Seats of Wisdom

Alice C. Linsley


Jeremiah refers to Edom and Teman of Edom as seats of wisdom. The prophet writes: Concerning Edom: This is what the LORD Almighty says: 'Is there no longer wisdom in Teman? Has counsel perished from the prudent? Has their wisdom decayed? (Jeremiah 49:7)

The wisdom to which Jeremiah refers is that of the Horite ruler-priests who were renown in the ancient world for their wisdom. Edom was Horite territory. Seir the Horite is listed in Genesis as one of the Edomite kings. He is a contemporary of Esau the Elder.

Reference: Genesis 36

Note that there are 2 named Esau. 
Esau the Younger is the grandson of Esau the Elder.

The wisdom of the Horites extended to medicine, astronomy, writing, commerce, navigation, natural sciences, and architecture. The 400-acre Edomite complex at Petra reflects Horite beliefs.

The Horites were the inventors of the earliest known writing systems. They were the early scribes and wise men or prophets. Naba-tean refers to Naba or Nabu, the guardian of scribes and prophets. The cult of Nabu was introduced into Mesopotamia and Babylon by the Kushites. Kushite kings sometimes bore the name Nabu, as with Nabu-shum-libur, an early Kushite king in Babylon and Nabu-aplu-iddina. This is the origin of the Hebrew word nabi, meaning prophet. 

The worldview of the Horites is essentially Kushite. As the Kushites spread across the ancient world, they took their wisdom with them. This wisdom is expressed in proverbs, poetry, descriptions of battles, travels, astronomical observations, commercial accounts and medical texts. It is represented in the huge collection of ancient Arabic texts found at the oases of Teman and Dedan. Teman and Dedan were caravan stops along the trade route from Sheba to Babylon. Genesis 10:7 designates Sheba and Dedan as Kushites.

Approximately 11,000 Thamudic inscriptions have been found scattered from the regions of Dedan and Teman to Syria. These represent the proto-scripts of the Biblical Afro-Asiatics. Similar inscriptions have been identified along the Nile in Sudan. These are accompanied by petroglyphs showing humans, oxen, cattle, circles and spirals. Abraham's Proto-Saharan ancestors venerated cattle.

The wisdom of the Horites was so extensive that it was unrivaled in the ancient world before the rise of Greece and much of the wisdom ascribed to the ancient Greeks was borrowed from the Horites. Iamblichus wrote that Thales of Miletus insisted that Pythagoras go to Memphis to study because the priests there were esteemed for their knowledge and wisdom. Plato studied for 13 years in Egypt under the priest Sechnuphis and his conception of the eternal Forms was based on Horite metaphysics.

The Greek word for boundaries in creation is oros or horos, a reference to the celestial archetype of Horus who was said to be the marker of boundaries. Horus was born of Ra by the Virgin Queen Hathor-Meri who became pregnant when overshadowed by the Sun, the emblem of the Creator. Hathor's totem was a cow and temple images show her holding her son in a manger. This is an early expression of Messianic expectation and it is based upon the Edenic promise that a Woman of the Horite lines would bring forth the "Seed" who would crush the serpent's head and restore Paradise (Gen. 3:15). Jesus identified Himself as that Seed in John 12:24 when he told his disciples, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit."

In the works of Plato and Aristotle horos or horismos refers to landmarks, boundaries and categorical limits. From Horus come the words hour, horoscope, horologion, horotely and horizon. The association of Horus with the horizon is evident in Har-ma-khet, meaning "Horus of the Horizon". Horus was said to control the winds and to establish the cardinal points. The stars, planets and constellations were fixed in place by Horus, and as Ben Sira reminds us, not one of the heavenly bodies "has ever got in the way of another, and they will never disobey his word." (Ecclesiaticus 16:24)

Horus shrines and temples were located at major water systems and Horus ruled the waters. This is why the Horus name appears in the word for river in Hebrew and Arabic (nahar/nahr) and in Aramaic (nehar). Abraham’s older brother controlled commerce on the Tigris River between Ur and Haran. His Horus name is Na-Hor (Gen. 22:20).


