Texts in Conversation
Wisdom of Solomon 14:1 echoes Jonah 1:5 by depicting sailors in crisis calling out during a storm, yet the reason for this echo is not immediately clear. Unlike Jonah, where the focus is on divine intervention, Wisdom uses the scene within a longer critique of idolatry.
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Jonah 1:5
Hebrew Bible
4 But the Lord hurled a powerful wind on the sea. Such a violent tempest arose on the sea that the ship threatened to break up! 5 The sailors were so afraid that each cried out to his own god and they flung the ship’s cargo overboard to make the ship lighter. Jonah, meanwhile, had gone down into the hold below deck, had lain down, and was sound asleep. 6 The ship’s captain approached him and said, “What are you doing asleep? Get up! Cry out to your god! Perhaps your god might take notice of us so that we might not die!”
Date: 3rd Century B.C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
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Wisdom of Solomon 14:1
Deuterocanon
1 Again, one preparing to sail and about to voyage over raging waves calls upon a piece of wood more fragile than the ship that carries him. 2 For it was desire for gain that planned that vessel, and wisdom was the artisan who built it; 3 but it is your providence, O Father, that steers its course, because you have given it a path in the sea, and a safe way through the waves,
Date: 100-50 B.C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
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Notes and References
"... Wisdom of Solomon 13:10-14:2 ... The description of the carpenter constructing wooden idols is based on Isaiah 44:9–20 supplemented by a few other Old Testament references such as Jeremiah 10:1–16. As in the Old Testament polemics against idolatry, the material is for internal consumption only, reinforcing a Jewish sense of superiority over the Gentiles. It cannot be addressed to non-Jews since it takes no account of Gentile explanations of what they thought they were doing when worshiping images. The point of 13:13 seems to be that the idol maker is not a professional sculptor. He is doing this in his spare time, in contrast to the picture presented in Isaiah 44:13. Less well attested readings for the words “leisure” and “idleness” make him seem more of a professional. 14:1 obviously draws on Jonah 1:5, though the point being made in 14:1–2 is not immediately clear. Verse 2 emphasizes the professional intent and high level of skill which goes into shipbuilding, so much so that the author “apparently credits Sophia (like Isis) with the invention of the maritime trades”. Yet, by contrast, sailors in distress call upon a wooden idol made from offcasts in the carpenter’s spare time! ..."
Hayman, A. Peter
Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible: Wisdom of Solomon
(p. 62) William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2019
* 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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