What Is the Structure and Genre of the Book of Proverbs?

The text of Proverbs clearly indicates that it is a collection of different works of wisdom, each of which is usually headed by a title of sorts. This sets up the basic organization of the book.

After a short preface to the book as a whole (1:1-7), the first nine chapters (1:8–9:18) are a collection of lengthy discourses on wisdom. These discourses differ markedly from the two line aphorisms people usually associate with Proverbs. They are a collection of lengthy poems primarily in the form either of a father addressing his son or of a personified wisdom herself calling for people to follow her ways. These discourses usually have three parts: (1) a call to the addressee exhorting him to listen to the lesson and providing him motivation to do so (e.g., 2:1-11), (2) a lesson commending the way of wisdom and/or warning against the way of folly (e.g., 2:12-19), and (3) a conclusion that summarizes the teaching (e.g., 2:20-22) (Tremper Longman III, Proverbs, BCOT [Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 2006], 30). This section primarily functions to exhort the reader to embrace the way of wisdom rather than the way of folly, making it a fitting beginning to Proverbs as a whole.

The next section (10:1–22:16) is called “the proverbs of Solomon.” The majority of this section is made up of the two-line proverb so familiar to many. There are four major questions to consider in connection with this literary form.

First, what exactly is a proverb? A proverb (Hb. mashal, “comparison,” “parable,” “proverb”) is a short wisdom saying—“wisdom in a nutshell” (M. Salisbury, quoted in Michael V. Fox, Proverbs 1–9: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary, AB [New Haven: Yale University Press, 2000], 15). The Hebrew term itself likely picks up on the idea of a comparison, perhaps referring to metaphors and similes in the proverb or to how the lines of the proverb relate to one another, but more likely referring to how the wise reader connects his situation to the message of the proverb (Waltke, Book of Proverbs 1–15, 56).

Second, what are some characteristics of a proverb? Proverbs share the characteristics of all Hebrew poetry. They are quite concise, but their brevity is dense with meaning and motivation. Moreover, like much good poetry, they are filled with figures of speech and laden with imagery, creating pictures with words. This helps the reader not only to remember but also to reflect further on what is said.

Proverbs are also characterized by another key feature of Hebrew poetry, parallelism, not rhyme schemes familiar in English poems. Hebrew poetry is arranged in groups of two or more lines that are parallel in structure, though they do not merely say the same thing. They are “juxtaposed in such a way that the words and images play off against each other and suggest a web of meanings” (Fox, Proverbs 1–9, 15). So in a two-line parallelism (as are most proverbs in this section), the second line might, for example, intensify, specify, reinforce, expand on, or contrast with the first line (William W. Klein, Craig L. Blomberg, and Robert L. Hubbard, Introduction to Biblical Interpretation [Dallas: Word, 1993], 225). The majority of the proverbs in this particular section of the book have antithetical parallelism (a contrast between the two lines). In any case, the key task for the interpreter is to seek to understand how the lines interact with one another.

Beyond these characteristics that proverbs share with Hebrew poetry in general, a proverb has a distinctive feature. A proverb, by its very nature, presents a general principle, a rule of thumb. This feature leads to a third question: how should one construe a proverb? Christians often misconstrue a proverb by understanding it as a rigid command or a fixed promise. On this view, a proverb could not have any exceptions. But this fundamentally misunderstands the genre. For “the proverb form, no matter the cultural background, presupposes the right circumstances for its proper application” (Tremper Longman III, How to Read Proverbs [Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 2002], 48). That is, proverbs have a range of application. Some may virtually always apply; many others do not apply to every situation. But it takes a wise person to know when each applies. For example, in light of 26:4-5, should one answer a fool according to his folly (v. 5) or not (v. 4)? It depends on the situation. “A wise person knows the right time and the right situation for the right proverb” (Longman, How to Read Proverbs, 49). This was one of the problems with Job’s friends. Many of the principles they articulated were proverbially true, but they inappropriately applied those principles to Job’s situation.

Finally, how are the proverbs in this section (10:1–22:16) related to one another? Many have argued that the proverbs in this section are put together randomly, with no particular arrangement. On a cursory reading, this certainly seems to be the case. Recently, however, several scholars have argued that there are literary units within this section, although there is no widespread consensus on how those units might be delineated precisely because no unit is obvious on a cursory reading. Advocates appeal to various features like literary devices (e.g., chiasm or inclusio), repeated sounds (e.g., alliteration, assonance), or repeated words or ideas as the basis for a literary unit.

It is quite possible that, as they were collected, some of these proverbs were put together in small literary units. However, as a general rule, it seems more prudent to approach this section as a random collection of proverbs. After all, when used originally in their oral context, they did stand alone (this section is a collection of proverbs, after all). Furthermore, they do not usually appear to be grouped together in terms of their actual content. Moreover, their largely random arrangement reflects real life, which is muddled and resistant to neat categorization (Longman, How to Read Proverbs, 40). In this sense, these “proverbs are presented in the seemingly haphazard way we encounter the issues with which they deal” in real life (Duane Garrett, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, NAC [Nashville: Broadman & Holman, 1993], 46).

This is a significant question because it directly influences how one interprets these proverbs. In short, what precisely is the context? As suggested above, this commentary will usually approach each proverb on its own without reference to a larger context. However, comments will also sometimes take account of two types of contexts to nuance the interpretation of certain proverbs. When a proverb does seem to be grouped in a unit with other proverbs, we will consider the literary context. And when a proverb deals with a certain topic, we will sometimes take into consideration the topical context (i.e., other proverbs that deal with the same topic).

The next section in Proverbs is the “sayings of the wise” (22:17–24:34). Four features are notable in this section. First, this section is different in style from the previous one. Most of the sayings are more extended than the two-line proverbs that dominate the previous section, and they reflect the style of a father’s address to his son (so prominent earlier in chaps. 1–9). Second, this section has two parts, the “thirty sayings of the wise” (22:17–24:22) and “more sayings of the wise” (24:23-34). Third, there is some disagreement over the exact delineation of the “thirty sayings” in part one (an issue that will be addressed within the commentary itself). Fourth, parts of this section are strikingly parallel with the words of the Egyptian wise man Amenemope. Whichever work was written earlier, this feature is a reminder of the international character of wisdom in the ancient world, as previously noted.

The “sayings of the wise” are followed by another collection of Solomon’s proverbs (25:1– 29:27). These sayings were collected during the reign of Hezekiah (25:1). They are similar in style to the first collection of Solomon’s proverbs (10:1–22:16).

The last two chapters of Proverbs consist of three separate sections. The first of these is the sayings of Agur (30:1-33). The identity of Agur is obscure; he may have been an unknown Israelite or even a Gentile wise man. One interesting feature of this section is the repeated use of numerical proverbs (e.g., 30:18-19). The second section in these chapters is the sayings of King Lemuel (31:1-9). Like Agur, Lemuel’s identity is obscure, as is his kingdom. But he too may have been a Gentile. The words in this section actually reflect the teaching of Lemuel’s mother, and they focus on the characteristics of an ideal king. The third section deals with another ideal, that of the ideal wife. This is an acrostic poem (each line of the poem beginning with a subsequent letter of the Hebrew alphabet) describing the virtuous woman. As argued in the commentary, this poem is likely a continuation of the words of King Lemuel.