The Fear of the Lord Is Wisdom – A Theological Introduction to Wisdom in Israel

Tremper Longman III (PhD, Yale University) is Distinguished Scholar and Professor Emeritus of Biblical Studies at Westmont College. He has served in leadership of the Institute for Biblical Research for many years. Longman is the author of more than 30 books, including biblical commentaries, scholarly works, and popular books on how to interpret the Bible. He is also a senior translator and a member of the Bible Translation Committee for the New Living Translation. He lives in Alexandria, Virginia.

Contents

Prologue
Part 1: The Heart of Wisdom: Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Job
1. Proverbs: The Fear of the Lord Is the Beginning of Wisdom
2. Ecclesiastes: Fear God, Obey the Commandments, and Live in Light of the Coming Judgment
3. The Book of Job: "Behold the Fear of the Lord Is Wisdom" (Job 28:28)
Part 2: Wisdom Elsewhere in the Old Testament
4. Other Sources of Wisdom: Deuteronomy, Psalms, Song of Songs, and Prophecy
5. Joseph and Daniel: Paragons of Wisdom
6. Adam and Solomon: From the Heights of Wisdom to the Depths of Folly
Part 3: Israel's Wisdom: Cosmopolitan or Unique?
7. Sources of Wisdom: Experience, Observation, Tradition, Correction, and Ultimately Revelation
8. Wisdom, Creation, and (Dis)order
9. Israelite Wisdom in Its Ancient Near Eastern Setting
10. Wisdom, Covenant, and Law
Part 4: Further Refining Our Understanding of Wisdom
11. The Consequences of Wise and Foolish Behavior: The Issue of Retribution Theology
12. The Social Setting of Wisdom
13. Wisdom and Gender
Part 5: The Afterlife of Israel's Wisdom
14. Intertestamental Wisdom from the Apocrypha to the Dead Sea Scrolls
15. New Testament Wisdom
Appendix 1: Wisdom in the Twenty-First Century
Appendix 2: Is Wisdom Literature a Genre?
Indexes