[christine roy yoder] wisdom as a woman of substan(bookzz.org)

Christine Roy Yoder Wisdom as a Woman of Substance

Beihefte zur Zeitschrift für die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft

Herausgegeben von Otto Kaiser

Band 304

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Walter de Gruyter · Berlin · New York 2001

Christine Roy Yoder

Wisdom as a Woman of Substance

A Socioeconomic Reading of Proverbs 1 - 9 and 31:10-31

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Walter de Gruyter · Berlin · New York 2001

© Printed on acid-free paper which falls within the guidelines of the ANSI to ensure permanence and durability.

Die Deutsche Bibliothek - CIP-Einheitsaufnahme

Yoder, Christine Roy: Wisdom as a woman of substance : a socioeconomic reading of proverbs 1 - 9 and 31 : 10 -31 / Christine Roy Yoder. - Berlin ; New York : de Gruyter, 2001

(Beihefte zur Zeitschrift fur die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft ; Bd. 304) Zugl.: Princeton, NJ, Univ., Diss., 2000 ISBN 3-11-017007-8

© Copyright 2001 by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co. KG, 10785 Berlin.

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sion in writing from the publisher.

Printed in Germany

Cover design: Christopher Schneider, Berlin

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Acknowledgements

I am grateful to Prof. Dr. Otto Kaiser, editor of BZAW, for his acceptance of this manuscript for the series and to Mr. Klaus Otterburig of Walter de Gruyter and Co. for his supervision of its publication.

This monograph is a slightly revised version of a doctoral dissertation by the same title that I submitted to the faculty of Princeton Theological Seminary in the spring of 2000. I am profoundly indebted to my thesis advisor, mentor, and teacher, C. L. Seow. His love of wisdom inspired my own and his gifts of time, knowledge, and creativity have been truly extravagant. I wish to thank the other members of the dissertation committee, Katharine Doob Sakenfeld and Dennis T. Olson, for their questions and helpful suggestions. F. W. Dobbs-Allsopp also offered invaluable critique of the first chapter.

I am grateful for the support of my colleagues and students at Columbia Theological Seminary and for the opportunities I have had to present portions of this work for their review. I am particularly indebted to Kathleen M. O'Connor for her willingness time and again to listen, read, and challenge, and to Walter Brueggemann for his encouragement and wise counsel. Tempie Alexander assisted with preparation of the bibliography and the list of abbreviations. My student assistants, Jonathan Kaplan and Rick Olson, helped with the bibliography and with proofreading. I am thankful to David G. Forney for his work to make the manuscript camera-ready and to Eugene H. Lovering for his preparation of the indexes.

A note of appreciation is due to my colleague and friend, William S. Campbell. The journey from the classroom to our dissertation defenses to the present has been a far richer one for his companionship. I am deeply thankful to my parents, Arthur and Sara Roy, for their ongoing support and encouragement, for inspiring in me a love for learning that continues to unfold in surprising and wondrous ways.

Finally, and most importantly, there is my husband, Reinald. With love and overwhelming gratitude, I dedicate this work to him.

Table of Contents

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ν

TABLE OF CONTENTS vii

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ix

INTRODUCTION 1

CHAPTER ONE: Linguistic Evidence and the Dating of Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31

A. Introduction 15 B. A Reconsideration of Linguistic Evidence 18 C. Features of Late Biblical Hebrew 20 D. Foreign Influence 24

1. Aramaisms 24 2. Absence of Grecisms 32

E. Orthography 35 F. Summary 38

CHAPTER TWO: A Study of Women in the Socioeconomic Context of Proverbs 1 -9 and 31:10-31

A. Introduction 39 B. The Business of Marriage 49 C. "Women's Work" 59 D. Summary 71

CHAPTER THREE: More Valuable than Corals: Wisdom as a Woman of Substance in the Socioeconomic Context of Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31

A. Introduction 73 B. A Socioeconomic Reading of the Woman of Substance

(Proverbs 31:10-31) 75

viii Contents

C. The Woman of Substance and Woman Wisdom: Lexical and Thematic Parallels 91

D. Wisdom as a Persian-Period Woman of Substance 93 E. Women and Instruction in Proverbs 1 -9 and 31:10-31 102

CONCLUSION 111

BIBLIOGRAPHY 115

INDEX OF ANCIENT TEXTS 143

INDEX OF AUTHORS 162

List of Abbreviations

1963 G. G. Cameron. "New Tablets from the Persepolis Treasury." JNES 24 (1965): 167-92

4Q102 Proverb fragment from Qumran Cave 4 (=4QProva) 4Q103 Proverb fragment from Qumran Cave 4 (=4QProvb) 11Q5 Psalms Scroll3 from Qumran Cave 11 (=1 lQPsa) AB Anchor Bible Commentary ABD D. N. Freedman et al., eds. The Anchor Bible Dictionary.

6 vols. New York: Doubleday, 1992 AfO Archiv für Orientforschung AJSL American Journal of Semitic Languages and Literatures ANEP J. B. Pritchard. The Ancient Near East in Pictures

Relating to the Old Testament: Second Edition with Supplement. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1969

AOAT Alter Orient und Altes Testament AOS American Oriental Series ASORMS American Schools of Oriental Research Monograph

Series ATNS J. B. Segal. Aramaic Texts from North Saqqära. London:

Egypt Exploration Society, 1983 BA Biblical Archaeologist BASOR Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research BE The Babylonian Expedition of the University of

Pennsylvania, Series A: Cuneiform Texts Bib Biblica BibOr Biblica et orientalia BKAT Biblischer Kommentar, Altes Testament BL Η. Bauer and P. Leander. Historische Grammatik der

hebräischen Sprache des Alten Testaments. Hildesheim: G. Olms, 1962

BM Tablets in the collections of the British Museum, London BOR Babylonian and Oriental Record BRev Bible Review

χ List of Abbreviations

BZAW Beihefte zur Zeitschrift für die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft

CahRB Cahiers de la Revue biblique Camb J. N. Strassmaier. Inschriften von Cambyses, König von

Babylon (529-521 v. Chr.). Babylonische Texte VIII-IX. Leipzig: Pfeiffer, 1890

CBQ Catholic Biblical Quarterly CBQMS Catholic Biblical Quarterly Monograph Series CBS Tablets in the Collections of the Babylonian Section of

the University Museum, Philadelphia CD Cairo Genizah copy of the Damascus Document from

Qumran CG C. S. Clermont-Ganneau. Etudes d'archeologie Orientale.

2 vols. Paris: E. Bouillon, 1880-97 CIS Corpus inscriptionum semiticarum CSSH Comparative Studies in Society and History CT Cuneiform Texts from Babylonian Tablets in the British

Museum CT J Calvin Theological Journal CTU M. Dietrich, O. Loretz, and J. Sanmartin. The Cuneiform

Alphabetic Texts from Ugarit, Ras Ibn Hani and Other Places (KTU, 2d ed.). Abhandlungen zur Literatur Alt-Syrien-Palästinas und Mesopotamiens 8. Münster: Ugarit, 1995

Cyr J. N. Strassmaier. Inschriften von Cyrus, König von Babylon (538-529 v. Chr.). Babylonische Texte VII. Leipzig: Pfeiffer, 1890

Dar J. N. Strassmaier. Inschriften von Darius, König von Babylon (521-485 v. Chr.). Babylonische Texte X-XII. Leipzig: Pfeiffer, 1892

DJD Discoveries in the Judean Desert Dtr Deuteronomistic History EBH Early Biblical Hebrew ETL Ephemerides theologicae lovanienses Fort. Persepolis Fortification Text FOTL Forms of the Old Testament Literature GKC E. Kautzsch, ed. Gesenius' Hebrew Grammar. Translated

by A. E. Cowley. 2d ed. Oxford: Clarendon, 1980 HAT Handbuch zum Alten Testament HSM Harvard Semitic Monographs

List of Abbreviations xi

HSS Harvard Semitic Studies HTR Harvard Theological Review HUCA Hebrew Union College Annual IBT Interpreting Biblical Texts ICC International Critical Commentary IEJ Israel Exploration Journal IH Israelian Hebrew JANES Journal of the Ancient Near Eastern Society of Columbia

University JA OS Journal of the American Oriental Society JBL Journal of Biblical Literature JCS Journal of Cuneiform Studies JEOL Jaarbericht van het Vooraziatisch-Egyptisch Gezelschap

(Genootschap) Ex Oriente Lux JESHO Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient JNES Journal of Near Eastern Studies JQR Jewish Quarterly Review JSOT Journal for the Study of the Old Testament JSOTSup Journal for the Study of the Old Testament

Supplement Series JSS Journal of Semitic Studies ΚΑΙ Η. Donner and W. Röllig, eds. Kanaanäische und

aramäische Inschriften mit einem Beitrag von O. Rössler. 3 vols. Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, 1969-73

KHAT Kurzgefasstes exegetisches Handbuch zum Alten Testament

L-29- Tablets in the Hilprecht bequest of the University Museum, Philadelphia

LAPO Litteratures anciennes du Proche-Orient LBH Late Biblical Hebrew LCL Loeb Classical Library Liv J. N. Strassmaier. Wörterverzeichniss zu den

babylonischen Inschriften im Museum zu Liverpool nebst andern aus der Zeit von Nebukadnezzar bis Darius: Veröffenlicht in den Verhandlungen des VI Orientalisten-Congresses zu Leiden. Leipzig: J. C. Hinrichs, 1886

LNB The Neo-B abylonian Laws LSJ H. G. Liddell and R. Scott, eds. A Greek-English Lexicon.

Revised by Η. S. Jones. Oxford: Clarendon, 1968 LXX Septuagint

xii List of Abbreviations

Moldenke A. Moldenke. Cuneiform Texts in the Metropolitan Museum of Art: Parts I and II. New York: Columbia University Press, 1893

MT Masoretic Text (BHS) Nbk J. N. Strassmaier. Inschriften von Nabuchodonosor,

König von Babylon (604-561 v. Chr.). Babylonische Texte V-VI. Leipzig: Pfeiffer, 1889

Nbn J. N. Strassmaier. Inschriften von Nabonidus, König von Babylon (538-529 v. Chr.). Babylonische Texte I-IV. Leipzig: Pfeiffer, 1889

NCBC New Century Bible Commentary NEB New English Bible, Oxford, 1961 -70 Ni Tablets excavated at Nippur, in the collections of the

Archaeological Museums of Istanbul NIV New International Version Nr. C. Wunsch. Die Urkunden des babylonischen

Geschäftsmannes Iddin-Marduk. Cuneiform Monographs IIIA/B. Groningen: Styx, 1993

NRSV New Revised Standard Version OB Ο Orbis biblicus et orientalis OBT Overtures to Biblical Theology OTL Old Testament Library OtSt Oudtestamentische Studien OTWSA Die Ou-Testamentiese Werkgemeenskap in Suid-Afrika PBS Publications of the Babylonian Section, The Museum of

the University of Pennsylvania PEQ Palestine Exploration Quarterly PF R. T. Hallock. Persepolis Fortification Tablets.

University of Chicago Oriental Institute Publications 92. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1969

PFa R. T. Hallock. "Selected Fortification Texts." Cahiers de laD.A.F.I. 8 (1978): 109-36

PF-NN Unpublished PF texts referred to in M. Brosius. Women in Ancient Persia 559-331 BC. Oxford: Clarendon, 1996

Ρ SB Princeton Seminary Bulletin PT G. G. Cameron. Persepolis Treasury Tablets. University

of Chicago Oriental Institute Publications 65. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1948

RA Revue d'assyriologie et d'archeologie Orientale RB Revue biblique

List of Abbreviations xiii

RES Revue des etudes semitiques RES Repertoire d'ipigraphie simitique (cited by number) RH Rabbinic Hebrew Rm. Tablets in the collections of the British Museum, London. RSV Revised Standard Version SBH Standard Biblical Hebrew SBLDS Society of Biblical Literature Dissertation Series SBLMS Society of Biblical Literature Monograph Series SP D. M. Gropp. "The Samaria Papyri from Wadi ed-

Daliyeh: The Slave Sales." Ph.D. diss., Harvard University, 1986

SUNT Studien zur Umwelt des Neuen Testaments TAD B. Porten and A. Yardeni, eds. Textbook of Aramaic

Documents from Ancient Egypt. 4 vols. Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns, 1986-99

TCL Textes cuneiforms du Musee du Louvre, Department des Antiquites Orientales

TuM 2-3 J. Lewy. Texte und Materialien der Frau Professor Hilprecht Collection of Babylonian Antiquities im Eigentum der Universität Jena. Neubabylonische Rechts-und Verwaltungs-Texte 2-3. Leipzig: J. C. Hinrichs, 1933

VT Vetus Testamentum VTSup Vetus Testamentum Supplements WMANT Wissenschaftliche Monographien zum Alten und Neuen

Testament ZA Zeitschrift für Assyriologie ZA W Zeitschrift für die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft

Introduction

Woman Wisdom (Gk. Sophia) has received significant ecclesiastical and academic attention. She first takes her stand in the streets and squares as a personified1 female figure in Proverbs 1-9. Subsequent descriptions of her testify to her ongoing importance. Ben Sira ascribes a hymn of self-praise to Wisdom (24:1-22) and identifies her with the Torah (24:23-34). Similarly, Baruch recounts how Wisdom, given by God to Jacob/Israel, lives among humans as Torah (3:9-4:4; esp. 4:1). In contrast, 1 Enoch claims that Wisdom sought a dwelling place with humanity but, finding none, returned to live permanently with the angels (42:1-2). In the Wisdom of Solomon (7:7-10:18), Wisdom is described as the pneuma Sophias (spirit of Sophia): the breath of the power of God, a pure emanation of divine glory, a reflection of eternal light, a flawless mirror of divine workings, and an image of God's goodness (7:25-26). Personified Wisdom is attested at Qumran (11Q5)2

and played a prominent role in Christian and non-Christian Gnostic writings.3 Moreover, biblical scholars widely agree that certain christological formulations (e.g., John 1:1-18; 17:5; Col 1:15-20; 1 Cor 1:18-31; 8:6; Heb 1:2-3; Luke 7:35; 11:49) are indebted to the

1 Personification is the "attribution of personal form, nature, or characteristics; the representation of a thing or abstraction as a person: esp. as a rhetorical figure or species of metaphor" (Oxford English Dictionary, prep, by J. A. Simpson and E. S. C. Weiner, 2d ed. [Oxford: Clarendon, 1989], 11: 604). In the Hebrew Bible, the personification of places, things, and abstract qualities is fairly common, particularly in poetic literature. See, for example, the personification of cities and lands as women—Zion (e.g., Jer 4:31; Lam 1-2, 4; Isa 52:1-2; 53:1-8; 62), Babylon and Chaldea (e.g., Isa 47), and Samaria (Ezek 23). The heavens and earth, mountains and hills, seas and rivers are witnesses (cf. Isa 1:2; Deut 32:1; Mic 6:1-2; Jer 2:12; Pss 50:4-6; 114). The glory of God is a rear guard (Isa 58:8). Kindness and truth are divine heralds (Ps 89:15 [Eng. 14]), justice and peace kiss (Ps 85:11 [Eng. 10]) and, in Proverbs, wine is a mocker and strong drink is a brawler (20:1).

2 J. A. Sanders, The Psalms Scroll of Qumrän Cave 11, DJD 4 (Oxford: Clarendon, 1965), 65-70.

3 D. J. Good, Reconstructing the Tradition of Sophia in Gnostic Literature, SBLMS 32 (Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1987), esp. xiii-xxi, 76-78.

2 Introduction

tradition.4 In short, the Woman Wisdom who walked into the Book of Proverbs and built her house had come to stay. Her presence continues to engender historical, theological, and confessional dialogue and controversy to this day.

Attributed to Solomon (the quintessential sage of Hebrew wisdom), Proverbs 1-9 is formulated as a father's instruction to his son in the context of the household.5 The chapters are a coherent unit, distinguished from what follows by a new superscription in 10:1 and, literarily, by longer didactic poems rather than discrete two-line sayings (cf. 10:1-22:16; 25:1-29:27). Moreover, the chapters' thematic focus on women, namely, Woman Wisdom and Woman of Folly, is attested nowhere else in the book except in the concluding poem about the Vti ΓΙψ'Ν in 31:10-31, a unit set apart by its alphabetic acrostic literary structure and content. Portraits of women thus "frame" Proverbs. The two units further share the "motto"6 of the book—"the fear of the Lord." The phrase forms an inclusio around Proverbs 1-9 (1:7 and 9:10) and around the book as a whole (1:7 and 31:30).

4 See M. J. Suggs, Wisdom, Christology and Law in Matthew's Gospel (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1970), 58; J. D. G. Dunn, Christology in the Making: A New Testament Inquiry into the Origins of the Doctrine of Incarnation, 2d ed. (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1996), 163-212; R. E. Brown, The Gospel According to John, 1-12, AB 29 (Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1966), cxxv. See also B. Witherington, Jesus the Sage: The Pilgrimage of Wisdom (Minneapolis, Minn.: Augsburg Fortress, 1994); E. A. Johnson, "Jesus, the Wisdom of God: A Biblical Basis for Non-Androcentric Christology," ETL 61 (1985): 261-94; F. C. Holmgren, The Old Testament and the Significance of Jesus: Embracing Change—Maintaining Christian Identity (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1999), esp. 156-60.

5 Reading the "I" of the discourse as that of a father and the "you" as that of a son. Although the mother's authority as a teacher is mentioned twice (1:8; 6:20), she does not have an independent voice. Rather, her presence functions to confirm the father's instruction (cf. C. Newsom, "Woman and the Discourse of Patriarchal Wisdom: A Study of Proverbs 1-9," in Women in the Hebrew Bible: A Reader, ed. A. Bach [New York: Routledge, 1999], 85-86; 98 n. 5).

6 So J. H. Greenstone, Proverbs with Commentary (Philadelphia: The Jewish Publication Society of America, 1950), xiii; C. H. Toy, The Book of Proverbs, ICC (Edinburgh: Τ. & T. Clark, 1959), 10-11; D. Kidner, The Proverbs: An Introduction and Commentary (London: Tyndale, 1964), 22; R. N. Whybray, Proverbs, NCBC (London: Marshall Pickering; Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1994), 17.

Introduction 3

The instructional goals of Proverbs 1-9 and, arguably, the entire book7 are broadly defined at the outset (1:2-7): to teach the inexperienced (Π'ΝΠδ, 1:4) how to live wisely (1:2-4, 6), to further educate the mature sage (1:5-6), and to remind everyone that knowledge begins with the "fear of the Lord," reverence for Yahweh, God of Israel (1:7a; cf. 9:10). Only fools ignore or despise such wisdom (1:7b). Following this preface, the father's lessons unfold with poetic mastery, driven by the analogy that a youth's choice to live wisely or foolishly is like the choice between two women: Woman Wisdom and Woman of Folly (or the "Stranger" Woman). Woman Wisdom is personified in five passages: 1:20-33; 3:13-18; 4:1-9; 7:4-5; 8:1-9:6, l l . 8 There are speeches about her (1:20-21; 3:13-18; 4:4-9; 7:4-5; 8:1-3; 9:1-3) and by her (in the voice of the father; 1:22-33; 8:4-36; 9:4-6, 11). She calls out to the young and the foolish, urging them to heed her sound instruction (1:22-33; 8:6-10a). She stretches out her hand (1:24). She laughs (1:26). She holds long life in her right hand and, in her left, riches and honor (3:16). She places a fair garland and a beautiful crown on her lover (4:9). Her lips speak what is noble and right; her mouth utters truth (8:6-8). She walks in the way of righteousness and justice (8:20). She builds her house, slaughters animals, mixes wine, sets a table, and sends out her maidservants to invite her guests (9:1-3). Interwoven with these images are theological claims about her identity (e.g., 8:22-31). Clearly a complex, multivalent female figure (like her counterpart, Woman of Folly), Woman Wisdom is at once elusive and intimate as a lover.

7 The majority of interpreters regard 1:1-6 [or 7] as the preface to the book. See, e.g., F. Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Proverbs of Solomon, trans. M. G. Easton (Edinburgh: Τ. & T. Clark, 1874), 1:6; W. Ο. E. Oesterley, The Book of Proverbs with Introduction and Notes (London: Methuen, 1929), xiii, xxvi; E. Jones, Proverbs and Ecclesiastes: Introduction and Commentary (New York: MacMillian, 1961), 55; W. G. Plaut, Book of Proverbs: A Commentary (New York: Union of American Hebrew Congregations, 1961), 12; Toy, Proverbs, 3-11; D. Cox, Proverbs with an Introduction to Sapiential Books (Wilmington, Del.: Michael Glazier, 1982), 91; Whybray, Proverbs, 3, 16-17, 30-36; and R. J. Clifford, Proverbs: A Commentary, OTL (Louisville, Ky.: Westminster John Knox, 1999), 33-36.

8 Prov 9:11 appears to provide the motivation for the injunction in 9:6 and, as such, is interpreted here as the conclusion to Wisdom's speech (cf. Μ. V. Fox, "Ideas of Wisdom in Proverbs 1-9," JBL 116 [1997]: 616 n. 7).

4 Introduction

The question of Wisdom's origin(s) in Proverbs 1-9 has long occupied interpreters. What models, realities, or images underlie her personification? In the history of modern interpretation,9 the predominant approach is to argue that the figure of Wisdom was shaped wholly or mainly as an Israelite parallel to female divinities in other ancient Near Eastern cultures. Proposals include the Mesopotamian goddess Ishtar,10 Egyptian Macat,n a Hellenized form of the Egyptian

19 1 λ goddess Isis, Asherah, and an unnamed, hitherto unknown Canaanite wisdom goddess.14

9 For recent summaries of the history of interpretation, see G. Baumann, Die Weisheitsgestalt in Proverbien 1-9: traditionsgeschichtliche und theologische Studien, Forschungen zum Alten Testament 16 (Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 1996), 1-57; R. N. Whybray, The Book of Proverbs: A Survey of Modern Study, History of Biblical Interpretation Series 1 (Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1995), 71-78; B. Lang, "Wisdom," in Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible, ed. K. van der Toorn, B. Becking, and P. van der Horst (Leiden: Ε. J. Brill, 1995), 1692-1702; C. V. Camp, Wisdom and the Feminine in the Book of Proverbs, Bible and Literature Series 11 (Sheffield: JSOT/Almond, 1985), 23-68.

10 See G. Boström, Proverbiastudien: die Weisheit und das fremde Weib in Sprüche 1-9, Lunds Universitets Arsskrift 30, 3 (Lund: Gleerup, 1935), esp. 156-74.

11 W. Schenke, Die Chokma (Sophia) in der jüdischen Hypostasen-Spekulation: Ein Beitrag zur Geschichte der religiösen Ideen im Zeitalter des Hellenismus (Kristiana: Jacob Dybwad, 1913); H. Donner, "Die religionsgeschichtlichen Ursprünge von Prov. Sal. 8," ZA 82 (1958): 8-18; C. Bauer-Kayatz, Studien zu Proverbien 1-9: Eine Form- und Motivgeschichtliche Untersuchung unter Einbeziehung ägyptischen Vergleichsmaterial, WMANT 22 (Neukirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener, 1966). See also, S. Schroer, Die Weisheit hat ihr Haus gebaut: Studien zur Gestalt der Sophia in den biblischen Schriften (Mainz: Matthias-Grünewald, 1996), esp. 12-62; B. Mack, "Wisdom Myth and Myth-ology: An Essay in Understanding a Theological Tradition," Interpretation 24 (1970): 46-60; G. Baumann, "A Figure with Many Facets: The Literary and Theological Functions of Personified Wisdom in Proverbs 1-9," in Wisdom and the Psalms: A Feminist Companion to the Bible (Second Series), ed. A. Brenner and C. R. Fontaine, The Feminist Companion to the Bible, 2d ser., 2 (Sheffield: Sheffield, 1998), 44-78, esp. 62-66.

12 See Μ. V. Fox, "World Order and Macat: A Crooked Parallel," JANES 23 (1995): 37-48; Johnson, "Jesus, the Wisdom of God," esp. 267-71; Mack, "Wisdom Myth and Myth-ology," 46-60.

13 M. D. Coogan, "Canaanite Origins and Lineage: Reflections on the Religion of Ancient Israel," in Ancient Israelite Religion: Essays in Honor of Frank Moore Cross, ed. P. D. Miller, Jr., P. D. Hanson, and S. D. McBride (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1987), 115-24, esp. 118-20; cf. also J. M. Hadley,

Introduction 5

The lack of consensus is symptomatic of problems with the approach. First, out of the five passages in which Wisdom is personified as a woman, only two explicitly point to some sort of divine or mythological status: Prov 3:13-20 and 8:22-31. The former opens with a tribute to Woman Wisdom and her benefits framed by an inclusio of the root meaning "happy" (ηψ'Ν/Ιψ'ΧΟ, 3:13-18). Wisdom is described as the bearer of riches, long life, and honor (3:14-16); her ways are those of prosperity and peace (3:17). Moreover, for those who embrace her, she is a "tree of life," an expression that elsewhere in Proverbs denotes a source of well-being (cf. 11:30 [the fruit of the righteous]; 13:12 [a fulfilled desire]; and 15:4 [a gentle tongue]).15 The verse that immediately follows, however, abruptly changes the object of praise. Yahweh now takes center stage (3:19)16

and the theme shifts to the creation of the world. Wisdom, previously personified subject, is redefined as an instrument or an agent of divine action: "Yahweh by [means of] Wisdom (Π03Π3) founded the earth..." (3:19a).17 The sage of Proverbs 1-9 identifies her as preeminent and, at the same time, subordinates her as a tool (attribute?) of Yahweh. As such, creation theology here subsumes Wisdom, whatever her original provenance. The Wisdom eulogized in 3:13-18 is essentially recast as Yahweh's wisdom in 3:19-20. Indeed, if read by themselves, 3:19-20

1Κ do not even imply that Wisdom is personified.

In the second passage (8:22-31), the status of Woman Wisdom—the nature of her relationship to Yahweh and her work—is veiled in ambiguity. The text reestablishes her preeminence, her existence before the dust and waters of the earth and the stars of the heavens (esp. 8:22-29).19 Her origins, however, are obscured by the phrase 'Ipj? ΓΠΓΡ. in

"Wisdom and the Goddess," in Wisdom in Ancient Israel: Essays in Honour of J. A. Emerton, ed. J. Day, R. P. Gordon, and H. G. M. Williamson (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995), 234-43.

14 B. Lang, Wisdom and the Book of Proverbs: An Israelite Goddess Redefined (New York: Pilgrim, 1986).

15 Note that D'Trr? parallels Dity' in 3:17-18. See R. Marcus, "The Tree of Life in Proverbs," JBL 62 (1943)': 117-20.

16 The inversion of the subject and verb indicates emphasis (cf. Whybray, Proverbs, 68).

17 The phrase is parallel to "by [Yahweh's] knowledge ( i f i in?) the deeps broke open" (3:20a).

18 So Whybray, Proverbs, 68. 19 Her preeminence is underscored rhetorically in 8:22-26 by the negative

expressions f'N?, "when there was no..." (8:24a, b), D"lt33 and 'JD1?, "before"

6 Introduction

8:22. Interpreters variously render it as "Yahweh took possession of/acquired me" (so Aquila, Symmachus, Theodotion, Vulgate)20 or "Yahweh created/birthed me" (so LXX, Targum, Peshitta). In either case (and the meanings of the verb nJj? may well overlap), Wisdom appears to be associated with Yahweh due to some sort of divine action—as the first creation, an acquired possession, or a child. The subsequent verses sustain the mystery while underscoring her preeminence. Wisdom is said to have been "formed" ('BSD}, 8:23a) and "brought forth" OnVVin, 8:24a, 25b). In short, she was there ('3X Otf, 8:27) for the divine creation. Whether or not she participated, however, is masked by yet another interpretive crux. In 8:30a, Wisdom is described as an }iQK at the side of Yahweh, a term typically construed as either "master artisan" or "little child."21 The latter translation seems preferable given the portrait of her playing with delight before Yahweh and on earth with humanity (8:30-31). Moreover, Wisdom is nowhere in the poem assigned an active role in creation. However, even if the translation "master artisan" is favored, the fact that Wisdom is set "at the side of Yahweh" (8:30) suggests that Yahweh is the principal creator.22 In sum, 8:22-31 reasserts the preeminence of Wisdom, describes her (mysterious) origin(s) as the fruit of divine action, and sets her in relation to Yahweh—at the divine "side" during creation.

Therefore, in the two (out of five) passages in Proverbs 1-9 most suggestive of some sort of divine or mythological status for personified Wisdom, one defines her as an instrument of Yahweh (3:13-20) and the other (ambiguously) as the first creation, a divine possession, or child (8:22-31). In both texts Woman Wisdom is subsumed by or set in subordinate relation to Yahweh. She is, so to speak, "under the thumb" of Yahwism. Proponents of the mythological approach attempt to explain this variously, claiming that Wisdom is a "semi-divine" figure,

(8:25), nipv kV-TV, "when (God) had not yet made" (8:26). 20 See also B. Vawter, "Proverbs 8:22: Wisdom and Creation," JBL 99 (1980):

205-16. 21 See H.-P. Rüger, '°Am0n—Pflegekind: Zur Auslegungsgeschichte von Prv

8:30a," in Übersetzung und Deutung: Studien zu dem Alten Testament und seiner Umwelt, A. R. Hülst gewidmet von Freunden und Kollegen (Nijkerk: Callenbach, 1977), 154-63; R. Β. Y. Scott, "Wisdom in Creation: The 3Amon of Proverbs VIII 30," VT 10 (1960): 213-23; Μ. V. Fox, '°Amon Again," JBL 115 (1996): 699-702.

22 See Hadley, "Wisdom and the Goddess," 23 8. 23 Ibid., 243.

Introduction 7

a transcendent being of "goddess-like rank at YHWH's side,"24 or a goddess "demythologized" by Yahwism over time.25 An alternative proposal is that she is an incompletely developed hypostatization of God's wisdom.26 In short, if she is derived from divinity, she is not (fully) divine here; she is "demythologized".27 This prompts the question of whether her attributes may be explained some other way.

A further problem with the mythological approach is that none of the female divinities proposed as parallels to Woman Wisdom seems to correspond consistently with her portrait in Proverbs 1-9. Notably, two of the above—Ishtar and Asherah—are not even associated with wisdom. Ishtar is a goddess of war and victory, of love and sexuality, and of Venus, the morning and evening star. Unlike Woman Wisdom, she is a "personality of contraries,"28 encompassing death and life, male and female, love and war. Moreover, she is typically dissatisfied, angry, and contentious, and she glories in aggression and destruction.29

Characteristics of Asherah similarly diverge from those of Woman Wisdom. In Ugaritic mythology, for example, Asherah/Athirat is the consort of the supreme god El. She is the mother, the procreatress, of the gods (qnyt ilm) who number seventy and are referred to as the "seventy sons of Athirat" (sb'm. bn. atrt, cf. CTU 1.4.VI.46).30 She is also typically referred to by the epithet "Lady Athirat of the sea" (rbt atrt ym, e.g., CTU 1.4.111.27). Woman Wisdom, by contrast, is

24 Baumann, "A Figure with Many Facets," 71. 25 So Lang, Wisdom and the Book of Proverbs, esp. 126-31. 26 H. Ringgren, Word and Wisdom: Studies in the Hypostatization of Divine

Qualities and Functions in the Ancient Near East (Lund: H. Ohlsson, 1947); R. Marcus, "On Biblical Hypostases of Wisdom," HUCA 25 (1950/51): 157-71.

27 See Whybray, Proverbs, 28. Μ. V. Fox speculates that even if the genesis of Wisdom was a female divinity(ies), it is highly doubtful that the audience would have recognized her or understood her significance in Wisdom's portrait ("Ideas of Wisdom in Proverbs 1-9," 624-25).

28 See T. Abusch, "Ishtar," in Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible, ed. K. van der Toorn, B. Becking, and P. van der Horst (Leiden: Ε. J. Brill, 1995), 849-53.

29 Ibid., 849. 30 See J. Day, "Asherah in the Hebrew Bible and Northwest Semitic Literature,"

JBL 105 (1986): 387; idem, "Asherah," in ABD 1: 483-87; S. M. Olyan, Asherah and the Cult of Yahweh in Israel, SBLMS 34 (Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1988); N. Wyatt, "Asherah," in Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible, ed. K. van der Toorn, B. Becking, and P. van der Horst (Leiden: Ε. J. Brill, 1995), 183-95.

8 Introduction

described as a creation, possession, or child of Yahweh in Proverbs 1-9—not a consort31—and her primary activity is delight, playing before God and on earth. The extent to which she may or may not participate in creation is ambiguous.

Macat and Isis, both associated with wisdom, are also problematic parallels. Whereas Woman Wisdom persuades with speech (cf. 1:22-33; 8:4-36; 9:4-6, 11), Macat nowhere gives a speech; "in fact, she never seems to speak at all." And unlike Wisdom's play before Yahweh (8:30), Macat is never shown playing before a god.33 The goddess Isis, unlike Wisdom, is a law-giver, creator, and a "mistress of magic" who effects her work by pronouncing spells.34 Further, as Fox notes, Isis did not emerge as a dominant deity until the late third and second centuries BCE and Isis aretalogies are not attested until the first century BCE—too late to have influenced even the latest redaction of Proverbs.35 In sum, none of these proposed female deities can be said to correspond consistently with Woman Wisdom in Proverbs 1-9. Hence, scholars of this approach may create parallels "from bits and pieces from here and there"36 or even posit an otherwise unattested goddess as Wisdom's model.37

Given the limitations of the mythological approach, some recent interpreters shift the question of Woman Wisdom's origins to one of her function as a literary personification that reflects, explicitly or implicitly, various roles of Israelite women. The aim of this approach is to take seriously the personal, human imagery attributed to Wisdom and to associate that imagery with women in the "real world." To do so, proponents draw parallels between the description of Wisdom and

31 Contra Coogan who interprets Wisdom in Proverbs 8 as indicative of "a living Canaanite tradition in Israel, specifically the belief in the consort of the deity" ("Canaanite Origins and Lineage," esp. 119-20). It appears that Coogan reads back into Proverbs the more "mythologized" depictions of Wisdom he identifies in later sources (Wis 8-9, Sir 24, and Philo), the texts he uses as support for his claim.

32 See Fox, "World Order and Macat," 43. 33 Ibid., 44. 34 See Fox, "World Order and Macat," 45; J. Assmann, "Isis," in Dictionary of

Deities and Demons in the Bible, ed. K. van der Toorn, B. Becking, and P. van der Horst (Leiden: Ε. J. Brill, 1995), 855-59.

3 5 Fox, "World Order and Macat," 47. 36 Ibid., 46. 37 So Lang, Wisdom and the Book of Proverbs, 57-70.

Introduction 9

those of other female figures in the Hebrew Bible. C. V. Camp, for example, identifies six female motifs that contribute to the "matrix of meaning" produced by Woman Wisdom: the wife, the lover, the harlot or adulteress, the wise woman, the woman who uses indirect means to effect God's ends, and the woman who authenticates written tradition.38

Others propose the models of wise and counseling women,39

prophets,40 or teachers.41

The approach can be problematic, however. For example, whereas Camp and Schroer underscore the interplay between social-historical context and literary expression, they methodologically prioritize the latter. Female "motifs" or roles of women are drawn from throughout the Hebrew Bible without regard to diachronic differences in the texts and in women's realities. Moreover, extrabiblical evidence for women (Israelite or not) is seldom considered. If social-historical context is addressed, it is done secondarily42 and the text is necessarily dated to the period in which the canon was available. Camp points to this dilemma in her work. On the one hand, she is convinced that the question of context must be addressed because "it is there," it "lurks in the background" of the literary analyses, and because Israel accepted the female imagery of Proverbs into its canon in response to "some human situation."43 On the other hand, she considers her dating for

38 Camp, Wisdom and the Feminine, 79-147; cf. idem, "Woman Wisdom as Root Metaphor: A Theological Reconstruction," in The Listening Heart: Essays in Wisdom and the Psalms in Honor of Roland E. Murphy, O. Carm., ed. K. G. Hoglund, E. F. Huwiler, J. T. Glass, and R. W. Lee, JSOTSup 58 (Sheffield: JSOT, 1987), 45-47; and idem, "The Female Sage in Ancient Israel and in the Biblical Wisdom Literature," in The Sage in Israel and the Ancient Near East, ed. J. G. Gammie and L. G. Perdue (Winona Lake, Ind.: Eisenbrauns, 1990), 185-203.

39 See S. Schroer, "Wise and Counselling Women in Ancient Israel: Literary and Historical Ideals of the Personified Hokmä," in A Feminist Companion to Wisdom Literature, ed. A. Brenner, The Feminist Companion to the Bible 9 (Sheffield: Sheffield, 1995), 67-84; C. R. Fontaine, "The Social Roles of Women in the World of Wisdom," in A Feminist Companion to Wisdom Literature, ed. A. Brenner, The Feminist Companion to the Bible 9 (Sheffield: Sheffield, 1995), 24-49.

40 See Lang, Wisdom and the Book of Proverbs, 56-59. 41 So Fox, "Ideas of Wisdom," 625. 42 So Schroer describes various wise and counseling women in the Hebrew

Bible before addressing why Wisdom would have developed in the postexilic period ("Wise and Counselling Women," 79-81).

43 Camp, Wisdom and the Feminine, 17 (emphases hers).

10 Introduction

Proverbs 1-9 the "most speculative" part of her project44 and concedes that she is "in a sense 'forced' into" the early postexilic period because her literary analysis presupposes the canon.45

The interpreters of both approaches, therefore, do not look for the origin(s) of Woman Wisdom amid the activities of and perceptions about women in a particular social-historical context. The reticence to do so is striking, particularly given a number of recent social-historical studies that do exactly that with regard to Wisdom's counterpart in Proverbs 1-9—the "Stranger" Woman or Woman o f Folly.46 These studies posit that the polemic against the "Stranger" Woman was motivated primarily by concerns about real women. Proposals include foreign devotees of Ishtar-Astarte who engaged in cultic prostitution,47

Israelite women who prostituted themselves to pay a vow,4 8 adulterous Israelite wives,4 9 women outside of the postexilic golah community,50

and any woman outside of the family who broke socially accepted standards for gender relations in Persian-period Yehud.51

44 Camp writes: "Am I sure it was the early post-exilic period? No, I am not. It could have been earlier, in which case the question of the book's relevance in the suggested period is still a valid one. It could also have been later...But the convergence of factors in early post-exilic Palestine suggested that as a good place to start. If I am wrong, either in my choice of periods or in the way I have reconstructed this one, at least a start has been made, a question raised" (Wisdom and the Feminine, 17).

45 Ibid., 14. 46 J. Blenkinsopp, "The Social Context of the Outsider Woman' in Proverbs 1-

9," Bib 72 (1991): 457-73; H. C. Washington, "The Strange Woman (rriDJ/mT WX) of Proverbs 1-9 and Post-Exilic Judaean Society," in Second Temple Studies 2. Temple Community in the Persian Period, ed. T. C. Eskenazi and Κ. H. Richards, JSOTSup 175 (Sheffield: JSOT, 1994), 217-42; C. Maier, Die 'fremde Frau' in Proverbien 1-9: Eine exegetische und sozialgeschichtliche Studie, OBO 144 (Freiburg: Universitätsverlag; Göttingen: Vandenhoeck und Ruprecht, 1995); idem, "Conflicting Attractions: Parental Wisdom and the 'Strange Woman' in Proverbs 1-9," in Wisdom and Psalms: A Feminist Companion to the Bible (Second Series), ed. A. Brenner and C. R. Fontaine, The Feminist Companion to the Bible, 2d ser., 2 (Sheffield: Sheffield, 1998), 92-108, esp. 99-104.

47 So Boström, Proverbiastudien, esp. 105-55. 48 K. van der Toorn, "Female Prostitution in Payment of Vows in Ancient

Israel," JBL 108 (1989): 193-205. 49 P. Humbert, "La 'femme etrangere' du livre des Proverbs," RES 2 (1937):

49-64. 50 Washington, "The Strange Woman," esp. 239-42. 51 Maier, Die 'fremde Frau' in Proverbien 1-9, 92-108.

Introduction 11

Generally speaking, therefore, the tendency in the search for the origin(s) of Woman Wisdom and Woman of Folly in Proverbs 1-9 is to trace Woman Wisdom to female goddesses or abstractions but Woman of Folly to "real" women. This inclination reflects a problematic view of women. The implicit assumption is that negative female figures are derived from real women whereas positive, powerful female figures are not. That is, women may be that "bad" but not that "good," that substantial, unless they are deities or abstractions. This view is of course troubling on its face, but is even more so given the evident juxtaposition of Woman Wisdom and Woman of Folly. The two figures are described in similar terms: both contend for the young man's attention, use speech to persuade (e.g., 1:20-33; 7:14-21; 8:4-36), move about in the streets of a city (1:20-21; 7:10-12; 8:2-3), have houses (7:8, 27), offer wealth and luxuries (e.g., 3:7, 16; 8:18-19; 7:16-17), and make similar invitations for a feast (9:4-6, 16-17). The literary structure of Proverbs 1-9 also reinforces their association by interweaving speeches by and about Wisdom with those by and about Woman of Folly.52 It would thus seem probable that whatever motivated and contributed to the crafting of one figure also influenced the other, its "mirror image." The tendency, then, to locate the origin(s) of each in radically different models or realities appears at odds with the text itself.

The aim of this study is to reconsider the origin(s) of Woman Wisdom in light of the social-historical, specifically socioeconomic, context in which the sage of Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 crafted the framing units around the book. At issue is how the socioeconomic activities of and perceptions about women in that context may have shaped the sage's personification of Wisdom.

I begin in chapter one with a reconsideration of linguistic evidence for the dating of Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31. First, I identify characteristics of Late Biblical Hebrew (LBH), specifically vocabulary that otherwise occurs exclusively or predominantly in exilic and postexilic biblical texts and the use of LBH vernacular. Secondly, I explore the question of foreign influence, pointing to likely morphological and lexical Aramaisms that are otherwise attested exclusively or extensively in Official Aramaic (specifically fifth

52 See G. A. Yee, "Ί Have Perfumed My Bed with Myrrh:' The Foreign Woman {"issäzärä) in Proverbs 1-9," JSOT43 (1989): 54.

12 Introduction

century BCE), later Aramaic dialects, and late biblical texts. I posit that these Aramaisms ought not be construed as representative of an early, northern "Israelian" dialect, but rather of LBH. I also show that the units contain neither Greek loanwords nor other evidence of Greek influence that might suggest a Hellenistic date. Finally, I consider whether the orthographic tendencies of MT Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 appear consistent with the other findings. In sum, I suggest that the cumulative linguistic evidence points to LBH and thus to a date for Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 between the beginning of the sixth century BCE and the end of the third century BCE—most likely, sometime in the Persian period.

Given this social-historical context, chapter two discusses epigraphic and biblical evidence for the socioeconomic activities of women and perceptions about them in Persian-period Palestine. The epigraphic materials offer a multifaceted look at everyday transactions in different sectors of the economy across the Achaemenid empire. I argue that their use in reconstructing the socioeconomic dynamics of Persian-period Palestine is warranted by the extent to which the empire was interconnected by roads, communication, travel, and trade. That is, the daily life and worldview of Palestine, including its views of and about women, were informed by its place in the larger Persian realm. I explore the "business" dimensions of marriage, divorce, inheritance, and gifts and their implications for women. I then consider some of the many ways that royal and non-royal women participated in the economy: as property holders, laborers, supervisors of workgroups, creditors and debtors, and managers of household economies.

