Texts in Conversation
The Wisdom of Solomon and Josephus recount Israel’s deliverance at the Red Sea but both expand the Exodus story in similar ways, such as adding details about taking the wealth of the Egyptians as repayment for their slave labor.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
Wisdom of Solomon 10:20
Deuterocanon
18 She brought them over the Red sea, and led them through much water; 19 but she drowned their enemies, and she cast them up from the bottom of the deep. 20 Therefore the righteous plundered the ungodly, and they sang praise to your holy name, O Lord, and extolled with one accord your hand that fought for them, 21 because wisdom opened the mouth of the mute, and made the tongues of babes speak clearly.
Date: 50 BCE – 50 CE (based on scholarly estimates)
Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews 2.16.5
Classical
4 At last free, the Hebrews rejoiced, singing songs of gratitude through the night, for their oppressors were destroyed and they knew they had found favor with God. Moses composed a hymn of thanksgiving in verse, as preserved in our holy texts. Though these events are extraordinary, similar occurrences have been attributed to divine or natural forces in other traditions too—some say the Pamphylian Sea parted for Alexander of Macedonia. Whether one believes these stories or not is a matter of individual judgment. 5 The next day, Moses gathered weapons washed ashore for the Hebrews to use, convinced this also was God’s providence so they would not remain defenseless. Armed with these, he led them toward Mount Sinai to offer sacrifices and thanks to God, fulfilling the command given to him.
Date: 93–94 CE (based on scholarly estimates)
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Notes and References
"... there are also elements that Pseudo-Solomon uses to supplement the biblical depiction of his wholly righteous and wicked figures, these include (1) Cain’s anger in Wisdom of Solomon 10:3; (2) Cain as a cause for the Flood in verse 4; (3) the unripe fruit that is a testimony of Sodom’s wickedness in verse 7; (4) the “unbelief” of Lot’s wife in verse 7; (5) an explanation of the memorial of Sodom’s wickedness in verse 8; and (6) the Israelites’ plundering of the Egyptians as reimbursement for their labors in verse 17. These omissions and additions contribute to the idealized picture of the righteous and wicked figures in chapter 10. Just as Pseudo-Solomon occasionally leaves out scriptural details and adds others to enhance the desired qualities of his examples, he does the same so as to emphasize the saving activity of Lady Wisdom and her praiseworthiness ..."
Andrew T. Glicksman, Wisdom of Solomon 10: A Jewish Hellenistic Reinterpretation of Early Israelite History through Sapiential Lenses, DCLS 9 (Berlin: de Gruyter, 2011), 255.
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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