Proverbs, one of three Old Testament 'Wisdom books', is made up of eight major sections. The six central sections are collections of wise sayings, while the two bookend sections intentionally mirror each other, focusing on one specific member of the Godhead.
Allow me to introduce Lady Wisdom.
In the Greek New Testament her name was Sophia, but in Hebrew she was 'Hokma.' As the personification of knowledge and shrewdness, she was mainly represented as the patroness of scribes. Thus, many scholars believe that Proverbs 1-9 were used to train young scribes. It focuses on Sophia as a divine being and force, while the final section in Proverbs 30 concerns 'the ideal woman,' the human embodiment of divine feminine principles.
Proverbs 1-9 paints a fairly detailed picture of Lady Wisdom as the first emanation of Yahweh, who witnessed him as he created the universe (Prov 8:22-30).
She guides kings and state officials (8:14-16). Like a scribe, she teaches wisdom to young men (1:20-33; 8: 1-11.32-36; 9: 1-6.11-12) while serving as the guardian of the student (3:23- 25), a familial mother/sister figure (4:6, 7:4) and guide to success and wealth (3:16-17; 8:18).
The Wisdom presented here is a kindly, caring, assuring, motherly figure who cares for humanity and guides us through life.
Proverbs 8, one of Scripture's most mythological texts and (in my opinion) among its most beautiful passages, describes the story of Lady Wisdom in three acts.
First, verse 22 tells us that she was begotten by Yahweh. Though some versions translate this as 'created,' the idea here is more personal. Sophia was a part of Yahweh, separated and formed into a new being. In a sense, Sophia could be seen as his daughter, but our narrative is more akin to an emanation like Athena, springing from the head of Zeus.
In the deuterocanonical Sirach 24:5, Wisdom sheds some light on the matter: 'I came out of the mouth of the most High, the firstborn before all creatures: I made that in the heavens there should rise light that never faileth, and as a cloud I covered all the earth: I dwelt in the highest places, and my throne is in a pillar of a cloud.'
Poetically, as God the Mother (Wisdom 9:4, also see this article) Wisdom is both the wife of Yahweh (making up the female half of 'Elohim') and his daughter. Prov 30:4 seems to imply that El was Israel's creator god and Yahweh the creator's son, but later Scripture reveals the son of the Creator to be none other than Jesus, both brother and son of Sophia!
After Sophia's birth, she witnessed her father's creative activity.
Proverbs 8:27-31: When he prepared the heavens, I was there. When he set a compass upon the face of the depth, when he established the clouds above, when he strengthened the fountains of the deep... when he appointed the foundations of the earth, then I was by him, as an infant. And I was daily his delight, rejoicing always before him, rejoicing in the habitable part of his earth.
The word translated 'infant' is the Hebrew word 'amon,' which only appears in this verse. Some scholars have suggested the translation 'craftsman.' Either way, this young Sophia begins to learn by observing as Yahweh creates, becoming the wisest being imaginable (Wis. 9:9). In her benevolent divinity, she desired to transmit this wisdom to humans. Verse 31 says that her 'delights were in the sons of men,' carrying the idea of playful, child-like teaching and instruction.
This brings to mind the mythological trope of the wise spirit teaching the primitive first humans and initiating them into the higher things. Like Prometheus bringing fire or the Lung serpent-gods of Asia teaching the alphabet and the first languages, Sophia taught humanity how to live life and operate within the beautiful world that God had created.
One could make the argument that each Wisdom book details the wisdom of a member of the Trinity. Proverbs depicts the Holy Spirit (Mother Wisdom) as a benevolent God who wants the world to be fair and to reward goodness. Job shows God the Father as a powerful God who is outside the judgment of man, too great to answer to humanity, while Ecclesiastes in its bleakness shows a world which needs Christ's salvation to provide meaning when wisdom just isn't enough.
Anyway, Lady Wisdom also plays a major role in the deuterocanonical books Sirach, Baruch, and the Wisdom of Solomon (hence the title), as well as several non-Jewish religious and philosophical texts.
In the Aramaic Ahiqar story, found on papyrus leaves on the Nile island of Elephantine, we can reconstruct a fragmentary passage:
"From heaven the peoples are favoured; Wisdom is of the gods. Indeed, she is precious to the gods; her kingdom is eternal. She has been established by Shamayn, yes, the Holy Lord has exalted her."
