ambiguity 128
3.2.1. Moral Ambiguity in Proverbs 1–9 129
3.2.2. Moral Ambiguity in Proverbs 10–29 132
3.2.3. The Function of Proverbs 1–9 for Proverbs 18.8 and 14.12 139
3.2.4. Conclusion and Implications 140

Chapter 4
Theological Context 143
4.1. Human Postures towards the Lord 145
4.1.1. Human Postures towards the Lord in Proverbs 16.3 145
4.1.2. Human Postures towards the Lord in Proverbs 1–9 148
4.2. The Supremacy of the Lord’s Wisdom and Sovereignty 151
4.2.1. Wisdom and Sovereignty in Proverbs 16.9 151
4.2.2. Wisdom and Sovereignty in Proverbs 1–9 154
4.2.3. The Function of Proverbs 1–9 for 16.9 158
4.2.4. Summary of Proverbs 16.3 and 16.9 160
4.2.5. The Function of Proverbs 1–9 for Human Postures
and the Lord’s Supremacy in Proverbs 22.17-21 161
4.2.6. Conclusion 167
4.3. The Lord’s Affection and Assessment 167
4.3.1. The Lord’s Affection and Assessment in Proverbs 16.2 168
4.3.2. The Lord’s Affection and Assessment in Proverbs 1–9 171
4.3.3. The Function of Proverbs 1–9 for 16.2 177
4.3.4. The Qualifications and Context of Proverbs 1–9
as an Introduction 179
4.3.5. Conclusion 180

Bibliography 184
Index of References 192
Index of Authors 203
 A ck n owl ed g em e nts

The longer I worked on this project, the clearer its complexity and impor-
tance became. Clearer too was my understanding of why no one had yet
addressed the status of Proverbs 1–9 as an introduction at a book’s length.
Thankfully, there have been several people who made my attempt possible
and, perhaps, plausible, including Professor C. John (‘Jack’) Collins, who
inspired the idea, and Dr. Katharine Dell, who accepted a bare form of this
proposal and supervised it at the University of Cambridge, encouraging
me at the right times and cautioning me in those moments when humility
and prudence were most needed. Dr. Nathan MacDonald also read a bulk
of this work in its dissertation form, all of which was examined by Dr.
Alison Gray and Professor Stuart Weeks, whose formidable appraisal
made the work publishable. Two reviewers for LHBOTS and Claudia
Camp gave charitable feedback on the manuscript, and Duncan Burns
was a great help during the production stage. Any errors or shortcomings
are certainly my own. Clare College, Cambridge provided a space where
the results of this study, prior to being in print, could benefit students and
also supplied a generous scholarship during two years of my research. I
am indebted to the resources of Tyndale House library and grateful for
the professional and personal direction of friends like David Illman, Dr.
Richard Oosterhoff, the Rev. Dr. James Hawkey, and many colleagues
unnamed here.
My parents have always supported my studies, not least financially,
and continue to see the value of biblical studies for the church and world.
My brother, Forrest, checked in on the process more than anyone else,
from the start of this book to its conclusion, and Emem, my wife, though
no expert in Hebrew or the norms of biblical research, is expert in asking
the right questions and encouraging me in the right way. Her love and
friendship have shaped, more than anything, my character, and for her I
am immensely grateful.
 L i s t of A b b r ev i ati ons

AB Anchor Bible
AEL Miriam Lichtheim, Ancient Egyptian Literature: A Book of Readings,
3 Vols. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1973–80
ANE Ancient Near East(ern)
ANET James B. Pritchard, Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old
Testament. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1950
AOTC Apollos Old Testament Commentary
BBR Bulletin for Biblical Research
BKAT Biblischer Kommentar Altes Testement
BZAW Beihefte zur Zeitschrift für die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft
CAD The Assyrian Dictionary of the Oriental Institute of the University of
Chicago. Chicago: Oriental Institute, 1956–
CBQ Catholic Biblical Quarterly
CBQMS Catholic Biblical Quarterly Monograph Series
CBR Currents in Biblical Research
BCOT Baker Commentary on the Old Testament
ESV English Standard Version
FAT Forschung zum Alten Testament
GKC Gensenius’ Hebrew Grammar, edited and enlarged by E. Kautzsch,
trans. A. E. Cowley, 2nd ed. Oxford: Clarendon, 1910; repr. with
corrections, 1966
HCOT Historical Commentary on the Old Testament
IBHS Bruce K. Waltke and M. O’Connor, Introduction to Biblical Hebrew
Syntax. Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns, 1990
ICC International Critical Commentary
JBL Journal of Biblical Literature
JETS Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society
JHS Journal of Hebrew Scriptures
JM Paul Joüon and T. Muraoka, A Grammar of Biblical Hebrew. 2nd ed.
Subsidia Biblica 27. Rome: Gregorian and Biblical Press, 2011
JNSL Journal of Northwest Semitic Languages
JSCE Journal of the Society of Christian Ethics
JSJSupp Supplements to the Journal for the Study of Judaism
JSOT Journal for the Study of the Old Testament
JTI Journal of Theological Interpretation
LHBOTS The Library of Hebrew Bible/Old Testament Studies
LXX Septuagint
x List of Abbreviations

MS(S) manuscript(s)
MT Masoretic Text
NASB New American Standard Bible
NIB The New Interpreter’s Bible: General Articles & Introduction,
Commentary, & Reflections for Each Book of the Bible, Including the
Apocryphal/Deuterocanonical Books, ed. Richard Clifford, vol. 5.
Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1994
NICOT The New International Commentary on the Old Testament
NIDOTTE New International Dictionary of Old Testament Theology and
Exegesis, ed. William A. VanGemeren, 5 vols. Grand Rapids:
Zondervan, 1997
NIV New International Version
NRSV New Revised Standard Version
OBO Orbis Biblicus et Orientalis
OT Old Testament
OTE Old Testament Essays
OTL Old Testament Library
SOTS Society for Old Testament Study
Syr Syriac
TDOT Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament, ed. G. J. Botterweck
et al., trans. D. E. Green et al., 15 vols. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans,
1974–2015
TOTC Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries
TWOT Bruce K. Waltke, R. Laird Harris, and Gleason Archer, Theological
Wordbook of the Old Testament. Chicago: Moody, 1980
VT Vetus Testamentum
VTSup Supplements to Vetus Testamentum
WBC Word Bible Commentary
ZAW Zeitschrift für die Alttestamentliche Wissenschaft
 1

I n t rod uct i on

The first nine chapters of the book of Proverbs are often labelled an ‘intro-
duction’ or ‘prologue’ for the remainder of the book, and in this monograph
that claim is put to question. The root of the issue is not what exactly is or
could be meant by ‘introduction’; it is instead an issue of function. How
does Proverbs 1–9 function within the book as a whole? Few studies have
properly articulated the function of Proverbs 1–9, and no study, beyond
suggesting a couple of examples, has clearly demonstrated in depth how it
operates, especially as it precedes and juxtaposes with Prov. 10.1–22.16.1
This latter portion of text, being a collection of proverbs with pithy literary
forms, contrasts with the initial chapters of the book, Proverbs 1–9, which
contains lengthy poems, developed and storied scenarios, and predomi-
nately second- rather than third-person address.2 For a section of biblical
material that has been referred to as an ‘introduction’ for so long, it is
surprising that so little has been shown regarding its introductory nature,
not least how it may inform the meaning of the proverbs that follow it.
The present work aims to determine and demonstrate how Proverbs 1–9
operates for the rest of Proverbs, providing the justification and guidelines
for those who wish to treat 1–9 as an ‘introduction’.
The argument revolves around two aspects of Proverbs, namely, the
interpretive challenges posed by Proverbs 10–29 and the interpretive
promises made in Prov. 1.1-7. The proverbs within chapters 10–29 pose
challenges for at least two interrelated reasons: first, their assumptions
and second, their brevity. By assumptions, I mean the information or
mental faculties that the proverbs require for interpretation, information

1. See the discussion below.

2. Proverbs 1–9 might be viewed as a ‘collection’ of poems and instructions.
Though preferring standard chapter and verse references, I adopt the accepted lan-
guage of ‘Collection I’ for Proverbs 1–9 and ‘Collection II’ for Prov. 10.1–22.16.
2 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

that is often latent within proverbial sayings due to their pithy nature. For
example, Prov. 16.3 baldly commands the reader to ‘Commit your work
to the Lord’, implying that the Lord is worthy of trust.3 To questions like,
‘why should I trust the Lord?’, Prov. 10.1–22.16 provides a limited set
of answers: if you trust the Lord then ‘your plans will be established’
(16.3b), or trust the Lord because he is wise and in control (16.1, 9); trust
him because he dispenses hatred, favour and punishment to humans (16.5;
12.2; 21.3). These texts establish a notably affective and transcendent
God and yet, outside of his bald power and recompense, they offer little
incentive to trust him and most importantly make little explicit connection
between human trust in God and a justification for it. While not true of
every proverb, many of them, like 16.3, deliver intriguing hermeneutical
challenges. Some leave obvious questions unanswered while others call
for additional insight, each inviting the reader to seek a fuller sense of
meaning.4
This is the point in the interpretive quest at which a reader might turn
to Prov. 1.1-7 for guidance. For it promises the acquisition of interpretive
skill in order that its audience might ‘understand words of insight…a
proverb and a saying, the words of the wise and their riddles’ (1.2b,
6). As explained in full below, this inaugural promise accounts for the
difficulties of Proverbs 10–29 by telling the audience that they will be
able to comprehend its enigmatic material, denoted here as ‘proverbs’
and ‘sayings’ (1.6) which, I will argue, refer to the content of Proverbs
10–29 and corroborate its challenging nature. Proverbs 1.1-7 indicates

3. Throughout this study, I use ‘God’ and ‘the Lord’ to refer respectively to ‫אלהים‬
and ‫יהוה‬, and ‘wisdom’ and ‘Wisdom’ to distinguish between the concept of wisdom
and the personified, female figure, often called Lady Wisdom.
4. Other proverbs and pithy literary forms from the ancient Near East exhibited
difficulties for their interpreters. Certain Sumerian proverbs were supplemented with
‘explanatory additions’, and pithy, metaphor-loaded sentences within omen texts of
Mesopotamia received explanatory comments. For instance, ‘Mesopotamian scholars
often felt a need to provide “factual” information on omen protases, either because
they were too unspecific, too cryptic, or so unrealistic that a re-interpretation was
necessary to make them applicable’ (Eckart Frahm, Babylonian and Assyrian Text
Commentaries: Origins of Interpretation, Guides to the Mesopotamian Textual
Record 5 [Münster: Ugarit Verlag, 2011], 79; see also 69, 80–5, 336). Certain mis-
translations and misinterpretations of the Mesopotamian texts, though, were due not
so much to brevity but to outdated forms of language. For ‘explanatory additions’ of
Sumerian proverbs, see Bendt Alster, Proverbs of Ancient Sumer: The World’s Ear-
liest Proverb Collections (Bethesda, MD: CDL, 1997), xxviii. Thanks is due to Yoram
Cohen for his personal correspondence about this scholarly discussion.
 1. Introduction 3

that Proverbs itself will enable the reader to make sense of these materials,
that is, ‘to understand words of insight…a proverb and a saying, the words
of the wise and their riddles’ (1.2b, 6).
Both the challenges of Proverbs 10–29 and the promises of 1.1-7
suggest that an interpretive need and its solution reside within the book
of Proverbs itself, fortifying the hypothesis that Proverbs 1–9 functions
in some discoverable way for much of the book.5 I argue that Proverbs
1–9 is that very portion of Proverbs which provides insights into the terse
sayings and certain perplexities of the book, that it functions didactically
by helping its audience to understand the material in Proverbs 10–31.
Now, this does not mean that the proverbial material stands before the
interpreter as an impenetrable text unless an aid, such as Proverbs 1–9,
comes to the rescue. It means that a portion of Proverbs offers insight into
material that appears in certain ways challenging largely due to its terse
proverbial form and tight, poetic content. My suggestion is that when
Proverbs is read as a whole, 1–9 furnishes insights into certain challenges
of 10–31, namely those related to character types, educational goals, and
references to the Lord, and in this way functions didactically.
Focusing on these three areas, the bulk of my work will articulate and
demonstrate the role of Proverbs 1–9 through an extended treatment of
examples from Prov. 10.1–22.16, since it provides a larger and formally
more consistent section than 22.17–31.31. However, I include selected
examples from the remaining material for each topic, incorporating the
character types of Prov. 29.1, the educational goals of 30.1-9, and the
theology of 22.19, to extend the hermeneutical reach of Proverbs 1–9
to passages representative of the entire book. In addition to the text of
Proverbs itself, two things prompt a study into the function of Proverbs
1–9: first, the long-voiced proposals from interpreters about the nature
of this section and second, a cross-comparison of Proverbs 1–9 with
its ancient Near Eastern counterparts. This chapter accounts for each of

5. Briefly examining the relationship between Proverbs 1–9 and 10–22, Richard
Clifford (‘Reading Proverbs 10–22’, Interpretation 63 [2009]: 244, also 245–6)
moves in this direction but in much less detail than I do. Beginning with Proverbs
10–22, he says that ‘Reading through such a collection is like wandering into a
tool shed and wondering what all the instruments hanging on the wall are meant
to do’. According to Clifford, Proverbs 10–22 seems to lack a context – perhaps
more precisely, an explanatory framework – and thus poses a particular challenge
to the interpreter. Clifford argues that Proverbs 1–9 provides just such a context for
the sentence literature, and that it does so in three ways: it establishes the narrative
context of the book; it clarifies the divine origins of the proverbs; and it reminds the
reader of the importance of memory and learning.
4 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

these, taking stock of the book’s opening comments (1.1-7), assessing the
relationship of Proverbs 1–9 to examples from the wider ancient Near
Eastern world, and tracing the history of labelling 1–9 as a prologue. It
then lays out a methodology and a summary of my argument.

1.1. Proverbs 1.1-7 and the Didactic Function of Proverbs 1–9

I mentioned that Prov. 1.2 and 1.6 account for the interpretive challenges
of Proverbs 10–29 by telling the audience that they will be able to
interpret the book’s enigmatic material. Riddled with diachronic debates,
the redactional history of these passages and Proverbs as a whole requires
attention and is addressed later. At this point, a closer look at the language
of 1.1-7 will both validate and clarify the possible function of 1–9 and
the best point of entry into Proverbs. As the opening verses of the book,
1.1-7 itemizes the goals and key concepts of Proverbs, claiming that the
audience will know wisdom and instruction (1.2) and receive training in
justice and equity (1.3). To these activities, 1.6 adds that the book offers
expertise in literary interpretation: ‘to understand/explicate a proverb
and a saying, the words of the wise and their riddles’ (‫להבין משׁל ומליצה‬
‫)דברי חכמים וחידתם‬. What I have translated ‘to understand/explicate’
comes from the hiphil ‫ בין‬that occurs here, as it does also in 1.2, and yet it
carries a distinct sense in each verse. The hiphil ‫ בין‬can resemble the qal,
meaning ‘learn’, ‘understand’, and especially ‘discern’ (1 Kgs 3.9, 11;
Prov. 8.5; 14.8; 28.11), which, involving more than heeding or grasping
cognitively, elsewhere refers to capturing the true sense of information
that is prone to being misunderstood (Prov. 8.9; Neh. 8.2-3; Dan. 8.23,
27; cf. Ps. 119.34). This sense of the qal fits with the hiphil occurrence in
Prov. 1.2, as the interpreter will ‘understand’ learned sayings. However,
hiphil ‫ בין‬sometimes carries a causative nuance of ‘teach’ or ‘explicate’, as
in Nehemiah when the priests ‘explicate’ the law to the people (Neh. 8.7,
9; cf. 8.8), and in the book of Job when Job asks the Lord to teach and to
‘make him understand’ how he erred (Job 6.24; see also Ps. 119.130, 144,
169; Isa. 28.9). This sense of ‘explicate’ – that is, ‘interpret’ in the sense
of ‘explain the meaning of’ – suits Prov. 1.6, as readers may ‘explicate a
proverb and an epigram, the words of the wise and their riddles’.6

6. These general senses of the qal and hiphil are often affirmed, but when inter-
preting Prov. 1.6 the hiphil occurrence is recognized as ‘understand’ without comment
(see, e.g., Helmer Ringgren, ‘‫ ִּבין‬bîn’, TDOT 2:102–3). As an exception, J. A. Loader
(Proverbs 1–9, HCOT [Leuven: Peeters, 2014], 61–2) defends the meaning of ‘expli-
cate’ here.
 1. Introduction 5

In addition to the verbs of 1.2 and 1.6, the literary lexemes of 1.6 in
the context of the opening verses of Proverbs suggest that the book aims
to inculcate interpretive competence. The lexeme ‫‘( מׁשל‬proverb’) refers
at least to the pithy sayings of Collection II (10.1, ‫)מׁשלי ׁשלמה‬, while
‫‘( דברי חכמים‬words of the wise’) reappears in 22.17, referring to the text
of Proverbs itself: ‘Incline your ear and hear the words of the wise; apply
your heart to my knowledge’. While ‘proverbs’ and ‘words of the wise’
clearly refer to material within Proverbs, the more enigmatic lexemes
of 1.6 – ‫[‘( מליצה‬dark] saying’) and ‫‘( חידת‬riddles’) – have produced
more contention with regard to their meaning.7 For ‫ מליצה‬appears only
once outside of Prov. 1.6 (Hab. 2.6) and there it parallels ‫ חידות‬and ‫מׁשל‬.
The lexeme ‫ חידה‬appears more frequently than ‫ מליצה‬and often refers to
something that requires interpretation (Judg. 14.12-19; Num. 12.8; Dan.
8.23) and even challenges understanding (1 Kgs 10.1; 2 Chron. 9.1).8
Aside from the precise meaning of these lexemes and the literary form
or content to which they might refer, they all signify enigmatic material
that requires interpretation and, taken together, call for hermeneutical
application.9 Timothy Sandoval has hypothesized about the significance
of these lexemes for Prov. 10.1–22.16 when he writes that they ‘alert
the reader to the interpretive efforts one will need to undertake as one
continues reading the book…. The one who reads past the prologue
should expect to encounter a complex piece of literature and a challenging
interpretive process’.10 In short, ‫מׁשל‬, ‫דברי חכמים‬, ‫ מליצה‬and ‫ חידת‬refer to
the literature of Proverbs itself, enigmatic material that Prov. 1.6 claims
the reader will be able to unravel.

7. See William McKane, ‘Functions of Language and Objectives of Discourse

according to Proverbs 10–30’, in La Sagesse de l’Ancien Testament, ed. Maurice
Gilbert (Leuven: Leuven University Press, 1979), 166–85; A. S. Herbert, ‘The
“Parable” (MĀŠĀL) in the Old Testament’, SJT 7 (1954): 180–96.
8. Stuart Weeks (Instruction and Imagery in Proverbs 1–9 [Oxford: Oxford
University Press, 2007], 41 n. 17) attributes the least enigmatic meaning to these
‘riddles’ (‫ )חידה‬when he writes that, in Ps. 78.2, the term ‘is used to refer to the
recitation of quite unmysterious events in history’. However, he still acknowledges
that Prov. 1.6 indicates ‘a recognition that wisdom literature may be obscure and
require interpretation’. See also Michael V. Fox, Proverbs 1–9: A New Translation
with Introduction and Commentary, AB 18A (New York: Doubleday, 2000), 63–7;
cf. W. T. Davison, The Wisdom-Literature of the Old Testament (London: Charles H.
Kelly, 1900), 124.
9. Bruce K. Waltke, The Book of Proverbs: Chapters 1–15, NICOT (Grand
Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2004), 180.
10. Timothy Sandoval, ‘Revisiting the Prologue of Proverbs’, JBL 126 (2007):
469, 471.
6 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

It seems that Prov. 1.6 simply reiterates a point already made in 1.2,
which promises the audience that they will understand the wisdom of
Proverbs. However, Prov. 1.6 does not simply reaffirm this, claiming the
reader will understand the enigmatic material, but rather adds a notion of
‘explicate’. This concept coheres with other statements in 1.1-7, particu-
larly the promise that the interpreter will teach ‘simpletons’ and ‘youth[s]’
(1.4) and acquire educational competencies (1.5).11 Expecting to teach
such people and acquire competency, readers will not only discover
the meaning of the sayings for themselves (1.2) but will interpret their
meaning for others too (1.6). The Egyptian term wh’ was used in instruc-
tional texts, where the student would ‘untie’ or ‘explain’ learned writings,
as Amenemope says, ‘Fill yourself with them, put them in your heart /
And become a man who explains them / One who explains as a teacher’
(XXVII.13-15).12 Likewise, Prov. 1.1-6 indicates that its audience will
be able to interpret its material in both senses of the word: to understand
(1.2) and to explicate (1.6) its contents. In other words, Proverbs suggests
that it proffers didactic faculties for interpreting the book itself. By
‘didactic’, I mean that the book intends to teach, and by ‘interpret’, I mean
‘understand’, which stands as a necessary prerequisite for the activity of
‘explicating’, both of which are instated by 1.2, 6.13 Proverbs instils its
readers with faculties that enable them to explicate the material within
the book itself.
Proverbs 1.1-7, according to Fox, ‘regards the sayings in Proverbs as
text that must be studied and interpreted, not just heard and obeyed…[it]
regards the interpretation of proverbs and enigmas as a goal in itself or
views proverbs as an object of explication…wisdom as a text that requires
interpretation and that trains the reader in hermeneutical skills’.14 Fox, it
seems, would agree with the train of thought given so far: that Proverbs
trains the interpreter, functioning didactically to help those who approach

11. See Arthur Keefer, ‘A Shift in Perspective: The Intended Audience and a
Coherent Reading of Proverbs 1:1-7’, JBL 136 (2017): 103–16.
12. Nili Shupak, Where Can Wisdom Be Found? The Sage’s Language in the
Bible and in Ancient Egyptian Literature, OBO 130 (Fribourg: Academic Press
Fribourg, 1993), 63–5. See also Fox (Proverbs 1–9, 76–8), who claims that the hiphil
‫ בין‬in 1.6 is not causative, though he overlooks occurrences of the term (listed above)
and his later comments support my position.
13. These definitions correspond to the Oxford English Dictionary’s first two
entries for ‘interpret’: ‘1.a. To expound the meaning of (something abstruse or
mysterious); to render (words, writings, an author, etc.) clear or explicit; to elucidate;
to explain. 1.b. To make out the meaning of.’
14. Fox, Proverbs 1–9, 76.
 1. Introduction 7

its enigmatic material. However, Fox remarks that nothing in Proverbs

‘actually tells how to penetrate and interpret the writings’, as if a promise
is made in Proverbs but the hermeneutical guidance is missing.15 I contend
that it is Prov. 1.2 and 1.6 that tell us how to do this, giving reason to look
for a means of interpretive training within the book of Proverbs itself,
and I propose that this preparatory instruction occurs in Proverbs 1–9,
as it functions didactically. This function will be elucidated by showing
that 1–9 supplements the interpretation of 10–31, and that it does so by
complementing other sources of interpretive insight, such as historical
context, OT topoi, and surrounding proverbs, but also by surpassing
those sources, in cases where they do not resolve questions of meaning.
I therefore demonstrate the significance, and in certain respects the
interpretive authority, of Collection I for understanding and illuminating
hermeneutical difficulties within the remainder of Proverbs.

1.2. Prologues in Biblical Wisdom

and in Ancient Near Eastern Texts

Prologues in Ecclesiastes, Job, and some non-biblical ancient Near Eastern

texts support the hypothesis that Proverbs 1–9 functions as a didactic
guide for 10–29. A ‘prologue’ (1.1-11) and an ‘epilogue’ (12.9-14) frame
Ecclesiastes, illuminating the remaining enigmatic content of the book
itself.16 Fox has given much attention to the function of these passages in
Ecclesiastes and concludes that an ‘Awareness of the frame-narrative gives
us a fundamental insight into the proper reading of the book as a whole’.17
According to Fox, the bookends function in stages, establishing the reality
of Qohelet’s character type and the interpreter’s attitude towards him to
create a dialogic ambiguity. The ambiguity arises from the ‘unorthodox
book’ that is then paired with ‘orthodox affirmations’ found particularly in
12.9-14. The text’s opening verses (1.1-2) introduce readers to Qohelet in
the third person, who then speaks in the first person starting at 1.12, while
the remainder of the prologue (1.3-11) includes a thesis (v. 3) and poetic
reflection (vv. 4-11) that prefigure much of the book’s message. Aside
from issues of date, editorial process, nuances of genre, and how much

15. Fox, Proverbs 1–9, 78.

16. Craig G. Bartholomew, Ecclesiastes, BCOT (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic,
2009), 110.
17. Michael V. Fox, ‘Frame-Narrative and Composition in the Book of Qohelet’,
HUCA 48 (1977): 105. See also Fox, Ecclesiastes: The Traditional Hebrew Text
with the New JPS Translation (Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 2004), xiii,
xv–xvii.
8 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

credence is given to notions of the book’s ‘orthodoxy’, most agree that the
bookends are essential for the interpretation of the whole.18
The question stated in Eccl. 1.3 for example – ‘What is the gain
for man in all his toil at which he toils under the sun?’ – creates an
inquisitive framework that unifies many of the experiences and observa-
tions of Qohelet. His introductory monologue about his endeavour, then,
can be read as an exposition of this question about ‘gain’ (‫ )יתרון‬in toil
(1.12-18), and his subsequent quest for pleasure in 2.1-11 explicitly falls
under the rubric introduced by 1.3, as he discovers that ‘there is no gain
under the sun’ (v. 11). The question of 1.3 thematically banners much of
Ecclesiastes and perhaps invites the reader to contemplate the question
itself while assessing Qohelet’s answers to it.19 The passage represents a
single example of how Eccl. 1.1-11 functions as a ‘prologue’ for the book.
The book of Job also employs a narrative frame. Job 1–2 and 42.7-17
stand as passages essential for understanding the sections of material
in Job 3.1–42.6, producing theological and hermeneutical tensions that,
according to some scholars, actually create the message of the book.20
Norman Habel has argued that the ‘prologue’ (Job 1–2) especially
integrates with the dialogues (3.1–42.6) and even establishes the literary,
rhetorical, and theological contexts of the story.21 For example, Job 1.1-5
introduces the reader to the man Job, his exceptional character, status, and
wealth, in order to provide background information for the narrative of
1.6–2.13 and 42.7-17. Job 2.11-13 then closes this narrative by depicting
Job’s grief and incorporating the other characters who feature in chapters
3–42, in this way preparing the reader for the dialogues that follow. Job’s
companions see his suffering and engage on an emotional level (2.11-13),

18. Choon-Leong Seow, Ecclesiastes: A New Translation with Introduction and

Commentary, AB 18C (New York: Doubleday, 1997), 111; Bartholomew, Eccle-
siastes, 74, 110; Andrew G. Shead, ‘Ecclesiastes from the Outside In’, RTR 55
(1996): 24–37, esp. 31; Daniel Fredericks, Ecclesiastes & the Song of Songs, AOTC
(Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2010), 68–9; Leo G. Perdue, Wisdom Liter-
ature: A Theological History (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2007),
190, 193.
19. Bartholomew, Ecclesiastes, 107, 110.
20. Martin A. Shields, ‘Malevolent or Mysterious? God’s Character in the
Prologue of Job’, TynBul 61 (2010): 255–70; see also Samuel Balentine, Job (Macon,
GA: Smyth & Helwys, 2006), 14–15; David J. A. Clines, Job 1–20, WBC 17 (Dallas,
TX: Word Books, 1989), xxxvi–xxxvii; Andrew E. Steinmann, ‘The Structure and
Message of the Book of Job’, VT 46 (1996): 85–100.
21. Norman Habel, The Book of Job: A Commentary, OTL (London: SCM Press,
1985), 25–35, 80–5.
 1. Introduction 9

setting a relational context that frames the theological advice and increas-
ingly heated counsel in the dialogues.22 Job 1–2, therefore, functions as
a sort of introduction by establishing the book’s many contexts. In short,
Ecclesiastes and Job, different from Proverbs but sharing its interest in
wisdom and its ‘bookended’ form, arguably depend upon introductory and
concluding passages to create a framework that aids the interpretation of
enigmatic materials in each book.23 While not further explored here, these
connections warrant further study in light of the model set out in what
follows for approaching Proverbs.
Other instructional texts from the ancient Near East include such
prologue and epilogue sections. It has been argued that the framing
passages of the Instruction of Ptahhotep connect with each other to
establish the setting of the instruction.24 ‘The maxims’, observes Richard
Parkinson, ‘expressing diverse attitudes might seem to be a partly
random anthology of sayings for which an assumption of thematic unity
is inappropriate’.25 But with the context cast by the introduction (1-50),
the reader understands that these apparently disparate sayings carry an
authoritative antiquity and that they aim to mature the obedient student
in wisdom and devotion (37-42). A lengthy epilogue expands on these
aims and forecasts the success that obedience brings: ‘If you listen to my
sayings, All your affairs will go forward’.26 The sayings within the body
of Ptahhotep, then, acquire an authority and educational purpose thanks
to the passages that begin and end the book.
The Instructions of Amenemope (III.9–IV.2) arguably reflects the form
of Proverbs in its inclusion of a self-referential, interpretive introduction.
So according to Amenemope’s first chapter (III.9–IV.2),

Give thy ears, hear what is said,

Give thy heart to understand them.
To put them in thy heart is worth while,
(but) it is damaging to him who neglects them.
Let them rest in the casket of thy belly,
That they may be a key in thy heart.

22. The ‘friends’ graduate from explaining Job’s situation as divine discipline
(5.17) and calling for a humble approach to God (5.8; 6.13-15; 8.3-6, 20), to chal-
lenging Job’s wisdom and guilt (15.4-6, 9-10), and then to calling him evil (22.5, 21).
23. As to the ‘bookended’ form of Proverbs, see the discussion below.
24. R. B. Parkinson, Poetry and Culture in Middle Kingdom Egypt: A Dark Side
to Perfection (London: Continuum, 2002), 258–66.
25. Parkinson, Poetry, 260.
26. AEL 1:73.
10 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

At a time when there is a whirlwind of words,

They shall be a mooring-stake for thy tongue.
If thou spendest thy time while this is in thy heart,
Thou wilt find it a success;
Thou wilt find my words a treasure of life,
And thy body will prosper upon earth.27

The first line refers to ‘what is said’ in Amenemope’s instruction itself

and bids the interpreter to understand it, evincing, in other words, a self-
referential introduction. Parts of this passage appear in Prov. 22.17-18,
a famous parallel that extends to Prov. 23.10 and fortifies the literary
similarities in the first chapters of both texts. Later in this study, I suggest
that Prov. 22.17-21 reiterates the didactic function of Proverbs 1–9, but
for now it is simply worth noting the conceptual overlap and similar
literary location of Amenemope’s passage and Proverbs 1–9.28 Although
Ptahhotep and Amenemope contain two of the clearest analogues to
Proverbs 1–9, it can be said, based on several instructional texts from the
ancient Near East, that introductory and sometimes concluding statements
motivate the audience to listen to and enact the contained instructions (Ani
7.4), enable interpretation by creating a discourse context (Ankhsheshonq
§1-4), and show self-awareness by referring to their own text (Amenemope
III.9–IV.2), all of which are qualities that show striking similarities with
Proverbs.29
Distinctions between these materials, though, ought to be held in
mind. To this end, Proverbs 1–9 has been helpfully differentiated from
Egyptian literature, given that the availability of Egyptian texts, aside
from Amenemope, to Israelite scribes is unclear and cautions textual
comparisons.30 Furthermore, Proverbs 1–9 boasts of a literary complexity

27. ANET, 421–2.

28. See the discussion in section 4.2.
29. Christopher B. Ansberry, Be Wise, My Son, and Make My Heart Glad: An
Exploration of the Courtly Nature of the Book of Proverbs, BZAW 422 (Berlin: de
Gruyter, 2011), 13–19. Lichtheim (AEL 3:160) writes of Ankhsheshonq, ‘the text has
an introductory narrative which purports to describe the circumstances that led to
the composition of the maxims, and, like its prototypes, the introduction is a literary
device and a fiction’ (see ANET, 421–5). For further examples, see Amenemhet i.2;
Ptahhotep i.51-60; The Teaching of a Man for His Son 1-3; for narrative contexts,
Wisdom of Ahiqar and Neferti; and Shuruppak 8-13.
30. E.g. the Instructions of Hardjedef, Ptahhotep and Kagemni. See Weeks,
Instruction, 4–11, also 12–66. For a helpful overview of scribal culture, see R. N.
Whybray, The Composition of the Book of Proverbs (Sheffield: Sheffield Academic
Press, 1994), 132–41.
 1. Introduction 11

not found among other ‘instructional’ material, as it integrates narrative

and teaching (e.g. Prov. 7), speeches within speeches (e.g. Prov. 4), and
varies the identity of the teacher (cf. God, Wisdom, grandfather, father).31
So while these texts share the element of a father instructing his son and
thereby constitute ‘instruction’, the distinctive character of Proverbs 1–9
is not unnoticed. I am not proposing a theory of dependence, in literary or
historical terms, but I am suggesting that certain similarities of Proverbs
with ancient Near Eastern instructional texts and the biblical books of Job
and Ecclesiastes encourage an exploration of how Proverbs 1–9 might
function as a ‘prologue’.
Lastly, the opening chapters of the extra-biblical book of Ben Sira, a
later text clearly dependent on the book of Proverbs, reflect the primary
concerns of Proverbs 1–9. Although Ben Sira includes an explanatory,
prose prologue more reminiscent of Greek historical works, Sir. 1.1-10
contains a hymn to Wisdom like Prov. 8.22-31, and Sir. 1.11-30 features
the fear of the Lord, a passage that, according to James Crenshaw, ‘serves
as a programmatic statement for the entire book’.32 Wisdom and the
fear of the Lord are worked out in their particularities throughout Sir.
2.1–4.10, chapters punctuated with language (‘my son’; 2.1; 3.12; 4.1)
and themes (e.g. humility, filial duty, discipline) found in Proverbs 1–9.
After another brief praise of Wisdom (4.11-19) the sentence instructions
begin at Sir. 4.20, showing structural similarity with Proverbs too. The
blatant reflection of the first nine chapters of Proverbs in Ben Sira’s first

31. Weeks, Instruction, 33–66. Berend Gemser (‘The Instructions of ‘Onch­

sheshonqy and Biblical Wisdom Literature’, in Studies in Ancient Israelite Wisdom,
ed. James Crenshaw [New York: KTAV, 1976], 142–7) argues, especially in light
of Ankhsheshonq which resembles Proverbs’ atomistic collection of sayings, that
the book of Proverbs stands as a more developed form of literature than its ancient
counterparts. So Kenneth Kitchen, ‘Biblical Instructional Wisdom: The Decisive
Voice of the Ancient Near East’, in Boundaries of the Ancient Near Eastern World:
A Tribute to Cyrus H. Gordon, ed. Meir Lubetski, Claire Gottlieb, and Sharon R.
Keller (Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1998), 363. While Kitchen stresses the
uniqueness of Proverbs and autonomy of ancient Near Eastern instruction compilers,
the similarities, which I account for, should not be overlooked. See Christa Kayatz,
Studien zu Proverbien 1–9 (Neukirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener Verlag, 1966), 26–75;
cf. R. N. Whybray, Wisdom in Proverbs: The Concept of Wisdom in Proverbs 1–9
(London: SCM Press, 1965), 61–71; Whybray, Proverbs (London: Marshall Pick-
ering, 1994), 23–30.
32. James Crenshaw, ‘Sirach’, NIB 5:650, also 642, 647. See also T. J. J. Corley,
‘An Intertextual Study of Proverbs and Ben Sira’, in Intertextual Studies in Ben Sira
and Tobit: Essays in Honor of Alexander A. Di Lella, O.F.M., CBQMS 38 (Washing-
ton, D.C.: Catholic Biblical Association of America, 2004), 180–2.
12 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

four chapters suggests that the structural distinction of Proverbs was

significant. In view of texts that are often considered the nearest relatives
of Proverbs, chapters 1–9 stand apart in aspects of form and content,
not to mention their nearly unrivalled length when taken collectively as
an introduction. But the length and introductory capacity of 1–9 is not
entirely unmatched, and there is some precedent for relatively lengthy,
interpretively influential material that has been placed onto the front of
ancient texts.
Sara Milstein has coined a phenomenon known as ‘revision by intro-
duction’, a practice whereby scribes supplemented a pre-existing text
with introductory material in order to shape the reader’s interpretation of
what follows.33 According to Milstein, such revision occurred in biblical
and Mesopotamian texts, and is evident in ‘hard evidence’ – namely,
extant textual witnesses that attest to variations in the material – and
also in the final form of certain texts, which lack concrete evidence of
change but nonetheless contain inconsistencies that make revision by
introduction a plausible phenomenon. This ‘soft evidence’, or inconsist-
encies within the final form of a text, is a well-known starting point for
historical-critical studies of the OT.34 Changes in genre, shifts in form,
and the unity of self-contained textual units within a larger portion of
literature all serve to convince some scholars that an extant text had a
certain pre-history. Tracing why and how editors may have adjusted the
text that we have is further cause for debate, but the idea that introductory
material was deliberately added to pre-existing material seems persuasive
and is corroborated by several examples, which I would add to those
mentioned above: Isaiah 1, Psalm 1 (and 2), Nehemiah 1 and, possibly,
longer portions of Deuteronomy and Judges.35 Milstein considers each of

33. Sara Milstein, Tracking the Master Scribe: Revision Through Introduction in
Biblical and Mesopotamian Literature (New York: Oxford University Press, 2016).
34. I realize that the language of ‘historical-critical’ is not preferred by all, but it
conveniently captures the many methods of critical study to which I refer, whether
source, form, redaction or ‘literary’. For a current survey of methods of text- and
historical-critical study of the OT, see Ville Mäkipelto, Uncovering Ancient Editing:
Documented Evidence of Changes in Joshua 24 and Related Texts, BZAW 513
(Berlin: de Gruyter, 2018), 1–14.
35. For literature, see Milstein, Tracking the Master Scribe, 58–60 nn. 41–9.
The additions that she considers in depth sometimes introduced smaller narratives
within a text (e.g. Judg. 6–9), and in cases such as the Epic of Gilgamesh they fronted
the entire story. Milstein makes a convincing case for the introductory function of
passages in Gilgamesh (124-136) but her biblical examples do not include Job, Eccle-
siastes or Proverbs.
 1. Introduction 13

these as examples of ‘revision by introduction’ despite the lack of ‘hard

evidence’, and while these cases are debatable they nevertheless provide
some precedent for considering Proverbs 1–9 as a later, deliberate intro-
duction to the book.
More persuasive than the biblical examples is the hard evidence of
Mesopotamian literature, those cases that have several versions of a text,
some with introductions and some without.36 The Sumerian King List
(SKL), for instance, exists in several forms, and some versions contain an
antediluvian section at the text’s outset. Other versions contain no antedi-
luvian section, and still other texts show that this antediluvian section
circulated on its own, without the traditional SKL included. In short, we
have the SKL with prefatory material and without prefatory material, and
evidence that prefatory material formed an independent text all its own.
Add to this that the introductory portion has notable differences from the
SKL, and the notion of revision by introduction becomes quite plausible.
A similar example is the Instructions of Shuruppak, which is perhaps
worth even more attention given its similarities to Proverbs. Three versions
of this text suggest that an introduction was added, namely the two Early
Dynastic (ED) versions and single Old Babylonian (OB) version from
approximately 700 years later.37 The ED versions contain several initial
lines considered by most to function as a sort of ‘introduction’.

The intelligent one, who knew the (proper) words,

and was living in Sumer,
Suruppak, the…

36. It is right to remember the difference in quality of conclusions about biblical

redaction based on the MT versus redaction grounded in the attestation of various
textual witnesses. For it ‘would be a mistake to assume that literary-critical recon-
structions are evidence of the same caliber as preserved textual witnesses’ (Reinhard
Müller, Juha Pakkala and R. B. ter Haar Romeny, Evidence of Editing: Growth and
Change of Texts in the Hebrew Bible [Atlanta, GA: SBL, 2014], 15).
37. The ED versions are from Adab and Abū Ṣalābīkh, the latter being the clearest
and therefore quoted as lines 1-8 above. For discussion and literature, see Milstein’s
doctoral dissertation (‘Reworking Ancient Texts: Revision through Introduction in
Biblical and Mesopotamian Literature’ [PhD diss., New York University, 2010],
46–8), where she also rightly qualifies the language of ‘lines’ when speaking about
this text. Translations are taken from Bendt Alster, The Instructions of Suruppak: A
Sumerian Proverb Collection, Mesopotamia: Copenhagen Studies in Assyriology
2 (Copenhagen: Akademisk Forlag, 1974). Interestingly, these introductory lines
reappear in lines 78-87 and 148-157, material also missing from certain sources (see
Alster, Instructions, 69).
14 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

The intelligent one, who knew the (proper) words,

and was living in Sumer,
Suruppak gave instructions to his son:
My son, let me give you instructions,
May you pay attention to them! (lines 1-8 [Abū Ṣalābīkh])

The OB version adds to this material approximately seven lines that do

three things: they further identify Shuruppak and his son (7-8); they accen-
tuate the antiquity of his instructions (1-3); and they further encourage his
son to obey them (9-13; additions are in italics):

In those days, in those far remote days,

In those nights, in those far-away nights,
In those years, in those far remote years –
In those days, the intelligent one, who made the elaborate words,
who knew the (proper) words, and was living in Sumer,
Suruppak – the intelligent one, who made the elaborate words,
who knew the (proper) words, and was living in Sumer –
Suruppak gave instructions to his son,
Suruppak, son of Ubartutu,
gave instructions to his son Ziusudra,
My son, let me give you instructions, may you take my instructions!
Ziusudra, let me speak a word to you, may you pay attention to it!
Do not neglect my instructions!
Do not transgress the word I speak!
The instructions of an old man are precious, may you submit to them!
(lines 1-13)

These additions are, in the first place, clearly additions, lines added to
a pre-existing text and intended to influence the reader’s approach to it.
Second, Shuruppak has a striking resemblance to Proverbs, especially
in its admonitions to ‘take my instructions’ and ‘not neglect’ them (lines
9-13), giving further support to the possibility that Proverbs 1–9 was
later added to Proverbs 10–29. Proverbs 1–9 is, of course, much longer
than the thirteen introductory lines of Shuruppak, but that need not deter
us from the hypothesis. For in view of all the evidence for revision by
introduction, Milstein concludes that the new introductions ‘could be
substantial in length’, though she presents no cases of instructional liter-
ature in that regard.38 She likewise concludes that ‘the new introduction
could introduce a different genre or format’ to the pre-established text
and that it could ‘anticipate elements in the material that follows’.39 It is

38. Milstein, Tracking the Master Scribe, 74.

39. Milstein, Tracking the Master Scribe, 74.
 1. Introduction 15

these elements that, I would argue, characterize Proverbs 1–9, and it is

the collective evidence that Milstein presents for this phenomenon that
further justifies the assumption to read Proverbs 1–9 as a later addition to
the book of Proverbs. As for what this implies methodologically, that will
be taken up below.
In summary, the interpretive challenges of Proverbs 10–29, the readerly
promises of 1.1-7, and the significance of comparable literature warrant
an investigation into the didactic function of Proverbs 1–9, a function
explored, unsurprisingly, by exegetes for more than the last three centuries.

1.3. Early Interpretations of Proverbs 1–9 as an ‘Introduction’

Proposals about the significance of Proverbs 1–9 for the rest of Proverbs
go back to at least the seventeenth century CE. What we might perceive as
modern commentary appears as early as 1659, when an English, Anglican
theologian, Henry Hammond, claimed that Proverbs 1–9 lays a ‘foun-
dation and introduction’ to the sentences that follow.40 Matthew Poole,
forty years later, explained that chapters 1–9 ‘were only a preface or
preparation [to Prov. 10.1–22.16], containing a general exhortation to the
study and exercise of wisdom, to stir up the minds of men to the greater
attention and regard to all its precepts, whereof some here follow’.41 It is
the exhortatory and prefatory role of Proverbs 1–9 that exegetes of the
seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, like Hammond and Poole, had in
view when they labelled Proverbs 1–9 as an ‘introduction’. Their works
represent the limited remarks made over the centuries prior to the nine-
teenth about the function of Proverbs 1–9 and the relationship between
1–9 and 10.1–22.16. During the nineteenth century itself, the situation
began to change, as German biblical scholars started to debate and further
articulate the idea that Proverbs 1–9 might serve as an introduction.
Early in the nineteenth century, Hermann Muntinghe and Carl Umbreit
remarked that the first collection sits as an ‘Einleitung’ and has a thematic
and formal coherence in itself, which led to questions that soon became
more acute for Heinrich Ewald and Ernst Bertheau as they debated over

40. Henry Hammond, A Paraphrase and Annotations Upon the Books of the
Psalms (London: Royston, 1659), 455. For interesting but unclear comments on
Prov. 1.1-7 by Jewish exegetes in the tenth century CE, see Ilana Sasson, ‘The Book
of Proverbs between Saadia and Yefet’, Intellectual History of the Islamic World 1
(2013): 162.
41. Matthew Poole, Annotations upon the Holy Bible, 3 vols. (New York: Robert
Carter & Brothers, 1696), 2:230; similarly, see Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the
Holy Bible.
16 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

the precise nature of the first nine chapters of Proverbs.42 In 1837, Ewald
argued for the coherence of chapters 1–9 and called it a long, detailed
introduction (‘Einleitung’) and preparatory work (‘Vorbereitung’) for
Collection II. In his view, the author had placed Collection I at the outset
as a supplement to the older proverbs that follow. Proverbs 1.1, 6 and
10.1 connect the collections by mentioning ‘proverbs’, and Ewald saw
the primary contribution of Collection I as an endorsement of wisdom,
calling the audience to cherish it. Bertheau critiqued that position in 1847.
While acknowledging Collection I’s place as an opening section because
it instructs the audience to grasp wisdom, Bertheau denied its coherence
and its role as an introduction, arguing that if the author intended Proverbs
1–9 as an introduction then it would explicitly refer to Collection II.
Although he acknowledged the introductory role of 1.1-7, Bertheau
seemed to overlook the possibility that 1.2 and 1.6 refer to the contents
of 10.1–22.16. Ewald noticed this connection and, in doing so, set the
trajectory for the theory of a didactic function for Proverbs 1–9.43
For over 150 years, commentators from Britain, Germany and
the United States continued to label Proverbs 1–9 an ‘introduction’,
‘prologue’, or ‘Einleitung’ for chapters 10 and following, but they rarely
elaborated on how it functions as such.44 Wildeboer, for instance, noted

42. Hermann Muntinghe, Die Sprüche Salomo’s (Frankfurt: Jäger, 1800), xii;
Friedrich Wilhelm Carl Umbreit, Commentar über die Sprüche Salomo’s (Heidelberg:
J. C. B. Mohr, 1826), lxii. Heinrich Ewald, Die Poetischen Bücher des alten Bundes
(Gottingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1837), 39–40; Ernst Bertheau, Die Sprüche
Salomo’s (Leipzig: Weidmann, 1847), xxi.
43. Ewald also formulated substantial arguments about the redaction of Proverbs,
but they do not seem significant for this particular conflict with Bertheau.
44. Charles Bridges, An Exposition of the Book of Proverbs (London: Seeley,
1847), 132; Moses Stuart, A Commentary on the Book of Proverbs (New York: M. W.
Dodd, 1852), 39; Friedrich Bleek, An Introduction to the Old Testament, ed. Johannes
Friedrich Bleek and Adolf Kamphausen, 2 vols. (London: Bell & Daldy, 1869),
2:256; Carl Friedrich Keil, George C. M. Douglas, and Friedrich Bleek, Manual of
Historico-Critical Introduction to the Canonical Scriptures of the Old Testament,
2 vols. (Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1869), 1:479–80; Carl Cornill, Einleitung in das
Alte Testament (Freiburg: J. C. B. Mohr, 1892), 222, 227; Davison, Wisdom-Literature,
115; A. Cohen, Proverbs: Hebrew Text and English Translation with Introduction
and Commentary (London: Soncino Press, 1945), 56; Helmer Ringgren, Sprüche
(Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1962), 8; Silvia Schroer, Wisdom Has Built Her
House: Studies on the Figure of Sophia in the Bible (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press,
2000), 27; Roland Murphy, The Tree of Life: An Exploration of Biblical Wisdom Litera-
ture (New York: Doubleday, 2002), 28–9; Samuel L. Adams, Wisdom in Transition: Act
and Consequence in Second Temple Instructions, JSJSup 125 (Leiden: Brill, 2008), 60.
 1. Introduction 17

linguistic agreements in Proverbs 1–9 and 10.1–22.16 to justify assertions

about authorship but not to validate or expound the role of Proverbs 1–9.45
Decades later, Edgar Jones simply states that Prov. 1.1-6 ‘sets forth the
essential aim of the book’ and calls Collection I a ‘long prologue’ that
advocates wisdom as the basis of life.46 For much of the twentieth century,
as with centuries prior, interpreters continued to label Proverbs 1–9 an
‘introduction’, and when they did consider the implications of this label
for interpretive issues, they did so primarily with diachronic interests,
as in the case of Wildeboer, who aimed to delineate the authorship of
Proverbs. But as the twentieth century came to a close, many interpreters
became most interested in a synchronic perspective on the book, and in
1986 Magne Sæbø advanced an innovative challenge for Proverbs schol-
arship with ‘the question of how the different units which make up the
final shape of the book are related to each other. This question seems to
be the most neglected one and has hardly had any substantial impact on
the exposition of the book; generally, the units are treated separately, as
disintegrated parts’.47 For Sæbø, the relationship of collections in their
‘final shape’ and the exegetical significance of their arrangement had
been neglected by interpreters of Proverbs up to that point. Since 1986,
and, as we shall see, just prior to that year, interpreters have more closely
addressed the relationship between the collections and its significance for
understanding Proverbs 1–9.

1.4. Current Interpretations of Proverbs 1–9 as an ‘Introduction’

1.4.1. Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction

Many scholars writing from 1985 to 2017 who affirm the labels of ‘intro-
duction’ and ‘prologue’ for Proverbs 1–9 have surpassed previous remarks
about how these chapters might function. While very few of them refer
to Sæbø’s article from 1986, these scholars do attend to the relationship
of collections and argue for notable features in how the collections are
arranged, especially as Proverbs 1–9 juxtaposes with 10.1–22.16. The
bases for connecting these sections of text include metaphor, values and

45. G. Wildeboer, Die Sprüche (Freiburg: J. C. B. Mohr, 1897), x, xviii.

46. Edgar Jones, Proverbs and Ecclesiastes: Introduction and Commentary,
Torch Bible Commentaries (London: SCM Press, 1961), 22, 55.
47. Magne Sæbø, ‘From Collections to Book – A New Approach to the History
of Tradition and Redaction of the Book of Proverbs’, in Proceedings of the Ninth
World Congress of Jewish Studies, ed. Moshe Goshen-Gottstein and David Assaf
(Jerusalem: World Union of Jewish Studies, 1986), 99.
18 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

aims, literary forms, theology, and character types.48 Commentators too,

who may not systematically demonstrate the introductory function of
Proverbs 1–9, treat it as such in their remarks about individual proverbs,
while many interpreters say that Proverbs 1–9 ‘thematically’ introduces
the book, with some substantiating this comment more than others.49
Additional perspectives to the question are brought by those who view
Proverbs 1–9 in its relation to Proverbs 31 and also those who view 1–9
independent of its relation to other portions of the book, that is, scholars
who prefer to interpret Proverbs 1–9 in its own right and who thereby
introduce interpretive issues that are potentially unaffected by Proverbs
10–31.
Prior to Sæbø’s challenge in 1986, at least one scholar had explored in
some depth the neglected question of ‘how the different units which make
up the final shape of the book, are related to each other’ by considering
Proverbs 1–9 as an interpretive framework for Proverbs 10–29.50 It was
Claudia Camp, who in 1985 published Wisdom and the Feminine in the
Book of Proverbs and examined many aspects of Proverbs – its imagery,
female figures, and socio-historical context – including the relationship
between Proverbs 1–9 and 10–29.51 She argues that certain metaphors in
Proverbs 1–9 substantiate the metaphors of Proverbs 10–29 by supple-
menting its imagery and providing fresh conceptual relations. The tree

48. Regarding the literary form of Proverbs, the works of Christine Yoder
(Proverbs, AOTC [Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 2009]) and Knut Heim (Poetic
Imagination in Proverbs: Variant Repetitions and the Nature of Poetry [Winona
Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns, 2013], e.g. 626–7) are, respectively, suggestive and implicit
in the support that they give to the function of Proverbs 1–9. Yoder has proposed
that Proverbs 1–9 embeds proverbs within some of its poems in order to show the
interpreter how to use the proverbial form of communication (i.e. 1.17; 2.21-22;
3.33-35; 9.7-9), a promising suggestion for how 1–9 might function. Heim has recog-
nized the function of Proverbs 1–9 as a ‘hermeneutical introduction’ in his work on
‘variant repetition’, in which he traces the repetition of terms and phrases throughout
Proverbs. When set within a diachronic framework, several cases of repetition in 1–9
and 10–29 imply that 1–9 embeds variant passages from 10–29 in a context of fuller
explanation. For character types, see Chapter 2.
49. For the latter see, among others, Horst Dietrich Preuss, Einführung in die
alttestamentliche Weisheitsliteratur (Stuttgart: Kohlhammer, 1987), 32, 60; Markus
Saur, ‘Die Literarische Funktion und die Theologische Intention der Weisheitsreden
des Sprüchebuches’, VT 61 (2011): 457–8; Waltke, Proverbs, 14, 74; Whybray,
Proverbs, 17; Fox, Proverbs 1–9, 323, 325, 346.
50. Sæbø, ‘From Collections to Book’, 99.
51. Claudia Camp, Wisdom and the Feminine in the Book of Proverbs (Decatur,
GA: Almond Press, 1985), 191–208.
 1. Introduction 19

of life, for example, features in Collections I and II (3.18; 11.30; 13.12;

15.4), and according to her the connotations of its appearance in 3.18
should be informed by the concepts associated with it in 10.1–22.16.
Camp also forwards the imagery of Prov. 21.6, which mentions ‘treasures’
and ‘death’, to argue that the figures of Wisdom and Folly in Proverbs
7–8 come to mind when reading Prov. 21.6. Despite their intrigue and
innovation, these examples attest to the methodological challenges that
studies of Proverbs 1–9 have and do face. On the one hand, it seems that
Proverbs 1–9 substantiates the imagery of 10.1–22.16 (i.e. ‘treasures/
death’), but, on the other hand, Camp seems to show that sayings within
10.1–22.16 also inform the interpretation of material in Proverbs 1–9 (i.e.
the tree of life). In other words, the interpretive influence of these sections
is bi-directional so that a problem of methodological inconsistency arises.
In what follows, it will be worth asking how this problem should be
accounted for and if it might be resolved.
Effort has also been spent on the goals and values of Proverbs, with
the most thorough investigation of these issues using the book’s wealth
and poverty language as a starting point.52 Here, Proverbs 1–9 has been
acknowledged as a ‘hermeneutical lens’ for the book and yet in practice
we have little evidence of what that lens might enable interpreters to see
in Proverbs 10–31.53 The aims and goals of Proverbs supply one of the

52. Sandoval, The Discourse of Wealth and Poverty in the Book of Proverbs
(Leiden: Brill, 2006); Raymond Van Leeuwen, ‘The Book of Proverbs’, NIB 5:31;
Walther Zimmerli (‘Zur Struktur der Alttestamentlichen Weisheit’, ZAW 51 [1933]:
177–204, esp. 185–92) claimed that Proverbs 1–9 provides motivational grounds
for obedience. While he did offer evidence from 1–9 (e.g. Prov. 3.5-9), he mostly
appealed to material from 10.1–22.16 to demonstrate his point.
53. See Sandoval, Discourse, esp. 56, 118–24, 133, 155, 209. Sandoval’s
conclusions likely arise in part from his fixation on Prov. 1.3 and its reference to ‘righ-
teousness’ (‫)צדק‬. He acknowledges the ‘cue to read wisely’ in what he calls Proverbs’
‘prologue’ (1.2-6/7) but gives much more interpretive weight to 1.3, which, according
to him, affixes wisdom to ‘virtue’, especially for establishing ‘social justice’, and then
drives his vision of Proverbial values. My view of Proverbial values differs, due to
my own emphasis on the ‘cue’ for intelligent reading as stated in Prov. 1.2 and 1.6,
noted above. R. N. Whybray (Wealth and Poverty in the Book of Proverbs, JSOTSup
99 [Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1990], 64) analyzes the attitudes towards
wealth and poverty in Prov. 10.1–22.16 and chs. 25–29, and refers to the ‘values’
of the speakers. However, he does not synthesize or concentrate on the values with
respect to the collection as a whole – except to say that they ‘leave a general impres-
sion of consistency’ – or engage with their rhetorical function. Further, he downplays
the significance of Proverbs 1–9 for wealth and poverty language, which Sandoval
counters.
20 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

most riveting instances of Proverbs 1–9’s function, and these are taken
up in Chapter 3 of the present work. As for its ‘theology’, this topic
of Proverbs is often grounded on the references to ‘God’ or ‘the Lord’
contained therein, which have recently been shown to form a coherent
part of the book as a whole.54 The study that has come closest to the
present work arises within this theological discussion, and it is a doctoral
dissertation by Hee Suk Kim, who claims that Proverbs 1–9 creates
an interpretive framework for 10–29 and conducts a close reading of
chapters 1–9 to propose that it establishes a ‘faith–consequence nexus’
that should overcome the interpretive difficulties within chapters 10–29.55
While I affirm Kim’s core thesis and much of his exegesis as well as his
notion of ‘interpretive framework’, he does not interact closely with texts
in Proverbs 10–29 and provides no textual examples to show how 1–9
actually aids interpretation. This omission prompts one of my central
efforts: to show how Proverbs 1–9 functions for 10–29 by demonstrating
its interpretive role with in-depth examples from both portions of material.
The need for this demonstration echoes throughout the current studies of
Proverbs that proclaim the introductory function of 1–9, the resolution of
which remains to be seen. As with others, theological interpreters provide
plausible proposals for how Collection I might function as an introduction
but offer limited examples to substantiate it.
What these arguments more positively reveal is the need to supply
Proverbs 10–29 with a context of some sort. Theological sayings within
those chapters, for instance, might give insight into the bulk of the book’s
material, especially its ‘non-theological’ sayings. Perhaps the lectures to
a son in 1–9 and then to a man with royal authority in chapter 31, along
with its exposé of a mature woman, frame how we ought to view the
purpose of 10–29.56 Or perhaps more discrete challenges arise in 10–29
that receive adequate clarification in Proverbs 1–9.57 Along with these

54. See the discussion in Chapter 4. In addition to the studies mentioned in this
section, other interpreters hold unsubstantiated proposals that Proverbs 1–9 functions
as a theological framework for the rest of the book.
55. Hee Suk Kim, ‘Proverbs 1–9: A Hermeneutical Introduction to the Book of
Proverbs’ (PhD diss., Trinity International University, 2010).
56. So William P. Brown, Wisdom’s Wonder: Character, Creation, and Crisis in
the Bible’s Wisdom Literature (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2014), 29–66.
57. See Tremper Longman, Proverbs, BCOT (Grand Rapids. MI: Baker Academic,
2006), 243, 496–7. For his interpretation of Proverbs 1–9 as an ‘introduction’ that calls
for a decision from the young reader to choose between Wisdom and Folly, a feature
corroborated by the pathway imagery, see 59–61; so Michael V. Fox, Proverbs 1–9,
 1. Introduction 21

possibilities, we must also consider if sources external to Proverbs address

its hermeneutical challenges in the fullest and most coherent fashion.
Most of these endeavours can be explained as attempts to provide some
part of Proverbs, especially its sayings material, with a ‘context’, which
in most every case faces methodological challenges. Should Proverbs
1–9 be segregated from the rest of the book, read along with 30–31, read
before 10–29 or in light of it? There is perhaps no ‘right’ answer to these
questions, which may be part of the reason why no monograph has been
dedicated to the introductory function of Proverbs 1–9. But there is a way
of reading the book that I think gives the most advantageous look at how
Proverbs 1–9 may function as an introduction.

1.4.2. Proverbs 1–9 as an Independent Section

The review of work on Proverbs 1–9 so far may suggest that all studies
on these first nine chapters advocate its introductory function, but this
would be misleading. A few interpreters examine 1–9 in its own right,
either independently of 10–31 or with no interest in its introductory role.
Although they do not explicitly object to the notion that Proverbs 1–9
plays a particular role in the book as a whole, these interpreters treat 1–9
with little consideration of its place within the book and thereby offer
an important perspective on Proverbs 1–9, exposing the features of this
text in a way unclouded by the questions or categories of 10–31. In other
words, Proverbs 1–9 develops ideas that may have little to do with the
chapters that follow, and such interests must be accounted for if we are to
discover its function within Proverbs. For what it underscores in its own
right certainly pertains to its function, which may hold little relevance
for Proverbs 10–31 and therefore severely question what I am proposing.
Hence these proposals require extended attention. Jean-Noël Aletti, Stuart
Weeks, and Bernd Schipper all work in this mode, interpreting Proverbs
1–9 as an independent entity and taking long strides towards how it
functions on its own terms.58

129–30; Proverbs 10–31: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary,

AB 18B (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2009), 516, 819, 831–2; Otto Plöger,
Sprüche Salomos (Proverbia), BKAT 17 (Neukirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener Verlag,
1984), 279; Bruce K. Waltke, The Book of Proverbs: Chapters 15–31, NICOT (Grand
Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2005), 286; Plöger, Sprüche, 276.
58. Jean-Noël Aletti, ‘Seduction et Parole en Proverbs I–IX’, VT 27 (1977):
129–44; Weeks, Instruction; Bernd Schipper, Hermeneutik der Tora: Studien zur
Traditionsgeschichte von Prov 2 und zur Komposition von Prov 1–9, BZAW 432
(Berlin: de Gruyter, 2012).
22 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

1.4.2.1. J. N. Aletti
In 1977, Aletti wrote an article entitled ‘Seduction et Parole en Proverbs
I–IX’ in which he looked at the means of seduction in Proverbs 1–9 and
their remarkable connection to the words spoken by key characters
within this collection. Focusing on the ‘youth’ (‫ )נער‬and ‘simpleton’
(‫ )פתי‬of Proverbs 1–9, Aletti argues that for the boy ‘ce ne son pas les
choses ou les êtres qui séduisent…. Le savoir faire est celui de la parole,
la séduction s’opère par le dire.’59 On the one hand, the speech of Prov.
1.22-33 scrambles the values within the son’s moral vision by exhibiting
lexical confusion, which is compounded by the sage and the female
figures throughout Proverbs 1–9 as they forward invitations with similar
language but with disparate results. Folly and Wisdom, for instance, use
the very same words to call their invitees to dinner (9.4, 16) but end the
evening in very different ways, demonstrating a key point for my study:
the moral situation is not simple, for what is wrong can sound right, and,
consequently, discerning good from bad requires a solution.
Although Aletti focuses on the fact that wrong things sound right, the
problem in 1–9 is a broader one of ‘moral ambiguity’, the solution for
which Aletti finds in the divinely given wisdom and the advice of the
father. Proverbs 1–9, therefore, functions by establishing a seduction-
related human problem and by offering a solution that awaits acceptance.60
In view of dangerous moral complexity, the pupil must become an
apprentice to wisdom that is taught by the father and transmitted by God.
Working explicitly with the question of how Proverbs 1–9 functions when
interpreted on its own terms, and accounting for much of its material,
Aletti adds an unavoidable contribution to my study of 1–9. He elucidates
a feature that must be accounted for if its function is to be established
responsibly and as robustly as possible. Aletti’s work on Proverbs 1–9
does not, I will argue, undermine my larger aim – to establish the function
of 1–9 in its relation with other portions of Proverbs – but instead directs
attention to unforeseen interpretive issues within Proverbs 10–29, namely,
aspects of moral ambiguity. The moral ambiguity laid out in Proverbs
1–9 appears tersely in many proverbs of 10–29, proffering a relationship
that is forged in section 3.2. That section further expounds Aletti’s contri-
bution in view of my broader argument.