Ancient Tyre

Another seat of wisdom was ancient Tyre. This island city was a Horite shrine as ancient as Jerusalem and Bethlehem. The artisans who served the temple at Tyre lent their architectural and metal-working expertise to the construction of David's palace and Solomon's temple.

The wisdom of Tyre is associated with the Edenic Promise, as is the wisdom of Edom. "Son of Man, raise a lament over the king of Tyre and say to him: Thus says the Lord God: You were the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and flawless beauty. You were in Eden, in the Garden of God; every precious stone was your adornment... and gold beautifully wrought for you, mined for you, prepared the day you were created." (Ezekiel 28:11-18)

Tyre was the home of Hiram I, the father of the Tyrian king who helped to build Solomon’s temple. Hiram I was kin to David and sent skilled artisans to help David build a palace in Jerusalem, “the city of the Great King” (Matt. 5:35). Hiram is also known as "Huram" and "Horam", which are versions of the names Hur, Hor and Harun (Aaron), as in Jabal Harun, the Mountain of Aaron.

According to Midrash, Hur was Moses’ brother-in-law, Miriam’s husband. Hur’s grandson was one of the builders of the Tabernacle. I Chronicles 4:4 lists Hur as the "father of Bethlehem". Bethlehem was in the heartland of Horite Hebrew territory. David was born about B.C. 1040, the eighth and youngest son of Jesse, a Horite shepherd-priest. The settlement was originally known for the sacrifice of sheep and rams. The meat was distributed to the poor, which is why the settlement was originally called "House of Meat." This meaning is retained in the Arabic name for the town: "bêt lahm".

When Jesus went to Tyre His true identity was recognized, according to Mark's Gospel (cf. Matt. 15:21). Hiram I, David and Jesus share a common Horite ancestry. Their Horite lineage extends back to Eden. The Horites believed that the promised Seed of the Woman would be born of their ruler-priest lines and they expected Him to visit them. In Mark 7:24, this expectation was fulfilled when the Son of God visited Tyre. Mark explains that there Jesus “could not pass unrecognized.”

Related reading: Juan Manuel Tebes, The Wisdom of Edom; Horite Hebrew Expectancy and the Star of Bethlehem; The Wisdom of Yeshua Ben Sira; Edom and the Horites; Horite Mounds; The Antiquity of the Edomite Rulers

The Chiastic Center of Ecclesiasticus

Alice C. Linsley

Ecclesiasticus, also known as the Wisdom of Ben Sirach, has a chiastic structure. The center of the structure is chapter 24, which begins with the Discourse of Wisdom. Here Wisdom praises herself before the Most High and in the presence of the Host of the Most High. We wonder who is she that is justified to boast in the presence of the Most High. She answers that she is of God, from God’s very mouth (24:3), and she is eternal (24:9).

From our perspective as Christians who have received the revelation of the Holy Trinity as manifested at Jesus’ Baptism, we discern Wisdom as “the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the Giver of life, who proceeds from the Father, who together with the Father and the Son is worshipped and glorified, who spoke through the prophets.”

Indeed, Sirach claims to be a prophet in verses 30-34. The wisdom he is passing on to future generations is like a canal of water or a small tributary that flows from Wisdom’s headwaters (ha-vilah). Sirach writes, “And behold, my canal became a river and my river became a sea. I will make instruction shine like the morning, and I will make it shine far away. I will yet pour forth teaching like prophecy and I will leave it behind for future generations. As you can see, I have not labored for myself alone, but for all who seek wisdom.” (Sirach 24:31-24)

Wisdom Personified

Wisdom is personified as the Feminine Principle (hokma in Hebrew; sophia in Greek). She is not a goddess, as feminists love to argue, but rather the source or fountainhead of life. She describes herself in language that identifies her with the ruach (breath, logos) of God in Genesis 1. She says, “I came forth from the mouth of the Most High and covered the earth like a mist… I walk in the depth of the abyss.” (24:3,5)

