A Cautionary Tale: The Acts-Consequence ‘Construct’

In 1955 Klaus Koch asserted that the Old Testament, particularly its wisdom literature, has no concept of divine retribution and that humanity simply receives the appropriate fruit of the good or bad deeds we sow. This notion, the so-called acts—consequence construct, has become an important element...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Hatton, Peter (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Sage 2011
In: Journal for the study of the Old Testament
Year: 2011, Volume: 35, Issue: 3, Pages: 375-384
Further subjects:B English translations from German
B Scribes
B Theodicy
B acts—consequence
B Wisdom Books
B Retribution
Online Access: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Description
Summary:In 1955 Klaus Koch asserted that the Old Testament, particularly its wisdom literature, has no concept of divine retribution and that humanity simply receives the appropriate fruit of the good or bad deeds we sow. This notion, the so-called acts—consequence construct, has become an important element in a paradigmatic approach to the wisdom books; one which attacks the sages of Proverbs as—strangely enough in view of Koch’s argument—invoking divine retribution to support their, supposedly, self-serving teachings. This article offers some critique of Koch’s original argument but focuses on the misleading way it was appropriated by English-speaking scholars.
ISSN:1476-6728
Contains:Enthalten in: Journal for the study of the Old Testament
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1177/0309089210385517