59. Aletti, ‘Seduction’, 129.

60. Aletti (‘Seduction’, 130) says ‘Tel sera donc l’objet de la présente étude:
analyser, en Prov. i-ix, comment fonctionne et jusqu’où va séduction de la parole
humaine pour en mesurer les effets’.
 1. Introduction 23

Alletti’s work includes some shortcomings, such as the failure to fully

account for distinctions between the foolish characters (i.e. the youth and
simpleton) and the audience itself. However, the danger of this conflation
does not override the strengths of Aletti’s case, the importance of which
cannot be overlooked. For it advances a second methodological mode,
which first approaches not the interpretive challenges of Prov. 10.1–22.16
but the emphases of Proverbs 1–9, a direction of study fully explained
shortly.

1.4.2.2. S. Weeks
Like Aletti, Weeks considers Proverbs 1–9 in its own right and is inter-
ested in its coherence more than in its inner differences and diachronic
features. Weeks dedicates an entire monograph to these chapters to argue
two primary theses: Proverbs 1–9 sits within a Jewish context more than
an Egyptian or broadly ancient Near Eastern background, and the material
of Proverbs 1–9 forms a coherent whole, with the exception of 6.1-19.61
Both theses are supported by the allusions, terms and imagery within
Proverbs 1–9 that connect with OT understandings of law, especially
Deuteronomy. Yet the contents of Proverbs 1–9 also connect with each
other as the various metaphors, for instance, interrelate and produce a
united vision for the audience. The coherence of 1–9 encourages my
study and certain details of Weeks’ work will lend help to later exegesis,
but his insistence on the relation of Proverbs 1–9 with OT law leads to a
conclusion that may unsettle the central question of 1–9’s role.
According to Weeks, ‘If instruction is indeed to be associated with the
Law, then wisdom may be the way in which Proverbs 1–9 characterizes
not the Law, but the condition achieved by those who have internalized
the Law’.62 Wisdom is not identified with law but is realized by those who
receive instruction, that is, ‘torah’. Such a conclusion stems, in part, from
the following features: lexical connections between Deuteronomy and
Proverbs 1–9, namely, Prov. 3.12 and Deut. 8.5 and their comparison of
God with a father; the ‘instruction of the Lord’ in Prov. 3.11 and Deut. 11.2;
the terms ‫ תורה‬and ‫ מצות‬used throughout Proverbs 1–9; and ‘tablet’ in Prov.
3.3 and 7.3 which appears in Deut. 9.9 and elsewhere, as well as connec-
tions throughout the OT between wisdom and instruction.63 Weeks aligns
the receptiveness to parental teaching in Proverbs 1–9 with receptiveness

61. Weeks (Instruction, 156–8), reasonably, remains unsure about the date of
Proverbs 1–9 and suggests no more specific time period than 500–200 BCE.
62. Weeks, Instruction, 113.
63. Weeks, Instruction, 102–5, also 96–127.
24 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

to Deuteronomic law and thereby understands 1–9 as advocating a certain

view of law and wisdom. It does not simply champion OT law but casts
legal piety in a sapiential mould with special concern for internalization.
Proverbs 1–9 functions for the reader in this way, but not, it seems, as an
introduction.
As mentioned, Weeks does not entertain Proverbs 1–9 as an intro-
duction to the book of Proverbs, but he does ponder what would happen if
we decoupled Deuteronomy from Proverbs 1–9. Once such a background
is removed, he says,

We are still left with a work that repeatedly exhorts obedience to a teaching
through which compliance with the divine will may be achieved, and
personal security thereby assured. No alternative identification of that
teaching is offered, and, for all the attempts to isolate ‘wisdom circles’ from
other strands of Jewish thought, it strains credulity to believe that a contem-
porary Jewish reader would not have made some link with the Law…. It
is relatively straightforward to say that Prov. 31: 1-9, for instance, has no
interest in the Law, but much harder to ascertain what assumptions form
the basis for, say, the righteous-wicked contrasts that dominate the start
of 10: 1–22: 16. It does seem apparent, at least, that no other material in
Proverbs seeks actively to draw out and identify the nature of wisdom and
instruction in the same way.64

By removing Deuteronomy from the picture, Weeks searches for a viable

background to Proverbs 1–9 within Proverbs itself and proposes that
no material, at least not 10.1–22.16 and 31.1-9, handles wisdom and
instruction in a way that explains their relationship in 1–9. Deuteronomy,
then, remains the plausible option.
Weeks establishes a function of Proverbs 1–9 that seems unrelated
to the rest of the book, and I do not, fundamentally, reject his thesis.
However, neither do I find an acceptance of his proposed links between
law and Proverbs as detrimental or even alternative to the possibility that
Proverbs 1–9 carries a function for 10–29. In the first place, 10.1–22.16
uses the same lexemes that, for Weeks, so firmly relate to Deuteronomy
(‫ תורה‬and ‫ מצוה‬in Prov. 10.8; 13.13-14; 19.16).65 Now, none of these
references ‘seeks actively to draw out and identify the nature of wisdom

64. Weeks, Instruction, 172–3.

65. He does say that ‘The place of conventional Jewish piety elsewhere in
Proverbs is too big an issue to discuss here, but there are other points in the book (e.g.
28: 4, 7, 9) where we should probably understand there to be an explicit interest in the
Law’ (Weeks, Instruction, 173 n. 44).
 1. Introduction 25

and instruction’, but such a factor is precisely my starting point for deter-
mining how Proverbs 1–9 functions as an introduction: 10.1–22.16 fails
to explain certain remarks, remarks that receive a much fuller explanation
in 1–9. The sapiential legal piety established in Proverbs 1–9 may very
well supply a framework for understanding the terse and undeveloped
references to ‫ תורה‬and ‫ מצוה‬in 10.1–22.16.
In the second place, we must be careful not to impose an either/or
distinction where it is unnecessary, as if connections in Proverbs 1–9 with
OT law consequently disconnect it from Proverbs 10–31. The consequence
of Weeks’ argument is not that Proverbs 1–9 acquires more independence
from the book of Proverbs but that if Proverbs 1–9 does relate to the law
then we must determine how its view of the law might relate to 10–31.
Proverbs 1–9 may advocate a wisdom version of legal piety, resonating
with and depending on other OT texts, and at the same time function as an
introduction for Proverbs 10–31. For aside from legal concepts, Proverbs
1–9 retains distinctive connections with the book of Proverbs, not least
its character types, certain lexemes, references to the Lord, and visions of
education. However, in his later Introduction to wisdom literature, Weeks
is provoked to doubt connections of 1–9 with other portions of Proverbs:

It is often suggested, for example, that chapters 1–9 are supposed to serve as
a sort of prologue, though that does little justice, perhaps, to the coherence
and self-containment of the section. Ultimately, with the book as a whole,
as with many of the sections within it, we are left wondering just how much
weight we should place on apparent connections, and just how much delib-
eration has gone into the creation of Proverbs from its constituent parts.66

Weeks exposes valid doubts, and these doubts give way to questions about
the amount of weight we should place on connections across Proverbs
and the deliberateness behind them. Many of the connective features
mentioned above will occupy this study, which instead of encountering
obstacles and deepening doubts will reveal places that advance the
integration of Proverbs and the OT. My study will dispel certain apprehen-
sions about the role of Proverbs 1–9 by suggesting that we can place quite
a lot of weight on apparent connections and can detect ample deliberation
within and across Proverbs while respecting individual integrity and the
possible independence of chapters 1–9.

66. Stuart Weeks, An Introduction to the Study of Wisdom Literature (London:

T&T Clark, 2010), 47.
26 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

1.4.2.3. B. Schipper
Schipper has substantiated some of Weeks’ views but done so in a
largely different mode. Schipper looks at the makeup of Proverbs 2, its
place within Proverbs 1–9, and the relationship of Proverbs as a whole to
OT law, particularly ‘torah’ and Deuteronomy, Psalms 19, 37, and 119,
Jeremiah 31 and Isaiah 56–66. For him, Proverbs exhibits a ‘Hermeneutik
der Tora’ by posing different relations of wisdom and law and arranging
these alternative views in a deliberate fashion. In that, Schipper comes to
conclusions about the message of Proverbs, that, contra Weeks, disclose
levels of disunity in its presentation of wisdom and law. For example, the
allusions to the Shema in Proverbs 3, 6 and 7 all portray the wisdom/torah
relation differently, while Proverbs 2 and 8 add further differences to
these, with Proverbs 28 and 30 adding another – what Schipper considers
final – position on wisdom and torah.
Again, the details of Schipper’s work, especially on Proverbs 2,
supply a helpful resource for exegesis, but his overall theses establish a
texture for 1–9 that presents an incoherent relationship between wisdom
and torah. The preceding comments about how Weeks’ work does not
necessarily hamper my investigation also pertain to Schipper’s, as torah
connections in Proverbs 1–9 do not necessarily disassociate it from
10–31. Schipper likewise passes over pertinent evidence in 10–29,67 and
yet his diachronic vision does result in a proposal for how 10–29 fits
within the book. According to him, given that portions of these chapters
were composed later than the core sections of 1–9 and that they reduce
wisdom’s affinity with torah and seat wisdom within the context of
practical living, Proverbs 10–29 blunts the legal interests of other portions
of the book. Yet Schipper nevertheless poses the question of how Proverbs
1–9 relates to the rest of Proverbs as a very live enquiry:

Wie ist das Verhältnis zwischen 1–9 und 10–31 zu bestimmen, wenn einzelne
Kapitel der ersten Sammlung deutlich an Themen und Formulierungen von
10–31 anknüpfen? Bedeutet dies, dass die Lehrreden von Prov. 1–9* von
vornherein im Hinblick auf 10–31 komponiert wurden, oder handelt es sich
um ein eigenständiges Korpus?68

While he concludes that Proverbs 9 transitions from 1–9 to chapters 10

and following, Schipper does not explore the commonalities in these
materials other than their conceptions of law, which, according to him, do

67. For brief comments, see Schipper, Hermeneutik, 84–8, 223 n. 11, 247–50.
68. Schipper, Hermeneutik, 187.
 1. Introduction 27

not really concern 10.1–22.16. Consequently, he to a large extent leaves

the question about the function of 1–9 unanswered.69 As to the cacophony
of wisdom voices in Proverbs, I think certain differences are overstated
and that Schipper’s attention to diachronic detail would benefit from a
study that gives primary attention to macro-diachronic elements of the
book. For where he emphasizes the contrast in Proverbs, I will propose
how such contrasts contribute to the book’s coherence.
Lastly, highlighting the sophisticated features of the text, both Weeks
and Schipper argue that someone with adequate intelligence or an educated
community fashioned and read the text, which calls for further clarity as
to what I do not mean by arguing for a ‘didactic’ function of Proverb
1–9. ‘Didactic’ does not, in this study, necessarily correspond to ‘clear’
or ‘simplified for the purposes of teaching’, as if to overlook the sophisti-
cated and at times complex texture of the poetry in this biblical material.
Didactic, as I indicated earlier in this chapter, refers to the function of
Proverbs 1–9, its deliberate aim to teach and, as we will see, to teach inter-
pretive skills. My thesis actually corresponds with the high view of poetry
argued for by Weeks, as a didactic function reflects a complex attempt to
prepare an able audience to further interpret proverbial material.
Aletti, Weeks and Schipper set aside questions about the introductory
function of Proverbs 1–9 and present the salient features of these chapters
when considered as a standalone unit. Aletti’s attention to moral ambiguity
and the need for discernment developed by 1–9 inspire a section dedicated
to these ideas in Chapter 3, which bolsters my overall argument by
accounting for an alternative methodological starting point. Weeks and
Schipper, each in their own way, tie Proverbs 1–9 to visions of torah
and, rather than silencing the question at hand, show its importance as
an independent unit, placing it within a context of ongoing enquiries into
how Proverbs relates to the OT and contains possible points of tension
within itself. These concerns will arise in several chapters in service to
my primary question, and Schipper’s work is particularly recalled in my
treatment of Prov. 30.1-9 in Chapter 3.

1.5. Conclusions on Context

I have told a brief history of how Proverbs 1–9 functions, especially

what it might mean for it to be an ‘introduction’ for Proverbs 10–31. The
text of Proverbs itself, especially 1.1-7 and 10.1–22.16, suggests that

69. Schipper, Hermeneutik, 208–12.

28 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

the book contains interpretive challenges and at the same time contains
an aid for addressing those challenges. Other ‘prologues’ in OT texts as
well as post-biblical and ancient Near Eastern literature endorse this role
and corroborate a methodological starting point for examining various
sections of Proverbs. The interpreters of these texts, from as early as the
seventeenth century CE, entertained the question of how Proverbs 1–9
or materials therein might function for the rest of the book. The question
climaxed in the debate of Heinrich Ewald and Ernst Bertheau, who in
1837 and 1847 respectively proffered contrasting views of Proverbs
1–9. Ewald argued for a coherent introduction, firmly connected to other
portions of the book, while Bertheau denied the introductory role of
Proverbs 1–9 and attached this role only to 1.1-7.
The debate remained undeveloped until the 1980s when interpreters
began to explore the introductory role of Proverbs 1–9. These ‘current
interpretations’ include a notable variety of approaches to how 1–9
functions, as each centres this function on one key area of interpretation,
including metaphor, values and aims, literary forms, theology, and
character types, as well as the work of commentators and those who view
Proverbs 1–9 in its relation to 31. Next to the many stand the few who
interpret 1–9 independently of questions about its role for 10–31, and
yet, instead of stalling the years of talk about an ‘introduction’, these few
advance the present thesis and the urgency of its question.
This account primarily reveals three points. First, a near consensus
expresses the view that Proverbs 1–9 somehow operates as an intro-
duction in the final form of Proverbs. Second, these interpreters reflect a
high diversity of perspectives on how 1–9 functions as an introduction.
Third, there is a lack of argument that demonstrates the function of 1–9
with an in-depth treatment of examples from 10.1–22.16. In other words,
interpreters affirm the introductory function of Proverbs 1–9 but have not
defended or systematically explained it. A defence of this function goes
hand in hand with an explanation of it, and that is what I propose to do in
the chapters that follow, after a consideration of how that defence is best
conducted.

1.6. Methodology: A Macro-Redactional Approach

It is evident that much of the current scholarship on Proverbs concen-

trates on the book’s final form, especially among scholars from Britain
and the United States. Many interpreters, however, not least in Germany,
maintain a diachronic methodology, one that predominated in the nine-
teenth century and continues to appear in works on Proverbs 1–9 and
 1. Introduction 29

10.1–22.16.70 In view of these traditions, I have made mention of

‘synchronic’, ‘diachronic’, and ‘final-form’ readings of the book, and it is
vital to be clear about what exactly I am doing in this study. The question
of how Proverbs 1–9 functions is especially difficult in this regard but,
in my judgment, it is given its most cogent answer when a few key
methodological supports are put in place. On the one hand, diachronic
analysis of the detailed textual history of Proverbs will be eschewed.
Studies of that quality, for instance, query the unity of Proverbs 1–9, as
it has been suggested that 1–9 presents a segment of text largely unified
in its purpose, and that 1.1-771 and 9.7-1272 appeared in the final stage of
the book’s editorial history, providing advantageous perspectives on the
whole of Proverbs and thereby serving particular functions.73 Proverbs
1.1-7 introduces Proverbs and notifies the reader of the material that
follows, and 9.7-12 likewise accounts for both Proverbs 1–9 and the text
that follows and functions as a transition from the first collection to the
second. The suitability of 6.1-19 within 1–9 is much more contentious,
and yet convincing arguments for its integrity have been made.74 The

70. E.g. Rolf Schäfer, Die Poesie der Weisen: Dichotomie als Grundstruktur der
Lehr- und Weisheitsgedichte in Proverbien 1–9 (Neukirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener
Verlag, 1999); Andreas Scherer, Das weise Wort und seine Wirkung: Eine Untersuchung
zur Komposition und Redaktion von Proverbia 10,1–22,16 (Neukirchen-Vluyn:
Neukirchener Verlag, 1999).
71. Magne Sæbø, Sprüche, ATD 16 (Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht,
2012), 17–18, 21; C. H. Toy, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Book of
Proverbs, ICC (Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1904), 4; cf. Fox, Proverbs 1–9, 325–6.
Those who connect the title (1.1) with 1.8–9.18 consider 1.2-7 as the relevant section.
72. See Toy, Proverbs, 192; Hitzig, Die Sprüche, 85; Sæbø, Sprüche, 140–1. Cf.
Fox (Proverbs 1–9, 306–7) who sees 9.7-12 as an interpolation with no transitional
role. While many argue that it represents a redactional addition, they nevertheless
claim that the chapter makes good sense in its final form, most likely functioning as a
link between Proverbs 1–9 and 10.1–22.16 (so, e.g., Loader, Proverbs, 380–1; Plöger,
Van Leeuwen, Waltke). For the integration of this passage with Proverbs 9, see Rick
Byargeon, ‘The Structure and Significance of Prov 9:7-12’, JETS 40 (1997): 367–72.
73. On the unity of Proverbs 1–9, see Achim Müller, Proverbien 1–9: Der
Weisheit Neue Kleider, BZAW 291 (Berlin: de Gruyter, 2000).
74. Hitzig, Die Sprüche, 46–7; Fox, Proverbs 1–9, 222, 224–5, 227; Weeks,
Instruction, 224–5. Some see 6.1-19’s dissemblance as no problem and propose that,
despite its difference from Proverbs 1–9, it serves to warn the son of figures other than
the seductive woman who appears in surrounding chapters, elevating laziness (6.6-11)
and worthlessness (6.12-15) to the level of wickedness and punishment entailed in
Proverbs 5 (e.g. Delitzsch, Proverbs, 1:134–5; Loader, Proverbs 1–9, 251–2. Cf.
Heim, Poetic Imagination, 161–6, 174–81). By treating 6.1-19 as a part of chapters
30 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

present study treats chapters 1–9 not as a collection of editorial place-

ments but as a unified whole that was then placed at the front of 10–29,
which offers promising suggestions for anyone interested in the editorial
history of Proverbs.
On the other hand, there is a second question that recurs in diachronic
study of Proverbs, which asks how 1–9 functions in relationship to other
portions of the book, what might be referred to as the book’s ‘macro-
redactional history’.75 That level of critical analysis suits my question
quite well and, thanks to the work of Milstein, is corroborated by evidence
of various textual witnesses in the ancient Near East, and not only
perceived inconsistencies within the final form of biblical literature. For
Proverbs 1–9 is generally agreed to have post-dated the main sections of
10–29 and is believed to have been composed in view of those chapters.76
That premise is the foundational assumption for this study. Consequently,
Proverbs 1–9 may have been developed with a function that deliberately
accounted for the interpretive challenges of 10–29. If Proverbs 10–29
appeared later than 1–9, especially by the hand of a different author,
then it would be difficult to demonstrate, on diachronic grounds, that 1–9
functions with interpretive consequences for 10–29. But there are good
reasons to think that Proverbs 1–9 was added to 10–29 and done so with
a deliberate strategy in view.

1–9 and including portions of that passage in the argument for 1–9’s introductory
function, 6.1-19 will be shown to have interpretive bearing on chapters 10–29 like
the rest of 1–9.
75. On the book’s compositional history, see Ewald, Die poetischen Bücher,
2–44 (followed by Delitzsch and Zöckler), 28–9; Toy, Proverbs, xxx; F. Hitzig, Die
Sprüche Salomo’s (Zurich: Orell, Füssli & Co., 1858), XVII–XVIII; Sæbø, Sprüche,
388–9. Such scholars disagreed primarily on how they accounted for the differences
within Proverbs, inclining towards either the material’s unity or diversity.
76. Schipper, Hermeneutik; Wildeboer, Sprüche, 1. Cf. Heim, Poetic Imagination,
616, 629–30. In contrast to chronological sequence, the actual dates that portions of
Proverbs appeared in literary form are largely irrelevant to my question and largely
a matter of subjective opinion anyway. The debate centres on an early, including
Solomonic-era, time period (Kenneth Kitchen, ‘Proverbs and Wisdom Books of
the Ancient Near East: The Factual History of a Literary Form’, TynBul 28 [1977]:
69–114; cf. David Carr, The Formation of the Hebrew Bible: A New Reconstruction
[New York: Oxford University Press, 2011], 403–29, esp. 403, 410) versus a period
beginning in the eighth–seventh centuries BCE and extending into the ‘Ptolemaic
period’ (Fox, Proverbs 10–31, 499–505; Leo Perdue, The Sword and the Stylus: An
Introduction to Wisdom in the Age of Empires [Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2008], 86–9,
99). Ultimately, evidence allows quite little certainty for precise dates for either the
oral origins or literary beginnings of Proverbs.
 1. Introduction 31

In the first place, we have the results of diachronic studies on Proverbs,

which, despite their in some cases problematic assumptions, have produced
a consensus about the sequential history of the main sections of Proverbs
and how they came together. In the second place, Proverbs 1–9 stands at
the outset of the book. Whether placed there later, or located there first and
then supplemented, those chapters are the first encounter that readers have
with the book as it stands, and that location ought to be accounted for.77
In the third place, as explained in the above discussion about ‘revision by
introduction’, there is precedence for what I am proposing about Proverbs
1–9, namely, that it was attached to pre-existing material with a particular
interpretive purpose in mind.
Recalling the evidence for ‘revision by introduction’ and my macro-
scale approach to biblical criticism, Milstein also gives voice to a method
of studying textual formation that I would echo.

I have tried to approach textual transmission not with the aim of nailing
down every verse or line, but instead with the aim of identifying the major
shifts in perspective that took place in the course of transmission. I have
done this with the understanding that these major shifts may well be full of
all sorts of other additions and omissions that I could not possibly recon-
struct. I have tried to keep my sights, however, on the big picture, in the
hopes of getting a glimpse, if but fleeting, of the masters. Toward this end,
I chose to focus on revision through introduction because this method so
often involved large-scale contributions: contributions that are arguably
more detectable, more ‘trackable’. This method was apparently employed
by Israelite and Mesopotamian scribes alike, as a convenient tool for
revamping a work and allowing it to serve new contexts.78

So, while various cases might be made for textual changes within Proverbs
1–9 itself, my eyes remain stayed on the larger portions of the book, and
with those portions in view, it seems reasonable to begin a study into the
function of Proverbs 1–9 by stating that those chapters were placed, at
some point, by some person or peoples, at the outset of a pre-existing
portion of Proverbs, perhaps 10.1–22.16 and possibly chapters 10–29.

77. For Carr (Formation, 412), that fronted locale of Proverbs 1–9 is the only
justification for acknowledging it as an introduction: ‘Whatever introductory function
[chapters 1–9] now play vis-à-vis the collection as a whole comes simply as a result
of their placement toward the start of Proverbs’. The ‘remarkable lack of specific
connections to the material they are supposed to have been composed from the
outset to introduce’ will be shown instead to be substantial, even if not in every case
linguistic as Carr may wish, throughout the present study.
78. Milstein, Tracking the Master Scribe, 211.
32 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

As for chapters 30–31, I am not sure when these came to be. Many have
proposed that these chapters form complementary ‘bookends’ with 1–9,
and in Chapter 3 I interpret Proverbs 30 in juxtaposition with Proverbs
1–9, basically in a synchronic relation, to offer several avenues for telling
the redactional story of Proverbs 30–31.79
In summary, the location of Proverbs 1–9, the results of historical-critical
studies on Proverbs, and the socio-historical evidence of other scribe-
added introductions form a collective justification for the assumption that
Proverbs 1–9 was added to 10–29.80 Though dictating little about how
Proverbs 1–9 came to be and when and how it may have been added to
another portion of Proverbs, this evidence grounds the assumption that
those chapters were indeed placed at the front of much of Proverbs, and
perhaps for some deliberate purpose.
Given this assumption, several caveats come to the fore. First, while
my project bumps up against questions about scribal practice and scribal
culture, it will remain silent on many of the scholarly debates in this area.81

79. The LXX arranged sections of Prov. 24.23–31.31 in a different order than the
MT (LXX = MT 1.1–24.22; 30.1-14; 24.23-34; 30.15-33; 31.1-9; 25.1–29.27; 31.10-
31). While previously thought to mark these sections as independently circulated
collections, the sequence of 24–29 and 30–31, which is separated in the LXX yet
matches that of the MT, suggests otherwise (Fox, Proverbs 1–9, 363). The location of
sections in the book of Proverbs tends not to influence views of its redaction, except
for its ‘bookends’, and LXX Proverbs 1–9 shows few substantial differences from the
MT (1.7; 3.18; 5.20; 6.6-11; 9.10, 12; the Peshitta and Targum translate even more
woodenly). Supported by similar authorial concerns in the Syriac and in medieval
commentaries, Waltke’s explanation (Proverbs 1–15, 4–5) for the LXX order seems
possible: to maintain the impression of Solomonic authorship, given the removal of
‘Agur’ and ‘Lemuel’ in 30.1 and 31.1, and adding ‘Solomon’ to 22.17 and 24.23,
supported by interlacing chapters 30–31 throughout ‘Solomonic’ material. Thematic
connections may also have motivated the LXX, such as kingship in 30.1-9 and
ch. 25 or the wicked man versus the wise woman in ch. 29 and 31.10-31 (for the latter,
see Johann Cook, The Septuagint of Proverbs: Jewish and/or Hellenistic Proverbs?
Concerning the Hellenistic Colouring of LXX Proverbs, VTSup 69 [Leiden: Brill,
1997], 293–315).
80. For a discussion of what I mean by ‘historical-critical’, see above.
81. The many questions that I am referring to are the existence, roles, and social
location of scribes, and the materials and practices associated with them. For an
overview of material evidence and writing practices, see Lindsay Askin, Scribal
Culture in Ben Sira, JSJSup 184 (Leiden: Brill, 2018), 21–31. For an assessment of
the mainly textual evidence for ‘scribes’ in the Second Temple period, see Samuel L.
Adams, ‘The Social Location of the Scribe in the Second Temple Period’, in Sibyls,
 1. Introduction 33

It, instead, will supply one lengthy case study of a practice that certain
scribes exercised: ‘revision by introduction’.
Second, the nature of this study’s question means that a simple
synchronic–diachronic distinction is not feasible. The best answer to how
Proverbs 1–9 functions within the book, which must also account for the
scholarship that has built up around it, is not given by a baldly synchronic
study, whereby Proverbs 10–31 is read in light of Proverbs 1–9 and 1–9
then read in light of 10–31 and assorted readings then tossed together.
A strictly synchronic reading would interpret these sections of Proverbs
reciprocally, giving priority to neither and consistently interpreting the
parts in light of the whole. Although the reciprocity of collections in
Proverbs will be attended to in this study, as explained below, it will
become evident that this mode of interpretation supports a uni-directional
intention for Proverbs 1–9, that it functions as an introduction designed for
the interpretation of the rest of the book. That argument, derived from the
question of how Proverbs 1–9 functions for the book of Proverbs, operates
on the assumption that Proverbs 1–9 was added to Proverbs 10–29, or at
least 10.1–22.16. This assumption is the only ‘diachronic’ principle of
thesis; for as independent collections of chapters, Proverbs 1–9 and 10–29
are treated as unified wholes and no attempt is made to investigate the
origin or emendation of passages therein, except on a text-critical level
for which we have evidence of alternative textual witnesses.82 Therefore,
in this instance, it seems best to avoid the language of ‘synchronic’ and
‘diachronic’, to instead observe that we have good reasons to think that
Proverbs 1–9 was added to Proverbs 10–29, and to proceed with the
question of why it stands at the head of Proverbs.
Third, although I argue that Proverbs 1–9 serves a deliberate and,
in some senses, authoritative role for the interpretation of the rest of
the book, that is not to say that other sources of interpretive insight are
rendered void or that there is a singular intended reading of Proverbs
10–31, only accessible via Proverbs 1–9. My ambitions, in other words,
do not operate as if there is one correct reading of a passage over and

Scriptures, and Scrolls: John Collins at Seventy, ed. Joel Baden et al., JSJSup 175
(Leiden: Brill, 2016), 22–37. Adams’ work shows the lack of specificity with which
we can answer questions about who may have added Proverbs 1–9 to the book.
82. This reflects the way in which Sæbø (Sprüche, 23) recognizes the priority of
the final form: ‘Dabei wird man – energischer als früher – nach der hermeneutischen
Funktion des Redaktionsprozesses auf die Endgestalt hin fragen müssen, zumal sie
letzten Endes die Weisheitslehre und Theologie des Buches mit bestimmt, und die
Einheit des Buches erst mit seiner Endgestalt gegeben ist’.
34 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

against an accumulation of misguided interpretations. A variety of valid

understandings of the biblical material are possible, and, when a particular
interpretation is argued for, it simply represents my best attempt to account
for the available evidence and the place of Proverbs 1–9 at the outset of
the book rather than an attempt to compel a singular meaning. An argu-
ment of this sort, though, does become falsifiable, and that very possibility
indicates how the introductory function of Proverbs 1–9 becomes not
only one possible way of reading the text but one of the most convincing.
This line of thought is made evident in view of resources alternative to
Proverbs 1–9, that is, other texts or sources of knowledge that might
revoke its role as an ‘introduction’. As mentioned above, Proverbs 1–9
may help interpreters understand challenging aspects of 10–29, many of
which proceed from what I have called ‘assumptions’, that is, the infor-
mation or skills that the text requires for interpretation. Put another way,
what concepts, background knowledge, or interpretive faculties does this
text presuppose? There are many plausible resources for supplying insight
into the meaning of individual proverbs, such as other ancient Near
Eastern texts, various portions of the OT, and any demonstrably prevalent
thoughts or beliefs among the ancient audiences of Proverbs. These other
sources of interpretive information provide possible alternatives to 1–9
and therefore might discredit its function as an introduction. For if 1–9
were to function as an introduction, it would be expected to offer a distinct
and more coherent contribution than other resources to the meaning of
10–31, though not necessarily an exclusive contribution.
When such alternatives to 1–9, like an Egyptian poem or a biblical
psalm, seem to trouble the argument for 1–9’s introductory role or to
propel it, then that resource is dealt with. For example, if a proverb uses
language quite common to the OT, such as ‘favour from the Lord’ (e.g.
Prov. 18.22), then the uses of that phrase throughout the OT should be
reckoned with in interpretation before jumping immediately to Proverbs
1–9 to show how it features the Lord’s favour and illuminates the inter-
pretation of said proverb. Proverbs 1–9 may provide significant insight on
this topic, but it must be considered alongside the additional OT evidence.
This observation is key for anyone interested in querying the intro-
ductory role of Proverbs 1–9, which, by nature of the query itself may
be difficult to verify in any satisfactory way. Making the case, in some
instances, rests on what many literary studies do, namely, demonstrate
one possible reading strategy that exposes interesting interpretations of
a text. At this, the synchronic method excels, and there is substantial
merit to making not an airtight case that 1–9 serves a singular function
in Proverbs and serves that function to the exclusion of other resources,
 1. Introduction 35

but rather to making a case for its introductory function by presenting

a collection of viable examples. At the same time, a more definitive
case can be made, especially when working from the assumption that
Proverbs 1–9 was deliberately placed at the fore of pre-existing material.
For in many instances, the query of how 1–9 functions rests upon the
possibility of showing that these chapters provide the most advantageous
reading strategy among plausible alternatives. It will become evident that
Proverbs 1–9 provides exegetical insight into 10–31 in ways that other
texts do not, which suggests that it holds, in some cases, a more privileged
interpretive position within Proverbs. Only in determining how these
other texts contribute to 10–31 can we have a sense for what 1–9 does
and does not accomplish in that regard. All things considered, the macro-
redactional approach delineated here is the most viable, at least in the first
instance of an extensive exploration of 1–9 as an introduction.

1.7. Two Methodological Avenues to Proverbs

Within such an approach, traditional methods of biblical exegesis are

employed to interpret the book of Proverbs, including attention to
keywords, socio-cultural context, grammatical features, relevant inter-
texts, and other sayings within portions of Proverbs. Each of these
requires laying out broader methodologies for determining the function
of Proverbs 1–9, and in order to account for the material as thoroughly as
possible, I approach Proverbs from two directions: primarily starting with
10.1–22.16 and in one instance with 1–9.
For the textual examples found in Chapters 2–4, I primarily approach
the material by starting with Prov. 10.1–22.16 and its specific inter-
pretive challenges, and only subsequently move to Proverbs 1–9, where
I demonstrate that 1–9 supplies interpretive insights for the challenges
of individual proverbs. In short, the primary method moves from Prov.
10.1–22.16 for problems, to 1–9 for solutions, and then back to 10.1–22.16
for resolution, which accords obviously with the assumption that Proverbs
1–9 were added to the book. But, as mentioned previously, the works of
Aletti, Weeks and Schipper indicate that Proverbs 1–9 might have its
own interests independent of 10–31 and that the interpretive challenges
that vex the sentence literature might distort the main concerns of 1–9.
This possibility warrants an alternative methodological approach, so, in
what follows, two methods are presented: the first starts with 10.1–22.16
and represents the primary approach of my study; the second starts with
1–9 and accounts for works by interpreters like Aletti. Combining these
approaches begets the most robust account of how Proverbs 1–9 functions.
36 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

Chapters 2, 4, and part of 3, use the primary method, approaching

Proverbs first at 10.1–22.16 and then proceeding to Proverbs 1–9. In
one portion of Chapter 3, I use the alternative method, entering Proverbs
1–9 before moving to 10.1–22.16. This direction of interpretation may
seem to contradict my starting assumption, that Proverbs 1–9 is later than
10.1–22.16. Why would I then start with the later material if I think it
may be intended to clarify issues within the older material? Surely, the
hermeneutical issues within that older material must be identified first and
then Proverbs 1–9 used as an interpretive aid for said issues. While that
is, indeed, my primary method – interpreting 10.1–22.16 with 1–9 – the
duty to also consider the alternative – interpreting 1–9 with 10.1–22.16 –
remains. This alternative point of departure ensures that the primary
features of Proverbs 1–9 are accounted for on their own terms. For the
main method, which uses 1–9 to address the categories and questions
derived from 10.1–22.16, runs the risk of overlooking 1–9’s key features.
Approaching 1–9 first not only accounts for the material on its own terms,
ensuring that aspects are not overlooked, but in doing so qualifies the
argument for its introductory function.
On the one hand, it supports the introductory function of Proverbs
1–9 by showing that the autonomous aims of 1–9 disclose correlations
with 10–29 that demonstrate its role as an introduction. As shown in
section 3.2, when interpreted on its own Proverbs 1–9 depicts the world
as morally ambiguous and reiterates this view to the interpreter, also
proffering a solution to such ambiguity. Delineating these features from
1–9 first then exposes similar elements of moral ambiguity in 10–29 that
in turn glean interpretive insights from 1–9. This alternative method does
not represent an alternative argument; it represents an alternative approach
to the material in order to make the same argument and so strengthens the
overall case in a fresh way.
On the other hand, this method also exposes the limitations of the
argument, disclosing certain priorities of Proverbs 1–9 that have little
didactic relevance for 10–29. As mentioned earlier, the links of Proverbs
1–9 with law and Deuteronomy may attest not to its introductory function
but to its aim of integrating Proverbs with other portions of the OT. The
Deuteronomic ties occur in Proverbs 1–9 and 10–31 and in both are largely
assumed conceptions, appearing like icebergs, protruding at particular
places and harbouring much more underneath. I have called such forma-
tions ‘assumptions’ whereby a little shows atop the text’s surface and
implies information or a framework that might draw out latent insights.
The Deuteronomic allusions often appear in a similar way – as assump-
tions – not only in 10–31 but also in 1–9. For this reason, Schipper can say
 1. Introduction 37

that Proverbs 2 portrays an image of wisdom that concludes with the goal
of residing in the land (2.21-22), so that, evidently, ‘der Verfasser von Prov.
2 eine bestimmte Texttradition und eine Reflexion über Weisheit bereits
voraussetzt’, and that ‘Prov. 2 auf Dtn 28 Bezug nimmt und auch Dtn 4 und
8 voraussetzt’.83 Themes such as law in Proverbs must first be understood
in light of large portions of other OT texts before they can be convinc-
ingly applied to the function of Proverbs 1–9 for the book of Proverbs,
an intertextual task that lies beyond the scope of my immediate concerns.
Therefore, links with law and Deuteronomy, while clearly significant for
Proverbs 1–9 and likely significant for its interpretive function in the book,
are not the starting point of this study. It begins instead with places where
10–31 clearly makes assumptions that 1–9 does not.
A final question remains about this alternative method: why is it the
alternative? Why not use it as the primary approach? First, I start with
10.1–22.16 because this crystallizes the interpretive question for Proverbs
1–9 and facilitates a clearer argument as to how 1–9 functions. Second,
the alternative method offers potential objections to the primary argument,
and since it may indeed falsify arguments based in the primary method,
using the independent concerns of Proverbs 1–9 as a starting point
remains essential but secondary.
The preceding remarks concern the initial step of the primary meth-
odological approach to Proverbs: to identify the interpretive challenges
of particular passages in Prov. 10.1–22.16. In summary, I consider chal-
lenges that are prominent within Proverbs and call upon ancient Near
Eastern, biblical, and socio-cultural evidence in as much as it bears direct
relevance, most importantly direct objections, to my main concern: the
function of Proverbs 1–9 for the book of Proverbs. After uncovering
the interpretive challenges of a particular proverb in light of relevant
evidence, Proverbs 1–9 is read with these challenges in mind to see if it
proffers any insight, asking, what texts in 1–9 address the issues raised
by 10–31, and do these texts illuminate any of the questions? I argue that
Proverbs 1–9 frequently offers interpretive insight into issues of meaning
that arise in 10–31 and in this way functions didactically. It is along this
avenue that I argue for the bulk of this study, (1) approaching Prov. 10.1–
22.16 to identify interpretive challenges, (2) unpacking evidence relevant
to them, (3) then approaching Proverbs 1–9 with questions derived from
those challenges and (4) demonstrating the distinctive and coherent inter-
pretive insight that 1–9 supplies for them.

83. Schipper, Hermeneutik, 78–9, 153. For a full evaluation of Schipper’s

interpretation of Proverbs 2, see section 3.1.
38 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

The complications faced at the outset of this study that I have taken
several pages to detail are, in my judgment, necessary. For in order to
answer the question of how Proverbs 1–9 functions, while accounting
for its history of interpretation and the claims of the text itself, several
decisions must be made, and these decisions are not always straight-
forward. I have eschewed a strictly synchronic reading and, at the same
time, a historical-critical analysis of the more detailed sort, because there
is good reason to see Proverbs 1–9 as a unified whole that was later added
to some or all of Proverbs 10–29. And although that leads me to wonder
if an editor intended a uni-directional purpose for Proverbs 1–9 – that it
interprets 10–29 – we cannot entirely do away with reading in both direc-
tions. For it is only by considering a bi-directional interpretation of the
parts of Proverbs that confident and nuanced claims can be made about if
and how Proverbs 1–9 functions in one direction. Thus the possibility that
10–29 informs the interpretation 1–9, and thereby counters or qualifies its
function as an introduction, will be considered at various points in what
follows, as will the possibility that neither section really lends much help
to the other at all. But amidst these possibilities, Proverbs 1–9 will still
exhibit its ability to supply distinctive and consistent insights into the
interpretive issues of 10–31.

1.8. Outline of Chapters

Over the course of this chapter, I have delineated a problem within inter-
pretations of Proverbs and proposed a theory of how to address it, which
entailed a look at the text of Proverbs itself, its ancient Near Eastern
counterparts, and a review of historical positions on the topic of Proverbs
1–9 as a ‘prologue’, along with those who do not necessarily view it with
that label. A key assumption has been defended about the macro-history
of Proverbs, namely that chapters 1–9 were added later, and a pair of
interrelated methodologies have also been detailed, which approach the
biblical material from two entry points in order to establish a more reliable
analysis of the text. My selection of topics from Proverbs, which dictates
the shape of the remaining chapters, also aims at reliable and thorough
analysis, as each topic accounts for a predominant feature of Proverbs
that is present in chapters 1–9 and 10–31. All examples fall under three
contexts of interpretation – literary, rhetorical and theological – each of
which receives its own chapter.
Over the course of Chapter 2, I explore one of the most palpable
features in the book of Proverbs: its characters. The wise, the foolish, the
righteous and the wicked show up in most chapters, especially 10.1–22.16,
 1. Introduction 39

a collection of sayings that has prompted the enquiry into character types.
Section 2.1 addresses the question of what these characters are with
respect to their identities, which may be exaggerated or real or somewhere
in between. Proverbs 10.1-5 poses two particular interpretive challenges,
the first being what to make of the ‘treasures of wickedness’ in 10.2, as it
has been debated whether gaining treasures by wickedness is even possible
or to be expected. Second, the ambiguous syntax of 10.4a renders two
possible interpretations of the line and prompts a larger question of how
character relates to behaviour. In view of such questions, Proverbs 1–9 is
consulted to determine if it might lend insight into these interpretive issues
and into character types more broadly. Proverbs 1.10-19, the scenario in
which the Proverbial father warns his son against joining a flagrant gang
of greedy sinners, displays an extreme portrait of wickedness, names it as
such, labels the culprits ‘sinners’, and then generalizes from this particular
scenario to reveal, for interpreters, that the characters in Proverbs – like
these ‘sinners’ – represent extreme exaggerations of humans rather than
the sorts of people that an ancient reader might encounter on a daily basis.
With additional support from 6.1-19, Proverbs 1–9 shows that character
types are like caricatures of people, though not strictly negative in their
portrayal or unreal.
In addition to the identity of these characters, the question of how
different character types maintain their identities in relation to each other
also arises, quite an important question given the abundance and diversity
of character lexemes in Proverbs. Knut Heim has proposed a theory
of ‘coreferentiality’ that interprets Proverbial characters as different
portrayals of an ultimately good or bad person. They represent, fundamen-
tally, neither distinct figures nor amalgamations of one person, but rather
distinct qualities from different realms of life, unified in their overall
characteristic of good or evil. Focusing especially on Proverbs 2 and the
conclusion of Proverbs 3 (vv. 31-35), I show that Proverbs 1–9, a section
unaccounted for by Heim, affirms and instils this sense of coreferentiality
between its characters.
Having discerned interpretive challenges in Prov. 10.1–22.16 and then
consulted 1–9, the following step determines how 1–9 might resolve the
challenges from 10.1–22.16. As mentioned, Prov. 10.1-5 produced two
interpretive challenges, one related to the phrase ‘treasures of wickedness’
(10.2) and the other to the ambiguous syntax of 10.4, which may render
‘a poor man makes a lax palm’ or ‘a lax palm makes a poor man’ and
more importantly opens a series of questions about the possibility of char-
acter types and their relation to behaviour. As an interpretive framework,
Proverbs 1–9 provides insights into these challenges, demonstrating its
40 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

didactic function. According to Proverbs 1, the wicked can gain treasures,

which means that, for prepared interpreters, the possibility for ‘treasures
of wickedness’ comes as no surprise when encountering 10.2. Proverbs 1
also introduces the interpreter to characters like the ‘sinners’, suggesting
that the ‘wicked’ of 10.2 connotes the wicked character type, an idealized
sort of evil person, who accumulates treasure through evil means, decep-
tive tactics, and possibly tempting partnerships. As for 10.4, the interpreter
fluent in Proverbs 1–9 now knows that behaviour and consequences stem
from character rather than vice versa, so that, when confronted with
syntactical options in the proverb, he or she may conclude that the idle
person begets poverty and, more significantly, that the ‘sluggard’, though
not mentioned in 10.4, serves as a likely and suitable character backdrop.
From the question about the characters’ identity follows the question
of how they are meant to function for the interpreter. Do Proverbial
characters compel some sort of response from the reader? Explored in the
section 2.2, the question pertains to rhetoric, viewed simply as the aims
and means of persuasion. Other interpreters, commenting on Proverbs
10–31, suggest that character types may function as mirrors for emulation
and self-evaluation, prompting readers of Proverbs to imitate or steer
clear of certain characters and assess themselves in light of them, not least
based on affective postures. Holding these suggestions as hypotheses, I
consult Prov. 1.20-33 to discover that it presents a set of bad character
types: simpletons, scoffers and fools. These people are condemned by
Lady Wisdom and distinguished from her primary audience, who, she
indicates, should evaluate these characters and use them for self-reflection,
ultimately rejecting the simpleton, the scoffer, and the fool in favour of the
right sort of person: ‘the one who listens’ to her.
Returning to Prov. 10.1–22.16, two sayings are examined – Prov. 15.2
and 18.2 – which include character lexemes, namely the wise person
and the fool, and state observations about them without giving explicit
advice. In other words, when read on their own, without accounting for
Proverbs 1–9, the characters of 15.2 and 18.2 compel no response from
the interpreter: wise people simply commend knowledge, and fools do not
delight in understanding. They give an indicative rather than imperative
portrait of people. While these passages, when read independently of
Proverbs 1–9, offer valuable insights, when they are interpreted with
1–9 in view, it becomes clear that both 15.2 and 18.2, and later 29.11,
harbour rhetorical force because of their character types. As an inter-
pretive framework, Proverbs 1–9 saturates these proverbs with rhetorical
implications, prompting interpreters to emulate good, self-evaluate based
 1. Introduction 41

on character types, and feel particular ways about them. From both
literary and rhetorical perspectives, Proverbs 1–9 functions didactically
by constructing a framework within which to understand the characters
of Proverbs 10–29.
In Chapter 3, I explore the goals and values of Proverbs based on two
particular challenges in Prov. 22.1 – ‘A name is to be chosen rather than
great riches; favour is better than silver and gold’. The first issue appears
when 22.1 is interpreted aside Prov. 16.16, which states that ‘To acquire
wisdom is much better than gold, and to acquire understanding is to be
chosen more than silver’. The juxtaposition of these sayings creates a
set of potentially competing values – a name and wisdom – which do
not receive an ordered relationship when viewed within Proverbs 10–29
alone. The two values might remain in tension, both simply championed
by individual proverbs with no other guidance as to how an interpreter
might choose between a name and wisdom if given the option. But it
is also worth asking if Proverbs harbours some organizing principle or
structure for its values, since it does propound comparative, axiological
statements so often, lending suspicion to the idea that 22.1 and 16.16
ought to remain in apposition.
Proverbs 22.1 also produces a question about its use of the lexeme ‫ׁשם‬,
which, based on OT evidence and Akkadian šumum, refers to ‘fame’ or
‘reputation’ without further qualification, such as positive connotations.
Other uses of ‫ ׁשם‬in Proverbs attest to this neutral sense, since the lexeme
always occurs with a modifier – such as ‘the name of the wicked’ – except
for its absolute appearance in 22.1. These resources, then, do not address
the question of what sort of name Prov. 22.1 envisions. It may remain
unqualified, as if a name of any sort, even a ‘favourable name’ in view
of 22.1b, should be chosen rather than great wealth. However, when such
questions are posed to Proverbs 1–9, Prov. 22.1 receives interpretive
insight, and in the remainder of Chapter 3, I show just that.
The two interpretive challenges related to Prov. 22.1 lead to Proverbs
7–8, chapters quite appropriate for these questions due to their highly
rhetorical flavour. They persuade, I argue, towards the goals of avoiding
folly and embracing wisdom, goals established by the teaching of the
Proverbial father, who portrays these correlative aims while drawing
attention to his own teaching. Proverbs 7–8 champions wisdom and
wise character as the ultimate goals of education and sets prime value on
wisdom as a possession and friend, culminating in a scheme of education:
through the text’s teachings, acquire wisdom in order to grow in wise
character.
42 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

This provisional conclusion, though convincingly based on Proverbs

7–8, does not account for the remainder of Proverbs 1–9, with Proverbs 2,
the ‘Lehrprogramm’ of 1–9, posing the greatest potential objection to my
proposal. With the work of Bernd Schipper, I argue that Proverbs 2 not
only affirms the views of Proverbs 7–8 but also supplements them with a
theological layer that colours the whole educational model and specifically
modifies it to the following: through the text’s teachings and the fear of
the Lord, acquire wisdom in order to grow in wise character. When this
educational framework is applied to the interpretive challenges of Prov.
22.1, it offers interpretive insights into conceptions of value, goals, and
lexical developments. The system of goals and values indicates that if
faced with a choice, the interpreter should prefer wisdom (16.16) to fame
(22.1), and that the ‘name’ to be chosen over great riches in 22.1 refers to
the reputation that arises from wise character. Proverbs 22.1 and related
sayings fit snugly into the system of values and educational goals set forth
by Proverbs 1–9, revealing its didactic function for the book of Proverbs.
Extending its scope beyond 10.1–22.16, the teleological network
established by Proverbs 1–9 operates in a similar way for 30.1-9. In
Proverbs 30, Agur expresses a lack of understanding, wisdom, and,
it seems, knowledge of God. Although Agur states a problem and a
potential solution, he does not provide the context necessary to answer
the question of why his problem is a problem: why has a lack of wisdom
provoked such a response? Many interpreters cite other OT texts that
Prov. 30.1-9 alludes to, especially Job, Psalms and Deuteronomy, and
attempt to explain Agur’s statements with one or all of the views found in
these other passages. The cacophony of allusions in Prov. 30.1-9, though,
can leave the intent of these allusions and their interpretive implications
unclear. For clarity, I appeal to Proverbs 1–9, which offers a network of
goals to suggest that Agur’s problem is a problem because he struggles
to attain the educational goals of wisdom’s schooling. The very lexemes
he uses for ‘understanding’ and ‘wisdom’, as well as knowledge of God,
appear in Proverbs 1 and 2 where they most directly serve to define the
educational scheme of Proverbs. Agur may allude to other OT texts, but
his comments also bear an unquestionable connection to Proverbs 1–9
and thereby establish a framework that informs one of the central inter-
pretive challenges of Prov. 30.1-9. In addition to the teleological context
of Agur’s remarks, Proverbs 1–9 provides insight into a detailed difficulty
of Prov. 30.3b, which, based solely on grammatical evidence, may affirm
Agur’s ‘knowledge of God’ or deny it. Providing more decisive clarity, the
educational scheme outlined in Proverbs 1–9 suggests that Agur has not
acquired this knowledge, cohering with the hyperbolic register of these
statements and the remainder of the passage.
 1. Introduction 43

The second section of Chapter 3 executes an alternative methodology

that takes its point of departure from Proverbs 1–9 instead of 10.1–22.16
to ensure that the main features of chapters 1–9 are not overlooked, as
these features might very well hamper the conclusion that 1–9 functions
didactically. Taking 1–9 on its own terms, Jean-Noël Aletti has disclosed
some of the section’s main features, arguing that it portrays the world as a
morally chaotic and ambiguous place where what is wrong sounds right,
like the invitations of the temptress who sounds very much like Wisdom.
This moral ambiguity creates problems for those unable to distinguish
good and bad. The youth of Proverbs 7, for example, falls prey to
seduction and, in a word, lacks discernment, which the father of Proverbs
1–9 shows is necessary for navigating the Proverbial landscape.
A similar depiction, albeit terse, appears in Proverbs 10–29, where
fools operate with moral confusion, and certain scenarios portray bad
things as good things. The latter occurs in Prov. 14.12 and 18.8 in which
the way to death ‘seems right to a man’ and the whisperer’s words taste
like ‘delicious morsels’. The sayings leave few evaluative clues with
which to determine how to respond: should I gobble gossip and enjoy it?
Do I simply tread through life and hope for the best? Or is there some
way to ensure a livelier outcome? Little more can be said in response to
these passages except that they require discernment, which, according to
Proverbs 1–9, is the faculty for encountering such moral ambiguity victo-
riously. But Proverbs 1–9 also shows how such discernment is acquired,
namely, through the scheme of education outlined earlier in Chapter 3, a
scheme that begins with the father’s instruction and the fear of the Lord,
leading to the acquisition of wisdom and growth in wise character that
wisdom facilitates with the Lord’s help. In this way 1–9 functions didacti-
cally and exposes features overlooked when taking 10.1–22.16 as the sole
point of departure. Even when interpreted on its own terms, Proverbs 1–9
still provides an interpretive framework for material in 10–31.
Chapter 4 examines the theology of Proverbs by organising the 57
sayings from 10.1–22.16 that refer to ‘the Lord’ or ‘God’ into three
categories: human postures toward the Lord; the supremacy of the
Lord’s wisdom and sovereignty; and the Lord’s affection and assessment.
Proverbs 15.33–16.9 is found to include material from each of the three
categories and to function as a theological ‘kernel’ for 10.1–22.16, with
its use of ‫ יהוה‬or ‫ אלהים‬being the highest concentration of any keyword
in Prov. 10.1–22.16. From this kernel, three sayings, each of which
represents one theological category, are selected to serve as examples for
extracting an interpretive challenge and determining how Proverbs 1–9
might function for the book’s theology.
44 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

First, Prov. 16.3 represents sayings that refer to the Lord and also
portray human postures towards him, such as ‘fear’ or ‘anger’ or, in this
case, ‘trust’, as the proverb baldly commands people to ‘trust your works
to the Lord’, who will establish your plans, and thereby assumes that the
Lord deserves trust. But why trust the Lord? After exploring Proverbs
10–31 and other potential interpretive resources (e.g. Prov. 12.2; 16.1, 5,
9; 20.22; 21.3), which could motivate trust based on the Lord’s supreme
wisdom and dispensation of consequences, this question is posed to
Proverbs 1–9. The instructions in Prov. 3.1-12 that address why and how
the Lord is worthy of human trust proffer reasons that cohere with those
found elsewhere, especially from 10.1–22.16, but they also add another
reason: trust the Lord because he loves you and delights in you, like a
father does his son (3.11-12). Proverbs 3.11-12 instils an interpretive
framework that lends interpretive insight into an assumption of Prov. 16.3,
substantiating a response to an interpretive challenge fundamental to the
saying.
Proverbs 16.9 represents the second category of theological sayings
in Collection II, depicting the superiority of the Lord’s wisdom and
sovereignty, and often juxtaposing these concepts with human wisdom
and control. Proverbs 16.9 observes that humans ‘plan’ their ways in
a largely cognitive sense, and that the Lord ‘establishes’ their steps, a
remark about God that entails both his knowledge and power. The inter-
pretive challenge of this proverb turns on the ambiguous relationship of
the two lines, which read ‘The heart of man plans his way while the Lord
establishes his steps’ and prompt deeper questions of the human–divine
relationship in Proverbs 10–29. Interpreters often assert an antithetical
relationship between such lines and view humans as primarily depraved
operators who plan ways that the Lord then overrides; humans push the
envelope of their cognitive and volitional limitations so that proverbs
like 16.9 warn against pressing such boundaries. However, by consulting
Proverbs 1–9, specifically 3.19-26 and 8.22-31, I argue that wisdom
functions as a mediator between God and humans, ‘bridging the gap’ so
to speak between the Lord’s prudent governance and human planning, to
render them complementary so long as humans heed wisdom. Proverbs
1–9 confirms the interpretive options of 16.9 and in that way displays
theological coherence with 10–29, but it more importantly provides a
theological backcloth for the passage, detailing how and why the Lord
might oppose one’s ways, and in what way one can plan in accord
with his wisdom and sovereignty. In this way, Proverbs 1–9 functions
didactically.
 1. Introduction 45

Third and finally, Prov. 16.2 provides an example of those sayings

that portray the Lord’s affection and assessment, how he feels about and
appraises humans and the world. It states that all ways are ‘pure’ (‫ )זך‬in
the eyes of humans and that the Lord weighs – in the sense of examining
and measuring – human hearts, thereby assuming a notion of ‘impurity’
and posing the question, what is the human problem in the view of this
proverb? Lexical and conceptual links derived from Prov. 16.2 lead to
the discovery of interpretive contributions from Proverbs 10–31 and the
Instruction of Amenemope but also direct us to Prov. 3.31-32 and Proverbs
5, as well as 6.12-19, passages that make remarks about human wrong-
doing within the context of comments on the affection or assessment of
the Lord. These texts indicate that human affections are a key human
problem and that these affections ought to align with the Lord’s, in light
of his omnicompetence and omniscience. In Proverbs 1–9, the Lord sets
the standard for morality, particularly hates evil, and wishes people to
align with his appraisal of good and evil and with the way he feels toward
them. And so, Proverbs 1–9 lays a backdrop for 16.2 with which to see a
more substantial vision of the human problem, that is, what it means to
be ‘impure’.
In this example, the function of Proverbs 1–9 encounters some of
its most obvious limitations. While Proverbs 1–9 offers insight into the
interpretive problem of Prov. 16.2 and other sayings like it, it at the same
time lacks the comprehensive interpretive punch that it delivers for 16.3
and 16.9. The challenges of Prov. 16.2 unveil even more puzzles within
Proverbs 1–9 itself, suggesting that 1–9 makes certain assumptions that no
part of the book addresses and thereby requires its own resources for inter-
pretation. But these assumptions do not compromise its didactic role; they
reveal the ambit of its introductory function, along with starting points for
how Proverbs might integrate with other portions of the OT and its ancient
context. Again, the focus of each chapter remains on how Proverbs 1–9
functions for the rest of the book, and the scope of features examined in
Chapters 2–4 aims to establish that function in its most significant ways,
expounding the role of Proverbs 1–9 for the characters of Proverbs, the
educational goals of the book, and its theology. For each perspective,
Proverbs 1–9 produces a framework that lends interpretive insights for
10–31, like an interpretive tutor, a map or blueprint, a sort of exegetical
glossary for the terse Proverbial sayings, and in this way functions as an
introduction.
 2

C h a ra c t er T y pe s

One of the most prominent features of Proverbs is its characters. This

diverse population most frequently includes the righteous, the wicked, the
wise and the fool, and less frequently, the diligent, sluggard, and prudent
person, among others. The appearance of these characters in Proverbs,
many of whom surface in 1–9 and 10.1–22.16, prompts two interrelated
questions: who are they and how are they meant to function for inter-
preters? It is these two enquiries that are explored in this chapter, which
addresses the literary identity and relation of Proverbial characters as well
as their rhetorical function. In the first section, it will become clear that
the presentation of characters in Prov. 10.1–22.16 raises questions about
where such characters lie on the spectrum of ideal to real. Should the wise
and foolish persons, for example, be understood as idealized, extreme
portraits of wisdom and folly, or as examples of realistic human beings? In
addition to the identity of these people, 10.1–22.16 raises the question of
how different characters relate with respect to their characteristic features.
Are the wise, righteous and diligent figures, for instance, all examples of
the same person or completely distinct people or forms of both? Such
questions are not entirely new among interpreters of Proverbs, and it
is, of course, my ultimate aim to suggest that Proverbs 1–9 addresses
these questions in some distinctive way, but there is, first, some essential
ground-clearing to be done.
A few studies that focused on character types appeared as parts of
larger works during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.1 From a

1. E.g. Karl Gramberg, Das Buch der Sprüche Salomo’s neu übersetzt (Leipzig:
J. A. G. Weigel, 1828), 16–24; W. Frankenberg, ‘Ueber Abfassungs-Ort und-Zeit,
Sowie Art und Inhalt von Prov. I-IX’, ZAW 15 (1895): 110–17; Hans-Jürgen Hermisson,
Studien zur israelitischen Spruchweisheit (Neukirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener Verlag
des Erziehungsvereins, 1968), 73–6; Brian W. Kovacs, ‘Is There a Class-Ethic in
Proverbs?’, in Essays in Old Testament Ethics, ed. John Willis and James Crenshaw
(New York: KTAV, 1974), 173–89.
 2. Character Types 47

brief description of certain wise and foolish types, to the appearance of

characters in Proverbs 10–29 and the concentration of righteous/wicked
contrasts in chapters 10–11 and wise/fool contrasts in chapters 14–15,
interpreters have discovered a firm antithesis between the character types,
a polarity referred to as ‘binary anthropology’. For some, the characters’
attitudes are emphasized more than their deeds or traits, and when such
character attitudes are linked with their corresponding outcomes, the
relationship becomes known as the ‘character–consequence’ nexus. While
both the similarities and distinctions between the character terms are still
contested, the interpretation of Proverbs 10–15 remains preoccupied with
antithetical character types and the attitude or character of these types.2
Aside from these points of agreement, three lines of enquiry remain
inconclusive or unexplored: what exactly these types are, how they relate,
and a comparison of their appearance in Proverbs 1–9 versus 10.1–22.16.3
As to the first, McKane moved beyond studies of character types that
focused on their lexemes and offered a theory of how these characters
function on a literary level.4 He comments that 10.1–22.16 gives ‘the
impression of an unreal black and white schematism’ for its characters,
and he offers as a ‘theory’ that ‘for the saddiq this is the best of all possible

2. Interpreters specifically debate whether the terms reflect synonymous types,

completely distinct types, or a blend of the two. Most recently, compare Knut M.
Heim, ‘Coreferentiality, Structure and Context in Proverbs 10.1-5’, Journal of
Translation and Textlinguistics 6 (1993): 183–209; Ruth Scoralick, Einzelspruch
und Sammlung: Komposition im Buch der Sprichwörter Kapitel 10–15 (Berlin: de
Gruyter, 1995), 27–43; Sun Myung Lyu, Righteousness in the Book of Proverbs, FAT
2/55 (Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2012), 52.
3. Discussion also exists regarding the relation of Proverbial character types to
ancient Near Eastern characters. As to the origin and development of the character
terms, Nili Shupak (Where Can Wisdom Be Found?, 199–212, 231–65, esp. 259–65)
has offered the most conclusive study; the debate barely continues. See also
Shupak, ‘Positive and Negative Human Types in the Egyptian Wisdom Literature’,
in Homeland and Exile: Biblical and Ancient Near Eastern Studies in Honour of
Bustenay Oded, ed. Gershon Galil, Mark Geller and Alan Millard, VTSup 130
(Leiden: Brill, 2009), 245–60.
4. Interpreters have widely provided definitions of lexemes that refer to these
characters, with descriptions of their contextual and lexical meanings based on
different grammatical forms. Among others, see Nili Shupak, Where Can Wisdom Be
Found?, 199–212, 231–58; Jutta Hausmann, Studien zum Menschenbild der älteren
Weisheit (Spr 10ff.), FAT 7 (Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 1995), 9–104 (she focuses
exclusively on Proverbs 10–31); Michael V. Fox, ‘Words for Wisdom’, Zeitschrift für
Althebraistik 6 (1993): 149–65; Fox, ‘Words for Folly’, Zeitschrift für Althebraistik
10 (1997): 4–17; Müller, Proverbien, 320; Lyu, Righteousness, 46–59.
48 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

worlds’.5 I understand McKane to mean that the righteous character is

portrayed in an ideal existence of flawless actions, attitudes, relationships,
and consequences, a proposal that has been expanded by identifying the
righteous or wise person in Proverbs as a ‘typisches Weisheitsideal’.6
Proverbs 10.1–22.16 confirms this possibility, as Prov. 19.24 and 22.13,
for example, exaggerate people into ‘caricatures’ that cannot possibly
represent real figures.7 The sluggard puts forward a ludicrous notion – ‘A
lion is outside! In the middle of the market I shall be slain!’ (22.13) – and
is likewise described in implausibly lazy terms: ‘The sluggard buries his
hand in the dish, he will not even bring it back to his mouth’ (19.24).
By labelling such a figure a ‘caricature’ I do not necessarily mean a
negative representation or a misrepresentation, as often appears in modern
newspapers, but only an extremely exaggerated form, whether negatively
or positively portrayed. Although the sluggard does seem to embody the
negative form of a caricature, other characters in Proverbs will embody the
positive version of certain extremes. I refer to these portraits as ‘ideals’,
meaning that the characters embody their virtues or vices to the uttermost
extent. The sluggard, for example, refuses to work and is lazy to the most
thorough and extreme degree. Such thorough embodiment constitutes him
as ideal, and his extreme embodiment gives him his caricatured quality.
This understanding of characters in Proverbs is still under debate, as
Sæbø, for instance, questions whether or not the characters of Proverbs
10–15 represent idealized caricatures: ‘Ob die positiven Eigenschaften
darüber hinaus ein „Ideal“ vom Menschen vorstellen wollen, bleibt trotz
gelegentlicher Behauptung fraglich’.8 The characters of Proverbs may
represent something more ‘real’ than ‘ideal’, and their identity remains
open to question, and yet within these disagreements about what character
types are, Proverbs 1–9 has not been adequately incorporated into the
discussion, a discussion that instead tends to concentrate on 10–29 and
especially 10–15. It is my contention that Proverbs 1–9 offers guidance
in answering current questions about the identity of Proverbial characters.
A second area of interest attends not so much to the real or ideal identity
of these characters but more to how they relate to each other. Heim has
championed the question and argues that the character terms in Prov.

