Vandenhoeck + Ruprecht The Wisdom of Torah: Epistemology in Deuteronomy and the Wisdom Literature

This recent study presents a hermeneutically sophisticated examination of Jewish ways of knowing as evidenced in the writings of the Hebrew Bible. Keenly aware of the philosophical and cultural currents in epistemology from ancient history to today, O’Dowd focuses on the peculiarities of the ancient Hebraic traditions. Nowhere is it more appropriate to engage these religious and philosophical questions than through the luminous history of Hebrew wisdom and Law. After a brief introduction, each of the next six chapters explores the epistemological foundations evident in readings in the Torah (principally Deuteronomy) and Wisdom Literature (Proverbs, Job and Ecclesiastes). The final chapter draws these readings together, commenting when relevant on the subsequent history of Jewish and Christian writings, influenced as they are by the Western Greek tradition. On the whole, the narrative style of this investigation very clearly demonstrates the mythical, religious and ethical foundations for knowing in Israel’s ancient world. The study also shows that Hebraic culture had to adapt its phenomenology of religion in the light of historical, social and cultural developments. Noting these changes, it also identifies continuity between Torah and Wisdom traditions which continue into later Jewish and Christian thought. The study demonstrates how important it is to recognize the way these unique ways of knowing often stand in contrast to rational, empirical and scientific ways of knowing in the Greek and Western world since then. While the study does not critique modern ways of knowing, it does provide many helpful ways to rethink our understanding of Hebraic religion and thought.