Wisdom as a Divine Hypostasis

I will be posting the verses, which Christians have historically appealed to as proof that God’s Wisdom is a divine Hypostasis or Person who became embodied in Jesus Christ. These were the texts that the early Church pointed to as indicating that Jesus Christ is God’s eternal, uncreated Wisdom Incarnate.

I start off with the following where Wisdom is said to do what YHWH does, namely, pour out the Holy Spirit and answer prayers:

“Wisdom shouts in the street, She gives forth her voice in the square; At the head of the noisy streets she calls out; At the entrance of the gates in the city she utters her sayings: ‘How long, O simple ones, will you love simplicity? And scoffers delight in scoffing And fools hate knowledge? Turn to my reproof, Behold, I will pour out my spirit on you; I will make my words known to you. Because I called and you refused, I stretched out my hand and no one paid attention; And you neglected all my counsel And were not willing to accept my reproof; I will also laugh at your disaster; I will mock when your dread comes, When your dread comes like a storm And your disaster comes like a whirlwind, When distress and anguish come upon you. Then they will call on me, but I will not answer; They will seek me earnestly but they will not find me, Because they hated knowledge And did not choose the fear of Yahweh. They were not willing to accept my counsel, They spurned all my reproof. So they shall eat of the fruit of their way And be satisfied with their own devices. For the turning away of the simple will kill them, And the complacency of fools will destroy them. But he who listens to me shall dwell securely And will be at ease from the dread of evil.’” Proverbs 1:20-33 Legacy Standard Bible (LSB)

In these other examples, Wisdom is depicted as existing from before creation, and springing forth out of YHWH himself, being the divine Agent of creation who possesses all of God’s essential attributes, such as omnipotence and omnipresence:

“Yahweh possessed me at the beginning of His way, Before His deeds of old. From everlasting I was installed, From the beginning, from the earliest times of the earth. When there were no depths I was brought forth, When there were no springs heavy with water. Before the mountains were settled, Before the hills I was brought forth; While He had not yet made the earth and the fields outside, Nor the first dust of the world. When He established the heavens, I was there, When He marked out a circle on the face of the deep, When He made firm the skies above, When the springs of the deep became strong, When He set for the sea its boundary So that the water would not pass over His command, When He marked out the foundations of the earth; Then I was beside Him, as a master workman; And I was a daily delight, Rejoicing always before Him, Rejoicing in the world, His earth, My delight is in the sons of men. So now, O sons, listen to me, For blessed are they who keep my ways. Hear discipline and be wise, And do not neglect it. How blessed is the man who hears me, To watch daily at my doors, To keep watch at my doorposts. For he who finds me finds life And obtains favor from Yahweh. But he who sins against me does violence to his own soul; All those who hate me love death.’” Proverbs 8:22-36 LSB

“I learned both what is secret and what is manifest, for wisdom, the fashioner of all things, taught me. There is in her a spirit that is intelligent, holy, unique (monogenes), manifold, subtle, agile, clear, unpolluted, distinct, invulnerable, loving the good, keen, irresistible, beneficent, humane, steadfast, sure, free from anxiety, all-powerful, overseeing all, and penetrating through all spirits that are intelligent, pure, and altogether subtle. For wisdom is more mobile than any motion; because of her pureness she pervades and penetrates all things. For she is a breath of the power of God and a pure emanation of the glory of the Almighty; therefore nothing defiled gains entrance into her. For she is a reflection (apagausma) of eternal light, a spotless mirror of the working of God, and an image (eikon) of his goodness. Although she is but one, she can do all things, and while remaining in herself, she renews all things; in every generation she passes into holy souls and makes them friends of God and prophets, for God loves nothing so much as the person who lives with wisdom. She is more beautiful than the sun and excels every constellation of the stars. Compared with the light she is found to be more radiant, for it is succeeded by the night, but against wisdom evil does not prevail.” Wisdom 7:21-30 NRSVUE

“She reaches mightily from one end of the earth to the other, and she orders all things well. I loved her and sought her from my youth; I desired to take her for my bride and became enamored of her beauty. She glorifies her noble birth by living with God, and the Lord of all loves her. For she is an initiate in the knowledge of God and an associate in his works. If riches are a desirable possession in life, what is richer than wisdom, the active cause of all things? And if understanding is effective, who more than she is fashioner of what exists? And if anyone loves righteousness, her labors are virtues, for she teaches self-control and prudence, justice and courage; nothing in life is more profitable for mortals than these. And if anyone longs for wide experience, she knows the things of old and infers the things to come; she understands turns of speech and the solutions of riddles; she has foreknowledge of signs and wonders and of the outcome of seasons and times.” Wisdom 8:1-8 NRSVUE