5. William McKane, Proverbs: A New Approach, OTL (London: SCM Press,

1970), 16.
6. Hausmann, Studien, 346; ‘a (stereo)typical wisdom ideal’.
7. McKane, ‘Functions’, 173. He notes the same observation in Toy, Ringgren,
and Gemser.
8. Sæbø, Sprüche, 26, see also 27.
 2. Character Types 49

10.1–22.16 can be ‘co-referential’ according to their meanings, syntagms

and connotations.9 He divides the lexemes from Proverbs 10 into semantic
fields of morality, intellect, and diligence, such as the righteous/wicked,
the wise/fool, and the diligent/slothful. He then shows how terms from
each group occur in similar thematic contexts or in direct parallel, and
that each contrasting pair represents both a positive and negative type of
character. So, the diligent person and the sluggard, a pair of characters
defined by their relation to work, are in one case ‘good’ (diligent) and in
the other ‘bad’ (sluggard). Likewise, the righteous/wicked refer to moral
character, and the wise/fool refer to intellectual, and yet each of them also
refers to either a ‘good’ or ‘bad’ character type. The specific characters, in
other words, are not identical but coreferential. Heim also demonstrates
that the character types derive not only from specific lexemes but also
from their predicates. For example, the ‘prudent son’ is ‘one who gathers
in summer’ (Prov. 10.5a), and thus this character is not only referred to by
‫‘( בן מביׁש‬prudent son’) but also by the characteristic attributed to him, as
the ‘one who gathers in summer’. Accounting for such predicate descrip-
tions furthermore enables one to account for all of a verse’s material – its
subjects and predicate descriptions – and also reveals the collection’s
focus on characters. Thus, 10.1–22.16 features character and attitude,
portraying types not only through singular lexemes but also through
positive or negative predicated descriptions.
I find Heim’s argument convincing, commended also by its sensi-
tivity to the linguistic concepts of sense and referent, which allow him
to distinguish the terms and phrases themselves from the object referred
to and to retain distinction between terms while also identifying their
commonalities. His initial article, described above, also accounts for all
of the material in Prov. 10.1-5, yielding a focus on character in a passage
representative of 10.1–22.16, and thereby providing a starting point from
which to approach the sayings material. For, six of the seven characteri-
zations of ‘diligence’ appear in Prov. 10.1-5 (10.4-5), plus coreferential
terms in the intellectual (e.g. wise/foolish) and moral fields (e.g. righteous/
wicked).10 Heim’s work does not, however, account for co-referentiality in
Proverbs 1–9 or the function of the ‘way’ metaphor, which is where I aim
to take the discussion.11

9. Heim, ‘Coreferentiality’.
10. Heim, ‘Coreferentiality’, 199.
11. The function of the way metaphor relates also to the limits of Heim’s
argument, which could, arguably, be pushed to show that each and every character
type does not occur adjacent to another and therefore fails to acquire a coreferential
50 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

Third, how do the characters in Proverbs 1–9 and 10.1–22.16 compare?

Some suggest that Proverbs 1–9 presents a portrait of characters that is
distinct from 10.1–22.16.12 Others hold that 1–9 plays a significant role for
the interpretation of characters in the sayings material, which is a much
more convincing proposal, in my judgment. Christopher Ansberry writes
that in Proverbs 10–15,

The ‘wise’ and the ‘righteous’ continue to serve as positive archetypes who
represent the way of life…. These personages not only bind the collections
together through shared vocabulary and imagery, but they also provide a
hermeneutical guide for the reader. The prologue describes socio-moral
values through a series of characters and root metaphors in order to provide
an ethical framework through which to evaluate the sayings in the sentence
literature.13

Ansberry has articulated a cogent theory about the characters and the
function of Proverbs 1–9 and has also attended to the female figures
therein. However, the traditional character types that bind 1.1–22.16,
such as the wise and righteous, are not addressed, and the focus remains
instead on those figures who feature only in 1–9: the two female figures
of Wisdom and Folly, the foreign woman, and the simpleton.14 The scope
of characters examined in Proverbs 1–9 needs to be expanded.
Sun Myung Lyu continues with further proposals about how characters
function and on the role of Proverbs 1–9:

Proverbs’ character of the righteous is to be studied, mimicked, and

internalized in the pupil’s life. Proverbs 1–9 gives a structured “theory of
learning” and guiding principles for using the raw material in the rest of
the book…. The binary anthropology of Proverbs, coupled with its ardent
emphasis on wisdom, is the crystallization of Israelite wisdom that enables
moral imagination to bloom into moral character.15

label of good or bad. For example, a fool and the greedy person may be coreferential,
but other characters, such as the violent person, may not. They may, instead, stand
relatively isolated in Proverbs, even in Proverbs 1–9. As argued below, the use of the
way only strengthens the case for coreferentiality.
12. Hausmann, Studien, 347; Kenneth Aitken, Proverbs (Philadelphia, PA:
Westminster Press, 1986), 135.
13. Ansberry, Be Wise, 76.
14. See Ansberry, Be Wise, 46–69.
15. Lyu, Righteousness, 74–5.
 2. Character Types 51

Lyu also mentions the more vivid characterization of negative types, such
as the gang, in Proverbs 1–9, but does not support or develop his claims
about the role of 1–9 in relation to 10.1–22.16. Despite the promising
proposals regarding the characters of Proverbs, what remains to be seen
is how Proverbs 1–9 functions in this respect, with a detailed examination
of characters common to both collections.
There have been several possible explanations for the identities of the
characters in Proverbs and how these characters relate, broaching concep-
tions of idealized portraits and co-referentiality. But there remains no
developed demonstration of such identities or a comparison of character
appearances that accounts for both Proverbs 1–9 and 10.1–22.16.
Consequently, in the first section of this chapter, two overarching questions
are posed to 1–9 in order to determine its function for 10.1–22.16: (1)
How does Proverbs 1–9 intend to portray its characters, as idealized
caricatures or something else? (2) How do the characters relate in view
of Heim’s coreferentiality theory? A key text from 10.1–22.16 (10.1-5)
is outlined in its hermeneutical assumptions and debates, which will
supplement this pair of primary questions with two additional subques-
tions. Having all of these queries in tow, I then consult Proverbs 1–9 and
argue that it functions didactically for Prov. 10.1-5, especially 10.2 and
10.4. The second section of this chapter follows up on these conclusions
about character identity to argue that Proverbs 1–9 also operates didacti-
cally with respect to the overall function of character types.

2.1. The Identity of Character Types

2.1.1. Character Types in Proverbs 10.1-5
For examining the identity of Proverbial characters in terms of what or
who they are, the significance of Prov. 10.1-5 should not be underesti-
mated. The ‘righteous’ and ‘wicked’, two of the most prominent character
terms in the book of Proverbs, appear with especially high frequency in
10.1–11.13, which contains 30 percent of the total occurrences of these
terms in 1.1–22.16.16 Observing this peculiar concentration, it has been
argued that Collection II connects to Collection I via the mention of
parents, wisdom, and folly in their initial passages (1.7-8; 10.1) and that

16. In Collection I, ‫ רׁשע‬occurs in substantive (7×) and alternative forms (2×),

and in Collection II (54×) with alternative forms (5×): Prov. 10.1–11.13 (18×); chs.
10–15 (40×); 16.1–22.16 (14×). The lexeme ‫ צדיק‬occurs as follows: Collection I (4×);
Collection II (49×); 10.1–11.13 (16×); chs. 10–15 (39×); 16.1–22.16 (10×). Thus,
Prov. 10.1–11.13 contains 18 of 61 occurrences of ‫ רׁשע‬in Collections I and II, and for
‫צדיק‬, 16 of 53. (Statistics are based on Accordance Bible software.)
52 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

Prov. 10.1–11.13 operates as a sort of character kernel, a set of neigh-

bouring verses dense with character referents.17 The character terms of
10.1–22.16 are dominated by the righteous and wicked, along with the
wise and foolish, all four of which appear as contrasting pairs in 10.1b-3.
In addition to these types, as mentioned above, 10.4-5 contains corefer-
ential terms in the semantic fields of intelligence and diligence, suggesting
that 10.1-5 is quite representative of the character population in Proverbs.
Based on its connections with Proverbs 1–9 and its cluster of represent-
ative character lexemes, Prov. 10.1-5 constitutes a passage well-suited for
studying character types in 10.1–22.16.

‫משׁלי שׁלמה פ‬ 10.1 The proverbs of Solomon:18

‫בן חכם ישׂמח־אב‬ A wise son makes a father glad
‫ובן כסיל תוגת אמו‬ a foolish son is his mother’s sorrow19
‫לא־יועילו אוצרות רשׁע‬ 10.2 Treasures of wickedness20 do not profit
‫וצדקה תציל ממות‬ but righteousness delivers from death
‫לא־ירעיב יהוה נפשׁ צדיק‬ 10.3 The Lord does not let the appetite21 of the
righteous be hungry
‫והות רשׁעים יהדף‬ but the desire of the wicked ones he thrusts
away
‫ראשׁ עשׂה כף־רמיה‬ 10.4 A lax palm makes a poor man
‫ויד חרוצים תעשׁיר‬ but the hand of the diligent ones makes rich
‫אגר בקיץ בן משׂכיל‬ 10.5 The one who gathers in summer is a prudent son;
‫נרדם בקציר בן מבישׁ‬ the one who sleeps in harvest is a shameful
son22

Heim has summarized the meaning of the passage as a coherent whole:

‘Be a wise son and be diligent, because then you will not have to gain

17. John Goldingay, ‘The Arrangement of Sayings in Proverbs 10–15’, JSOT

19 (1994): 75–83. Proverbs 10.1-5 operates like the theological kernel of Proverbs
(15.33–16.9), a starting point that will prove fruitful in Chapter 4.
18. The LXX and some MSS omit the title, but the LXX’s elimination of clearer
headings (24.23; 30.1; 31.1) suggests that 10.1a existed in the original.
19. ‘Sorrow of/to his mother’ could be a mediated genitive. The cola may also
render double substantives: e.g. ‘A son, a wise one’ (though cf. Prov. 25.12; Eccl.
4.13; Job 34.34).
20. The phrase is often rendered, ‘Treasures gained by wickedness’. See, e.g.,
Waltke, Proverbs 1–15, 447; ESV.
21. Cf. Prov. 13.25; 16.24; 25.25.
22. The hiphil is interpreted to mean that the son causes either his parents or
himself shame.
 2. Character Types 53

money through unrighteous practices, so your parents can be proud of

you and the Lord will bless you!’23 Aside from any particular quibbles
that could be raised against that summary, the passage certainly exhibits
characters in theological, practical, and moral realms, particularly the
‘son’, as he bears some positive or negative relationship to the Lord (v. 3),
work (v. 4), and ethically qualified actions (v. 2).24 Since theological topics
are dealt with in Chapter 4 of the present work, I here examine Prov. 10.2
and 10.4 as cases of character types in the pragmatic and moral realms,
both of which pose interpretive challenges.
Proverbs 10.2 states that ‘Treasures of wickedness do not profit, but
righteousness delivers from death’. The proverb provokes questions
regarding character types within the realm of ethics, which is clearly
evident in a series of comments from interpreters. Tremper Longman
claims that the phrase ‘treasures of wickedness’ surprises the reader,
because it indicates that the wicked can gain wealth.25 Bruce Waltke more
neutrally observes that ‘The proverb assumes that one can amass a fortune
to which wickedness clings’, and he, like Longman, appeals to the role
of acts–consequence as reason for this surprise: for the proverb ‘clearly
implies that there is no tidy calculus between virtue and its rewards and
vice and its retribution’.26 Otto Plöger writes that with respect to all
three antithetical pairs, Prov. 10.1-5 ‘jedenfalls weithin irreparabel Züge
annimmt’.27 Each of these interpreters identifies presuppositions within
Prov. 10.2, as Longman and Waltke note that the verse assumes that the
wicked can become rich, since 10.2 mentions ‘treasures of wickedness’,

23. Heim, ‘Coreferentiality’, 203. Commentators observe and admire the struc-
tural soundness of Prov. 10.1-5, further testifying to its coherence. See Hans Fuhs,
Sprichwörter (Würzburg: Echter Verlag, 2001), 74–5; Arndt Meinhold, Die Sprüche,
Zürcher Bibelkommentare: Altes Testament 16 (Zurich: Theologischer Verlag, 1991),
163 (based on characters); Plöger, Sprüche, 124 (based on a literary contrast);
Scoralick, Einzelspruch, 169–74.
24. Independently, interpreters have identified similar thematic categories within
Prov. 10.1-5. Meinhold (Sprüche, 165) and Goldingay (‘The Arrangement’, 81, 83)
note the sapiential or pragmatic (10.1b, 4-5), the moral (10.2), and the theological
(10.3) perspectives. While these divisions only loosely cohere with Heim’s three
semantic fields of diligence, intelligence, and morality, Goldingay persuades that
they appear throughout Proverbs 10–15 (10.23-27; 12.1-4; 14.1-4; 15.2-7). For my
purposes, the pragmatic, moral, and theological perspectives provide categories to
direct more specific questions about Prov. 10.1-5 and substantiate the two overarching
questions posed above.
25. Longman, Proverbs, 230.
26. Waltke, Proverbs 1–15, 453.
27. Plöger, Sprüche, 123.
54 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

and Plöger particularly observes that the ‘wicked’ and ‘righteous’ pre-
suppose some sort of ethical identity, what he calls ‘irreparable traits’.
These observations prompt a pair of questions, the answers to which, I
would argue, are not entirely clear based on Prov. 10.1-5 alone: should the
interpreter be surprised by the wicked gaining wealth, and more broadly,
what are we to make of the assumptions behind these characters’ ethical
identities?
The second example is 10.4, which contains a syntactical abnormality in
the second line: ‫ראשׁ עשׂה כף־רמיה‬. The Hebrew word order can mean that
poverty leads to idleness or that idleness leads to poverty, either, ‘a poor
man makes a lax palm’ or ‘a lax palm makes a poor man’. Suggesting that
the ambiguity is no self-explanatory issue, Whybray resolves it through
the parallel reference in 10.4b, where diligence causes wealth and thereby
implies that a lax palm would lead to poverty.28 ‘The hand of the diligent
makes rich’, and therefore ‘a lax palm makes one poor’. Like Longman
and Waltke with 10.2, so Whybray here appeals to the role of acts–conse-
quence in his interpretation of the saying. But might it be warranted to
give attention to the role of character in this instance and not only to
acts-consequence? For the ‘diligent’ character in colon B implies not only
an immediate syntactical solution but also signals that a corresponding
character may be at play in colon A. In the first place, the verse contrasts
a ‘lax palm’ with ‘the hand of the diligent’, showing that the second line,
in its mention of ‘the diligent’, explicitly incorporates character more than
the first. Being rich is an outcome for the diligent, and it seems that being
poor would, therefore, be an outcome rather than a constitutive element
of character. That is, the poverty mentioned in 10.4a most likely refers
not to a character type (i.e. the poor person) but rather to an outcome
that, according to 10.4b, stems from a certain character type. Second,
‘the poor’, if it does represent a character type, expectedly appears with
‘the rich’ person elsewhere in Proverbs, further supporting the view that
the ‘poor man’ is not the primary contrast to the diligent person in 10.4.29
Lastly, ‫ ראׁש עׂשה‬may refer less to a ‘poor man’ and more to ‘poverty’
(ESV; NIV) or becoming ‘poor’ (NASB), indicating that the language used
for destitution does not necessarily denote a character type. Collectively,
this reasoning warrants the question, to whom, if not the characteristically

28. Whybray, Proverbs, 158. Proverbs from 10.1–22.16 that contain predicative
participles and display similar ambiguity are, unlike 10.4, most often clarified by the
nature of the subject and object (11.18; 12.23; 13.3, 18; 14.10; 15.32; 16.17, 27-28;
17.27-28). In two cases, words occur in an abnormal order unexplainable by an appeal
to chiasm (17.17; 22.2).
29. Proverbs 13.7; 14.20; 18.23; 22.2, 7; 28.6; cf. 13.8; 28.3.
 2. Character Types 55

poor man, does the lax palm of 10.4a belong? The answer seems undis-
closed by or perhaps latent within 10.1-5, and the problem leads to a
more basic issue about the presentation of character and behaviour in
the proverbs. The issue has received contrasting responses: according to
Raymond Van Leeuwen, Proverbs 10–15 supposes the concepts of right-
eousness and wickedness while displaying their behaviour;30 according to
Waltke, in 10.1-5, ‘The behaviour of the wise/righteous is often assumed
and left undefined’.31 So, is it the behaviour or the character concepts
that are latent within the proverbs? This question is foundational to the
dilemma posed by the interpretation of 10.4 – how are its character types
and their behaviours meant to be related? And while the acts–consequence
nexus has clearly played a lead role in the interpretation of these verses, I
would suggest that character types warrant our full attention too. I propose
that we consult Proverbs 1–9 for answers to these concerns, enquiring into
the relationship it instils between character types and their behaviour in
pragmatic realms, such as work and social relations.
My foray into Prov. 10.1-5 lends two additional questions that substan-
tiate the first larger concern:

1. How does Proverbs 1–9 intend to portray the characters? As idealized

caricatures, or something else such as realistic personalities?
a. How does it inform their ethical identities, specifically in
relation to wealth?
b. What relationship does it instil between character types and
their behaviour in pragmatic realms?
2. How do the characters relate in view of Heim’s theory of
coreferentiality?

2.1.2. Character Types in Proverbs 1–9

Many, but not all, of the lexemes in Prov. 10.1–22.16 that characterize
groups or individuals appear in 1–9. Of the four most prominent antithetical
pairs from Collection II, only two occur as pairs within Collection I: the
wise (‫ )חכם‬and the fool (‫)כסיל ;אויל‬, and the righteous (‫ )צדיק‬and wicked
(‫)רׁשע‬. The rich (‫ )עׁשיר‬and poor (‫)עני ;רׁש ;אריון ;דל‬, along with the prudent
(‫)ערום‬, an alternative term for the foolish (‫)נבל‬, and the diligent (‫)חרוץ‬
only appear in chapters 10 and following, though the labourer’s worse
half – the sluggard (‫ – )עצל‬does show up in 6.6 and 6.9. Proverbs 1–9 also
mentions the scoffer (‫)לץ‬, simpleton (‫)פתי‬, the one who lacks sense (‫חסר‬

30. Van Leeuwen, ‘Proverbs’, 105.

31. Waltke, Proverbs 1–15, 101. So Fox, Proverbs 10–31, 510.
56 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

‫)לב‬, the upright (‫)יׁשר‬, and the understanding (‫)בין‬. In addition to these, a
number of other characters appear only once in Collection I and rarely
in Collection II.32 The character types just mentioned signify characters
denoted by one or two lexical items, such as ‫ רׁשע‬for the ‘wicked’ and
‫ חסר לב‬for ‘the one who lacks sense’. Some characterizations in Proverbs
1–9, though, differ from this format and instead provide predicate descrip-
tions of character types, such as ‘the men who speak perversity’, which
seems to substantiate the wicked (2.12b; cf. 2.13-15; 6.19), or the ‫אׁשרי‬
(‘blessed’) person who embodies wisdom and equates to the ‘righteous’
(3.13; 8.32-36; cf. Ps. 1.1, 6). Otherwise, within Proverbs 1–9, characters
contribute to a story or an illustration, in either a fictitious (2.19; 6.29; cf.
9.7) or more realistic fashion (6.1; 8.15-16).
As for additional distinctions between Collections I and II, Kenneth
Aitken draws attention to 2.20-22 and 4.10-19 to conclude that Collection
I portrays the theological dimension of the character types, such as their
relationship to God and their righteous mode of acquiring wisdom,
whereas Collection II describes their social outworking, perhaps their
relationships with others and society as a whole.33 But in the context
of character terms, I do not find Aitken convincing. Proverbs 2.7-9 and
4.16-17 describe the social activities of certain characters, and the first
mention of the righteous and wicked persons in Collection II puts them in
relation to the Lord (10.3), which amounts to an exact reversal of Aitken’s
view. A general distinction like Aitken’s might hold, but the notable
distinction with respect to character terms in Proverbs 1–9 and 10.1–22.16
stems not from a theological dimension but from the literary context. In
10.1–22.16, the terms appear in single proverbs or small clusters that
elaborate on the character types. In Proverbs 1–9, the terms appear in
much richer literary contexts, embedded in illustrative narratives, lengthy
speeches, or extended series of instructions. I contend that these larger

32. That is, the sinner (‫)חטא‬, godly (‫)חסיד‬, good (‫)טוב‬, blameless (‫)תמים‬, treach-
erous (‫)בגד‬, man of violence (‫)איׁש חמס‬, devious (‫)נלוז‬, worthless person (‫)איׁש בליעל‬,
and wicked man (‫)איׁש און‬. Collection II also includes rare characters not found in
Collection I. However, in each case, the rare type occurs in parallel with a familiar
character type, or includes common ethical terms, or reflects a predicate description:
godless (‫חנף‬, 11.9), man of evil devices (‫איׁש מזמות‬, 12.2; 14.17), one of twisted mind
(‫נעוה לב‬, 12.8), backslider in heart (‫סוג לב‬, 14.14), man of short anger (i.e. quick
temper; ‫קצר אפים‬, 14.17), good of heart (‫טוב לב‬, 15.15), man of anger (‫איׁש חמה‬,
15.18; cf. 6.34; 16.32). See also 11.20; 17.20 (cf. 2.15); 12.20 (cf. 3.29; 6.14); 17.4
(cf. 6.17); 19.5, 15; 20.19; 22.14. One of the terms for ‘poor’ (‫ )עני‬occurs at Prov.
3.34, but in this context it refers to the ‘humble’.
33. Aitken, Proverbs, 133.
 2. Character Types 57

and richer contexts serve to establish the function of the character terms,
portraying them as idealized types or caricatures, each distinct but ulti-
mately coreferential. By developing the caricatured and coreferential
quality of the characters, 1–9 functions didactically by preparing the inter-
preter to understand their function and relationship within 10.1–22.16.
The opening lecture from the father (1.10-19) exemplifies the treatment
of character types in Proverbs 1–9, so this passage is closely examined,
while other key texts that inform the interpretive questions from 10.1–
22.16 are then considered.

2.1.2.1. Proverbs 1.10-19

The Proverbial father’s first lecture (Prov. 1.10-19) contributes most
to the first question about the interpretation of character types: how
does Proverbs 1–9 intend to portray its characters? Are they idealized
caricatures or realistic personalities? The father begins at 1.10 with a
call to attention, ‘my son’, and an introduction to the passage’s primary
character type: ‘if sinners (‫ )חטאים‬entice you, do not consent’. He poses a
hypothetical speech of temptation towards the son, where the gang, with
flagrant talk, invites the boy to kill the innocent (1.11) and partake of the
spoils (1.13-14). Some claim the account resembles realistic scenarios
from ancient Palestine, where such violence likely occurred due to regular
daytime and night-time foot travel.34 But while group violence and theft
was possible, and perhaps common, the plausibility or frequency of such
occurrences should not determine the (non)fictional nature of the passage.
The language of 1.10-19 itself suggests that the words of the criminals
evoke a fictitious and radical tone, as the gang likens itself to death (1.13)
and declares its own act as ‘without cause’. Furthermore, the following
speech in Prov. 1.20-33 appears fictitious and extreme, where personified
wisdom calls out in the city centre and appeals to her audience with
dramatic language. Calamity, terror, distress, anguish, whirlwind, and
storms threaten those who reject Lady Wisdom, whose personified nature
itself suggests that the characters of Proverbs 1 represent something
other than strictly realistic figures. The gang, if it is a realistic portrayal,
which may in fact be the case, certainly reflects the worst of the worst
of such reality. Of Prov. 1.10-19, Johnny Miles has written that ‘the
father exercises complete control over the speech and description of the
criminals as he infuses an element of reality into a hypothetical scenario,

34. Van Leeuwen, ‘Proverbs’, 38; Whybray, Proverbs, 42; Philip J. King and
Lawrence E. Stager, Life in Biblical Israel (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox
Press, 2001), 186.
58 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

which smacks of more than just youthful temptation’.35 Thus, without

denying the reality of such violence, the words in 1.11-14 suggest a
fictitious and exaggerated account that the author attributes to ‘sinners’.
This example at the outset of Proverbs places a character term (‫)חטאים‬
in the context of an extreme and exaggerated self-description, portraying
the ‘sinners’ as a wildly violent and fiercely anti-social character type.
Proverbs 2 corroborates this method of ethically identifying literary
characters by presenting two basic types of people and addressing the
question of character identities. On the one hand, in 2.7-8, the author
combines the ‘upright’ (‫)יׁשרים‬, those ‘who walk in integrity’ (‫)הלכי תם‬,
and God’s ‘saints’ (‫)חסיד‬: ‘he stores up sound wisdom for the upright;
he is a shield for those who walk in integrity, guarding paths of justice
and watching over the way of his saints’.36 On the other hand, the author
presents the ‘men who speak perversities’ (2.12b), with a series of
descriptive actions, such as forsaking right paths, rejoicing in evil, and
living deviously (2.13-15), and then presents the forbidden woman, who
forsakes her companion and forgets God’s covenant (2.16-19).37 Amidst
grouping these people and their behavioural descriptions, the author
explicitly labels the characters with ethical terms, in the first place,
summarizing upright living as ‫כל מעגל טוב‬, ‘every good pathway’ (2.9b),
and, second, repeating the term ‫‘( רע‬evil’) three times in the passage
about perverse men (2.12a, 14). The chapter’s conclusion (2.20a) echoes
an ethical term from 2.9 (‫)טוב‬, as the son shall walk in the way of good
men (‫)טובים‬, cementing the author’s deliberate effort to ethically evaluate
the characters of Proverbs 2.
The final verses of Proverbs 2, like the bulk of the chapter, draw attention
not to behaviours as such but to the ethical evaluation of behaviours and
their association with character types. So 2.21-22 notes the blessed fate
of the ‘upright’ and ‘those with integrity’ in contrast to the ‘wicked’ and
‘treacherous’ who are removed from blessing. For Christine Yoder, the
author is naming ‘this wisdom’ and ‘that wickedness’, and treating ‘the
wicked’ in chapter 2 as ‘little more than stock figures’, who recall the

35. Johnny E. Miles, Wise King – Royal Fool: Semiotics, Satire and Proverbs
1–9, JSOTSup 399 (London: T&T Clark, 2004), 49. Also Plöger, Sprüche, 15–17, 20;
Waltke, Proverbs 1–15, 191; Fox, Proverbs 1–9, 86, 93.
36. The plural Qere (LXX; Syr) is preferable to the MT’s singular. For the
singular, only the second person suffix is used (Deut. 33.8; Ps. 16.10), and 1 Sam. 2.9
has similar Qere/Ketiv alternatives in a clearly plural context.
37. The plural and singular terms (2.15-16) plus the masculine and feminine
combination constitute a merism, representing the entirety of the evil population
(Yoder, Proverbs, 30).
 2. Character Types 59

comprehensive corruption of ‘sinners’ from chapter 1.38 Therefore, in

Proverbs 2, the author intends primarily not to detail ethical or unethical
behaviour but to evaluate the ethical identity of character types, general-
izing between two polar groups of ‘good’ and ‘evil’ people. The function
of a similar passage (4.10-19) has been described with a didactic charac-
terization that I argue applies to Proverbs 2: ‘The lecture provides no
specific guidance on the right and wrong way. Rather, it serves to prepare
the son to receive the specific teachings about right and wrong behaviour,
extensively given in the collections that follow Collection I.’39 At least
Proverbs 1 and 2, then, aid the interpretation of 10.1–22.16 by familiar-
izing the interpreter with character types and portraying or describing
them in terms of ethical identities.40
The opening verses of Proverbs (1.1-7) raise doubts about this
conclusion. Surely, goes the objection, the ‘wise’ and ‘foolish’ persons
mentioned in 1.5 and 1.7 precede the didactic induction of 1.10–2.22
and presuppose from the outset that the interpreter understands how such
characters function: ‘let the wise hear and increase in learning’ (1.5a). As
I have argued, the ‘wise’ in 1.5 represents an ideal reader, supported by
the fact that 1.2-6 characterizes his basic functions without qualification:
he receives instruction (1.2-3a), with practical implications (1.3b), passes
it on to others (1.4), and learns (1.5-6).41 On the back of this characteri-
zation, Prov. 1.7 portrays the ‘fool’ in his fundamental posture – despising
wisdom and instruction – implying a total rejection of wisdom and a
complete contrast with the wise person. Proverbs 1.2-7, then, does not so
much assume the identity of its characters like 10.1–22.16 does but rather
didactically develops them, depicting the wise person and the fool in
what Proverbs 1–9 shows to be their typical habits. Therefore, instead of
countering the pattern of character presentation in 1.10–2.22, Prov. 1.2-7
immediately inducts the interpreter into Proverbs’ scheme of character
types, who await further formation throughout Proverbs 1–9.
Returning to the interpretive questions of this chapter, I move now
to the first subquestion, which asks how Proverbs 1–9 informs the
identities of character types, specifically with regard to wealth. The topic
of wealth features in 1.10-19, wherein, first, the ‘sinners’ appear to have
access to resources similar to the positive characters in Proverbs, such as
money (1.13, 19a), a social circle (1.14), and the intelligence assumed to

38. Yoder, Proverbs, 35. Also McKane, Proverbs, 282, 288.

39. Waltke, Proverbs 1–15, 285.
40. I would argue Proverbs 5 functions in a similar way by serving to characterize
the ‘wicked’ (5.22-23).
41. Keefer, ‘A Shift’, passim.
60 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

successfully accomplish their plot. They do not seem inherently restricted

from gaining wealth. Second, the author not only describes what may
appear to be unethical behaviours; he explicitly brands the behaviours
themselves as unethical. He calls the group ‘sinners’, claims their feet
run to ‘evil’ (1.16a), and labels their gains as ‘unjust’ (1.19a), similar to
the predications from Proverbs 2 about the perverse man and forbidden
woman. So, with more than a descriptive list of behaviours, the unethical
nature of the group is emphasized. For the second subquestion, the nature
of behaviour in pragmatic realms, 1.10-19 clearly portrays the gang’s
behaviour as an extreme case and intends to disapprove of such action.
Proverbs 6 coheres with and supplements the caricatures from 1.10-19.
It sets a pragmatic context of economic agreements (6.1-5) and labour
(6.6-11), and offers the most detailed description of behaviours in
Collection I (6.12-19), characterizing the ‘sluggard’ (‫ )עצל‬and ‘worthless
person’ (‫)אדם בליעל‬. These characters also appear as extreme examples. In
Prov. 6.6-11, the appeal to an ant, use of rhetorical questions, and under-
stated jab at the sluggard render the passage comical and exaggerated,
much like the satirical lines of Prov. 19.24 and 22.13. But more impor-
tantly, the following verses (6.12-19) add a holistic portrait, mentioning
the mouth, eyes, feet, and fingers in order to complete the character’s
evil. Proverbs 6.12-14a describes the ‘worthless man’ going about ‘with a
crooked mouth, winking his eyes, shuffling his feet, pointing his fingers,
perversity in his heart, devising evil’. Likewise, 6.17-19 mentions a globe
of body parts and evil actions, such as ‘haughty eyes, a lying tongue and
hands which spill innocent blood’ (6.17). What appears in 6.12-19, then,
reflects much of what appears in chapters 1–2, which deal with gener-
alized personalities rather than with specific persons.42 As a whole, Prov.
6.1-19 portrays actions in extreme and holistic form and attributes them to
character types, cohering with other portions of Proverbs 1–9 and contrib-
uting most to this question of behaviour in pragmatic contexts.
The final overarching question for this section addresses the relation
of the characters: are they distinct, coreferential, or identical? Proverbs
1.10-19 begins with a particular group lexeme – ‘if sinners (‫)חטאים‬
entice you’ – yet concludes by universalizing these sinful characters as

42. Richard Clifford, Proverbs: A Commentary (Louisville, KY: Westminster

John Knox Press, 1999), 73. Proverbs 4.14-19 arguably aligns with the views of
Proverbs 1–2 in its distinction between the ‘wicked’ and ‘righteous’, as the former
move along the path of ‘evil’ (v. 14), do wrong (v. 16a), make others stumble (v. 16b),
and drink ‘violence’ (v. 17). See Clifford, Proverbs, 73, 76; Waltke, Proverbs 1–15,
336, 341–2; Fox, Proverbs 1–9, 219.
 2. Character Types 61

a generalized type of person. Starting at 1.10, the father focuses on the

‘sinners’ as a particular example of temptation and evil, and in 1.18 refers
to them when he says: ‘But they, for their own blood they ambush, they
lurk for their own lives’. While verse 18 refers to the sinners/gang (i.e.
‘they’), verse 19 expands the interpreter’s purview by universalizing the
gang: ‘Such are the ways of everyone greedy for gain, it takes the life of
its possessors’. Proverbs 1.10-19 substantiates a single type of person for
eight verses and then concludes by expanding the particular label to a
generalized identity. ‘They’, the greedy, sinner gang, will tempt and thieve
and murder, and this is the way of life for ‘everyone greedy for gain’.
Such a trend recurs in 2.20-22 and 3.31-35, passages that also inform this
final interpretive question.
Again, the final question concerns whether the characters stand in
distinct, coreferential, or identical relation. Admittedly, Proverbs 1–9 does
retain some distinction between its various types of ‘negative’ characters.
The ‘fool’, for example, appears as one who rejects the fundamental
tenets of wisdom, constituting the unteachable caricature (1.7, 22), while
the ‘simpleton’, though equally condemned (1.32), shows a unique level
of gullibility (7.7; cf. 7.8-23). Despite these distinctions, Proverbs 1–9
consistently portrays characters as coreferential, through generalized
conclusions that slot the character terms into two basic categories: good
or evil. Like 1.19, which explodes the gang into ‘everyone greedy for
unjust gain’, Prov. 1.33 establishes the identity of ‘whoever listens’ to
Lady Wisdom.43 The pattern of summative conclusion recurs in 2.20-22
and 3.31-35, as, on the tail of a lengthy set of commands and warnings
(3.21-30), Prov. 3.31-32 transitions by naming the ‘man of violence’
(‫ )איׁש חמס‬and ‘devious one’ (‫ )נלוז‬into a summarized set of contrasts that
places many of the characters in parallel throughout 3.31-35: ‫כסילים‬/‫;חכמים‬
‫עניים‬/‫צדיקים ;לצים‬/‫יׁשרים ;רׁשע‬/‫נלוז‬.44 Based on Proverbs 1, it has been
argued that characters are distilled into either good or bad persons within a
context of clarification, suggesting that the author intends to instil general
categories associated with character terms.45 I would add that characters,
sometimes distinct, appear in direct parallel to each other, such as the
simpleton, the scoffer, and the fool (1.22; also 4.14; 8.5; 9.7-9), solidi-
fying their common identity.

43. Fox, Proverbs 1–9, 102; Waltke, Proverbs 1–15, 203.

44. There is no apparent reason for the singular of ‫רׁשע‬, although ‫ נלוז‬follows on
from the singular ‘man of violence’.
45. Aletti, ‘Seduction’, 132, see also 130–3.
62 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

2.1.2.2. Characters and the ‘Way’ Metaphor

One final feature of Proverbs consolidates the character types and
places them into two distinct groups; that feature is the ‘way’ metaphor.
In Proverbs 1–9, four lexemes refer to ‘ways’, variously translated as
‘pathways’ or ‘paths’ (‫)דרך ;מעגל ;נתיבה ;ארח‬, and each occur in parallel
to each other, evincing no difference in meaning (Prov. 1.15; 2.13, 15;
4.11; 8.20). The way ranges from references to behaviour as a more
abstract concept (5.21; 6.6), to more figurative (2.18; 5.5-6) as well as
less-figurative uses (7.8, 19; cf. Judg. 5.6). Collectively, these terms occur
54 times in Collection I, 40 times in Collection II, and 14 times elsewhere
in Proverbs, with the concentration of terms for ‘way’ in Proverbs 1–9
signalling its significance therein.46
In addition to lexical concentration, an outline of the ‘way’ language
in Proverbs 1–9 demonstrates its prominence and metaphorical contours.
Proverbs 1 introduces a criminal scenario (1.10-14) and then admonishes
the son: ‘do not go in the way with them, withhold your foot from their
path’ (1.15). This ‘way/path’ is described by actions of evil and bloodshed,
resulting in a loss of life (1.16-19). In Prov. 1.20-33, Wisdom addresses
‘ways’ explicitly only in her conclusion, where those who reject her will
‘eat from the fruit of their way’ (1.31) and so die (1.32). Way language
explodes in Proverbs 2 and acquires a host of qualities: God protects the
‘ways of justice’ and the ‘way of his godly’ (2.8) who then understand
‘every good way’ (2.9), which contrasts with the way of evil, darkness and
crookedness (2.12-15). Concluding statements portray the polarity of these
ways and their results: one leads to death, the other leads to life (2.18-20).
In James Loader’s comments on Prov. 2.20, he begins to direct inter-
pretation towards 10.1–22.16. He writes,

[Prov. 2.20] uses the metaphor of the way to categorise all the positive mani-
festations of understanding wisdom in the most generic manner possible.
They all amount to practice “the good” and “the just.” This general way
of using the metaphor of the way (or of walking) to subsume concrete acts
under the headings of being “righteous” or “wicked” is also found in the
aphorisms (cf. 10.9).47

Such is the pattern that emerges throughout chapters 1–9. As Proverbs

1–2 clarifies, ‘ways’ functions as a metaphor that represents the collective

46. Also notable is the relative absence of female figures for wisdom and folly
in Prov. 10.1–22.16 (cf. 14.1; 22.14) but the abundance of its way language (40
occurrences), which suggests that the way is a more integral metaphor for Collections
I and II.
47. Loader, Proverbs 1–9, 133. See also Waltke, Proverbs 1–15, 285
 2. Character Types 63

behaviours of persons. And yet despite plural ‘ways’, Proverbs suggests

only two. One is associated with the Lord and wisdom, trodden by good
characters and leading to life, the other associates with folly and its
character types, ending in death. Further chapters cement this conclusion
but also elaborate on the characteristics of both ways. For example, the
way of life is a way of peace (3.6, 17, 23; cf. 3.31). In Prov. 4.10-19 one
way is smooth and illuminated while the other dark and obstructed (see
also 4.26-27; 5.5-6), and the way of wisdom, especially, requires guidance
(4.11). Proverbs 1–5 provides a general view of ‘ways’ that incorporates a
few key characteristics, not least that the characters within those chapters
trod one of those two paths.48
In short, the way constitutes the metaphorical substructure of Proverbs
1–9. And what are its main characteristics? According to Proverbs, all
individual ways, which stand for behaviours embodied in characters, fall
onto either the way of wisdom or folly and result in either life or death.
For in addition to consolidating the two groups of characters in Proverbs,
the ways are, in turn, even defined by them – ‘the path of the righteous’
and ‘way of the wicked’ (4.18-19) – resolving most doubts about the
bipolar classification of these people. These passages exhibit the basic
antithesis of Proverbs 1–9 – positive and negative ways of life embodied
in character types – and support the claim that 1–9 clarifies and instils
characters as general portrayals of coreferential ideals.49

2.1.2.3. Summary
An investigation has been made, so far, into proposals about what
the character types in Proverbs are and how they relate to each other.
Proverbs 10.1-5 is a ground thorny with interpretive challenges, producing
questions that were fielded by Proverbs 1–9, which, I argued, says quite
a bit about character types. Proverbs 1 sets the trajectory for the identity
and function of character terms in chapters 1–9, contributing most with
its portrayal of the ‘sinners’ as a literary caricature. As seen also in
Proverbs 2, the primary concern of these passages is not to detail ethical
or unethical behaviour but to evaluate the ethical identity of character
types, generalizing between two polar groups of ‘good’ and ‘evil’ people.

48. Proverbs 7–9 introduces additional metaphors that are ultimately subsumed
by pathway imagery. As Weeks (Instruction, 79) notes of Proverbs 1 and 7–9, ‘all the
settings involve roads, implicitly or explicitly, and in a work that displays a strong
interest in the figurative use of ways and roads, it seems unlikely to be a coincidence
that the speeches of significant characters are associated with them in this way’.
49. Fox, Proverbs 1–9, 168; Van Leeuwen, ‘Proverbs’, 55; Fuhs (Sprichtwörter,
34) describes a ‘Riß’ or ‘Kluft’ between populations.
64 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

These chapters also contribute to the question of behaviour in pragmatic

contexts, portraying actions in extreme and holistic form and attrib-
uting them to character types, with the final intention to disapprove of
them.50 Proverbs 1–9 reveals some distinction between character terms,
but overall it aligns them through antitheses, treating the types as coref-
erential caricatures for either a good or bad character. The immediate
introduction and concentration of character types in Proverbs 1, and their
consistent appearance in 2–9 within extended literary contexts, suggests
that Proverbs 1–9 may didactically prepare its interpreter for the character
terms of 10.1–22.16.

2.1.3. Character Types Outside of the Book of Proverbs

We should progress no further with character types in Proverbs without
exploring their use in other texts of the OT and ancient Near East.
Character types do not appear in all ancient Egyptian instruction texts,
but they do appear in Ptahhotep and Ankhsheshonq, and find fullest
expression in Papyrus Insinger.51 Insinger presents its wise and foolish
persons as correlative to its pious and impious men. For example, ‘The
evil man is evilly punished because of (his) deceit. Do not trust a fool
because he brings you (something) with a blessing’ (12.3-4).52 The
evil man and the fool seem united in their character here, a trend not
dissimilar from the coreferentiality in Proverbs. Insinger also describes
the behaviour of these characters, as the evil man in the previous passage
is said to practice deceit, and yet the character’s moral character itself is
ultimately determined not by discrete behaviours but by the totality of
their traits. Hence Insinger labels these figures with ‘pious’ or ‘fool’ or

50. Proverbs 6 perhaps contributes most to this point.

51. The Instruction of Ptahhotep, from P.Prisse, refers primarily to realistic
figures (e.g. a disputant [68] or master [250]) and predicate descriptions (e.g. he who
hears [548]; a man who leads [265]). It mentions the ‘wise’ and ‘ignorant’ (55), the
‘silent man’ (167), the ‘hot-bellied’ (352), and the ‘hot-heart’ (378), with concluding
mentions of the wise person (523-524, 526), followed by a lengthy characterization of
that person being a good listener (531-572) and a juxtaposition with the fool (573-574)
who is also then described (575-587). Cf. the ‘great man’ (140-144, 388, 515), and
notice that Ptahhotep forbids greed without a depiction or mention of the greedy man
(298-324). The Instruction of Ankhsheshonq also mentions non-caricatured people
(e.g. the thief [13.3]; merchant [16.5]) but seems to assume an understanding of its
‘wise’ and ‘foolish’ persons (e.g. 5.10; 6.3, 13-14; 13.9; 14.8; 26.9). As Ankhsheshonq
is a much later text than Ptahhotep, understandings of these characters may have
developed within Egypt, and the influence of a scribal context would inform how
they were interpreted.
52. AEL 3:194.
 2. Character Types 65

‘evil man’.53 Mariam Lichtheim has also noted the exemplary nature of
such people in this text: ‘morality and piety have been completely fused
and they are exemplified in the character of the “wise man”’.54 Insinger
not only supports the coreferentiality of terms in Proverbs, it also reflects
the holistic concern for behaviours, their service in emphasizing character,
and the exemplar conception of character types. Operating outside of
Egyptology while assessing its primary texts, biblical interpreters have
produced a consensus that the characters function as ideals.55
Characterizing Egyptian characters as ideals, though, is not straight-
forward. On the one hand, they do seem to portray idealizations, as seen
in a number of examples. Insinger associates the wise man with perfec-
tion: ‘When a wise man is tested few discover his perfection’ (12.23).
Ptahhotep’s introduction notes exemplar expectations for his son: ‘May he
become a model for the children of the great’ (39). And in The Instructions
Addressed to Merikare, the wise king receives idealistic accolades: ‘As
one wise did he come from the womb, From a million men god singled
him out’ (115-116).56 Against this idealization, Lichtheim objects that
Egyptians ‘had no idea what an “Ideal” was’, a statement that I find agree-
able if it warns against equating an ideal with moral perfection.57 For the
wise man in Insinger may be harmed because of loving a woman (7.11)
or become foolish and inconsiderate in the midst of retaliation (34.12-13),
possibilities that make this wise man less than perfect.58 The wise person
of Proverbs, however, is flawless. He does no wrong and succumbs to no
foolishness, supporting the idealized nature of characters in Proverbs and
accentuating an important distinction within ancient Near Eastern mate-
rial. While certain Egyptian texts may not describe ideal characters, they
do, nevertheless, portray exemplars.

53. Miriam Lichtheim, ‘Observations on Papyrus Insinger’, in Studien Zu

altägyp­tischen Lebenslehren, ed. Erik Hornung and Othmar Keel (Freiburg: Univer-
sitätsverlag, 1979), 291, see also 290–3.
54. AEL 3:185.
55. Lyu, Righteousness, 99–102, 34–5; Hausmann, Studien, 346; Shupak, Where
Can Wisdom Be Found?, 221, 238–9, 259–61; AEL 2:147; Leo G. Perdue, Proverbs,
Interpretation (Louisville, KY: John Knox Press, 2000), 199.
56. Quotations are taken from AEL; see also, Insinger 2.10; 3.2-8; 4.9; 12.4, 23;
14.5; 34.11-12; 35.11-12.
57. Miriam Lichtheim, Moral Values in Ancient Egypt, OBO 155 (Göttingen:
Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1997), 88, see also 83. Cf. AEL 2:146 where she distin-
guishes between the ideal man and a perfect man.
58. Miriam Lichtheim, Late Egyptian Wisdom Literature in the International
Context: A Study of Demotic Instructions, OBO 52 (Göttingen: Vandenhoeck &
Ruprecht, 1983), 119, see also 116–27.
66 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

Literary character types and the portrayal of characters in firm antithesis

(i.e. ‘binary anthropology’) also appear in the book of Psalms, Ecclesiastes,
and Job. Commenting on Psalm 1, Derek Kidner says that ‘The tone and
themes of the psalm bring to mind the Wisdom writings, especially
Proverbs, with their interest in the company a man keeps, in the two ways
set before him (cf. e.g. Prov. 2.12ff., 20ff.), and in moral types, notably the
scoffers’.59 So the first verse of the Psalm reads, ‘Blessed is the man who
walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the seat of scoffers’. Psalms 15 and 24 similarly describe
the virtuous worshipper in idealistic terms: ‘Lord, who shall sojourn in
your tent; who shall dwell on your holy hill? He who walks blamelessly
and does right and speaks truth in his heart’ (Ps. 15.1-2). Furthermore,
Psalms 26 and 37 refer to the wicked and righteous in ways reminiscent
of Proverbs: ‘Do not be angry over the one who prospers in his way, over
the man who makes (evil) devices…. For evildoers shall be cut off; but
those who wait for the Lord, they shall inherit the land’ (Ps. 37.7b-c, 9).
The lexeme for ‘evildoer’ (‫ )מרע‬here refers to an ethical possibility that
is then embodied by those who act accordingly, so that in the Psalms, this
person stands for ‘every member of the congregation who might deviate
from the right path’.60 The ‘wicked’ and ‘sinner’, the one who ‘walks
blamelessly’, and the ‘evildoer’, understood within the contexts of these
psalms, represent character types of extreme and binary people.61
In short, certain Egyptian texts seem to portray character terms as exem-
plars through holistic descriptions of behaviour that champion character,

59. Derek Kidner, Psalms 1–72: An Introduction and Commentary on Books I and
II of the Psalms, TOTC (London: Inter-Varsity Press, 1973), 63 (emphasis my own).
See also Erhard Gerstenberger, Psalms: Part I: With an Introduction to Cultic Poetry
(Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1988), 42.
60. Gerstenberger, Psalms: Part I, 209. In Ps. 50.16a, Theodore Seidl suggests
multiple possible concrete referents for the ‘wicked’ (‘Who Stands Behind the RSHʻ
in Psalm 50.16A? The Ethical Testimony of Psalm 50.16-22’, in Psalmody and Poetry
in Old Testament Ethics, ed. Dirk J. Human [New York: T&T Clark, 2012], 76–92).
61. For a thorough argument on the literary and didactic nature of character types
in Psalms 15, 24, 34, and 37, see Daniel C. Owens, Portraits of the Righteous in the
Psalms: An Exploration of the Ethics of Book 1 (Eugene, OR: Pickwick, 2013). Ben
Sira (21.12-26; 22.7-15) renders a coherent point of view on the wise and foolish
person, and the book of Job contains examples of exemplar types. Kenneth Hoglund,
‘The Fool and the Wise in Dialogue: Proverbs 26.4-5’, in Learning from the Sages:
Selected Studies on the Book of Proverbs, ed. Roy Zuck (Grand Rapids: Baker
Books, 1995), 339–52, esp. 348–50. Brown (Wisdom’s Wonder, 15) says, ‘much of
the literature conveys or models the contours of normative character through literary
characterization’. See, e.g., Job 3.17; 9.22; 17.9.
 2. Character Types 67

while the book of Psalms and other texts of the OT and Apocrypha at
times reflect a binary relationship between character concepts, and employ
these terms on a literary level. If such interpretations are plausible, these
uses of character types outside of the book of Proverbs may support many
of the conclusions derived from Proverbs 1–9. However, on the back of
this support comes an objection. For the same evidence may suggest that
interpreters of Psalms and Insinger understood character terms without an
interpretive aid, meaning that ancient interpreters might not have found
Proverbs 1–9 particularly helpful or necessary for understanding the
characters in 10.1–22.16. But there are a few reasons to think otherwise.
First, the Egyptian texts and the Psalms that employ character terms use
them in ways most similar to Proverbs 1–9, not 10.1–22.16, placing them
within the context of prolonged poetic descriptions. Second, Insinger –
the Egyptian text that makes most use of character terms, at times in ways
similar to Prov. 10.1–22.16 – expounds many of its terms early on. For
example, ‘Do not let yourself be called ‘the bad man’ because of merci-
less evildoing’ (3.2; so 3.3-8). This and six parallel statements predicate
the nature of certain characters and place them within the context of an
explicit command, which would clarify the character terms that recur later
in the text on a literary and rhetorical level.62 Such descriptions suggest
that these character types may not have been automatically understood.
Finally, Prov. 10.1–22.16, and Proverbs as a whole, stands apart in its
predominance of character terms, which, when compared with Egyptian
texts, other biblical wisdom texts and Psalms, suggests that Collection
II warrants more substantial introductory material. These interpretive
resources leave certain issues unresolved within 10.1–22.16 and the
nature of character types open to question, creating the possibility that
Proverbs 1–9 functions didactically in some distinctive way.

2.1.4. The Function of Proverbs 1–9 for Proverbs 10.1-5

I have just posited that in view of pertinent texts other than Proverbs 1–9
information remains latent within 10.1–22.16, interpretive challenges
remain unresolved, and the nature of character types open to question.
It remains to be seen how 1–9 might address these issues, and in this
section I argue that the conclusions developed from Proverbs 1–9 fashion
a framework that provides insights into some of the challenges of 10.2 and
10.4. Having culled resources from the OT and elsewhere in the ancient
Near East, it should be observed that before interrogating Proverbs 1–9,

62. Recall that, unlike for Proverbs, we do not possess the initial portions of the
text for Insinger or Ptahhotep.
68 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

the local literary context of the proverbs themselves remains the most
viable option among interpretive resources.
With its remark about ‘treasures of wickedness’, Prov. 10.2 raises at
least two interpretive challenges: specifically, should the interpreter be
surprised by the wicked gaining wealth, and more broadly, what should
we, as interpreters, make of the assumptions about these characters’ ethical
identities? ‘Treasures of wickedness do not profit, but righteousness
delivers from death’, says the proverb. Longman and Waltke assert that
10.2 surprises the reader, because it indicates that the wicked can gain
wealth or presupposes the fact.63 If this interpretation is to be evaluated,
then the nature of this ‘wicked’ person must first be established based
on its local context and then considered in view of 1–9. The first line of
10.2 comments upon ‘treasures of wickedness’ or ‘treasures gained by
wickedness’ (ESV), and while 10.2 uses ‫ ֶר ַׁשע‬as ‘wickedness’, Prov. 10.3
clarifies that this quality implicates full-fledged character types. For the
Lord ‘thrusts away’ the desire of ‘the wicked ones’ (‫)ר ָׁש ִעים‬,
ְ a plausible
use of character lexemes in view of the wise son (‫ )בן חכם‬and the foolish
son (‫ )בן כסיל‬mentioned in 10.1. The lexical link of ‫ רׁשע‬in 10.2 and 10.3
and the overall context of clearer characters in 10.1-5 suggest that Prov.
10.2 involves character types, though such connections do not inform the
primary interpretive concerns of this saying.
With a key term for wickedness and a surrounding context of character
types, Prov. 10.2 recalls many of the elements in 1.10-19, which, like
much of Proverbs 1–9, aims to evaluate the ethical identity of its character
types, sorting them into either the good or bad category. Proverbs 1.10-19
explicitly labels its gang as a group of ‘sinners’ and then generalizes
them into anyone greedy for gain, a pattern repeated in Proverbs 2 and 3.
Furthermore, Proverbs 1 associates one type, the ‘sinners’, with money
and evil, a group that seems quite capable of obtaining plunder, albeit in
an unrighteous manner. When viewed from the perspective of 1–9, Prov.
10.2 does not surprise the interpreter. Rather, the mention of treasures and
profit in 10.2, plus the term ‫רׁשע‬, calls to mind character types, specifically
the scenario from Proverbs 1.
Proverbs 10.2 lacks the extended literary context that could inform
the interpreter about what it mentions so briefly, namely, wickedness,
treasures, and the identity of those involved. Proverbs 1–9 clarifies the
ethical identities that substantiate these associated concepts and generates
expectations, as it elaborates on wickedness, as well as the ethical and
literary identities of character types. Holding 1–9 in mind as an interpretive

63. See respectively, Longman, Proverbs, 230; Waltke, Proverbs 1–15, 453.
 2. Character Types 69

framework, the interpreter, in the first place, encounters 10.1–22.16 not

with surprise but with informed expectations. Wickedness can certainly
supply treasures, an assumption that 10.2 relies upon to make its point that
such treasures ‘do not profit’. In the second place, although they have been
confirmed as possible, what are ‘treasures of wickedness’? According to
10.1–22.16 such treasures may be had by one with a lying tongue (21.6)
who possibly does not fear the Lord (15.16). Other relevant passages
(e.g. 15.6) rely upon an understanding of character terms, endorsing the
interpretive challenge of 10.2 and the strength of Proverbs 1–9 as an inter-
pretive resource. The literary brevity of 10.2 begs for substantiation, and
Prov. 1.10-19 provides such substance. The ‘sinners’ accumulate wealth
but they do so through evil means and deceptive tactics, ways possibly
attractive to the Proverbial ‘son’ yet ultimately destined to death. This
result suits the second line of 10.2, where ‘righteousness delivers from
death’, as the non-wicked type avoids the fate of greedy, wicked people.
With the aid of Proverbs 1–9, the inner design of 10.2 becomes that much
clearer: ‘Treasures of wickedness do not profit, but righteousness delivers
from death’.
In the case of 10.2, parallels between Collection I and II centre upon
the ethical terms for wickedness and righteousness. While the character
lexemes in 10.2 may at first seem like abstract concepts (‘wickedness’ and
‘righteousness’), the surrounding context (10.1-5) evokes the character
types delineated in Proverbs 1–9, and it is 1–9 that provides a coherent
interpretive framework for 10.1-5, presenting characters as types of
people defined by good or bad ethical identities. Proverbs 10.2 therefore
most plausibly surprises the interpreter who is unfamiliar with Proverbs
1–9, since the proverb’s character types are more clearly understood in
view of the character types outlined therein.
The sayings of Prov. 10.1-5 largely assume the nature of their character
concepts, and 10.4, in particular, broaches a debate about whether
10.1–22.16 assumes character concepts, like ‘righteous’, and then defines
their behaviours, or assumes behaviour and then substantiates the concepts.
Proverbs 10.4 reads, ‘a poor man makes a lax palm’ or ‘a lax palm makes
a poor man’, depending on how the apposition is interpreted. Whybray
underscores the syntactical abnormality, noting that the Hebrew word
order can mean either that poverty leads to idleness or that idleness leads
to poverty.64 Considering questions about the relationship of characters

64. Whybray, Proverbs, 158; ‫ראשׁ עשׂה כף־רמיה‬. These options are also supported
by the ancient versions. Cf. the Vuglate’s egestatem operata est manus remissa and
Septuagint’s πενία ἄνδρα ταπεινοῖ, χεῖρες δὲ ἀνδρείων πλουτίζουσιν.
70 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

and their behaviour, I argued that 1.10-19 does detail the behaviours of
its characters but seems more concerned with portraying holistic and
extreme wickedness in order to disapprove of the characters who embody
it. Proverbs 1.19 generalizes the ‘sinners’ as ‘everyone greedy for gain’,
a pattern repeated throughout Collection I, while other passages employ
detailed behaviours in order to portray a character concept. Consequently,
Proverbs 1–9 encourages the interpreter to think in character terms more
than in behavioural terms, as if character gives rise to behaviour or perhaps
holds ethical authority over human action. As shown in 10.2, the character
terms are associated with particular behaviours, such as gaining wealth, but
I suggest that it is the character concepts themselves that determine such
interpretive conclusions. In short, character concepts outweigh behaviour.
If a choice were to be made, then, Proverbs can be said to function more
as a portrait of characters – who then direct the interpreter to behavioural
traits and preferences – than a guidebook for how to behave. As we shall
see in the following section of this chapter, those characters and behaviours
remain integrated with the consequences that they produce; that, though, is
a question of rhetoric and the reader’s motivation rather than the priority
that Proverbs assigns to the character and actions of a moral agent.
When using Proverbs 1–9 as a framework, the interpreter knows that
behaviour and consequences stem from character rather than vice versa,
so that when confronted with syntactical options in 10.4, he or she may
conclude that the idle person begets poverty, rather than poverty beget-
ting idleness. This syntactical ambiguity, however, was not the only, and
perhaps not even the most significant, issue within the proverb. In view of
the diligent hand that makes one rich in colon B, the lax palm of 10.4a may
make a man poor (so ‘a lax palm makes a poor man’). But the lax palm, in
the context of labour, resembles the sluggard of Proverbs – the antithesis
of the diligent person – so that the ‘slack hand’ in 10.4a represents a type
of character, plausibly the ‘sluggard’, who then falls into poverty.65 The
possibility that the ‘sluggard’ (‫ )עצל‬stands behind 10.4a becomes a near
certainty when read in view of Prov. 6.6-11. The passage bids the ‘slug-
gard’ to go and observe an ant, who works without a leader and in the
appropriate season, offering a stark contrast to the sluggard himself who
fails to work and instead sleeps and comes to poverty. ‘A little sleep, a little
slumber, a little folding the hands to rest, and your poverty will come like a
robber and your need like an armed man’ (6.10-11). This advice, of course,

65. The character focus is affirmed by the lexical overlap of ‫ יד‬with the human
person (Toy, Proverbs, 200), though this sense usually occurs with a preposition (e.g.
Gen. 16.9; 30.35).
 2. Character Types 71

also appears in 24.30-34, wherein the speaker observes a sluggard’s vine-

yard, his negligence and consequent poverty. But unlike this sluggard, the
lazy person of 6.6-11 is paired with a positive character, the ant, who works
hard and receives equal attention in the passage. A negative character type
is placed within a context that develops his behaviours in contrast to a pref-
erable character type, showing particularly that laziness leads to poverty
and that diligence should be the norm. The informative import for 10.4 is
notable, which also contains a negative and positive portrayal of labour.
The proverb hints at what 6.6-11 details, suggesting that Proverbs 1–9 not
only coheres with but adds to the meaning of Prov. 10.4. Whybray exposed
the interpretive issue by noting the syntactical ambiguity in 10.4a, but I
have shown that the issue lies deeper than ambiguous syntax and that when
read as a didactic introduction Proverbs 1–9 sheds light on the nature of
character and behaviour in the proverb.66 It instils a framework of character
types to associate with 10.1–22.16 and consequently deepens interpretive
engagement with it.
The role of 1–9, however, requires more nuance when considering
10.1–22.16 as a whole. Proverbs 10.1-5 sometimes assumes character
concepts (e.g. 10.4-5) and sometimes assumes behaviour (10.1-3). As a
coherent passage, it in some ways substantiates these assumptions on its
own, through the interrelationship of verses as Heim’s summary of 10.1-5
showed. However, we do not need to look far into Collection II to find
similar assumptions, which appear in contexts much more difficult to
resolve. In some cases, behaviour may presuppose wicked character (e.g.
15.25; 22.28), but many behaviours arise in ethically neutral language and
consequently benefit from character types in their interpretation: ‘work
of the righteous’ (10.16); ‘lips of the righteous’ (10.21); ‘desire of the
righteous’ (10.24). What does it mean for a work or desire to be ‘of the
righteous’? The trend continues throughout 10.1–22.16 and demonstrates
how much an understanding of character types and their literary nature
would aid in its interpretation. By evaluating holistic character concepts
as good or bad, Proverbs 1–9 can be seen to create an interpretive nexus
with 10.1–22.16. Proverbs 1–9 does not prompt the interpreter to see an
either/or distinction between assumed concepts and assumed behaviours.
Instead, it lays a foundation of character types for both, just as 10.1–22.16
sits steadily atop it.