Kotisieper's translation:
“... Among the gods, too, she is honored. She shares with her lord the rulership. In heaven is she established; yea, the lord of the holy ones has exalted her."
Sophia's exhaltation in the story makes use of a common Mesopotamian trope in which a deity is promoted or brought to a higher status in the pantheon. It's the same trope evoked by Baal's ascendance on Mount Zaphon to the level of Elohim's throne, and by Yahweh's crowning and exaltation of the Son of Man.
The mysterious 'Shamayn' who exalts Wisdom in the Ahiqar passage is probably Baalshadim, the sky god who, along with Bel, was one of the two supreme gods of ancient Palmyra. Interestingly, however, some scholars associate Shamayn in this passage with the god El.
Some elements of the Hebrew Sophia seems to have been borrowed from the Greek goddess Hekate. Proverbs 1:20 and 8:2-3 depict Wisdom speaking at the city gate and at crossroads.
Perhaps she was connected with liminal places of transition, symbolizing her status as both utterly divine and totally within the mundane world, like Hekate, who presided over entrances and crossroads where her shrines were built. It is possible that the very ancient Hebrews prayed to Wisdom at similar crossroad shrines, and she 'spoke' to them.
There were many goddesses of Wisdom such as the Sumerian Nisaba, Mistress of Science, and the Egyptian Maat. There was also Isis, probably an inspiration for the character of Sophia in the Book of Wisdom.
Both Isis and Sophia were associated with the king and kingship. Wis. 10:14 says that Sophia is with the prisoner in his distress, while in a hymn to Isis (lsidorus 1:29.34) we are told that “as many as are in prison, in the power of death... having called upon you... are all saved.” In a somewhat strange set-up, Sophia is the wife of both God and the king (Wisdom 94:, 8:9). This is probably based on Isis' dual marriage to Re/Osiris (the king god) and the Egyptian king.
Ben Sira wrote that when the Torah was read aloud, Sophia's voice was heard, and the Book of Baruch depicts her as a poetic personification of the Law. The work of Aristoboulos and the Book of Wisdom identify Sophia with Spirit and intellectual Light, emanating from God and pervading his creation while also residing within great leaders and prophets and inspiring their divine utterances.
And so we see the true identity of Wisdom- she is the Holy Spirit, the divine Mother, the Presence of God.
Wisdom 7:25-27: For she is the breath (remember that 'ruach' as in Holy Ruach can mean 'spirit' or 'breath') of the power of God, and a pure emanation of the glory of the Almighty. For she is the brightness of the everlasting light, the unspotted mirror of the power of God, and the image of his goodness. And being but one, she can do all things: and remaining in herself, she maketh all things new: and in all ages entering into holy souls, she maketh them friends of God, and prophets.
In a very real sense, the Holy Spirit is the Pantheistic element of God. Just as the spirit is the lifeforce of creatures (in the ancient sense), so the Infinite's Spirit is the omnipresent life-force of Creation.
The Bible Project's video on the Holy Spirit explains very well why Spirit, Wind and Breath are all the word ruach. All three are invisible, but they move and affect visible things. Wind blows trees, breath keeps us alive. The same principle is why 'the life is in the blood' (Genesis 9:4, Leviticus 17:11, 14), because blood is the closest physical thing to a life force we can see and understand.*
*Note that Biblical use of these terms is not entirely consistent, so I'm generalizing
We've discussed the many connections between Isis and Sophia. In Metamorphoses, a Roman novel written right around the time of the apostles, we find a conversation between Lucius and Isis that echoes many themes in Proverbs and paints Mother Wisdom as a Mother Earth type character, inhabiting everything beautiful in the world.
”Thee the gods above adore, the gods below worship. It is thou that whirlest the sphere of heaven, that givest light to the sun, thou governest the universe… to thee the stars respond, for thee the seasons return…thy nods the winds blow, the clouds nourish (the earth), the seeds sprout, the buds swell…”
Isis speaks to Lucius:
“I am Nature the universal Mother, mistress of all the elements, primordial child of time, sovereign of all things spiritual, queen of the dead, queen also of the immortals, the single manifestation of all gods and goddesses there are.. though I am worshiped in many aspects, known by countless names, and propitiated with all manner of different rites, yet the whole round earth venerates me”.
We also know that God cares for all the little creatures of his creation, including sparrows (interestingly enough, sparrows are one of the sacred birds of Venus, the Roman goddess of motherhood).
