Can the Book of Proverbs be a player in "biblical theology"?

Biblical Theology Bulletin, Spring, 2001 by Roland E. Murphy

Appendix

I add here a list of sayings that are relevant to the title of this article. They are chosen for various reasons: theological potential, human insight, literary style. In any case, the list is intended to be representative, not exhaustive, and even to be a suggestion that all readers make their own lists. In each instance a kind of catch word is included to recall to memory the saying; in a few cases, the correct translation is a factor.

1:7                Fear of the Lord
2:6                gift of wisdom
3:19               wisdom in creation
3:30-31            wisdom with God and humans
10:2               deliverance from death
10:22              effort to substitute for Lord's blessing
11:2               pride/humility
11:24              a paradox (cf. 13:7)
12:14              deed/consequence (cf. 13:2; 18:20)
12:28              to (no?) death
13:11              haste
14:20              money makes "friends"
14:31              poor/Maker (cf. 17:5; 22:2)
15:11              Sheol, heart
15:16-17           "better"
15:23              timely word (perhaps 25:11)
15:5, 10, 32, 33   reproof

16:1-9

16:25              the right? way
16:33              lots
17:3               cf. 27:21
17:27-28           ambiguity of silence
18:13              listen!
18:17              both sides
18:22              "find" wife;  cf. 19:14
18:23              money makes a difference (19:4, 6-7)
19:21              Cf. 16:9
20:14              a bargain
20:24              determinism
20:27              ??
21:2               right, but?
21:30              wisdom and YHWH
22:17-23:31        and Amenemope's "thirty"
24:17-18           attitude to enemy; cf. 20:22; 24:28-29
25:14              clouds but no rain
25:15              tongue/bone
26:4-5             famous "contradiction"
26:12              "wise in one's own eyes"
26:14              door/sluggard
26:27              digging a pit
27:2               praise
27:5               honesty in love
27:7               bitter/sweet
29:9               wise and fool contending
29:20              haste in speech
30:18-19           a numerical proverb on marvel

Works Cited

Brown, William P. 1996. CHARACTER IN CRISIS: A FRESH APPROACH TO THE WISDOM LITERATURE OF THE OLD TESTAMENT. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans.

Childs, Brevard. 1993. BIBLICAL THEOLOGY OF THE OLD AND NEW TESTAMENTS. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress.

Clifford, Richard J. 1999. PROVERBS: A COMMENTARY. OTL; Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox.

1995. The Book of Proverbs and Our Search for Wisdom. Milwaukee, WI: Marquette University.

Eichrodt, Walter. 1961. THEOLOGY OF THE OLD TESTAMENT. Philadelphia, PA: Westminster.

Fontaine, Carole R. 1982. TRADITIONAL SAYINGS IN THE OLD TESTAMENT. Sheffield, UK: Almond.

Fox, Michael V. 2000. PROVERBS 1-9. AB 18A; New York, NY: Doubleday.

1996. What the Book of Proverbs is About. Pp. 153-67 in CONGRESS VOLUME CAMBRIDGE (1995). VTSup 66. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill.

Gilbert, Maurice (ed.). 1979. LA SAGESSE DE L'ANCIEN TESTAMENT. Leuven, Belgium: Leuven University.