PROVERBS 8: WISDOM SPEAKS

The best way to begin consideration of this key chapter is to diagram it:

                                                       Figure 1: Structure of Proverbs 8

                                A. Wisdom calls (vv. 1-11)

                                                B. Wisdom among men (vv. 12-21)

                                                B'. Wisdom with God (vv. 22-31)

                                A'. Wisdom calls (vv. 32-36)

Thus, we can point out that:

    1. The chapter breaks down into two halves, as confirmed by verbal parallels between A (“wisdom is better than jewels,” v. 11) and B (“my fruit is better than gold,” v. 19), and between B' (“prudence,” v. 5; “fear of the Lord,” v. 7) and A' (“prudence,” v. 12; “fear of the Lord,” v. 13).

    2. The titles for B and B' above are from A.F. Walls.

    3. The key word “hear” appears in both A (v. 6) and A' (v. 33).

    4. There are approximately fourteen occurrences of first-person pronouns (I, me, and mine) in Section B and seven in B'. These numbers may not be coincidental since “seven” and its multiples in the Bible symbolically represent the concept of “perfection,” which fits exactly with Wisdom's self-description of herself in this chapter.

Rather than take this chapter verse by verse, I would like to zero in on Section B' (see Figure 1), about which H.M. Wolf states, “This is one of the most interesting, yet complex passages in Proverbs.” I could also add that it is also one of the most controversial. Again, an overview of the organization of this section is instructive before proceeding further:

                                                Figure 2: Structure of Proverbs 8:22-31

                        1. Wisdom's origins (vv. 22-23)

                                                2. Negative state of the creation (vv. 24-26)

                                                2'. Positive presentation of the creation (vv. 27-29)

                        1.' Wisdom celebrates humanity's origins (vv. 30-31)

The above scheme is taken from Bruce Waltke, who states, “The section begins with 'the LORD' and ends with bene adam ('humanity'), the climax and aim of God's creative work and the audience of wisdom's appeal (v. 4).”

But we can drill down into the organization even further by considering the elements within units 2 and 2'.

                                                 Figure 3: Structure of Proverbs 8:24-29

                a. waters of the deep (v. 24)

                                b. mountains and earth (v. 26)

                                                c. heavens and horizon (v. 27)

                                                c'. skies (v. 28a)

                a'. fountains of the deep (vv. 28b-29a)

                                b'. foundations of the earth (v. 29b)

With the organizational matters finished, we can not proceed to a more detailed consideration of the problems of interpretation present in Proverbs 8:22-31.

Proverbs 8:22

The problems begin with v. 22, concerning which Walls says, “Since the time of the opening of the Arian controversy in the 4^th century this verse has been one of the most discussed passages in the OT. The main point at issue is, what is the meaning of the word qana translated 'possessed' or created. The Arians used the LXX [i.e. Septuagint] 'the Lord created me' as one of their main proof texts for their thesis that Christ was a created being.”

Interestingly, their opponents in the Church agreed with the Arians that Wisdom referred to Christ, the eternal Word. But the orthodox explanation was that verse 22 referred to the creation of Jesus as a human being. However, there are problems with the reasoning of both historical parties.

C.J. Collins notes that elsewhere in Proverbs the concept is to “get” or “possess” wisdom (see Proverbs 1:5; 4:5,7; 15:32; 17:16; 18:15; 19:8; 23:23). H.M. Wolf adds Proverbs 16:16 to this list. Thus, qana probably means “to possess” in 8:22 as well, rather than “to create.”

“The emphasis..is on the fact that wisdom belongs to the LORD, not on how or when it came so to belong.” (C.G. Martin)

Wolf also expresses the opinion that “verses 22-25 are a consistent whole referring to the birth of wisdom, brought forth by God to be intimately involved with the work of creation. Although it is possible to connect 'wisdom' with Christ as the only-begotten Son of God...the fact that birth imagery is used with the mountains and seas (cf. Ps. 90:2; Job 38:8-9) makes this interpretation unlikely.”

On an historical note, Shaye Cohen explains, “The Logos of Philo resembles the figure of Wisdom in Proverbs 8 (Philo specifically connects the two.)...because of its obscurities and ambiguities, the passage does not make it clear whether Wisdom is merely an attribute of God or whether she is being endowed with some measure of autonomy and independence. Philo identified Wisdom with the Logos. John and other Christians identified Wisdom with the Logos and the Logos with Christ. The rabbis of the third and fourth centuries identified Wisdom with the Torah...and argued that God created the world by consulting the Torah.”

