The Book of Proverbs is exactly what the name implies, a collection of short sayings gathered from different places and produced over long periods of time. In general, these sayings represent wisdom derived from practical experience. Although they contain no profound contributions to theological ideas, they constitute wholesome advice about the way a person should live in order to attain a happy and satisfactory life. Late tradition attributed the entire Book of Proverbs to King Solomon, but we may be sure that this is historically incorrect. Many of the proverbs, especially those that extol the virtues of monogamy, would have been most inappropriate coming from King Solomon, who is reported to have had many wives. Solomon may have been the author of some of the proverbs included in the book, but most of them originated from other sources. Within the book itself, there are different collections of proverbs, some of which are attributed to men who were not Hebrews, which gives added emphasis to the universal character of this work of the sages. Overall, the wisdom contained in the Book of Proverbs can be said to have been drawn from a wide range of experiences, including those of both Jews and non-Jews.
In its present form, the book is made up of different collections of proverbs. The first collection, found in Chapters 1–9, consists of a series of instructions given by a father to his son. The purpose of the instruction is that of guiding youth in doing what is "right and just and fair; for giving prudence to the simple, knowledge and discretion to the young." The proverbs in the second group, found in Chapters 10–22 and titled "Proverbs of Solomon," are usually written in couplet form and are quite different from the ones included in the first section. Because this collection probably constituted the original core of the book, the first nine chapters serve as an introduction to the entire collection and the remaining sections as appendices. The short sections found in Chapters 22–24 bear the titles "Sayings of the Wise" and "Further Sayings of the Wise." Chapters 25–29 begin, "These are more proverbs of Solomon, copied by the men of Hezekiah king of Judah." The last two chapters of the book contain two groups of sayings called "Sayings of Agur" and "Sayings of King Lemuel." Because both Agur and Lemuel have Arabic rather than Jewish names, the inclusion of their proverbs in the final collection indicates a recognition on the part of the editors that genuine wisdom can be obtained through non-Hebraic sources. The Book of Proverbs closes with a significant poem written in praise of a worthy wife.