The antiquity of this worldview can be verified by anthropological study of the ancient world which reveals a binary and gendered framework. Speaking analogically, Wisdom represents ha-vah, the mother of life. This is the word that is rendered Eve in English Bibles. In Genesis 2:11, ha-vilah means the source of waters. Ha-vah and Ha-vilah are linguistically related, as are the idea of Wisdom as mother of life and the primal life-granting waters that covered the earth. Sirach develops this ancient conception as a central message of the book. (For more on the V as an archaic symbol representing the Feminine Principle, see note below.)

Wisdom spreads across the surface of the earth to all peoples like the great flood waters. She is like a hovering bird who seeks a place to rest. Here we have an allusion to the dove released by Noah who finds rest and returns to him with an olive branch in its beak. Wisdom says, “In the waves of the sea, in all the earth and in every people and nation (ethne) I have gained a possession.” Her resting place is with Jacob (24:8) and she is established in Zion (24:10). Her inheritance is Israel (24:8), and from Israel she plucks the olive branch that is offered to all the nations.

Wisdom as the Tree of Life

Sirach develops another image of Wisdom in verse 13-28. Here she is described using the image of trees, each with a special quality. There is the height of the mighty cedars of Lebanon, the fragrance of the cypresses of Hermon; the tamars in En-Gedi (called “Hazazon-tamar” in Gen. 14:7 and II Chron. 20:2). En-Gedi was a famous oasis which refreshed travelers. It is one of only two fresh water springs located on the western shore of the Dead Sea. It hosted date nut palms (tamars) which represented the feminine principle because to the vaginal appearance of the date nut when opened.

David Falls at En-Gedi

Solomon compared his lover to “a cluster of henna blossoms from the vineyards of En-Gedi” (Song 1:14). It is the site of the oldest temple in Palestine. The temple, dating between 4000 and 3150 B.C., had a Holy of Holies (Sanctum sanctorum) with an altar upon which animals were sacrificed. David took refuge here to avoid Saul’s men (I Sam. 23:29).

Wisdom is further described as having the beauty of the Jericho roses and the fruitfulness of the olive trees on the Jericho plain. She is described as upright like the plane tree and aromatic like the bark we know as cinnamon. She is aromatic like the tree resins myrrh and frankincense. Finally, she is likened to the Terebinth of Palestine (24:16), a tree associated with the kings and prophets of Israel.

Tr-bnt means “daughter of the priest” and predates Hebrew. The word bint means "daughter" as in Qasr Bint Far'um (temple of Pharaoh’s daughter at Petra) and tera an extremely archaic word for priest found among Abraham’s ancestors. In full flower the Palestinian Terebinth is adorned in scarlet and wide branching. Its leaves are egg shaped with soft fuzz or hair around the edges (having a vaginal appearance). In the ancient world the terebinth and the tamar were associated with fertility and the feminine principle.

Terebinths and tamars marked the shrines of the morehs or judges before the time of the monarchy. Judges 4:5 tells us that Deborah judged from her tamar between Bethel and Ramah (north-south axis).

Terebinths are mentioned in Genesis 12:6, 13:18, 14:13 in reference to the place where Abraham camped between Ai and Bethel (east-west axis). The terebinths of Mamre are usually rendered "oaks of Mamre" in English Bibles, but the terebinth (elah) should not to be confused with the oak (el). They were assigned different genders among Abraham’s people. There is evidence that female prophets judged from tamars and terebinths while male prophets judged from oaks and other hard trees that represented the masculine principle.

The association of the terebinth with the ruler-priest lines is evident in the Hebrew Scriptures. 1 Samuel 17:2, 19 tells of how David, of the ruler-priest line of Jesse, defeated Goliath in the Valley of Terebinth. The wife of Heber, a kinsman of the ruler-priest Jethro, killed the enemy general Sisera while he was sleeping in her tent (Judges 4:21). In Judges 9:6, we read that Abimelech was crowned at the terebinth in Shechem.

