Dr. Dunham’s Recent Article: Intertextual Links between Deuteronomy and Ecclesiastes as a Pointer to Qohelet’s Positive Message
Dr. Dunham recently had an article published in the Journal for the Evangelical Study of the Old Testament. Here is a snapshot summary, along with a link to the article.
Intertextual links between Deuteronomy and Ecclesiastes have begun only recently to garner interest as a possible literary source for Qohelet. In examining these proposed links, Deuteronomy proves, in fact, to be the sole literary precursor from which Qohelet draws by all three rhetorical modes: citation, allusion, and echo. In addition, Deuteronomy and Ecclesiastes share several important discourse concepts, including eating as the joyful response to God’s provision, remembrance as an antidote against spiritual apostasy, and divine kingship as the source for wisdom. These cumulative links form a chain of evidence suggesting that Deuteronomy’s positive message of enjoying the blessings of life as grateful and obedient recipients of divine grace is perhaps more influential upon Qohelet than realized. The literary connections suggest furthermore that Qohelet should be read in a more positive light than interpreters have been accustomed to do.
