Biblical Hebrew Forum

[dwashbur AT nyx.net]

On 18 Sep 2009 at 11:15, Kevin P. Edgecomb wrote:

> Quoting Rolf Furuli <furuli AT online.no>:
> > The book implies that Solomon wrote it....
> 
> I write:
> But this is not necessarily so.  It states "Son of David, king in 
> Jerusalem" (Qoh 1.1 NRSV).  All of the kings of Judah bore the  
> appellation "Son of David" just as all the rulers in Damascus bore
> the  
> appellation "Son of Hadad" and various Aramaean dynasts bore the  
> appellation "Son of (PN)" as noted in Assyrian documents.  In view
> of  
> this, it could be attributed to any of the rulers of Judah,
> including  
> Jehoiachin who died in Babylon in the late sixth century.

Given the conclusion of the matter in Qohelet, I doubt Jehoiachin would have 
been the 
author.  Kings, Chronicles and Jeremiah all indicate that he "did evil," and 
there's no 
indication that he repented toward the end of his life.  It seems to me that 
any "son of David" 
who might have written this book would have to have been one of the "good" 
kings, and 
there were none after Josiah.  I doubt it would have been Josiah himself, 
since he didn't 
really amass wealth and concubines and all that, so by a process of 
elimination, it appears 
that the author, if we take his self-appelations at face value, must date at 
least from before 
Josiah, and hence must still be fairly pre-exilic.

Dave Washburn

http://www.nyx.net/~dwashbur