Texts in Conversation
Proverbs 21 says that God turns a king's heart wherever he wants and guides people's hearts toward justice. The Letter of Aristeas joins these separate sayings into one idea to explain why the king of Egypt agrees to free the Jewish captives.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
Proverbs 21:1
Hebrew Bible
1 The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord like channels of water; he turns it wherever he wants. 2 All a person’s ways seem right in his own opinion, but the Lord evaluates his thoughts. 3 To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice. 4 Haughty eyes and a proud heart—what the wicked cultivate is sin. 5 The plans of the diligent lead only to plenty, but everyone who is hasty comes only to poverty. 6 Making a fortune by a lying tongue is like a vapor driven back and forth; they seek death. 7 The violence done by the wicked will drag them away because they have refused to do what is right.
Letter of Aristeas 1:18
Letter of Aristeas to Philocrates
Pseudepigrapha, Hebrew Bible Expansions
After a brief interval, while I was offering up an earnest prayer to God that He would so dispose the mind of the king so that all the captives might be set at liberty-(for the human race, being the creation of God, is swayed and influenced by Him. Therefore with many different prayers I called on Him who rules the heart, so that the king might be constrained to grant my request. For I had great hopes with regard to the salvation of the men since I was assured that God would grant a fulfilment of my prayer. For when men from pure motives plan some action in the interest of righteousness and the performance of noble deeds, Almighty God brings their efforts and purposes to a successful issue) - the king raised his head and looking up at me with a cheerful expression asked, 'How many thousands do you think they will number?' Andreas, who was standing near, replied, 'A little more than a hundred thousand.' 'It is a small favour indeed,' said the king, 'that Aristeas asks of us!'
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Notes and References
“... M. Hadas and other commentators referred this passage to Proverbs 21:1, “The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord as the water-courses: He turneth it whithersoever He will.” That reference, however, is neither complete nor sufficient. First, our passage alludes not only to Prov. 21:1, but to Prov. 21:2–3: “Every way of a man is right in his own eyes; but the Lord guides the hearts. To do justice and truth is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice.” [...] In other words, Aristeas not just alludes to Proverbs 21:1–3. He builds a midrash by contaminating two and a half verses, which originally were separate. ...”
Kovelman, Arkady
Between Alexandria and Jerusalem: The Dynamic of Jewish and Hellenistic Culture
(pp. 113-114) Brill, 2005
* 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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