66. In line with my comment above about 10.4b, Whybray concludes that ‘a slack
hand causes poverty’ due to the line’s parallelism with 10.4b, where ‘the hand of the
diligent makes rich’. He accounts for the alternative word order as a use of chiasm:
object–verb–subject (colon A); subject–verb–[implied object] (colon B).
72 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

2.1.5. Conclusion
This chapter has thus far examined the personalities of Proverbs, such
as the ‘wicked’ and ‘righteous’ persons, by questioning who they are,
how they relate, and how to account for the distinctive and common
aspects of their appearance in Proverbs 1–9 and 10.1–22.16. Proverbs
1–9 emphasizes the ethical identities of many character types encountered
in 10.1–22.16. It evaluates them as good or bad and attributes base-line
behaviours, while also portraying character concepts as literary carica-
tures. Collection II assumes the literary nature of these concepts, and
Collection I clarifies that they function on a literary level as idealized
types. If we are going to speak of the characters as in some sense ‘real’,
then they should be considered as the best and worst embodiments of their
respective traits. For not every depiction seems quite as ridiculous as the
sluggard’s, who cannot even muster the will to move his handful of food
from plate to mouth, but these characters do all attest to the extremes of
their character attributes. Finally, Proverbs 1–9 not only matches Heim’s
notion of coreferentiality in 10.1-5, it deliberately portrays character
concepts as coreferential. So while the interpreter may deduce from
10.1–22.16 that such terms corefer, Proverbs 1–9 explicitly and firmly
relates the terms as coreferential and groups them as either good or
bad. The ‘man of violence’ causes harm without remorse; the ‘scornful’
continually holds contempt; and the wicked are never spared of God’s
curse. With their own qualities, each of these characters shines a distinct
light on the Proverbial bad man. In view of Prov. 10.2 and 10.4, Proverbs
1–9 clearly provides faculties that help the interpreter to make sense of
the proverbs of 10.1–22.16 on a literary level, serving a didactic function
that is supported by the simplicity, clarity, and emphasis with which 1–9
treats character concepts. Though not dictating a singular understanding
of the material in 10.1–22.16, Proverbs 1–9 does impose a framework and
categories that offer interpretive insights into certain passages.
I have shown how Proverbs 1–9 enables the interpreter to interpret
character types on a literary level, answering questions that revolve
around what these character types are. But the discovery of their identity
and literary function prompts a new question: why have the character
concepts been portrayed in the form of idealized literary types? This
relates to the rhetorical function of these caricatures, which are explored
in the next section.

2.2. The Rhetoric of Character Types

In the previous section I examined what is denoted by the character terms
and concepts of Proverbs. These ‘character types’, such as the righteous,
 2. Character Types 73

wicked, wise, and foolish, incorporate distinct traits but in the end refer
to either the good or bad personae of Proverbs. They are idealized or
exaggerated embodiments of virtue and vice, what I call ‘caricatures’,
without a necessarily negative connotation. Proverbs 1–9 establishes
their identity as idealized, coreferential concepts in both predicate and
nominal literary form, enabling the interpreter to see that characters
carry a primarily literary identity rather than a ‘real’ identity that would
represent a person or people in historical time and space, such as the
‘wicked’ enemies that pursue the psalmist (e.g. Ps. 3.8[7]). In Proverbs,
the ‘sluggard’ is far too lazy to be found on Earth, and the wise person far
smarter than most. These people seem to embody real qualities to an unreal
degree, and at the least symbolize the best and worst of their respective
traits. While addressing the question of what these characters are, I did
not answer the question of how they function for the interpreter. In other
words, why has the author portrayed these types as idealized literary
figures? What effect are they intended to have upon the interpreter? What
are they meant to do to or for those who encounter them? As we shall see,
these questions relate to the persuasive force of the character types and
therefore belong to the rhetorical context of Proverbs. Again, interpreters
have considered similar questions, especially about Prov. 10.1–22.16, and
a look at their answers will aid the direction of these enquiries as they are
pursued afresh.
Lyu observes that Prov. 10.1–22.16 praises the righteous person (11.11;
14.34) and affirms the pursuit of righteousness (15.9), concluding that

the rhetorical function of the discourse of praising the righteous person

is to instill in its readers a desire to emulate the idealized character of
the righteous person…. we can hope to induce desire by showing what is
desirable.67

I want to consider Lyu’s claim – that Proverbs shows what is desirable

in order to persuade interpreters to emulate its characters – as a theory
of the characters’ rhetorical function. The shortcoming of this theory
is that it proposes too much based on the evidence. For although the
texts that ‘praise the righteous person’ do speak of the righteous in an
approving way, such sayings, even 10.1–22.16 as a whole, do not warrant
the confident conclusion: that Proverbs intends its readers to emulate its
characters. In view of 11.11; 14.34 and 15.9, why should the interpreter
pursue righteousness? ‘By the blessing of the upright a city is exalted’
(11.11; NRSV); ‘righteousness exalts a nation’ (14.34; NRSV); the

67. Lyu, Righteousness, 62 (italics original).

74 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

Lord ‘loves the one who pursues righteousness’ (15.9; NRSV). These
texts place righteousness in the context of plausibly positive incentives,
but they do not adequately establish the function of characters that Lyu
proposes, particularly the assertion that they induce the reader’s ‘desire
to emulate the idealized character of the righteous person’. Other sayings
package their characters alongside additional, plausibly motivational
rhetorical features, such as value-laden consequences or divine approval,
and yet 10.1–22.16 still employs good and bad character terms in addition
to these other rhetorical features (also see below). Proverbs 11.11, for
example – ‘By the blessing of the upright a city is exalted’ – depends
upon an understanding of ‘the upright’ person, regardless of whether the
outcome of ‘exalting’ a city attracts the reader or not. Perhaps, as Lyu
describes, ‘the upright’ function in a particular rhetorical fashion, namely
by evoking the reader to emulate them, but 11.11 and other evidence from
10.1–22.16 do not provide the resources to argue so. As will become clear,
many other sayings do not advocate what Lyu contends about rhetoric in
a straightforward manner, though it seems that the characters may serve
some motivational role in and of themselves, a query that I will bring to
Proverbs 1–9.
Lyu does observe some key assumptions within the sayings regarding
the emotions of these characters.68 He notes that Prov. 21.15 and 21.10
reveal that a flourishing life requires cultivating the right desires. For ‘it
is a joy to the righteous when justice is done but terror to evildoers’; and
‘the soul of the wicked desires evil’. Furthermore, Collection II assumes
good and bad desires in its dominant character types: the righteous and
the wicked. Thus, ‘by their desire, the treacherous are captured’ (11.6b)
and ‘the desire of the righteous will be given’ (10.24b; cf. 10.3; 11.6, 23;
10.24). These observations, which tie emotions to Proverbial characters,
support the notion that these characters function in a rhetorical manner by
engaging the emotions of the audience. We have a sense that the affec-
tions of the treacherous contribute to their capture and that the desires
of righteous people will be granted, even gratified. Other than this,
Lyu’s notions are, at the moment, only suggestions, lacking the textual
corroboration and the consideration of Proverbs 1–9 that are required for
a solid defence. For now, I hold his conclusions regarding the function of
character types as a hypothesis.
While not explicitly claiming a rhetorical approach, Kenneth Aitken
has also examined the characters of Prov. 10.1–22.16 and captures, in his
words, their rhetorical function:

68. Lyu, Righteousness, 65–8.

 2. Character Types 75

the wise intend their proverbs about the fool and his folly to be a series
of snap-shots for people to take a very hard look at to see if they can spot
themselves—and be warned!…. [W]e must not forget that these proverbs are
connected with the theme of the two ways and have a didactic purpose….
So if these proverbs on the righteous and the wicked are concerned to assert
a moral orderliness, it is to strengthen our resolve to ‘turn away from evil’
(12.26) and to ‘pursue righteousness’ (15.9).69

According to Aitken, the author of Proverbs, in portraying these characters,

establishes a moral system that serves a didactic purpose. However,
Aitken assumes that the interpreter desires to be the righteous person and
avoid the wicked, and furthermore that he or she will self-reflect in light of
these caricatured figures based on a few suggestive sayings (12.26; 15.9).
Even more problematic for Aitken, 12.26b does not assert ‘turn away
from evil’; it says ‘the way of the wicked leads them astray’.70 And, as
mentioned with Lyu, 15.9 presumes that divine approval will motivate the
pursuit of righteousness. In my view the proverbs of 10.1–22.16 reflect
on and observe characters more than they explicitly exhort behaviour or
emulation. This constitutes an interpretive challenge to their potential
didactic, rhetorical function that will be considered shortly.
Aitken and Lyu reveal that Prov. 10.1–22.16 suggests a positive and
negative desirability between the interpreter and character types. They
also propose that the characters function rhetorically by offering models
for the interpreter to emulate or mirrors for self-evaluation, options
plausible and well articulated but inadequately defended. More clearly,
10.1–22.16 indicates that its characters harbour emotions that match their
moral identities, pushing interpretation toward the realm of rhetoric. In
summary, both interpreters largely overlook texts from Proverbs 1–9 and
no correlation between the collections is explored. Based on the sugges-
tions and assumptions observed above, the interpretive questions for
Proverbs 1–9, which may provide insight into the characters of 10–29,
stand as follows:

1. What is the rhetorical function of the character types in Proverbs

1–9?
a. What is the role of emulation?
b. What is the role of self-reflection?
c. What affective posture does Proverbs 1–9 instil in the inter-
preter towards its characters?

69. Aitken, Proverbs, 96, 144.

70. The MT reads, ‫וְ ֶד ֶרְך ְר ָשׁ ִעים ַתּ ְת ֵעם‬.
76 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

2.2.1. Character Types in Proverbs 10.1–22.16

Before exploring Proverbs 1–9, texts need to be selected from 10.1–22.16
so that the most generalizable conclusions can be made. In order to select
material most pertinent to the rhetorical function of character types, I have
categorized all of the material in 10.1–22.16 based on the two elements
that contribute most to a saying’s rhetorical function: character types and
consequences. The references break down as follows:

Table 2.1

Character only Character and Consequence only

Consequence
10.3, 6, 18, 20, 23, 26, 10.1, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, 11, 10.2, 9, 12, 17, 19; 11.4,
32; 11.12, 20; 12.1, 5, 10, 13, 21, 24, 25, 27, 29-31; 14, 15, 17, 19, 24-27;
15-17, 23, 28; 13.1, 16; 11.2, 3, 5-11, 16, 18, 21, 12.2, 8, 9, 11, 14, 19, 25;
14.2, 7-9, 15, 19, 21, 29, 23, 28-31; 12.3, 6, 7, 12, 13.3, 8, 10, 11, 13, 17,
33; 15.2, 3, 5, 8, 9, 12, 13, 18, 20, 21, 24, 26, 18, 23; 14.1, 4, 22, 23,
14, 19, 21, 26, 28; 16.4, 27; 13.2, 4-6, 9, 14, 15, 25-27, 30, 34, 35; 15.1, 4,
23, 32; 17.4, 7, 10, 12, 19-22, 25; 14.3, 6, 11, 14, 10, 13, 15, 18, 22, 25, 27,
15, 16, 18, 24, 26, 27; 16-18, 20, 24, 32; 15.6, 29, 30, 32, 33; 16.3, 5-7,
18.2, 5, 9; 19.1, 10, 24, 7, 20, 24, 31; 16.14, 17, 15, 18, 20, 24, 31; 17.2,
28; 20.26; 21.4, 8, 18, 24, 21, 22, 27-30; 17.11, 20, 5, 8, 9, 13, 19, 22; 18.3,
26, 27; 22.13 21, 23, 25, 27; 18.6-8, 12, 15, 16, 18-22, 24;
10, 15; 19.8, 13, 15, 25, 19.2, 4-7, 9, 11, 16-20,
29; 20.3-5, 7, 19; 21.5, 7, 23, 26, 27; 20.1, 2, 8, 13,
10-12, 15, 20, 22, 25, 29; 17, 20-22, 25, 28, 30;
22.3, 5, 10, 12 21.6, 13, 14, 16, 17, 21,
23, 28; 22.4, 6, 8, 9, 11,
14-16
Possibly Consequence:
10.22; 11.13; 12.4; 13.7,
24; 14.12, 13, 28, 31;
15.23; 16.10, 13, 25;
17.6, 14; 18.4, 11, 17;
19.3, 12, 21; 20.11, 18,
24, 29; 21.1, 31

Neither Character nor Consequence 11.1, 22; 12.22; 13.24; 14.5, 10; 15.11,
16, 17; 16.1, 2, 8, 9, 11, 12, 16, 19, 26,
33; 17.1, 3, 17; 19.14, 22; 20.6, 9, 10,
12, 14-16, 23, 27; 21.2, 3, 9, 19, 30;
22.1, 2, 7
 2. Character Types 77

It is thought that proverbs in Collection II persuade by means of

characters, as the comments of Lyu and Aitken attest, and also by means
of consequences. The function of consequences in Proverbs has been
stated succinctly: ‘Ihre Intention ist, wie bereits dargelegt primär eine
pädagogische; es geht darum, Zusammenhänge des Lebens darzulegen,
um zu einem entsprechenden Verhalten anzuleiten’.71 For example, Prov.
20.13 warns, ‘Do not love sleep, lest you come to poverty’. A conse-
quence (poverty) is portrayed as stemming from a particular action
(sleep), plausibly motivating the poverty-fearing reader to adhere to its
command: ‘Do not love sleep’. The outcome in 20.13 serves not only an
informative but also a persuasive purpose: the threat of poverty motivates
people to sleep less. The cursory treatment of this proverb illustrates the
way that many sayings within 10.1–22.16 omit character terms and yet
nevertheless function rhetorically, often aiming to motivate, or to justify a
certain mode of being or activity, by stating the consequences.
With these didactic and rhetorical features in mind, the 375 sayings
of Prov. 10.1–22.16 present the following divisions: character only (69);
consequence only (101); character and consequence (138); possibly conse-
quence (26); and neither character nor consequence (41). At 82 percent, the
overwhelming majority of texts include characters and/or consequences.
Setting aside consequences, I here select the passages in 10.1–22.16
that incorporate character types without any clear consequence-related
elements in order to facilitate the most effective focus on the topic at hand.
Again, this segregation fosters analysis; it is not based on the assumption
that motivation in Proverbs is unintegrated, as if characters persuade to
some end and consequences to another, each in their own fashion and
without overlap. Statistically, these two features cross-pollinate, as the
majority of sayings in 10.1–22.16 contain both character types and conse-
quences, indicating that they obviously work together. But those statistics
only capture part of the picture. Take, for example, a passage that will
be examined below. Proverbs 15.2 mentions that the ‘tongue of the wise
makes knowledge good’, and that ‘the mouth of fools pours out folly’.
At face value, the statements do not persuade towards one action or the
other – they characterize the speech of wise people and fools – but when
read in light of 15.1, the interpretive possibilities open up. ‘A soft answer
turns back wrath, but a harsh word brings up anger’. Deflecting wrath is
presumably desirable, and invoking anger, presumably, undesirable, and

71. Georg Freuling, ‘Wer eine Grube gräbt…’: Der Tun-Ergehen-Zusammenhang

und sein Wandel in der alttestamentlichen Weisheitsliteratur (Neukirchen-Vluyn:
Neukirchener Verlag, 2004), 104. So Philip Johannes Nel, The Structure and Ethos of
the Wisdom Admonitions in Proverbs (Berlin: de Gruyter, 1982), 74–6.
78 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

such inclinations might motivate someone to speak gently and refrain

from lambasting. If one were to associate the actions and motivations of
Prov. 15.1 with the ‘tongue of the wise’ and ‘mouth of fools’ in 15.2, then
we have a clear example of how character types and consequences are
integrated across multiple proverbs. Wise people respond tenderly and
assuage wrath; fools spill out harsh words and induce anger; do not you,
interpreter, want to be like the former? Character and consequences work
together, and this is to make no mention of value statements or the book’s
theology, to which the later chapters of this monograph are dedicated.
Proverbs often function holistically, motivating readers to ways of
being and action by means of character types and consequential state-
ments. Any motivations that are proximate to character-based proverbs
will be accounted for in this chapter, as seemingly solitary characters must
be read in light of any consequence statements within the surrounding
proverbs. But my selection of texts remains guided by the distribution of
characters and consequences, which will bring into focus those character
types that carry the greatest motivational burden. With this criteria, the
clearest and most persuasive answers can be given to the question of how
the character types function rhetorically.
The character-only passages do not exhibit a clear pattern in terms of
content or literary and rhetorical form. Sometimes they present a standard
case of the wise or foolish person in nominal form, such as the ‘fool’
without modification: ‘A fool will not delight in understanding but only in
his heart revealing itself’ (18.2). Characters often appear in construct form,
like the ‘tongue of the righteous’ and the ‘heart of the wicked’ (10.20),
for instance. Lastly, in addition to mixing character domains, such as the
moral/intellectual, theological, and wisdom/pragmatic categories noted
earlier (e.g. 14.9), 10.1–22.16 packages its character terms in a variety of
rhetorical styles, such as the question, imperative, or quotation.
My selection of texts cannot do justice to all of the variety in content,
form, and rhetorical style, so I have chosen texts with an eye towards
those that are not used elsewhere in this study and that represent material
across 10.1–22.16, which should facilitate the best demonstration of the
didactic function of Proverbs 1–9. These include a proverb with the wise
and the foolish person in nominal form (18.2) and the same characters in
construct state (15.2).72 The full grouping of texts that use character types
without consequence orientation include the following:

72. See also different rhetorical styles (14.7; 15.26; 17.7, 26; 18.5; 19.10; 21.27;
22.13; cf. 16.4). For predicate-dominant passages, cf. Prov. 14.2, 21, 29; 15.5b; 16.32;
17.27; 18.9.
 2. Character Types 79

Table 2.2

Moral Theological Other

(wise/fool/prudent/ (righteous/wicked) (e.g. scoffer)
understanding)
10.3, 18, 23; 11.12; 10.3, 6, 20, 32; 12.5, 14.15; 15.3, 12; 17.4;
12.15-16, 23; 13.16; 10, 28; 15.8-9, 28; 16.4; 21.24
14.7-8, 19, 33; 15.2, 14, 17.26; 18.5; 20.26; 21.4,
21; 16.23; 17.7, 10, 12, 18, 26-27 Sluggard:
18, 24; 18.2 10.26; 18.9; 19.24; 22.13

Mix of Domains 13.1; 14.9; 15.5, 19; 19.1, 10, 28

Rather than dealing with the particular questions of these passages at this
point, I examine Proverbs 1–9 with the three key rhetorical questions
noted above, which were derived from scholarship on 10.1–22.16 and
offer enough direction themselves for an enquiry into 1–9. The texts
from 10.1–22.16 that I have selected are revisited in section 2.2.3, where
the particular interpretive issues of 15.2 and 18.2 are expounded and the
insights of 1–9 brought to bear upon them.

2.2.2. Character Types in Proverbs 1–9

The characters of Proverbs 1–9 make a striking appearance in 1.20-33, as
Wisdom denounces simpletons, scoffers and fools in a collective enquiry
about their lack of attention to and affection for her. Yet prior to their
appearance in Prov. 1.20-33, and with more subtlety, Prov. 1.1-7 intro-
duces character types and encourages emulation of one while portraying
the other as unattractive: be like the wise; the fool is not appealing.73 I
have argued elsewhere that the primary audience of Proverbs is not the
‘simpleton’ or ‘youth’ of 1.4 but ‘the wise’ in 1.5 who ‘hear and increase
in learning’. Proverbs 1.5 ‘commands and invites the audience to posture
themselves not as the fool, simpleton, or youth but as the wise character
who heeds instruction’.74 The wise in this passage operates as an ideal
addressee, who always listens and grows in wisdom. He functions as a
caricatured, literary type with a rhetorical function intended to inspire

73. On the characters of Proverbs 1–9 as an emotional map for interpreters, see
Christine Yoder, ‘The Objects of Our Affections: Emotions and the Moral Life in
Proverbs 1–9’, in Shaking Heaven and Earth: Essays in Honor of Walter Bruegge­
mann and Charles B. Cousar, ed. Kathleen O’Conner, E. Elizabeth Johnson,
Christine Elizabeth Yoder and Stanley Saunders (Louisville, KY: Westminster John
Knox Press, 2005), 73–88.
74. Keefer, ‘A Shift’, 112.
80 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

emulation and evaluation. Functioning in the same way but with the
obverse effect, the fool who ‘despises wisdom and instruction’ (1.7)
should repulse the interpreter. While clear, the rhetorical intentions of
these characters remain undeveloped in 1.1-7, suggesting emulation or
avoidance but little more than that. Proverbs 1.10-19 begins to further
address the question of emulation, but reading to the end of Proverbs 1
discloses much more about character rhetoric.
Proverbs 1.20-33 advocates self-evaluation in view of its caricatures.
The passage portrays a personified female figure of Wisdom who calls
out in the city centre, addressing a collection of negative character types
in 1.22 – the simpleton, scoffers and fools – and consistently attributing
them with particular attitudes. She says they love simplicity, delight in
scoffing, and hate knowledge (1.22). They refuse Wisdom’s call (1.24),
neglect her counsel, and do not consent to her reproof (1.25, 30). They
hate knowledge and do not choose the fear of the Lord (1.29), instead
turning from Wisdom and remaining complacent (1.32). This passage
introduces a representative collection of three character terms and
enumerates their attitudes to capture a gamut of negative postures and
perhaps to emphasize the holistic corruption of these negative types. The
passage clearly sets a context of character types and includes a slew of
particular characteristics.
In Prov. 1.22-27, Wisdom addresses the characters as ‘you’:

How long, simple ones, will you love (‫ )תאהבו‬simplicity…. If you turn
(‫ )תׁשובו‬to my reproof…you will know my words (‫…)אודיעה דברי אתכם‬but
I call and you refuse (‫…)ותמאנו‬when your dread (‫ )פחדכם‬comes…when
distress and anguish come upon you (‫)עליכם‬.

After addressing the negative characters directly in 1.22-27 with ‘you’

language, at verse 28 Wisdom shifts grammatical person from ‘you’ to
‘they’.

Then they will call (‫ )יקראנני‬on me and I will not answer; they will seek me
diligently (‫…)ישׁחרנני‬. They did not consent (‫ )לא־אבו‬to my counsel…. So
they will eat (‫ )יאכלו‬from the fruit of their way (‫( )דרכם‬1.28-31).

What is the rhetorical significance of this shift in perspective? I contend

that 1.20-33 shows Lady Wisdom shifting grammatical subjects, because
the scene is intended to serve as a lesson for the interpreter. Given the
options of the wise and foolish persons, Prov. 1.1-7 has already aligned
the audience’s identity with the wise and started to detail their traits,
but for the fool that passage implies only his dislike for wisdom and the
Lord: ‘The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise
 2. Character Types 81

wisdom and instruction’ (1.7). In 1.20-33 we now see specific features

of the foolish population: they neglect, refuse, turn from, hate, and stand
complacent towards wisdom. Furthermore, Lady Wisdom draws the
interpreter’s attention to the fools, whom she addresses as ‘you’, and then
shifts to third-person address to retain a distance from them.75
The detail of negative attitudes and the concern of Lady Wisdom to talk
about rather than to character types in 1.20-33 suggests a deliberate rhetor-
ical attempt on the part of the text. Interpreters should evaluate themselves
in light of the characters portrayed: looking at these fools, looking at
their actions and attitudes, and self-reflecting in light of them. ‘The fools’
emotions’, in 1.22, says Christine Yoder ‘variously reveal postures of
hubris, wantonness, and animosity. Wisdom holds them responsible. Her
rhetorical question stings, her exasperation aims to invoke their guilt, and
her words caution anyone within earshot to think twice before adopting
such smug ways of being in the world.’76 I am arguing that the text,
without aligning interpreters with its negative character types, encourages
the audience to consider these negative characteristics in light of their
own. Do I hate knowledge? Do I choose the fear of the Lord? Do I despise
reproof? Proverbs 1.20-33 invokes a process of evaluation, whereby the
interpreter must consider these negatively caricatured attitudes and assess
his or her own affections.77
The passage does not maintain an exclusively negative tone but
concludes with an attractive alternative to the fools – the one who listens
to wisdom: ‘But the one who listens to me dwells in security and is at
ease from the dread of evil’ (1.33). This verse affirms the alignment of
the interpreter with the positive characters of Proverbs, even recalling the
invitation to hear (‫ )ׁשמע‬in Prov. 1.5 as Wisdom characterizes her favoured
person as ‘the one who listens (‫ )ׁשמע‬to me’ (1.33a). Seeing that she
wants her audience to listen to her (1.23a, 24b), Wisdom’s final comment
in 1.33 certainly refers to the sort of people she is looking for – those
who pay heed to instruction. As to its rhetorical effect, perhaps her call
commends the following: be this sort of person, and assess your attitude
towards Wisdom and your capacity to heed her. It certainly contrasts with
those who reject wisdom and plausibly prompts interpreters to evaluate
their own desire to listen. Towards the fools, however, the interpreter’s

75. Bernhard Lang, Wisdom and the Book of Proverbs: A Hebrew Goddess
Redefined (New York: Pilgrim Press, 1986), 42.
76. Yoder, ‘Objects’, 77; so Fox, Proverbs 1–9, 98.
77. Yoder (Proverbs, 20–1) rightly warns that this is not a Romantic notion of
identifying the ‘true’ self in isolation. Rather, the process entails community but most
importantly prompts the question, who do I want to be like?
82 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

posture also receives adjustment due to the extended claims of disaster

and mockery that befall them in 1.26-28. The negative outcomes for evil
characters instil dread, fostering affections of dislike and apprehension,
which has addressed the third and final interpretive question of this
chapter: what affective posture does Proverbs 1–9 instil in the interpreter
towards the characters? In summary, the caricatures of Proverbs portray
idealized selves, meant to attract or repel, while offering mirrors of good
and evil with which to evaluate our own character. The speech to fools
in 1.20-33 particularly shows that character types function not only as
models of emulation but as mirrors for self-evaluation. Cohering with
Prov. 1.1-7 and 1.10-19, these conclusions account for the three rhetorical
framework questions and, when accounting for the clarity and force of the
text, suggest that these passages function didactically.

2.2.3. The Function of Proverbs 1–9 for 15.2 and 18.2

To determine if the passages from Proverbs 1–9 indeed function didacti-
cally, their insights into Proverbial characters must be brought to bear on
10.1–22.16. The textual examples enlisted from 10.1–22.16 were chosen
for their strength as examples and for their grammatical properties.
Proverbs 18.2 presents the ‘fool’ in nominal form, and 15.2 presents a
single body part of the wise and foolish persons, respectively, a ‘tongue’
and ‘mouth’. These proverbs pose interpretive challenges particularly
related to their use of character types and thereby test the interpretive
function of Proverbs 1–9.

‫לא־יחפץ כסיל בתבונה‬ 18.2 A fool will not delight in understanding

‫כי אם־בהתגלות לבו‬ but rather78 in his heart’s exposing itself

Proverbs 18.2 says, ‘A fool will not delight in understanding, but rather
in his heart’s exposing itself’. This proverb mentions the fool in nominal
form and simply describes what he does and does not delight in. The fool
does not delight in understanding but delights only in making himself
known (hithpael ‫)גלה‬, that is, in expressing his thoughts and words.
Genesis 9.21 employs the only other occurrence of the verb (hithpael ‫)גלה‬
to depict Noah’s drunken self ‘uncovered in his tent’ (cf. Prov. 27.5), so
that the fool might in a sense ‘uncover’ his heart. The ‫ כי אם‬in Prov. 18.2,
translated ‘but rather’, emphasizes the contrast: the fool delights not even
in a bit of understanding but only in self-expression. At face value, the
proverb does not motivate. It states what a fool does and does not delight

78. After a negation, ‫ כי אם‬signals a contrast (JM §172c; Gen. 32.29; Ps. 1.2),
often translated, ‘but only’ (ESV; NRSV).
 2. Character Types 83

in, and so seems to convey an observation about the fool and his delights.
Waltke, however, comments that the saying ‘warns against having a
closed mind and an open mouth’, implying that the proverb includes
not only an indicative but a rhetorical force: it warns.79 This rhetorical
function might be disregarded by insisting that the proverb simply
observes, that it tells us what is the case and nothing about what ought to
be or what someone should do, placing the burden of proof on those who
would argue otherwise. Therefore, I will argue otherwise, not to say that
Prov. 18.2 does not make an observation about the world, valuable in its
own right, but to say that the proverb carries additional rhetorical force
that is acquired via the conception of character types that I have been
developing based on Proverbs 1–9.
How, then, does the interpreter discern this rhetorical thrust that is not
simply observational? First, we might contrast the fool’s lack of delight in
understanding, with the commended value of understanding, as advocated
by Proverbs 1–9: ‘Blessed is the one who finds wisdom’ (3.13a), and ‘My
son, be attentive to my wisdom’ (5.1a; so Prov. 2.2-3, 11). In Prov. 18.2,
then, the failure to delight in understanding does not cohere with the admo-
nitions elsewhere in Proverbs, so that the interpreter might recognize that
when ‘a fool will not delight in understanding’ this saying portrays a bad
attitude. Second, the rhetorical nature of the proverb becomes clearer when
the character lexeme (‘a fool’) is replaced with a generic reference to ‘a
human’: ‘a human will not delight in understanding’. From this perspec-
tive, with the character lexeme omitted, the proverb carries some, though
not as much, rhetorical significance. For even a human failing to delight in
understanding receives a negative evaluation elsewhere in Proverbs.
I, nevertheless, contend that a figure as ethically neutral as ‘the human’
would not harbour the rhetorical force of the ‘fool’, and that the presence
or absence of the character lexeme makes all the interpretive differ-
ence for 18.2. Consider the second line: ‘a human delights in his heart’s
exposing itself’. This statement counters much of Proverbs 10–29, which,
despite valuing silence (10.8, 19; 18.13; 29.11), advocates human expres-
sion, namely of the sort that is based on ‘understanding’. For example,
‘The lips of the wise spread knowledge; not so the heart of fools’ (15.7).
This passage and others seem to support the ‘heart’s exposing itself’, as
the wise ‘spread knowledge’, the understanding have wisdom on their lips
(10.13), and ‘the mouth of the righteous brings forth wisdom’ (10.31; so
15.2, 28). Expression in these cases appears to be a recommended activity,
suggesting that a human who delights in exposing his heart serves as a
positive example for readers. However, each of these sayings incorporates

79. Waltke, Proverbs 15–31, 69.

84 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

character lexemes, so that spreading knowledge seems inseparable from

the lips of the wise and abnormal for any fool. The mouth of the ‘right-
eous’ brings forth wisdom, and ‘the understanding’ have wisdom on their
lips. Although I have been saying these proverbs ‘value’ certain forms of
speech, such as spreading knowledge, they, like Prov. 18.2, actually state
observations about characters, to which forms of speech are bound, and
thereby return us to the same issue: what is the rhetorical significance
of character types? Proverbs 1–9 provides a remarkable response to this
question. When read as an interpretive framework, it imposes a concep-
tion of these characters that shapes the rhetorical pulse of 18.2, causing its
‘fool’ to undergo rhetorical transformation.
Proverbs 1–9 instils an unquestionable repulsion against the fool, so
that the interpreter arrives at 18.2 knowing that he or she does not want,
or should not want, to be like that character. This response accounts for
emulation: do not be like this fool. As for self-evaluation, 18.2 describes
attributes that the interpreter must avoid: disenchantment with understand-
ing, and exclusively sharing his or her own knowledge. When and where,
asks the self-evaluative interpreter, do I reflect such qualities? The third
question for 1–9 assessed the affective implications of characters, combin-
ing the aforementioned emulation and self-evaluation. The fool models a
contorted affective posture, delighting in the wrong things or in the wrong
way, so that the interpreter informed by Proverbs 1–9 is motivated to
modify his or her affective posture based on the fool’s bad example.
In sum, Prov. 18.2 makes an observation without direct rhetorical
force. While it contains qualitative descriptions, such as not delighting in
understanding, on the surface the passage does not persuade. But with an
understanding of the rhetorical function of character types from Proverbs
1–9, the interpreter can identify and, more importantly, feel the persuasive
intent of 18.2 and similar sayings, enfolding within his interpretive scope
not only valuable observations about the world but also volitional impli-
cations. Therefore, Proverbs 1–9 functions didactically by instilling a
rhetorical framework and interpretive categories that account for a latent
rhetorical layer within 10.1–22.16.

‫לשׁון חכמים תיטיב דעת‬ 15.2 The tongue of the wise makes knowledge good80
‫ופי כסילים יביע אולת‬ but the mouth of fools pours out folly

80. The verb (hiphil ‫ )יטב‬is translated ‘commend’ (ESV) or ‘adorn’ (Fox; Waltke),
communicating a sense of mastery or improvement (Franz Delitzsch, Biblical Com-
mentary on the Proverbs of Solomon, trans. M. G. Easton [Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark,
1880], 1:316).
 2. Character Types 85

A similar situation occurs in Prov. 15.2, which contrasts the wise

and foolish persons, not in a grammatically absolute form but rather
in a construct state that associates the characters with particular bodily
organs: the tongue of the wise and the mouth of fools. Like 18.2, Prov.
15.2 does not explicitly commend or discourage a course of action. It
makes an observation, stating that wise tongues ‘make good’ or improve
upon knowledge and that foolish mouths pour out folly. Also like 18.2,
the character terms could have been omitted, so that ‘A tongue makes
knowledge good, but a mouth pours out folly’. However, that statement
would render a contradiction, or at least a puzzling tension. For if the
tongue and mouth refer to the same thing, namely a person’s speech, then
according to 15.2 a human expresses both good and folly.81 As an obser-
vation this proverb would be advantageous, indicating a human practice,
even a habit, of speech that plausibly corresponds with life in current and
ancient contexts, whereby a person may speak in both good and foolish
ways. But the original version of Prov. 15.2, though it still states an
observation, includes modifiers, and these modifiers are character terms
that, again, make all the difference for its interpretation. ‘The tongue of
the wise makes knowledge good, but the mouth of fools pours out folly’.
Now, the character terms do make all the difference for 15.2, but
there are proximate sources of motivation that might guide the rhetoric
of the proverb. According to 15.1, ‘A soft answer turns back wrath, but
a harsh word brings up anger’. Assuming the attractiveness of diverting
someone’s wrath and the unattractiveness of causing anger, an interpreter
might favour the ‘soft answer’ instead of the ‘harsh word’. So too, ‘A
healing tongue is a tree of life, but perversion in it breaks the spirit’ (15.4).
This proverb works in a way similar to the previous, depicting healing
words as a life-giving tree and perverted speech as capable of battering
someone’s spirit. Both proverbs use consequences to persuade readers
towards certain courses of action and away from others: gentle words will
turn away wrath and even give life; speaking harshly or with twisted talk
will enrage someone and possibly harm him. Consequences inform and
motivate, depicting what will happen in most circumstances and thereby
disposing one to act in a certain way.
Proverbs 15.1 and 15.4 provide some substance to 15.2. As I alluded
to at the outset of this chapter, the preferred ways of speech could be
associated with the wise person of 15.2, so long as one knows to prefer
wisdom to folly, and that may mean that from ‘the tongue of the wise’
comes a soft answer and soothing remarks, and that the folly that fools

81. The Epistle of James (3.9-10a) states this very point.

86 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

‘pour out’ may sound harsh or perverse.82 So through a chain of reasoning

the characters of 15.2 could be perceived as attractive, and readers who
follow that reasoning, scanning around 15.2 and accounting for its state-
ments about speech and its consequences, may then wish to be like the
wise person and unlike the fool. In my judgment, that is not unfeasible
based on the text we have.83 The immediate context of the proverb
supplies some motivation to align with certain characters and specifies a
few forms of communicative conduct. But that still leaves us wondering
about how these characters are rhetorically evaluated and whether the
associations made from 15.1, 4 would make a reader decidedly pursue
one character instead of the other. Furthermore, how ought one to respond
to that attraction or dislike, and is the immediate literary context the only
guidance we have for deciding how to speak?
Proverbs 1–9 clarified the self-evaluative, rhetorical function of
characters, and when viewed within this framework the characters
of 15.2 function in the same way. The interpreter sees speech organs
associated with character types and respective descriptions, so that
with the aid of Proverbs 1–9 the observation becomes a mirror of
self-reflection, prompting interpreters to question the wise and foolish
qualities of their own speech. Do I improve upon knowledge or pour
out folly? Proverbs 1–9 also instils an attraction towards the former and
repulsion against the latter so that we feel drawn towards knowledge-
able speech and opposed to foolish speech. We not only assess our own
verbal habits; we aim to improve them in accord with the characters of
15.2. In short, Prov. 15.2 first relies upon its character terms to ethically
qualify different types of talk, and apparently remains indicative rather
than imperative until, secondly, Proverbs 1–9 supplies a rhetorical
framework for extracting a certain type of applicative force from 15.2.
That force is generated also from the consequential statements within
15.1-4, which seem to complement the character instructions of chap-
ters 1–9, and yet Proverbs 1–9 leaves interpreters more decided about
the rhetorical question of 15.2.

82. So Waltke, Proverbs 15–31, 613–14: ‘This verse continues the topic of a good
“answer” versus a bad “word”, mentioning both their instruments, tongue and mouth,
and their sources, which are rooted in the character of the wise versus that of fools’
(italics original; I have omitted parenthetical verse references).
83. The same reasoning applies to those who might listen to these proverbs,
hearing 15.1-7, for example, or reciting it from memory and making the connections
that I have proposed.
 2. Character Types 87

2.2.4. The Function of Proverbs 1–9 for 29.11

As shown over the course of this chapter, understanding the characters
of Proverbs involves two primary questions: what are they and what
are they intended to do for the interpreter? I have argued that Proverbs
1–9 provides a framework that lends interpretive insight into some of
the challenges that arise from characters in Prov. 10.1–22.16, wherein
they represent caricatured versions of certain qualities that represent
distinct facets of the Proverbial good or bad person and deliver a series of
rhetorical functions meant to persuade the interpreter into reflection and
affective response. Proverbs 1–9, I will argue here, also offers this inter-
pretive framework for Prov. 22.17–29.27, which like 10.1–22.16 often
relies upon an understanding of character types.
Proverbs 22.17–29.27 too states observations rather than admonitions
about its characters. For example, in 29.11 ‘The fool brings out all of his
spirit, but the wise stills it back’. This saying contributes a valuable obser-
vation about fools, wise people, and the relationships they have with their
inner lives. The ‘spirit’ (‫)רוח‬, which is here ‘brought out’ by the fool or
‘stilled back’ by the wise, may refer to anger (cf. 14.29; 16.32; Judg. 8.3;
Eccl. 10.4) or to the internal thoughts and feelings of a person (Prov. 1.23;
Job 7.11; Ps. 77.7[6]), though in Proverbs it most commonly refers to a
person’s ‘spirit’ or ‘disposition’, which may be crushed (15.13), broken
(15.4), trustworthy (11.13), haughty (16.18), lowly (16.19; 29.23) or
resilient (18.14a). At this point, there is no reason to translate ‫ רוח‬in Prov.
29.11 as anything other than this sense of ‘spirit’. However, interpreters
often assume two things about this proverb, first, that it deals with anger
and, second, that it delivers an instruction about how to handle such anger.
In the first place, the lexical evidence alone does not justify interpreting
‫ רוח‬in 29.11 as ‘anger’, though it permits the possibility. Proverbs 29.22
states that ‘A man of anger (‫ )אף‬stirs up strife, and the wrathful (‫)חמה‬
man, much transgression’, and while this has been cited as evidence for
similar themes in 29.11, verse 22 actually shows that other lexemes were
at the author’s disposal to denote ‘anger’ and were not used in 29.11, such
as ‫ אף‬and ‫חמה‬.84 So ‫ רוח‬in 29.11 may refer to anger but we would expect
an alternative term.

84. Sæbø (Sprüche, 350) connects Prov. 29.8, 11, 20, and 22 with anger and
the destabilization of society through speech, but only verses 8 and 22 clearly refer
to anger and its socially destabilizing consequences. In 29.22, the phrase ‫בעל חמה‬,
woodenly ‘owner of wrath’, uses ‫ בעל‬as a noun of relation to denote a wrathful person
(see BDB, 127 [I.5]).
88 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

For argument’s sake, if Prov. 29.11 does refer to anger, then how do
interpreters justify the conclusion that the saying delivers an instruction?
Plöger, for instance, says that ‘Auch der Weise ist nicht frei von Emotionen,
aber er versteht es, in der rechten Weise mit ihnen umzugehen’.85 Notice
the evaluative and thereby instructive conclusion regarding the proverb’s
observation: the wise person deals with emotion ‘in the right way’.
Plöger and others appeal to the court scene in 29.9 to claim that 29.11
continues the scenario and adds further instructions, not seeming to
account for the observational nature of 29.9 and 29.11.86 For 29.9 only
tells us what is the case: ‘A wise man argues with a foolish man, and [the
fool] rages and laughs, and there is no quiet’. To render imperative force
from 29.11, appeal is otherwise made to other proverbs that deal with
speech or emotions (e.g. 12.16). While such statements are more directly
imperative, they, including 29.9, incorporate character types, which I
suggest transform the rhetorical implications of Prov. 29.11, since taken
without these terms the proverb does not persuade towards certain action
or ways of life.87 If ‘a human’ brings out all of his spirit, but ‘a human’
stills it back, it cannot be known if one or both deals with emotions ‘in
the right way’. Both expressing one’s spirit and withholding it remain
morally ambiguous options for how one might speak. As it stands, the
proverb may simply describe two types of activities: how the fool acts
and how the wise person acts – a plausible and not unhelpful interpre-
tation when read within the context of Proverbs 10–29. However, as with
the examples explored earlier (15.2; 18.2), two interpretive manoeuvres
carry significant insights on a rhetorical level for Prov. 29.11. First, what
happens when the character terms are removed?
If the character terms are replaced with neutral references, then the
passage would read, ‘One person brings out all of his spirit, but another
person stills it back’. The statement recalls Prov. 29.22, where ‘A man
of anger stirs up strife, and the wrathful man, much transgression’. Like
the modified version of 29.11, Prov. 29.22 contains no character lexemes,
but unlike 29.11, Prov. 29.22 uses unmistakable terms for anger: ‫ אף‬and
‫חמה‬, not ‫רוח‬. Furthermore, 29.22 uses other morally qualified language
to portray the consequences of anger as bad, for ‫ אף‬instigates ‘strife’ and
‫ חמה‬causes ‘much transgression’. Such morally charged language and
consequences do not appear in 29.11, which, without its character terms
simply leaves the interpreter with ‘One person brings out all of his spirit,
but another person stills it back’.

85. Plöger, Sprüche, 345.

86. Waltke, Proverbs 15–31, 439.
87. Fox (Proverbs 10–31, 838), for instance, appeals to Prov. 12.16.
 2. Character Types 89

The saying remains an observation, but if the statements of 29.11 intend

not only to describe but to commend and warn, as is often asserted, then it
is not clear which colon should be obeyed and which should be avoided.
Maybe the first line reflects good behaviour, for even if we interpret ‫רוח‬
as ‘anger’, Proverbs does not necessarily prohibit the emotion: it praises
those slow to anger (14.29; 15.18) and portrays the Lord himself as angry
(22.14; 24.18). Hence, letting out all of one’s angry spirit could be permis-
sible. Likewise, Proverbs associates the ‘cool spirit’ and restraint of words
with understanding (17.27), also indicating that anger can lead to trans-
gression (29.22), evidence that supports the characterization of 29.11b
as positive: ‘another person stills [his spirit] back’. Based on passages
in Proverbs 10–29, both lines of 29.11 are justifiably appropriate acts
when rid of their character lexemes. But again, according to Plöger, the
behaviour in verse 11b deals with emotions in the right way, as restraint of
anger is commended and its full release, condemned.88 In other words, line
A portrays bad behaviour and line B portrays good. Such a conclusion,
though, does not follow from other instructions in Proverbs or from Prov.
29.11 when stripped of its character terms, and therefore it seems that the
use of character lexemes offers the only solid ground for making a quali-
tative judgment about the activities in 29.11.89 In other words, Prov. 29.11
requires its character terms in order to indicate proper conduct. ‘One
person brings out all of his spirit, but another person stills it back’ leaves
the application of the proverb ambiguous, so that the interpreter does
not know what behaviour the proverb advocates. Such language would
advocate neither behaviour; it would simply observe.
Having levelled our first query into the rhetoric of Prov. 29.11, the
second significant question to ask is, what happens when 29.11 is read in
light of Proverbs 1–9? Proverbs 1–9 does not simply speak of ‘humans’
but instead portrays a variety of character types, and it is not content
with making observations about these people but instead clarifies who
they are, how they relate, and how interpreters might interact with them.
Proverbs 1–9 inculcates the interpreter with a hatred and avoidance of the
foolish person and a love for and desire to emulate the wise person. With
this rhetorical framework, the interpreter of 29.11 knows to avoid actions
associated with the fool and to replicate the activity of a wise person. In
other words, ‘Do not (or, be careful about) bringing out all of your spirit;
rather, keep it stilled’. The interpreter also knows that these two figures

88. Plöger, Sprüche, 345.

89. The main legal material of the OT seldom regulates human emotions, espe-
cially anger, which would derive from laws about hatred (Exod. 23.5 [cf. 21.20-27];
Lev. 19.17-18; Deut. 19.11).
90 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

represent extreme embodiments of wise and foolish qualities and thus

display actions that are, respectively, right and wrong.
At this point, a potential problem arises. With such a positive portrayal
of restraining anger in 29.11, how should an interpreter account for other
statements in Proverbs 10–29 that, when interpreted within the same
Proverbs 1–9 framework, endorse anger rather than condemn it? Proverbs
14.29, for example, attributes ‘slow anger’ to those with understanding –
‘Whoever is slow to anger has great understanding, but he who has a
hasty temper exalts folly’ (ESV) – possibly contradicting 29.11 when
understood to condemn anger.90 It can be said that Proverbs views both
restrained and slow anger as different perspectives of good ways to handle
anger, that it neither condemns anger in the absolute nor justifies it at
all times but rather suggests that it may be appropriate in certain cases.
Proverbs 1–9 does add a key qualification to this seeming generalization:
such emotion, bubbling within one’s spirit and perhaps akin to anger, is
handled rightly only when handled by those with wisdom and under-
standing. For it is the understanding person who is slow to anger, and
it is the wise person who holds back his spirit, activities that, according
to Proverbs 1–9, are deemed appropriate because of their association
with approved character types. Linguistically, conceptually and ethically,
character makes all the difference for matters of speech in 29.11. Without
its character terms, and even with them, the indicative statements in Prov.
29.11 do not deliver clear instructions for how to manage anger. While
using description only is not necessarily a problem, when the proverb
includes character lexemes, and these are interpreted in light of Proverbs
1–9, then the indicative statements take clear rhetorical direction, guiding
the affections and behaviours of its readers.

2.2.5. Conclusion
The characters within Proverbs are caricatures, not necessarily negative
pictures but extreme versions and idealized portraits of the Proverbial
population, each of which represents one perspective on a single good
or bad person. Rhetorically, they function by prompting interpreters to
emulate the positive types, shun the negative, and to self-evaluate in
light of the particular features that characters display, stemming from and
also guiding affective postures. An examination of Prov. 1.10-19; 15.2;
18.2; and 29.11, as well as 6.1-19, demonstrated that Proverbs 1–9 estab-
lishes a framework of rhetorical categories that then produces additional

90. The proverb nicely reads more woodenly: ‘slow anger is great understanding,
but short temper exalts folly’ (‫)ארך אפים רב־תבונה וקצר־רוח מרים אולת‬.
 2. Character Types 91

interpretations of Proverbs 10–29. On their own, the proverbs make valu-

able observations about the world, and when they incorporate character
types that are read in conjunction with Proverbs 1–9, their observations
also become rhetorically charged statements that persuade the interpreter
towards particular ways of being and behaving. In other words, Proverbs
1–9 functions didactically by offering interpretive faculties that uncover,
and at times supplement, the persuasive effects of Proverbs 10–29.91
Having established the literary and rhetorical nature of Proverbial
characters over the course of this chapter, I have not explained how these
two perspectives relate. It is likely that they inform each other, as it seems,
in the first place, that the embellished nature of the character types facili-
tates emulation. For given that extreme aspect, portraits of good and evil
confront the interpreter in a pronounced way. If the gang in 1.10-19, for
example, invited the son to join in petty theft – say, stealing a neighbour’s
scythe without harming anyone involved – then for the interpreter the
father’s warning to ‘not consent’ would likely flag in persuasive effect.
It is, plausibly, the radical greed and violence in 1.10-19, the rejection
of Wisdom and the incapacity to respond to her in 1.20-33 that so jar the
audience into evaluation.
Regarding their identity, it was also concluded that the characters relate
to each other in a coreferential manner, where each type – such as the
fool, the wicked person, and the sluggard – exhibits a different persona of
a singular figure, in this case, the evil person. However, the relationship
of this coreferentiality to the author’s rhetorical intentions was not made
so obvious. How do so many different shades of good and evil contribute
to the rhetorical aims of evaluation, self-reflection, and affective posture?
The coreferential nature of the characters most plausibly contributes to the
author’s hope that interpreters will self-reflect in light of the multifarious
collection of personal qualities. The ‘righteous’ prompts self-reflection in
the realm of one’s relationship to the Lord; the ‘wise’ in relation to wisdom;
the ‘diligent’ in relation to work; and the ‘upright’ in relation to justice.
I am not saying that these distinctions are fixed or exclusive categories,
but they do remain quite consistent throughout Proverbs and most
convincingly explain how the characters’ coreferential identities relate
to their rhetorical function. Therefore, the identity of character types –
their caricatured nature and coreferential partnerships – contributes to the
function of character types in no trifling way. What these characters are
stimulates what they can achieve for those who encounter them.

91. Such an argument applies not only for the passages selected here but also, in
the vein of 18.2, for Prov. 10.32; 15.2; and 21.18.
92 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

The increased variety and occurrences of character lexemes in Prov.

10.1–22.16, relative to Proverbs 1–9, were also noted. This distribution
suggests that 1–9 intends to supply the interpreter with an interpretive
framework by teaching what characters are and how they function. It
presents a simpler set of character types within a literary context of
extended poems through which the author can comprehend the nature and
function of these types. Proverbs 10.1–22.16 subsequently presents the
characters with more variety, and yet less elaboration, so that the inter-
preter can evaluate and self-reflect on himself or herself in life’s many
scenarios. In this respect, Waltke has captured the function of Proverbial
characters precisely: they stand as ‘exemplars by which to judge one’s life
in many situations’.92 In these ways, Proverbs 1–9 functions didactically
for Proverbs 10–29. The next chapter continues to look at the rhetorical
features of Proverbs, though it exchanges character types for the specific
aims and goals toward which the material persuades.

92. Waltke, Proverbs 1–15, 125.

 3

E d ucat i on a l G oals

The aims and values explored in this chapter relate directly to the notions
of persuasive rhetoric explained in the previous one. In Chapter 2, I argued
that the character types of Proverbs serve a rhetorical function, persuading
the audience to emulate or avoid their characteristics. Consequently, when
a character term appears within a proverb, which would otherwise make
an observation about the world without carrying any persuasive force for
the reader, that proverb is now imbued with a new level of persuasive
power due to the presence of particular character lexemes. While the focus
of that argument was understandably on proverbs that contain characters,
the focus of the current chapter must account for the remaining material,
which will expose additional rhetorical features.
One of those rhetorical features includes consequences, as shown in
proverbs that motivate by means of correlating a consequence with a
particular command or observation.1 ‘Wealth will not profit on the day
of wrath, but righteousness will deliver from death’ (Prov. 11.4). By
declaring the futility of riches during the ‘day of wrath’ and the advantage
of righteousness in the face of death, this proverb uses consequences to
motivate one towards righteousness and away from putting too much
stock in prosperity. As in Chapter 2, this material must be set aside in
order to concentrate on another rhetorical element: the value statements
of Proverbs. What the book values often correlates to the goals that it sets
for its pupils. It holds up wisdom, for instance, as both a high value and
prime educational achievement, and the same could be said of accepting
instruction, which is valued and aimed for by the Proverbial teacher. By
examining such values and interrelated aims, and not focusing on character
types and consequences, this chapter explores the larger rhetorical mission

1. See the statistics and references in section 2.2.1.

94 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

of Proverbs to further determine the function of chapters 1–9. In the first

section, the didactic role of Proverbs 1–9 is demonstrated with respect
to these goals through Prov. 22.1 and 30.1-9. The second section then
recalls Aletti’s understanding of Proverbs 1–9 and its conception of moral
discernment as an educational goal, thus also contributing to the enquiry
into the aims and values of Proverbs.

3.1. The Aims and Values of Proverbs

I have mentioned the many means that Proverbs employs to persuade its
audience, including character types, consequences, and direct commands,
among others. A closer look at these features prompts the topic of this
section – what Proverbs aims for and what it values – offering a window
through which to analyse the relationship of Proverbs 1–9 and 10–31.
The aims and values of Proverbs are bound together, and by attempting to
structure them within Proverbs 10–31, especially within 10.1–22.16, their
interpretive challenges become clear.

3.1.1. Educational Goals in Proverbs 10.1–22.16

When the sayings of 10.1–22.16 that contain consequences are combined
with those that use character terms, they total 82 percent of the whole.2
Of the remaining material, a number of sayings make comparative state-
ments, often with language of ‘better than’, in order to directly commend
one object over another, as in Prov. 22.1 – ‘A name is to be chosen rather
than great riches, favour is better than silver and gold’. A proverb like this,
and others that use the language of ‘better than’ (…‫ – )טוב…מן‬e.g. ‘To
acquire wisdom is much better than gold, and to acquire understanding
is to be chosen more than silver’ (16.16) – imply some system of values.
At the very least, they make value judgments: for 22.1, ‘a name’ is more
valuable than ‘great riches’, and ‘favour’ carries more value than ‘silver
and gold’, creating a microcosm of axiological order where values fit into
a type of hierarchy. The value statements in 22.1 prompt the question of
whether 10.1–22.16 harbours a larger, endorsed system of values. That is,
do the ‘better thans’ and comparative values of this entire collection fit
within a hierarchy of goods and ends? The question becomes more acute
when several value judgments in 10.1–22.16 are considered.

2. See Table 2.1 in section 2.2.1.

 3. Educational Goals 95

3.1.1.1. Competing Goals in Proverbs 10.1–22.16

We might take a closer look at Prov. 16.16 and 22.1:

‫ קנה־חכמה מה־טוב מחרוץ‬16.16 To acquire wisdom is much better than gold,

‫וקנות בינה נבחר מכסף‬ and to acquire understanding is to be chosen
more than silver.
‫נבחר שׁם מעשׁר רב‬ 22.1 A name is to be chosen rather than great riches,
‫מכסף ומזהב חן טוב‬ favour is better than silver and gold.

Both proverbs indicate that something is ‘better than’ precious metals,

making statements of value that imply, respectively, that wisdom holds
more value than gold (16.16) and that favour holds more value than gold
(22.1). These axiological premises form part of a network of values that,
within Proverbs, may or may not be coherent. A coherent network of
values would be ordered in a hierarchical fashion that attributes certain
things with more value and other things with less.3 For example, making
money could be the prime goal, while working hard holds second place
and acquiring enough rest stands in the third, creating a structure of values
that might direct one’s daily life. An incoherent network would contain
competing values, without deliberate order, that are simply left in tension.
So rather than financial acquisition being better than hard work, the two
are both commended, along with adequate rest, and yet no deliberate order
of their importance is indicated. It is worth asking whether a coherent
structure appears in Proverbs, that is, whether it organizes its values in a
particular fashion. In addition to Prov. 16.16 and 22.1, three references to
the Lord expose the importance of this question:

No wisdom, no understanding, no counsel can avail against the Lord.

(21.30, ESV)

The rich and poor meet; the Lord makes all of them. (22.2)

The consequence of humility and the fear of the Lord is riches, honour and
life.4 (22.4)

3. In contrast to constructing an absolute hierarchy, some things might have

equivalent value or variable value depending on the person or situation. For example,
good physical fitness would be more valuable for a soldier than for the scribe, who
conversely values penmanship above physical fitness.
4. On this translation, see Waltke, Proverbs 15–31, 193 n. 6; cf. Delitzsch,
Proverbs, 2:85–6.
96 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

If 16.16 values wisdom more than gold, then 21.30 and 22.2 suggest
that the Lord is more valuable than either of these: for no wisdom can
avail against him, and he is the creator of people who possess all ranges
of wealth. Proverbs 16.16; 21.30 and 22.2 establish a coherent structure
of values, from gold to wisdom to the Lord, but this structure is put into
question by 22.4, which states, ‘The consequence of humility and the fear
of the Lord is riches, honour and life’. If the fear of the Lord results in
riches and honour and life, then might these products carry more value
than the Lord himself?5 Proverbs 22.4 certainly seems to present them as
outcomes of fearing the Lord, perhaps placing a superior level of value
upon them and indicating that they may hold an ultimate level of value
or desirability. In other words, the Lord seems to operate as a means
to an end here, perhaps several ends, and therefore takes an ancillary
place to the more valuable aims of riches, honour and life. Elsewhere in
10.1–22.16, life, wealth, favour, honour, and even the family’s prosperity
and security appear as desirable and attainable goals with little hint as to
how they should be organized (e.g. 10.2, 4; 13.15; 14.26; 20.13, 20-21).
The cacophony of goals in 10.1–22.16 and the tension that they create
in view of a possibly coherent network of values in Proverbs raise the
interpretive challenge of whether we should establish such a coherent
system or leave the tension in place. Pragmatically, if both wisdom and
favour are better than gold, what happens when someone must choose
between wisdom and favour? Does Proverbs view one as more valuable
than the other, and does it intend for interpreters to know? Likewise, the
Lord, on the one hand, appears supremely valuable – for he stands above
wisdom (21.30) and riches and poverty (22.2) – but, on the other hand,
it is through the Lord that one acquires riches and honour and life (22.4),
which at the least leaves interpreters unclear as to what holds or should
hold most value.6

5. Accepting the alternative translation, that ‘the reward of humility is the fear of
the Lord, riches, honour and life’, simply compounds the problem at hand, namely,
the disorder or unclear organization of ends in Proverbs 10–29.
6. Bálint Károly Zabán (The Pillar Function of the Speeches of Wisdom: Proverbs
1.20-33, 8.1-36, and 9.1-6 in the Structural Framework of Proverbs 1–9, BZAW 429
[Berlin: de Gruyter, 2012], 282–4) assesses the treasure imagery in Proverbs 1–9
and 16.16, and discounts a connection between Proverbs and the reference to silver
and gold in Job 28.15-19 based on the maritime context of the latter, a disassociation
further supported by the commonality of references to these and similar precious
materials in ancient Near Eastern literature, to which Zabán calls attention (e.g. Ps.
68.14[13]; Zech. 9.3).
 3. Educational Goals 97

We might express these questions about value in a simpler way: what

are the goals of Proverbs? Proverbs 10.1–22.16 suggests that someone
might live in order to acquire wealth, honour, wisdom, ‘life’, or a certain
relationship with the Lord, all of which are presented as goals of its educa-
tional paradigm. Unless the text suggests otherwise, I assume that the
priority of a goal is inseparable from its value, so that each end to which
Proverbs persuades corresponds to its respective worth. Does Proverbs
harbour a coherent system of goals that structures its values in a consistent
way? Or, lacking such a framework, does it arbitrarily make statements of
value that should simply be left to stand in tension? Proverbs 22.1, when
compared to 16.16, offers a clear example that provokes such questions: if
wisdom is better than gold (16.16) and if favour is better than gold (22.1),
then how do we relate wisdom and favour? Perhaps they carry equal
value, and yet if forced to choose between them, perhaps Proverbs would
commend one over the other. As suggested, an answer to this question
does not arise from 10.1–22.16 alone, and I will contend that the question
is addressed by Proverbs 1–9 as it offers a framework of goals with which
to structure 10.1–22.16.

3.1.1.2. The ‘Name’ in Proverbs 22.1

Before consulting Proverbs 1–9, consider one other interpretive chal-
lenge posed by Prov. 22.1, derived from its language of ‘name’: ‘A name
is to be chosen rather than great riches; favour is better than silver and
gold’. The ‘name’ (‫ )ׁשם‬in this case occurs in conjunction with ‘favour’,
values that interpreters often equate to a good and full life, as if the goal is
‘überzeugend und gut zu verhalten’ or, as McKane puts it, to be a person
of ‘engaging personal qualities’, or, as the LXX succinctly augments, to
choose, not ὄνομα, but ὄνομα καλὸν.7 To the broad positive qualities asso-
ciated with a ‘name’ in Prov. 22.1, Waltke adds that it aligns with good
character that depends on wisdom, supporting such associations with
passages from Proverbs 1–9 and 10.1–22.16.8 I will examine the material
in Proverbs 1–9 closely and suggest that other passages within those
chapters also address the challenges of 22.1. For the moment, however,
this ‘name’ is considered in view of 10.1–22.16 and other pertinent
evidence.

