[Sidenote: Pr. 21:3]
To do what is just and right
Is more acceptable to Jehovah than sacrifice.
[Sidenote: Pr. 15:1]
A soft answer turns away wrath;
But a harsh word stirs up anger.
[Sidenote: Pr. 3:27]
Withhold not good from your neighbor,
When it is in your power to do it.
Say not to your neighbor, "Go, and come again,
And to-morrow I will give," when you have it by you.
[Sidenote: Pr. 14:21, 19:17]
He who despises his neighbor, sins,
But he who has pity on the poor, happy is he.
He who has pity on the poor, lends to Jehovah,
And his good deed will yet pay him.
[Sidenote: Pr. 25:21-22]
If your enemy be hungry, give him bread to eat,
And if he be thirsty, give him water to drink;
For you will heap coals of fire upon his head,
And Jehovah will reward you.
[Sidenote: Pr. 3:11-12]
My son, reject not the instruction of Jehovah,
And do not grow weary of his reproof,
For whom Jehovah loveth he reproveth,
Even as a father the son in whom he delights.
[Sidenote: Pr. 3:5-6]
Trust in Jehovah with all your heart,
And depend not upon your own understanding.
In all your ways know him well,
And he will make plain your path.
I. Structure and Authorship of the Book of Proverbs. The book of Proverbs is in reality a collection of originally independent groups of proverbs. In its present form it consists of nine general divisions: (1) The preface defining the aims of the book, 1:1-6. (2) A general introduction describing the characteristics and value of the wisdom teaching, 1:7-9:18. (3) A large collection designated as the Proverbs of Solomon, 10:1-22:16. The fact that ten proverbs are repeated in practically the same words indicates that it, like the book of Proverbs as a whole, is made up of smaller collections. In chapters 10-15 the prevailing type of the poetic parallelism is antithetic or contrasting, while in the remainder of the book the synonymous or repeating parallelism prevails. (4) A supplemental collection, 22:17-24:22. This is introduced by the suggestive superscription, "Incline your ear and hear the words of the wise." (5) A shorter appendix, 24:23-34, with the superscription, "These also are from the wise." (6) The second large collection of proverbs, 25-29. This bears the superscription, "These also are the proverbs of Solomon which the men of Hezekiah, king of Judah, transcribed." It contains several proverbs found in the first large collection, and evidently represents later gleanings from the same field. (7) The words of Agur, 30. Of Agur nothing is known beyond his name, which may be simply typical. The latter part of the chapter contains a collection of numerical enigmas which may or may not have been associated at first with the opening section. (8) The words of King Lemuel, 31:1-9. (9) A description of the ideal Hebrew housewife, 31:10-31. The contents of these collections as well as their superscriptions clearly indicate that these proverbs represent the work of many different wise men, living at different periods and writing from different points of view. Few, if any, can be confidently attributed to Solomon. Even the proverbs in the large collection, 10:1-22:16, which are definitely designated as the Proverbs of Solomon, emphasize monogamy and denounce rulers who oppress their subjects. Many of the proverbs in these larger Solomonic collections give practical advice regarding the bearing of a subject in the presence of the king, and few of them fit in the mouth of the splendor-loving monarch, who by his foreign marriages and grinding taxation exerted a baleful influence upon the political and religious life of Israel. The great majority of the proverbs reflect the noble ethical teachings of the prophets. Clearly the term Proverbs of Solomon is simply a late designation of early proverbs the authorship of which, like that of most popular maxims, had long since been forgotten.
II. Date of the Different Collections. The preface and general introduction to the book of Proverbs reflect the immorality and evils that characterized both the Persian and Greek periods. Their background is the corrupt life of the city. The tendency to personify wisdom is also one of the marks of later Jewish thought. It is probable, therefore, that this part of the book of Proverbs was added by a late editor who lived during the Greek period. The oldest collection in the book is clearly to be found in 10:1-22:10. The evils which it describes, the oppression of the poor and dependent by the rich and powerful, existed throughout most of Israel's history, but were especially prominent in the days of the divided kingdom immediately before the destruction of Jerusalem. The references to the king imply that the proverb writers had in mind Hebrew rulers. In general their rule is just and they enjoy the respect of their subjects. The prevailing occupation of the people is agriculture. Commerce is just beginning to develop. The exile has not yet cast its shadow over Hebrew life and thought. The majority of these proverbs clearly represent the fruitage of the teachings of the pre-exilic prophets, and many of them come from the days immediately before the final destruction of Jerusalem. From the occasional references to the scoffers, the absence of allusions to idolatry, and the fact that monogamy is here assumed, we may infer that some of them at least come from the Persian or even the Greek periods. It is probable that this large collection was not made until the latter part of the Persian or the early part of the Greek period.
The appendices in 22:17-24:34 contain many repetitions of proverbs found in the larger collection. The prevalence of intemperance, the existence of a merchant class, and the allusions to exiled Jews (e.g., 24:11) point rather clearly to the dissolute Greek period as the age when these small collections were made. The word meaning "transcribe," that is found in the superscription to the second large collection (25-29), is peculiar to the late Hebrew, and implies that this superscription, like those of the Psalms, was added by a late Jewish scribe. The literary form of these proverbs is more complex than those of the other large collection. The kings are feared by their subjects, but figure now as oppressors rather than champions of the people. While this collection may contain a few proverbs coming from the period before the final destruction of Jerusalem, it is probable that, like the smaller appendices to the first large collection, they were not gathered until the early part of the Greek period. The long appendices in chapters 30-31 are clearly late. The note of doubt in the opening section of 30 is closely akin to that which recurs in the book of Ecclesiastes. It is also based on Isaiah 44:5 and 45:4. Aramaisms and the acrostic form in 31:10-31 imply that the background was the late Persian or early Greek period.