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Wisdom of Solomon
Wisdom speaks in Solomon’s voice, teaches that humans were made for immortality, and retells the Exodus.10 sources10 sources1. Wisdom of Solomon 2:232. Wisdom of Solomon 3:13. (ed.)4. Wisdom of Solomon 9:75. Wisdom of Solomon 9:86. Gigot7. Wisdom of Solomon 6:18. Wisdom of Solomon 10:19. Gigot10. Kohler
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At a glance
- Length
- 19 chapters; 436 verses in Brenton and the KJV Apocrypha.11
Summary
What becomes of the righteous after death? Wisdom teaches that humans were made for immortality and that the righteous are in God's hand. Speaking in Solomon's voice, it addresses rulers, presents his prayer for wisdom and retells the Exodus. Readers also come to passages compared with the New Testament: the plot against the righteous man in Wisdom 2 resembles the taunt at the cross in Matthew 27:43, and Sanday and Headlam argue that Romans 1 draws on Wisdom 13–14's attack on idolatry.23 sources23 sources1. Wisdom of Solomon 2:232. Wisdom of Solomon 3:13. (ed.)4. Wisdom of Solomon 9:75. Wisdom of Solomon 9:86. Gigot7. Wisdom of Solomon 6:18. Wisdom of Solomon 10:19. Gigot10. Kohler17. Wisdom of Solomon 2:1218. Wisdom of Solomon 2:1319. Wisdom of Solomon 2:1820. Wisdom of Solomon 2:2021. Matthew 27:4322. Deane23. Gigot24. Romans 1:2025. Wisdom of Solomon 13:126. Wisdom of Solomon 13:527. Sanday28. Sanday29. (ed.)
Contents
Rulers, justice and the righteous
Chapters 1–6In Kohler’s outline, the opening addresses rulers. It includes the ungodly plotting against a man who calls himself God’s child, alongside teaching about the righteous and immortality.11 sources11 sources7. Wisdom of Solomon 6:18. Wisdom of Solomon 10:19. Gigot10. Kohler17. Wisdom of Solomon 2:1218. Wisdom of Solomon 2:1319. Wisdom of Solomon 2:1820. Wisdom of Solomon 2:201. Wisdom of Solomon 2:232. Wisdom of Solomon 3:13. (ed.)
A king asks for wisdom
Chapters 7–9The speaker presents himself as the temple-building king. His prayer addresses God as creator through word and wisdom.8 sources8 sources4. Wisdom of Solomon 9:75. Wisdom of Solomon 9:86. Gigot30. Wisdom of Solomon 9:131. Wisdom of Solomon 9:232. Wisdom of Solomon 9:1710. Kohler16. (ed.)
Wisdom in Israel’s history
Chapters 10–19The later chapters turn to history, especially the Exodus. They also attack idolatry and argue that creation points toward knowledge of its maker.10 sources10 sources7. Wisdom of Solomon 6:18. Wisdom of Solomon 10:19. Gigot10. Kohler24. Romans 1:2025. Wisdom of Solomon 13:126. Wisdom of Solomon 13:527. Sanday28. Sanday29. (ed.)
Stories
A righteous man becomes a target
Wisdom 2:12–20The ungodly decide to test a righteous man through suffering, challenging his claim to be God’s child and asking whether God will rescue him.4 sources4 sources17. Wisdom of Solomon 2:1218. Wisdom of Solomon 2:1319. Wisdom of Solomon 2:1820. Wisdom of Solomon 2:20
Solomon’s prayer
Wisdom 9The royal speaker recalls being chosen to build the temple and asks for wisdom from the God who made the world.8 sources8 sources4. Wisdom of Solomon 9:75. Wisdom of Solomon 9:86. Gigot30. Wisdom of Solomon 9:131. Wisdom of Solomon 9:232. Wisdom of Solomon 9:1710. Kohler16. (ed.)
