Texts in Conversation
The Wisdom of Solomon praises personified Wisdom as more beautiful than the sun and above all the stars, the same type of language that the Song of Solomon uses to describe the bride.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
Song of Solomon 6:10
Song of Songs
Hebrew Bible
9 But she is unique, my dove, my perfect one! She is the special daughter of her mother; she is the favorite of the one who bore her. The maidens saw her and complimented her; the queens and concubines praised her: 10 “Who is this who appears like the dawn? Beautiful as the moon, bright as the sun, awe-inspiring as the stars in procession?” 11 The Lover to His Beloved: I went down to the orchard of walnut trees, to look for the blossoms of the valley, to see if the vines had budded or if the pomegranates were in bloom.
Wisdom of Solomon 7:29
Deuterocanon
26 For she is a reflection of eternal light, a spotless mirror of the working of God, and an image of his goodness. 27 Although she is but one, she can do all things, and while remaining in herself, she renews all things; in every generation she passes into holy souls and makes them friends of God, and prophets; 28 for God loves nothing so much as the person who lives with wisdom. 29 She is more beautiful than the sun, and excels every constellation of the stars. Compared with the light she is found to be superior, 30 for it is succeeded by the night, but against wisdom evil does not prevail.
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Notes and References
... There are few correspondences between Wisdom and the Song, doubtless due to the difference in language, but certain descriptions sound similar. For instance, "she is more beautiful than the sun, and above all the orders of the stars" (Wisdom of Solomon 7:29) is evidently the same thought as, "You are fair, my companion, as beauty itself, comely as Jerusalem", and "Who is she who looks down like the morning star, fair as the moon, bright as the sun, and terrible as the hosts of heaven?" (Song of Songs 6:4 and 10). Again, "Being but one, she is able to do all things" (Wisdom of Solomon 7:27), has resonances with "One is my dove, my perfect one" (Song of Songs 6:9). ...
Kingsmill, Edmée
The Song of Songs and the Eros of God: A Study in Biblical Intertextuality
(p. 74) Oxford University Press, 2009
* 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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