With respect to the proposal of there being a “Wisdom Christology” in the Synoptic Gospels, Sigurd Grindheim wrote the following about wisdom concepts found in Matt 11:
The saying in Mt. 11.25-30 is not the only one where Matthew’s Jesus makes use of wisdom ideas. In Mt. 11.19, he refers to God’s wisdom directly. Jesus first notes the opposition with which he and the Baptist are met, but counters that “wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.” The Lukan parallel reads: “wisdom is vindicated by all her children” (7.35). Most scholars believe that the Lukan version is the original and that Matthew has changed “children” to “works” in order to forge a more direct identification between Jesus and wisdom. Luke’s version may be ambiguous as to whether “children” refers to Jesus and the Baptist or to their followers. If Jesus and the Baptist are understood as wisdom’s children, they cannot be identified with wisdom. In Matthew’s version, however, wisdom’s “works” can only refer to Jesus’ and the Baptist’s works. The conclusion that Matthew identifies Jesus with wisdom thus lies close at hand. But the implication would then be that John the Baptist is also so identified, as Jesus’ works in Mt. 11.7-19 concern the Baptist more than they concern himself. It is unlikely, however, that the Baptist could be identified with God’s wisdom. Therefore, the “works” through which wisdom is justified must be the works that God’s wisdom does through Jesus and the Baptist.
Such a loose association between Jesus and wisdom accounts for the saying in Mt. 12.42 as well. Jesus maintains that “something greater than Solomon is here!” The implication is that Jesus exceeds Solomon’s wisdom. In other words, the climatic revelation of God’s wisdom is found in him. (Sigurd Grindheim, Christology in the Synoptic Gospels: God or God’s Son? [London: T&T Clark, 2012], 111-12, emphasis added)
Further Reading
Simon J. Gathercole, "Chapter 8: A Critique of the Wisdom Christology Hypothesis," in The Preexistent Son: Recovering the Christologies of Matthew, Mark, and Luke (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 2006)
