Biblical Hebrew Forum

["Dave Washburn" <dwashbur AT nyx.net>]

Raymond,
> At 22-05-2001 11:29 Dave Humpal <ebedyah AT elite.net> wrote:
> 
> > It seems to me it can be explained as
> > unusual Hebrew written by someone with strong economic and philosophical
> > interests beyond the borders of Israel.  Solomon was the only King of 
> > Israel
> > with this kind of broad background.  At least that's a possible 
> > explanation!
> 
> What is wrong with the supposition that we are dealing with pseudepigraphy
> in the book of Qoheleth? This was a common phenomenon in the ancient Near
> East, why should it not have been used in the bible?

What is wrong with taking the text as it stands?  We often hear 
this sort of statement about pseudepigraphy in the ANE, but I 
haven't seen much evidence to support the contention that it was 
"a common phenomenon."  We have examples of it in the later 
period, especially the Hellenistic and Herodian eras, but to assert 
from this that it was common all over the ANE hundreds of years 
before that is anachronistic.  I seems to me that our first task is to 
look at the text as it is first and take it at face value.  I have yet to 
see any good reason not to.

> The philosophy of Qohelet does not fit the era of (David and) Solomon. The
> kingdom was a state in its formative stage or a so-called early state. The
> possible literary activity of that era was more concerned with ideological
> and legitimating aspects of that state than with the philosophy with which
> Qoheleth is troubling his mind.

And this conclusion is based on...what?  Solomon is said to have 
been a master of proverbs as well as politics, so the picture we 
have of him is at least as philosophical as it is concerned with 
politics.  I think we need to make it clear that these statements 
about Solomon and the philosophy of Qohelet are assumptions, 
nothing more.  We all have them, of course, but it's a good idea to 
assert them as assumptions rather than as facts.


Dave Washburn
http://www.nyx.net/~dwashbur
"You just keep thinking, Butch.  That's what you're good at."