In a recent work, Pierre Gibert studied the development of "creation theology" in the Old Testament.¹ Two features of this work have a bearing on clarifying the Wisdom author’s understanding of creation: a) the first is the cross-referencing of allusions between the stories of creation in Genesis (P) and the stories of the exodus event; b) the second is the historical development evidenced in the creation accounts which are based on the three cultural contexts of Canaan, Babylon, and Hellenism.

The first feature is well known.²  The Priestly account of creation, which stresses the ordering of the world through division, affirms a victory over chaos parallel to the victory of God over Israelite slavery at the hands of Pharaoh’s forces. Conversely, the separation of the sea in the escape of the Israelites alludes to the victory over the primeval waters as well as to the mastering of cosmic forces through division and separation. Creation is understood as a type of liberation, and the Exodus is understood as a form of creation.

The second feature is more complex. Three accounts of creation are analyzed in Gibert’s work with respect to the intentionality of the story and to the language which the account employs. Each creation account is marked by the milieu in which it was formulated: 1) Genesis 2–3
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1. P. Gibert, Bible, mythes et récits de commencement (Parole de Dieu; Paris: Seuil, 1986).

2. Other recent works that have stressed the common language and allusions between the Exodus event and the Priestly creation account are found in J.L. Ska, Le passage de la mer (AnBib 109; Rome: Biblical Institute, 1986); Paul Beachamp, L’un et l’autre Testament (2 vols.; Parole de Dieu; Paris: Seuil, 1976, 1990).

Gibert’s assertion that the philosophical precision of Hellenism (exemplified in the example of 2 Maccabees) helped creation theology to crystallize its "barest elements" may well be a valid one with respect to the use of mythical language.⁴ However, there is another phenomenon at work in the creation theology of Israel’s Hellenistic period, that is particularly evident in the Wisdom of Solomon. Both Creation and the Exodus become paradigms for understanding salvation which culminates in apocalyptic. The apocalypse, an ultimate judgment, is viewed as the culmination of the creative forces of the cosmos which save, liberate, and reward the just.

For the Wisdom author, creation, exodus, and salvation are all related as signs of God’s justice and goodness. Therefore, all three signs are related through a common set of terms and imagery. It is the cosmos that functions as a constant in the references to creation, to the exodus event, and to the apocalyptic judgment.⁵ By attributing a creative and wholesome

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3. "I do not know how you came into being in my womb. It was not I who gave you life and breath, nor I who set in order the elements within each of you. Therefore the Creator of the world, who shaped the beginning of humankind, will in his mercy give life and breath back to you again, since you now forget yourselves for the sake of his laws" (2 Macc 7:22-23).

4. No doubt it appears rather strange for an exegete to focus on creation theology in the Hellenistic period without attention to a major contribution of the sapiential tradition to creation theology, namely the personification of wisdom. For reasons of specialization and limitation of the field of inquiry, Gibert limits the passages under consideration (Bible, mythes et récits de commencement, 141, 151). Nonetheless, the unique perspective of creation theology of the Wisdom author does not consist in the "barest elements" of faith in God, the creator, but rather in the continuity of creation in history which culminates in apocalyptic. For a detailed overview of the figure of personified wisdom in the Book of Wisdom and its relation to the Hellenistic version of the Isis cult, see J. S. Kloppenborg, "Isis and Sophia in the Book of Wisdom" HTR 75 (1982) 57-84.

5. J.J. Collins has noted the consistency of the Wisdom author’s employment of the creative function of the cosmos in the three major sections of the book ("Cosmos and

Each major section of the Book of Wisdom (first—chapters 1–6, second — chapters 7–10, third — chapters 11–19) contributes a unique perspective to this unity within its creation theology.

