"Mystery" in the Wisdom of Solomon and 4QInstruction (original) (raw)

Abstract

Similar ideas and tropes found in the Wisdom of Solomon and 4QInstruction (4Q415-418, 423; 1Q26) have considerable significance for the study of early Jewish sapiential literature. One feature shared by both compositions is teaching about "mysteries." Previous studies on these two wisdom writings conclude that there are distinct differences in what these mysteries are and how they function in the thought world of each composition. This article argues for an alternative understanding of mysteries in 4QInstruction to those presented in previous comparative studies. In light of this reassessment of mysteries, the Wisdom of Solomon and 4QInstruction are seen to participate within an intellectual space much closer to one another than previously perceived.

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What explains the common themes of immortality in 4QInstruction and Wisdom of Solomon?add

Both texts exhibit a nuanced focus on immortality, with the Wisdom of Solomon explicitly stating it five times, while 4QInstruction highlights future rewards contingent upon right conduct, implying a shared interest in afterlife themes.

How is the concept of mystery framed in 4QInstruction compared to the Wisdom of Solomon?add

In 4QInstruction, the mystery of existence is frequently referenced, establishing it as a source of knowledge essential for making moral choices, while in the Wisdom of Solomon, the mystery is more broadly accessible to those who reason rightly.

What significance does the Vision of Hagu passage have for understanding humanity?add

The Vision of Hagu depicts two different humanities according to interpretation, differentiating between an elect spiritual community and a fleshly spirit, influencing the understanding of moral judgment in both texts.

How do 4QInstruction and the Wisdom of Solomon conceptualize the relationship between creation and human behavior?add

Both compositions illustrate that the understanding of creation is foundational for discerning right from wrong behavior, with 4QInstruction framing this understanding through the lens of the mystery, while the Wisdom of Solomon emphasizes moral reasoning.

What are key differences in the interpretative approaches to the dualities present in these texts?add

While Collins and Goff argue for distinct dualities in 4QInstruction, this study suggests a unified human condition with access to the mystery of existence, contrasting with the differentiated view presented in the Wisdom of Solomon.

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References (19)