Connections to the Bible
Echoes and allusions
- Matthew 27:43 · Wisdom of Solomon 2:18medium confidence
Academic commentator Deane compares Wisdom 2:18 with Matthew 27:43 and Psalm 22:8. He cautions that the Gospel similarity could reflect shared Old Testament wording.4 sources4 sources21. Matthew 27:4319. Wisdom of Solomon 2:1822. Deane23. Gigot
- Romans 1:18–32 · Wisdom 13–14medium confidence
Sanday and Headlam argue that Paul's movement from creation to idolatry and wrongdoing in Romans 1 draws on Wisdom 13–14.6 sources6 sources24. Romans 1:2025. Wisdom of Solomon 13:126. Wisdom of Solomon 13:527. Sanday28. Sanday29. (ed.)
- Romans 9:21 · Wisdom of Solomon 15:7medium confidence
Critical scholar Holmes compares the potter making vessels for different uses from the same clay. Other biblical potter images mean the wider image is not unique to these passages.6 sources6 sources24. Romans 1:2025. Wisdom of Solomon 13:126. Wisdom of Solomon 13:527. Sanday28. Sanday29. (ed.)
- Hebrews 1:3 · Wisdom of Solomon 7:26medium confidence
Academic commentator B. F. Westcott notes the same rare Greek word, apaugasma, for Wisdom’s radiance and for the Son in Hebrews; it also occurs in Philo.4 sources4 sources33. Wisdom of Solomon 7:2634. Hebrews 1:335. Westcott36. Kohler
Background
- John 1:1–3 · Wisdom 9low confidence
Kohler reads Wisdom as identified with God's creative Word and Spirit, offering background for comparison with John's Word.5 sources5 sources30. Wisdom of Solomon 9:131. Wisdom of Solomon 9:232. Wisdom of Solomon 9:1710. Kohler16. (ed.)
Where each church stands
Wisdom of Solomon Full table →
Why some kept it, why others left it out
Early Christians did not all give Wisdom the same standing. Greek church bishop Athanasius placed it outside his canon but recommended it for new converts. Latin church bishop Augustine counted it authoritative, stressing recognition in the churches. Jerome recommended reading it without using it to establish doctrine. Trent included Wisdom in its Catholic list in 1546; the Orthodox Synod of Jerusalem defended it as Scripture in 1672.6 sources6 sources46. Alexandria47. Hippo48. Edgecomb49. Shaw) 188750. Waterworth 184851. Robertson) 1899
Kept
Early church: Latin
Augustine counted Wisdom authoritative without requiring Solomon to have written it; its recognition in the churches mattered.47
Left out
Early church: Latin
Jerome noted that Wisdom was absent from the Hebrew collection and distinguished its usefulness for readers from authority to confirm doctrine.48
Protestant: Anglican
Article VI names Wisdom among the books read for instruction without using them to establish doctrine, explicitly following Jerome.53
Misconceptions
Myth Accepting Wisdom as Scripture means believing Solomon wrote it.
Actually: Catholic scholar Francis Gigot rejects Solomon’s authorship because the book was composed in Greek.6
Further reading
- Wisdom of Solomon, Book of the (Jewish Encyclopedia, 1906) · Kaufmann Kohler12
- Book of Wisdom (Catholic Encyclopedia, vol. 15, 1912) · Francis Gigot6
- The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha of the Old Testament, vol. 1 (Oxford, 1913), Wisdom of Solomon, Introduction section 5 · R. H. Charles (ed.), S. Holmes on Wisdom15
Sources
53 sources from 46 works
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Francis Gigot, “Book of Wisdom (Catholic Encyclopedia, vol. 15, 1912)”
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- 13Place and date of composition↩
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- 8
Kaufmann Kohler, “Wisdom of Solomon, Book of the (Jewish Encyclopedia, 1906)”
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- 12
- 36Authorship and Date↩
- 11Checked in this site's verse database: Chapters and verses of Wis (Brenton)↩
How this was derived
select count(distinct chapter), count(*) from verses where work_id='brenton' and book='Wis' - 14
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- 53
R. H. Charles (ed.), S. Holmes on Wisdom, The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha of the Old Testament, vol. 1 (Oxford, 1913), Wisdom of Solomon, Introduction section 9, p. 528