Wisdom is further portrayed as coming forth from God’s mouth, likening her to God’s Word, that sits with God on his throne, and who dwells in the pillar of cloud. Wisdom even works in union with the Holy Spirit, and is also the One who has been with mankind from the time of Adam in order to save them, being the One who delivered Israel out of Egypt and led them into the wilderness:

“O God of my ancestors and Lord of mercy, who have made all things by your word and by your wisdom have formed humankind to have dominion over the creatures you have made and rule the world in holiness and righteousness and pronounce judgment in uprightness of soul, give me the wisdom that sits by your throne, and do not reject me from among your children… With you is wisdom, she who knows your works and was present when you made the world; she understands what is pleasing in your sight and what is right according to your commandments. Send her forth from the holy heavens, and from the throne of your glory send her, that she may labor at my side and that I may learn what is pleasing to you. For she knows and understands all things, and she will guide me wisely in my actions and guard me with her glory… Who has learned your counsel unless you have given wisdom and sent your holy spirit from on high?” Wisdom 9:1-4, 9-11, 17 NRSVUE

Wisdom protected the first-formed father of the world, when he alone had been created; she delivered him from his transgression² and gave him strength to rule all things.³ But when an unrighteous man departed from her in his anger, he perished because in rage he killed his brother.⁴ When the earth was flooded because of him, wisdom again saved it, steering the righteous man by a paltry piece of wood.

⁵ Wisdom also, when the nations in wicked agreement had been put to confusion, recognized the righteous man and preserved him blameless before God and kept him strong in the face of his compassion for his child.

⁶ Wisdom rescued a righteous man when the ungodly were perishing; he escaped the fire that descended on the Five Cities.⁷ Evidence of their wickedness still remains:a continually smoking wasteland, plants bearing fruit that does not ripen, and a pillar of salt standing as a monument to an unbelieving soul.⁸ For because they passed wisdom by, they not only were hindered from recognizing the good but also left for humankind a reminder of their folly, so that their failures could never go unnoticed.

⁹ Wisdom rescued from troubles those who served her.¹⁰ When a righteous man fled from his brother’s wrath, she guided him on straight paths; she showed him the kingdom of God and gave him knowledge of holy things; she prospered him in his labors and increased the fruit of his toil.¹¹ When his oppressors were covetous, she stood by him and made him rich.¹² She protected him from his enemies and kept him safe from those who lay in wait for him; in his arduous contest she declared him victorious, so that he might learn that godliness is more powerful than anything else.

¹³ When a righteous man was sold, wisdom did not desert him but delivered him from sin.¹⁴ She descended with him into the dungeon,and when he was in prison she did not leave him, until she brought him the scepter of a kingdom and authority over his masters.Those who accused him she showed to be false, and she gave him everlasting honor.

¹⁵ Holy people and blameless offspring wisdom delivered from a nation of oppressors.¹⁶ She entered the soul of a servant of the Lord and withstood dread kings with wonders and signs.¹⁷ She gave to holy people the reward of their labors; she guided them along a marvelous way and became a shelter to them by day and a starry flame through the night.¹⁸ She brought them over the Red Seaand led them through deep waters,¹⁹ but she drowned their enemiesand cast them up from the depth of the sea.²⁰ Therefore the righteous plundered the ungodly; they sang hymns, O Lord, to your holy name and praised with one accord your defending hand,²¹ for wisdom opened the mouths of those who were mute and made the tongues of infants speak clearly. Wisdom 10 NRSVUE

“Wisdom praises herself and tells of her glory in the midst of her people. In the assembly of the Most High she opens her mouth, and in the presence of his hosts she tells of her glory: ‘I came forth from the mouth of the Most High and covered the earth like a mist. I encamped in the heights, and my throne was in a pillar of cloud. Alone I compassed the vault of heaven and traversed the depths of the abyss. Over waves of the sea, over all the earth, and over every people and nation I have held sway. Among all these I sought a resting place; in whose inheritance should I abide? Then the Creator of all things gave me a command, and my Creator pitched my tent. He said, “Encamp in Jacob, and in Israel receive your inheritance.” Before the ages, in the beginning, he created me, and for all the ages I shall not cease to be. In the holy tent I ministered before him, and so I was established in Zion. Thus in the beloved city he gave me a resting place, and in Jerusalem was my domain. I took root in an honored people; in the portion of the Lord is my inheritance.’” Sirach 24:1-12 NRSVUE

[Chapter 42]

1 Wisdom found no place where she might dwell; Then a dwelling-place was assigned her in the heavens.

2 Wisdom went forth to make her dwelling among the children of men, And found no dwelling-place: Wisdom returned to her place, And took her seat among the angels.

