ISBN 0-664-22803-8 ,!7IA6G4-cciadd!:t;K;k;K;k 6.00 x 9.00 6.00 x 9.00 .441 ,!7IA6G4-cciadd! BH JAMES L. CRENSHAW ECCLESIASTES THE OLD TESTAMENT LIBRARY General Editors PETER ACKROYD, University of London JAMES BARR, Oxford University BERNHARD W. ANDERSON, Princeton Theological Seminary JAMES L. MAYS, Union Theological Seminary, Richmond, Virginia Advisory Editor JOHN BRIGHT, Union Theological Seminary, Richmond, Virginia JAMES L. CRENSHAW A Commentary THE WESTMINSTER PRESS PHILADELPHIA © 1987 James L. Crenshaw All rights reserved-no part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer who wishes to quote brief passages in connection with a review in magazine or newspaper. Scripture quotations from the Revised Standard Version of the Bible are copy­ righted 1946, 1952, © 1971, 1973 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. and are used by permis­ sion. Excerpts from James B. Pritchard, ed., The Ancient Near East: An Anthology of Texts and Pictures, copyright© 1958 by Princeton University Press, are reprinted by permission of the publishers. Book design by Gene Harris First edition Published by The Westminster Press® Philadelphia, Pennsylvania PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 98765432 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Crenshaw, James L. Ecclesiastes : a commentary. (The Old Testament library) Bibliography: p. 1. Bible. O.T. Ecclesiastes-Commentaries. I. Title. II. Series. BS1475.3.C74 1987 223'.807 87-16053 ISBN 0-664-21295-6 CONTENTS Preface 7 Abbreviations 9 Selected Bibliography 11 Introduction 23 Qohelet's Teachings 23 Literary Expression 28 The Meaning of the Name Qohelet 32 Literary Integrity and Structure 34 The Historical Setting 49 The Larger Environment 51 Canonization 52 The Text 53 A Plea to Readers 53 Commentary 55 1:1 The Superscription 55 1:2-3 Motto and Thematic Statement 57 1:4-11 Nothing New Under the Sun 61 1:12-2:26 The Royal Experiment 68 3:1-15 A Time for Everything 91 3:16-4:3 The Tears of the Oppressed 101 4:4-6 Proverbial Insights About Toil and Its Opposite 107 6 Contents 4:7-12 The Advantages of Companionship 109 4:13-16 The Fickle Crowd 112 4:17-5:8 [5:1-9 Eng.] Religious Obligations 114 5:9-6:9 [5:10-6:9 Eng.] The Disappointments of Wealth 119 6:10-12 A Transitional Unit 130 7:1-14 A Collection of Proverbs 132 7:15-22 On Moderation 140 7:23-29 Seeking and Finding 144 8:1-9 Rulers and Subjects 148 8:10-17 The Mystery of Divine Activity 153 9:1-10 The Shadow of Death 158 9:11-12 Time and Chance 164 9:13-18 Wasted Wisdom 165 10:1-20 A Collection of Proverbs on Wisdom and Folly 168 11:1-6 The Element of Risk 178 11:7-12:7 Youth and Old Age 181 12:8 Thematic Statement (lnclusio) 189 12:9-14 The Epilogue(s) 189 PREFACE In writing this commentary I have received extraordinary assistance from three persons, Marti Steussy, Michael V. Fox, and Judy Matthews Taylor, to whom I hereby express my deepest appreciation. The first two read my manuscript and made valuable suggestions for its improvement, and the third transformed my handwritten text into a typescript that could easily be prepared for publication. In addition, Michael made available to me a copy of his forthcoming commentary on Qohelet, which is especially strong on the linguistic aspects of the book. Roland E. Murphy extended a similar kindness, allowing me to see the typescript of his commentary on Ecclesias­ tes that will appear shortly in the Hermeneia series. Both Michael and Roland shared offprints with me as well, and in this significant expression of collegiality others have also joined, most notably Robert Gordis (whose commentary on Qohelet was indispensable), R. Norman Whybray, Anton Schoors, Graham Ogden, John Gammie, and Addison D. Wright. My indebtedness to others, with whom my relationship is less personal, is no less real. Any attempt to list those scholars-living and dead-who have informed my thinking about Qohelet is doomed to fail, but the follow­ ing deserve special notice: Delitzsch, Barton, and Ginsberg for relentless attention to language and syntax; Podechard for thoroughness, especially the introductory material; Ginsburg for a history of research; Loretz for the study of the ancient Near Eastern parallels; Whitley for philological obser­ vations; Hertzberg and Lauha for comprehensiveness; Braun for the Greek background; Ellermeier and Kroeber for special syntactical problems; Lohfink for literary features; Zimmerli for theological insights; Lys for philosophical probings; and Barucq for cautious examination of the status of research on Qohelet. A major portion of the research during the final stages of writing this book was made possible by a fellowship from the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation for the academic year 1984-85. That project, "The Depiction of Old Age in Ancient Near Eastern Wisdom Literature," focused on the exquisite poem in Eccl. 11:7-12:7 and enabled me to explore the larger context of Qohelet in a way that would otherwise have been impossible. I wish by this means to express my profound gratitude to Joel 8 Preface Conarroe, President of