Finally, chapter three highlights ways in which the sage's personification of Woman Wisdom in Proverbs 1 -9 and description of the Woman of Substance in 31:10-31 reflect the socioeconomic activities of women and perceptions about them in his Persian-period context. First, I argue that the Woman of Substance is a composite figure of real, albeit exceptional, Persian-period women. Secondly, I claim that the specific nature and extent of lexical and thematic parallels between the Woman of Substance (31:10-31) and Woman Wisdom (1-9) suggest that the women who "frame" the book of Proverbs essentially coalesce as one figure. I then explore that convergence, pointing out how significant portions of the father's instruction to his son portray Woman Wisdom as a Persian-period Woman of Substance, as a bride to be sought and acquired before all

Introduction 13

other possessions. Finally, I consider possible social-historical and theological implications of this study.

CHAPTER ONE

Linguistic Evidence and the Dating of Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31

A . Introduction

Dating the Book of Proverbs, as with many other biblical books, is notoriously difficult. External evidence provides a terminus ante quem of the mid-second century BCE. Ben Sira ostensibly drew on the book around 190 BCE, paraphrasing and adapting proverbs for his context.1

LXX-Proverbs similarly dates to the first half of the second century BCE.2 The earlier of two Qumran manuscript fragments of the book (4QProva=4Q102) is dated on paleographic grounds to a century later— the mid-first century BCE.3 Internal evidence of use for dating the book

1 See P. W. Skehan and A. di Leila, The Wisdom of Ben Sira, AB 39 (Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1987), 40-45.

2 So G. Gerleman, Studies in the Septuagint III: Proverbs (Lund: Gleerup, 1956), 60; J. Cook, "The Dating of Septuagint Proverbs," ETL 69 (1993): 399. As to whether the Hebrew Vorlage of LXX is a different recension than that of MT, see Ε. Τον, "Recensional Differences between the Masoretic Text and the Septuagint of Proverbs," in Of Scribes and Scrolls: Studies on the Hebrew Bible, Intertestamental Judaism, and Christian Origins Presented to John Strugnell on the Occasion of his Sixtieth Birthday, ed. H. W. Attridge, J. J. Collins, and Τ. H. Tobin, College Theology Society Resources in Religion 5 (Lanham, Md.: University Press of America, 1990), 43-56; R. J. Clifford, "Observations on the Text and Versions of Proverbs," in Wisdom, You Are My Sister: Studies in Honor of Roland E. Murphy, O. Carm., on the Occasion of his Eightieth Birthday, ed. M. L. Barre, CBQMS 29 (Washington, D.C.: Catholic Biblical Association of America, 1997), 49-56. The general content, order, and placement of Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 as units are identical in LXX and MT. Both texts appear to have been stabilized prior to the Greek translation.

3 4QProva=4Q102 contains l:27c-2:l. The second fragment (4QProvb=4Q103) contains 13:6b-9; 14:6-10, 12b, 13b; 14:31-15:8; 15:19b-31 and is dated on paleographic grounds to the mid-first century CE. Both differ only slightly

16 Linguistic Evidence and the Dating of Proverbs 1 -9 and 31:10-31

is frustratingly sparse. The superscription in 25:1, "these also are the proverbs of Solomon which the men of Hezekiah, king of Judah, transmitted," suggests a terminus a quo of the late eighth to early seventh century BCE for at least part of the book.4 Otherwise, there are no references to Israel and its histoiy, and few to its cultic and political institutions. Personal names are either prominent (Solomon, Hezekiah) or too obscure (Agur, Lemuel) to be helpful. Moreover, superscriptions and internal variations suggest that the book is comprised of sections that were woven together over time: 1:1-9:18; 10:1-22:16; 22:17-24:22; 24:23-34; 25:1-29:27; 30:1-33; and 31:1-9, 10-31.

Given these challenges to dating the book as a whole, interpreters typically begin with the various sections. The methods predominantly used to date Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31, the units of concern for this study, are questionable in themselves, rely on evidence not conducive to the task, or both. Not surprisingly, the results vary significantly. First, there is a form-critical claim that longer, more complex strophes developed chronologically later than shorter sayings.5 Both literary

from MT. There also appears to be a quotation of Prov 15:8 in CD 11:20-21. See G. W. Nebe, "Qumranica I: Zu unveröffentlichen Handschriften aus Höhle 4 von Qumran," ZAW 106 (1994): 307-22, esp. 308-9; Clifford, "Observations," 48-49.

4 But see Μ. Carasik, "Who Were the 'Men of Hezekiah' (Prov 25:1)?" VT44 (1994): 289-300.

5 L. G. Perdue, for example, writes that "brief sayings incorporating human observations suggest a more archaic genre than do lengthy instructions and didactic poems that require greater intellectual and literary sophistication" ("Wisdom Theology and Social History in Proverbs 1-9," in Wisdom, You Are My Sister: Studies in Honor of Roland E. Murphy, O. Carm., on the Occasion of his Eightieth Birthday, ed. M. L. Barre, CBQMS 29 [Washington, D.C.: Catholic Biblical Association of America, 1997], 79-80). See also B. Gemser, Sprüche Salomos, HAT 16 (Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 1963), 5; W. Baumgartner, "The Wisdom Literature," in The Old Testament and Modern Study: A Generation of Discovery and Research, ed. Η. H. Rowley, trans. D. R. Ap-Thomas (Oxford: Clarendon, 1951), 212; O. Eissfeldt, The Old Testament: An Introduction, trans. P. R. Ackroyd (New York: Harper and Row, 1965), 473; R. Β. Y. Scott, Proverbs/Ecclesiastes: Introduction, Translation and Notes, AB 18 (Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1965), 15.

Scholars have similarly dated Prov 31:10-31 to the postexilic period on the basis of literary sophistication. See A. Wolters, "Söpiyyä (Prov 31:27) as Hymnic Participle and Play on Sophia," JBL 104 (1985): 586-87; W. Ο. E. Oesterley, The Book of Proverbs with Introduction and Notes (London: Methuen, 1929), xxvi; F. Hitzig, Die Sprüche Salomo's (Zurich: Orell, Füssli, 1858), 334. However, acrostic poetry is attested as early as the Babylonian

Introduction 17

forms, however, are attested contemporaneously in earlier non-Israelite wisdom texts.6 Second, the dating of Proverbs 1-9 on the basis of putative extrabiblical7 and biblical8 parallels or influence is confounded by the complexities of demonstrating that influence and its direction.9

Third, thematic arguments are generally dubious in light of the lack of internal evidence particular to one historical period. Scholars date the "material prosperity" in Proverbs 1-9, for example, anytime from the mid-ninth century BCE10 to the early Hellenistic period.11 Likewise, the description of the VTrfltP'N in Prov 31:10-31 is dated from the

Theodicy (ca. 1000 BCE) and as late as Qumran (cf. 1 lQPsaSirach, llQPsaZion, and the partial acrostic, llQPsa155). Biblically, acrostics are found in Pss 9-10 and Nah 1, most likely of the monarchical period, and in the exilic and postexilic texts of Lam 1-4 and Ps 119.

6 See Bauer-Kayatz, Studien zu Proverbien 1-9, 15-68; W. McKane, Proverbs: A New Approach, OTL (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1970), 1-10.

7 Scholars have proposed variously Ugaritic, Aramean, Canaanite-Phoenician, and Egyptian parallels. See, e.g., Clifford, "Proverbs IX: A Suggested Ugaritic Parallel," 298-306; C. I. K. Story, "The Book of Proverbs and Northwest Semitic Literature," JBL 64 (1945): 319-37; W. F. Albright, "Some Canaanite-Phoenician Sources of Hebrew Wisdom," in Wisdom in Israel and in the Ancient Near East: Presented to Professor Harold Henry Rowley, ed. M. Noth and D. W. Thomas, VTSup 3 (Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1955), 1-15; Kayatz, Studien zu Proverbien 1-9, esp. 93-119; Baumgartner, "The Wisdom Literature," 210-37.

8 See, e.g., D. G. Wildeboer, Die Sprüche, KHAT 15 (Freiburg i.B.: J. C. B. Möhr, 1897), xi-xix; A. Robert, "Les attaches litteraires Bibliques de Prov. I-IX," parts 1 and 2, RB 43 (1934): 42-68, 172-204, 374-84; 44 (1935): 344-65, 502-25; H. Gese, "Wisdom Literature in the Persian Period," in The Cambridge History of Judaism, Vol. 1: Introduction; The Persian Period, ed. W. D. Davies and L. Finkelstein (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1984), 206. For a more nuanced traditio-historical argument, see H. C. Washington, Wealth and Poverty in the Instruction of Amenemope and the Hebrew Proverbs, SBLDS 142 (Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1994), 128-33.

9 For example, proposed parallels between Proverbs and Deuteronomy may be attributed to the independent use of wisdom terminology by the circles that produced Proverbs and Deuteronomy rather than to direct borrowing. See M. Fishbane, Biblical Interpretation in Ancient Israel (Oxford: Clarendon, 1985), 288; M. Weinfeld, Deuteronomy and the Deuteronomic School (Oxford: Clarendon, 1972), 244-81; Whybray, Proverbs, 59-60.

10 Delitzsch, Proverbs of Solomon, 1:1-51, esp. 29-31, 36. 11 Τ. K. Cheyne, Job and Solomon: or The Wisdom of the Old Testament

(London: Kegan Paul, Trench, 1887), 168-69; Toy, Proverbs, xx-xxxi.


12 13

pre-monarchical period to the second century BCE. The majority of modern interpreters thus reluctantly endorse the

view expressed by R. N. Whybray: "It is not possible to date different parts of the book by their contents, points of view, theology or literary form."14 Nonetheless, most presume that Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 were the last units to be added to the book, most likely sometime in the postexilic period.15

B. A Reconsideration of Linguistic Evidence

I propose to reconsider the linguistic evidence for the date of Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31.16 Linguistic analysis has gained credibility in recent years through the work of a number of scholars, notably A. Hurvitz17 and R. Polzin.18 With regard to wisdom literature, the method

12 E. L. Lyons, "A Note on Proverbs 31:10-31" in The Listening Heart: Essays in Wisdom and the Psalms in Honor of Roland E. Murphy, O. Carm., ed. K. G. Hoglund, E. F. Huwiler, J. T. Glass, and R. W. Lee, JSOTSup 58 (Sheffield: JSOT, 1987), 237-43. Lyons argues that the pre-monarchic ideal of women reflected in Prov 31:10-31 had new significance when the text was redacted in the postexilic period because cultural conditions were analogous.

13 M. Waegeman, "The Perfect Wife of Proverbia 31:10-31," in Goldene Äpfel in silbernen Schalen: Collected Communications to the XHIth Congress of the International Organization for the Study of the Old Testament, Leuven 1989, ed. K.-D. Schunck and M. Augustin, Beiträge zur Erforschung des Alten Testaments und des antiken Judentums 20 (Frankfurt: Peter Lang, 1992), 101-7.

14 R. N. Whybray, The Composition of the Book of Proverbs, JSOTSup 168 (Sheffield: JSOT, 1994), 163-64.

15 See, e.g., Toy, Proverbs, xix-xxxi; A. Meinhold, Die Sprüche, 2 vols. (Zurich: Theologischer, 1991), esp. 1:45-47; Clifford, Proverbs, 6; Whybray, Proverbs, 28-30,426.

16 For the methodological presuppositions of typology, including linguistic typology, see F. M. Cross, "Alphabets and Pots: Reflections on Typological Method in the Dating of Human Artifacts," Maarav 3 (1982): 121-36.

17 A. Hurvitz, The Transition Period in Biblical Hebrew: A Study in Post-Exilic Hebrew and Its Implications [sic] for the Dating of Psalms (in Hebrew; Jerusalem: Bialik Institute, 1972); idem, A Linguistic Study of the Relationship between the Priestly Source and the Book of Ezekiel: A New Approach to an Old Problem, CahRB 20 (Paris: Gabalda, 1982); idem, "The Evidence of Language in Dating the Priestly Code: A Linguistic Study in Technical Idioms and Terminology," RB 81 (1974): 24-56.

18 R. Polzin, Late Biblical Hebrew: Toward an Historical Typology of Biblical

A Reconsideration of Linguistic Evidence 19

has been applied to the dating of Job by Hurvitz,19 and, recently, to Qohelet by C. L. Seow. There has not been, however, a comprehensive linguistic analysis of Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31.21

Following the method as outlined by these scholars,22 I first look for LBH vocabulary and vernacularisms. Next, I consider evidence of foreign influence, specifically, the presence or absence of Aramaisms and Greek loanwords or expressions necessarily derived from Greek

Hebrew Prose, HSM 12 (Missoula, Mont.: Scholars Press, 1976). For the pioneer efforts in this method, see S. R. Driver, An Introduction to the Literature of the Old Testament (Gloucester, Mass.: Peter Smith, 1972); and A. Kropat, Die Syntax des Autors der Chronik verglichen mit der seiner Quellen: ein Beitrag zur historischen Syntax des Hebräischen, BZAW 16 (Glessen: A. Töpelmann, 1909). More recently, Μ. Rooker, Biblical Hebrew in Transition: The Language of the Book of Ezekiel, JSOTSup 90 (Sheffield: JSOT, 1990); A. Säenz-Badillos, A History of the Hebrew Language, trans. J. Elwolde (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993); Ε. Y. Kutscher, A History of the Hebrew Language (Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1982); N. Waldman, The Recent Study of Hebrew: A Survey of the Literature with Selected Bibliography, Bibliographica Judaica 10 (Cincinnati: Hebrew Union College Press; Winona Lake, Ind.: Eisenbrauns, 1989); Α. Ε. Hill, "Dating the Book of Malachi: A Linguistic Reexamination," in The Word of the Lord Shall Go Forth: Essays in Honor of David Noel Freedman in Celebration of his Sixtieth Birthday, ed. C. Meyers and M. O'Connor (Winona Lake, Ind.: Eisenbrauns, 1983), 77-89; G. Α. Rendsburg, "Late Biblical Hebrew and the Date of 'P'," JANES 12 (1980): 65-80.

19 A. Hurvitz, "The Date of the Prose-Tale of Job Linguistically Reconsidered," HTR 67 (1974): 17-34.

20 C. L. Seow, "Linguistic Evidence and the Dating of Qohelet," JBL 115 (1996): 643-66.

21 For previous but limited linguistic arguments see A. Hartmann, Die enge Verbindung des Alten Testaments mit dem Neuen aus rein biblischen Standpunkte entwickelt (Hamburg: Friedrich Perthes, 1831), 148-49 n. 88; Wildeboer, Die Sprüche, esp. xiv-xv; Toy, Proverbs, esp. xxiv-xxxi; Eissfeldt, The Old Testament, 472-77; Driver, An Introduction to the Literature of the Old Testament, 392-407; B. Lang, Die weisheitliche Lehrrede: Eine Untersuchung von Sprüche 1-9, Stuttgarter Bibelstudien 54 (Stuttgart: KBW, ca. 1972), 58-60; Washington, Wealth and Poverty, 111-33; Clifford, Proverbs, 4.

22 I use the standard abbreviations for the three major diachronic phases of Hebrew: Early Biblical Hebrew (EBH) of the pre-monarchical and early monarchical periods, Standard Biblical Hebrew (SBH) of the monarchical period (ninth to seventh centuries BCE), and Late Biblical Hebrew (LBH) of the exilic and postexilic periods.


thought. Finally, I examine the orthography of both units to determine whether it appears consistent with the other linguistic findings.

C. Features of LBH

One indication that a text may belong to the late period is the use of vocabulary that is otherwise attested exclusively or predominantly in exilic and postexilic biblical and extrabiblical texts. Several terms in Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 occur only in such contexts. The noun Jin, "circle/orbit" (Prov 8:27), for example, is attested elsewhere only in Isa 40:22; Job 22:14; and Sir 43:12. The feminine singular construct

("mountain goat") is found only in Prov 5:19 and, in the absolute, in Ezra 2:56; Neh 7:58 (X^yO; and 1 Chr 12:8 (n^VV). The standard Hebrew term for the feminine is the unmarked form as suggested by the female personal name (Judg 4:17-18, 21-22; 5:6, 24). This standard form is also retained in Job 39:1, where the masculine plural form ( l ^ O " ' ^ ^ is the subject of ΓΠ^ ("give birth") in the context of birthing imagery (39:lb-4). It is possible that the feminine singular n^y. developed secondarily in LBH, perhaps as a colloquialism. Finally, the plural noun ("corals") in Prov 3:15 (Q); 8:11; and 31:10 (cf. 20:15) occurs outside of Proverbs only in Job 28:18; Lam 4:7; and Sir 7:19; 30:15; and 31:6. Of uncertain Semitic derivation, its Greek equivalent (πίν[ν]α) is not attested prior to the second century BCE,23 suggesting that the Greek word itself may have been borrowed.

There is vocabulary in Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 that is attested predominantly but not exclusively in late texts. The preposition rva, "between" (Prov 8:2), is a feminine form, probably secondarily derived from *bayin (< *baynt). With the exception of its occurrence in 2 Kgs 11:15, Π ,3 is found only in exilic or postexilic texts: Ezek 41:9; Job 8:17; 2 Chr 23:14; and Sir 42:12. A MS of Job with standard Hebrew pa ("between") instead of rva in 8:17 suggests that the two were synonymous. The preposition rva is not attested in inscriptional Hebrew. It is found extrabiblically in an Aramaic document from Warka that is dated to the third or second century BCE.24

Further, the noun Jiöüö, "treasure" (Prov 2:4), occurs only in Jer 41:8; Isa 45:3; Job 3:21; Gen 43:23; and Sir 42:9. The term ks-jö,

23 LS J, 1405. 24 See A. Dupont-Sommer, "La Tablette Cuneiforme Arameenne de Warka,"

RA 39(1942-44): 51.

Features of LBH 21

25 "healing, remedy" (Prov 4:22; 6:15 ), occurs outside of Proverbs only in Mai 3:20; 2 Chr 21:18; 36:16; Jer 8:15; 14:19; 33:6; Qoh 10:4; and Sir 43:22. The noun "DÜ, "purchase price" (Prov 31:10), is found elsewhere only in N u m 20:19; N e h 13:16; and Sir 42:4b. The common sapiential term VDfr, "insight, understanding" (Prov 3:426), is attested in 1 Sam 25:3, but elsewhere only in 1 Chr 22:12; 26:14; 2 Chr 2:11; 30:22; Ezra 8:18; N e h 8:8; Job 17:4; Ps 111:10; Dan 8:24; and Sir 8:9. Other vocabulary found predominantly in the later materials includes *7Π(7, "community" (Prov 5:14),27 the verb 13V, "to tie on" (Prov 6:21; Job 31:36), a n d p n , "wealth, property" (Prov 1:13; 3:9; 6:31; 8:18).28

Because the vernacular of LBH has been largely defined on the basis of narrative texts (e.g., Chronicles, Ezra-Nehemiah),29 scholars debate the extent to which those features can be used to date poetic and

30 proverbial texts like Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31. The assumption is that the linguistic structures of poetry and prose are distinct from one another. Recent studies demonstrate quite the contrary, however.31

Hurvitz states:

the late features, characteristic of post-exilic writings, are by no means restricted to prose works. Non-classical expressions and idioms, which are best explained as imprints of post-classical Hebrew, may be found in the elevated style of late prophecy as

25 See Prov 12:18; 13:17; 16:24; 29:1. 26 See Prov 12:8; 13:15; 16:22; 19:11; 23:9. 27 Although attested in EBH, ^nj? occurs with greater frequency in LBH and

post-biblical Hebrew (DSS, Sir). This development contrasts with the use of the term ΓΠ1? (also in Prov 5:14). Although well attested in EBH, ΓΠ1? is not found in the late biblical texts of Ezra and Nehemiah. Its appearance in 2 Chr 5:6, a text that parallels 1 Kgs 8:5, most likely reflects the Chronicler's borrowing of the Vorlage (Rooker, Biblical Hebrew in Transition, 143-46; Hurvitz, Linguistic Study, 66).

28 Rather than the standard Hebrew |1X; see Prov 10:15; 11:14; 12:27; 13:7, 11; 18:11; 19:4, 14; 24:4; 28:8, 22; 29:3; 30:15; Ezek 27:12, 18, 27, 33; Ps 44:13; 112:3; 119:14; and Song 8:7.

29 So Polzin, Typology of Hebrew Prose·, Hurvitz, A Linguistic Study·, idem, "Evidence of Language in Dating the Priestly Code."

30 Washington, for example, writes: "[t]he typological criteria developed by R. Polzin for identifying LBH relate chiefly to prose syntax and hence cannot be applied to Proverbs" (Wealth and Poverty, 116-17).

31 For further discussion see Rooker, Biblical Hebrew in Transition, 40-44; M. O'Connor, Hebrew Verse Structure (Winona Lake, Ind.: Eisenbrauns, 1980), 66; J. Kugel, The Idea of Biblical Poetry: Parallelism and its History (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 1981), esp. 59-95.


well. The same holds true of compositions which fall under the 32 category of poetic literature.

Linguistic features in poetry and proverbs do not differ significantly. As such, there is no reason to preclude either from typological and linguistic analysis. Nevertheless, features characteristic of poetry and proverbs (e.g., avoidance of the definite article, less use of the marker of the definite direct object and the particle "lUW, more frequent use of archaisms) should not be construed as indications for the date of the * * 33

text. The first person singular independent personal pronoun in Proverbs

1-9 is always (1:26; 8:12, 14, 17, 27) rather than 'D'HX, the longer form attested in earlier narrative and poetic texts. A preference for ""JN in LBH is already evident in Ezekiel, where the shorter form is attested 155 times but 'plN occurs only once (in an archaistic context, Ezek 36:28) and in Lamentations where 'ÜX is attested exclusively (1:16, 21; 3:1, 63). The Chronicler substituted 'JX for the more conservative O'JN in passages parallel to sections of 2 Sam and 1-2 Kgs (cf. 1 Chr 2 1 : 1 0 , Ί 7 / / 2 S a m 24:12, 17; 2 Chr 34:27/ /2 K g s 22:19). T h e shorter form is also used exclusively in the postexilic texts of Ezra, Esther, Haggai, Song of Songs, Qohelet, Zechariah 1-8, and Ben Sira. Moreover, is used predominantly in the later books of Malachi, Chronicles, Nehemiah, and Daniel. The only attestations of in each occur in archaistic contexts (Mai 3:23; Neh 1:6; 1 Chr 17:1; Dan 10:11).35 At Qumran, ']K is standard. The longer Ό3Χ occurs solely in reference to God in texts stylistically consistent with the Pentateuch (i.e., archaistic).36 The shorter form is also preferred in Mishnaic Hebrew. The exclusive use of ^X in Proverbs 1-9 thus suggests LBH.

Proverbs 1-9 reflects the emergence of a later morpheme for the third person plural suffix on feminine plural nouns. The typical third person

32 Hurvitz, "The Date of the Prose Tale," 18 (emphases his). 33 Note, for example, that the Hebrew of Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 reflects the

LBH feature that pronominal suffixes with accusative function are attached directly to the verb rather than to the marker of the definite direct object (ΠΚ). This cannot be construed as a marker of LBH, however, as ΠΚ is infrequent in poetry of any period (GKC §117b).

34 Rooker, Biblical Hebrew in Transition, 74 n. 28; Seow, "Linguistic Evidence," 661.

35 Seow, "Linguistic Evidence," 661. 36 So E. Qimron, The Hebrew of the Dead Sea Scrolls, HSS 29 (Atlanta:

Scholars Press, 1986), §321.11.

Features of LBH 23

plural suffix in EBH (D - ) is replaced over time by Di"P~. Hurvitz argues that the direction of this change is indicated because the form Dir.", when extended from masculine to feminine plural nouns, is tautological. That is, the feminine noun is now doubly marked as plural: first by the morpheme ΓΠ" and, second, by 1 ~ from the masculine plural morpheme.37 Hurvitz concludes that "biblical literature as a whole exhibits faithfully the gradual substitution of DHi" by •Π1Πί -."38

The late character of the extended form is assumed because the logical direction of development is QHi" to ΠΪΤΓΓΓ and the latter occurs predominantly in late biblical and extrabiblical literature. Rare in EBH, the •Π1 ." suffix is found in such late texts as Jeremiah (e.g., 33:8), Ezekiel (e.g., 6:14; 37:23), 2 Chronicles (e.g., 6:25) and Ill-Isaiah (e.g., 59:7-8; 65:2; 66:18). At Qumran, both suffixes are attested, with ΟΓΓΓ still dominant.39 In RH, however, the new morpheme Dirni" is most frequent. As such, the change apparently occurred over an extended period of time and on a word-by-word basis. In Proverbs 1-9, the DHi" morpheme is attested four times: ΠΓίΤΠ (1:6), (1:18; cf. Num 17:3; 2 Sam 23:17; 1 Chr 11:19), o n l ^ y o (2:15; cf. Isa 59:8), and •nim'K (9:15; Joel 2:7; cf. •Π1Π'Π1Κ, 2:15). The D i r n r morpheme occurs three times: OrrriXJfo (ϊ:31 f Pss 5:11; 81:13; Hos 11:6; cf. n n i ^ i Q , Mic 6:16), ΟΓΓΓΙϊη'χ (2:15; cf. Dnlm'X, 9:15; Joel 2:7), and ffivn'nv'x (8:21; cf. On'miX^ Isa 30:6). This'4:3 ratio of the D n r morpheme to the DiTni" morpheme suggests LBH.

Hurvitz and Rooker argue that the shift from the qal of the verb "[Vn, frequently attested throughout the Hebrew Bible, to the piel Οΐ^Π) is a feature of LBH.40 With the exception of 1 Kgs 21:27 and Hab 3:11 (early poetic), the piel is found only in late and/or poetic passages (Isa 59:9; Ezek 18:9; Lam 5:18; Job 24:10; 30:28; Qoh 4:15; 8:10; 11:9; Pss 38:7; 55:15; 81:14; 85:11, 14; 89:16; 104:3, 10, 26; 115:7; 131:1; 142:4). It is also preferred at Qumran and in RH.41

37 Hurvitz, A Linguistic Study, 24-27. 38 Ibid., 26. Hurvitz attributes this shift from Dt" to •Π\.~ to external influence

from the corresponding Aramaic pronominal suffix D'n- and, secondarily, to the internal analogy of the Hebrew masculine forms D!"!1

39 Qimron, Hebrew of the DSS, §322.182,63 n. 81. 40 Hurvitz, A Linguistic Study, 48-52; Rooker, Biblical Hebrew in Transition,

153-55. 41 Qimron, Hebrew of the DSS, §500.1; M. Jastrow, ed. A Dictionary of the

Targumim, the Talmud Babli and Yerushalmi, and the Midrashic Literature (New York: Judaica, 1996), 352-53.

2 4 Linguistic Evidence and the Dating of Proverbs 1 -9 and 31:10-31

Although the form is not exclusively attested in late texts, its predominance there may indicate that the piel of ^ Π in Prov 6:11, 28 and 8:20 is suggestive of LBH. Such a shift from the qal to either the piel or hiphil in LBH and later dialects is not uncommon.42

D. Foreign Influence

1. Aramaisms During the exilic and postexilic periods, Official Aramaic was the

language of administration, commerce, diplomacy and, increasingly, daily communication throughout the Babylonian and Persian empires. For this reason, evidence of direct or indirect influence of Aramaic on the vocabulary and linguistic structures of Hebrew may be found in texts composed during or after the exile.43 Use of "Aramaisms" as a criterion for dating a text as late must be done cautiously, however, as genuine and putative Aramaisms occur sporadically in early texts (particularly poetry) and in books of probable northern origin.44 It is important, therefore, to satisfy certain conditions in deciding whether an Aramaism is useful for arguing a possible late date. First, the Aramaism should not be attested in unquestionably early Hebrew texts. Second, it should occur with some regularity in late biblical Hebrew and/or extrabiblical materials. Third, the Aramaism should be distinguished when possible from the term used for the same meaning in EBH and SBH (i.e., linguistic "opposition")45 Finally, the term should not be an isolated occurrence. There should be a comparatively heavy concentration of Aramaisms and other late elements in the text under consideration.46 With these criteria in mind, the following are

42 See Rooker, Biblical Hebrew in Transition, 83-85, 153-55; Qimron, Hebrew of the DSS, §310.16.

43 See E. Kautzsch, Die Aramaismen im Alten Testamentum, I: Lexicalischer Teil (Halle: Niemeyer, 1902); M. Wagner, Die lexicalischen und grammatikalischen Aramaismen im alttestamentlichen Hebräisch, BZAW 96 (Berlin: Töpelmann, 1966).

44 A. Hurvitz, "The Chronological Significance of 'Aramaisms' in Biblical Hebrew," IEJ18 (1968): 234-37.

45 If an appropriate EBH term cannot be identified, other linguistic considerations may be used to explain the alleged LBH feature (Hurvitz, "Chronological Significance," 238-39).

46 See Hurvitz, "Chronological Significance," 238-39.

Foreign Influence 25

morphological and lexical Aramaisms that point to a late date for Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31.

The use of feminine abstract substantive nouns with an ΓΠ" termination is morphologically suggestive of Aramaic influence. The majority of such nouns occur in exilic or postexilic biblical texts: i n n (e.g., Qoh 1:14; 2:11, 17, 26; 4:4, 6; 6:9), m i a (Jer 41:17), ni3Tn (Ezek 16 and 23 [19 occurrences]), mfoVn (Job 6:6), ΠΠΤ (Jer 12:7), r rnV (Qoh 11:9-10), niDKVö (Hag 1:13), m i n i ? (Ezek 21:11), mV?p (e.gi, Qoh 2:3, 12, 13; 7:25; 10:1, 13), (Qoh 1:17), mTris (Jer 23:32), rVlTji? (Isa 50:3), man (Ezek 32:5), ηηπψ' (Qoh 11:10), nWÖW'n (Ezek 24:26), n^Stf (Qoh 10:18), m a y (Ezra 9:8, 9; Neh 9:17), ηη?ΠΐρΠ (Dan 11:23),' and ItiTJÖ (Sir 33:25; 42:8). The increasing use of the ΓΡΓ termination is indicated by the Chronicler's use of iTDVö to replace natoö, "kingdom" (cf. 1 Chr 14:2//2 Sam 5:12; 1 Chr 17:11//2 Sam 1\\2\\ Chr 17:14//2 Sam 7:16). Daniel and Esther use nOVi? exclusively47 and the form is preferred at Qumran.48

Although the 1ΤΓ termination is attested in preexilic texts, a few of those texts are associated with the north where Aramaic influence is not unexpected. Hosea, for example, contains the feminine abstract nouns ΠID^PD (1:4), mat (4:11; 6:10), and η1*?}. (2:12). It is thus possible that the ΠΙ" termination, more common in Aramaic than in EBH/SBH (Judaean), came increasingly into use in the exilic and postexilic periods largely through the influence of Aramaic.49 This is substantiated by epigraphic evidence. Feminine nouns with the ΣΤΓ termination are attested in Aramaic and Aramaic dialects,50 but are absent in inscriptional Hebrew until late in the postexilic period.51 In Proverbs

47 So niD^Q ("kingdom") in Esther (e.g., 1:14; 2:3; 3:6, 8) and Daniel (e.g., 1:20; 11:4, 9, 17, 20). See also η«1?» in 2 Chronicles (e.g., 33:13; 36:20, 22).

48 Qimron, The Hebrew of the DSS, §330.1. 49 See P. Joüon and T. Muraoka, A Grammar of Biblical Hebrew, trans, and rev.

T. Muraoka, 2 vols. (Rome: Editrice Pontificio Istituto Biblico, 1996), §88Mj. 50 See, e.g., Official Aramaic Π1Π, "peace, benediction" (RES 438:5), ΠΠΉΟ'Π,

"(his) trustworthiness" (TAD ΙΠ, 1.1.132), and ΓΓΰϋ, "goodness, beauty" {KAI 276:11).

51 See, e.g., Π132Τ0, "purchase" (DJD II, 42:4; cf. P. Benoit, J. T. Milik, and R. de Vaux, Les Grottes de Murabbacät, DJD 2 [Oxford: Clarendon, 1961], 155-59) and ηΠΠ, "freedom, liberation" on first and second century CE coins struck in Jerusalem (cf. J. Meshorer, Jewish Coins of the Second Temple Period, trans. I. H. Levine [Tel-Aviv: Am Hassefer, 1967], e.g., Nos. 153b, 156, 194, 202).


1-9 and 31:10-31 there are six such nouns: ΓΡΙΝΩ1, "recovery" (3:8),52

m^'ifV, "wrongness, falsehood" (4:24; 6:12), mi"?, "crookedness" (4:24), rnV>0?, "insolence, stupidity" (9:13), ΓΠ-'Π?, "thoughtlessness, lack of understanding" (9:13), and ΓΡΙ Vw, "idleness" (31:27). This concentration is similar to that found in the exilic and postexilic texts of Qohelet (seven), Ezekiel (eight), Chronicles (five), and II- and III-Isaiah (eight). Comparatively, there are two feminine nouns with the ΓΗ" termination in Amos and none in Micah.

Proverbs 1-9 also contains likely lexical Aramaisms. The noun nintpn ("multi-colored embroidered cloth") in Prov 7:16 is a Hebrew hapax legomenon. The adjective 313Π ("striped") is attested extrabiblically in Official Aramaic; it modifies (woolen) garments listed among dowry properties in fifth century BCE marriage documents (TAD II, 2.6.7; 3»ϋΠ, 3.8.7, [9]; [6.1.7, 9]). The singular absolute ΓΟϋΠ is also found in a late-sixth to early-fifth century BCE Aramaic letter discovered at Hermopolis (TAD I, 2.4.10), evidently as a technical term for a type of embroidered or colored garment.53 Neither the noun nor the adjective is attested in Old Aramaic. The plural adjective ("ΟϋϊΠ), however, is found in Talmudic Aramaic (Ned. 49b) modifying ("cloaks"). It refers there similarly to embroidered or designed wraps.54

The noun p^j?, "property, possession" (Prov 4:7) is found in fifth century BCE Aramaic legal documents, predominantly marriage contracts, in the standard formula "goods (fO3J) and property Opjp)" (TAD II, 2.6.19, 22, 30, 35; 2.8.4;55 3.8.[27], 30-31, 35; 6.3.1, [4], 8). It also occurs in the Aramaic portion of a bilingual tomb inscription dating to the fifth or fourth century BCE (KAI 260.8). Like ΓήηρΓ], it is not attested in Old Aramaic. It does occur frequently in Talmudic Aramaic and Mishnaic Hebrew.56 All occurrences of pjlp in the Hebrew Bible are arguably exilic or postexilic: Ezek 38:12, 13; Lev 22:ll;57

Gen 31:18; 34:23; 36:6;58 Josh 14:4,59 and Ps 105:21.

52 The noun ΓΠΧ31 occurs elsewhere only in Sir 38:14. 53 P. Grelot, Documents Arameens d'Egypte, LAPO 5 (Paris: Les Editions du

Cerf, 1972), 158 n. f; 193 n. f. 54 Jastrow, Dictionary, 431. 55 TAD Π, 2.8 is a document of withdrawal. 56 Jastrow, Dictionary, 1392-93. 57 It is likely that the Holiness Code originated sometime between in the late

pre-exilic and early postexilic periods. See M. Noth, Leviticus, trans. J. E. Anderson (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1977), 127-28.

58 The language of Gen 31:18 and 34:23 is suggestive of P, and Gen 36:6-8 is considered a Ρ itinerary that follows the genealogy of 36:1-5. See C.


The root "to speak" (Prov 6:13), attested only once in Old Aramaic (KAI 224.2), occurs regularly in fifth century BCE legal documents from Elephantine (TADll, 8.5.6, 11, 14; 8.6.4, 8; 8.8.4, 8-9), in Persian period judicial texts from North Saqqära (e.g., ATNS 1:4, 7-8; 9:3, 7), and in other Jewish Aramaic texts (e.g., RES 1785B:4). It is not attested in Hebrew inscriptions. Verbal forms of V?Ö, rather than the standard Hebrew "I XT, are found only in late biblical texts: 1 Chr 25:4, 26; Job 8:2; 33:3; Ps 106:2; and Gen 21:7. The last text, which follows the priestly (P) section of 21:3-5, is the conclusion to the account of the birth of Isaac (21:1-7) shaped by a later redactor.60 Its connection to what precedes is also suggested by the wordplay between Dni3N"7 ("who would have said to Abraham") in 21:7 and T T . . . . . . . \ / •Π13Κ Vq T. ("and Abraham circumcised") in 21:4. It appears likely that was an Old Aramaic term that gained greater popularity in both Aramaic and Hebrew during the exilic and postexilic periods.

The Aramaic equivalents of these Aramaisms, therefore, occur exclusively or predominantly in Official Aramaic (specifically fifth century BCE), later Aramaic dialects, and late biblical texts. This suggests a postexilic date for Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31. Despite these parallels to Official Aramaic and later Aramaic dialects (and not to Old Aramaic), some scholars argue that the book of Proverbs as a whole has a "northern character" which would render the use of Aramaisms more likely. That is, what Aramaisms there may be in Proverbs might be attributed to an early, northern provenance. Proposed parallels between Proverbs and Ugaritic, Aramean, and Canaanite-Phoenician vocabulary and expressions,61 for some, indicate that Proverbs reflects a northern "Israelite dialect (IH)." The evidence for such a dialect is limited primarily to the epigraphic material of the Samaria ostraca (first half of the eighth century BCE), Kuntillet cAjrüd,62 two Hebrew ostraca found

Westermann, Genesis 12-36: A Commentary, trans. J. Scullion (Minneapolis, Minn.: Augsburg Fortress, 1981), 493, 537, 562-63.

59 Josh 14, with its emphasis on the Levites, is most likely a later addition by the Dtr2 redactor. See R. Boling and G. E. Wright, Joshua, AB 6 (Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1982), 358.

60 See Westennann, Genesis 12-36, 330-35. 61 See, e.g., Albright, "Some Canaanite-Phoenician Sources of Hebrew

Wisdom," 1-15; Story, "The Book of Proverbs and Northwest Semitic Literature," 319-37; Clifford, "Proverbs IX: A Suggested Ugaritic Parallel," 298-306.

62 Strong northern (Israelite, not Judean) influence is evident in the material and epigraphic remains from Kuntillet cAjrüd: (a) Samaria ware pottery; (b) the

28 Linguistic Evidence and the Dating of Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 63

at Tell Qasile and, secondarily, to a small corpus of texts in the Hebrew Bible that likely originated in the north (e.g., the Ephraimite narratives in Dtr, Hosea). Ginsberg, for example, surmises that

writing of all theophorous personal names with the ending —yw (e.g., THDU?, VT5?, 1H3», Vi?DW) rather than the Judean -yhw; (c) Phoenician-style

orthography in some inscriptions; and (d) inscriptions that refer to "Yahweh of Samaria (or of Teman)." Z. Meshel concludes that the site was likely occupied in the eighth century BCE by a group of priests from the northern kingdom who were accompanied by an officer (12? "Kuntillet cAjrud," mABD 4.103-9, esp. 108).

63 Material and epigraphic remains suggest that Tell Qasile was a fortified Israelite settlement on the border of Philistia in the period of the Divided Monarchy. Among the finds were a significant number of sherds of Samaria ware pottery (ninth to eighth centuries BCE) and an ostracon with the PN hyhw (cf. B. Maisler [Mazar], "Two Hebrew Ostraca from Tell Qasile," JNES 10 [1951]: 265-67).

64 For recent discussion about the characteristic features of IH see G. A. Rendsburg, Linguistic Evidence for the Northern Origin of Selected Psalms, SBLMS 43 (Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1990); C. L. Seow, review of Linguistic Evidence for the Northern Origin of Selected Psalms, by G. A. Rendsburg, JBL 112 (1993): 334-37; J. R. Davila, "Qoheleth and Northern Hebrew," Maarav 5-6 (1990): 69-87; Saenz-Badillos, A History of the Hebrew Language, 64-66; H. L. Ginsberg, The Israelian Heritage of Judaism, Texts and Studies of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America 24 (New York: Jewish Theological Seminary of America, 1982); A. Blommerde, Northwest Semitic Grammar and Job, BibOr 22 (Rome: Pontifical Biblical Institute, 1969).

The epigraphic evidence suggests that a primary characteristic of the northern dialect is the reduction of the diphthongs *aw and *ay by the tenth century BCE. Thus, the Samaria ostraca have ]"> for BH ("wine") and, on the Jin ΓΡ3 from Tell Qasile, the contracted form 1"ΙΠ for Proto-Canaanite *hawrön (GN) occurs next to an uncontracted 1V3 (cf. F. M. Cross and D. N. Freedman, Early Hebrew Orthography: A Study of the Epigraphic Evidence, AOS 36 [New Haven, Conn.: American Oriental Society, 1952], 45 n. 4, 46-51; W. R. Garr, Dialect Geography of Syria Palestine, 1000-586 BCE [Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1985], 38-40). There is diphthong reduction in line 7 of the Gezer calendar (late tenth century BCE)—

for expected BH ("measuring") and fp for BH Pj? ("summer [harvest]")—but whether or not this is a "northern" text remains disputed (cf. J. C. L. Gibson, Textbook of Syrian Semitic Inscriptions I: Hebrew and Moabite Inscriptions [Oxford: Clarendon, 1971], 1-4; Cross and Freedman, Early Hebrew Orthography, 45 n. 4; J. Naveh, review of Textbook of Syrian Semitic Inscriptions I: Hebrew and Moabite Inscriptions, by J. C. L. Gibson, IEJ 22 [1972]: 187-88). Although Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 contain uncontracted diphthongs, the possibility of "Judeanization" of orthography


Proverbs is "a book of Israelian origin."65 Rendsburg more forcefully claims that Proverbs is a "northern book."66

Ginsberg draws his conclusion, first, on the basis of what he calls "interesting echoes" of Proverbs in Second Hosea (4-14).67 He contends that these parallels—indeed for him, borrowings—between Proverbs and Hosea indicate that Proverbs is likely also a northern text. The reasoning is problematic, however. First, it is difficult to demonstrate that parallels between the two texts must be attributed to direct borrowing (and that from Proverbs by Hosea) rather than more generally to the fact that Hosea (and other eighth century BCE prophets) knew and invoked wisdom themes and vocabulary.68 For example, the agricultural language of "sowing" and "reaping" in Hos 8:7 is a common wisdom analogy (e.g., Job 4:8; Prov 22:8; Qoh 11:4; Sir 7:3; cf. Mic 6:15). It cannot be demonstrated, as Ginsberg suggests, that it is derived from Prov 22:7 [sic].69 Further, it is hard to see why Hos 4:6 is "of course" an echo of Prov 1:29.70 The apparent similarity between the two is thematic—impending doom for those without "knowledge"— and is a motif attested elsewhere in prophecy (e.g., Jer 10:14-15//51:17-18). Indeed, the two verses do not share the same vocabulary apart from nyr ("knowledge"). Finally, even if there are parallels between Proverbs and Hosea, it does not follow that Proverbs must be a "northern" book. Note the (more numerous) links between Hosea and the southern, exilic prophet Jeremiah, for example (cf. Hos 4:2//Jer 7:9-10; Hos 7:14-16; 9:3-6//Jer 42-44; and Hos 11:1 -8//Jer 31:18-20).71

Ginsberg argues further that the "veiy language" of Proverbs may be

precludes construing this as diagnostic of a southern (Judahite) provenance. 65 Ginsberg, The Israelian Heritage, esp. 35-36. 66 Rendsburg, Linguistic Evidence, 100. 67 Ginsberg, The Israelian Heritage, 35. 68 See A. A. Macintosh, "Hosea and the Wisdom Tradition: Dependence and

Independence," in Wisdom in Ancient Israel: Essays in Honour of J. A. Emerton, ed. J. Day, R. P. Gordon, and H. G. M. Williamson (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995), 124-32; H. W. Wolff, Hosea: A Commentary on the Book of the Prophet Hosea, trans, by G. Stansell, Hermeneia (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1974), xxiv; C. L. Seow, "Hosea, Book of," in ABD 3:293.