Matthew 10:29 : Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father's care.
Many atheists make the argument that, in the story of the Virgin birth, the Holy Spirit's miraculous impregnation of Mary is just a Christianized version of Zeus and other gods seducing various human women and producing heroic demigod sons.
They're right in that the Virgin Conception is a culmination of mythical narratives, but they've got the wrong ones. In the light of the Holy Spirit as a mother goddess, we see the story with a whole new perspective.
Luke 1:34-35 : “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?” The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God."
With our realigned perspective, we realize that the Holy Spirit is here playing the role of a mother goddess like Isis, already connected to Mother Wisdom, or Meskhenet (who breathed life into each newborn baby). The Holy Spirit is playing the role of a fertility goddess, inspiring the birth and pregnancy of the new humanity which began with Jesus, the true Son of Man.
Lady Wisdom isn't the only mythological figure that factors into the Christian concept of God.
The West Semitic deity Zedek (whose name means 'Righteousness') is found in the names of two Biblical figures: Adonizedek (Josh 10:13) and Melchizedek (Gen 14:18, Ps 110:4; Heb 5:6; 6:20-7:17).
Though this detail may seem trivial at first, it actually reveals a behind-the-scenes Bible storyline and sheds light on ancient Jerusalem, Israelite religion and 'pre-incarnate' Jesus Christ.
First of all, though Zedek faded into obscurity, his worship seems to have been fairly widespread during some ancient period, and remnants of it were left all over. Philo of Byblos wrote of a Phoenician god named Sydyk. Eusebius quoted Philo on Sydyk, and in some manuscripts the name in rendered 'Sedek.'
Zedek/Sedek also seems to correspond with Isar in the Amorite pantheon, and was tied to Jupiter, the King of the Greco-Roman cosmos and the one who defeated the evil Titans, cyclopses and giants in the Titanomachy. This connection makes sense, as Sedek was described as a child of the Titans, just like Zeus.
C.S. Lewis was very interested in the Medieval seven heavens (even basing each Narnia book on one of them), and he saw Zeus as the deity corresponding closest to the Christian god.
Lewis wrote that paganism was "only the childhood of religion," and that Christianity fulfilled it as "the thing fully grown" (SBJ, p. 235), with Christ as "the summing up and actuality" of all religions and philosophies.
There are definitely echoes of the Jovial war and victory over rebellious serpentine giants in Jesus' defeat of Satan's forces, and the 'trumpet of the Lord' sounding at Christ's victory is a very Jovial image, and as King of Kings and Lord of Lords he is the ultimate fulfillment of the king of gods.
Meanwhile, the Assyrian version of Zedek, 'Kittu' (whose name means 'truth' or 'right') was paired with Misharu ('Justice'). They were seen as personifications and described as seated before the sun god Shamash, attending him and standing at his right hand. Interestingly, Kittu was sometimes described as the son of Shamash.
This divine duo of Right and Justice were found under different names elsewhere.
At Mari, for instance, offerings were made to the divine pair Mesar and Isar (we already mentioned Isar's connection to Zedek). Based on the interchangeability of the names Kittu, Bar, Sidqu and Zedek as the partner of Truth/Right to Misharu of Justice, it seems that this god of 'Right' was known also as Zedek (meaning 'Righteousness') in Hebrew.
The fact that both Melchizedek and Adonizedek were kings of pre-Israelite Jerusalem has naturally led to speculation that Jerusalem served as a cult center for Zedek before the Israelite takeover.
But we know that, in Genesis 14, Melchizedek was also a priest of El Elyon, God Most High! This could indicate that, in the days before Judaic Yahwism, Yahweh was worshiped in Canaan under the name El.
After all, we know that Noah and his family worshiped Yahweh, sacrificed to him and knew about clean/unclean animals (Genesis 7:2), so it would be weird if their religion completely disappeared from all their descendants until God revealed himself again to Abraham. The Bible contains many characters who randomly worship the God of the Israelites even before Israel!
Besides, Hebrews 7:17 states that the line of Yahwist priesthood went back to Melchizedek. It seems likely that the Caananite cult of El stemmed from original Yahwist beliefs, morphed over time into a false and even demonic religion when the order of Aaron replaced the order of Melchizedek. It is also interesting that ancient Jerusalem's religion connected the god Zedek to El, because Israel did the same thing.