  1. 159-80; first published in Wisdom and Apocalypticism in the Dead Sea Scrolls and in the Biblical Tradition, ed. F. García Martínez, BETL 168 (Leuven: Peeters, 2003), 287-305;
  2. Matthew J. Goff, "Adam, the Angels and Eternal Life: Genesis 1-3 in 4QInstruction and the Wisdom of Solomon," in Studies in the Book of Wisdom, ed. Géza G. Xeravits and József Zsengellér, JSJSup 142 (Leiden: Brill, 2010), 1-21.
  3. Émile Puech, "The Book of Wisdom and the Dead Sea Scrolls: An Overview," in The Book of Wisdom in Modern Research: Studies on Tradition, Redaction, and Theology, ed. Angelo Passaro and Giuseppe Bellia (Berlin: de Gruyter, 2005), 117-41, at 132-34 discusses 4QInstruction and immortality in the Wisdom of Solomon, esp. Wis. 5:15 "But the righteous live forever (αἰῶνα ζῶσιν), and their reward is with the Lord; the Most High takes care of them."
  4. For treatments of Wisdom of Solomon and Hellenistic philosophy, see Gregory Sterling, "The Love of Wisdom: Middle Platonism and Stoicism in the Wisdom of Solomon," in From Stoicism to Platonism: The Development of Philosophy, 100 BCE-100 CE, ed. T. Engberg- Pedersen (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2017), 198-213; David Winston, The Wisdom of Solomon, AB 43 (New York, NY: Doubleday, 1979);
  5. James M. Reese, Hellenistic Influence on the Book of Wisdom and Its Consequences (Rome: Biblical Institute Press, 1970).
  6. A number of recent studies argue for the unity of Wisdom of Solomon; see Luca Mazzinghi, Wisdom, IECOT (Stuttgart: Kohlhammer, 2019), 19-20.
  7. Collins, "The Mystery of God," 180.
  8. Collins, "The Mystery of God," 179.
  9. Goff, "Adam, the Angels," 3.
  10. Goff, "Adam, the Angels," 4.
  11. Goff, "Adam, the Angels," 9 following Collins, "The Mystery of God," 174 in his citation and interest in Philo's Opif. 134 which is significant because Philo contrasts two types of human being based upon an allegorical interpretation of Genesis 1-2. Cf. Ekaterina Matusova, "Genesis 1-2 in De opificio mundi and Its Exegetical Context," SPhiloA 31 (2019): 57-94.
  12. Collins, "The Mystery of God," 178.
  13. Collins, "The Mystery of God," 163.
  14. Collins, "The Mystery of God," 162 points to 1QS III 15 where the Niphal verb is used; how- ever, as he points out, it is commonly translated as "all that is and shall be" (italics mine).
  15. While ‫רז‬ alone may denote revealed heavenly knowledge in Dan 2:27-30 and Enochic lit. (e.g., 1 En. 106:19), there is no indication that this is the case in 4QInstruction which does not portray visions and angelic mediation. Instead, 4Q Instruction conceives of diligent pursuit of the mystery which is rooted in human activity and responsibility.
  16. John Strugnell, Daniel J. Harrington, and Torleif Elgvin, Qumran Cave 4 XXIV. Sapiential Texts, Part 2: 4QInstruction (Mûsār lĕ Mēvîn): 4Q415ff. with a Re-edition of 1Q26, DJD 34 (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1999) translate "the mystery that is to come"; Matthew Goff, 4QInstruction, WLAW 2 (Atlanta, GA: SBL, 2013), 14-17; Armin Lange, Weisheit und Prädestination: Weisheitliche Urordnung und Prädestination in den Textfunden von Qumran, STDJ 18 (Leiden: Brill, 1995), 57-61; Torleif Elgvin, "The Mystery to Come: Early Essene Theology of Revelation," in Qumran between the Old and New Testaments, ed. Frederick H. Cryer and Thomas L. Thompson, JSOTSup 290; CIS 6 (Sheffield: Sheffield, 1998), 131-39; in DJD 1:103 Józef T. Milik translates the term in 1QMysteries (1Q27) 1 i 3-4 as "le mystère future" in Qumran Cave 1, ed. D. Barthélemy and J. T. Milik, DJD 1 (Oxford: Clarendon, 1955), 103-4, note par. 4Q300 3, which Lawrence Schiffman, in Torleif Elgvin, Menachem Kister, Timothy Lim, et al., Qumran Cave 4, XV. Sapientials Texts, Part 1, DJD 20 (Oxford: Clarendon, 1997), 105 translates as "the mystery of that which is coming into being."
  17. David J. A. Clines, ed., Dictionary of Classical Hebrew, vol. II ‫ב-ו‬ (Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1995), 540 ‫היה‬ Niphal ptc. as noun meaning: "the present, (present) event, (present) existence, i.e., that which exists, those that exist." The Niphal of ‫היה‬ appears eight times in the Hebrew scriptures (Deut 4:32; 1 Kgs 1:27, 12:24; Joel 2:2; Mic 2:4; Zech 8:10; Neh 6:8; 2 Chr 11:4) and context clearly indicates that it has a past meaning.
  18. Cf. Daniel J. Harrington, "The Rāz Nihyeh in a Qumran Wisdom Text (1Q26, 4Q415-418, 423)," RevQ 17 (1996): 549-53; Eibert J. C. Tigchelaar and Florentino García Martínez pre- fer "mystery of existence" in the Dead Sea Scrolls Study Edition, 2 vols. (Leiden: Brill, 1999);
  19. Jean-Sébastien Rey, 4QInstruction: sagesse et eschatologie, STDJ 81 (Leiden: Brill, 2009),