69 Ginsberg, The Israelian Heritage, 36. 70 Ibid., 35. 71 See, e.g., G. A. Yee, Composition and Tradition in the Book of Hosea: A

Redaction Critical Investigation, SBLDS 102 (Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1987), 187-88,201,218-19, 267-68.


evidence of a northern origin insofar as it is "rich" in Phoenician words and forms.72 Although Phoenician influence on some Hebrew dialects (and on Proverbs) cannot be ruled out, Ginsberg identifies here only a handful of isolated terms. A few appear to be parallels between Proverbs 1-9 and general Semitic, e.g., p i n , "gold" (Prov 3:14; 8:10, 19; cf. Ugaritic hrs\ Akkadian huräsu) and pID/p'S, "to reach, find, obtain" (Prov 3:13; 8:35; cf. Ugariticpq). Another requires emendation of MT rrra'n, "riotous places" (1:21) to Πί^'Π, "walls." Others can be explained differently. For example, the phrase mrP Γΰνίη, "abhorrent to Yahweh" (Prov 3:32), which Ginsberg sees as parallel to an early-fifth century BCE inscription on the sarcophagus of King Tabnit of Sidon (k t%t cstrt hdbr h* KAI 13.6),73 occurs frequently in Deuteronomy (e.g., 7:25; 12:31; 17:1; 18:12), a text (and tradition) with which many interpreters associate Proverbs.74 And the ΓΓΓ suffix on feminine singular niQDH, "Wisdom" (Prov 1:20; 9:1; cf. 14:1), may be explained as a marker of the abstract substantive (cf. niVVin, Qoh 1:17; 2:12; 7:25; 9:3; D'TT, Ps 45:1) akin to the rvr termination (cf. mVrin, Qoh 10:13). Further, one may point out that the "very language" of Proverbs 1-9 (and 31:10-31) is strikingly un-Phoenician,76 The marker of the definite direct object is always ΠΝ, not Phoenician ^yt, the first person singular independent pronoun is always not Phoenician M , the verb "to give" is always p i , not Phoenician ytn, and the relative particle is always ItP'N, not Phoenician Js.17 It seems, therefore, that the terms Ginsberg identifies in Proverbs 1-9 are at best Phoenician parallels. Even if some could be shown to be Phoenicianisms, however, this requires neither that Proverbs 1-9 be dated early nor that it is northern. Archaeological and epigraphic evidence demonstrates a

72 Ginsberg, The Israelian Heritage, 36. 73 See J. B. Peckham, The Development of the Late Phoenician Scripts

(Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1968), 71-87; E. Mullen, Jr., "A New Royal Sidonian Inscription," Β AS OR 216 (1974): 25-30; S. Moscati, The World of the Phoenicians, trans. A. Hamilton (New York: Praeger, 1968), 25.

74 See, e.g., Robert, "Les attaches litteraires Bibliques de Prov. I-IX," esp. 350; M. Fishbane, "Torah and Tradition," in Tradition and Theology in the Old Testament, ed. D. A. Knight (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1977), esp. 284; Washington, Wealth and Poverty, 128-33.

75 BL§61tt-uv. 76 See Seow, "Linguistic Dating," 656. 77 Ibid., 655-56; Davila, "Qoheleth and Northern Hebrew," 73-76.


significant Phoenician presence on the coast of Palestine and Phoenician trade inland in the Persian period.78

Rendsburg refers to the work of other scholars (including Ginsberg), but otherwise offers no substantial evidence for his claim that there is

79

"probably very little Judahite material in Proverbs." Rather, he presents it as a given in his introduction and assumes it throughout his analysis as grounds by which to identify other texts (namely certain Psalms) as "northern." Proverbs 1-9, in particular, he calls a "section of Proverbs replete with ΓΗ elements." Some of the putative "IH features" he refers to in Proverbs 1-9, however, are identified as such because they occur a "good number of times" in what he has defined as northern texts. Yet the root i?13/p>,D (Prov 3:13; 8:35) occurs outside of Proverbs in Isa 28:7; Jer 10:4; Isa 58:10; Pss 140 (a text he argues is northern), 144; and Sir 4:12; 35:15. Similarly, the verb "|0Q, "to mix" (Prov 9:2, 5) is attested elsewhere in Isa 5:22; 19:14; and Ps 102:10.

In sum, the Aramaic equivalents of the lexical Aramaisms in Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 occur exclusively or predominantly in Official Aramaic, later Aramaic dialects, and late biblical texts. This suggests that the presence of Aramaisms in the texts ought not be attributed to an early, northern provenance. Further, the arguments by Ginsberg and assumed by Rendsburg that the language of Proverbs reflects an early northern "Israelian" dialect are not compelling. It seems probable, therefore, that the Aramaisms are representative of southern (Judahite) Hebrew of a late date.

78 With regard to the Sharon coastal region, E. Stern writes: "no fewer than thirty-five large and small settlements have been discovered along this short coastal strip. There was probably no unoccupied space between these coastal settlements" (Material Culture of the Land of the Bible in the Persian Period, 538-332 B.C. [Jerusalem: Israel Exploration Society, 1982], 241). Evidence of Persian-period Phoenician occupation has also been discovered at sites in the more southern province of Ashdod, including Ashkelon, Tell es-Safi, Yavneh, Tell el-Hesi, and Tel Sippor. Phoenicians apparently did extensive trading inland as well. Phoenician jewelry, coins, figurines, and pendants of colored glass are common among Persian-period artifacts at such sites as Beth Yerah, Tell Abu-Hawam, Hazor, Samaria, Lachish, Beth-Zur, Megiddo, Gezer, Wadi Daliyeh, En-Gedi, andcAtlit (Stern, Material Culture, 153, 181-82, 220).

79 Rendsburg, Linguistic Evidence, 10. 80 Ibid., 77.

32 Linguistic Evidence and the Dating of Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31

2. Absence of Grecisms Proposals for a Hellenistic date for Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 and

the book as a whole are confounded linguistically by the absence of Greek influence in the vocabulary. Only two terms in the entire book have been considered Greek loanwords. The first is flUX ("linen") in Prov 7:16, a Hebrew hapax legomenon. Some scholars argue that the term is derived from Greek όθόνη.81 This is not compelling for phonological reasons, however. Hebrew tet almost always corresponds to Greek tau not theta if the tet occurs in the initial or medial position of the word.82 The correspondence of Hebrew ßt to Greek tau is seen in the rendering of Hebrew personal and geographical names in LXX: ViOÜ (LXX Ταβεήλ, Ezra 4:7; Isa 7:6), ΚψΌΓ! (LXX Ατητά, Ezra 2:42//Neh 7:45), and T1UÖ (LXX Ματραείθ/Ματράδ, Gen 36:39; 1 Chr

83 '

1:50). The correspondence is similarly seen in the following Greek loanwords taken into Aramaic: fHUlOS), a "three-stringed instrument" (ψαλτήριον), in Dan 3:7 and Ό^ΏΊΌΌΧ, "pine nuts" (στρόβιλος), in an Aramaic ostracon dated to the third century BCE found in Jerusalem.84 It is far more likely that if "pUX was derived from the Greek, the theta in όθόνη would have shifted to a täw in Hebrew, as is the case for the 85 Greek loanword Dlin1]? (κίθαρις) in Dan 3:5, 7, 10, and 15. J Thus the term flUK is not of Greek origin. It is now recognized as a loanword from Egyptian idmy ("red linen").86

81 Oesterley, The Book of Proverbs, 53; Wildeboer, Die Sprüche, 23. 82 In a few cases, when Hebrew tet occurs in the final position, it is rendered as

a Greek theta. Such aspiration of a dental in the final position is not unexpected, particularly if it precedes a rough breathing vowel by elision, crasis, or to form a compound (cf. H. W. Smyth, Greek Grammar [Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1956], 31 §124).

83 See also W'taü (LXX ταβελίας/ταβλαί, 1 Chr 26:11), p -DD (LXX ταβερεμά/ταβενραημά, 1 Kgs 15:18), W : (LXX Ιεχ[τ]ούρ, Gen 25:15; 1 Chr 1:31), (LXX τέλεμ, Ezra 10:24), t n t Q (LXX βοτάνει[-ιν], Josh 13:26).

84 F. M. Cross, "An Aramaic Ostracon of the Third Century BCE from Excavations in Jerusalem," Eretz Israel 15 (1981): 67-69.

85 Compare the correspondence of Hebrew täw with Greek theta in the following Hebrew PNN and GNN in LXX: Θόβελ (ban, cf. Ezek 27:13; 32:26), Θαμνί (ΉΠ, 1 Kgs 16:21), Θοργαμά (ΠΟ*1ϊϊ), Gen 10:3; cf. 1 Chr 1:6; Ezek 27:14; 38:6), Βαθουήλ 0?!«ns, Joel 1:1), Δωθαειμ (jrft, Gen 37:17; 2 Kgs 6:13), and Γολιάθ (TV1?*, 1 Sam 17:4, 23; 21:10; 22:10; 2 Sam 21:19; 1 Chr 20:5).

86 See T. O. Lambdin, "Egyptian Loan Words in the Old Testament," J AOS 73 (1953): 147.


The second term that has been considered a Greek loanword is the uncommon feminine participial form rPSiX ("she watches over") in Prov 31:27. Wolters argues that ΓΡ51Χ is a deliberate Hebrew pun on the Greek word σοφία. The proposal, however, is problematic. First, as Wolters himself notes, not a single LXX translator, who surely would have known the word σοφία, caught the wordplay.88 If Wolters' pun existed, it was such a "cleverly-veiled barb in a religious polemic"89 that even Greek translators did not get it! Secondly, Wolters attributes the plene form of the word to the author's intent to avoid ambiguity rather than, more simply, to the fuller orthographic tendencies evident throughout the poem (e.g., Q^riSÜ [31:10]; l i ^ S D [31:19]). Finally, he argues that the unusual form of the participle "calls for some explanation" even though the same form is attested elsewhere in Proverbs (e.g., ΓΡίρ'Π, "noisy, tumultuous," 7:11; 9:13). Wolters' proposal, therefore, cannot be demonstrated. Nevertheless, even if it could be, it does not follow that 31:10-31 and the book as a whole should be dated to the Hellenistic period as he suggests.90 That conclusion presupposes that the influence of Greek language and culture in Palestine was nonexistent prior to the late-third century BCE.91 Archaeological (including epigraphic) evidence demonstrates, however, that quite the contrary was the case.92

87 Wolters,"Söpiyyä," 577-87. 88 Wolters concedes that the barb was so well-veiled "that it appears to have

become lost to view almost from the very beginning" ("Söpiyyä," 586-87 η. 47).

89 Ibid., 586. 90 Wolters argues that "since the play on sophia presupposes a certain

knowledge of Greek (however limited) on the part of both the author and the intended audience, it seems reasonable to assume that the song was probably composed some time after Alexander's conquest, presumably in the third century B.C." ("Söpiyyä," 585-86). Based in part on Wolters' conclusions, Camp revised her early postexilic date for Proverbs (Wisdom and the Feminine, 233-39) to the Hellenistic era ("What's So Strange About the Strange Woman?" in The Bible and the Politics of Exegesis: Essays in Honor of Norman K. Gottwald on his Sixty-Fifth Birthday, ed. D. Jobling, P. Day, and G. Sheppard [Cleveland: Pilgrim, 1991], 303 n. 22).

91 Although Wolters leaves open the possibility that Hellenization was underway prior to Alexander's conquest, this does not appear to affect his conclusions ("Söpiyyä," 586 η. 44).

92 Material and epigraphic evidence demonstrate that Greek culture appeared in Palestine much earlier than the Macedonian conquest (cf. Stern, Material Culture, 236). First, imported Attic pottery, which first appeared at the end of


Scholars have occasionally argued that the personification of Wisdom in Proverbs 1-9 (esp. 8:22-31) is derived from the Greek

93 notion of σοφία. As M. Hengel demonstrates, however, Greek σοφία appears as a personification (divine) relatively late, presumably under oriental and gnostic influences.94 It is attested in Hermetica, in the late-second to early-first century CE writings of Plutarch, and among the Neo-Platonists.95 Earlier references are either indirect or too abstractly philosophical to be considered a personification. Proposed analogs for the personification of Wisdom from Mesopotamia and Egypt, such as Ishtar and Macat, although dubious, are more compelling.

In sum, there are neither Greek loanwords nor expressions necessarily derived from Greek thought in Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31.

the seventh century BCE, was prevalent after the early fifth century BCE and was widely imitated by local artisans (Stern, Material Culture, 137-42). Secondly, Greek coins (and local imitations) were in circulation by the end of the sixth century BCE and were more widely distributed thereafter. Indeed, one of the earliest coins to be discovered in Palestine is an Attic coin found at Givcat Ram, a suburb of Jerusalem. It dates to the mid-sixth century BCE (cf. J. Meshorer, "An Attic Archaic Coin from Jerusalem," cAtiqot 3 [1961]: 185). Third, fifth to fourth century BCE Greek style seal-impressions have been discovered at such sites as Ramat Rahal, En-Gedi, cAtlit, and Wädi ed-Däliyeh (Stern, Material Culture, 198-200; F. M. Cross, "The Discovery of the Samaria Papyri," BA 26 [1963]: 115). Fourth, some Persian-period architecture reflects Greek influence (e.g., Greek style drum columns at the Lachish residency). A building inscription from Susa dated to the reign of Darius I (521-486 BCE) lists Greek stonemasons among the foreign laborers who constructed the Achaemenid palaces (Stern, Material Culture, 57-60). Finally, the impact of Greek language is evident in the Greek form of the names of prominent Phoenicians (e.g., cAbd:,astart Strato, king of Sidon during the reign of Aratxerxes Π Mnemon [404-358 BCE]). Similarly, Sanballat ΙΠ, the last governor of Samaria during Achaemenid rule, called his daughter by the Greek name Nikaso (M. Hengel, Judaism and Hellenism: Studies in their Encounter in Palestine during the Early Hellenistic Period, 2d ed., trans. J. Bowden [Minneapolis, Minn.: Augsburg Fortress, 1974], 58-65, esp. 61). This influx of Greek culture was advanced by trade and by the conscription of Greek soldiers into the Persian army as early as the sixth century BCE (cf. J. Naveh, "The Excavations at Mesad Hashavyahu, Preliminary Report," IEJ 10 [1962]: 89-113; Washington, Wealth and Poverty, 119-22).

93 See, e.g., Eissfeldt, The Old Testament, 473; G. Fohrer, Introduction to the Old Testament, trans. D. Green (New York: Abingdon, 1968), 319.

94 Hengel, Judaism and Hellenism, 1:154. 95 Ibid., 1:154, 2:98 n. 298.

Orthography 35

Comparatively, the final form of the book of Daniel, which is dated to the Hellenistic period, contains the Greek loanwords OillVj?, "lyre" (κίθαρις), HniOS, "three-stringed instrument" (ψαλτηρίου), and n .'SQID, "symphony" (συμφωνία, Dan 3:5, 7, 10, 15). Extrabiblically, a third century BCE bilingual economic text from Khirbet el-Qom contains the Greek loanword oV'Dp, "money-lender" (κάπηλος). And a third century BCE Aramaic ostracon found at Jerusalem contains the Greek loanwords dVdIüOX, "pine nuts" (στρόβιλος) and 0ΓΠΠ, "fodder" (χόρτος).96 Although the absence of such in Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 is not strictly diagnostic,97 it does suggest that the units came to frame the book of Proverbs prior to the Hellenistic period.

E. Orthography

Although the orthography of MT is neither consistent nor uniform, scholars generally recognize the gradual addition of matres lectionis, or vowel letters, to the original orthography to facilitate reading.98

Epigraphic evidence indicates that although the use of external matres was common by the ninth to eighth centuries BCE, the use of internal matres was limited prior to the exilic and postexilic periods.99 If MT Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 accurately reflect the texts' original orthography, the frequency of internal matres points to an exilic or postexilic date. Note, for example, that original long - / is often marked

96 Seow, "Linguistic Evidence," 657. 97 There are neither Greek loanwords nor clear grecisms in Ben Sira or the

Qumran materials either. With regard to the latter, however, the language of the Qumran scrolls and fragments tends to be self-consciously conservative. The scribes often deliberately imitated classical Hebrew (Seow, "Linguistic Evidence," 660; cf. Qimron, Hebrew of the DSS, 117).

98 So Cross and Freedman, Early Hebrew Orthography, 45-60; idem, Studies in Ancient Yahwistic Poetry, SBLDS 21 (Missoula, Mont.: Scholars Press, 1975), 30-35; Z. Zevit, Matres Lectionis in Ancient Hebrew Epigraphs, ASORMS 2 (Cambridge, Mass.: ASOR, 1980); Ε. Τον, Textual Criticism of the Hebrew Bible (Minneapolis, Minn.: Augsburg Fortress, 1992), 221. For discussion about the complexities of Hebrew orthography and the problems of using orthography to date biblical texts, see J. Barr, The Variable Spellings of the Hebrew Bible (New York: Oxford University Press, 1989).

99 The Yabneh Yam ostracon (KAI 200), for example, which is dated to the last quarter of the seventh century BCE has final but no internal matres (cf. Seow, "Linguistic Evidence," 645 n. 14; Zevit, Matres Lectionis, esp. 21-22, 35-36).


with a yod: e.g., TP 133, "I reached out" (1:24), and D'Vn», "fools" (1:22, 32; 3:35; 8:5). A waw is commonly used to mark original long -ü: e.g., llVs, "close companion" (2:17), Π'ΎΙΜ, "her youth" (2:17; 5:18), ΠΎΟϊ, "strength" (8:14), n m ö » , "her pillars" (9:1), and tflnV, "garment" (31:22, 25). A waw is also used to mark long -δ: e.g., VlXtt!1', "Sheol" (1:12; 5:5; 7:27; 9:18), "treasures" (2:4), ΟΠΤΠ, "wine" (3:10), niöinn, "[the] deeps" (3:20), TIDX, "bird" (6:5; 7:23), i?imü, "far away" (7:19), and Jltf1?, "tongue" (6:14, 24; 31:26). The masculine plural ending (-im) is always written with a yod. The feminine plural ending, with one exception,100 is spelled with a waw when accented. There are also six instances in which a feminine plural ending in a unaccented position is written in plene form, i.e., Dm^VD, "their paths" (2:15), I ' m o s y , "your bones" (3:8), n'mnTIJ, "her paths" (3:17; 7:25), TTniTW, "their iniquities" (5:22), and ΓΡΓΠΙΠΤ, "her arms" (31:17).

There are inconsistencies in the orthography. Although the qal active participle is most often written defectively (qfl), it is attested with the vowel letter (qwff) more than one quarter of the time, cf. ''Til1 (1:12), DHXia (2:22), j rD (3:19), a t f r (3:29), iVin (4:18; 6:12; 7:22), m m (8:15; 31:4), ΠΠΤ (6:26; 7:10), 1Π10 (31:14), and Π'ΒΊΪ (31:27). Qal passive participles are written in plene form only, e.g., "1TD (5:18) and (9:17). Qal imperatives are attested in plene (qtwl; e.g., 112 V [4:15]) and in defective forms (qtl\ e.g., ΙΉ [3:2], " W [4:4j, "ΙΏΧ [7:4]). The same is true of qal infinitive constructs. Qal imperfect forms are typically written without internal matres, but plene writing is attested in n m 1 (6:30) and VlörP (6:34).

Similar orthographic tendencies are found in other texts dating to the exilic or postexilic periods. In Qohelet, for example, the qal active participle of strong roots is written in plene form (qwtT) a little less than half the time and qal imperfects are typically written without the vowel

100 The only accented feminine plural ending spelled defectively is n'HTQ in 8:34. 101 Qal infinitive constructs are written as qtwl (e.g., ΓΓίίΡΪ^, 2:14; 3:27) or, more

frequently, as qtl: ϊ ΐ φ (2:8), (5:2; 8:34), (8:34), Kip1? (9:15), and ΓΙΧ'3ύ> (8:13). The latter is an unusual form. It is the only occurrence of the infinitive of ΚW with a Π-ending in the Hebrew Bible (cf. 8'Jtp, Gen 37:5; Ps 105:25). It is possible that the form could be attributed to IM-^alep/he confusion found elsewhere in LBH. Other \ΰ.-3έΐβρ verbs with this form of the infinitive construct include X^Ö (Lev 8:33; 12:4, 6; 25:30; Num 6:5, 13; Jer 25:12; 29:10; Dan 10:3; Job 20:22; Est 1:5; Ezek 5:2; and 2 Kgs 4:6) and Nip (Judg 8:1).

Orthography 37

102 letter. Qal infinitive construct and imperative forms also show inconsistencies in spelling, with plene forms slightly outnumbering defective.103 Variable spellings are also attested in postexilic epigraphic materials. Persian-period stamps contain the alternate spellings ΠΪ0/ΠΪΙ0 ("Mosah") and ΤΠνηΠ' ("Yehud").104

Clearly, however, the orthography of MT Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 reflects a more conservative practice than that attested in Qumran texts dating ca. 250 BCE to 68 BCE.105 Generally, the spelling conventions at Qumran may be characterized as very full, marked by the addition of many matres lectionis in both the external and medial positions. With regard to internal matres, the qal active participle is typically qwtl, the qal imperative with afformative is most frequently qtwl, the qal infinitive construct may be either qwtl or qtwl, and the qal o-form imperfect is dominantly yqtwl even with pronominal suffixes or afformatives.106 Qimron concludes: "the most characteristic feature of the orthography of the DSS [Dead Sea Scrolls] is the extensive use of waw as a vowel letter." 107 The use of yod to represent long - / is also standard.108 As such, the orthographic tendencies of MT Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 are consistent with texts dating to the exilic and postexilic periods but appear to precede the more plene writing of the DSS. This suggests a date sometime between the beginning of the sixth and the end of the third century BCE.

102 Seow, "Linguistic Evidence," 645. 103 Ibid., 645. 104 See Seow, "Linguistic Evidence," 645; N. Avigad, Bullae and Seals from a

Post-Exilic Judean Archive, trans. R. Grafman, Qedem 4 (Jerusalem: Hebrew University Press, 1976), 4-5.

105 Unfortunately for this study, the Qumran fragment of Prov l:27c-2:l (4QProva=4Q 102), the only evidence of Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31, is not substantial enough for comparison. It varies from MT only twice: (a) deleting the conjunctive 1 before DHTlXiiDQ in 1:31; and (b) reading rOtflD in 1:32 where MT has T)2Wti. With regard to the latter, Nebe suggests that perhaps the scribe, troubled by MT's "for the turning aside (naUP'ö) of the simple destroys them," borrowed rottriD from Job 38:31b to read "the bands (rourio) of Orion (|V>D]3)/the fool ([D"n]S [destroy them]." Another possibility is that the scribe graphically confused 3 and 3 and inserted the waw as a vowel letter (cf. Nebe, "Qumranica I," 308-09; Clifford, "Observations," 49).

106 Qimron, Hebrew of the DSS, esp. §§311.13-15. 107 Ibid., §100.2. 108 Ibid., §100.32.


F. Summary

The cumulative results of this analysis appear to corroborate the inclination among interpreters to date MT Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31, the framing units around the book of Proverbs, to the postexilic period. The linguistic findings point to LBH and, thereby, to a date between the beginning of the sixth century BCE and the end of the third century BCE—most likely sometime in the Persian period. This dating is suggested, first, by vocabulary that otherwise occurs exclusively or predominantly in exilic and postexilic biblical texts and, secondly, by characteristics of LBH vernacular (the exclusive use of ''ϋΧ, the presence of the later Dir.." third person plural suffix on feminine plural nouns, and the piel of "I*?!"?). Third, two of the Aramaic equivalents of likely lexical Aramaisms in Proverbs 1-9 occur exclusively in Official Aramaic (specifically fifth century BCE), later Aramaic dialects, and late biblical texts, but not in Old Aramaic as might be expected if the texts were early and northern. Moreover, there are no Greek loanwords or idioms derived from Greek influence in either section of Proverbs that might indicate a Hellenistic date. Finally, the orthography of MT Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 is consistent with a date between the sixth and third centuries BCE. Given those broad perimeters, one might speculate a date earlier rather than later insofar as the texts reflect fewer LBH features than such other postexilic books as Qohelet, Esther, Ezra-Nehemiah, and 1-2 Chronicles.

CHAPTER TWO

A Study of Women in the Socioeconomic Context of Proverbs 1 -9 and 31:10-31

A . Introduction

Reconstruction of the socioeconomic world of Persian-period Palestine has been done largely on the basis of sociological models and modern analogies.1 Such approaches to describing what has been considered "one of the most obscure eras in Palestine"2 can be attributed, in part, to limited biblical evidence and concerns about the reliability of Greek sources (e.g., Herodotus, Ctesias, Xenophon, Diodorus Siculus, Thucydides) and the Jewish historian, Josephus.3

1 See M. Smith, Palestinian Parties and Politics that Shaped the Old Testament, 2d ed. (London: SCM, 1987); J. Berquist, Judaism in Persia's Shadow: A Social and Historical Approach (Minneapolis, Minn.: Augsburg Fortress, 1995); H. Rreissig, Die socialökonomische Situation in Juda zur Achämenidenzeit, Schriften Geschichte und Kultur des Alten Orients 7 (Berlin: Akademie, 1973); J. P. Weinberg, The Citizen-Temple Community, trans. D. L. Smith-Christopher, JSOTSup 151 (Sheffield: JSOT, 1992); and W. Schottroff, "Zur Sozialgeschichte Israels in der Perserzeit," Verkündigung und Forschung 27(1982): 46-68.

2 Stern, Material Culture, xv. 3 See, for example, A. Kuhrt, The Ancient Near East c. 3000-330 BC: Volume 2,

Routledge Histoiy of the Ancient World (London: Routledge, 1995), 647-48, 652; idem, "Achaemenid Babylonia: Sources and Problems," in Achaemenid History IV: Centre and Periphery, ed. H. Sancisi-Weerdenburg and A. Kuhrt (Leiden: Nederlands Instituut voor het Nabije Oosten, 1990), esp. 184-86; J. M. Cook, The Persian Empire (New York: Schocken, 1983), 11-24; J. C. Greenfield, "Aspects of Archives in the Achaemenid Period," in Cuneiform Archives and Libraries: Papers read at the 3(f Rencontre Assyriologique Internationale, Leiden, 4-8 July 1983, ed. K. R. Veenhof (Leiden: Nederlands Instituut voor het Nabije Oosten, 1986), esp. 290. For a critical analysis of Greek evidence for Persian women, see M. Brosius, Women in Ancient Persia, 559-331 BC, Oxford Classical Monographs (Oxford: Oxford

40 Women in the Socioeconomic Context of Proverbs 1 -9 and 31:10-31

Within the last century, however, a wealth of new epigraphic evidence from the Persian period has come to light, including the Elephantine ostraca and papyri,4 the Samaria papyri from Wadi Däliyeh,5 the Egibi archive,6 the Murasü archive,7 the Persepolis Fortification Tablets,8 the

University Press, 1996). 4 B. Porten and A. Yardeni, eds., Textbook of Aramaic Documents from

Ancient Egypt, 4 vols. (Winona Lake, Ind.: Eisenbrauns, 1986-99). 5 The Samaria papyri remain largely unpublished. See P. W. Lapp and N. L.

Lapp, eds., Discoveries in the Wadi ed-Däliyeh, Annual of the American Schools of Oriental Research 41 (Cambridge, Mass.: American Schools of Oriental Research, 1974); D. M. Gropp, "The Samaria Papyri from Wadi ed-Däliyeh: The Slave Sales" (Ph.D. diss., Harvard University, 1986); F. M. Cross, "Papyri of the Fourth Century B. C. from Däliyeh: A Preliminary Report on their Discovery and Significance," in New Directions in Biblical Archaeology, ed. D. N. Freedman and J. C. Greenfield (Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1969), 41-62; idem, "Samaria Papyrus 1: An Aramaic Slave Conveyance of 335 BCE found in the Wadi ed-Däliyeh," Eretz Israel 18 (1985): 7*-17*; idem, "A Report on the Samaria Papyri," in Congress Volume: Jerusalem 1986, ed. J. A. Emerton, VTSup 40 (Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1988), 17-26; idem, "The Discovery of the Samaria Papyri," 110-21; idem, "Aspects of Samaritan and Jewish History in the Late Persian and Hellenistic Times," HTR 59 (1966): 201-11.

6 This study focuses on the latter portion of the Egibi archive, namely, the almost 400 documents ascribed to four generations of the Nür-Sin family (ca. 577-480 BCE). See S. Weingort, "Das Haus Egibi in neubabylonischen Rechtsurkunden" (Ph.D. diss., Berlin-Charlottenburg, 1939); A. Ungnad, "Das Haus Egibi," AfO 14 (1941/44): 57-64; J. Krecher, "Das Geschäftshaus Egibi in Babylon in neubabylonischer und achämenidischer Zeit" (Habilitationsschrift, Münster, 1970); G. van Driel, "The Rise of the House of Egibi: Nabü-ahhe-iddina," JEOL 29 (1985): 50-67; L. B. Shiff, The Nür-Sin Archive: Private Entrepreneurs hip in Babylon (603-507 BCE) (Ann Arbor, Mich.: University Microfilms, 1987); C. Wunsch, Die Urkunden des babylonischen Geschäftsmannes Iddin-Marduk, 2 vols., Cuneiform Monographs III (Groningen: Styx, 1993).

7 See G. Cardascia, Les Archives des Murasü, une famille d'hommes d'affaires babyloniens ä l'epoque perse (455-403 av. J.-C.) (Paris: Imprimerie Nationale, 1951); M. W. Stolper, Entrepreneurs and Empire: The Murasü Archive, the Murasü Firm, and Persian Rule in Babylonia, Uitgaven van het Nederlands Historisch-Archaeologisch Instituut te Istanbul 54 (Leiden: Nederlands Historisch-Archaeologisch Instituut te Istanbul, 1985); V. Donbaz and M. W. Stolper, Istanbul Murasü Texts (Leiden: Nederlands Instituut voor het Nabije Oosten, 1997); G. van Driel, "The Murasüs in Context," JESHO 32 (1989): 203-29.

8 R. T. Hailock, Persepolis Fortification Tablets, University of Chicago

Introduction 41

Persepolis Treasury Texts,9 and Aramaic documents discovered at Hermopolis10 and North Saqqära.11 Scholars have examined these resources mainly to address linguistic, legal, or historical questions. Recently, however, C. L. Seow has pointed to the possibility of using them for social-historical reconstruction.12 Analogously, I propose to consider epigraphic and biblical evidence for the economic activities of women and perceptions about them in the socioeconomic context of Persian-period Palestine.13

The nature of the epigraphic materials is particularly advantageous for such a study. First, they are primarily "everyday" texts of different genres. There are personal and official letters, promissory notes, marriage and divorce contracts, records of the division of inheritance, bequests, bills of sale for real estate, legal contracts, judgments, accounts, and lists. Their diversity affords a multifaceted look at daily economic life. Second, the materials testify to different sectors within

Oriental Institute Publications 92 (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1969); idem, "Selected Fortification Texts," Cahiers de la D. A. F. I. 8 (1978): 109-36; D. M. Lewis, "The Persepolis Fortification Texts," in Achaemenid History IV: Centre and Periphery, ed. H. Sancisi-Weerdenburg and A. Kuhrt (Leiden: Nederlands Instituut voor het Nabije Oosten, 1990), 1-6.

9 G. G. Cameron, Persepolis Treasury Tablets, University of Chicago Oriental Institute Publications 65 (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1948); idem, "Persepolis Treasury Tablets Old and New," JNES 17 (1958): 161-76; idem, "New Tablets from the Persepolis Treasury," JNES 24 (1965): 167-92; R. T. Hallock, "New Light from Persepolis," JNES 9 (1950): 237-52; idem, "A New Look at the Persepolis Treasury Tablets," JNES 19 (1960): 90-100.

10 E. Bresciani and M. Kamil, "Le Lettere Aramaiche di Hermopoli," in Atti della Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei: Classe di Scienze morali, storiche e filologische, Series 8, 12/5 (1966): 356-428. Republished in Porten, TAD I, 2.1-2.7.

11 J. B. Segal, Aramaic Texts from North Saqqära (London: Egypt Exploration Society, 1983).

12 C. L. Seow, "The Socioeconomic Context of 'The Preacher's' Hermeneutic," PSB 17 (1996): 168-95.

13 Previous social-historical reconstructions of women's activities and perspectives about women in Persian-period Palestine have been done largely on the basis of biblical evidence, sociological models, and theoretical analyses. See, e.g., Camp, Wisdom and the Feminine in Proverbs, esp. 233-82; T. C. Eskenazi, '"Out from the Shadows:' Biblical Women in the Postexilic Era," JSOT 54 (1992): 25-43; Washington, "The Strange Woman," 236-37; but see Maier, Die "fremde Frau" in Proverbien 1-9, 126-247.

4 2 Women in the Socioeconomic Context of Proverbs 1 -9 and 31:10-31

the economy. Some are private archives that recount the history of families and their fortunes. Others chronicle the day-to-day business affairs of private firms, such as the Murasu house. There are also administrative records from imperial treasury-storehouses that account for the transfer and delivery of food commodities, the payment and rations of workers, and the provision of supplies to various persons. Finally, the resources are widespread geographically, permitting a comparison of economic dynamics across the empire, including Persepolis, Susa, Nippur, Babylon, Palestine, and Egypt.

The use of these diverse epigraphic resources to reconstruct the socioeconomic context of Palestine is warranted by the extent to which the Achaemenid empire was interconnected. That is, Palestine did not exist in isolation. People, ideas, and material culture from across the realm and the larger Mediterranean world permeated its boundaries and shaped its daily life. An extensive network of roads maintained by the Persian government facilitated communication, travel, and trade within the empire.14 The roads were part of an efficient imperial postal system. Mounted couriers carrying royal correspondence traveled the highways, stopping only for food, rest, and fresh horses at supply stations located approximately one day's distance apart (cf. PF 300, 1285, 1319-21, 1329, 1334-35, 2052). The swiftness of these couriers, known as "fast messengers" (pirradazis), made possible up-to-date communication between the royal court and the provinces. For example, Arsham, the satrap of Egypt, and his Persian colleagues corresponded regularly from Babylon with his officials in Egypt about a variety of everyday matters, including the status of land grants, the punishment or release of slaves, the collection of rent, and the repair of property (TAD I, 6.1-16; TAD IV, 6.3-14). Esther describes how letters of the king, written in the script and language of each province, were delivered by the couriers throughout the kingdom in a matter of days (Est 8:9-14; cf. 3:12-15). Greek historians also paid tribute to the speed of the Persian mounted courier service.15 Herodotus' description, now paraphrased, is well

14 See D. F. Graf, "The Persian Royal Road System," in Achaemenid History VIII: Continuity and Change, ed. H. Sancisi-Weerdenburg, A. Kuhrt, and M. C. Root (Leiden: Nederlands Instituut voor het Nabije Oosten, 1994), 167-89; M. Astour, "Overland Trade Routes in Ancient Western Asia," in vol. 3 of Civilizations of the Ancient Near East, ed. J. M. Sasson (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1995), 1417-18; Cook, The Persian Empire, 108-9.

15 See Herodotus Histories 5.52-53; 8.98; Xenophon Oeconomicus 4.13; Cyropaedia 8.6, 17-18; Anabasis 1.4.10; 2.4.14.

Introduction 43

known: "Nothing stops these couriers from covering their allotted stage in the quickest possible time—neither snow, rain, heat, nor darkness" {Histories 8.98). In addition to official letters carried by these royal couriers, non-official letters and packages were carried by special messenger (cf. TAD I, 3.6; 3.9; 4.1; 4.3) or by persons traveling to the desired location who were willing to deliver mail (cf. TAD I, 2.1.9-10; 2.2.12-13; 2.5.5-6).16

The ease of communication enabled Palestine to maintain loose contacts with Egypt and Mesopotamia. The archive of Jedaniah, leader of the Jewish community at Elephantine, includes two drafts of a letter written to Bagohi, the governor of Judah, requesting that he petition the satrap of Egypt to authorize the rebuilding of the temple at Elephantine (TAD I, 4.7; 4.8). In the letter, Jedaniah mentions three earlier unanswered appeals for help sent to Bagohi, to Jehohanan, the high priest in Jerusalem, and to Ostanes, the head of the nobles in Judah, respectively (TAD I, 4.7.17-19; 4.8.16-18). A memorandum issued jointly by Bagohi and a Samarian official endorsed Jedaniah's request (TAD I, 4.9). Letters similarly moved between the satrapy "Beyond the River" and the royal court. Ezra 4:6, 7, 8-23 and 5:3-6:12 refer to several exchanges between various officials in Palestine, other satrap authorities, and the king concerning the reconstruction of Jerusalem. Finally, imported Achaemenid seals and seal impressions, presumably the remains of archives of officials in the Persian administration, have been discovered in Persian-period strata at Wadi Däliyeh, Samaria, and Shechem as were imported Babylonian bullae at En-Gedi, Tell es-Safi, and Tell Jemmeh.17

Other travelers frequented the imperial roads. The Persepolis Fortification Tablets record daily rations issued to officials, workers, and others traveling largely between Persepolis and Susa, but also to and from such remote corners of the empire as India (e.g., PF 1318, 1383, 1397, 1524, 1552, 1556, 1572), Sardis (PF 1321), and Egypt (PF 1544). Travelers carried documents authorizing their passage through the various provinces and daily rations were provided at the supply stations en route. Royal guides also accompanied some parties, particularly those of foreigners: Cappadocians (PF 1577), Indians (PF 1572), Sardians (PF 1409), Skudrians (PF 1363), and Egyptians

16 P. S. Alexander, "Remarks on Aramaic Epistolography in the Persian Period," JSS22) (1978): 158-59.

17 Stern, Material Culture, 196-98.


(PF 1557). A letter from Arsham attests to a similar arrangement elsewhere in the Persian realm (TAD I, 6.9). While on leave in Babylon, Arsham wrote a letter authorizing the officials managing his estates to issue daily rations to his subordinate, Nehtihur, and thirteen companions on their journey from northern Babylon to Egypt. Presumably, Nehtihur carried the document with him and presented it at each stop to receive necessary provisions.18

The traffic on the imperial roads was evidently quite heavy. Men of status traveled on business alone (PF 1294, 1299) and with companions or servants (e.g., PF 1289-93, 1296-97, 1306). Royal and non-royal women made trips in private and official capacities (cf. PFa 5, 31; PF 684, 1546, 1550; Fort. 1017).19 Officials transported cash and commodities (PF 1342, 1357; PFa 14). Skilled laborers—men and women (e.g., PF 1531)—were transferred to new work sites.20 Itinerant workers such as foresters (PF 1262), hunters (PF 1264-65), woodworkers (PF 1569), and goldsmiths (PF 1519) moved from job to job. The result was lively contact between peoples from across the empire. At one point, for example, the labor pool at Persepolis included an Egyptian woodworker serving as centurion (PT 1), Egyptian stone-relief and inscription makers (PT 9), Syrian and Ionian laborers (PT 15; cf. PT 12, 22), and Carian goldsmiths (PT 37).

Thus, when the exiles journeyed back to Jerusalem from Babylon (Ezra 2:1-67; 8:1-36) and from Susa (Neh 2:9-11; cf. 13:6-7), they did not do so on deserted roads. Like some of these travelers, the exiles included workers designated by their various professions: temple officials, singers, servants, and gatekeepers (cf. Ezra 2:36-58, 64-65). Ezra's party transported with them valuable commodities (gold, silver, temple vessels) that were itemized, counted, and weighed by royal

18 It should be noted that these were not official supply stations but Arsham's private estates (see H. G. M. Williamson, "Ezra and Nehemiah in the Light of the Texts from Persepolis," Bulletin for Biblical Research 1 [1991]: 58).

19 PFa 5, for example, records daily travel rations of ninety quarts of flour issued at Kurdusum, Bessitme, and twice at Liduma to the wife of Mardonius, a daughter of Darius I (identified as Artazostra by Herodotus in Histories 6.43). According to PF 688, a text dated to the same month and year, her father-in-law, Gobryas, received daily travel rations of beer at Bessitme and twice at Liduma. Presumably, the two met in Bessitme and traveled together from there (cf. Hallock, "Selected Fortification Texts," 110, 118; Brosius, Women in Ancient Persia, 71, 92-93).

20 See PF 1328, 1363, 1368, 1396, 1513, 1527, 1565, 1575, 2055.

Introduction 45

officials in Persepolis and again in Jerusalem (Ezra 1:7-11; 8:33-34; cf. 8:25-30). Ezra and Nehemiah were issued letters authorizing payment in supplies for their work (Ezra 7:21-24; Neh 2:8). Moreover, like other foreign travelers, Nehemiah was accompanied by royal armed guards (Neh 2:9). He also carried with him letters from the king addressed to the governors of the satrapy "Beyond the River" to ensure his safe passage to Judah (Neh 2:7-9).21

Imperial soldiers of various nationalities and ethnic groups also traveled into and out of Palestine.22 Persian-period ostraca from Arad and Beersheba record the distribution of rations to persons with non-Hebrew names associated with the garrisons at those sites.23 Remains of mid-fifth century BCE Persian fortresses have been uncovered at several sites, including Ashdod, Horvat Mesora, Tell Es-Sacidiyeh, Nahal Yattir, Tell Serac, and Arad.24 Other sites with evidence of permanent garrisons are Beersheba, Kadesh Barnea, Khirbet Ritmah, and Tell el-Kheleifeh.25 Cist tombs containing Achaemenid-style weapons and metalware, such as those found at Tell el-Farac and Gezer, are likely

21 See Williamson, "Ezra and Nehemiah in the Light of the Texts from Persepolis," 59-60.

22 Neo-Babylonian texts demonstrate that some of the land grants made by the Achaemenid administration across the empire came with the obligation of service in the military as bowmen (bow estates), charioteers (chariot estates), or calvary ("horse estates"). Soldiers in the imperial forces were thus drawn from many regions. Among the soldiers stationed at Elephantine, for example, were Jews, Arameans, Babylonians, Caspians, and Khwarezmians (cf. K. G. Hoglund, "The Achaemenid Context," in Second Temple Studies 1. Persian Period, ed. P. R. Davies, JSOTSup 117 [Sheffield: JSOT, 1991], 64; M. A. Dandamaev, "Achaemenid Mesopotamia: Traditions and Innovations," in Achaemenid History VIII: Continuity and Change, ed. H. Sancisi-Weerdenburg, A. Kuhrt, and M. C. Root [Leiden: Nederlands Instituut voor hetNabije Oosten, 1994], 233).

23 Hoglund, "The Achaemenid Context," 64; J. Naveh, "The Aramaic Ostraca from Tel Arad," in Arad Inscriptions, ed. Y. Aharoni, trans. J. Ben-Or (Jerusalem: Israel Exploration Society, 1981), 153-76; cf. Stern, Material Culture, 240.

24 K. G. Hoglund, Achaemenid Imperial Administration in Syria-Palestine and the Missions of Ezra and Nehemiah, SBLDS 125 (Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1992), 170-205.

