Be Wise, My Son, and Make My Heart Glad: An Exploration of the Courtly Nature of the Book of Proverbs (Beihefte Zur Zeitschrift Fur Die Alttestamentliche Wissenschaft): 422

In view of the various proposals concerning the nature and function of the book of Proverbs, the present study focuses on the social dimensions of the document within its distinct, literary context. That is, the study examines the nature and function of the sapiential material within its new performance context, viz., the discursive context, the Sitz im Buch. In the main, the investigation explores the discourse setting of the book of Proverbs as well as the formal and thematic features of the individual collections. More specifically, the study highlights the fundamental features of the book's discursive context, the thematic development of the material, the ethos of the individual collections and their role within the book of Proverbs in order to ascertain the degree to which the book of Proverbs may be considered a courtly piece.

The social and intellectual context of the material in the book of Proverbs has given rise to several proposals concerning the nature of the constituent compendia within the document as well as the function of the discourse as a whole. In light of the problems inherent in an investigation of the nature and function of Proverbs, the present study focuses on the social dimensions of the document within its distinct, literary context. That is, the study attempts to examine the nature and function of the sapiential material within its new performance context, viz., the discursive context, the Sitz im Buch. This form of analysis moves beyond the investigation of individual aphorisms to provide a concrete context through which to view the various components of the discourse as well as the discourse as a whole. In the main, the study explores the formal, discursive, and thematic features of the constituent collections within the book of Proverbs in order to identify the nature and function of the work. More specifically, the study highlights the fundamental features of the book’s discourse setting, the thematic development of the material, the ethos of the individual collections and their role within Proverbs in order to ascertain the degree to which the document may be considered a courtly piece.

In view of the various proposals concerning the nature and function of the book of Proverbs, the present study focuses on the social dimensions of the document within its distinct, literary context. That is, the study examines the nature and function of the sapiential material within its new performance context, viz., the discursive context, the Sitz im Buch. In the main, the investigation explores the discourse setting of the book of Proverbs as well as the formal and thematic features of the individual collections. More specifically, the study highlights the fundamental features of the book s discursive context, the thematic development of the material, the ethos of the individual collections and their role within the book of Proverbs in order to ascertain the degree to which the book of Proverbs may be considered a courtly piece. Frontmatter 1 Table of Contents 9 Acknowledgement 13 Abbreviations 15 Chapter 1. Introduction 19 Chapter 2. The Nature of Ancient Near Eastern Instructional Texts 29 Chapter 3. The Value of Wisdom: Proverbs 1–9 54 Chapter 4. Rudimentary Wisdom: Proverbs 10–24 89 Chapter 5. Advanced Wisdom: Proverbs 25–29 144 Chapter 6. Applied Wisdom: Proverbs 30–31 180 Chapter 7. The Courtly Nature of the Book of Proverbs 202 Backmatter 209