Biblical Hebrew Forum

["Karl Randolph" <kwrandolph AT email.com>]

> 
> We know that "I, Claudius" is fiction because we know who the author is
> (Robert Graves) and when know when it was written. We don't know either of
> these things about Qohelet.
> 
> There are some sections in the wisdom portions of Qohelet which don't sound
> to us moderns and postmoderns like the words of a fabulously rich King with
> too many wives, for example Eccl. 4:1-3,5:7-8 (English 5:8-9), 10:20.
> 
> 
> 
Isn’t this just another modernist or post-modernist expectation that we are 
forcing onto a historical person? I mean, after all, here is a super achiever 
looking back over his life’s work, and realizing that some day all of it 
would be ruins or worse. What then is his legacy?

Chapter 2 really brings out the futility, where death is the great equalizer 
that will make him no better than a fool and all his work will be in the 
hands of others who, for all he knows, could tear it all down. Death will 
still his mouth so he can no longer speak for himself, and stop his hands 
from further construction, and what he left behind will be in the control of 
others who may have no appreciation for all the effort that went into their 
construction.

In the case of Solomon, none of the buildings that he built are still 
standing, and we have only a small fraction of his aphorisms collected into 
Proverbs (total number he had in 1 Kings 5:12). His negative assessment of 
his legacy was accurate. It was futile.

Karl W. Randolph.

> Just to clear the air, I am not arguing for Solomon as the author of
> Qohelet. For psychological reasons alone I find Solomon a poor candidate for
> authoring Qohelet. From what we know of Solomon, he was a super achiever in
> terms of public works. I cannot make myself accept the idea that a super
> achiever could have written this book. Wrong sort of temperament.
> 
> thanks for your comments,
> 
> Clay
> 
> 
> --  
> Clayton Stirling Bartholomew
> Three Tree Point
> P.O. Box 255 Seahurst WA 98062
-- 
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