25 Stern, "New Evidence on the Administrative Division of Palestine in the Persian Period," in Achaemenid History IV: Centre and Periphery, ed. H. Sancisi-Weerdenburg and A. Kuhrt (Leiden: Nederlands Instituut voor het Nabije Oosten, 1990), 223.

46 Women in the Socioeconomic Context of Proverbs 1 -9 and 31:10-31 26

those of imperial soldiers stationed at regional outposts. The local population was obligated to support the imperial troops, providing grain and other supplies as needed.

Finally, there were traders. Palestine was integrated into the empire and the larger Mediterranean world by the expansion of trade. Under the Achaemenid government, Palestine experienced an unprecedented growth in international commerce. What had been largely a subsistence agricultural economy in the preexilic and exilic periods28 developed into a thriving cosmopolitan marketplace.29 Archaeological evidence indicates that in the Persian period there was a dramatic increase in the population of the Sharon and Carmel coastal regions, suggestive of international trade.30 Some of the many (largely Phoenician) coastal cities, including Dor, Ashkelon and Abu-Hawam, were bustling seaports. At Appolonia-Arsuf and Dor, there were purple-dye manufacturing centers.31 At Abu-Hawam, there was a granary and, at Shiqmona, a weaving workshop. Several sites, such as Jaffa, Shiqmona, and Dor, had large storehouses. There were warehouses and street-front workshops, as at Ashkelon.

26 Stern, Material Culture, 84-86, 237; idem, "The Persian Empire and the Political and Social History of Palestine in the Persian Period," in The Cambridge History of Judaism, Vol. I, Introduction: The Persian Period (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1984), 80.

27 Ibid., 237; Hoglund, Achaemenid Imperial Administration, 213-14. 28 Prior to the Persian period, the state conducted international commerce

largely from taxes-in-kind that had been paid to the royal storehouses. Ezekiel describes various nations gathering together to barter their goods with Tyre (27:12-25). Among them were Judah and the land of Israel with agrarian products (wheat, honey, oil, and balm; 27:17).

29 See Seow, "The Socioeconomic Context," 168-95; Hoglund, "The Achaemenid Context," 54-72; Stolper, Entrepreneurs and Empire, esp. 143-56.

30 Persian-period remains have been identified at no fewer than twelve coastal sites, including Achzib, Shiqmona, cAtlit, Abu-Hawam, Dor, Mikhmoret, Ashkelon, Michal, Makmish, and Ashdod. At Tel Megadim, remains of a planned city give the impression that it was a "commercial harbour town that was entirely erected at one time" (Stern, Material Culture, 15).

31 See E. Stern and I. Sharon, "Tel Dor, 1986: Preliminary Report," IEJ 37 (1987): 208; E. Stern, J. Berg, and I. Sharon, "Tel Dor, 1988-89: Preliminary Report," IEJ 41 (1991): 53-54; E. Stern, Dor—Ruler of the Seas: Twelve Years of Excavations at the Israelite-Phoenician Harbor Town on the Carmel Coast (Jerusalem: Israel Exploration Society, 1994), 194-200.

Introduction 47

International goods flowed into the region. For example, Persian-period remains at Ashkelon include Attic imports, Greek cooking pots, a Cypro-Classical limestone head of a male youth, Egyptian beads, scarabs, amulets and bronze statuettes, and a Persian weight and carved ivory comb.32 At Ashdod, there are black-figured Attic ware and Persian style Jewelry33 and at Ruqeish, Greek amphorae and Egyptian Β es vessels.3 And off the coast of cAtlit are concentrations of fifth century BCE Phoenician amphorae—the remains of ship cargoes that likely originated at Tyre, Sidon, and Cyprus.35

International commerce was not restricted to the coast. Foreign coins, ceramics, metals, and jewelry have been found at Persian-period sites throughout Judah. The scanty remains of a rather cosmopolitan and wealthy community at Shechem include shards of Attic black-glazed ware, a Persian seal impression, and the krater rim of an electrum coin from Thasos.36 A woman's tomb in the Beth-Shean

37 Valley contained an Attic white ground lekythos. Another, near 38

Hebron, held an Egyptian alabastron. Egyptian cosmetic articles (mirrors, kohl equipment, bottles for fragrant oils, and small bowls) and jeweliy from Greece or Cyprus were also common burial objects for women.39 At Gezer, there are earrings and bracelets in Achaemenian style, most likely imitations crafted by Phoenician or Egyptian

32 L. Stager, "Ashkelon," in vol. 1 of The New Encyclopedia of Archaeological Excavations in the Holy Land, ed. E. Stern (Jerusalem: Israel Exploration Society and Carta; New York: Simon and Schuster, 1993), 109.

33 M. Dothan, "Ashdod," in vol. 1 of The New Encyclopedia of Archaeological Excavations in the Holy Land, ed. E. Stern (Jerusalem: Israel Exploration Society and Carta; New York: Simon and Schuster, 1993), 100.

34 E. Oren, "Ruqeish," in vol. 4 of The New Encyclopedia of Archaeological Excavations in the Holy Land, ed. E. Stern (Jerusalem: Israel Exploration Society and Carta; New York: Simon and Schuster, 1993), 1294.

35 C. N. Johns, A. Raban, E. Linder, and E. Galili, " cAtlit," in vol. 1 of The New Encyclopedia of Archaeological Excavations in the Holy Land, ed. E. Stern (Jerusalem: Israel Exploration Society and Carta; New York: Simon and Schuster, 1993), 120.

36 I. Magen, "Shechem," in vol. 4 of The New Encyclopedia of Archaeological Excavations in the Holy Land, ed. E. Stern (Jerusalem: Israel Exploration Society and Carta; New York: Simon and Schuster, 1993), 1353.

37 Stern, Material Culture, 68. 38 E. Stern, "A Burial of the Persian Period near Hebron," IEJ 21 (1971): 25-30. 39 Stern, Material Culture, 143-53; idem, "Achaemenian Tombs from

Shechem," Levant 12 (1980): 90-111.


artisans.40 At Hazor were found Greek bronze fibulae. And, at several sites in Palestine including En-Gedi, there are Phoenician pendants of opaque colored glass.41 Ceramic containers used primarily for the transit of goods (grain, oil, wine, etc.)—abundant along the coast and in a fifth century BCE shipwreck near Ma3agan Mikha^el42—have been also discovered inland. In short, foreign goods and, with them, traders flowed into Palestine at an unprecedented rate. Nehemiah describes the Jerusalem marketplace as bustling with merchants selling their wares, men treading winepresses, animals loaded with heaps of grain, grapes and figs, and Tyrian (Phoenician) residents selling fish and other products, even on the Sabbath (Neh 13:15-21; cf. Neh 10:31).

In sum, Palestine was not a distant, isolated corner of the Persian empire. Rather, communication, people, and goods flowed in and out freely. Letters and documents traded hands. Travelers journeyed from place to place. Migrant workers set up shop and then moved on. Foreign merchants settled in the cities and gathered at the marketplaces to sell their wares. And imperial troops passed through or were stationed at regional outposts. As "no more than a minor part of a vast empire,"44 the daily life and worldview of Palestine, including its views of women, were shaped by its place in the larger Persian realm.45

40 Stern, Material Culture, 151. 41 Ibid., 153. 42 Ε. Linder, "Ma-'agan Mikha^el," in vol. 3 of The New Encyclopedia of

Archaeological Excavations in the Holy Land, ed. E. Stern (Jerusalem: Israel Exploration Society and Carta; New York: Simon and Schuster, 1993), 918.

43 Stern, Material Culture, 109-10. 44 Ibid, 229. 45 Note that among Persian-period artifacts from sites throughout Palestine are

female figurines of diverse types, many of which are shaped and/or clothed in the style of neighboring peoples. The figurine of a woman holding a drum found at Tel cEreni, for example, resembles Babylonian female figurines in form and dress. A figurine of a woman discovered at Beersheba wears a Persian headdress. Other female figurines wear Egyptian wigs or are sitting or standing clothed in western (i.e., Greek) fashion. These figurines appear to be local imitations (Stern, Material Culture, 168-72).

The Business of Marriage 49

B. The Business of Marriage

The introduction of coinage and standardization of currency by the Persian administration led to an increasingly "monetarized" economy.46

Money became the preferred medium of exchange and a commodity in everyday transactions throughout the empire. As a regular part of business deals both large and small, goods and services were assigned monetary values that reflected their perceived worth. Negotiations for marriage, often conducted as a business deal between two families, were no different.47 The primary purpose of marriage contracts— worked out between the groom and the bride's agent (typically her father)—was the stipulation of the economic arrangements of the union. The groom or his family might pay a sum of cash to the bride's agent. At Elephantine, the groom's gift {mohar) was ten shekels for a young (presumably virgin) bride (TAD II, 3.8.5),48 five shekels for an older widow (TAD II, 2.6.5),49 and nothing for a slave woman (TAD II, 3.3). The mohar was not retained by the bride's agent, but was typically added to the value of the bride's dowry (TAD II, 2.6.14; 3.8.15-17).50 In

46 See Seow, "Socioeconomic Context," 171-73. 47 For the similarities between conveyance transactions and marriage

negotiations at Elephantine, see Y. Muffs, Studies in the Aramaic Legal Papyri from Elephantine, Studia et Documenta ad Iura Orientis Antiqui Pertinentia 8 (Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1969), 52-56. A Neo-Babylonian marriage contract stipulates financial penalties for failure to uphold the agreement. If the bride's agent did not deliver the bride to the groom, the agent owed him five minas of silver. If the groom initiated a divorce, he owed the bride's agent the same amount (Μ. T. Roth, Babylonian Marriage Agreements 7,h-3rd

Centuries B.C., AO AT 222 [Kevelaer: Butzon and Bercker; Neukirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener, 1989], 16-17, No. 8).

48 Comparatively, the cost of an average woolen garment at Elephantine was between seven and twelve shekels (cf. TAD Π, 2.6.10-11; 3.8.6-10; 3.3.4-5). A new woolen shawl measuring eight by five cubits was eight shekels (cf. TAD II, 2.6.9-10) and an average-sized home with beams, windows, and two doors might be purchased for thirteen shekels (cf. TAD II, 3.12.5-6,12-15).

49 For the same amount, one could buy various bronze utensils (worth on average one shekel apiece, cf. TAD Π, 2.6.11-13; 3.8.13-15; 6.2.7), a new shawl measuring four by seven cubits (cf. TAD Π, 6.2.5-6), or four to five linen garments (cf. TAD Π, 3.8.11-12).

50 As J. J. Collins notes, the groom's payment of the mohar to the bride's agent


Mesopotamia, three marriage agreements include the payment of a "bridewealth" (biblu) by the groom or the groom's agent. They were worth (at least) twenty shekels (No. 35), one hundred shekels (No. 34), and one hundred twenty shekels (No. 4).52

The bride's family, on the other hand, almost always provided a dowry. Indeed, an inventory of the dowry was the predominant feature of marriage contracts.53 In contracts at Elephantine, the contents of the dowry were itemized, sometimes with detailed descriptions. The monetary values of the components were listed in an opposite column and, at the end of the list, a total sum was provided in cash (TAD II, 2.6; 3.3; 3.8; 6.1-2; TAD IV, 3.16).54 Any reader of the contract knew immediately what the dowry was worth. Similarly, in Mesopotamia, dowry (nudunnü) items had an equivalent cash value. Sometimes this cash equivalent was paid to substitute for promised non-cash

was in essence a legal formality. By rabbinic times, a groom did not provide a mohar but merely promised to pay a designated amount (then called a ketubba) in the event of a divorce ("Marriage, Divorce, and Family in Second Temple Judaism," in Families in Ancient Israel, ed. L. G. Perdue, J. Blenkinsopp, J. J. Collins, and C. Meyers [Louisville, Ky.: Westminster John Knox, 1997], 113-15; cf. E. Lipiiiski, "Marriage and Divorce in the Judaism of the Persian Period," Trans euphratene 4 [1991]: 67).

51 So Roth, Babylonian Marriage Agreements, 11-12. She notes that a biblu is attested in only these three marriage agreements (Nos. 4, 34, 35) out of the forty-five she includes in the volume.

52 Comparatively, in Persian-period Mesopotamia the average cost of a donkey was forty to fifty shekels, the annual rent of an house (minus a wood door) was twenty shekels (under Darius I), and a healthy male adult slave was between sixty and one hundred twenty shekels (cf. W. H. Dubberstein, "Comparative Prices in Later Babylonia [625-400 B.C.]," AJSL 56 [1939]: 20-43).

53 The importance of the dowry in a Neo-Babylonian marriage contract is indicated by the identification of the contract as a kunuk nudunni ("dowry agreement;" Roth, Babylonian Marriage Agreements, 26-28, No. 38:6; 42:26; cf. No. 43:7).

54 For detailed discussions about the Elephantine marriage contracts, see R. Yaron, "Aramaic Marriage Contracts from Elephantine," JSS 3 (1958): 1-39; B. Porten, "Five Fragmentary Aramaic Marriage Documents: New Collations and Restorations," Abr-Nahrain 27 (1989): 80-105; idem, Archives from Elephantine: The Life of an Ancient Jewish Military Colony (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1968), 205-13, 221-25, 240-55; Lipiiiski, "Marriage and Divorce in the Judaism of the Persian Period," 62-71.


components such as real estate (e.g., Nr. 137) and slaves (e.g., Nbn 755).55

Insofar as money measured the worth of a woman's dowry, it measured the financial "worth" of the woman who brought it.56 That is, the value of the dowry said a lot about the perceived "value" of the woman as a wife. The daughter of a profitable merchant, government official, or landowner, for example, would be expected to bring a more substantial dowry than one from a less affluent family.57 Moreover, in addition to her dowry property, her husband stood to gain certain less tangible (but not necessarily less valuable) social, political, or business advantages by aligning himself with her family. A woman's socioeconomic desirability, therefore, was proportional to the monetary value of her dowry. In effect, its price was hers. At Elephantine, an Egyptian slave woman named Ta(pe)met originally brought a dowry worth just over seven shekels, little more than the value of the clothes on her back. After some negotiations, it seems, her master added fifteen shekels (TAD II, 3.3). Comparatively, the dowry of her daughter, Jehoishma, a free woman,58 was worth just over 68 shekels (TAD II, 3.8).59 This is similar to the dowry of an older free widow named

61 62 Miptahiah. She paid a dowry for her second marriage worth 60/4

55 See Μ. T. Roth, "The Dowries of the Women of the Itti-Marduk-balätu Family," JAOS 111 (1991): 19-37; idem, "The Material Composition of the Neo-Babylonian Dowry," AfO 26/37 (1989/1990): 1-55.

56 So Seow, "The Socioeconomic Context," 173. 57 See Roth, "The Material Composition," 3; Collins, "Marriage, Divorce, and

Family," 115. 58 In 427 BCE, Meshullam, Ta(pe)met's master, emancipated and effectively

adopted Ta(pe)met and her daughter, Jehoishma, on the condition that they care for him and, following his death, for his son, Zaccur (TAD Π, 3.6).

59 This does not include the mohar of ten shekels that became part of her dowry property (TAD Π, 3.8.15-17).

60 Miptahiah's prior marriage is concluded on the basis of other documents in her archive (TAD Π, 2.3.7; 2.4.1-4). A fragment of a marriage contract dating to the mid-fifth century BCE (TAD II, 2.5) may be that of Miptahiah and her first husband, Jezaniah.

61 This is indicated by the lack of a reclamation waiver in the marriage contract. Typically, the bride's agent would waive the right to reclaim any or all of the dowry property. For example, Jehoishma's adoptive brother Zaccur, who negotiated her marriage contract, waived his right (TAD Π, 3.8.40-42). Similarly, Ta(pe)met's master, Meshullam, waived his right to reclaim her child, Pilti, unless Anani divorced her (TAD Π, 3.3.13-14). The absence of

52 Women in the Socioeconomic Context of Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31

shekels (TAD II, 2.6).63

Marriage to a more "valuable" bride afforded a man greater financial resources. Although the down/ remained legally her property, he became its effective guardian. He could draw on it for his own purposes as long as he eventually compensated his wi fe with property of equal value. Should he not do so, legal action could be taken to restore the integrity of her dowry. When Iddin-Marduk used seven minas of silver from his wife 's dowry to settle a few of his father's outstanding debts, her father demanded that the value of her dowry be restored. Iddin-Marduk transferred seven slaves to her and guaranteed all of his assets as replacement for the missing portion of her dowry (Nbk 265=Liv 154). Similarly, a woman named Bunanitu issued a complaint against her husband for 3 V% minas silver, money he had taken from her dowry to purchase a house. Her husband guaranteed the house to her as repayment (Nbn 356=Liv 9865).

In some instances, however, a woman never received full restoration of her dowry. Such was true of Amat-Bau. Her husband, Marduk-näsir-apli, sold off nearly all of her sizeable dowry—thirty-five minas of

such a waiver in Miptahiah's marriage contract with Eshor suggests that there was no one with claim to the dowry property but Miptahiah. Moreover, by the time of her second marriage, Miptahiah was financially capable of accumulating her own dowry (cf. R. Yaron, Introduction to the Law of the Aramaic Papyri [Oxford: Clarendon, 1961], 51). Neo-Babylonian marriage agreements also attest to women providing their own dowries (cf. Roth, Babylonian Marriage Agreements, Nos. 15, 25, 29).

62 See B. Porten, The Elephantine Papyri in English: Three Millennia of Cross-Cultural Continuity and Change (Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1996), 177 η. 1 (B28), 188-89 n. 10(B30).

63 This does not include the mohar of five shekels that presumably became part of her dowry property (TAD Π, 2.6.14).

64 The language of Neo-Babylonian marriage contracts reflects this. The dowry is generally given "to" {ana) the groom and comes "with" (itti) the bride. (M. T. Roth, "Marriage and Matrimonial Prestations in First Millennium B. C. Babylonia," in Women's Earliest Records From Ancient Egypt and Western Asia: Proceedings of the Conference on Women in the Ancient Near East, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, November 5-7, 1987, ed. B. Lesko, Brown Judaic Studies 166 [Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1989], 249). Typically, a man married after his father's death when he had realized his inheritance. If the marriage occurred prior to that time, the groom's father usually received the dowry of the bride (Roth, Babylonian Marriage Agreements, 9).

65 See Nbn 85=Liv 61; Nbn 187; Moldenke 1 18.


silver (including the value of her jewelry), two minas of gold, and two slaves (Dar 26; BOR 2 3)—in the first years of their marriage to establish his own financial position. Years went by before he deeded a field and nine slaves to her as replacements, property worth far less than the value of her original dowry (BOR 2 3). He then prevented her from selling the slaves for cash (Dar 429).66 In short, he "plundered" her financial resources to his own advantage.

A woman typically had minimal control over her husband's use of dowry property. At Elephantine, however, the marriage contract of Miptahiah and her second husband, an Egyptian royal builder named Eshor, reveals an attempt to address this limitation (TAD II, 2.6). Miptahiah was a "valuable" bride. She was an independently wealthy Jewish woman, with ownership of the dowry from her first marriage, a household plot given to her by her father (TAD II, 2.3), and the home of her first husband (TAD II, 2.10).67 She was also financially capable of providing her own dowry of 60lA shekels. In order to marry her, Eshor agreed to the inclusion of an otherwise unattested provision in their marriage contract. The provision forbade him to "release" (1ΓΙ3)—sell— any of his property without her consent (TAD II, 2.6.35). If he failed to garner her support, he would be penalized the hefty sum of two hundred shekels (TAD II, 2.6.36). Miptahiah thus acquired considerable control over his financial transactions. She was able to protect her assets. She could guarantee that he could meet his financial obligations to her, specifically the return of her dowry, in the event of a divorce.68 Eshor was apparently willing to give up what would otherwise have been his financial rights to marry Miptahiah. Presumably, he would be better off with her than without her. This may explain the eventual assumption by him of the Jewish name Nathan (TAD II, 2.10), and the naming of their two sons after Miptahiah's father, Mahseiah, and her grandfather, Jedaniah (TAD II, 2.9.3; 2.10.3; 2.11.2-3). Miptahiah, it seems, was worth it.

66 See Roth, "The Dowries," 27-29. 67 Miptahiah's ownership of the house of her first husband is demonstrated by

the fact that her children with Eshor are capable of inheriting it (TAD II, 2.10; cf. Yaron, Introduction to the Law of the Aramaic Papyri, 75-76).

68 See Yaron, Introduction to the Law of the Aramaic Papyri, 52; Porten, Archives from Elephantine, 254.


At Elephantine, a woman's economic "worth" could be enriched through inheritance,69 bequests, or additional dowry gifts. Her husband enjoyed the benefits of such gains. Miptahiah's father, for example, granted her a household plot and stipulated that she had full rights to improve and sell the property (TAD II, 2.3; cf. 2.2). In a second document drafted at approximately the same time, however, her father granted building and usufruct rights for the same plot to Miptahiah's first husband, Jezaniah (TAD II, 2.4). Although Jezaniah could not sell the property, he had a vested economic interest in any improvements he made to the property during their marriage. If he made any investment, he and his children with Miptahiah were guaranteed (at least) half ownership of the land. Therefore, although the property remained a personal holding of Miptahiah's apart from her dowry, she was not able to sell or give it away.7

A similar situation occurred with Jehoishma. Prior to her marriage, Jehoishma's father granted her lifetime usufruct of a house and shared rights with her brother to an adjacent stairway and courtyard {TAD II, 3.7). Three months later, she married Anani {TAD II, 3.8). Her father then stipulated, in appreciation for her support of him in his old age, that upon his death she would receive the properly, complete with alienable rights {TAD II, 3.10). Two years later, however, he made the house a dowry addendum to Jehoishma's marriage contract with Anani {TAD II, 3.11). This latter document, which legally superseded the previous two, transferred the property immediately into their marital estate. Anani thus gained access to it along with the rest of her dowry.

69 A woman at Elephantine, for example, could inherit property following the death of her parents or brothers). This is indicated by the inclusion of women in lists of possible claimants to property. The phrase "son or daughter, brother or sister" is commonly attested in restraint waivers precluding any action or litigation against the conveyance of certain properties (cf. TAD II, 2.1.8-10; 2.2.12-13; 2.8.7-10; 2.9.10-12). In one case, mothers were also included {TAD Π, 3.5.19). This suggests that women had legitimate claim to the property in question, including the right to initiate suit and to prevent the transfer of goods. Secondly, the provisions for surviving spouses in marriage contracts applied only when the couple had neither a male nor female child {TAD Π, 2.6.17-22; 3.8.28-30, 34-36). Implicitly, therefore, the existence of a daughter, even in the absence of sons, would have had an effect on the transfer and maintenance of the matrimonial property (Yaron, Introduction to the Law of the Aramaic Papyri, 67-68).

70 It was only when Jezaniah died and the couple were without children (none are mentioned in the archive) that Miptahiah assumed full ownership.


Likewise, in Mesopotamia, women might receive inheritances or bequests. Iddin-Marduk, for example, promised that in addition to a valuable dowry, his daughter Nuptaya would receive an inheritance amounting to one-third of his total estate (Nr. 137).71 A woman named Silim-Istar similarly stipulated that upon her death all of her property "in the city and in the country" would be inherited by her daughter, Gula-qa^isat (Nbk 283). The gift, an addition to Gula-qäDisat's earlier dowry, was witnessed by two others with potential claim to the property, Silim-Istar's son and Gula-qä3isat's father-in-law. This was likely done to preclude any future dispute.

Dowry supplements are also attested. A woman named Qudäsu, for example, added a slave to the dowry of Qibi-dumqi-ilat (Nbn 760).72

Ina-Esagila-ramät twice enhanced the already sizeable dowry of her granddaughter, Nanä-etirat—with four minas silver (Nr. 354) and with one of her own dowry slaves (Nr. 355). These gifts were in addition to the ten minas silver and two slaves that Ina-Esagila-ramät had already contributed to the dowry (Nr. 355, lines 7-11).

It was intended that a woman's children, her father's grandchildren, would ultimately inherit her dowry. In Mesopotamia, if a woman had children and predeceased her husband, he retained her dowry as a part of his estate. After his death, the dowry and his property were divided among their children.73 It is probable that a widower with children at Elephantine had similar claim to his wife's dowry.74 In the absence of children, a woman's dowry and any additional property she had received were inherited (Γ1Τ) after her death by her husband (TAD II, 2.6.20-22; 3.8.34-36; but cf. TAD II, 3.3.12-13/5). Her property did not

71 If, as evidence suggests, Iddin-Marduk also had two sons, it is probable that they would share the balance of his estate. As such, his property (minus Nuptaya's dowry) would have been divided equally between the two brothers and one sister (cf. Roth, "The Dowries," 37 n. 58).

72 So Roth, "The Dowries," 25. The precise identity of Qudäsu and the nature of her relationship to Qibi-dumqi-ilat are disputed.

73 See Roth, "Marriage and Matrimonial Prestations," 252. 74 See Yaron, Introduction to the Law of the Aramaic Papyri, 69. 75 In Ta(pe)met's marriage contract, the term used is (proprietorship)

rather than ΠΤ (inherit), most likely due to her status as a slave. Yaron argues that because her master would be entitled to her property in the event of her death, her husband's right is in this case derived from the marriage contract and not by standard legal provision (Introduction to the Law of the Aramaic Papyri, 70).


76

revert to her family. In contrast, a childless widow was given proprietorship (ü^U?, TAD II, 2.6.17-20; 3.3.10-11) or the right to "seize" (7ΠΧ) her husband's property {TAD II, 3.8.28-30). Her claim might be a usufruct limited to her lifetime or the extent of her widowhood. Thus, Jehoishma was entitled to her deceased husband's estate unless she remarried {TAD II, 3.8.33-34). Presumably, when a woman remarried or died, her deceased husband's property was returned to his family. Therefore, while a husband's property might be enjoyed for a limited period of time by his wife, a wife's wealth endured as part of her husband's estate.

Divorce came at a price. For a husband married to a "valuable" wife, it could be a steep one. At Elephantine, both a husband and a wife had the right to initiate divorce proceedings.77 If the wife initiated, she owed her husband a divorce fee of IVi shekels ("hatred money"), roughly equivalent in value to a woolen garment. If the husband requested the divorce, he owed her the same fee (TAD II, 3.3.8; 3.8.2278) and might also forfeit his mohar {TAD II, 2.6.27). Regardless of who initiated the proceedings, however, the husband was obligated to return his wife's dowry or items of equivalent value to her: "all that she brought in her hand she shall take out, from straw to string, and go away" {TAD II, 2.6.25-29; 3.3.8-10). She was to receive the dowry immediately, "on one day at one time" {TAD II, 2.6.28; 3.8.24), before she left their

76 In contrast, the dowry of a Neo-Babylonian bride reverted to her father's estate if she died childless (so LNB §10 [iii 32-37]; see also The Code of Hammurabi, Laws 163-64).

77 It seems that no reason was required to initiate a divorce at Elephantine. The husband or wife simply stood up in an assembly of witnesses and declared "hatred" of the other (cf. TAD II, 2.6.22-23, 26-27; 3.3.7, 9; 3.8.21-22, 24-25). Marriage contracts might also specify certain circumstances that would result in an immediate divorce: (1) the taking of a second wife by the husband (TAD II, 3.8.36-37; cf. 6.4.1-2); (2) refusal of conjugal rights {TAD Π, 3.8.37-40; cf. 6.4.3-6); or (3) the taking of a second husband by the wife {TAD II, 3.8.33-34).

78 There is an exception to this in the marriage contract of Eshor and Miptahiah. If Miptahiah initiated a divorce, she owed Eshor the divorce penalty. If Eshor initiated, however, he was not obligated to pay the penalty {TAD II, 2.6.22-29). This exception further supports the argument above about the extent to which Miptahiah had the socioeconomic means and advantage in their marriage. As J. J. Collins states, "apparently in this case it was the husband.. .who needed the greater protection" from divorce ("Marriage, Divorce, and Family," 146).


home. If the husband was unable to return her dowry in full, he was in debt to her for the outstanding amount, including interest if he did not pay promptly (cf. TAD II, 4.6).79 The situation was similar in Mesopotamia, although only a husband had the right to dissolve a marriage agreement. If he did so, he owed his wife a (prohibitively substantial) divorce penalty of one, five, or six minas of silver and had to return her dowry or items of equal value to her.81 Certainly, such divorce stipulations were intended to protect women from being cast out of their homes penniless. For a man married to a "valuable" wife, however, the forfeiture of her dowry and less tangible benefits could make divorce quite costly.

The family of Itti-Marduk-balätu, a successful Babylonian businessman, mastered this business of marriage.82 The socioeconomic and political advantages offered by a marital alliance with this profitable business family meant that it could command dowries rich in cash and property from women who married into the family, while spending far less on the dowries of its own daughters and sisters. Thus, over three generations (ca. 550-489 BCE), the family negotiated its marriages for profit, specifically cash.83 The first generation of women consisted of Nuptaya, the wife of Itti-Marduk-balätu, and Qibi-dumqi-ilat, his sister. Nuptaya's dowry included (at least) fifteen minas silver, some real estate,8 ten slaves85 and household goods (Nr. 137; Nbn 755; cf. Cyr 129, 130). Her father promised additionally that she would inherit one-third of his total estate (Nr. 137). As such, Nuptaya's dowry was a substantial one. In comparison, the dowry of Qibi-dumqi-ilat—a field, at least six slaves, and various household goods—was quite modest (Nbn 760; 761 [cf. Liv 32]). The family of Itti-Marduk-balätu

79 See Muffs, Studies in the Aramaic Legal Papyri, 58-62. 80 There is only one Neo-Babylonian marriage agreement that provides for the

right of a woman to initiate divorce (No. 34). The clause stipulates that should she do so, she would forfeit her dowry, leaving her impoverished (Roth, Babylonian Marriage Agreements, 12-15).

81 Roth, Babylonian Marriage Agreements, 13-14. 82 Roth, "The Dowries," 19-37. 83 Ibid., 35. 84 Nr. 137 records the receipt by Itti-Marduk-balätu of silver in lieu of the real

estate that had been promised as part of his wife's dowry. 85 Nbn 755 records that Itti-Marduk-balätu received three minas and forty-eight

shekels from the sale of slaves that had been promised to him as part of Nuptaya's dowry.


thereby secured substantial amounts of cash and property in the dowry of Nuptaya, while expending relatively little for Qibi-dumqi-ilat.

This practice continued in the following two generations. Whereas the dowry of Itti-Marduk-balätu's daughter-in-law, Amat-Bau, was considerable (see above), the dowries of his own daughters—Tasmetu-tabni (Cyr 143; Camb 21486), Ina-Esagila-belet (Camb 21587), and Nanä-etirat (Camb 21688)—were less so. In the third generation, Amat-Bau's daughter-in-law (Itti-Marduk-balätu's granddaughter-in-law), Susanni, brought a dowry that included silver, a field valued at almost twenty-seven minas silver, slaves, and household goods (BM 33932; Rm. 681). After a series of later transactions, her dowry ultimately consisted of silver, small plots of land and huts, thirteen slaves, and household goods (BM 33933). In contrast, the dowry of Amat-Bau's daughter (Itti-Marduk-balätu's granddaughter), Eristu, was two fields, five minas silver, two slaves, and household goods (BM 30441; cf. CT 51 55; BM 33934). Therefore, all of the women marrying into the family brought large amounts of cash. Women of the family, however, took comparatively little silver or, as in the case of Qibi-dumqi-ilat and Ina-Esagila-belet, none at all.89 The family made a business of marriage, and it was a profitable one.

86 Cyr 143, dated to 535 BCE, records the dowry promised to Tasmetu-tabni in anticipation of her marriage to Itti-Nabü-balätu. It is not known what happened to the marriage. The dowry was cancelled nearly nine years later (Camb 214).

87 Camb 215, written on the same day as the document that cancelled Tasmetu-tabni's dowry (Camb 214), specifies a dowry for Ina-Esagila-belet for her marriage to the same Itti-Nabü-balätu. Itti-Marduk-balätu and Itti-Nabü-balätu apparently thought it advantageous to continue their association by arranging another marriage (Roth, "The Dowries," 26).

88 It is quite plausible that the dowry fields of Ina-Esagila-belet and Nanä-etirat are mentioned in BM 31513 (520 BCE) and Dar 79 (519 BCE). Nanä-etirat later received supplementary dowry items including four minas silver and three slaves from her grandmother, Ina-Esagila-ramät (Nr. 354, 355).

89 Note, further, the dowries of Ina-Esagila-belet's sisters, Tasmetu-tabni and Nanä-etirat. Tasmetu-tabni's dowry, containing ten minas silver (Cyr 143), was never delivered. Nanä-etirat's dowry was without silver (Camb 216) until her maternal grandmother, Ina-Esagila-ramät, granted her supplementary dowry gifts of ten minas silver (cf. Nr. 355) and four minas silver (Nr. 354; cf. Wunsch, Die Urkunden des Babylonischen Geshäftsmannes Iddin-Marduk, 1:71-72.

"Women's Work" 59

C. "Women's Work"

The work of women in the Achaemenid empire, whether married or not, was centered in the home and family. Their responsibilities included the care and education of children (e.g., TAD I, 2.7; TAD IV, 7.6; Neh 13:23-24) and management of the household economy. Women at Elephantine went about in the marketplaces, buying, selling, and bartering for various goods such as wool (TAD I, 2.6; TAD IV, 7.7), barley {TAD IV, 7 . 1 6 ) , s a l t (TAD IV, 7.2;91 Ί.Τ\ cucumber seed (TAD IV, 7.3),93 grain (CIS II, 13794), oil (TAD I, 2.2; 2.5), clothing, and vessels (TAD I, 2.1). Women also tended to the preparation of wool and flax fibers, spinning, weaving, tailoring, and the cleaning of clothing. Groups of spindle whorls and loom weights found in Persian-period strata at Dor in almost every excavated area, but particularly in residential buildings, suggest that women there engaged in a thriving textile industry.95

At times, women assisted with the family business. Naqqitu, a daughter in the Murasü family, paid a portion of the annual rent96 for some fields leased to the Murasü firm (CBS 12965).97 The fields were

98 apparently under her management. Ina-Esagila-ramät conducted business as an agent of her husband. She paid workers (Nbn 657, 757, 820; Cyr 48; Moldenke I 30), made and received payments and

90 See A. Dupont-Sommer, "L'ostracon Arameen du Sabbat (Collection Clermont-Ganneau No. 152)," Semitica 2 (1949): 29-39.

91 See A. Dupont-Sommer, "Un Ostracon Arameen inedit d'Elephantine adresse a Ahutab," RES, 1945: 67; Porten, Archives from Elephantine, 276.

92 Porten, Archives from Elephantine, 277. 93 See A. H. Sayce and A. E. Cowley, Aramaic Papyri Discovered at Assuan

(London: Moring, 1906), TextN. 94 See B. Levine, "Notes on an Aramaic Dream Text from Egypt," JAOS 84

(1964): 18-22; A. Dupont-Sommer, "Ostraca arameens d'Elephantine," Annales du Service des Antiquites de L 'Egypte 48 (1948): 109-30.

95 Stern, Ruler of the Seas, 194-95. 96 Naqqitu paid two minas white silver of a yearly rent of two minas silver and

kissatu ("chopped straw"). 97 Stolper, Entrepreneurs and Empires, 253 (#46); idem, "The Genealogy of the

Murasü Family," JCS 28 (1976): 196-200. 98 The fifth line of CBS 12965 reads sa ina IGI fNaq-qi-tu4 DUMU.SAL-ä si

Mu-ra-s[u-u].


deliveries (Cyr 27, 65; Camb 279), and completed cash transactions (Nbn 741). She was also present occasionally at the writing of business contracts (Nbn 7 0 0 ) . " Her daughter, Nuptaya, collected the rent on a house owned by her husband (Camb 97). Women were also parties to the purchase and sale of slaves and land (cf. Nbk 67, 207; Nr. 210; TAD II, 3.4; 3.12).

Women were workers (kurtas) in the royal economy.1 0 0 Non-royal women, in numbers generally equivalent to or greater than their male counterparts depending on the work,101 were issued rations for service in a variety of professions. Women and "girls"102 were stockyard workers (PF 848, 1008), treasury workers (PF 863, 877; PT 29, 39-40),103 goldsmiths (PF 872; PT 37; 1963:2), and keepers of fruit (PF 869). They were grain handlers (PF 1821-24, 1589), scribes (PF 1828, 1947), irrigation workers (PF 1842-44, 1946), attendants and ration makers (PF 865-66). Women were winemakers (PT 36), tax handlers (PT 41), 04 beer tenders or preparers (PT 46), workers in the armory

99 The phrase ina asabi ("with the assistance of ' ) before a personal name (often of a woman) signified that she authorized the transaction by her presence (Cardascia, Les Archives des Murasü, 23; Shiff, The Nür-Sin Archive, 228 n. 15).

100 Although the precise legal status of the kurtas remains disputed, it is probable that the term was used broadly (e.g., "persons" or "laborers") for free persons and for slaves working for wages or performing temporary service duty in the royal economy (cf. M. A. Dandamaev, Slavery in Babylonia: From Nabopolassar to Alexander the Great [626-331 B.C.], ed. M. A. Powell and D. Weisberg, trans. V. A. Powell [Dekalb, 111.: North Illinois University Press, 1984], 573-84).

101 This is suggested by the number of female workers listed in the Persepolis Fortification regular monthly ration texts (PF 847-1084, 2039-45 [Hallock's category L 1-3 texts]). Disregarding those texts in which either the number of workers is unclear (PF 865-66, 955, 990, 1003, 1009, 1054, 1068, 1083, 2041, 2044) or the gender of workers is not specified (PF 975, 986, 994, 1036, 1039, 1058), by my count women and girls account for 59% of the workers issued such rations. See also Brosius, Women in Ancient Persia, 182; Hallock, Persepolis Fortification Tablets, 5; Dandamaev, Slavery in Babylonia, 573-74 n. 28.

102 It is unknown on what basis (age? marriage?) a female was classified as a "girl" (puhu) or as a "woman" (MUNUS.lg).

103 See also PF 864-66, 878; PT 45,64-67. 104 PT 49, 54 and 55 concern workgroups of workers/copperers composed of

men, women, and children who may have assisted the tax handlers (Cameron, Persepolis Treasury Texts, 160).

'Women's Work" 61

(PT 52), sheepherders (PT 50, 61), stoneworkers (PF 1948; 1963:2), woodworkers (1957:2), and artisans (PF 1049; PT 69-70; cf. PT 28). In addition, women served in various named but unknown capacities, including as makers of w.GIR.lg (PF 867-68), as "exerters" (PFa 31), and as ramikurras and ammalup workers (PF 865-66).105 They are also listed simply as kurtas, "workers" (PT 42, 53). At Elephantine, women were harvesters (TAD III, 3.28.80-84, 88) and received rations as members of the garrison {TAD III, 3.13; 3.18; 3.26;106 cf. TAD II, 5.5). Ezra and Nehemiah refer to female singers (Ezra 2:65//Neh 7:67; cf. Qoh 2:8). Nehemiah also mentions Noadiah the prophetess (Neh 6:14) and lists the daughters of Shallum among workers rebuilding the Jerusalem walls (Neh 3:12).

Women worked at different ranks and degrees of specialization. Among the finds of an early Persian-period Judean archive is the seal of "Shelomith, maidservant (DÖN) of Elnathan the governor."107 The formulation of the seal indicates that Shelomith, presumably the same woman identified in 1 Chr 3:19 as the daughter of Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, was a woman of high standing. Moreover, the quality and quantity of bullae in the archive—including a Yehud seal (an official seal of the province), six Yehud bullae, a bulla of Elnathan the governor of the province, four Yehud bullae with the names of provincial officials, and ten bullae of a scribe named Jeremiah—indicate that this

108 was an official, not private, repository. As such, scholars conclude that Shelomith had an official capacity in the administrative affairs of the province, perhaps as the one "in charge of the archive; or rather.. .responsible for the administrative centre of which the archive was part." How she came to have such a role depends in part on the unresolved interpretation of the title DDK. The term may refer to a functionary relationship (as an official), to her marital status as

105 It is probable that some professions were restricted either to men or to women. Brosius notes that only men are attested in the professions of tuppira ("scribe"), etip, and mulatap, whereas only women are listed as ammalup and gal huttip ("ration maker;" cf. PF 865-66; Women in Ancient Persia, 150-51).

106 In two of these documents women are the only recipients of grain (TAD ΙΠ, 3.13; 3.18) while in another they constitute a majority (TAD ΙΠ, 3.26).

107 Avigad, Bullae and Seals, 11-13, 30-32; Ε. M. Meyers, "The Shelomith Seal and the Judean Restoration: Some Additional Considerations," Eretz Israel 18(1985): 33*-38*.

108 So Avigad, Bullae and Seals, 30-31. 109 Ibid., 31.


Elnathan's wife-concubine,110 or perhaps to both. Some non-royal women were supervisors, or arassap (sing.

arassara), of workgroups.111 Their elevated position in the work force is apparent. In ration texts, the arassap are listed apart from other male and female workers and, in one document, they are referred to by their

112 personal names (PF 1790 ). They received considerably more rations per month: fifty quarts of jjrain (PF 865-66) and thirty quarts of wine (PF 875-76, 879, 1012). One text also records a meat ration (four sheep per year) to five arassap (PF 1790).114 Comparatively, the standard monthly rations for an unspecialized male worker were thirty quarts of grain and, for a female, twenty or thirty quarts of grain; most workers did not receive wine or beer regularly. Even skilled male laborers received proportionately less than the arassap (PF 875).116

Arassap were associated with workgroups known as pasap that were

110 Meyers argues that Elnathan married or aligned himself with Shelomith, a descendent of David, to strengthen his position as governor at a time of diminishing fiscal power and expanding influence of the high priesthood ("The Shelomith Seal," 34*-37*).

111 See PF 865-66, 875-76, 879, 1012, and 1790. Brosius includes in this group the unpublished texts PF-NN 1524, 1666, and 1887 (Women in Ancient Persia, 146-54). A synonymous term for arassap was matistukkas. Two published texts refer to two women and one man, matistukkas, who each received monthly wine rations of thirty quarts (PF 1063-64; cf. 1076).

112 PF 1790:5-10 reads: "(They are) to be issued as rations to Dakma (at) Hunar, and Ir...na (at) Liduma, and Harbakka(?) (at) Hidali, and Saddukka the Zappiyan, and Matmabba (at) Atek, total 5 women."

113 Presumably, any woman receiving a monthly ration of thirty quarts of wine was an arassara, regardless of whether or not she is referred to as such (cf. PF 877-78, 880-88, 890-92, 896-908; cf. PF-NN 413, Fort. 5206). The same is likely true for women receiving monthly rations of fifty quarts of grain (cf. PF 922-28, 930-32, 935, 940, 948-49, 957-61, 969-70, 995; see Brosius, Women in Ancient Persia, 153-55, 158-61; R. T. Hallock, "The Evidence of the Persepolis Tablets," in The Cambridge History of Iran, Vol. II: The Median and Achaemenian Periods, ed. I. Gershevitch [Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1985], 601).

114 Rations of sheep were quite uncommon. When sheep were issued, the ration might be 1/2 (PF 1791), 1/3 (PF 1790-91), 1/6 (PF 1791), 1/10 (PF 1793), or even 1/30 (PF 1794) of a sheep per month (cf. Hallock, Persepolis Fortification Tablets, 27; Lewis, "The Persepolis Fortification Texts," 2).

115 Hallock, "The Evidence of the Persepolis Tablets," 603. 116 The arassara received thirty quarts of wine compared to the ten to twenty

quarts received by the men.