Francis Gigot, “Book of Wisdom (Catholic Encyclopedia, vol. 15, 1912)”, Language and authorship
Francis Gigot, “Book of Wisdom (Catholic Encyclopedia, vol. 15, 1912)”, Contents
Kaufmann Kohler, “Wisdom of Solomon, Book of the (Jewish Encyclopedia, 1906)”, Contents of the Book
Kaufmann Kohler, “Wisdom of Solomon, Book of the (Jewish Encyclopedia, 1906)”, opening paragraph
Francis Gigot, “Book of Wisdom (Catholic Encyclopedia, vol. 15, 1912)”, Place and date of composition
R. H. Charles (ed.), S. Holmes on Wisdom, The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha of the Old Testament, vol. 1 (Oxford, 1913), Wisdom of Solomon, Introduction section 7, p. 524
R. H. Charles (ed.), S. Holmes on Wisdom, The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha of the Old Testament, vol. 1 (Oxford, 1913), Wisdom of Solomon, Introduction section 5, p. 520-521
R. H. Charles (ed.), S. Holmes on Wisdom, The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha of the Old Testament, vol. 1 (Oxford, 1913), Wisdom of Solomon, Introduction section 5, p. 521
Matthew 27:43
43He trusts in God. Let God deliver Him now if He wants Him. For He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’”
William J. Deane, The Book of Wisdom (Oxford, 1881), note on 2:18, commentary on ch. 2, v. 18
Francis Gigot, “Book of Wisdom (Catholic Encyclopedia, vol. 15, 1912)”, Doctrine of the book
Romans 1:20
20For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood from His workmanship, so that men are without excuse.
W. Sanday and A. C. Headlam, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Epistle to the Romans (ICC, 1895), note at the end of ch. 1, p. 51-52
W. Sanday and A. C. Headlam, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Epistle to the Romans (ICC, 1895), note at the end of ch. 1, p. 52
R. H. Charles (ed.), S. Holmes on Wisdom, The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha of the Old Testament, vol. 1 (Oxford, 1913), Wisdom of Solomon, Introduction section 8, p. 525-526
Hebrews 1:3
3The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His nature, upholding all things by His powerful word. After He had provided purification for sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.
B. F. Westcott, The Epistle to the Hebrews (2nd ed., 1892), note on 1:3, note on ἀπαύγασμα, Heb 1:3
Kaufmann Kohler, “Wisdom of Solomon, Book of the (Jewish Encyclopedia, 1906)”, Authorship and Date
Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion (1571), Article VI, as printed in E. J. Bicknell, A Theological Introduction to the Thirty-Nine Articles (1919)
Council of Trent, Session IV (8 April 1546), Decree concerning the canonical Scriptures
Synod of Jerusalem (1672), Confession of Dositheus, Question III
Apostoliki Diakonia of the Church of Greece, online Old Testament (Septuagint text)
NRSV with Apocrypha, 'The Apocryphal/Deuterocanonical Books of the Old Testament' (To the Reader)
Russian Synodal Bible, as published by Azbuka Very (azbyka.ru): contents and chapter notes
The Longer Catechism of the Orthodox, Catholic, Eastern Church (St Philaret of Moscow), 'Examined and Approved by the Most Holy Governing Synod'; English as in Schaff, Creeds of Christendom vol. 2
R. W. Cowley, 'The Biblical Canon of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church Today', Ostkirchliche Studien 23 (1974) 318–323
Athanasius of Alexandria, Festal Letter 39 (NPNF series 2, vol. 4), section 7
Augustine of Hippo, On Christian Doctrine, book 2, ch. 8 (NPNF series 1, vol. 2), 2.8.13
Jerome (tr. Kevin P. Edgecomb, 2006, public domain), Prologue to the Books of Solomon, second paragraph
Augustine of Hippo (tr. J. F. Shaw), On Christian Doctrine book 2 (NPNF1 vol. 2), via New Advent (1887), 2.8.12
Council of Trent (tr. J. Waterworth, 1848), Session IV, Decree concerning the canonical Scriptures, Hanover Historical Texts Project (1848)
Synod of Jerusalem (tr. J. N. W. B. Robertson), The Acts and Decrees of the Synod of Jerusalem (London 1899), archive.org OCR (1899), pp. 155-156, Question III
Church of England, Articles of Religion (1571), as printed in E. J. Bicknell, A Theological Introduction to the Thirty-Nine Articles (1919), newscriptorium.com (1919), Article VI