Intro
“The Bible is the product of minds that were exposed to, influenced by and reacting to the ideas and cultures of their day. Comparative study of the Bible and the literature of the ancient Near East, reveals the shared cultural and literary heritage.” – Christine Hayes
Israelite wisdom literature belongs to a much wider and broad wisdom legacy or tradition in the Ancient Near East. There’s very little in Biblical wisdom literature that is not paralleled in the wisdom literature of Egypt, Mesopotamia and Canaan.
Egyptian influence on Israel and Judah was particularly strong during the reign of Solomon and Hezekiah; as a result, Hebrew literature is permeated with ideas and figures derived from Egyptian literature.