"Women's Work" 63

predominantly117 comprised of women and children (so arassara pasabena in PF 875-76 , 1012, 1790; cf. PF-NN 1887). Pasap women were issued sizeable rations (as much as forty-five quarts of grain per month), an indication that they did specialized labor. Men in the same groups, in contrast, received thirty quarts of grain. These workgroups, ranging in size from nearly one hundred workers (e.g., PF 847, 1128) to more than five hundred (e.g., PF 1794) , were numerous and widespread geographically.118 Similar though generally smaller workgroups largely of women and children called harrinups (e.g., PF 996 , 1051-52 , 1086-87) are also attested.119 Workers in a harrinup either received the same monthly ration regardless of their gender, thirty quarts of grain (e.g., PF 870, 1052-55) , or women received twenty and men received thirty quarts (e.g., PF 996, 998).

Royal women employed sizeable work forces, including some of the pasap (cf. PF 1236; PT 6), on their estates. The Persians instituted a system of property grants in which land was distributed as hereditary property to members of the royal family, the Persian nobility, and ranking officials.120 Royal women were not excluded. Artystone (Irtasduna), wife of Darius I, for example, owned and operated at least three estates in the region of Persepolis.121 She corresponded with the supervisors administering her properties. In one letter (PF 1835), she ordered the supervisor of her estate at Mirandu to issue wine to a specified individual. Similarly, she instructed the supervisor at her estate at Kukkannakan to dispense sizeable quantities of wine to other individuals (PF 1836-39) . The reasons for these distributions are unknown. Artystone independently and with others ordered the issue of royal provisions. She ordered grain (PF 730), flour (PF 731), and wine

117 But not exclusively, see PF 847 and 999. 118 Pasap are referred to in over thirty texts, including PF 847, 999, 1089-91,

1128-29, 1165, 1171, 1184, 1200-1201, 1203, 1236, 1590, 1606, 1608, 1790, 1794, 1848. They are attested at a number of sites in the region of Persis and Fahliyan, including Liduma (PF 847, 1128), Taspak (PF 1089, 1200, 1590), Hidali (PF 1184, 1848), Zappi (PF 1090), Baktis (PF 1129), Narezzas (PF 1203), Parmadan (PF 1606), Daser (PF 1608), and Urandus (PF 1794).

119 There are references to harrinup workgroups in more than forty Fortification tablets. They apparently varied in size from five (PF 870) to nearly one hundred (PF 1052) workers.

120 Dandamaev, "Achaemenid Mesopotamia," 232. 121 Artystone is associated with an estate at Matannan (PF 166-68, 1857), at

Kukkannakan (PF 1836-37), and at Mirandu (PF 1835).

64 Women in the Socioeconomic Context of Proverbs 1 -9 and 31:10-31 122

(PF 732) for deposit at various locations. Her seal (No. 38) is affixed to the orders and it is likely that she was present at each transaction.123

With Arsames (one of Darius' sons), Artystone ordered large quantities of grain and flour (PF 733), barley loaves (PF 734), and beer (PF 2035). Darius I also ordered two thousand quarts of wine (PF 1795) and one hundred sheep (Fort. 6754) for her, perhaps as supplies for a feast.124 In one year, her estate at Matannan received deposits of 7640 quarts of grain (PF 166-67; cf. PF-NN 1685, 2081) and 570 quarts of figs (PF 168). Artystone provided special grain rations for mothers (PF 1236; cf. PF-NN 1238, 2497)1 2 5 and for other workers in her employ (cf. PF-NN 279).1 2 6 Moreover, Artystone issued travel rations to those conducting business on her behalf (PF 1454, 2049; PFa 14J.

Another royal woman named Irdabama 7 similarly owned and managed estates. Like Artystone, Irdabama corresponded with the supervisors of her properties. In one letter she ordered the issue of 1500 quarts of grain from one of her estates to a nurseryman (PFa 27). She instructed her accountants to keep a record of the transaction. Irdabama

122 See R. T. Hallock, "The Use of Seals on the Persepolis Fortification Tablets," in Seals and Sealings in the Ancient Near East, ed. M. Gibson and R. D. Biggs, Bibliotheca Mespotamia 6 (Malibu, Calif.: Undena, 1977), 128.

123 Hallock, Persepolis Fortification Tablets, 24. 124 See G. G. Cameron, "Darius' Daughter and the Persepolis Inscriptions,"

JNES 1 (1942): 214-18; Brosius, Women in Ancient Persia, 97. 125 So-called "mother's rations" were one time, monthly payments (cf. PF 1219)

of wine or beer and/or grain. Women who gave birth to boys consistently received twice as much (usually twenty quarts of grain and/or ten quarts of wine or beer) as women who gave birth to girls (ten quarts of grain and/or five quarts of wine or beer).

126 Other grain deposits in her name are recorded in PF 164-65. 127 Unlike Artystone who is identified as a duksis ("princess"), Irdabama is never

referred to by a title. Her receipt of royal provisions indicates that she was associated with the royal court. Other high-ranking women of unknown identity shared the same privilege. PF 823 records a ration of two sheep for a woman named Istin. She is identified as a duksis ("princess"), a title used elsewhere only for Artystone (cf. PF 1795; Fort. 6764). A woman named Uparmiya (perhaps Parmys, daughter of Bardiya and wife of Darius I) was issued 900 quarts of grain by Arsames (PF 309). Pandusassa, wife of Bakansakka, received sixty quarts of flour (PF 784). Udusana received two deposits of grain in one year, one of 4000 quarts (PF 162) and another totaling 1600 quarts (PF 163). That same year, Sazana was issued 4230 quarts of grain (PF 171). A year later, a woman named Pilaka received 5000 quarts of grain (PF 193; cf. Brosius, Women in Ancient Persia, 144-46).

"Women's Work' 65

ordered royal provisions. Wine rations of 650 quarts (PF 73fr), 750 quarts (PF 735), and an unparalleled 2360 quarts (PF 737) were distributed on her behalf at various locations. So, too, were sizeable allotments of grain (PF 738, 740) and barley loaves (PF 739).129 All of

130 these orders bear her personal seal (No. 51). Irdabama is perhaps most notable for her large work force^ generally designated as kurtas Irdabamana, "workers of Irdabama." She employed a number of work groups on her estate at Tirazzis. PF 1028, for example, records the issue of grain rations to 490 laborers there.132 Three other texts apportion thirty quarts of wine per month to one man and two women at Tirazzis (kurtas Tirazis Irdabamana·, PF 1041-43). At various times Irdabama also had work groups numbering twenty at Tukras (PF 1109), 150 at Tamukkan (PF 1098), seven at Turtukkan (mother's rations, PF 1221, 1232), 52 at Kurra (PF 1198), 75 at Nukusantis (PF 1002), and 43 (PF 849), 102 (PF 1005), and 244 (PF 1029) at unspecified locations.

The property grants enjoyed by these women could generate a tidy profit. Although the women were required to pay taxes to the crown (cf. PF 2070,133 1857134), they kept a considerable portion of whatever revenues their estates generated.135 Moreover, they were permitted to

128 Brosius notes that this is "by far the largest amount of wine ordered by a member of the royal family," exceeding by 360 quarts that ordered for Artystone (cf. PF 1795; Women in Ancient Persia, 130-31).

129 Brosius refers to several unpublished texts (e.g., PF-NN 641, 855, 1332, 1773, 1973, 2055) that also record royal provisions issued to Irdabama. All bear her personal seal (Women in Ancient Persia, 130-31).

130 Hallock, "The Use of Seals," 128. 131 See Brosius, Women in Ancient Persia, 141-44. 132 PF-NN 1068 and 1146 apparently refer to rations issued for two months to the

same group of 480 workers at Tirazzis in the same year (Brosius, Women in Ancient Persia, 141).

133 PF 2070 records a tax payment of seven goats and one ewe by a woman named Madamis. It was the second largest payment of four from the estate of Miturna.

134 Addressed to Parnaka, a chief economic officer under Darius I, PF 1857 is a letter that records the collection of grain from various estates, including 36'Λ quarts of grain from Artystone's estate Matannan (lines 17-20). Presumably, the grain was reserved and later distributed as needed by the authorities (cf. Hallock, Persepolis Fortification Tablets, 20-23 [Categories F and G]; on Parnaka, see Hallock, "The Evidence of the Persepolis Tablets," 589-90).

135 Some persons who received property grants paid one third of their proceeds in royal taxes and kept two thirds. See Seow, "The Socioeconomic Context,"


lease and to subdivide the land among those they favored for even more cash. Records from the Murasü business firm reveal that royal women did both. Two Murasu texts dated to the reign of Artaxerxes I refer to the "estate of the Lady of the Palace," presumably one of Artaxerxes' four queens or the queen mother, Amestris.136 Each document records a rental payment made by Enlil-sum-iddin, son of Murasü, to the manager (BE 9 28=TuM 2-3 179) or the manager's deputy (BE 9 50) of her estate. The rent was expensive, including barley, dates, barrels of fine liquor, sheep and goats, twenty-five royal soldiers, and rations for the estate manager (BE 9 50). The Murasüs also conducted business with queen Parysatis (Purusatu), wife and half-sister of Darius II.137 Parysatis leased portions of her estate to the firm. Her supervisor, Ea-bullissu, and his agents managed her affairs. Ea-bullissu, himself a smallholder on a sub-plot of Parysatis' land (TuM 2-3 185), collected rent from the Murasüs and from other servants of Parysatis who lived as tenant

138 farmers on her estate. A receipt dating to the late-fifth century BCE (TuM 2-3 185) records a rental payment of the Murasü house for 139 portions of Parysatis' land and for Ea-bullissu's sub-plot. Two of Ea-bullissu's agents received it.

Two other royal women leased property to the Murasüs.140 The first was AmisirP. In 431 BCE, Enlil-sum-iddin, son of Murasü, arranged for a three year lease of crown land and a royal reservoir at the "end o f ' (ina silihtu) the Badiatu Canal of AmisirP (CBS 5199).141 To irrigate the rented fields, he requested limited rights to draw off water that belonged to the king and to AmisirP142 from the Harri-Piqud Canal. The second woman, Madumitu, is first mentioned as a member of the house of AmisirP and an owner of a field in her estate. The Murasü firm leased her land and then subleased it to another for two minas silver per

176; van Driel, "The Murasüs in Context," 206. 136 Stolper, Entrepreneurs and Empires, 62. 137 PBS 2/1 38 ,50 ,60 ,75 , 105, 146-47; BE 10 97, 131; TuM 2-3 185. 138 See Stolper, Entrepreneurs and Empires, 63. 139 Cardascia, Les Archives des Murasü, 95-96. 140 The fifth line of a fragmented rental receipt (Ni 539) also includes the name

of a woman (fRisa) among those leasing fields to the Murasüs. It is plausible that she was an owner or co-owner of property (Donbaz and Stolper, Istanbul Murasü Texts, 114 [No. 44]).

141 Stolper, Entrepreneurs and Empires, 231 (No. 1). 142 Reading the fifth line as partially restored by Stolper: ...[A. MES(?)

sä LU]GAL u^A-mi-si-ri^... (Entrepreneurs and Empires, 231 [No. 1]).

"Women's Work" 67

year (Ni 508; cf. BE 9 39143). Sometime later, the Murasüs again subleased a field belonging to Madumitu,144 but it is not clear whether the land was still part of the estate of Amisiri3 (Ni 538). The last reference to Madumitu's land occurs four years later (PBS 2/1 75). By then, her property had become part of the estate of Parysatis and was managed by Ea-bullissu.145

In Mesopotamia, women of affluence also bought, sold, and supervised slaves. Such women frequently received three to five slaves as part of their dowries.146 Ina-Esagila-ramät, for example, brought three slaves in her dowry, received seven from her husband as dowry compensation (Nbk 265=Liv 154), and then purchased a slave family of six (Nbk 147; Nr. 16). Sometime later, she and her daughter, Nuptaya, also became co-owners of a slave named Rimüt-Bel. Nuptaya also supervised a family slave who was commissioned to a weaver, supplying his daily bread and work clothes for the five years of his apprenticeship (Cyr 64). Other women bought and sold slaves. Guzummu sold two slaves for thirty shekels (Nbk 201; cf. Nbk 37). Kassaya sold a female slave for sixty shekels (Camb 15) and Täbatu bought a slave trained as a baker for fifty-five shekels (Nbn 336). As owners of slaves, these women could hire them out to others, generating additional income.148

Another way for women to make money was to get into the loan business. Economic growth did not favor all people in the empire. Smallholders, with little capital, struggled to make enough to pay their rent and taxes, much less to support themselves. Equipment, livestock,

143 BE 9 39, a duplicate of Ni 508, includes captions of seal impressions but was unsealed (Donbaz and Stolper, Istanbul Murasü Texts, 109 [No. 38]).

144 mMadu ^tu in line 11 of Ni 508 is read by Donbaz and Stolper as an error for fMadumitu (Istanbul Murasü Texts, 110 [No. 39]).

145 See Donbaz and Stolper, Istanbul Murasü Texts, 110 n. 11. 146 Dandamaev, Slavery in Babylonia, 210. 147 Rimüt-Bel was a gift from Ina-Esagila-ramät's father-in-law, Iqisaya, for her

support (food, clothing, oil) of him in his old age (Nbn 697). Apparently, Iqisaya had agreed to manumit Rimüt-Bel if he would care for him but, once Rimüt-Bel was freed, he fled and did not fulfill his responsibilities. In Rimüt-Bel's absence, Ina-Esagila-ramät tended to Iqisaya. When Rimüt-Bel was captured, Iqisaya cancelled the manumission document and, in appreciation, transferred ownership to Ina-Esagila-ramät and Nuptaya.

148 Dandamaev, Slavery in Babylonia, 112-36.


and water could be quite expensive.149 While some people took out loans to build their business in hopes of becoming rich, others borrowed just to survive.150 Some women with sufficient capital took advantage of this business opportunity. Loans were typically made in cash, but might also be issued in various commodities. Ina-Esagila-ramat,151 for example, made loans of dates (Nr. 274) and cash ranging from as little as two shekels (Cyr 303) to as much as five minas (Nr. 232).152 Her daughter, Nuptaya, similarly loaned silver (Nr. 241), emmer (Nr. 304), and dates (Nr. 372). Even one of Ina-Esagila-ramät's slaves, a woman named Mahitu, got into the business, lending thirty shekels to two male slaves (Nr. 196).

There was plenty of business. Loans assumed for business and personal reasons were part of everyday financial transactions. At times, money changed hands quickly and relationships between creditors and debtors were complicated. One woman named Bunanitu loaned thirty-five shekels to a man named Nabu-tultabsi-lisir, for which a slave

149 Stolper, Entrepreneurs and Empires, 128-43. 150 Seow, "The Socioeconomic Context," 184. 151 The evidence indicates that Ina-Esagila-ramät managed her loan business

independently. First, in every obligation document in which she is the creditor, she is identified by her patronymic "daughter of Zeriya, son of Nabaya" rather than by her marital status. Only once is she identified by both her patronymic and as the alii mIddin-iMarduk ("wife of Iddin-Marduk," Nbn 611). This practice is quite different when compared to documents in which she conducted business on behalf of her husband. There, if any identification in addition to her name was provided, it always includes alti mIddin-dMarduk. When Ina-Esagila-ramät is identified by name only, the context indicates that she is acting on behalf of Iddin-Marduk (cf. Nbn 727). Secondly, in the one document in which Ina-Esagila-ramät and Iddin-Marduk both extend credit, she is identified by her patronymic and the amount owed to her is distinguished from that owed to Iddin-Marduk: "12'Λ minas silver (is the) claim of Iddin-Marduk, son of Iqisaya, son of Nür-SIn and 10 minas silver (is the) claim of Ina-Esagila-ramat, daughter of Zeriya, son of Nabaya" (Nr. 291, lines 1-3). Finally, although members of the Egibi family frequently served as witnesses and scribes for her loans, Iddin-Marduk is never listed among them. It therefore appears that Ina-Esagila-ramät independently extended and profited from her personal investments.

152 See also Nbn 15 (=Liv 40), 611; Nr. 232, 291, 375; Camb 370. On one occasion, she extended a loan to a family member without interest (Nbn 82). Another document (Cyr 51) records an interest payment made by a husband and wife to Ina-Esagila-ramät in 537 BCE.

Women's Work" 69 153

woman served as security (cf. Nbn 391=Liv 100 and TCL 12 94). Very soon thereafter, Bunanitu and her husband borrowed thirty shekels from a woman named Ina-Esagila-belet. They pledged as security the same slave (Nbn 390). Four days later, Nabu-tultabsi-lisir sold three of his slaves, including the one he had posted as security, for two minas fifty shekels (Nbn 392). Of that total sale price, he received only two minas fifteen shekels. The remaining thirty-five shekels were paid to his creditor, Bunanitu (Nbn 391). Bunanitu and her husband then paid their debt of thirty shekels to Ina-Esagila-belet. Within five days, all creditors had been paid in full.

The market clearly favored the creditor, and business could be quite profitable. Annual interest rates varied from 20-40% in Babylon154 and 60-120% at Elephantine (e.g., TAD II, 3.1.3-7).155 Amat-Ninlil, for example, loaned forty shekels at 20% annual interest to another woman named Täbatu and her son. A plot of land, part of Täbatu's dowry, was pledged on terms of antichresis. That is, Amat-Ninlil had the right to use it as income-generating property through the duration of the loan (Liv 15). Two years later, Täbatu and her son borrowed another twenty shekels. Amat-Ninlil then sold both obligations for their combined value of one mina to a third party, posting the plot of land as security (Nbn 1025). At the time ofthat transaction, she had a profit in interest of sixteen shekels (eight shekels/year) plus whatever revenues the land had generated. She invested her earnings in a harränu-partnership—a business deal in which investors financed agents to engage in various mercantile activities, including the trade of moveable goods.156

Not all women were so fortunate. While some women prospered, others struggled to make ends meet. The interest rates on loans were daunting and the penalties for default severe. At Elephantine, for example, a woman named Jehohen took out a loan of four shekels (TAD II, 3.1) at a compound interest rate of five percent per mensum, or sixty percent annually (cf. TAD II, 4.2.1-5). If she failed to repay the debt within two years, her creditor could seize all of her property as security.

153 See Dandamaev, Slavery in Babylonia, 143-44. 154 Ibid., 140. 155 The difference in interest rates between Mesopotamia and Egypt suggests that

the cash market was tighter at Elephantine. Thus, a creditor there was at even more of an advantage (so Porten, Archives from Elephantine, 77-78).

156 See Shiff, The Nür-Sin Archive, 55-56; 96-98 nn. 107-10; Wunsch, Die Urkunden Ilia, 23-27.


Moreover, if she died before repaying the loan and its interest, her children would inherit her debt ( T A D II, 3.1.14-20). In Mesopotamia, two women named Nidintu and Adirtu borrowed 940 shekels (BE 10

157 3) and 950 shekels (BE 10 2), respectively, from the Murasü house. Both women assumed a 40% annual interest rate and pledged their homes as security. Their motivation for assuming the loans is stated at the end of each agreement: kaspu sä ina muhhi PN märisu ("[it is] the silver which is owed by PN, [her] son"). Nidintu and Adirtu, it 159 seems, were mothers assuming the debts of their sons. Women were also liable for any loans of cash160 or produce161 they took out with others.162

Those unable to pay their debts could be seized, consigned to a "house of detention" (bit kili) by their creditors, and forced to work off 163 their debts. Such was the situation of a woman named Bazitä. Unable to repay her loan(s), Bazitä was consigned by Enlil-sum-iddin of the Murasü house to a bit kili managed by Rimut-Ninurta. A s part of the bit

157 This sum is restored by Cardascia on the basis of BE 10 2 (Les Archives des Murasü, 47-48).

158 BE 10 2, lines 5-6; BE 10 3, lines 6-7. 159 See Cardascia, Les Archives des Murasü, 30. 160 See, e.g., Nbn 187; TCL 12 118; BOR 4 52; Cyr 284; Nr. 307; Nbn 103;

Nbk 345. 161 See Nbn 11, 151, 152; BE 9 58. 162 Each party to the loan contract agreed to be a guarantor of the loan (isten put

saninasü, "one is the guarantor for the other," cf. Nbn 11, lines 7-8). Each was responsible not only for their debt, but also for that of their partner. If the debt was not paid at the appropriate time, a guarantor was obligated to turn over the debtor to the creditor. If the guarantor could not produce the debtor, however, he or she was obligated to settle the debt. It is apparent from such provisions that women were considered legal guarantors for their own debt and for that of others (cf. Nbk 342). As such, widows continued to pay or renegotiated any outstanding debts following the death of their husbands. Bunanitu, for example, paid nine shekels to Iddin-Marduk—the interest owed for silver she and her deceased husband had borrowed (Moldenke I 18). Another widow, Kassaya, requested a new guarantor for a debt of dates she and her husband owed Iddin-Marduk but had not paid prior to her husband's death (Nbn 619 and 375).

163 See Dandamaev, Slavery in Babylonia, 160; Cardascia, Les Archives des Murasü, 161-62. Compare references to the pDX fl'D ("house of detention") in several Aramaic fragments from North Saqqara (Segal, Aramaic Texts from North Saqqära, 3:1; 8:10; 50:9).

Summary 71

kili, Bazitä could be "loaned out" or retained at the discretion of Rimut-Ninurta, who held the promissory note(s) of her debt. One document records the release of Bazitä and two men for two weeks to Nabü-usezib, a servant of Enlil-sum-iddin (Ni 267).164 Presumably, the three debtors were needed as laborers. If Nabü-usezib failed to return Bazitä and her companions, he owed Rimut-Ninurta the amount of their outstanding debts.

D. Summary

The epigraphic and biblical resources afford a multifaceted look at the economic roles and realities of royal and non-royal women in the Achaemenid empire. In marriage, often negotiated as "business" arrangements between families, a Persian-period woman was a bride of specified financial "worth" from whose dowry and additional inheritances, bequests, or gifts men might derive monetary gain.

"Women's work" in the Achaemenid economy was varied. Among their responsibilities as managers of the household, women manufactured textiles, traded in the marketplaces, and might own and supervise slaves. Women also made and received deliveries, managed properties, and were parties to the purchase and sale of slaves and land. As workers in the royal economy, non-royal women engaged in a wide range of skilled and unskilled professions in numbers equivalent to or greater than men; women also worked at varying ranks and degrees of specialization.165 Moreover, women with sufficient amounts of capital might get into the credit business, making loans of cash and other goods at favorable interest rates.166

Finally, royal women and women of high rank were often property holders and estate owners. Their land ownership was renowned by Greek historians.167 Artystone owned at least three estates in the region of Persepolis. Irdabama had a large work force (kurtas Irdabamana) concentrated at her estate at Tirazzis and at a number of other locations between Susa and Persepolis. Such women managed their properties

164 Donbaz and Stolper, Istanbul MurasO Texts, 150 (No. 103). 165 See this chapter, 59-63. 166 Ibid., 67-71. 167 See, e.g., Plato Alcibiades I 121c-123cd; Xenophon Anabasis 2.4.27; cf.

Brosius, Women in Ancient Persia, 123-24.


directly and through subordinates, authorized economic transactions with their own seals, ordered the transfer of commodities from the royal storehouses, issued rations for their workers, and paid taxes to the crown. Murasü business documents further demonstrate that they might lease and subdivide their properties for a profit.

The next chapter considers the figure of Woman Wisdom in light of these socioeconomic activities and perceptions of Persian-period women. At issue is how the sage's personification of her may reflect the realities of women in his socioeconomic context.

CHAPTER THREE

More Valuable than Corals: Wisdom as a Woman of Substance

in the Socioeconomic Context of Proverbs 1 -9 and 31:10-31

A. Introduction

Several recent studies interpret the "Stranger" Woman in Proverbs 1-9 in light of the socioeconomic context of Persian-period Palestine.1

Highlighting the identification of her as strange (ΓΠΤ) and foreign (!"P"p3, 2:16; 5:20; 7:5; cf. 5:3; 6:24), these studies locate the polemic against her in Ezra-Nehemiah's campaign against exogamous marriages to Din?! ("foreign women;" cf. Ezra 9-10; Neh 13:23-27). Such marriages, it is argued, were perceived to threaten not only the moral and religious purity of the golah but also, given the inheritance and property rights of women, its economic stability. The sage of Proverbs 1-9, a proponent of Ezra-Nehemiah's ideological strategy, incorporated this economic concern in his crafting of the composite figure2 of the "Stranger" Woman. In 2:12-22, for example,

1 Blenkinsopp, "The Social Context of the Outsider Woman,'" 457-73; Washington, "The Strange Woman," 217-42. See also Maier, Die 'fremde Frau' in Proverbien l-9\ idem, "Conflicting Attractions: Parental Wisdom and the 'Strange Woman' in Proverbs 1-9," 92-108, esp. 99-104.

2 The epithets ΓΠΤ Π^Χ/ΠΙΤ, "Stranger" Woman (2:16; 5:3, 20; 7:5), Π·η?3, "Foreign" Woman (2:16; 5:20; 6:24; 7:5), 271 Πψ'Χ, "Evil" Woman (6:24), ΠΤίΤ "Promiscuous Woman" (6:26; cf. 7:10), tf'X n p , "Wife of Another" (6:26), Win Πψ'Χ, "Wife of his Neighbor" (6:29), and n i ^ p ? Πψ'Χ, and "Woman of Folly" (9:13) refer to one female figure. This is demonstrated by: (1) the use of identical and similar and lexical terms and themes to describe the various women; (2) the parallel use of a cluster of personified attributes to identify Woman Wisdom (cf. 2:10-11; 4:5-9; 7:4; 8:1), and (3) a macrostructure that juxtaposes speeches by and about Wisdom with those by

74 Wisdom as a Woman of Substance in Socioeconomic Context

the father warns his son that association with the "Stranger" Woman results in the alienation of land. In 5:7-14, he cautions that involvement with her carries a double penalty: bankruptcy at the hands of foreigners and utter disgrace in the community.3 In short, the description of the "Stranger" Woman in Proverbs 1-9 in part reflects anxiety about the socioeconomic power of foreign women in Persian-period Palestine. As H. Washington states, the "Stranger" Woman became "technical terminology"4 for "outsider" women with power, specifically economic power, to endanger the stability of the community.

Given the fruit of these studies, it is surprising that the economic dimensions of the "Stranger" Woman's counterpart, Woman Wisdom, have not been seen in the same way to reflect the socioeconomic power of Persian-period women.5 The two figures are described in notably similar terms: both contend for the young man's intimate attention, use speech to persuade (e.g., 1:20-33; 7:14-21; 8:4-36), move about in the streets (1:20-21; 7:10-12; 8:2-3), and make similar invitations to their respective houses for a feast (9:4-6, 16-17). Moreover, it is likely that Woman Wisdom was developed as a secondary elaboration, or "reverse mirror image," of the "Stranger" Woman.6 Therefore, if the

and about Woman of Folly (cf. Yee, " Ί Have Perfumed My Bed with Myrrh,'" 54).

3 See Washington, "The Strange Woman," 235-41; Blenkinsopp, "The Social Context of the Outsider Woman,'" 467-72.

4 Washington, "The Strange Woman," 223. 5 Although scholars have suggested that Woman Wisdom may reflect the status

and circumstances of women in Persian-period Palestine (e.g., Camp, Wisdom and the Feminine, 258-65), there has been to my knowledge no detailed socioeconomic reading of her or of the V'rriWN (Prov 31:10-31) in that context.

6 So Blenkinsopp, "The Social Context of the Outsider Woman,'" 466-67. See also R. J. Clifford, "Woman Wisdom in the Book of Proverbs," in Biblische Theologie und gesellschaftlicher Wandel für Norbert Lohfink, S. J., ed. G. Braulik, W. Groß, and S. McEvenue (Freiburg: Herder, 1993), 63; idem, The Wisdom Literature, IBT (Nashville: Abingdon, 1998), 55. A similar warning about the "Stranger" Woman is found in the Egyptian Instruction of Ani that dates to the late second millennium BCE (cf. M. Lichtheim, Ancient Egyptian Literature, Vol. II: The New Kingdom [Berkeley: University of California Press, 1976], 136-37). Cautions about wanton women—harimtu (prostitutes), Ishtar-women, and kulmasitu (devotees of gods)—are attested in Babylonian wisdom literature of the same period (e.g., Counsels of Wisdom, lines 72-80, in W. G. Lambert, Babylonian Wisdom Literature [Oxford: Clarendon, 1960], 103; cf. Washington, "The Strange Woman," 221-23). By comparison, the figure of Woman Wisdom is without a parallel in wisdom literature and

A Socioeconomic Reading of the Woman of Substance (Prov 31:10-31) 75

sage's description of the "Stranger" Woman reflects the economic realities of women, might not the same be true for Woman Wisdom? To consider this question, I begin with a socioeconomic reading of the Woman of Substance (Prov 31:10-31) in the context of Persian-period Palestine. Next, using lexical and thematic parallels, I argue that the Woman of Substance and Woman Wisdom—women who "frame" the book of Proverbs—essentially coalesce as one figure. I then explore how the sage urges an intimate relationship with Wisdom using the metaphor of marriage to a Persian-period Woman of Substance. Finally, I consider some social-historical and theological implications of this reading.

B. A Socioeconomic Reading of the Woman of Substance (Proverbs 31:10-31)

The book of Proverbs ends with a literary portrait of the VTrntPX. The frame of the portrait, that of an alphabetic acrostic, is sequential and complete, suggesting that 31:10-31 was written for a literate audience. The portrait in the frame, however, perhaps due to the exigencies of the acrostic, is painted as a series of disjointed, even "random,"7 descriptions of the various attributes and activities ascribed to the ^Τπηψ'Κ (31:10).8 There is no apparent thematic order9 apart from the broad strokes of an introduction (31:10-12), an enumeration of her qualities and deeds (31:13-27), and concluding praise (31:28-31). Rather, Prov 31:10-31 reads much like an impressionistic painting. Viewed up close, the individual brush strokes seem scattered and

proposed analogs from Mesopotamia and Egypt (e.g., Ishtar, Isis, Macat) remain dubious.

7 McKane, Proverbs, 666. See also Toy, Book of Proverbs, 542; Whybray, Proverbs, 426; T. P. McCreesh, "Wisdom as Wife: Proverbs 31:10-31," RB 92 (1985): 31.

8 None of the proposed thematic or structural outlines of the poem has received widespread support. See, e.g., A. Wolters, "Proverbs XXXI 10-31 as Heroic Hymn: A Form Critical Analysis," VT 38 (1988): 446-57; Μ. H. Lichtenstein, "Chiasm and Symmetry in Proverbs 31," CBQ 44 (1982): 202-11; T. R. Hawkins, The Meaning and Function of Proverbs 31:10-31 in the Book of Proverbs (Ann Arbor, Mich.: University Microfilms, 1995), 6-59.

9 There are, for example, four non-consecutive references to the woman's textile industry (31:13, 19, 22, 24).


haphazard, but from only a step or two away, dots and splatters merge to become the cumulative10 portrait of a woman.

The poem begins with an identification of the woman to whom it pays tribute as an νΤΓΓίψ'Ν (31:10). At issue is what it means for a woman, here a wife (cf. 31:11-12, 23, 28), to be described as having V n. Throughout the Hebrew Bible, the term VTI refers broadly to the quality of strength11 and is used of men who are soldiers,12 officers,13 or brave warriors. 4 These persons are able-bodied, courageous, and loyal in their service. Several texts point also to their comparative wealth (e.g., 2 Kgs 15:20; 24:14). Elsewhere, the term VTI refers to wealth, property,15 and profits from trade.16 Men with ^Π in these contexts are professionals (e.g., 1 Chr 26:7-9, 30, 32), managers of property (Gen 47:6), landowners, or community leaders (Exod 18:21, 25; Ruth 2:1). Generally, then, men with VTI are men of power and capacity. They are persons of prominence, wealth, professional skill, or loyalty—men of "substance."17 Yet, when a woman with VTI is identified as the subject of Prov 31:10-31, her title is variously translated as "a good wife,"18 "a capable wife,"19 "the good housewife,"20 "a true lady,"21 "a wife of

10 So McCreesh, "Wisdom as Wife," 31. 11 See, e.g., Judg 3:29; 1 Sam 2:4; Ps 18:33,40; Qoh 10:10; Zech 4:6. 12 The term "7'ΓΙ is used to designate "armed forces" (e.g., Exod 14:4; Deut 11:4;

1 Chr 20:1; Jer 32:2; Ezek 17:17) and individuals or groups serving as soldiers, including Υ-ΠΠ (Josh 1:14; Judg 6:12; 11:1; 2 Kgs 24:14; 1 Sam 16:18; 1 Chr 12:9; 2 Chr 17:13), (e.g., Judg 20:44, 46; 2 Sam 11:16; 24:9), and VTI n i3 J O W (1 Chr 5:24; 8:40).

13 So D'Win n fc (e.g., 1 Kgs 15:20//2 Chr 16:4; 2 Kgs 9:5; 2 Sam 24:2, 4; Jer 40:7, 13; Neh 2:9) and VTin n i p ? (e.g., Num 31:14; 2 Kgs 11:15; 2 Chr 23:14).

14 See, e.g., Judg 11:1; Num 24:18; 1 Sam 14:48; 2 Sam 11:16; Deut 3:18; 1 Chr 11:22; Pss 60:14; 108:14.

15 See, e.g., Gen 34:29; Num 31:9; Deut 8:17; 1 Kgs 10:2//2 Chr 9:1; Ezek 28:5; Zech 14:14; Isa 8:4; Jer 15:13.

16 See, e.g., Ezek 28:5; Job 20:18. 17 So E. F. Campbell, Ruth: A New Translation with Introduction and

Commentary, AB 7 (Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1975), 90. 18 So RSV; Whybray, Proverbs, 425-26; K. Aitken, Proverbs (Philadelphia:

Westminster, 1986), 155; D. Cox, Proverbs with an Introduction to Sapiential Books, Old Testament Message 17 (Wilmington, Del.: Michael Glazier, 1982), 250; cf. "good wife or worthy wife," in McCreesh, "Wisdom as Wife," 25.

19 Clifford argues: "the most suitable title is Hymn to (or perhaps Encomuim of) the Capable Wife" (Proverbs, 272). See also NRSV; NEB; Scott,

A Socioeconomic Reading of the Woman of Substance (Prov 31:10-31) 7 7

many parts,"22 or "an ideal wife."23 With some exceptions,24 there is a notable reticence to use the same language of "substance," power, and wealth for her as is used for her male counterparts, despite all evidence to the contrary.

The question ΧΧΏ"' "»ö ("who can find?") in 31:10a initially suggests that this woman is a rarity.25 Indeed, although there are many "men of Vri" in the Hebrew Bible, there are only two references to Women of Substance outside of Prov 31:10-31. In Prov 12:4, a Woman of Substance is described as the "crown of her husband" (in contrast to the wife who brings shame) and, in Ruth 3:11, Boaz assures Ruth that the community knows her to be a Woman of Substance. These women are celebrated for their exceptional devotion and self-sacrifice—one for the honor she brings to her husband (Prov 12:4) and the other for her loyalty, persistence, and resourcefulness (Ruth 3:10-11). The implication of both texts is that such women are uncommon.

But there is more to the question WW 'ft (31:10a) than an alleged dearth of Women of Substance. The question is paralleled by the phrase: "her purchase price (ΓΠ???) is more than corals" (31:10b). This wife is not only difficult to find (XXÖ), it seems. She is expensive to

Proverbs/Ecclesiastes, 185; Meinhold, Die Sprüche, 1:520; Waegeman, "The Perfect Wife of Proverbia 31:10-31," 101; and "the capable woman" in J. J. Collins, Proverbs/Ecclesiastes, Knox Preaching Guides (Atlanta: John Knox, 1980), 68-70.

20 W. G. E. Watson, Classical Hebrew Poetry: A Guide to its Techniques, JSOTSup 26 (Sheffield: JSOT, 1986), 194.

21 Scott, Proverbs/Ecclesiastes, 186. 22 McKane, Proverbs, 665. 23 Whybray, The Composition of the Book of Proverbs, 154; R. E. Murphy,

Wisdom Literature: Job, Proverbs, Ruth, Canticles, Ecclesiastes and Esther, ed. R. Kneirim and G. Tucker, FOTL 13 (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1981), 82.

24 See, e.g., "strong woman" (Κ. M. O'Connor, The Wisdom Literature, Message of Biblical Spirituality 5 [Collegeville, Minn.: Liturgical, 1988], 77-79), "woman of worth" (Camp, Wisdom and the Feminine, 90; C. R. Fontaine, "Proverbs," in The Women's Bible Commentary, ed. C. Newsom and S. Ringe [Louisville, Ky.: Westminster John Knox, 1992], 151), "woman of valour" (A. Cohen, Proverbs [Hindhead, Surrey: Soncino, 1945], 211), and "valiant woman," (Wolters, "Proverbs XXXI 10-31 as Heroic Hymn," 446-57; idem, "Söpiyyä [Prov 31:27] as Hymnic Participle," 577-87).

25 Whereas the question XXp1 'Q is used rhetorically elsewhere to imply an impossibility (Prov 20:6; Qoh 7:24), references to such women in Prov 12:4 and Ruth 3:11 suggest that the question here has to do with scarcity (cf. Whybray, Proverbs, 426).


attain (X¥D).26 She has a "purchase price." She, unlike any "man with VO," is regarded as both person and merchandise. The Woman of Prov 31:10-31 is, in this respect, a typical bride of the Persian period. Money measured the worth of women's dowries and, "in so doing, willy-nilly also measured the 'financial worth' of those who brought [the dowries]."27 Women were often, in effect, assigned a "purchase price." For the Egyptian slave woman at Elephantine, Ta(pe)met, that price was initially just over seven shekels (TAD II, 3.3). In contrast, the older free widow Miptahiah was "worth" 60'/2 shekels (TAD II, 2.6) and Ta(pe)met's daughter Jehoishma, also a free woman, was valued at just over 68 shekels (TAD II, 3.8). The most desirable bride, one of high "price," brought wealth, property, and socioeconomic advantage to her husband. In some cases, as in Miptahiah's marriage to Eshor (TAD II, 2.6), Ina-Esagila-ramät's to Iddin-Marduk (Nbk 265=Liv 154), and Amat-Bau's to Marduk-näsir-apli (Dar 26; BOR 2 3), her wealth afforded her husband a life of luxury and privilege he might otherwise not have known.28

The businesslike dynamics of marriage provide a backdrop against which to interpret the explanation for the high "price" of the Woman of Substance given in Prov 31:11-12. There, her husband is said to trust her not because he loves her, but because he never lacks for "loot" ( ^ ψ , 31:11). His "plunder" from what she brings home makes him a wealthy man. As her husband, he is able to draw upon her dowry money and property for his own purposes and he profits from her additional earnings, inheritances, bequests, or supplemental dowry gifts.29 In short, he can live off of her. She even "treats him well" (inn^DÄ), looking after him all the days of her life (31:12). These two verses make explicit what was implicit: the Woman of Substance is a desirable spouse because she guarantees the financial well-being of her husband. As a bride of high "price," she makes it possible for him to live as a wealthy man.

This instruction to marry a woman for wealth is set in a socioeconomic context analogous to that of Persian-period Palestine. A

26 For XXQ with the sense "to attain, obtain, or achieve" see, e.g., Hos 12:9 [Eng. v. 8]; Job 31:25; Lev 12:8; and Gen 26:12. See also A. R. Ceresko, "The Function of Antanaclasis (ms^"to find" // msJ "to reach, overtake, grasp") in Hebrew Poetry, Especially in the Book of Qoheleth," CBQ 44 (1982): 551 -69.

27 Seow, "The Socioeconomic Context," 173. 28 See chapter two, 52-53. 29 Ibid., 52-56.


concentration of terms in Prov 31:10-31 suggests such a cosmopolitan marketplace. There are "Canaanites" (31:24), a term that has come to mean "traders." In the Persian period, the name was synonymous with the "Phoenicians,"30 maritime traders who densely populated the coast31 and traded throughout the Mediterranean.32

Phoenician coins, jewelry, pendants of colored glass, and figurines are common among the Persian-period artifacts at a number of inland sites in Palestine.33 Nehemiah tells of Tyrian (Phoenician) merchants selling their wares in the Jerusalem marketplace (Neh 13:16). Ezra reports that Sidonians (Phoenicians) and Tyrians were paid to import Lebanon cedar to Joppa for use in rebuilding the temple (Ezra 3:7). At Elephantine, custom accounts of import and export duties record the

30 See J. Elayi, "The Phoenician Cities in the Persian Period," JANES 12(1980): 14; Stern, Dor: Ruler of the Seas, 21.

31 This was due, in part, to the Persian relegation of the administration of the Carmel and Sharon coastal regions to the Sidonians. An inscription on the sarcophagus of Eshmuncazar, king of Sidon, tells of the Persian grant of Dor and Joppa to him as a reward for his services: "...the Lord of Kings gave us Dor and Joppa, the mighty lands of Dagon, which are in the plain of Sharon, in accordance with the important deeds which I did, and we added them to the borders of the country so that they would belong to Sidon" (CIS 3; cf. J. Elayi, "Studies in Phoenician Geography during the Persian Period," JNES 41 [1982]: 98).

32 It is likely that the Phoenicians made an effort to control the major trade routes in Palestine and the surrounding regions. Phoenician scripts dated to the Persian period have been found as far away as Tell el-Kheleifeh, a way station on the trade route along the shore of the Red Sea (N. Glueck, "Tell el-Kheleifeh Inscriptions," in Near Eastern Studies in Honor of W. F. Albright, ed. H. Goedicke [Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press, 1971], 229-34; Elayi, "The Phoenician Cities," 15).

33 Inland sites where Phoenician Persian-period artifacts have been discovered include Samaria, Lachish, Megiddo, Hazor, Wadi Däliyeh, En-Gedi, and Gezer (Stern, Material Culture, 1-8, 29-30, 38-44). A Persian-period ostracon listing four or five Hebrew and Phoenician PNN was discovered at Jokneam in the Jezreel valley (A. Ben-Tor, "Jokneam," in vol. 3 of The New Encyclopedia of Archaeological Excavations in the Holy Land, ed. E. Stern [Jerusalem: Israel Exploration Society and Carta; New York: Simon and Schuster, 1993], 807). Sidonian inscriptions dating to the mid-fifth century BCE demonstrate familiarity with Hebrew literature and religious practices (J. C. Greenfield, "Scripture and Inscription: The Literary and Rhetorical Element in Some Early Phoenician Inscriptions," in Near Eastern Studies in Honor of W. F. Albright, ed. H. Goedicke [Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press, 1971], 253-68).


import of Sidonian wine for the royal storehouses.34 The Phoenicians were well known as manufacturers and traders of textiles, an industry that apparently flourished along the coast during the Persian period.35

The hallmark of this industry was the production and export of purple-dye—an expensive fast-color, non-fading dye extracted from marine snails.36 Remains o f Persian-period purple dye manufacturing installations have been uncovered at Appolonia-Arsuf and Dor.37 The red-purple 31:22) worn by the Woman of Substance is one of two known varieties they produced.

There are other terms in Prov 31:10-31 indicative of a commercial economy. First, the root "1Π0, with the meaning "to wander about as a merchant or trader," is attested twice: once as an active participle in the phrase ΊΠΊΟ ΓΓΡΙΝ, "merchant ships" (31:14) and once as the noun Hip, "merchant profit" (31:18; cf. Isa 23:3, 18; 45:14). Phoenician

34 See TAD III, 3.7Gr2.8; 3.7Dv2.6, and the (partially) restored 3.7Fr3.9; 3.7Fv3.4; 3.7Gv2.6. The phrase "and to a Sidonian" ΟΠ'ϊ 'Π) is attested in a fragmented text of the Instruction of Ahiqar (TAD ΙΠ, 1.1.207). The remains of nearly sixty Phoenician jars used for the transport of wine were also discovered in two adjacent rooms of a building at Elephantine (cf. Porten, Archives from Elephantine, 85).

