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Wisdom of Solomon

jewish-deuterocanonGreekc. 100 BCE – 50 CE

Jewish wisdom literature bridging OT and NT theology, canonical in Catholic/Orthodox traditions

Translation: Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition (Public Domain)

Overview

The Wisdom of Solomon is one of the most philosophically sophisticated Jewish texts of the Second Temple period and one of the most important books for understanding the theology of the New Testament. Composed in elegant Greek around 100 BCE to 50 CE, probably in Alexandria, Egypt, it presents a sustained argument for the superiority of Jewish wisdom and piety over both Gentile idolatry and apostate Jews who have abandoned their tradition for worldly success. It is part of the deuterocanonical books included in Catholic and Orthodox Bibles but excluded from the Protestant and Jewish canons.

The figure of Wisdom (Sophia) receives her most exalted treatment in chapters 7-9, where Solomon praises Wisdom as a divine being who was with God at creation, as 'a breath of the power of God and a pure emanation of the glory of the Almighty,' as 'a reflection of eternal light, a spotless mirror of the working of God, and an image of his goodness' (7:25-26). This hypostatic Wisdom, distinct from God yet sharing the divine nature, is the closest pre-Christian parallel to the Logos Christology of John 1:1-14 and Colossians 1:15-17. Several New Testament texts appear to use the Wisdom of Solomon's Sophia language to describe Jesus.

Bible connections
  • John 1:1-14 (Logos Christology paralleling Sophia theology)
  • Hebrews 1:3 (radiance of God's glory; exact image)
  • Colossians 1:15 (image of the invisible God, firstborn of creation)
  • Romans 1:18-32 (critique of idolatry following Wisdom 13-15)
  • Matthew 27:40-43 (passion narrative taunts echoing Wisdom 2:12-20)
Key terms
Sophia (Wisdom)– The personified divine Wisdom presented in chapters 7-9 as a being through whom God creates and who mediates between God and humanity
Hypostasis– A distinct personal subsistence within the divine nature; used of Sophia to describe her as more than a poetic personification
Deuterocanonical– Books included in the Catholic and Orthodox Old Testament canons but not in the Protestant or Jewish canons; from the Greek for 'second canon'
Immortality (athanasia)– The Platonic concept adopted by the author: the soul is naturally deathless and survives bodily death
Did you know?

Wisdom of Solomon 2:12-20 describes the righteous man being tested by the wicked with such specific detail — including the claim that 'if the righteous man is God's child, he will help him' — that early Christians read it as a prophecy of Jesus's passion. This likely influenced how Matthew described the mocking of Jesus on the cross in Matthew 27:43.