Ecc Sup Script - Solomonic Authorship

Was Solomon the Author?

Many Scholars today believe that Solomon is not the author of Ecclesiastes. The reasons they cite for this are:

The distinctive nature of the Hebrew used in the book is widely believed to be indicative of a much later date.

For example some vocabulary is compared to late Hebrew and even Aramaic.

Furthermore there are believed to be Persian words which would indicate a date later than when Solomon lived.

It is argued that since Solomon says he ‘was king’ and that there was never a time recorded when Solomon wasn’t king then Solomon couldn’t be the author

The Author indicates that there were ‘many’ who preceded him as King in Jerusalem while if it was Solomon then only David preceded him

The author observes injustice and oppression and the hands of political power which seems odd since Solomon was the King

He also observes the foolishness kings and their abuse of royal power which would seem odd if coming from Solomon

The book seems to have two voices, the Teacher and a second wise man or evaluator, or critic.

After the first two chapters there appears to be no real connection to Solomon

If it were Solomon, why not just say so? Why write under a pseudonym?

Addressing the ‘issues’

Why it matters that Solomon was the author?