35 At Shiqmona, for example, a sixth century BCE weaving workshop was discovered. The large one room shop contained dozens of clay weights of assorted sizes and storage jars filled with smaller weights (J. Elgavish, "Shiqmona," in vol. 4 of The New Encyclopedia of Archaeological Excavations in the Holy Land, ed. E. Stern [Jerusalem: Israel Exploration Society and Carta; New York: Simon and Schuster, 1993], 1375). At Dor, spindle whorls and loom weights were found in nearly every excavated area, particularly in residential buildings (Stern, Dor: Ruler of the Seas, 194).

36 See E. Spanier, ed., The Royal Purple and the Biblical Blue (Argaman and Tekhelet): The Study of Chief Rabbi Dr. Isaac Herzog on the Dye Industries in Ancient Israel and Recent Scientific Contributions (Jerusalem: Keter, ca.1987); A. Raban and R. R. Stieglitz, Phoenicians on the Northern Coast of Israel in the Biblical Period (Israel: The Reuben and Edith Hecht Museum, University of Haifa, 1993), 10*, 27*-28*; L. Jensen, "Royal Purple of Tyre," JNES 22 (1963): 104-18; I. Ziderman, "Seashells and Ancient Purple Dyeing," BA 53 (1990): 98-101.

37 Excavations at Tel Dor in 1986 found an intact purple dye manufacturing installation and a dump in the center of town containing vessels and waste products (shells, limes, etc.) from the dye industry (Stern and Sharon, "Tel Dor, 1986: Preliminary Report," 208; cf. Stern, Dor: Ruler of the Seas, 195-99).

38 The participial form is used for the profession of peddling and merchandizing (e.g., Ezek 27:36; 38:13; 1 Kgs 10:28; 2 Chr 1:16; Isa 23:2, 8).


tomb inscriptions dating to the postexilic period (sixth to second centuries BCE) found at Carthage include two for sons of male merchants (ΊΠ0)39 and one for a woman "merchant of the city" (mj?n ΓΠΠΟ).40 Second, the root 1DD occurs twice (31:10, 24). As a verb, it refers to the act of selling (31:24). As a noun, it means "trade" (Sir 42:4b), "purchase price" (31:10; cf. Num 20:19), or "saleable items" (Neh 13:16). The root "DÜ is at home in the Persian-period economy. Nehemiah recounts that Tyrians brought their merchandise (1DQ) and sold (D'HD'Q) it in the Jerusalem marketplace (Neh 13:16). The "people of the land" brought goods to sell ("lisp'?, Neh 10:32). Further, two slave sale deeds found at Wadi Däliyeh contain the receipt-quittance formula "PDÖ TtJX ("[the sale price] is paid, received").41 Finally, the poem includes references to flax (D'JW'S, 31:13) and linen (WW, 31:22), products imported to Palestine from Egypt.42 This cluster of terms, particularly in such a short poem, suggests a commercial setting with international merchants, imported and exported products, and lively trade for profit.

In this socioeconomic context, the Woman of Substance makes her "loot" as a savvy businesswoman who refuses to eat "bread of idleness" (ΓΠ"??ν DH^)—food not earned by her own work (31:27b). Her primary industry is the spinning and weaving of textiles, work symbolic of women's skill throughout the ancient Near East. Even queens and wealthy women are described or depicted holding a spindle.43 She acquires the raw materials of wool and flax (31:13). She puts her hands to the spinning tools (31:19).44 And she works ITD? f sn? (31:13b), a

39 CIS 5967; 5993; see H. Benichou-Safar, Les Tombes Puniques de Carthage: Topographie, Structures, Inscriptions et Rites Funer aires Etudes d'Antiquites Africaines (Paris: Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, 1982), 213 (No. 29), 220 (No. 55).

40 CIS 5948 (KAI 92); Benichou-Safar, Les Tombes Puniques de Carthage, 209 (No. 10).

41 SP 3:3, 8; 7:5 (Gropp, "The Samaria Papyri from Wadi ed-Daliyeh: The Slave Sales," 63-68,105-11).

42 See I. Jacob and W. Jacob, "Flora," in ABD 2:815. 43 See, e.g., Judg 16:14; ANEP 43, pi. 144 (P. Bird, Missing Persons and

Mistaken Identities: Women and Gender in Ancient Israel, OBT [Minneapolis, Minn.: Augsburg Fortress, 1997], 59).

44 The precise meanings of "TiU S, a hapax legomenon, and its parallel (nonpausal cf. 2 Sam 3:29) in 31:19 remain disputed. Traditionally construed as technical terms for spinning tools, the former is commonly rendered "distaff' and the latter as "spindle" or "spindle-whorl." For recent


phrase often translated "with willing hands" based on the meaning "delight" for Γ?Π.45 The noun fSH, however, may also refer to a "matter" or "activity" (e.g., Qoh 3:1, 17; 5:7; 8:646). In an Aramaic inscription from Sefire, fSH means "business."47 At Qumran, fan is used for specific tasks or assignments done by individuals (CD 14:12; 1QS 3.17). The word ?|ssrj in Sir 10:26 is translated in Greek τό έργον σου ("your work"). This meaning of the term also continues in Postbiblical Hebrew (e.g., Moced Qat. 9b; Sabb. 113a).48 The larger context of Prov 31:10-31 suggests that it is this sense of fDH, namely "work" or "business," that is appropriate in 31:13b. Binding up her skirts49 and strengthening her arms (for work, so LXX; 31:17), the Woman of Substance sets about her task. She makes textiles for herself (31:22) and, presumably, the members of her household. She manufactures other textiles and trades them in the marketplace. She produces clothing CptO)50 and sells (Ϊ30Γ1) it and she trades belts with the Phoenicians (31:24). The textile industry is, quite literally, the "business" (fsrr) of her hands (31:13b).

And she is successful at it. Her business is profitable. In 31:16, she invests from the "fruit of her hands" (ITS? 1 "!?<?), from her earnings.51

discussion, see A. Wolters, "The Meaning of Kisör (Prov 31:19)," HUCA 65 (1994): 91-104; G. A. Rendsburg, "Double Polysemy in Proverbs 31:19," in Humanism, Culture, and Language in the Near East: Studies in Honor of Georg Krotkoff, ed. A. Afsaruddin and Α. Η. M. Zahniser (Winona Lake, Ind.: Eisenbrauns, 1997), 267-74.

45 So NRSV, RSV; see also "at the pleasure of her hands" (Clifford, Proverbs, 275; cf. Toy, Book of Proverbs, 544); "delights to work with her hands" (Scott, Proverbs/Ecclesiastes, 185, 187).

46 LXX translates Τ3Π in Qoh 3:1, 17; 5:7; and 8:6 as πράγμα ("matter, occurrence").

47 J. A. Fitzmyer, The Aramaic Inscriptions of Sefire, rev. ed., BibOr 19/A (Rome: Editrice Pontificio Institute Biblico, 1995), 150 (Sf 3:8); cf. Seow, Ecclesiastes, 159-60.

48 Jastrow, Dictionary, 492. 49 Lit. "she girds up her loins with strength." The sense is to tuck up the skirts of

a garment in preparation for a prolonged activity (e.g., Exod 12:11; 2 Kgs 4:29; 9:1).

50 Attested only here, Judg 14:12-13, and Isa 3:23 (where it is listed among the fineries of wealthy women), the precise meaning of p^D (LXX σινδόνας) remains disputed. The term may refer to a fine fabric and/or to a type of garment made of such fabric (cf. Akkadian saddinnu).

51 See Whybray, Proverbs, 427; Murphy, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, 155; Toy, Proverbs, 544.


She is compared to merchant ships ("ΐΠίΟ rfl'JN, 31:14), and she perceives (ΠΏΓΟ) that her merchant-profit (ΓΠΠ0) is good (31:18a). That is, she knows from experience that her earnings are significant. The parallel phrase "her lamp is not extinguished at night" (31:18b) suggests, first, that she can afford to burn her lamp far into the evening and, secondly, that her profits are due at least in part to her tireless attention to business matters (31:18b). She burns the midnight oil to be sure that her profits last. She even rises before dawn to gain the advantage (31:15).52 Given the repeated emphasis on her success, the poem's concluding refrain is not surprising: "Ascribe to her53 the fruit of her hands (iTV "HSi?) and let her works (PPti^D) praise her at the gates" (31:31, emphases added)! There is no question. The Woman of Substance is a shrewd merchant whose business operates in the black.

To marry the Woman of Substance is to live a life of luxury. Her household enjoys the trappings of privilege and wealth. First, there are fine foods and expensive goods. Like merchant ships ("ΐΓΓίΟ nisJX) importing goods from foreign lands, the Woman of Substance brings food "from afar" to her household (31:14). The ambiguity of this expression lends itself to (at least) two interpretations. On the one hand, she buys the food at a location away from home. On the other, the food she purchases is itself imported "from afar;" it is an expensive delicacy. Either way (and perhaps both are intended), the point is that her family does not live the hand-to-mouth existence of a subsistence agrarian culture. Rather, they consume what she buys, barters for, or otherwise

52 Particularly in military contexts, one arises in the night (Π"?1.1? Dip) in order to gain an advantage over a rival or enemy (e.g., Judg 9:34; 16:3; 2 Sam 17:1; 2 Kgs 7:12; Jer6:5).

53 So MT (lit. "Give to her of the fruit of her hands"). That is, give her credit and recognition for the fruits of her labor. There is no need to emend the qal imperative from ]Π3 ("to give") to the piel imperative Ί3Γ) from Π3Π ("to recount, rehearse;" so, e.g., W. A. van der Weiden, Le Livre des Proverbes: Notes philologiques, BibOr 23 [Rome: Biblical Institute, 1970], 155-56; Wolters, Proverbs XXXI 10-31 as Heroic Hymn," 449, 456). The qal imperative of fD3 is attested elsewhere in ascriptions of praise (e.g., Ps 68:35 [Eng. v. 34]) and of condemnation (e.g., Ps 28:4). Note, particularly, Ps 28:4:

Ascribe to them (OnVjri) according to their work and according to the evil of their deeds;

Ascribe to them (Oi lΤ Fl) according to the work of their hands (DrPT; nTOD?); render to them their due reward.


acquires in the streets and marketplaces. In the Persian period, markets throughout Palestine offered a host of imported wares and fine goods, including food, ceramics, precious metals, alabaster, glass, and jewelry. In Jerusalem, merchants plied their goods, people treaded winepresses, animals were loaded with heaps of grain, grapes and figs, and Tyrian merchants sold fish and other products, even on the Sabbath (Neh 13:15-16). At Elephantine, women moved about in the markets buying, selling, and bartering for various goods, including salt (TAD IV, 7.2; 7.7), vegetables, barley (TAD IV, 7.16), cucumber seed {TAD IV, 7.3),54 grain (CIS II, 137), and oil (TAD I, 2.2; 2.5).

Royal women, women of the court, and workers also brought food "from afar" in the form of royal provisions. Royal women independently and with others ordered food supplies from the royal storehouses. Artystone's seal is affixed to orders for grain (PF 730), flour (PF 731), and wine (PF 732) to be distributed at various locations. She ordered additional provisions with Arsames (PF 733-734, 2035) and, on one occasion by order of Darius I, received two thousand quarts of wine (PF 1795) and one hundred sheep (Fort. 6754). Irdabama and other women of high rank similarly ordered and/or received royal foodstuffs (e.g., PF 162-63, 171, 193, 309, 735-40, 784, 823). Non-royal women were issued rations as workers in the royal economy. Account lists from Elephantine show that some women received distributions of emmer, barley, and oil as members of the garrison (TAD III, 3.13; 3.18; 3.26; cf. TAD II, 5.5). The Persepolis Fortification texts record the disbursement of rations, including wine, beer, sheep, grain, and flour, to female workers. For women of high social or professional rank, the quantities could be significant. Arassap typically received monthly rations of fifty quarts of grain (PF 865, 866), thirty quarts of wine (PF 875-76, 879, 1012) and, on occasion, meat (PF 1790). Women pasap workers were also issued sizeable monthly rations, presumably for specialized labor.

Those in the household of the Woman of Substance wear only the finest garments. Her family is clothed in "scarlet" (• ,}ψ)55 and,

54 Dupont-Sommer, "Un ostracon," 67; Porten, Archives from Elephantine, 276. 55 So MT (Π'3ψ). Some ancient versions, however, reflect Hebrew

n\Vp ("double" garments; cf. LXX, Vulgate). Although "scarlet" is usually •W, it is attested in the plural form (Π'ίψ) here and in Isa 1:18. In Isa 1:18, its parallelism with "snow" (Ι^ψ) which is white, suggests that "scarlet" is correct despite the plural form. That the issue in Prov 31:21 is the quality of the garments ("scarlet") and not their quantity ("double garments") is further


accordingly, she need not fear for snow (31:21). An expensive dye, scarlet was a color of wealth, luxury (1 Sam 1:24; Jer 4:30; cf. Rev 18:12, 16) and royalty (Matt 27:28). It was used on clothing of quality, not cheap, thin fabrics that would offer little protection from the cold.56

This demand for quality in the garments of her family is similarly evident in the high quality of her own. The Woman of Substance wears imported Egyptian linen QDp, 31:22) and clothing dyed in Phoenician red-purple (|ΏΓΊΧ, 31:22). Linen is associated with wealth (e.g., Ezek 16:10, 13) and royalty (e.g., 1 Chr 15:27); in Isa 3:23, linen garments are listed among the accoutrements of wealthy women. Similarly, purple is the color of royal garments (Judg 8:36; Est 8:15; cf. Mark 15:17, 20; John 19:2, 5), the seat of the king's palanquin (Song 3:10), and decorations in the Persian court (Est 1:6). The rich man in Luke 16:19 is clothed in purple and fine linen. Scarlet, red-purple, and linen textiles, further, are the stuff of the tabernacle, the house of the royal divine king.57 Even in the abstract, the Woman of Substance wears garments of dignity and power (31:25; cf. Isa 52:1; Ps 104:1; Job 40:10). In sum, the Woman of Substance, her husband, and her children dress in garments fit for a royal household.

At night, thanks to the work of her hands, they sleep in similar finery. The Woman of Substance makes Q173"l<? (31:22). The word marbadu is found in a fragmented tablet from El Amarna (120:21) parallel to an unknown type of garment.58 It is also attested in the royal archives from Ugarit. In one inventory list (CTU 4.385.9-10), mrbd is parallel to mskbt, "bed" (cf. Prov 7:16). In another {CTU 4.270.11), the term explicitly refers to the "coverings" of the king (mrbdt mlk). Further, the verb rbd is used for the act of "covering" a bed with royal covers (cf. Prov 7:16).59 The made by the Woman of Substance (31:22), therefore, are the bed coverings of royalty. Likely thick and

indicated by the emphasis placed on the quality of her garments in the parallel verse (31:22).

56 At Ugarit, for example, one scarlet garment cost eighteen shekels while an ordinary, non-scarlet one cost five shekels (CTU4.146.8; cf. CTU4.146.6).

57 Scarlet was the color of curtains, veils, and other items (e.g., Exod 26:1; 35:6, 23, 35; 38:23; Num 4:8). Linen was used for the priestly vestments (e.g., Exod 28:5, 39; 39:3) and red-purple was the color of priestly garments and other articles (Exod 26:1; 28:6,15, 31).

58 A. Rainey, El Amarna Tablets (359-379): Supplement to J.A. Knudtzon Die El-Amarna-Tafeln, 2d ed., AOAT 8 (Neukirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener, 1978), 81.

59 Ugaritica 7, 42:25.


expensive, they are yet another example of the quality goods enjoyed by those in her household.

The Woman of Substance has a staff of "young women/girls" (31:15). The term ΓΤί"|}73 may refer to female freeborn servants or slaves who did primarily domestic labor. To have even one servant was a mark of privilege. In the Hebrew Bible, women with ni"li73 are royalty or from well-to-do families: the daughter of Pharaoh (Exod 2:5), Esther (Est 4:4, 16), Abigail (1 Sam 25:42), Naaman's wife (ΓΠ173, 2 Kgs 5:2, 4), and Rebekah (Gen 24:61). Similarly, affluent women in Persian-period Mesopotamia frequently received three to five slaves (male and female) as part of their dowries and might purchase or receive more by bequest, inheritance, or dowry compensation. Slaves given to women by their mothers, grandmothers, or aunts as part of supplemental dowry gifts were predominantly female, possibly young handmaids or the bride's own nursemaid to ease her transition into the marital home.60

At the same time, ni"li73 can be young female workers, like the contingent of female harvesters in the fields of Boaz (Ruth 2:5, 8, 22-23; 3:2). The Woman of Substance might thus have a female workgroup (ni~lV3), possibly weavers or other laborers who assist in her textile industry. This would not have been unusual in the Persian period. Women and girls were well represented in the work force, doing both skilled and unskilled labor. In numbers equivalent to or greater than those of men,61 women labored alongside men and boys

fO

and in predominantly female groups such as the pasap and the harrinup.63 Royal women and women of the court often employed workgroups of varying size on their estates. Irdabama, in particular, had a large work force designated as the kurtas Irdabamana.64 Some non-royal women served as arassap, supervising sizeable groups of male and female workers.65 A supervisor or employer had the responsibility of providing rations for her workers. Hence, in Prov 31:15, the Woman of Substance gives j?Tl ("an allotted portion") to her female workers (n1n»3). The parallel terms DHV, "food" (31:14) and "food"

60 Roth, "The Material Composition of the Neo-Babylonian Dowry," 12-17. 61 See chapter two, 60 n. 101. 62 See PF 847, 999, 1089-91, 1128-29, 1165, 1171,1184, 1201-3, 1236. 63 See PF 996, 1051-52, 1086-87. 64 See chapter two, 64-65. 65 See PF 865, 866, 875, 876, 879, 1012, 1790.


(31:15; cf. Ps 111:5; Mai 3:10) suggest that ρ'Π here refers to an "allotted portion" or ration of food (cf. Prov 30:8).

In addition to imported delicacies, fine clothing, and workers, the Woman of Substance buys and develops real estate for more money. She considers a field (ΓΠψ) and acquires it (31:16a). Then, in a smart business move, she draws from her earnings to plant the field as a vineyard (D"13, 31:16b). She thus converts the field into income-generating property. Nehemiah describes people treading winepresses and transporting heaps of grapes and wine to sell in the Jerusalem marketplace (Neh 13:15). It is also likely that wine was being exported. The discovery of native ceramic jars used for the transportation of goods (such as wine, grain, and oil) along the coast and at several inland sites (e.g., Beth Yarah, Tel en-Nasbeh, En-Gedi) suggests the export of such agrarian products.66 Other Persian-period women, particularly those of royal or affluent position, similarly managed and exploited their lands for profit. Records of the Murasü business firm reveal that sizeable rents were paid for use of the "estate of the Lady of the Palace,"67 the extensive properties of Parysatis,68 a canal owned by AmisirP,69 and the lands of Madumitu.70 Likewise, the Persepolis Fortification tablets refer to at least three estates owned and managed directly by Artystone, wife of Darius I, and several by Irdabama, a woman of the court.71 Non-royal women also rented (Nr. 221) and improved property for the purpose of making money (Liv 15). To marry a profitable landowner like the Woman of Substance afforded a financial security that many Jewish men and women were woefully lacking:

There were also those who said, "We are mortgaging our fields (ΊΓΓΠψ), our vineyards (li'DIDI), and our houses so that we may get grain during the famine." And there were those who said, "We have borrowed money for the king's tax on our fields and vineyards. Now,

66 See Hoglund, "The Achaemenid Context," 60-61; Seow, "The Socioeconomic Context," 176; Stern, Material Culture, 109-10.

67 BE 9 28=TuM 2-3 179; BE 9 50. 68 PBS 2/1 38, 50, 60, 75, 105, 146, 147; BE 10 97, 131; TuM 2-3 185. 69 CBS 5199. 70 Ni 508, 538; PBS 2/1 75. 71 Documents bearing their personal seals and letters from both women to their

estate managers demonstrate their involvement in the administration of their properties (e.g., PF 164-68, 735-36, 738-40, 849, 1041-43, 1109, 1835-39, 1857; PFa 27).


we are of the same flesh as our kin and our children are as their children. But we are at the point of selling our sons and daughters into slavery—indeed some of our daughters are enslaved. We are powerless, for our fields and our vineyards belong to others" (Neh 5:3-5).

Further, the Woman of Substance "stretches out her hands" to the poor and needy (31:20). This verse, together with the preceding one (31:19), form a chiasm, centered by repetition of the noun 13 (31:19b; 31:20a) and framed by the phrase ΠΠ^' ΓΡΤ (31:19a; 31:20b):

She stretches out her hands (nrf?ltf r p T j to the distaff and her hands (H'SS) grasp the spindle;

She reaches out her hand (Π33) to the poor She stretches out her hands Π,"Ρτ) to the needy.

The first half of the chiasm is about her hands at work spinning (31:19); the second, her hands at work with the poor (31:20). Identical terminology describes both activities as the labor of her hands. As is commonly noted by interpreters, the chiasm thus associates the woman's industriousness with her generosity; the hands that skillfully weave for profit also reach out to serve others.72 The link of her business with her charity may also suggest that she has money to spare. The earnings from her weaving are enough that she can afford to give some away. She is able to open her hands ( Ι?/!^ 31:20) to the poor because the "fruit of her hands" (13, 31:16; T^ 31:31), namely her profits, are abundant.

In light of the Persian-period socioeconomic context, the chiasm might also be construed to further underscore the woman's keen sense for business. Some Persian-period women extended credit. Ina-Esagila-ramät, for example, made a number of cash and commodity loans worth as little as two shekels (Cyr 303) to as much as five minas (Nr. 232). Her daughter, Nuptaya, loaned silver (Nr. 241), emmer (Nr. 304), and dates (Nr. 372). Amat-Ninlil loaned silver and, in exchange, had the use of land as income-earning property until the money was repaid (Liv 15). Nana-tamsP made a small loan of barley (L-29-594+608). The slave woman Mahitu also had sufficient capital to loan thirty shekels silver to two male slaves (Nr. 196). Business could be profitable. Interest rates were high, ranging annually from 10-40% in

72 See the prohibition in Deut 15:7 against being "tight-fisted" (T7V n ? r'Si?n χ 'η ) with the poor.


Babylon to 60-120% in Elephantine. Read in this light, the work of the Woman's hands with the poor is a "business"—yet another opportunity to increase her earnings.

The husband of the Woman of Substance who, unlike the poor, never lacks for "loot" is found sitting among the elders at the city gates (31:23). For some interpreters, this statement attributes the family's socioeconomic privilege to him. The husband's position among the powerful is due to his own affluence. As such, the Woman of Substance is "the wife of a well-to-do man in ancient

Israel." To ascribe the husband's position to his wealth, however, contradicts the poem's content and rhetorical force. First, whereas there is no mention of the husband's wealth, the poem clearly and repeatedly establishes hers: her "loot," her profits, her investments, and the luxuries she provides (e.g., 31:16, 18, 20-22, 24). Secondly, the statement regarding the husband's sociopolitical position is not distinguished from what is otherwise a catalogue or commercial of her activities. The rank of her husband (31:23) is just one of her many works to which the poem pays tribute. Third, the Woman of Substance is, in fact, known and praised at the gates for her success (31:31). This challenges the notion that her husband is free to "make a name for himself' because she tends quietly behind the scenes to his domestic worries.74 In short, the husband's social prominence among the elders of the land is to be attributed to her. She makes a name for him. Undoubtedly, such a situation occurred with the marriage of Eshor to Miptahiah (TAD II, 2.6).75

Finally, even the words of the Woman of Substance are expensive. She "opens her mouth with wisdom (ΠΏ3Π) and sound teaching is on her tongue" (31:26). What she teaches, namely, wisdom (ΠΏ3Π), is itself a valued commodity to be sought like silver and hidden or buried treasures (Prov 2:4). It is better even than gold (Prov 16:16a). Furthermore, once wisdom is acquired, it can yield socioeconomic advantages. Wisdom in trade, for example, increases wealth (Ezek 28:5). The rooms of a house built by wisdom are filled with costly riches (Prov 24:3-4). Moreover, at the poem's conclusion, the Woman of Substance is identified with "the fear of the Lord" (31:30),76 the 73 Scott, Proverbs/Ecclesiastes, 186; cf. Waegeman, "The Perfect Wife," 101;

M. Crook, "The Marriageable Maiden of Proverbs 31:10-31," JNES 13 (1954): 139-40.

74 McKane, Proverbs, 669. 75 See chapter two, 53. 76 Reading MT ΠΙΠ'-ΠΚΤ. substantively (cf. Prov 1:7; 9:10; 15:33) and in


beginning or epitome (ΓΡψ'ίΠ) of wisdom (Prov 1:7; Ps 111:10). "The fear of the Lord" is more expensive than fine gold (Ps 19:10). Its rewards—embodied in the Woman of Substance—are riches, honor, long life (Prov 22:4; cf. 10:27; 23:17-18), security for oneself (Prov 19:23) and one's children (Prov 14:26). Whereas charm is deceptive (ΊΡψ) and beauty ephemeral (*?2Π, 31:30a), the Woman of Substance ensures prosperity.

By the end of the poem, a prospective groom should have little doubt as to why he ought to find and attain the Woman of Substance (31:10a). Her purchase price is high (31:10b); her wealth and revenues are more. She will bring him a great yield. She affords him a life of luxury and security. She fills her household with the "loot" (31:11) of imported delicacies, the finest of garments, real estate, and cash profits. She secures her husband's position among the elders at the city gate (31:23). Her household is a model of socioeconomic strength, and it remains so due to the work of her hands, her instinct for good business, and her watchful eye (31:27). All is so well, in fact, that she laughs at the day to come (31:25). Her children rise up, a gesture that signals the importance of their declaration (cf. Jer 1:17; Mic 6:1; 1 Chr 28:2), and celebrate her good fortune (31:28) while her husband praises her: "Many women have achieved VTl, but you surpass them all!" (31:29). Many women may make money,77 but the Woman of Substance is a businesswoman par excellence.

Who, then, is this Woman of Substance? The embodiment of a goddess? This socioeconomic reading suggests not. Rather, the Woman of Substance in Prov 31:10-31 is a composite figure of real—albeit exceptional—women in the Persian period. She is a bride priced high for her wealth and socioeconomic potential. She brings home "loot" (her dowry and earnings) that makes her husband a wealthy man. She manufactures and trades in textiles with Phoenician merchants. She

apposition to ΠψΧ ("a woman, fear of the Lord"). MT ΠΧΤ is vocalized as the feminine construct of ΠΧΤ ("fear"), not as the feminine adjective suggested by the common translation "a woman who fears Yahweh" (e.g., NRSV, NIV). One would expect the feminine adjective to be ΠίΟ1. or ΠΧΤ. (cf. McCreesh, "Wisdom as Wife," 28-29 n. 11; Murphy, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, 156).

77 The phrase V'O Πψϊ has the meaning "to make wealth" in Deut 8:17-18; Ezek 28:4.

Lexical and Thematic Parallels 91

moves about, buying and selling, in the marketplaces and around the storehouses. She wears fine garments and clothes her family in the same. She manages workers. She buys real estate, develops it for profit, and still has money left over to give or loan to the poor. In short, her socioeconomic activities mirror those of affluent and royal women in the Persian period. She may be hard to find (X¥D) and even harder to attain (N^O), but she is not a figment of the imagination. As is expected in the wisdom tradition, it was the world—indeed, the women—known to the Persian-period writer that provided the pedagogical device for this wisdom poem. Images from the socioeconomic lives of women are here transformed into instruction for the socioeconomic survival of young men in the postexilic community.

C. The Woman of Substance and Woman Wisdom: Lexical and Thematic Parallels

Previous interpreters have drawn attention to parallels between the Woman of Substance (Prov 31:10-31) and Woman Wisdom in Proverbs 1-9.78 That the two women are to be identified with each other is suggested, first, by lexical parallels. The noun "ΙΠ0 ("merchant profit") occurs in Proverbs only in 31:18 and 3:14. The Woman of Substance knows that her merchant profit is good (31:18); Woman Wisdom's merchant profit is more than that of silver (3:14). Both women are difficult to find/attain (Κ^Ώ, 31:10; cf. 1:28; 8:17) and are more precious than corals 31:10; cf. 3:15 [Q]; 8:11).79 Each has a house (ΓΡ3, 31:15, 21, 27; cf. 9:1) and a staff of young women (rhV3, 31:15; cf. 9:3). They provide food for their companions (QH , 31:14; cf. 9:5) and offer a life of security (Πϋ3, 31:11; cf. 1:33). Both women are known at the city gates (•"'"IVU''): Wisdom by her presence (1:21; 8:3) and the Woman of Substance for her profits and work (31:31) and by

78 See, e.g., A. Barucq, Le Livre des Proverbes, Sources Bibliques (Paris: J. Gabalda, 1964), 231; J.-N. Aletti, "Seduction et parole in Proverbes I-IX," VT 27 (1977): 129-44; McCreesh, "Wisdom as Wife," 25-46; Camp, Wisdom and the Feminine, 186-208; Whybray, The Composition of the Book of Proverbs, 153-62.

79 This term is found only once elsewhere in Proverbs (20:15), where it again is used to compare the value of knowledge to riches: "there is gold and an abundance of D'J'JS, but the lips of knowledge are a precious tool."


her husband (31:23). They stretch out their hands (T) to the needy (31:20; cf. 1:24). Their fruit 01?) is profit (31:16, 31; cf. 8:19). The Woman of Substance does no evil (JH, 31:12); Woman Wisdom hates evil (in, 8:13). They laugh (ρπψ, 31:25; cf. 1:26; 8:30). The children of the Woman of Substance call her happy (πηψΝ,

:1, 31:28). Those who hold fast to Woman Wisdom are made happy 3:18).

There are also thematic parallels. The husband of the Woman of Substance rules among the elders at the city gates (31:23) and never lacks for "loot" (31:11). So, too, those who follow Woman Wisdom are assured a good reputation (3:4, 16) and abundant riches (3:16; 8:18, 21). Both women look out for those in their keeping. The Woman of Substance supervises her household (31:27) and Woman Wisdom guards (4:6) her companions. Both are the bearers of honor: the Woman of Substance wears it (31:25) and Woman Wisdom carries it in her left hand (3:16; cf. 4:8). They teach (31:26; cf. 1:23, 25; 8:6-9, 14, 32-34) and their identities and instructions are associated with "the fear of the Lord" (31:30; cf. 1:29-30; 8:13). They are women of strength (31:17, 25; cf. 8:14). Finally, the Woman of Substance plants a vineyard (31:16); Woman Wisdom mixes wine (9:2).

Lexical and thematic parallels between Prov 31:10-31 and Proverbs 1 -9 further show that the Woman of Substance, like Woman Wisdom, is a counter-figure to the wicked, the foolish, and the "Stranger" Woman. The youth is urged to "find/attain" (X^Q, 31:10) the Woman of Substance. In contrast, the "Stranger" Woman "finds/attains" (Χ^Ώ, 7:15) her companion. The Woman of Substance brings a lifetime of "loot" 31:11) to her husband. The wicked ones' scheme to steal for "loot" leads to certain peril (1:11-19). The tongue 31:26) of the Woman of Substance speaks wise and faithful instruction. The tongue Oity'V, 6:24) of the "Stranger" Woman is smooth with slippery deceit. The husband of the Woman of Substance sits among the elders of the land (f"]X, 31:23). Those who associate with the "Stranger" Woman risk being cut off from the land (ΠΝ, 2:21). The Woman of Substance is driven and industrious (e.g., 31:15, 16, 17, 19-20). The fool (1:32) and the "Stranger" Woman (5:6) are wayward.

Moreover, there are three additional terms that occur in Proverbs only in 31:10-31 and chapters 1-9. The noun "night" (nV'V) is attested only in 31:15, 18, and 7:9. At night, the Woman of Substance tends to her business profits by the light of a lamp (31:18) while the "Stranger"

Wisdom as a Persian-Period Woman of Substance 93

Woman lurks in darkness for her lover. Secondly, the term "beauty" ('PI) is found only in 31:30 and 6:25. The beauty of the "Stranger" Woman (6:25) is elusive vapor when compared to the Woman of Substance as "fear of Yahweh" (31:30). Finally, the noun U n y p ("bed coverings") is found in Biblical Hebrew only in Prov 31:22 and 7:16. Whereas the Woman of Substance makes the royal coverings (31:22), the "Stranger" Woman drapes them across her bed in anticipation of seduction and sex (7:16). What is a symbol of one woman's virtue is, for the other, a mark of her vice.

The specific nature and extent of these parallels suggest that for the sage the Woman of Substance (31:10-31) and Woman Wisdom (1-9)— women who "frame" the book of Proverbs—essentially coalesce as one figure. Some interpreters tend to this convergence, highlighting the so-called "wisdom dimension"80 of the Woman of Substance. She has been characterized as an allegory of Wisdom, an epitome of

R9 Wisdom, or a symbol of Wisdom "finally settled down with her O l

own." This socioeconomic reading of Woman Wisdom, however, explores the convergence from the reverse direction. That is, to what extent is there a "Woman of Substance dimension" to Woman Wisdom? How may the above reading of the Woman of Substance point to ways in which Wisdom reflects women in the sage's socioeconomic context?

D. Wisdom as a Persian-Period Woman of Substance

A significant component of the father's instruction to his son in Proverbs 1-9 is five passages in which Wisdom is personified as a woman (1:20-33; 3:13-18; 4:1-9; 7:4-5; 8:1-9:6, 11). The context in which she and Woman of Folly move about is a city (cf. TV, 1:21 and ΓΠ(7, 8:3; 9:3, 14).84 There are street-front houses (9:14-15), and

80 McCreesh, "Wisdom as Wife," 30. 81 E. Jacob, "Sagesse et Alphabet: A propos de Proverbes 31:10-31," in

Hommages ä Andri Dupont-Sommer (Paris: Adrien-Maisonneuve, 1971), 287-95.

82 Camp, Wisdom and the Feminine, 190. 83 McCreesh, "Wisdom as Wife," 30. 84 It is no surprise that Wisdom (the epitome of all that is virtuous and valuable)

is found in a city (the alleged epitome of culture). That is, there is a congruent


squares (Γήηϊη, 1:20; 5:16; 7:12), busy corners (ηί-^'Π UftOl, 1:21), intersections (ΓΠΤΓΙ} n , 3, 8:2) and city gates (D'HVW) with doors (•Tin?, 1:21; 8:3). liiere are streets (fin, 1:20; 7:12; pW, 7:8), roads C|TJ, 8:2), corners (Π35, 7:8, 12), pathways (Πί^η?, 1:15; 3:17; 7:25; 8:20), and high places (ΰ 'ΟΠζ) VfVi\ 8:2; cf. nnj? ' t f l p , 9:3, 14). Private houses are mentioned frequently with their doors (ΠΠ3, 5:8; 8:34), door posts (ΠΤ1Τ0, 8:34), windows or lattices CfiVn and ^It tfa , 7:6).85

Such a setting fits well with evidence of urbanization and urban planning in the Persian period, particularly in cities located along the coast. The remains of Persian-period buildings suggest that settlements were well-planned, often organized according to orthogonal (hippodamic) principles.86 This meant that the city was separated into blocks by streets intersecting at right angles. Further, different areas of the city were assigned particular functions (e.g., residential, sport, business). At Acco, Tel Abu-Hawam, and Shiqmona, houses of uniform design were built along paved streets running at right angles to one another.87 At Tel Megadim, houses lined a broad, straight thoroughfare intersected at right angles by side streets.88 At Abu-Hawam, a central street ran east to west and was lined with a thirty-

o n

meter long building. And at Dor, a carefully planned residential area on the eastern mound is the "best preserved example of hippodamic

interplay between the woman and her physical setting. Where else would one expect to find her?

85 See R. N. Whybray, "City Life in Proverbs 1-9," in "Jedes Ding hat seine Zeit... ": Studien zur israelitischen und altorientalischen Weisheit, Diethelm Michel zum 65. Geburtstag, ed. Α. A. Diesel, R. G. Lehmann, E. Otto, and A. Wagner, BZAW 241 (Berlin and New York: Walter de Gruyter, 1996), 243-50.

86 "Hippodamic" city planning gets its name from Hippodamus of Miletus, a fifth century BCE resident of Asia Minor, who first wrote about the principles of urban planning (Stern, Dor: Ruler of the Seas, 159).

87 Stern, Dor: Ruler of the Seas, 159; cf. Stern, Material Culture, 11-13, 229-30; M. Dothan and Z. Goldmann, "Acco," in vol. 1 of The New Encyclopedia of Archaeological Excavations in the Holy Land, ed. E. Stern (Jerusalem: Israel Exploration Society and Carta; New York: Simon and Schuster, 1993), 22; J. Balensi, M. D. Herrera, and M. Artzy, "Abu-Hawam," in vol. 1 of The New Encyclopedia of Archaeological Excavations in the Holy Land, ed. E. Stern (Jerusalem: Israel Exploration Society and Carta; New York: Simon and Schuster, 1993), 9.

88 Stern, Dor: Ruler of the Seas, 159. 89 Balensi, Herrera, and Artzy, "Abu-Hawam," 9.


planning found to date in Palestine."90 The dense population of the region, coupled with urban development made the coast "without doubt the scene of active urban life."91 Inland, there were rather prosperous settlements in northern Judah and Benjamin in the late sixth century BCE, including Tel en-Nasbeh, Gibeon, and Tel el-Ful.92 Nehemiah also initiated the restoration of the city walls and gates in Jerusalem (Neh 2:17-18; cf. 3:1-38 [Eng 3:1-4:6]). He mentions street corners (7739, Neh 3:24; cf. Prov 7:8, 12) and describes squares (ΠίΠ"], Neh 8:1, 3, 16; Ezra 10:9; Zech 8:4-5; cf. Prov 1:20; 5:16; 7:12) where people gathered.

In this context, the father instructs his son to seek an intimate— indeed, a marital—relationship with Woman Wisdom. He encourages the son to seek and find (KXQ, 3:13; cf. 8:17, 35) Woman Wisdom, language typical of intimacy and courtship (e.g., Song 3:1-4; 5:6; 6:1; Hos 2:9 [Eng. v. 7]). The verb XXÖ is used for finding a bride in Prov 31:10 (the Woman of Substance) and in Prov 18:22, "he who finds (ΧΧΏ) a wife, finds a good thing." The father urges the youth to hold fast to her (ρ>7Π, 3:18; cf. Isa 4:1) and to embrace her (pan, 4:8; cf. Song 2:6; 8:3). He is to love (277N, cf. Gen 24:67; Hos 3:1)94 and never abandon or divorce (2TV, cf. Isa 54:7) her (4:6).95 He is to call Wisdom his "sister" (Π'ΠΧ, 7:4), a term of endearment parallel with "bride" (Π1??) spoken by a man to his beloved (Song 4:9, 10, 12; 5:1; cf. 5:2).96 The father says that she will place on his head a garland and crown, items worn by a bridegroom (4:9; cf. Song 3:11; Isa 61:10). Finally, the

90 Stern, Dor: Ruler of the Seas, 159. Stem notes that what is remarkable about the planned settlement at Persian-period Dor is that it was laid out according to hippodamic principles in the late-sixth century BCE, prior to Hippodamus' writing in the fifth century BCE. He concludes that Hippodamus must have developed his strategies for urban planning by observing the structures of already existing cities.

91 Ibid., 230. 92 Ibid, 33-35, 48-49. 93 See R. E. Murphy, "Wisdom and Eros in Proverbs 1-9," CBQ 50 (1988):

600-603. 94 A favored wife is an Π31ΠΚ (e.g., Deut 21:15; Song 7:7). 95 An abandoned or divorced woman is called an HDITV (Isa 54:6; 60:15; 62:4;

cf. Akkadian ezebu, "to abandon a wife/husband, to divorce"). 96 Similarly, some of the women addressed as "sister" (ΠΠΝ) in letters from

Elephantine were probably wives. In Egyptian, husband and wife were often designated, respectively, as "brother" (sn) and "sister" (snf, Porten, Archives from Elephantine, 267; cf. TAD I, 2.1-2.3; 2.5-2.6).


father commands the son to "acquire" (H3p, 4:5, 7) her. The former sense of Πΐρ (to acquire) is used of marriage in Ruth 4:10: Boaz "acquires" (i"Up) Ruth as his wife (cf. Ruth 4:5). The latter meaning (to buy) occurs with regard to wisdom (not personified) elsewhere in Proverbs. In Prov 23:23 there is reference to the purchase (H3p) and sale ("DD, cf. Prov 31:24) of wisdom, and, in 17:16, to a fool who has cash with which he hopes to buy (Hip) wisdom. Whichever sense of Π3ρ is intended in Prov 4:5, 7, Woman Wisdom is to be counted among the youth's possessions fl^p, 4:7). She, like the Woman of Substance, is regarded as both person and merchandise to be acquired.

A socioeconomic rationale for why the son should seek a marital relationship with Woman Wisdom unfolds through different voices and with increasing intensity. In the first personified Wisdom passage (1:20-33), a speech by Woman Wisdom interrupts (but is part of) the father's teaching. She calls to the simple ones, inviting them to listen to her, and promises that the one (note the shift to third person singular) who heeds her voice will live in security (Πϋ3"]3ψ'') and ease, without fear of disaster (1:33). Her companion can trust that she will take care of him (cf. nt?3, Prov 31:11).

In the second personified wisdom passage (3:13-18), framed by repetition of the term "happy" (ηψ'Χ, 3:13; and "IW'Ni?, 3:18), the father describes more fully the precise nature of the security pledged by Woman Wisdom:

Happy (ηψί?, cf. Prov 31:28) is the one who attains (XXQ) Wisdom the one who obtains Understanding

Because her merchant profit (ΡΠΠΟ) is worth more than silver and her revenue is worth more than gold.

She is worth more than corals (Q and no treasure97 can compare with her.

Long life is in her right hand, in her left hand are riches and honor.

Her ways are the ways of ease and all of her paths are prosperous.

She is a tree of life to those who lay hold of her; those who hold on to her are made happy ("ΐψΚΤρ, cf. Prov 31:28).

97 Omitting the second person possessive suffix on T??tJ with the versions. The poem is otherwise in the third person and the suffix may be explained as the result of graphic confusion of D and 13. Compare the parallel O'SSO in 8:11 (cf. Clifford, Proverbs, 53; Toy, Proverbs, 68).


The father emphasizes the financial rewards that Wisdom offers. He explains that the one who attains (ΝΗΏ, 3:13; cf. Prov 31:10) Woman Wisdom is fortunate because her merchandizing profits (ΊΠ0, 3:14; cf. Prov 31:18) are significant and her yield abundant. Her husband's happiness is due ('S, 3:14a) to her revenue. She is a profitable merchant. She brings to him material advantage. As a Woman of Substance, she is more valuable than rare and precious jewels (D^JS, 3:15; cf. Prov 8:11; 31:10); she is worth more than any treasure (cf. 8:11). The son should strive to acquire her among the first of all his possessions because, in the end, she will bring him even more wealth, property, and good fortune (3:16-17). The father describes her as a "tree of life" (•"ΓΓΠ?, 3:18), an expression used elsewhere in Proverbs to denote a source of well-being (11:30 [the fruit of the righteous]; 13:12 [a fulfilled desire]; 15:4 [a gentle tongue]). Like a man who embraces his lover—a woman as stately as a palm tree and with breasts like its clusters (Song 7:8-9 [Eng. w . 7-8])—the youth is urged to lay hold of Woman Wisdom and enjoy a long life of ease, secure in her prosperity (3:17-18).