3 And unrighteousness went forth from her chambers: Whom she sought not she found, And dwelt with them, As rain in a desert And dew on a thirsty land. 1 Enoch

[Chapter 84]

1 And I lifted up my hands in righteousness and blessed the Holy and Great One, and spake with the breath of my mouth, and with the tongue of flesh, which God has made for the children of the flesh of men, that they should speak therewith, and He gave them breath and a tongue and a mouth that they should speak therewith:

2 Blessed be Thou, O Lord, King, Great and mighty in Thy greatness, Lord of the whole creation of the heaven, King of kings and God of the whole world. And Thy power and kingship and greatness abide for ever and ever, And throughout all generations Thy dominion; And all the heavens are Thy throne for ever, And the whole earth Thy footstool for ever and ever.

3 For Thou hast made and Thou rulest all things, And nothing is too hard for Thee, Wisdom departs not from the place of Thy throne, Nor turns away from Thy presence. And Thou knowest and seest and hearest everything, And there is nothing hidden from Thee [for Thou seest everything]

4 And now the angels of Thy heavens are guilty of trespass, And upon the flesh of men abideth Thy wrath until the great day of judgement.

5 And now, O God and Lord and Great King, I implore and beseech Thee to fulfil my prayer, To leave me a posterity on earth, And not destroy all the flesh of man, And make the earth without inhabitant, So that there should be an eternal destruction.

6 And now, my Lord, destroy from the earth the flesh which has aroused Thy wrath, But the flesh of righteousness and uprightness establish as a plant of the eternal seed, And hide not Thy face from the prayer of Thy servant, O Lord.'

These are the examples which have led some scholars to conclude that there was a segment of Judaism that viewed Wisdom as more of an actual Divine Person/Hypostatization, than simply a personification of God’s attribute:

(1) Personified Wisdom in Jewish tradition.

In Israel’s sacred literature, the word hokma in the Hebrew Scriptures and Sophia in the Greek Scriptures designate wisdom: the quality of intelligence, insight, and pragmatic competence, frequently predicated of God, yet shareable with human subjects. Both nouns are feminine, and Wisdom was accordingly personified as a woman, a preacher of truth, who invites the attentive to heed her instruction (Prov 8.1-11; Bar 3.9; Sir 4.11; 24.19-21; 4Q185 I—II 1.13-2.8) with the promise that those who accept her will become her children and avoid misfortune (Prov 8.32-36; Bar 3.10-14; Sir 4.12-13; 24.22). Among the earliest of Jewish wisdom texts is Job 28, which laments the lack of access humans have to Wisdom. Wisdom is portrayed as precious, yet she remains elusive, and her origins are ineffable. God either invented Wisdom or discovered Wisdom, and the human path to Wisdom is to “fear the Lord” and “depart from evil” (Job 28.27-28). Subsequent Jewish tradition made much of the Lord’s relationship to Wisdom and how she took up residence among Israel largely through the Torah.

In Proverbs, Lady Wisdom is a sage in the Street reproving the foolish and offering her insight (Prov 1.20-33; 8.1-11), a goddess offering life and wealth (Prov 3.18-20; 8.12-21), and a companion in Gods Creative work (8.22-31). In this last passage, Lady Wisdom is personified as someone “created” (qana/ektisen), “installed/established” (nissakhti/ethemeliosen), and “brought forth" (holalti/genna) in the beginning of creation but prior to the beginning of the earth. She is a “master worker” (’amon)¹⁴³ at God’s side, rejoicing in God’s creative work and delighting in humanity (Prov 8.22-31). Importantly, Wisdom here is not eternal but a created entity, nor a demiurge as she does not cooperate in the work of création.¹⁴⁴ More properly, she is a something of an authenticator and audience to God’s Creative artistry.