7. Meinhold, Sprüche, 363; McKane, Proverbs, 566; so Toy, Proverbs, 413.

8. Waltke, Proverbs 15–31, 199. According to Plöger (Sprüche, 253), Prov. 22.1 is
not about wisdom or the goods it conveys but is rather a declaration that the popular
man and what emanates from him are more impressive than silver and gold.
98 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

Waltke aligns a ‘name’ with wisdom-dependent good character pri-

marily based on the semantic quality of ‫ ׁשם‬as well as its use in Prov. 10.7;
18.10 and 21.24, since each of these sayings mentions ‫ׁשם‬. In his words,
‘A good name represents a person’s good character and his memory (see
10.7; 18.10; 21.24) and depends on his wisdom (3.1-4)…wisdom, a co-
referential term for a “good name”’.9 However, even though these sayings
share a lexeme with Prov. 22.1, their use of this lexeme, as well as the
broader linguistic evidence, differs in ways critical to Waltke’s conclusion.
For each of the passages from Collection II – as well as the other relevant
uses of ‫ ׁשם‬in 22.17–31.31 (30.9) – qualifies the lexeme rather than stating
it absolutely as 22.1 does. It is the name ‘of the wicked’ (10.7), ‘of the
Lord’ (18.10; cf. 30.9), or ‘his name is scoffer’ (21.24) that these passages
present instead of ‘a name’ in the abstract, which, I will contend, harbours
no inherent qualitative value. In short, the passages from Proverbs 10–31
that use ‫ ׁשם‬qualify the type of name in question, unlike 22.1 which more
simply states that ‘a name is to be chosen rather than great riches’.
The meaning of ‘name’ may receive substantiation when considered
within the OT as a whole, wherein ‫ ׁשם‬takes a connotation of ‘fame’
or ‘reputation’. So the warrior Abishai in 2 Sam. 23.18 wielded a spear
against 300 men and a received ‘a name’, which, as the following verse
makes clear, entailed the honour that he received from others. For he was
the most ‘renowned’ (‫ )נכבד‬of the thirty men (23.19), acquiring honour,
perhaps fame, in the eyes of the community. The ‘men of name’ in Num.
16.2 and 1 Chron. 5.24 seem to be in some respect famous, and in other
passages ‘a name’ is associated with ‘a praise’, similar to the honour
bestowed on Abishai in 2 Samuel 23 (Deut. 26.19; Zech. 3.19-20; cf.
Jer. 13.11). It might seem that the connotations of ‫ ׁשם‬with fame and
reputation in these passages entails an inherently positive quality, as if
Abishai had a good name and the ‘men of name’ represented men of good
repute. But such positive connotations are not a given. The ‘men of name’
in Num. 16.2 refer to those well-known Israelites who followed Korah
and challenged the authority of Moses and Aaron, an act and context
that suggest their ‘name’ was not a good one in the eyes of the author.
According to Numbers 16, rebels might be famous men but not neces-
sarily good men; they were burned alive (16.35).
Speaking of Solomon, 1 Kgs 4.31 records that ‘his name was in all the
surrounding nations’, which indicates a name with positive connotations,
due not to the use of this lexeme but due to the comments earlier in the
verse: ‘He [Solomon] was wiser than all other men, wiser than Ethan

9. Waltke, Proverbs 15–31, 199.

 3. Educational Goals 99

the Ezrahite, and Heman, Calcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol, and
his name was in all the surrounding nations’. 1 Kings 4.31 establishes
its own context that then qualifies the sort of ‘name’ in question, in this
case, a reputation of astounding wisdom. The inherently unqualified
nature of ‫ ׁשם‬is further exhibited in passages that explicitly modify the
term: Nehemiah recounts that his enemies ‘might give me a bad name
[‫ ]ׁשם רע‬in order to taunt me’ (Neh. 6.13); and Qohelet says, ‘a good
name [‫ ]טוב ׁשם‬is better than good oil’ (Eccl. 7.1). Interpreters most
often cite Eccl. 7.1 as support for seeing a ‘good’ name in Prov. 22.1,
but Eccl. 7.1 obviously does not find ‫ ׁשם‬sufficient to make its point and
instead clarifies that ‘a good name is better than good oil’.10 The same
trend appears in Sirach 41.11-13 (‫ )טובת ׁשם ;ׁשם חסד‬and Pirkei Avot
4.13 (‫)ׁשם טוב‬. In Akkadian, the lexeme šumum is used, which, like ‫ׁשם‬,
may refer to ‘fame’ or ‘reputation’: ‘the diviner will become renowned’
(bārû šum damiqtim ileqqe); ‘the house of Mari is famous’ (bīt Mari
šumam išû).11 However, to convey a qualitative sense of ‘name’, šumum
is modified with ṭābum or damqum, clarifying that such repute is ‘good’.
For instance, ‘your reputation is good’ (šumka damiq); ‘that house will
acquire a good reputation’ (bītu MU damiqti TUK-ši); ‘[I know] that
your reputation with the king is bad’ (kīma lamin MU-ka ana panī šarri).12
The Akkadian lexical evidence, along with the material in Proverbs
and the OT, supports the unqualified nature of ‫ ׁשם‬in Prov. 22.1 and only
enhances the interpretive challenge of the saying, namely, what sort of
‘name’ does it have in mind? Interpreters attach a variety of positive
characteristics to this lexeme that receive little support from the evidence
examined here. With no other indication of the sort of ‘name’ intended by
Prov. 22.1, the second line of this saying provides one modifier – ‘favour’
(‫)חן‬, which is better than silver and gold – and thereby suggests that a
‘favourable name’ is to be chosen rather than great riches. However,
similar to fame, favour might arise from the Lord (Prov. 12.2; ‫ )רצון‬or
from a generous man (Prov. 19.6), and, although pleasant, it does not
disclose a necessary justification or advisable limitations. A favourable
name can simply mean a name favoured by anyone for any reason – like
the honour associated with ‫ – ׁשם‬and not necessarily a good reason or, in
the sight of the author, productive of the right kind of favour. Hence, Prov.
22.1’s interpretive challenge remains unresolved, so that the ‘name’ might

10. See, among others, Ewald, Die poetischen Bücher, 199; Fox, Proverbs 10–31,
694.
11. See CAD 17/3, 292–4 and references there.
12. The logogram MU signifies, among other terms, šumum.
100 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

simply indicate that a reputation, of any sort and based on any grounds,
is to be chosen in preference to great riches, or that the name is somehow
favourable, though why and to what extent it is not clear.
On the other hand, there are interpreters who have suggested positive
connotations in 22.1 by incorporating Proverbs 1–9, but these claims
appear largely unsubstantiated. Waltke gets closest in his reference to 3.1-4
and 3.14, a direction that I will continue in conjunction with my broader
concerns for the goals of Proverbs and the questions about what sort of
value system might lie behind the axiological remarks of 10.1–22.16. The
interpretive challenge, then, distils into one question: what are the educa-
tional goals of Proverbs that organize its various values? If an answer to
this question can be discovered, it will offer insight into the place of Prov.
22.1 within what appear to be competing assertions of value in Proverbs
10–31 as well as insight into the challenge of what 22.1 means by ‘name’.
I pose the question of goals to Proverbs 1–9, asking, toward what goal or
goals do these chapters persuade?

3.1.2. Educational Goals in Proverbs 1–9

Proverbs 22.1, within the context of Proverbs 10–31, has presented two
interpretive challenges: the structure of values in Proverbs and the nature
of the ‘name’ mentioned in 22.1. Both issues relate to the educational
goals of Proverbs – what it advocates and persuades towards – and while
it is reasonable to ask if Proverbs harbours an organized set of values, it
may very well be the case that no such order can be found. That is, the
goals and values of Proverbs might simply remain in tension and, for all
we know, may have been intended to remain so. However, interpreters
have suggested Proverbs 1–9 as a fruitful place to look for such a value
system, and while not capitalizing on these chapters for the interpretive
challenges of 10–31, they have posed a question similar to my own.
Interpreters interested in the goals of Proverbs 1–9 often couch their
studies in terms of Collection I’s pedagogical aims or how it shapes
the desires of its audience, using different language to answer the
current question: what are the overall rhetorical aims of Proverbs 1–9?
Responses, detailed below, typically mention four characteristics, some-
times hierarchically related and at other times simply listed. These include
wisdom, the father’s instruction, God or the fear of the Lord, and character
formation. While interpreters also use a variety of methods to determine
the persuasive telos of Proverbs 1–9 and offer a swathe of conclusions,
their differences do not so much reveal disagreements as they do alterna-
tive points of emphasis. Consider a sampling: Daniel Estes claims that
while character formation constitutes one of many pedagogical goals, the
 3. Educational Goals 101

greatest goal is to know God, which then allows the audience to assimi-
late wisdom, the prime virtue of Collection I.13 Glenn Pemberton employs
Aristotle’s categories of logos, pathos, and ethos across Proverbs 1–9 to
conclude that it persuades the audience to accept the father’s instruction
(i.e. wisdom) and avoid the seduction of folly.14 Michael Fox argues that
the author, with his rhetorical tools, intends his audience to strive for
wisdom, which equals moral character and prepares them for 10.1–22.16.15
According to Sun Myung Lyu, Proverbs 1–9 persuades towards wisdom
which leads to character formation, and for Bálint Zabán internalized
instruction establishes a relationship with wisdom and induces ideal char-
acter.16 In these studies, wisdom, the father’s instruction, God or the fear
of the Lord, and character formation arise in different forms and fashions,
but they arise consistently to create a constellation of concepts seemingly
significant for determining the persuasive aims of Proverbs 1–9. R. N.
Whybray’s comments reveal the preponderance of these concepts when,
referring to Collection I, he writes that the interpreter

will see all its teaching as directed towards the formation of the complete
person, both wise and pious…. In their present form these chapters serve
both to elevate the character of the wisdom teacher who, it will be assumed
by the reader, is responsible for everything which follows, and, at the same
time, in impressive and mysterious, quasi-mythical language, to stress the
intimate relationship of wisdom with God, its attractiveness to the learner,
and the indispensability of its acquisition.17

13. Daniel J. Estes, Hear, My Son: Teaching and Learning in Proverbs 1–9, New
Studies in Biblical Theology (Leicester: Apollos, 1997), 45, 63–86, 148.
14. Glenn D. Pemberton, ‘The Rhetoric of the Father in Proverbs 1–9’, JSOT 30
(2005): 63–82.
15. Fox, Proverbs 1–9, 348–51.
16. Lyu, Righteousness, 5; Zabán, Pillar Function, 286–342. See, among others,
James Fleming, ‘Some Aspects of the Religion of Proverbs’, JBL 51 (1932): 31–9;
Dave Bland, ‘Formation of Character in the Book of Proverbs’, ResQ 40 (1998):
221–38; Christine Yoder, ‘Forming “Fearers of Yahweh”: Repetition and Contradic-
tion as Pedagogy in Proverbs’, in Seeking out the Wisdom of the Ancients: Essays
Offered to Honor Michael V. Fox on the Occasion of His Sixty-Fifth Birthday, ed.
Ronald L. Troxel, Kelvin G. Friebel and Dennis R. Magary (Winona Lake, IN: Eisen-
brauns, 2005), 167–84; Alice M. Sinnott, The Personification of Wisdom (Aldershot,
UK: Ashgate, 2005), 19–21, 53–87; Maurice Gilbert, L’Antique sagesse d’Israël:
Études sur Proverbes, Job, Qohélet et leurs prolongements, EBib (Pendé, France:
Gabalda, 2015), 38–47, 206.
17. Whybray, Proverbs, 17 (italics added).
102 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

When noting the persuasive aims of Proverbs 1–9, Whybray incorpo-

rates wisdom, God, the instructor, along with the teacher’s instruction
specifically, and character formation, those ingredients that seem closely
related to wisdom and integral to the persuasive goals of Collection I.18 In
addition to these four emphases, many studies on the rhetoric of Proverbs
1–9 focus on the collection’s feminine imagery, given its persuasive
pungency.19
I affirm the palpability of this conceptual set and the persuasive force
of the females in Proverbs 1–9. In pursuing an answer about the collec-
tion’s goals, these elements do seem to be accounted for in a coherent
manner, and yet it remains to be seen whether or not Proverbs 1–9
validates such coherence. Aside from 1.20-33, I have given little attention
so far to the female figures of Proverbs 1–9, so in this section Proverbs
7–8 is examined and the four elements of persuasive vision accounted
for: wisdom, the father’s teaching, God, and character. By incorporating
another portion of the text, the choice of Proverbs 7–8 further strengthens
the case for the didactic function of Proverbs 1–9.20 But a discussion of
this text must also account for Proverbs 2, which makes, perhaps, the
most logical case for an educational framework in Proverbs, and so in
what follows I navigate a relatively lengthy discussion of Proverbs 2, 7–8
in order to return to Prov. 22.1 and address an issue prevalent in Proverbs
10–29, of which 22.1 is a representative.

3.1.2.1. Proverbs 7–8

Proverbs 7–8 portrays Wisdom and Folly at length and with literary
artistry, suggesting a heightened effort to persuade the audience. In brief,
Folly appears unattractive and dangerous, while Wisdom presents herself

18. Whybray (Proverbs, 4) does remark that, as a whole, the purpose of Proverbs
‘is to persuade the reader to acquire wisdom’.
19. Margaret Odell Gilchrist, ‘Proverbs 1–9: Instruction or Riddle’, Proceedings,
Eastern Great Lakes & Midwest Bible Society (1984), esp. 141, 143; Lang, Wisdom,
50, 72, 104, 107; Hennie Viviers, ‘The “Body” and Lady Wisdom (Proverbs 1–9)’,
OTE 18 (2005): 879–90; Weeks, Instruction, 67–155; Pete F. Wilbanks, ‘Non-Proverb
Proverbial Bookends: A Possible Lens for Viewing the Book of Proverbs’ (paper
presented at the Southwest Regional Meeting of the ETS, New Orleans, LA, 26 March
2000), 1–45; Gale Yee, ‘I Have Perfumed My Bed with Myrrh: The Foreign Woman
(’iššâ zārâ) in Proverbs 1–9’, JSOT 43 (1989): 53–68; Scott C. Jones, ‘Wisdom’s
Pedagogy: A Comparison of Proverbs VII and 4Q184’, VT 53 (2003): 65–80; Mark
Sneed, ‘White Trash Wisdom: Proverbs 9 Deconstructed’, JHS 7 (2007): 1–10.
20. Proverbs 9 continues the rhetorical point developed by Proverbs 7–8 but adds
little for the concerns of this section. I account for Proverbs 9 in section 3.2.1.
 3. Educational Goals 103

as attractive and beneficial, composing two portraits that, I contend, aim

to persuade the audience towards a single but two-sided goal: embrace
wisdom and avoid folly. For wisdom is a friend, a lover, a protector and
provider. Folly appears friendly, lovely and beneficial but ultimately leads
to destruction. Although these twin portraits feature in Proverbs 7–8,
both chapters include the four aspects apparently integral to Collection
I – wisdom, teaching, the Lord, and character – and it is these aspects
that must be considered under the rubric of 1–9’s educational goals. In
my examination of Proverbs 7–8, I attempt to capture the overall thrust of
the material rather than exegetically mining particular passages. Such an
overarching approach reliably determines the rhetorical effort of the text,
while a more detailed attack will be reserved for Proverbs 2, which raises
a potential objection to my views of Proverbs 7–8.
Proverbs 7 contains two primary levels of discourse. First, it portrays a
youth who wanders the street and falls prey to the seductions of a temptress
who looks good, smells good and promises a delightful experience
(7.6-23). This scenario of seduction and attraction constitutes the story of
chapter 7 that is told by the Proverbial father. Around this story, the father
structures the second level of discourse, as he forwards commands to his
son and adds commentary about the tale, prefacing it with commands to
‘keep my words’ (7.1-3) and concluding with a similar injunction: ‘listen
to me and be attentive to the words of my mouth’ (7.24).21 By drawing
attention to his words, the father not only persuades the son to peruse the
story but also persuades the son to hear those very words that immediately
follow the father’s calls to attention. This noteworthy material appears
in 7.4-5 and 7.25-27, which offer complementary positive and negative
instructions about wisdom and folly. The first passage, 7.4-5, tells the son
to embrace wisdom: ‘Say to wisdom, “You are my sister”, and call insight
a relative’ (7.4). The following verse then gives one reason why the son
should befriend wisdom and insight: ‘to keep you from the alien woman
and from the foreigner, her smooth words’ (7.5). In Prov. 7.4-5, after
calling attention to his teaching, the father presents two goals – embrace
wisdom and avoid folly – and indicates that wisdom, in some form, is the
means to achieving these goals, for it ‘keeps you from the alien woman’.
In Prov. 7.24, the father reinforces attention toward his teaching and
in verse 25 follows with a warning: ‘do not stray into [Folly’s] paths’.
Why? ‘For she has caused many wounded to fall, and all her slain are
mighty. Her house is the way to Sheol, going down to chambers of

21. For another perspective on the significance of these scenes and the father’s
commentary, see section 3.2.
104 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

death’ (7.26-27). The father wants to persuade his son to avoid folly
primarily because she is dangerous, as she captures boys like stags,
slaughters them like oxen, and takes advantage of their oblivious flight
into her snare.22 Avoid such temptations, says the father, and achieve this
goal, he implies, by heeding my instruction which leads to wisdom. As
folly’s dangers and the father’s teaching remain at the forefront of this
passage, embracing wisdom stays in the background, and 7.4 allows for
little distinction between the father’s teaching and wisdom as we will
come to know her in Proverbs 8. Nevertheless, the persuasive aim of
Proverbs 7 places an avoidance of folly as primary and an awareness of
the father’s teaching as the means of accomplishing this.
In Proverbs 8, and on the tails of the father’s stern warnings about the
lady of temptation, we meet wisdom (‫ )חכמה‬and understanding (‫)בינה‬,
remarkably similar to the wisdom (‫ )חכמה‬and understanding (‫ )תבונה‬of
7.4, but now raising their voices and calling to those who will listen:
‘Does not wisdom call, and understanding give her voice?’ (8.1). The
initial alert and scene setting (8.1-3) move into a direct address by
Lady Wisdom, who now contrasts with the woman of Proverbs 7. The
persuasive force of chapter 8 and perhaps chapter 7 now increases since
they have been read sequentially, and their rhetorical features become
more prominent in light of the thematic and lexical links. Folly appears
quietly in the darkness of the city (7.12-13), while Wisdom stands boldly
at its heights (8.2-3). Both women call (7.13-20; 8.3-4) and advertise their
possessions to their audiences (7.16-18; 8.10-11), and both texts include
terms for ‘mouth’ (7.5, 21; 8.1, 6, 7a) and conclude with a reference to
‘death’ (7.27b; 8.36b). These parallels between Proverbs 7 and 8 suggest
not only a conceptual contrast but a rhetorical effort that bolsters the
persuasive aims of the author. Avoid folly and embrace wisdom.23
In Proverbs 8, the father’s voice fades and the voice of Wisdom swells,
as she makes four points. First, she aligns herself with all things right and
knowledgeable, especially her words: ‘Hear, for I will speak noble things,
and from my lips is uprightness’ (8.6). She also underscores her role: ‘by

22. Christl Maier (Die ‘fremde Frau’ in Proverbien 1-9: Eine exegetische und
sozialgeschichtliche Studie [Freiburg: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1995], 209) says
‘Ziel der ganzen Rede Prov 7 ist nach Ausweis von v. 25 die eindringliche Warnung,
den Weg der “Fremden” einzuschlagen’.
23. For Maier (Die ‘fremde Frau’, 214), the comparison of wisdom and folly
in Proverbs 7 prepares the way for their contrast in Proverbs 9. However, wisdom,
particularly as a personified figure, remains unobtrusive in Proverbs 7 until she is
foregrounded in chapter 8.
 3. Educational Goals 105

me kings rule and rulers decree rightness’ (8.15; so 8.6-9, 12, 14-16, 20).
Second, wisdom puts herself in relation to high value goods, on the one
hand, saying that she possesses riches, honour and prosperity (8.18), but,
on the other hand, labelling herself as more valuable than these things:

‫קחו־מוסרי ואל־כסף‬ 8.10 Take my instruction and not silver,

‫ודעת מחרוץ נבחר‬ and knowledge rather than choice gold.
‫כי־טובה חכמה מפנינים‬ 8.11 For wisdom is better than jewels,
‫וכל־חפצים לא ישׁוו־בה‬ and all desires do not compare with her.
‫טוב פריי מחרוץ‬ 8.19 My fruit is better than gold, even fine gold,
‫ומפז ותבואתי מכסף נבחר‬ and my produce than choice silver.
‫בארח־צדקה אהלך‬ 8.20 I walk in the way of righteousness
‫בתוך נתיבות משׁפט‬ and in the midst of the paths of justice,
‫להנחיל אהבי ישׁ‬ 8.21 To give an inheritance to those who love me,
‫ואצרתיהם אמלא‬ and fill their treasuries.

Wisdom is ‘better than’ jewels, and her productions outshine the most
glamourous gold, offering more than silver can buy. Wisdom constructs
a system of value and presents herself within it, placing herself and her
teaching at the top. Yet rather than condemning less valuable things, such
as wealth and honour, she asserts that these things are supplied by her:
‘to give an inheritance to those who love me, and I will fill their treas-
uries’ (8.21).24 In Prov. 8.1-21, then, she is more valuable than wealth and
honour, and to love her marks the ultimate goal.
After her clarion call in 8.1-21, Wisdom, thirdly, recounts her role in
the Lord’s ancient acts of creation, accentuating her age and her proximity
to him. She was set up ‘ages ago’ (v. 23) and worked ‘beside’ God as his
delight (v. 30).25 From a rhetorical perspective, Prov. 8.22-31 accentuates

24. Sandoval (Discourse, 89–101) focuses on the ‘symbolic’ significance of wealth

imagery in Prov. 8.10-11 and 8.18-21 and argues that this imagery does not refer to
the actual goods produced by wisdom but instead to all that is desirable. Although he
concludes this with appropriate qualification (100–101), I do not find it convincing
that the metaphorical presentation of Wisdom leads to metaphorical conceptions of
wealth and possessions in this passage. While the silver mentioned in 8.10 may not
be necessary for the wise person, based on Sandoval’s wooden interpretation of ‘take
my instruction and [do] not [take] silver’, this does not undercut the comparative
statements made by Wisdom in the following verses.
25. On the phonetic and semantic options for ‫ אמון‬in Prov. 8.30, see Fox, Proverbs
1–9, 285–7, and Arthur Keefer, ‘Sound Patterns as Motivation for Rare Words in
Proverbs 1–9’, JNSL 43 (2017): 46. None of the lexeme’s possible meanings (‘master
worker/constantly/ward’) take away from my point or the thrust of the passage, that
106 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

the attractiveness and status of Wisdom, who commends herself based on

her antiquity and intimacy with God.26 From the perspective of theology,
and material and immaterial goods, Wisdom rises as the goal that her
audience ought to desire and acquire. In the final portion of Proverbs
8, she situates herself next to teaching and another educational goal,
distilling her point to a single line: ‘hear instruction and be wise’ (8.33).
Wisdom here clarifies the goals of Proverbs 1–9 and the structure of
its values, forwarding instruction as a means to grow in wisdom, that is,
to become wise, which seems to be the ultimate outcome of fellowship
with her. Becoming wise in 8.33 mirrors the concepts that follow in
8.34-35, namely, the ‘happiness’ of those who listen to wisdom, the life
that they find when they find her, and the favour that the Lord bestows:
‘hear instruction and be wise [v. 33]…happy is the one who listens to
me [v. 34]…. For whoever finds me finds life and obtains favour from
the Lord [v. 35].’ Based on the structure of these concepts, Magne Sæbø
has concluded that ‘Den Weisen galt sonst immer das Leben als das vor
allem zu sichernde summum bonum’.27 Wisdom upholds ‘life’ as the
greatest good. Yet the Lord ascends to the same status by granting favour
and so seems to accompany becoming wise as a final end for Proverbs
1–9. On this view, wisdom and growth in wise character would enable
the interpreter to secure the ultimate end of Proverbial education: ‘life’.28
However, perhaps ‘being wise’ results not only in ‘life’ but in life and
favour and happiness, as seems evident from the macarisms that surround
the injunction to ‘hear instruction and be wise’ (8.33); for those who keep
Wisdom’s ways and listen to her are ‘blessed’ (8.32b, 34a). Perhaps ‘be
wise’ represents the educational goal of the passage, while the results of
obedience, or the effects of wisdom, are presented as motivating ends with
a value equal to growing in wise character. Most clearly, the prime value
and aim of Prov. 8.32-36 is attending to wisdom and becoming wise;
the other ends presented boost the attractiveness of this prospect. This
interpretation is most convincing given the grammar of verse 33, which
contains the imperatives of the passage and repeats the call to ‘hear’

Wisdom bears a close proximity to God and a privileged presence during the time of
creation. Although the different meanings adjust how her function is understood, they
do not necessarily affect her attractiveness.
26. On the rhetorical significance of Wisdom’s partnership with the Lord, see the
discussion on Proverbs 2 below and section 4.2.2.
27. Sæbø, Sprüche, 125. Sæbø (124) affirms that ‘be wise’ in 8.33 indicates the
purpose of listening to wisdom (‫)שׁמעו מוסר וחכמו‬.
28. On the meaning of this concept in Proverbs, see Waltke (Proverbs 1–15,
104–5) who identifies it with ‘wisdom’s reward’ and binds it to ‘fellowship with God’.
 3. Educational Goals 107

from verse 32, and is endorsed by the clarity that it brings: ‘be wise’.29
Rhetorically, then, wise character seems to be the aim of the passage,
though other ends and values, serving a motivational function in the
poem, may stand adjacent to this aim in an absolute sense.
At the conclusion of her speech, Wisdom spreads a constellation of
values that centre on a single educational goal: becoming wise. For
growth in wisdom is what she commands in verse 33 and from there
other benefits accrue, such as happiness, life and divine favour. Therefore,
growth in wise character stands as the ultimate educational goal, achieved
by listening to instruction and consequently embracing Wisdom, who
facilitates such growth.30 A structure of goals begins to emerge: through
the text’s teachings, love and pursue wisdom in order to grow in wise
character.

3.1.2.2. Proverbs 2
This order of educational goals has been developed based upon
Proverbs 7–8, but in order to establish it as representative of Proverbs 1–9,
the remaining material ought to be considered. Proverbs 2 presents the
greatest potential obstacle for the posited educational system as derived
from Proverbs 7–8. Well known among interpreters as the ‘Lehrprogramm’
of 1–9, Proverbs 2 constitutes a 22-verse poem from the Proverbial father
with a coherent and tightly knit structure.31 As the program of education
goes, if the son attends to the father’s words and seeks wisdom (2.1-4),
then he will understand the fear of the Lord (v. 5), who gives wisdom
and protection (vv. 6-8), and will also understand every good path (v. 9),
with wisdom entering his heart (vv. 10-11) to deliver the boy from evil
(vv. 12-19) in order to walk in the way of good people, who inhabit the
land (vv. 20-22). This long chain of reasoning offers multiple possible
goals, and if Proverbs 2 functions as an educational blueprint for 1–9, then
its educational aims must be compared with those from Proverbs 7–8.
Bernd Schipper has examined Proverbs 2, and its place within Proverbs
1–9 as a whole. Regardless of his preoccupation with diachronic details,
Schipper contributes exegetical insights that bear significance for the
question of what goal or goals Proverbs 1–9 promotes. According to him,
the reasoning in Proverbs 2 culminates in verses 20-22, which state the
final aims of its educational program:

29. See Schäfer, Poesie, 224–5.

30. For more on the study of character formation in Proverbs, see Anne Stewart,
Poetic Ethics in Proverbs: Wisdom Literature and the Shaping of the Moral Self (New
York: Cambridge University Press, 2016); Brown, Wisdom’s Wonder, 29–66.
31. Meinhold, Sprüche, 43, 62–4.
108 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

In order that [‫ ]למען‬you might walk in the way of good people,

and keep the paths of the righteous.
For [‫ ]כי‬the upright will dwell in the land,
and the blameless will remain in it.
But the wicked will be cut from the land,
and the treacherous will tear away from it. (2.20-22)

Schipper contends that ‘Dieses Ziel – das Bleiben im Land – ist aber nicht
im Sinne eines zukünftig zu erwartenden Handelns zu verstehen, sondern
erscheint als logische Folge des gegenwärtigen Agierens’.32 For Schipper,
Proverbs 2 works towards the ultimate goal of remaining in the land,
which he sees as something not necessarily achievable in the immediate
term but a ‘logical consequence of the present action’, action spelled out
especially in verses 12-19. Focus on the land, of course, and other key
terms in 2.21-22, broaches debate about the place of Proverbs in the canon
and its relation to themes of the covenant.33 These issues are intriguing but
tangential to the present question, so my focus remains on the educational
aims of Proverbs 2, what it ultimately persuades the interpreter towards,
and how these goals match or disrupt those outlined by Proverbs 7–8.
While Schipper’s treatment of Proverbs 2 has much worth commend-
ing, commendations that are capitalized on shortly, his interpretation of
2.20-22 is in discordance with my argument, possibly due to our different
interpretive interests. The problem stems from confusing certain conse-
quences in 2.20-22 with the rhetorical purpose of the passage, as if the
final outcomes noted in a text must constitute its aims of persuasion. This
issue relates to an oversight of the grammatical features in these verses as
well as the central concepts of the chapter. In the first place, 2.20 begins
with ‫למען‬, which most likely depends on the entire exordium of 2.1-11
and particularly the resultant protection of wisdom promised in 2.11 (so
2.12, 16), rendering the following: ‘discretion will watch over you, and
understanding will guard you [2.11]…in order that you might walk in the
way of good people and keep the paths of the righteous [2.20]’.34 Proverbs
2.20, therefore, not 2.21-22, expresses the purpose of the educational

32. Schipper, Hermeneutik, 75. See also Sæbø (Sprüche, 59–60), who asserts that
the dichotomous people types in v. 20 draw attention to the ‘land’ and the dichotomy
in vv. 21-22.
33. Cf. Fox, Proverbs 1–9, 122–5. Schipper considers intertextual relations in his
third chapter, after his treatment of Proverbs 2.
34. See, among others, Waltke, Proverbs 1–15, 216–18; Sæbø, Sprüche, 58–9;
Schipper, Hermeneutik, 67–71. God may simultaneously function as protector
throughout Prov. 2.12-19.
 3. Educational Goals 109

model outlined in Proverbs 2. It is not securing residence in the land that

the program aims for but rather placing one on the right path of life. That
the chapter’s goals appear in 2.20 is further supported by the ‫ כי‬that starts
verse 21: ‘For the upright will inhabit the land and those with integrity
will remain in it’. The ‫ כי‬here grounds the purpose statement of verse 20,
and for two verses (21-22) it governs an explanation and, most of all,
a motivation for the hope that the pupil will ‘walk in the way of good
people’. Based on these grammatical features, Schäfer rightly calls 2.20 a
‘Hauptfinalsatz’ and verses 21-22 the ‘Schlußmotivation’.35
The grammar of Proverbs 2 affirms part of Schipper’s conclusion about
verses 20-22, namely, that verses 21-22 are a ‘logical consequence’ of
the present action, but the grammar does not support these consequences
as the ‘Ziel’ of the chapter. The purpose arises in verse 20, joined by its
motivating consequences in verses 21-22. As consequences, the statements
in verses 21-22 can be considered ‘ends’, but they should not be confused
with the goal or educational aim of the preceding instructions. This inter-
pretation is supported by the primacy given to character types and moral
categories like good and evil in Proverbs 1–9, including Proverbs 2, as
Schipper himself observes and my argument from Chapter 2 fortifies.36
Proverbs 2 is concerned less with particular behaviours and more with
becoming a particular type of person and bearing a particular relationship
towards good and evil. In this vein, Schipper makes an astute observation
about 2.1-11 when he says that ‘Der in Prov 2,1 entfaltete Gedankengang
findet in V. 11 ein vorläufiges Ende, indem das, was der Weisheitsschüler
als Subjekt tun soll, ihm nun als Objekt widerfährt – er ist gleichsam am
Ziel angelangt, nur dass dieses bislang nicht näher konkretisiert wurde’.37
The son pursues wisdom (vv. 1-5) but also stands as the object pursued
by wisdom (vv. 9-11), a symbiotic educational syllabus that Schipper calls
the ‘erstes Ziel’ of Proverbs 2. The description of this first goal sounds
much like ‘character formation’, which is facilitated by the son’s search
for and discovery of wisdom. Wisdom’s protection helps to transform the
pupil into the sort of person who ‘walks in the way of good people’. Aside
from specific instructions about pursuing wisdom in 2.1-4, Proverbs 2
largely describes the benefits that the Lord and his wisdom hold in store,
noting that the one who acquires such benefits will live a life of and

35. Schäfer, Die Poesie, 64–6. Meinhold (Sprüche, 63, 70) calls 2.20 an
‘abschließenden Zielangabe’ with 2.21-22 continuing the conclusion.
36. Schipper, Hermeneutik, esp. 67–71, 77–9. He draws attention to the ‘Vorbilder’
(role models) of the chapter.
37. Schipper, Hermeneutik, 53.
110 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

among the good. Yes, he may consequently inhabit the land, but the whole
of Proverbs 2 aims to instil a desire for wisdom in order to accomplish its
primary goal: character formation.
In my judgment, the educational program laid out by Proverbs 2 looks
much more like the one developed by Proverbs 7–8 than a vision of land
residency mentioned in 2.21-22.38 The other elements that Proverbs 2
addresses at length, especially the evil people and forbidden woman from
whom Wisdom delivers (vv. 12-15, 16-19), do not counter the educational
goals established so far but rather support these goals by elaborating on
the guardian role of Wisdom, unpacking, in other words, how Wisdom
facilitates growth in wise character. She protects those who know her,
so that they might become the sort of people who ‘walk in the way’ of
good folk. In all, the chapter depicts the father’s teaching as a means to
loving and pursuing wisdom, which is intended to produce growth in wise
character.
The remaining element noted by Schipper, but not yet discussed,
stems from the theology of Proverbs 2. The father says, that ‘if you seek
[wisdom] like silver and search for it like hidden treasure, then you will
understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God’ (vv. 4-5).
He continues by saying that the Lord ‘gives wisdom’ and ‘guards’ the way
of his saints (vv. 6, 8), indicating that wisdom comes from the Lord, who
gives it to those who seek it. This mutual human–divine relationship in
the school of wisdom, though not yet made lucid in Proverbs 2, permits
the following conclusion:

Es dominieren im ersten Teil der Lehre weisheitliche Begriffe, allerdings

werden diese durch den Bezug auf JHWH religiös eingefärbt. JHWH ist der
Geber von Weisheit, so dass die Lehre, die hier durch den Weisheitslehrer
vermittelt wird (V. 1), eine theologische Dimension erhält. Dabei sind
sowohl die Unterweisung des Weisheitslehrers, als auch das Lernen des
Weisheitsschülers und die Bestimmung der Weisheit von JHWH her aufei-
nander bezogen.39

However, it is clear that the fear of the Lord, which at the least indicates
a relationship with God, marks the starting point of wisdom (1.7) and is
encountered by the boy on his search for wisdom (2.4-5). Therefore, to
the human instruction that serves as a means to wisdom we might add
a relationship with the Lord. The Lord also functions like wisdom in

38. Dwelling in the land resembles the promise of material and immaterial goods
bestowed by Wisdom in Proverbs 8. See section 4.2.
39. Schipper, Hermeneutik, 54.
 3. Educational Goals 111

Proverbs 2, by protecting those he knows and thereby enabling them to

achieve the same goal as wisdom: growth in wise character.40 The Lord
saturates the educational process envisioned by Proverbs 2, supplementing
the current system of educational goals to produce a revised version. The
original scheme of ends stated that through the text’s teachings, one would
love and pursue wisdom in order to grow in wise character. Given the
Lord’s role in Proverbs 2, the plan becomes slightly adjusted: through the
text’s teaching and the fear of the Lord, love and pursue wisdom in order
to grow in wise character.41
Rather than being undermined by alternative educational goals or
value structures, the educational paradigm derived from Proverbs 7–8
is fortified, even supplemented, by Proverbs 2, the ‘Lehrprogramm’ of
Proverbs 1–9. The set and sequence of educational goals argued for here
answer the question that arose from Prov. 22.1, and other material in
Proverbs 10–31, concerning the book’s vision of values and aims, and
their relationship. The sayings material indicates that such values may
stand in tension without a clear structure to order them. However, it also
suggests that an organization of values might be latent within its sayings,
as if they assume and partially indicate a network of ordered values.
Proverbs 1–9 organizes values by making comparative statements and by
presenting the goals of Proverbial education in a consistent and ordered
fashion, persuading the interpreter toward these goals and introducing the
necessary means to achieve them. Upon returning to 22.1, the question
remains as to how the educational vision of Proverbs 1–9 might function
didactically for 10–31.

3.1.3. The Function of Proverbs 1–9 for Proverbs 22.1

Proverbs 22.1 prompted two questions, one dealing with an overall
perspective on the material in Proverbs 10–29, which presents a plurality
of values that either lie in tension with each other or presume a system
of values that would organize them. The other question deals with a
particular, though related, issue in 22.1 – what sort of ‘name’ does it
have in mind, given the unqualified nature of ‫ ?ׁשם‬As argued above,
the lexeme ‫ ׁשם‬connotes neither a good nor a bad name, a neutrality not
resolved by appealing to the second line of the proverb to make the name
a ‘favourable’ one. The first interpretive challenge was approached from
two interrelated perspectives, that of value and that of ends (i.e. goals),

40. On the similar functions of Wisdom and the Lord, see section 4.2.
41. Wisdom, in this formula, subsumes the teaching of the father, which is at
times referred to as ‘wisdom’ (Fox, Proverbs 1–9, 359; Sæbø, Sprüche, 122, 125).
112 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

and at this point two interpreters will help develop these perspectives and
demonstrate the extent of the interpretive dilemma when Proverbs 10–29
is examined apart from 1–9.
Zoltan Schwab considers proverbs that compare values, such as 16.16,
and attempts to establish a hierarchy of ends based on material in Proverbs
10–29. He appeals to humility’s association with honour and other
comparative statements in the collection, as well as sayings in 16.16’s
nearby literary context.42 Backed by a detailed outline of the ‘results’
and ‘effects’ of wisdom throughout Proverbs, that is, the ends of wisdom
based on occurrences of ‫חכמה‬, Schwab concludes the following:

Therefore, at least part of the answer to the question regarding why good
human character is more valuable than riches is that which I have stated
above: because it leads to protection, honour, and riches… [T]his is not
often stated explicitly in these sentences, rather, it is conjectured by the
reader from the context of some of them. Would not we expect more
explicit praise of protection and honour in these sentences if their provision
is the only reason for a good character’s superiority to riches? There is an
intrinsic openness of formulation in these verses that invites more than one
interpretation.43

Such a point is quite plausible based on the generous connections that

Schwab sees in the text, though this does not resolve the issue at hand
about how Prov. 16.16 and 22.1 might relate. For when it comes to
wisdom, reputation, and the quality of this reputation, Proverbs 10–29
leaves interpretation in the realm of, in Schwab’s words, ‘conjecture’ and
implicit evidence. Widening the angle on Proverbs, Schwab accounts for
every effect of wisdom to find that ‘Proverbs does not offer an explicit,
systematic hierarchy of ends. However, it does provide a plurality of ends.
Furthermore, even if these ends are not ordered clearly and explicitly
into a strict hierarchy, there are certain hints in the text that point in the
direction of such a hierarchy’.44 The book of Proverbs exhibits a ‘plurality
of ends’ with no ‘explicit, systematic hierarchy’ to order them. The ‘hints’
in Proverbs of such a hierarchy entail Schwab’s previous remarks based
on a perusal of interrelations in Proverbs 10–29, which still obscure a

42. Zoltan Schwab, Toward an Interpretation of the Book of Proverbs: Selfishness

and Secularity Reconsidered, JTISup 3 (Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns, 2013), 125.
Stewart (Poetic Ethics, 126) does not explore the collections separately, but in view
of Proverbs’ motivating values – wealth, honour, protection and life – she assumes
that wisdom is ‘the highest reward’.
43. Schwab, Toward an Interpretation, 125.
44. Schwab, Toward an Interpretation, 158.
 3. Educational Goals 113

clear system of ends and only accentuate my initial interpretive question:

do goals remain in tension or are they organized? Close attention to
Proverbs 1–9, and not only a look at its use of ‫חכמה‬, reveals a consistent
and rhetorically hammered set of goals that, I contend, will offer insight
into the plurality of ends that populate Proverbs 10–29. Before attending
to this proposal, we need to consider the second perspective on our inter-
pretive challenge, which approaches the material not with language of
‘ends’ but with language of ‘value’.
Claus Westermann has also examined proverbs of value judgment (‘die
Sprüche der Wertung’) within Proverbs 10–29, and when interpreting
22.1 and 16.16 he distinguishes such sayings based on the status of the
value presented and how the interpreter ought to respond.45 According to
Westermann, proverbs like 22.1 do not express fixed advice; they provoke
the interpreter to contemplate his or her situation and determine what is
good and less good based on the saying’s value judgment. So ‘A name is
to be chosen rather than great riches, favour is better than silver and gold’
calls one to ponder over these values and discern how one of them or
another might be preferable in a certain situation. Proverbs like 16.16 (i.e.
20.15) present wisdom as an ‘abstraction’ that holds ‘objective value’.
In his words, ‘In den Sprüchen der Wertung ist die jeweils empfohlene
Entscheidung die weise, die klügere Entscheidung; in den nachgeahmten
Sprüchen ist die Weisheit ein abstrakter Begriff und zum objektivierten
Selbstwert geworden’.46 So ‘To acquire wisdom is much better than gold,
and to acquire understanding is to be chosen more than silver’ attributes
not circumstantial worth to wisdom and gold but an absolute amount
of value. I agree that value statements, like so many proverbs, prompt
the interpreter to contemplate action or attitude in his or her particular
situation, but I see no reason to view the value statements in Proverbs
as of two sorts, as if 16.16 means ‘better than’ in a way that differs from
the ‘better than’ of 22.1. Both make statements of comparative value,
and these two particular sayings leave interpreters with the indeterminate
values of ‘a name’ and ‘wisdom’.
Westermann denies that Proverbs offers a system of values to order
such a dilemma: the ‘vergleichendes Fragen unterscheidet sich grund-
legen von einer statischen Wertelehre, in der, was gut und was schlecht ist,
ein für allemal festgelegt wird’.47 Proverbs 10–29 does not, it seems, offer
a completely ordered system of values, and the values that it presents may

45. Claus Westermann, Wurzeln der Weisheit: die ältesten Sprüche Israels und
anderer Völker (Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1990), 83–8.
46. Westermann, Wurzeln, 86.
47. Westermann, Wurzeln, 86.
114 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

very well, as Westermann says, prompt a ‘constant weighing against each

other, about what was good and less good’, rather than a fixed hierarchy.48
However, once Proverbs 1–9 enters the picture, it transforms the interpre-
tation of 10–29 and its assortment of value judgments. Westermann, like
Schwab, makes valid conclusions based on an interpretation of Proverbs
that focuses on chapters 10–29, with little consideration of 1–9, fortifying
the interpretive challenge that has driven this chapter and pressuring
certain conclusions on the part of the interpreter. I would argue not that
Westermann and Schwab are wrong in their interpretations but rather that
these interpretations stem from a view that removes Proverbs 1–9 from
the picture. Once this missing element is relayed, it imposes a framework
on Proverbs 10–29 that offers interpretive insight into the challenges that
trouble both interpreters.
To summarize the point, Proverbs 1–9 lays out a consistent and clear
network of values by persuading the interpreter towards certain goals
and establishing the means by which those goals are accomplished. It
presents the father’s teaching and the fear of the Lord as means, to direct
the interpreter towards and successfully acquire Wisdom, who then facili-
tates growth in wise character. These elements undoubtedly interrelate,
and Proverbs 1–9 presents them in a poetic and highly rhetorical register
rather than in a formulaic account of values and ends. Nevertheless, an
order appears consistently and constructs a framework that coherently
organizes the apparently competing values of Proverbs 10–29.
According to Proverbs 1–9, wisdom is the greatest value and it helps
one to achieve the highest end of these opening chapters: to grow in wise
character.49 Thus, 16.16 firmly aligns with 1–9 when it states, ‘To acquire
wisdom is much better than gold, and to acquire understanding is to be
chosen more than silver’. Proverbs 1–9 affirms this (3.15; 8.10-11) but
it also gives a reason for such an admonition. For instead of acquiring
wisdom for its own sake or due to the many wicked reasons that inter-
preters might devise, which is quite possible based on 16.16 alone,
wisdom is acquired in order to grow in wise character, since wisdom and
character, both more valuable than precious metals, stand as the ultimate
goals of the Proverbial educational program. In the case of 16.16, the
program established in Proverbs 1–9 provides a hierarchy of ends and an
axiological organization.

48. Westermann, Wurzeln, 86. The community assessed values ‘dass man ständig
gegeneinander abwog, was gut und was weniger gut war’.
49. Character formation might be the highest value also, but it seems that wisdom
and character form an indissoluble union in Proverbs. See more below.
 3. Educational Goals 115

Proverbs 1–9 also addresses the question of interpreting 22.1 in light

of 16.16. Instead of the wisdom extolled by 16.16, Prov. 22.1 presents
‘a name’ as more choice-worthy than metals: ‘A name is to be chosen
rather than great riches, favour is better than silver and gold’. When 22.1
and 16.16 are collocated, this ‘name’ (‫)ׁשם‬, referring at least to fame or
reputation, stands next to wisdom in its value. What is ‘to be chosen’,
though, if the choice lies between reputation and wisdom? An inter-
preter familiar with Proverbs most likely points to wisdom instinctively,
asserting that ‘Proverbs would of course value wisdom above personal
fame or reputation’. But, I wonder, where does such an instinct come
from? It does not most plausibly come from Proverbs 10–29, which, as
seen throughout this chapter, generates more questions than answers about
its values. It is by viewing Proverbs 1–9 as an interpretive framework,
which presents goals and an organization of values with rhetorical force
and sufficient clarity, that the interpreter of 16.16 and 22.1 would, or
should, choose wisdom.
The choice of values seems unquestionable in light of Proverbs 1–9,
and yet the nature of the reputation mentioned in 22.1 remains at best
morally neutral, and its precise relation to wisdom, uncertain. Proverbs
1–9, however, does not simply frame the interpreter’s understanding of
values in 10–29, it also informs the understanding of the ‘name’ itself.
As argued at the outset of this chapter, 22.1 uses the lexeme ‫ׁשם‬, and
this lexeme does not inherently indicate a moral or value-related quality,
such as a ‘good name’, and at most connotes a name or reputation recog-
nized as honourable. However, such renown may arise from good or
bad reasons, like the 250 rebellious men who join Korah and yet have
a ‘name’ among the people (Num. 16.2). Bad acts, not just good, can
make someone famous. Otherwise, ‫ ׁשם‬is explicitly modified in biblical
Hebrew, in contrast to its absolute form in Prov. 22.1 (so Eccl. 7.1), and
the semantic question of 22.1 receives no further clarity from Proverbs
10–31. In contrast to the resources in 10–31, Proverbs 1–9 offers a clear
understanding of both the content and sources of ‘a name’ in 22.1.
Placed within the teleological structure of Proverbs 1–9, a name in the
book of Proverbs connotes a person’s character, and this name would not
include someone with a notoriously foolish character or wicked character,
even if such qualities proved that person famous or reputable. The name
endorsed by Proverbs 1–9 includes personal character developed by the
wisdom that stems from the authoritative teachers of Proverbs and a
relationship with the Lord, which indeed stands above the values of silver
and gold. In other words, when interpreted within the frame of Proverbs
1–9, Prov. 22.1 places value on a person’s wise character, acquired through
116 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

a religious and human-mediated education. This insight also explains why

a name and wisdom stand at similar places within the network of value
judgments created by 22.1 and 16.16. For they seem to be competitors, if
not equals, in terms of their worth. In the system of values and ends estab-
lished by Proverbs 1–9, a name and wisdom also stand on similar ground,
but their relationship is contextualized: wisdom begets wise character (i.e.
a ‘name’), which itself embodies that Wisdom who makes it possible.
Without wisdom, we can presume that one’s ‘name’ might be malformed
and if renowned then perhaps renowned for the wrong reasons. A fool,
for instance, could have a ‘name’, but Proverbs 1–9 indicates that one’s
name is not to be pursued by such unwise means. With wisdom comes
a good reputation, and this good reputation stems from one’s wisdom-
infused character. Again, Prov. 22.1 may intend to promote any sort and
source of fame over precious metals, but when placed in view of Proverbs
1–9 – the proposed introduction to the book – an alternative interpretation
arises. Proverbs 1–9 functions didactically for 10–29 by formulating a
structured set of values and persuading towards a particular sequence of
goals, which have offered insight into certain interpretive challenges of
Prov. 22.1 and related sayings. The final example of this section moves
beyond the bounds of Prov. 10.1–22.16 into Proverbs 30 to see if Proverbs
1–9 functions didactically for the words of Agur.50

3.1.4. Proverbs 30
The final example of Proverbial goals turns attention away from competing
values and visions and towards the very question of a goal itself. Proverbs
30.1-9 is examined due to its particular interpretive challenge, as it
expresses an epistemological dilemma: Agur says he has no knowledge.
However, the passage seems to lack a context within which to explain
why Agur’s problem is a problem. Why does his lack of knowledge vex
him so greatly? Before pressing further into 30.1-9, a word should be
said about the nature of Proverbs 30–31 as a whole and its relation to
the approach taken so far. These final chapters do not contain as many
assumptions as Prov. 10.1–22.16 or, in my judgement, as 22.17–29.27
and are comprised of longer, more coherent poems. In this way 30–31
resembles Proverbs 1–9 and provides, rather than assumes, much of its
own interpretive context. For example, 31.1-9 depicts a mother speaking
to her royal son, maintaining a case for how he should rule his people.
The familial and royal contexts are established, as are the audience and
solution that the king must address. In this way, 31.1-9 provides much

50. For a discussion of Prov. 22.17–29.27 see section 4.2.5.

 3. Educational Goals 117

more of a framework for interpreting its particular statements than do the

sayings contained within Proverbs 10–29.51 But even though the poetic
form of Proverbs 30–31 eliminates many hermeneutical challenges, it
does not clarify every interpretive issue that arises within these chapters.

3.1.4.1. The Epistemological Problem in Proverbs 30.1-9

One such challenge appears in Prov. 30.1-9, a passage that contains
‘the words of Agur son of Yakeh’. These words form part of a chapter
that includes an opening confession and dictum (30.1-9), an assortment
of instructions (30.10-17, 20) and numerical sayings (30.18-19, 21-33),
all cohered by the concepts of pride and humility.52 The chapter starts
with the confession of Agur (vv. 1–9), which poses special challenges for
translation and interpretation. One such challenge especially demonstrates
the role of Proverbs 1–9, namely, the question of why does Agur have a
problem?
He says the following:

‫דברי אגור בן־יקה המשׂא‬ 30.1 The words of Agur, son of Yakeh; the oracle.53
‫נאם הגבר לאיתיאל‬ The utterance of the man: I am weary, O God;54
‫לאיתיאל ואכל‬ I am weary, O God, and wasted away.
‫כי בער אנכי מאישׁ‬ 30.2 For I am too brutish for a man;
‫ולא־בינת אדם לי‬ and I do not have the understanding of a man;
‫ולא־למדתי חכמה‬ 30.3 And I have not learned wisdom,
‫ודעת קדשׁים אדע‬ and knowledge of the Holy One I do not
know.55

51. Similarly, given the uncertain diachronic relationship between 1–9 and 30–31,
they will be treated as simultaneous additions to Proverbs 10–29 and read, more or
less, in a synchronic relationship. On this, see Chapter 1.
52. For the many views on how to structure Proverbs 30, see Fox, Proverbs
10–31, 851; Ansberry, Be Wise, 163–4.
53. ‫ המׂשא‬may refer to ‘the Massahite’ but would be its only occurrence. For
‘Lemuel, king of Massah [‫ ’]למואל מלך מׂשא‬in Prov. 31.1, the term modifies ‘king’
and lacks the article. To render ‘the Massahite’ in 30.1, we expect ‫ המׂשאי‬or ‫ממׂשא‬,
and ‘oracle’, widely attested elsewhere, suits the reference to the ‘words’ of Agur and
the ‫ נאם‬of 30.2.
54. For the ‘utterance’, see Num. 24.3, 15; 2 Sam. 23.1. The oddity of a repeated
‘to Ithiel’, and the clause starting with ‫ כי‬in v. 2 (Delitzsch, Proverbs, 2:269), which
supposes a prior statement, favours the majority interpretation presented above. The
meaning of ‫ ֻא ָכל‬is unknown, and revocalizing it as a form of ‫ כלה‬renders a sensible
translation, hence the LXX’s καὶ παύομαι (see Fox, Proverbs 10–31, 850, 853–4).
55. See the explanation below.
118 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

‫מי עלה־שׁמים וירד‬ 30.4 Who has gone up to heaven and come down?
‫מי אסף־רוח בחפניו‬ Who has gathered the wind in his fists?
‫מי צרר־מים בשׂמלה‬ Who has wrapped the waters in a garment?
‫מי הקים כל־אפסי־ארץ‬ Who has established all the ends of the earth?
‫מה־שׁמו ומה־שׁם־בנו‬ What is his name, and what is the name of his
son?
‫כי תדע‬ 30.5 Surely, you know!
‫כל־אמרת אלוה צרופה‬ Every word of God is refined;
‫מגן הוא לחסים בו‬ he is a shield to those who seek refuge in him.
‫אל־תוסף על־דבריו‬ 30.6 Do not add to his words,
‫פן־יוכיח בך ונכזבת‬ lest he reprove you and you be proven a liar.

After Agur bemoans his lack of knowledge and energy (vv. 1-3), he attests
to the otherness of God and the strength of God’s words: ‘Who has gone
up to heaven and come down?…. Every word of God is refined; he is a
shield to those who seek refuge in him’ (vv. 4a, 5). While the puzzlement
and theology of 30.4-9 may accentuate the epistemological problem stated
in 30.1b-3 or formulate its solution, Agur is nevertheless weary, brutish,
and ignorant, and one question remains unanswered. As one commentator
put it: ‘Why this complaint?’56 The negative statements of Agur, his weari-
ness, lack of understanding, and failure to learn wisdom offer no assertion
about why Agur’s problem is a problem. He clearly has one, if not many,
but does not situate it within a context that explicates his justification for
having such a deep-seated lament. According to André Barucq,

Il n’est pas aisé de rattacher logiquement ce passage au début des ‘paroles

des sages’…. Ces diverses péricopes font l’effet d’extraits ayant appartenu
à un ensemble plus vaste. On les aurait juxtaposés comme en une anthologie
sans prendre soin d’en recréer le contexte.57

Barucq questions not only the context of Agur’s words, he questions

how other portions of Proverbs might recreate the context and doubts
that they have done so. The significance and difficulty of my question is
revealed by the efforts of many interpreters to situate the passage within
a background other than Proverbs.
Interpreters offer, deliberately or accidentally, an answer to the ques-
tion of Agur’s problem in one of three ways. First, many explain the
significance of this passage by appealing to links with other OT texts,
such as Raymond Van Leeuwen who says, ‘Reference to other passages
of Scripture is an essential feature of this passage, and these allusions

56. Delitzsch, Proverbs, 2:272.

57. André Barucq, Le Livre des Proverbes (Paris: J. Gabalda, 1964), 221.
 3. Educational Goals 119

and quotations have a deliberate theological and canonical function’.58

Such intertextual links do provide insights into the interpretation of Prov.
30.1-9 but not, I will argue, for one of the primary questions raised by
the passage, namely, why does Agur have a problem? Job 38–39 contains
many connections with the questions posed in Prov. 30.4, but Job does
not simply want knowledge, as it seems Agur does; he wants vindication
before God.59 For instance, in addition to the context of the whole book
of Job, the remarks in Job 40.2, 7b-8 show that Job desires to be in the
right rather than, primarily, to find knowledge and wisdom. According to
the Lord,

Shall a fault-finder dispute with the Almighty?

He who reproves God, he shall answer it…
I will question you and you make it known to me.
Will you even frustrate my judgment?
Will you condemn me that you might be in the right?

The problem that vexes Job stems in part from a lack of knowledge
but primarily from the way that he has been treated in light of his prior
character and actions. Job pleads for a hearing with God to vindicate
his integrity, which leads to humility, whereas Agur admits failure, finds
confidence in God’s supremacy, and maintains a humble attitude.
The questions in Prov. 30.4 appear elsewhere in the OT and other
ancient Near Eastern literature, attesting to what Van Leeuwen sees as
three ‘topoi’ of such texts.60 One pertains to the extension of stature and

58. Van Leeuwen, ‘Proverbs’, 251. See also Rick D. Moore, ‘A Home for the
Alien: Worldly Wisdom and Covenantal Confession in Proverbs 30,1-9’, ZAW 106
(1994): 96–107. His comments on page 104 begin to account for Proverbs 1–9.
Outside of the biblical evidence, Insinger concludes with declarations of piety (35.2-
12; AEL 3:213).
59. Cf. Barucq, Proverbes, 219. In support of the claims in this paragraph: Job
defends his innocence (6.8-10, 24-25, 30; 9.21-24; 16.17; 23.11-12; 27.5-6), rebukes
his friends (13.4-12; 16.2-4; 17.10; 21.7, 34), rages at God (7.17-21; 9.16) and
demands a trial with the Lord (13.1-3; 19.25-27; 31.35-37). I am not saying that a
‘courtroom narrative’ controls the entire book of Job, but Job does perceive his prob-
lem within a largely legal framework (cf. Tremper Longman III, Job [Grand Rapids:
Baker Academic, 2012], 34–7; Michael Dick, ‘The Legal Metaphor in Job 31’, CBQ
41 [1979]: 37–50).
60. Raymond C. Van Leeuwen, ‘The Background to Proverbs 30.4aα’, in Wisdom,
You Are My Sister: Studies in Honor of Roland E. Murphy, O.Carm., on the Occasion
of His Eightieth Birthday, ed. Michael L. Barré, CBQMS 29 (Washington, DC:
Catholic Biblical Association of America, 1997), 102–21.
120 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

grasp, especially a god’s; another depicts a hero ascending to heaven and

descending to earth or the underworld; and the final, the most relevant to my
question, regards ‘the cosmic scope of the god’s investigative knowledge,
in contrast to other gods or humans who lack such knowledge’.61 This
third topos includes exclusively biblical and apocryphal evidence, notably
Job 11 and 28, while no Mesopotamian or Egyptian texts are put forward.
The pertinent evidence would suggest that Agur’s problem is a problem
because he strove for the ‘investigative knowledge’ of God and has failed
to attain it. Job 11.7, for example, asks ‘Will you find the searches of God?
Will you find unto the end of Shaddai?’ While questioning the extent of
human epistemological capacities, the passage specifies the ‘deep things’
(ESV) or ‘searches’ (‫ )חקר‬of God himself, and verse 6 mentions the
‘secrets of wisdom’, making it likely that the puzzlement in Job 11 regards
not the ‘wisdom’ and ‘understanding’ that Agur lacks but something of a
different quality.62
Job 28 also contributes, according to Van Leeuwen, to the background
to Prov. 30.4, and, as a well-known chapter in the book of Job, recounts
the poetically exalted search for wisdom: ‘where can it be found?’ But
Job 28 does not so much express the extent of God’s wisdom and the lack
of man’s as it does the thirst for God’s wisdom and a human definition of
it. The author wonders about wisdom’s source: ‘but where shall wisdom
be found? And where, then, is the place of understanding?…. God under-
stands its way, and he knows its place’ (28.12, 23). The author does not
bemoan the inaccessibility of wisdom or the challenge of acquiring it.
After all, he concludes with a definition of wisdom, with no suggestion
about its remoteness: ‘Behold, the fear of Adonai, that is wisdom, and
to turn from evil is understanding’ (28.28b-c). It is possible that Agur’s
problem arose due to his failure to find the source of wisdom, as if a
successful quest would have manifested in a confession similar to Job
28, but I hope to show that another explanation is more plausible. While
Agur and the book of Job state profound questions about wisdom, both
human and divine, the connections between these texts do not furnish
Prov. 30.1-9 with a background that explains one of its key assumptions.

61. Van Leeuwen, ‘Background’, 107–8 (italics original).

62. See, among others, Friedrich Horst, Hiob, BKAT 16/1 (Neukirchen-Vluyn:
Neukirchener Verlag, 1968), 169–70. Job 11.7-11 more closely aligns with Psalm
139, which expresses not the absence of human wisdom but the supremacy and
inaccessibility of God’s complete wisdom (for this intertextual relationship, see Will
Kynes, My Psalm Has Turned into Weeping: Job’s Dialogue with the Psalms, BZAW
437 [Berlin: de Gruyter, 2012], 112–15).
 3. Educational Goals 121

The pleas for knowledge and the recognition of God’s word and refuge
in Psalms 73, 92, and 139 are also forwarded to explain Agur’s cry. Yet
the psalmist’s remarks too arise from problems that do not cohere with
Agur’s situation: vindication before accusers (Ps. 139.19-24), salvation
from enemies (Ps. 92), and the psalmist’s envy of the wicked (Ps. 73).63 To
Job and Psalms, Van Leeuwen adds Deuteronomy: ‘the specific focus of
Agur’s ignorance appears to be his failure to learn the wisdom that Moses
taught to Israel (Deut. 4.1, 6) and for which one does not need to ascend
to heaven (Deut. 30.11-14)’.64 With Deuteronomy as a third and final OT
background for Prov. 30.1-9, Van Leeuwen suggests that the link of law
and wisdom in Deut. 4.1, 6, and the geographical references in 30.11-14
and Prov. 30.4, cloak Prov. 30.1-9 with a framework of law-keeping that
then explains Agur’s problem as his failure to obey the Mosaic law. In
short, Van Leeuwen sees a coherent relationship between Deuteronomy
and Prov. 30.1-9. This Deuteronomic framework is also championed by
Bernd Schipper, but instead of placing Prov. 30.1-9 in a coherent relation
to Deuteronomy, he sees Agur’s lament as denying what Deuteronomy
so confidently proclaims.65 In its allusion, Prov. 30.1-9 recognizes the
existence of an ‘authoritative tradition’ in Mosaic torah yet claims that
such a tradition cannot be grasped by human wisdom and, moreover,
‘geht nicht davon aus, dass die göttliche Weisheit vermittelt werden
kann’.66 The ‘canon-formula’ in Prov. 30.6, according to Schipper, places
Agur at odds with the Deuteronomic view of human wisdom, opposing
any torah interpretation and mediation from one generation to the next.
Consequently, the common intertextual connections that Van Leeuwen
and Schipper appeal to render alternative interpretations of Prov. 30.1-9,
to which other conflicting versions of biblical echoes could be added.67
To reconcile the Joban and Deuteronomic interpretations of Prov. 30.1-9,
it would need to be shown that Job’s answer about the source and nature
of wisdom also incorporated torah and that Deuteronomy reciprocated
by connecting wisdom and torah in this way. While these interpreta-
tions are not out of the question, there is one overlooked, and perhaps
simpler, direction of argumentation, namely, bringing Proverbs 1–9 into
consideration.