In the third personified Wisdom passage (4:1-9), the father employs a new educational strategy. In an appeal to tradition, he draws on the words of his own father as the centerpiece of his teaching. His childhood instruction serves to reinforce the earlier claims of 3:13-18:

Acquire (Hip) Wisdom! Acquire (Π3.Ρ) Insight!98

Do not forget or turn away from the words of my mouth. Do not abandon her and she will keep you;

love her and she will look after you. The beginning of wisdom (is this):

Acquire (njj?) Wisdom and, whatever else your possessions (H'JÜ?), Acquire (Π}]?) Insight.

Prize her highly and she will increase your value (liODiin); she will reward you richly (1753?) if you embrace her.

She will place on your head a fair garland; she will bestow on you a beautiful crown. (4:5-9)

The descriptive, third person mode of teaching in 3:13-18 gives way here to an imperative, second person instruction. Instead of "happy is

98 So MT contra LXX which has the shorter phrase φύλασσε ευτολάς ("Guard the commandments") for 4:5a. The following verse (4:6) requires a feminine singular antecedent, namely, Π0?Π and/or Π3,3 (cf. Clifford, Proverbs, 60).


the one who..." (3:13), the father (through the words of his father) commands not once, but four times (4:5, 7) that the son acquire Wisdom as one of his possessions (Γτίΐ?)· The noun ],

T]p ("possessions"), attested extrabiblically only in Official Aramaic, is part of the standard phrase fJp l DD] ("goods and property") used in Elephantine marriage contracts for everything owned by either the groom or the bride (TAD II, 2.6.19, 21-22, 30, 35; 3.8.29-30, 31, 35; cf. 6.3.1, [4, 8]). Whatever else his possessions (l^j?), he is not wise until he obtains her. She will protect him. She will keep him (4:6). If he loves and esteems her, she will increase his worth (*|üüi*ini) and reward him richly (^"IBDri; 4:8). She will make him a wealthy, honorable man. The verb Dn in the polel (4:8) has the metaphorical meaning "to exalt" or "to raise the estimation of a person's value" including, at times, one's worth in material goods. In 1 Sam 2:7, for example, DQilp parallels TUWD ("to make rich"): "Yahweh makes poor and makes rich; Yahweh brings low, Yahweh also exalts" (cf. Ps 37:34). Similarly, the giving of large sums of silver and gold is associated with "honoring" (Ή3) someone in Num 22:17-18; 24:11-13. Woman Wisdom will honor her husband with riches. Moreover, he will wear a fair garland (cf. Prov 1:9) and a beautiful crown, signs of honor (cf. Isa 62:3; Jer 13:18; Lam 5:16; Job 19:9) and of his marriage to her. Indeed, Woman Wisdom as the Woman of Substance is, metaphorically speaking, the crown on his head (Prov 12:4).

When Woman Wisdom speaks again (through the voice of the father) in 8:4-36, her words confirm the teachings of the father and grandfather before her. What they have promised about her socioeconomic benefits, she now guarantees in a unit framed by an inclusio of "love" (3ΠΚ):

I love those who love me," those who seek me diligently find ('ΜΗΧΟ'.) me.

Riches and honor are with me enduring'00 wealth and prosperity.

99 Reading the Qere O D'X) with LXX and versions given the first person singular context.

100 The term pfiS, a hapax legomenon, is derived from the root pfii? meaning to "advance" or "move forward." The context of material wealth (riches, gold, silver) and inheritance (V'TOn1?, 8:21) suggests a meaning of "enduring" wealth (]in), or wealth that lasts.

Wisdom as a Persian-Period Woman of Substance 9 9

My fruit (""I?) is better than gold, even fine gold, my yield is better than choice silver.

I walk on the way of righteousness, along the paths of justice,

Giving wealth as an inheritance to those who love me, and filling their storehouse-treasuries (ΟΓΡΓΠΪ'Ν). (8:17-21)

Woman Wisdom underscores in four ways the significance of her economic rewards for those who seek her as a lover and find her (8:17). First, she associates her riches with honor (Tin?) and prosperity Her husband will be respected by the community and enjoy success (8:18; cf. 31:23). Second, echoing and elaborating on the father's words in 3:14, she testifies to the quality of her earnings: "My fruit ("IS, cf. 31:16, 31) is better than gold, even fine gold (TS); my yield is better than choice silver (1Π33 ID?)" (8:19). The emphasis in the immediate context on wealth and riches (esp. 8:18, 21) suggests that the "fruit" and "yield" of which she speaks are her monetary earnings. Third, she certifies that her wealth is perpetual (cf. 8:18a, 21b); presumably, her husband and children will inherit it. Finally, she gives concrete expression to her abundance. Her wealth is sufficient to fill storehouse-treasuries (Dirn'IS'N, 8:21). As part of the Persian imperial administration, royal treasury-storehouses throughout the empire managed the income and distribution of silver, grain, wine, meat and other supplies. At Elephantine, the KDVö Ί2ΜΧ ("treasury of the king;"101 cf. TAD II, 3.7.7; 3.11.4) distributed allotments of silver (TAD II, 4.2), emmer {TAD II, 3.13), and grain (TAD II, 4.3; 4.4) to members of the garrison. The Persepolis Treasury paid workers in silver and cash-equivalent amounts of grain, wine, flour, beer and sheep.102

Nehemiah reports that storehouses (iThXiX) in Jerusalem were filled with grain, wine, and oil by the go/a/z-community and Levites to support the temple personnel (Neh 10:39; 13:12-13; cf. Mai 3:10). Treasury-storehouses in the royal economy, therefore, were at the center of economic activity and abundance (cash and goods). In light of this, Woman Wisdom's promise to fill not just one but many such storehouse-treasuries (ΓΠ"φΝ, 8:21) gives specific expression to the extent of her wealth. In sum, Wisdom is the key to socioeconomic

101 The royal treasury-storehouse was also referred to as ίθ"?Ώ 'Τ K1X1K (TAD II, 3.4.9), ΚΊΧ1Χ (TAD Π, 4.2-4.4), and X31?» m ("house of the king;" e.g., TAD II, 4.3,4.4; 5.5; cf. Porten, Archives from Elephantine, 60).

102 See Cameron, Persepolis Treasury Texts, 1-5, 12.


privilege. Hers is a wealth of quality, perpetuity, and abundance that secures for her husband a position of honor and well-being in the community.

Finally, in a reversal of the pattern of the first instruction (3:13-18), the father interrupts Woman Wisdom's speech to make a last rhetorical move (9:1-3). General descriptions of her abundant wealth now give way to a detailed portrait of her household:

Wisdom has built her house (ΠΓΡ5), she has set up103 her seven pillars.

She has slaughtered her animals, she has mixed her wine, and she has set her table.

She has sent out her young women (Π'Πίνΐ), She calls from the highest places in the town. (9:1-3)

Wisdom's original promise of a secure life of ease (1:33) culminates at her house. That she builds her house (HIV?, 9:1; cf. Prov 31:15, 21, 27) communicates permanence, stability (Isa 65:21; Ezek 28:26; Zech 5:11), and prosperity (Prov 24:3-4).104 But this is not just any house. It is a house with seven pillars, a number signifying completeness or perfection. Archaeological evidence has demonstrated that the number of pillars in a house was an indication of wealth and status. In the Persian period, the majority of houses and public buildings were built according to an "open-court" plan—an open courtyard surrounded on all or several sides by rows of rooms. A large palace-residency uncovered at Lachish, however, differs markedly from this uniform construction. Among its architectural innovations were numerous drum columns in Greek style, monumental staircases, and vaulted roofing.105

Multiple columns set Wisdom's house apart as just such a mansion, a house of the wealthiest, complete with a staff of young women (ΙΓΓήνΐ, 9:3; cf. Prov 31:15) who work for her.

103 MT has Π2¥Π ("to hew out [from rock]") but LXX reads καί ύπήρεισεν , which reflects ΓΠ'ΧΠ ("she has set up," cf. Syr., Targ.).The latter reading is preferred. The letters Π and Π are easily confused. Moreover, the verb Π33 ("to build;" cf. Prov 9:1a) and the hiphil conjugation of are attested in the same semantic domain in Josh 6:26 and 1 Kgs 16:34 (cf. Clifford, Proverbs, 102).

104 Elsewhere in Proverbs, wise women build their houses (cf. Prov 14:1; 24:3). 105 Stem, Material Culture, 230.


Those in her household feast at her banquet table, enjoying intoxicating wine (cf. Prov 23:30; Isa 5:22) and the delicacy of meat (ΠΠ5ϋ, 9:2; cf. Gen 43:16). There is evidence that Persian royal women hosted such elaborate feasts. The two thousand quarts of wine (PF 1795) and one hundred sheep (Fort. 6764) ordered by Darius for his wife Artystone were presumably for a feast celebrating the new year.106

Artysone and Arsames also ordered sizeable provisions of flour and grain (PF 733), beer (PF 2035), and barley loaves (PF 734) that were likely for feasting.107 The book of Esther further recounts a banquet for women hosted by Queen Vashti in the royal palace (1:9) and a "wine feast" prepared by Queen Esther and enjoyed by herself, her husband, and Haman (6:14-7:2). As expected, Wisdom offers a feast fit for kings.

Interpreters tending to the parallels between Woman Wisdom (1-9) and the Woman of Substance (31:10-31) highlight the "wisdom" dimensions of the Woman of Substance. This socioeconomic reading has reversed that approach, with new results. Significant portions of the father's instruction to his son in Proverbs 1-9 have been shown to personify Wisdom as a Woman of Substance. She is a bride and a commodity to be sought after before all other possessions (4:4-7). She is a profitable businesswoman: her merchant profits ("1Π0, 3:14), revenues, and earnings (HS, 8:19) are considerable. She is worth more than precious jewels (3:15; 8:11). She looks after her husband, offering him security, material advantage, storerooms filled to the brim (8:21), and an honorable place in the community. Finally, her household is a mansion filled with the trappings of privilege—servants and fine foods (9:1-3). Wisdom is a Woman of Substance and, as such, is a composite image of (exceptional) real women in the Persian period. In her, the lives of women become instruction for life.

106 So W. Hinz, "Achämendische Hofverwaltung," ZA 61 (1971): 289; cf. Brosius, Women in Ancient Persia, 97.

107 Brosius, Women in Ancient Persia, 97.


E. Women and Instruction in Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31

Thus the sage of Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 taught about wisdom in the socioeconomic context of Persian-period Palestine. The choice between death and life, he proposed, is like the choice between two women. On the one hand, there is the sexually attractive (6:25), smooth-talking (e.g., 2:16; 5:3; 6:24; 7:21) Woman of Folly (or "Stranger" Woman), a composite figure of women whose socioeconomic power endangered a young man's economic stability. To choose her, the sage warned, was to forfeit every economic advantage: land (2:12-22), wealth, and honor (5:7-14). It was even to lose life itself (7:27). On the other hand, the sage formulated a new figure, namely Woman Wisdom, as a positive rival for the youth's attention. As I have demonstrated here, Woman Wisdom, like her negative counterpart, is also a composite figure of women—affluent and royal Persian-period women whose socioeconomic power ensured economic prosperity. To choose her was to gain every economic advantage: business profits, imported delicacies, fine clothing, real estate, a mansion complete with staff, treasury-storehouses filled to the brim, perpetual wealth, and social prominence. It is no wonder that the youth was urged to marry such a Woman of Substance. She offered to him an abundant, secure life.108

108 The juxtaposition of the Woman Wisdom and the "Stranger" Woman in Proverbs 1-9 is thus analogous to the juxtaposition of the "good" woman and the "bad" woman in Egyptian wisdom texts. By the New Kingdom period (ca. 1551-1070 BCE), women were characterized in sapiential literature in one of two ways: those inside the immediate family (wives, mothers, widows) and those outside the family (women who give pleasure and potential adulteresses). The Instruction of Ani, for example, encourages the reader:

Do not control your wife in her house, When you know she is efficient; Don't say to her, "Where is it? Get it!" When she has put it in the right place. Let your eye observe in silence, Then you recognize her skill; It is a joy when your hand is with her, There are many who don't know this.

At the same time, the Instruction cautions against the "Stranger" Woman:

Beware of a woman who is a stranger, One not known in her town;

Women and Instruction in Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 103

Attention to the economic dimensions of the sage's rhetoric highlights its class bias. The language and worldview of Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 suggest that this was instruction by and for affluent and moderately wealthy members of an urban commercial class. The setting is a cosmopolitan marketplace with merchant ships (31:14), Phoenician traders (31:24), merchandise (31:24), imported goods (31:13, 22), purchase prices (31:10b), and merchant profits (3:14; 31:18). The intended audience appears to be young men of relatively privileged circumstances. It is assumed that they have ownership of, or access to, agricultural production (3:9-10), money (5:10; 6:35), honorable reputations (5:10), and sociopolitical power (31:23). Such men would also be the most likely to identify with the sage's metaphor of Wisdom as a Woman of Substance. In the business dynamics of marriage, only young men of some affluence could aspire to marry such a bride.109

Presumably, they might also have use for the sage's guidance about the proper management of money, including the dodging of get-rich-quick schemes (1:11-19), responsible giving (3:9-10; cf. 3:27-28), and the avoidance of debt (6:1-5).

Money is a primary means by which the sage motivates the young men to choose Wisdom (4:5-7). The value of Wisdom is compared favorably to silver and gold (3:14; 8:19; cf. 8:10) and to costly jewels (3:15; 8:11). Once acquired, she is a perpetual source of merchant profits (ΊΠ0, 3:14), revenues (Ρΐηχΐηξΐ, 3:14), wealth (Jin, 8:18; U?1., 8:21), riches (Ίψ"1?, 3:16; 8:18), and filled treasuries (Π'ΊΧ'Κ, 8:21). Although God ultimately grants Wisdom (2:6), the sage assures the young men that if they seek her diligently, they will find her and reap

Do not stare at her when she goes by. Do not know her carnally. A deep water whose course is unknown, Such is a woman away from her husband. Ί am pretty' she tells you daily when she has no witnesses. She is ready to ensnare you A great and deadly crime when it is heard (Lichtheim, Ancient Egyptian Literature, Vol. II, 136-37; A. Depla, "Women in Ancient Egyptian Wisdom Literature," in Women in Ancient Societies: An Illusion of the Night, ed. L. J. Archer, S. Fischler, and M. Wyke [London: Macmillan, 1994], 24-52).

This dichotomy between "good" and "bad" women is attested elsewhere in Proverbs, including 12:4; 14:1; 18:22; 19:14; 22:14; 23:27-28; 30:20.

109 Note that the only persons explicitly identified as having a relationship with Wisdom in Proverbs 1-9 are kings, rulers, and nobles (8:15-16).


socioeconomic rewards. In this act-consequence worldview, those who call Wisdom their "sister" are guaranteed to get ahead while, conversely, the foolish live in poverty, the just fruits of their laziness and immorality (cf. 6:6-11, 30-31).110 The sage of Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 thus perpetuates the view, arguably more typical of people who have known and come to expect success,111 that humans have control over how they live. Their choices determine their fortunes. Whomever the young man chooses as his intimate companion—the virtue of Wisdom or the vice of Folly—determines whether and how he gets along in life. If he chooses wisely, he will live richly. Money thereby becomes an objective means to evaluate human worth.112

Economic success is the mark of superior moral character whereas poverty signifies moral deficiency. The sage's ethic legitimates the favored status of the upper class, placing value on material wealth and social esteem as evidence of Wisdom's favor.113

The socioeconomic bias suggests that the sage was a member of the golah community who addressed his teaching principally to those who had returned from Babylonian exile. The golah community, endorsed by the Persian administration as the legitimate restorers of the Jerusalem temple (Ezra 1:3-4, 7-11; 6:1-12, 14; 7:11-26), had the socioeconomic and political upper hand over the indigenous population (the "peoples of the land"). The Persian government purportedly provided to the deportees royal rations of animals, wheat, salt, wine, and oil (Ezra 6:8-9; cf. 3:7), the temple goods seized by Nebuchadnezzar (Ezra 1:7-11), and contributions of goods, cash, and freewill offerings from their neighbors in the diaspora (Ezra 1:4-11; 7:16; cf. 8:26-27). Members of the golah are also described as having

110 This perspective on the poor, the only reference to poverty in Proverbs 1-9, is one of a diversity of teachings about wealth and poverty in the book as whole. For further discussion, see R. N. Whybray, Wealth and Poverty in the Book of Proverbs, JSOTSup 99 (Sheffield: JSOT, 1990); Washington, Wealth and Poverty, 171-202; J. L. Crenshaw, "Poverty'and Punishment in the Book of Proverbs," in Urgent Advice and Probing Questions: Collected Writings on Old Testament Wisdom (Macon, Ga.: Mercer University Press, 1995), 396-404.

111 D. Bergant, Israel's Wisdom Literature: A Liberation-Critical Reading, A Liberation Critical Reading of the Old Testament (Minneapolis, Minn.: Augsburg Fortress, 1997), 101.

112 See J. P. Brown, "Proverb-Book, Gold Economy, Alphabet," JBL 100 (1981): 183.

113 See Crenshaw, "Poverty and Punishment in the Book of Proverbs," 396-97.

Women and Instruction in Proverbs 1 -9 and 31:10-31 105

enough personal wealth to donate sixty-one thousand darics of gold, five thousand minas silver, and one hundred priestly robes to the temple building fund (Ezra 2:68-69; cf. Hag 1:4). The sage teaches as an "insider" in such a community, urging his audience to make an economic commitment to the Yahweh cult (3:9-10) and to avoid conduct that would jeopardize land ownership (2:20-22)1 1 4 and good standing in the qahal (5:14). The socioeconomic motivation for his instruction was likely general concerns about the financial viability of the emerging restoration community (e.g., 5:10, 17; 6:1). Specifically, however, his use of female figures, the metaphor of marriage, and the motif of the "Stranger" Woman resonate with the ideological campaign against exogamous marriages to Γϊί9Ί33 Π'ψ'Ι ("foreign women") waged by Ezra-Nehemiah. From an economic perspective, such marriages by leaders and members of the golah (cf. Ezra 9:2; Neh 6:18-19; 13:28-29) might well have been perceived as a threat to the economic stability of the community (cf. 2:12-22; 5:7-14).115

Whereas the "Stranger" Woman is an economically desirable outsider who offered to her lover a couch spread with royal coverings

114 Part of the conflict between the golah and the "people(s) of the land(s)" was the issue of land tenure. After the deportation, the poorer Judeans who were left behind (2 Kgs 25:12; Jer 52:16) claimed the land of the exiles (Jer 39:10), properties the ownership of which had been preserved previously by the right of genealogical descent. Despite Ezekiel's assurance that God would restore the land to the exiles (11:17), the non-deported Judeans justified their new ownership, arguing that the deportees had been effectively expelled from the cultic community. As such, their claims to property were forfeit (11:15; cf. 33:23). When the exiles returned and found their land-holdings so expropriated, struggles for land tenure ensued.

For the golah, reclaiming the land was seen as necessary both ideologically and economically. Because Yahweh's judgment had been the devastation of the land and exile, restoration of the relationship between Yahweh and Israel required restoration of the people to their land. Membership in the golah included the right to land tenure (Ezek 11:15) and land ownership was considered vital. Ezra, for example, urged the exiles to remain separate from the "people(s) of the land(s)" "so that you may be strong and eat the good of the land and leave it for an inheritance to your children forever" (9:12, emphasis added). Later, when he ordered all golah members to assemble in Jerusalem, the punishment for not attending was expulsion from the community and confiscation of all movable and immovable property Ezra 10:8; cf. 1 Chr 27:31; 2 Chr 21:14; 31:3; 32:29; 35:7; cf. Washington, "The Strange Woman," 231-38).

115 So Washington, "The Strange Woman," esp. 239-42; Blenkinsopp, "The Social Context of the Outsider Woman,'" esp. 467-73.


7:16; cf. 31:22), embroidered (imported) Egyptian linen, and perfumed with expensive spices (myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon, 7:16-17), Wisdom as a Woman of Substance is an economically desirable insider for the faith community. In the personified Wisdom passages in Proverbs 1-9 and in the acrostic poem of 31:10-31, the sage closely associates, even identifies, Wisdom as a Woman of Substance with "the fear of the Lord" (ΓΠΓΡ ΓΙΝΤ), an idiom for religious piety.116 To "fear the Lord" is to revere and be obedient to Yahweh and to acknowledge one's place as part of the divine creation (e.g., Gen 20:11; Exod 20:20; 1 Kgs 18:3, 12; 2 Sam 23:3). In Proverbs 1-9, Woman Wisdom (through the voice of the father) employs the idiom twice. In her first speech (1:22-33), she urges the youth to listen to her teaching and warns that those who refuse will surely be battered by the winds of calamity and the storms of anguish (1:27). If they then call out to her, she will not answer; if they seek her, they will not find her (1:28) for "they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the Lord" (1:29). The idiom is parallel to "my advice" ('Γΰν), and "my reproof' ('ΠΠ^ίΠ, 1:30; cf. 1:23, 25), suggesting that Wisdom's words, her teachings, emulate "the fear of the Lord." Later, in her second speech (8:4-36), Wisdom defines "the fear of the Lord" as the hatred of evil (3Π Γΐίόψ, 8:13a) and then, in the parallel line, declares "I hate" Onxity) the "way of evil" (5Π TTJ, 8:13b). She thus appears to model rightly or embody "the fear of the Lord." Finally, as noted above, at the end of the book (at the close of the acrostic poem) the sage sets the idiom in apposition to "woman" (31:30), explicitly identifying the Woman of Substance with "the fear of the Lord."117 In Proverbs 1-9 and 31:30-31, therefore, the sage associates personified Wisdom as a Woman of Substance with "the fear of the Lord"—with religious piety—by her words (1:29-30), her conduct (8:13), and her being (31:30). As such, she is a pedagogical figure for teaching more than economic survival in the Persian-period marketplace. She is about fidelity to Yahweh.118

116 The association of wisdom with "the fear of the Lord" is attested elsewhere. See, e.g., Job 28:28 (ΠΜΙΊ ΝVI ''ΠΚ nXT, "the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom") and Ps 111:10.

117 See this chapter, 90 n. 76. 118 See R. E. Murphy, "The Personification of Wisdom," in Wisdom in ancient

Israel: Essays in Honour of J. A. Emerton, ed. J. Day, R. P. Gordon, and H. G. M. Williamson (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995), 224-26.


This association has implications beyond the personified Wisdom passages and acrostic poem. The idiom "the fear of the Lord" is attested elsewhere in Proverbs twelve times (1:7; 2:5; 9:10; 10:27; 14:26-27; 15:16, 33; 16:6; 19:23; 22:4; 23:17) and the imperative "fear the Lord!" occurs three times (3:7; 14:2; 24:21). "The fear of the Lord" is also an inclusio (cf. 1:7; 31:30) for the book as a whole. Therefore, whereas the descriptions of Wisdom as a Woman of Substance are limited to the framing units of Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31, "the fear of the Lord" with which she is associated may rightly be called the book's resounding refrain.

According to 1:7, the so-called "motto"119 of the book, "the fear of the Lord"—and Wisdom by association—is "the Π'ΦίΟ of knowledge" (1:7; cf. 9:10; 15:33). The term ΓΡΪΡΝΊ may be construed temporally, as "beginning, or starting point" (e.g., Gen 10:10; Jer 26:1; Deut 11:12; Isa 46:10; cf. Prov 9:10 [nVnp]; 15:33), suggesting that Woman Wisdom is the prerequisite for knowledge. She rightly embodies the religious piety foundational to the pursuit of wisdom. With her, one can acquire an understanding of God and live a faithful, moral life. Without her, one is neither devout nor may ever be wise. The term ΓΡΦΧ1 may also be read qualitatively, as "first and best, or epitome" (e.g., Ezek 48:14; Amos 6:6; Jer 2:3). Construed in this way, Woman Wisdom is herself the model of piety and knowledge. She is the beginning and end—the best or fullest expression of what it means to be a faithful and wise person. Whether as "beginning" or as "epitome," Woman Wisdom is the key to knowledge of God. Only a fool would despise her (cf. 1:7).

When "the fear of the Lord" recurs elsewhere in the book, its description mirrors that of Wisdom as a Woman of Substance. "The fear of the Lord," like Wisdom, is more valuable than great treasures (15:16; cf. 3:14-15; 4:7; 8:19) and is to be preferred above all else (23:17). Its benefits are hers: life (10:27; 14:27; 19:23; 22:4; cf. 3:16; 8:35; 9:11), security (ΠΜ, 14:26; 19:23; cf. 1:33; 31:11), and riches and honor (22:4; cf. 3:14, 16; 8:18, 21). Moreover, with "the fear of the Lord" one avoids the "snares of death" (14:27; cf. 16:6). With Woman Wisdom, one may resist the snare (7:23) of the "Stranger" Woman whose house is death (7:27; 9:18).

It may be argued, therefore, that Wisdom as a Woman of Substance frames the book (Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31) and, by association with

119 So Greenstone, Proverbs, xiii; Toy, Proverbs, 10-11; Kidner, Proverbs, 22; Whybray, Proverbs, 17.


"the fear of the Lord," weaves the whole together. She is at once the embodiment of success in the Persian-period marketplace and the prerequisite for, or model of, religious piety for young men in the golah community. In her—a composite image of exceptional Persian-period women—real women's (extraordinary, everyday enterprises become the framing, indeed defining, rubric for a book about living wisely in the ordinary everyday. Common sense sayings spoken in the household and the marketplace are held together by a composite figure of women at work. What is more, in Wisdom as a Woman of Substance, "women's work" is set apart and named as the beginning, even the standard (ΓΡ^ΚΊ) of piety. Whether bartering in the marketplaces, weaving, trading, feeding and clothing others, planting vineyards, mixing wine, or burning the midnight oil, the labor of women is here elevated, theologically legitimated, and claimed as the preferable means for moral and theological instruction of the religious community. Despite the silence of women's voices, women's activities embodied in Wisdom become "God-talk." Indeed, with climactic poetic flourish, the sage identifies this Wisdom as the preeminent companion of Yahweh and the delight of all creation (8:22-31). Ben Sira, for whom personified Wisdom is Torah, would later make similar claims (cf. Sir 24).

The focus of this study has been how the sage of Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 taught. The question of the origins of Woman Wisdom is fundamentally one of pedagogical method and vocabulary. Whereas previous interpreters have located the genesis of Woman Wisdom in ancient Near Eastern goddesses or semi-divine figures, abstract concepts, literary constructs, or professional stereotypes, this reading locates much of the language and imagery associated with her in the economic activities of, and perceptions about, Persian-period women. That is, this sage taught about personified Wisdom in a manner typical of the tradition—by drawing on observations and experiences of daily life. Woman Wisdom as a Woman of Substance is a "living metaphor," a metaphor from life shaped for the lives of young men. Her composite nature presumably highlights those activities and qualities equated by the sage with "wise" and faithful living in his commercial context. To be intimate with Wisdom was to be in the marketplaces. It was to wed oneself to shrewd business sense, manufacture and trade, industriousness, profits, and the acquisition of luxury goods. It was to invest in hard work and to reap the rewards of royalty. Moreover, to hold fast to Wisdom was to embrace a life of religious piety. It was to


take hold of "the fear of the Lord" as the beginning and end, the epitome, of right living in the golah community. Wisdom of the proverbial marketplace (1:20-21), it seems, had very much to do with economic and theological survival in the Persian empire.

Although the sage's teaching elevates women's realities to the level of theological language, it must be said in the end that his rhetoric offers "no safe haven for women."120 His instruction reinforces the values and customs of a context that is patriarchal in structure and androcentric in bias. First, as has been well noted, the juxtaposition of Woman Wisdom and the Woman of Folly perpetuates the stereotyped polarization of women as "madonnas" or "whores." In this caricature of the sexes, women are portrayed either as wholly good or as wholly evil and men are either their beneficiaries or their victims.121 Second, the sage objectifies Woman Wisdom and the Woman of Substance, describing them as merchandise to be found and purchased (4:5, 7; 31:10b). The Woman of Substance has a "price" (31:10b). Woman Wisdom is the most valuable of all a young man's possessions (4:7). Both are compared favorably to other expensive items (cf. 3:14-15; 8:11; 31:10b). Third, the young man is encouraged to seek Woman Wisdom and the Woman of Substance for what "loot" (imported delicacies, garments, real estate, cash, honor) they offer to him. What women can do for men defines what is positive and desirable about them. Fourth, Woman Wisdom and the Woman of Substance, as composite images of women, are figures "spliced" together from the attributes and activities of real women. As such, they embody no one woman, but rather the desired aspects (or parts) of many, not unlike some contemporary portraits of women in photo and film. Included in that imagery is the assumption that a Woman of Substance is a married woman with children. Such splicing is simultaneously dehumanizing to women and, as intended, enticing for young men. Notably, both men and women may profit by the process. In short, Woman Wisdom as a Woman of Substance is a pedagogical device that furthers male objectives.

In the end, this socioeconomic look at Woman Wisdom in Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 points anew to her complexities as a figure in the Israelite wisdom tradition. The sage's portrait of her as a Woman of Substance claims the lives and work of women as the realia of moral

120 Ο 'Connor, The Wisdom Literature, 61. 121 Ibid., 62.


and theological education. At the same time, the portrait objectifies the same women to promote the socioeconomic values of wealthy men. The result is a profoundly captivating yet disconcerting image of Wisdom—one that would be repainted by sages for generations to come (e.g., Sir 24; Bar 3:9-4:4; Wis 7:7-10:18; 1 En. 42:1-2).

Conclusion

The search for the origin(s) of Woman Wisdom in the book of Proverbs is about getting to know her better. It is to discover those models, images, or realities that may underlie her personification and shape her character. It is, further, to find out more about the sage who gave her voice and the community that first heard her cry out at the crossroads. The aim of this study has been to contribute to the search by considering the interplay between Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 and social-historical context. Specifically, I have asked how the figure of personified Wisdom reflects the socioeconomic activities of and perceptions about women in the sage's setting. I conclude that, to a significant extent, Wisdom's origins lie not in putative mythological antecedents or abstract literary constructs, but in women's concrete, everyday realities.

I began, in chapter one, with a reconsideration of linguistic evidence for the date of Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31. Ben Sira and LXX-Proverbs establish a terminus ante quem of the mid-second century BCE for the book as a whole. The superscription in Prov 25:1 suggests a terminus a quo of the late eighth to early seventh century BCE for (at least) portions of Proverbs. Given these chronological boundaries, I first identified vocabulary in the units that otherwise occurs exclusively or predominantly in exilic and postexilic biblical texts. I also indicated characteristics of LBH vernacular (the exclusive use of "»JS, the presence of the later D i T t h i r d person plural suffix on feminine plural nouns, and the piel of Next, I considered possible foreign influences. The use of feminine abstract substantive nouns with the ΓΠ" termination (e.g., mxpl , 3:8; mtfj??, 4:24; 6:12 and mV^y, 31:27) is suggestive of morphological Aramaic influence. Lexical Aramaisms include the noun nisurj ("multi-colored embroidered cloth," 7:16), the noun ("property, possession," 4:7), and the root ("to speak," 6:13). Two of the Aramaic equivalents of these Aramaisms, ΓΓΌϋΠ and

are attested exclusively in Official Aramaic (specifically fifth century BCE), later Aramaic dialects and late biblical texts, but not in Old Aramaic as might be expected if the units reflect an early, northern

112 Conclusion

"Israelian" dialect. Rather, these Aramaisms appear representative of southern (Judahite) Hebrew of the postexilic period—when Aramaic was the lingua franca of commerce and administration. The absence of Greek loanwords or idioms derived from Greek influence in either unit suggests a date prior to the Hellenistic period. Finally, I noted that the orthographic tendencies of MT Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 are consistent with a date between the sixth and third centuries BCE. In sum, the cumulative results of this analysis appear to corroborate the inclination among many interpreters to date MT Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 to the postexilic period. The linguistic findings point to LBH and thus to a date between the early sixth and late third century BCE, most plausibly sometime in the Persian period.

In chapter two, I considered epigraphic and biblical evidence for the socioeconomic activities of women and perceptions about them in Persian-period Palestine. The epigraphic materials (personal and official letters, legal contracts, receipts, lists, and accounts) offer a multifaceted look at everyday transactions in different sectors of the economy across the Achaemenid empire. I argued that my use of them for socioeconomic reconstruction is warranted by the extent to which the empire was interconnected by communication, travel, and trade. That is, people, ideas, and material culture from across the realm and the larger Mediterranean world flowed into and out of Palestine, impacting its daily life and worldview, including its views of women.

First, I highlighted the businesslike dimensions of marriage and divorce. Negotiated by the groom and the bride's agent (usually her father), the centerpiece of a marriage contract was the dowry, the bride's share of her patrimony. The monetary value of the dowry was typically proportional to the perceived desirability of a woman as a spouse. The more "valuable" the bride the richer the dowry. Marriage to a "valuable" bride afforded the groom greater financial resources. He could spend the dowry components at his own discretion as long as he eventually replenished the dowry with property of equivalent value. He stood to gain from any inheritance, bequests, or supplemental dowry gifts his wife might receive. Moreover, the dowry effectively became part of his estate for purposes of inheritance. Divorce terminated a husband's claim to the dowry. Regardless of who initiated the proceedings, the husband was required to return in full the dowry or items of equivalent value to his wife immediately. For a man married to a "valuable" wife, this could prove quite costly. In the business dynamics of marriage, therefore, a Persian-period bride had a

Conclusion 113

designated financial "worth" for whom men haggled and from whose dowry and additional properties they derived monetary gain.

Secondly, I considered the evidence for "women's work" in the Achaemenid economy. The evidence reveals a breadth of economic roles and responsibilities for royal and non-royal women. Women at Elephantine went about the marketplaces buying, selling, and bartering various goods. At Dor, women engaged in a thriving textile industry. Some women assisted with the family business, managing properties, conducting transactions, and serving as parties to the purchase and sale of slaves and land. Others made loans of cash and goods, benefiting from favorable interest rates. Non-royal women worked in a variety of professions at different ranks and degrees of specialization. Shelomith, for example, had an official capacity in the administrative affairs of Yehud. Other women were supervisors (arassap) of workgroups, receiving generous rations of grain, wine, and (occasionally) meat for their efforts. There were also work forces composed predominantly of women and children {pasap and harrinup). Royal women were renowned, in particular, for their vast estates. They managed such properties directly and through subordinates, authorizing transactions with their own seals, ordering the movement of commodities, employing and issuing rations to workers, and paying taxes to the crown. They could also lease and sub-divide their properties for profit. In short, "women's work" in the Persian period was multifaceted and appears to have permeated all sectors of the royal economy.

In chapter three, I argued that the sage of Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 used language and imagery derived from these socioeconomic activities of and perceptions about women to personify Woman Wisdom. I first demonstrated that the Woman of Substance (VrrnttftjO in Prov 31:10-31 is a composite figure of real, albeit exceptional, Persian-period women. She is a bride of high "price" (31:10). Her dowry and earnings are "loot" that her husband may "plunder" for his own gain (31:11), and her economic activities mirror those of affluent and royal women. Next, I claimed on the basis of specific and extensive lexical and thematic parallels that the Woman of Substance in Proverbs 31:10-31 and Woman Wisdom in Proverbs 1-9, the women who "frame" the book of Proverbs, essentially coalesce as one figure. I then explored this convergence, highlighting how the sage portrays Wisdom as a Woman of Substance. She is a bride and commodity to be acquired before all other possessions (4:5-7). She is a businesswoman who brings in considerable merchant profits ("ΙΠ0, 3:14). Her household is a

114 Conclusion

mansion replete with servants and fine foods (9:1-3). And she looks after her husband, offering him security (e.g., 1:33; 3:17-18), enduring material advantage (e.g., 3:16; 8:18-19), honor (e.g., 4:8-9; 8:18), and storerooms filled to the brim (8:21). In short, Wisdom—a Woman of Substance—is a composite image of (exceptional) real women in the Persian period. She is a pedagogical figure used to teach young boys of the golah community about economic survival in the Persian period and, by her association with "the fear of the Lord," about religious piety. The sage thus intertwined theology and economics to teach young men of the golah community how to live "wisely." The hallmark of his pedagogy was the juxtaposition of two women: Woman of Folly, the outsider, a composite figure of women whose socioeconomic power endangered a young man's economic stability, and Woman Wisdom, the insider, a composite figure of women whose socioeconomic power ensured the same.

This study demonstrates the value of social-historical context for reconstructing the origins of Wisdom in the book of Proverbs. First, it prioritizes methodologically the identification and description of the sage's socioeconomic context and presumes that he wrote to address particular circumstances. Second, it claims that there is interplay between the sage's literary expression of Wisdom as Woman and the activities and realities of women in his context. In a manner typical to the wisdom tradition, the sage drew on images from the world around him to teach. Third, it highlights the extent to which the sage's rhetoric reflects an upper-class bias and act-consequence worldview. The sage's teaching reinforces and recruits young men into the ideologies of the commercial class, encourages the maintenance and expansion of the financial assets and privileges of the postexilic golah community, and identifies such work with religious piety.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, this study points anew to the manifold character and complexities of Wisdom personified as Woman. It is her portrait that frames Proverbs and weaves the whole together, making real women's (extra)ordinaiy, everyday enterprises the hermeneutical key to a book about living wisely and faithfully in the everyday. It is her visage that elevates and theologically legitimates women's activities as the embodiment of what it means to be wise and a fearer of Yahweh. It is, at the same time, her image that is painted in brushstrokes to reflect and promote male objectives. Taking her stand in the streets and squares, she is a mesmerizing sight—at once the veneration and objectification of women's lives and work.

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Widengren, G. The King and the Tree of Life in Ancient Near Eastern Religion. Uppsala: A.-B. Lundequistska, 1951.

Widengren, G. "The Persian Period." In Israelite and Judean History, edited by J. Hayes and J. M. Miller, 489-538. London: SCM; Philadelphia: Trinity, 1977.

Wildeboer, D. G. Die Sprüche. KHAT 15. Freiburg: Mohr Siebeck, 1897.

Williamson, Η. G. Μ. "Ezra and Nehemiah in the Light of the Texts from Persepolis," Bulletin for Biblical Research 1 (1991): 41-61.

Wilson, F. M. "Sacred and Profane? The Yahwistic Redaction of Proverbs Reconsidered." In The Listening Heart: Essays in Wisdom and the Psalms in Honor of Roland E. Murphy, O. Carm, edited by K. G. Hoglund, E. F. Huwiler, J. T. Glass, and R. W. Lee, 313-34. JSOTSup 58. Sheffield: JSOT, 1987.

Witherington, B. Jesus the Sage: The Pilgrimage of Wisdom. Minneapolis, Minn.: Augsburg Fortress, 1994.

Wolff, H. W. Hosea: A Commentary on the Book of the Prophet Hosea. Edited by P. D. Hanson. Translated by G. Stansell. Hermeneia. Philadelphia: Fortress, 1974.

Wolters, A. "The Meaning of Kisör (Prov 31:19)." HUCA 65 (1994): 91-104.

Bibliography 141

Wolters, A. "Nature and Grace in the Interpretation of Proverbs 31:10-31." CTJ19 (1984): 153-66.

Wolters, A. "Proverbs XXXI 10-31 as Heroic Hymn: A Form Critical Analysis." VT 38 (1988): 446-57.

Wolters, A. "Söpiyyä (Prov 31:27) as Hymnic Participle and Play on Sophia." JBL 104 (1985): 577-87.

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Xenophon. Anabasis. 1998. Translated by C. L. Brownson. Rev. ed. LCL 90. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press.

Xenophon. Cyropaedia. 1960-61. Translated by W. Miller. 2 vols. LCL. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press.

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Yee, G. A. Composition and Tradition in the Book of Hosea: A Redaction Critical Investigation. SBLDS 102. Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1987.

