The Progress of Wisdom
It was suggested long ago by Origen that the canonical arrangement of the three books of wisdom - Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and the Song - is deliberate. It represents the progress of wisdom.
Origen saw it the trajectory as one from the principles of “moral knowledge” through the recognition of the fleetingness of this world to the climax of eternal love.
I’d suggest a variation of that:
Proverbs teaches that a moral cause-and-effect exists in God’s world.
Ecclesiastes teaches that this cause-and-effect elude us. All is vapor.
The Song draws the conclusion: If all is vapor, then we eat, drink, and rejoice in the life of our youth.
The progress is from seriousness through skepticism to play. The sage is the homo ludens.
It is a progress toward childlikeness.
Peter Leithart
Peter J. Leithart is President of Theopolis Institute. He is the author of numerous books on theology, literature, and culture, including Theopolitan, Defending Constantine, and Baptized Body.
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