Baruch is a post-exilic writing that reinterprets Israel’s story of exile and forthcoming restoration and along the way constructs a discourse about the relationship of Wisdom and Torah (Bar 3.9-4.4). Israel’s “exile” will not fully end until she learns Wisdom from the “commandments of life” in the Torah. While Wisdom may seem inaccessible, as per Job 28, nonetheless, God has given knowledge to Israel in the form of Torah: “She appeared on earth and lived with humankind. She is the book of the commandments of God, the law that endures forever” (Bar 3.37-4.1). Wisdom is personified as a teacher given to Israel, and her revelation is described in epiphanic (“appeared,” ophthe) and anthropomorphic (“lived with,” synavestraphe) language (Bar 3.38).

The book of Sirach was written by the scribal sage Yeshua ben Sira ca. 200 BCE and contains various proverbs for all sorts of circumstances and situations; it was composed originally in Hebrew but received a Greek translation by Ben Sira’s grandson. Ben Sira appears to regard Wisdom as created by God before the beginning of creation and yet persisting into an eternal future (Sir 1.1, 4; 24.3, 9). Wisdom is specifically connected to the Torah as its fulfillment (Sir 15.1; 19.20; 21.11; 34.8; 39.1). At one point, Lady Wisdom narrates her journey from the Lord’s mouth, the heavenly host, and God’s throne to dwelling in Israel’s temple through inhabitation of the Torah (Sir 24.1-23). The turning point is that she comes to dwell in Israel in a manner similar to how the shekinah dwelt in the temple (Exod 40.34-35; Sir 24.8-10). Then, in the climax, “Ail this is the book of the covenant of the Most High God, the law that Moses commanded us” (Sir 24.23).115 The striking thing is that Ben Sira presents Wisdom as God’s personified word (Sir 4.24, 24.1-2), closely associated with God’s spirit (Sir 39.6; 24.3) and glory (Sir 24.1-2, 8-10, 16) and embodied in the Torah (Sir 24.23).

The Wisdom of Solomon is most probably an Alexandrian text, written either side of the turn of the eras, dependent upon Proverbs and Sirach, and represents a synthesis of Jewish sapiential traditions and Hellenism. Lady Wisdom is she who “came to be” from the “beginning of creation” (Wis 6.22), and her knowledge is “the salvation of the world” (Wis 6.24; cf. 9.18). In Solomon’s encomium to wisdom, she is “the fashioner of ail things” (panton technitis) with strongly immanent qualities as “all-powerful, overseeing ail, and penetrating through ail spirits ... For wisdom is more mobile than any motion; because of her pureness she pervades and penetrates ail things” (Wis 7.22-24). Wisdom is the personification of divine attributes that in manifold senses are generated from God: “breath of the power of God,” “a pure emanation of the glory of the Almighty,” “a reflection of eternal light,” “a spotless mirror of the working of God,” and “an image of his goodness” (Wis 7.25-26). She has a “shared life with God,” is an “initiate in the knowledge of God” and “chooses his works” (Wis 8.3-4). In addition, God made ail things by his Word/Wisdom, and Wisdom “sits by your throne” (Wis 9.1-4; cf. 1 En. 84.2-3). Wisdom is probably identical to the judgment against the firstborn of Egypt during the Passover, whereby the “all-powerful word leaped from heaven, from the royal throne into the midst of the land that was doomed, a stern warrior carrying the sharp sword of your authentic command” (Wis 18.15-16). Importantly, the presence of Hellenistic influences is discernible in that Wisdom is analogous to the pervasive nature of the Stoic Logos/Pneuma (Wis 1.7; 7.23-24; 8.1; 12.1) and the Platonic view of the Logos as an emanation from the one God (Wis 7.25-26).¹¹⁶

The Enochic tradition also contributes to the personification of Wisdom in Jewish thought. Many Jewish traditions are concerned with Wisdom’s inaccessibility and absence (Job 28.12-28; Prov 30.4-5; Bar 3.14-23), which is why Wisdom must be given as a gift from the Lord (1 Kgs 4.29; 5.12; Prov 2.6; Dan 1.17; Bar 3.36-37; Sir 1.1; 39.6; 43.33; 51.17; Wis 8.21). As we have seen, Ben Sira modulates this motif with Lady Wisdom descending to dwell with Israel (Sir 24.8-10). Here we can note 1 En. 42.1-3, from the earliest section ofthe Enochic parables, describing the descent of Wisdom and her experience of rejection:

Wisdom could not find a place where she might dwell; so her dwelling was in the heavens.

