Wisdom Language in Biblical Psalmody (review)

Hebrew Studies 34 (1993) 145 Reviews temporary students and scholars. They only illustrate that history is not philosophy. Harris has demonstrated the value of Krochmal's philosophy for Jewish history; it remains for others to explore how valuable that work is for Jewish philosophy. Norbert Samuelson Temple University Philadelphia, PA 19122 WISDOM LANGUAGE IN BIBLICAL PSALMODY. By Avi Hurvitz. Pp. 162. Jerusalem: Magnes Press, 1991. Cloth, $11.52. How can a wisdom psalm be identified? Most standard commentaries suggest that a wisdom psalm is one which displays the presence of literary or stylistic devices such as acrostics; the phrase "better is 'x' than 'y"'; numerical sayings; or the presence of certain didactic motifs, such as the just and unjust, the two ways, practical advice regarding conduct, etc. In this book, Avi Hurvitz maintains that wisdom psalms can best be identified solely by utilizing linguistic techniques. Specifically taking issue with J. L. Crenshaw, who maintains that an exclusive sapiential vocabulary cannot be identified (Old Testament Wisdom: An Introduction [Atlanta, 1981] p. 39), Hurvitz contends that, with proper controls, such a wisdom vocabulary can indeed be recognized. To identify this wisdom vocabulary, Hurvitz utilizes a methodology similar to that of his previous diachronic studies of early and late hebrew. He identifies distinctive linguistic elements whose usage is typical-that is, exclusive or predominant-in the wisdom corpus, which is defined as Proverbs, Job, and Ecclesiastes, plus Ben Sira and Ahiqar. Whenever possible , a linguistic opposition between the wisdom element and its nonwisdom equivalent is sought to demonstrate that wisdom language is indeed quite distinctive. Showcase examples for Hurvitz's method are the word han (wealth) and the phrase sur meraC (shun evi1!). Both occur predominantly in the standard wisdom corpus. Elsewhere in the Bible, other words ('asar, zahab, kesep, nekasim) are used to express the concept of "riches" and "wealth." In a like fashion, Hurvitz demonstrates that the components of the phrase sur meraC do not occur elsewhere in the Bible as a combined phrase except in wisdom Hebrew Studies 34 (1993) 146 Reviews texts. Hence, the occurrences of hon and sur meraC in the Psalms are wisdom indicators. Now, if a particular psalm has enough of these indicators, what Hurvitz terms a significant accumulation, then that psalm is declared to be a wisdom psalm. According to Hurvitz, only five psalms (l9b, 34b, 37, 112, and 119) meet his criteria. But what constitutes "a significant accumulation"? Nowhere does Hurvitz make this clear. According to Hurvitz, Psalm 119 has twelve wisdom indicators, Psalm 37 has ten, Psalm 34 has eight, and Psalms 19 and 112 have four each. So presumably four elements constitutes "significant accumulation." But what about Psalm III which only has two indicators? Hurvitz is ambivalent about the status of that psalm. On the one hand he includes it in his linguistic analysis (pp. 93-96) and classifies it as a wisdom psalm in his conclusion (p. 123), yet, on the other hand, he also expresses reservations because of the paucity of its indicators (pp. 99, 121, n. 9, and in the chart, p. 128). Further, is accumulation affected by the length of a psalm? Are the four wisdom features identified in Psalm 19b's eight verses and the ten features for the forty verses of Psalm 37 to be considered akin to the twelve features listed for Psalm 119, which has 176 verses? Even Hurvitz realizes that from a purely statistical point of view the examples he has culled for Psalm 119 are few (p. 119). And what of the fact that some of the wisdom elements repeat themselves? Does that repetition count for accumulation? The book concludes with three short appendices. In the first, Hurvitz presents a chart of the opinions of ten representative scholars who have identified wisdom psalms. It is interesting to observe that there is universal agreement on only one psalm (Psalm 37), and that Psalms 1,49, 127, and 128, which do seem to have characteristic features of wisdom psalms and are included on most of the other scholars' lists, do not meet Hurvitz's criteria . Hurvitz himself recognizes the incomplete character of his list. Perhaps, he says, future study may help enlarge the scope...