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Wisdom of Solomon

About this book

The Suffering and Hope of the Righteous

Chapter 3

1 But the souls of the righteous are in the hand of God,⁠ and no torment will touch them.⁠ 2 In the eyes of the foolish they seemed to have died. Their departure was considered a disaster,⁠ 3 and their travel away from us ruin, but they are in peace.⁠ 4 For even if in the sight of men they are punished, their hope is full of immortality.⁠ 5 Having borne a little chastening, they will receive great good; because God tested them, and found them worthy of himself.⁠ 6 He tested them like gold in the furnace,⁠ and he accepted them as a whole burnt offering. 7 In the time of their visitation they will shine. They will run back and forth like sparks among stubble.⁠ 8 They will judge nations and have dominion over peoples. The Lord will reign over them forever.⁠ 9 Those who trust him will understand truth. The faithful will live with him in love, because grace and mercy are with his chosen ones. 10 But the ungodly will be punished even as their reasoning deserves, those who neglected righteousness and revolted from the Lord; 11 for he who despises wisdom and discipline is miserable.⁠ Their hope is void and their toils unprofitable. Their works are useless. 12 Their wives are foolish and their children are wicked.

Virtue, Childlessness, and Lasting Fruitfulness

13 Their descendants are cursed. For the barren woman who is undefiled is happy, she who has not conceived in transgression. She will have fruit when God examines souls.⁠ 14 So is the eunuch who has done no lawless deed with his hands, nor imagined wicked things against the Lord; for a precious gift will be given to him for his faithfulness, and a delightful inheritance in the Lord’s sanctuary. 15 For good labors have fruit of great renown. The root of understanding can’t fail. 16 But children of adulterers will not come to maturity. The seed of an unlawful union will vanish away. 17 For if they live long, they will not be esteemed, and in the end, their old age will be without honor. 18 If they die young, they will have no hope, nor consolation in the day of judgment. 19 For the end of an unrighteous generation is grievous.

Texts in conversation

Compare Wisdom of Solomon 3:8 and 1 Corinthians 6:2

Deuterocanon · New Testament

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Summary

The Wisdom of Solomon and 1 Corinthians describe a future where the faithful are given authority to judge. In Wisdom, those who endure are refined and raised to positions of honor. Paul echoes this, saying the faithful will one day judge the angels.

Passages

Wisdom of Solomon 3:8

Deuterocanon
4 For even if in the sight of men they are punished, their hope is full of immortality. 5 Having borne a little chastening, they will receive great good; because God tested them, and found them worthy of himself. 6 He tested them like gold in the furnace, and he accepted them as a whole burnt offering. 7 In the time of their visitation they will shine. They will run back and forth like sparks among stubble. 8 They will judge nations and have dominion over peoples. The Lord will reign over them forever. 9 Those who trust him will understand truth. The faithful will live with him in love, because grace and mercy are with his chosen ones.
50 BCE – 50 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in the Wisdom of Solomon

1 Corinthians 6:2

New Testament
1 When any of you has a legal dispute with another, does he dare go to court before the unrighteous rather than before the saints? 2 Or do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world is to be judged by you, are you not competent to settle trivial suits? 3 Do you not know that we will judge angels? Why not ordinary matters! 4 So if you have ordinary lawsuits, do you appoint as judges those who have no standing in the church? 5 I say this to your shame! Is there no one among you wise enough to settle disputes between fellow Christians?
55–57 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in 1 Corinthians

References

"... When Paul said that the saints would judge the world (1 Corinthians 6:2), he may have thought of Wisdom of Solomon 3:8 ... However, Paul may have been thinking of Daniel 7:22 (LXX) where the Ancient of Days 'gave judgment to the saints of the most high'. Jesus said that the twelve disciples would judge the twelve tribes (Matthew 19:26; Luke 22:30) ... as in Wisdom, Paul's judgment of the heathen wavers between mild recognition of the heathen's lack of knowledge and crude and strong judgment of all their religion and ethics ..."
Phillip W. Berwick, The Way of Salvation in the Wisdom of Solomon (Boston University, 1958), 116–118.
"... Precisely what is behind Paul's affirmation that 'the saints will judge the world', and its parallel, 'we are to judge angels' is debatable. Fee notes that this is 'a common motif from Jewish apocalyptic eschatology'. What is clear is that Paul is again holding up the mirror of eternity. He did this already in his parable of the builder (3:10-17) ... see also Daniel 7:22; Wisdom of Solomon 3:8; Jubilees 24:29; 1 Enoch 38:5, 95:3 ..."
Kenneth E. Bailey, Paul through Mediterranean Eyes: Cultural Studies in 1 Corinthians (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2011), 173.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

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Wisdom of Solomon 3:8 and 1 Corinthians 6:2

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