The Value of a Curious Translation: Revisiting Proverbs 2:5

Abstract

The tradition of the spiritual senses has been an inspiration for major recent theological endeavors (such as those of Karl Rahner, Hans Urs von Balthasar, and Sarah Coakley). Many consider Origen as the “founding father” of this theological tradition. He found substantial biblical evidence for the existence of a spiritual sensation in Prov 2:5, which, according to him, speaks of a divine sense (sensus divinus, αἴσθησις θεία). However, this rendering differs significantly from both the MT (דעת אלהים) and the LXX (ἐπίγνωσις θεοῦ). Therefore, a venerable theological tradition seems to stem from a rather “idiosyncratic” reading of the biblical text. This article investigates how the translator of Origen's text might have arrived at his/her translation. My conclusion is that, although it cannot be accepted as a good translation of the Hebrew, Origen's text grasps important elements of the deeper theological structure of Proverbs 2; thus, it represents a possible interpretation of the text.