We will discuss each section when discussing the compilation of the book below, noting what evidence there is of more detailed structure within them. LITERARY FORMS The book of Proverbs is written entirely in Hebrew poetry. In one sense this is surprising. Prose would seem to be an eminently suitable medium for giving moral and religious instruction. It is the form used for the collections of Law in the Hebrew Bible and for the exhortatory ‘sermons’ found in the opening chapters of Deuteronomy. Why