63. See, e.g., Fox, Proverbs 10–31, 854, 862; Van Leeuwen, ‘Proverbs’, 252.
64. Van Leeuwen, ‘Proverbs’, 252. Sæbø (Sprüche, 366) mentions Deut. 8.12-14.
65. Schipper, Hermeneutik, 250–5.
66. Schipper, Hermeneutik, 256.
67. See Ansberry, Be Wise, 163–9, among others.
122 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

Interpretations of Prov. 30.1-9 are as manifold as the inner-biblical

and extra-biblical allusions that appear in the text, which make it difficult
to determine the design of the textual allusions and how they relate.
Certainly, law, covenantal themes, and other perspectives on wisdom con-
gregate in Prov. 30.1-9, and my aim is neither to refute these nor to offer a
comprehensive account of how they might inform Agur’s message. Many
current treatments of these intertexts, however, seem to champion one
element over another, run counter to each other, and offer little grounds
for how allusions ought to be established and interpreted within Proverbs.
The legal, Deuteronomic interpretation seems the most plausible candi-
date for offering a framework to answer the interpretive challenge of Prov.
30.1-9 – why is Agur’s problem a problem? – but it has not done justice to
the connections of this passage with other portions of Proverbs.
It should be said, though, that Schipper does not completely side-line
inner-Proverbial allusions in preference for inner-biblical allusions, for he
identifies linguistic connections in Prov. 30.2-3, 5b and 2.1-7. Proverbs
2.1-5 calls for ‘understanding’ (‫ )בינה‬and turns an ear to ‘wisdom’ (‫)חכמה‬
to find the fear of the Lord and knowledge of God. The search for wisdom
leads to a relationship with the Lord, and such aims are promised in Prov.
2.1-5. In 30.2b-3a, Agur denies these very concepts: ‘I do not have the
understanding (‫ )בינה‬of a man; And I have not learned wisdom (‫’)חכמה‬.
Schipper says this language ‘wirkt fast wie eine Anspielung auf Prov.
2,1-5’ and concludes that 30.2-3 denies what 2.1-5 promises.68 Likewise,
the likening of God to a ‘shield’ in 2.7 is transformed in 30.5b, as such
protection comes, in the former (2.7), to those who adhere as upright
human beings to the wisdom doctrine and, in the latter (30.5b), to those
who subordinate themselves to God’s word ‘unter Negierung der eigenen
Erkenntnis’.69 Agur’s words counter the optimism of Proverbs 2, negating
and denying the very things that it promises, and ultimately, according
to Schipper, displaying the ‘bankruptcy of wisdom’ in favour of the
eminence of torah.
Schipper’s interpretation accounts for Proverbs 2, which creates a
framework for understanding Agur’s comments and dovetails with Agur’s
concerns about wisdom and law. In summary, Agur negates the optimistic
assertions of 2.1-7 and favours divine law over human wisdom. The
question of why his problem is a problem, though, receives only an implicit
answer: perhaps he found wisdom insufficient for life and found a solution
in God’s law. Furthermore, the connections with Proverbs 1–9 warrant an

68. Schipper, Hermeneutik, 251.

69. Schipper, Hermeneutik, 283.
 3. Educational Goals 123

additional look. The cluster of lexemes in Prov. 30.2b-3 – ‫בינה‬, ‫חכמה‬, ‫– דעת‬
occurs elsewhere in the OT only in Prov. 2.6 and 3.19-20 (both ‫)תבונה‬,
and Isa. 11.2 (cf. Dan. 1.4; 2.21), yet the lexical items or their roots also
appear in Prov. 1.2-7, especially in 1.2, which inaugurates the stated goals
of Proverbs: ‫לדעת חכמה ומוסר להבין אמרי בינה‬. These lexemes, therefore,
relate 30.2b-3 not only with Proverbs 2 but also with 1.1-7, a passage that,
I contend, offers a key interpretive context for Agur’s dilemma. According
to Prov. 1.2, acquiring knowledge, wisdom and understanding constitutes
the aim of Proverbs, an aim that I spelled out in more detail earlier in this
chapter and established as consistent with Proverbs 2, namely, through the
text’s teachings and with the fear of the Lord, love and pursue wisdom in
order to grow in wise character. Functioning didactically, Proverbs 1–9 as
a whole offers this larger framework within which to view Agur’s claims
and gives a firm sense for why his problem is a problem. It is not that
human wisdom has gone bankrupt but that Agur himself has struggled
with the aims set out in Proverbs 1–9. He does not deny these aims; he
confesses his inability to fully realize them. ‘I am weary, O God, and
wasted away. For I am too brutish for a man; and I do not have the under-
standing of a man; And I have not learned wisdom.’ Agur’s lament makes
sense within the framework of goals in Proverbs 1–9, as he does not
bemoan a failure to understand as such but bemoans a failure to achieve
the book’s aims. Agur confronts his stupidity, a problem that is a problem
because it leaves the educational vision of Proverbs unaccomplished.

3.1.4.2. The Grammatical Problem in Proverbs 30.1-9

The function of Proverbs 1–9 is further demonstrated when we consider
a related interpretive challenge of 30.1-9, this time a grammatical detail
in verse 3:

‫ולא־למדתי חכמה ודעת קדשׁים אדע‬

The interpretive question here is how to translate the second colon

(‫)ודעת קדשׁים אדע‬. This colon (v. 3b) forms part of an explanation, started
by ‫ כי‬in verse 2 and continued in verse 3a with a waw. Consequently,
Agur says, ‘[v. 2] For I am too brutish for a man, and I do not have the
understanding of a man; [v. 3a] and I have not learned wisdom’. These
statements are followed by the line in question: ‫ודעת קדשׁים אדע‬, which
as it stands seems to read, ‘and I know knowledge of the Holy One’.
The sequence of ‘do nots’ that precede this statement – ‘I do not have
the understanding of a man, and I have not learned wisdom’ – makes a
negative in the final line plausible: ‘[v. 3b] and I [do not] know knowledge
of the Holy One’. Negating the verb suits the grammatical context and
124 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

flow of thought in 30.1-4, also corresponding to the acknowledgment

that concludes 30.4 in response to the verse’s series of questions: ‘Surely
you know’. This choice finds further support in clear examples where a
negative particle in the initial line governs an unmarked second line (Isa.
38.18; Pss 9.19[18]; 35.19).70
The viable alternative to negating 30.3b by grammatical subordination
is to subordinate it semantically, interpreting the line as expressing the
intention of verse 3a: ‘I have not learned wisdom that I may know knowl-
edge of the Holy One’.71 Lamentations 1.19 uses a similar construction
to express such a meaning, and nothing in Prov. 30.1-9 opposes it. At the
same time, nothing in 30.1-9 facilitates a confident conclusion about the
interpretation of 30.3b, which when left on its own or when left to gram-
matical analogues in biblical Hebrew offers three plausible interpretations:

I have not learned wisdom but I know knowledge of the Holy One.
I have not learned wisdom so that I might know knowledge of the Holy One.
I have not learned wisdom and I do not know knowledge of the Holy One.

The cluster of lexemes just noted and the inclusion of ‘knowledge of the
Holy One’ provide firm grounds for consulting Proverbs 1–9 in order to
answer this grammatical question. Proverbs 9.10b itself, which uses this
phrase – ‘knowledge of the Holy One’ – offers a little clarity on the issue,
asserting that ‘knowledge of the Holy One is insight’ (‫)ודעת קדשׁים בינה‬.
This statement equates knowledge of God with insight to suggest that
Prov. 30.2-3 would treat them as equals. As I argued earlier, Collection I
as a whole indicates that no true wisdom or instruction is had without the
fear of the Lord, a relationship with the Lord, even if not further specified,
that starts and maintains growth in wisdom. Therefore, unless ‘knowledge
of the Holy One’ refers to a special sort of knowledge, in distinction to the
fear of the Lord, the second interpretation proposed – ‘I have not learned
wisdom that I may have knowledge of the Holy One’ – becomes problem-
atic.72 For it implies that wisdom begets knowledge of God, rather than,
in harmony with Proverbs 1–9, the knowledge of God being the starting
point of wisdom, and thereby in some way begetting it. Agur may negate
his wisdom and affirm his knowledge of God; yet Proverbs 1–9 gives no
reason to think that such a situation is possible.

70. So Fox, Proverbs 10–31, 854–5.

71. Delitzsch, Proverbs, 2:273; Plöger, Sprüche, 351.
72. Fox (Proverbs 10–31, 855–6) sees the wisdom of Prov. 30.3 as different from
the wisdom of Proverbs 2, but based on the grammar itself rather than the other way
around.
 3. Educational Goals 125

If Agur does affirm knowledge of God, he does not, in the view of

Proverbs 2, proclaim the bankruptcy of wisdom or the power of torah.
Instead, such a theological affirmation within the context of 30.1-9 would
imply a failure on God’s part; for in Proverbs 2 those who search for
wisdom receive it from God, who, as its source, gives wisdom to those
who desire it. Agur’s denial of wisdom coupled with a knowledge of God
would mean that God himself has failed to proffer what Proverbs 1–9,
not to mention 10–29, promises he will. However, this scenario, that is,
a denial of wisdom and an affirmation of God who then fails to deliver
wisdom, is inconsistent with the rest of Agur’s remarks. For Agur, in his
very confession of ignorance, reflects the posture of wisdom depicted in
Proverbs 1–9, where the depths of ignorance are admitted only by those
not ‘wise in their own eyes’ (3.5-7).73 Such people trust not in their own
‘wisdom’ or insight but in the Lord, who himself provides wisdom to the
humble and straightens their paths. As to the place of God in wisdom
education, 30.5 seems to make his protective role contingent upon subor-
dination to his words: ‘Every word of God is refined; he is a shield to
those who seek refuge in him’. To cohere with Proverbs 1–9, these words
of God need an analogue therein, and what are the words of the Proverbial
father and Wisdom herself in 1–9 if not the words of God? Schipper
himself says ‘die Lehre des Weisheitslehrers in Prov 2 eng mit der Lehre
JHWHs verknüpft ist. Die Weisheit, die er mitteilt, ist letztlich die Gabe
JHWHs’.74 Neither the nature of Agur’s confession nor his theological
point of view obstructs a connection between his poem and Proverbs 1–9.
Based on the rest of Agur’s words and theological statements in Proverbs
1–9, it seems that Agur struggles with attaining wisdom but does not
declare it bankrupt. All of this is driving towards the grammatical question
in 30.3.
The first option for translating 30.3 – affirming a knowledge of God
without wisdom – produces theological incoherence between Proverbs
1–9 and 30.1-9. The second option relates wisdom as a necessary condi-
tion for knowledge of God – ‘I do not have the understanding of a man so
that I might know knowledge of the Holy One’ – which offers a possible
interpretation but again finds discord with the rest of 30.1-9, its reflection
of knowledge of God, and the rest of Proverbs. When Proverbs 1–9
interjects as an interpretive framework, it places option three as the most
likely interpretation: I do not have the understanding of a man and I do
not know knowledge of the Holy One. Agur’s wholesale denial of wisdom

73. Longman, Proverbs, 520–1.

74. Schipper, Hermeneutik, 71.
126 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

and knowledge of God reflects a failure of the educational goals outlined

by Proverbs 1–9, remains consistent in how it relates those goals, and
also receives grammatical support from other biblical passages. Negating
the verb in 30.3b, then, seems the most plausible interpretation: ‘I do not
know knowledge of the Holy One’.75
Can this statement, though, really be understood as an absolute denial
of wisdom and the knowledge of God? Such denial does not accord with
30.5-9 and all of its theological affirmations, but neither does it accord with
30.1-4 itself. For 30.1b-c addresses God with an expression of weariness:
‘I am weary, O God; I am weary, O God, and wasted away’. Consequently,
many view the subsequent denials in verses 2-3 as hyperbolic statements
borne of Agur’s desperate state.76 I would add that such desperate calls
find a place in the framework of Proverbs 1–9, which indicates the goals
of wisdom, the way of wisdom, and the challenges entailed in heading its
direction, which reasonably warrant an outburst like Agur’s. Expecting
wisdom and striving for understanding, he cries out in exhaustion of
what appears to be a failed education. He is weary; he is brutish; and, in
his view, he has no understanding. Agur’s lament and his confidence in
30.1-9 accord with the framework of goals set out in Proverbs 1–9, which
functions didactically by providing a plausible context to explain why
Agur’s problem is a problem and shed a bit of light on a grammatical issue
in 30.3b. With this interpretation, I do not mean to silence the intertextual
appeals made by many scholars or to assert the grammatical solution to
30.3b as irrevocable. However, Proverbs 1–9 does offer a cogent account
of 30.1-9 and establishes a coherent relationship between both passages,
perhaps lending some credibility to the idea that Proverbs 1–9 and 30–31
frame the book in a way significant for its meaning.

3.1.5. Conclusion
Having arrived at the end of this chapter’s first section, we ought to take
stock of where the argument has come so far. The chapter started by
observing the plurality of ends in Proverbs 10–29 and offering two expla-
nations about their relationship. The ends, or values, seem to remain in
tension when viewed within Proverbs 10–29 alone, but they also prompt

75. Whichever option is selected must reason with the apparent discord between
30.1-4 and 30.5-9, which laments a lack of knowledge and, in my view, knowledge
of God (vv. 1-4), and joins this with quite certain points of understanding and
relationship with the Lord (vv. 5-9).
76. Hans-Friedemann Richter, ‘Hielt Agur sich für den Dümmsten aller Menschen?
(Zu Prov 30,1-4)’, ZAW 113 (2001): 419–21; Van Leeuwen, ‘Proverbs’, 252.
 3. Educational Goals 127

the question as to whether an organization of values is latent within

Proverbs. Posing the question of what end or ends Proverbs 1–9 persuades
toward, I argued that 1–9 guides the interpreter towards particular goals
that correlate to its vision of values. It establishes such guidance in
Proverbs 7–8, which contrasts Folly and Wisdom to advocate friendship
with the latter and avoidance of the former. These chapters likewise
establish a preliminary educational program: the father’s teaching operates
as the educational starting point that directs the interpreter to wisdom who
then facilitates growth in wise character. Proverbs 2 presents the most
probable objection to this system, especially given its reputation as a
‘Lehrprogramm’ for Proverbs 1–9.
Developed most recently by Bernd Schipper, work on the educational
plan of Proverbs 1–9 draws attention to the goals of Proverbs 2 and
the means that accomplish these goals, on the one hand affirming the
conclusion derived from Proverbs 7–8, such as the role of the father’s
teaching and the aims of wisdom and wise character, yet on the other
hand presenting a potential alternative to the system established so far.
Schipper sees Prov. 2.21-22 as the ultimate goal of Proverbs 2 – that is,
to dwell in the land – a proposal that I argue against on grammatical,
conceptual, and literary grounds, maintaining my original educational
program. However, Proverbs 2 supplements this educational paradigm by
interpolating the Lord into the values and goals of Proverbial education.
The Lord now joins the father’s instruction as the starting point of wisdom
and the companion who aids in the realization of the ultimate goal of wise
character.
This framework of ends and values offered interpretive insight for
Proverbs 10–29, providing an ordered set of ends that structures the appar-
ently unordered values of 16.16 and 22.1 – wisdom and fame/reputation
(‫ – )ׁשם‬and offering a teleological scheme with which to interpret ‘a name’
in 22.1. In view of 1–9, this name refers to the reputation built by wise
character, which is comprised of wisdom and its foundation of Proverbial
teaching and a relationship with the Lord. Proverbs 1–9 does not deny
other methods of interpreting sayings like 22.1, but when accounted for,
it does impose a framework of ends and values that, I suggest, provides
insight into the interpretive challenges of Proverbs 10–29. Proverbs
30.1-9 also provoked an interpretive challenge derived from the lament
of Agur who bemoans his lack of wisdom and then affirms the centrality
of a relationship with God, leaving the question of why Agur’s problem
is a problem unaddressed. Intertextual appeals to Job, Psalms and
Deuteronomy do not furnish an answer to this question with as much
consistency as the book of Proverbs itself, especially Proverbs 1–9. This
128 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

‘introduction’ again functions didactically by providing a framework that

explains why Agur’s problem is a problem, setting it within a network of
educational goals, and offering insight into a grammatical issue in Prov.
30.3. Despite its interpretive fruit and broad scope, this section on the
rhetorical aims of Proverbs does not account for every educational goal
in Proverbs 1–9. To discover this, Proverbs must be approached from
an entryway other than 10.1–22.16, and to this the following section is
dedicated.

3.2. Discerning Moral Ambiguity

The first half of this chapter explored the, at times disparate, aims and
values of Proverbs 10.1–22.16 to discover that Proverbs 1–9 outlines
persuasive educational goals, creating a structure of values and a hierarchy
of ends that organize the features in 10–29. The scheme produced by
Proverbs 1–9 can be summarized as follows: through the father’s teaching
and fear of the Lord embrace wisdom in order to grow in wise character.
This educational framework derives from Proverbs 2 and 7–8, chapters
that contain the collection’s ‘Lehrprogramm’ and contrasting female
figures, which offered interpretive insight for 16.16 and 22.1. It developed
out of this study’s primary starting point, namely, the interpretive chal-
lenges of 10.1–22.16 which then determined the interpretive questions to
be brought to Proverbs 1–9. As indicated in Chapter 1, this method does
not distort the text, but it does run the risk of overlooking the most salient
features of Proverbs 1–9. For instance, while Proverbs 7–8 clearly presents
a contrasting pair of persuasive female figures to organize the values and
ends of Proverbs, these figures, when read apart from 16.16 and 22.1,
might also serve other purposes. Taken on their own account, the females
might have a more significant or at least equally important role.
The present section of this chapter considers just such an alternative
function by starting not with Prov. 10.1–22.16 but instead with Proverbs
1–9. When interpreted independently of the rest of Proverbs, what do the
book’s first nine chapters emphasize? How do the women, in particular,
function within 1–9 when examined on their own terms and without the
interpretive priorities of 10.1–22.16? I will argue that they still inform the
educational goals of Proverbs but that they do so in a way overlooked by
the previous section. That is, the women maintain their rhetorical potency
but employ it for reasons yet unaccounted for. Accounting for this alter-
native entry point – Proverbs 1–9 – by extracting its additional rhetorical
features fortifies my argument, setting it more firmly on exegetical ground
and within scholarly discussion on Proverbs.
 3. Educational Goals 129

This section, however, does not remain within Proverbs 1–9. Those
chapters serve as a starting point that leads to 10.1–22.16. In short,
the emphases of Proverbs 1–9 will prompt questions about material in
10.1–22.16 that have so far been overlooked. Proverbs 1–9 itself deter-
mines how it might function as an introduction by prompting interpretive
priorities that disclose interpretive challenges in 10.1–22.16. The inter-
pretive priorities of 1–9 come to the fore in an article by J. N. Aletti, who
in 1977 argued that the presentation of speech in Proverbs 1–9, especially
the words of the women, functions to persuade the interpreter towards a
certain outlook on morality.77 Aletti’s article on 1–9 will be unpacked to
expose two proverbs from 10.1–22.16 that are then examined to demon-
strate the function of Proverbs 1–9 (14.12; 18.8).

3.2.1. Moral Ambiguity in Proverbs 1–9

Treating a generous scope of material in Proverbs 1–9, Aletti’s primary
contention is that the seduction portrayed in these chapters poses a threat
to the simpleton, and that this seduction comes not by means of certain
objects, like financial reward, or by the seductive beings themselves, such
as the temptress, but rather through the actual words of seduction. That
is, it is the words themselves that seduce. Aletti focuses on three features,
the first being the linguistic chaos that ensues, especially in 1.22-33. The
chaos is evident due to the selection of lexemes in the passage, its tone
of urgency, and the multiple substantives that connote panic (e.g. ‫;פחד‬
‫)איד‬. Second, he concentrates on the means of seducing the simpleton or
youth in 1–9 and, third, on the solution to this seduction, that is, the means
by which one might avoid the fate of the simpleton. Seduction targets
the simpleton or youth of Proverbs 1–9, and as mentioned Aletti argues
that it is not the objects or the beings themselves that seduce, it is rather
the words spoken. For example, evil characters and good characters use
similar words to persuade their audiences.78 The gang of Proverbs 1 tempts
the boy with promises that ‘we shall fill (‫ )נמלא‬our houses with plunder’
(1.13), while Wisdom promises to fill (‫ )מלא‬the treasuries of those who
love her (8.21). The proverbial father says that a man should ‘always
be intoxicated in her love (‫( ’)באהבתה‬5.19), that is, the love of one’s
wife, while the temptress declares to the youth: ‘let us delight ourselves
with love (‫( ’)באהבים‬7.18). Lastly, the invitations of Wisdom and Folly
in Proverbs 9 include identical phrasing, as both 9.4 and 9.16 state,

77. Aletti, ‘Seduction’. On the significance of this article for the present study, see
the discussion in Chapter 1.
78. Aletti, ‘Seduction’, 133.
130 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

‘Whoever is simple, let him turn here. To the one who lacks sense, she
says….’ In each case, a good and an evil tempter use the same language
to persuade their audiences. Gangs and Wisdom promise to fill treasuries;
a wife and an illicit temptress say they can delight a man with love; and
the figures of Wisdom and Folly announce an identical invitation to dine
with them. Aletti rightly concludes that in many respects the speakers of
Proverbs 1–9 use the same means of temptation: words.
The fact that they use not only words but the same words in different
and similar situations leads to Aletti’s second insight: the solution to
seduction. In the last section, two layers of discourse were distinguished
in Proverbs 7: on the one hand the reader encounters a story about a
youth and his temptation, and on the other hand encounters the father’s
commentary on this story. The previous section focused on the latter, the
father’s commentary, but Aletti accounts for both, especially the narrated
scenario itself. The boy in Proverbs 7 is seduced by the temptress (7.21-
23), listening to her words and spiralling to death, apparently unaware of
her moral quality and the consequences that she expedites. Such lack of
awareness might be called ‘stupidity’, and Aletti observes that within such
stories and elsewhere, the author notes two things: the haste of such acts
(1.16; 7.22-23; cf. 6.18) and the stupidity of the agents (5.22-23; cf. 1.7).
Haste and stupidity, accentuated more than the evil or rebellious attitude
of the youth, disclose the solution to seduction.
For Aletti, this solution resides in listening to the teacher: ‘Seule
l’observation minutieuse des mots et des choses, ainsi que l’écoute
patiente des maîtres (iv 13), permet de déjouer la seduction’.79 In light
of the chaotic presentation of language and competing sets of appealing
words, Wisdom and the teacher endorse the truth of their words (Prov.
4.1-9; 8.6-7) and draw attention to them throughout Proverbs 1–9 (e.g.
1.8, 22-24). As a part of this strategy, the father exhorts his son to hear
and says, ‘For I give you good teaching; do not forsake my torah’ (4.2).80
Then, appealing to the grandfatherly source of his instruction (4.3-4), he
draws attention to seduction’s solution:

Acquire wisdom; acquire insight.

Do not forget and do not turn from the words of my mouth.
Do not forsake her, and she will keep you;
love her and she will protect you. (Prov. 4.5-6)

79. Aletti, ‘Seduction’, 140.

80. Aletti, ‘Seduction’, 141.
 3. Educational Goals 131

The authority and reliability of the father’s teaching dovetail with the
power of wisdom, all of which corroborates the educational paradigm
outlined in the previous section: through the father’s teaching and fear of
the Lord embrace wisdom in order to grow in wise character. As Aletti
recognizes, the solution to seduction also requires a divine helper – the
Lord who gives wisdom to humans – leaving my original educational
paradigm undisturbed.81 However, Aletti’s work on Proverbs 1–9 does
add a component to the ultimate goal of ‘growth in wise character’,
namely, the faculty of discernment. As mentioned, ‘Only the meticulous
observation of words and matters…makes it possible to elude seduction’.82
Gaining such discernment requires, Aletti suggests, a long process of
training:

de même que la valeur symbolique des êtres et des choses ne peut être
découverte qu’à la fin d’un long apprentissage (lorsque le regard s’est
exercé au discernement), de même, ce n’est qu’à la fin du livre lui-même,
lorsqu’il a pu aiguiser son jugement à la lecture des proverbes, que l’élève
sait reconnaître en cette femme de valeur le symbole de la sagesse et qu’il
chante sa louange.83

Discernment comes by sharpening one’s judgment through the reading

of proverbs with the aid of God-given wisdom. It is the means proposed
in this formula that is key for determining how Proverbs 1–9 functions:
judgment is sharpened by means of reading proverbs (‘à la lecture des
proverbes’), that is, the proverbs contained in Proverbs 10–29. These
proverbs may hone the moral faculties of a reader now prepared by 1–9
for moral ambiguity. Such moral ambiguity appears to be a hermeneu-
tical bridge between Proverbs 1–9 and 10–29, a connection that Aletti
addresses with only a brief comment. My question, therefore, is whether
10–29 contains or displays similar moral confusion, and how this material
relates to 1–9.
Aletti has disclosed a key aim of Proverbs 1–9: it depicts the world as
morally ambiguous, a place where, like the words of competing voices,
bad things look good and good things may, therefore, look like the bad.
Illustrated most clearly by the use of words in 1–9, where what is wrong
sounds right, the moral landscape is convoluted and those who traverse
it need skill to discern good from bad and bad from good. Without the

81. Aletti, ‘Seduction’, 142–3.

82. Aletti, ‘Seduction’, 140.
83. Aletti, ‘Seduction’, 144.
132 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

queries of Proverbs 10–29 in mind, Proverbs 1–9 renders the world

morally ambiguous and proposes a solution in divine wisdom. If 1–9
functions didactically for the book in this regard, then it ought to relate to
some such moral ambiguity in 10–29.

3.2.2. Moral Ambiguity in Proverbs 10–29

In view of the main points of Aletti’s argument, which concentrate solely
on Proverbs 1–9, it is remarkable to find that 10–29 displays moral
ambiguity of a similar shape. Quite a few proverbs portray fools as
morally confused: ‘The wisdom of the prudent is to discern his way, but
the folly of fools is deceit’ (14.8); ‘Folly is a joy to the one who lacks
sense, but a man of understanding walks straight’84 (15.21); ‘Thus is the
way of the adulteress: she eats and wipes her mouth and says, “I have
not done wrong”’ (30.20). Some passages also suggest that bad things
look good, or that bad things taste good as 20.17 would have it: ‘Bread
of falsehood is sweet to a man, but afterward his mouth will be full of
gravel’. Proverbs 10–29 portrays evil characters as morally distorted,
with fools taking joy in folly rather than acting like the prudent person
who discerns his way. Certain passages imply that the world is a morally
ambiguous place, a place where falsehood tastes sweet, and telling right
from wrong is not necessarily easy.
Matters of moral ambiguity in Proverbs are matters of the moral self.
Though not focussing on Proverbs, Carol Newsom has formulated three
essential features of the moral self in the OT: ‘desire, knowledge, and the
discipline of submission to external authority’.85 That trio does a decent
job at reflecting the moral self of Proverbs and is helpful for anatomizing
moral agents that encounter moral ambiguity. But with such anatomi-
zation comes the risk of artificial segregation. So, as with the classification
of character and consequence in Proverbs, a caveat applies to the elements
of the moral self: they are not permanently or functionally segregated, as
if moral problems are only problems of knowledge or desire or external
authority. As Newsom herself says, ‘Moral failure generally involves
a combination of these three elements, though one or another may be
stressed’.86 It is that stress which interests me and, I would argue, is
evident in the passages about moral ambiguity in Proverbs.

84. Delitzsch (Proverbs, 1:327) rightly sees ‫ לכת‬as an accusative, as in Prov.

30.29 and Mic. 6.8.
85. Carol A. Newsom, ‘Models of the Moral Self: Hebrew Bible and Second
Temple Judaism’, JBL 131 (2012): 12.
86. Newsom, ‘Models of the Moral Self’, 13. It should be remembered that moral
ambiguity is only one aspect of moral failure in Proverbs, which encompasses a far
 3. Educational Goals 133

The stressed element of moral disfunction that I am homing in on, and I

think Aletti points to, is knowledge. Good and bad are ambiguous because
people cannot perceive them correctly. Good sounds like evil; it is
unfamiliar, misperceived, or misunderstood. But that knowledge problem,
like the wider scope of moral failure in Proverbs, depends upon desire and
external authority. For moral agents are portrayed as confused about right
and wrong not only because they are ignorant, but because they desire the
wrong things and resist sanctioned sources of moral authority. And yet
cognitive confusion still seems to hold a first-place position. So where
desire is clearly involved – ‘folly is a joy to the one who lacks sense’
(15.21a) – even that enjoyment, which is a delight in folly, is felt by the
one who ‘lacks sense’; he has an intellectual problem.87 Similarly, Prov.
14.15 suggests that heeding too many voices can lead one along the wrong
path: ‘The simpleton believes every word, but the prudent understands
his steps’. Here, the simpleton is blamed for accepting all sources of
moral direction, making his flaw one of external authority. However, the
prudent, who presumably accepts wise guidance, is said to ‘understand his
steps’, which makes his moral rectitude not a matter of desire or external
authority but a matter of knowledge. Proverbs pertinent to the moral
ambiguity of 14.12 target various loci of moral failure, and although that
larger problem calls upon the agent’s desires, knowledge, and adherence
to authority, the issue of moral ambiguity centres upon one’s intellectual
perception. Again, as will be argued, that perception sees clearest when
wise teachers are heeded, God feared, and desires rightly directed, and yet
the evidence relevant to moral ambiguity, as presented here, exhibits that
problem as an issue of knowledge.

greater amount of material and resists cognition-affection-adherence distinctions. For

in Proverbs as a whole, knowing good is not always a sufficient condition for doing
good; its depiction of moral agency, as I argue elsewhere, is more Aristotelian than it
is Socratic. See Arthur Keefer, The Book of Proverbs and Virtue Ethics: Integrating
the Biblical and Philosophical Traditions (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,
forthcoming).
87. Passages relevant to moral ambiguity include Prov. 11.22; 12.15; 13.19; 14.8,
12-13; 15.21; 16.21, 24-25; 17.4, 8, 28; 18.16, 24; 20.6, 17; 21.14; 26.22-26; 29.5;
30.20-23; cf. 17.24; 27.7. Of these, only Prov. 13.19 and 15.21 make the problem one
of desire (cf. 20.17; 27.7). If the use of bribes aroused affective confusion in those
subject to moral ambiguity, which it probably did, that would then incorporate 17.8
and 18.16. Proverbs 10.23 is often translated with affective terms, not supplied by
the MT, making the role of desire unclear: ‘Doing wrong is like a joke to a fool, but
wisdom is pleasure to a man of understanding’. The second line reads, ‫וחכמה לאישׁ‬
‫תבונה‬.
134 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

Two proverbs regarding moral ambiguity will be examined in this

section: ‘The words of a whisperer are like tasty morsels, they go down
into the chambers of the belly’ (18.8); ‘There is a way that is straight
before a man; but its end is the way of death’ (14.12). These passages
disclose concord between Aletti’s interpretation of Proverbs 1–9 and the
moral world of 10–29, and will demonstrate the didactic function of 1–9
as it prepares the interpreter not only to expect moral ambiguity but also
to find its solution.

3.2.2.1. Proverbs 18.8

Proverbs 18.8 discloses moral ambiguity in a way slightly different to
what has been expressed by other passages from Proverbs 10–29. It says,88

‫דברי נרגן כמתלהמים‬ 18.8 The words of a whisperer are like tasty morsels,
‫והם ירדו חדרי־בטן‬ they go down into the chambers of the belly.

The other texts from Proverbs 10–29 show evil characters as morally
distorted, confusing good and bad, such as the one who ‘lacks sense’ and
finds ‘folly a joy’ instead of adhering to the good way of the wise man
(15.21). But this is not what we see in Prov. 18.8. The proverb does not
depict evil people who stray from wisdom’s way and treat evil as if it is
good, like those bad and morally confused characters of Proverbs 1–9.
Proverbs 18.8 instead exhibits the problem of moral ignorance, which
Aletti himself observed.

le seul reproche qu’on puisse faire aux méchants est d’être des in-sensés,
des sots, d’une sottise et d’une ignorance coupable…. L’idiot est justement
celui qui ne sait ni ne veut prendre du temps pour discerner, dans le discours
d’autrui, le vrai du faux.89

The person who lacks sense in Prov. 15.21 and calls folly a joy may very
well align with the person described here by Aletti. The point is that this
character has made a confused decision about something’s moral quality,
which is a problem distinct from the moral ambiguity of that thing or
ambiguity within the world itself, as is displayed by 18.8. Proverbs 15.21
displays a moral agent gone wrong; Prov. 18.8 displays an object in moral
ambiguity, akin to what appears in Proverbs 1–9.

88. The LXX reads, ὀκνηροὺς καταβάλλει φόβος ψυχαὶ δὲ ἀνδρογύνων πεινάσουσιν
(‘Fear throws down the lazy, and the souls of the effeminate shall hunger’).
89. Aletti, ‘Seduction’, 140.
 3. Educational Goals 135

Proverbs 18.8 employs distinctive language to describe ‘the words of

a whisperer’, as the four occurrences of ‫ נרגן‬within the OT appear only in
Proverbs (16.28; 18.8; 26.20, 22) and derivatives of the root in Deut. 1.27;
Isa. 29.24; and Ps. 106.25 to describe those who ‘murmur’ as opposed
to accepting instruction. The ‘whisperer’ may slander or grumble, and
although he seems to speak in a bad way, the evil quality of speech is not
as obvious as the one who reviles or scoffs or utters falsehood (19.29;
21.24; 24.9; 30.10). Elsewhere in Proverbs, the whisperer ‘separates close
friends’ (16.28) and breeds a quarrel (26.20), the evidence altogether
suggesting that ‫ נרגן‬connotes something subtler than blatant wrongdoing.
In 18.8, his words liken to ‘morsels’ (‫)מתלהמים‬, a hapax legomenon
(par. 26.22) that, based on the Arabic cognate lahima, may connote a
delicious flavour so that someone is ‘wolfing down gossip like food’.90
Finally, these morsels descend into the ‫‘( חדרי בטן‬inner parts of the
body’), a phrase that occurs only in Proverbs (20.27, 30; par. 26.22) and
stems from the Egyptian ‘casket of the belly’ (hnw n h.t).91 Both phrases
indicate the belly as a ‘dwelling place for words’ and, when joined to the
rest of the language from Prov. 18.8, display its distinctive nature and
connection with Egyptian instructions.92 ‘The words of a whisperer are
like tasty morsels, they go down into the chambers of the belly.’ Although
18.8 continues to show itself as a fit example for the current topic, it
remains to be seen if the other Egyptian and OT resources resolve the
interpretive issue at hand.
Other proverbs that mention the whisperer identify the troublemaking
consequences of his words – estranging friends (16.28) and contributing
to quarrels (26.20) – and suggest a disapproval of the character in 18.8.
Similarly, 18.7 says that ‘A fool’s mouth is his ruin, and his lips are
a snare to his soul’, portraying a speech problem from the speaker’s
perspective. It is the one who uses words in these sayings that has the
problem. In contrast to these passages, 18.8 focuses on the listener,
mentioning the attractiveness of the speaker’s words to inform an audi-
ence who might devour them. That is, the problem in 18.8 lies with the
one who hears. If we consider words from the listener’s point of view,
then other proverbs in chapters 10–29, such as 16.21, 23-24, compound
the moral ambiguity.

90. Fox, Proverbs 10–31, 641. So Whybray, Proverbs, 267.

91. Shupak, Where Can Wisdom Be Found?, 291–7.
92. Shupak, Where Can Wisdom Be Found?, 292.
136 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

The wise of heart is called discerning,

and sweetness of lips increases persuasiveness.93
The heart of the wise makes his mouth prudent
and adds persuasiveness to his lips.
Pleasant speech is honey of the comb,
sweetness to the soul and health to the bone.

According to these statements, a wise mind increases the persuasiveness

of speech, and pleasant words are likened to honey that is sweet and gives
health to the hearer. Proverbs 16.21 makes a similar point, showing that
the speech of a good person tastes good, which suggests that wise words
are delicious like the words of the whisperer. How, then, can one tell
the difference? In Proverbs 10–29, both wise instruction and murmured
gossip taste good to the hearer, constructing a morally ambiguous world
where good and bad conflict, leaving the listener at a loss for how to
discern what not only tastes good but is good.94
Egyptian texts leave a similar impression. Ani 7.9-10 says ‘A man’s
belly is wider than a granary, and full of all kinds of answers; Choose the
good one and say it, while the bad is shut in your belly’.95 The speaker
contains good and evil, and he must choose the good, yet how so? Ani
7.9-10 simply says ‘choose the good one’, but leaves one wondering, how
do I discern the good from the bad in order to choose the better part? Ani
7.4-5 lends a bit of clarity: ‘One will do all you say if you are versed in the
writings; Study the writings, put them in your heart, then all your words
will be effective’.96 While this passage offers suggestions for the speaker,
it is of limited help for our question. For the moral ambiguity in Ani stems
from the speaker and is not portrayed from the perspective of the listener.
Therefore, the problem of discerning what is heard remains unaddressed
and perhaps remains a problem distinct to Proverbs.97 In view of the
relevant evidence in Proverbs 10–29, Prov. 18.8 leaves the interpreter
with a moral ambiguity, portraying a world where bad words taste good.
Since no solution readily arises from plausible interpretive resources to
resolve the ambiguity, I will suggest that Proverbs 1–9 provides insight
into this interpretive challenge, after first consulting another proverb.

93. For this sense of ‫לקח‬, see Prov. 7.21 and Keefer, ‘A Shift’, 113–14.
94. Meinhold (Sprüche, 300) finds ‘an especially close parallel’ in Jer. 15.16,
which recounts the joyful outcome of Jeremiah tasting God’s words.
95. AEL 2:140.
96. AEL 2:140.
97. Other passages about the ‘belly’ also maintain the speaker’s perspective
(Shupak, Where Can Wisdom Be Found?, 291–7).
 3. Educational Goals 137

3.2.2.2. Proverbs 14.12

An interpretive situation similar to the one found with Prov. 18.8
occurs with 14.12.

‫ישׁ דרך ישׁר לפני־אישׁ‬ 14.12 There is a way that is straight before a man,
‫ואחריתה דרכי־מות‬ but its end is the way(s) of death.

The saying describes a moral ambiguity at best and moral confusion at

worst. In short, a person sees his way as ‘straight’, connotative of the right
way (12.15; 14.2; 21.8), but what he sees turns out to be wrong. What
looks good is actually bad and the person in this scenario fails to realize
it. The proverb portrays a person morally confused, and it prompts the
interpreter to wonder whether he or she views life in this way. Harbouring
an interpretive challenge so similar to Prov. 18.8, yet in different language
and from a slightly different perspective, 14.12 requires a less lengthy
treatment and will add clarity and strength to the ongoing argument. The
problem in 14.12 is one of moral ambiguity.
Proverbs in the vicinity of 14.12 suggest that ‘prudent’ (‫ )ערום‬people
understand their ways, in contrast to the simpleton and fool. ‘The wisdom
of the prudent is to discern (hiphil ‫ )בין‬his way, but the folly of fools
is deceit’ (14.8). ‘The simpleton believes every word, but the prudent
understands (qal ‫ )בין‬his steps’ (14.15). The prudent person somehow
understands and discerns his way, and does not, it seems, believe every
word he hears as the simpleton would (14.15a), or associate himself
with deceit in the ways that fools do (14.8b). If these character terms are
imported into Prov. 14.12, so that the prudent or simpleton are somehow
aligned with the moral possibilities in 14.12, then we return to issues
dealt with in Chapter 2, where the identity and function of character terms
are aided by Proverbs 1–9.98 Since that is not the interest of this chapter,
and 14.12 itself does not include character terms, considering this saying
from the angle of moral ambiguity as depicted in Proverbs 1–9 remains
the focus. In support of treating 14.12 alone, notice its replicate in 16.25,
which lacks a character-driven literary context like 14.12’s (e.g. 14.8, 15).
Proverbs 16.25 says that ‘the violent man entices his neighbour and leads
him in a way not good’, ensuring that bad people may persuade to bad
ends but all the while fortifying the point made in 14.12 – a bad way might
look good, that is, enticing. For a violent person to persuade someone
towards a bad path, that someone would most likely need to perceive

98. For connections between verses in this section of Proverbs 14, see Knut M.
Heim, Like Grapes of Gold Set in Silver: An Interpretation of Proverbial Clusters in
Proverbs 10.1–22.16, BZAW 273 (Berlin: de Gruyter, 2001), 178–9.
138 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

the bad path as actually good. The point prompts the question that arose
with Prov. 18.8 – how does someone determine the right path from the
apparently right path? How might a neighbour know if he or she is being
enticed down a way of evil rather than a way of peace? Some interpreters,
such as Waltke, offer a theological answer to the question:

The house of the wicked is annihilated because it is built on the flimsy

foundation of human epistemology, the relative truth accessible to human
sight. Only the omniscient, omnipotent God knows the true road that leads
to life, reality as it actually is. Truth is beyond the reach of finite humanity;
the Lord himself must reveal the right way through his inspired sage, and
the disciple must accept that revelation by faith.99

Waltke argues that God’s revelation provides insight for the human, and
in support he cites Prov. 3.7 and 30.1-6. In contrast to such an optimistic
proposal, Whybray says

there is no suggestion here of the making of a choice between good and evil
or between wisdom and folly. The proverb simply states that life contains
hidden snares: the road ahead may seem to lead straight…to the desired
goal, but there may be…hidden and fatal dangers further on.100

Whybray too appeals to Proverbs 1–9, yet it seems to bring no inter-

pretive import to 14.12, which stands alone and indicates that ‘there is a
way that is straight before a man, but its end it the way of death’, with
‘no suggestion here of the making of a choice’.101 In view of Whybray’s
interpretation and its disregard for 1–9, Prov. 14.12 contains no warning
but only a matter of fact: bad things look good, or at least ‫יׁשר‬. I hope to
develop these allusions to Proverbs 1–9 by affixing the insights estab-
lished earlier in this section to the interpretive question from 14.12.
The interpretive challenges and the potential solutions for two sayings
in Proverbs 10–29 have been set out, prompted by their correspondence
with Proverbs 1–9 and its mission to delineate the moral ambiguity of the
world. The connections between Proverbs 1–9 and 10–29 do not simply
attest to coherence or disparity, as Whybray suggests, but rather set up a

99. Waltke, Proverbs 1–15, 592. Also, Wildeboer, Sprüche, 42. Plöger (Sprüche,
171–2) remarks that the warnings of the wisdom teacher are missing in 14.12 but that
the pupil possesses the principles to fight apathy.
100. Whybray, Proverbs, 215.
101. Similarly, Sæbø (Sprüche, 205) connects Prov. 14.11-12 with Eccl. 8.8-10
and 9.2-6, as instances of ‘unexplainable phenomena’ (so Scherer, Das weise Wort,
149).
 3. Educational Goals 139

relationship with which to test the long-voiced claim that Proverbs 1–9
functions as an introduction to the rest of Proverbs. This function so far
seems ‘didactic’, providing a framework that lends interpretive insights
for particular passages in Proverbs 10–31, and it remains to be seen if the
connection of 1–9 with 14.12 and 18.8 bolsters this argument.

3.2.3. The Function of Proverbs 1–9 for Proverbs 18.8 and 14.12
As argued earlier, Proverbs 1–9 displays a world of moral ambiguity
similar to what appears in passages from Proverbs 10–29, where good
and bad words taste delicious. Likewise, Wisdom and Folly both appear
attractive to their audiences, who remain ignorant of the true nature of this
persuasion when not tutored by the father. However, although Proverbs
1–9 and 10–29 share this moral vision, the former displays it within the
context of prolonged poems and the father’s commentary. These features
create a framework for the moral situation unavailable in Proverbs 10–29,
an awareness, diagnosis and solution regarding moral ambiguity that shed
light on 18.8 and 14.12.
Proverbs 1–9 instils three points that frame the interpretation of Prov.
18.8, which likens ‘The words of a whisperer’ to ‘tasty morsels, they go
down into the chambers of the belly’. First, the father draws attention
to the superiority of his words by attesting to their source in tradition
(4.1-13), labelling his precepts as ‘good’ and locating their origin in family
transmission. Second, this teaching leads to Wisdom, for embracing her
constitutes the central facet of the father’s teaching (4.7): ‘The beginning
of wisdom – acquire wisdom!’ Additionally, Wisdom bestows a bounty
(4.8-9) and leads one on the way of life, as opposed to the way of folly,
which is followed unto destruction. Such is the point of the ‘two ways’
poems in Prov. 4.10-27, wherein the boy should ‘Keep hold of instruction
and do not let go; protect her, for she is your life’ (4.13). Third, as Aletti
points out, the father roots wisdom’s eminence and his own words in their
divine origin (2.6; Prov. 8): ‘la parole du sage est une parole transmise
(iv 1-4). Le discours du sage et celui des insensés (y compris la femme
adultère) diffèrent par leur origine. Le discours du sage est un don de
Yahweh.’102 The divine origin, culminating in Proverbs 8, leaves the
solution to moral ambiguity clear: ‘Tout l’effort rhétorique des chapitres
précédents visait à démasquer cette faculté que l’homme a’.103 Aletti
perhaps overstates the significance of ‘order’ in answering the interpretive

102. Aletti, ‘Seduction’, 141. These aspects of wisdom’s superiority all touch on
the more fundamental question of wisdom’s authority and how the biblical material,
as well as other ancient Near Eastern texts, authorized wisdom.
103. Aletti, ‘Seduction’, 143.
140 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

question of moral ambiguity, an emphasis that, as will be argued in the

next chapter, should be placed more on a wisdom-mediated relationship
with the Lord, but for the present issue, a solution becomes clear.
This solution regards the problem observed above, where sayings like
16.21 and 18.8 liken speech to tasty food, and yet suggest that both wise
instruction and murmured gossip taste good to the hearer, constructing a
morally ambiguous world where good and bad conflict and leaving the
listener at a loss for how to discern what not only tastes good but is good.
When read in light of the joint observations gathered from Proverbs 1–9
and the network of goals from the previous section, the solution to the
morally ambiguous world encountered in 10–29 lies in the character of
the listener who must embrace wisdom in relationship to the Lord and
under the teacher’s tutelage, and thereby nurture the skill of discernment
to ascertain the true quality of speech. Proverbs 1–9, then, shows that only
by discernment, a quality of wise character, can someone resist the tasty
morsels of the whisperer (18.8) and devour the instruction of the wise
(16.23-24). In this way, Collection I functions didactically.
Like Prov. 18.8, Prov. 14.12 portrays a morally ambiguous world where
bad things look good: ‘there is a way that is straight before a man, but its
end is the way of death’. A person sees his way as right and follows it to
death, unaware of its true quality. How, then, can the truly right path be
determined? Proverbs 14.8 and 14.15 suggest that ‘prudent’ people can
discern the right way, but the sayings do not explain how such discernment
functions or where it comes from.104 I contend that Proverbs 1–9 offers
insight into this dilemma: the discernment necessary to know the truly ‫יׁשר‬
way from the falsely ‫ יׁשר‬way begins with the father’s instruction and the
fear of the Lord, leading to the acquisition of wisdom and growth in wise
character that she facilitates with the Lord’s help. Such human character
harbours the moral wherewithal to determine right from wrong, good
words from bad, a straight path from an allusion. Proverbs 1–9 supplies
an interpretive frame of goals and a solution to moral ambiguity that offer
a dynamically coherent reading of sayings like Prov. 14.12 and 18.8.

3.2.4. Conclusion and Implications

Aletti provided an alternative interpretation of Proverbs 1–9 that accounts
for its rhetorical aims and dovetails neatly with my earlier section on the
aims, values, and educational construct of 1–9. Distinctly, this section of
my study used 1–9 as its starting point, and, in the case of this chapter as

104. Meinhold (Sprüche, 235) remarks that 14.12 ‘can hardly be squared’ with the
conception of the two paths in Proverbs 1–9.
 3. Educational Goals 141

a whole, the two methods of approaching Proverbs enriched each other.

Approaching 10.1–22.16 first, extracting its interpretive questions, and
consulting 1–9 as a resource for those questions proved fruitful; likewise,
starting with 1–9 and determining its own priorities without the concerns
of 10.1–22.16 uncovered unforeseen connections with 10.1–22.16 to
expose the didactic function of Proverbs 1–9. Both methods treated
themes of rhetoric in Proverbs – how and what it persuades towards – and
revolved around its educational goals. My initial interests and argument
on these topics show concord with Aletti’s interpretation of Proverbs 1–9,
all of which have now been integrated and extended to the rest of the book
of Proverbs.
Four cases in particular demonstrated the didactic function of Proverbs
1–9 in the realm of educational goals. Proverbs 16.16 and 22.1 confront
the interpreter with a choice between values and an unqualified concept
of ‘fame/reputation’ that are respectively organized and deciphered when
interpreted in light of Proverbs 2 and 7–8. If forced to choose between
wisdom (16.16) and fame (22.1), pick wisdom. As for the neutral repute
denoted by ‫ׁשם‬, Proverbs 1–9 qualifies the concept as renown derived
from wise character. The next interpretive challenge, found in Prov.
30.1-9, stems from Agur’s lament that he has failed to learn wisdom, but
it is not clear why this constitutes a problem. Proverbs 1–9 constructs a
frame of educational goals that explains Agur’s problem by locating it
within an overarching aim of the book. Agur bemoans a lack of under-
standing, not in and of itself but because it attests to his incomplete
education in the school of wisdom, echoing the now unfulfilled objec-
tives of 1.2-7. The final two examples, Prov. 14.2 and 18.8, portray the
world as morally ambiguous, a characteristic observed first in the poems
of Proverbs 1–9, where bad things, especially, can look good. What the
sayings in Proverbs 10–30 do not provide, however, is a solution. How
do I distinguish the good from the bad when wise instruction and gossip
taste delicious (18.8)? And how do I know if the way that, in my eyes,
lies ‘straight’ ahead leads to death instead of life (14.2)? Proverbs 1–9
supplies an answer, instructing the interpreter that only discernment – a
part of wise character developed through embracing wisdom with the help
of the Lord and the father’s teaching – will enable the interpreter to rightly
evaluate moral ambiguity.
Proverbs 1–9 continues to function didactically by providing a
framework of educational goals and a moral vision of the world that
provide interpretive insight for material in Proverbs 10–31. This function
is demonstrable when approaching the book of Proverbs from two direc-
tions: starting with 10.1–22.16, the primary mode of this study, but also
142 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

by starting with Proverbs 1–9, methodologies that complement each

other and corroborate a consistent relationship for 1–9 and the rest of
the book. Moving away from educational goals and moral ambiguity, the
next chapter accounts in full for a figure so far mentioned in part: ‫יהוה‬.
By examining the references to him throughout Proverbs, the function of
Proverbs 1–9 can be determined from a theological perspective.
 4

T h eol og i ca l C onte xt

The ‘Lord’ has come up at certain points in this study, but to say that my
argument has dealt with the theological context of Proverbs would be an
overstatement. In this chapter, I give concentrated attention to the material
in Proverbs that mentions the ‘Lord’ or ‘God’ and examine the scope of
his activity. As with the literary features of Proverbs and the relation-
ships between the book’s major sections, the theological material of
Proverbs has been considered one of the book’s contexts, through which
other content can be understood. For some interpreters, this material
is explained as a final redactional layer of sayings in the book, and for
others one of its constitutive elements, firmly united to ‘non-theological’
sayings and providing such sayings with a theological colouring.1 These
ongoing debates feature the theological references of Proverbs – namely
references to the Lord – as one of the book’s many contexts, and the first
question that one faces when considering those passages is how they are
best approached and organized. Of the 375 proverbs in Prov. 10.1–22.16,
fifty-seven refer to the Lord or God, and I suggest that they organize
quite neatly into three categories: human postures towards the Lord; the
supremacy of his wisdom and sovereignty; and the Lord’s affection and
assessment.2

1. See McKane, Proverbs, 10, 413–14; Heim, Grapes, 316; Katharine Dell,
The Book of Proverbs in Social and Theological Context (Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press, 2006), 108–9.
2. In linear fashion: 10.3, 22, 27, 29; 11.1, 20; 12.2, 22; 14.2, 26, 27, 31; 15.3, 8,
9, 11; 15.16, 25, 26, 29, 33; 16.1-7, 9, 11, 20, 33; 17.3, 5, 15; 18.10, 22; 19.3, 14, 17,
21, 23; 20.10, 12, 22-24, 27; 21.1-3, 30, 31; 22.2, 4, 12, 14. I exclude 21.12, which
refers to the ‘righteous one’, because it may indicate simply a human. If it does refer
to the Lord, it would fit in with the Lord’s affection and assessment. To Whybray’s
count of 55 references, I add those that mention the ‘Maker’ (‫( )עׂשה‬14.31; 17.5). For
144 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

Human Postures towards the Lord

The Fear of the Lord 15.33; 16.6 10.27; 14.2, 26, 27; 15.16; 19.23; 22.4
Positive and Negative 16.3 10.29; 14.31; 16.20; 17.5; 18.10; 19.3,
Postures 17; 20.22

Supremacy of the Lord’s Wisdom and Sovereignty

Wisdom 16.1, 9 15.3; 19.21; 20.24, 27; 21.30; 22.12

Sovereignty 16.4 10.3, 22; 15.25; 16.11, 33; 19.14; 20.12; 21.1, 31; 22.2

The Lord’s Affection and Assessment

Abomination of the Lord 16.5 11.1, 20; 12.22; 15.8, 9, 26; 17.15; 20.10, 23
General Affection and 16.2, 7 12.2; 15.11, 29; 17.3; 18.22; 21.2, 3; 22.14
Assessment

The first set of passages feature human postures towards the Lord, which
include references to the ‘fear of the Lord’, and the attitudes and actions
of humans. Postures may be positive, such as those who commit to him
(16.3) or wait for him (20.22), or negative, like those who rage against
(19.3) or insult the Lord (14.31; 17.5).3 The second group of texts suggests
that the Lord’s wisdom and power supersede those of humankind. By
wisdom, he keeps omnicompetent watch over people and situations (15.3;
22.12), and he plans with superior skill and insight (e.g. 16.1, 9; 20.24).
With supreme sovereignty, he controls or holds the final say in matters
of justice (16.11), war (21.13), and daily life (10.3), also operating as an
omnipotent creator (16.4; 22.2). Passages in the third group underscore
the Lord’s emotional posture towards humans or his penetrating evalu-
ation of them, in other words, his affection and assessment. This final
category represents all references to the Lord’s ‘abomination’, as well as
his favour (12.2; 18.22), acceptance (21.3), anger (22.14), or powers of
perception (15.11; 16.2) and its consequences (16.2b; 17.3).
Each of these three categories is represented in a single passage con-
taining the highest concentration of references to the Lord in 10.1–22.16,

those who account for the majority of verses with breakdowns slightly different than
my own, see Gramberg, Das Buch, 2–16; André Lelièvre, La sagesse des Proverbes:
Une leçon de tolérance (Genève: Labor et Fides, 1993); John W. Miller, Proverbs
(Scottdale, PA: Herald Press, 2004), 206–17.
3. I include Prov. 10.29, because ‘the way of the Lord’ and ‘refuge’ denote the
subject’s behaviour and trust in the Lord.
 4. Theological Context 145

what has been called a theological ‘kernel’: Prov. 15.33–16.9.4 The Lord
appears in every verse of 15.33–16.9, except for verse 8, which, neverthe-
less, comfortably integrates into the passage’s theological schema. From
this kernel I examine three sayings in turn: 16.3 pertains to human pos-
tures towards the Lord; 16.9 concerns the supremacy of the Lord’s wisdom
and sovereignty, to which 22.19 is added in order to extend conclusions
beyond 10.1–22.16; and 16.2 deals with the Lord’s affection and assess-
ment. As exhibited in previous chapters, the texts of 10.1–22.16 present
interpretive challenges and consequently supply interpretive questions
that are then posed to Proverbs 1–9. In this section, it will be shown that
Proverbs 1–9 furnishes interpretive insight for the theological framework
of Proverbs 10–29 and in this way functions didactically. But it will also
become clear that this introductory role, in the theological context at least,
operates with certain qualifications; the limits of its boundaries will be
pushed. Proverbs 1–9 does not answer every question about Proverbs, and
even when it does answer questions, which I will argue remain distinc­tive,
other portions of the OT interject.

4.1. Human Postures towards the Lord

4.1.1. Human Postures towards the Lord in Proverbs 16.3

‫גל אל־יהוה מעשׂיך‬ 16.3 Commit your works to the Lord

‫ויכנו מחשׁבתיך‬ and your plans will be established.

Like a number of other passages pertaining to human postures towards

the Lord (10.29; 18.10; 20.22), Prov. 16.3 baldly commands the inter-
preter to commit one’s works to him. It woodenly reads, ‘Roll (qal ‫)גלל‬
your works to the Lord’, using a verb that clearly connotes ‘trust’ (Ps.
37.5; cf. 22.8-10) and when negated means ‘take away’ (Josh. 5.9).5 The
verse exhorts one to ‘roll upon’, ‘entrust’, or ‘commit’ works to the Lord.
These works probably represent all human actions, since within the local
literary context they parallel ‘plans’ and appear with a series of ‫ כל‬in

4. Scherer (Das weise Wort, 190) notices that the eight occurrences of ‫ יהוה‬in Prov.
15.33–16.7 are not only Collection II’s highest concentration of divine references but
are ‘die längste stichwortbedingte Spruchkette der ganzen Sammlung’.
5. The term ‫ גלל‬need not be emended to ‫( גלע‬Meinhold, Sprüche, 266), and the
evidence does not permit us to say that ‫ גלל‬means ‘to make one’s plans congruent with
God’s will’ (Fox, Proverbs 10–31, 609).
146 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

16.2, 4-5, suggesting a comprehensive scope.6 ‘All the ways of a human

are pure in his eyes’ (16.2a); ‘the Lord made everything for its answer’
(16.4a); ‘everyone haughty in heart is an abomination to the Lord’ (16.5a).
Proverbs 16.3 quite plausibly implies, ‘Commit all your works to the
Lord’.7 While the verses surrounding 16.3 feature the Lord’s supremacy –
he seems to make, know and oversee everything – Prov. 16.3 itself,
especially its initial injunction, emphasizes the posture of humans towards
the Lord. For they should entrust all matters to him, matters he will indeed
establish.
The primary interpretive challenge of this saying stems not from what
it denotes – the semantic features come across clearly – but rather from
what it connotes, implies, or assumes. By commanding humans to trust
the Lord, Prov. 16.3 assumes that the Lord is worthy of human trust, a
presupposition evident in other references to the Lord in 10.1–22.16,
which liken the Lord to a stronghold (10.29; 18.10) or commend inter-
preters to ‘wait for the Lord’, who will assuredly ‘help’ them (20.22).
A number of other explanations for why the Lord might deserve trust
also appear in Collection II: the Lord is wise and in control (16.1, 9); he
dispenses hatred and favour and punishment to humans (16.5; 12.2; 21.3);
perhaps most plainly, and economically, he will ‘establish your plans’
(16.3b).8 These texts establish a notably affective and transcendent God,
yet, outside of his bald power and recompense, they offer little incentive
to trust him. The assumption of God’s trustworthiness might be explained
by the identity of the text’s historical audience, if it includes those of the
covenant community who could have drawn upon additional theological
knowledge to ground their trust in the Lord. The proverb’s ties with other
OT texts support the possibility, that one might trust the Lord due to a
broad conception of his theological might.
Within the OT and outside of Prov. 16.3, the lexeme ‫ גלל‬occurs in
the imperative qal five times, twice commanding people to ‘roll’ a large
stone (Josh. 10.18; 1 Sam. 14.33) and three times in Psalms, one of which
requests that God would ‘take away from me’ (‫ )גל מעלי‬the scorn and
contempt of insolent people (119.22). The two remaining uses of ‫ גלל‬in

6. Heim, Grapes, 209; Delitzsch, Proverbs, 1:336. For ‘plans’ and ‘establish’ see
Prov. 16.9 in section 4.2.1.
7. Scherer (Das weise Wort, 194) rightly notes the phonic pattern created by the
repeated ‫ כל‬in 16.2-5 to which ‫ גל‬contributes.
8. The ‘steadfast love and faithfulness’ in Prov. 16.6, which could be the Lord’s
and thereby incentives to trust him, remain too ambiguous to offer authoritative help
with addressing the question of 16.3.
 4. Theological Context 147

Psalms resemble its use in Prov. 16.3. In Ps. 22.9[8] the psalmist recalls
the taunts of others who say ‘Trust (‫ )גל‬in the Lord; let Him deliver him;
let Him rescue him; for He delights in him’. The jeers imply that the
psalmist might trust the Lord because of the Lord’s ability to rescue him
and delight in him. One wonders whether these jeers reflect grounds with
which the psalmist would agree or grounds misapplied by his enemies.
It seems that the jeers most likely represent the psalmist’s beliefs, albeit
those he currently struggles to believe, which are then deployed by
his enemies as ammunition for mockery.9 Elsewhere in the psalm, the
psalmist appeals to the trust that his ancestors had in the Lord and the
consequent salvation that God performed for them (22.5-6[4-5]), while he
later bids that the congregation fear and praise the Lord on grounds that
the Lord did not hide his face from the psalmist but responded to his cry
(22.24-25[23-24]).
The qal imperative of ‫ גלל‬also occurs in Ps. 37.5, where the psalmist
enjoins the congregation to trust the Lord rather than envy wrongdoers.
The psalm contains significant lexical links with language prominent in
Proverbs: ‘your way’, ‫( דרכך‬v. 5); the ‘wicked’ and ‘righteous’, ‫רׁשע‬/‫צדיק‬
(v. 12); the righteous speaking ‘wisdom’, ‫( חכמה‬v. 30); and the ‘upright’,
‫( יׁשר‬v. 37).10 The grounds for the imperative ‘Commit your way to the
Lord’ in Ps. 37.5a seems to be that God will indeed act, as the following
line says: ‘Trust (‫ )בטח‬in him and he will act’. He will also make the
vindication of those who trust in him brilliant (v. 6) and, as other parts of
the psalm indicate, he knows the days of the blameless (v. 18) and will
rescue those who take refuge in him (v. 40).11 If posed with the question,
‘why trust the Lord?’, the author(s) of Psalms 22 and 37 may, in summary,
reply, ‘because he responds with salvation; he hears his people in whom
he delights, and he acts for them’.
It would be inappropriate to evaluate the sufficiency of these reasons
for trusting the Lord, but it is not out of place to say that they offer an
alternative perspective to the transcendent, albeit emotional, God of
Prov. 10.1–22.16. In Psalms he is powerful, knowledgeable and ready for

9. John Goldingay, Psalms. Vol. 1, Psalms 1–41, BCOT (Grand Rapids, MI:
Baker Academic, 2006), 330.
10. Cf. Ps. 37.6, 28-29 and Prov. 2.21-22; 4.18.
11. For a maximal interpretation of Psalm 37 as a psalm concerned with wisdom,
see Simon Cheung (Wisdom Intoned: A Reappraisal of the Genre ‘Wisdom Psalms’,
LHBOTS 613 [London: Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2015], 53–78, esp. 70–1), who
reasonably holds that the theme of trusting the Lord features in Ps. 37.1-6 and that the
clauses in verses 4b and 6 undergird the call to trust him in verse 5.
148 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

action.12 On initial evaluation, the lexical and thematic links with Psalm
37 do inform the interpretation of 16.3, and they establish a potentially
significant connection for an intertextual study of Proverbs and the OT.
We could also move beyond the particular lexical link of ‫ גלל‬and consider
the question – why trust the Lord? – based on all lexemes for ‘trust’ or on
other pertinent evidence in the OT that offers an answer to this question.
Although that would be a valid way to go about answering the question,
and may produce a result just as good as Proverbs 1–9, Proverbs 1–9 must
still be accounted for. The interpretive challenge of 16.3 remains, and so
I turn now to Proverbs 1–9 to examine its reasons for trusting the Lord.