Wisdom Flows as a Great River

The description of Wisdom as the Tree of Life is bracketed by the theme of flowing waters. Earlier Wisdom is pictured as walking upon the waves, hovering over the waters, and spreading out like the flood. In Sirach 24:25-29, the image of water is taken up again.

Here we find a significant difference between the Septuagint and the Masoretic texts. The Greek list only 5 rivers whereas the Hebrew lists 6 rivers. The Greek omits the Nile and in doing so, breaks the Hebrew parallelism. The Pishon and the Tigris are paralleled (24:25). They are the great rivers at the western and eastern boundaries of the ancient world. From them Wisdom brims over like trees weighed down with the first fruits. The Euphrates and the Jordan are paralleled (24:26). These are the two great rivers controlled by Abraham’s people. From these, intelligence flows like an abundant harvest. And in the Hebrew, the Nile and the Gihon are paralleled (24:27). These are the great rivers of East Africa from which discipline springs forth like grapes at the time of harvest.

Conclusion

Ecclesiasticus has a chiastic structure, albeit, a loose one, and chapter 24 is the central message. The chapter is rich in evocative images drawn from the oldest narratives of the Creation and the Flood. These stories reflect the oldest known metaphysics and ontology, that of the ancient Afro-Asiatic rulers who controlled the great water systems thousands of years ago when the Sahara, Arabia, Mesopotamia and the Indus River Valley were much wetter. Among them were the Horites, a caste of ruler-priests, and among the Horites are the greatest figures of Israel's history: Abraham, Moses, Samuel, David and Jesus Christ. Jesus ben Sirach was of the Horite caste. His wisdom does not originate with him. He received this as a living tradition from his horim/Horite ancestors. Today their voices continue to proclaim Wisdom!  In the Eastern Orthodox churches the priestly call to "attend" is heard in the Divine Liturgy. May God grant us ears to hear and hearts to receive the timeless Wisdom of God.

Related reading:  The Wisdom of Ben Sirach (Part 1); Women Rulers in Ancient Israel; The Genesis Begats Speak of Archaic Rulers and Jesus Christ; Samuel's Horite Family; Jesus Christ's Horite Ancestry; Theories About the Tree of Life

NOTE


The honorific title Pharaoh originates in the term pr-aa, which means "great house." In Vedic tradition, pra-jna means "wisdom of the great house." The words have multiple, related meanings (polysemic). In Vedic tradition the a-laya-vijña-na is the seed of the receptacle-world, but literally it means the receptacle of the seed, as in va-gina, symbolized originally by the pictograph V. Karmic seeds - bija - are laid down in Alaya-vi-jña-na to produce karmic fruition. Alaya (aalaya) refers to a house, dwelling, or a receptacle. Bi appears to be a variant of Vi.

vi or bi - separation
jna - wisdom / to know
pra- intensifier

The Wisdom of Yeshua Ben Sira

The Wisdom of Ben Sirach, also known as Ecclesiasticus, is one of the gems of Holy Scripture, but largely unknown to Protestants. It was composed in Hebrew and translated into Greek in the second century before Christ. It is among the last books of the Old Testament.


Alice C. Linsley


Jesus and the Apostles James, Peter and Paul quote from the Book of Ben Sirach and references to this book appear in the writings of the Evangelists Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Scholars agree that Jesus was directly quoting Sirach 51:27 in Matthew 11:29, where we read: “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”

There are several allusions to the Wisdom of Sirach in the New Testament. These include the Magnificat of the Blessed Theotokos in Luke 1:52, which follows Sirach 10:14; the description of the seed in Mark 4:5,16-17, which follows Sirach 40:15, and also Christ's statement about knowing a man by his fruits in Matthew 7:16,20, which follows Sirach 27:6. James 1:19: “…let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak and slow to wrath…” follows Sirach 5:11.

