Section three: The Books of Wisdom Literature
There are five books in this third section of the Jewish Bible. Their contents are extremely varied. Some are concerned with questions about the meaning of human experience, such as desire and love (the book ‘The Song of Songs’) or the inequalities of life and suffering (the books ‘Job’ and ‘Ecclesiastes’), others with the wise ordering of daily life (the book ‘Proverbs’), or with praise and prayer to God (the book ‘Psalms’).
Wisdom is to be applied to the living of life day by day. Deep questions are raised in Wisdom Literature, and practical advice is offered. This section of the Bible is marked by an emphasis on the fate and behavior of the individual.
Section four: The Books of Prophets
This last section of the Old Testament contains 17 books9, which are divided into Former Prophets (the narrative works) and Latter Prophets (the prophetic books).
Prophets existed in Israel from at least the tenth century BC. They became increasingly individual figures. From the early fifth century BC, the prophets’ function of communicating the will of God was progressively taken over by priests.
Significant Stories
The Period of the Judges
After the death of Joshua the Israelites were ruled by a series of Judges, and fought several wars with the Philistine people.
The Story of Samson (Judges, chapters 13 – 16)
One of the Judges was a man called Samson, who was famous for his supernatural strength. Once he killed a thousand Philistines, using as a weapon only the jaw-bone of a donkey. Later he unwisely married a Philistine woman called Delilah. She persuaded him to tell her the secret of his strength, which was in his hair. If his hair was cut, he would become weak. She betrayed his secret to the Philistines, who cut his hair when he was asleep, making him as weak as an ordinary man. They then captured him, blinded him, and made him a slave. However, as his hair slowly grew again his strength returned, and when it was fully grown he pulled down the chief Philistine temple on the heads of a large crowd of Philistines who had come to laugh at him. In this way he succeeded in killing even more Philistines in his death than he had killed in his life.
Literary Significance
In literature strong men are compared to Samson, and seductive but faithless women are compared to Delilah.