658036

book-review2016
RAE0010.1177/0034637316658036Review & ExpositorBook Reviews

Review and Expositor

2016, Vol. 113(3) 409427
Book reviews The Author(s) 2016
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DOI: 10.1177/0034637316658036
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I. Biblical studies
The Words of the Wise Are Like Goads: Engaging Qoheleth in the 21st Century, edited by Mark J. Boda,
Tremper Longman III, and Cristian G. Rata. Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns, 2013. xi + 515 pp. $64.50. ISBN
978-1-575-06265-5.

The editors of this volume are respected scholars with extensive work in the Old Testament wisdom
tradition. The book is a collection of articles divided into five parts, each addressing a different
aspect of the study of the Old Testament book of Ecclesiastes, or Qoheleth.
Part 1 consists of four essays that address the early history of interpretation. The first of these
essays discusses the premodern interpretation of Ecclesiastes. The second provides samples of rab-
binic approaches to the book. The third essay deals with the period of the Reformers, and the fourth
and final essay in this section discusses Puritan interpretations and applications of Ecclesiastes.
These essays are thorough and well done, but are not written for the casual reader of the Bible.
Part 2, entitled History, Form, and Rhetoric, includes five essays. Tremper Longman III, one
of the editors, engages the difficulty of identifying the historical context of Ecclesiastes. Longman,
following the pattern of most scholars who study Ecclesiastes, dismisses the traditional association
with Solomon as the author of the book, and, also following the majority of interpreters, places the
likely context of the books appearance in the post-exilic period. In the course of his essay, Longman
offers a summary of the factors that impact decisions made about the dating of the book. In the final
analysis, he suggests that, Ecclesiastes, like most wisdom books, does not depend on knowledge
of its original setting to communicate its message (p. 102).
Leo Perdue takes on the theme of mortality in Qoheleth and the influence of Hellenistic skepti-
cism on the way that theme is developed in the book. He concludes that Qoheleth reflects attitudes
common to Greek philosophical Skepticism during the Hellenistic period (p. 116).
The essay by Martin A. Shields focuses on the relationship of Qoheleth to the forms of royal
autobiography. He offers an overview of what such influence involves, and concludes that elements
of the book suggest an intentional adoption of this pattern often evident in Northwest Semitic royal
inscriptions. Its use, he argues, is to establish the grandeur of the king but ultimately uses this
grandeur to serve the didactic purpose of asserting that lifeeven the life of the wisest and most
powerful kingis devoid of any sense discernible to Qohelet (p. 136).
The final two essays in this section of the book address structural issues noted in Ecclesiastes
and the nature of the poetry of Ecclesiastes. The very detailed essay that discusses the poetry of
Ecclesiastes summarizes ways in which particular content areas of the book have been variously
referred to as prose or poetry. Both of these essays will be of interest to the careful scholar wishing
to engage this biblical book, but will not likely appeal to the casual reader.
Part 3 of the book, entitled Key Concepts and Passages, allows the authors of these four
essays to address what they consider to be, in fact, the important ideas in Ecclesiastes and the cru-
cial texts in which those ideas appear. This may be the most readable section of the book for the
non-technical reader. I found one of these essays, the essay by Russell L. Meek on the meaning of
hebel in Qoheleth, to be particularly valuable. Meek calls attention to the likely intertextual
410 Review and Expositor 113(3)

connection between this most important word in Qoheleth and the brother of Cain in Genesis 4,
whose name is the same word. Meek goes beyond the use of the word, typically translated as the
name Abel, to offer multiple parallels between the texts of early Genesis and Qoheleth. The word
hebel, which is one of the most recognizable features of Qoheleth, has, as is the case with most
Hebrew words, a variety of possible translations. Common are the following: breath, vapor, ephem-
eral, and vanity. The problem is that no choice made may offer a clear understanding of what is
intended by the word. Meeks conclusion is that the word reflects the inconsistencies of Abels
(hebel) life and uses hebel as a thematic word to describe the Abel-ness of all things (p. 256).
Mark Bodas essay on the Epilogue of Ecclesiastes also offers much that will likely interest most
readers. Interpreters of Ecclesiastes have often debated whether the epilogue is consistent with the
body of the book or a corrective to it. Bodas essay sheds considerable light on this question.
Part 4 consists of three essays that focus on language and grammar issues in the book of
Ecclesiastes. Obviously, persons who are not familiar with biblical Hebrew and Aramaic will find
these essays difficult to follow. As with other more detailed elements in earlier essays, these discus-
sions will be of value to the careful scholar, but less so for the casual reader.
Part 5 concludes the book with five essays entitled Interpreting Qohelet. The titles of the
essays may indicate that these contributions will also prove worthwhile to any reader with interest
in a better understanding of this enigmatic book in the Old Testament. The Theology of
Ecclesiastes, by Craig G. Bartholomew begins this section, followed by Ecclesiastes and the
Canon, by Stephen G. Dempster, Fresh Perspectives on Ecclesiastes: Qohelet for Today, by
Iain Provan, Preaching Qohelet, by Daniel C. Fredericks, and concluding with Solomons
Sexual Wisdom: Qohelet and the Song of Songs in the Postmodern Condition, by Peter J. Leithart.
In summary, this is a volume that an Old Testament specialist, especially one who engages the
wisdom tradition, will find helpful. For non-technical readers of the Bible, some of the essays will
prove interesting and worthwhile, whereas others will be less helpful.

Gerald L. Keown
M. Christopher White School of Divinity, Gardner-Webb University,
Boiling Springs, NC, USA

I & II Thessalonians: A Commentary, New Testament Library, by M. Eugene Boring. Louisville, KY:
Westminster John Knox Press, 2015. xl + 348 pp. $50.00. ISBN 978-0-664-22099-0.

Boring has written this volume in the reborn New Testament Library (NTL), a distinguished series
for half a century serving both the Church and the academy. Boring uses both historical criticism
and literary criticism. He has three overarching goals: (1) discerning the narrative world created by
the Pauline corpus; (2) analyzing every Greek sentence; and (3) searching ancient texts facilitated
by Accordance biblical software (p. xii). Closer to the books under study, Boring examines four
contexts: (1) the context of the present-day reader; (2) the context of the New Testament canon; (3)
the history of interpretation of the books; and (4) the context of the original readers (p. 1).
With regard to the first context, Boring writes, Hermeneutics can never be neatly settled in
advance interpretation is always rebuilding the ship at sea (p. 1). Secondly, Boring sees diverse
theological positions within the canon as a plus: Dialogue and mutual correction are facilitated
when canonical texts are read in relation to each other rather than in isolation (p. 3). Moreover, for
Boring, historical criticism and canonical criticism are not naturally antithetical disciplines. He
notes that many historical critics insist upon the theological relevance of their work, whereas
many canonical critics enthusiastically affirm the value of historical research (pp. 56).
Regarding the third context, the history of interpretation, Boring argues that an historical per-
spective helps to place contemporary interpretation in proper context and also guards against