It has been suggested that Zedek is equivalent to the god Shalem, as in Jerusalem. It is certain that Shalem had elements of solar religion, aspects of which found their way into Yahwistic and Messianic Judaism. It is possible that OT-era Jews adopted the title 'Zedek' from friendly Elohist Caananites in the order of Melchizedek, and this could also account for certain titles of Jerusalem such as 'the city of Righteousness' (lsa 1:21,26) and 'pasture of Righteousness' (Jer 31:23, 33:16).
When Josiah reformed Jerusalem, those reforms included removing "the horses that the kings of Judah had dedicated to the sun, at the entrance to the house of Yahweh" and burning "the chariots of the sun" (2 Kgs 23: 2, Deut 4: 19). According to Ezekiel 8:16, some sort of solar cult continued in Jerusalem up until the destruction of the temple, possibly traceable to an early split between solar Yahwists and less Caananite-influenced practitioners of Judaism.
Zedek made his way into Scripture as a member of God's angelic court and a personification of his Righteousness. The High Priest of Israel during the reigns of David and Solomon was Zadok ('Righteous'), a name which could reflect Yahweh's symbolic connection to the sun.
At times, Zedek is used as a synonym or parallel for Yahweh.
Isaiah 51:1 : "Harken to me, you who pursue Zedek, you who seek Yahweh."
Isaiah 61:3 : "They will be called the oaks of Zedek, the planting of Yahweh.”
Psalm 4:6 : "Sacrifice sacrifices of Zedek and trust in Yahweh.”
Other passages use Righteousness as a substitute for Yahweh, such as Psalm 94:15: "For unto Zedek will judgment return." Sometimes Zedek and Yahweh make up the compound name 'Yahweh-Zedek,” see Psalm 17:1.
In opposition to this use as a Divine Name, Zedek also appears as a separate element of the Godhood representing his invincibility, kingship and righteous protecting power, primarily exacted by his right hand/arm.
Psalm 48:11 : "Righteousness fills thy (Yahweh's) right hand.”
Isaiah 41:10 : "I (Yahweh) will support you with my right hand of Righteousness.”
Isaiah 51:5 : "My (Yahweh's) Righteousness is near, my salvation has gone forth, and my arms will rule the peoples.”
Psalm 118 brings all the concepts of Zedek together in a unifying trope that influenced future Judaism greatly.
Psalm 118: 15-26: “Yahweh’s right hand has done mighty things! Yahweh’s right hand is lifted high... ”I will not die but live, and will proclaim what Yahweh has done... Open for me the gates of Righteousness, I will enter and give thanks to Yahweh.
This is the gate of Yahweh, through which the righteous may enter. I will give you thanks, for you answered me, you have become my salvation. The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. Yahweh has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes. Yahweh has done it this very day; let us rejoice today and be glad... blessed is he who comes in the name of Yahweh.
Here we see a reference to the protection of the righteous and the opening of Zedek/Yahweh's gates (for those who display the quality of zedek) by the right hand of Yahweh. This is interspersed by Messianic prophecies of 'the stone that the builders rejected' and 'he who comes in the name of Yahweh.'
The prophetic books also use this theme. In Jeremiah 33:16, we are told that the endtime Jerusalem will be named 'Yahweh-is-our-Righteousness,' and Malachi 4:1-3 showcases the original function of Zedek as an aspect of the solar god, searching out and destroying injustice on the earth while vindicating the righteous.
Once again, imagery of the sun is tied to Zedek ('Sun of Righteousness') and used as a vessel for Messianic prophecy. There are many other similar verses, which see Zedek as the ultimate heavenly body, connected to the sun, stars, rain and the heavens in general.
Micah 7:9 : I will bear Yahweh’s wrath, until he pleads my case and upholds my cause. He will bring me out into the Light, I will see his Righteousness.
Isaiah 45:8 : “You heavens above, rain down my Righteousness, let the clouds shower it down. Let the earth open wide, let salvation spring up, let Righteousness flourish with it. I, Yahweh, have created it.
Isaiah 45:19 : I have not spoken in secret, from somewhere in a land of darkness. I have not said to Jacob’s descendants, ‘Seek me in vain.’ I, Yahweh, speak the truth. I declare what is right.
Zedek and Misharu as Shamash' attendant deities also carry into Yahwism, appearing as incarnated qualities of God.
