The Book Of Proverbs: Chapters 1-15.

The New International Commentary on the Old Testament

by Bruce K. Waltke

Over twenty-five years in the making, this much-anticipated commentary promises to be the standard study of Proverbs for years to come. Written by eminent Old Testament scholar Bruce Waltke, this two-volume commentary is unquestionably the most comprehensive work on Proverbs available.

Grounded in the new literary criticism that has so strengthened biblical interpretation of late, Waltke's commentary on Proverbs demonstrates the profound, ongoing relevance of this Old Testament book for Christian faith and life. A thorough introduction addresses such issues as text and versions, structure, authorship, and theology. The detailed commentary itself explains and elucidates Proverbs as "theological literature." Waltke's highly readable style -- evident even in his original translation of the Hebrew text -- makes his scholarly work accessible to teachers, pastors, Bible students, and general readers alike.

Genres: Reference, Theology, Old Testament, Biblical Studies, Christian, Nonfiction, Christianity

729 pages, Hardcover

First published October 14, 2004

About the author

Bruce K. Waltke is Distinguished Professor of Old Testament at Knox Theological Seminary, Fort Lauderdale, and professor emeritus of biblical studies at Regent College, Vancouver.

Reviews

[John Waldrip · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hands down, the best on Proverbs in my library, or that I have ever been exposed to. Scholarly, well-written, with devotional gems and an obvious commitment to God's Word. Recommended for anyone interested in the Proverbs.

[Bill Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read several reviews of Dr. Waltke's 2-volume Proverbs commentary in which reviewers are frustrated with his seemingly over-technical approach and / or moralistic frame. I'd like to offer another opinion to set alongside these reviews and encourage serious Bible students to make use of these texts. My opinion was formed over the course of one year, as I daily referred to these two volumes in the context of a devotional study of the book of Proverbs, using Tim and Kathy Keller's "God's Wisdom for Navigating Life" as my devotional guide.

Because I was following the Kellers, I was't reading Proverbs or Waltke straight through. Having read the introductory material years ago (when these volumes were first published), I decided that the commentary proper wasn't meant to be read that way. Instead, the commentary is best read like the Proverbs themselves, as individual pearls on a string. Consulted like that, this resource brought me deeper into devotion than a "surface read" of Proverbs. I was able for the first time ever to really let the text of Proverbs speak for itself, understanding its construction and modes of communication (the royal setting, moral and religious training and the cultivation of the virtue of wisdom over against foolishness, themes and motifs, figures and compositional strategies, etc.).

Devotional insights must be gleaned from the author's interaction with the academic legacy of critical sources, bringing to the pages of this commentary a lifetime of work in philology, both of the Old Testament and Ancient Near Eastern literature, and arguing for a more faithful, canonical reading than most mid-and-late-twentieth-century critical sources. Furthermore, Dr. Waltke embeds this technical analysis within the worldview of Proverbs, a worldview governed by The Fear of the LORD, and so allows the book of Proverbs to witness its unique approach to wisdom within its cultural and literary setting, wisdom that is impossible apart from faith in and relationship with the covenant LORD.

To be clear, I've never considered NICOT or NICNT to be a "pastoral" commentary series, so I wasn't expecting much at the level of Christ-centered application. Indeed, one cannot get a Christocentric reading of Proverbs without the New Testament! We read backwards, as many have observed from John 5:46 and Luke 24:13-35. Only when we see Jesus, the (true) wisdom from God (1 Cor. 1:30), will we be able to fill out the moralism sketched in the outlines of Proverbs to reveal the full spectrum of the gospel and substance of Christ shadowed there. The Kellers point this out in their devotional, which was the companion I needed to truly make my study of Proverbs a devotional read rather than an academic one. Waltke's business here is with the text as such, not with going beyond it.

Finally, as I daily consulted "The Book of Proverbs," either volume, I found many places where the author did bring nuggets of personal exhortation and discipleship insights. For example, in Vol. 2, on Prov. 16:3 (Commit your work to the LORD / and your plans will be established) Waltke gently prods the reader: The faithful must not fret or worry about [the] effectiveness (of their planned deeds), or even their purity, for that assessment and their achievement depends upon God, not on the doer (Ps. 22:9; 37:5; 55:23; 1 Pet. 5:7). Secular man, who feels so self-confident, paradoxically is plagued with fear. Pious people, who know God’s sovereignty and their limitations, live in prayer and peace. I found nuggets like this throughout the text, emerging from thorough exegesis and interaction.

Much like taking a class with Dr. Waltke, one is overwhelmed with his erudition and experience, but his love for Jesus surpasses his scholarship and comes through at points not expected. I'd say that was my experience with this commentary as well.

[Joshua Reichard · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a commentary and it’s only the first volume. I have looked at a decent amount of commentaries on Proverbs and this is by far the best. Extremely detailed in Hebrew, very helpful in the syntax of Proverbs, and powerful in the explanation/application. How great it is to be blessed with men who can exegete God’s word faithfully!

[Andrei Rad · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book has a very good introduction on Proverbs main themes. Even thought I don't fully agree with the Waltke, he also presents the opposite opinions with integrity. As for the text commentary, it was useful to understand the historial & cultural context of some of the most enigmatic verses besides some sparse devotional bits.

