The Old Testament Wisdom Books and the Modern Human

Abstract

In this article, I will examine a subject that may help modern people to think differently about the Old Testament texts. Modern human, carried away by the fast, intense, and demanding pace of everyday life and the wholly materialistic setting of modern times, seeks happiness in the acquisition and accumulation of goods and in the demonstration of a happy life. This happiness, however, is proven plasmatic/fake as human tries to cover this inflating emotional void by creating a vicious circle. To this point comes the Old Testament with its Wisdom Books (Psalms, Job, Song of Songs, Wisdom of Solomon, and Ben Sira/Sirach – according to the Septuagint translation) to help humans by orienting their interest to the care of their souls. Those biblical texts are full of teachings about daily and personal life, relationships with others, and humans’ inner conflicts. Old Testament texts are always topical and able to help contemporary human to redefine their relationship with themselves and others by guiding them to be a mentally healthy personality. In examining the topic, I will explain in a few words the themes that every Wisdom book discusses in order to demonstrate their application in modern life.