4.1.2. Human Postures towards the Lord in Proverbs 1–9

Proverbs 1–9 is averse neither to the concept of God nor to the act of
trusting him. Each chapter, except for Proverbs 4 and 7, mentions ‘the
Lord’ or ‘God’ at least once, with the references totalling 22.13 A particu-
larly good example arises in Prov. 3.1-12, when, in 3.5, the Proverbial
father says to his son, ‘Trust (‫ )בטח‬in the Lord with all your heart, and
on your own understanding do not lean’. The command arrives within a
lecture about the relationship between the son and the Lord that begins
with a call to cherish the father’s instructions (3.1-3) and notice their
consequences: ‘So you will find favour and good success in the eyes of
God and humankind’ (3.4). This initial mention of God (‫ )אלהים‬transitions
to a series of references to the Lord (‫ )יהוה‬at 3.5 and follows with seven
direct or indirect references to him in 3.6-12. In summary: the son will
find favour in the eyes of God (3.4); he should ‘trust in the Lord’ (3.5),
acknowledge him (3.6a), and the Lord will make straight his paths (3.6b).
The Lord is to be feared (3.7) and honoured (3.8); he disciplines, reproves,
loves and delights in the son (3.11-12).

12. Scherer’s (Das weise Wort, 194) observation about the phonic connections
in Prov. 16.2-5, noted earlier, support the possibility that ‫ גל‬was selected for 16.3
because of its phonic qualities, which, from a diachronic perspective, would possibly
lessen its connection with Psalm 37 for those arguing that this portion of Proverbs
developed later. However, placing the lexeme after the first use of ‫כל‬, instead of
in verse 4 or 5 after the pattern establishes itself, weakens the explanation that the
lexeme appears for phonological reasons (see Keefer, ‘Sound Patterns’, 35–49;
Thomas McCreesh, Biblical Sound and Sense: Poetic Sound Patterns in Proverbs
10–29 [Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1991], 34). Cf. another rare lexeme in Ps 37.4 (‫)ענג‬
and Job 22.26; 27.10.
13. Proverbs 1.7, 29; 2.5-6, 17; 3.4-5, 7, 9, 11-12, 19, 26, 32-33; 5.21; 6.16; 8.13,
22, 35; 9.10.
 4. Theological Context 149

When posed with the question, why trust in the Lord?, Prov. 3.5-12
discloses answers that resemble those found in Prov. 10.1–22.16.14 The
Lord deserves trust because of his supreme wisdom, given the fact that the
son should neither rely on his own insight (‫ ;בינה‬3.5b) nor be wise in his
own eyes (‫ ;היה חכם‬3.7a) but rather trust the Lord and fear him (3.5a, 7b).
The Lord also deserves trust because of his supreme control over situa-
tions, since he can straighten the son’s paths (3.6b).15 Finally, the Lord
deserves trust because of the consequences of relying upon him, since,
by implication he heals the son (3.8) and supplies him with abundant
resources (3.9-10). The incentives to trust the Lord in 3.5-10 add little
to the incentives brought forward by 10.1–22.16, not least 15.33–16.9
itself, which mentions supreme wisdom, superior control, and favourable
consequences. However, 3.1-12 supplies something that the other portions
of Proverbs and the Psalms mentioned above do not, and it appears in its
concluding verses:

‫מוסר יהוה בני אל־תמאס‬ 3.11 My son, do not reject the Lord’s discipline,
‫ואל־תקץ בתוכחתו‬ and do not loathe his reproof.
‫כי את אשׁר יאהב יהוה יוכיח‬ 3.12 For the one whom the Lord loves, he
reproves,
‫וכאב את־בן ירצה‬ like a father the son in whom he delights.

The passage reiterates the address to ‘my son’ (‫ ;בני‬v. 11), which began
Proverbs 3 (v. 1), and encourages him to not despise the Lord’s reproof.
To encourage the boy amidst such discipline, the father underscores the
Lord’s love and likens it to a father’s, ‘for the one whom the Lord loves,
he reproves, like a father the son in whom he delights’ (v. 12).16 The

14. Proverbs 3.21-26 mentions security and the Lord. I only briefly note that at the
end of the pericope in 3.26a, the emphatic position of the Lord (‫)כי יהוה יהיה בכסלך‬
indicates that he is the pinnacle of confidence. Due to the positive language of security
and contrasting fear of the storm, the only alternative is to trust him. These features
corroborate a didactic intent of the theological context in Proverbs 3.
15. This is reflected in Proverbs 2, where the reasons to pursue wisdom (2.6)
include that the Lord gives wisdom (2.6) and stores it (2.7a); he is a shield (2.7b) and
guards both paths and people (2.8), protecting his people from the evil way, evil men
and women (2.12, 16).
16. Proverbs 3.1-12 forms a separate section because of the distribution of ‫בן‬
(vv. 1, 11, 12), the concentration of references to the Lord, and the independence of
3.13-18, based on ‫( אׁשר‬vv. 13, 18) and its topic of Wisdom. Though occupied with
redactional issues, Schäfer (Die Poesie, 78–90) sees 3.5-12 as unfolding a theological
dimension of the ‘steadfast love and faithfulness’ of 3.3.
150 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

son should trust the Lord, not least during difficulty, because the Lord
loves and cares for him, like a father who delights in his child.17 In Louis
Derousseaux’s words, this is ‘la pedagogie divine paternalle’,18 and the
divine fatherhood here does not spotlight transcendence or power, nor
even simply historical activity, but rather the affective, familial care of a
father for his son. When Prov. 3.1-12 is read as a frame for 16.3, it incor-
porates these paternal incentives to ‘commit’ one’s works to the Lord with
those supplied by 10.1–22.16, not only cohering with the Lord’s supreme
wisdom and knowledge and his dispensation of consequences, but adding
to these. ‘Commit your works to the Lord’ (16.3a), not only because the
Lord is omnipotent and omniscient but also because he cares about those
who trust him. Proverbs 1–9 supplements the reasons to trust the Lord
found elsewhere by incorporating God’s love as a motivator. By impli-
cation, the ‘plans’ that ‘will be established’ in 16.3b, most likely by the
Lord, include not only the sensible and certain scenarios that flow from a
wise and powerful God, but also benevolent plans of the sort that a happy
father might envision for his son.
Psalm 16.3 occurs within the theological ‘kernel’ of Prov. 10.1–22.16
and instates a bald command to ‘trust the Lord’. The verse’s local and
wider literary contexts offer certain incentives to trust, reasons based on
what might be labelled God’s ‘transcendent’ nature, and such reasons are
matched by Prov. 3.1-12, which contains a high concentration of references
to God and also affirms his transcendence. However, 3.1-12 also supplies
reasons to trust God based on his more ‘immanent’ characteristics, namely,
his love and delight for humans as conveyed through a familial metaphor.19
In the Psalms, too, we are told that the Lord is worthy of trust because he
is the sort of God who saves his people and acts on their behalf, being holy
and the one to whom kingship belongs. None of these descriptors arises in
Proverbs 1–9, and each of them plausibly contributes to the interpretation
of Prov. 16.3. But Proverbs 1–9 still retains something that these relevant

17. Proverbs 3.11-12 recalls Job 5.17, and aside from issues of date or influence,
Job’s theological point supports the conclusion that even without explicit disobedience
to God, his people suffer under his fatherly love. While possibly stated at an
inopportune time, Eliphaz tells Job that ‘blessed is the one whom God corrects’ (Job
5.17). Elsewhere, as a father, God corrects the king as son, a trying process but not
without sustained steadfast love to his people and purpose (2 Sam. 7.14-16).
18. Louis Derousseaux, La crainte de Dieu dans l’Ancien Testament: royauté,
alliance, sagesse dans les royaumes d’Israël et de Juda (Paris: Éditions du Cerf,
1970), 328.
19. Perhaps this insight offers evidence in favour of reading the ‘steadfast love
and faithfulness’ in Prov. 16.6 as qualities of the Lord.
 4. Theological Context 151

Psalms do not – paternal imagery for an adoring Lord – and consequently

makes a distinctive deposit to the meaning of the proverb. Proverbs 1–9,
therefore, gives the interpreter theological categories both coherent with
and supplementary to 10.1–22.16, offering a new way of interpreting
16.3 and proverbs like it. For, as an introduction, those chapters portray
the Lord in a way that might spur readers on to seize him as a stronghold
(10.29), trust him (16.20), find asylum in him as a strong tower (18.10),
and wait patiently for his deliverance (20.22).

4.2. The Supremacy of the Lord’s Wisdom and Sovereignty

The previous section considered a single interpretive question from

a single proverb that represents one of three theological categories in
Proverbs: human postures towards the Lord. Proverbs 16.3, taken from
Collection II’s theological ‘kernel’ (15.33–16.9), demonstrated the didactic
function of Proverbs 1–9 for this theological category. The current section
explores another category of theological sayings in 10.1–22.16 and again
uses a representative example – Prov. 16.9 – for the group, which contains
proverbs that pertain to God’s wisdom and sovereignty.

4.2.1. Wisdom and Sovereignty in Proverbs 16.9

‫לב אדם יחשׁב דרכו‬ 16.9 The heart of man plans his way
‫ויהוה יכין צעדו‬ while the Lord establishes his steps

Proverbs 16.9 relays the supremacy of God’s wisdom and sovereignty, a

supremacy, that is, relative to a human’s: ‘The heart of man plans his way,
while the Lord establishes his steps’. With piel ‫חׁשב‬, the first line conveys
a primarily cognitive notion of human planning that often indicates evil
scheming (e.g. Prov. 24.8; Nah. 1.9; Dan. 11.24). These problematic
instances, though, are often grammatically qualified by a preposition to
designate that a human schemes ‘against’ someone else, as Prov. 24.8
similarly states, ‘Whoever plans to do evil (‫)מחׁשב להרע‬, he will be called
a schemer’ (so Hos. 7.15). More broadly, and most likely in Prov. 16.9,
the verb means ‘consider/think’ or ‘plan’, without a positive or negative
connotation, such as when the psalmist ‘thinks about’ his ways (119.59)
or ‘considers the days of old’ (Ps. 77.6[5]; cf. Pss 73.16; 144.3). The piel
‫ חׁשב‬in Prov. 16.9 portrays a human thinking about, possibly planning,
his way in life, not necessarily with malicious or autonomous intent, but
certainly by exerting the knowledge that he possesses: ‘the heart of man
plans his way’.
152 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

The second line says that ‘the Lord establishes his steps’. When the
Lord ‘establishes’ (hiphil ‫ )כון‬something, he arranges and sets it in place
(Prov. 8.27; Ps. 65.6), prepares it (Zeph. 1.7; cf. Prov. 6.8; 24.27), and
sometimes morally fortifies the ways of his followers (Ps. 119.133; cf.
Ps. 10.17). All senses carry a notion of permanence, and the sense of
‘arrange’ probably fits best with the context of human plans in 16.9.20 So
the Lord permanently arranges someone’s steps while the human thinks
about or plans them. Although most of the semantics of this proverb are
clear, a few observations and interpretive challenges remain. First, Prov.
16.9 combines both features of its theological category (wisdom and
sovereignty), incorporating human knowledge (i.e. ‘wisdom’) and divine
control, a control that, it seems, exceeds the human’s and also entails
divine knowledge. If the Lord ‘arranges’ the ways of humankind by his
supreme power, he surely possesses the cognitive wherewithal to do so.
Given the fact that the human in 16.9 ‘considers’ his own way, the proverb
presumes that the Lord considers it even more and thereby incorporates
divine wisdom and sovereignty.
Second, while Prov. 16.9 contains discernible lexemes and exemplifies
the Lord’s wisdom and sovereignty, it also offers an interpretive chal-
lenge, one that arises from the relationship of its lines, manifesting a
significant theological question. The question is exemplified in, though
not reducible to, the interpretation of the waw that joins the two lines,
which may translate as ‘but’ or ‘and’ or ‘while’, the latter of which would
capture both ‘but/and’ senses. The waw may render, ‘The heart of man
plans his way but the Lord establishes his steps’, indicating a disjunction
between human plans and divine arrangement. Yet the waw may render,
‘The heart of man plans his way and the Lord establishes his steps’,
conveying a complementary relationship between human plans and divine
arrangement. Both remain open possibilities if the passage is interpreted
as ‘while the Lord establishes his steps’ and highlight the primary issue
at hand, which is one of theological ambiguity. The passages surrounding
Prov. 16.9 offer little clarification on the ambiguous nature of how its lines
relate. The content of 15.32 indicates that two lines may unmistakably
contrast, as ignoring instruction and despising oneself clearly oppose the
image of one listening to reproof and acquiring intelligence. ‘The one who
ignores instruction despises himself, but the one who listens to reproof
acquires intelligence’. Other proverbs use the second line to affirm the
first, for committing one’s works to the Lord results in one’s plans being
established (16.3; so 16.6). Finally, many lines reflect the ambiguity of

20. See Elmer Martens, ‘‫’כון‬, NIDOTTE 1:615–17. In Prov. 16.9, a man’s ‘way’
parallels his ‘steps’, suggesting that the latter is a manner of life or course of action.
 4. Theological Context 153

16.9. ‘The plans of the heart belong to a man, while from the Lord is the
answer of the tongue. All the ways of a man are pure in his eyes, while the
Lord weighs spirits’ (16.1-2). These proverbs suggest at least a contrast
between God and humans, and the syntactical priority of ‘from the Lord’
in 16.1 suggests that God is ultimately authoritative, and yet they remain
ambiguous as to whether the relationship is one of harmony or discord,
with the grammatical features and surrounding passages offering little
clarity on the issue.21
Claus Westermann discusses many of the sayings that comprise this
category, which I have called ‘The Supremacy of the Lord’s Wisdom
and Sovereignty’, a title he would probably replace with ‘Gott und sein
Wirken als Grenze menschlicher Möglichkeiten’, with which he heads
his section on these passages.22 His title summarizes his theological
point – these proverbs address human limitations in view of God’s capa-
bilities – and unsurprisingly leads him to interpret the lines of 16.9 as a
contrast (‘but/aber’), for at least two reasons.23 First, Westermann seems
to assume a negative view of humanity, underscoring not only their
‘limitations’ but also implying a misguided response to those limitations,
concluding that ‘Alle diese Sprüche wurden je in besondere Situationen
hinein gesprochen, in denen es notwendig war, dies auszusprechen an die
Adresse eines, der gerade diese Grenze zu vergessen oder zu mißachten
im Begriff war’.24 Such a negative interpretation of human limitations also
stems from Westermann’s emphasis on God’s role as creator. Referring
to Prov. 15.11, he asserts that such statements can be made, ‘weil Jahwe

21. Proverbs 16.1 reads, ‫לאדם מערכי־לב ומיהוה מענה לשׁון‬. Scherer (Das weise
Wort, 196), for instance, identifying links between 16.9 and 16.1-3, asserts that an
antithetic structure is recognizable in 16.1-2 and 16.9. While I find the case more
complicated as argued above, Scherer (202–5) rightly argues against Thomas Pola,
who proposes a connection between Psalm 132 and Prov. 16.1-15 (see Thomas Pola,
‘Die Struktur von Proverbia 16,1-15’, Biblische Notizen 80 [1995]: 47–72). Meinhold
(Sprüche, 266) identifies an interpretive issue in Prov. 16.3 similar to what I have
observed in 16.9.
22. Westermann, Wurzeln, 137.
23. Westermann, Wurzeln, 137. He says, ‘einem Tatbestand oder einer Absicht
aufseiten des Menschen steht ein „Aber“ Gottes entgegen. Dieses „Aber“ weist auf
die Grenzen, die dem Menschen gesetzt sind.’
24. Westermann, Wurzeln, 138. In this vein, Meinhold (Sprüche, 269) cites Ani
8.9-10 and Amenemope XIX.16-17. Gerhard von Rad’s (Wisdom in Israel, trans.
James Martin [London: SCM Press, 1972], 97–106) interpretation of 16.9 and related
sayings entails a similar pessimism but underscores the incomprehensibility of God’s
ways rather than what humans do not know, ought to know or could know. Such
sayings imply that humans ought to remain ‘open to the activity of God’ (101).
154 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

der Schöpfer des Menschen ebenso wie der Schöpfer des Alls ist’.25
Westermann’s strictly pessimistic view of the contrast in 16.9 arises in
part from his assumptions about human limitations and the proverbs
that address them, yet also from theological views presumably based on
proverbs about God’s role as creator.
I do not question the place of human ‘limitations’ in these proverbs,
as my title for this section suggests; the Lord’s supremacy in wisdom
and sovereignty implies an inferiority in human wisdom and power.
However, I do question Westermann’s anthropological conclusion, that
these proverbs address ‘someone who was about to forget this boundary
or limitation’, which justifies a contrast (‘but’) in the lines of 16.9. Might
the ambiguity of the lines’ relationship, which may in fact render the
observation that humans plan their ways and the Lord establishes their
steps, provide an alternative to Westermann’s interpretation? Perhaps
Prov. 16.9 indicates that humans consider their lives in accordance with
God, who thereby arranges and establishes their plans. These possibilities
reveal the more fundamental interpretive challenge of 16.9, that is, what
is the relationship between human wisdom and power, and divine wisdom
and power? The preceding discussion shows that they may be at odds
with or complement each other, and either option leaves much about the
relationship unclear. Other sayings that champion the Lord’s wisdom
and sovereignty only compound the issue: in Prov. 21.30, ‘There is no
wisdom, no understanding, no counsel against the Lord’, and 20.24 nearly
states the question for us: ‘A man’s steps are from the Lord; but a man,
how can he understand his way?’ What is the relationship of humans and
the Lord with respect to the main topics of this section: wisdom and sover-
eignty? Proverbs 1–9 offers some intriguing insights into the question.

4.2.2. Wisdom and Sovereignty in Proverbs 1–9

Before examining the Lord’s wisdom and sovereignty in Proverbs 1–9,
we should consider the nature of wisdom itself in 1–9, particularly
whether or not any other types of wisdom, such as human wisdom or
‘Wisdom’s’ wisdom, appear in these chapters and how they relate to the
Lord’s. According to Collection I, the Lord possesses wisdom, gives (2.6)
and originates it (8.22-31), even, it seems, making ‘wisdom’ exclusively
his own: ‘for the Lord gives wisdom, and, from his mouth, knowledge
and understanding’ (2.6). The author of this passage does not pit divine
wisdom over and against human wisdom but knows only one, a position
consistent with the rest of Proverbs 1–9. Proverbs 5.1 mentions ‘my

25. Westermann, Wurzeln, 138. Proverbs 15.11 says, ‘Sheol and Abaddon lie open
before the Lord; how much more the hearts of the children of man!’ (ESV).
 4. Theological Context 155

wisdom’ and ‘my understanding’ to refer to the father’s teachings, which

are not contrasted to God’s wisdom but equated to it (2.1-2). In Prov. 8.9,
Wisdom claims her words are ‘right to him who understands’, implying
a knowledge that precedes wisdom and might rival the wisdom of God,
but the ‘one who understands’ in 8.9 refers to one already wise and
so perceptive of Wisdom’s words.26 Proverbs 1–9, therefore, does not
distinguish two different forms of wisdom (or understanding); one type
is maintained, and only wickedness and foolishness stand as alternatives.
Proverbs 1–9 does acknowledge limits to human knowledge, namely,
normal, creaturely limitations, such as the inability to know what happens
during sleep (3.24), but otherwise, these chapters emphasize that humans
limit their knowledge due to arrogance. In 3.5b and 3.7a, for example, the
father forbids that the son put his own wisdom in place of God’s. The son
ought to trust the Lord’s understanding instead of arrogantly trusting his
own. Along with arrogance, humans limit their knowledge by inattention
and thereby fail to acquire God’s wisdom, as 5.13-14 indicates: ‘I did not
listen to the voice of my teachers or incline my ear to my instructors. I was
quickly in all evil, in the midst of the assembly and congregation.’27 To the
interpretive question under consideration – how does Proverbs 1–9 view
the supremacy of the Lord’s wisdom and the place of humankind’s? –
these passages offer the initial answer: God’s wisdom constitutes the only
wisdom of Proverbs 1–9, and it supersedes the knowledge of humans,
who limit their acquisition of it through arrogance and inattention.
Honing an answer to the interpretive question of Prov. 16.9, Proverbs
1–9 underscores the Lord’s sovereignty in primarily two passages: 3.19-20
and 8.22-31. The first, 3.19-20, presents God’s wisdom and sovereignty
together to forward its central point: wisdom is an instrument of God’s
creative and sovereign activity.28

‫יהוה בחכמה יסד־ארץ‬ 3.19 The Lord, by wisdom, founded the earth;
‫כונן שׁמים בתבונה‬ he established the heavens by understanding.
‫בדעתו תהומות נבקעו‬ 3.20 By his knowledge the deeps were split;
‫ושׁחקים ירעפו־טל‬ and the clouds dropped dew.

26. Fox, Proverbs 1–9, 190.

27. The lexeme ‫ כמעט‬often means ‘almost’, but here, as in Pss. 2.12 and 81.15[14],
it means ‘quickly/soon’ (Fox, Proverbs 1–9, 198; Fox also cites Isa. 1.9 for support,
but ‘few’ seems to better suit the passage unless the atnach is moved back to ‫)ׂשריד‬.
28. Sæbø (Sprüche, 69–71) argues that all four instructions of Proverbs 3
converge on the emphasis of the Lord’s sovereignty and primacy, with wisdom and
human belief as main themes.
156 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

The repetitive by (‫ )ב‬wisdom signals an instrumental sense, where

wisdom operates as the means or aid that facilitates God’s creative work.
As an instrument, wisdom is a point of connection between God and
his creation. This portrayal of divine wisdom in 3.19-20 is followed in
3.21-26 with implications for the proverbial son: ‘keep sound wisdom and
discretion’ (3.21b).29 The father, in this passage, does not bid the son to
trust the Lord or acknowledge him as the source of prosperity like he did
in 3.1-12.30 Instead, he bids his boy to heed wisdom and goes on to portray
her steadfast advantages, saying that if he will keep wisdom ‘then you
will walk on your way securely, and your foot will not stumble’ (3.23).
Wisdom will protect the son and keep him safe (3.24). A similar promise
of security appears in the next verses, when the father tells his son not
to fear sudden trouble (3.25): ‘For the Lord will be your confidence, and
he will keep your foot from capture’ (3.26). In this verse, it is no longer
wisdom but the Lord who protects the son, affirming that wisdom and the
Lord complement each other with parallel roles.
Objecting to the complementary roles of wisdom and the Lord in Prov.
3.21-26, Whybray argues that wisdom will ‘infallibly protect’ the son and
that God’s protection marks an unrelated alternative:

These verses [3.25-26] form a kind of appendix to vv. 21-4, but one which
is somewhat at variance with their message. In v. 25 panic (paḥad) clearly
picks up the verb (pāḥad) of v. 24a; but since the pupil or reader has already
been assured that constant attention to ‘sound wisdom and discretion’
will infallibly preserve him from such fear, this additional admonition is
redundant. Then in v. 26 Yahweh is suddenly and belatedly introduced as
providing an alternative reason for confidence, with no attempt to indicate
that he is in any way connected with the above ‘sound wisdom’.31

Rather than the incoherence proposed by Whybray, I would argue that

the passage conveys that as the Lord protects, so God-given wisdom

29. Schäfer (Die Poesie, 93–6) links Prov. 3.19-20 more closely with 3.13-18.
While these texts do share themes and lexemes related to creation, Prov. 3.13-18
nevertheless corroborates my point for wisdom as a mediator (e.g. Fox [Proverbs
1–9, 160] labels vv. 13-18 as the usefulness of wisdom for man, and vv. 19-20 as the
usefulness of wisdom for God). I focus on 3.21-26 because of its imperative mood,
which aims to instil the preceding reflections didactically, and its climactic nature, as
it completes a logical progression from vv. 13-18 and vv. 19-20, especially evident in
the verbs of vv. 13, 18, and 21 (see Waltke, Proverbs 1–15, 255–6).
30. See section 4.1.
31. Whybray, Proverbs, 71.
 4. Theological Context 157

constitutes a means of protection. Wisdom cooperates with the Lord, as

she did at creation (3.19-20), and serves as the connective tissue for God
and humanity.32
This description hints at what some interpreters, as early as the 1920s,
have called the ‘mediating’ role of wisdom in Proverbs 1–9, exhibited
most clearly through Wisdom’s appearance in Proverbs 8, the second
text that addresses the interpretive question under discussion.33 In Prov.
8.22-31, Wisdom speaks about God creating the earth and about how
she fitted into that activity. She accentuates her antiquity (vv. 22-29)
and also her affections: she was God’s ‘delight’ everyday and ‘rejoiced’
in the world and humankind (vv. 30-31).34 This passage garners most
attention, especially recently, due to its significance for a ‘creation order’,
which interpreters often attempt to align with a moral order.35 Accounting
for the ordering activities of God, Aletti nevertheless argues that the
passage focuses on wisdom and her role for humankind, concluding that
it enforces ‘la mediation de la sagesse’, as she functions as the mediator
between God and humans.36

32. Étienne-Noël Bassoumboul (Des sagesses à la sagesse: Étude de l’unité sapi-

entielle en Pr 1–9 [Paris: J. Gabalda, 2008], 166) affirms the instrumental sense of ‫ב‬
and the section’s purpose (Prov. 3.13-20) to underscore the preferability of wisdom.
From a direction different than mine, Bassoumboul argues that 3.11-20 produces
a hierarchy of humans, wisdom and the Lord, where the Lord’s correction begets
wisdom, which functions as his instrument of creation and as inseparable from human
life, so that, in brief, ‘la sagesse conduit à YHWH’ (167; see also 161–7). Cf. Roland
E. Murphy (‘Wisdom and Creation’, JBL 104 [1985]: 9) who follows von Rad.
33. For a review of the discussion, see Gerlinde Baumann, Die Weisheitsgestalt
in Proverbien 1–9: Traditionsgeschichtliche und Theologische Studien (Tübingen:
J. C. B. Mohr, 1996), 42–3, 50–4, also 291–4. Since Heinrich in the 1920s, the
discussion has focused on the literary aspects of Prov. 8.22-31 (e.g. Aletti; Yee; see
below), the significance of Wisdom’s image for the historical context of Proverbs
(Camp, Wisdom, 272–82), and notions of creation and social order (Dell, Proverbs,
139–46). However, it remains to be seen how Wisdom as mediator might inform the
interpretation of the book of Proverbs.
34. Proverbs 8.30a may add that she was God’s ‘workman’ (for discussion, see
Loader, Proverbs 1–9, 356–60).
35. See Lennart Boström, The God of the Sages: The Portrayal of God in the
Book of Proverbs (Stockholm: Almqvist & Wiksell International, 1990), 53; Waltke,
Proverbs 1–15, 414–15; cf. Weeks, Introduction, 112–13.
36. Jean-Nöel Aletti, ‘Proverbes 8, 22-31. Étude de structure’, Biblica 57 (1976):
25–37; ‘the mediation of wisdom’.
158 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

I set aside notions of order and pick up the concept of mediator observed
here, because it seems to better reflect the concerns of the author(s) of
Proverbs. The author of Proverbs 8 does not broach the concept of sover-
eignty to acclaim God as creative orderer but rather to extol wisdom,
as Fox writes, ‘Everything in the chapter serves the rhetorical goal of
influencing the reader to desire wisdom…. The description of creation,
which is just an elaboration of v 22, adds no new information. Its purpose
is to heighten Wisdom’s grandeur by describing the glorious works to
which God gave her precedence.’37 According to Fox, humans ought to
desire and attain Wisdom, who is sovereignly and creatively used by God.
She is also, I would add, the mediator between humanity and God himself.
Before and after 8.22-31, Wisdom calls her audience to grasp her, as the
supplier of life’s good gifts (8.18-21) and again aligned with the Lord.38
Proverbs 8.35 even says that the one who finds her ‘finds life and obtains
favour from the Lord’. In other words, come to Wisdom and receive from
God; for she mediates divine blessing.

4.2.3. The Function of Proverbs 1–9 for 16.9

I have not been attempting to drive a wedge between God and humanity
or to divorce any notion of order from Proverbs 1–9, rather I have been
attempting to locate the author’s primary concerns about the relationship
between God and humans within passages that feature the Lord’s supreme
sovereignty. These passages, Prov. 3.19-26 and 8.22-36, intimate that
between God and humanity stands wisdom, or, more accurately, that God
and humanity share a close proximity but their relationship is facilitated
by wisdom. Like God, she protects humankind and bestows blessings, and
humans who approach her tend to find the Lord. In summary, Proverbs
1–9 presents God’s wisdom as the only wisdom, with folly, arrogance, and
inattention as its only alternatives. Consequently, the Lord’s sovereignty

37. Fox, Proverbs 1–9, 289, 293. So Weeks, Instruction, 101, 123. Cf. Leo G.
Perdue, Wisdom & Creation: The Theology of Wisdom Literature (Nashville, TN:
Abingdon Press, 1994), 84; Gilbert, L’Antique sagesse, 206.
38. The Lord and wisdom also combine under the guise of sovereignty in Proverbs
2, aligned here as protectors. God is ‘a shield for those who walk in integrity’ (2.7b,
see vv. 6-8), yet ‘discretion will watch over you, understanding will guard you’ (2.11,
see vv. 10-12). Likewise, in Prov. 3.19-20 as the Lord protects, so God-given wisdom
constitutes a means of protection, and in 3.11-12 when the blessings of wisdom do
not appear as they should, humans can rely on the Lord (see Plöger, Sprüche, 39–40).
Proverbs 2, 3 and 8 incorporate God’s sovereignty to esteem wisdom’s worth and
parallel it with the Lord’s role as protector.
 4. Theological Context 159

is abler than humankind’s to navigate life, so the greatest responsibility

lies on humans to listen to, embrace, and use wisdom while trusting God’s
superior control and understanding. Wisdom functions in tandem with the
Lord to protect humans and guide their way, yet she functions as a divine
partner so accessible to human beings, the mediator between God and
humankind.
That formulation from Proverbs 1–9 should not be understated. For
it is not so readily or specifically articulable based on Proverbs 10–29,
and it supports the case that Proverbs 1–9 supplies interpretive insight
into 16.9, which is representative of close to twenty proverbs from
10.1–22.16 that feature the supremacy of the Lord’s wisdom and sover-
eignty but do not expound upon how these qualities relate to their human
counterparts. The problem was manifested in, though not restricted to, an
ambiguous relation of lines in 16.9, namely, ‘The heart of man plans his
way while the Lord establishes his steps’, leaving open the possibilities
that human plans counter the Lord’s or accord with them. Westermann
opts for the former, presuming a depraved view of humankind, who tend
to overestimate their capabilities. His interpretation requires all proverbs
relevant to the subject to be spoken ‘to someone who was about to forget
or disregard this boundary/limit [Grenze]’. Does reading Proverbs 1–9
as an interpretive framework cohere with such a conclusion? It does,
in part, by suggesting that humans may reject the Lord’s wisdom in
preference of their own ‘wisdom’ and thereby need to hear 16.9 as a
warning: the Lord ‘establishes man’s steps’, and he overrides arrogant or
ungodly humans who ‘plan their own ways’. However, complementing
the need for humility because of God’s supreme wisdom and sovereignty,
Proverbs 1–9 also portrays a positive relationship between God’s govern-
ance and his gift of wisdom. Wisdom, as a mediator, enables humans to
plan their ways in cooperation with the Lord. Consequently, Prov. 16.9
would actually boost confidence for humans who consider their plans
with God-given wisdom, plans which the Lord himself may establish.
‘The heart of man plans his way [with wisdom] and the Lord establishes
his steps.’
Proverbs 1–9 substantiates both interpretations, a conclusion that
may seem to offer nothing near a profound interpretive insight. For, in
previous examples, Proverbs 1–9 seems to point towards one of several
possible interpretations raised by 10–29, supplying interpretive insight
by decisively directing readers towards the most plausible hermeneutical
option. But in this case, Proverbs 1–9 seems to confirm ambiguity, to
point fingers in two directions rather than one and to offer no real help at
all for better understanding Prov. 16.9. That apparent concern, though, is
160 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

no real problem. First, it is important to clarify that, in this case, Proverbs

1–9 is not introducing ambiguity; the proverb is already ambiguous and
1–9 at most coheres with that ambiguity. Second, in corroborating the
ambiguity of 16.9, Proverbs 1–9 (a) displays its theological coherence
with other portions of Proverbs and (b) manifests a limitation in its intro-
ductory role. It does not answer each and every hermeneutical question
raised by 10–29, and by selecting this example I hope to ensure that that
point is made.
Third, despite the fact that 1–9 confirms one aspect of ambiguity in
16.9 and pushes the boundaries of its introductory function, it nonetheless
offers a distinctive insight into the saying and removes one of its obscu-
rities, namely, the unspecified relationship between humans and God.
For what has become clear and incredibly interesting is the degree of
insight that 1–9 gives into the theological backcloth of the two possible
interpretations of 16.9. In this way it ‘fills the gaps’ of sayings that state
terse observations about human beings and the supreme capabilities of
God. When the ‘plans of the heart belong to a man’ (16.1) or ‘the heart of
man plans his way’ (16.9), someone may be planning life based on his or
her own wisdom instead of the Lord’s and thereby confront the opposi-
tional plans of God who establishes his own way. As specified in 1–9, the
‘wisdom’ that might counter God’s is one’s own, and in those chapters one
is deterred from planning life based upon it. But when humans plan based
on God-given wisdom, then the human–divine relationship becomes one
of concord. That possibility is ambiguously stated in 10–29 and emphati-
cally detailed in 1–9; Wisdom mediates between humans and God for
those who embrace her. It seems that God’s wisdom, rather than soaring
over the capacities of human beings, fills these gaps and facilitates inter-
action between God and humankind.

4.2.4. Summary of Proverbs 16.3 and 16.9

Two passages from Prov. 10.1–22.16 representative of its references to
the Lord have been interpreted in light of Proverbs 1–9 to demonstrate
its didactic function. The first section showed how 16.3 baldly commands
the interpreter to commit one’s works to the Lord and, like other sayings
that portray human postures towards the Lord, thereby assumes that the
Lord is trustworthy. Proverbs 3.1-12 reveals that the Lord deserves trust
because of his supreme wisdom, his control over situations, and the
consequences of relying on him, all factors that appear in 15.33–16.9 not
to mention 10.1–22.16 as a whole. Proverbs 3.1-12, however, features
something that Collection II does not: the Lord’s loving, fatherly char-
acter and the offer of reliable wisdom, which humans cannot attain
 4. Theological Context 161

independently. Proverbs 1–9 instils in the interpreter a confidence in the

Lord who protects and a confidence in the Lord’s wisdom that enables
security in life, so that when approaching 16.3 the interpreter has more
than omnipotent and omnicompetent incentives to trust.
Proverbs 16.9 also harbours these assumptions, evident in its stark
juxtaposition of human and divine wisdom and control: ‘The heart of
man plans his way while the Lord establishes his steps’. The proverb,
and others like it, leaves a ‘gap’ in the details of how these two sides
of wisdom and control relate, but Proverbs 1–9 provides a means of
reconciliation. Proverbs 3.19-26 and 8.22-36 portray the Lord’s superior
sovereignty and, within this context, align him with wisdom, specifying
her as the mediator between God and humans. Wisdom protects like God
and bridges the gulf between anthropological striving and planning, and
the Lord’s supreme knowledge and actions. As mediator, Wisdom may
lead humans to adjust their thoughts and plans to God’s or may assure
them that these plans indeed agree and that their realization lies within the
Lord’s security. In short, Proverbs 1–9 functions didactically by providing
a framework of reasons to trust the Lord and a conception of wisdom as
mediator between God and humans.

4.2.5. The Function of Proverbs 1–9 for Human Postures and the Lord’s
Supremacy in Proverbs 22.17-21
Having concentrated on the material in Prov. 10.1–22.16, it remains to be
seen how Proverbs 1–9 functions for 22.17–29.27. Both of the insights
established in this chapter – human postures, and the Lord’s wisdom
and sovereignty – extend to this remaining material, with 22.19 being a
particularly illustrative example. Proverbs 22.17–29.27 directly refers to
the ‘Lord’ or ‘God’ twelve times, and these theological references make
up less than 6 percent of the material.39 The contrast in frequency with
10.1–22.16 is immediately noticeable, as over 15 percent of 10.1–22.16
includes a reference to the Lord or God, with a number of these appearing
in the ‘theological kernel’ (15.33–16.9), a dense series of theological
proverbs not present in 22.17–29.27. The first reference to the Lord in
22.17–29.27 arises in its third verse, Prov. 22.19, which forms part of a
five-verse section:

39. Proverbs 22.19, 23; 23.17; 24.18, 21; 25.2, 22; 28.5, 25; 29.13, 25-26 (of the
220 verses in 22.17–29.27). These advocate trust in or fear of the Lord, and portray
his sovereign and king-like behaviours.
162 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

‫הט אזנך ושׁמע דברי‬ 22.17 Incline your ear and hear the words of the
‫חכמים‬ wise;
‫ולבך תשׁית לדעתי‬ apply your heart to my knowledge
‫כי־נעים כי־תשׁמרם בבטנך‬ 22.18 For [it will be] pleasant if you keep them
within you,
‫יכנו יחדו על־שׂפתיך‬ if, together, they are ready on your lips
‫להיות ביהוה מבטחך‬ 22.19 That your trust might be in the Lord,
‫הודעתיך היום אף־אתה‬ I make you know,40 today, even you.
]‫הלא כתבתי לך [שׁלשׁים‬ 22.20 Have I not written for you thirty [sayings]41
‫במועצת ודעת‬ in counsel and knowledge,
‫להודיעך קשׁט אמרי אמת‬ 22.21 to make you know the truest words of truth,42
‫להשׁיב אמרים אמת‬ to give true answers to those who send
‫לשׁלחיך‬ you?

The passage begins with its primary exhortation to action – ‘incline your
ear and hear the words of the wise; apply your heart to my knowledge’
(v. 17) – and follows with reasons – ‘for [it will be] pleasant if you keep
them within you, if, together, they are ready on your lips’ (v. 18). To this
exhortation and its grounds, the verse under consideration adds a purpose:
‘that your trust might be in the Lord, I make you know, today, even you’
(v. 19). This statement most likely contributes to the motivating reasons
to ‘hear’ given in verse 18, so that listening (v. 17) begets pleasant results
(v. 18) and at the same time trust in the Lord (v. 19).43 One question arises
immediately: how does listening to these instructions lead to trusting
God? According to Longman,

It is not made explicit how the teaching will increase trust, and so we are
left to speculate. Perhaps the idea is that as the advice works in life, then
it breeds confidence in its ultimate author. Or perhaps it is calling on trust
in Yahweh as the first step toward implementing the advice found here. As
one practices trust by following the advice…then one grows in trust as the
unexpected consequences come.44

40. The performative perfective, which signals that the action occurs simultaneously
with speaking, suits the context (see IBHS, 489, P. 30.5.1d).
41. Neither the Ketiv (‘formerly’; ‫ )שׁלשׁום‬nor the Qere (‘noble things’; ‫)שׁלישׁים‬
make sense here. The emendation to ‫( שׁלשׁים‬thirty) is widely accepted based on the
reference in Amenemope.
42. The superlative rendering finds support in Eccl. 12.10: ‫ישׁר דברי אמת‬. For the
absolute form of ‫ קשׁט‬see Ps. 60.6[4].
43. Sæbø, Sprüche, 280.
44. Longman, Proverbs, 416.
 4. Theological Context 163

The challenge distils to one of relating human teaching to trusting the Lord,
which is best left for later while I instead consider the second challenge of the
passage, a question identical to the one derived from Prov. 16.3 – why trust
the Lord? Although 22.19 views trust from a different perspective – 16.3
commends trust in God while 22.19 promises to produce trust in God –
the sayings share a fundamental assumption: the Lord is trustworthy. So,
again, why trust the Lord? We must consult evidence outside of Proverbs
1–9 for an answer to these questions before turning to 1–9 itself.
Proverbs 22.17–29.27 contains eleven other references to the Lord, and
three of these inform the Lord’s trustworthiness. Proverbs 28.25 says ‘A
greedy man stirs up strife, but the one who trusts in the Lord is enriched’,
and Prov. 29.25 reads, ‘Trembling before man lays a snare, but the one
who trusts in the Lord is set on high’.45 Both passages positively portray
trust in God and indicate that such trust leads to ‘enrichment’ and security,
promises that plausibly motivate trust in the Lord but at the same time
leave the content of that motivation vague.46 They imply that the Lord can
and will supply protection and enrichment. The third passage (23.17-18)
does not use language of ‘trust’, but it does say, ‘Do not let your heart
envy sinners, but rather, continue fear of the Lord all the day. Surely there
is a future and your hope will not be cut off’. A ‘future’ and ‘hope’, then,
supply the grounds for trust given by Prov. 23.17-18, while enrichment
and protection appear in 28.25 and 29.25. These reasons for trust resemble
those of 10.1–22.16, especially the favourable consequences of relying on
God. Therefore, in its assumptions and interpretive resources, Prov. 22.19
differs little from sayings of the same family in 10.1–22.16.
Proverbs 22.19 sits within a part of Proverbs that calls upon an addi-
tional resource for its interpretation: the Instruction of Amenemope. The
Egyptian text contains clear parallels with Prov. 22.17–23.11, including
thematic and linguistic similarities that indicate that Proverbs likely drew
from Amenemope, albeit for its own purposes as seen in its arrangement and
modifications.47 The surrounding verses among which Prov. 22.19 appears

45. Often translated ‘greedy man/Habgieriger’ (e.g. ESV; NASB; Meinhold,

Sprüche, 473), ‫ רחב נפׁש‬in Prov. 28.25 refers to one with a ‘wide appetite’. Being
‘enriched’ may more specifically refer to being ‘fattened’.
46. In Prov. 29.25, the phrase ‘set on high’, from pual ‫ׂשגב‬, connotes security. The
phrase ‘trembling before man’ (‫ )חרדת אדם‬is often translated ‘fear of man’ (ESV;
NASB).
47. On the connection of these texts, see below and, among others, Nili Shupak,
‘The Instruction of Amenemope and Proverbs 22.17–24.22 from the Perspective of
Contemporary Research’, in Troxel et al., Seeking out the Wisdom, 203–20; Fox,
Proverbs 10–31, 753–67.
164 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

(22.17-21) all correspond to passages from Amenemope, but 22.19 itself

discloses no direct attachment to the Egyptian instructions.48 Although the
proverbial text distinctly includes ‫יהוה‬, Amenemope does include refer-
ences to Egyptian gods that may offer reasons for trusting them. Fox says
that ‘Although 22.19a is not verbally dependent on Amenemope, it is very
much in line with the spirit of his teachings, the only real difference being
that it uses the name of Israel’s God’.49 The passages from Amenemope
that most directly address the quest for trusting a deity or most closely
resemble Prov. 22.19 include X.12-15, which reads,

You shall pray to the Aten when he rises,

Saying: ‘Grant me well-being and health’;
He will give you your needs for this life,
And you will be safe from fear.50

These lines appear in Amenemope’s seventh chapter (IX.10–X.15). The

first two lines (X.12-13) offer what Vincent Laisney calls the ‘raisons
religieuses’ for the whole chapter, and the second two (X.14-15) name the
promises that stem from heeding the religious exhortations. ‘Pray to the
Aten’ and ‘he will give you your needs for this life, and you will be safe
from fear’. According to Laisney, ‘Ils énumèrent aussi les biens que l’on
peut demander et espérer légitimement du dieu’.51
Amenemope motivates action in the world and prayers to the Aten based
on the consequences that these behaviours produce, a driver concordant
with the proverbs from 22.17–29.27 mentioned earlier that hold out hope,
security, and enrichment for those who trust the Lord. The affinities
of the Proverbial text and Amenemope extend to other teleological
aspects, as both identify prosperity as the aim of instruction (III.17–IV.2;
Prov. 22.18). Despite these similarities, Amenemope offers no additional
grounds for trusting the Lord, and the divine name itself utterly differen-
tiates these texts, as both references to the ‘Lord’ in 22.17–23.11 find no
partner in Amenemope (22.19, 23).52 Furthermore, Prov. 22.19 states the

48. Diethard Römheld, Wege der Weisheit: Die Lehren Amenemopes und
Proverbien 22,17–24,22, BZAW 184 (Berlin: de Gruyter, 1989), 151, see also 13–26;
Vincent Pierre-Michel Laisney, L’Enseignement d’Aménémopé, Studia Pohl: Series
Maior 19 (Rome: Pontificio Istituto Biblico, 2007), 239–46.
49. Fox, Proverbs 10–31, 709.
50. AEL 2:153.
51. Laisney, L’Enseignement, 111. Amenemope VII.7-10 reflects a perspective
similar to X.12-15.
52. Laisney, L’Enseignement, 240. Cf. Römheld, Wege, 151–2.
 4. Theological Context 165

aim of instruction with crystal clarity – to trust the Lord – in contrast to

the implied notions of trust in Amenemope. The Egyptian text, despite its
influence on the author of Prov. 22.17–23.11, offers no distinctive answer
to the theological question produced by Prov. 22.19 – why trust the Lord?
Amenemope proffers a reason that resembles those of Prov. 22.17–29.27,
even 10.1–22.16 – namely, trust the Lord because of the beneficial conse-
quences – but offers little more in terms of interpretive resources for
22.19. Hence, the interpretive journey arrives at a place very similar to
Prov. 16.3, namely, wondering if Proverbs 1–9 may supply grounds for
trusting God. Again, there are reasons to think it does.
A number of linguistic connections appear in Prov. 22.17-21 and
Proverbs 1–9, including ‘incline your ear’ (4.20; 5.1, 13) and ‘hear’
(1.8; 4.1), with additional links in 22.17b-18 and 2.2b; 4.21; 6.21; 7.3.53
Proverbs 22.17-21 does not consequently function just like Proverbs 1–9,
but its five verses do recall some of the central features of Proverbs 1–9
and warrant an investigation into how these two portions of material relate.
As to the question about why to trust the Lord, recall the insights drawn
from 3.1-12, where the author outlines incentives for his exhortation to
‘trust in the Lord’ (3.5), including God’s superior wisdom, his supreme
control over situations, and, like Prov. 22.17–29.27 and Amenemope, the
beneficial consequences of trusting him. But Prov. 3.11-12 supplemented
this set of reasons with the Lord’s fatherly care: ‘My son, do not reject
the Lord’s discipline and do not loathe his reproof. For the one whom
the Lord loves, he reproves, like a father the son in whom he delights.’
The Lord’s love for the Proverbial pupil, like a father’s love for his son,
receives no parallel testimony elsewhere in Proverbs, and these personal,
affective grounds offer a distinctive motivation for obeying 22.17 –
‘incline your ear and hear the words of the wise; apply your heart to my
knowledge’ – and subsequently for trusting the Lord of 22.19. Proverbs
3.1-12, therefore, offers an interpretive framework that lends insights into
22.17–29.27 and its references to the Lord, particularly human postures
towards him.
This example resembles Prov. 16.3, yet it is also similar to another
category of theological sayings from Collection II: those that depict the
supremacy of the Lord’s wisdom and sovereignty. Proverbs 22.19 couples
human trust in the Lord with teaching without explaining the nature of the
connection. Hearing the words of the wise (22.17) supposedly facilitates

53. Ansberry, Be Wise, 120 n. 169. See also Whybray, Proverbs, 326. Plöger
(Sprüche, 267) says that Prov. 22.19 supplies a function (‘Zweckbestimmung’) for the
collection of proverbs that follow, like 1.2-6 does for the whole book.
166 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

trust in the Lord (22.19), but, as mentioned earlier, ‘It is not made explicit
how the teaching will increase trust, and so we are left to speculate’.54
How does heeding the ‘words of the wise’ and the teacher’s knowledge
lead to trust in the Lord?
Already directing this question towards Proverbs 1–9, Fox has
suggested that 22.19 states a purpose that matches 1.1-7 and 2.1-22 (esp.
2.5). According to him,

[22.19] asserts that the purpose of the teachings of Part III is to inculcate
trust in God. This is the promise also of the Prologue (1.1-7) and Lecture
II (2.1-22), especially 2.5. Yet few of the maxims teach this directly. (Prov.
23.4 and 23.17 imply it.) It is an axiom for this author that all wisdom leads
to trust in God. When one learns the right modes of behavior and their
consequences, in the practical as well as moral realms, one comes to view
the world as an orderly, just system and comes to trust its ruler.55

These comments seem to pick up on something that I explicated in the

earlier discussion on Prov. 16.9 – that Proverbs 1–9 portrays wisdom as
the mediator between God and humans, and that she particularly functions
like the Lord in bestowing blessings on people and protecting them.
Proverbs 3.19-26 and much of Proverbs 8 exemplified these character-
istics. However, I am not sure that wisdom’s motivational role leads to
emphasizing ‘the world as an orderly, just system’ as described by Fox,
and it certainly deters from interpreting her as a dispensable means to God.
Proverbs 1–9 portrays the search for wisdom leading to God (2.1-5) who
then dispenses wisdom to humans (2.6) and relates to them through her
(2.7-11). Consequently, Proverbs 1–9 encourages interpreters to see that
behind 22.17-19 lies not a system of order, whether moral or religious,
but a dynamic, mediated relationship with the Lord that is propelled by
the instructions within 22.17–23.11 and elsewhere in Proverbs. The state-
ments in 22.17 and 22.19 may convey that between listening to instruction
and living a wise life lies the Lord, who gives such wisdom and enables
humans to live in accordance with her.
With the example of Prov. 22.19, I have extended the conclusions of
Proverbs 1–9’s didactic function beyond 10.1–22.16 and into another
section of Proverbs. Interpretive challenges similar to those in 16.3 and
16.9 appear in 22.19, given its reference to the Lord, human posture
towards him, and relationship to wisdom, which produces questions

54. Longman, Proverbs, 416.

55. Fox, Proverbs 10–31, 708.
 4. Theological Context 167

about reasons for trusting the Lord and the place of wisdom in that trust.
Proverbs 1–9 again offers a framework that other portions of Proverbs
and resources of plausible benefit do not dispose. By supplying this
theological framework, Proverbs 1–9 functions didactically for the inter-
pretation of Proverbs 10–31.

4.2.6. Conclusion
There is one final section that will bring this chapter to a close, but so far
it has been seen that 16.9 and the discussion about God’s superior wisdom
and sovereignty complement the previous section on human postures
towards the Lord. As with 16.3, Prov. 16.9 starkly juxtaposes a statement
about God and humanity: humans plan their way; God establishes it. God
may endorse the life course envisioned by humans or he might override
their schemes. However, two passages in Proverbs 1–9 (3.19-26; 8.22-36)
emphasize the Lord’s sovereignty and so happen to place these remarks
within a context that both underscores the role of wisdom for humans
and incorporates the activity of the Lord. Wisdom, it seems, functions
as a mediator between God and humanity, quite a distinctive role when
Proverbs is viewed within the OT as a whole and a role that offers helpful
insights on Prov. 10.1–22.16. Furthermore, the sort of planning that
might oppose her is one’s very own ‘wisdom’, which is also described
and denounced in Proverbs 1–9. The arguments from the previous two
sections – human postures towards the Lord (16.3) and the supremacy
of his wisdom and sovereignty (16.9) – apply to Prov. 22.19, which
discloses interpretive challenges similar to but distinct from the earlier
texts. For Prov. 22.19 assumes that the Lord is trustworthy and presup-
poses a relationship between him and humanity. This example solidifies
the didactic function of Proverbs 1–9 and extends its domain to passages
outside of 10.1–22.16.

4.3. The Lord’s Affection and Assessment

The previous two sections accounted for passages in Prov. 10.1–22.16

that refer to the Lord and portray human postures toward him or feature
his wisdom and sovereignty. The final theological category, also based on
material in 10.1–22.16 that mentions ‘the Lord’ or ‘God’, incorporates
proverbs that portray the Lord’s affection and assessment, referring to
his emotional posture towards people and actions, or his awareness and
evaluation of them. Sayings like Prov. 16.5, for instance, which predicates
a haughty heart as an ‘abomination to the Lord’, appear in this category,
as do sayings about God’s anger, favour, and perceptive powers. In this
168 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

section, one passage representative of the current theological category

is again selected, one that also belongs to the theological ‘kernel’ of
Collection II (15.33–16.9): Prov. 16.2.

4.3.1. The Lord’s Affection and Assessment in Proverbs 16.2

‫כל־דרכי־אישׁ זך בעיניו‬ 16.2 All the ways of a man are pure in his eyes,
‫ותכן רוחות יהוה‬ while the Lord weighs spirits.

Proverbs 16.2 represents the category of theological sayings that address

the Lord’s affection and assessment, declaring that ‘All the ways of a man
are pure in his eyes, while the Lord weighs spirits’. The lexeme for ‘pure’
(‫ )זך‬describes oil and ritual objects as free from impurities (Exod. 27.20;
30.34; Lev. 24.2, 7) or, in an ethical sense, is used for doctrine (Job 11.4)
and prayers (Job 16.17). In Proverbs, ‫ זך‬qualifies ‘conduct’ (‫ ;פעל‬20.11;
21.8), conveying a sense of moral uprightness attested also in Job (8.6;
33.9), which suggests that ‘pure conduct’ in this case means purity from
iniquity and transgression (33.9).56 A saying nearly identical to Prov. 16.2
alters only this one lexeme (‫ )זך‬to replace it with ‫‘( יׁשר‬upright’; 21.2),
confirming that ‫ זך‬most plausibly refers to moral purity in 16.2. The inter-
pretive challenge of 16.2 derives from this lexeme for ‘pure’, as it prompts
the question, ‘what is impure?’, that is, what is the human problem within
Prov. 16.2? The problem is most likely an ethical issue, and it seems to
be latent within the proverb’s context. If ‘all the ways of a man are pure
in his eyes’, then what in particular is he pure from and what could be the
problem?
On the surface, it appears that Prov. 16.2 holds little interest in a human
problem, and that it rather aims to observe that humans judge their ways
as ‘pure’ – we can say ‘morally right’ for now – and that God operates as
the ultimate evaluator. P. Mommer states a stark version of this interpre-
tation: Prov. 16.2 ‘declares that what matters is not the private judgment
of a human being but the incorruptible and certain judgment of Yahweh…
[H]e determines whether the individual is acting properly’.57 Although it
is questionable to say that a human’s private judgment does not matter,
Mommer may accurately represent what 16.2 observes, namely, God’s
determinative ethical appraisal. However, the language of the saying
suggests that it implies more about the human–divine situation than a
juxtaposition of moral judgments.

56. The context of the Job passages implies that Job’s very claim to ‘pure’ status
is ‘impure’, at least according to his friends.
57. P. Mommer, ‘‫ תכן‬tkn’, TDOT 15:664.
 4. Theological Context 169

The phrase ‘in [someone’s] eyes’ refers, basically, to their opinion

or judgment and in Proverbs characterizes how the fool views his own
uprightness (12.15) or wisdom (26.5, 12; cf. 28.11): ‘The way of a fool is
right [‫ ]יׁשר‬in his own eyes’ (12.15).58 These sayings indicate that consid-
ering one’s ways as ‘pure’ may resemble the opinion of a fool, but none
of them offers evidence regarding what is wrong with such an opinion –
except that it may be false – or why such an opinion arises. Furthermore,
these sayings do not place the Lord, not to mention his affection and
assessment, within their sights, which draws attention to the distinctive
feature of Prov. 16.2.59 Not only does it contain a distinct term (‫)זך‬, it
also joins human moral evaluation with the Lord’s, a combination that
adds a theological element to my primary question – what is the human
problem? – and, after searching Proverbs 10–31, leaves us wanting for
an answer.
Other pertinent texts include Ps. 119.9 and its use of ‫זכה‬, where the
psalmist wonders ‘How can a young man make [or keep] his way pure?’
and then implies that impurity would entail straying from the Lord’s
commands or sinning (119.10-11). In Isa. 5.20-21, the prophet accuses
those ‘wise in their own eyes’ of confusing good and evil, calling evil
good and good evil. The prophet declares that this angers the Lord
(5.25), but, like other passages with a connection to Prov. 16.2, leaves us
wondering about the nature of the human problem therein. Psalm 119.9
and Isa. 5.20-21 begin to compile a catalogue of possible resolutions to
the problem, and yet we must also account for the second line of Prov.
16.2.
The second line of Prov. 16.2 offers insight into our question, as it reads,
‘while the Lord weighs spirits’. The lexeme for ‘weigh’ (‫)תכן‬, like ‫זך‬,
occurs infrequently in the OT (the root, 13×) and attests to the distinctive
nature of Prov. 16.2. It does appear in Prov. 24.12, where it contributes
to a rhetorical question that refers to the Lord: ‘does not he who weighs
the heart perceive it?’ The rhetorical question addresses the ‘problem’ of
this passage, that humans have been ignorant of a local crime or at least
used ignorance as an excuse for inaction and, after someone receives a
death sentence, say, ‘Behold, we did not know this’. To this statement, the
proverbial author responds, does not God weigh and perceive the heart?,
implying that God sees their inner world, regardless of the sincerity of their
ignorance. Based on 24.12, ignorance might constitute the human problem

58. Carl Schultz, ‘‫‘( ַעיִ ן‬ayin)’, TWOT 1612a. For a helpful compendium of this
idiom in the OT, see F. J. Stendeback, ‘‫‘ ַעיִ ן‬ayin’, TDOT 11:28-44, esp. 36–8.
59. Two other proverbs assert that the ‘eyes of the Lord’ are in all places (15.3)
and watch knowledge (22.12).
170 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

underlying Prov. 16.2. However, another occurrence of ‫( תכן‬1 Sam. 2.3)

suggests an additional possibility – arrogant human talk – and, finally,
there is the evidence from one other proverb.
Proverbs 20.9 uses the verbal form of ‫ זך‬to ask, ‘Who can say, “I have
made my heart pure (‫ ;)זכיתי‬I am clean from my sin (‫ ’?”)טהרתי מחטאתי‬In
this passage, purity aligns with a lack of ‘sin’, pointing towards another
lexical resource that might aid the current question. The lexeme ‫חטאת‬
refers to ‘sin’ and in several cases acquires a definition: it is juxtaposed
to righteousness (13.6; 14.34), predicated to ‘haughty eyes and a proud
heart’ (21.4), and likened to ‘devising folly’ (24.9). However, it in no
case occurs with the Lord’s evaluation, and in several passages it is
used without a particular denotation: ‘the gain of the wicked leads to
sin’ (10.16b); ‘sin overthrows the wicked’ (13.6b); ‘sin is a disgrace to
a people’ (14.34b).60 These passages offer an insight into the question
at hand akin to that of the passages mentioned earlier, which form a
collection of possible connotations for ‘impurity’, but lack the context of
the Lord’s evaluation. The same could be said of the various statements
in Prov. 15.31–16.8, which imply that ‘purity’ may look like one or all of
many things: receiving instruction (15.31-33), committing one’s work to
the Lord (16.3), not being arrogant (16.5), fearing the Lord and pleasing
him (16.6-7), and being righteous (16.8).
Similarly, evidence from the OT bearing firm lexical or conceptual links
with Prov. 16.2 presents a collage of answers to the current interpretive
question and, when 16.2 is read within that context, displays a picture of
how one might feel self-assuredly ‘pure’.61 The image is ample: sinful

60. Proverbs 14.12 and 30.12 lend similarly limited insights to the question (cf.
Plöger, Sprüche, 189). Aside from debates about whose ‘steadfast love and faithful-
ness’ appear in Prov. 16.6, the point that ‘iniquity is atoned for’ (‫ )יכפר עון‬indicates
that the solution to iniquity includes the Lord’s atonement and that this proverb itself
harbours assumptions that warrant the help of other biblical material (see, e.g., Mark
Boda, A Severe Mercy: Sin and Its Remedy in the Old Testament, Siphrut 1 [Winona
Lake: Eisenbrauns, 2009], 374–5). A. Negoită and H. Ringgren (‘‫ זָ ָכה‬zākhāh’, TDOT
4:62–4) assert that the adjectival use of ‫( זכה‬i.e. ‫ )זך‬connotes the notion of ‫צדק‬, which
may suit Job 8.6 and Ps. 51.6[4] but not necessarily the passages in Proverbs.
61. Hartmut Gese (Lehre und Wirklichkeit in der alten Weisheit: Studien zu den
Sprüchen Salomos und zu dem Buche Hiob [Tübingen: Mohr, 1958], 45–50) differ-
entiates proverbial sayings like 16.9 from ancient Egyptian instructions due to their
views on the ‘determination of hearts’. In Egypt, the determination arises from a more
metaphysically grounded determination; in Israel, the Lord can act independently of
human action. Gese contrasts the biblical proverbs that show the Lord acting against
 4. Theological Context 171

uncleanliness, intellectual disposition, human autonomy, revolt against

God, blindness to injustice As a result, it is safe to say that for the scope
of evaluation, ‘Ausschlaggend sind dabei nicht nur die Taten, sondern
auch die ihnen zugrundeliegenden Qualitäten, Motive und Absichten’.62
The problem likely entails the whole person, more than just their actions,
and the texts above indicate wrongdoing especially towards the Lord.
These answers are intriguing and feasible, whether they represent notions
of impurity based on a Bible-wide scope of interpretation or they hint at a
stock of knowledge that was common to many ancient readers of Proverbs.
But we cannot overlook the fact that they leave us a little uncertain as to
which one pertains most to Prov. 16.2, though perhaps they can all apply,
and, more importantly, they are missing a clear connection to the second
line of that proverb, namely, the Lord’s assessment of human beings. For
one not only feels ‘pure in his own eyes’ but is also told that God is the
one who ‘weighs spirits’, and in that regard one final piece of relevant
evidence from Proverbs commends itself: Prov. 5.21-23. First, Prov. 5.21
depicts the Lord’s assessment of human ways: ‘For a man’s ways are
before the eyes of the Lord, and he observes all his pathways’. Second,
5.22-23 propounds a human problem, using lexemes related to ‫זך‬: ‘His
iniquities (‫ )עוונותיו‬will ensnare him, and he will be held fast in the cords
of his sin (‫( ’)חטאתו‬5.22). Third, 5.21-23 occurs within Proverbs and
notably within Proverbs 1–9, which, I have been arguing, stands at a place
within the book that warrants the interpreter’s attention and functions in
a way that has so far offered an interpretive framework for understanding
Prov. 10.1–22.16. The question derived from 16.2 – what is the nature of
the human problem? – is now posed to Proverbs 1–9.