Wisdom went forth to dwell among the sons of men, but she did not find a dwelling.

Wisdom returned to her place and sat down in the midst of the angels.

Then Iniquity went forth from her chambers, those whom she did not seek she found, and she dwelt among them, like rain in a desert, like dew in a thirsty land.

The rejection of Wisdom is well attested enough, attributed to Adam in particular (Sir 24.28) and the wicked in general (Wis 10.8). Yet the Enochic narration of Wisdom’s descent is remarkable for a few reasons. First, it retells the story of Sirach 24 but as a type of tragedy, where Wisdom finds no dwelling on earth and so returns to heaven, while Iniquity thereafter was able to take up residence among the sons of men. Second, there is an analogue with later Gnostic accounts of the tragic descent of Sophia to the earth and her return to the pleroma. Third, it is reminiscent of John 1.10-11: “He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him.” The rejection of Wisdom is translated into Christian narratives pertaining to either cosmology (Gnostic) or Christology (Johannine).

Philo’s contribution to Jewish personifications of Wisdom is principally in its marriage to Platonic and Stoic concepts. Philo likens Wisdom to several things: a city or home for the virtuous man (Leg. ail. 3.3), a tabernacle where the wise man dwells (Leg. ail. 3.46), a tree of life (Leg. ail. 3.52), and a fountain (Leg. ail. 2.86-87; Det. 117; Post. 136-38; Somn. 2.242; Spec. leg. 4.75). Philo depicts Wisdom as possessing many names (Leg. ail. 1.43), and she is the “mother of ail things” (Leg. ail. 2.49; Det. 54, 115-17; Ebr. 31, 61; Her. 53; Fug. 109; Mut. 137), both of which are true also of Isis (Apuleius, Met. 11.5; Plutarch, Is. Os. 53).

Philo’s Wisdom relates to the Logos in several ways. First, Wisdom is God’s female consort (Cher. 49), with whom God fashioned the universe in the tradition of Prov 3.19 and 8.22-23, 30, and so has a demiurgical role (Fug. 109; Ebr. 30-31; Det. 54; Her. 199). Second, Wisdom also has many of the same titles as the Logos, including “beginning” and “image” (Leg. ail. 1.43). Third, Wisdom is the mother of the Logos, while Logos is the fountain of Wisdom, a motif with clear resonance to later Gnostic authors (Fug. 97, 108-9). Fourth, Wisdom is explicitly identified with the Logos in an allegory concerning the river that flows from Eden (Leg. ail. 1.65; Somn. 2.242-45). Wisdom also has a close relationship with God, as God himself is the “fountain of wisdom,” and Wisdom flows to humans through the Logos (Leg. ail. 2.87; Sacr. 64; Post. 136, 138; Fug. 97; Spec. leg. 1.277).

In Israel’s sacred traditions, Wisdom is given significant attention in relation to monarchical virtue and practical piety. Kings need her counsel, and the upright pursue her way. In addition, a common trope is that Wisdom is inaccessible and absent because she resides with God (Job 28; Bar 3.29-31). Thus, to find the divine will is to find Wisdom personified in the Torah (Bar 3.9-4.4; Sir 24.1-23). Wisdom is also the immanent feature of God’s ordering of the world, hence the link with creation. Notably, Wisdom is a divine attribute evident in the work of creation (Prov 3.19) and a literary device pertaining to God’s personified companion in creation (Prov 8.22-30), an associate (Wis 8.4), or advisor (2 En. 33.4). Generally, Wisdom is the poetically personified aspect of God’s Creative works and a shrewd female guide for making wholesome choices in life as directed in the Torah.¹⁴⁷ Gods wisdom is normally not something other than God—it is not an independent entity but is God in his wisdom, a way of talking about God acting in the world.¹⁴⁸ The exceptions are, first, the Wisdom of Solomon, where Wisdom received a Stoic and Platonic interpretation, Wisdom is described in ways congruent with Hellenistic views of intermediation, and there are perhaps even tacit echoes of Isis traditions (i.e., a feminine figure, royal advisor, and savior).¹⁴⁹ Second, Philo attributes to Wisdom some demiurgical properties and treats Wisdom as the Lord’s metaphorical consort with a maternal relationship to creation. In these cases, Wisdom becomes more than a poetic personification; it is a semi-independent entity, and it is a “hypostatization” in the sense of “a quasi-personification of certain attributes proper to God, occupying an intermediate position between personalities and abstract beings.”¹⁵⁰ (Michael F. Bird, Jesus Among the Gods: Early Christology in the Greco-Roman World [Baylor University Press, Waco, TX in 2022], II. Jesus and Intermediary Figures, 4. Jesus and the “In-Betweeners”: Comparing Early Christologies and Intermediary Figures, pp. 171-175; emphasis mine)