St. Jerome quotes from Sirach. He knew the book as it was written in Hebrew and Sirach informed Jerome’s Latin translation of the Old Testament (Vulgate).

Ben Sirach’s stress on righteous living, meditation on Scripture, and the illumination of the Holy Spirit are not uniquely Jewish. These are stressed by the Church, which probably explains why St. Cyprian named the book Ecclesiasticus, meaning “Churchman.” As a priest and bishop, St. Cyprian identified with Rabbi Ben Sirach’s concern that the people of God should grow in holiness (theosis).

It is evident from its use by these early authorities that Sirach was regarded as an important book and it was adopted early into the Christian canon, though the book was not read in the synagogues. The early Church recognized that the book had many Messianic references and that it presented a balanced approach to holiness, spiritual maturity and salvation.

St. Paul’s writings are the earliest Christian epistles in the Christian canon. It appears that Paul thought of the wisdom tradition of Judaism as a religious philosophical conversation. He appears uninterested in the debate of the philosopher-theologians, be they Greek or Jewish. He wrote, “For Jews demand signs and Greeks desire wisdom, but we proclaim Christ.” For the Apostle Paul, Christ crucified and risen was the sum of Divine Wisdom. He writes, “It is by Him that you exist in Christ Jesus, who for us was made wisdom from God.” (I Corinthians 1:30)

“Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, lest the cross should be made of no effect. For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” (I Corinthians 1:17, 18)


Weaving Two Traditions

People often say “I read the Bible, but I don’t understand it.” They innately know that the Bible is important and should be read, but they have not invited the Holy Spirit to illuminate their reading. This is why it is important to pray for wisdom before reading the Bible. Without the Spirit’s guidance we are likely to misunderstand and misrepresent what is meant in Scripture. People who insist on using Bible verses as ammunition against those with whom they disagree are not under the Spirit’s guidance.

There are four approaches to wisdom in Judaism and in the Old Testament: Torah; the Spirit (charismatic); Apocalyptic, and Qumran. The first two are the most ancient approaches and carry the greatest authority. The Apocalyptic and Qumran traditions had their greatest following during the century in which our Lord lived among us. Only one copy of Sirach was found among the Dead Sea scrolls (compared to 24 copies of Genesis and 25 copies of 1 Enoch). The apocalyptic tradition speaks of dramatic events that exemplify God’s power in the cosmos. In this genre of literature, we find descriptions of the heavens burning up like a scroll that curls in the fiery furnace. In the Qumran tradition wisdom is the Spirit-revealed knowledge of the hidden meaning of the Torah. We find elements of this tradition in Mark’s Gospel.

The Torah tradition predates Moses and reflects the Nilo-Palestinian veneration of written texts (scrolls). In this tradition, no changes were permitted to the writings. They were to be preserved for all generations unchanged. It was the ruler’s responsibility to see that the sacred tradition of the fathers (horim) was not corrupted. The righteous ruler was a wise ruler. David was known to be wise and he prayed that his son Solomon would also be wise (1 Ch.22:12-13). Solomon became the prototypical wise king. He quotes the old proverbs by which a young man will learn to order his life according to God’s ways.

The Torah approach is reflected in Sirach’s statements which link wisdom and Torah. “All this [Wisdom] is the book of the covenant of the Most High God, the law that Moses commanded us as an inheritance for the congregations of Jacob.” (Sirach 24:23 and 45:5) In this view, Wisdom indwells the Torah or Torah embodies Wisdom. The rabbis taught that study and observance of the Torah leads to Wisdom, which in turn leads to blessedness (theosis/sanctification) and salvation.

The Spirit tradition reflects the Jews living in the Diaspora where they were influenced by Greek philosophy. In this tradition, which is linguistically removed from the ancient Hebrew or Afro-Asiatic roots, there must be some range of interpretation in order to preserve meaning of the Hebrew text in the Greek language. In this task, the elders were wise to seek the illumination of the Holy Spirit.

