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Wisdom of Solomon
Dating
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Setting: Written as if by King Solomon, addressing rulers and speaking about wisdom's role in Israel's history
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Reference point: Expands on themes from Proverbs and Ecclesiastes, combines Hebrew wisdom with Greek philosophy
Signifcance
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Defends Torah wisdom against Hellenism
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Addresses Hebrew persecution
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Explores immortality concept
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Demonstrates divine wisdom's superiority
Discovery
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Found in Septuagint manuscripts
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Early church citations
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Greek manuscript tradition
Transmission
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Through Alexandrian Hebrew community
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Via Christian manuscript tradition
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Included in Catholic/Orthodox canons
Language / Translation
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Original language: Greek
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Sophisticated Alexandrian style
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Ancient versions: Latin, Syriac, Coptic
Genre
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Wisdom literature
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Philosophical treatise
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Apologetic work
Content
The text presents a defense of YHWH's wisdom against pagan philosophy, particularly addressing the Hebrew community in Alexandria. It divides into three main sections: wisdom's gift of immortality, wisdom's role in history, and wisdom versus idolatry. Using sophisticated Greek literary style, it demonstrates how Torah wisdom surpasses Greek philosophy while remaining faithful to Hebrew thought. The work particularly emphasizes YHWH's justice in history, the folly of idolatry, and the reward of the righteous. It shows how faithful adherence to YHWH's wisdom leads to true understanding and eternal life, while providing comfort to persecuted believers.
Commentary
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