Jesus the Sage: The Pilgrimage of Wisdom

Have only read about half of this and I love Ben's writing and insights. He continually points to Christ. This he does in the midst of a load of very thick theological explanations and even kind exposures of other understandings he doesn't agree matches the scripture, which he does with such grace I just know this is his place in the Body of Christ. Very much recommended.The main reason I like this is how much it points to the sage Jesus Christ.A side note - I needed a dictionary from time to time, so you might, too. But, it's worth the time.I will write more, once I finish.______________________________UPDATE:Studying this again and finding the material so in-depth and so all encompassing, I do not see a need to look elsewhere. Not saying I won't, but this book is comprehensively showing Christ is the Wisdom of God, the Light of the World. God is brilliant; he is so smart, no one can touch him. This book exalts Jesus Christ. It's pure food. The rational arguments are good, if you have questions or are looking for an answer to help someone challenged by information that leads to irrational thinking. Well thought out. Highly recommended!

So far the first 1/3 of the book is a good review of Wisdom Literature from a gently evangelical framework. I will return to say more later

Very good book for connecting Jesus with the wisdom tradition of the Hebrew Bible. The scripture (including the apocrypha) index is valuable for connecting the Jesus and wisdom traditions.

a great book for my collection...I will treasure it and am glad to have it for my library here at home

There are times when I feel the urge to dig into what can easily be labeled as a “nerdy” book and there are some theological subjects that arguably deserve such an in-depth treatment. Exploring the wisdom literature of Scripture as well as the extra-biblical writings that impacted Jewish and early Christian thought is one of those topics deserving of such a deep dive. Ben Witherington, in his book Jesus the Sage: The Pilgrimage of Wisdom, walks the reader through the grand and important history of wisdom literature, how it flows throughout Scripture, and most importantly, why it is necessary for believers to spend time studying this subject matter.Let me first state this is a very scholarly book. If you are looking for a quick overview of biblical and extra-biblical wisdom literature, you should look elsewhere. Conversely, if you desire to take the time to work through this topic and are looking for a book that digs very deep into the various elements of wisdom literature, then this book is one you will want to explore. Those not familiar with all the various aspects of wisdom literature and thought will, again if they take the time to digest the material Witherington presents, will find upon completing this book they have gained a great deal of important knowledge. Ultimately, this is not a quick read but it is well worth the read.Witherington notes in the Preface that “This book…is not only about the pilgrimage of Wisdom but also about Jesus the sage as one who contributed to the growth and development of Jewish Wisdom and, for the community of his own followers, charted a course that they would follow in further developing Wisdom ideas and forms.” As such, Witherington efforts to trace for the reader not just wisdom literature itself, but more importantly, how Jesus continued this wisdom tradition.Reading, understanding, and identifying wisdom literature is a pursuit that demands a great deal of effort. Witherington reminds the reader of that important fact at the outset of this book. With that said, those who again take the time to grasp what wisdom is all about and what it means to be wise, will find their efforts rewarded. In an effort to break down this journey through wisdom literature, Witherington divides this book into two parts with the first part examining this genre from the period of Solomon to the time of Jesus and with part two looking at how wisdom literature was shaped from the time of Jesus to the period of the early church.For myself, the most interesting chapter was “Wisdom in Person: Jesus the Sage”. Of particular interest was Witherington’s engagement of Jesus’ parables and aphorisms. Jesus used the form of the parable to relay important theological truths to those who listened to his words. As Witherington notes, this approach is indicative of how a sage would have chosen to instruct his followers. He also suggests “It is also quite likely that Jesus was perceived to be some sort of sage by the part of his audience that was conversant with the world of Jewish Wisdom traditions.” Witherington presents some very interesting thoughts on the manner by which Jesus presented his teaching, parables, and speeches, asserting they take the form of Jewish wisdom traditions, thoughts that will certainly require further examination given the sheer volume and specificity of information Witherington provides all throughout this book.Anyone desiring to further their breadth of understanding of Jewish wisdom literature and how it presents itself throughout Scripture to include the words of Jesus, should give this book a read. As noted earlier, this is a very scholarly book and it will take the reader time and patience to dig into all the information Witherington provides. I know I will be returning to this book in the future to examine various individual elements discussed throughout as I continue my own studies on wisdom literature.I received this book for free from Fortress Press for this review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

