Knowledge Hidden and Revealed: Ben Sira between Wisdom and Apocalyptic Literature

Since the motif of hidden and revealed knowledge is often considered a topos of socalled apocalyptic literature, this paper studies the motif in Ben Sira, a text that does not matter-of-factly belong to apocalyptic, but rather to wisdom literature. Three significant texts are analyzed: wisdom's discourse in Sir 4:11–19; the praise of the scribe in Sir 39:1–3; and the revelation of wisdom to the humble in Sir 3:17–24. Through examining each passage philologically, I will ask how the idea of hidden and revealed knowledge is presented in these texts; what the conditions are for such knowledge to be revealed; and how such revelation is obtained.