4.3.2. The Lord’s Affection and Assessment in Proverbs 1–9

Proverbs 1–9 presents the Lord’s affection and assessment in three
primary perspectives: (1) he assesses all the ways of humankind (5.21);
(2) he bestows favour upon certain people (3.4, 34; 8.35); (3) he ‘hates’
or abhors certain people and actions (3.32; 6.16). Of these references to
God’s affection and assessment, Prov. 3.31-32 and 5.21-23 are focused on
in this section, as they detail, respectively, ethical instructions and a series

human plans (e.g. 16.1) with texts like Amenemope XX.3-6 and Ptahhotep 115-116,
548-552 (AEL 2:158; 1:65, 74). Cf. Erik Hornung, Conceptions of God in Ancient
Egypt: The One and the Many, trans. J. Baines (London: Routledge & Kegan Paul,
1983), 210–11.
62. Meinhold, Sprüche, 266.
172 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

of warnings about sexual relations while underscoring the affections or

assessments of the Lord and humans. Through the combination of these
elements, these passages acutely address the interpretive question from
16.2.
The first passage (3.31-32) lies after a list of prohibitions about social
relations (3.27-30), like ‘Do not devise evil against your neighbour who
lives trustingly with you’ (v. 29). The prohibitions end in verse 31 with a
final order: ‘Do not envy a man of violence, and do not choose any of his
ways’. The imperatives leading up to this verse dictate actions – do not
withhold, or say, or plan or quarrel – and, with the exception of ‘devising
evil’ against a neighbour (v. 29), the instructions do not explicitly target
the emotions of the audience. In other words, the attention of these prohi-
bitions is on personal behaviour rather than personal affections. However,
the focus in 3.31 momentarily shifts from behaviour to attitude when it
enjoins – ‘do not envy’ – and then forbids the audience from choosing the
ways of violence. ‘Do not envy a man of violence, and do not choose any
of his ways.’
Verse 31’s interest in affection continues in verse 32, which states ‘For
the devious person is an abomination to the Lord but with the upright is his
counsel’. The ‘abomination to/of the Lord’ crops up throughout Proverbs
as a judgment against what the Lord hates, landing primarily upon wicked
people and wicked actions. Like the Lord’s abomination, ‘envy’ also
reappears in Proverbs in warnings similar to 3.21. Proverbs 24.1, for
instance, accentuates an affective focus: ‘Do not envy the wicked or desire
to be with them’. Envy, in Proverbs 10–31, relates to human emotions,
indicates that such emotions are prone to problems, and suggests that
Proverbs aims to redirect them. Hence, do not envy or desire to be with
the wicked (24.1); ‘do not let your heart envy sinners but continue in the
fear of the Lord’ (23.17); a calm heart gives life, but envy rots the bones
(14.30). Proverbs 3.31-32, though, incorporates the Lord’s affections into
its comments about human emotion. The sharp juxtaposition of human
‘envy’ and divine abhorrence in 3.31-32 suggests that the author intends to
facilitate an exchange in emotions. He mirrors someone who might ‘envy
a violent man’ with the Lord abhorring such perverse men.63 He replaces
the affections of envy with affections of hatred and goes on to propound

63. Though overlooking the significance of the remarks about affections and
focusing instead on the ideal social behaviours espoused by Prov. 3.21-35, Bassoum-
boul (Das sagesses, 167–70) concludes that ‘Il souligne que la mesure de cet idéal
est YHWH’. He explains that 3.31 intends to keep the son away from imitating ‘the
methods’ of the violent man, a purpose of the passage that I contend depends upon
certain affections.
 4. Theological Context 173

a set of divine affections in verses 33-35, wherein the Lord curses, scorns
and disgraces wicked character types, and blesses, favours and honours
righteous types. Who would envy such targets of God’s curse?64
Divine affection and human emotion appear not only in biblical
instructional literature. Two passages in the Instruction of Amenemope use
the Egyptian version of ‫‘( תועבת יהוה‬abomination of the Lord’) as grounds
for admonitions against false speech and action:65

Do not speak falsely to a man,

The god abhors it;
Do not sever your heart from your tongue.
That all your strivings may succeed.
You will be weighty before the others,
And secure in the hand of the god.
God hates the falsifier of words,
He greatly abhors the dissembler. (XIII.15–XIV.3)

Do not cheat a man (through) pen on scroll,

The god abhors it. (XV.20-21)

In these passages, perhaps composed during the height of ‘personal piety’

in ancient Egypt, the instructions ‘do not speak falsely’ and ‘do not cheat
a man’, plus the reiteration of divine affection in XIV.2-3, resemble
the tone of Prov. 3.28-32. Hence, ‘Do not speak falsely to a man; the
god abhors it…. God hates the falsifier of words, He greatly abhors the
dissembler’ (XIII.15-16; XIV.2-3). However, these instructions do not
address human affections, either positively or negatively, or propound the
audience with an inventory of divine attitudes towards good and evil as
in Prov. 3.33-35.66 Therefore, by juxtaposing prohibitions with the god’s
affections, the Egyptian material encourages attention towards the Lord’s
affection and assessment in Proverbs, but in Proverbs it nevertheless
seems that something innovative is occurring.

64. Being in God’s ‘counsel’ (‫ ;סוד‬3.32b) may involve communication between

those involved (Ps. 25.14; as ‘council’, see Jer. 23.18, 22).
65. See AEL 2:154–5. Cf. Amenemope V.8-9; XVIII.8–XIX.1.
66. The theological framework that lies below the surface of a text like Amene-
mope, based on the bulk of evidence from ancient Egypt, differs substantially from
the image of God portrayed in the OT (see Hornung, Conceptions, 186–216, esp.
195–6, 201–2, 212). Though unconvincingly arguing for a monotheistic conception of
Egyptian ntr, Joseph Vergote (‘La Notion de Dieu dans les Livres de Sagesse Égyp�-
tiens’, in Les Sagesses du Proche-Orient Ancien: Colloque de Strasbourg 17–19 mai
1962 [Paris: Presses Universitaires de France, 1963], 170–86) provides a thorough
list of references and quotations for Egyptian instructional texts that mention ‘god’.
174 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

The human affective problem and the solution of acquiring divine

affections finds support in another passage of the OT that joins language
of human desire and the Lord’s abomination: Deut. 7.25-26.

The images of their gods you shall burn with fire. You shall not covet
the silver or gold that is upon them or take it for yourselves, lest you be
ensnared by it, for it is an abomination to the Lord your God. And you
shall not bring an abomination into your house and become devoted to
destruction (‫ )חרם‬like it. You shall utterly detest it and utterly abhor it, for
it is devoted to destruction.

Notice how the author of the passage prohibits humans from coveting
and grounds the prohibition in the Lord’s alternative affections: ‘Do not
covet the silver or gold that is on [the images of foreign gods] and take
it for yourself…for it is an abomination to the Lord your God’. Yet the
passage moves beyond a juxtaposition and into prescriptive, emotional
guidance. For the people ‘must utterly detest and utterly abhor’ the silver
and gold. Using forceful language (‫)ׁשקץ ותׁשקצנו ותעב תתעבנו‬, Deut.
7.26 enjoins its audience to feel how God feels; as he abhors the idol-
related substances of foreign nations, so you, Israel, shall abhor them. The
behavioural instruction offered in Deut. 7.25-26 incorporates emotional
obedience, grounded upon the emotions of the Lord who then serves as
the model for how his people should feel.
A similar exchange, I contend, occurs in Prov. 3.31-32, which condemns
misguided human emotions and follows with an alternative, divine
emotion that redirects the audience’s affections, a strategy absent from
Proverbs 10–31.67 Proverbs 3.31-32 viewed within 3.28-35 suggests
that when Proverbs 1–9 mentions the affections of the Lord, it aims to
commend these affections to humans. Inversely, it indicates that the
human problem includes the failure to share God’s feelings towards

67. Proverbs 23.17 offers no instruction for how to feel about wickedness, though
it corroborates the point that humans should feel how God does: ‘Your heart shall not
envy sinners but rather be in the fear of the Lord all the day’ (see also 10.3; 12.12;
24.1, 19; cf. 1.22; 6.25). On implicit views of desire and desire as such throughout
Proverbs, see Stewart, Poetic Ethics, 130–69. Following Lyu, Stewart’s treatment
of desire in Proverbs is bound up with character types and their ‘poetic’ features,
which I address in Chapter 2. She also acknowledges that ‘The patterning of desire in
Proverbs is developed to the most elaborate extent in chapters 1–9’ (147), which, for
her, form character ‘in the likeness of wisdom’ (162). Forming desire in the likeness
of the Lord remains unaddressed, and Stewart’s examples show how the sayings
in Proverbs 10–29 hold no explicit theological aspect (e.g. 12.1; 13.5; 18.2; 21.15;
24.13-14).
 4. Theological Context 175

wickedness.68 As we investigate an answer to the question of what consti-

tutes the human problem, the Proverbs 3 passage is only one portion of
the evidence in 1–9 regarding the Lord’s affection and assessment. As
mentioned at the end of section 4.3.1, due to a pair of terms for ‘sin’ and
‘iniquity’, the second passage in Proverbs 1–9 pertinent to the current
question arises in Proverbs 5.

‫כי נכח עיני יהוה דרכי־אישׁ‬ 5.21 For a man’s ways are before the eyes
of the Lord,
‫וכל־מעגלתיו מפלס‬ and he observes all his paths.

Proverbs 5.21 baldly states ‘For a man’s ways are before the eyes of the
Lord, and he observes all his paths’. This verse inaugurates the conclusion
of Proverbs 5 (5.22-23), which summarizes an ethical evaluation of the
preceding story, wherein the father again commends his teaching (vv. 1-2)
only to present an exposé of a temptress (vv. 3-6), the man seduced by
her (vv. 7-14), and the proper context of sexual activity (vv. 15-20). The
story portrays what happens to men who succumb to the temptations of
a dangerous female by outlining the consequences for the man’s honour,
time (5.9), possessions, and energy (5.10): he loses all of them. These
losses culminate in a realization of his foolish behaviour and a confession
of what went wrong: ‘How I hated discipline, and my heart despised
reproof! I did not listen to the voice of my teacher or incline my ear to
my instructors’ (5.12-13). He ‘hated’ discipline and ‘despised’ reproof,
language that attests to a problem of affection; he harboured the wrong
feelings toward pedagogical instruction.
The Lord’s evaluation does not appear in the confession of 5.12-14 but
arises instead seven verses later, at the end of the chapter in 5.21. The
verse says that the Lord sees and examines all the ways of humans, not
least of this man, and proceeds to offer another appraisal of those lured by
the Proverbial temptress:

For a man’s ways are before the eyes of the Lord,

and he observes all his paths.
His iniquities will ensnare him,
and he will be held fast in the cords of his sin.
He will die by a lack of discipline,
and by his great folly he strays. (5.21-23)

68. Based on a brisk study of sin and its solution in Proverbs 1–9, without
focusing on the texts in question, Boda (Severe Mercy, 374; see 359–76) concludes
that wisdom in Collection I ‘entails turning away and rejecting evil and turning to and
embracing righteousness, both in the affections as well as in practice’.
176 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

In short, these verses explain the reasons for the man’s behaviour in
5.3-14 – iniquity, sin, folly, and a lack of discipline. Based on the lightbulb
scenario of 5.11-12, where at the end of his life this man realizes the
source of his former problems, it seems that ignorance may have been his
greatest fault. In his latter days he suddenly realizes his former attitude.
But his admission of conscious, negative postures toward instruction, and
the explanation in 5.22, particularly the ‘sin’ and ‘iniquity’ that spurred
his downfall, indicate that perhaps ‘ignorance’ does not best capture the
problem. As Christl Maier concludes, based on the generalized nature
of the terms for wrongdoing in 5.22, ‘Dabei ist es unerheblich, ob diese
wissentlich oder unwissentlich geschehen sind’.69
What, then, is the problem in Proverbs 5? As 5.21 wants us to know,
God certainly sees it. It may include the broad scope of iniquity and sin
conveyed by ‫ עון‬and ‫ חטא‬in 5.22.70 However, the confession in verses
12-13 suggests an affective problem, one more directly related to the ‘lack
of discipline’ and the ‘folly’ mentioned in 5.23. The man hated discipline
and reproof and did not desire to listen to his teachers. Might it be accurate
to say that he was right ‘in his own eyes’, at least until old age, and that
God sees not only an illicit tryst but also the improper affections of a
sinful man? He wrongly hated and despised the instruments of instruction
that would have led him aright earlier in life. This passage does not, like
3.31-32, suggest that the audience align their affections with the Lord’s, but
it does show the nature of the human problem when the Lord is watching.
His affection (3.31-32) and assessment (5.21) occur within Proverbs 1–9 in
contexts quite concerned with the affections of humans, to show that one
way humans go wrong is by failing to feel how God feels.
Before returning to Prov. 16.2, consider two more observations about
the Lord’s affection and assessment from Proverbs 1–9. In the first place,
none of the passages that mention or depict these concepts provides a
background or justification for the Lord’s affection; they assume the
Lord’s moral standards as categorical.71 For example, certain things are
an abomination to the Lord, full stop. In the second place, Collection I is
not interested to explain why the Lord hates such activity but is concerned
with clarifying what he hates, that is, the purview of his abomination, such

69. Maier, Die ‘fremde Frau’, 125.

70. On the use of these lexemes elsewhere, especially in the book of Psalms, see
below. ‘Transgression’ (‫ )פׁשע‬in Proverbs seems to refer to wrongdoing against other
humans rather than God (e.g. 19.11; 28.24).
71. Against the possibility that the negative consequences of such behaviour,
perhaps generalized as ‘social disorder’, constitute the grounds for the Lord’s stance,
see Boström, God, 202.
 4. Theological Context 177

as the characters, actions, and, as explored in this section, the misguided

affections of human beings. Both of these points are affirmed by 6.12-19,
which portrays the bad behaviour of certain people and critiques it with
a simple appeal to the Lord’s hatred for them. While the wicked person
and man with crooked speech will come to ruin, they likewise meet the
disfavour of the Lord, who hates and finds as abhorrent haughty eyes,
lying tongues, and hands that shed innocent blood. In summary, the Lord
sets the standard for the moral judgment of humans, and Proverbs 1–9
attempts to align the interpreter’s affections and assessment with the
Lord’s. The core problem, then, for humans is their failure to approach
and respond to good and evil in the way that God does.

4.3.3. The Function of Proverbs 1–9 for 16.2

Having posed the interpretive question of this section about Proverbs’
theology to Proverbs 1–9, I now return to the source of the question: Prov.
16.2. Representative of several sayings in 10.1–22.16 about the Lord’s
affection and assessment, Prov. 16.2 remarks that ‘All the ways of a man
are pure in his eyes, while the Lord weighs spirits’. The quite distinct
language for ‘pure’ (‫ )זך‬refers to moral uprightness and joined with ‘in
his eyes’ conveys that humans hold an opinion about their ways, judging
them to be morally right. Following this judgment, the second line of 16.2
states that the Lord ‘weighs spirits’ to indicate that he knows and assesses
the hearts of those humans who see their ways as pure. The challenge of
this proverb comes not so much from its language of the Lord ‘weighing’
hearts or from what exactly it means by being pure ‘in one’s eyes’. It
is the distinctive language of ‘pure’ in 16.2 that prompts an intriguing
enquiry into what constitutes ‘impurity’ in the view of this saying and
the book of Proverbs. That is, what is the nature of the human problem?
Other material in Prov. 10.1–22.16, while provoking similar questions,
offers several possible answers to the question, as do other passages from
the OT with conceptual or lexical links to Prov. 16.2. These resources
suggest promising resolutions, particularly attractive in their scope and
for those reading Proverbs with an extensive knowledge of the OT. But
the distinctive contribution of Proverbs 1–9 is evident, as it combines
what none of these other materials do, namely, the anthropological and
theological perspectives contained in Prov. 16.2.72 Proverbs 3.31-32 and

72. Deuteronomy 7.25-26 informs Prov. 5.31-32 more than Prov. 16.2 because of
its direct links to the former (i.e. ‘abomination of the Lord’). Had the phrase appeared
in Prov. 16.2, then that would broach a possibly more significant interpretive relation
between Prov. 10.1–22.16 and Deuteronomy, one worth exploring for other passages,
given the presence of the Lord’s abomination in Proverbs.
178 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

5.21-23, as well as 6.12-19, are reliable resources for this interpretive

challenge, addressing human problems in the context of divine affection
and assessment.
Proverbs 3.31-32 and the whole of Proverbs 5 show that the Lord sets
the standard for the moral outlook of human beings, and that Proverbs
1–9 attempts to align the interpreter’s affections and assessment with
this standard. To pose the question of Prov. 16.2 – what is the human
problem? – to Proverbs 1–9, the core problem is the failure to approach
and respond to good and evil in the way that God does. Proverbs 1–9
affirms that humans have a penchant for evil, or at least find it attractive,
and therefore provides a framework to see that, on the one hand, 16.2
connotes a problematic human ethical judgment. That is, ‘all the ways of
a man are pure in his own eyes’, even though none of his ways actually
are pure. Such interpretations find approval from some commentators,
such as Waltke, who in 16.2 sees people who ‘justify “all their actions”’
and enter into conflict with the Lord’s true evaluation.73 But Proverbs 1–9
supports the voices of those like Fox, who contend that Prov. 16.2, on the
other hand, ‘does not mean that all people are inevitably self-righteous.
Proverbs nowhere displays such a jaundiced view of humanity’.74 Proverbs
16.2 may connote that ‘all the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes’ and
are nevertheless sometimes in line with the Lord’s standard.
These interpretive positions recall the debate that surrounds Prov.
16.9 and whether it connotes a positive or negative view of humanity. In
section 4.2, Proverbs 1–9 imposed a framework upon these options, not
so much to decide between options or to refute an interpretation, but to
add a subtlety and nuance often unrecognized. Likewise, for Prov. 16.2,
Proverbs 1–9 reorients discussions and invites attention to the human
imitation of God, in its efforts to portray the human problem as one of
failure to feel how God feels, especially about evil, and assess it according
to his standards. According to Mommer, ‘what matters is not the private
judgment of a human being but the incorruptible and certain judgment of
Yahweh’.75 According to Proverbs 1–9, the human judgment does matter,
not in that it determines good and evil, but in that Proverbs envisions a
people with moral judgments that should align with God’s. Lastly, how
might this alignment be achieved? Proverbs 5 indicates that in order to
acquire God’s affection and assessment, to the extent that it is possible,
humans must listen to the teachings of authorized instructors. The man

73. Waltke, Proverbs 15–31, 10.

74. Fox, Proverbs 10–31, 608.
75. Mommer, TDOT 15:664.
 4. Theological Context 179

in Proverbs 5 bemoans his recalcitrance, and it seems the author himself

forwards this man as an example to show that God feels and thinks
otherwise, and to inspire his audience to follow suit. For, as Proverbs 1–9
makes clear, the Lord sets the moral standard, and, with this insight as
well as its conception of affection and assessment, functions didactically
by providing an interpretive framework for Prov. 10.1–22.16. So, despite
the subtlety of certain functions of Proverbs 1–9 here, its chapters offer
clear and distinctive insights into the theological questions of Proverbs
10–29 and in that way functions as an introduction.

4.3.4. The Qualifications and Context of Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction

Proverbs 16.2 and the discussion about God’s affection and assessment
completes my deliberate venture into the theological world of Proverbs.
Despite selecting only three of the fifty-seven sayings that mention ‘the
Lord’ or ‘God’ in Prov. 10.1–22.16 (16.2, 3, 9), this selection represents
the variety of theological perspectives in the collection and demonstrates
how Proverbs 1–9 functions didactically with respect to each. Proverbs
16.3 broaches issues of how humans posture themselves toward God –
especially the question of why to trust him – and 3.1-12 discloses that
God deserves trust because of his supreme wisdom, superior control,
favourable consequences, and most distinctly his love and delight for
people. Within the context of the Lord’s wisdom and sovereignty, Prov.
16.9 starkly juxtaposes a statement about God and humanity. Humans
plan their way; God establishes it. For such an ambiguous relation, two
passages in Proverbs 1–9 (3.19-26; 8.22-36) demonstrate that divine
wisdom functions as a mediator between God and humanity, bridging
the gap in sayings like Prov. 16.9. Gathering the conclusions of the first
two sections, I applied these insights to 22.17-21, a passage that also
presumes the Lord as worthy of trust and details little about the relation
of humans and God. Consequently, Proverbs 1–9 offers insight beyond
10.1–22.16, perhaps functioning as an introduction for 10–31 as a whole.
Lastly, Prov. 16.2 presents the interpreter with the challenge of discerning
the human problem in Proverbs, derived from remarks about human
morality and the Lord’s affection and assessment. Proverbs 3.31-32
and Proverbs 5 and 6.12-19 show that the Lord norms the moral world
for humans who struggle to align their affections and their appraisal of
good and evil with the Lord’s. All of these examples show how Proverbs
1–9 functions didactically by supplying an interpretive framework for
Proverbs 10–31, not necessarily imposing a single reading upon proverbs
that reference the Lord, but nuancing and enhancing the interpretation of
those passages.
180 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

4.3.5. Conclusion
Proverbs 16.2 was the final example in my study because it introduces
significant qualifications to and implications for what it means to call
Proverbs 1–9 an ‘introduction’. As mentioned, while Proverbs 1–9
does operate as an introduction for 16.2 in the way that I have been
maintaining, it also harbours its own assumptions on the topic of divine
affection and assessment. It gives no justification for why the Lord feels
the way he does about human wrongdoing; nor does it explain why his
feelings are ethically authoritative. Other passages in the OT provide
cogent contributions to the interpretation of 16.2, offering several human
problems that may answer the question of what makes someone ‘impure’:
sinful uncleanliness, intellectual disposition, human autonomy, revolt
against God, and blindness to injustice. To my mind, these are all under-
standably biblical ways that someone might not be as ‘pure’ in one’s own
eyes as one thinks.
Furthermore, in Deut. 7.25-26 too we see human impurity, and yet
a solution is also offered that resembles what we find in Prov. 3.31-32.
Theologically and anthropologically, these two passages make similar
suggestions: that one should feel as the Lord feels about wrongdoing; for
he abhors it. Proverbs 5, though, does forward a distinctive diagnosis for
the problem of being ‘pure in one’s own eyes’ – a hatred for discipline
and reproof, the failure to heed one’s teachers, and an ignorance of God’s
assessment of the situation – and therefore it should not be discredited in
its introductory function for Proverbs 10–29. Holding that conclusion in
place, there is a sense in which the interpretive challenges of 16.2 push
the boundaries of how Proverbs 1–9 functions as an introduction. For the
plethora of explanations for 16.2 found within the OT itself dovetails with
the nature of the explanation given by Proverbs 1–9 and likewise coheres
with the theological assumptions within it.
That becomes even clearer in view of two lexemes used by Proverbs
1–9: ‫ חטא‬and ‫עון‬. These terms for ‘sin’ and ‘iniquity’, associated with
16.2’s notion of ‘purity’, brand what the man in Proverbs 5 got wrong,
and yet they, in one case, rarely occur in Proverbs (i.e. ‫ )עון‬and, in the
other, presume quite a bit of conceptual stock (i.e. ‫)חטא‬. Forms of ‫חטא‬
can refer to ‘sinner(s)’, to the activity of ‘missing’ something, or to ‘sin’
in the abstract.76 As mentioned, the lexeme’s sense of ‘sin’ is juxtaposed
to righteousness (13.6; 14.34), predicated to ‘haughty eyes and a proud

76. For ‘sinner(s)’ (‫חטאים‬/‫)חוטא‬, see Prov. 1.10; 11.31; 13.21-22; 14.21; 23.17.
For ‘miss’, see 8.36; 19.2; cf. 20.2. For ‘sin’ (‫)חטאת‬, see 10.16; 13.6; 14.34; 20.9;
21.4; 24.9.
 4. Theological Context 181

heart’ (21.4), and likened to ‘devising folly’ (24.9), and is otherwise used
without explicit definition. ‫ עון‬occurs only in Prov. 5.22 and 16.6, with the
latter occurrence having a meaning that the passage itself does not clarify:
‘by steadfast love and faithfulness iniquity is atoned for’. ‫ עון‬occurs in
the book of Psalms 31 times, and Koch concludes that ‘Just which trans-
gressions or crimes actually lead to ‘āwōn is not explicated’, citing Ps.
89.32-33[31-32] as the exception, which, nevertheless, refers to the king’s
children transgressing guidelines normative for royalty, rather than all the
people of Israel transgressing the Mosaic law.77 In Psalms, these lexemes
often appear clustered together, as in 32 and 51, and seem to ‘express the
totality and immensity of culpability’ rather than indicating the measure
of the offence or its precise nature.78 Clearly, the lexemes in Prov. 5.22
connote wrongdoing against God and fellow humans, but what else might
lurk behind this ‘sin’ and ‘iniquity’? Can we know more about the ethical
standard in Proverbs, aside from the premise that God determines it and
that ‘sin’ has a close relation to pride and folly?
These questions dovetail with the remarks of Wildeboer, who, in
his comments on Prov. 5.21-22, says that God punishes ‘wenn nun
der Mensch Gottes Gesetz übertritt’, and that Prov. 16.2 prompts the
audience to adopt God’s law as his moral will and standard.79 The law,
for Wildeboer, marks the key to understanding moral wrong in these
passages, suggesting that one human problem in Proverbs, one I would
consider major based on these texts, is lawlessness. Humans transgress
the law of God, and God, who assesses all humans, feels certain ways
about it. In short, certain challenges in Prov. 16.2 are softened thanks to
Proverbs 1–9, and yet other challenges in 16.2 spawn even more puzzles
within Proverbs 1–9 itself, suggesting that 1–9 makes assumptions about
certain topics, not least theological, and thereby requires its own resources
for interpretation. These assumptions do not compromise its didactic role;
they reveal its limitations, along with a starting point for how Proverbs
might integrate with other portions of the OT and its ancient context.
Similarly, given the subtlety and nuance surrounding the examples of
16.2 and 16.9, one wonders if the introductory function of Proverbs 1–9
is more difficult to see than it is helpful. But the nuance of its role does
not necessarily mean that that role is obscure; it only seems so because
the process of explaining its function – that function itself being in some
ways simple – is a complex task.

77. K. Koch, ‘‫עֹון‬,

ָ ‘āwōn’, TDOT 10:553.
78. Boda, Severe Mercy, 446.
79. Wildeboer, Sprüche, 16; see also 47–8.
182 Proverbs 1–9 as an Introduction to the Book of Proverbs

By reading back and forth between the theological content of Proverbs

10.1–22.16 and 1–9, the book of Proverbs is still shown to have an intro-
duction, its first nine chapters orienting the reader to a certain theological
context that clears up certain challenges in the sayings material. But what
is striking about the examples of 16.2 and 16.9 is that they represent
a mode of theological thought not necessarily distinct to Proverbs.
Assertions of the Lord’s superior wisdom and sovereignty, and the moral
authority of his affections and assessment crop up in many OT texts,
albeit in their own distinctive ways, all of which suggests a common
set of theological beliefs. Other topics explored in this study – character
types, moral ambiguity, and the aims of Proverbs – are, by comparison,
somewhat characteristic of the book and specific to it. For the volume
and clarity with which these elements occur in Proverbs overshadow
their presence elsewhere in the OT, and that may suggest that the readers
of Proverbs had incongruous stores of knowledge. They seem to have
possessed a foundation of theological knowledge in a way that they did
not for these other interpretive topics. Hence, for aspects of the Lord’s
wisdom, sovereignty, affection and assessment we see less didacticism
from Proverbs 1–9 and more straightforward coherence in its relation
to Proverbs 10–29, though, again, not without significant contributions
to interpretation. Therefore, the, in some ways, unremarkable insights
that Proverbs 1–9 offers 16.2 and 16.9 do not jeopardize its function as
an introduction. It actually makes good sense in light of the alternative
sources of information that an original reader would have plausibly held.
What is remarkable is that Proverbs 1–9 ties up these basic theological
beliefs with the figure of Wisdom, and that its elaboration on how
she relates to those beliefs has implications for how 16.2 and 16.9 are
understood.
That is only a brief look down one of many promising avenues that can
now be pursued with the introductory function of Proverbs 1–9 in place.
These chapters, standing at the outset of the book of Proverbs, have long
been called a ‘prologue’ or ‘introduction’, and I have argued that in both
the detail and the ‘big picture’ of the book, Proverbs 1–9 functions didacti-
cally by supplying interpretive frameworks for chapters 10–31. It teaches
interpretive skills that help the interpreter to understand and explicate
material in 10–31, within literary, rhetorical, and theological contexts.
By functioning in this didactic way, Proverbs 1–9 fulfils the promises of
Prov. 1.1-7, which claims that the interpreter will ‘understand’ Proverbs
(1.2) and ‘explicate’ its material (1.6). The issues that need explicating
arise from the ‘assumptions’ in Prov. 10.1–22.16, that is, the information
and skills that are required for interpreting the proverbs. As a primary
 4. Theological Context 183

part of its didactic function, Proverbs 1–9 informs the particular inter-
pretive challenges that arise from these assumptions and does so in a
way that is coherent with 10–31 and distinctive, sometimes more so than
alternative sources of information, such as other ancient Near Eastern
texts, OT passages, and intellectual or experiential knowledge demon-
strably possessed by the ancient audiences of Proverbs. Specifically,
Proverbs 1–9 establishes the literary identity and rhetorical function
of the characters of Proverbs; it creates a network of aims and values
by establishing particular educational goals that organize certain state-
ments in Proverbs 10–31; and it substantiates the role of the Lord and his
relationship to humanity for sayings that only briefly mention him. In each
of these ways, Proverbs 1–9 forms an interpretive framework to explain
much of what is latent and unstated by the proverbial material.
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 I n d ex of R ef ere nce s

Hebrew Bible/ 9.9 23 1 Chronicles

Old Testament 11.2 23 5.24 98
Genesis 19.11 89
9.21 82 26.19 98 2 Chronicles
16.9 70 28 37 9.1 5
30.35 70 30.11-14 121
32.29 82 33.8 58 Nehemiah
27.20 168 1 12
30.34 168 Joshua 6.13 99
5.9 145 8.2-3 4
Exodus 10.18 146 8.7 4
21.20-27 89 8.8 4
23.5 89 Judges 8.9 4
1–9 12
Leviticus 5.6 62 Job
19.17-18 89 8.3 87 1–2 8, 9
24.2 168 14.12-19 5 1.1-5 8
24.7 168 1.6–2.13 8
1 Samuel 2.11-13 8
Numbers 2.3 170 3–42 8
12.8 5 2.9 58 3.1–42.6 8
16 98 14.33 146 3.17 66
16.2 98, 115 5.8 9
16.35 98 2 Samuel 5.17 9, 150
24.3 117 6 4 6.8-10 119
24.15 117 7.14-16 150 6.13-15 9
23 98 6.24-25 119
Deuteronomy 23.1 117 6.24 4
1.27 135 23.2 117 6.30 119
4 37 23.18 98 7.11 87
4.1 121 23.19 98 7.17-21 119
4.6 121 8.3-6 9
7.25-26 174, 177, 1 Kings 8.6 168, 170
180 3.9 4 8.20 9
7.26 174 3.11 4 9.16 119
8 37 4.31 98, 99 9.21-24 119
8.5 23 6–7 4 9.22 66
8.12-14 121 10.1 5 11 120
 Index of References 193

11.4 168 19 26 119 26

11.6 120 22 147 119.9 169
11.7-11 120 22.4-5 147 119.10-11 169
11.7 120 22.5-6 147 119.22 146
13.1-3 119 22.8-10 145 119.26 151
13.4-12 119 22.8 147 119.34 4
15.4-6 9 22.9 147 119.130 4
15.9-10 9 22.23-24 147 119.144 4
16.2-4 119 22.24-25 147 119.169 4
16.17 119, 168 24 66 139 120, 121
17.9 66 25.14 173 139.19-24 121
17.10 119 26 66 144.3 151
19.25-27 119 30.3 124
21.7 119 32 181 Proverbs
21.34 119 34 66 1–9 1, 3, 4, 7,
22.5 9 35.19 124 10–52,
22.21 9 37 26, 66, 55–7,
22.26 148 147, 148 59–64, 67,
23.11-12 119 37.1-6 147 68–76, 79,
27.5-6 119 37.4 147 82–4, 86,
27.10 148 37.5 145, 147 87, 89–92,
28 120 37.6 147 94, 96, 97,
28.12 120 37.7 66 100–103,
28.15-19 96 37.9 66 106, 107,
28.23 120 37.12 147 109, 111–
28.28 120 37.18 147 17, 121–
31.35-37 119 37.28-29 147 32, 134,
33.9 168 37.30 147 136–42,
34.34 52 37.40 147 145, 148,
38–39 119 50.16 66 150, 151,
40.2 119 51 181 160, 161,
40.7-8 119 51.4 170 163, 165–
42.7-17 8 51.6 170 7, 171,
60.4 162 174–83
Psalms 60.6 162 1–5 63
1 12 68.13 96 1–2 60, 62
1.1 56 68.14 96 1 40, 42, 57,
1.2 82 73 121 59, 61–3
1.6 56 73.16 151 1.1–24.22 32
2 12 77.5 151 1.1–22.16 50, 51
3.7 73 77.6 87, 151 1.1-14 58
3.8 73 77.7 87 1.1-11 7
9.18 124 78.2 5 1.1-7 2–4, 6, 15,
9.19 124 89.31-32 181 16, 27–9,
15 66 89.32-33 181 59, 79, 80,
15.1-2 66 92 121 82, 123,
16.10 58 106.25 135 166, 182
194 Index of References

Proverbs (cont.) 1.19 59–61, 70 2.7-9 56

1.1-6 6, 17 1.20-33 40, 57, 62, 2.7-8 58
1.1-2 7 79–82, 91, 2.7 122, 149
1.1 16, 29 102 2.8 62, 110,
1.2-7 19, 29, 59, 1.20-22 79 149
123, 141 1.22-33 22, 129 2.9-11 109
1.2-6 19, 59, 1.22-27 80 2.9 58, 62,
165 1.22-24 130 107
1.2-3 59 1.22 61, 80, 81, 2.10-11 107
1.2 2–7, 19, 174 2.11 83, 108
123, 182 1.23 81, 87 2.12-19 107, 108
1.3-11 7 1.24 80, 81 2.12-15 62, 110
1.3 4, 7, 19, 1.25 80 2.12 56, 58, 66,
59 1.26-28 82 108, 149
1.4-11 7 1.28-31 80 2.13-15 56, 58
1.4 6, 59, 79 1.28 80 2.13 62
1.5-6 59 1.29 80, 148 2.14 58
1.5 6, 59, 79, 1.30 80 2.15-16 58
81 1.31 62 2.15 56, 62
1.6 2–7, 16, 1.32 61, 62, 80 2.16-19 58, 110
19, 182 1.33 61, 81 2.16 108, 149
1.7-8 51 2–9 64 2.17-19 166
1.7 32, 59, 61, 2 26, 37, 39, 2.17 148
80, 81, 42, 58, 59, 2.18-20 62
110, 130, 62, 63, 68, 2.18 62
148 102, 103, 2.19 56
1.8–9.18 29 106–11, 2.20-22 56, 61,
1.8 130, 165 122–5, 107–9
1.10–2.22 59 127, 141, 2.20 58, 62, 66,
1.10-19 39, 57, 149 108, 109
59–61, 68, 2.1-22 166 2.21-22 18, 58,
70, 80, 82, 2.1-11 108 108–10,
90, 91 2.1-7 122 127, 147
1.10-14 62 2.1-5 109, 122, 2.21 109
1.10 57, 61, 166 3 26, 39, 68,
180 2.1-4 107 149, 175
1.11 57 2.1 110 3.1-12 44, 148–
1.12 7 2.2-3 83 50, 160,
1.13-14 57 2.2 165 165, 179
1.13 57, 59, 2.4-5 110 3.1-4 98, 100
129 2.5-6 148 3.1-3 148
1.14 59 2.5 107, 166 3.1 149
1.15 62 2.6-8 107 3.2 67
1.16-19 62 2.6 110, 123, 3.3-8 67
1.16 60, 130 139, 149, 3.3 23, 149
1.17 18 166 3.4-5 148
1.18 61 2.7-11 166 3.4 148, 171
 Index of References 195

3.5-12 149 3.32-33 148 5.21-23 171, 175,

3.5-10 149 3.32 171-73 178
3.5-9 19 3.33-35 18, 173 5.21-22 181
3.5-7 125 3.34 56, 171 5.21 62, 148,
3.5 148, 149, 4 11, 148 171, 175,
165 4.1-13 139 176
3.6-12 148 4.1-9 130 5.22-23 59, 130,
3.6 63, 148, 4.1-4 139 171, 175
149 4.1 165 5.22 171, 176,
3.7 138, 148, 4.2 130 181
149 4.3-4 130 5.23 176
3.8 148, 149 4.5-6 130 5.31-32 177
3.9-10 149 4.7 139 6 26, 64
3.9 148 4.8-9 139 6.1-19 23, 29, 30,
3.11-12 44, 148, 4.10-27 139 39, 60, 90
165 4.10-19 56, 59, 63 6.1-5 60
3.11 23, 149 4.11 62, 63 6.1 56
3.12 23, 149 4.13 130, 139 6.6-11 29, 60, 70,
3.13-18 149 4.14-19 60 71
3.13 56, 83, 4.14 60, 61 6.6 55, 62
149 4.16-17 56 6.9 55
3.14 100 4.16 60 6.10-11 70
3.15 114 4.17 60 6.12-19 45, 60,
3.17 63 4.18-19 63 177–9
3.18 19, 32, 4.18 147 6.12-15 29
149 4.20 165 6.14 56
3.19-26 44, 161, 4.21 165 6.16 148, 171
166, 167, 4.26-27 63 6.17-19 60
179 5 29, 45, 59, 6.17 56, 60
3.19-20 123 175, 176, 6.18 130
3.19 148 178–80 6.19 56
3.21-35 172 5.1-2 175 6.21 165
3.21-30 61 5.1 83, 165 6.25 174
3.21-26 149 5.3-14 176 6.29 56
3.21 172 5.3-6 175 6.34 56
3.23 63 5.5-6 62, 63 7–9 63
3.26 148, 149 5.7-14 175 7–8 19, 41, 42,
3.27-30 172 5.9 175 102, 103,
3.28-35 174 5.10 175 107, 108,
3.28-32 173 5.11-12 176 110, 111,
3.29 56, 172 5.12-14 175 127, 128,
3.31-35 39, 61 5.12-13 175, 176 141
3.31-32 45, 61, 5.13 165 7 11, 26, 43,
171, 172, 5.15-20 175 103, 104,
174, 176– 5.19 129 130, 148
8, 180 5.20 32 7.1-3 103
3.31 63, 172 7.3 23, 165
196 Index of References

Proverbs (cont.) 8.20 62, 105 102, 111–

7.4-5 103 8.21 105, 129 17, 125–8,
7.4 103, 104 8.22-36 161, 167, 131, 132,
7.5 103, 104 179 134–6,
7.6-23 103 8.22-31 11, 44, 138, 140,
7.7 61 105 145, 160,
7.8-23 61 8.22 148 174, 179,
7.8 62 8.23 105 180, 182
7.12-13 104 8.30 105 10–22 3
7.13-20 104 8.32-36 56, 106 10–15 47, 48, 50,
7.16-18 104 8.32 106, 107 51, 53, 55
7.18 129 8.33 106, 107 10–11 47
7.19 62 8.34-35 106 10 16, 55
7.21-23 130 8.34 106 10.1–22.16 1–3, 5,
7.21 104, 136 8.35 106, 148, 15–17,
7.22-23 130 171 19, 23–5,
7.24 103 8.36 104, 180 27–9, 31,
7.25-27 103 9 29, 102, 33, 35–40,
7.25 103 104, 129 42–4,
7.26-27 104 9.4 22, 129 46–52,
7.27 104 9.7-12 29 54–7, 59,
8 26, 104, 9.7-9 18, 61 62, 64, 67,
106, 110, 9.7 56 69, 71–9,
139 9.10 32, 124, 82, 84, 87,
8.1-21 105 148 92, 94–7,
8.1-3 104 9.12 32 100, 101,
8.1 104 9.16 22, 129 116, 128,
8.2-3 104 10–31 3, 7, 18, 129, 141,
8.3-4 104 19, 25–8, 143–7,
8.5 4, 61 33, 35–8, 149–51,
8.6-9 105 40, 43–5, 160, 161,
8.6-7 130 94, 98, 163, 165–
8.6 104 100, 111, 7, 171,
8.7 104 115, 139, 177, 179,
8.9 4 141, 167, 182
8.10-11 104, 105, 169, 172, 10.1–11.13 51, 52
114 174, 179, 10.1-5 39, 49,
8.10 105 182, 183 51–5, 63,
8.11 105 10–30 141 67–9, 71,
8.12 105 10–29 1–4, 7, 14, 72
8.13 148 15, 18, 10.1-3 52, 71
8.14-16 105 20–2, 24, 10.1 5, 16,
8.15-16 56 26, 30–4, 51–3, 68,
8.15 105 36, 38, 41, 76
8.18-21 105 43, 44, 47, 10.2 39, 40,
8.18 105 48, 75, 83, 51–4,
8.19 105 88–92, 96,
 Index of References 197

67–70, 72, 11.4 76, 93 12.18 76

76, 96 11.5-11 76 12.20 56, 76
10.3 52, 53, 56, 11.6 74 12.21 76
68, 74, 76, 11.9 56 12.22 76, 143,
174, 79, 11.11 73 144
143, 144 11.12 76, 79 12.23 54, 76, 79
10.4-5 49, 52, 53, 11.13 76, 87 12.24 76
71 11.14 76 12.25 76
10.4 39, 40, 11.15 76 12.26 75, 76
51–5, 67, 11.16 76 12.27 76
69–72, 76, 11.17 76 12.28 76, 79
96 11.18 76, 54 13.1 76, 79
10.5 49, 52, 76 11.19 76 13.2 76
10.6 76, 79 11.20 56, 76, 13.3 76, 54
10.7 76, 98 143, 144 13.4-6 76
10.8 24, 76, 83 11.21 76 13.5 174
10.9 62, 76 11.22 76, 133 13.6 170, 180
10.10-19 69 11.23 74, 76 13.7 54, 76
10.10 76 11.24-27 76 13.8 54, 76
10.11 76 11.28-31 76 13.9 76
10.12 76 11.30 19 13.10 76
10.13 76, 83 11.31 180 13.11 76
10.16 71, 170, 12.1-4 53 13.12 19
180 12.1 76, 174 13.13-14 24
10.18 76, 79 12.2 2, 44, 56, 13.13 76
10.19 76, 83 76, 99, 13.14 76
10.20 76, 78, 79 143, 144, 13.15 76, 96
10.21 71, 76 146 13.16 76, 79
10.22 76, 143, 12.3-4 64 13.17 76
144 12.3 76 13.18 54, 76
10.23-27 53 12.4 76 13.19-22 76
10.23 76, 79, 12.5 76, 79 13.19 133
133 12.6 76 13.21-22 180
10.24 71, 76, 74 12.7 76 13.23 76
10.25 76 12.8 76, 56 13.24 76
10.26 76, 79 12.9-14 7 13.25 52, 76
10.27 76, 143, 12.9 76 14-115 47
144 12.10 76, 79 14 137
10.29-31 76 12.11 76 14.1-4 53
10.29 143–6, 12.12 76, 174 14.1 62, 76
151 12.13 76 14.2 76, 78,
10.31 83 12.14 76 137, 141,
10.32 76, 79, 91 12.15-17 76 143, 144
11.1 76, 143, 12.15-16 79 14.3 76
144 12.15 133, 137, 14.4 76
11.2 76 169 14.5 76
11.3 76 12.16 88 14.6 76
198 Index of References

Proverbs (cont.) 15.1 76, 77, 78, 15.31–16.8 170

14.7-9 76 85, 86 15.31-33 170
14.7-8 79 15.2-7 53 15.31 76
14.7 78 15.2 40, 76–9, 15.32 54, 76
14.8 4, 132, 82–6, 88, 15.33–16.9 43, 145,
133, 137, 90, 91 149, 151,
140 15.3 76, 79, 160, 161,
14.9 78, 79 143, 144, 168
14.10 54, 76 169 15.33–16.7 145
14.11-12 138 15.4 19, 76, 15.33 76, 143,
14.11 76 85–7 144
14.12-13 133 15.5 76, 78, 79 16.1–22.16 51
14.12 43, 76, 15.6 76, 69 16.1-7 143
129, 133, 15.7 76, 83 16.1 2, 44, 76,
134, 137– 15.8-9 79 144, 146,
40, 170 15.8 76, 143, 160, 171
14.13 76 144 16.2-5 146, 148
14.14 56, 76 15.9 73-76, 16.2 45, 76,
14.15 76, 79, 143, 144 144–6,
133, 137, 15.10 76 168–70,
140 15.11 76, 143, 172, 176–
14.16-18 76 144 82
14.17 56 15.12 76, 79 16.3 2, 44, 45,
14.19 76, 79 15.13 76, 87 76, 144–8,
14.20 54, 76 15.14 76, 79 150, 151,
14.21 76, 78, 15.15 56, 76 160, 161,
180 15.16 69, 76, 163, 165–
14.22 76 143, 144 7, 170,
14.23 76 15.17 76 179
14.24 76 15.18 56, 76, 89 16.4-5 146
14.25-27 76 15.19 76, 79 16.4 78, 76, 79,
14.26 96, 143, 15.20 76 144, 146,
144 15.21 76, 79, 148
14.27 143, 144 132–4 16.5-7 76
14.28 76 15.22 76 16.5 2, 44, 144,
14.29 76, 78, 87, 15.23 76 146, 148,
89, 90 15.24 76 167, 170
14.30 76, 172 15.25 71, 76, 16.6-7 170
14.31 76, 143, 137, 143, 16.6 144, 146,
144 144 150, 170,
14.32 76 15.26 76, 78, 181
14.33 76, 79 143, 144 16.7 144
14.34 73, 76, 15.27 76 16.8 76, 145,
170, 180 15.28 76, 79, 83 170
14.35 76 15.29 76, 143, 16.9 2, 44, 45,
15.1-7 86 144 76, 143–6,
15.1-4 86 15.30 76 160, 166,
 Index of References 199

167, 170, 17.6 76 18.17 76

178, 179, 17.7 76, 78, 79 18.18-22 76
182 17.8 76, 133 18.22 34, 143,
16.10 76 17.9 76 144
16.11 76, 143, 17.10 76, 79 18.23 54
144 17.11 76 18.24 76, 133
16.12 76 17.12 76, 79 19.1 76, 79
16.13 76 17.13 76 19.2 76, 180
16.14 76 17.14 76 19.3 76, 143,
16.15 76 17.15 76, 143, 144
16.16 41, 42, 144 19.4-7 76
76, 94–7, 17.16 76 19.5 56
112–16, 17.17 54, 76 19.6 99
127, 128, 17.18 76, 79 19.8 76
141 17.19 76 19.9 76
16.17 54, 76 17.20 56, 76 19.10 76, 78, 79
16.18 76, 87 17.21 76 19.11 76, 176
16.19 76, 87 17.22 76 19.12 76
16.20 76, 143, 17.23 76 19.13 76
144, 151 17.24 76, 79, 19.14 76, 143,
16.21 76, 133, 133 144
135, 136, 17.25 76 19.15 56, 76
140 17.26 76, 78, 79 19.16 24, 76
16.22 76 17.27-28 54 19.17 143, 144
16.23-24 135, 140 17.27 76, 78, 89 19.21 76, 143,
16.23 76, 79 17.28 133 144
16.24-25 133 18.2 40, 76, 78, 19.22 76
16.24 76, 52 79, 82–5, 19.23 143, 144
16.25 76 88, 90, 91, 19.24 48, 60, 76,
16.26 76 174 79
16.27-30 76 18.3 76 19.25 76
16.27-28 54 18.4 76 19.28 76, 79
16.27 76 18.5 76, 78, 79 19.29 76, 135
16.28 76, 135 18.6-8 76 20–22 76
16.31 76 18.7 135 20.1 76
16.32 56, 76, 78, 18.8 43, 129, 20.2 76, 180
87 134–41 20.3-5 76
16.33 76, 143, 18.9 76, 78, 79 20.6 76, 133
144 18.10 76, 98, 20.7 76
17.1 76 143–6, 20.8 76
17.2 76 151 20.9 76, 170,
17.3 76, 143, 18.11 76 180
144 18.12 76 20.10 76, 143,
17.4 56, 76, 79, 18.13 83 144
133 18.14 87 20.11 76, 168
17.5 76, 143, 18.15 76 20.12 76, 143,
144 18.16 76, 133 144
200 Index of References

Proverbs (cont.) 21.19 76 22.17–29.27 87, 116,

20.13 76, 77 21.20 76 161, 163,
20.14-16 76 21.21 76 165
20.15 113 21.22 76 22.17–23.11 163–6
20.17 76, 132, 21.23 76 22.17-21 10, 161,
133 21.24 76, 79, 98, 164, 165,
20.18 76 135 179
20.19 56, 76 21.25 76 22.17-18 10, 165
20.22-24 143 21.26-27 79 22.17 5, 32, 162,
20.22 44, 144–6, 21.26 76 165, 166
151 21.27 76, 78 22.18 162, 164
20.23 76, 144 21.28 76 22.19 3, 145,
20.24 76, 144 21.29 76 161–7
20.25 76 21.30 76, 95, 96, 22.20 162
20.26 76, 79 143, 144 22.21 162
20.27 76, 135, 21.31 76, 143, 22.23 161, 164
143, 144 144 22.28 71
20.28 76 22.1 41, 42, 76, 23.4 166
20.29 76 94, 95, 23.10 10
20.30 76, 135 97–100, 23.17-18 163
21.1-3 143 102, 111– 23.17 161, 166,
21.1 144 13, 115, 172, 174,
21.2 76, 144, 116, 127, 180
168 128, 141 24–29 32
21.3 2, 44, 76, 22.2 54, 76, 95, 24.1 172, 174
144, 146 96, 143, 24.8 151
21.4 76, 79, 144 24.9 135, 170,
170, 180, 22.3 76 180, 181
181 22.4 76, 95, 96, 24.12 169
21.5 76 143, 144 24.13-14 174
21.6 19, 69, 76 22.5 76 24.18 89, 161
21.7 76 22.6 76 24.19 174
21.8 76, 137, 22.7 54, 76 24.21 161
168 22.8 76 24.23-34 32
21.9 76 22.9 76 24.23-131.31 32
21.10-12 76 22.10 76 24.23 32
21.10 74 22.11 76 24.30-34 71
21.11 76 22.12 76, 143, 25–29 19
21.12 143 144, 169 25.1–29.27 32
21.13 76, 144 22.13 48, 60, 78, 25.2 161
21.14 76, 133 79 25.12 52
21.15 74, 76, 22.14-16 76 25.22 161
174 22.14 56, 62, 89, 25.25 52
21.16 76 143, 144 26.5 169
21.17 76 22.17–31.31 3, 98 26.12 169
21.18 76, 79, 91 26.20 135
26.22-26 133
 Index of References 201

26.22 135 30.4-9 118 Jeremiah

27.5 82 30.4 118–21, 13.11 98
27.7 133 124 15.16 136
28 26 30.5-9 126 23.18 173
28.3 54 30.5 118, 122 23.22 173
28.4 24 30.6 118, 121 31 26
28.5 161 30.9 98
28.6 54 30.10-17 117 Lamentations
28.7 24 30.10 135 1.19 124
28.9 24 30.12 170
28.11 4, 169 30.13 96 Daniel
28.24 176 30.15-33 32 1.4 123
28.25 161, 163 30.18-19 117 2.21 123
29 32 30.20-23 133 8.23 4, 5
29.1 3 30.20-21 96 8.27 4
29.5 133 30.20 117, 132 11.24 151
29.8 87 30.21-33 117
29.9 88 31 18, 20, 28 Hosea
29.11 40, 83, 31.1-9 24, 32 7.15 151
87–90 31.1 32, 117
29.13 161 31.10-31 32 Nahum
29.20 87 1.9 151
29.22 87-89 Ecclesiastes
29.23 87 1.1-11 8 Habakkuk
29.25-26 161 1.3 8 2.6 5
29.25 163 1.12-18 8
30–31 21 2.1-11 8 Zechariah
30-131 32, 116, 2.11 8 3.19-20 98
117, 126 4.13 52 9.3 96
30 26, 32, 42, 7.1 99, 115
116 8.8-10 138 Apocrypha
30.1-14 32 9.2-6 138 Ben Sira
30.1-9 3, 27, 32, 10.4 87 1.1-10 11
42, 94, 12.10 162 1.11-30 11
116, 117, 2.1–4.10 11
119–27, Isaiah 2.1 11
141 1 12 3.12 11
30.1-6 138 5.20-21 169 4.1 11
30.1-4 124, 126 5.25 169 4.11-19 11
30.1-3 118 11.2 123 4.20 11
30.1 32, 117, 28.9 4 21.12-26 66
126 29.24 135 22.7-15 66
30.2-3 122–4, 126 38.18 124 41.11-13 99
30.2 117, 123 56–66 26
30.3 42, 117,
123, 125,
126, 128
202 Index of References

Mishnah Ankhsheshonq 548-552 171

Pirkei Avot §1–4 10 548 64
4.13 99 5.10 64 573-574 64
6.3 64 575-587 64
Ancient Near Eastern 6.13-15 64
Sources 13.3 64 Merikare
Amenemhet 13.9 64 115-116 65
i.2 10 14.8 64
16.5 64 Ptahhotep
Amenemope 26.9 64 i.51-60 10
III.9–IV.2 9, 10 1–50 9
III.17–IV.2 164 Gilgamesh 37–42 9
V.8-9 173 124-136 12 39 65
VII.7-10 164 55 64
IX.10–X.15 164 Insinger 68 64
X.12-15 164 2.10 65 115-116 171
X.12-13 164 3.2-8 65 140-144 64
X.14-15 164 4.9 65 167 64
XIII.15– 7.11 65 250 64
XIV.3 173 12.4 65
XIII.15-16 173 12.23 65 Shuruppak
XIV.2-3 173 14.5 65 ll. 1-13 14
XV.20-21 173 34.11-12 65 ll. 1-8 13, 14
XVIII.8– 34.12-13 65 ll. 1-3 14
XIX.1 173 35.11-12 65 ll. 7-8 14
XX.3-6 171 ll. 8–13 10
XXVII.13-15 6 265 64 ll. 9-13 14
298-324 64 ll. 78-87 13
Ani 352 64 ll. 148-157 13
7.4-5 136 388 64
7.4 10 515 64 The Teaching of a Man
7.9-10 136 523-524 64 for his Son
526 64 1–3 10
531-572 64
 I n d ex of A u t h or s

Adams, S. L. 16, 32, 33 Estes, D. J. 101

Aitken, K. 50, 56, 75 Ewald, H. 16, 30, 99
Aletti, J.-N. 21, 22, 61, 129–31, 134, 139,
157 Fleming, J. 101
Alster, B. 2, 13 Fox, M. V. 5–7, 18, 20, 21, 29, 30, 32,
Ansberry, C. B. 10, 50, 117, 121, 165 47, 55, 58, 60, 61, 63, 81, 88, 99, 101,
Askin, L. 32 105, 108, 111, 117, 121, 124, 135, 145,
155, 156, 158, 163, 164, 166, 178
Balentine, S. 8 Frahm, E. 2
Bartholomew, C. G. 7, 8 Frankenberg, W. 46
Barucq, A. 118, 119 Fredericks, D. 8
Bassoumboul, E.-N. 157, 172 Freuling, G. 77
Baumann, G. 157 Fuhs, H. 53, 63
Bertheau, E. 16
Bland, D. 101 Gemser, B. 11
Bleek, F. 16 Gerstenberger, E. 66
Boda, M. 170, 175, 181 Gese, H. 170
Boström. L. 157, 176 Gilberg, M. 101, 158
Bridges, C. 16 Gilchrist, M. O. 102
Brown, W. P. 20, 66, 107 Goldingay, J. 52, 53, 147
Byargeon, R. 29 Gramberg, K. 46, 144

Camp, C. V. 18, 157 Haar Romeny, R. B. ter 13

Carr, D. M. 30, 31 Habel, N. 8
Cheung, S. 147 Hammond, H. 15
Clifford, R. 3, 60 Hausmann, J. 47, 48, 50, 65
Clines, D. 8 Heim, K. M. 18, 29, 30, 47, 49, 53, 137,
Cohen, A. 16 143, 146
Cook, J. 32 Henry, M. 15
Corley, T. J. J. 11 Herbert, A. S. 5
Cornill, C. 16 Hermisson, H.-J. 46
Crenshaw, J. 11 Hitzig, F. 29, 30
Hoglund, K. 66
Davison, W. T. 5, 16 Hornung, E. 171, 173
Delitzsch, F. 29, 84, 95, 117, 118, 124, Horst, F. 120
132, 146
Dell, K. 143, 157 Jones, E. 17
Derousseaux, L. 150 Jones, S. C. 102
Dick, M. 119
Douglas, G. C. M. 16
204 Index of Authors

Kayatz, C. 11 Pola, T. 153

Keefer, A. 6, 59, 79, 105, 133, 136, 148 Poole, M. 15
Keil, C. F. 16 Preuss, H. D. 18
Kidner, D. 66
Kim, H. S. 20 Rad, G. von 153
King, P. J. 57 Richter, H.-F. 126
Kitchen, K. A. 11, 30 Ringgren, H. 4, 16, 170
Koch, K. 181 Römheld, D. 164
Kovacs, B. W. 46
Kynes, W. 120 Sæbø, M. 17, 18, 29, 30, 33, 48, 87, 106,
108, 111, 121, 138, 155, 162
Laisney, V. P.-M. 164 Sandoval, T. 5, 19, 105
Lang, B. 81, 102 Sasson, I. 15
Lelièvre, A. 144 Saur, M. 18
Lichtheim, M. 10, 65 Schäfer, R. 29, 107, 109, 149, 156
Loader, J. A. 4, 29, 62, 157 Scherer, A. 29, 138, 145, 146, 148, 153
Longman III, T. 20, 53, 68, 119, 125, Schipper, B. 26, 27, 30, 37, 108–10, 121,
162, 166 122, 125
Lyu, S. M. 47, 50, 65, 73, 74, 101 Schroer, S. 16
Schultz, C. 169
Maier, C. 104, 176 Schwab, Z. 112
Mäkipelto, V. 12 Scoralick, R. 47, 53
Martens, E. 152 Seidl, T. 66
McCreesh, T. P. 148 Seow, C.-L. 8
McKane, W. 5, 48, 59, 97, 143 Shead, A. G. 8
Meinhold, W. 53, 97, 107, 109, 136, 140, Shields, M. A. 8
145, 153, 163, 171 Shupak, N. 6, 47, 65, 135, 136, 163
Miles, J. E. 58 Sinnott, A. M. 101
Miller, J. 144 Sneed, M. 102
Milstein, S. J. 12–14, 31 Stager, L. E. 57
Mommer, P. 168, 178 Steinmann, A. E. 8
Moore, R. D. 119 Stendeback, F. J. 169
Müller, A. 29, 47 Stewart, A. 107, 112, 174
Müller, R. 13 Stuart, M. 16
Muntinghe, H. 16
Murphy, R. E. 16, 157 Toy, C. H. 29, 30, 70, 97

Negoită, A. 170 Umbreit, F. W. C. 16

Nel, P. J. 77
Newsom, C. A. 132 Van Leeuwen, R. C. 19, 29, 55, 57, 63,
119–21, 126
Owens, D. C. 66 Vergote, J. 173
Viviers, H. 102
Pakkala, J. 13
Parkinson, R. B. 9 Waltke, B. K. 5, 18, 21, 29, 32, 52, 53,
Pemberton, G. D. 101 55, 58–62, 68, 83, 86, 88, 92, 95, 97,
Perdue, L. G. 8, 30, 65 98, 106, 108, 138, 156, 157, 178
Plöger, O. 21, 29, 53, 58, 88, 89, 97, 124, Weeks, S. 5, 10, 11, 21, 23–5, 29, 63,
138, 158, 165, 170 102, 157, 158
 Index of Authors 205

Westermann, C. 113, 114, 153, 154 Yee, G. 102

Whybray, R. N. 10, 11, 18, 19, 54, 57, 69, Yoder, C. 18, 58, 59, 79, 81, 101
101, 102, 135, 156, 165
Wilbanks, P. F. 102 Zabán, B. K. 96, 101
Wildeboer, G. 17, 30, 138, 181 Zimmerli, W. 19