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CHAPTER XI.

DOES KOHELETH CONTAIN GREEK WORDS OR IDEAS?

We now begin the consideration of the question, Are there any well-ascertained Græcisms in the language and in the thought of this obviously exceptional book? That there are many Greek loan-words in Targumic and Talmudic, is undeniable, though Levy in his lexicon has no doubt exaggerated their number. G. Zirkel, a Roman Catholic scholar, was the first who answered in the affirmative, confining himself to the linguistic side of the argument. His principal work,^[1] Untersuchungen über den Prediger (Würzburg, 1792), is not in the Bodleian Library, but Eichhorn's review in his Allgemeine Bibliothek, vol. iv. (1792), contains a summary of Zirkel's evidence from which I select the following.

(a) (Hebrew characters) in sense of καλός 'becoming' (iii. 11, v. 17). This is one of the Græcisms which commend themselves the most to Grätz and Kleinert. The former points especially to v. 17, where he takes (Hebrew characters) together as representing καλὸν κἀγαθόν (comp. Plumptre on v. 18). The construction, however, is mistaken (see Delitzsch). The second (Hebrew characters) indicates that (Hebrew characters) is a synonym of (Hebrew characters) 'excellent.' The notion of the beautiful can be developed in various ways. The sense 'becoming,' characteristic of later Hebrew, is more distinctly required in iii. 11.

(b) 'In the clause (Hebrew characters) (ii. 15) the words (Hebrew characters) must signify ἔτι μᾶλλον: quid mihi prodest majorem adhuc sapientiæ operam dare?' But the demonstrative particle (Hebrew characters) means, not ἔτι, but 'in these circumstances' (Jer. xxii. 15). Its position and connection with (Hebrew characters) are for emphasis. The fact of experience mentioned makes any special care for wisdom unreasonable.

(c) '(Hebrew characters) (iii. 12) is a literal translation of εὖ πράττειν.' This