rbs represent the work of many different wise men, living at
different periods and writing from different points of view. Few, if any,
can be confidently attributed to Solomon. Even the proverbs in the large
collection, 10:1-22:16, which are definitely designated as the Proverbs of
Solomon, emphasize monogamy and denounce rulers who oppress their
subjects. Many of the proverbs in these larger Solomonic collections give
practical advice regarding the bearing of a subject in the presence of the
king, and few of them fit in the mouth of the splendor-loving monarch, who
by his foreign marriages and grinding taxation exerted a baleful influence
upon the political and religious life of Israel. The great majority of the
proverbs reflect the noble ethical teachings of the prophets. Clearly the
term Proverbs of Solomon is simply a late designation of early proverbs
the authorship of which, like that of most popular maxims, had long since
been forgotten.

II. Date of the Different Collections. The preface and general
introduction to the book of Proverbs reflect the immorality and evils that
characterized both the Persian and Greek periods. Their background is the
corrupt life of the city. The tendency to personify wisdom is also one of
the marks of later Jewish thought. It is probable, therefore, that this
part of the book of Proverbs was added by a late editor who lived during
the Greek period. The oldest collection in the book is clearly to be found
in 10:1-22:10. The evils which it describes, the oppression of the poor
and dependent by the rich and powerful, existed throughout most of
Israel's history, but were especially prominent in the days of the
divided kingdom immediately before the destruction of Jerusalem. The
references to the king imply that the proverb writers had in mind Hebrew
rulers. In general their rule is just and they enjoy the respect of their
subjects. The prevailing occupation of the people is agriculture. Commerce
is just beginning to develop. The exile has not yet cast its shadow over
Hebrew life and thought. The majority of these proverbs clearly represent
the fruitage of the teachings of the pre-exilic prophets, and many of them
come from the days immediately before the final destruction of Jerusalem.
From the occasional references to the scoffers, the absence of allusions
to idolatry, and the fact that monogamy is here assumed, we may infer that
some of them at least come from the Persian or even the Gr