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Index of Ancient Texts HEBREW BIBLE

Genesis 10:3 32 n. 85 10:10 107 20:11 106 21:1-7 27 21:3-5 27 21:4 27 21:7 27 24:61 86 24:67 95 25:15 32 n. 83 26:12 78 n. 26 31:18 26, 26 n. 58 34:23 26, 26 n. 58 34:29 76 n. 15 36:1-5 26 n. 58 36:6 26 36:6-8 26 n. 58 36:39 32 37:5 36 n. 101 37:17 32 n. 85 43:16 101 43:23 20 47:6 76

Exodus 2:5 86 12:11 82 n. 49 14:4 76 n. 12 18:21,25 76 20:20 106 26:1 85 n. 57 28:5, 39 85 n. 57 28:6, 15,31 85 n. 57 35:6, 23,35 85 n. 57

38:23 85 n. 57 39:3 85 n. 57

Leviticus 8:33 36 n. 101 12:4,6 36 n. 101 12:8 78 n. 26 22:11 26 25:30 36 n. 101

Numbers 4:8 85 n. 57 6:5, 13 36 n. 101 17:3 23 20:19 21, 81 22:17-18 98 24:11-13 98 24:18 76 n. 14 31:9 76 n. 15 31:14 76 n. 13

Deuteronomy 3:18 76 n. 14 7:25 30 8:17 76 n. 15 8:17-18 90 n. 77 11:4 76 n. 12 11:12 107 12:31 30 15:7 88 n. 72 17:1 30 18:12 30 21:15 95 n. 94 32:1 1 n.l

Joshua 1:14 76 n. 12 6:26 100 n. 103

144 Index of Ancient Texts

13:26 32 n. 83 14 27 n. 59 14:4 26

Judges 3:29 76 n. 11 4:17-18,21-22 20 5:6,24 20 6:12 76 n. 12 8:1 36 n. 101 8:36 85 9:34 83 n. 52 11:1 76 ηη. 12& 14 14:12-13 82 n. 50 16:3 83 n. 52 16:14 81 n. 43 20:44, 46 76 n. 12

Ruth 2:1 76 2:5, 8, 22-23 86 3:2 86 3:10-11 77 3:11 77, 77 n. 25 4:5 96 4:10 96

1 Samuel 1:24 85 2:4 76 n. 11 2:7 98 14:48 76 n. 14 16:18 76 n. 12 17:4, 23 32 n. 85 21:10 32 n. 85 25:3 21 25:42 86

2 Samuel 3:29 81 n. 44 5:12 25 7:12 25 7:16 25 11:16 76 nn. 12 & 14 17:1 83 n. 52 21:19 32 n. 85

23:3 106 23:17 23 24:2,4 76 n. 13 24:9 76 n. 12 24:12, 17 22

1 Kings 8:5 21 n. 27 10:2 76 n. 15 10:28 80 n. 36 15:18 32 n. 83 15:20 76 n. 13 16:21 32 n. 85 16:34 100 n. 103 18:3, 12 106 21:27 23

2 Kings 4:6 36 n. 101 4:29 82 n. 49 5:2,4 86 6:13 32 n. 85 7:12 83 n. 52 9:1 82 n. 49 9:5 76 n. 13 11:15 20, 76 n. 13 15:20 76 22:19 22 24:14 76, 76 n. 12 25:12 105 n. 114

1 Chronicles 1:6 32 n. 85 1:31 32 n. 83 1:50 32 3:19 61 5:24 76 n. 12 8:40 76 n. 12 11:19 23 11:22 76 n. 14 12:8 20 12:9 76 n. 12 14:2 25 15:27 85 17:1 22

Index of Ancient Texts 145

17:11 25 17:14 25 20:1 76 η. 12 20:5 32 η. 85 21:10, 17 22 22:12 21 25:4,26 27 26:11 32 η. 83 26:14 21 26:7-9, 30, 32 76 27:31 105 η. 114 28:2 90

2 Chronicles 1:16 80 η. 36 2:11 21 5:6 21 η. 27 6:25 23 9:1 76 η. 15 16:4 76 η. 13 17:13 76 η. 12 21:14 105 η. 114 21:18 21 23:14 20, 76 η. 13 30:22 21 31:3 105 η. 114 32:29 105 η. 114 33:13 25 η. 47 34:27 22 35:7 105 η. 114 36:16 21 36:20, 22 25 η. 47

Ezra 1:3-4 104 1:4-11 104 1:7-11 45, 104 2:1-67 44 2:36-58, 64-65 44 2:42 32 2:56 20 2:65 61 2:68-69 105 3:7 79, 104

4:6-23 43 4:7 32 5:3-6:12 43 6:1-12, 14 104 6:8-9 104 7:11-26 104 7:16 104 7:21-24 45 8:1-36 44 8:18 21 8:25-30 45 8:26-27 104 8:33-34 45 9-10 73 9:2 105 9:8, 9 25 9:12 105 η. 114 10:8 105 η. 114 10:9 95 10:24 32 η. 83

Nehemiah 1:6 ..22 2:7-9 45 2:8 45 2:9 45,76 η. 13 2:9-11 44 2:17-18 95 3:12 61 3:24 95 5:3-5 88 6:14 61 6:18-19 105 7:45 32 7:58 20 7:67 61 8:1,3 95 8:8 21 8:16 95 9:17 25 10:31 48 10:32 81 10:39 99 13:6-7 44


13:12-13 99 13:15 87 13:15-16 84 13:15-21 48 13:16 21,79,81 13:23-24 59 13:23-27 73 13:28-29 105

Esther 1:5 36 n. 101 1:6 85 1:14 25 n. 47 2:3 25 n. 47 3:6,8 25 n. 47 3:12-15 42 4:4, 16 86 8:9-14 42 8:15 85

Job 3:21 20 4:8 29 6:6 25 8:17 20 8:2 27 17:4 21 19:9 98 20:18 76 n. 16 20:22 36 n. 101 22:14 20 24:10 23 28:2 106 n. 116 28:18 20 30:28 23 31:25 78 n. 26 31:36 21 33:3 27 38:31b 37 n. 105 39:1 20 39:lb-4 20 40:10 85

Psalms 5:11 23 9-10 17 n. 5 18:33,40 76 n. 11 19:10 90 28:4 83 n. 53 37:34 98 38:7 23 44:13 21 n. 28 45:1 30 50:4-6 1 n.l 55:15 23 60:14 76 n. 14 68:35 [Eng. v. 34]) 83 n. 53 81:13 23 81:14 23 85:11 [Eng. 10] 1 n.l 85:11, 14 23 89:15 [Eng. 14] 1 n.l 89:16 23 102:10 31 104:1 85 104:3, 10, 26 23 105:21 26 105:25 36 n. 101 106:2 27 108:14 76 n. 14 111:5 87 111:10 21,90, 106 n. 116 112:3 21 n. 28 114 1 n.l 115:7 23 119 17 n. 5 119:14 21 n. 28 131:1 23 140 31 142:4 23 144 31


Proverbs 1-9 1 ,2 ,3 ,4 , 5,6, 8, 10, 11,

12, 15 n. 2, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 22 n. 33, 23, 25, 26, 27, 28 n. 64, 30,31, 32, 34, 35, 37, 37 n. 105, 38, 73,91,92, 93, 101, 102 n. 108, 102, 103, 103 n. 109, 104, 104 n. 110, 106, 107, 108, 109, 111, 112, 113

1:1-6 [or 7] 3 n. 7 1:1-9:18 16 1:2-4 3 1:2-7 3 1:4 3 1:5-6 3 1:6 3,23 1:7 2, 90, 90 n. 76, 107 1:7a 3 1:7b 3 1:8 2 n. 5 1:9 1:9 98, 101 1:11-19 92, 103 1:12 36 1:13 21 1:15 94 1:18 23 1:20 30, 94, 95 1:20-21 3, 11,74, 109 1:20-33 3, 11,74, 93,96 1:21 30,91,93,94 1:22 36 1:22-33 3, 8, 106 1:23 92, 106 1:24 3,36, 92 1:25 92, 106 1:26 3,22, 92 1:27 106 l:27c-2:l 15 n. 3,37 n. 105 1:28 91, 106 1:29 29, 106

1:29-30 92, 106 1:30 106 1:31 23, 37 n. 105 1:32 36, 37 n. 105,92 1:33 91,96, 100, 107, 114 2:10-11 73 n. 2 2:12-22 73, 102, 105 2:14 36 n. 101 2:15 23,36 2:16 73,73 n. 2, 102 2:17 36 2:20-22 105 2:21 92 2:22 36 2:4 20, 36, 89 2:5 107 2:6 103 2:8 36 n. 101 3:2 36 3:4 21,92 3:7 11, 107 3:8 26,36, 111 3:9 21 3:9-10 103, 105 3:10 36 3:13 31,95,96, 97, 98 3:13-18 100 3:13-18 3,5,93,96, 97 3:13-20 5,6 3:1-38 [Eng 3:1-4:6] 95 3:13 30 3:14 ....30, 91, 97, 99, 101, 103,

107,113 3:14a 97 3:14-15 107, 109 3:14-16 5 3:15 [Q] 91 3:15 20, 97, 101, 103 3:16 3, 11,92, 103, 107, 114 3:16-17 97 3:17 5,36, 94 3:17-18 5 n. 15,97, 114 3:18 92, 95,96, 97


3:19 5,36 3:19a 5 3:19-20 5 3:20 36 3:20a 5 n. 17 3:27 36 n. 101 3:27-28 103 3:29 36 3:32 30 3:35 36 4:1-9 3 ,93,97 4:4 36 4:4-7 101 4:4-9 3 4:5 96, 98, 109 4:5a 97 n. 98 4:5-7 103, 113 4:5-9 73 n. 2, 97 4:6 92, 95,97 n. 98,98 4:7 26, 96, 98, 107,109, 111 4:8 92, 95,98 4:8-9 114 4:9 3,95 4:15 36 4:18 36 4:22 21 4:24 26, 111 5:2 36 n. 101 5:3 73,73 n. 2,102 5:5 36 5:6 92 5:7-14 74, 102, 105 5:8 94 5:10 103, 105 5:14 21,21 n. 27, 105 5:16 94, 95 5:17 105 5:18 36 5:19 20 5:20 73,73 n. 2 5:22 36 6:1 105 6:1-5 103

6:5 36 6:6-11 104 6:11 24 6:12 26,36, 111 6:13 27, 111 6:14 36 6:14-7:2 101 6:15 21 6:20 2 n. 5 6:21 21 6:24 36, 73, 73 n. 2, 92, 102 6:25 93, 102 6:26 36, 73 n. 2 6:28 24 6:29 73 n. 2 6:30 36 6:30-31 104 6:31 21 6:34 36 6:35 103 7:4 36, 73 n. 2, 95 7:4-5 3, 93 7:5 73, 73 n. 2 7:6 94 7:8 11,94, 95 7:9 92 7:10 36, 73 n. 2 7:10-12 11,74 7:11 33 7:12 94, 95 7:14-21 11. 74 7:15 92 7:16 26. 32. 85.93. 106. I l l 7:16-17 11, 106 7:19 36 7:21 102 7:22 36 7:23 36, 107 7:25 36, 94 7:27 11,36, 102, 107 8 8n . 31 8:1 73 n. 2 8:1-3 3


8:1-9:6,11 3,93 8:2 20,94 8:2-3 11,74 8:3 91 ,93 ,94 8:4-36 3, 8, 11,74, 98, 106 8:5 36 8:6-8 3 8:6-9 92 8:6-10a 3 8:10 30, 103 8:11...20, 91, 96 n. 97, 97, 101,

103,109 8:12 22 8:13 36 n. 101,92, 106 8:13a 106 8:13b 106 8:14 22,36, 92 8:15 36 8:15-16 103 n. 109 8:17 22 ,91 ,95 ,99 8:17-21 99 8:18...21, 92, 99, 103, 107, 114 8:18a 99 8:18-19 11, 114 8:19... 30, 92, 99, 101, 103, 107 8:20 3,24, 94 8:21 23,92, 98 n. 100, 99,

101, 103, 107, 114 8:21b 99 8:22 6 8:22-26 5 n. 19 8:22-29 5 8:22-31 3, 5,6, 34, 108 8:23a 6 8:24a 6 8:24a, b 5 n. 19 8:25 6 n. 19 8:25b 6 8:26 6 n. 19 8:27 6, 20, 22 8:30 6, 8, 92 8:30a 6 8:30-31 6

8:32-34 92 8:34 36 n. 101,94 8:35 30 ,30 ,31 ,95 9:1 30,36,91, 100 9:1a 100 n. 103 9:1-3 3, 100, 101, 114 9:2 31,92, 101 9:3 91, 93, 94,100 9:4-6 3,8 , 11,74 9:5 31,91 9:6 3 n. 8 9:10 2 , 3 , 9 0 n. 76, 107 9:11 3, 3 n. 8, 8,107 9:13 26, 33,73 n. 2 9:14 93,94 9:14-15 93 9:15 23, 36 n. 101 9:16-17 11,74 9:17 36 9:18 36, 107 10:1 2 10:1-22:16 2, 16 10:15 21 n. 28 10:27 90, 107 11:14 21 n. 28 11:30 5 ,97 12:4 77, 77 n. 25, 98,

103 n. 108 12:8 21 n. 26 12:18 21 n. 25 12:27 21 n. 28 13:6b-9 15 n. 3 13:7, 11 21 n. 28 13:12 5 ,97 13:15 21 n. 26 13:17 21 n. 25 14:1 30, 100 n. 104,

103 n. 108 14:2 107 14:6-10 15 n. 3 14:12b 15 n. 3 14:13b 15 n. 3 14:26 90, 107


14:26-27 107 14:27 107 14:31-15:8 15 n. 3 15:4 5,97 15:8 16 n. 3 15:16 107 15:19b-31 15 n. 3 15:33 90 n. 76, 107 16:6 107 16:16a 89 16:22 21 n. 26 16:24 21 n. 25 17:16 96 18:11 21 n. 28 18:22 95, 103 n. 108 19:4 21 n. 28 19:11 21 n. 26 19:14 21 n. 28, 103 n. 108 19:23 90, 107 20:1 1 n.l 20:6 77 n. 25 20:15 20,91 n. 79 22:4 90, 107 22:7 29 22:8 29 22:14 103 n. 108 22:17-24:22 16 23:9 21 n. 26 23:17 107 23:17-18 90 23:23 96 23:27-28 103 n. 108 23:30 101 24:3 100 n. 104 24:3-4 89, 100 24:4 21 n. 28 24:21 107 24:23-34 16 25:1 16, 111 25:1-29:27 2, 16 28:8,22 21 n. 28 29:1 21 n. 25 29:3 21 n. 28

30:1-33 16 30:8 87 30:15 21 n. 28 30:20 103 n. 108 31:1-9 16 31:4 36 31:10 20,21,33, 75, 76,81,

91,92, 95,97, 113 31:10-12 75 31:10-31 2, 11, 12, 15 n. 2,

16, 16 n. 5, 17, 18, 18 n. 12, 19, 20, 21, 22 n. 33, 25,26, 27, 28 n. 64, 30,31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 37, 37 n. 105, 38, 74 n. 5, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 82, 90, 91, 92, 93, 101, 102, 103, 104, 106, 107, 108, 109, 111, 112, 113

31:10a 77, 90 31:10b 77, 90, 103, 109 31:10-31 16 31:1178, 90,91,92, 96, 107, 113 31:11-12 76, 78 31:12 78, 92 31:13 75 n. 9,81, 103 31:13-27 75 31:13b 81, 82 31:14 36, 80, 83, 86,91, 103 31:15 83, 86, 87,91,92, 100 31:15-17 92 31:16 82, 88, 89, 92, 99 31:16a 87 31:16b 87 31:17 36, 92 31:17 [LXX] 82 31:18 80, 89,91,92, 97, 103 31:18a 83 31:18b 83 31:19 33,75 n. 9,81,

81 n. 44,88 31:19a 88 31:19b 88


31:19-20 92 31:20 88,92 31:20a 88 31:20b 88 31:20-22 89 31:21 84 n. 55, 85,91,100 31:22 36, 75 n. 9, 80,81,82,

85, 85 n. 55,93,103,106 31:23 76, 89, 90, 92, 99, 103 31:24 75 n. 9, 79,81,82, 89,

96, 103 31:25 36, 85,90, 92 31:26 36,89,92 31:27 26,33, 36, 90,91,92,

100,111 31:27b 81 31:28 76,90,92,96 31:28-31 75 31:29 90 31:30 2, 90, 92, 93, 106, 107 31:30a 90 31:30-31 106 31:31 83, 88, 89,91,92, 99

Qoheleth 1:14 25 1:17 25,30 2:3 25 2:8 61 2:11 25 2:12 25,30 2:13 25 2:17 25 2:26 25 3:1 82, 82 n. 46 3:17 82, 82 n. 46 4:4,6 25 4:15 23 5:7 82, 82 n. 46 6:9 25 7:24 77 n. 25 7:25 25,30 8:6 82, 82 n. 46 8:10 23

9:3 30 10:1 25 10:4 21 10:10 76 n. 11 10:13 25,30 10:18 25 11:10 25 11:4 29 11:9 23 11:9-10 25

Song of Solomon 2:6 3:1-4 3:10 3:11

95 95 85 95

4:9, 10, 12 95 5:1 95 5:2 95 5:6 95 6:1 95 7:7 95 n. 94 7:8-9 [Eng. vv. 7-8] 97 8:3 95 8:7 21 n. 28

Isaiah 1:2 1 n.l 1:18 84 n. 55 3:23 82 n. 50 3:23 85 4:1 95 5:22 31, 101 7:6 32 8:4 76 n. 15 19:14 31 23:18 80 23:2 80 n. 36 23:3 80 23:8 80 n. 36 28:7 31 30:6 23 40:22 20 45:3 20


45:14 80 46:10 107 47 1 n.l 50:3 25 52:1 85 52:1-2 1 n.l 53:1-8; 62 1 n.l 54:6 95 n. 95 54:7 95 III Isaiah 23 58:8 1 n.l 58:10 31 59:7-8 23 59:8 23 59:9 23 60:15 95 n. 95 61:10 95 62:3 98 62:4 95 n. 95 65:2 23 65:21 100 66:18 23

Jeremiah 1:17.... 2:3 2:12.... 4:30.... 4:31....

90 107

1 n.l 85

1 n.l 6:5 83 n. 52 7:9-10 29 8:15 21 10:4 31 10:14-15 29 12:7 25 13:18 98 14:19 21 15:13 76 n. 15 23:32 25 25:12 36 n. 101 26:1 107 29:10 36 n. 101 31:18-20 29 32:2 76 n. 12

33:6 21 33:8 23 39:10 105 n. 114 40:7, 13 76 n. 13 41:8 20 41:17 25 42-44 29 51:17-18 29 52:16 105 n. 114

Lamentations 1-2 1 n.l 1-4 17 n. 5 1:16,21 22 3:1,63 22 4 1 n.l 4:7 20 5:16 98 5:18 23

Ezekiel 5:2 36 n. 101 6:14 23 11:15 105 n. 114 11:17 105 n. 114 16 25 16:10, 13 85 17:17 76 n. 12 18:9 23 21:11 25 23 1 n.l , 25 24:26 25 27:12 21 n. 28 27:12-25 46 n. 28 27:13 32 n. 85 27:14 32 n. 85 27:17 46 n. 28 27:18, 27,33 21 n. 28 27:36 80 n. 36 28:4 90 n. 77 28:5 76 nn. 15 & 16, 89 28:26 100 32:5 25 32:26 32 n. 85


33:23 105 η. 114 36:28 22 37:23 23 38:6 32 η. 85 38:12 26 38:13 26, 80 η. 36 41:9 20 48:14 107

Daniel 1:20 25 η. 47 3:5 32,35 3:7 32,35 3:10, 15 32,35 8:24 21 10:3 36 η. 101 10:11 22 11:4, 9, 17, 20 25 η. 47 11:23 25

Hosea 1:4 25 2:9 [Eng. v. 7] 95 2:12 25 3:1 95 4-14 29 4:2 29 4:6 29 4:11 25 6:10 25 7:14-16 29 8:7 29 9:3-6 29 11:1-8 29 11:6 23 12:9 [Eng. v. 8] 78 η. 26

Joel 1:1 32 η. 85 2:7 23

Amos 6:6 107

Micah 6:1 90

6:1-2. 6:15.. 6:16..

.1 n.l 29 23

Nahum 1 17 n. 5

Habakkuk 3:11 23

Haggai 1:4 105 1:13 25

Zechariah 4:6 76 n. 11 5:11 100 8:4-5 95 14:14 76 n. 15

Malachi 3:10 87, 99 3:20 21 3:23 22

NEW TESTAMENT

Matthew 27:28 85

Mark 15:17, 20 85

Luke 7:35 11:49 16:19 85

John 1:1-18 17:5 19:2,5 85

1 Corinthians 1:18-31 8:6

Colossians 1:15-20

Hebrews 1:2-3


Revelation 18:12, 16 85

APOCRYPHA

Wisdom of Solomon 7:7-10:18 1, 110 7:25-26 1 8-9 8n. 31

Sirach 4:12 31 7:3 29 7:19 20 8:9 21 10:26 82 24 8n. 31, 108, 110 24:1-22 1 24:23-34 1 30:15 20 31:6 20 33:25 25 35:15 31 38:14 26 n. 52 42:4b 21,81 42:8 25 42:9 20 42:12 20 43:12 20 43:22 21

Baruch 3:9-4:4 1, 110 4:1 1

PSEUDEPIGRAPHA

1 Enoch 42:1-2 1, 110

QUMRAN

1QS 3.17 82 4QProva=4Q102 15, 15 n. 3,

37 n. 105 4QProvb=4Q103 15 n. 3 11Q5 1 UQPsa155 17 n. 5 llQPs'Sirach 17 n. 5 llQPs'Zion 17 n. 5 CD

11:20-21 16 n. 3 14:12 82

GREEK WRITERS

Herodotus Histories 5.52-53 42 n. 15 Histories 6.43 44 n. 19 Histories 8.98 42 n. 15, 43

Plato Alcibiades I 121c-123cd 71

n. 167 Xenophon

Anabasis 1.4.10 42 n. 15 Anabasis 2.4.14 42 n. 15 Anabasis 2.4.27 71 n. 167 Cyropaedia 8.6, 17-18 42

n. 15 Oeconomicus 4.13 42 n. 15

HELLENISTIC JEWISH WRITERS

Philo 8 η. 31

TALMUD

Mo'edQat 9b 82 Ned. A9b 26 Sabb. 113 82


OTHER EXTRA-BIBLICAL TEXT COLLECTIONS

N.B.: The following materials are listed alphabetically according to the abbreviations employed throughout the book. For full titles, see pp. ix-xiii or the Bibliography.

1963:2. .60 ATNS

1:4,7-8 27 3:1 70 n. 163 8:10 70 n. 163 9:3,7 27 50:9 70 n. 163

BE 9 28 66, 87 n. 67 9 39 67, 67 n. 143 9 50 66, 87 n. 67 9 58 70 n. 161 10 2 70, 70 n. 157, 70 n. 158 10 3 70, 70 n. 158 10 97, 13 87 n. 68 10 97, 131 66 n. 137

BM 30441 58 31513 58 n. 88 3393 2 58 3393 3 58 3393 4 58

BOR 2 3 53,78 4 52 70 η. 160

Camb 15 67 97 60 21 4 58, 58 nn. 86 & 87 21 5 58, 58 n. 87 21 6 58, 58 n. 89 279 60 370 68 n. 152

CBS 5199 66, 87 n. 69 12965 59, 59 n. 98

CIS 3 79 n. 31 5948 81 n. 40 5967 81 n. 39 5993 81 n. 39 II, 137 59, 84

Code of Hammurabi Laws 163-164 56

CT 51 55 58

CTU 1.4.111.27 7 1.4.VI.46 7 4.146.6 85 n. 56 4.146.8 85 n. 56 4.270.11 85 4.385.9-10 85

Cyr 27 60 48 59 51 68 n. 152 6 4 67 6 5 60 12 9 57 13 0 57 143 58, 58 n. 86, 58 n. 89 284 70 n. 160 303 68, 88

Dar 26 53, 78 79 58 η. 88 429 53

Donbaz and Stolper, Istanbul Murasfi Texts 150 (No. 103) 71 n. 164

El Amarna 120:21 : 85


Fort. 1017 44 5206 62 n. 113 6754 64, 84 6764 64 n. 127, 101

Gezer calendar Line 7 28 n. 64

Hallock, R. T., "The Use of Seals" No. 38 64 No. 51 65

Instruction of Ani 102 n. 108

KAI 13.6 30 92 81 η. 40 20 0 35 η. 99 224.2 27 260.8 26

L-29-594+608 88

Liv 15 69 ,87 ,88 32 57 40 68 η. 152 98 52 100 69 154 52 ,67 ,78

LNB §10 [iii 32-37] 56

Moldenke I 18 70 n. 162 130 59

Nbk 37 67 67 60 147 67 20 1 67 207 60 265 52, 67,78 283 55

342 70 n. 162 345 70 n. 160

Nbn 11 70 n. 161 11, lines 7-8 70 n. 162 1 5 68 n. 152 82 68 n. 152 85 52 n. 65 103 70 n. 160 15 1 70 n. 161 15 2 70 n. 161 187 52 n. 65,70 n. 160 336 67 356 52 375 70 n. 162 39 0 69 39 1 69 39 2 69 611 68 n. 151,68 n. 152 619 70 n. 162 657 59 697 67 n. 147 700 60 727 68 n. 151 741 60 755 51,57, 57 n. 85 757 59 76 0 55, 57 76 1 57 820 59 1025 69

Ni 267 71 508 67, 67 n. 143, 67 n. 144,

87 n. 70 53 8 67, 87 n. 70 53 9 66 n. 140

Nr. 1 6 67 137 51,55, 57, 57 n. 84 196 68, 88 210 60


221 87 232 68, 68 η. 152, 88 241 68, 88 274 68 291 68 nn. 151, 152 304 68, 88 307 70 η. 160 35 4 55,58 η. 88,58 η. 89 35 5 55, 58 η. 88, 58 η. 89 372 68, 88 375 68 η. 152

PBS 2/1 38 66 η. 137, 87 η. 68 2/1 50 66 η. 137, 87 η. 68 2/1 60 66 η. 137, 87 η. 68 2/1 75 66 η. 137, 67,

87 η. 68, 87 η. 70, 2/1 105 66 η. 137, 87 η. 68 2/1 146 66 η. 137, 87 η. 68 2/1 147 66 η. 137, 87 η. 68

PF 16 2 64 η. 127 162-63 84 16 3 64 η. 127 164-65 64 η. 126 164-68 87 η. 71 166-67 64 166-68 63 η. 121 168 64 171 64 η. 127, 84 193 64 η. 127, 84 300 42 309 64 η. 127, 84 684 44 688 44 η. 19 73 0 63,84 731 63,84 73 2 64, 84 73 3 64, 101 733-734 84 73 4 64, 101 73 5 65

735-36 87 η. 71 735-40 84 73 6 65 73 7 65 73 8 65 738-40 87 η. 71 73 9 65 74 0 65 784 64 η. 127, 84 823 64 η. 127, 84 84 7 63,63 η. 117,

63 η. 118, 86 η. 62 847-1084 60 η. 101 84 8 60 84 9 65, 87 η. 71 863 60 864-6 6 60 η. 103 86 5 84, 86 η. 65 865-6 6 60, 60 η. 101,

60 η. 105,61,62, 62 η. 111 86 6 84, 86 η. 65 867-68 61 86 9 60 87 0 63,63 η. 119 872 60 87 5 62, 86 η. 65 875-76 62, 62 η. 111,63, 84 87 6 86 η. 65 87 7 60 877-78 62 η. 113 87 8 60 η. 103 87 9 62, 62 η. 111,84,

86 η. 65 880-88 62 η. 113 890-92 62 η. 113 896-908 62 η. 113 922-28 62 η. 113 930-32 62 η. 113 935 62 η. 113 940 62 η. 113 948-49 62 η. 113 955 60 η. 101 957-61 62 η. 113


969-70 62 n. 113 975 60 n. 101 986 60 n. 101 990 60 n. 101 99 4 60 n. 101 99 5 62 n. 113 99 6 63, 86 n. 63 99 8 63 99 9 63 n. 117, 63 n. 118,

86 n. 62 100 2 65 100 3 60 n. 101 1005 65 1008 60 1009 60 n. 101 1012 62, 62 n. 111,63,84,

86 n. 65 102 8 65 102 9 65 1036 60 n. 101 1039 60 n. 101 1041-43 65, 87 n. 71 1049 61 1051-5 2 63, 86 n. 63 1052 63 n. 119 1052-5 5 63 1054 60 n. 101 1058 60 n. 101 1063-64 62 n. I l l 1068 60 n. 101 1076 62 n. I l l 1083 60 n. 101 1086-87 63,86 n. 63 108 9 63 n. 118 1089-91 63 n. 118, 86 n. 62 109 0 63 n. 118 1098 65 1109 65, 87 n. 71 112 8 63,63 n. 118 1128-29 63 n. 118, 86 n. 62 112 9 63 n. 118 1165 63 n. 118, 86 n. 62 1171 63 n. 118, 86 n. 62

1184 63 n. 118, 86 n. 62 1198 65 1200 63 n. 118 1200-1201 63 n. 118 1201- 3 86 n. 62 1203 63 n. 118 1219 64 n. 125 1221 65 1232 65 1236 63,63 n. 118,64,

86 n. 62 1262 44 1264-65 44 1285 42 1289-93 44 1294 44 1296-97 44 1299 44 1306 44 1318 43 1319-21 42 1321 43 132 8 44 n. 20 132 9 42 1334-35 42 1342 44 1357 44 1363 43,44 n. 20 1368 44 n. 20 1383 43 139 6 44 n. 20 139 7 43 1409 43 1454 64 1513 44 n. 20 1519 44 1524 43 1527 44 n. 20 1531 44 1544 43 1546 44 1550 44 1552 43


155 6 43 155 7 44 1565 44 η. 20 1569 44 1572 43 1575 44 η. 20 1577 43 158 9 60 159 0 63 η. 118 1606 63 η. 118 1608 63 η. 118 179 0 62, 62 η. 111,63,

63 η. 118, 84, 86 η. 65 1790:5-10 62 η. 112 1790-91 62 η. 114 179 1 62 η. 114 179 3 62 η. 114 179 4 62 η. 114, 63,

63 η. 118 179 5 64,64 η. 127,

64 η. 128, 84, 101 1821-24 60 1828 60 1835 63,63 η. 121 1835-3 9 87 η. 71 1836-3 7 63 η. 121 1836-39 63 1842-44 60 1848 63 η. 118 1857 63 η. 121,65,65 η.

134, 87 η. 71 194 6 60 194 7 60 194 8 61 1957:2 61 1963:2 61 2035 64, 84, 101 2039-2045 60 η. 101 2041 60 η. 101 2044 60 η. 101 2049 64 2052 42 2055 44 η. 20

2070 65,65 η. 133

PFa 5 44, 44 η. 19 1 4 44, 64 2 7 64, 87 η. 71 31 44,61

PF-NN 279 64 413 62 η. 113 641 64 η. 129 855 64 η. 129 1068 65 η. 132 1146 65 η. 132 1238 64 1332 64 η. 129 1524 62 η. 111 1666 62 η. 111 1685 64 1773 64 η. 129 1887 62 η. 111,63 1973 64 η. 129 2055 64 η. 129 2081 64 2497 64

ΡΤ 1 44 6 63 9 44 12 44 1 5 44 22 44 2 8 61 29 60 3 6 60 3 7 44, 60 39-40 60 4 1 60 4 2 61 4 5 60 η. 103 4 6 60 4 9 60 η. 104 5 0 61


5 2 61 5 3 61 5 4 60 n. 104 5 5 60 n. 104 61 61 64-67 60 n. 103 69-70 61

RES 1785B:4 27

Rm. 681. .58

Samaria ostraca 28 n. 64

SP 3:3, 8 81 η. 41 7:5 81 η. 41

TAD 1,2.1 59 1,2.1.9-10 43 I, 2.1-2.3 95 η. 96 I, 2.2 59, 84 1,2.2.12-13 43 1,2.4.10 26 I, 2.5 59, 84 1,2.5.5-6 43 1,2.5-2.6 95 η. 96 1.2. 6 59 1.2. 7 59 I, 3.6; 3.9 43 I, 4.1; 4.3 43 I, 4.7 43 I, 4.8 43 1,4.9 43 1,6.1-16 42 I, 6.9 44 II, 2.1.8-10 54 n. 69 II, 2.2 54 II, 2.2.12-13 54 n. 69 11,2.3 53 ,54 II, 2.3.7 51 n. 60 II, 2.4 54 11,2.4.1-4 51 n. 60

11.2. 5 5 I n . 60 II, 2.6 50, 52, 53, 78, 89 II, 2.6.5 49 II, 2.6.7 26 11.2.6.9-1 0 49 n. 48 11.2.6.10-1 1 49 n. 48 II, 2.6.11-13 49 n. 48 II, 2.6.14 49, 52 n. 63,

52 n. 63 II, 2.6.17-20 56 II, 2.6.17-22 54 n. 69 II, 2.6.19,21-22, 30, 35 98 11,2.6.19, 22, 30, 35 26 II, 2.6.20-22 55 II, 2.6.22-23, 26-27 56 n. 77 II, 2.6.22-29 56 n. 78 II, 2.6.25-29 56 II, 2.6.27 56 11,2.6.28 56 11.2.6.3 5 53 11.2.6.3 6 53 II, 2.8.4 26 II, 2.8.7-10 54 n. 69 11,2.9.3 53 11,2.9.10-12 54 n. 69 11,2.10 53 ,53 n. 67 II, 2.10.3 53 11,2.11.2-3 53 11,3.1 69 11.3.1.3- 7 69 11,3.1.14-20 70 11.3. 3 49, 5 0 , 5 1 , 7 8 11.3.3.4- 5 49 n. 48 11,3.3.7,9 56 n. 77 11.3.3. 8 56 II, 3.3.8-10 56 11,3.3.10-11 56 11.3.3.12-1 3 55 11.3.3.13-1 4 51 n. 61 11.3. 4 60 11.3.4. 9 99 n. 101 11,3.5.19 54 n. 69 11.3. 6 51 n. 58

Index of Ancient Texts

II 3.7 54 II 3.7.7 99 II 3.8 50, 51, 54, 78 II 3.8.5 49 II 3.8.6-10 49 n. 48 II 3.8.7, [9] 26 II 3.8.11-12 49 n. 48 II 3.8.13-15 49 n. 48 II 3.8.15-17 . . 49 ,51 n. 59 II 3.8.21-22, 24-25 56 n. 77 II 3.8.22 56 II 3.8.24 56 II 3.8.27 26 II 3.8.28-30 .. 54 n. 69, 56 II 3 .8:29-30,31. . 98 II 3.8.30-31 26 II 3.8.33-34 . .56, 56 n. 77 II 3.8.34-36 . .54 n. 69, 55 II 3.8.35 26, 98 II 3.8.36-37 56 n. 77 II 3.8.37-40 56 n. 77 II 3.8.40-42 51 n. 61 II 3.10 54 II 3.11 54 II 3.11.4 99 II 3.12 60 II 3.12.5-6, 12-15 49 n. 48 II 3.13 99 II 4.2 99 II 4.2.1-5 69 II 4.2^1.4 99 n. 101 II 4.3 99, 99 n. 101 II 4.4 99, 99 n. 101 II 4.6 57 II 5.5 6 1 , 8 4 , 99 n. 101 II [6 .1.7,9] 26 II 6.1-2 50

161

II, 6.2.5-6 49 η. 48 II, 6.2.7 49 η. 48 II, 6 . 3 . 1 , 4 , 8 26, 98 II, 6.4.1-2 56 η. 77 II, 6.4.3-6 56 η. 77 II, 8.5.6, 11, 14 27 11,8.6.4,8 27 II, 8.8.4, 8-9 27 III, 1.1.207 80 n. 34 III, 3.7Dv2.6 80 n. 34 III, 3.7Fr3.9 80 n. 34 III, 3.7Fv3.4 80 n. 34 III, 3.7Gr2.8 80 n. 34 III, 3.7Gv2.6 80 n. 34 111,3.13 6 1 , 6 1 n. 106, 84 111,3.18 61, 61 n. 106, 84 111,3.26 6 1 , 6 1 n. 106, 84 III,3.28.80-8 4 6 1 , 6 1 IV, 3.16 50 IV, 6.3-14 42 IV, 7.2 59, 84 IV, 7.3 59, 84 IV, 7.6 59 IV, 7.7 59, 84 IV, 7.16 59, 84

T C L 12 94 69 12 118 70 n. 160

Teil Qasile 28 n. 64

T u M 2-3 179 66, 87 n. 67 2-3 185 66, 66 n. 137,

87 n. 68

Ugaritica 7, 42:25 85 n. 59

Abusch, Τ. Ackroyd, P. R 16 Afsaruddin, A 82 Aharoni, Y 45 Aitken, Κ 76 Albright, W. F 17, 27 Aletti, J.-N 91 Alexander, P. S 43 Anderson, J. Ε 26 Ap-Thomas, D. R 16 Archer, L. J 103 Artzy, Μ 94 Assmann, J 8 Astour, Μ 42 Attridge, Η. W 15 Augustin, Μ 18 Avigad, Ν 37,61 Bach, A 2 Balensi, J 94 Barr, J 35 Barre, M. L 15, 16 Barucq, A 91 Bauer-Kayatz, C 4, 17 Baumann, G 4, 7 Baumgartner, W 16, 17 Becking, Β 4 , 7 , 8 Benichou-Safar, Η 81 Benoit, Ρ 25 Ben-Or, J 45 Ben-Tor, A 79 Berg, J 46 Bergant, D 104 Berquist, J 39 Biggs, R. D 64 Bird, Ρ 81 Blenkinsopp, J 10, 50, 73, 74,

105

A 28 Boling, R 27 Boström, G 4, 10 Bowden, J 34 Braulik, G 74 Brenner, A 4, 9, 10 Bresciani, Ε 41 Brosius, Μ 39, 44, 60, 61, 62,

64, 65,71, 101 Brown, J. Ρ 104 Brown, R. Ε 2 Cameron, G. G 41, 60, 64, 99 Camp, C. V 4,9, 10,33,41,

74, 77, 91, 93 Campbell, E. F 76 Carasik, Μ 16 Cardascia, G 40, 60, 66, 69 Ceresko, A. R 78 Cheyne, Τ. Κ 17 Clermont-Ganneau, C. S 59 Clifford, R. J 3, 15, 16, 17,

18, 19, 27, 37, 74, 76, 82, 96, 97, 100

Cohen, A 77 Collins, J . J 15,49,50,51,

55,77 Coogan, M. D 4, 8 Cook, J 15 Cook, J. Μ 39, 42 Cowley, Α. Ε 59 Cox, D 3, 76 Crenshaw, J. L 104 Crook, Μ 89 Cross, F. Μ 18, 28, 32, 34,

35,40 Dandamaev, Μ. A 45, 60, 63,

67, 69

Index of Authors

7 Blommerde

Index of Authors 163

Davies, P. R 45 Davies, W. D 17 Davila, J. R 28, 30 Day, J 5,7,29, 106 Day, Ρ 33 de Vaux, R 25 Delitzsch, F 3, 17 Depla, A 103 Diesel, A. A 94 di Leila, A 15 Donbaz, V 40,66,67,71 Donner, Η 4 Dothan, Μ 47, 94 Driver, S. R 19 Dubberstein, W. Η 50 Dunn, J. D. G 2 Dupont-Sommer, A 20, 59, 84 Easton, M. G 3 Eissfeldt, 0 16, 19, 34 Elayi, J 79 Elgavish, J 80 Elwolde, J 19 Emerton, J. A 40 Eskenazi, T. C 10, 41 Finkelstein, L 17 Fischler, S 103 Fishbane, Μ 17, 30 Fitzmyer, J. A 82 Fohrer, G 34 Fontaine, C. R 4, 9, 10, 77 Fox, Μ. V 3 , 4 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 Freedman, D. Ν 28,35,40 Galili, Ε 47 Gammie, J. G 9 Garr, W. R 28 Gemser, Β 16 Gerleman, G 15 Gershevitch, 1 62 Gese, Η 17 Gibson, J. C. L 28 Gibson, Μ 64 Ginsberg, H. L 28, 29, 30 Glass, J. Τ 9, 18

Glueck, Ν 79 Goedicke, Η 79 Goldmann, Ζ 94 Good, D.J 1 Gordon, R. Ρ 5,29, 106 Graf, D. F 42 Grafman, R 37 Green, D 34 Greenfield, J. C 39,40, 79 Greenstone, J. Η 2, 107 Grelot, Ρ 26 Gropp, D. Μ 40,81 Groß, W 74 Hadley, J. Μ 4, 6 Hallock, R. Τ 40, 41, 44, 60,

62, 64, 65 Hamilton, A 30 Hanson, P. D 4 Hartmann, A 19 Hawkins, T. R 75 Hengel, Μ 34 Herrera, M. D 94 Hill, Α. Ε 19 Hinz, W 101 Hitzig, F 16 Hoglund, K. G 9, 18,45,46, 87 Holmgren, F. C 2 Humbert, Ρ 10 Hurvitz, A 24, 18, 19,21,

22, 23 Huwiler, E. F 9, 18 Jacob, Ε 93 Jacob, 1 81 Jacob, W 81 Jastrow, Μ 23, 26, 82 Jensen, L 80 Jobling, D 33 Johns, C. Ν 47 Johnson, E. A 2, 4 Jones, Ε 3 Joüon, Ρ 25 Kamil, Μ 41 Kautzsch, Ε 24

164 Index of Authors

Kidner, D 2, 107 Kneirim, R 77 Knight, D. A 30 Krecher, J 40 Kreissig, Η 39 Kropat, A 19 Kugel, J 21 Kuhrt, A 39,41,42, 45 Kutscher, Ε. Υ 19 Lambdin, Τ. 0 32 Lambert, W. G 74 Lang, Β 4 ,5 ,7 ,8 ,9 , 19 Lapp, N. L 40 Lapp, P. W 40 Lee, R. W 9, 18 Lehmann, R. G 94 Lesko, Β 52 Levine, Β 59 Levine, I. Η 25 Lewis, D. Μ 41, 62 Lichtenstein, Μ. Η 75 Lichtheim, Μ 74, 103 Linder, Ε 47,48 Lipiriski, Ε 50 Lyons, Ε. L 18 Macintosh, Α. A 29 Mack, Β. L 4 Magen, 1 47 Maier, C 10,41,73 Maisler [Mazar], Β 28 Marcus, R 5, 7 McBride, S. D 4 McCreesh, Τ. Ρ 75, 76, 90,

91,93 McEvenue, S 74 McKane, W 17, 75, 77, 89 Meinhold, A 18,77 Meshel, Ζ 28 Meshorer, J 25, 34 Meyers, C 19, 50 Meyers, Ε. Μ 61, 62 Milik, J .T 25 Miller, P. D„ Jr 4

Moldenke, A 52, 59, 70 Moscati, S 30 Muffs, Y 49, 57 Mullen, E., Jr 30 Muraoka, Τ 25 Murphy, R. Ε 77, 82, 90,

95, 106 Naveh, J 34, 45 Nebe, G. W 16,37 Newsom, C 2, 77 Noth, Μ 17,26 O'Connor, Κ. Μ 77, 109 O'Connor, Μ 19,21 Oesterley, W. Ο. Ε 3, 16, 32 Olyan, S. Μ 7 Oren, Ε 47 Otto, Ε 94 Peckham, J. Β 30 Perdue, L. G 9, 16, 50 Plaut, W. G 3 Polzin, R 18,21 Porten, Β 40,41, 50, 52, 53,

59, 69, 80, 84, 95, 99 Powell, Μ. A 60 Powell, V. A 60 Qimron, Ε 22, 23, 24, 25, 35, 37 Raban, A 47, 80 Rainey, A 85 Rendsburg, G. A 19, 28, 29,

31,82 Richards, Κ. Η 10 Ringe, S 77 Ringgren, Η 7 Robert, A 17,30 Rooker, Μ 19,21,22,23,24 Root, M. C 42, 45 Roth, Μ. Τ 49,50,51,52, 53,

55, 57, 58, 86, Rowley, Η. Η 16 Rüger, H.-P 6 Säenz-Badillos, A 19, 28 Sancisi-Weerdenburg, Η 39,

41,42, 45

Index of Authors 165

Sanders, J. A 1 Sasson, J. Μ 42 Sayce, Α. Η 59 Schenke, W 4 Schottroff, W 39 Schroer, S 4,9 Schunck, K.-D 18 Scott, R. Β. Y 6, 16, 76,77,

82, 89 Scullion, J 27 Segal, J. Β 41,69 Seow, C. L 19,22,28,29,

30, 35, 37, 41, 46, 49, 51, 65, 68, 78, 82, 87

Sharon, 1 46,80 Sheppard, G 33 Shiff, L. Β 40, 60, 69 Simpson, J. A 1 Skehan, P. W 15 Smith, Μ 39 Smith-Christopher, D. L 39 Smyth, H. W 32 Spanier, Ε 80 Stager, L 47 Stansell, G 29 Stern, Ε 31,33,34,39,43,

45, 46, 47, 48, 59, 79, 80, 87, 94, 95, 100

Stieglitz, R. R 80 Stolper, M. W 40,46, 59,

66, 67, 68, 71 Story, C. I. Κ 17, 27 Suggs, M. J 2 Thomas, D. W 17 Tobin, Τ. Η 15 Τον, Ε 15, 35 Toy, C. Η 2,3, 17, 18, 19,

75, 82, 96 Tucker, G 77 Ungnad, A 40

van der Horst, Ρ 4, 7, 8 van der Toorn, Κ 4, 7, 8, 10 van der Weiden, W. A 83 van Driel, G 40, 66 Vawter, Β 6 Veenhof, K. R 39 Waegeman, Μ 18, 77, 89 Wagner, A 94 Wagner, Μ 24 Waldman, Ν 19 Washington, H. C 10, 17, 19,

21,30, 34,41,73,74, 104, 105 Watson, W. G. Ε 77 Weinberg, J. Ρ 39 Weiner, E. S. C 1 Weinfeld, Μ 17 Weingort, S 40 Weisberg, D 60 Westermann, C 26-27 Whybray, R. Ν 2, 3, 4, 5, 7,

17, 18, 75, 76, 77, 82, 91, 94, 104, 107

Wildeboer, D. G 17, 19 Williamson, Η. G. Μ 5, 29,

44, 45, 106 Witherington, Β 2 Wolff, Η. W 29 Wolters, A 16,33,77,83,

75, 82 Wright, G. Ε 27 Wunsch, C 40, 58, 69 Wyatt, Ν 7 Wyke, Μ 103 Yardeni, A 40 Yaron, R 50, 52, 53, 54, 55 Yee, G. A 11,29,74 Zahniser, Α. Η. Μ 82 Zevit, Ζ 35 Ziderman, 1 80