In this book the author traces the pilgrimage of Wisdom. His interest is in explicating the sapiential background of much of the N.T., and in particular expounding the Wisdom Christology based on it.The sages of Israel presuppose the covenant relation based on Torah, but draw on conventional wisdom obtained from experience and lessons learned from nature (inanimate, animal and human) to help guide one into how to live wisely in the world. The teachings of the early Wisdom writings (e.g., Proverbs and Psalms) are based on certain fundamental beliefs, which include: 1) God is the Creator and Lord of the world, 2) the universe is basically harmonious, 3) the world has a moral structure, in particular a structure of retribution where one's actions have prescribed consequences: the righteous are rewarded and prosper, or at least their deeds naturally lead to health, long life, heirs, and prosperity, while the unrighteous are punished or their deeds result in disaster, and 4) God acts in the present world to distribute justice, since the Jews had not yet come to a belief in an afterlife.In the later canonical sapiential writings (e.g., Ecclesiastes and Job), we encounter wisdom of a "counter-order." Traditional wisdom can no longer be relied upon, and is inefficient to chart the course of life or to help one understand life. The normal ebb and flow of life has now turned into a raging storm, an extreme situation of suffering and living under domination of a consuming illness or rule under a foreign power. The righteous suffer while the evil prosper, all the day long, and impending death hangs over one's head like a shroud, particularly in Ecclesiastes where it spells the end of life.With the Wisdom writings of Ben Sira and Wisdom of Solomon, Wisdom's pilgrimage takes a turning point. Notably, in Ben Sira: 1) Wisdom is said to come to dwell in Torah (Wisdom becoming concrete or even incarnate in Torah), and 2) With still no developed view of an afterlife, God's justice may be delayed but will come in it's own time, and, in any case, will be administered in how one dies either (peacefully or in misery). The notable feature of Wisdom of Solomon is that the affirmation of life after death finally breaks through: God's justice will finally determine one's life in the hereafter.Witherington next shows how the N.T. takes a decisive and innovative step in identifying Jesus as a sage and, indeed, as Wisdom itself. This "Wisdom Christology" was among the earliest in the N.T., was widespread, and clearly reveals the divinity of Jesus. There are several arguments used to affirm the identification of Wisdom with (not in but as) Jesus and, therefore, the divinity of Jesus: 1) previous sapiential writings (e.g., Ben Sira) had identified Wisdom with the Torah (Wisdom was embodied in or became incarnate in Torah), 2) some of the prophets had presented themselves or were viewed as being a living embodiment or incarnation of God's message, 3) Jesus is personally identified as Wisdom (a personification and attribute of God) in the N.T., 4) the characteristics of Wisdom are attributed to Jesus, 5) being David's "Lord," Jesus must be seen in more transcendent categories, and 6) like Solomon, Jesus is the very embodiment of Wisdom, but Jesus is greater, which, again, indicates understanding Jesus in transcendent categories. Other claims for the divinity of Jesus are based on the name "Emmanuel" applied to Jesus, Jesus' body being the temple (presence) of God, etc.In the second half of the book, Witherington demonstrates how extensive and fundamental the sapiential writings were in their influence on "Q," James, the N.T. Wisdom Songs, , Paul's writings, Matthew, John, and much of the entire N.T., which is further confirmation of the likelihood that Jesus viewed himself as a sage and as Wisdom.I highly recommend the book. It is well developed and goes into a lot of detailed analysis and comparison with previous sapiential materials, especially Ben Sira and Wisdom of Solomon. In fact, one of the main points of the book is just how great an influence the writings of these two had on Jesus and the N.T. Altogether, an excellent book. By way of critique and dialogue, I have two main concerns with his arguments for a "Wisdom Christology" that identified Jesus as Wisdom, making Jesus "God." 1) With his demonstration of so many precedents for Wisdom being embodied or incarnated in the Torah, temple or individuals, when subsequently predicated of Jesus how are we justified in claiming him, alone, to be "God"? His very precedents undermine his conclusion! I have the same problem with Larry Hurtado (when he claims other figures like angels and exalted patriarchs were accorded divine qualities and given praise, but says that because Jesus was similarly treated he must really be God) and Murray Harris (when he claims theos was used, even by the Jews, biblical writers and Jesus himself, to refer to other humans, angels, and exalted patriarchs, and then claims when used of Jesus he must be "God") 2) While Witherington acknowledges that personified Wisdom really belongs to God and cannot be identified as independent of God or hypnotized as a sort of "second God" (as Logos was for Philo), and that we need to understand the poetical use of such language, nonetheless, he then proceeds to hypostasize Wisdom (or Logos)--not just as independent but as an actual "Person"! Usually, this results in a practical denial or reduction of the human reality of Jesus, as when Witherington later refers to Jesus as "Wisdom in human guise."