The first section of the Book of Wisdom (1–6) consists of an exhortation to justice which focuses its attention on dissuading the reader from bringing on death through injustice (1:12-16; 2:21-24). Death, understood by the author as an intrusion into the cosmos, is the prime negative image for eliciting the pursuit of virtue and justice. Within the unfolding of the argument through the metaphor of a trial scene, the apocalyptic judgment of chapter functions as the sentencing, the vindication of the just and the destruction of wickedness. In the two extreme contexts within this argument, namely that of the first creation and of the ultimate judgment, the author emphasizes the creative role of the cosmos.⁶
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Salvation: Jewish Wisdom and Apocalyptic in the Hellenistic Age," HR 17 [1977] 128). "It appears then that the Wisdom of Solomon presents a coherent theology throughout the book. God is encountered through the cosmos, by wisdom. History illustrates the structure of the universe, and eschatology is also built into that structure. The human way to salvation is by understanding the structure of the universe and adapting to it in righteousness."

6. The first six chapters of Wisdom form an elegant concentric structure which both highlights the similarities between units and emphasizes their differences. 1:1-15, an exhortation to justice which dissuades the reader from choosing death, is parallel to 6:1-21, an exhortation to wisdom in order to be just. 1:16–2:24, the wicked’s defense for their choice of power and injustice is parallel to 5:1-23, the wicked’s confession of error. The central unit 3:1–4:20, consists of four parallel diptychs through which the author disproves the wicked’s defense and defends the integrity of the just. The first detailed presentation of this literary structure is in A. G. Wright, "The Structure of the Book of Wisdom" Bib 48(1967) 165-84. For a complete presentation of the concentric structure, see M. Gilbert, "Sagesse de Salomon (ou livre de la Sagesse)" DBSup II (1986) cols. 114-19, or M. Kolarcik, The Ambiguity of Death in the Book of Wisdom 1–6 (AnBib 127; Rome: PBI, 1991) 50-62.

8. This analogy of arming the cosmos through the metaphor of a hoplite’s armor is an adaptation of Isa 59:17-19. The author of Wisdom has tightened the analogy by comparing divine zeal to the armor of a hoplite (instead of to the divine mantle as in Isaiah) and then by identifying each weapon with a moral attribute. However the Wisdom author’s major adaptation of the analogy in Isaiah is the expansion of the idea that the cosmos itself is armed to do battle against wickedness. There is only a hint of the elements of the cosmos in the metaphors of a "rushing stream" and the "wind" in Isa 59:19. See M. J. Suggs, "Wisdom of Solomon II, 10–V: A Homily Based on the Fourth Servant Song," JBL 76(1957)28-33; Kolarcik, The Ambiguity of Death in the Book of Wisdom 1–6, 47, 106-7.
 

As a result of the confession of the wicked among one another in Wis 5:1-14, the setting is prepared for judgment to be executed in favor of the just and against the wicked. God re-establishes justice by calling upon creation itself which is in alliance with God and justice.

5:17 The Lord will arm creation (thVn ktivsin) as a defense against enemies.
5:20 The cosmos (oJ kovsmo") will fight with God against the demented. 

In this first section of Wisdom, the author has drawn a direct parallel between the original creation of God where the cosmos is emphasized as being wholesome, and the ultimate judgment where God re-establishes justice by overcoming ethical chaos as if in a renewed creation. These relations of creation and the ultimate judgment to the cosmos form two key principles operative in the author’s creation theology. 1) The cosmos is wholesome and just because God has created it, and 2) the function of the cosmos is to continue the work of creation by helping the just and by destroying lawlessness.

In the presentation of the ultimate judgment, the author has brought the reader to the lofty heights of a divine perspective where the realities of blessedness and moral tragedy stand clearly over against the appearance of the power of injustice and the impotence of virtue. But what basis is there for the author to construct this sure hope in an ultimate judgment which completes the original creation? The basis for this perspective is elaborated in the following sections of Wisdom. There the author roots the hope in an ultimate judgment on the concrete history of the world’s salvation, and specifically the salvation of the Israelites in the exodus.

If the first part of Wisdom can be understood as the author’s exhortation to justice by a dissuasion from following a life of injustice that leads to death, the second part of Wisdom (6:22–10:21) can be grasped as the author’s exhortation to wisdom by a presentation of the positive attributes and gifts of God’s wisdom in the cosmos. The first is a dissuasion from death; the second is a persuasion to life. By means of the personified figure of wisdom, the author joins together God’s original creation to the continuous recreation of God in salvation history.