The book is also addressing translation technicalities that cannot be properly tasted without being familiar with the original language. Honestly, I don't know who cares about explaining the Hebrew verse rhymes. People who understand Hebrew will automatically detect the rhyme and people who don't understand it don't care about knowing the each verses' phraseology... In hindsight I don't think it's worth reading it in full, better spend the time meditating on the Proverbs. However, I would recommend reading the introduction and checking only the verses whose meaning is not clear. The books does a good job in ellucidating the unknowns.

[Mr. Yoon · Rating 5 out of 5]

This commentary is the gold standard for a proper study of the Proverbs. The best aspect is its treatment of Proverbs 10-31 as a coherent flow of sayings, not as a bag of randomized "quote of the day" messages. Some of Waltke's interpretations are unconventional, but he always provides a convincing explanation for why he chose to interpret them in such a way. My only complaint is that there are numerous instances throughout the commentary where the Scripture reference is clearly broken. (E.g., a simple typo as in 2:23 instead of 12:23, or a totally confused reference as in 5:11 for 12:23. These are made up examples, by the way.)

Caveat: no amount of study in Hebrew words and Ancient Near Eastern literature will give you the wisdom (hokmah) and insight (binah) which are so frequently mentioned throughout the Proverbs.

[Ian Minielly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good commentary. I do think the nature of Proverbs makes preparing a commentary more challenging, but Waltke does a good job. I did gain valuable insight into Wisdom and Folly through reading the commentary and would suggest it to someone else who wanted to gain a better comprehension of Proverbs and its style and method.

[Cameron Barham]

“As the course and bulk of biblical wisdom, the book of Proverbs remains the model of curriculum for humanity to learn how to live under God and before humankind. As a result, it beckons the church to diligent study and application.”, p. xxi

[Mike E. · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book of Proverbs emphasizes how important it is to seek (2:4), purchase (4:5), and learn (4:1) its wisdom and understanding.

[Mark Evans · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read portions for various projects and messages etc. Excellent!

[Mukund Bhore]

556

[S Dunn · Rating 5 out of 5]

The definitive authority on Proverbs! Does not shy away from complex passages. Thorough exegesis and rich application.

[James Stroll · Rating 3 out of 5]

Somewhat disappointed, because on the basis of Westminster Media tapes of Dr. Waltke I expected more discussion and theology about the relationship between Proverbs and God's redemptive purpose in Christ. Dr. Waltke does a superior text-critical examination of Proverbs and reliable exegesis, but without a serious attempt to relate them to Christ one inevitably comes across in his applications of this literature as moralistic. Not that Proverbs "foretells" Christ and his death and resurrection like Moses and the prophets, but surely they can find their fulfillment in Christ as "our wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption" (1 Cor. 1:30). Of course, in general the world of academic biblical scholarship has an issue with getting beyond (not against!) exegesis to explore the things God has freely given us in Christ. A rather expensive commentary that offers little that is valuable beyond text criticism and exegesis.

[Scott Cox · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the second commentary I've read by Bruce Waltke; the first commentary I read, "Genesis," was superb. This commentary on Proverbs is very good as well, but not as Christocentric as I would have hoped (c.f. Section "F" and commentary on Proverbs 8), and the literary chiastic structures didn't resonate as much as they did in his "Genesis" commentary. However I gleaned much from other aspects of his superb and lengthy Introduction which defends a 7-fold structure to the Proverbs (Prologue, Proverbs of Solomon, Thirty Sayings of the Wise, Further Sayings of the Wise, Hezekiah’s' Proverbs, Agur's Oracles and Sayings, Lemuel's Mother's Sayings). Waltke also describes the various poetic structures found within the Proverbs (simile, metaphor, allegory, synecdoche, etc.). Overall, I found this to be a very useful commentary, and I am very much looking forward to reading Waltke’s second volume on Proverbs!

[Peter Krol · Rating 4 out of 5]

Waltke really knows his stuff. This commentary was very thorough and analytical. I really appreciated how he showed the interconnectedness of Proverbs and how sensitive he is to the literary devices in the text.

This commentary was pretty heavy on Hebrew and theological and literary lingo. It's not an easy read, but would mostly be useful for looking up particular questions one has.

I wanted to read through this entire first volume, just to do it. It was a lot of fun on chapters 1-9. But chapters 10-15 was very, very tough going (because of the erratic nature of the individual proverbs). I also have Waltke's second volume, but I don't think I'll read it through. I'll just save it for when I study particular sections of Proverbs in the future.

[Jacob O'connor · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a shame.  Often these commentaries are too academic for their own good.  I buy them to read straight through, but this one was particularly frustrating.  All the Scripture is parenthetical, and the footnotes are in chapter breaks.  The result is, you can never get into a reading flow.  It's a paragraph littered with references and then jolted by so many footnotes that you lose track of the author's thought.  Most people who buy this book won't care.  They'll use it to lookup a particular passage.  For me, it was an exercise in frustration

[Andre]

This is volume 1 of a 2 volume set that I had ordered through Amazon. I have received volume 2 but not 1. I plan to use this with the study that A'nia and I are doing at night time. I am looking forward to using this commentary as I enjoy Waltke's work.

[Maer]

To-Read

[Carlos Montijo]

Provides an accurate explanation of the term "heart" in the Bible.

[Jonathan Ginn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finished vol 1. Will write my review after completing vol 2.

[Caleb · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simply the definitive, 25-years-in-the-making, commentary on Proverbs.