The Spirit approach is evident in Sirach’s statements which link wisdom to the Spirit: Wisdom “came forth from the mouth of the Most High and covered the earth like a mist.” (Sirach 24:3) Here we have an allusion to Genesis 1:1 which speaks of the Spirit (ruach – breath) of God going forth to put in order the chaotic deep. Likewise, in Job 33:4, “the breath of Shaddai” speaks of the Spirit. In Job 32:8, Elihu declares that it is the spirit in a man, the breath of Shaddai, that gives him wisdom.

Wisdom is often personified. Wisdom tells us that she “came forth from the mouth of the Most High” as the first-born before all creatures. Wisdom is personified as a female who seeks a place to rest upon the earth and finds that place among the people of Jacob (Sirach 24:8) In this view, wisdom is associated with the Spirit’s presence and guidance. Loving Wisdom leads to blessedness (theosis/sanctification) and salvation. Those who despise Wisdom are cursed.


A Balanced Approach

Sirach reflects both Torah and Spirit in a unique way that appealed to the early Church Fathers and to the Orthodox. The Fathers and the Orthodox recognize that Scripture reading in worship, and Bible study under the illumination of the Holy Spirit, is essential to holy living. Both the Bible and the Holy Spirit are necessary if we are to know and love the Divine Three-in-One more fully.

Though Sirach draws on both approaches, he does not set them at odds. It is not a case or either Torah or Spirit. Instead, both approaches are tools to enable us to reach the ultimate goal of union with God.


Messianic References

Ben Sirach contains many Messianic references and this is another reason the book was adopted by the Church very early. Consider these verses: “The Lord took away his sins, and exalted his power [qeren/horn] forever; he gave him the covenant of kings and a throne of glory in Israel.” (Sirach 47:11) The same word appears in reference to Jesus as a direct descendant of David: “and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David.” (Luke 1:69)

Wisdom is explicitly said to be eternal: “From eternity, in the beginning, he created me, and for eternity I shall not cease to exist.” (Sirach 24:9) This statement is similar to Christ’s being the Word, and the “first-born of all creation”. (Col 1:15b) At Sirach 24:19, Wisdom tells her listeners to “Come to me”, which is echoed in Christ’s saying “Come to me” in Matthew 11:28. Like Jesus the Messiah, Wisdom also keeps souls from sin (Sirach 24:22).


Jews Disagree on Ben Sirach

For at least three centuries before the Council of Jamnia (Yavne) in A.D. 90, many rabbis quoted Sirach as an authoritative work. After Jesus’ death and resurrection the book became suspect among the Jews because of its use by Christian apologists and evangelists.

The Jerusalem Talmud (c. 300 B.C.) lists the book of Ben Sirach as one of the “outside books” (sefarim ha-chitzonim) and Rabbi Akiba warned against those who read the outside books. Reading Homer and other such writings did not pose as great a threat as did reading Sirach because none claimed that these were divinely inspired writings.

In the Babylonian Talmud (c. 100 B.C.) "uncanonical books" are called "the books of the Sadducees." Yeshua Ben Sirach was a Sadducee and Ben Sira's wisdom is frequently quoted in the Babylonian Talmud. Yad Ramah (an early medieval source in the Babylonian Talmud) implies that Ben Sira was once an inside or canonical book which was later removed by the rabbis.

Rabbi Yosef attempted to ban most of Sirach, but other rabbis argued with him (Sanhedrin 100b), showing that Jewish tradition contains the same ideas which he disputes in Ben Sira. However, others say that Rabbi Yosef only forbade the public reading of Sirach.

Sirach is the basis for two parts of the Jewish liturgy. Recent scholarship indicates that the vocabulary and the framework of the Amidah 19 blessings draw heavily on Sirach. The Amidah is the central prayer of the synagogue liturgy. Observant Jews recite the Amidah morning, noon and night in a typical weekday service.


Related reading: Cornelis Bennema, The Strands of Wisdom in Intertestamental Judaism; The Ruach of God, The Chiastic Center of Ecclesiasticus; Seats of Wisdom