The speaker throughout these chapters is the unnamed figure of Solomon who appreciates the limitations of his human condition and the need for God’s wisdom that comes from on high (7:1-9). Unlike the wicked in the first section (2:1-5), Solomon understands the fragile human condition to be open to divine wisdom. For the wicked in chapter 2, the transience of human life was judged to be final and tragic. As a result of their disparaging judgment on the mortal condition of humans, they considered power, injustice and even sheer violence to be viable options in this passing world (2:6-20). Whatever is weak they judged to be useless. Instead of giving in to despair as the wicked, Solomon prays for the wisdom that comes from God. What encloses the famous prayer for wisdom in chapter 9 is the presence of wisdom in creation (9:1-3) and in salvation (9:18).⁹ God has created humanity through wisdom, and it is through wisdom that humanity is continuously saved.

O God of my ancestors and Lord of mercy,
who have made (poihvsa") all things by your word
and by your wisdom have formed (kataskeuavsa") humankind¹⁰

a 9:1-3                   a’ 18
   b 4                   b’ 17b 
     c 5-6          c’ 13-17a 
       d 7-8      d’ 12 
           e 9   e’ 10b-11 
              f 10a 

    to have dominion over the creatures you have made 
and to rule the world in holiness (9:1-3) .

And thus the paths of those on earth were set right 
     and people were taught what pleases you,
and were saved (ejswvqhsan) by wisdom (9:18).

With you is wisdom, she who knows your works and was present 
   when you made the world (oJvte ejpoivei" toVn kovsmon); 
she understands what is pleasing in your sight
   and what is right according to your commandments (9:9).

Salvation, for the author of Wisdom, is understood as God’s effort to bring humanity to the point of realizing the original intentions at creation. Therefore, it is through the gift of wisdom, who was present at creation, that the unnamed Solomon will be guided wisely (9:11), whose works will be acceptable and who will be able to judge justly (9:12). Solomon will be able to put into practice the intention of the creator through the gift of wisdom who was present at creation.

This feature of wisdom’s function to save humanity by virtue of her role in creation is elaborated in examples from the Pentateuch. Beginning with Adam and ending with Moses (Wisdom 10), the author recounts how, at critical moments in the history of humanity, wisdom intervened on behalf of humans to restore and save the just?¹¹ On the other hand,
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be incorrect to separate the creation of the cosmos from the creation of humanity within the author’s presentation. They are presented together as a continuum, just as the Genesis 1 creation account exemplifies. There is no underlying idea present here of a creation of the cosmos that is separate from the creation of humanity.

11. Adam is contrasted to Cain, 10:1-3; Noah is contrasted to those who perished in the flood, 10:4; Abraham is contrasted to the nations who were put into confusion (Babel), 10:5; Lot is contrasted to those who perished in the cities of the plain and even to his wife, 10:6-8; Jacob is contrasted first to Esau, 10:9-10 and then to Laban and personal enemies 10:11-12; Joseph is contrasted to his brothers and to Potiphar’s wife,

By relating wisdom’s saving activity to her presence at creation, the author of Wisdom focuses the lens of creation theology to view the salvation history of Israel. Each saving moment is a recreation. Wisdom saves because she was present at creation and therefore knows how to restore the conditions of creation for the just. The last and brief contrast between the Israelites and the Egyptians at the end of chapter 10, leads the author to begin the final developed presentation. The exodus is re-interpreted as the privileged moment of salvation. This interpretation of the exodus reaffirms the feasibility of postulating an ultimate judgment and serves as the paradigm of salvation—God’s recreation of the world in favor of the just.

In the opening section of Wisdom, the ultimate judgment was presented through a series of declarations. The author chose to depict the scene of judgment through imagery that alludes to creation, wherein the cosmos itself is armed to reward the just and to destroy moral chaos. But how is this assertion for an ultimate judgment feasible in the author’s argumentation? The entire reasoning process of the author to disprove the false judgment of the wicked in chapter 2 rests on the postulation of an ultimate judgment. If the feasibility of the ultimate judgment in chapter 5 was rendered somewhat plausible through the positive categories of creation, in the latter part of Wisdom, the ultimate judgment is based on Israel’s history— the exodus.