¹⁵⁰ W. O. E. Oesterley and G. H. Box, The Religion and Worship of the Synagogue (London: Pitman, 1911), 195, cited in Dunn, Christology in the Making, 168. Commendable too is Lee’s differentiation between divine personification and divine hypostasis: “By ‘personified divine attribute' we mean ‘a quality, epithet, attribute, manifestation or the like of a deity which, having been subjected to a literary personification, behaves as though it is a distinct (if not fully independent) divine being in its own right, but still remains within the literary realm.’ By ‘divine hypostasis’ we mean ‘a quality, epithet, attribute, manifestation or the like of a deity, which through a process of personification, concretization, or differentiation, has become a distinct (if not fully independent) divine being in its own right.’ While the former still remains within the literary realm, the latter has already crossed over the boundary of the literary world to encompass a concrete, actual, divine being alongside a deity" (From Messiah to Preexistent Son, 39, emphasis original). (Ibid., p. 175)

And:

Wisdom as a Distinct Entity

As we saw with the Word of God, some would contend that all Jewish literature describing God’s Wisdom as a distinct entity are in fact poetic personifications. Initially, we could stipulate how Word and Wisdom are often equated, and since we have shown in previous chapters how God’s Word is best understood in many texts to be a distinct hypostasis, it follows that Wisdom should be understood as such as well. However, rather than relying on simple deductions and comparisons, we will here review the arguments and evidence at play in this debate.

Assessing Wisdom’s Status

In light of these arguments, Dunn and others conclude that what might appear to be hypostatic depictions of Wisdom are better understood as vivid personifications of either a divine attribute or function. Dunn is willing to allow that Wisdom might be a way in which Jews described the function of divine immanence, but he rejects the conclusion that she is a distinct being.

The first argument to address is the claim that depictions of Wisdom are best understood the same way as other personifications found in Jewish texts. Certainly there are occasions where the tasks and descriptions of Wisdom could be understood as simple personification used to give vibrancy to abstract concepts or divine attributes (e.g., Wisdom crying out to and warning God’s people [Prov 1:20, 8:1] or Wisdom laughing at those who do not listen to her [Prov 1:26]). In this way, Wisdom might parallel similar personifications of attributes such as God’s faithfulness, righteousness, and mercy. But many times, the manner in which Wisdom is described resists such an interpretation, and also sets it apart from the personification of concepts such as faithfulness and mercy. Wisdom is depicted as engaging in the very act of creation, functioning as a divine intermediary between God and creation, and exercising sovereignty over creation. Such tasks are not assigned to the divine attributes of faithfulness, mercy, or any other divine attribute. These depictions of Wisdom seem to move past vivid personification of abstract ideas/attributes and toward distinct and significant theological concepts. These examples raise the question as to why the author would assign such tasks to a concept like Wisdom, when such tasks are commonly the function of God himself. Such a move is hard to explain by literary device alone and begs for a more compelling theological answer.

The second argument is concerned with fluidity of the concepts of God’s Wisdom. It is certainly true that at times Wisdom is not presented as a distinct being, but simply as an abstract concept or attribute of God himself. But does such fluidity deny the possibility that either author or reader could also conceive of Wisdom as a distinct being? It is not necessarily true that because Wisdom is at times described as an attribute of God or humans that it could also not be conceived as a distinct agent of God, perhaps an agent through which an attribute of God is manifest and shared with God’s people. Philo certainly understands Wisdom in such a dualistic way. He distinguishes between the divine power of Wisdom, which is depicted as a distinct being and agent, and the manifestation of the characteristic of wisdom in God’s creation, which Philo specifically states is not divine in the same manner as the heavenly power; the latter is merely a reflection of the former, and thus not depicted as a distinct divine being. In the Greco-Roman world, it was quite easy for people to speak of powers or “virtues” (in the Latin sense of the term) such as justice, faithfulness, good fortune, and wisdom as attributes of both gods and human beings, but at the same time conceive of all of them as distinct divine beings in and of themselves.²¹ In light of such examples, it seems misguided to conclude that fluidity of the depictions of Wisdom in Second Temple Jewish literature precludes Wisdom from being understood as a distinct divine entity.²²

