(c) Attributes.— A. string of 21 attributes, in thoroughly Greek style, is ascribed to the spirit of Wisdom (7^-*-). Among other things, she is said to be ' only begotten ' (tiovoyevh, the very word used of Christ in Jn 1"- '^ 3'«- '« and 1 Jn 4^ though RV of Wisdom renders it here 'alone in kind,' having ' sole born ' in the margin). Further, wis- dom is described as ' a clear etHuenoe of the glory of the Almighty' and an 'effulgence (aTravyaaim, whence He 1^) from everlasting light' (/-'" ='^). She is free from all defilement, beneficent, beautiful.
((/) Functions. — Divine functions are asc^ribed to Wisdom, since it is by His wisdom that God per-
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forms them. (1) Creation. She is 'the artificer of all things ' (7^), ' an artificer of the things that are '(8*). (2) Providence. The function of wisdom in providence is much dwelt on. Wisdom is re- garded as a sort of guardian angel watching over men and directing the course of history. Patri- archal history from Adam downward is described as thus under the charge of wisdom. (3) Revela- tion. The picture of Wisdom as the effulgence from everlasting light points to tliis. She is also described as ' an unspotted mirror of the working of God, and an image {eiKiiv, cf. 2 Cor 4-*, Col 1'^) of His goodness ' (7^) ; in attaining to wisdom we come to know the ways of God.
(e) IVisdmn as a human acquisition. — While wisdom is described in its relation to God as co- extensive with the infinite range of the Divine activities, it is also represented from another point of view as a treasure which mankind is invited to seek. The dittieulty of acquiring wisdom .suggested in Baruch is not found here. On the contrary, we read that—
'Easily is she beheld of them that love her. And found of them that seek her ' (612). ^ Moreover, there is no limitation of JeOTsh ex- clusiveness in the privilege of enjoying this great- est of God's gifts, 'for wisdom is a spirit that loveth man ' (F). When a little later we read that 'the spirit of the Lord hath filled the world' (71)1' oUovixivriv, 'the inhabited earth,' RVm), the breadth of Hellenism seen throughout the Alex- andrian movement, first Jewish, later Christian, is here apparent. While Wisdom is identified with the Law in the Palestinian work Sirach, here all true enlightenment, pagan as well as Jewish, must be included in this far-reaching wisdom. At the same time, this widespread wisdom is very ditterent from Greek jjhilosophy. The practical, ethical element which is essential to the Hebrew Ifokhmah is always its chief constituent. Moreover, the homelier conception of wisdom as an exalted prudence serviceable in worldly affairs, which is often apparent in Proverbs and Sirach, is also to be found in the Bk. of Wisdom.
(/) Anticipations of Ckristology. — With this con- ception of wisdom we cannot claim tlie identity of terms (airaiyatriia, ehiJiv, Xi^os) which are here applied to wisdom and in tlie NT to Jesus Christ as an indication of any clear anticipation of Cliris- tian truth. It is rather the other way. St. Paul and the author of Hebrews knew Wisdom, and made use of expressions in the book for their own purposes, giving to them a riclier Cliristian mean- ing. Nor can it be allowed tliat the use of the word XiSvos as closely associated with wisdom is any real anticipation of the X6-yo5 doctrine of Philo. In Wis 9' we read —
' O God of the fathers, and Lord who keepest thy mercy. Who madest all things by thy word' (» ^mtrcts ik n'ivTa U Xoyu oreu).
■This is evidently an allusion to the Creation story in Gn 1, so that we must understand X670S in tlie sense of ' word' (ijj, in the familiar OT expression ' the word of the Lord '). But Philo uses \6yoi in the Stoic sense of ' reason.' It may be conjectured that the transition to this meaning has begun in Wis., because the line immediately following that just quoted is, 'and by thy wisdom thou formedst man ' (Wis 9°). Thus X6705 is treated as parallel to ■ivisdom. In any case \byot is a rational word, not a mere utterance of the voice, but a word with thought, reason in it. Still, the author elsewhere uses the term in the sense of ' word ' as the implied reference to Gn I indicates that he does here.* It
" xiyK occurs 15 times in Wisdom (viz. 19- 16 22- 17-20 6911 7I6 88. 18 91 129 1612 1815. ffi). 1,1 13 of these instances there is no question that it means ' word.' Of the 2 remaining cases one is that now under consideration ; the other is 22—' And while our
would be nearer the mark to say that Jn 1' is an echo of Wis 9'. Still there is much more in the prologue to the Fourtli Gospel than can be derived m any way from this simple statement, and a great deal of that reminds us more of Philo than of Wisdom. The conclusion would seem to be that in John as in Wisdom X070S is used in the common Biblical sense of ' word ' ; but that there are also associations with Philo, the author of the Fourth Gospel ascribing to the X070S as ' word ' some of the attributes which Philo had ascribed to his Xo'7os as 'reason.' Accordingly the prologue to the Fourth Gospel may be said to combine reminiscences both of Wisdom and of Philo, together with its own original Christian ideas.