Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon, and the Last Words of David

Luther's Works #15

by Martin Luther

A monumental resource, now available electronically

The 55-volume set of Luther's Works, a monumental translation project published jointly by Fortress Press and Concordia Publishing House in 1957, is singular in its value to church historians, Luther scholars, and Christians. The message of Martin Luther's faith has never spoken more clearly and more comprehensively than here, and now that the entire set is available on CD-ROM, his message will never speak more freely. This truly exquisite offering will put the entire Luther corpus at the command of a few keystrokes and provide the reader with a Luther resource unrivaled in accessibility and convenience. Luther's Works on CD-ROM is indispensable for studies of Luther and invaluable for preachers.

The first thirty volumes contain Luther's expositions of various biblical books, while remaining volumes include his Reformation writings and occasional pieces. The final volume of the set contains an index of quotations, proper names, and topics, and a list of corrections and changes. The CD-ROM will also contain a glossary of many of the technical terms that recur in Luther's works and links to every biblical reference.

Genres: Reference

252 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 1971

About the author

Martin Luther (1483-1546) was a German monk, theologian, university professor and church reformer whose ideas inspired the Protestant Reformation and changed the course of Western civilization.

Luther's theology challenged the authority of the papacy by holding that the Bible is the only infallible source of religious authority and that all baptized Christians under Jesus are a spiritual priesthood. According to Luther, salvation was a free gift of God, received only by true repentance and faith in Jesus as the Messiah, a faith given by God and unmediated by the church.

Luther's confrontation with Charles V at the Diet of Worms over freedom of conscience in 1521 and his refusal to submit to the authority of the Emperor resulted in his being declared an outlaw of the state as he had been excommunicated from the Roman Catholic Church. Because of the perceived unity of the medieval Church with the secular rulers of western Europe, the widespread acceptance of Luther's doctrines and popular vindication of his thinking on individual liberties were both phenomenal and unprecedented.

His translation of the Bible into the vernacular, making it more accessible to ordinary people, had a tremendous political impact on the church and on German culture. It furthered the development of a standard version of the German language, added several principles to the art of translation, and influenced the translation of the English King James Bible. His hymns inspired the development of congregational singing within Christianity. His marriage to Katharina von Bora set a model for the practice of clerical marriage within Protestantism.

Much scholarly debate has concentrated on Luther's writings about the Jews. His statements that Jews' homes should be destroyed, their synagogues burned, money confiscated and liberty curtailed were revived and used in propaganda by the Nazis in 1933–45. As a result of this and his revolutionary theological views, his legacy remains controversial.

Reviews

[Glenn Crouch · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is indeed an interesting volume containing 3 separate works - Luther's examination of Ecclesiastes; Luther's examination of the Song of Songs; and Luther's treatise on the Last Words of David from 2 Samuel. They make quite a good read together :)

Luther examines Solomon's work in Ecclesiastes and Song as part of a 3-part guide to Wisdom - Proverbs is aimed at the Home and life in general; Ecclesiastes aimed at the one who governs; and Song continues the political aspect of Ecclesiastes into a Love Song from Solomon about his government. This is quite an interesting way to look at these books. We don't seem to have anything on Luther's comments on Proverbs in "Luther's Work's", which is sad. However I found his approach to Ecclesiastes to be most practical, and I think we gain not only useful insight into the book, but also in to Luther's views on government.

With Song, I found it curious that though Luther normally avoids the Allegorical approach of the Middle Ages, he seems to find it quite absurd that the Holy Spirit would allow a Love Song (especially one that is quite erotic in parts) to be a part of the Holy Word of God. He doesn't seem to even consider that just as Proverbs gives practical advice for Home and Life; that Song could be giving a practical example of what love between a man and a woman should be like within marriage as God designed it way back in Genesis 2. Oh well, I can accept that Song can be read (and is perhaps meant to be read) at more than one level - and Luther's approach is quite informative. Like with Ecclesiastes, we get further insight into his views on government.

I would also note, that just as Luther had difficulty in seeing the flaws in the Patriarchs, he also seems to have troubles seeing the flaws in Solomon and his government.

Finally, the third part of this volume contains Luther's Treatise on the last words of David. This took me quite by surprised, as it turns out to be quite a lengthy discussion on the Trinity, with special emphasis on the action and understanding of the Trinity in Old Testament times (especially Moses and David). If you want to see how Luther viewed the Trinity, then this is the place to go.

So excellent value in this volume!

[Neil White · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Ecclesiastes commentary is not bad for a 500 year old source and Luther has some good insights here. The Song of Songs commentary is an allegorical interpretation and you can see some of Luther's theology come out. The Last Words of David is a polemical work, written in the same year as On the Jews and Their Lies and has the same tone and language-a really ugly work.