The third argument to address is related to the possible dependence of the Jewish Wisdom tradition and deities of the ancient Near East. It is argued that the hypostatic depictions of Wisdom are ways of either accommodating or counteracting pagan deities, by incorporating features of those deities into Jewish monotheism. In other words, these depictions of Wisdom are not truly hypostatic, but merely Jewish responses to pagan religion. It should first be noted that while such traditions are possible, they are far from certain, and the history of how such traditions developed is debated.²³ But regardless of whether dependence exists, it is hardly an argument against reading Jewish Wisdom traditions in terms of a second divine hypostasis. Such Jewish borrowing could indeed be the source of Jewish thinking for Wisdom as a divine hypostasis: the Egyptian goddess Isis that creates the world becomes the hypostatic Wisdom of the God of Israel through which that God creates the world. It is also possible that the similarities between pagan deities and Jewish Wisdom are the result of blending such pagan deities with a distinct hypostasis of Israel’s God that already existed, perhaps something like Hellenistic philosophy’s impact on Jewish depictions of God’s Word. Concluding that dependence on pagan traditions somehow supports the position that seemingly hypostatic Wisdom traditions are indeed non-hypostatic, seems to be built on a presupposition of the singularity of the one God of Israel. But if one accepts that Second Temple Jews could understand their one God in terms of two powers in heaven, any evidence of pagan influence could be understood in terms of shaping Jewish depictions of such powers. As stated in our first chapter, we cannot privilege one view of Jewish monotheism over another as we approach the relevant evidence—the question of the nature of Jewish monotheism is currently an open one.

Wisdom and the Proposed Criteria

We are convinced that Wisdom is a distinct hypostasis in many Second Temple texts. This view is strengthened both by Wisdom’s strong identification with the Word, which we have shown above, and by Wisdom’s identity as the Angel of the Lord, which we will show in the following chapters. If we are right that Wisdom operates as an agent distinct from the Most High God, then it will prove helpful to review the criteria we set out in chapter 1 in order to see if Wisdom qualifies as a second power in heaven.

In our examination of Wisdom, we saw that she is regularly depicted as active in creating the cosmos. Such depictions can be found across a wide body of literature, including the Hebrew Bible, Philo, Wisdom of Solomon, and the Targums. Thus, this criterion supports the conclusion that Wisdom could often be identified in these texts as the second power in heaven.

We have also seen that Wisdom is also regularly depicted as reigning over the cosmos. Wisdom is even depicted as sitting on God’s throne, a feature that is rarely attributed to anyone but God himself and is symbolic of cosmic rule. Thus, this criterion also supports the conclusion that Wisdom could be identified as the second power in heaven.

We have also demonstrated that for multiple Second Temple sources, Wisdom is equated with God’s Word. Thus, the strength of the case set forward for establishing God’s Word as a second power in heaven can be applied to God’s Wisdom. Even if Wisdom is not supported as thoroughly by the criteria as God’s Word, its shared identity with God’s Word implies that the criteria that support the latter can also be applied to the former, at least in the works of Philo or the Wisdom of Solomon. Therefore, Wisdom’s shared identity with God’s Word greatly strengthens the case that Wisdom, like God’s Word, is best understood as the second power in heaven.

Conclusions about Wisdom

As we saw with God’s Word in our previous chapters, in this present chapter we have shown that Wisdom is not only a distinct entity, she fits several of the criteria for being identified as the second power in heaven. Furthermore, since Wisdom and Word are equated in many of these sources, we have come to the same conclusion for Wisdom that we did for God’s Word: Wisdom was understood by some Jews in the Second Temple period to be the second power in heaven.

This conclusion will next be strengthened by turning to texts about the Angel of the Lord. We will assess this figure, using the same set of criteria outlined in chapter 1 to find this Angel to be the second power in heaven. What is more, the Angel will be shown to have been equated—at least in some sources—with God’s Word and Wisdom. (David E. Wilhite & Adam Winn, Israel’s Lord: YHWH as “Two Powers” in Second Temple Literature [Fortress Academic, 2026], pp. 97-100; emphasis mine)

Further Reading

CHRIST: GOD’S CREATED WISDOM?

Christ: God’s Word/Wisdom Incarnate

JESUS CHRIST: THE LORD & THE LORD’S SON