In Isaiah 11:4, when the Spirit of Yahweh possesses the messianic king "he will judge the weak with Righteousness, he will defend the poor of the earth with Justice." Similarly in Psalm 9:9 : "He judges the world with Righteousness; he judges the peoples with Justice.”
In Psalm 89:14 and 97:7, Righteousness ('Zedek') and Justice ('Mispat,' related to Misharu) are said to be the foundations of Yahweh's throne and connected to his Presence. According to Isaiah 1:21 and 26, Zedek and Mispat made their homes in Jerusalem. Psalm 85 brings this theme to its fullest, with various attendant deities portrayed as personifications of Yahweh's qualities.
Psalm 85:10-13 : Love and Faithfulness meet together, Righteousness and Peace kiss each other. Faithfulness springs forth from the earth, and Righteousness looks down from heaven. Yahweh will indeed give what is good, and our land will yield its harvest. Righteousness goes before him and prepares the way for his steps.
Jewish mystical traditions held Zadkiel, an angel whose name means 'Righteousness of God,' to be the archangel of mercy. Some traditions identified him with the Angel of Yahweh, and Western ritual magic follows Jewish mysticism in associating him with the planet Jupiter, just like the god Sedek.
In the War of the Sons of Light Against the Sons of Darkness, Zedek is a heavenly figure, closely associated with Michael in the fight between Light and Darkness. According to the scroll, when the forces of Light finally triumph, God "will exalt the kingdom of Michael in the midst of the gods" while "Righteousness shall rejoice on high" (1QM 17:7-8).
The scroll also applies this victory to Melchizedek, calling him the 'divine being of Zion' (see column 21). He is even described as Michael the Archangel under a different guise (11QMelch), one of two opposing deities created by Yahweh (the other being Belial). We know that the author of Hebrews (probably Jude) thought of Melchizedek as at least a prototype of Christ, while Gnosticism and even pre-Christian traditions held him to be the coming Messiah.
So this god 'Righteousness,' associated with Michael and Melchiedek and shown in the Bible as a feature of Yahweh, can reasonably be seen as one of the many forms of the Logos. It should not surprise us, therefore, that this Messiah-centric War Scroll depicts Zedek as the sun or morning star before whom darkness and evil retreat (e.g. 1QM 1:8, yst5-6).
Righteousness and Wisdom are elements of the Infinite that enter into the Universe, embodying those aspects. Though Christianity is not based on merit or sagacity, both qualities are very important to God, bring one closer to him and are received from him as part of the Christian walk.
Ephesians 1:17 : That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of Glory, may give unto you the Spirit of Sophia and revelation in the knowledge of him:
Matthew 6:33 : But seek you first the kingdom of God, and his Righteousness, and all the rest will be given to you.
Christian concepts of the Trinity are ultimately dualistic, whether it be the visible Messenger Yahweh in subordination to Elohim (the invisible two-gendered union of Mother and Father), or the Son and Daughter, Michael and Sophia, firstborn of creation interacting with humanity within the fallen world in subordination to the Ancient of Days, sitting holy beyond the universe in infinite splendor.
In very early Judaism this two-god system expressed itself primarily as El Elyon, the chief god, who functioned through the Messenger Yahweh/Zedek. Throughout the Old Testament the lesser character was developed as the Destroyer, Michael, the messianic Son of Man.
The Book of Wisdom retains the personal language of Sophia as a goddess, an individual personality within the Godhead, while also connecting her to the impersonal life-force of the Infinite, the Holy Spirit's identity as simply an element or function of Yahweh.
In the Book of Wisdom, Sophia is seen as an 'artisan' or 'master builder', making God's creation beautiful. (Wis 7:21-22; 8:4; 14:2).
Poetically, she shares Yahweh's throne as his consort (Wisdom 9:4), but is also King Solomon's spouse (8:9). Though confusing, the interplay of mythological narrative and philosophical symbolism work together to present the dual nature of Sophia.
She functions as a hypostasis, emanating from a higher reality to which she is somewhat subordinate, but also retaining an individual personality as a goddess. Christ was also a hypostasis. In the Gospel of John's opening poem, the Logos is defined and developed with ideas borrowed from Proverbs 8.
In a sense, you could say that Logos contains the ideas of both Michael and Sophia. Christ and Sophia share the place of 'firstborn of all Creation,' spoken out by God.
The gods flow in and out of one another.
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