The hope in an ultimate judgment which the author presented through a series of declarations in the opening part of Wisdom is now shown
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10:13-14 and finally the Israelites and Moses are contrasted to the plight of their enemies, Pharaoh, and his army. Throughout these contrasts, wisdom is judged to have intervened in order to save and inspire the just.

12. The literary structure of Wisdom 11–19 is a complex interweaving of diptychs with theological reflections. The author’s use of diptychs to unfold the plagues and blessings against Pharaoh and for the Israelites is parallel to the four diptychs in Wisdom 3–4. See A. G. Wright, "The Structure of Wisdom 11–19," CBQ 27(1965) 28-34, and Gilbert, "Sagesse de Salomon (ou livre de la Sagesse)," cols. 114-19.

The two principles which the author explored to link creation to the ultimate judgment in the first section are applied to the reinterpretation of the exodus. a) The cosmos is wholesome because God has created the world and continues to love all things. b) The cosmos itself has been transformed and renewed in order to restore justice for the Israelites and to destroy the chaos of the enemies.

The positive quality of all that God had created is asserted again in order to draw the parallel between creation and the exodus events.

   11:17 For your all-powerful hand, which created the world out of formless matter . . . (cf. 1:14).
   11:24 For you love all things that exist and detest none of the things that you have made. . . (cf. 1:14).
   11:26 You spare all things, for they are yours, O Lord, you who love the living (cf. 1:13).

The language used to enunciate this interpretive key for the exodus events is similar to the language employed in 1:13-14. Just as the positive relationship between God and the cosmos was established as a basis for the intervention of the cosmos in behalf of the just in Wisdom 1–6, so too is the same relationship presented as a basis for the intervention of the cosmos in behalf of the Israelites during the exodus.
The second principle, whereby the cosmos is understood to intervene in behalf of the Israelites against the enemy, is a unique interpretation of the exodus events by the author of Wisdom¹³ The author recounts
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13. For the scene of the ultimate judgment in Wisdom 5, the author of Wisdom borrowed the analogy of God being armed with moral virtues from Isaiah. The author’s unique

14. The author’s unique interpretation of the plagues as God’s "fashioning anew" the elements of the cosmos points to the author’s deliberate emphasis of the creation motif in moments of salvation. To understand the author’s presentation of the exodus simply as a restoration of order would miss the powerful, underlying motif of creation. It is true that the relationship between creation and order in Genesis 1 is carried over in the Wisdom author’s perspective of creation and salvation. Personified wisdom in chapters 9 and 10 is seen to restore humanity continuously onto correct paths. But the deliberate parallelism between creation and salvation in chapter 9, and the description of the exodus event through images of another apocalyptic creation, would suggest that the author is emphasizing the "newness" of the salvation moment that the creation motif carries.

In returning to the two points highlighted at the beginning of this paper from Gibert’s study on origins in Scripture, I would like to note some of the Wisdom author’s particular nuances of creation theology. The literary cross-referencing that is noticeable between the creation and exodus accounts of Genesis and Exodus is a feature that the Wisdom author turns into an interpretive principle. The cosmos has been created through wisdom and it works for the re-establishment of justice against chaos — especially the ethical chaos of injustice. The exodus events are interpreted by the Wisdom author as God’s reestablishment of justice precisely through the workings of creation and the cosmos. The exodus is a new creation that saves.

By the same principle, the author projects this creative, saving activity of God into the future, into an ultimate judgment. The role of the cosmos in the apocalyptic judgment of Wisdom 5 is presented by the author with the same interpretive key as that for the exodus events. The elements of the cosmos do battle against injustice in order to restore justice. Creation and salvation are drawn into direct parallel. The exodus is the prime historical example through which creation and salvation are seen to be joined.

Though the philosophic distinctions inherent in strains of Hellenism may have influenced the Israelite conception of creation to be reduced to its "barest elements" in other directions it has expanded. What is more fully developed in the Book of Wisdom is the extension of creation theology to interpret the entire spectrum of history: creation, exodus, and the ultimate judgment. For the Wisdom author, every human event is ultimately interpreted through the lens of a creational principle. The cosmos, created in the wisdom of God, continues to restore the original justice of creation. Creation is a liberation from chaos, and every saving moment is a form of new creation.

Michael Kolarcik, S.J.
Regis College, Toronto