the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, for its generous support of my research. This book is dedicated to Austin S. and Grace Rhodes Bobo, who for many years have provided a home away from home for my wife and me. JAMES L. CRENSHAW Vanderbilt Divinity School ABBREVIATIONS AB Anchor Bible ANET Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament, ed. by J. B. Pritchard, 2nd. ed., Princeton, 1955 AST/ Annual of the Swedish Theological Institute ATD Das Alte Testament Deutsch BASOR Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research BDB *Brown, Driver, and Briggs, Hebrew and English Lexicon BHK Biblia Hebraica, ed. by Rudolf Kittel, 1937 BHS *Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia, 1978 BHT Beitriige zur historischen Theologie Bib Biblica BKAT Biblischer Kommentar Altes Testament BO Bibliotheca Orienta/is BTB Biblical Theology Bulletin BZ Biblische Zeitschrift BZAW Beihefte zur Zeitschrift fiir die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft CBQ Catholic Biblical Quarterly E English (where numbering differs from the Hebrew) ET English translation ETL Ephemerides Theologicae Lovanienses ExpT Expository Times FOTL The Forms of the Old Testament Literature GKC *Gesenius-Kautzsch-Cowley, Hebrew Grammar HAR Hebrew Annual Review HAT Handbuch zum Alten Testament HS Hebrew Studies HSAT Die Heilige Schrift des Altes Testament HUCA Hebrew Union College Annual IB Interpreter's Bible, ed. by G. A. Buttrick, 12 vols., Nashville, 1952-57 ICC International Critical Commentary IDB Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible, ed. by G. A. Buttrick, 4 vols., Nashville, 1962 IDBSup Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible, Supplementary Volume, ed. by K. Crim, Nashville, 1976 Int Interpretation ITQ Irish Theological Quarterly JAOS Journal of the American Oriental Society JO Abbreviations JBL Journal of Biblical Literature JBR Journal of Bible and Religion (now Journal of the American Academy of Religion) JJS Journal of Jewish Studies JNES Journal of Near Eastern Studies JPS *Jewish Publication Society translation (Tanakh) JQR Jewish Quarterly Review JSOT Journal for the Study of the Old Testament JSS Journal of Semitic Studies JTS Journal of Theological Studies KAT Kommentar zum Alten Testament KHAT Kurzer Hand-Commentar zum Alten Testament NAB New American Bible OLZ Orientalistische Literaturzeitung OTS Oudtestamentische Studien PAAJR Proceedings of the American Academy of Jewish Research PEQ Palestine Exploration Quarterly RB Revue Biblique RHPR Revue d'Histoire et de Philosophie Religieuses RSV Revised Standard Version SAIW *Studies in Ancient Israelite Wisdom, ed. by J. L. Crenshaw SJT Scottish Journal of Theology SPOA Les sagesses du Proche-Orient ancien (Colloque de Strasbourg, 1962), Paris, 1963 STU Schweizerische Theologische Umschau TDOT Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament, ed. by G. J. Botterweck and H. Ringgren, Grand Rapids, 1974- TR Theologische Rundschau TSK Theologische Studien und Kritiken TTZ Trierer theologische Zeitschrift TZ Theologische Zeitschrift UF Ugaritische Forschungen VT Vetus Testamentum VTSup Supplements to Vetus Testamentum WMANT Wissenschaftliche Monographien zum Alten und Neuen Testament WTJ Westminster Theological Journal WZLU Wissenschaftliche Zeitschrift Leipziger Universitiit ZAS Zeitschrift fur iigyptische Sprache und Altertumskunde ZAW Zeitschrift far die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft ZDMG Zeitschrift der deutschen morgenliindischen Gesellschaft ZDPV Zeitschrift des deutschen Paliistina-Vereins ZTK Zeitschrift far Theologie und Kirche For full details of entries marked * see Bibliography SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY A. Translations, Texts, Dictionaries, and Grammars The Revised Standard Version of the Bible. The New English Bible. Tanakh: The Holy Scriptures. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 1985. (Also published in three volumes; vol. 3, The Writings, 1982.) Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia. Ed. by Kurt Elliger and Wilhelm Rudolph. Stutt- gart, 1967-77. Septuaginta. Ed. by Alfred Rahlfs. Stuttgart, 1962. Biblia Sacra. luxta Vu/gatem Versionem. Ed. by Robert Weber. Stuttgart, 1969. Baumgartner, Walter, and J. J. Stamm, eds. Hebriiisches und aramiiisches Lexicon zum A/ten Testament. 3rd edition. I (1967), II (1974), III (1983). Leiden. Brown, Francis; S. R. Driver; and C. A. Briggs. A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament, with an Appendix Containing the Biblical Aramaic. Oxford, 1907. Gesenius, F. W., Hebrew Grammar, rev. by E. Kautzsch; 2nd English edition, ed. and tr. by A. E. Cowley. Oxford, 1910. Hatch, E., and H. A. Redpath. A Concordance to the Septuagint and the other Greek Versions of the Old Testament (including the Apocryphal Books). Oxford, 1897. Jastrow, Marcus. A Dictionary ofthe Targumim, the Talmud Babli and Yerushalmi, and the Midrashic Literature. New York, 1950. Joiion, Paul. Grammaire de l'hebreu biblique. Rome, 1955. Kohler, Ludwig, and Walter Baumgartner, eds. Lexicon in Veteris Testamenti Li­ bras.