“In the case of Prov. 8, the personification of 'wisdom' as being in God's presence directly preceding his creation of the world is to indicate that God's wisdom enabled him to be the perfect artisan in accomplishing this marvelous work.” (Beale)

“Some feel that the paragraph does refer to the work of Christ at the Father's side in creation. Attractive as this interpretation my appear, it fails to take the context into account...She is contrasted to lady 'Folly', who is also calling out to the naïve and inviting them to harken to her voice (9:13-18).” By the way, if anyone wonders why Wisdom is pictured as a woman rather than a man, E.C. Lucas explains: “It is very probable that the feminine gender of the noun 'wisdom' in Hebrew (hokma) led to the personification of Wisdom as a woman.”

Kidner concludes, “Although 'wisdom' in Proverbs 8 does not refer directly to Christ, the concept 'paves the way for the New Testament proclamation of the personal Word and Wisdom of God.'”

New Testament Echoes

In light of Kidner's comment above, this may be as good a time as any to look at some NT passages which may reflect Proverbs 8.

    I Corinthians 8:6 – “The references to the roles of the Father and of the Lord Jesus Christ in creation ('from whom and through whom') also reflect traditional scriptural affirmations of the roles of God and of Wisdom in creation.” (Ciampa and Rosner)

    Colossians 1:15-20 – “Paul may have had this passage in mind in his description of Christ's role in creation, but there are crucial differences...In Paul's view, Christ is more than the embodiment or personification of Wisdom, for unlike Wisdom he is the uncreated image of God and sustains what he has created (vv. 15-17), and he is the focus of all creation (v. 16c; cf. Eph. 1:10) and himself embodies all the divine attributes.” (M.J. Harris)

    II Peter 3:5 – “Many commentators take by God's word to refer both to the divine fiat which was active in creation, and also to the Eternal Word through whom creation was accomplished (Jn. 1:3; Heb. 1:2). The same ambiguity can be found in Hebrews 11:3. I doubt whether this double meaning was intended in this context, it was undoubtedly a commonplace in Jewish Wisdom literature (Pr. 8:23-31).” (M. Green)

Proverbs 8:23

P. Schmidt states, “Prov. 8:23 is difficult. Wisdom says me'olam nissakti, I was poured out from eternity (Eng. versions 'I was set up'). The Gk. translators varied in their renderings.” It may mean wisdom was standing at God's disposal from the beginning or that he had been appointed by Him for a specific task. Thus Walls says, “Set up may refer to God's appointment of wisdom for her task.”

Proverbs 8:24-25

“The metaphor 'brought me forth' signifies that Solomon's inspired wisdom comes from God's essential being; it is a revelation that has an organic connection with God's very nature and being, unlike the rest of creation that came into existence outside of him and independent from his being.” (Waltke)

Hartley points out that “the language of [Job] 15:7a is almost identical to that of Prov. 8:25a. Like wisdom, this heavenly man [Adam] was the first of God's creative acts (cf. Ezek. 28:11-19 and Sirach 49:16).”

Proverbs 8:27

“Prov. 8:27 refers to God as setting a 'circle upon the face of the deep'. Does this teach the circularity of the earth? Or does it refer to the circularity of the heavens above?” (Ramm) He concludes: “To set a circle is to draw the boundaries for the ocean beyond which it is not to come. So interpreted the verse does not refer to the sphericity of the earth, but to the divinely drawn boundaries of the ocean.” Note that this understanding is different from the one I used to formulate the structure shown in Figure 3 above.

Proverbs 8:30

The major bone of contention in this verse concerns the translation of the rare Hebrew word 'amon. Bruce Waltke outlines four different approaches to understanding this word in its context.

        1. The majority view is that it can be best translated as “craftsman.”

C.J. Collins says, “For Wisdom to be a 'craftsman' suggests that the creation is in some sense like a finely functioning work of skill.”

Walls: “Wisdom is not only present at, but is the mediatrix of creation. Human craftsmanship is the product of wisdom (Ex. 35:31); so also is the craftsmanship that formed the world.”

        2. On the other hand, if “craftsman” is the proper translation, then perhaps it doesn't refer to Wisdom but to God instead, i.e. “beside Him, the Craftsman.”

        3. If 'amon is read as 'amun, then the image fits a “nursling” or “little child.”

        4. 'amon may be a grammatical form of 'mn, meaning “faithfully” or “continually.”

Waltke opts for option 4 as giving the best parallelism within verse 30.

                “And I was                               beside him       faithfully

                 and I was        delighting                                  daily

                 and I was        celebrating      before him         at all times.”

        5. Additionally, E.C. Lucas notes that 'amon may mean “counselor.” That understanding might fit in with the rather ludicrous rabbinical exclamation that God consulted the Torah before creating the world.